US2012177450A1PendingUtilityA1

Retaining wall system

32
Individually held — no corporate assignee on recordPriority: Jan 6, 2011Filed: Jan 6, 2011Published: Jul 12, 2012
Est. expiryJan 6, 2031(~4.5 yrs left)· nominal 20-yr term from priority
Inventors:Francis X. PhillipsGail E. PhillipsWilliam R. Watkins
E02D 29/0216
32
PatentIndex Score
0
Cited by
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References
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Claims

Abstract

A retaining wall system for use in retaining a backfill particulate mass is formed by at least one retaining wall unit. The retaining wall unit has a substantially upright forward wall having a rear surface for abutting against the backfill particulate mass. A substantially upright stem wall extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall. The stem wall has opposite substantially upright sidewalls. At least one of the sidewalls has a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope upward toward the forward wall.

Claims

exact text as granted — not AI-modified
1 . A retaining wall system for use in retaining a backfill particulate mass comprising:
 at least one retaining wall unit comprising:
 a substantially upright forward wall having a rear surface for abutting against the backfill particulate mass; and 
 a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall, the stem wall having opposite substantially upright sidewalls, and wherein at least one of the sidewalls has a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope upward toward the forward wall. 
   
     
     
         2 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 both sidewalls of the stem wall having a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope upward toward the forward wall.   
     
     
         3 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves of each sidewall are arranged in a longitudinally staggered configuration from those of the opposite sidewall.   
     
     
         4 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a wedge-shaped transverse cross section.   
     
     
         5 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a depth of from about ½ inch or more.   
     
     
         6 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a depth of from about ½ inch to about 4 inches.   
     
     
         7 . The retaining wall system of  claim 5 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a transverse width of from about ½ inch or more.   
     
     
         8 . The retaining wall system of  claim 5 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a transverse width of from about ½ inch to about 4 inches.   
     
     
         9 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second retaining wall unit comprising a substantially upright forward wall and a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall;   the first and second retaining wall units being provided with at least one of a cooperating projection and recess provided with one of the upper and lower ends of the stem walls of the first and second retaining wall units, the cooperating projection and recess being configured so that the projection of one of the first and second retaining wall units is received in the recess of the other when the first and second retaining wall units is stacked one on top of the other.   
     
     
         10 . The retaining wall system of  claim 9 , wherein:
 the stem wall of the second retaining wall unit also has opposite substantially upright sidewalls, and wherein at least one of the sidewalls of the second retaining wall units is also provided with a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope downwardly rearward.   
     
     
         11 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lengths of the elongated grooves are oriented at an angle of from about 10° to about 75° relative to a longitudinal axis of the stem wall.   
     
     
         12 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the lengths of the elongated grooves are oriented at an angle from about 15° to about 70° relative to a longitudinal axis of the stem wall.   
     
     
         13 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second retaining wall unit comprising a substantially upright forward wall and a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall; and   an upright face wall unit configured for engaging opposite sides of the forward wall of the first and second retaining wall units when the first and second retaining wall units are laterally spaced apart to provide a gap therebetween with the face wall unit being positioned between the first and second retaining wall units to close the gap.   
     
     
         14 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second retaining wall unit comprising a substantially upright forward wall and a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall; and   a cap unit having a longitudinal wall channel for receiving the upper ends of the forward walls of the first and second retaining wall units when the first and second retaining wall units are arranged in a substantially side-by-side configuration, the cap unit having at least one of a stem wall slot and cutout that communicates with the longitudinal channel for receiving at least one of the stem walls of the first and second retaining wall units.   
     
     
         15 . The retaining wall system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second retaining wall unit comprising a substantially upright forward wall and a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall, the second retaining wall being configure for cooperating engagement with the first retaining wall unit when the forward walls of the first and second retaining wall units are oriented substantially perpendicular to one another other; and   a corner face wall unit configured for engaging opposite sides of the forward walls of the first and second retaining wall units when the first and second retaining wall units are in proximity to one another and oriented at a non-straight angle to one another to form a corner gap with the corner face wall unit being positioned between the first and second retaining wall units to close the corner gap.   
     
     
         16 . A retaining wall system for use in retaining a backfill particulate mass comprising:
 at least two retaining wall units, each retaining wall unit comprising:
 a substantially upright forward wall having a rear surface for abutting against the backfill particulate mass; and 
 a substantially upright stem wall that extends rearward from the rear surface of the forward wall, the stem wall having opposite substantially upright sidewalls, and wherein at least one of the sidewalls has a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope upward toward the forward wall, the lengths of the elongated grooves being oriented at an angle from about 10° to about 75° relative to a longitudinal axis of the stem wall; 
 the retaining wall units each being provided with at least one of a cooperating projection and recess provided with one of the upper and lower ends of the stem walls of the retaining wall units, the cooperating projection and recess being configured so that the projection of one of the retaining wall units is received in the recess of the other when the first and second retaining wall units are arranged in stacked configuration one on top of the other. 
   
     
     
         17 . The retaining wall system of  claim 16 , wherein:
 both sidewalls of the stem wall of each retaining wall unit has a series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves that slope upward toward the forward wall.   
     
     
         18 . The retaining wall system of  claim 16 , wherein:
 the series of longitudinally spaced apart elongated grooves of each sidewall of each retaining wall unit are arranged in a longitudinally staggered configuration from those of the opposite sidewall of each retaining wall unit.   
     
     
         19 . The retaining wall system of  claim 16 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a depth of from about ½ inch or more and a transverse width of from about ½ inch or more.   
     
     
         20 . The retaining wall system of  claim 16 , wherein:
 the lengths of the elongated grooves are oriented at an angle from about 15° to about 70° relative to a longitudinal axis of the stem wall of each retaining wall unit.   
     
     
         21 . The retaining wall system of  claim 16 , wherein:
 the elongated grooves each have a depth of from about ½ inch to about 4 inches and a transverse width of from about ½ inch to about 4 inches.

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