AU2004202784A1 - Formwork Systems, Methods and Panels for use Therein - Google Patents

Description

-1- FORMWORK SYSTEMS, METHODS AND PANELS FOR USE THEREIN Field of the Invention The present invention relates to formwork systems, to methods of construction using such forrnworks systems, and two panels for use in formwork systems.

Background to the Invention In my earlier international patent application no. PCT/AU98/01059, I have described a formwork system based on a combination of modules which facilitates the forming of solid concrete walls.

In my Australian patent application no. 2002323707, I have described methods and systems for forming concrete beams or walls. The method described in this Australian patent application involves setting rows of a plurality of boxing modules in an end to end relationship to create a formwork, fastening abutting ends of the modules, spacing the formwork by a plurality of spaces which span between the module panels and are fixed by bolts or push in ties, bracing and straightening the formwork as required, setting reinforcing between the formwork as required, and pouring concrete into the formwork.

The entire contents of my earlier international patent application no.

PCT/AU98/01059 and my earlier Australian patent application no. 202323707 are herein incorporated by cross reference.

The present invention relates to improved panels for use in such methods of construction. The present invention also relates to other methods of construction using the improved panels.

In another aspect, the present invention also relates to a method for forming a floor.

Brief Description of the Invention In a first aspect, the present invention provides a panel for use in forming a formwork for concrete in which a plurality of panels are joined together and spaced from other like panels to form the formwork, the panel having an inner face that in use comes into contact with the concrete, an outer face that in use faces away from the concrete, a peripheral edge extending around the panel, a flange extending back from the peripheral -2edge for joining to an adjacent flange of another panel and a plurality of reinforcement means in contact with the outer face of the panel.

Preferably, the plurality of reinforcement means includes a peripheral frame, said peripheral frame including the flange. More preferably, the plurality of reinforcement means further includes a plurality of reinforcing members extending between the peripheral frame. Even more preferably, the reinforcing members include a plurality of intersecting reinforcing members.

In an especially preferred embodiment of the present invention, the reinforcing means are integrally formed with the outer face of the panel.

The panel is suitably a unitary panel. Even more suitably, the panel is an integrally formed, unitary panel. The panel is suitably made from a mouldable material, such as plastic. The panel is most preferably made by a roto moulding process.

In a most preferred embodiment, the panel in accordance with the first aspect of the present invention is an integrally formed, unitary panel made from a plastics material.

The panel includes a peripheral frame that extends rearwardly from a peripheral edge. The peripheral frame includes side walls which form the flange of the panel. A plurality of intersecting reinforcing members are integrally formed with the peripheral frame. The intersecting reinforcing members suitably comprise one or more vertical reinforcing members that intersect with one or more horizontal reinforcing members. Each reinforcing member suitably extends from one side of the frame to an opposed side of the frame. The reinforcing members are integrally formed with the outer face of the panel. The opposite side of the outer face comprises the inner face of the panel. The outer face may further include reinforcing ribs to further strengthen the panel.

In this embodiment, the reinforcing members suitably extend away from the outer face of the panel, thereby providing thicker reinforcement members for the outer face.

As the reinforcing members are integrally formed with the outer face, the reinforcing members are in contact with and joined to the outer face which, in turn, reinforces the inner face of the panel.

The reinforcing members may have internal reinforcement made form a different material to the material from which the outer face is made. for example, the reinforcing members may comprise a metal or timber member that is encased in plastic or integrated with the plastic. This is especially suitable where the panel is made by a -3rotomoulding process. For example, the panel may be made by putting appropriate metal or timber reinforcing members into a mould and subsequently forming the rest of the panel by a plastics moulding process such that the metal or timber reinforcing members become encased in plastic or integrated with and thus are integrated into and form part of the panel.

The reinforcing members are preferably of generally square or rectangular shaped cross section. The reinforcing members may be solid reinforcing members or they may be hollow reinforcing members. If hollow reinforcing members are used, the reinforcing members may be filled with foam to further strengthen the reinforcing members.

In an alternative embodiment, the panel includes a panel member having an inner face and an outer face and the frame and reinforcing members are joined to the panel member. In this embodiment, the flange may be formed from the panel member or it may be formed as part of the peripheral frame. In this embodiment, the panel member may be made from plastics or sheet metal and the frame may be made from timber or metal.

Suitably, the frame is made from channel section or box section metal members.

The panels in accordance with the first aspect of the present invention can be used to construct formwork used for forming concrete beams or walls. The panels may also be used in the construction of walls, with the panels becoming incorporated into the wall structure. This may be achieved, for example, by joining together a plurality of panels to form a wall structure and optionally cladding the panels with a cladding material, such as plaster board or fibro cement, to improve the aesthetics of the wall. The panels may be held together by one or more ties to further stabilize the panels and the wall structure. In this use, the wall is suitably a non load-bearing wall.

