CA1310201C - Attachment and reinforcement member for molded construction forms - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT
The Attachment and Reinforcement Member for Molded Construction Forms, as embodied herein, has a central portion of expanded webbed steel in which the ends are bent to accommodate covering strips of solid galvanized steel.
The invention is embedded in a molded construction form during the form's manufacture. The strips of the solid galvanized steel extend to the outer surfaces of the form and provide attachment surfaces whereas the central portion of expanded steel web reinforces the form. The result is a molded construction formthat is stronger, and one that further provides easily locatable embedded attachment surfaces for bracing means during the curing of the concrete and for finishing materials. The molded construction form has a number of galvanized steel strips, preferably ten with five on each outer surface, located at the standard building twelve inch centers, to provide surfaces for attaching any type of wallcovering such as sheetrock, siding, paneling, lath for stucco, or brick veneer.
These attachment strips also define the location of the vertical cavities and concrete posts within the construction form.

Description

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ATTACHMENl AND lREINFORCEMENT MEMBER
FOR MOLDED CONSTRUCTION FORMS

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the field of building cons~ruction ma~erials and more particularly to an improved means of reinforcing and applying materialsto the outer surfaces of molded construction forms.

BACKGROUND QF THE INVENTION
The advantages of using a self-supporting molded cons~ruction fo~m in the building industry a}e well known in the art. These construction forms are manufactured from a polymeric material, often polyurethane or polystyrene, which expands within a mold to yield a rigid, low-density foamed plastic form having vertical and/or horizontal cavities to be filled with wet concrete. Tl~e polys~yrene concrete forms typicaily have a tongu~ and groove arrangement on allsides to allow for the interlocking placement of additional forms on either side, above, and below a form as to construct a solid wall or structure. Wet concrete is poured into the construction forms which are then left in place, instead of -~eing removed, once the concrete has cured thereby pro~/iding support for the concreteand insulation for the finished building structure. U.S. Patent No. 3,552,076, entitled "CONCRETE FORM" to ~:;regori, and U.S. Patent No. 3,788,02Q, entitled "FOAMED PLASTIC CONCRETE FORM WITH FIRE RESISTANT TENSION
MEMBER" to Gregori both teach methods whereby polystyrene foam is molded to y;eld a concrete forrn.
The construction industry has incorporated several means of attaching finishing materials to the outer sides of these molded construction forms after the concrete within the cavities has set~ One such method has been to glue the paneling, sheetrock, or other suitable finishing materials to the outer surfaces of 2 ~ ~

the completed form. Additionally, outer finishing materials may be rigidly attached using a penetrating device through the outer molded form to the dried concrete or other building mate}ial inside the form. Another method to attach finishing materials is to glue or nail furring strips on the outer surfaces of the 5 forms. Gluing the furring strips to the foam forms require construction adhesive, and nailing the furring strips or the finishing materials to the outer sides of the forms require that special concrete nails be used. The application of these concrete nails, moreover, must be accomplished at a critical time during the curing of the concrete. Then, the finishing materials are nailed or screwed onto10 the furring strips.
Another method whereby materials can be mounted to a building structure has been to glue an intermediate attachment surface to the outer surface of a polymeric building structure. The adhesion of sheet metal to polyester foam beams is presented in U.S. Patent No. 3,922,828, entitled "STRUCTURAL
15 MEMBER" to Patton. Finishing materials are then attached by means of nails orscrews to the strips of sheet metal. The disadvantages associated with this arrangement is that it is costly and time consuming to apply a continuous sheet of rnetal to the outer surfaces of building studs or beams. Moreover, adhesion materials are also costly and the adhesion may eventually deteriorate with the 20 resultant separation of the finishing materials from the synthetic structural member. An aiternative embodiment of the Potter invention is to embed a Z-shaped piece of steel ~,vithin the polyester structural beam and to attach thefinishing material to the outer surfaces with screws or other penetrating devices through the Z:-shaped steel member. This means of attachment poses the 25 difficulty of locating the steel members embedded within the structure and do not extend to the outer surfaces. A large piece of steel is required to either cover ~3~2~

