COLONNE D'EXTERIEUR PREFABRIQUEE

PRE-FABRICATED OUTDOOR COLUMN

Abrégé anglais

A pre-fabricated outdoor column assembly with an
outer wall having the appearance of masonry. The pre-fabricated
column assembly includes a tubular member
with an insert disposed inside the tubular member. The
insert has an opening for receiving a mounting post and
is disposed in spaced apart relation to the ends of the
tubular member such that a first space between the
insert and the tubular member and a second space between
the insert and the tubular member are formed.

Revendications

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WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. A pre-fabricated outdoor column assembly,
comprising:
an elongate tubular member having at least one
inner wall, at least one outer wall, a first end and a
second end disposed opposite the first end, the at least
one outer wall having the appearance of masonry; and,
an insert having a first end and a second end, the
insert disposed inside the tubular member, the insert
disposed adjacent to the at least one inner wall of the
tubular member, the insert disposed in spaced apart
relation to the first and second ends of the tubular
member such that a first space between the insert and
the first end of the tubular member and a second space
between the insert and the second end of the tubular
member are formed, the insert having a opening sized to
receive a mounting post.
2. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the tubular member further comprises an
opening for receiving a mailbox into the first space in
the tubular member.
3. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the insert further comprises a raceway

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extending from the first end of the insert to the second
end of the insert such that a conduit extending from the
first space to the second space is capable of being
disposed through the raceway.
4. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the opening in the insert is defined by
at least one first wall defining a first opening for
receiving the post and at least one second wall forming
a raceway disposed adjacent to the first wall such that
conduit can be run inside the insert along an outside
surface of the mounting post.
5. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the at least one outer wall of the
tubular member is coated with an elastomeric hard shell
coating.
6. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 5, wherein the hard shell coating comprises a
polyurea based coating.
7. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 6, wherein the coating is applied by spraying.
8. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the tubular member is formed by
rotocasting.
9. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of

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Claim 1, wherein the tubular member is formed by
molding.
10. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, further comprising a cap having a light fixture
disposed therein, the cap capable of being attached to
the column assembly at the first end of the tubular
member.
11. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the mounting post is an elongate
vertical post disposed in the ground.
12. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the mounting post is an elongate
vertical post attached to a concrete surface.
13. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the column assembly has an elongate
opening in the tubular member and has a corresponding
opening in the insert such that one end of signage is
capable of being attached to the mounting post.
14. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the mounting post is a standard 4" X 4"
post.
15. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of brick.

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16. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of paneled stucco.
17. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of stone.
18. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, further comprising an illuminated house number
display disposed in the column assembly.
19. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, further comprising an electrical outlet
disposed in the column assembly.
20. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the tubular member is formed from four
walls joined at ninety degree, keyed corners.
21. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 1, wherein the tubular member further comprises an
opening for receiving a newspaper box.
22. A pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly,
comprising:
an elongate tubular member having at least one
inner wall, at least one outer wall, a first end, and a
second end disposed opposite the first end, the at least
one outer wall having the appearance of masonry, the at

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least one inner wall of the tubular member defining an
opening extending from the first end to the second end
of the tubular member;
an insert disposed inside the tubular member in
spaced apart relation to the first and second ends of
the tubular member such that a first space between the
insert and the first end of the tubular member and a
second space between the insert and the second end of
the tubular member are formed, the insert having a first
end and a second end, the insert having at least one
first inner wall defining an opening extending from the
first end to the second end, the opening sized to
receive a mounting post, the insert having at least one
second inner wall defining a raceway such that conduit
may be disposed through the insert from the first space
to the second space; and,
a cap sized to fit onto the first end of the
tubular member.
23. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the tubular member further comprises
an opening for receiving a mailbox into the first space
in the tubular member.
24. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 23, wherein the mailbox is attached to the top
surface of the mounting post.
25. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the insert further comprises a raceway

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extending from the first end of the insert to the second
end of the insert such that a conduit extending from the
first space to the second space is capable of being
disposed through the raceway.
26. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the opening in the insert is defined
by at least one first wall defining an opening for
receiving the post and at least one second wall forming
a raceway disposed adjacent to the first wall such that
conduit can be run inside the insert along an outside
surface of the mounting post.
27. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the at least one outer wall of the
tubular member is coated with an elastomeric hard shell
coating.
28. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 27, wherein the hard shell coating comprises a
polyurea based coating.
29. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 28, wherein the coating is applied by spraying.
30. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the tubular member is formed by
rotocasting.
31. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of

