U.S. patent application number 10/136114 was filed with the patent office on 2002-09-05 for weldment plate spacer/support.
Invention is credited to Schulze, Clayton E..
Application Number | 20020121065 10/136114 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 25110145 |
Filed Date | 2002-09-05 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020121065 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Schulze, Clayton E. |
September 5, 2002 |
Weldment plate spacer/support
Abstract
A spacer/support having a body portion, a surface engaging
portion and a securement to attach the body portion to a weldment
plate in tilt-up construction is disclosed. In a first embodiment,
the securement includes a plurality of fingers that can snap onto
the head of a Nelson stud. A second embodiment is equipped with a
flat head that can be secured to the weldment plate using an
adhesive. The length of the spacer/support may be adjusted manually
by cutting the body to length or by rotating one threaded member
relative to a second to accommodate different thicknesses of walls.
The spacer/support is preferably plastic but may be metal.
Inventors: |
Schulze, Clayton E.;
(Albion, PA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
RICHARD K THOMSON, ATTORNEY
7691 FAIRLANE DRIVE
FAIRVIEW
PA
16415
|
Family ID: |
25110145 |
Appl. No.: |
10/136114 |
Filed: |
May 1, 2002 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10136114 |
May 1, 2002 |
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09777400 |
Feb 6, 2001 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
52/677 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04B 1/41 20130101; E04B
1/355 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
52/677 |
International
Class: |
E04C 005/16 |
Claims
I claim:
1. During formation of a concrete wall, a device for supporting a
weldment plate, said device comprising a. a body portion having a
length substantially equal to the thickness of the concrete wall
minus a dimension of the weldment plate extending in a direction of
the thickness of the concrete wall; b. a surface engaging portion
for contacting a surface on which the concrete wall is poured and
supporting the weldment plate in a position appropriately spaced
from that surface; c. means for attaching said body portion to the
weldment plate; whereby the weldment plate will be maintained in a
desired position as wet concrete is poured and sets up.
2. The device of claim 1 wherein said length of said body portion
is adjustable.
3. The device of claim 2 wherein said length is adjustable by
manually removing excess length.
4. The device of claim 2 wherein said body portion comprises two
components which may be adjusted relative to each other to achieve
the desired length.
5. The device of claim 4 wherein said two components are threadably
engaged and rotation of one component relative to a second
component results in a change in the length of said body
portion.
6. The device of claim 4 wherein said means for attaching comprises
an adhesive layer between said weldment and one of said
components.
7. The device of claim 1 wherein said surface engaging portion
comprises a section which tapers to a point to minimize surface
treatment of the concrete wall needed to accommodate said
device.
8. The device of claim 1 wherein a material for said device is
selected from a group consisting of plastic, metal and powdered
metal.
9. The device of claim 1 wherein the weldment plate includes a
plate member and projections extending from the plate member, said
means for attaching comprises means to secure said device to a head
portion of the weldment projection.
10. The device of claim 9 wherein the projections are Nelson studs
welded to the nether side of the plate member and said means for
attaching comprises a plurality of fingers to capture the head
portion of the Nelson stud securing said device thereto.
11. The device of claim 10 wherein said plurality comprises at
least three equally spaced fingers with portions that snap behind
the head portion of the weldment projection.
Description
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to the manufacture of concrete
walls used in tilt-up construction. More particularly, the present
invention is directed to a spacer/support that holds a weldment
plate in proper position until the wet concrete sets up.
[0002] In commercial construction, as well as in residential
construction where wood is at a premium, builders are increasingly
using tilt-up construction, that is, they are pouring concrete
walls in forms as they lay on the ground, floor or other surface,
and then tilting them up into the desired position after the
concrete has cured. One of the features such construction affords
is the placement of a weldment plate on one surface of the wall so
that structural support beams, and the like, may be welded/secured
between adjacent walls. In current practice, the concrete wall is
poured and then the weldment plate is "floated" on the top of the
wet cement. Since these steel plates are denser than the wet
concrete, they tend to sink below the surface. Accordingly, it
sometimes becomes necessary to allow the concrete to take a partial
set and then attempt to push the weldment plate into the desired
position. Neither of these current practices provides effective
quality control and the results often are not those desired.