large building beams or studs, or to embed the steel within the beam or stud. This not only malces the beam or stud heavy and burdensome, but it is costly to provide such a large piece of steel in the structure.
Another rnethod for applying materials particularly to the concrete form S previously discussed is presented in U.S. Pa~tent No. 4,223,501, entitled "CONCRETE FORM" to DeLozier. This patent teaches a method whereby a one piece transverse connecting member is embedded in the polystyrene concrete form taught in the Gre~ori patent. The connecting member has attachment flanges extending at right angles which extend near the outer surfaces of the form, and thus are allegedly suitable for receiving fastening members penetra~ing the flanges. The disadvantages presented by the DeLozier invention include the difficulty of locating the flanges once the concrete form is in place and the concrete has been poured because the attachment flanges are positioned below theouter surface of the concrete fo}ms. The DeLozier invention ~eaches that the attachment flanges can be located with either a template or markings on the foamunits. Alternatively, the attachment flanges can be located by breaking away ~hefoam to reveal the flanges for attachment. All of the above methods are tirne consuming and rec~,uire additional labor.
The manufacturing costs associated with the concrete form embodied in the DeLozier patent, moreover, are high partially because of the one piece construction of the connecting members and extending flanges. The connecting member taught by DeLo~ier is manufactured from heavy gage steel wieh arcuate or polygonal holes punched in the steel, thus generating substas~tial wasee material.
The one piece construction of the connecting member and the attachment flanges, furthermore, requires that the attachment flanges be rnade from the same heavy gage steel as the connecting rnember. Practical application of the DeLozier invention reveals that it is difficult to screw or attach finishing materials to the form because the steel is too thick. The ~ invention uses only two of these connecting members psr form unit wherein each connecting member is placed midway between the center and the edges of the form presumably because of the cost of the steel and the weight of the heavy gage steel used. The use of only two connecting members per form does not practicably yield additional streDgth or reinforcement of the concrete form at the weakest parts of the form which are the ends.
A device similar to the invention taught by DeLoz er has been in use in the industry incorporating a metal connecting member, bu~ the attachment flangesare pieces of wood, generally of a 2 X 2 size, embedded in the outer surfaces ofthe concrete form. The wooden flanges are stapled ~o the metal connecting member, and then the finishing materials such as sheetrock is a~tached to the wood as is common in the art. Two wooden attachment members are used on each outer surface of the per polystyrene concrete iform, and are located midway between the center and the ends of the forms. This arrangement presents several disadvantages, some of which have already been discussed. First, the use of the wooden attachment members at the two locations provides no reinforcement of the construction form at the weakest parts of the form, i.e., the ends of ~he fonu.
Secondly, it is impossible to apply these wooden attachment flanges to the e~ds of the form because they interfere with the tongue and groove arrangemene for the fitting of adjacent forms. Lastly, the stapiing of the wood flanges to the central metal web portion presents a point of potential failure. The wood n~ay easily separate from the metal web portion and, at worse, the finishing materials could separate from the outer surfaces of the construction forms.
A construction panel unit made up of solid flanges and elcpanded steel mesh is taught in U.S. Patent No. 3,872,636, entitled "LIGH T WEIGHT LS~)AD
BEARING METAL STRUCTURAL PANEi,'' to Nicosia. This unit is intended to provide for high strength compression and tension load sustaining surfaces inthe construction of walls, ceilings, floors and the like, and is used in place of the ~3~l~2~1 rnolded construction form. It would be impossible to apply this construction panel to a molded construction form withou~ having new molds machined ~o accommodate the elaborate configuration of steel mesh and steel bars embodied in the Nicosia invention. Rather, the panel p}esents a construction alternative to 5 the molded construction form. The cost of fabrication of this panel, moreover, is rela~ively high compared to the cost of the polystyrene eonstruction fosms incorporating the features of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INyENTION
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide increased strength and reinforcement to molded construction forms.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an attachment member whereby bracing means can be easily applied to the molded construction forms to hold the molds level and plumb while the concrete or other building substance 15 cures and hardens.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a visual means of defining where the concrete posts are located within the construction mold.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an imp}oved and more eronomical means for attaching finishing materials to the outer surfaces 20 of molded construction form.
The present invention provides an improved and a mose economical means of attaching materials to the outer surfaces of molded construction forms and provides additional reinforcement of the forms.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the invention.
Figure 2 is a side view of the invention.
Figure 3 is a perspsctive of the invention when viewed from an edge.

