Pile sensing device and method of using the same

• US 8,382,369 B2
• Filed: 02/11/2011
• Issued: 02/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pile Dynamics, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Pile Dynamics, Inc.
• Inventors: Piscsalko, George R., Rausche, Frank, Cotton, Dean A., Ference, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Harshad R
• Assistant Examiner(s): AHMED, NASIR UDDIN
• Application Number:
  US13/025,875
• Publication Number:
  US 20110200068A1
• Time in Patent Office: 746 Days
• Field of Search: 310/337, 310/341, 310/311, 310/73, 733/10, 735/96, 73/614.1, 736/02, 738/655, 73/190.3, 736/28, 735/99, 73/617.5, 73/240.3, 73/614.2, 738/03
• US Class Current: 374/152
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 1/026 arrangements for monitoring a plurality of temperatures, e.g. by multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 13/00 Thermometers specially adapted for specific purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 13/10 for measuring temperature within piled or stacked materials by special arrangements for conducting heat from the object to the sensitive heat element G01K1/16
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 25/72 Investigating presence of flaws
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/383 Concrete, cement

Abstract

A system for monitoring the forming of a solid object having a sensor string positionable in a forming structure before the curing process and a communication line extending along a string axis between a first and second end. The string further including a plurality of sensors joined to the communication line between the ends and each sensor being mounted at a set position on the line. Each sensor having a sensor body and a sensor housing and the sensor body including an electrical connecter to electrically join an electrical structure to the communication line at the set position. The electrical structure including a temperature sensor configured to monitor temperature near the set position and further including an electronic identification code corresponding to the set position of the sensor along the axis. The system further including a transmitting device for selectively communicating the temperature and identification code.

Claims

1. A system for generating a thermal matrix to analyze the integrity of a poured pile at a jobsite that is formed by introducing a curable material into a pile cavity at the jobsite and the curable material solidifying in the pile cavity to form an in place structural pile, the pile cavity extending from a first cavity extent to a second cavity extent at the base of the cavity and the pile cavity having a side wall extending between the first cavity extent to the second cavity extent, the curable material generally filling the pile cavity and engaging the side wall, the system comprising a sensor string positionable in a generally known but permanently fixed position within an associated pile cavity for analysis of an associated curable material introduced into the associated pile cavity, the sensor string having a support line fixable relative to the associated pile cavity in the known and fixed position and extending along a string axis between a first end and a second end, the sensor string having a group of thermal sensors and each thermal sensor of the group being fixed relative to the support line and spaced along the string axis in a known position between the first and second ends and in a permanently fixed position relative to the associated pile cavity, each thermal sensor of the group being configured to independently detect a test temperature of the associated curable material in a permanently fixed sensor range extending around the known position of the particular sensor at the same time as other sensors in the group, each sensor of the group having a unique electronic identification code corresponding to the particular sensor and the known and permanently fixed position of the particular sensor along the axis, wherein the test temperatures of each independent thermal sensor of the sensors in the group of sensors together form a thermal string matrix of thermal activity from temperature readings taken at generally the same time from multiple thermal sensors and associated with the associated curable material within the pile cavity, the thermal string matrix allowing for the detection of temperature variations at multiple locations simultaneously that are associated with the pouring and/or curing of the associated structural pile and the automatic determination of the location of the variations.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the support line is fixed directly to an associated rebar cage within the associated pile cavity.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the thermal string matrix is configured to detect inclusions in the associated side wall of the associated pile cavity.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the associated pile cavity is a ground opening in a ground layer extending from a ground surface to a bottom extent below the ground surface.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the fixed sensor range of one sensor in the group of sensors partially overlaps with the fixed sensor range of at least one adjacent sensor of the group.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the each sensor has a sensor body and an electrical structure, the sensor body having a connector to join the sensor to the support line at a set position corresponding to the desired known and fixed position, the electrical structure including the thermal sensor and a transmitting device for selectively communicating the test temperature and the identification code from the each sensor in the group.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the support line includes a communication line and the connector is an electrical connector to electronically join the electrical structure to the communication line, the selective communication being through the communication line.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the support line includes a power line and the connector is an electrical connector to electronically join the electrical structure to the power line.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the each sensor further includes a memory storage, the memory storage including instructions for at least one of the transmitting device for the selective communicating the test temperature and each thermal sensor for operation of the each sensor, the memory storage further including the identification code.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection of the test temperatures of the thermal string matrix is selective measurement of all the test temperature of the sensor group at designated time intervals for the analysis of the associated curing material.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor string is a first sensor string forming a first group, the system further including a second sensor string forming a second group and a third sensor string forming a third group, the thermal string matrixes of the three groups forming a three dimensional thermal matrix associated with the curing cycle of the associated curable material from temperature readings taken from all three groups of sensors at generally the same time.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the first sensor string is positioned near the associated side wall of the associate pile cavity such that the permanently fixed sensor ranges of the first group of sensors is at least in close proximity to the associated side wall.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the three dimensional thermal matrix is a detection of the test temperatures of the thermal string matrixes is selective measurement of all the test temperature of all the sensor groups at designated time intervals for the analysis of the curing cycle.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the thermal matrix is a detection of the test temperatures of the thermal string matrix is selective measurement of all the test temperature of all sensors in the sensor group at designated time intervals for the analysis of the curing cycle.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor string is positioned near the associated side wall of the associate pile cavity such that the permanently fixed sensor ranges of the group of sensors is at least in close proximity to the associated side wall.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the spacing along the string axis of the each thermal sensor is equal spacing along a majority of the sensor string.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the equal spacing is less than 1 foot between adjacent sensors.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the support line includes a communication line and an electrical connector electronically joins each thermal sensor to the support line, the unique electronic identification code and the test temperature being transmitted through the communication line, the system further including a computing device to take the data from the sensors and produce the thermal matrix.

19. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor string further includes at least one of a pressure sensor, sound sensor, accelerometer, resistivity sensor, strain sensor, capacitance sensor, moisture sensor, and chemical sensor.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the thermal string matrix is configured to detect abnormalities after the curing cycle.

21. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor string extends along the majority of the length of the associated structural pile and allows for a continuous thermal string matrix along the majority length for the entire curing cycle.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor string includes a fiber optic wire.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the system includes at least four sensor strings.

24. A method of forming a structural pile at a jobsite that is formed by introducing a curable material into a pile cavity at the jobsite and the curable material solidifying in the pile cavity to form an in place structural pile, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a sensor string having a support line extending along a string axis between a first end and a second end, the sensor string having a group of thermal sensors and each thermal sensor of the group being fixed relative to the support line and spaced along the string axis in a known position between the first and second ends and in the fixed position, the each sensor of the group being configured to detect a test temperature of fluids or gases around the each sensor in a fixed sensor range extending around the known position of the particular sensor on the support line independently of and simultaneously with other sensors in the group of sensors, the each sensor of the group having a unique electronic identification code corresponding to the particular sensor and the known position of the particular sensor along the sensor axis, the each sensor being configured to communicate the unique identification code and a test temperature relating to the temperature in the fixed sensor range;

providing a computing device for receiving data from the sensor string including the unique identification code and the independent test temperatures;

positioning the sensor string in a known and fixed position within a pile cavity such that the position of the each sensor in the group within the pile cavity is generally known, but is permanently fixed relative to the pile cavity;

associating the unique electronic code of the each sensor to the generally known position of the each sensor in the pile cavity;

pouring a curable material into the pile cavity such that the curable material encapsulates each thermal sensor in the group of thermal sensors below a top extent of the curable material;

monitoring the test temperatures detected by each sensor of the group of sensors simultaneously;

associating the monitored test temperature of a least one sensor with the unique identification code of the at least one sensor to determine the location of the at least one the test temperature with the pile cavity.

25. The method of claim 24, further including the step of generating a real time thermal string matrix from the group of sensors based on temperature data taken from each sensor at generally the same time thereby producing real time thermal data along the entire sensor string.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein the monitoring step includes monitoring test temperatures during the pouring step and the method further includes the step of determining the top extent of the of the curable material during the pouring step based on changes in test temperatures of the sensors.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the pouring step includes introducing the curable material into the pile cavity by way of a fill tube, the method further including the step of controlling the position of the fill tube based on the determining the top extent step.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein the providing a sensor string is providing a first sensor string having a first group of sensors and the securing the sensor string is securing a first sensor string in a first known and fixed position within the pile cavity, the method further including the steps of providing a second sensor string having a second group of sensors and providing a third sensor string having a third group of sensors, and securing the second sensor string in a second known and fixed position within the pile cavity and securing the third sensor string in a third known and fixed position within the pile cavity, the monitoring the test temperatures detected by the each sensor including monitoring all three groups of sensors and the associating the monitored test temperature including monitoring a least one sensor and unique identification code of all three groups.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the monitoring step includes monitoring test temperatures of at least of the three groups during the pouring step and the method further includes the step of determining the top extent of the of the curable material during the pouring step based on changes in test temperatures of the sensors.

30. The method of claim 28, further including the step of generating a real time three dimensional thermal matrix from the three groups of sensors thereby producing real time three dimensional thermal data along the sensor strings.

31. The method of claim 24, whereby the sensor string within the pile cavity is directly encapsulated by the curable material.

32. The method of claim 24, further including the step of determining the existence of an inclusion based on the monitored test temperatures.

33. The method of claim 24, further including the steps of installing a rebar cage within the pile cavity after the forming step and securing the sensor string directly to the rebar cage before the pouring step such that the sensor string is fixed relative to the rebar cage during the pouring step and during the curing step.

34. The method of claim 24, further including the step forming the pile cavity, the forming the pile cavity includes drilling the pile cavity in a ground layer.

35. The method of claim 24, further including the steps of providing a remote testing center having the computing device, and providing a remote communication system, the method further including the step of transmitting the test temperatures and the unique identification codes to the remote testing center, the remote testing center generating a thermal string matrix from the group of sensors.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the remote testing center creates and monitors a real time thermal string matrix.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein the remote testing center monitors a real time thermal string matrix.

38. The method of claim 24, wherein the providing a sensor string step and securing the sensor string step includes providing and securing at least four sensor strings.

39. The method of claim 24, wherein the pouring step is before the securing the sensor string step.

40. The method of claim 24, wherein the monitoring step includes periodic taking of test data from all sensors simultaneously.

41. The method of claim 24, wherein the associating step includes determining the generally known position of the each sensor based on the location of the sensor on the support line.