U.S. patent application number 11/742798 was filed with the patent office on 2008-11-06 for decorative load-bearing capitals for architectural columns.
Invention is credited to Edward H. Burke.
Application Number | 20080271396 11/742798 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39938556 |
Filed Date | 2008-11-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080271396 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Burke; Edward H. |
November 6, 2008 |
DECORATIVE LOAD-BEARING CAPITALS FOR ARCHITECTURAL COLUMNS
Abstract
Prefabricated decorative capital includes an axial recess
extending partway therethrough from a lower end wall for receipt of
an upper end of a prefabricated architectural column shaft. The
depth of the recess is somewhat less than the length of the upper
end of the column shaft above an external neck ring on the column
shaft, whereby when the upper end of the column shaft is received
in the recess with the uppermost end of the column shaft flush
against the bottom wall of the recess, there is a slight gap
between the lower end wall of the capital and the neck ring so the
load acting on the capital is transferred to the uppermost end of
the column shaft and not to the neck ring.
Inventors: |
Burke; Edward H.;
(Jefferson, OH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
RENNER OTTO BOISSELLE & SKLAR, LLP
1621 EUCLID AVENUE, NINETEENTH FLOOR
CLEVELAND
OH
44115
US
|
Family ID: |
39938556 |
Appl. No.: |
11/742798 |
Filed: |
May 1, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
52/301 ;
52/750 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04F 13/0733 20130101;
E04C 3/30 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
52/301 ;
52/750 |
International
Class: |
E04H 12/00 20060101
E04H012/00 |
Claims
1. A decorative capital for architectural columns comprising a body
member made of a load bearing material, the body member having
upper and lower end walls, and an axial recess extending partway
through the body member from the lower end wall for receipt of an
upper end portion of an architectural column shaft, the recess
having a bottom wall that is contacted by an uppermost end of the
column shaft when the upper end portion of the column shaft is
inserted into the recess for transferring loads directly from the
capital to the column shaft.
2. The capital of claim 1 further comprising a coaxial bore
extending through the body member from the bottom wall of the
recess to the upper end wall of the body member.
3. The capital of claim 1 wherein the recess has a depth of several
inches for receipt of a corresponding axial length of the upper end
portion of the column shaft.
4. The capital of claim 3 wherein the recess has a depth of at
least 3 inches.
5. The capital of claim 1 wherein the recess is sized for
relatively close sliding receipt of the upper end portion of the
architectural column shaft within the recess.
6. The capital of claim 1 wherein the body member is made of a
fiber reinforced polymer composite.
7. In combination, a load bearing architectural column shaft and a
load bearing decorative capital adapted to be inserted over an
upper end of the architectural column shaft, the architectural
column shaft having a neck ring extending radially outward from the
column shaft in axial spaced relation from an uppermost end of the
column shaft, and the capital comprising a body member having upper
and lower end walls, and an axial recess extending partway through
the body member from the lower end wall sized for receipt of the
upper end of the column shaft above the neck ring, the recess
having a depth somewhat less than the length of the upper end of
the column shaft above the neck ring, whereby when the capital is
inserted over the upper end of the column shaft with the uppermost
end of the column shaft flush against a bottom wall of the recess,
there is a gap between the lower end wall of the capital and the
neck ring so that any load acting on the upper end wall of the
capital is transferred to the uppermost end of the column shaft and
not to the neck ring.
8. The combination of claim 7 wherein the recess has a depth of
several inches.
9. The combination of claim 7 wherein the recess has a depth of at
least 3 inches.
10. The combination of claim 7 wherein the bottom wall of the
recess is substantially flat.
11. The combination of claim 7 wherein the recess is sized for
relatively close sliding receipt of the upper end of the column
shaft within the recess.
12. The combination of claim 7 wherein both the architectural
column and the decorative capital are made of a fiber reinforced
polymer composite.
13. The combination of claim 7 wherein the capital has a coaxial
bore extending completely through the body member from the bottom
wall of the recess to the upper end wall of the body member, the
dimensions of the coaxial bore being less than interior dimensions
of the uppermost end of the column shaft.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to decorative load-bearing capitals
for architectural columns that do not have to be secured to the
column shafts to keep the capitals in proper alignment on the
column shafts.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Architectural columns prefabricated, for example, out of
fiber reinforced polymers are commonly used to add style and
elegance to a house or other building structure including porches,
balconies, pool enclosures, decks, gazebos, courtyards and patios
or the like. The advantage in using prefabricated architectural
columns is that they are virtually maintenance-free and relatively
light in weight, making them easy and economical to install without
specialized labor or equipment. Also such columns may be tapered to
make them architecturally correct, may be made in a wide range of
designs, sizes and shapes including round or square, and may be
used for either interior or exterior applications. Capitals of
different designs and styles may also be prefabricated out of the
same or similar materials as the architectural columns for use with
the architectural columns to add elegance and accents to the
columns.