Figure 4 illustrates the invention incorporated into a construction form, with a portion of ~he outer surface of the folm cut away for demonstrating the placement of the invention.
Fi~ure S is a plan view of the invention incorporated into a construction 5 form.
Figure 6 is a side view of the construction form and illustrates the s~acking of the construction form and the attachment surfaces provided by the invention.
Figure 7 is an enlarged view of Figure 5 showing ~ cut-away portion of the construction form incorporating the invention and the attachment of a 10 finishing material to the construction form.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBoDiMENT
Referring to Figs. 1,2, and 3, the invention, an A~ttachment and Reinforcement Member for Molded Construction Forms, comprises a piece of 15 expanded mesh 10 with a central web portion 12 and extensions 14 bent at an angle 16 and ex~ending in the same or opposite direction at a distance determined by the application of the invention with anachment members 18 of solid galvanized steel bent snugly on either side of the extensions 14 as shown in Figure 2. It is to be understood that while the preferred embodiment of the present 20 invention uses an expanded metal mesh, preferably steel, as the expanded mesh, other metals, such as aluminum, or even nonmetallic subs~ances which proYide high tensile strength may also be used as the expanded mesh 10 of the invention.Lilcewise, the preferred embodiment of ~he invention uses solid metal, and most preferably, solid galvanized steel of a lighter gage than the expanded mesh 10, as 25 the attachmen~ member 18, but other materials with a solid surface, an appropriate thickness, and with sufficient strength characteristics may be incorporated into the present inYention.

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Initially, the dimensions of the flattened piece of expanded mesh 10 are nine inches by thirteen inches. The extensions 14 of the expanded mesh 10 are bent at angles 16, leaving approximately one inch at the bent extensions, and a central web portion 12 of the invent;on as a rectatlgle of approximately ten inches S by eleven inches. The dimensions of the attachment members 1~ are approximately nine inches by two inches. The attachment members 18 are then folded along the longitudinal axis with one inch extending from either side of the center fold and applied to the extensions 14 of the expanded mesh 10 ~us covering the mesh of the extensions 14 as shown in Figure 2. Care m~lst be taken10 during the manufacture of the invention to ensure that the overall depth of the finished construction form 20, shown in Figure 4, minus the overall dimension ofthe central web portion 12, the bent extensions 14, and the attachment members 18 covering the extensions 14 is between one-thirty second and one-ei~hth of an inch. This difference in dimensions must be slight for two reasons. If this 1~ difference does not fall within the aforementioned specifications, the metal or substance from which the expanded mesh 10 is composed, may scra~ch or otherwise mar the delic~ately machined aluminum molds when the invention is placed in the mold during the manufacture of the construction form, especially is the expanded mesh is expanded steel. The critical dimension of the invention,20 moreover, allows the attachment members 18 to extend to and lie within the plane of the outer surfaces 26 of the construction form 20, and are thus easily visible.
While it should be noted that the preferred embodiment of the present invention is incorporated into the molded polystyrene concrete form 20, the dimensions of the invention can be altered to accommodate its use with other 25 types and sizes of molded çonstruction forms. For example, for a smaller polystyrene mold the initial expanded mesh 10 may be of the dimensions nine inches by eleven inches, such than when the extensions 14 are bent at angles 16,a central web portion 12 would be a sq~are of ayproximately nine inches by nine inches. Furthermore, the e~tensions 14 bent at angles 16 to the expanded mesh 10 may be greater than or less than one inch, and correspondinglY the dimensionsof the attachment members 18 may be greater or less to accommodate the changes in dimensions of thc extensions 14, thereby creating a larger o} a smaller S attachment surface 18 on the outer surface 26 of the construction form 20. Thus, it is intended that the dimensions given are not limitations of the present invention, but rather merely provide an example of its application.
The central web portion 12, as sbown in Fig. 1, is an open mesh structure, preferably provided by the expanded metal technique, well known in the art, 10 wherein longitudinal slits a}e perforated in sheet metal and the metal is stretched laterally to expand the slits resulting in a uniform pattern of staggered diamond-shaped longitudinal openings 30 having a longer or major axis, and a shorter or minor axis. Upon expansion of the metal, the longitudinal or rhomboid openings 30 are angularly configured, i.e., the side of each rhomboid opening parallel the 15 major axis is situated above the plane of the other side. This angular arrangement of the steel mesh is common in the building industry and is suitable for the application of plaster to the steel mesh. It is also common to the specialty steel sheet industry and is generically referred to as expanded metaL The expanded metal is then preferably flattened eo form the expanded mesh portion 10 of the 20 invention. The expanded mesh portion 10, however, need not be flattened. The invention as embodied herein may accommodate the angular configuration of the central web portion 12 if the slots in the aluminum mold are sufficiently wide enough to allow for that additional depth or if replaceable inserts are placed in the mold to prevent the scratching and marring of the aluminum mold that may 25 otherwise occur. The advantages presented by using the expanded metal technique eliminates the additional labor associated with punching the holes in the steel, and the waste resulting from the punching arcuate or polygonal holes as taught in the prior art because the expanded metal is readily available. The ~ 3 ~

