CA2101284C - Retaining wall block - Google Patents

Retaining wall block Download PDF

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Publication number
CA2101284C
CA2101284C CA 2101284 CA2101284A CA2101284C CA 2101284 C CA2101284 C CA 2101284C CA 2101284 CA2101284 CA 2101284 CA 2101284 A CA2101284 A CA 2101284A CA 2101284 C CA2101284 C CA 2101284C
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
block
cavity
blocks
wall
projecting means
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Fee Related
Application number
CA 2101284
Other languages
French (fr)
Other versions
CA2101284A1 (en
Inventor
Vernon J. Dueck
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Pacific Precast Products Ltd
Original Assignee
Pacific Precast Products Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Pacific Precast Products Ltd filed Critical Pacific Precast Products Ltd
Priority to CA 2101284 priority Critical patent/CA2101284C/en
Publication of CA2101284A1 publication Critical patent/CA2101284A1/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of CA2101284C publication Critical patent/CA2101284C/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Fee Related legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E04BUILDING
    • E04CSTRUCTURAL ELEMENTS; BUILDING MATERIALS
    • E04C1/00Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings
    • E04C1/39Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings characterised by special adaptations, e.g. serving for locating conduits, for forming soffits, cornices, or shelves, for fixing wall-plates or door-frames, for claustra
    • E04C1/395Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings characterised by special adaptations, e.g. serving for locating conduits, for forming soffits, cornices, or shelves, for fixing wall-plates or door-frames, for claustra for claustra, fences, planting walls, e.g. sound-absorbing
    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E02HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING; FOUNDATIONS; SOIL SHIFTING
    • E02DFOUNDATIONS; EXCAVATIONS; EMBANKMENTS; UNDERGROUND OR UNDERWATER STRUCTURES
    • E02D29/00Independent underground or underwater structures; Retaining walls
    • E02D29/02Retaining or protecting walls
    • E02D29/0258Retaining or protecting walls characterised by constructional features
    • E02D29/0266Retaining or protecting walls characterised by constructional features made up of preformed elements
    • EFIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E04BUILDING
    • E04BGENERAL BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS; WALLS, e.g. PARTITIONS; ROOFS; FLOORS; CEILINGS; INSULATION OR OTHER PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS
    • E04B2/00Walls, e.g. partitions, for buildings; Wall construction with regard to insulation; Connections specially adapted to walls
    • E04B2/02Walls, e.g. partitions, for buildings; Wall construction with regard to insulation; Connections specially adapted to walls built-up from layers of building elements
    • E04B2002/0202Details of connections
    • E04B2002/0204Non-undercut connections, e.g. tongue and groove connections
    • E04B2002/0213Non-undercut connections, e.g. tongue and groove connections of round shape

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Civil Engineering (AREA)
  • Structural Engineering (AREA)
  • Architecture (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Paleontology (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Retaining Walls (AREA)

Abstract

A block for forming a retaining wall comprising a generally parallelepiped body with front, rear, top, bottom and side surfaces and a central internal cavity with internal walls. Integrally formed protruding knobs are formed on the bottom surface adjacent the front surface and are positioned for protruding into the central cavity of at least one other block in a wall formed from the blocks. The protruding knobs are adapted to abut the internal walls of the open cavity to position the block in the retaining wall. A wall construction using the blocks is provided.

