Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
~i ~
There is a continuing need for improve-
ments in,structural materials, particularly those
suitable for home and light industry buildings.
There is also a need for construction materials
.~ which permit rapid erection by relatively unskilled
workers. Thi's invention is directed to both of
these needs by providing a building wall:structure
having a plurality of paperboard honeycomb;layers
. ~ adhesively secured to each other.in vertical
~ - - , arrangement, each of the honeycomb layers..~having
, a~central core of paperboard honeycomb;~having .`.
: vertical axes and a paperboard closure sheet essen~
tially covering the~top and the bottom of the core.
The opposite long sldes of the central~core honey~
: . - :- ~ ~ , , . ~
comb are open on each side and the top closure
: sheet of one honeycomb layer is:adhesivély~secured~
to the~bottom closure:~sheet'of an adjacent,honeycomb
' layer forming a plurality of:paperboard`honeycomb ;~
:' layers to a desired wall hPight. Utilizing-;the ;~
structure of this invention, an-entire:load:~bearing
~1 :, `'';`~ : . : interior or exterior wall or a:large,sec~io:n of -:~
such~'wall may be~'prefabricated;at a central location,'.
,.:.~..~ : ~ ,,~ '; i'~'~,~::' ' ~and~due to its.}ightweight and easy erection tech~
niques9 may~be::readily transported and~erécted at~
' the building site by relatively~ s illèd~-`wo ~ er '~
KIRR-103 ~ ~2
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Alternatively, any desired size building block
may be prefabricated at a central location and
shipped for on-the-site construction requiring
a minimal amount of skill in'the labor force
~ doing the on-the-site erection. When erected,
the walls constructed according to this
invention may be plastered directly on either
side with a cementious substance such as' an
exterior stucco,-interior plaster or mayibe~
~- ~ covered with conventional panels.
~ There have been previous attempts~to
: : utilize paperboard in building construction, but
; those known to the applicant have only ussd the
.' .paperboard as a com~ponent in otherwise conventional
building structuraI systems. .For examplèj'U. S.
Patent 3,753,843 teaches a ~uilding paneI..having
a core comprised of heavy paper honeycomb~.materiaL
itX a seamles3 covering of moldable material
' such~as::synthetic polymers~ : The molded ~.~ructural~ ` :
` panels formed by the 3,753~843 patent,~when.used
in conventional wàll~systems,~have ths~axes~of :~
the-honeyco ~ corè~in a~:horizontal dire ~ n.
U.-S'. Patent 3,883,999 and U. S. Pa~ent~-3,'7~98,852
: relate to precut, oid b~Ie~site~2rected:~aperboard~
IRK-103 ' '~ 3
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panels and trusses. The structures of these patents do not
provide the desired simplicity of erection nor surfaces on both
sides of the wall which may be readily plastered.
It is an object of this invention to overcome the above
disadvantages.
It is an object of this invention to provide a building
wall structure of paperboard honeycomb layers which may be
preassembled in wall units and readily erected at the building
site.
It is another object of this invention to provide a
building block for building wall construction, which building
block is made of paper honeycomb layers, alternate layers being
offset to form a tongue-and-groove joint with adjacent building
blocks.
In one particular aspect the present invention provides
a building wall structure comprising a plurality of paperboard
honeycomb layers adhesively secured to each other in verticai
arrsngement; each said honeycomb layer having a central core of
paperboard honeycomb cells having vertical cell axes and a
paperboard closure sheet essentially covering the top and bottom
of szid core, the opposite long sides of said central core
honeycomb being open on each side; the top closure sheet of one
honeycomb layer adhesively secured to the bottom closure sheet
of an adjacent honeycomb layer forming a plurality of paperboard
honeycomb layers to the desired wall height.
In another particular aspect the present invention provides
a building block for building wall construction comprising a
plurality of building blocks, each of said building blocks
comprising a plurality of paperboard honeycomb layers adhesively
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secured to each other in vertical arrangement; each said honeycomb
layer having a central core of paperboard honeycomb cells having
vertical cell axes and a paperboard closure sheet essentially
covering the top and bottom of said core, the opposite long sides
of said central core honeycomb being open on each side; the top
closure sheet of one honeycomb layer adhesively secured to the :
bottom closure sheet of an adjacent honeycomb layer forming a
plurality of paperboard honeycomb layers to the desired building
block height, the ends of said building blocks having alternate
honeycomb layers offset to form a tongue-and-groove joint with
adjacent building blocks.
