EP2894270A1

EP2894270A1 - Interlocking modular element for construction of structures and furniture.

Info

Publication number: EP2894270A1
Application number: EP14425002.4A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Stefano Savelloni
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2014-01-14
Filing date: 2014-01-14
Publication date: 2015-07-15

Abstract

Modular interlocking element (200), preferably in wood material, for the construction of building structures and furniture characterized by:
- preferably a parallelepiped shape;
- an upper surface and a lower surface, respectively, with protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.) of preferably cylindrical shape, distributed on said upper surface, and with cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above protrusions (201 a, 201b,..., etc.), , distributed on said lower surface, which represent a first interlocking system in the vertical direction;
- side surfaces respectively equipped with a protrusion (205) with geometric shape of a parallelepiped, with length equal to the height of the modular element, and a cavity (206) having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above mentioned protrusion (205), to constitute a second interlocking system in the longitudinal direction;
- holes (203a, 203b,..., etc.) drilled along the vertically length of the element placed at each respective protrusion and cavity that are located on the said upper and lower surfaces;
- an internally hollow element (204), called spine or rod, cylindrical in shape, with a diameter corresponding to that of the holes in the element modular and with height preset and higher than the one of the single element, to be inserted in the holes themselves to mutually connect two or more similar elements,
in such a way that the modular elements are mutually connected and joined together by means of the above mentioned systems of interlocking achieved with the aforementioned protrusions and cavities on the top, bottom and side surfaces and through the hollow cylindrical element that passes through in the vertical direction two or more overlapping elements, and in such a way that the hollow cylindrical element constitutes a possible housing for the cables of the building.

Description

The present invention relates to a modular interlocking element particularly suitable for a simple and quick building of structures such as walls, partitions, rises, dividers, exhibition stands, tourist bungalows, garage exterior, small sheds, but also elements of stage furniture, home furniture or parts of them, etc.. In particular, the modular element is firmly joined to other modular elements by an efficient interlocking system, it presents internal cavities suitable for housing of a system of mutual locking which, in turn, can house different types of cables. These characteristics, in case of applications in the construction industry, give the realized structure a resistance to cope seismic efforts. The modular element, subject matter of the present invention, preferably made of a recycled and/or recyclable material, can be used very easily not only by workers and companies operating in the building industry, but can be used also by a single person who wants to build individually useful structures in a domestic environment, at home, such as partitions, dividers, stands, etc..
As known, usually buildings can be made using ordinary or reinforced masonry, with a frame structure or a structure with panels. The realization of a simple masonry wall, however, has always required specialized workers combining different skills, requiring a specific training process, and further considering the necessary amount of time for positioning of the various elements of the buildings. Moreover, among the drawbacks of the elements that constitute the walls, stands their nature poorly suited to those which are the current needs of environmental sustainability.
Among the execution phases of a building, then, once a masonry wall is realized, it is still necessary to perform the conduits, and that entails, as known, an additional amount of work and time.
A critical factor in choosing the construction techniques is further given by the requirement to create some anti-seismic structures. In this sense it is important that the elements that constitute the walls are firmly jointed each other, and often this is achieved by using vertical and horizontal reinforcement steel.
Furthermore, for the purposes of the present invention, it should be noted that nowadays the construction techniques do not have anything in common with the construction of furniture. In other words, it is rarely possible to find a correspondence between the techniques of realization of a wall and techniques of realization of a piece of furniture.
In recent years, the above problems in the field of construction engineering have been solved in various ways, using materials, anchoring techniques, interlocking systems of different types, which, however, solve only partly the problem of providing a modular structure being rigid and resistant to stress.
An innovation in the field of building materials has been introduced with the "'modular element for building constructions in wood material" according to the principles and teachings of the Italian patent application n. RM2007A000181 . This invention proposes a modular element that can be combined very easily with other similar modular elements, by means of an interlocking system including geometric protrusions and cavities with a complementary shape placed respectively on the top and on the bottom of each said element. The modular elements are further each other, through a cylindrical element, said spine or rod, which is inserted in holes available in said modular elements and going all through their length. The invention allows to overcome part of the above outlined critical issues: the modular element is placed in an extremely easy and quick way, without the use of mortar, glues or nails, and it does not requires any additional finishing material, being preferably made of wood. In addition to the easy way of assembly, the modular elements combined each other as specified before, achieve in case of application in the construction engineering, a possible solution to the need of earthquake-resistant structures.
The objective of the present invention is to make even more advantageous and functional the use of the modular elements in construction maintaining all the advantages achieved by the above-described modular element for building constructions of wooden material, introduced with the Italian patent application n. RM2007A000181 .
In particular, the present invention proposes to ensure rapidity of realization of the elevation structure and simplicity of execution of the same compared to the techniques commonly employed.
A further objective is to create modular elements ready for the insertion of cables and piping inside, in a vertical and horizontal direction.
Another objective is to ensure the realization of an elevation structure having good strength characteristics and that is anti-seismic.
Another objective is to use modular elements made of recycled and/or recyclable materials, giving therefore an ecological characteristic.
A further objective is that the building of structures can be achieved without a resulting waste of construction material or packaging material.
Another objective of the present invention is to apply the same building technique of the construction engineering field, to the realization of a furniture, like in example a desk, a bookcase, a cabinet, etc..
The object of the present invention is therefore to propose a modular element that overcomes all the above mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, allowing a great versatility of use and being able to be applied in several fields, from the construction engineering to the design and assembly of furniture at home.
Therefore it is specific object of the present invention an interlocking modular element, preferably made of wood, for the construction of building structures and furniture characterized by:

