INTEGRATED AND MODULAR SYSTEM CONSISTING OF A ROAD SAFETY BARRIER AND A SOUNDPROOFING PANEL

Abstract

 The present invention relates to an integrated and modular system (40) formed by the coupling of one or more barrier elements (12) and one or more acoustic insulation/absorption panels (11, 11', 11") to form soundproofing separating panellings in areas such as construction or industrial sites, sound barriers for railway or road lines. In particular, the system of the invention is useful for the abatement of the noise caused by construction sites due to structural and infrastructural works and by road traffic.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to an integrated, modular system formed by the coupling of a barrier element and a sound insulation/absorption panel to form soundproofing separating panellings in areas such as construction or industrial sites, sound barriers for railway or road lines. In particular, the system of the invention is useful for the abatement of the noise caused by construction sites due to structural and infrastructural works and by road traffic.

STATE OF THE ART

[0002] In order to meet the need for delimitation and safety in construction site areas or on the edges of road and railway lines, elements of the type known by the name of New Jersey are increasingly used. The latter are elements typically made of concrete that can be positioned either permanently or temporarily, for example to define temporary traffic lanes in case of works; they are heavy enough not to be displaced by the impact of a vehicle. New Jerseys are mainly positioned on the edges of extra-urban roads (motorways, freeways, ...), but they can also be found on urban high-speed roads, and can be positioned either on the outer sides of the carriageway, to prevent people from driving off the road, or as traffic divider separating the lanes with opposite direction of travel, to prevent vehicles from invading the opposite lane.

[0003] Another need that often arises near roads, railway lines or construction sites is to reduce the noise generated by the passage of vehicles or by the works. For this purpose it is known to use noise barriers, which can be simple solid vertical panels or panels with internal structures that have cavities of more or less complex geometries. In both cases, the panels may have a modular construction, with the overall wall of the panel consisting of modules that are stacked one on top of the other and held in place by inserting their edges into vertical guides driven into the ground; these panels or modules are often concrete plates and the vertical guides are in turn made of concrete, but the panels (modular or not) can also be produced in metal or plastic materials (possibly fibre-reinforced) and the guides may be made of metal.

[0004] In the rest of the description, the elements delimiting road lanes or construction site perimeters will be defined as "barrier elements"; the noise abatement panels, which may have sound absorption and/or insulation characteristics, will instead be generically referred to as "soundproofing panels".

[0005] Since safety barriers and noise barriers have to be placed essentially in the same areas at the edges of construction sites and roads, it may be convenient to combine them.

[0006] Patent application US 2006/0118354 A1 describes a system integrating these two types of elements, in which a noise barrier made of plastic crossbars connected to vertical metal guides is fixed on a protection barrier constituted by aligned New Jersey.

[0007] A problem encountered with the integrated system of this patent application is that the structure thus obtained has a high ratio between the total height of the system and the area of the rest base, where the area of the rest base means the convex envelope of all the portions in contact with the ground. This aspect can create criticalities from the point of view of resistance to horizontal loads (such as wind thrusts or impacts), which generally lead to the oversizing of the barrier element or of the anchorages to the ground, or even of the vertical metal guides, and therefore a greater impact of the intervention under various aspects, including the economic one.

[0008] On the other hand, having the soundproofing panel placed above the barrier element requires having a single fixing point at the interface between the two: in order to guarantee the strength of the connection, fixing elements (e.g. screws) of large dimensions inserted in the New Jersey concrete are required, and it is well known that these become points of possible deterioration of the concrete over time, both due to chemical attacks on the metal material (in particular, the formation of rust) and due to the differential thermal expansions of metals and concrete when temperatures are very high or very low; the phenomenon of concrete deterioration is described for example in the introduction of patent application US 2004/0128947 A1.