expanded mesh 10 of the central web portion 12 also facilitates the flow of the construction material which can be quite viscous, such as concrete, within the cavities 22 of the molded construction form 20 more efficiently than the flow ofwet concrete through the polygonal or arcuate ho;les embodied in the prior art.
S As mentioned, it is preferred that the attachment members 18 are constructed from a solid piece of a lighter gage of steel than is required for the central expanded steel mesh portion 10 of the invention. This arrangement is advantageous because the lighter gage steel is less expensive than the heavier gage steel used in the prior art, and the lighter gage steel is readily available in the building industry. The heavier steel construction of thase devices taught in ~heprior art, moreover, makes penetration of the steel more difficult and, of course, morc time consuming for the construction worker. The present invention overcomes this disadvantage of the prior art by providing a lighter gage steel surface for attachment making it easier to scIew or otherwise apply materials tolS the finished form. The lighter gage steel of the attachment members, rnoreover, provides sufficient strength to funetion as a load bearing unit to support the finishing materials.
The attachment m0mbers 18, shown in Figures 2 and 3, are folded over the extensions 14, rather than integrally attached to the extensions 14. This means of attachment presents several advantages over the prior art in which the attachment flanges are integrally connected with the a heavier steel and are manyfactured from steel of the same gage. First, by merely folding the attachment members 18~one does not have to spot weld or other~vise go through a time consuming and costly process required for integral construction. Another advantage of the present invention addresses the orientation of the rhomboid openings 30 within the central web portions 12 resulting from avoiding the integral construction ofthe cross members and attachment flanges presented in the prior art. In Figure I, note that the major axis of the rhornboid openings 30 are parallel to the line A

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- A' and are perpendicular to the line B - B'. If the invention were to use an integral construction technique whereby the ;nterior portion of a solid piece of steel were slit and then expanded leaving extensions 14, the orientation of the rhomboid openings 30 would be rotated, and the major axis of the open;ngs would 5 be parallel to the line B - B'. Additional strength is obtained by orientation of the major axis of the rhomboid openings 30 along A - A' because the expanded mesh 10 has greater resistance to forces applied normally along B - B' than along A -A'. Note that when the invention is embedded in the construction form 20, as shown in Figure 4, the orientation of the major axis of the }homboid openings 30 is perpendicular to the plane of the outer surfaces 26 of the form 20. When the construction forms 20 are stacked one upon the other for sto}age or shipping, stresses are applied along the line B - B' which provides greater resistance to compression and other forces than if the rhomboid openings 30 were along axis A - A'.
Figure 4 illustrates the incorpora~ion of the invention into a construction form 20. During mamlfacture of the construction form 20, the invention compris}ng the central web portion 12, with the extensions 14 of expanded mesh ~: 10 bent away from the central web portion 12 and covered by the folded attachment mernbers 18 of solid galvanized steel are placed in the grooves of ~he 20 mold of the construction form 2û. In the preferred case of using an expanded . polystyrene concrete form, the molds are closed and polystyrene beads are injected. The polystyrene beads expand around the invention and embed the present inYention within the finished construction form 20, as shown in Figures 4, S, 6, and 7. The attachment members 18 extend to the outer surfaces 26 of the 25 molded construction form 20. As can be seen in Figures 4 and 6, the attachment surfaces presented by the embedded attachment members 18 are easily visible. A
template or otherwise marking the finished construction forms 20 to locate the attachment surfaces as taught in the prior ~rt becomes unnecessary, and the 11 3~1 ~2~

