Abstract:
A pocketformer includes a pocketformer body having a tapered exterior surface. The exterior surface has at least one portion along a length thereof of substantially constant diameter. The pocketformer body has a feature for engaging an anchor base in a concrete structure prior to pouring concrete and a grout ring having a substantially constant inner diameter substantially equal in diameter to the at least one portion. The grout ring has an exterior surface shaped to cause retention of the grout ring in set concrete.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of prior-filed, co-pending U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/981,947, filed Apr. 21, 2014, the entire contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD 
       [0002]    This disclosure is related to the field of encapsulated post tension concrete reinforcing systems. More specifically, the disclosure relates to structures for a pocketformer and a tendon tail length gauge usable with such systems. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0003]    Encapsulated post tension concrete reinforcing systems known in the art include a cast nodular steel anchor base with a tapered wedge receiving bore. The outer surface of the anchor base is covered in an impermeable barrier material, such as plastic over most of its surface. The wedge receiving bore is not covered in the barrier material. An example of such a system with a tendon locked in the anchor is shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . 
         [0004]      FIG. 1  shows the anchor base  1  covered by the barrier material  2 . The barrier material  2  may include an extension tail  4  to enable sealing engagement with a sheathed tendon  3  inserted through the tail  4  and through the wedge receiving bore in the anchor base  1 . An unsheathed portion  3 A of the tendon  3  is locked into the anchor base by wedges  6  of types well known in the art. The concrete which is being reinforced using the devices shown in  FIG. 1  is omitted from the drawing for clarity of the explanation. When concrete is poured, a device called a pocketformer, explained below with reference to  FIG. 3  is inserted into the open end of the anchor base  1  so that a pocket opening is formed in the concrete. The pocket enables pulling on the tendon  3 , inserting the wedges  6 , and releasing the tendon  3  so that it is locked in tension in the anchor base. The exposed end of the tendon  3  is then cut off to a selected length. Referring to  FIG. 2 , after the end of the tendon is cut off, an exposed portion of the unsheathed tendon  3 A extends a selected length outward from the anchor base ( 1  in  FIG. 1 ). A grease filled cap  7  may then be inserted onto the anchor base such that the cap  7  forms a fluid tight seal with the barrier material. In this way, moisture is excluded from the tendon and anchor, thereby reducing the risk of corrosion. 
         [0005]    An example of a pocketformer known in the art is shown in  FIG. 3 . The pocketformer  10  is generally disposed over one end of the anchor base ( 1  in  FIG. 1 ). A tapered end  18  fits inside the wedge receiving bore of the anchor base to exclude cement from entering the bore. A tapered, cylindrical pocketforming surface  20  excludes poured cement from the volume defined by the pocketformer  10 . For some applications, e.g., where the anchor base is not a terminal anchor but is only an intermediate anchor, a tube  14  may extend through the entire length of the pocketformer  10  to enable the tendon to pass through. After the cement cures, the pocketformer may be removed, and the tendon installation as described above may be performed. The pocket formed by the pocketformer  10  shown in  FIG. 3  provides a generally smooth tapered surface to the wall of the pocket. After the tendon installation is completed, the pocket may be filled with cement or grout. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  shows an example of a prior art encapsulated anchor base. 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  shows a detail of part of the anchor base after installation of a tendon and a grease cap after cutting off an end of the tendon. 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  shows an example of a prior art pocketformer. 
           [0009]      FIGS. 4 and 5  show sectional and side views, respectively, of a pocketformer according to one aspect of the present disclosure. 
           [0010]      FIG. 6  shows an example grout ring. 
           [0011]      FIGS. 7 and 8  show top and side views, respectively, of one example of a tail gauge. 
           [0012]      FIGS. 9 and 10  show, respectively, an exploded view and an assembled view of another embodiment of a tail gauge. 
           [0013]      FIG. 11  shows the tail gauge of  FIG. 7  being used to measure a tendon tail to ensure the tendon tail does not exceed a predetermined length limitation. 