[0009] The object of the present invention is to provide a system consisting of the coupling of a barrier element and a soundproofing panel which overcomes the problems of similar known integrated systems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] This object is achieved by the present invention, which relates to an integrated and modular system formed by the coupling of at least one barrier element and at least one soundproofing panel comprising two flat plates connected and spaced apart by a discontinuous structural element and at their edges by means of a frame, in which said panel is constrained in two points, having the lower side of the frame resting on the ground and fixed directly to the ground or to one of the barrier elements or both, and at least another point of the frame, spaced apart from said lower side, constrained to at least one barrier element.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The invention will be described in the following with reference to the figures, in which:

• Figs. 1-3 show sectional views of possible alternative embodiments of the integrated and modular system of the invention;
• Fig. 4 perspective of an integrated and modular system of the invention from the front side of the soundproofing panels;
• Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of an integrated and modular system of the invention from the rear side of the soundproofing panels, which highlights the barrier elements;
• Fig. 6 shows an exploded view of a possible base module of an integrated and modular system of the invention consisting of a single panel and a single barrier element, in which the barrier element, the fixing frame of the soundproofing panel and the panel are shown separately, and the two plates of the panel that constitute the planar faces and the internal support structure are shown;
• Fig. 7 shows, in an exploded perspective view, a possible soundproofing panel for use in an integrated and modular system of the invention, in which the internal structure has a generic geometry;
• Fig. 8 shows, in an exploded perspective view, a possible preferred geometry of a soundproofing panel for use in an integrated and modular system of the invention;
• Fig. 9 shows various steps for producing a soundproofing panel of Fig. 8;
• Figs. 10 to 13 show different embodiments of soundproofing panels that can be used in an integrated and modular system of the invention;
• Fig. 14 shows a perspective view of a system of the invention in which one or more acoustic wave diffracting elements are mounted on the top of the soundproofing panels;
• Fig. 15 schematically shows the effect of the diffractors of Fig. 14;
• Fig. 16 shows an internally illuminated soundproofing panel;
• Fig. 17 shows an integrated system of the invention, in which the soundproofing panels also perform the function of information or decorative panels;
• Fig. 18 reproduces three graphs of noise abatement as a function of frequency obtained with three systems of the invention of different construction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The present invention couples one or more barrier elements, for example of the New Jersey type, to one or more soundproofing panels, in a composed and modular structure in which the soundproofing panels are placed side by side along a line and constrained in two points, in particular a first point of the panel is constrained to a barrier element and a second point of the panel is constrained to the ground and/or to the barrier element; the term "point" is understood herein in a broad sense, a fixing "point" or constraint according to the present invention can also consist of an entire segment or an area along the perimeter of the panel, and the definition "constrained in two points" only indicates that the points, lines or constraint areas are separated (do not coincide and do not overlap) along that perimeter. The perimeter of a soundproofing panel is generally constituted by a frame that encloses the panel at its edges and ensures the structural solidity of the edges of the same panel.

[0013] Figs. 1-3 show examples of embodiment of the constructive concept underlying the present invention. In these figures, and the following ones, an equal number corresponds to an equal element.

[0014] Fig. 1 shows a section of a first possible embodiment of the system of the invention. The system, 10, consists of a soundproofing panel 11, connected to a barrier element 12 by means of a support 13 fixed to the frame of the panel, and fixed to the ground, on one side of the element 12, by means of fixing means indicated generically in the figure as element 14; in this embodiment, the fixing element 14 is approached, but not fixed, to the barrier element 12. The insert in the figure shows a detail of the implementation of the fixing of the support 13 to the barrier element 12, by means of an element 15, generally metallic, having an "L" section (which appears in the figure in front view), connected by means of fixing means 16 (typically, screws and bolts) to the support 13, and fixed by means of fixing means 17 and 17' (typically screws) to the top of the barrier element 12.

[0015] Fig. 2 highlights a possible way of fixing the panel both to the ground and to the barrier element. In this case, in the system 20, the panel 11 is connected on one side to the element 12 by means of the support 13 fixed to the frame of the panel; the fixing of the panel to the ground, shown in greater detail in the insert in the figure, is obtained by means of a part 21, integral with the frame of the panel 11 or fixed to the same frame in its lower part; the part 21 is fixed to the ground by means of fixing means (typically screws) 22 and 22', and to the barrier element 12 by means of further fixing means 23 (typically screws).

[0016] In an alternative embodiment (not shown in the figures), the panel 11 could be fixed, through the lower part of the frame, only to the barrier element 12; that is, with reference to Fig. 2, the fixing could be made with the means 23 but without the use of the means 22, 22'.

