Support system for vessels such as swimming pools

Support systems for vessels such as above-ground swimming pools are disclosed. Each system may include one or more buttresses adapted to support substantially the entire vertical height of the side wall or each of a series of side walls of the pool. The buttresses, which flare along their lengths, closely match the support they provide each side wall to the outward water pressure present along its height for enhanced reliability. The diminished space required for installation of the disclosed buttresses reduces the surface area required for their associated pool.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to vessels such as swimming pools and more 
particularly to support systems having buttresses for walls of 
above-ground swimming pools. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The popularity of swimming pools, particularly in residential areas, 
continues to increase. This increased popularity is based at least in part 
on the availability of aesthetically appealing above-ground pools, whose 
durability permits cost-effective purchasing by consumers. Above-ground 
pools additionally are particularly useful in areas where substantial 
excavation is either impermissible or undesirable. In densely-populated 
regions, for example, residential lawns may not be sufficiently large to 
accommodate the space required for in-ground pools. Moreover, in some 
cases they may be inadequate to accommodate the equipment necessary to 
excavate in-ground pools, even if space for such pools exists. 
Alternatively, above-ground pools may be preferable because of the 
decreased time typically needed for installation (and, if necessary, 
removal) or the lesser maintenance requirements and costs often associated 
with them. 
Many substantially-permanent above-ground pools are generally either 
circular or oval in shape, with each type comprising multiple vertical 
walls and a frame. Because of their strength, galvanized steel or other 
compositions are usually chosen as materials from which the walls are 
made. Nonetheless, water pressure present at and near the bottoms of 
filled pools often requires the walls of above-ground pools to be braced 
for reliable performance. This bracing requirement is particularly 
pertinent in connection with oval pools, whose elongated side walls are 
especially vulnerable to collapse from the outward pressure exerted by the 
water contained therein. 
As a consequence of this vulnerability, existing oval above-ground pools 
are constructed with braces supporting the lower sections of their side 
walls. Each brace includes three pieces, denominated an "upright" portion, 
an "angled" portion, and a "connecting" portion. FIG. 1 illustrates such 
braces 10 of above-ground pool 14, whose generally oval shape requires use 
of multiple vertical side walls 18. As shown in FIG. 1, upright portion 22 
extends upward from bottom 26 of side wall 18, with connecting portion 28 
being either at ground level or buried underground. An end of each of 
upright portion 22 and angled portion 30 connects to a respective end of 
connecting portion 28, while the other end 34 of angled portion 30 
attaches to upright portion 22. The resulting structure resembles the 
outline of a right triangle, with angled portion 30 constituting the 
hypotenuse. 
FIG. 1 details the protruding nature of braces 10. Such braces 10 
frequently extend outward several feet from side walls 18 on both sides of 
pool 14, increasing the surface area of the lawn required for installing 
the pool. This increased surface area can cause difficulties in installing 
pools in areas subject to covenants or zoning regulations, as insufficient 
land may remain post-installation to meet setback and other legal or 
contractual requirements. Braces 10 may also inhibit lawn maintenance 
adjacent pool 14 and, to some, may detract from the aesthetic appeal of 
the pool itself. The three-piece structure of each brace 10 additionally 
increases its associated manufacturing and installing cost, while 
supporting less than the entire vertical height of a side wall 18. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention, by contrast, provides a support system intended to 
resolve these issues. Particularly suited for vessels such as elongated 
above-ground pools, the support system includes a set of, typically, 
one-piece buttresses adapted to support the entire vertical height of one 
or each of a series of side walls. The flared design of the buttress, 
furthermore, matches the support it provides the side wall to the outward 
water pressure present along its height for enhanced reliability, 
permitting use of fewer buttresses than the number of existing braces that 
would otherwise be necessary. The one-piece design of the buttress further 
eliminates some of the manufacturing and installation costs associated 
with existing braces, while its sleek appearance is more likely to please 
discerning observers. 
The diminished footprint of the innovative buttress additionally reduces 
the surface area required for its corresponding pool. Setback and similar 
requirements thus pose fewer problems than with existing pools, permitting 
pools incorporating the present invention to be located in smaller 
(especially narrower) lawns. Consequently, more residential customers in 
densely-populated areas are able to situate these pools in the lawn space 
available to them, increasing the market for the pools beyond that 
existing today. Abolishing the open areas between the angled portions of 
current braces and the ground additionally avoids many of the difficulties 
associated with providing lawn care in those areas. 
