Improved assembly comprising a structural cable and a saddle

Abstract

The assembly comprises a structural cable comprising tendons ( 12 ) and a saddle deflecting the structural cable between the two ends thereof. The saddle comprises a body ( 18 ), conduits ( 24 ) formed in the body and each receiving one of the tendons of the cable, and two anchoring devices ( 20 ) which anchor the tendons by defining a first portion of the structural cable received in the saddle, where the tendons are subject to a prestressed tension that is constant over time and at least one second portion of the structural cable where the tendons are subject to tensions that are variable over time. An anchoring device ( 20 ) comprises an anchoring plate ( 28 ) comprising anchoring openings ( 36 ) each receiving one of the tendons, and wedges ( 30 ) each received in a respective anchoring opening of the anchoring plate in order to lock one of the tendons of the structural cable. The anchoring plate ( 28 ) has a rear surface bearing against the body ( 18 ).

1 . An assembly comprising:
 a structural cable comprising a plurality of tendons anchored at two opposite ends of the structural cable between which they extend without interruption; and   a saddle configured for deflecting the structural cable between the two ends thereof,   wherein the saddle comprises:
 a body; 
 a plurality of conduits formed in the body and each receiving and guiding one of the tendons; and 
 two anchoring devices configured for anchoring the tendons so as to define a first portion of the structural cable received in the saddle, where the tendons are subject to a prestressed tension that is substantially constant over time, and at least one second portion of the structural cable, where the tendons are subject to tensions that are variable over time, 
   wherein at least one of the two anchoring devices comprises:
 an anchoring plate comprising anchoring openings each receiving one of the tendons, wherein the anchoring plate has a rear surface bearing against the body; and 
 wedges each received in a respective anchoring opening of the anchoring plate in order to lock one of the tendons of the structural cable therein. 
   
     
     
         2 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the body is made of material molded inside a tubular envelope of the saddle. 
     
     
         3 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein each tendon of the structural cable is coated with an individual sheath removed at the anchoring device, wherein the anchoring openings have a frustoconical shape through the anchoring plate, and wherein the frustoconical shape has a minimum diameter that is strictly greater than the diameter of the tendon coated with the individual sheath. 
     
     
         4 . The assembly of  claim 3 , wherein at least one of the anchoring openings receives a lining surrounding the wedge so as to define in the anchoring opening a passage having a cross-section smaller than the anchoring opening, by which a tendon passes through the anchoring plate. 
     
     
         5 . The assembly of  claim 3 , wherein, for at least one anchoring opening, the wedge is in direct contact with the frustoconical wall of the anchoring opening so as to anchor the tendon in the anchoring plate. 
     
     
         6 . The assembly of  claim 3 , wherein at the anchoring device, the individual sheath of each tendon is removed over a portion of length less than three times the length of the wedge. 
     
     
         7 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the anchoring plate has a thickness in a range of 1 to 1.5 times the length of the wedge. 
     
     
         8 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the saddle comprises at least one guiding member having a plurality of guiding channels each receiving one tendon and configured to guide angular deviations of the tendons in at least one second portion of the cable. 
     
     
         9 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the saddle comprises a sealing system including an axially compressed seal to make a seal around the tendons, wherein the anchoring plate of one of the anchoring devices is located between the sealing system and the body of the saddle. 
     
     
         10 . The assembly of  claim 9 , wherein the saddle comprises at least one guiding member having a plurality of guiding channels each receiving one tendon and configured to guide angular deviations of the tendons in at least one second portion of the cable, and wherein the sealing system is placed between the guiding member and the anchoring plate of said anchoring device. 
     
     
         11 . The assembly of  claim 9 , wherein an O-ring is placed in each conduit formed in the body for receiving a tendon of the structural cable, and wherein a protective material is injected in a volume made tight by the axially compressed seal and the O-rings, and containing the anchoring plate and the wedges. 
     
     
         12 . The assembly of  claim 11 , wherein each tendon of the structural cable is coated with an individual sheath removed in an area located between the O-ring and the axially compressed seal. 
     
     
         13 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the anchoring plate has the rear surface thereof bearing against the body, a front surface and a peripheral surface received freely in a housing coaxial with the structural cable at the anchoring device. 
     
     
         14 . A method for deflecting a structural cable comprising a plurality of tendons, the method comprising:
 placing a saddle body in a region located between two ends of the structural cable, wherein the body is formed with a conduit for each tendon of the structural cable;   inserting each tendon in an anchoring opening of a first anchoring plate, in one of the conduits formed in the body and then in an anchoring opening of a second anchoring plate;   tensioning the tendons to a preset prestressed tension in a first portion of the structural cable located between the first and second anchoring plates and locking the tendons in each of the first and the second anchoring plates, while each of the first and second anchoring plates has a rear surface bearing against the saddle body; and   anchoring the structural cable at the two ends thereof such that the tendons experience tensions variable over time in two second portions of the structural cable each located between one end of the structural cable and one of the first and the second anchoring plates.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14  wherein each tendon is successively threaded into a guiding channel of a guiding member of a first anchoring device, into a passage formed in a sealing system of the first anchoring device, into the first anchoring plate belonging to the first anchoring device, into one of the conduits formed in the body, into the second anchoring plate belonging to a second anchoring device, into a passage formed in a sealing system of the second anchoring device and into a guiding channel of a guiding member of the second anchoring device. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein each tendon of the structural cable is coated with an individual sheath, and wherein after inserting a tendon in an anchoring opening, the individual sheath of the tendon is removed at said anchoring opening for inserting therein a wedge for locking the tendon. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein after tensioning the tendons in the first portion to the prestressed tension and locking in the first and second anchoring plates, the tension is released and then the tendons are tensioned in each second portion to a value below the prestressed tension before anchoring the structural cable at both ends thereof. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the tensioning and locking of the tendons in one of the first and the second anchoring plates, placed behind a housing formed in a tubular envelope receiving the saddle body, comprises:
 applying a tension over the full length of at least one tendon at at least one of the ends of the structural cable;   arranging an overlocking device comprising at least one jack on a front side of the housing; and   controlling the jack in order to drive, around said tendon, a wedge into an anchoring opening of said anchoring plate.