[0003] The device of the present invention comprises a
spacer/support that engages the support surface on which the
concrete wall is poured and a weldment plate holding it in the
desired position relative to that surface during the curing of the
concrete. The spacer/support comprises a body portion having a
length substantially equal to the thickness of the concrete wall
minus a dimension of the weldment extending in the direction of the
thickness of the concrete wall; a surface engaging portion for
contacting the surface on which the concrete wall is poured and
supporting the weldment in a position appropriately spaced from
that surface; means for attaching said body portion to the
weldment; whereby the weldment will be maintained in a desired
position as wet concrete is poured and sets up.
[0004] Weldment plates take different forms: some are simply
rectangular metal plates with two smooth surfaces. Other weldment
plates are equipped with protrusions on one surface that improve
the adhesion of the plate to the wall enabling greater weight to be
suspended therefrom. These protrusions typically take the form of a
plurality of Nelson studs welded to the surface of the plate that
is to be embedded in the concrete. These studs can have shaft
diameters of 1/4", 3/8", 1/2", 5/8" with head diameters graduated
by 1/4" increments between 1/2" and 11/4". For weldment plates that
have no protrusions, the support/spacer will have additional length
(as compared to those engaging the heads of Nelson studs) and be
equipped with a flat head that can be adhered to the nether surface
of the weldment plate by an adhesive such as LIQUID NAILS (a
registered trademark of Macco). A minimum of three spacer/supports
will be used on each weldment plate positioned in a triangular
pattern to provide balance in the wet concrete. The embodiment of
support/spacer engaging the Nelson stud will have a plurality
(three shown) of fingers that grip the head of the stud, the
fingers having portions that snap beneath the head and retain the
spacer/support in position while the concrete sets up. This
configuration will be made in a plurality of sizes to accommodate
the various sizes of Nelson stud heads.
[0005] The spacer/support is preferably made of a material selected
from the group consisting of plastic, metal, and powdered metal.
The end contacting the support is preferably pointed to minimize
the surface treatment needed for the wall and, typically, the wall
may simply be painted, papered or given any other conventional
treatment, without the tips of the spacer/supports affecting the
treatment. The length of the body portion of the spacer/support may
be adjusted in either of two ways: the surface may be scored at any
of a plurality of conventional lengths, and the spacer/support cut
to the length appropriate for the wall thickness with which it is
used; the spacer/support includes two parts that may be adjusted
relative to each other to achieve the desired length. Preferably,
these pieces are threadingly engaged and the length can be readily
adjusted by rotating one of the pieces relative to the other. This
feature may be added to either the flat-head or fingered
configurations.
[0006] Various other features, advantages and characteristics of
the present invention will become apparent to one of ordinary skill
in the art after a reading of the following specification.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The preferred embodiment(s) of the present invention is/are
described in conjunction with the associated drawings in which like
features are indicated with like reference numerals and in
which
[0008] FIG. 1 is a side view of a first embodiment of the weldment
spacer/support of the present invention shown assembled on a Nelson
stud;
[0009] FIG. 2A is an exploded side view of the spacer/support shown
in FIG. 1;
[0010] FIG. 2B is a top view of the first embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing the spacer/supports used
to suspend a pair of weldment plates on a tilt-up wall; and
[0012] FIG. 4 is a second embodiment of the weldment spacer/support
of the present invention for use with a weldment plate.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
[0013] A first embodiment of the weldment plate spacer/support is
shown in FIGS. 1-3 generally at 20. Weldment spacer/support
comprises an elongated body portion 22, a surface engaging portion
24, and means 26 for attaching the spacer/support to weldment plate
11. In this embodiment, weldment plate 11 includes projections 15
which may take the form of Nelson studs welded to the surface 13 of
weldment plate 11 to be embedded in the concrete 17 (FIG. 3). Body
portion 22 is of a length substantially equal to the thickness t of
the concrete wall 18 minus a dimension of the weldment plate 11
extending in a direction of the thickness of the concrete wall 18.