In some embodiments of the invention, each buttress is a unitary structure 
whose height approximates that of the side wall or walls of its associated 
pool. At least one surface of the buttress contacts the side wall along 
substantially its entire height, supporting the height of the wall 
continuously against the outward pressure exerted when the pool is filled 
with water. Because the buttress defined by these embodiments flares along 
its height it assumes, in side elevational view, the general form of a 
truncated, solid triangle. Embodiments of the buttress further comprise 
notched sections to retain the bottom rim of the pool--and therefore help 
retain the side walls--in place. 
Additionally included in some support systems of the present invention may 
be elongated cross-members spanning the width of the pool. Often called 
"omegas" because of their cross-sectional appearance, the cross-members, 
when present, are buried so that only their upper surfaces are above the 
ground. Buttresses on each side of the pool may be bolted or otherwise 
attached to the upper surfaces to retain them in position relative to the 
ground. Protruding from the upper surface of a cross-member adjacent its 
ends are one or more tabs, which in use fit into slots in the bottom rim 
of the pool to maintain its position. The buttresses, side walls, bottom 
rim, and cross-members thus can interact to preserve the position and 
structure of the pool relative to the ground. Alternatively, the 
buttresses may extend below ground level and be bolted, interlocked, or 
otherwise connected or fitted to the cross-members. 
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system for 
supporting a vessel designed to be filled with water or similar fluid. 
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a system including 
one or more buttresses for supporting the side wall or walls of an 
above-ground swimming pool. 
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system in 
which a buttress supports a wall of a pool substantially continuously 
along the height of the wall. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a system for 
supporting pool walls in which the supporting structures extend only 
minimally beyond the exteriors of the walls. 
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a system, 
including one or more buttresses, for supporting a vessel such as an 
above-ground pool, in which the buttresses comprise notched sections to 
retain the bottom rim of the pool in position. 
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a system for 
supporting an above-ground swimming pool in which buttresses, side walls, 
the bottom rim, and cross-members interact to maintain the position and 
structure of the pool relative to the ground. 
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be 
apparent with reference to the drawings and remainder of the text of this 
application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
FIGS. 2-5 and 7 illustrate buttresses 38 of the present invention. As shown 
in FIG. 2, buttresses 38 may be used in connection with pool 14' instead 
of braces 10. Doing so can adiminish significantly the surface area 
required for installation of pool 14', permitting pool 14' to be 
positioned in areas inadequate for placement of pool 14. As noted earlier, 
setback and similar requirements additionally pose fewer problems for pool 
14' because of its smaller overall size. 
FIGS. 2 and 3 detail typical locations of buttresses 38 in connection with 
pool 14'. Illustrated in FIG. 2 is a set of buttresses 38 spaced along 
side 42 of (generally) oval pool 14'. Although not shown in FIG. 2, a 
similar set of buttresses 38 may be spaced along opposite side 46 of pool 
14'. Because pool 14' is oval, sides 42 and 46 are elongated relative to 
ends 50 and 54 and subject to greater stresses caused by the pressure of 
water W within the pool 14'. 
This pressure within pool 14' additionally is greatest at bottom 26 of side 
wall 18 (adjacent ground G) and decreases toward the corresponding top 58 
of the wall 18. To support the entirety of height H of side wall 18, the 
above-ground height of buttresses 38 may be substantially similar or 
identical to height H and, as shown in FIG. 3, most or all of their 
surfaces 62A and 62B (see FIGS. 4 and 7) may contact the side wall 18. To 
match more closely the support provided side wall 18 to the pressure of 
water W as a function of height H, buttresses 38 additionally may be 
flared in depth as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. Such flaring results in 
buttress 38 having its minimum depth D.sub.1 at its top 66 and its maximum 
depth D.sub.2 at its bottom 70 (also adjacent ground G), with the depth 
increasing substantially continuously between top 66 and bottom 70. 
Buttress 38 thus resembles, in the side elevational view shown in FIG. 3, 
a right triangle. 