[0017] Finally, Fig. 3 shows another possible system of the invention, 30 in which the panel 11 is connected but not fixed to the barrier element 12; the figure, for clarity's sake, only shows the panel 11 and the support 13, but not the barrier element 12. In the system according to this embodiment, the panel 11 is fixed to the ground at its base, and is simply hooked to the element 12 by means of an element 31, shaped like the upper profile of the element 12 but pretensioned so as to fit firmly on the top of the element 12; the solidity of the constraint between the support 13 and the barrier element 12 is guaranteed in this case both by the friction between element 12 and element 31, and by the fact that the panel is held in place by the constraint, in its lower part, to the ground and/or to the element 12.

[0018] An integrated and modular system of the invention may be obtained according to permutation of all the elements and conditions described above with reference to Figs. 1-3; a soundproofing panel of type 11 can therefore be connected firmly, through type 13 supports fixed to a point not at the base of its frame, to the top of a type 12 barrier element, both by means of fixing means and by means of an anchorage that does not provide for such fixing means; and it can be constrained, by means of a point at the base of its frame, to the ground, to the base of the barrier element 12, or both.

[0019] The resulting structure, consisting of a soundproofing panel positioned laterally to the barrier element and fixed to it at least at one point by means of a frame and appropriate supports, has two favourable technical consequences:

• the device resting base area is considerably enlarged; this reduces the overturning moment of the horizontal stresses (wind thrust and impacts) and therefore allows lighter barrier elements and less resistant anchorages to be used under the same conditions of use;
• the soundproofing panel is supported and fixed on the two hooking points of the supports. Firstly, this considerably increases the flexural rigidity of the soundproofing panel section compared to the single anchorage at the base provided by traditional solutions; secondly, the double anchorage of the soundproofing panel (and possibly also the anchorage to the ground), distributes and considerably reduces the stresses transmitted in the single supports between the panel and the barrier element. This thus allows the use of light and unobtrusive fixing elements in the barrier element, thereby minimising the problems described above due to the chemical or mechanical interactions between the metal fixing elements and the barrier material, which is generally made of concrete; in one embodiment of the invention, such fixing elements to the barrier element are completely eliminated.

[0020] An integrated and modular system of the invention generally consists of several barrier elements and several soundproofing panels placed side by side along a line, which can correspond to the edge of a road or railway line or to the perimeter of a construction site. In a preferred embodiment, the width (along the aforementioned line) of the panel 11 and of the barrier element 12 are multiples of each other; for example, in practical embodiments of the invention, the soundproofing panel is 2 m wide and one, two or three are mounted on 2, 4 or 6 m wide New Jerseys. However, this condition is not necessary, and the integrated system of the invention can also be constructed without there being any simple multiples relationship between the widths of the soundproofing panels and of the barrier elements. Figures 4 and 5 show a section of a system of the invention, 40, made according to the preferred condition indicated above, in which the width of the New Jersey is a multiple of the width of the panels; in particular, in the example in these figures, there are three soundproofing panels, 11, 11', 11", connected to a single barrier element, 12, by means of essentially linear supports of type 13, according to any one of the methods illustrated above with reference to Figs. 1 and 3; also the fixing of the panels to the ground can be any, for example both of the type shown in Fig. 1 and the type shown in Fig. 2, or even just at the base of the barrier element (case not shown in the figures).

[0021] The barrier element, 12, is generally constituted by a monolithic block of sufficient weight (e.g. at least 1000 kg), commonly produced in concrete due to the low cost of this material, and typically having a rectangular base surface. In the case of the New Jersey element, the vertical section has an elongated bell shape.

[0022] The type 13 supports, which connect the barrier element and the soundproofing panel, as well as the connection elements to the barrier element (elements 15 and 31 in Figs. 1 and 3), are typically made of metal, preferably steel or aluminium.

[0023] The soundproofing panel 11, in its most general embodiment, consists of two plates which form the flat faces between which a discontinuous structural element is enclosed, i.e. such as not to completely occupy the space between the two plates; this element performs the functions of connecting and maintaining the two flat plates at the desired distance and of defining rooms or partitions between them, which play an active role in abating noise, as described in greater detail below.