           [0014]      FIGS. 12 through 14  show various views of an example of a pocket cap that may be inserted into the pocket instead of using grout filler. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]      FIG. 4  shows a cross section of an example embodiment of a pocketformer according to the present disclosure. A pocketformer body  10 A may include a tube end  18 A for insertion into the wedge receiving bore of the anchor base. A tube  16 A may extend through the entire length of the center of the pocketformer body  10 A. An exterior surface of the pocketformer body  10 A may be tapered, e.g., generally conical in shape. In the present example the conical shape may have a first taper angle section  12 B, a second taper angle section  12 A having a different taper angle than the first taper angle section  12 B, and approximately in the longitudinal center of the tapered sections  12 A,  12 B, a substantially constant diameter section  12 C (i.e., a section that forms a substantially right circular cylinder shape). The pocketformer  1  body  0 A may be made from any suitable material known in the art for making pocketformers, typically plastic, but the choice of material is not a limitation of the scope of the present disclosure. 
         [0016]    A grout ring  13  may be placed on the constant diameter section  12 C. In internal diameter of the grout ring  13  and the external diameter of the constant diameter section  12 C may be selected such that the grout ring  13  will remain in place by friction but may be readily applied to the exterior of the pocketformer body  10 A by light hand pressure. 
         [0017]    A side view of the pocketformer of  FIG. 4  is shown in  FIG. 5 , wherein the features of the first  12 B and second tapered  12 A portions and the grout ring  13  may be better observed. While the example pocketformer shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5  has two different taper angles on the first and second tapered sections, it is within the scope of the present disclosure for the taper angles to be the same. 
         [0018]      FIG. 6  shows an example grout ring  13  in more detail. An inner surface  13 A of the grout ring  13  may be generally constant internal diameter, as explained above to fit on the constant diameter portion ( 12 C in  FIG. 4 ) of the pocketformer body ( 10 A in  FIG. 4 ). An exterior surface  13 B of the grout ring  13  may have a beveled or tapered edge. When installed on the pocketformer body as shown in  FIG. 4 , the exterior surface of the grout ring may form a ledge  13 C that is substantially transverse to the longitudinal axis of the pocketformer body and the interior surface  13 A. The grout ring  13  may be made from plastic or similar material, although the material chosen is not a limit on the scope of the present disclosure. The present example embodiment of the grout ring  13  may have an exterior surface shaped for form a ledge, however other shapes for the outer surface of the grout ring  1  may be used, provided that they form a shape in the concrete which tends to retain the grout ring in the concrete while the pocketformer is removed therefrom. 
         [0019]    When the pocketformer and grout ring assembled as shown in  FIG. 4  are applied to an anchor base, and concrete is then poured and cured, removing the pocketformer will leave the grout ring  13  in place because of the respective shapes of the ledge ( 13 C in  FIG. 6 ) and the interior surface ( 13 A in  FIG. 6 ). The grout ring  13  will in effect slide off the pocketformer body when the pocketformer is removed from the pocket. The grout ring  13  may be subsequently removed from the pocket, e.g., by prying it out with a common hand tool such as a screwdriver. Removing the grout ring  13  will leave a reverse tapered ledge in the surface of the pocket. The foregoing will be shown in more detail with reference to  FIG. 11 , however, such a ledge may provide a gripping surface if the pocket is subsequently filled with cement or grout. In other embodiments, a pocket cap may be inserted into the open end of the pocket, wherein the cap, explained in more detail below with reference to  FIGS. 12-14 , may have a feature that enables the cap to lock on the ledge. 
         [0020]    After the concrete is cured and the pocketformer is removed, the tendon ( 3  in  FIG. 1 ) may be stripped of its sheath (see  3  in  FIG. 1 ) for a selected length, and place in tension. The wedges ( 6  in  FIG. 1 ) may be applied to the exterior surface of the unsheathed tendon ( 3 A in  FIG. 1 ), and the tension of the tendon then released so that a selected amount of tension remains in the tendon (which is locked in place in the anchor base by the wedges). The end of the unsheathed tendon may be cut to a selected length and the grease cap ( 7  in  FIG. 2 ) may be installed as explained above. 