The panels may also be used to construct load bearing walls. In this embodiment, a plurality of panels are joined together to form a wall structure, with the panels including one or more apertures or channels. The apertures or channels may then be filled with concrete and allowed to set to thereby form a load bearing wall. The apertures or channels may include suitable reinforcing material such as reinforcing bars, which becomes encased in the concrete. The panels may also be surrounded by or encased in concrete to further strengthen the wall. If panels are filled with concrete, the outer covering of the panel may be removed or stripped (for example, by chemical means or mechanical means) after the concrete has set.

The panels in accordance with the present invention may include one or more -4apertures extending through the inner face to enable spacers to be positioned between panels on opposed side of the formwork to hold the formwork in the desired spaced apart relationship.

The flange of the panel may include one or more holes to enable the flange to be joined to an adjacent flange of a similar panel, for example, by bolting. The flange may also include half apertures extending along the depth of the flange which, when matched with an adjacent flange, will form a bolting aperture.

Adjacent flanges may also be connected together using a U-bracket and appropriate bolts. Additionally, any of the means for joining flanges as described in my Australian patent application no. 2002323707 may also be used. The entire contents of my earlier Australian patent application no. 2002323707 are herein incorporated by cross reference.

In addition to providing panels for forming formwork and methods for using those panels in the construction of walls (by using the panels as part of the formwork for pouring concrete to form the walls and also by using the panels as members for the walls), the present invention also provides a method for preparing a concrete floor.

In a further aspect, the present invention provides a method for preparing a concrete floor comprising the steps of forming walls that support the floor, said walls being formed with slots in an upper part of at least two opposed walls, placing beams in the slots such that the beams span a space between the two opposed walls, pouring concrete onto the beams and allowing the concrete to set to form the floor.

Preferably, the beams are T-beams, i.e. beams having a T-shaped cross section. Preferably, the beams abut adjacent beams.

The floor may be a floor of a multi-storey construction and the construction process may involve forming walls of one storey, installing the floor at the top of the wall and adding further walls and floors.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings Figure I shows a perspective view of a panel in accordance with an aspect of the present invention; Figure 2 shows a plan view of the panel shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 shows a plan view of a modified panel in accordance with the present invention; Figure 4 is a perspective view of the panel showing a number of different reinforcing options strengthening the panel; Figure 5 is a cross sectional view taken along lines 4-4 in Figure 4; Figure 6 is a front view of another panel in accordance with the present invention; Figure 7 is a side view showing the connection of a number of panels together; Figure 8 shows a detailed close up of the connection of the flange part of adjacent side panels; Figure 9 is a side view of a plurality of panels of different sizes showing the creation of openings for doors and window block outs in a concrete formwork; Figure 10 is a side view schematically showing how a floor can be poured over the top edge of a wall, in accordance with another aspect of the present invention; and Figure 11 is a plan view of a wall structure prepared for forming the concrete floor as shown in Figure Detailed Description of the Drawings The drawings attached to the specification show preferred embodiments of the present invention. These drawings have been provided for the purpose of illustrating those preferred embodiments and thus the invention should not be considered to be restricted solely to the features shown in the drawings.

Figure 1 shows a panel in accordance with the first aspect of the present invention. The panel shown in Figure 1 is suitably formed by rotomoulding of plastics.

Figure 1 shows the outer face of the panel and the associated frame, flange and reinforcement members.

The panel 10 of Figure 1 includes a peripheral edge 12 that extends around the inner face of the panel. The inner face is not shown in Figure 1 but it is appreciated that the inner face of the panel comprises the hidden face of the panel. The inner face of the panel may be plain or embossed to create aesthetic appeal in the finished concrete wall. In -6this regard, it would be appreciated that any pattern formed on the inner face of the panel will be reproduced on the concrete that is poured into the formwork made from the panel.

The panel 10 includes a peripheral flange extending back from the peripheral edge 12. The peripheral flange includes flange parts 14, 16, 18 and 20. A plurality of vertically extending ribs 22, 24, 26 extend between the opposed flange portions 14 and 18.

A plurality of horizontally extending ribs 28, 30, 32, 34, 36 extend between opposed flange portions 16 and The outer face of the panel includes a number of sections disposed between the intersecting reinforcing members. Two of these sections are indicated by reference numeral 38. As can be seen, the reinforcing members are in contact with the rear face of the panel. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the reinforcing members are in contact with the outer face of the panel by virtue of the reinforcing members being integrally formed with the outer face of the panel.

To provide even further strength to the panel, the outer face of the panel is formed with a plurality of ribs, for example those shown at 40, 42.

The flanges 14, 16, 18, 20 include a number of apertures, such as those shown at 44, 46, 48 and 50. The apertures in the flange are provided to facilitate the joining of adjacent panels, for example by use of appropriate bolts.

