AU742278B2 - A stump - Google Patents

Description

1 -1- P/00)011 Regulation 32

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for service GRAEME SMITH Graeme Smith in Australia: CARTER SMITH BEADLE 2 Railway Parade Camberwell Victoria 3124 Australia Invention Title: A STUMP Details of Associated Provisional Application: PO3297 filed 29 October 1996 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us II n -2- TITLE A STUMP This invention relates to a molded support device which can be used to replace structural building supports or stumps in existing buildings and other fixed structures.

In Australia, wooden structural supports or stumps have been used extensively to support the bearers under the flooring of many existing commercial and residential buildings. Depending on the ground conditions beneath the building, wooden stumps can last between on average 30 to 60 years before they are no longer serviceable and need to be replaced. To replace a stump, the bearer is supported and the old stump removed. The installer then positions the new stump and adjusts the height of the stump using some form of packing. If the stump is not in contract with the bearer after the installation process, or the stump is not aligned vertically to support any compressive load along the longitudinal axis of the stump, the replacement stump will be ineffective in supporting that section of the bearer.

Generally the replacement stump is molded from concrete in predetermined lengths. Two people are generally required to locate and pack the stump into :.:":position. Molded concrete stumps have previously been provided with lengths of wire molded into the end of the stump to provide a means of attaching the stump to the bearer and hold the stump in contact with the bearer. However, such an attachment requires a nail or other fixing means to be correctly positioned and i secured to the bearer requiring the use of both of the operators hands prior to positioning of the stump. This is a time consuming exercise and not always accomplished without error. Consequently, unless the nail is positioned to ensure that the wire loop is taut once the stump is in position, any slackness in the wire loop will result in the stump loosing contact with the bearer and therefore not acting •effectively to support that section of the bearer.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a molded concrete support which can be positioned and secured to the structure to be supported by a single operator quickly and easily.

Accordingly, the invention provides a molded support device for supporting BGC'JH#19018.CAP 21 Octob 1997 "4.

3 structural fixtures or bearers of buildings including an elongate support and rigid attachment means, the rigid attachment means comprising at least one attachment member and an anchor member, the anchor member being integrally formed and positioned in the elongate support.

In one form of the invention, it is preferable that the at least one attachment member extends longitudinally of the elongate support, and the anchor member extends laterally of the elongate member. The at least one attachment member and the anchor member are preferably connected together and may be integrally formed and positioned in the elongate support.

Preferably, the elongate support is formed by molding and allowing to set, moldable structural material. The rigid attachment means are preferably molded into said elongate support during the molding process.

The attachment member may include fixing means for securing the attachment member and the elongate support to the structural fixture or bearer of the building to be supported. The fixing means ensures that the concrete stump or elongate support can be secured into position against the bearer or structural fixture during the installation process ensuring correct alignment of the elongate support or stump and the proper functioning of the support device to support that section of the bearer.

The features, objects and advantages of the present invention will now become 20 more apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments and accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is a perspective view of the present invention connected to a bearer of a 25 house or the like structural fixture, and Figure 4 is a perspective view of a mold used to produce the present invention.

Referring to Figure 1, the invention comprises an elongate support or stump 1 having formed therein a rigid attachment means shown as planar attachment members 2, 3. An anchor member 4 connects together and holds the attachment Melboume\003921922 Printed 15 October 2001 (15:22) -4members in position on the stump 1. The attachment members 2,3 and anchor member 4 are preferably integrally formed by bending an appropriate sheet material such as sheet steel or aluminium so that the length of the anchor member is approximately the width of the stump 1.

When the molded support of the invention is positioned beneath a bearer of a house or building, the attachment members 2,3 are only required to withstand small shear forces since most of the forces applied to the support are compressive forces applied vertically along the longitudinal axis of the stump. Thus while the attachment members must be rigid to enable proper fixing to the bearer, it is only necessary for them to withstand small shear forces.

The attachment members are preferably provided with a fixing means for attachment to a bearer of a house or the like structural fixture. The fixing means may be holes to receive nails or screws known as Tek screws which are driven or screwed into the bearer. As shown in Figure 2, the fixing means may comprise a plurality of projections commonly termed gang nails.

