Revetment structure

Claim 1

A revetment or earth facing structure laid directly on the earth comprising a plurality of interfitting units to form a flexible mattress and including means defining cavities therethrough which are filled with said earth to stabilize and retain said revetment on said earth, said units being similar to one another, said units interlocking after assembly to substantially minimize rotative shifting of units adjacent any units subjected to a rotative, shifting force caused by earth movement, each of said units being of generally rectangular configuration and being formed by a series of interconnected ribs which taper towards the upper face of said unit, said unit having two parallel longitudinal edges and a central longitudinal axis, each of said edges having a projection centrally located on one half thereof, a recess, similarly dimensioned, centrally located on the other half thereof and a space provided between each projection and recess to form cavities between said units assembled into a revetment said unit having a total length of twice its breadth plus a relatively small allowance for joint thickness, each projection having sides which slope to a point of the projection farthest from the axis, each recess having sides which slope to a point of the recess nearest the axis, the projections and recesses interfitting with recesses and prpjections respectively of identical units to form said revetment, the projections and recesses on one said edge being reflections in the axis of the projections and recesses respectively of the other edge, the projections and recesses of said each of said units being provided with sockets receiving linking members for transmitting forces between adjacent units in a direction perpendicular to the plane of said revetment, whereby any heaving or shifting in the earth with resultant movement of units adjacent any one unit will cause substantially only nonrotative shifting of such one unit thereby substantially negating breaking up of the interfitting structure of the identical units forming said revetment.