Description

RETAINING WALL BLOCK
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a building block and a block wall construction.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Retaining walls to prevent earth embankments from sliding and slumping are well known. Conventional walls are constructed from materials such as wood ties or blocks of stone or concrete. The rows of a wall are often offset with respect to one another to form a wall face that is inclined with respect to the vertical.
Retaining walls formed from interconnectable blocks are particularly popular as they are sturdy and relatively easy to construct. Many block designs and wall configurations have been developed. Examples of such designs are shown in the following patents:
United States Patent 2,892,340 to Fort United States Patent 4,671,706 to Giardini United States Patent 4,825,619 to Forsberg United States Patent 4,860,505 to Bender United States Patent 4,920,712 to Dean, Jr.
United States Patent 4,964,761 to Rossi United States Patent 4,965,979 to Larrivee et al.
United States Patent 5,017,049 to Sievert United States Patent 5,044,834 to Janopaul, Jr.
United States Patent 5,161,918 to Hodel The wall blocks and wall constructions disclosed in the foregoing patents generally relate to blocks that use a system of drilled holes and aligning pegs or a tongue and groove arrangement to position and interlock together the individual blocks of the retaining wall.
Tongue and groove interlocking blocks suffer from impossible to form into a curved configuration without using specially shaped blocks. It is often necessary to have a curve in a retaining wall to accommodate curves in the terrain.
Blocks that use drilled holes and aligning pegs tend to be time consuming to interfit together. The additional cost of the aligning pegs and specially drilled holes in blocks makes the blocks more expensive to manufacture. The result is a retaining wall that is costlier to construct in terms of both time and materials.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides'a wall block that addresses the foregoing disadvantages of the prior art.
The wall blocks of the present invention can be quickly and efficiently assembled into a straight or curved retaining wall using a single block design.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a block for forming a retaining wall comprising:
a generally parallelepiped body with front, rear, top, bottom and side surfaces and a central internal cavity with internal walls;
projecting means integrally formed on the bottom surface adjacent the front surface and positioned for protruding into the central cavity of at least one other block in a wall formed from the blocks, the projecting means being engagable against the internal walls of the open cavity to position the block in the retaining wall.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a retaining wall comprising:
::
::..

