DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a wall panel, a connecting member embedded therein, and a structure formed therewith.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In many cases, soil has to be used to increase the height of a structure such as a bridge approach ramp etc. This soil is retained in position using a wall typically made of reinforced concrete or using reinforced soil. In reinforced soil structures the soil is typically reinforced using polymeric geogrids, grid strips, polymeric straps or steel straps. The fascia of such a reinforced soil structure can be made from panels, blocks, steel wire baskets, and several other options.

For any panel fascia, the panels have to be connected with the soil reinforcing element using mechanical meansand are required to have a structure life of 100+ years. The wall panels currently available require external connectors for stabilizing the wall panel for formation of structures.

External connectors as seen in US6447212B2, US5044833 and KR20180067168A are generally fabricated from steel or iron and require treatment to prevent rusting. Despite such measures, external connectors have been observed to undergo corrosion and bending as they are exposed, such corrosion and weathering can lead to sudden breakage leading to catastrophic structural failures.In the past several years there have been several failures in these connectors due to above mentioned reason.

In some cases, as seen in US7850400B2, internal embedded connectors are used for stabilizing the wall panel but they have restrictions of being very narrow in width only allowing for narrow straps to pass through and which are very concentrated in their pressure due to the narrow width resulting in increase in panel reinforcement bar strength.

In some instances, the internal connector is directly in contact with the panel reinforcement and covers the panel reinforcement with a plastic sleeve which can be torn or damaged, creating the risk of exposing the panel reinforcement to the external environment leading to corrosion.

Multiple attempts have been made to use non-corrosive material for such connectors. The drawback in these inventions have been that the connectors are simply not durable enough, to be used reliably for heavy load bearing conditions.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to solve one or more of aforementioned issues.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a wall panel for creating structures, including but not limited to, retaining walls, abutment of bridges, or the like, which is cost effective and highly durable

Another object of the present invention is to provide a connecting member for wall panels, which is non-corrosive and long lasting

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a connecting member for wall panels, which is water-proof.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a hollow connecting member for wall panels, having at least two openings capable of allowing stabilizing strips such as geogrid strips to pass through

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a wall panel having a hollow connecting member embedded within the body of the wall panel and a geogrid strip that passed through the connecting member, thereby connected robustly to the wall panel by means of the hollow connecting member.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide more than one wall panels connected to each other by an inter-locking mechanism.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a wall panel system comprising of a geogrid strip; and a wall panel formed of a concrete material having reinforced steel or fiberglass bars and a connecting member, wherein the connecting member uniformly distributes pressure applied by the geogrid strip to the reinforcement bar and the concrete material of the wall panel.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of the present invention provides a wall panel comprising of a front face surface and a rear support face surface, defining the body of the wall panel; at least one reinforcement bar adapted horizontally or vertically within the front face surface and the rear support face surface for providing strength; and at least one connecting member, embedded within the front face surface and the rear support face surface, said connecting memberhaving a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, wherein the connecting member is adapted around at least one of the reinforcement bars with the inlet and outlet opening on the rear support face surface.
Another aspect of the present invention provides a wall panel system comprising of a geogrid strip; and a wall panel formed of a concrete material having reinforced bars and a connecting member, wherein the geogrid strip passes through the connecting member of the wall panel, and the connecting member of the wall panel uniformly distributes pressure applied by the geogrid strip to the enforcement bar and the material of the wall panel.

Yet another aspect of the present invention provides a connecting member for a wall panel, comprising of a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, having a curved shape preferably selected from, but not limited to, ‘C’ shape design or ‘U’ shape.

Yet another aspect of the present invention provides a connecting member for a structure formed by arrangement of wall panels. The structure comprises at least two (2) wall panels connected to each other.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Reference will be made to embodiments of the invention, example of which may be illustrated in the accompanying figure(s). These figure(s) are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Although the invention is generally described in the context of these embodiments, it should be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to these particular embodiments.

Figure 1 shows a wall panel having a connecting member according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 shows a wall panel having a connecting member according to another embodiment of the present invention; and
Figure 3 shows a wall panel according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4: Shows two view of the connecting member, fig. 4A shows the side view whereas fig. 4B shows the front view.

Figure 5: Shows images taken during experimental tests performed to measure the structural strength of the wall panel of the present invention.