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These and other objects, advantages and
features of this inven~ion will be apparen~ from
the description and by reference to the drawings
wherein preferred embodiments are'shown as:
.~ ` Fig. l is a perspective cutaway view of
a paperboard honeycomb layer sui~able for use in
this invention; ''
. :
' Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one em- ,
- bodiment of a building block according to this~
:,~invention;
~ . , . ~ - . - - .
Fig. 3 is a side view of the building..
block shown in Fig. 2;
Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the
corner portion of a wall structure,according~to ;~
this.invention utiliæing building~blocks as~shown
n Fig. 2; and ~ : si'~
ig.. 5 i9 a perspective~corner view'.of , :~
a wall structure of:'this inve~tion utilizing.pre-: ~.~ ''':'
fàbricated wall sections:according to one~embodiment,:'~
oE-this inventioD. ~
Fig. l shows a cueaway.~view~of a paperboard
honeycomb suitab1e~for, use in~thls'~invention.
Th~-honeycomb ~oard has a centra1 core~ formed . '',;~
from paperboard incIudin~ heavy~paper su~h às~ k~aft ~ ~ .
paper.: Throughout this disclosure~-and :claims',.the . ~ ,'
:term "paperboard" ls used to~includ~ any suitable
paper such as krae paper~ laminaeed pap~r,~;thin
corrugated, paper she~ts~ and ~other~;suitable~paper sheets.
RIRK-103 ~ 5~
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1~8962~
The honeycomb core, due to its internal closed
'cells, provides excellent thermal and acoustical
insulation. The shape and size of the individual
honeycomb cells may be modified to obtain desired .
compression, bending and shear strength of the
' honeycomb board. The ends of the honeyco=b - :
core are covered by closure sheets 12 and 13
whlch essentially cover the top and boteom of : ' --'
the central core structure. Closure sheets ~ ~-
12 and.13 are also paperboard such as heàvy kra~t.
paper~which is adhesivély secured to the..ends '~
of the honeycomb core material. The honeycomb
:core~material shown in Fig.~ is a hexagonal .
: ~ expanded core wherein the long axes of the~
:: . core~material i~:'''transverse to the long'axis
of the honeycomb board strips as useû~in this ;~
invention. Paperboard honeycomb boards are
'presently commercially available in various sizes '~
and th~cknesses.~. For use in::this invent~on it is.' '
pa~rticularly desired to u~e honeycomb~paperboard
having~a thickness o~ about~ l/2 to'4`"' he~
For~use iD this invention,~:the honeycom~.paper~
board is'first cu~ into strips of~the~desired
' thickness of the wall s~ructure, ple~èrably about~
l/2 to about 6 inohes. Aè~shown in~Fig.~
8ide face 14 and~end facs 15~ as well~as~their
' ` KIRK-103 :~ 6~
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opposite faces, not shown, are cut honeycomb cell
structures which are left open to provide a rough
; surface suitable for application o~ plaster. Thus,
. the side and end faces have inherent lath charac-
- teristics suitable for plastering directly~thereby
eliminating any need for wire mesh or expanded metal lath.
In one embodiment of this invention, the ~ .
;honeycomb strips as shown in Fig. 19;are cut to.
désired ]engths.to make individual honeycomb
building blocks such as shown in Fig.~ 2:as 20.~
Building block 20 is made by adhesively securing:
four strips of honeycomb~:paperboard in the con~
figuration as shown in Fig. 2 having first layer~ . -
21~second layer 22, third:layer 23,~and ~ourth
layer~24. Second layer~22 and fourth layer~24 are ~ ;
of~set from the ends of~first layer 21 and third
layer 23, an amount approximately equal to the~
wi of the buildi~g~block fo ~ ing-groove~;~27~
;a~d 28. Thus, in wall~constzuction,-~ ~ adjacent
building block extension.layers ~orresponding--to~ s~
; 2 nd 24, acting as~t ngues, extend i:nto grooves
:``;27 and 28 eqoslly well whether it.is de~ired. t~
.the ad~acent~building~block be::in~the~:.sam~ planar :~
relationship or~at.a~9R planar~relationship hav :~
ound that it i9 desirabl2 to cr ~ r~the~end of the: : : ;.
tongue portion6 o~ each layer sl ~ so that ~t~
ll be more readily~rece ~ ed~ ~ g a ~T s
` ~y-easily~be done.as the strip~. e.c~t to~d re~
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length by passing one end of the strip through a
roller havlng the deisired narrowing action.