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Claim 22, wherein the tubular member is formed by
molding.
32. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, further comprising a cap having a light
fixture disposed therein.
33. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the mounting post is an elongate
vertical post disposed in the ground.
34. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the mounting post is an elongate
vertical post attached to a concrete surface.
35. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the column assembly has an elongate
opening in the tubular member and has a corresponding
opening in the insert such that one end of signage is
capable of being attached to the mounting post.
36. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the mounting post is a standard 4" X
4" post.
37. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of brick.
38. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of

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Claim 22, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of paneled stucco.
39. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the at least one outer wall has the
appearance of stone.
40. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, further comprising an illuminated house number
display disposed in the column assembly.
41. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, further comprising an electrical outlet
disposed in the column assembly.
42. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the tubular member is formed from four
walls joined at ninety degree keyed corners.
43. The pre-fabricated, outdoor column assembly of
Claim 22, wherein the tubular member further comprises
an opening for receiving a newspaper box.
44. A method of constructing an outdoor column,
comprising:
providing an elongate tubular member having at
least one inner wall, at least one outer wall, a first
end and a second end disposed opposite the first end,
the at least one outer wall having the appearance of
masonry;

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providing an insert having a first end and a second
end and at least one inner wall defining an opening
extending from the first end to the second end;
attaching the insert inside the tubular member
adjacent to the at least one inner wall of the tubular
member, the insert disposed in spaced apart relation to
the first and second ends of the tubular member such
that a first space between the insert and the first end
of the tubular member and a second space between the
insert and the second end of the tubular member are
formed, the tubular member and insert forming a
prefabricated, outdoor column;
excavating a hole in the ground;
anchoring a vertical post to the hole;
placing the prefabricated, outdoor column over the
post such that the post is received by the opening in
the insert; and,
attaching the prefabricated, outdoor column to the
post.
45. The method of Claim 44, wherein the tubular member
further comprises an opening for receiving a mailbox
into the first space in the tubular member.
46. The method of Claim 45, wherein the mailbox is
attached to a top surface of the mounting post.
47. The method of Claim 44, wherein the insert further
comprises a raceway extending from the first end of the
insert to the second end of the insert such that a

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conduit extending from the first space to the second
space is capable of being disposed through the raceway.
48. The method of Claim 44, wherein the opening in the
insert is defined by at least one first wall defining an
opening for receiving the post and at least one second
wall forming a raceway disposed adjacent to the first
wall such that conduit can be run inside the insert
along an outside surface of the mounting post.
49. The method of Claim 44, wherein the at least one
outer wall of the tubular member is coated with an
elastomeric hard shell coating.
50. The method of Claim 49, wherein the hard shell
coating comprises a polyurea based coating.
51. The method of Claim 50, wherein the coating is
applied by spraying.
52. The method of Claim 44, wherein the tubular member
is formed by rotocasting.
53. The method of Claim 44, wherein the tubular member
is formed by molding.
54. The method of Claim 44, further comprising a cap
having a light fixture disposed therein, the cap capable
of being attached to the first end of the tubular
member.

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55. The method of Claim 44, wherein the mounting post
is an elongate vertical post disposed in the ground.
56. The method of Claim 44, wherein the mounting post
is an elongate vertical post attached to a concrete
surface.
57. The method of Claim 44, wherein the pre-fabricated
column has an elongate opening in the tubular member and
has a corresponding opening in the insert such that one
end of signage is capable of being attached to the
mounting post.
58. The method of Claim 44, wherein the mounting post
is a standard 4" × 4" post.
59. The method of Claim 44, wherein the at least one
outer wall has the appearance of brick.
60. The method of Claim 44, wherein the at least one
outer wall has the appearance of paneled stucco.
61. The method of Claim 44, wherein the at least one
outer wall has the appearance of stone.
62. The method of Claim 44, further comprising an
illuminated house number display disposed in the pre-
fabricated outdoor column assembly.
63. The method of Claim 44, further comprising an

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electrical outlet disposed in the pre-fabricated,
outdoor column assembly.
64. The method of Claim 44, wherein the tubular member
is formed from four walls joined at ninety degree keyed
corners.
65. The method of Claim 44, wherein the tubular member
further comprises an opening for receiving a newspaper
box.