present invention eliminates the costs of the recluired template and the labor associated with its use or otherwise locating the attachment surfaces. The attachment members 18 also visually define ver~ically where the concrete posts are located in the finished structure because the center of the concrete posts are 5 located in the form cavity midway between each of the at~achment members 18, shown at 22 in Figures 4, 5, and 7. This allows for a simplified means of locating where wall or adjoining floor members may be anchored into the concrete posts.
Most preferably, the present invention is inserted in fiYe positions of the molded polystyrene concrete mold 20, i.e., at each end 28 of the form and at each 10 of the three interior ribs 24 within the molded polystyrene concrete form 20 shown in Figures 4 and 5. This placement of the invention provides increased reinforcement and added strength of the form 20, especially at the ends 2B of the form which are the weakest parts of the structure. The use of the Attachment andReinforcement Member in the five placement positions strengthens the 15 construction form 20 to withstand the strain and stress that occur during the pouring, settling, and curing of wet concrete~ The construction form 20 incorporating the present invention is at least two times as strong as any otherform presented by the prior art.
The attachment members 18, moreover, are conveniently located at the 20 ends 28 and are placed in the center of each rib 24, at intervals of the building standard of twelve inch centers per construction form 20. Each of the attachmentmembers 18 offers an attachment surface area, as shown in Figure 4. The use of the present invention provides one hundred and fifty percent more attachment su}faces for finishing materials to the construction form 20 than as taught in the 25 prior art. As shown in E:igure 5, the attachment members 18 all project towards the left side of the drawing, except for the unit placed at the far right end 28 of the form 20. At these ends 28, where the tongue of the form 20 extends to mate with the groove of the adjacent forrn 20, the invention projec~s to the right in the ~ 3~2~L

drawing. When the forms 20 are fit together, as shown in Figure 6, by matching the tongues of one form with the grooves of the adjacent form, an effective attachment surface of two inch width is provided at the matching ends 28 by reversing the projection of this last unit.
The figures, Figures 2, S, and 7, depict the extensions 14 in a channel configuration. One extension 14, however, may be bent in an opposite direction from the other extension 14, such that the angle 15 at which one extension 14 isbent will be substantially ninety degrees or to the central web portion 12, while the angle 16 of the extension 14 at the opposing end will be substantially two hundred seventy degrees relative to the central web portion 12, in an essentially Z- shaped configuration. The projection of each attachment member 18, as shown in Figure 5, moreover, need not all be in the same direction. Thus, any one or more of the attachment surfaces 18 may project in any direction and may be channel- or Z-shaped so long as the attachment member 18 does not interfere with the tongue and groove arrangement of the construction forms 20.
It is important to note that there are five such units used in the polystyrene molded concrete form 20 because that is the number of grooves i~ the premanufactured molds of this particular construction form 20. The invention may be adapted for use with any construction molds, and the number and dimension of the units to be incorporated into a construction form 20 is determined by the number of grooves in the rnolds, by the preferred building interval, and the number requited to hold the construction form 20 together.
Thus, if only three units of the present invention were placed in the polystyrene molds, one on each end 28 and one at the center rib 24, the attachment and bracing surfaces would be located at twen~y-four inch centers. Some molds allow for sixteen inch building centers. European and foreign construction forsns havestandard building increments based upon the metric system. Thus, the design of the mold and the resulting construction form 20 will determine the number and 11 3102~1 dimension of the present invention used and incorporated into the form 20.
During construction of a building structure, the forms 20 are placed in a staggered and layered arrangement shown in Figure 6. It is preferred that the form 20 that is placed above the underlying form 20 be offset at a distance of at least one integral number of the attachment and reinforcement member. In this fashion, the attachment members 1~ a}e right above or below the attachrnent member 18 of the adjacent form 20, as along line C - C' shown in Figure 6. This placement not only permits al;gnment of the attachment members 18 along ~he building increments, but more importantly, allows alignment of the concrete cavities 22, which is essential to the structural strength of the concrete structure being built. Wet concrete is then poured into the cavities 22 of the forms 20, directly from a concrete truck or more conveniently with a hose from a concrete pump for better control. After a sufficient length of time while the concrete isallowed to set up, another tier of construction forms 20 is built upon the previous and concrete is again poured. It is necessary to provide a bracing means, usually straps, wires or a rigid material, to maintain the construction forms 20 plumb, level, and strait while the concrete is poured into the forms 20 and while the concrete sets up. The attachment members 18 provide an easily locatable and a strong surface to attach the bracing means to the construction forms 20 while the concrete is poured and sets up.
Figure 7 is an enlarged view of a construction form 20 incorporating the present invention. In this view, finishing material 32 has been applied to the outer surfaces 26 of the construction form 20 through the attachment member 18 by a screw or other penetrating device 34. The steel web cross member 12 reinforces the construction form 20 at each rib 24 and at the ends 28 of the form 20. The extensions 14 of the invention are shown covered with the attachment members 18 which extend to the outer surfaces 26 of the form 2û. A penetrating device 34, such as a screw or nail, is shown, and penetrates and extends through the finishing ~31~2~