a lower tier of individual blocks arranged side by side, each block having a body with an internal cavity having internal walls;
an upper tier of individual blocks arranged side by side, each block having integrally formed projecting means formed on a lower surface of the block;
the upper tier being positioned on top of the lower tier with the projecting means of the upper tier being inserted_within corresponding internal cavities of the lower tier to abut an internal wall of the cavities thereby positioning the blocks of the upper and lower tiers with respect to each other, the projecting means and the internal cavity being dimensioned and positioned such that the blocks of the upper tier are offset rearwardly and laterally from the blocks of the lower tier.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Aspects of the present invention are illustrated, merely by way of example, in the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a plan view of a block according to the .w present invention;
Figure 2 is a side elevation view of the block of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the block of the present invention;
Figure 4 is a side elevation view of the block of Figure 3;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of the block of Figure 1 and 2;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of a straight retaining wall constructed using the blocks of Figure 1 and 2;
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a curved retaining wall constructed using the blocks of Figure 1;
Figure 8 is a plan view of a third embodiment of the block of the present invention;
Figure 9 is a side elevation view of the block of Figure 8; and Figure 10 is a plan view of a section of a wall constructed from the blocks of Figure 3.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Figures 1, 2 and 5 illustrate a first embodiment of a block 2 for forming a retaining wall. The block includes spaced front and rear wall portions 4 and 6, respectively. A
pair of sidewalk 8 extend between and join the front and rear wall portions to define a central open cavity 10 through the block having internal side walls 11, internal front wall 13 and internal rear wall 17. The block has an upper surface 12 and a lower surface 14.
The block is preferably formed from concrete and the fact of front wall portion 4 is formed with a roughened pattern 16. The block has a generally trapezoidal shape in plan view with the front wall portion 4 wider than the rear wall portion 6.
Figures 3 and 4 illustrate a second embodiment of the block having a greater overall length than the first embodiment. A reinforcing web 15 is provided between the sidewalls 8 at substantially mid-length along the sidewalls. An internal cavity 10 is formed between web 15 and the front wall portion 4. The blocks of Figures 3 and 4 are used in larger retaining walls as their additional size and mass allows them to support a greater bulk of soil.
The blocks of the present invention are filled with loose angular gravel and dirt poured into open cavities once the blocks are assembled into a wall structure to 10 anchor the wall in place. The gravel or dirt permits free drainage of water through the interior of the wall.
Both embodiments of the block are provided with projecting means in the form of a pair of spaced, cylindrical extensions or knobs 18. Knobs 18 are integrally formed on the lower surface 14 of sidewalls 8 adjacent front wall portion 4. Knobs 18 are positioned on lower surface 14 to protrude into the open cavity 10 of an underlying block when the blocks are stacked atop each other to form a retaining wall as illustrated in Figures 6 and 7. Knobs 18 of an upper block are abutted against an internal side wall 11 and internal front wall 13 of a cavity 10 in a lower block to quickly position the blocks in a wall structure. Knobs 18 extend slightly ahead of cavity 10 by a distance 20 such that the front wall portion 4 of an upper block is offset rearwardly from the front wall portion of an underlying block when the blocks are stacked one atop the other. This is the case even when knob 18 is directly engaging internal front wall 13. This offset distance can be increased by moving knob 18 toward internal rear wall 17. In addition, it is necessary to laterally offset or stagger an upper block to stack it atop a pair of underlying blocks. This staggered block arrangement permits each knob 8 of the upper block to fit within the cavities 10 of two underlying blocks.
Figure 6 illustrates a retaining wall constructed with the blocks of Figures 1, 2 and 5. A lower tier 25 of individual blocks 2 are arranged side by side. An upper tier 26 of blocks is positioned on top of lower tier 25 such that knobs 18 of the upper tier are inserted within corresponding internal cavities 10 of the lower tier to abut an internal wall 11 of the cavities thereby positioning the blocks of the upper and lower tiers with respect to each other. The blocks of the upper tier are offset rearwardly and laterally from the blocks of the lower tier.
A retaining wall constructed according to the foregoing description is formed from identical blocks 2.
The blocks can be arranged in a straight line as illustrated in Figure 6. Figure 7 illustrates a retaining wall in which the blocks are arranged in an arcuate configuration. Rear wall portion 6 of the block includes frangible extensions 28 that extend beyond sidewalls 8. Frangible extensions 28 can be broken off along pre-formed fault lines 29 so that each block is reduced to essentially an arcuate segment. Each block can then be rotated to a desired angle to form a curved retaining wall as shown in Figure 7. The rounded surface of knobs 18 accommodate any curve in the retaining wall while maintaining consistent rearward and lateral offset in relation to other blocks.
Figures 8 and 9 illustrate a third embodiment of the block of the present invention intended for forming straight retaining walls. The block of Figures 8 and 9 is formed with essentially rectangular knobs 18 that are dimensioned for a close fit between the front and rear walls 13 and 17, respectively, of an essentially rectangular internal cavity 10 of another block.
Rectangular knobs 18 are offset rearwardly from front wall portion 4 and behind the front wall 13 of internal _ 7 _ cavity 10 unlike in the blocks of Figures 1 to 4 where knobs 18 extend forwardly of the cavity front wall. The result is that the blocks of Figure 8 and 9 must be oriented such that the knobs 18 are on the uppermost surface in order to construct a wall that is inclined at an angle to the vertical into the material to be held back by the wall.
This arrangement is preferred as it allows the user to see knobs 18 of a lower block when aligning an upper block cavity 10 over the close fitting knobs. Knobs 18 permit lateral adjustment of the blocks with respect to each other, however, forward or rearward movement of individual blocks is prevented.
Figure 10 illustrates a plan section of a wall constructed from blocks of the embodiment illustrated in Figure 3. The projecting means 18 of upper tier blocks 26a and 26b are engageable against the internal walls of open cavity 10 of lower tier block 25a, where all frangible extensions 28 have been broken off.
Although the present invention has been described in some detail by way of example for purposes of clarity and understanding, it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be practised within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (18)