[0024] The presence of the internal discontinuous structural element coupled with the external plates gives the assembled panelling a high flexural rigidity and load-bearing capacity with respect to wind loads or other horizontal loads such as those connected with the passage of high-speed trains.

[0025] The integrated system of the invention also forms an aesthetically low impact structure thanks to the covering of the barrier (for example, New Jersey) with the soundproofing panel. This is due to the possibility of completely hiding the barrier to view; this is particularly appreciated in tourist sites or urban contexts such as historical centres and residential areas.

[0026] Fig. 6 shows an exploded view of a possible base module of the integrated system of the invention; in the example shown in the figure, the module consists of a single panel and a single barrier element, which have the same width. The figure highlights the barrier element 12, the frame 60 which forms the perimeter of the soundproofing panel 11 to which two supports 13 and 13' are connected, and the two flat plates 61 and 61' between which the discontinuous structural element 62 is enclosed.

[0027] The two external, flat plates of the soundproofing panel are made of a material having a density between 800 kg/m³ and 15000 kg/m³ and a modulus of elasticity between 10⁴ and 10¹² Pa; this material can be a transparent or non-transparent plastic (e.g. polyvinyl chloride or polymethyl methacrylate, also regenerated), glass or a metal sheet (e.g. aluminium or steel).

[0028] The discontinuous structural element 62 is formed by a material having a density between 800 kg/m³ and 15000 kg/m³ and a modulus of elasticity between 10⁶ and 10¹² Pa. This element can be made from the same materials as those indicated above for the plates 61 and 61', and preferably in metal sheet; however, it is not required that in the construction of the single panel the materials of the plates 61 and 61' and of the element 62 are the same (for example, a panel can be made with a metal element 62 and plates 61, 61' in transparent or non-transparent plastic, or with element 62 and one of the two plates, for example 61 in the figure, in metal, and the second plate, for example 61', in transparent or non-transparent plastic).

[0029] A soundproofing panel for use in the system of the invention generally has a height between 1.5 and 4.0 m, a thickness of the flat plates between 0.1 and 50 mm and a thickness of the air gap between said two flat plates between 1 cm and 50 cm.

[0030] By respecting these conditions of materials and dimensions, a soundproofing panel for use in the system of the invention can have numerous constructions.

[0031] Fig. 7 shows, in an exploded perspective view, a possible soundproofing panel in its more general embodiment. This panel, 70, consists of two flat plates 71 and 71' connected to the discontinuous structural element 72, having irregular shape but constant thickness in the direction perpendicular to the two flat plates. The two plates 71 and 71' are shown as continuous, but could be perforated or microperforated, as described below in relation to other embodiments of the panel.

[0032] Fig. 8 shows, in an exploded perspective view, a possible soundproofing panel in a preferred embodiment. This panel, 80, consists of two flat plates 81 and 81' connected to the discontinuous structural element 82, in this case of regular geometry (and constant thickness in the direction perpendicular to the two flat plates); in particular, the projection of the element 82 on the two plates 81 and 81' defines a hexagonal grid. Also in this case the two plates 81 and 81' are shown as continuous, but they could be perforated or microperforated.

[0033] Fig. 9 shows the steps of a possible method for constructing the panel of Fig. 8. In the first step, the perimeter frame, 60, of the panel is prepared; one of the two plates 81 and 81' may already be fixed to this frame, but in the example shown in this figure no plates are initially fixed to the frame. In the second step, shaped elements 90 are fixed inside the frame so that their juxtaposition forms the complete hexagonal grid 82 of the third step. Finally, the plates 81 and 81' (only the first one visible in the figure) are fixed to the frame, completing the panel 80. This construction method offers the advantages that the shaped elements 90 can be easily produced in series and can be transported occupying little space, facilitating the production and installation of the soundproofing panel even directly on site; in this way, each component of the structure is modular and can be assembled on site.

[0034] From the point of view of the sound insulation mechanism of the assembled panelling, the internal structural element (62, 72 or 82) identifies portions with vibrating plate behaviour on the surface of the external plates (61 and 61'; 71 and 71'; 81 and 81'). When hit by the acoustic wave, the system constituted by the vibrating plates of the two plates and the air cavity included between them constitutes an acoustic resonator, which allows the absorption and insulation of the incident wave in particular frequency ranges depending on the materials and geometry of the system.