Unlike brace 10, however, buttress 38 of FIG. 3 has solid sides 74A and 
74B, a solid face 78, and is truncated at top 66. Surfaces 62A and 62B, 
moreover, function as flanges of buttress 38. The result is a unitary 
structure for buttress 38 that both provides greater and more uniform and 
continuous support for side wall 18 and has a sleeker profile than braces 
10. Furthermore, for some embodiments of buttress 38, maximum depth 
D.sub.2 does not exceed ten inches, an amount significantly less than the 
distance (typically thirty-six inches) from pool 14 that braces 10 
protrude. Other dimensions of an exemplary buttress 38 include height 
between approximately forty-two and sixty inches, width of approximately 
four inches, and a minimum depth D.sub.1 of approximately two to four 
inches. Buttress 38 is usually made of metal such as galvanized steel but 
may be manufactured of other materials when necessary or appropriate. The 
face 78, sides 74A and 74B, and surfaces 62A and 62B of buttress 38 
additionally need not be integrally formed, although so forming them may 
avoid reducing the strength of the overall structure. Surfaces 62A and 62B 
also need not necessarily be formed at substantially right angles to 
respective sides 74A and 74B as shown in FIG. 4. 
FIG. 5 illustrates notched section 82 of buttress 38. In use, buttress 38 
may be connected (by bolts or other suitable means) to a cross-member 86 
spanning the width of pool 14'. Such a cross-member 86 is shown in FIG. 6 
and is buried in ground G so that only upper surface 90 is visible, and it 
is to this surface 90 that buttress 38 connects. Attaching buttress 38 to 
cross-member 86 in this manner thus retains the buttress 38 in position 
relative to ground G. Once buttress 38 is positioned, rim 94 (see FIG. 7) 
may be fitted into section 82 to assist in fixing its placement relative 
to the ground G. Slots of rim 94 additionally may receive tabs 98 
protruding from upper surface 90 of cross-member 86 to complete its 
positioning. Side wall 18 may then be fitted into rim 94 in conventional 
fashion to retain it in place. Those skilled in the art will thus 
recognize that buttresses 38, side wall 18, rim 94, and cross-members 86 
of the present invention may be designed if desired to interact 
appropriately to preserve the position and structure of pool 14' relative 
to the ground G. 
Shown in FIG. 8 is an alternative buttress 38'. Unlike corresponding 
components of buttress 38, face 78' of buttress 38' is curved, and 
surfaces 62A' and 62B' are formed at acute angles to respective sides 74A' 
and 74B'. Buttress 38' additionally extends beyond notched section 82' to 
terminate at lower edge 102, which in use is buried underground. 
FIGS. 9A-C detail alternate cross-members 106A-C. Like upper surface 90 of 
cross-member 86, upper surfaces 110 of cross-members 106A-C are at or near 
the level of ground G. Similar to buttress 38', furthermore, buttresses 
114A-C extend so that lower edges 118A-C are buried underground. In the 
buttress 114A of FIG. 9A, lower edges 118A are bent to form flanges 122, 
which include apertures in which bolts 126 or other fasteners may be 
placed. Horizontal sections 130 additionally include apertures for 
receiving bolts 126, thereby permitting buttress 114A to be fastened to 
cross-member 106A. By connecting buttress 114A to horizontal sections 130 
rather than vertical sections 134 of cross-member 106A, bolts 126 are 
subjected to reduced shear stresses. Optionally excavating ground G to 
pour a concrete or other base C beneath horizontal section 130 may enhance 
the ability of buttress 114A to support a pool. 
Cross-members 106B and 106C instead may include slots 138 or recessed 
segments 142 for receiving pins or tabs 146 of buttresses 114B or 114C. 
Such slots 138 or recesses formed by segments 142 effectively retain 
buttresses 114B or 114C in position relative to respective cross-members 
106B or 106C by engaging, or interlocking with, tabs 146 below ground G. 
Although lower edge 118B is flanged and lower edge 118C is not, such edges 
118B-C may be interchanged as necessary or desired. In any case, the 
result is a relatively secure positioning of a buttress 38', 114A, 114B, 
or 114C vis-a-vis a cross-member 106A, 106B, or 106C by connecting them 
underground. 
The foregoing is provided for purposes of illustrating, explaining, and 
describing embodiments of the present invention. Modifications and 
adaptations to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the 
art and may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the 
invention.