[0003] Heretofore, before the decorative capitals could be
installed on the architectural columns, the decorative columns had
to be trimmed flush above the neck ring on the column shafts so the
capitals could rest on top of the neck rings and allow for proper
fit. If the capitals were non-load bearing, plugs had to be
centered over the top of the neck ring on the column shafts and
secured in place using suitable fasteners such as screws or the
like, so the capitals could be positioned over the plugs and
secured in place by inserting additional fasteners through pilot
holes pre-drilled and countersunk through the capitals and into the
plugs. The plugs were typically sized to extend approximately 1/8
inch above the capitals so that any load acting on the plugs would
be transferred past the non-load bearing capitals to the column
shafts.
[0004] If the capitals were load bearing, there was no need for
plug extensions to transfer the load past the capitals to the
column shafts. However, the load bearing capitals had to be
properly sized and made virtually straight to properly fit on top
of the neck ring and had to be secured in place using suitable
fasteners to keep the capitals in proper alignment with the column
shafts.
[0005] The capitals of the present invention are also load bearing.
However, the capitals of the present invention do not have to be
secured to the column shafts to keep the capitals in proper
alignment on the column shafts. This has the advantage that the
ends of the column shafts above the neck ring do not have to be cut
off before mounting the capitals on the column shafts.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention relates to decorative load bearing
capitals that do not have to be secured to the column shafts to
keep the capitals in proper alignment on the column shafts. Nor do
the ends of the column shafts above the neck ring have to be cut
off before mounting the capitals on the column shafts.
[0007] In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the capitals
include a body member having an axial recess extending partway
therethrough from a lower end wall of the body member for receipt
of the upper end portion of the column shafts above the neck
ring.
[0008] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
recess in the capitals is sized for relatively close sliding
receipt of the upper end portion of the column shafts above the
neck ring for maintaining the capitals in proper alignment on the
column shafts.
[0009] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
recess in the capitals has a depth somewhat less than the length of
the upper end portion of the column shafts above the neck ring,
whereby when the capitals are inserted over the upper end portion
of the column shafts and the uppermost end portion of the column
shafts is flush against the bottom wall of the recess, there is a
slight gap between the lower end wall of the capitals and the neck
ring so the load acting on the capitals is transferred to the
uppermost end of the column shafts and not to the neck ring.
[0010] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
capitals may have a coaxial bore extending from the bottom wall of
the recess to the upper end wall of the capitals.
[0011] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
dimensions of the coaxial bore through the capitals is less than
the interior dimensions of the uppermost end of the column shafts
so the entire surface area of the uppermost end of the column
shafts contacts the bottom wall of the recess for transferring the
load acting on the capitals to the column shafts.
[0012] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the
shape of the side wall of the recess in the capitals substantially
corresponds to the exterior shape of the upper end portion of the
column shafts, which may be round or square.
[0013] These and other advantages, features and aspects of the
present invention will become apparent as the following description
proceeds.
[0014] To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the
invention, then, comprises the features hereinafter more fully
described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following
description and the annexed drawings setting forth in detail
certain illustrative embodiments of the invention, these being
indicative, however, of but several of the various ways in which
the principles of the invention may be employed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The present invention may be more readily understood by
reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
[0016] FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section through one form of load
bearing decorative capital of the present invention; and
[0017] FIG. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal section showing the
load bearing decorative capital of FIG. 1 placed over the upper end
portion of a prefabricated architectural column shaft.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] Referring now in detail to the drawings, wherein the same
reference numbers are used to designate like parts, FIG. 1 shows
one form of load bearing decorative capital 1 of the present
invention which is designed to be placed over the upper end portion
2 of a prefabricated architectural column 3 as shown in FIG. 2 for
transferring loads acting on the capital to the column shaft 4 as
described hereafter. Such load bearing capitals may be
prefabricated out of the same fiber reinforced polymers used to
prefabricate the load-bearing columns, and may be of different
designs and styles to add the desired elegance and accents to a
home or other building structure, including porches, balconies,
pool enclosures, decks, gazebos, courtyards and patios or the like.
The advantage in fabricating the capitals and columns out of fiber
reinforced polymers is that they are virtually maintenance free and
relatively light in weight, making them easy and economical to
install without specialized labor or equipment. Also the columns
may be tapered to make them architecturally correct, may be made in
a wide range of designs, sizes and shapes including round or
square, and may be used for either interior or exterior
applications.
[0019] The bottom end of the column shaft 4 (not shown) should be
trimmed to make the column shaft any desired height and
substantially finished to insure an even load distribution around
its entire circumference. When a decorative capital is used with
the column shaft, the capital height must also be taken into
consideration in determining the overall height of the column shaft
and capital.
[0020] Such columns may be used to support any type of beam
including floor joists, laminated beams or even steel beams in
commercial applications. The beams must be raised slightly to be
able to insert the columns and associated capitals in place under
the beams and then lowered onto the capitals.