It can also be seen that the ribs 22, 24, 26 are also provided with apertures, such as those denoted by reference numerals 52, 54 and 56. These apertures enable appropriate spacers to be passed therethrough to enable a panel to be properly spaced from an opposed panel in making the formwork. Half apertures, such as those shown at 58 and may be provided in the flange which, when matched with like half apertures in the flange of an adjacent or abutting panel, will form a bolting aperture.

Figure 2 shows a plan view of the panel shown in Figure 1. In Figure 2, the inner face 11 can be seen to be surrounded by peripheral edge 12. The other features shown in Figure 2 are the same as those shown in Figure I and like reference numerals have been used in Figure 2 to denote the same features as shown in Figure 1. These figures need not be described further.

Also shown in Figure 2 is the use of a U-bracket 62 which is connected to or clipped onto reinforcing rib 22 to provide further strength to reinforcing rib 22. The Ubracket 62 may be connected to reinforcing rib 22 by use of appropriate bolts or other -7fasteners, or by a friction fit between the U-bracket 62 and rib 22.

Figure 3 shows an embodiment that is generally similar to that shown in Figure 2, except that the vertical ribs 22a, 24a, 26a and the vertical components 16a, 20a of the flange are extended such that they have a greater depth than the corresponding ribs and flange parts shown in Figure 2. This provides added strength to the panel.

Figure 3 also shows use of a U-bracket 64 to connect the panel 10 to an adjacent panel (not shown). This will be described in more detail with reference to Figures 7 and 8.

Figure 4 shows the outer face of a panel 70, with a number of different ways of strengthening the panel being illustrated in Figure 4. These strengthening means comprise openings 74 in the rear face of the panel, which openings extend to the inner face.

The side walls 78, 80 of the openings 74 act to reinforce the panel. As can be seen from Figure 4, a number of different shapes may be used to strengthen the panel.

A cross sectional view along line 4-4 is shown in Figure 5 to more clearly show these features.

Figure 6 shows a panel 80 having a peripheral flange 82, a horizontally extending reinforcing member 84 and vertically extending reinforcing members 86, 88, The outer face includes ribs 92, 94, etc.

Apertures 96, 98, etc. are provided for allowing spacers to be inserted therethrough.

The panel of Figure 6 is generally similar to that shown in Figure 1.

Figures 7 and 8 show how a plurality of panels 10 can be connected together.

In particular, the flanges of adjacent panels 10 are positioned in abutment with each other and a appropriate U-brackets 100 with bolts 102 are used to join the flanges together. This is more clearly shown in Figure 8 in which a flange 104 of one panel is placed in abutment with the flange 106 of an adjacent panel. U-bracket 100 is placed around the flanges 104, 106 and bolt 102 is then inserted through an appropriate opening in the U-bolt to retain the U-bracket in place and to thereby hold the flanges (and panels) together. The bolt 102 is suitably inserted through an aperture made by appropriate positioning of half apertures (such as 58, 60 as shown in Figure 1) on the flanges 104, 106. A nut or similar fastener may be used to hold the bolt in place.

Similarly, U-brackets similar to that shown in Figures 7 and 8, may be connected to the reinforcing ribs to provide futher reinforcement and strength to the panels.

Figure 9 shows how a number of different sized panels 110, 112, 114, 116 can be joined to facilitate blockouts in the formwork where windows and doors are to be situated. The panel sizes may vary to suit standard building panel and door sizes.

The panels may also be used on a horizontal plane between boxed out beams for forming concrete floors in a manner described in my earlier Australian patent application no. 2002323707.

Figures 10 and 11 show the formation of a concrete floor in accordance with a further aspect of the present invention. Referring initially to Figure 11, side walls 140, 142, 144 and 146 are made, suitably from reinforced concrete. Opposed side walls 142 and 146 are formed with slots, such as 148, 150, therein. The slots 148, 150 on opposed sidewalls are essentially in register with each other.

In order to form the concrete floor appropriate T-bars 152 having a downwardly extending leg 154 and a laterally extending portion 156 are positioned in the slots 148, 150. As can be seen in Figurevl0, the downwardly extending leg 154 of T-bar 152 fits into slot 150. Furthermore, the T-bars and slots are sized and positioned such that the edges of the laterally extending portions 156 of T-bars 152 come into abutment with each other. Concrete 158 may then be poured onto the T-bars and allowed to set in order to form the floor.

The panels in accordance with preferred embodiments of the present invention include a number of reinforcing measures that result in the panels having sufficient strength to be used in making formwork for concrete. The panels are suitably made by rotomoulding of plastics material, The reinforcing ribs in the panels may include a reinforcing framework, for example formed from metal or timber, which becomes encased in plastic during the rotomoulding process. Other plastic moulding process may also be used to form the panels. The panels have flanges extending around their periphery, which flanges assist in joining adjacent panels together.

