PILE TESTER

Abstract: A self-contained unit has a probe (N) urgeable against a structure to be tested, means (H, I, J, F, M) for applying a shock to the structure through the probe (N), and transducer means (A, B, C) for receiving resulting vibrations from the structure through the probe (N) and providing electrical output data. The unit may also include a memory (b) for storing the data. The unit may have a tubular body (E) in which the transducer means (A, B, C) is receivable. The transducer means (A, B, C) may be linked to a weight (H) and springs (G, I) such that urging the probe (N) against a structure progressively compresses springs (G, I), drives the enclosure (A, B, C) into the body (E) and raises the weight (H) until it is suddenly released and hits the transducer means (C) to supply the shock.

Description: PILE TESTER Technical Field This invention relates to apparatus and methods for the evaluation of the integrity of building structures and the like, particularly foundation piles for buildings and structures. Background Art It is known to apply a mechanical shock to a pile, detect the resulting vibrations of the pile, and analyse them to provide data about the pile. Such methods are known variously as 'acoustic', 'sonic' , or 'transient dynamic' pile survey. Essentially, the method measures the pile-head's vertical motions in response to a mechanical shock. The shock may be generated by a manually-delivered blow downwards on the pile-head, sometimes via a 'load cell' which measures the force of the initial shock, and the subsequent vertical motions of the pile-head, or it may be that the concrete is struck directly and the resulting motions are registered by a velocity or acceleration transducer firmly attached to the concrete nearby the shock position. The shock causes the concrete to be momentarily compressed, and vertical motions of waveform approximating a decaying sinusoid follow the blow, as measured at the pile-head. In descending the column of the pile, reflection of proportions of the shock wave occur wherever the column varies in cross-sectional area, or in density. On returning to the pile-head such reflections 'interfere' with the decaying sinusoid motions there, and interpretation of this resultant complex waveform enables predictions as to the existence of defects in the pile column, and confirmation or otherwise that it is of the correct length. The technique is now well-established in the Construction Industry. There are three essential conditions for the acquisition of the pile shock vibration data: 1. the vibration transducer must be held in firm contact with the concrete of the pile-head 2. a shock (or 'impulse' ) must occur 3. a record of the vertical vibration motions of the transducer (and thus the pile-head) must be made In addition, a means should exist for recording the identity (its site number) of the pile under test. In many site circumstances, access to the piles may not be straightforward. They may be relatively distant from a position to which a vehicle can be conveniently brought, or the pile-heads may be covered in mud, water or other site debris, and site plant and other obstacles may be inimical to the presence of the recording apparatus and the normal preparations necessary for the tests to proceed. Existing methods are slow in execution, and may be difficult or impossible to carry out in the face of such usual construction site obstacles as mud, flooding, deep trenching, shuttering, site traffic and so on. Disclosure of the Invention It is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus that can acquire the necessary information to enable an evaluation of piles' soundness and fitness for their purpose in as short a time as possible and with the minimum possible disruption of the normal site activities, and with minimum hazard to the pile surveyor and other site personnel. According to the previous invention there is provided apparatus for use in testing structures, comprising a self-contained unit comprising shock means for delivering a mechanical shock to a structure and transducer means for sensing vibrations of a structure caused by said shock and producing a corresponding electrical signal. Desirably said self-contained unit includes memory means) coupled to said transducer means for storing electrical signals from it. Suitably the apparatus includes a mass and means whereby it is guided to strike, with constant force, a rigid assembly containing the transducer, causing the transducer to produce a voltage output representing its mechanical displacements along the axis of the assembly. In the development of preferred embodiments of the invention, account has been taken of all the obstacles to the testing procedures normally encountered on construction sites, and an apparatus has been developed which can be deployed rapidly and reliably, and with minimal or no interference with the usual site activities and traffic. Brief Description of the Drawings Fig. 1 is a schematic axial section through an apparatus embodying the invention; and Fig. 2 is a view on a larger scale of portions of the drop-weight mechanism of the Fig. 1 embodiment.* Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention The illustrated apparatus has a cylindrical outer sleeve E. Adjacent its lower end there are a plurality of longitudinally extending guide slots. A transducer carrying chamber B has the form of a cylindrical cup, whose interior cavity opens into the interior of the sleeve E. Within the cup cavity there is an electromagnetic velocity, acceleration or displacement transducer assembly A having transducer terminals R,S. A shaft passes threadedly through an aperture in the base of the cup and bears a chuck D in which a replaceable steel probe or contact rod N selected to be of suitable dimensions for the job in hand is gripped. The mouth of the cup is threaded to receive a lid C. Transverse guide pins T extend outwardly from the cup, through respective guide slots. The chamber B is telescopically receivable within the sleeve, its maximum travel being indicated by an arrow U. A push-rod F extends within the sleeve E. Its lower end rests on the lid C of the chamber B. Its upper end and associated parts of a drop-weight mechanism are shown in Fig. 2. A drop-weight lifting lever M is pivotally mounted inside the sleeve E adjacent the top of the push- rod F so as to be pivotable upwardly from the configuration shown in broken lines in Fig. 1 in which it extends downwardly at an angle to the sleeve's axis'. The lever M has a slot bounded adjacent the pivot by a stepped surface formed of a rod displacement profile Q, a ratchet profile P and a transverse portion W. The rod displacement profile Q extends from the axis of the lever M to the lower edge thereof, angled slightly towards the distal end of the lever M. The ratchet profile P extends from the axial end of the displacement profile Q along the axis, away from the pivot. The transverse portion W extends from the ratchet profile P transversely to the axis. A spring X attached to a collar on the rod F urges the rod leftwards (in Figs 1 and 2) so that its top end tends to contact the stepped surface P, Q, W. The distal end of the lever M has a line anchored to it. This carries a drop-weight H which is displaceable within a drop-weight guide cylinder J. At upper and intermediate regions of the sleeve E, there are internal drop-weight guide spacing rings K, L which hold the guide cylinder J centrally within the sleeve E. A transducer carrying-chamber compression spring I is engaged between the intermediate ring K and the chamber lid C. A drop- weight acceleration spring I is engaged between the top of the drop-weight H and the upper spacing ring L. In use, pressure is applied downwards on the enclosing sleeve E, compressing transducer chamber compression spring G, which forces transducer chamber B, C against the concrete of the pile-head by way of the contact rod N held in the chuck D. the pressure might alternatively be maintained by pneumatic, magnetic or other known means of exerting pressure, acting on the transducer chamber. As the transducer chamber rises in the tube, push- rod F engages the ratchet contour of the drop-weight lifting lever M, raising the drop-weight lifting lever M, which raises the drop-weight H against the drop-weight accelerating spring I. As the lever approaches the horizontal, the push-rod is forced away from the ratchet P by the profile Q (figure 2) . The drop-weight is released and is accelerated by spring I and gravity towards the transducer cover C, striking it. The weight's travel is indicated by arrow Y. The force is transmitted to the concrete via the chamber sides and base B, chuck D and contact-rod N; the whole assembly being held during this time in firm contact with the concrete by spring G. Alternative simple hoist and release mechanisms could feature toothed wheels and/or rods, and the acceleration spring might be replaced by pneumatic or magnetic means of exerting pressure, or it might be omitted altogether, leaving acceleration of the mass to be caused by gravity alone. The transducer assembly A will produce at its terminals R, S an alternating voltage proportional to the vibration motions of the pile-head along the axis of the chamber and the tube in response to the shock. Thus a single downward motion of the complete assembly will result in a voltage waveform representing the pile-head vibration response to a shock at the tip of rod N. At the top of tube E an enclosure Z may be mounted containing solid-state memory circuitry, numerical keyboard, voltage-level attenuator and liquid crystal display, capable of storing by known digital means vibration motion representations of up to 120 shocks, and transferring these at a later time to a computer for analysis, processing and paper print-out. For example, such a print-out may comprise an oscillation trace, a listing of data calculated by the computer (e.g. Toe reflection time, decay rate of oscillation, and estimated length of pile), and a listing of identification data at least some of which are input on site, using the keyboard of the apparatus. Such data may include some or all of the pile number, the impulse number, identification of the client and site, and the date and time. The enclosure Z on the apparatus may house batteries a, a memory b employing removable memory cards, a display screen c, a keyboard d^ and a multiposition switch e. Handles f_ for operating the device may extend on either side. The switch e may be a four-position key-operated switch, for selecting the modes: "off", "review stored data", "record" and "erase memory card". The keyboard is used to enter the pile numbers, adjust the sensitivity (rarely needed), and review the stored data and waveforms. The overall weight of the unit is desirably below 141bs 7(kg). With its low weight and rapid sounding capacity the apparatus can complete surveys of fifty or a hundred piles in one or two hours. Even where there are obstructions on the site and the piles have not been prepared for testing, site hold-ups are negligible. Because the apparatus makes contact with the pile-head through its single steel probe, it can easily operate through reinforcing bars and cages and overlying water, mud and loose rubble. The lightness of the unit also means that it can easily be carried hundreds of metres to piles where vehicles cannot reach.