It is seen that the buiiding blocks of this
invention may be erected into a wall structure
by simply assembling adjacent building blocks
.~ith adhesive on lower surface 25,and upper :,
surface 26, as ~ell as on the faces of the
tongue-and-groove joints at both ends of the '
blocks. Thus, a unitized wall system may~be~
readily constructed UBing thie bailding blocks~
shown in Figs. 2 and~3. , ;~
. The buiIding blocks,~ as~shown in Figs.
2~and 3, may be made at a central location'and .
shipped to:the building site for easy erection. , ;~
The building blocks as shown in Figs. 2~and`3;"
ma~ be of aDiy desired size and~may preferably
ha~e about 3 to 6 layers of honeycomb paper~
board. 'Figs:. 2~ànd;3;~show four layera'~
as exemplary only and i~ is readiIy seen~that `:'',:~.. ~.:.:.: :-.`',:
;one layer~may be el~ inated~making a thrèe~
layer block~or~addieional~layers~; ay~be. d~t:
'the:same fashion. Due~to:'the~lightnes ~in , ,~
weight,~it is. praceicsl:an~.dèsired~to mak~;t~e
b~llding.blocks of thisA'inve i
rger~than present b:used buildlng bIocks;,:`~
ormed~from CQncrete:or bric~ T~ë bui~ding~
d this invention may, l.~to.
length and 1 to 4~feet in height and~
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readily handled by unskilled erection personnel
at the ~ob site as well as readily transported
to the job site. Preferably, the block is spray
coated at the manufacturing site with a moisture
b
rbsistant.coating such as is provided by a wide
number of synthetic polymers and paint-type
coatings presently available to~provide protection-
during storage and transport and to permit an
. aqueous plaster.or cement to be-applied.~ Any
- coating providing desired moisture resist~nce is
: ' satisfactory.
Fig. 4 shows one embodimen~ o~f a~buiiding~
: , ' : ,wall structure constructed of 8 plurality:of '-
building blocks according to this inventian such .~ ,
,as~-illustrated in Figs. 2 and'3. The oor~er ' ...
`;` - tongue-and-groove structure'is clearIy.s ~ :at
corner 43'. It i8~ seen that outer face~of~the
block wall 4l provides~a roughened surfaqè^cauoed ~ f~
.s ~ by the:cutting of the cellular~core. '~Inner:face
'42~is the~sa e t~ e'surface~ai uter ~ 1.
It is readily see~.that the:lower course`~':of.' ,~
building~blocks~may be~placet directly :~a~
-~" ~ ~ "''''` ' ''~eve~sill of any'nature.-~The'sill ùpon ~ ich.~,'J~
,J ~: the~wall is placed may be;tXe~op of a concr te ,~: ' ' ''' '''
~ foundation or,footi~g~or~may be a woode~ or:steel~
J~ ill supported.~in any desired,~ashion.'.?":The only~
',.':requireme~t b~ing~that the 8ill prov ~ the ;
': ~ desired vertical,struct~ral`support,.fo~ e'wall.,~ ",".,,~:'~''~,:'''
IRK-103 ~ 9~
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system. Any desired ~eans of lateral resistance
may be supplied at the base of the wall. For
example, the bottom course of blocks may be set
. in a channel shape, may be held by strips on either
side, or may be forced over projections sticking
up from the sill structure. L-ikewise, the top
. .
of the wall structure.of this invention may be~
secured in any desired manner. For example, .~ ~
~afters or joists may be set directly on a plate ::
attached to the top of the uppe2 course of blocks.
A prefabricated roof slab may also be set dlrectly
on top of such plate. The building blocks may~
also be drilled for alignment and rein~orcement
rod holes which may be provided so that reinforcement~
~:r~ods ~ay:be ins~rted between blocks or extending
the:entlre~height of;the wall.
