Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This invention relates to construction systems and
more particularly to a building construction utilizing pre-cast
panels, each of which is an integral unlt providing both the
foundation foot portion and a complete vertical seyment of the
wall o~ the building, and to casting forms for making such
panels.
It is an object of the invention to provide a pre-cast
building unit, and a building structure which make it possible
to erect building walls substantially without pouring any con-
crete at the building site.
The ultimate aim of the invention is to make it
possible to erect a building with cast concrete walls without
the labor and time normally required for building concrete forms
and reinforcement structures at the building site as well as
reducing the waste of time and labor involved in pouring the
concrete into the forms, allowing it to cure, and removing the
forms.
The invention provides a wall comprising a plurality
of substantially solid monolithic pre-cast cementitious panels
each havlng a generally planar section and an enlarged foot
portion, said foot portion of each panel being buried in the
~ground, and securing means for mechanically securing said panels
together~ in side edge-to-side edge relationship to one another
to form said wall, said enlarged foot portion resting on and
; being supported by soil underneath it.
The invention makes it possible to eliminate the cost
of transporting to the buildlng site special equipment such as
concrete mixers and framing materials D Additionally, it is
intended to avoid the waste of materials which sometimes occurs
~ when concrete forms are discarded after use at a building site,
and to improve the oonsistency of the quality of buildings built
of cast materials by building the panels at a manu~acturing site
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at which the e~fects of weather variations on the curing of the
concrete and personnel changes can be minimized.
It also becomes possible to reduce costs attributable
to the ordering of either excessive or insuficient ~uantities
of concrete or other materials usually used at the building site.
The foot portion of the panel is substantially wider
than the wall portion so that the foot portion will provide a
broad, stable, heavy base to support the wall section in a
vertical position.
The width of the foot portion preferably changes
gradually with its height, thus giving it a sloping face. This
forms an extremely strong structure, able to be transported to
the building site with little danger of damage, while being
relatively simple and easy to manufacture. The sloping foot
portion ends near the lower end of the panel (below the earth
level when installed), thus minimizing the cost of materials
used, and ensuring that the wall will be straight.
Preferably, the securing or attachment means for
interconnecting the panels has a substantial vertical extent so
that the panels can be secured together without expensive
leveling procedures, despite irregularities in the elevation of
; the ground surface upon which the panels stand.
Means are preferably provided for attaching floor and
roof supports to the panels. These means also are adapted to
avoid the labor and time required for leveling the panels, by
permitting attachment at a variety of vertical positions without
changing the levels of the surfaces supporting the floor and
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The form used for casting the panels is highly
adaptable. It has movable barriers for easily varying the
dimensions of the cast panels, thus saving the cost of
making many different forms for use in making panels having
different dimensions. One type of form can be used either
to form two separate panels in one pouring, or can be used
to make one very tall panel. Thus, the adaptable form and
the method of manufacture have unobvious versatility and
greatly reduce the time and cost of manufacture.
The foregoing objects, features and advantages
of the invention will be set forth in or apparent from the
following description and drawings.
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the pre-cast
construction unit or panel of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a side elevation view of ~he panel
of Figure l;
Figure 3 is a partially schematic elevation view
showing a plurality of thepanels of Figures 1 and 2 connected
~20 together to form a buuilding; and
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a casting form
constructed in accordance with the present invention.
Figure 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the panel
I0 of this invention. The panel 10 has two stems 1, a flange
9, and a foot section 2. The panel 10 is cast of concrete in
one piece; that is, it is monolithic.
Preferably, the panel is reinforced with steel mesh
30 7, and with steel reinforcing bars of pre-stressed cable at
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locations indicated by the dashed lines 3. The p~nel 10 is
shown resting upon the earth at 4.
In Figure 2, as well as in Figure 1, it is shown
that the foot section 2 has a sloping face. The width 13 of
the foot section 2 is considerably greater than the thickness
20 of the flange 9 and the thickness 8 of the stems 1. The
height of the foot section 2 is such that the foot section
ends in the lower portion of the panel. The height 6, the
width 13 and the angle of the sloping face of the foot section
all are variable, as is the width 5 (Figure 1) and the height 11
of the whole panel 10. It may be seen that variation in the
height 6 of the foot section dictates the variable width 13
of the footer, depending upon the angle of slope of the face
of the foot section.
The thickness 8 of the stems 1 and the thickness 20
of the flange 9 are variable, and determine the thickness of
the panel 10. The depth of penetration of the panel into the
earth 4 is represented by the dimension 12, and also is variable.