         [0021]    It has been observed that the length of the unsheathed tendon after cutting (called the “tail”) may in some cases be too long for the grease cap ( 7  in  FIG. 2 ) to effectively seat on the barrier material ( 2  in  FIG. 1 ), thereby enabling entry of moisture into the anchor base and tendon therein. Such moisture entry may enable corrosion to begin, thus endangering the reinforcing of the structure by the tendon and anchor system. If the pocket has already been filled with grout, rework to shorten the tail and install a new grease cap may be difficult and expensive. Referring to  FIG. 7 , an example embodiment of a tail gauge  30  is shown in plan view. The tail gauge  30  may be molded from plastic or other suitable material, but the material is not a limit on the scope of the present disclosure. The tail gauge may include a handle end  36  for enabling the user to insert the tail gauge  30  into the pocket by hand. Contact tangs  32  may be provided on opposite sides of a depth gauge recess  34 . The contact tangs  32  and the recess  34  may have dimensions selected such that when the tail gauge  30  is inserted into the pocket, the tangs  32  will contact the anchor base or the barrier material (see  FIG. 1 ). If the tendon tail is not excessive length, an “ACCEPTABLE” indicator  38  may be flush with the surface of the concrete forming the pocket. If the tendon tail is too long, the ACCEPTABLE indicator will be disposed outside the end of the concrete. Thus, the user has immediate indication that the tail is too long and installation of the grease cap ( 7  in  FIG. 2 ) may be ineffective. A side view of the tail gauge  30  in  FIG. 7  is shown in  FIG. 8 . 
         [0022]      FIG. 9  shows an exploded view of another embodiment of a tail gauge  40 . The tail gauge  40  may include a gauge housing  52 , a spring  50 , an indicator rod  44  and a contact end  42  for the indicator rod  44 . The indicator rod  44  may include a cap  54  to prevent the indicator rod  44  from falling out of the gauge housing  52 . The indicator rod  44  may include colored or other identifiable segments. A first segment  48  indicates that the tendon tail does not exceed the length limitation. A second segment  46  indicates that the tendon tail is too long. An assembled, sectional view of the present embodiment of the tail gauge is shown in  FIG. 10 . A bottom end  52 A of the gauge housing  52  may have an enlarged diameter selected to match the diameter of the wedge receiving bore or the barrier material on the anchor base. 
         [0023]      FIG. 11  shows the tail gauge of  FIGS. 9 and 10  being used to check the length of a tendon tail. The bottom end  52 A is shown in contact with the anchor base  1 . The contact end  42  of the indicator rod  44  is shown in contact with the cut end  3 A of the tendon. Also visible in  FIG. 11  is the pocket  56  formed in the concrete  60  by the pocketformer ( 10 A in  FIG. 4 ), including the ledge  58  formed by the grout ring ( 13  in  FIG. 6 ). The grout ring has already been removed in the view in  FIG. 11 . 
         [0024]    If the tail gauge indicates that the tail is within the length limit, then the grease cap ( 7  in  FIG. 2 ) may be installed and the pocket may be filled with grout. The ledge  58  may provide a feature to reduce the possibility of the grout falling out of the pocket  56  after the grout cures. 
         [0025]    In another embodiment, and referring to  FIG. 12 , the pocket may be closed without the use of grout by using a pocket cap  62 . The pocket cap  62  may include a tapered exterior surface  63  having a taper that matches the taper on the first portion ( 12 B in  FIG. 4 ) of the pocketformer. The pocket cap  62  may also include a lip  64  that substantially matches the shape of the grout ring ( 13  in  FIG. 6 ). The pocket cap  62  may be made from plastic or similar material such that the features, including the lip  64  on the pocket cap are sufficiently flexible that the pocket cap  62  may flex to enable the lip  64  to lock in place in the ledge ( 58  in  FIG. 11 ). The pocket cap  62  may be removed such as by prying in the event the components in the pocket require servicing.  FIGS. 13 and 14  show end and sectional views, respectively, of the pocket cap  62 . 
         [0026]    A pocketformer, tail gauge and pocket cap according to the various aspects of the present disclosure may reduce installation costs, may reduce defective installations and may more reliably close a pocket formed in a post tension reinforced concrete structure. 
         [0027]    While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of independent embodiments, those skilled in the art, having benefit of this disclosure, will appreciate that other independent embodiments can be devised which do not depart from the scope of the invention as disclosed herein. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be limited only by the claims.