material 32 and both sides of the folded piece of galvani~ed steel compr;sing the attachment member 18. If necessary, more than one penetrating device 34 can be applied to each attachment member l 8. Those skilled in the art will appreciate the ease with which these attachment members 18 can be located, and because, in the preferred embodiment of the invention, the attachment members l8 are of a lighter gage steel than the central web portion 12, the ease with which the .
penetrating device 34 can be applied.

Claims (8)

1. In a molded construction form having two sidewall members of rectangular configuration having horizontal and vertical edges, and each of saidmembers having a respective inner surface and a planar outer surface, comprisingin combination:
(a) a plurality of cross members of expanded material with at least one angularly extending end, transversely connecting between said sidewall members;
and (b) a plurality of attachment surfaces, U-shaped in a side elevation, embracing said angularly extending end, forming a uniform continuous planar surface, coplanar with said outer surface of said sidewall member.

2. The combination of Claim 1, wherein said attachment surfaces are a lighter gage material than said cross members.

3. The combination of Claim 1, wherein said expanded material has rhomboid openings with major and minor axes, and wherein the orientation of each major axis is transverse to said attachment surfaces.

4. The combination of Claim 3, wherein said cross members have two angularly extending ends, and said attachment surfaces embrace said angularly extending ends.

5. The combination of Claim 1, wherein said cross members connect between said sidewall members at each vertical edge and at predetermined distances along the length of said construction form, and wherein said attachment members are located at each vertical edge and at predetermined distances along said outer surface to enable mechanical attachment of building materials on saidouter surface of said sidewall members.

6. In a molded construction form having two sidewall members of a rectangular configuration having horizontal and vertical edges, and each of saidmembers having a respective inner surface and a planar outer surface, comprisingin combination:
(a) a plurality of expanded metal cross members having rhomboid openings with major and minor axes, and two angular extensions, wherein said cross members are embedded in and transversely interconnect said sidewall members; and (b) a plurality of metal attachment surfaces U-shaped in a side elevation embracing said angular extensions of said cross members forming a uniform continuous planar surface, in which the orientation of said major axis of rhomboid openings of said expanded metal mesh is substantially transverse to said attachment surfaces, andsaid attachment surfaces are of a lighter gage metal than said cross members, and said attachment surfaces extend to and are substantially coplanar with said outer surface of said sidewall members in a parallel relationship.

7. The combination of Claim 6, wherein said metal is steel.

8. The combination of Claim 6, wherein said cross members interconnect said sidewall members at each vertical edge and at predetermined distances along the length of said construction form, and wherein said attachment members are also located at each vertical edge and at predetermined distances along said outer surface to enable mechanical attachment of building materials on said outer surface of said sidewall members.