Steel weld-plates 16 are cast-in-place at the side
edges of the flange 9. The plates 16 allow the panels 10 to
be joined together welding. The weld plates 16 may be formed
by bending the ends of the reinforcing bars which span the width '
of the panel. Thus, when the weld plates 16 are welded together,
this welds the ends of the bars together and creates a continuous
reinforcement band around the building perimeter (except where
interrupted wi~h voids forming doors, windows, etc.). Thus,
a plurality of adjacent panels which are welded together form
;~ completed walls, including a fuoter, a founda~îon and the wall
surfaces.
; 30 Steel bolts or studs 14 are cast in place and extend
into the stems 1. The bolts 14 preferably are tied or otherwise
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secured to the steel mesh 7 and steel rod or steel cable
reinforcements 3 beEore the concrete is poured during casting.
Bearing-support ledges 15, which may be made of
wood, steel or other suitable material, are secured to the
S panels 10 by means of the bolts or studs 14. The bearing-
support ledges 15 support the floor joists 17 of the building,
and the whaler 18, at the top. The whaler 18 supports the
roof structure 22 (see Figure 3).
The first step in the method of erecting a building
is to determine the engineering and construction specifications.
These specifications include the desired number of floors,
live- and dead-load requirements, and soil loading and soil
characteristics. Then, the panels 10 are ordered and cast.
The dimensions of the panels are determined to conform to the
specifications, and include: the width (and number) of the
stems l; the width 5 of the panel unit 10; the height 6 (and
dependent dimensions) of the footer sec~ion 2; and width 13
of the foot; the depth 8 of the stems; the ~hickness 20 of
the flange 9; the resultant total thickness or depth of the
panel 10; the height 11 of the panel 10; the number and
location, vertically, o~ the steel bolts or studs 14; and the
depth 12 to whlch the panel is to be set in the ground, which
dlmenslon bears upon determination of the ~otal length 11.
The steel weld plates~16, are cast at suitable locations
according to the dimensions of tke panel 10.
The panels are cast from a mold, and the completed,
cured panels are deli~ered to the construction site when the
earth has been prepared to receive them.
; The cons~ruc~ion crew assembles the panels, ~oins
~30 ; them by welding together the weld plates 16, sealing the seams
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between panels as required. Joined panels may be sealed to
prevent moisture transfer by use of any suitable waterproofing
f agent and/or "Visqueen" or other suitable plastic sheeting
material. Any suitable caulking material may be used to seal
the panels above ground. Then the whaler 18 is attached, and
the joist-supportin~ support ledges 15 are attached to the
steel bolts or studs 14. A completed panel 10, when installed,
may immediately receive floor joists and roofing construction,
with no delay in construction.
Voids may be cast into the panel as required for
door and window openings, and for c-onstruction requirements
such as plumbing and electrical entrances. Voids may be
cast in the base of the footer section, to allow for any
necessary relief to accommodate soil expansion.
Panels may be cast without stems, where flat panels
are desired; the variable-thickness flange may be increased in
thickness in its casting to provide requisite load bearing
capacity.
Reinforcing may be deleted; or carbon, glass, plastic,
- 20 wood, paper or other reinforcement materials and methods may be
employed, if desired.
Figure 3 is an illustration of a plurality of panels
10 connected integrally to provide an enclosed building
structure having a floor 17 and a roof 22. As illustrated,
~25 ~each of the panels 10 is placed on the previously prepared
foundation. The drawing shows, in magnified form, the effect
of having an imperfectly level foundation. The panels 10 are
hown with their bottoms at distinctly different levels.
Therefore, the top of each panel 10 is displaced vertically
from the top of adjacent panels.
The panels 10 are joined together by welding the
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weld plates 16 together. The weld plates 16 have a
substantial vertical dimension so that they have sufficient
overlap to accommodate differentials in the vertical positions
of the panels 10.
The bearing support members 15 preferably are
relatively wide wooden beams; ~.g. boards two inches thick
by six or ei&ht inches wide. The bearing members 15 are
positioned so that their upper surfaces are level at the
height required for ~he floor or roof, and then holes are
drilled in the members 15 to accommodate the bolts 14. Note
that the bolts 14 for each of the two members 15 illustrated
in Figure 3 are shown at different heights, corresponding to
the differential that exists in the foundation elevation of
each panel. In this manner, panels 10 are int~grally joined
by plural means, comprising both the weld pla~es 16 and the
bolted members 15.
As illustrated, the floor 17 is positioned on top
of the lower member 15, and may be secured thereto by any
conventional means desired. On top of the upper member 15
ls positioned the whaler 18, on top of which are positioned
rafters 20, with the roof 22 secured to the rafters 20. It
is noted tha~, sub~ect to any limitation on the overall length
of the panels 10 that might exist for a particular building,
there may be a plurality of additional floors.
