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EP-3870765-B1 - FLARED END RAMP FOR STORMWATER CHAMBER

EP3870765B1EP 3870765 B1EP3870765 B1EP 3870765B1EP-3870765-B1

Inventors

  • SPIRES, GREGORY
  • RUSTIA, BRIAN
  • GENO, Evan
  • KUEHN, MICHAEL

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20200724

Claims (15)

  1. A flared end ramp (720) for managing flow of material into a stormwater chamber, the flared end ramp comprising: an inlet end (721) configured for connection with a pipe, a side wall (723) of the flared end ramp having a rounded profile at the inlet end; an outlet end (722) configured for placement within the stormwater chamber; and an inclined surface (725) extending between the inlet end and the outlet end of the flared end ramp and configured to deliver material from the pipe into the stormwater chamber, wherein the outlet end of the flared end ramp has a larger width than the inlet end of the flared end ramp such that the inclined surface is angled laterally outward from the inlet end toward the outlet end; characterised in that the inclined surface includes at least one drainage groove (726) extending between the inlet end of the flared end ramp and the outlet end of the flared end ramp, wherein the at least one drainage groove (726) includes: a first drainage groove extending along a midline of the inclined surface (726a); and a second drainage groove angled laterally outward from the inlet end toward the outlet end (726b, 726c).
  2. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, further comprising: at least one support foot (724) configured to support the flared end ramp, the at least one support foot being located at the outlet end of the flared end ramp and extending laterally from the flared end ramp.
  3. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 2, wherein the flared end ramp includes a single support foot (724) extending laterally between a first side of the outlet end and a second side of the outlet end, the single support foot forming the widest portion of the flared end ramp.
  4. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 2, wherein the at least one support foot is configured to secure the flared end ramp relative to the stormwater chamber.
  5. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein the side wall (723) of the flared end ramp has a semi-circular profile or an annular profile at the inlet end (721).
  6. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein at the outlet end (722) of the flared end ramp, the inclined surface (725) includes a flattened bottom portion (725a) and first and second upstanding side portions (725b, 275c).
  7. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein the inlet end (721) of the flared end ramp is configured to receive an end of the pipe within the rounded profile of the inlet end.
  8. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein the inlet end (721) of the flared end ramp is configured to conform to an outer surface of the pipe.
  9. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein the inlet end (721) of the flared end ramp is configured for placement within the stormwater chamber.
  10. The flared end ramp (720) of claim 1, wherein the flared end ramp is configured to convey material away from an end cap of the stormwater chamber.
  11. An apparatus for a stormwater chamber, the apparatus comprising the flared end ramp (720) of claim 1 and end cap (812), the end cap having an interior surface configured to delimit a chamber enclosure formed by the stormwater chamber and the end cap.
  12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the flared end ramp (720) further comprises: at least one support foot (724) located at the outlet end of the flared end ramp and extending laterally from the flared end ramp, wherein the at least one support foot is configured to secure the flared end ramp relative to the stormwater chamber.
  13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein at the outlet end (722) of the flared end ramp (720), the inclined surface (725) includes a flattened bottom portion (725a) and first and second upstanding side portions (725b, 725c).
  14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the flared end ramp and the end cap (812) are configured to be secured together by the pipe.
  15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the end cap includes at least one opening configured to receive the pipe, and the flared end ramp is configured for placement within the stormwater chamber.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a Continuation-in-Part of International Application No. PCT/US2019/059283, filed October 31, 2019, and a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. Application No. 16/670,628, filed October 31, 2019, both of which claim the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/753,050, filed October 30, 2018. TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates generally to systems, apparatus, and methods for fluid run-off management systems. In particular, this disclosure relates to enhancing efficiency and efficacy of fluid run-off system maintenance. BACKGROUND Fluid run-off systems include systems designed to process rainwater or other fluid run-off and particularly stormwater. Related stormwater management systems known in the art include chamber systems including those available from Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. under the STORMTECH® brand. Such systems are designed primarily for use under parking lots, roadways, and heavy earth loads. STORMTECH® chambers are thermoplastic, injection molded, and formed of polypropylene, polyethylene, or a combination thereof. Such a chamber has an arched cross-section, and is formed to have a long, narrow configuration with an advantageously compact footprint that optimizes use of space. The arch-shaped chamber defines an open bottom. The chamber is installed and placed on crushed stone or other porous medium, which constitutes a floor of the chamber underlying the arch. The chamber may be formed to include corrugations, which may be advantageously shaped and configured to accommodate efficient stormwater or fluid run-off management and debris collection. One or more chambers include an inlet configured to connect to a stormwater collection system, which may include one or more drain basins that receive fluid run-off from a parking lot, roof, or street. The one or more chambers are designed to distribute collected stormwater into the ground. During a storm, stormwater or rainwater run-off enters the chamber from the one or more drain basins, and in some system configurations, may exit the chamber by flowing through a conduit connecting the chamber to another system component, such as a basin or another chamber. By way of example, a chamber-type stormwater management system may include an array of chambers buried in crushed stone. The chambers may be connected in parallel or in series. Stormwater carries debris and solid contaminants that can pass into and through basins, traps, and filters of conventional stormwater management systems. Stormwater may include suspended solids, including dirt, sand, organic debris such as leaves, paper, and plastic. Stormwater management system chambers such as the STORMTECH® chambers are configured to receive stormwater and allow debris to settle to a bottom of the chamber before the stormwater is released into the ground. Related stormwater management systems known in the art have been developed that prevent some debris and solid contaminants from reaching the chambers. For example, some chamber-type stormwater management systems are configured to divert surface stormwater to a solids retention system, and then into the array of chambers so that an amount of debris and solid contaminants that enter the one or chambers connected to the system is minimized. Solids suspended or entrained in the stormwater are retained by the solids retention system using a combination of settling and filtering actions. When stormwater inflow exceeds a capacity of the solids retention system, the water rises in the diverter to an overflow point at which water flows through a bypass line to the chamber array. Such systems are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 6,991,734 to Smith et al., titled Solids retention in stormwater system. In another example, related stormwater management systems known in the art may include a subsystem by which stormwater first flows to a primary row of chambers dedicated to capturing a large amount of debris. The primary chamber is called an isolator row in a stormwater management system provided by Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. The isolator row chamber is encased in a geotextile mesh or filter fabric forming a fine mesh made of any suitable now known or later developed material. Other chambers in the system may also be encased in a geotextile mesh or filter fabric forming a fine mesh made of any suitable material. The filter fabric encases the chamber, interposing the chamber and the crushed stone floor. Debris and solid contaminants have been found to locally mask and block exit points in the filter fabric, impeding outflow of fluid or water from the chamber into the ground. Accordingly, maintenance is required to ensure optimal functionality of chambers, whether they are isolator row chambers, other chambers in an isolator row system, chambers in a system without an isolator row, or chambers in systems with or without other means of debris and solid contaminant collection. Debris is typically manually