Implosion shield apparatus and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12092445-B2
Application number	US-202318331458-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 8, 2023
Priority date	Dec 20, 2019
Publication date	Sep 17, 2024
Grant date	Sep 17, 2024

Abstract

An implosion shield of ballistic fabric adapted to mount so as to surround an implosion sleeve or dead-end on a power line. The implosion shield may be wrapped or formed as an envelope or tent including one piece and folded around the implosion sleeve or dead-end and secured with fasteners. A method of installing the implosion cover may include installing an implosion sleeve or dead-end on a power line, and then installing the implosion shield around the implosion sleeve or dead-end, by wrapping the implosion shield around the implosion sleeve or dead-end, or by securing an envelope implosion shield over the implosion sleeve or dead-end, or by draping the shield over the implosion sleeve or dead-end, or by mounting the shield on a frame over the implosion sleeve or dead-end, then detonating the implosion sleeve or dead-end. The implosion shield attenuates shock, pressure and sound waves from the detonation.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A pliable implosion shield for attenuating effects of a blast intensity around an implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve installed on a power line, wherein the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve has at least horizontally exposed sides, the implosion shield comprising:
a first panel and a second panel; wherein the first and second panels are made of a flexible ballistic fabric and are adapted to be located on opposite sides of the at least horizontally exposed sides of the installed implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve;
the first and second panels forming an envelope, when installed, around the installed implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve; and
wherein, in operation, the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve and the at least horizontally exposed sides are located within a hollow of the envelope and the at least horizontally exposed sides are spaced from at least one edge of the envelope so as to contain the effects of the blast intensity within the envelope.

2. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first panel and second panel are continuous and are formed from a single, rectangular piece of flexible ballistic fabric that is folded once around one horizontally exposed side of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve so as to define a fold at a first long edge of the fabric and loose ends at a second and opposite long edge of the fabric, and wherein, the loose ends at the second and opposite long edge are coupled to one another by a plurality of fasteners, spaced along the second and opposite long edge, and wherein, the first and second long edges are spaced from the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

3. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first panel and second panel are continuous and are formed from a single, rectangular piece of flexible ballistic fabric that is folded once over one horizontally exposed side of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve so as to define a fold at a first long edge of the fabric and loose ends at a second and opposite long edge of the fabric, and wherein, the loose ends at the second and opposite long edge are coupled to one another by a plurality of fasteners, and wherein, the fold is located on the one horizontally exposed side of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve and the second and opposite long edge is spaced from the one horizontally exposed side of implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

4. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first and second panels are formed of two, separate and distinct rectangular pieces of flexible ballistic fabric, and wherein the first and second panels are coupled to one another along their first and second long edges by a plurality of fasteners, spaced along the first and second long edges, and wherein the first and second long edges are spaced from the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

5. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first and second panels are formed of two, separate and distinct rectangular pieces of flexible ballistic fabric, and wherein the first and second panels are coupled to one another along their short and long edges by a plurality of fasteners, spaced along the short and long edges, and wherein the long edges are spaced from the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

6. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first and second panels are formed of two, separate and distinct rectangular pieces of flexible ballistic fabric, and wherein the first and second panels are supported on opposite sides of an A-frame located around the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve, and wherein the first and second panels are operatively coupled to each other at a top edge of the A-frame through a plurality of clamps, and wherein at least the top edge is spaced from one horizontally exposed side of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

7. The shield of claim 6 , wherein the A-frame is supported on the power line.

8. The shield of claim 6 , wherein the A-frame is supported on a ground under the power line.

9. The shield of claim 1 , wherein the first panel and second panel are continuous and are formed from a single, rectangular piece of flexible ballistic fabric that is folded once over a top edge of an A-frame located around the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or the dead-end sleeve, and wherein the first and second panels are operatively coupled to each other at the top edge of the A-frame through a plurality of clamps, and wherein at least the top edge is spaced from one horizontally exposed side of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

10. A system for attenuating effects of a blast intensity around a power line comprising:
an implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve, having at least horizontally exposed sides, adapted to be installed on the power line; and
an implosion shield made of a flexible ballistic fabric and adapted to be mounted over the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve, when the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve is installed on the power line, so as to surround the at least horizontally exposed sides of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve during detonation of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the implosion shield is adapted to be wrapped around the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the implosion shield is a wrapped implosion shield adapted to be coiled around the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve so as to form more than one layer of the wrapped implosion shield wrapped around the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve.

13. The system of claim 11 , wherein the implosion shield is an envelope formed of the ballistic fabric.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the envelope has circumferentially extending edges, and wherein the edges are joined together with fasteners extending at least partially along the edges.

15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the edges are joined together so as to define a gas escape through-way in the envelope for pressurized gas from the detonation to exit the envelope.

16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the envelope is formed of auxetic ballistic fabric.

17. The system of claim 11 , wherein the implosion shield is formed as a tent.

18. The system of claim 10 , wherein the ballistic fabric is auxetic ballistic fabric.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the auxetic ballistic fabric is made of core fibres wrapped in wrap fibres, and wherein longitudinal lengths of the core fibres are arranged so that detonation of the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve, when the implosion shield is mounted over the implosion sleeve or dead-end sleeve, tensions the core fibres along their longitudinal lengths so as to cause auxetic expansion of the auxetic ballistic fabric to thereby temporarily open gas venting apertures in the auxetic ballistic fabric to at least partially vent explosion gases from the detonation.

Assignees

• Quanta Associates Lp

Inventors

• Wabnegger David Karl
• O'Connell Daniel Neil
• Ferrari Mark Douglas
• Harvey Benjamin James

Classifications

• H02G1/14

  for joining or terminating cables · CPC title

• H02G1/02

  for overhead lines or cables · CPC title

• D10B2505/00

  Industrial · CPC title

• D10B2401/061

  elastic · CPC title

• D04B21/18

  incorporating elastic threads · CPC title