1. A block for forming a retaining wall comprising:
a body with front, rear, top, bottom and side surfaces and a central cavity with internal walls;
projecting means integrally formed on the bottom surface adjacent the front surface and positioned for protruding into the central cavity of at least one other underlying block in a wall formed from the blocks, the projecting means being laterally offset from the cavity and forwardly offset by a distance from the cavity toward the front surface and having a rounded surface being engageable against the internal walls of the cavity of an underlying block to position the block in the retaining wall in offset relation to underlying blocks.
2. A block for forming a retaining wall comprising:
spaced front and rear wall portions;
a pair of sidewalls extending between and joining the front and rear wall portions to define a central cavity in the block, the cavity having internal walls;
the block having an upper surface and a lower surface; and projecting means integrally formed on the sidewalk adjacent the front wall portion and positioned for protruding into the cavity of at least one other underlying block in a wall formed from the blocks, the projecting means being laterally offset from the cavity and forwardly offset by a distance from the central cavity toward the front wall portion and having one rounded surface being engageable against the internal walls of the cavity in an underlying block to position the block in offset relation to underlying blocks.
3. A block as claimed in claim 2 in which the block comprises a generally trapezoidal shape in plan view with the front wall portion wider the rear wall portion and the pair of sidewalk extending there between.
4. A block as claimed in claim 3 in which the rear wall portion is formed with frangible extensions that extend beyond the side walls.
5. A block as claimed in claim 2 in which the projection means are positioned with respect to the sidewalk and the cavity such that the block is laterally offset in relation to an underlying block.
6. A retaining wall comprising:
a lower tier of individual blocks arranged side by side, each block of the lower tier having a body with a cavity having internal walls;
an upper tier of individual blocks arranged side by side, each block of the upper tier having a body with a front, rear, and side surfaces and a cavity and having projecting means with one rounded surface being integrally formed on a lower surface of the upper tier block, the projecting means being laterally offset from the cavity and forwardly offset by a distance from the cavity toward the front surface;
the upper tier blocks being positioned on top of the lower tier blocks with the projecting means of the upper tier blocks being inserted within corresponding [internal]
cavities, of the lower tier to abut an internal wall of the cavities, with projecting means of adjacent blocks of the upper tier being inserted into the same cavity of a block in the lower tier, thereby positioning the blocks of the upper and lower tiers with respect to each other, the projecting means and the cavity being dimensioned and positioned such that the blocks of the upper tier are offset rearwardly and laterally from the blocks of the lower tier.
7. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 6 in which all the blocks are identical.
8. A retaining walls as claimed in claim 6 in which the tiers are arranged in a straight configuration.
9. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 6 in which the tiers are arranged in an arcuate configuration.
10. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 6 in which said projecting means of each block of the upper tier is formed with a pair of extensions having a rounded surface, each extension being engaged within the cavity of a separate underlying block.
11. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 6, wherein the cavities are filled with granular fill.
12. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cavities are filled with granular fill.
13. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 8, wherein the cavities are filled with granular fill.
14. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cavities are filled with granular fill.
15. A retaining wall as claimed in claim 10, wherein the cavities are filled with granular fill.
16. A block for forming a retaining wall comprising:
spaced front and rear wall portions;
a pair of sidewalk extending between and joining the front and rear wall portions to define a central cavity in the block, the cavity having internal walls;
the block having an upper surface and a lower surface;

projecting means integrally formed on the side walls adjacent the front wall portion and positioned for protruding into the central cavity of at least one other underlying block in a wall formed from the blocks, the projecting means having one rounded surface and being engageable against the internal walls of the cavity in an underlying block to position the block in offset relation to underlying blocks, in which the projection means comprise a pair of cylindrical extensions formed on the lower surface of the block adjacent each sidewall.
17. The block of claim 16, wherein the projection means are positioned with respect to the sidewalk and the internal cavity such that the front wall portion of the block is offset rearwardly from the front all portion of an underlying block.
18. A retaining wall comprising:
(a) a lower row of blocks arranged side by side, each black having a body with a cavity and a rear portion;
(b) an upper row of blocks arranged side by side, each block having a body with a front, rear and bottom portion, two side portions and a central cavity with a front internal wall and projecting means integrally formed on said bottom portion between a plane containing said front internal wall and a plane containing a rear internal wall of the central cavity, said projecting means being laterally, outwardly and rearwardly offset from said cavity front internal wall and having a rounded front surface, wherein said projecting means abuts said rear portion of a proximate block in the lower row and said front, rear, top, bottom and side portions being rearwardly offset in relation to the proximate block in the lower row.
CA 2101284 1993-07-26 1993-07-26 Retaining wall block Expired - Fee Related CA2101284C (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA 2101284 CA2101284C (en) 1993-07-26 1993-07-26 Retaining wall block

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA 2101284 CA2101284C (en) 1993-07-26 1993-07-26 Retaining wall block

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
CA2101284A1 CA2101284A1 (en) 1995-01-27
CA2101284C true CA2101284C (en) 2000-07-04

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Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CA 2101284 Expired - Fee Related CA2101284C (en) 1993-07-26 1993-07-26 Retaining wall block

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CA2101284A1 (en) 1995-01-27

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