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EP-4658592-B1 - WINDING APPARATUS FOR WINDING A ROLL OF A THREE-DIMENSIONAL NONWOVEN GEOTEXTILE

EP4658592B1EP 4658592 B1EP4658592 B1EP 4658592B1EP-4658592-B1

Inventors

  • AL SALAMAT, Muhamad Amin Jadaan

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240604

Claims (12)

  1. A winding apparatus (1000) for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll, the three-dimensional geotextile material comprising a multitude of cell structures, the winding apparatus comprising a first means for rotating (1001) and a second means for rotating (1011), first arms (1002), each first arm having a first endpoint (1003) and a second endpoint (1004), the first endpoint (1003) of the first arms (1002) connected to the first means for rotating (1001), wherein the first arms (1002) extend in a radial direction from the first means for rotating (1001), second arms (1012), each second arm having a first endpoint (1013) and a second endpoint, the first endpoint (1013) of the second arms (1012) connected to the second means for rotating (1011), wherein the second arms (1012) extend in a radial direction from the second means for rotating (1011), and elongated strips (1005) extending from the second endpoint (1004) of the first arms (1002) to the second endpoint of the second arms (1012), each elongated strip (1005) spaced from each adjacent elongated strip (1005) for receiving the cell structures comprised in the three-dimensional geotextile material, wherein the first arms (1002) and the second arms (1012) are configured to be reduced in length during winding of the roll of three-dimensional geotextile material, characterised in that the first arms (1002) and the second arms (1012) are configured to be reduced in length sequentially during winding of the roll of three-dimensional geotextile material.
  2. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to claim 1, wherein each elongated strip (1005) spaced from each adjacent elongated strip (1005) at regular intervals.
  3. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to any one or more of claims 1 to 2, wherein the elongated strips (1005) have a width which is configured to be equal to or less than the width of bridging sections composed of the nonwoven layer of fibers between the openings of the cell structures connecting side walls of adjacent cell structures comprised in the three-dimensional geotextile material.
  4. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to claim 3, wherein the elongated strips (1005) have a width between 10 mm and 30 mm.
  5. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to any one or more of claims 1 to 4, wherein the length of the first arms (1002) and the length of the second arms (1012) are configured to be reduced by a hydraulic system.
  6. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to any one or more of claims 1 to 4, wherein the length of the first arms (1002) and the length of the second arms (1012) are configured to be reduced by an electrical motor or by a spring system.
  7. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to any one or more of the previous claims, comprising a means for cutting the three-dimensional geotextile material at the outer diameter of the roll.
  8. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to claim 7, comprising a means for limiting a depth of penetration of the cutting means into the three-dimensional geotextile material.
  9. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to claim 8, wherein the means for limiting the depth of penetration of the cutting means is configured to be heated to a temperature at or above the melting temperature of fibers comprised in the nonwoven layer of fibers comprised in the three-dimensional geotextile material.
  10. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to any one or more of the previous claims, wherein the second endpoint (1004) of the first arms (1002) or the second endpoint (1014) of the second arms (1012) are releasably connected to the elongated strips (1005) extending from the second endpoint (1004) of the first arms (1002) to the second endpoint (1014) of the second arms (1012).
  11. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll according to claim 10, wherein the second endpoint (1004) of the first arms (1002) or the second endpoint (1014) of the second arms (1012) comprise an orifice for receiving an end of the elongated strips, the orifice having an inner surface and wherein an inflatable material is located within the orifice at an interface between the inner surface of the orifice and the end of the elongated strip (1005).
  12. The winding apparatus for winding a roll of a three-dimensional geotextile material at a constant outer diameter of the roll three-dimensional geotextile material according to any one or more of claims 7 to 9, comprising a means for taking up the three-dimensional geotextile material after cutting the roll of three-dimensional geotextile material.

Description

The application pertains to geotextile materials that can be used to in civil engineering applications, in particular in infrastructure projects. The most important requirements in civil engineering applications are to provide sufficient filtration, drainage, separation and/or reinforcement, in particular in infrastructure projects. Geotextile materials can for example be used in infrastructure projects to provide soil reinforcement and many other engineering functions. It is known that geogrids can especially be used in soil reinforcement works. Specifically, geogrids are used under roads, buildings, in reinforced slopes, and in retaining walls. The process of soil reinforcement by applying geogrids depends mainly on three mechanisms: soil confinement, load redistribution, and tensioned membrane effect. To achieve the goal of soil reinforcement, the reinforcing geotextile material must have two basic characteristics, i.e. the ability to interfere with the soil as much as possible to provide interlock of the soil by the geotextile material, and the geotextile material should have sufficient stiffness, i.e. the resistance of the geotextile material to deform under load, so that it can be easily stimulated. The currently available geotextile materials generally possess only one of these two basic characteristics while the other basic characteristic is not fulfilled at all or only to a relatively limited extend. CA 1209798 A discloses a composite structure comprising at least one nonwoven fiber layer and a layer of granular particles. The layer of granular particles is arranged and held between a backing layer and a cover layer, with at least one of the layers containing fibers or filaments needle bonded with each other through the particle layer. By the needle felting of the backing layer and the cover layer, the particle layer located in between is penetrated by fibers or filaments in a uniform manner which extend through the particle layer and secure the particles in their positions. Document CN 215 755 438 U discloses a winding device for three-dimensional nonwoven geotextile. There remains a need for improved geosynthetic materials for civil engineering, in particular in infrastructure projects. The object of the invention is to prevent, or at least reduce, the disadvantages of the prior art. A three-dimensional nonwoven geotextile is provided, which is not according to the claimed invention. A three-dimensional geotextile material, the three-dimensional geotextile material comprising a nonwoven layer of fibers, and comprising a multitude of cell structures for confinement of particulate matter, in particular for confinement of soil, clay, sand and/or gravel, the cell structures comprising a base and one or more side walls composed of the nonwoven layer of fibers and forming an opening in the cell structures, the cell structures having a depth, the base of the cell structures having an inner surface and an opposite outer surface, wherein the depth of the cell structures is 1.0 cm or more, enables to combine the two basic characteristics for soil reinforcement, by providing a high level of interlock of the soil by the geotextile material and sufficient stiffness of the geotextile material. The stiffness of the geotextile material is the resistance of the geotextile material to deform under load, EA = N/ε. The three-dimensional geotextile material may be provided by shaping a two-dimensional nonwoven layer of fibers into a three-dimensional geotextile material, which can be understood as a transition from an essentially flat form of a geotextile material, in particular of a two-dimensional nonwoven geotextile, into a spatial form, i.e. into a three-dimensional nonwoven geotextile. The three-dimensional geotextile material is a unitary material, i.e. a material which is not assembled from separate elements, composed of the nonwoven layer of fibers. The new spatial form of the three-dimensional geotextile material may be adjusted in terms of its dimensions, such as cell depth, other different geometries of the cell, or the distance between each two adjacent cells, such that, these adopted dimensions satisfy the efficiency of the three-dimensional geotextile material and the possibility for manufacturing and packaging, and facilitate its use as well, depending on the requirements in the intended application. The depth of a cell structure is the distance between the plane defined by the opening of the cell structure and the inner surface of the base of the cell structure. The three-dimensional geotextile material may comprise a repetitive cell model, which means that the three-dimensional geotextile material comprises the cell structures in a repetitive pattern. Each of the cell structures comprised in the three-dimensional geotextile material has two in-plane dimensions (length and width), which may be varied. The cell structures comprised in the three-dimensional geotextile material may advantageously have in