Systems, Devices, and/or Methods for Managing Traffic

Abstract

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a system, machine, device, and/or manufacture comprising a traffic separating median barrier comprising: a barrier body having a substantially uniform cross section along a longitudinally extending direction, said barrier body defining a body length extending along said longitudinally extending direction, a body width orthogonal to said body length, and a body height orthogonal to said body length and said body width, said barrier body terminating in a first barrier end region and a second barrier end region, said first barrier end region comprising a female interlocking structure attached to said barrier body, said second barrier end region comprising a male interlocking structure attached to said barrier body, said female interlocking structure adapted to interlock with said male interlocking structure.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system comprising a plurality of substantially solid, elongated, steel bar reinforced, precast, concrete, vehicular traffic-separating barriers of the type that are configured to, when physically interconnected, rely solely on substantially horizontally-oriented friction forces to resist lateral movement of each barrier from the plurality of barriers with respect to a barrier-supporting surface, the friction forces arising between the barrier-supporting surface and a bottom surface of each barrier from the plurality of barriers, each barrier from the plurality of barriers comprising:
 a barrier body comprised of an substantially solid, elongated, steel bar reinforced, precast, concrete material, said barrier body defining a body length of approximately 12 feet as measured along a longitudinally extending direction, a body width defined orthogonal to said body length, and a body height defined orthogonal to said body length and said body width, said barrier body terminating in a first barrier end region and a second barrier end region, said first barrier end region comprising a steel female interlocking structure attached to said barrier body, said second barrier end region comprising a steel male interlocking structure attached to said barrier body by a plurality of reinforcing bars having a length from approximately 2 feet to approximately 2.5 feet;   said female interlocking structure comprising a substantially open-ended tube having a longitudinal axis extending substantially parallel to said body height, said tube defining a slot having a slot width substantially parallel to said body width and having a slot height substantially parallel to said body height;   said male interlocking structure comprising a web having a web thickness extending substantially parallel to said slot width and measuring less than said slot width, said web extending from said second barrier end region in a direction substantially parallel to said body length and attached to a flange having a longitudinal axis extending substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of said web and a major surface extending substantially perpendicular to a major surface of said web, said flange having a flange width greater than said slot width;   a plurality of interconnecting rods, each of said interconnecting rods connected to each of said interlocking structures and extending longitudinally through said barrier body; and   a first plurality of interlock anchor rods, each of said first plurality of interlock anchor rods interconnecting with one of said interlocking structures and extending in said longitudinally extending direction a distance of at least 40 diameters of said interconnecting rods;   wherein:
 each of said first plurality of interlock anchor rods overlapping an adjacent one of said interlock anchor rods by a distance of at least 40 diameters of said interlock anchor rods; 
 said precast, steel bar reinforced, concrete material has a minimum compressive strength of approximately 4,000 psi; 
 each of said first barrier end region and said second barrier end region defines a corresponding end face that transitions to a top face of said barrier body via a corresponding chamfered intersection; 
 each end face of said barrier body transitions to a longitudinally extending right face of said barrier body via a corresponding chamfered intersection; 
 each end face of said barrier body transitions to a longitudinally extending left face of said barrier body via a corresponding chamfered intersection; 
 each end face of said barrier body transitions to the bottom surface of said barrier body via a corresponding chamfered intersection; 
 said web and said flange interconnect to form a device having a T-shaped longitudinal cross-section; 
 a length of said male interlocking structure, measured parallel to said body height, is less than 50 percent of said body height; 
 in an operative arrangement, a top of said female interlocking structure is positioned below a top of said barrier body; 
 in an operative arrangement, a bottom of said female interlocking structure is positioned approximately 10 inches above a bottom of said barrier body; 
 for any substantially identical and adjacent pair of barriers from the plurality of barriers:
 a longitudinal axis of a barrier body of a first barrier from said pair is configured to be angled vertically by at least 3 degrees to approximately 4 degrees with respect to a longitudinal axis of the barrier body of a second adjacent barrier from said pair when the male interlocking structure of said first barrier is interlocked with the female interlocking structure of said second barrier by the web of said first barrier extending through the slot of said second barrier and the flange of said first barrier is located within the tube of said second barrier; 
 when said male interlocking structure of said first barrier is not interlocked with said female interlocking structure of said second barrier, said male interlocking structure operatively configured to resist inter-engaging with said female interlocking structure of said second barrier when subjected to substantial relative movement between said first barrier and said second barrier in any direction other than a substantially vertical direction; 
 when said male interlocking structure of said first barrier is interlocked with said female interlocking structure of said second barrier, said male interlocking structure operatively configured to resist disengaging from said female interlocking structure of said second barrier when subjected to substantial relative movement between said first barrier and said second barrier in any direction other than a substantially vertical direction; 
 in an operable arrangement, said flange of said male interlocking structure of said first barrier is configured to enter and exit said tube of said female interlocking structure of said second barrier only via a substantially vertical relative motion between said male interlocking structure of said first barrier and said female interlocking structure of said second barrier; and 
 when said substantially identical pair of said barriers are operatively interlocked, facing end faces of said barriers are configured to be separated by between approximately 1.5 inches and approximately 2 inches when the pair of said barriers are pulled apart from each other as far as operably possible; and 
 
 in an operative arrangement, said plurality of barriers is configured to form a curve in a substantially horizontal plane, that curve having, a minimum radius of approximately 50 feet to approximately 85 feet. 
   
     
     
         2 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said tube is at least partially embedded in said concrete material.   
     
     
         3 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said web height is substantially equivalent to said slot height.   
     
     
         4 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said male interlocking structure extends less than 18 inches in a direction parallel to said body height.   
     
     
         5 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said female interlocking structure extends less than 18 inches in a direction parallel to said body height.   
     
     
         6 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said male interlocking structure of said first barrier is operatively configured to non-destructively inter-engage with, and non-destructively disengage from, said female interlocking structure of said second barrier only via a substantially vertical relative movement between said first barrier and said second barrier.   
     
     
         7 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said length of said male interlocking structure, measured parallel to said body height, is greater than 20 percent of said body height.   
     
     
         8 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 a length of said female interlocking structure, measured parallel to said body height, is less than said body height.   
     
     
         9 . A traffic separating median barrier according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 said tube defines a first pair of opposing side walls and a second pair of opposing side walls, each of said first pair of side walls defining a corresponding substantially planar major outer surface oriented substantially parallel to said body width and substantially perpendicular to said body length, said slot defined through one sidewall from said first pair of sidewalls.