[0035] One or both flat plates that make up the faces of the soundproofing panel can be microperforated. "Micro-holes" in this description means openings with a maximum lateral dimension (e.g. diameter in the case of circular openings) lower than 1 cm. Fig. 10 shows in an exploded perspective view another possible soundproofing panel, 100, for use in a system of the invention. In this case, one of the two plates, 101, is of continuous type, and the other one, 101', is microperforated, presenting a dense array of openings of very small dimensions and reciprocal distances (for example, less than one tenth) with respect to the width of the hexagons of the internal structural element. The presence of micro-holes makes it possible to improve the performance of the panel in terms of sound absorption, thanks to dissipative phenomena that occur at the microperforated surfaces hit by acoustic waves. The shape of each micro-hole can be regular, preferably circular, or irregular and their spacing can be constant or non-constant. The dimension and spacing parameters of the micro-holes regulate the sound absorption effect in terms of absorption magnitude and frequencies.

[0036] One or both flat plates that make up the faces of the soundproofing panel can be perforated; in the present description, "holes" refer to openings with dimensions greater than 1 cm and up to 50 cm. If there are openings in the panel, the vibrating plate effect described above is combined with a second sound insulation effect. The acoustic wave that hits the panelling excites acoustic resonances, through the openings, in the cavities defined by the external plates and by the mesh of the internal load-bearing structural element. These resonances lead to a sound insulation depending on the geometry of the cavity itself. Through the appropriate design of the panelling components, the effect of these resonances can be controlled, providing an increase in sound insulation in the desired frequency ranges. As the holes also allow ventilation through the panelling, their presence can be of particular interest for applications where it is necessary to ensure good air exchange without losing acoustic performance.

[0037] Even in the case of the presence of holes on one or both plates constituting the two faces of the panel, these may have regular or irregular shapes, and be distributed on the surface of the plates according to a regular or irregular arrangement; possible examples in this regard are shown below with reference to Figures 11 and 12.

[0038] Fig. 11 shows a front view of a soundproofing panel 110 and the imprint of the hexagonal grid of the internal structural element; on one or both plates there are openings 111, 111', 111", ..., of different and generic shapes (represented in the figure by openings of various regular polygonal shapes, but these shapes could be any) and distributed on the surface of the plate(s) according to an irregular distribution.

[0039] Fig. 12 shows, in a view similar to Fig. 11, another possible soundproofing panel, 120, which may be used in a system of the invention. In this case the openings 121, 121', 121", ... are all of equal and regular shape (circular openings are exemplified), and their distribution on the surface of one or both plates follows a regular geometry; in the example in the figure the openings are concentric with the hexagons defined on the surface of the plates by the lattice of the internal structural element.

[0040] Fig. 13 shows, in a front view, and in an enlarged section, another possible panel, 130, for use in a system of the invention. In this case, the plates 131 and 131' constituting the two faces of the panel are continuous, but on the surface facing the inside of the panel, massive elements 132, 132' are connected to them, which are preferably but not necessarily made of the same material as the plates. The addition of these massive elements increases the dissipative capacity of the resonator constituted by the vibrating plate present on the surface of the panel, modifying its dynamic properties. This feature introduces an additional degree of freedom in the acoustic design of the barrier and in particular increases the ability to push sound insulation at low frequencies. In alternative embodiments of panels with massive elements, they can be positioned on at least one vibrating plate of one or both plates of the panel, on the outside or inside of the panel, and preferably have a cylindrical shape with circular section, but they could have a shape with a generic concave or convex, solid or hollow section, with straight or curved edges. In the front view in the left part of the figure, the projections on the plate 131 of the massive elements 132, exemplified of cylindrical shape, are shown.

[0041] The features illustrated in Figures 10 to 13 may be combined and permutated to make a soundproofing panel for use in the integrated system of the invention. For example, each of the two external plates that form a panel can be continuous, with macroscopic openings or microperforated, independently of the other plate; and in all possible panels obtained from permutations of pairs of plates that are independently of each other continuous, with openings and microperforated, these can have massive elements of type 132 on the face facing inwards or on the face facing towards the outside of the panel.