Fig.5A-shows the overall set up of the test

Fig.5B&5C- show the Pull out test configuration for the wall panel

Fig.5D-shows Clamping the front end of geogrid at hydraulic actuator

Fig.5E- Shows the failure pattern of the connecting member of the present invention during the pull out test.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Various embodiments of the present invention disclose a wall panel. The wall panel is used for creating structures, including but not limited to, retaining walls, abutment of bridges, or the like.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the wall panel comprises of a front face surface and a rear support face surface defining the body of the wall panel, at least one reinforcement bar placed horizontally or vertically within the front face surface and the rear support face surface for providing strength, and at least one connecting member, embedded within the front face surface and the rear support face surface, having a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, wherein the connecting member is adapted or wrapped around at least one of the reinforcement bar with the inlet and outlet opening on the rear support face surface.

The reinforcement bars of the wall panels are placed horizontally or vertically either independently or connecting each other to create a mesh.

The bars are typically arranged at a distance of 200mm - 250mm (vertically and horizontally) from each other. The reinforcement bar provides strength to the precast wall panel. The reinforcement bar(s) is/are placed within a formwork used for pre-casting the wall panel, the connecting member(s) is/are secured around the reinforcement bar(s), and the material, is filled in the formwork for formation of the precast wall panel. The reinforcement bar(s) may have varied shape(s) and weight considering the shape and size of the wall panel, the reinforcement bar may be made of ferrous and non-ferrous material, including but not limited to, steel, and fiberglass. The material for creating the wall panel may be selected from a group consisting of concrete mixture, polymer concrete, any form of concrete mixed with additives, or combination thereof.

The connecting member having the hollow body may have varied designs, preferably selected from but not limited to, ‘C’ shape and ‘U’ shape design. The connecting member body having a curvature is adapted around the reinforcement bar. The uniquely shaped design of the connecting member uniformly distributes pressure when the force is applied by a stabilizing strip passing through the hollow body thereby resulting in a stable and robust structure. The shape and design of the connecting member allows for a high interface adhesion with the reinforcement bar and the filling material which improves the pullout strength of the connecting member.

In another embodiment, a wall panel formed from a material is described. The wall panel comprising a front face surface and a rear support face surface, defining the body of the wall panel, the body of the wall panel may have an interlinking system for connecting different wall panels, at least one reinforcement bar placed horizontally or vertically within the front face surface and the rear support face surface, and at least one connecting member, embedded within the front face surface and a rear support face surface, having a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, wherein the connecting member is adapted around at least one of the reinforcement bar without direct contact with the reinforcement bar with the inlet and outlet opening on the rear support face surface.

The wall panel body may be connected in a series of various wall panels for formation of stabilized wall panel structure.

A wall panel system is described according to an embodiment of present invention. The wall panel system comprising a geogrid strip; and a wall panel formed of a concrete material having reinforced bars and a connecting member, wherein the geogrid strip passes through the connecting member of the wall panel, and the connecting member of the wall panel uniformly distributes the pressure applied by the geogrid strip to the reinforcement bar and the concrete material of the wall panel.

A connecting member for a wall panel is described, wherein the connecting member is embedded in the wall panel. The connecting member embedded in the wall panel comprises a hollow body having at least two open ends separated from each other vertically by a distance of 50mm-300mm and preferably 103mm, each of the open ends have an opening width in a range selected from but not limited to 100mm to 220mm and wherein the connecting member is of a shape having a curved portion. The specific width of the openings enables stabilizing strips of various dimensions to pass through it. Preferably, the specific width of the openings enables stabilizing strips such as geogrid strips to pass through the hollow connecting member. The connecting member is made of a non-corrosive, waterproof material selected from but not limited to a fiberglass, polymer, carbon fiber or other plastics or fibers, treated metal, ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), PP (Polypropylene), HDPE (High-density polyethylene), or other industrially acceptable material.

The connecting member having a curvature body is adapted around at least one reinforcement bar of the wall panel. The hollow body of the connecting member is preferably of shape selected from but not limited to, a ‘C’ shape or ‘U’ shape, and the surface of the body having the curvature is adapted around the reinforcement bar without coming in direct contact with the reinforcement bar thereby providing a high pullout strength when tension is applied by a stabilizing strip passing through it for stabilizing the wall panel.The reinforcement bar is made of a material selected from but not limited to steel or fiberglass.

In an embodiment of the present invention the connecting member body having a curvature body is adapted around the reinforcement bar and material forming body of the wall panel such that the material forming body of the wall panel is sandwiched between the connecting member and the reinforcement bar disallowing a direct connection between the connecting member and the reinforcement bar. This sandwiched arrangement where the material (wall panel body material) such as concrete forms as a translating medium, enhances the uniform distribution of load as it travels from the stabilizing strip, through the connectors, wall panel body material and finally the reinforcement bars.