Description

CA 02499443 2005-03-04
PRE-FABRICATED OUTDOOR COLgMN
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application claims priority to U.S.
Provisional Patent Application No. 60/592,083 filed on
July 28, 2004, entitled "Pre-fabricated Outdoor Column,"
which is incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to outdo4r columns
far use as free-standing landscape pillars, fencing
columns, mailbox support columns and commercial sign
support columns.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Outdoor columns are typically constructed with
masonry building materials such as concrete, cement
mortar, reinforcing steel bar, clay, marble, brick,
stone or stackable pre-cast concrete block of various
shapes to achieve a column. Many of these materials are
susceptible to cracking, scaling, effluorescence and
hydro-freeze expansion. Also, these materials typically
require a large foundation to support the weight of the
building materials (typically 300-400 lbs.). These
materials require extensive labor, packaging and heavy
equipment to transport from suppliers to the
installation site. Accordingly, there is a need for an
outdoor column that provides a durable, decorative,
versatile, relatively inexpensive, and easy to install
design for use in exterior landscape, fencing and sign
support applications.

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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention meets the above-described
need by providing a multi-purpose, outdoor engineered
column system that is prefabricated for rapid
installation in the field.
BRIEF DESCRIPTTON OF THE DRAWTNGS
The invention is illustrated in the drawings in
which like reference characters designate the same or
similar parts throughout the figures of which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the core of the
present invention;
Figure 2 is a top perspective view of the core of
the present invention;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a column of the
present invention shown in a mailbox application;
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a column of the
present invention shown in a commercial sign
application;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of a column of the
present invention with a light kit installed;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of a column of the
present invention having a simulated brick surface;
and,
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a mounting post
attached to a concrete pad.
DETAILED DESCRIPTIO~1
Referring to Fig. 1, a core 10 is typically

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rectangular with four side walls 12, 14, 16, and 18
joined at the corners to form a hollow structure with an
inside cavity 19. The four walls 12, 14, 16, 18 may be
joined at ninety degree keyed corners and bonded
together by commercially available adhesives or the like
as will be evident to those of ordinary skill in the
art. The walls 12, 14, 16, and 18 may be molded from
suitable plastic materials such as polystyrene,
polyethylene, or polyurethane resins. The molding
processes include, but are not limited to, injection
molding arid rotocasting (rotational molding). Molding
provides for speed of manufacture, however, other
methods of forming the walls may also be suitable. The
outside surfaces 21 of the walls 12, 14, 16, and 18 are
provided with surfaces textures that resemble
traditional brick, paneled stucco, natural stone or the
like. The outside surfaces 21 are provided with an
exterior hard shell coating to provide the appropriate
colors for the particular design and to provide a
coating to provide protection for use in outdoor
environments. By way of example only, the exterior
coatings for the walls 12, 14, 16, 18 are a combination
of commercially available polyurea base coating, acrylic
bonding primer and an exterior insulation finishing
system {EIFS) textured finish coating. The E3FS coating
is a textured 100% acrylic polymer finish coat used in
both residential and commercial construction. As an
alternative, the walls and surface texture for some of
the columns such as stone-type may be formed integrally
in a rotocasting process where the textures and coloring