[0042] Intermediate solutions derived from further permutations of characteristics described above are also possible; for example, considering a plate divided into "sections" that correspond to the subdivision defined on it by contact with the element 62 (that is, each "section" of a plate corresponds to a free vibrating portion of the same) it is possible that in a panel a part of the blocks of each single plate, independently of the other plate, is continuous, perforated, microperforated or it has massive elements of type 132.

[0043] In order to further improve the noise abatement properties of the soundproofing panels described so far, it is possible to connect on top of them one or more diffractors, elements 140, 140', 140", ... in Fig. 14; these devices entail a deviation of the incident acoustic wave, increasing the insulation effectiveness of the panel. More in detail, the acoustic wave (151 in Fig. 15) incident on a generic panel 11 is deviated and would propagate downstream in a manner qualitatively indicated by direction 152 in Figure 15. The presence of the diffractor results in an upward deviation of the transmitted wave (direction 153 in Fig. 15): the insulation effect is equivalent to that of an acoustic barrier with a height even 1.5 m higher than the actual one.

[0044] The plates that make up the two main faces of the panels can be of different materials to meet the needs of different installation environments. In some areas, for example, it may be useful to have panels made of transparent materials to allow visibility through the panelling.

[0045] When using panels with transparent plates, the panelling can be made by integrating lighting sources into it. This possibility is illustrated in Fig. 16: the panel 160 consists of a transparent or translucent plate (for example, with a frosted glass effect) 161, and a plate 161' of any type, not necessarily transparent; the plate 161 allows at least the texture of the discontinuous structural element 162 to show through. Within the panel there are provided lighting elements 163 (for example, one or more LED strips), which are inserted into some or all of the cavities defined between the two plates by the lattice of the element 162. This feature is of particular interest on construction or industrial sites, for example, where it is necessary to keep the area where the barriers are installed illuminated. In this way, the lighting source is integrated into the system of the invention, without the need for additional lighting sources; the lighting source can also be coupled with the internal metal structure so as to generate a backlighting effect on one of the two external plates, preferably opaque.

[0046] Soundproofing panels with at least one of the two plates that is transparent can further allow printed material such as, for example, advertising or information or decorative posters to be accommodated (Fig. 17). These posters are usually affixed on the barriers after having undergone plasticising treatments to make them suitable for resisting atmospheric phenomena, which treatments are however expensive. A soundproofing panel according to this embodiment of the invention, on the other hand, allows printed material to be accommodated without the need for any treatment. This can be achieved, for example, by creating a slot in one of the two transparent plates for the insertion of printed material; or alternatively by creating one of the two plates by coupling two plates, at least the outermost of which is made of transparent material, forming an interspace into which printed material can be inserted. This second possibility is exemplified in the exploded perspective view of Fig. 17, showing a section of an integrated system of the invention, wherein the central module comprises a panel 170 having a plate composed of two sheets, an internal sheet 171 and a transparent external sheet 172, connected to each other only on three sides in order to leave a slot on the fourth side for the insertion of the poster 173.

[0047] Fig. 18 shows three noise abatement graphs obtained from mathematical simulations of the behaviour of soundproofing panels that can be used in an integrated system of the invention. The graphs show the Transmission Loss (TL) values for three panellings according to the present invention, which differ in the geometric design and the constituent elements of the plates of the panels. The curves in the figure refer to three analyses in which, with the same configuration that includes solid plates (i.e. without the presence of holes or micro-holes), made of polyvinyl chloride and a discontinuous structural element in steel, only the lateral dimension of the single cell is varied which constitutes the honeycomb of said discontinuous structural element; the three curves in the figure refer to panels in which the honeycomb hexagons have a width 40 mm (to which the dashed line in the figure corresponds), 30 mm (dotted line) and 20 mm (solid line). The TL value provides a measure of the reduction of the acoustic wave offered by the acoustic panelling at the various frequencies; the greater the TL value, the greater the soundproofing capacity of the panel at that frequency. In particular, it can be observed how the TLs of the panelling show insulation peaks that can be controlled through an appropriate design and positioned in the desired frequency range, even in the low frequency range (100-400 Hz) which is difficult to mitigate with traditional solutions.

