Vehicle Barrier

• US 20090250675A1
• Filed: 03/24/2009
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Fiberweb Incorporated (Berry Global Group Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fiberweb Incorporated (Berry Global Group Inc.)
• Inventors: Verble, Marc Douglas, Hickle, Brian Andrew, Cashin, Arthur Henry, Hawkins, Sheldrick Faris, Hollowell, Frank Lee JR., Hawkins, William McAdam
• Application Number:
  US12/409,600
• Publication Number:
  US 20090250675A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 256/13.100
• CPC Class Codes: E01F 13/12 for forcibly arresting or disabling vehicles, e.g. spiked mats
• CPC Class Codes: E01F 15/145 Means for vehicle stopping using impact energy absorbers

Abstract

A vehicle barrier having an impact side, a reflection side opposite the impact side, and a plurality of interior walls extending between the impact side and the reflection side. The refection side, the impact side, and the plurality of interior walls are formed from vertically-oriented sheets of barrier material (when in the deployed configuration). Further, the refection side, the impact side, and the plurality of interior walls define multiple chambers. The chambers can be packed with fill material to stop an oncoming vehicle.

Claims

1. A vehicle barrier, comprising:

a barrier body having an impact side, a reflection side opposite the impact side, and a plurality of interior walls extending between the impact side and the reflection side; and

wherein the impact side comprises a first sheet of barrier material, the reflection side comprises a second sheet of barrier material, the plurality of interior walls comprise one or more interior sheets of barrier material, and wherein the impact side, the reflection side, and the plurality of interior walls define a plurality of hollow protection chambers.

2. The barrier of claim 1 wherein the plurality of protection chambers has an upper chamber face, the barrier further comprising:

a top chamber covering detachably engaged to the upper chamber face.

3. The barrier of claim 2 wherein the top chamber covering comprises barrier material.

4. The barrier of claim 1 wherein at least one of the plurality of protection chambers has a quadrilateral shape.

5. The barrier of claim 1 wherein the barrier material comprises a geotextile.

6. The barrier of claim 1 wherein the barrier body has an exterior geometry defining an exterior barrier surface, the barrier further comprising:

a gabion removably engaged to the barrier body, wherein the gabion has a frame geometry defining an interior gabion surface greater than the exterior geometry of the barrier body to allow the barrier body to be removably received into the gabion.

7. The barrier of claim 1 wherein each of the first and second sheets of barrier material is a continuous sheet.

8. A method of creating a vehicle barrier, comprising:

(a) attaching an interior wall to a first bounding wall at a plurality of first wall locations; and

(b) attaching the interior wall to a second bounding wall at a plurality of second wall locations horizontally offset from the plurality of first wall locations to create a vehicle barrier array, wherein the vehicle barrier array includes a plurality of vessels, each of the plurality of vessels defined by at least two of the interior wall, the first bounding wall, and the second bounding wall, and further wherein each of the interior, first bounding, and second bounding walls comprise barrier fabric.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the first bounding and second bounding walls comprise a continuous sheet of barrier fabric

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the barrier fabric comprises a geotextile fabric.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein each of the first bounding and interior walls has a height and the height of the first bounding wall is greater than the height of the interior wall.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of vessels has an open bottom surface.

13. A vehicle barrier, comprising:

a first plurality of interconnected cells having an upper surface and a first exterior boundary, each cell having vertical side walls comprising barrier material, wherein the first plurality of cells occupies a first elevation;

a second plurality of interconnected cells having a lower surface and a second exterior boundary, each cell having vertical side walls comprising barrier material, wherein the second plurality of cells occupies a second elevation greater than the first elevation, and further wherein lower surface is at least partially coupled to the upper surface; and

a coupling projection engaged to one of the first and second exterior boundaries and extending over at least a portion of the other of the first and second exterior boundaries.

14. The barrier of claim 13 wherein the second plurality of interconnected cells comprises a top surface opposite the lower surface, the barrier further comprising:

a top surface covering engaged to the top surface.

15. The barrier of claim 14 wherein the top surface covering comprises barrier material.

16. The barrier of claim 13 wherein the barrier material comprises a geotextile fabric.

17. The barrier of claim 13, further comprising:

a gabion, wherein at least one of the first and second pluralities of interconnected cells is removably received in the gabion.

18. The barrier of claim 13 wherein the first plurality of interconnected cells has an open bottom side opposite the upper surface.

19. The barrier of claim 13 wherein one of the first and second plurality of interconnected cells has a periphery, an extended area, and a plurality of periphery attachment locations distributed along the periphery, the barrier further comprising:

a rigid framework having an area not less than the extended area, wherein the rigid framework is detachably coupled to the plurality of periphery attachment locations to prevent the one of the first and second plurality of interconnected cells from assuming an area less than the extended area.

20. The barrier of claim 13 wherein the coupling projection comprises barrier material.