A structure formed by arrangement of the wall panels is described. The various wall panels are arranged together by placement of the wall panels over each other or sideways or combination thereof. The wall panels are stabilized by passing a stabilizing strip through the connecting member of the wall panel thereby creating a robust and stabilized structure. The various wall panels may be connected together either through an adhesive or by an interlinking system of the wall panel, or a combination thereof. An adhesive for connecting the wall panels may include but not limited to polyurethane construction adhesive.

The subject matter is now described with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purpose of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the claimed subject matter. It may be evident however, that such matter can be practiced with these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures as shown in diagram form in order to facilitate describing the invention.

Referring Figure 1 a wall panel (100) having a connecting member (140) is shown according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 1, the wall panel(100) comprises a front face surface (110) and a rear support face surface (120) defining body of the wall panel. The body of the wall panel is made of concrete, resin or other industrially acceptable material.

The wall panel (100) further comprises reinforcement bars (130, 131, 132) creating a mesh for providing strength to the body of the wall panel (100). The reinforcement bars are adapted horizontally and vertically within the front face surface (110) and the rear support face surface (120) for providing strength to the wall panel (100).
As shown in Figure 1, a connecting member (140), embedded within the front face surface (110) and the rear support face surface (120), has a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening (141, 143), wherein the connecting member (140) having a curvature (142) is adapted around the reinforcement bar (132) with the inlet and outlet opening (141, 143) on the rear support face surface (120). The connecting member (140) provides strength to the wall panel (100) when the force is applied by the stabilizing strip (150) passing through the connecting member (140).

As shown in Figure 1, the stabilizing strip (150) may be a geogrid, and when the wall panel (100) having a geogrid (150) is used to create a structure, first the force when applied is spread across the geogrid, thereafter, the connecting member embedded around the material (not shown) and reinforcement bar (132) provide the strength resulting from the material of the wall panel (100) and reinforcement bar (132) support. Thereby providing a robust structure.

Referring Figure 2 a wall panel (200) having a connecting member (240, 241, 242, 243) are shown according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 2, the wall panel (200) comprises a front face surface (210) and a rear support face surface (220) defining body of the wall panel.

The wall panel (200) further comprises reinforcement bars (230, 231) creating a mesh for providing strength to the body of the wall panel (200). The reinforcement bars (230, 231) are adapted horizontally and vertically within the front face surface (210) and the rear support face surface (220) for providing strength to the wall panel (200).

As shown in Figure 2, a connecting member (240, 241, 242, 243) is embedded within the front face surface (210) and the rear support face surface (220). The connecting member (240, 241, 242, 243) provides strength to the wall panel (200) when the force is applied by the stabilizing strip (250, 251, 252, 253) passing through the connecting member (240, 241, 242, 243).

Referring Figure 3 a wall panel (300) is shown according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 3, the wall panel (300) comprises a front face surface (310), a rear support face surface (320), and a width (330) defining body of the wall panel (300).

The wall panel (300) further comprises reinforcement bars (not shown) creating a mesh for providing strength to the body of the wall panel (300). The reinforcement bars (not shown) are adapted horizontally and vertically within the front face surface (310) and the rear support face surface (320) for providing strength to the wall panel (300).

As shown in Figure 3, a connecting member (340, 341, 342, 343), embedded within the front face surface (310) and the rear support face surface (320). The connecting member (340, 341, 342, 343) provides strength to the wall panel (300) when the force is applied by the stabilizing strip (350, 351, 352, 353) passing through the connecting member (340, 341, 342, 343).

Referring Figures 4A and 4B, a side view of a connecting member (400), and a front view of a connecting member (500), are respectively shown according to an embodiment of present invention. The connecting member (400, 500) as shown has a curved body with two arms (1, 2) extending into two openings having a width (B). The width (B) of the opening of the arms (1,2) is in the range of but not limited to 100 mm – 220 mm, and the distance between the two arms (1, 2) is A, wherein the distance A is 50mm-300mm and preferably 103 mm.

WORKING EXAMPLES

EXAMPLE 1
An example of the connecting member is described wherein the connecting member made from ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), is of a ‘U’ shape containing a curved portion extending into two arms which open on either ends as shown in fig.4A the distance between the two arms is 103mm (A of fig. 4A), the width of each of the openings (1) & (2) is 220mm (B of fig 4B).

EXAMPLE 2
An example of the connecting member is described wherein the connecting member made from PP (Polypropylene), is of a ‘C’ shape containing a curved portion extending into two arms which open on either ends. The distance between the two arms is 150mm, the width of each of the openings is 100mm.

EXAMPLE 3
An example of the connecting member is described wherein the connecting member made from HDPE (High-density polyethylene), is of a ‘C’ shape containing a curved portion extending into two arms which open on either ends. The distance between the two arms is 100mm, the width of each of the openings is 240mm.

