ACT / Patents
Granted,
and filed.
The ACT systems are protected by patents in the United States, Egypt, Canada and through the international PCT route. The certificates below are reproduced as issued; where the document is published online, the number links to it.
The first one
US 6,718,723 B1
Method and apparatus for strengthening the concrete elements using prestressing confinement. Filed 18 October 1999, priority from Egypt 9 January 1999, granted 13 April 2004.
This is the patent behind the Mechanical Strengthening Technique. It covers applying global external prestressing along the whole length — or the required part — of a concrete element through a set of elongated members and a special pressure apparatus. The claimed effect is an increase in strength and ductility without significantly increasing the dimensions or the weight of the element, and without harming the concrete section: the technique also reduces lateral strain, internal cracking and volume increase as load is added.
Five claims, nine drawing sheets. International class E04G 21/00.
The record
Ten patents
and applications.
| Number | Jurisdiction | Subject | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| US 6,718,723 B1 | United States | Method and apparatus for strengthening the concrete elements using prestressing confinement | Granted 2004 |
| EG 21,647 | Egypt | Mechanical strengthening technique for structural elements | Granted 2002 |
| EG 23,111 | Egypt | Strengthening of concrete beams and beam–column joints using external pressure | Granted |
| CA 2,325,706 | Canada | Mechanical strengthening technique for structural elements | Application |
| US 2010/0104357 A1 | United States | Mechanical reinforcing bar coupler based on bar deformations | Published 2010 |
| PCT/EG2005/000014 | PCT / WIPO | Mechanical reinforcing bar coupler — from Egyptian application 2004050224 | Filed |
| WO 2023/098965 A1 | PCT / WIPO | Reinforcing bar coupler based on the double action of screw elements | Published 2023 |
| PCT/EG2021/000039 | PCT | International application for the coupler, filed 1 December 2021 | Filed |
| EG 2009101449 | Egypt | Karma structural system for light, environmentally friendly structures | Pending |
International patent classification E04C 5/16 (auxiliary parts for reinforcement: connectors, spacers, stirrups) and E04G 21/00. Egyptian grants are not published in the international databases, so no link is given for those — the certificates are below.
Certificates
As issued.
Click any certificate to open it full size.
What each family covers
Three inventions,
several jurisdictions.
Strengthening by confinement — US 6,718,723 · EG 21,647 · EG 23,111 · CA 2,325,706
Active external prestressing applied along a concrete member through steel angles and a pressure apparatus, then locked permanently by welded strips. EG 23,111 extends the same principle from columns to beams and beam–column joints. This is the Mechanical Strengthening Technique used on site.
The rebar coupler — PCT/EG2005/000014 · US 2010/0104357 · WO 2023/098965 · PCT/EG2021/000039
The first family copies the bar ribs into female grooves machined in the sleeve, with no clearance and no filling material between them. The 2023 family adds the double action of screw elements: the screws tighten against the bar without threading, enlarging or undercutting it, pressing the ribs into direct contact with the sleeve and eliminating the spaces between them.
The Karma structural system — EG 2009101449
Light precast wall and slab panels with a lightweight core, ribs projecting beyond the panel, and in-plane post-tensioning — including the modified hollow core slab produced with a vibrator loading mould.
Licensing enquiries.
All three families are available for licensing, manufacture under licence and joint development.