The panels may also be used as components of a wall a structure, particularly non-load bearing walls. In this regard, the panels may be assembled together to form a wall structure and the panels may then be clad with plasterboard or the like for improved appearance.

The panels may also be used as a basis for load bearing walls. In such instances, it is preferred that the panels have one or more apertures therein which provide for channels for receiving concrete and, optionally, reinforcement such as steel bar. To erect such a wall, the panels are assembled together, appropriate reinforcing bar inserted into the channels and concrete poured into the channels and allowed to set. The panels may also be encased in or surrounded by concrete to add further strength.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention described herein may be susceptible to a number of variations and modifications. For example, although the attached drawings of the panel show vertical and horizontal reinforcing ribs, it will be appreciated that the reinforcing ribs may extend in any convenient direction, for example diagonally or obliquely to the peripheral frame.

Although the invention may be susceptible to variations and modifications other than those specifically described, it is to be understood that the invention encompasses all such variations and such modifications that fall within its spirit and scope.

Claims (17)

1. A panel for use in forming a formwork for concrete in which a plurality of panels are joined together and spaced from other like panels to form the formwork, the panel having an inner face that in use comes into contact with the concrete, an outer face that in use faces away from the concrete, a peripheral edge extending around the panel, a flange extending back from the peripheral edge for joining to an adjacent flange of another panel and a plurality of reinforcement means in contact with the outer face of the panel.

2. A panel as claimed in claim I wherein the plurality of reinforcement means includes a peripheral frame, said peripheral frame including the flange.

3. A panel as claimed in claim 2 wherein the plurality of reinforcement means further includes a plurality of reinforcing members extending between the peripheral frame.

4. A panel as claimed in claim 3 wherein the plurality of reinforcing members includes a plurality of intersecting reinforcing members. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the reinforcing means are integrally formed with the outer face of the panel.

6. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the panel is a unitary panel.

7. A panel as claimed in claim 6 wherein the panel is an integrally formed, unitary panel.

8. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein is an integrally formed, unitary panel made from a plastics material having a peripheral frame that extends rearwardly from a peripheral edge, said peripheral frame including side walls which form the flange of the panel, a plurality of intersecting reinforcing members integrally formed with the peripheral frame, said intersecting reinforcing members comprising one or

11- more vertical reinforcing members that intersect with one or more horizontal reinforcing members. each reinforcing member extending from one side of the frame to an opposed side of the frame, said reinforcing members being integrally formed with the outer face of the panel, said outer face further including reinforcing ribs to further strengthen the panel. 9. A panel as claimed in claim 8 wherein the reinforcing members suitably extend away from the outer face of the panel, thereby providing thicker reinforcement members for the outer face. 10. A panel as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 9 wherein the reinforcing members have internal reinforcement made form a different material to the material from which the outer face is made 11. A panel as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 10 wherein the reinforcing members are solid reinforcing members or hollow reinforcing members.

12. A panel as claimed in claim 11 wherein the reinforcing members are hollow and are filled with foam to further strengthen the reinforcing members.

13. A panel as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the panel includes a panel member having an inner face and an outer face and the frame and reinforcing members are joined to the panel member.

14. A panel as claimed in claim 13 wherein the flange is formed from the panel member or it is formed as part of the peripheral frame. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the panel includes one or more apertures extending through the inner face to enable spacers to be positioned between panels on opposed side of the formwork to hold the formwork in the desired spaced apart relationship. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the flange of -12- the panel includes one or more holes to enable the flange to be joined to an adjacent flange of a similar panel.

17. A panel as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the flange has one or more half apertures extending along the depth of the flange which, when matched with an adjacent flange, form a bolting aperture.

18. Use of a panel in accordance with any one of the preceding claims to construct formwork used for forming concrete beams or walls.

19. Use of a panel in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 17 in the construction of walls, with the panels becoming incorporated into the wall. A method for preparing a concrete floor comprising the steps of forming walls that support the floor, said walls being formed with slots in an upper part of at least two opposed walls, placing beams in the slots such that the beams span a space between the two opposed walls, pouring concrete onto the beams and allowing the concrete to set to form the floor.

21. A method as claimed in claim 20 wherein the beams are T-beams, i.e. beams having a T-shaped cross section.

22. A method as claimed in claim 20 or claim 21 wherein the beams abut adjacent beams.

23. A method as claimed in any one of claims 20 to 22 wherein the floor is a floor of a multi-storey construction and the construction process includes forming walls of one storey, installing the floor at the top of the wall and adding further walls and floors. DATED this 24 th day of June 2004 Peter Bilowol By His Patent Attorneys CULLEN CO.