EXAMPLE 4
A wall panel having a width of 1500 mm, height of 1500 mm, and thickness of 160 mm. Sixteen (16) reinforcement bars made of steel are arranged at a distance of 200mm (vertically and horizontally) to create a mesh like structure within an external square shaped frame of the above mentioned dimensions. Four connecting members having specifications as disclosed in Example 1 are adapted around the reinforcement bars. The connecting members are positioned such that the openings face outwards on the rear support face surface of the wall panel while the remaining body is embedded within the wall panel. The connecting member is held in position around the steel reinforcement bar and ensuring that the connecting member is not in contact with the steel reinforcement bar a concrete mixture is poured into the frame, engulfing the reinforcement bars and the external surface of the connecting members leaving the openings of the connecting members unfilled. The concrete is allowed to set thereby fixing all components of the wall panel in a rigid manner. The Geogrid strips having a width of 200 mm are inserted through one end of each of the connecting members and out through the other, looping the geogrid around the ‘U’ shape of the connecting members. As force is applied on the geogrids it is uniformly distributed by the connecting members onto the wall panel.

The waterproof material and joints of the connecting member prevents any liquid components from denaturing the body of the wall panel. Moreover, the non-corrosive materials used to make the connecting members protect the members from weathering caused by the extreme conditions found in regions where wall panels are generally used.

EXAMPLE 5
A wall panel having a width of 1480 mm, height of 1480 mm, and thickness of 150 mm is made from concrete material. The formwork has a square shape for creating a shaped wall panel. The reinforcement bars are placed within the formwork, wherein the reinforcement bars are arranged to create a mesh thereby increasing the strength of the wall panel. Two (2) connecting members made using specifications as disclosed in Example 2 are secured around the reinforcement bars. The two (2) connecting members are placed near the two (2) bottom corners/edges of the formwork. Stabilizing strips such as geostrips having a width of 80 mm are passed through the openings of the connecting members thereby creating a stabilized structure.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
It is apparent that the precast wall panel, the connecting member embedded therein, and the structure formed therewith provides a cost effective solution for creating a robust wall panel and stabilized structure. Further, the connecting member of the wall panel provides an excellent mechanism to uniformly distribute the tension applied by the stabilizing strip passing through it, thereby resulting in a robust structure.

The foregoing description of the invention has been set merely to illustrate the invention and is not intended to be limiting. Since modifications of the disclosed embodiments incorporating the substance of the invention may occur to person skilled in the art, the invention should be construed to include everything within the scope of the disclosure.

EXPERIMENTAL DATA & ANALYSIS

Experiments were performed to Determine the structural strength of cavity connection of Wall Panel of the present invention.

DETAILS OF EXPERIMENT

Two types of facing panels Panel A and Panel A+ were developed with connecting members having two openings of widths 214 mm and 114 mm respectively. The details of the connection are illustrated in Figures 3 & 4A.

The overall dimensions of both Panel A and Panel A+ are the same i.e. 1480 mm width, 1480 mm height and 160 mm thickness. For Panel A, four numbers of 224 mm wide connectors (connecting members) are provided. For Panel A+, six numbers of 114 mm wide connectors (connecting members) are provided. The maximum strength of geogrids for use in Panel A will be 250 kN/m. These geogrids are cut to strips of approximately 200 mm width for use with these panels. Similarly, Panel A+ will be used along with approximately 100 mm wide geogrids having maximum tensile strength of 500 kN/m. The maximum design strengths per strip are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Design strength of geogrid Strips

S. No. Type of geogrid Type of Panel Approx. width (mm) Long term design strength per strip after applying safety factors Strength per connection
1 SGU 250 Panel A 200 28.9 kN 28.9 x 2 = 57.8 kN
2 SGU 500 Panel A+ 100 28.9 kN 28.9 x 2 = 57.8 kN

The strips of geogrids are connected to the Wall Panel of the present invention by passing them through the connector in the RCC facing Panel to perform full-scale connection tests on these panels with the geogrids to assess their structural strength.

The laboratory tests were performed in a large tank of 2 m length, 1 m width, and 1 m height. The system consists of facility to apply pullout loads through hydraulic actuator that can be run at speeds of 1 mm to 20 mm per minute. The overall view of the test system is shown in Figure 5A.