As shown in Figure 2, the invention may be provided with only a single attachment member 12 connected to an anchor member 14 embedded within the elongate support 11. As discussed above the purpose of the elongate members is to position the stump and hold the stump in position during the installation process.

It is not necessary for the attachment members to withstand large shear forces and so in many cases a single attachment member may be sufficient to locate and secure S-the stump in the correctly aligned position beneath the bearer.

To produce the invention, the attachment means shown in Figure 4 as attachment members 6,7 connected by anchor member 8 is positioned in a mold 14.

The mold 14 consists of four sides to define the outer surfaces of the elongate S• support and does not have a bottom or top surface. The attachment members are aligned either side of an end panel of the mold and extend beyond that panel. The mold is then filled to the top of the sides of the mold with concrete and levelled to provide a smooth surface. As the mold is sitting on a substantially smooth surface, the bottom surface of the elongate support will also be substantially smooth. Once BG CJ:#1901.CAP1 21 October 1997 the concrete is set, the mold is removed.

Figure 3 shows a stump 1 connected to a bearer 5 using nails 9 driven into holes 10 formed in the attachment member 2 to fix the attachment member in position. Due to the rigidity of the attachment member 2,3, the invention is positioned by the installer holding the stump in position against the bearer 5 with one hand and either hammering the nails 9 or gang nails 13 or screwing the Tek screws into the bearer 5 with the other hand to thereby hold the support device in the correct position during the installation process. As discussed above, the purpose of the attachment members is to withstand the nominal shear forces and hold the stump in the correct position during the installation process. Therefore only one attachment member may be sufficient. By holding the stump 1 in the correct position during the installation process, the stump can be correctly positioned and installed below the bearer to ensure that no gap exists between the stump and bearer after installation and that the compressive load is transferred vertically along the longitudinal axis of the stump.

Hence the present invention is useful in ensuring that the replacement stumps are correctly aligned beneath the bearer in a commercial or residential building and in contact with the bearer to properly support that section of the bearer. The invention is equally useful in ensuring that the support for a bearer is correctly positioned beneath the bearer of a new building. The bearers used with the V invention may be timber or hollow rectangular section steel. When steel bearers are o used, the attachment members are secured to the bearer using Tek screws.

o BGCIH:#1g018.CAP 21 Ocobuer 1997

Claims (12)

1. A molded support device for supporting structural fixtures or bearers of a building including an elongate support and rigid attachment means, the rigid attachment means comprising at least one attachment member and an anchor member, said anchor member being integrally formed and positioned in the elongate support.

2. The molded support device of claim 1, wherein the at least one attachment member extends longitudinally of the elongate support, and the anchor member extends laterally of the elongate member.

3. The molded support device according to claim 2 wherein the at least one attachment member and the anchor member are connected together.

4. The molded support device according to claim 3 wherein the at least one attachment member and the anchor member are integrally formed.

The molded support device in accordance with any one of the preceding claims wherein the elongate support is formed from molded concrete.

6. The molded support device in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, wherein the attachment member and anchor member are formed from a sheet material.

7. The molded support device in accordance with any of the preceding claims wherein the attachment member includes fixing means for securing the attachment member and the elongate support to the structural fixture or bearer of the building to be 20 supported.

A method of forming a molded support device in accordance with any one of the preceding claims, including forming the elongate support by molding and allowing to set, a moldable structural material. oooo•

9. A method according to claim 8, and further including molding the rigid attachment means into the elongate support during the forming of the support.

10. A method of supporting a structural fixture or bearer of a building including the steps of: positioning a molded support device in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 7 against the fixture or bearer to be supported, and Melboume\003921922 Printed 15 October 2001 (15:22) engaging the fixing means with the fixture or bearer to secure the attachment member and the elongate support to the fixture or bearer.

11. A method of replacing a support for a structural fixture or bearer of a building including the steps of removing the existing fixture or bearer, positioning a molded support device in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 7, holding said molded support device against said fixture or bearer and securing said attachment member of said molded support device to the fixture or bearer.

12. A molded support device for supporting structural fixtures or bearers of a 1 building substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying S* 10 drawings. Dated: 3 May, 2001 FREEHILLS CARTER SMITH BEADLE 15 Patent Attorneys for the Applicant GRAEME SMITH A RNM:DL:40382059 AMD 3 May 2001