[0021] Both the column shafts and capitals are typically made
hollow in order to reduce weight and material costs. Also making
them hollow has the additional advantage that they can be used to
conceal wiring or other items inside the columns including
downspouts as desired.
[0022] During fabrication of such architectural columns 3, a
decorative neck ring 5 is typically provided on the exterior of the
column shaft 4 in spaced relation from the uppermost end 6 of the
column shaft as shown in FIG. 2. Heretofore, when conventional
decorative capitals were used with the columns, the column shafts
had to be trimmed flush above the neck ring 5 so the capitals could
rest on top of the neck ring and allow for a proper fit. This
necessitated that the capitals be properly sized and secured to the
neck ring as by drilling pilot holes through the column shafts and
into the base of the capitals and then securing the capitals in
place using a toe nailing attachment. If there wasn't a strong
connection between the capitals and column shafts or the capitals
weren't virtually straight, they would not fit right on top of the
column shafts.
[0023] If the capitals were non-load bearing, a plug extension
having a length slightly greater than the height of the capitals
also had to be centered over the top of the neck ring and secured
in place using suitable fasteners such as screws or the like prior
to placing the capitals over the plug extension and securing the
capitals in place by pre-drilling and countersinking pilot holes
through the capitals into the plug extensions.
[0024] The load bearing decorative capitals 1 of the present
invention differ from previous known capitals in that they include
an axial recess 10 extending partway through the body member 11 of
the capitals from the lower end wall 12 of the body member for
receipt of the upper end portion 2 of the column shafts 4 above the
neck ring 5. This eliminates the need for having to trim off the
entire upper end portion 2 of the column shafts above the neck ring
prior to mounting the capitals on the column shafts.
[0025] Recess 10 in capitals 1 has a shape substantially
corresponding to the exterior shape of the upper end portion 2 of
the column shafts 4 above the neck ring, which may be of any
desired shape including round or square. Also the dimension of the
recess is slightly greater than the exterior dimensions of the
upper end portion 2 of the column shafts above the neck ring for
maintaining the capitals in proper alignment on the column shafts
when placed thereover.
[0026] The depth of the recess 10 may vary depending on the length
of the upper end portion 2 of the column shafts 4 above the neck
ring 5 which may be as little as 3 plus inches for 6 inch diameter
column shafts and 6 inches or more for larger diameter column
shafts. If the length of the upper end portion of the column shafts
above the neck ring is greater than 6 inches, the recess 10 may
have a depth, for example, of 6 inches or more. Any excess length
of the upper end 2 of the column shafts above the neck ring may be
cut off so that when the uppermost end 6 of the column shafts fits
flush against the flat bottom wall 15 of the recess, there is a
slight gap 16 between the lower end wall 12 of the capitals and the
neck ring 5, for example, 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch. This ensures that
the load acting on the upper end wall 17 of the capitals is
transferred to the uppermost end 6 of the column shafts and not to
the neck ring.
[0027] The depth of the recess 10 may be as little as 3 inches.
However, there should be enough overlap between the upper end 2 of
the column shafts 4 and the side wall 18 of the recess in the
capitals to properly locate the capitals on the upper end portion
of the column shafts and still provide a slight gap 16 between the
lower end wall 12 of the capitals and the neck ring 5 for the
reasons previously discussed. Because of the overlap between the
capitals and upper end portions of the column shafts inside the
recess, there is no need to attach the capitals to the column
shafts. However, the capitals should be attached to the beam or
other structure supported thereby using screws inserted into
predrilled and countersunk holes extending at an angle through the
capitals into the structure supported thereby.
[0028] The capitals 1 of the present invention may also have a
coaxial bore 19 extending from the bottom wall 15 of the recess 10
to the upper end wall 17 of the capitals as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2
to further reduce the weight and material costs of the capitals,
and to conceal wiring or other item inside the capitals and columns
including, for example, downspouts if desired. The size of the
coaxial bore 19 in the capitals should be less than the inner
dimensions of the uppermost end 6 of the column shafts so the
entire surface area of the uppermost end of the column shafts
contacts the bottom wall 15 of the recess as shown in FIG. 2 for
transferring the load acting on the capitals to the column
shafts.
[0029] Although the invention has been shown and described with
respect to certain embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent
alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the
art upon the reading and understanding of the specification. In
particular, with regard to the various functions performed by the
above-described components, the terms (including any reference to a
"means") used to describe such components are intended to
correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component which
performs the specified function of the described component (e.g.,
that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally
equivalent to the disclosed component which performs the function
of the herein illustrated exemplary embodiments of the invention.
In addition, while a particular feature of the invention may have
been disclosed with respect to only one embodiment, such feature
may be combined with one or more other features as may be desired
and advantageous for any given or particular application.
* * * * *