Considering the dimensions of test set up, the following size of panels was considered for testing purpose.
1. Panel A – Dimensions for testing are 740 mm width, 740 mm height, and 160 mm thickness.
a) Grade of concrete for Wall Panel = M35
b) Connector (connecting member) of 224 mm width embedded at mid-height during casting of panels.
2. Panel A+ – Dimensions for testing are 500 mm width, 740 mm height, and 160 mm thickness.
a) Grade of concrete for Wall Panel = M35
b) Connector (connecting member) of 114 mm width embedded at mid-height during casting of panels.

The pullout test was conducted on the panels by clamping both ends of the reinforcement, which is connected to the Wall Panel. The Wall Panels were restrained horizontally against front end of the tank while the geogrid strips were connected to the hydraulic actuator through a roller grip. Tensile load was applied on the geogrid strips, which was measured through an electronic load cell. The details of the connection of the geogrid to Wall Panel and hydraulic actuators are illustrated in Figures 5A, 5B, and 5C.

The tests were performed by not placing soil in front of the Wall Panel to simulate the worst case of the Wall Panels loosing contact with the backfill soil due to soil shrinkage during service life. Hence, the results obtained in the laboratory are on the conservative side as the soil support to the concrete panel is not allowed to develop in the tests.

OBSERVATIONS
The observed pullout capacities of the present invention are shown in

Table 2.
Table 2: Observed pullout capacity of the connecting members
S. No. Pullout test configuration Maximum pullout capacity Mode of failure
1 Panel A connected with 200 mm wide reinforcement 73.81 kN Failure of concrete
2 Panel A connected with 100 mm wide reinforcement 73.5 kN Failure of concrete

The Figure 5E shows the failure pattern of concrete during the pullout test

These connectors can also be safely used with lower strength geogrids as their connector loads are expected to be lower than those indicated in Table 1.

The observed maximum loads bearing observed by the wall panel was found to be more when incorporating the present invention than the respective strengths of the geogrids independently. Hence, it could be concluded that the provided geogrids will be able to safely mobilize their design tensile strengths when they are connected to the Wall Panels with connectors of the present invention.

,CLAIMS:
1. A wall panel comprising:
a front face surface and a rear support face surface defining body of the wall panel;
at least one reinforcement bar adapted horizontally or vertically within the front face surface and the rear support face surface for providing strength; and
at least one connecting member, embedded within the front face surface and the rear support face surface, having a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, wherein the connecting member is adapted around at least one of the reinforcement bar without direct contact with the reinforcement bar with the inlet and outlet opening on the rear support face surface.

2. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reinforcement bars are placed horizontally or vertically either independently or connecting each other to create a mesh.

3. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hollow body of the connecting member has at least two open ends, each having a width in the range selected from but not limited to100mm – 220mm and a shape selected from but not limited to ‘C’ shape or ‘U’ shape

4. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connecting member body having a curvature body is adapted around the reinforcement bar and material forming body of the wall panel such that the material forming body of the wall panel is sandwiched between the connecting member and the reinforcement bar disallowing a direct connection between the connecting member and the reinforcement bar.

5. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connecting member having the hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening is structured to allow a stabilizing strip to pass through it, wherein the stabilizing strip may be a geogrid strip.

6. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, further comprises an interlinking system for connecting more than one wall panels, each wall panel having Width in the range of range – 1000mm to 3000mm; height range – 500mm to 3000mm; and Thickness – 100mm to 200mm.

7. A wall panel system comprising:
a geogrid strip; and
a wall panel formed of a concrete material having reinforced bars and a connecting member,
wherein the geogrid strip passes through the connecting member of the wall panel, and the connecting member of the wall panel uniformly distributes pressure applied by the geogrid strip by distributing the load received from the geogrid to the reinforcement bar and the concrete material of the wall panel.

8. A connecting member for a wall panel comprises:
a hollow body with an inlet and an outlet opening, and the hollow body have a shape selected from, but not limited to, ‘C’ shape design or U shape design,
wherein the surface of the body having the curvature is adapted around a reinforcement bar and the material forming body of the wall panel, thereby providing a high pullout strength when tension is applied by a stabilizing strip passing through it.
9. The connecting member as claimed in claim 8, wherein the inlet and the outlet opening has a width in a range of 100mm to 220mm.

10. A structure formed by arrangement of wall panels as claimed in claim 1.

11. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1 wherein:
The reinforcement bar is made of a material selected from but not limited to steel or fiberglass and the connecting member is made of a non-corrosive, waterproof material selected from but not limited to fiberglass, polymer, carbon fiber or other plastics or fibers, treated metal, ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), PP (Polypropylene), HDPE (High-density polyethylene), or other industrially acceptable material.

12. The wall panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hollow body of the connecting member has at least two open ends separated from each other vertically by a distance of 50mm-300mm and preferably 103mm.