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would be inherent in the polyethylene or polyurethane
resin compound.
In the example shown, the top 20 and bottom 22 are
square-shaped and open. The inside cavity 19 is
provided with an insert 24. The insert 24 may be
rectangular shaped with outside dimensions matching the
inside dimension of the cavity 19 such that the insert
24 may be disposed snugly inside the cavity 19. The
insert 24 may be attached inside the cavity I9 by
IO adhesives or the like as will be evident to those of
ordinary skill in the art. The insert 24 has an opening
26 disposed along a central longitudinal axis. The
opening 26 is sized to receive a standard 4" X 4" post.
The opening 26 is also provided with at least one
conduit raceway 28 defined along the edge of the opening
26 such that conduit(not shown) can be run along the
outside of the post inside the insert 24. The
electrical conduit/wire passageways or raceways 28 are
designed to allow for electrical conduit or underground
rated wire to be installed within the column 39 (Fig. 3)
far supplying electrical power to an optional light
fixture kit 40 (Fig. 3), electrical outlet kit, or
illuminated house number kit.
As shown in Fig. 1, the insert 24 is spaced apart
from the bottom 22 of the side walls 12, 14, 16, 18 such
that a space 30 is formed below the insert 24. The
space 30 provides for a degree of flexibility with
regard to the position of the conduit for applications
such as lights or the like.
The core 10 is also provided with a space 33

CA 02499443 2005-03-04
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extending to the top 20. The space 33 provides an area
for a mailbox 31 (Fig. 3) to be inserted into the core
of the finished column 39 as shown in Fig. 3.
Turning to Fig. 2, wall 18 may be provided with an
5 opening 36 in the shape of a mailbox. The opening 36
receives the mailbox 31 and newspaper box (not shown)
which is disposed above the post when the column is
installed. The conduit raceways 28 may be disposed on
different sides of the opening 26 such that the conduit
i.s not obstructed by the mailbox 31.
The structure described above for the core 10
provides the end user with the ability to rapidly
install the finished product aver a commonly available
4" X 4" wood, PVC, steel or aluminum post installed in
15 the ground. The post may be initially installed into an
8"-20" ho~.e that is augured in the ground. The post is
inserted into the hole to the appropriate depth
depending on the local building codes with regard to the
frost line. The post is secured by backfilling with
20 commonly available pre-mixed concrete. The
prefabricated column 39 is then mounted over the
installed post and bonded to the post using commercially
available exterior rated adhesives or the like_ Using a
4" X 4" wood, PVC, aluminum or steel post provides a
safe "break away" feature in the event that an moving
vehicle comes into contact with the prefabricated
column.
The columns are designed to accept various
accessory devices that are field mounted to enhance the
usefulness of th.e column such as a mailbox kit, a light

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fixture kit, a light fixture mounting base kit, a plant
holder bracket and illuminated house number display.
In Fig. 3, a column 39 having a mailbox 31 and a
lighting kit 40 is shown. The lighting kit 40 is
mounted on a top cover 44 that engages with the top of
the side walls 12, 14, 16, 18 to cover opening 20.
Turning to Fig. 4, a pillar 50 fox supporting one
side of a commercial sign (not shown) has an opening 53
on the side where the sign i~ inserted. Opening 53
extends through the core and insert of pillar 50 such
that a bracket (not shown) can be inserted into the
opening and attached to the post at one end and attached
to the surface of the outdoor signage at the opposite
end. Accordingly, the bracket and the post are load
bearing and not the pillar 50. Except for the opening
53, the core and insert are similar to the core and
insert shown in Fig. 1.
The pillar 50 is slid over a 4"x4" aluminum or
steel post set in concrete to the appropriate frost
level to support the load of the sign. The bracket is
bolted to the post once it is inserted into the opening
53 on the side of the pillar 50. The opposite end is
bolted to the finished surface of the outdoor signage.
In Figs. 5 and 6, alternate versions of the designs
for the columns are shown. In Fig. 5, column 60 is a
paneled stucco version having a top cover 44 with a
light kit 40 installed therein. In Fig. 6 a brick
column ?0 is shown with a plain top cover 80.
As shown in Fig. 7, in addition to the post hole
mounting, the column of the present invention may be

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field mounted to existing concrete footers, foundations,
pads, sidewalks, patios, driveways, walkways, or asphalt
parking lots by using optional pad mounting brackets 90
that are attached to the bottom of a mounting post 93.
The brackets 90 are attached to a concrete pad 99 by
commercially available masonry fasteners or the like as
will be evident to those of ordinary skill in the art.
Other shapes of brackets and mounting hole patterns
including a single bracket may also be suitable.
While the invention has been described in
connection with certain embodiments, it is not intended
to limit the scope of the invention to the particular
forms set forth, but, on the contrary, it is intended to
cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents
i5 as may be included within the spirit and scope of the
invention as defined by the appended claims.

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