Appeal No. 2000-1655 Page 7
Application No. 08/836,892
Next a slurry of fill material (e.g., soil, aggregate or
water) is introduced into the hole around the pile. Finally
the fill material is frozen to form an integral attachment
between the rings, the cylindrical outside surface of the pile
and the permafrost soil.
Long teaches (column 3, lines 41+) that with his
invention the "jacking" forces in the seasonal-thaw region
will be
effectively reduced since the main securement of the pile with
the soil will be in the generally permanently frozen region.
Thus the freezing and thaw in the seasonal-thaw region will
cause the fill material in that region to slide over the
outside surface of the pile rather than to work the pile up or
down. Since the rings become permanently locked in the fill
material the fill material between adjacent rings becomes
trapped and in effect becomes a lateral extension of the pile.
As a result the effective outside diameter of the pile becomes
increased. This increase in effective outside diameter
increases the surface area between the material trapped by the
rings and the surrounding soil thus providing an increased
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