Patent ID: 8109057

Claim:
A tower foundation for coupling a tower to the ground, comprising: a support column having an upper end, a lower end, and an outer surface intermediate the upper and lower ends, the support column extending in a first direction between the upper and lower ends; a plurality of arms each having a first and second end, each arm being coupled to the outer surface of the support column at the first end and extending radially outward away from the outer surface; a hollow tubular element coupled to the second end of each of the plurality of arms, the hollow tubular element being circumferentially enclosed; a plurality of elongate anchors each having an upper end portion and a lower end portion, the upper end portion of each anchor being coupled to the second end of a respective one of the plurality of arms and the lower end portion of each anchor being embeddable within a subterranean geological formation at a location substantially away from the lower end of the support column, wherein the upper end portion of each of the plurality of elongate anchors is coupleable to the hollow tubular element; an upper plate coupled to an upper portion of at least one of the plurality of arms, at least one of the hollow tubular elements, and the support column, wherein the upper plate extends along the upper portion of the at least one of the plurality of arms from the support column to the at least one of the hollow tubular elements; and a lower plate coupled to a lower portion of at least one of the plurality of arms, at least one of the hollow tubular elements, and the support column, wherein the lower plate extends along the lower portion of the at least one of the plurality of arms from the support column to the at least one of the hollow tubular elements, the upper and lower plates being spaced apart by the at least one of the plurality of arms.