. Desired outer sheathing`44 may be applied
to~the exterior of the outer-face~41. Outer ~
sheathing 44 may be~any type of~de~sired exterior
finish panel such as wood or Letal,~which may.be
adhesively or ~echanically ateached to:.outer ace
41. For e~ample, conventional wood or:metal~
siding may be attachet to outer face~41 by nails
or strips~having barb~projectlon~ which ma; be~
driven into the honeycomb core for anchoring wi~h
or:withoùt supplemental ~astening.by àdhesive~
KIRK-103 ~ ~lO~
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The outer face 41, previously coa~ed with mois~ure
resistant coating, is then plastered with a
cementious substance such as Portland cement
or s~ucco to provide an exterior weatherproof
coating. Likewise, the inner face 42 may be
provided with inner sheathing 45 which may be
adhesively and/or mechanically secured to inner
face 42. Inner face 42 may also have interior
plaster applied.directly to the coated inner face ~ :
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~2. Thusj it is seen-that when the wall system~as :~
shown in Fi~.' 4 is utilized as an -exterior wall
~system, it may be coated with stùcco on the outside
and coated with plaster~on the~inside'providing a
structurally composite system which'~;provides goot
thermal insulation, desired acoustical properties
and ~ire resistance.
The same wall~systems as~previously~
described, uti~izing~the building'blocks of~this
~veotion, may be used for interior';walls. Such
interior walls provide~load bearing wall structures~ ~ ~'..'.
whieh may be plaster~d~directly~on bo~h side~
; Fig.~5 shows~another;embodi ent of '~
in~ntlon wherein:an entire wall or wall~section :~
L8 pre~abricated ant coated with~a moistore'.;reoista
coating at a central-location~and rapidly erected ; .
by relatively unskilled, on-the-site~personné;l.~ .~;s~
9~2~
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The prefabricated wall assembly 50 shown in Fig. :
5 has outer face 51 and inner face 52 with the
same random cut core, as more fully shown in
Figs. 1 and 4. Fig. 5 is shown in a more
stylized manner. ~ikewise, the prefabricated wall
assembly may~be covered with the desired outer
sheathing 54 and inner sheathing 55 in the same
manner as described above. The wall shown in Fig.
. ~ . .
S is erected by.simply securing the bottom of the
: : : wall to a sill as previously described and~securing ~ " . .
adjacent wall sections to each~other by coating
: ~ the tongue-and-groove~areas wi~th~a suitable.~
: ' adhesive and placing:~adjacent~wall sectiDns'in
; their desired pos~tiDnsO ~ g~
; , A wide number o~ suitable adhesives are~
: availablej especially synthetic~'adhesives~such
' as e*oxy resins and the like..'Any water:reæistant.
a ~esiv ~providi g,desired strength is ~ ~ le. :-~, ,; : :
' It is~preferred that the.adh siv- be~r ~ ly
fast:drying or'setting to m~nimize the~,need'~or
p,ecial ~igs or tempDrar bracing.
:It i8 noted~that~ in.the erec ~ of~both ,'~
the ex~terior and lnterior~walls,acoording'`to~this
vention, the:walls may:be erécted with:~.no"~
- ::openings:or with'the:larger.~openings~:ini~ve:ry :~
: ,.rough-~:~orm si~ce~::all~desired~openings-~may~,~be~
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readily cut for prefabricated doors, windows,
,
and the like, by simply sawing the opening
after the wall is 2rected and prior to installation
of the inner and outer sheathings. It is seen
from Fig. 5 that large prefabricated wall
assemblies may be readily erected at the building
site by simply coating the tongue-and-groove end
. ~
surfaces with adhesive and forcing the adjacent :~ ~ :
wall assemblies.into the desired position.
~: It is seen that the prefabricated:wall
assembly and building blocks of this invention~
: I provide an extremely lightweigh~ simply erected,
load bearing wall structure which may be utiIized :~
.for either an interior or exterior;wall. The
waIl construction according to this~invention,
:particularly suited for.use in those part~ of
the:world wherè paper~;pulp is~in~good supply~~and
erienced on-the-sLee conatruction~labor is.
t~avallable. It is~seen that:~:a~wide~va ~ :~of ;~
rolative b~simple one-sto ~ housing~structures~
s~may.be rapidly and inexpensively.produced~w~ile~
a~fordlng- 8 sturdy insulat ng s
:1 wall structure of this:invention may be plastered
: ~ ; o~ both sides wlth a locally available ado~e~
C~ e clay or.variou8~ mud compo~itions.
:: Nhil~ in the fore~oing::~specification this:~
:~vention ~ s be ~ described~in relatio~ to certai ~ :
KIRK-103 . -13~
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~1.0~396Z'l .
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preferred embodiments thereof, and many details
have been set forth for purpose of illustration,
it will be apparent to those skilled in the art
that the invention is susceptible to additional
embodiments and that certain of the details described
herein can be varied considerably without departing
from the basic principles of the invention.
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