In this case, the dimension of the weldment plate extending in the
direction of the thickness of wall 18 includes the thickness of
plate 12 as well as the length of Nelson stud 15. Nelson studs come
in a plurality of sizes and lengths. Common diameters include 1/4",
3/8", 1/2", 5/8" with head diameters of 1/2", 3/4", 1"and 11/4",
respectively. The heads 16 also vary in depth having lengths of
0.187 inch, 0.281 inch, 0.312 inch, and 0.312 inch, respectively,
for the diameters listed here. The length of body portion 22 will
be designed to position the weldment plate 12 where desired,
typically with upper surface 14 flush with the surface 19 of wall
18.
[0014] Surface engaging portion 24 preferably comes to a point 25
so as to minimize the amount of weldment spacer/support that
protrudes on surface 21. Accordingly, minimal accommodation will be
necessary to treat the points 25 on wall 18. In fact, it is
anticipated that the painting, papering or other treatment provided
wall surface 21 will adequately cover the points 25. It is
preferred that the length of body portion 22 will be adjustable.
One such means can be the cutting of body portion 22 to the desired
length to place weldment plate 12 flush with the designed wall
surface 19 once concrete 17 is poured. To facilitate this cutting
(or breaking), body 22 may be provided with scoring lines 28 at one
or more conventional wall thicknesses/stud lengths so the point 25
may be maintained.
[0015] The material from which weldment plate spacer/support is
made is selected from the group consisting of plastic, metal, and
powdered metal. It is envisioned that a durable, tough plastic
material such as nylon or polypropylene, possibly with glass or
carbon fiber reinforcement, will be suitable for this application
and provide the most cost effective means of solving this problem.
It is, however, possible that for certain applications, the
strength requirements will dictate that the weldment plate
spacer/support 20 be manufactured from metal including but not
limited to powdered metal. The spacer/support 20 of the present
invention could be cast or machined from aluminum, from
example.
[0016] Means 26 for attaching body portion 22 to weldment plate 11
comprises a plurality of fingers 30 (shown exemplarily as three in
number) with portions 29 that snap in behind stud heads 16. As seen
in FIGS. 2A and 2B, fingers 30 are equally spaced about the
periphery of head securement 28. However, it is envisioned that as
few as two and as many as six fingers could be utilized to effect
attachment to head 16. If only two fingers 30 were utilized, they
would have an extended peripheral span to stabilize their hold on
head 16. It is preferred for stability reasons, that there be three
or more fingers 30. The depth of head securement 28 will be sized
to accommodate the length of stud head 16 and the diameter will
similarly be properly sized to receive the particular diameter of
stud head 16.
[0017] A second embodiment of weldment plate spacer/support is
shown in FIG. 4 generally at 20'. In this embodiment, body portion
22' is formed by a first component 32' and a second component 34'
that can be longitudinally moved with respect to each other to vary
the length, as desired. This variation in length is effected by
rotating one of the components 32', 34' with respect to the other.
The complementarily engaged threads 33' and 35' will produce the
desired variation in length. The head 31' of first component 32' is
designed for attachment to a weldment plate 12 that has no
projections. An adhesive, such as LIQUID NAILS may be used to
secure the spacer/support 20' to the surface 13 of weldment plate
12. A minimum of three spacer/supports 20' dispersed in a
triangular pattern will be needed to assure stable placement of the
weldment plate 12.
[0018] In use (FIG. 3), weldment plate spacer/supports 20 are
attached to weldment plate 11 as by snapping finger portions 29
over projection heads 16. At least three such spacer supports 20
configured in a triangular pattern should be used to ensure
stability. The length of spacer/supports 20 will have been
previously adjusted to position the surface 14 at the desired
reference plane with respect to upper surface 19 of concrete wall
18. The thusly equipped weldment plate 11 is situated inside
concrete forms 41 on surface 43 which may, for example, be a
plastic sheeting material, and concrete 17 poured into forms 41.
Weldment plate spacer/supports 20 hold plates 11 in the desired
position while the concrete 17 sets up. When the concrete 17 has
properly set, tilt-up wall 18 can be uprighted and secured in
position. The smallness of points 25 will have minimal/no effect on
the surface treatment required to finish wall surface 21.
[0019] Various changes, alternatives and modifications will become
apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art following a reading of
the foregoing specification. For example, while the two component
adjustable embodiment has been depicted only with the flat head
design, it will be understood it can easily be adapted for use with
the fingered securement head 28. It is intended that any such
changes, alternatives and modifications as fall within the scope of
the appended claims be considered part of the present
invention.
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