Figure 4 shows a preferred casting form 30 for use
in casting the panels 10.
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The form 30 includes side walls 32, end walls 33
and a bottom wall 34, and a supporting structure 36.
The side walls 32 and end walls 33 are vertical,
and the bottom wall 34 is horizontal in the central areas,
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but has two sections 38 which slope downwardly so as to form
the sloping foot portions 2 of the panels lO when the form
30 is filled with concrete.
The bottom wall 34 hAs longitudinal recesses or
slo~s 40 which are used to form the stems l of the panels lO.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention,
the form 30 is easily adaptable to make panels lO of varying
dimensions, and also can be used to make two panels simultaneously
with only one pouring of concrete. For these purposes there
are provided two movable end bulkheads 42 and 44, and one or
more movable central bulkheads 46 and 48. All of the bulkheads
extend up to or above the top of the side walls 32 and end walls
33 and span the full width 50 of the form 30.
The bulkheads 42 and 44 can be moved longitudinally
in order to increase or decrease the height 6 (see Figure 2)
of the foot section 2 of the panel lO. Simultaneously, such
movement will increase or decrease the wid~h 13 of the foot
section 2, because of the ælope in the section 38 of the form.
Blocks or wedges of various materials can be inserted between
2G the bulhheads 42 and 44 and the end walls 33 to hold those
bulkheads in a given position.
The bulkheads 46 and 48 can be moved to vary the
height ll of the panels lO. Each bulkhead 46 or 48 has a
; pair of extensions 47 or 49 which fit in~o ~he recesses 40.
The bulkhead sli~es along the surface of the bottom wall 34,
and is clamped in a desired location by conventional clamping
means (not shown).
1n order to increase ~he thickness of the flange 9,
rails can be attached to the top of the side walls 32 and end
walls 33 to raise the height of those walls.
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With the bulkheads in the positions shown in Figure 4,
two panels 10 can be made simultaneously. Concrete is poured
into the areas between bulkheads 48 and 44, and aiso between
bulkheads 42 and 46.
If, on the other hand, the desired height of the
panel is too great to permit two panels to be made, one of
the bull~heads 46 or 48 can be removed. Then, the extra
height is provided by the additional area in the center of
the form that is left by the removal of ~he bulkhead.
The form 30 preferably is made of steel sheets.
The support structure preferably is made of welded steel
reinforcing bars, angles or the like. However, the materials
of which the form and its support are made can be wo~d, metal,
fiberglass, etc.
The lengths 52, 54 and 56 of the center and two
end sections are variable, as are the width 50, total length
58, and hei~ht 60 of the form 30.
However, an angle o~ around 45 for the foot section
2 is preferred. Therefore the sloping form walls 38 preferably
are at an angle of 45 D,
The maximum height presently contemplated for each
panel 10 ~is approximately thirty-four feet. In order to
achieve that dimension, the sum of the distances 52 and either
54 or 56 should be slightly greater than thirty-four feet.
.... In a form which has been bulit and llsed successfully,
the recesses 40 had a width of our inches and a depth of six
inches. The widtll 50 of the form 30 was eight fee~, the centers
of the recesses 40 were each two feet from the nearest side
~all 3.2/ and.the recesses 40 were four fee~ ~part. Of course,
all of these dimensions can be changed as desired.
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In using the form 30, the engineering and construction
specifications for the panel are determined as described above.
If the stems 1 are not desired, then the recesses 40 can be
filled with wood or other materials.
Next, the central bulkheads are either inserted
or removed depending on whether one or two panels are to be
case, and then all of the bulkheads are located so as to
produce a panel 10 having the desired dimensions.
Next, the steel reinforcing members, bolts 14 and
welding plates 16 are located in the form 30. If needed,
additional form members may be added to form voids for doors,
windows, and soil expansion chambers in the foot section 2.
Also, an eye bolt (not shown) can be positioned in the form
so as to provide a means for lifting the panel 10 out of the
form when cured.
Then, the concrete is poured into the form, cured
and the panel or panels are lifted out.
From the foregoing, it can be seer, that the invention
satisfies the objectives set forth above. The invention makes
it possible to erect cast concrete walls at a building site
without having to pour concrete at the building site. The
structure of the building panels i5 simple, strong, and
relatively easy to make. Moreover, the tops of the building
panels can be leveled in a simple procedure. The casting
form and method used to cast the panels is extremely versatile
and permits variations in the panel dimensions to be made
with relative ease.
CLAIMS:
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