Claims: AMENDED CLAIMS [received by the International Bureau on 8 October 1990 (08.10.90); original claims 1-4 replaced by new claim 1; original claims 5-9 renumbered as claims 2-6; new claims 7 and 8 added (3 pages)] 1. Apparatus for use in testing structures, comprising a self-contained unit comprising shock means (H, I, J, F, M) for delivering a mechanical shock of predetermined magnitude to a structure; transducer means (A, B, C) for sensing vibrations of a structure caused by said shock and producing a corresponding electrical signal; memory means (b) coupled to said transducer means (A) for storing electrical signals from it; said shock means (H, I, J, F, M) comprising potential energy storage means (H, I) adapted to be gradually charged and suddenly discharged to deliver said mechanical shock; characterised in that the apparatus includes a probe (N) arranged to transmit said shock from said shock means (H, I, J, F, M) to a structure, and to transmit said vibrations to said transducer means (A): and the probe (N) is arranged to effect said gradual charging by a force acting on the probe (N) when the probe (N) is urged against a structure to be tested. 2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said potential energy storage means comprises a weight (H), means (F, M) coupled to the probe for lifting the weight (H) and means (P, Q) for allowing the lifted weight (H) to fall. 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 wherein said potential energy storage means (H, I) comprises a spring (I), means coupled to the probe (N) for energising the spring (I) and means (P, Q) for releasing energy from the spring. 4. Apparatus according to any of claims 1-3 wherein said probe (N) is fast with said transducer means (B); said shock means (H, I, F, M) is arranged to deliver said shock to said transducer means (C) on the side remote from the said probe (N); and said transducer means (B, C) is adapted to transmit said shock to said probe (N). 5. Apparatus according to claim 4 having an elongate body (E), means for mounting said transducer means (A, B, C) to the said body (E) so as to be relatively longitudinally displaceable; said shock means (H, I, J, F, M) being mounted to said body (E) at the side of said transducer means (A, B, C) remote from said probe (N); 1 the apparatus further having resilient means (G) urging displacement of said transducer means (A, B, C) in the direction away from said shock means (H, I, J, F, M); said shock means being coupled to said transducer means so that displacement in opposition to said resilient means (G) urges said gradual charging. 6. Apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said shock means comprises a weight (H) displaceably mounted to the body (E) and displacement means (F, M) coupling the weight (H) to the transducer means (A, B, C) such that displacement of the transducer means (A, B, C) in opposition to said resilient means (G) raises the weight (H). 7. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein the probe (N) is an elongate contact rod. 8. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein said potential energy storage means (H, I) is constructed and arranged so that urging said probe (N) against a structure initially progressively charges said potential energy storage means (H, I), and further urging them causes said sudden discharge. STATEMENTUNDERARTICLE19 Claim 1 has been redrafted by combining the original claims 1-4 and using the disclosure of The Soviet Journal of Nondestructive Testing, Volume 23, No. 2 February 1987, as the closest prior art to define the pre- characterising part of the new claim 1. According to the characterising part of new claim 1 a probe (N) is engaged between the shock means and the structure to be tested. It is used (1) to transmit the shock to the structures; (2) to transmit vibrations of the structure to the sensor; and (3) to charge the potential energy storage means (H, I). Thus it enables the apparatus of the present invention to be used to administer a constant shock force at small, inaccessible surfaces - in trenches, through mud and water and through reinforcing steel cage grids etc. New claim 7 further defines that the probe (N) has an elongate structure. New claim 8 further defines that the probe (N) is also used to discharge the potential energy storage means (H, I). None of these features is disclosed in the above document which discloses a striker 6 which is retracted against a spring force by operating a lever, then released to hit a test surface.

Inventors: HOWELL MARK IAN, HOWELL, MARK, IAN
Applicants: HOWELL MARK IAN, HOWELL, MARK, IAN
Application year: 1990
Main classification: G01N3
IPC codes: E02D33, G01M7, G01N3