[0048] The performance in terms of insulation/absorption, even at low frequencies, can be further improved thanks to the use of any combination of the characteristics illustrated in Figures 10 to 13, making the soundproofing panel particularly versatile for reducing the desired acoustic frequencies.

Claims

1. Integrated and modular system (10; 20; 30; 40) formed by the coupling of at least one barrier element (12) and at least one soundproofing panel (11, 11', 11"; 70; 80; 100; 110; 120; 130; 160) comprising two flat plates (61, 61'; 71, 71'; 81, 81'; 101, 101'; 131, 131'; 161, 161') connected and spaced apart by a discontinuous structural element (62; 72; 82) and at their edges by means of a frame (60), in which said panel is constrained in two points, having the lower side of the frame resting on the ground and fixed directly to the ground or to one of the barrier elements or both, and at least another point of the frame, spaced apart from said lower side, constrained to at least one barrier element.

2. Integrated and modular system according to claim 1, wherein the frame (60) of said at least one soundproofing panel (11) is connected to the upper part of at least one barrier element (12) by means of at least one support (13), and is fixed to said upper part of the at least one barrier element by means of fixing means (15; 16; 17, 17') or by means of retention elements (31) shaped according to the upper profile of said at least one barrier element and pre-tensioned so as to fit firmly on the top of said at least one barrier element.

3. Integrated and modular system according to any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the frame (60) of said at least one soundproofing panel (11) is constrained in its lower part to the ground by means of fixing means (22, 22'), or at the base of at least one barrier element by means of fixing means (23), or both.

4. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said barrier element is constituted by a monolithic block weighing at least 1000 kg.

5. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said soundproofing panel consists of two flat plates, the same or different from each other, having a thickness between 0.1 and 50 mm and spaced apart of between 1 cm and 50 cm, made with a material having density between 800 kg/m³ and 15000 kg/m³ and modulus of elasticity between 10⁴ and 10¹² Pa chosen among transparent or non-transparent plastic, glass and metal sheet, and in which between said two plates a discontinuous structural element is enclosed made with a material, not necessarily the same as that of said sheets, chosen among transparent or non-transparent plastic, glass and metal sheet, having a density between 800 kg/m³ and 15000 kg/m³ and modulus of elasticity between 10⁶ and 10¹² Pa.

6. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said soundproofing panel (70; 80) consists of two flat plates (71, 71'; 81, 81') and a discontinuous structural element of irregular shape (72) or of regular shape (82) and of constant thickness in the direction perpendicular to the two flat plates.

7. Integrated and modular system according to claim 6, wherein the projection of said discontinuous structural element of regular shape (82) on the two plates (81, 81') defines a hexagonal grid.

8. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said two flat plates, independently of each other, are of the continuous type, of the microperforated type (101') with openings having maximum lateral size of less than 1 cm, or of the perforated type with openings having maximum lateral size between 1 and 50 cm, and in which said openings have an irregular (111, 111', 111") or regular (121, 121', 121") shape and are distributed on the surface of the plate according to an irregular (111, 111', 111") or regular (121, 121', 121") arrangement.

9. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein, on the face facing said discontinuous structural element or on the opposite face of said two flat plates (131, 131'), independently of each other, are present one or more massive elements (132, 132') of irregular or regular shape distributed on the surface of the plate according to an irregular or regular arrangement.

10. Integrated and modular system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein one or more acoustic wave diffracting elements (140, 140', 140") are present on the top of one or more soundproofing panels.

11. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one soundproofing panel (160) comprises a transparent or translucent plate (161) and a not necessarily transparent plate (161'), and inside said panel there are lighting elements (163) inserted in some or all of the cavities defined between the two plates by the lattice of the discontinuous structural element (162).

12. Integrated and modular system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one soundproofing panel (170) comprises a plate formed by two sheets, an internal sheet (171) and an external transparent sheet (172), connected to each other only on three sides so to leave a slot on the fourth side for the insertion of printed information material (173).

Drawing