preferably a parallelepiped shape;
an upper surface and a lower surface, respectively, with protrusions of preferably cylindrical shape, distributed on said upper surface, and with cavities having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above mentioned protrusions, distributed on said lower surface, which represent a first interlocking system in the vertical direction;
side surfaces respectively equipped with a protrusion with geometric shape of a parallelepiped, with length equal to the height of the modular element, and a cavity having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above mentioned projection, to constitute a second interlocking system in the longitudinal direction;
holes drilled along the vertically length of the element placed at each respective protrusion and cavity that are located on the said upper and lower surfaces;
an internally hollow element, called spine or rod, cylindrical in shape, with a diameter corresponding to that of the holes in the element modular and with height preset and higher than the one of the single element, to be inserted in the holes themselves to mutually connect two or more similar elements,

These and additional objects, advantages, features and benefits of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification:

Figures 1-2 are two perspective views, along two respective angles, of a modular element according to the prior art;
Figure 3 is a front perspective view of two modular elements, realized according to the prior art, connected by a cylindrical element;
Figures 4-5 are two perspective views, along two respective angles, the modular element according to the present invention;
Figure 6 is a top view of the modular element;
Figure 7 is a side view of the modular element;
Figure 8 is a front view of the modular element;
Figure 9 is a front perspective view of two modular elements, made according to the present invention, assembled using the interlocking system present on the respective upper and lower surfaces and connected via a hollow element of cylindrical shape;
Figure 10 is a front perspective view of two modular elements, made according to the present invention, assembled using the interlocking system placed on the side surfaces;
Figures 11 and 12 are two perspective views, along two respective angles, of a special modular element, smooth on the upper surface and drilled for the lower half of its height;
Figures 13-14 are two perspective views, along two respective angles, of a special modular element, smooth on the lower surface and drilled for the upper half of its height;
Figure 15 is a perspective view of a special modular element, which laterally has the only parallelepiped shaped cavity;
Figure 16 is a perspective view of a special modular element, which laterally has the only parallelepiped shaped protrusion;
Figure 17 is a front perspective view of a modular special element characterized by a horizontal hole that intercepts the vertical holes of a row;
Figure 18 is a side view of the section of part of the special modular element in Figure 17.

It must be stressed as in the following will be illustrated, by way of example but not of limitation, only some of the possible embodiments of the present invention, being possible to describe many other based on the particular technical solutions identified. In Figures 1-3 it is illustrated the modular element 100 for building constructions of wooden material, introduced with the patent application n. RM2007A 000181 . This modular element is suitable to be assembled together with other modular elements. This happens through an interlocking system that allows to firmly join more modular elements when the parallelepiped shaped protrusions 101 a, 101b,..., etc., on the upper surface, fit into corresponding complementary shaped cavities 102a, 102b,..., etc., placed on the lower surface of the overlying modular element.
In correspondence of each protrusion and cavity of each modular element there are the cylindrical holes 103a, 103b,..., etc. crossing the modular element for its entire vertical length.
The modular elements so described are connected to each other, allowing to obtain further structural cohesion, through the cylindrical shaped element 104, called spine or rod, having height higher than the height of the single element, and diameter corresponding to that of the holes 103a, 103b,... etc.. of each element in which it is inserted.
In Figures 4-10 it is illustrated the modular element 200 according to the present invention: each modular element is assembled with the modular elements that are in contact vertically or laterally through two distinct interlocking systems that ensure stability of cohesion to the resulting structure. A first interlocking system includes the protrusions 201a, 201b,..., etc., placed on the upper surface of the element, preferably cylindrical shaped, and the cavities 202a, 202b,..., etc., having a complementary shape and being located on the lower surface of the element. This first system achieves, once the protrusions 201a, 201b,..., etc.. of an element are entered in the cavities 202a, 202b,..., etc. of the overlying element, the stability of the position of a modular element referring to another superimposed modular element, in case of longitudinal and transverse stresses.
A second interlocking system gives the stability of the structure in the event of transverse stresses, the stable position of a modular element referring to another modular element which is placed laterally. It is achieved when the parallelepiped shaped protrusion 205 present on the lateral surface of a first element is inserted in the cavity having a complementary shape 206, that is placed at the other side surface of another neighboring modular element.
Furthermore, each element has cylindrical holes 203a, 203b,..., etc., along the entire vertical length and in correspondence of each protrusion and cavity placed respectively on the upper and lower surfaces of the modular element.
Further stability to the mutual position of two or more elements placed one on the other, in case of longitudinal or transverse stress, is given by the insertion, in said holes, of the element 204, called spine or rod, of cylindrical shape, diameter corresponding to the one of the holes and length preset and greater than the height of the individual modular element. The element 204 can be empty inside, in order to achieve a channel for cables passing through, or can be full inside in order to achieve more solid and stable structures.
Figures 11-16 show the structure of a special modular element, designed to be positioned, for example, as element of a sill in a window, see Figure 11, item 211, or as constituent element of the architrave of a window, see element 212 of Figure 13. In the special case of the element 211 in Figures 11-12, with smooth upper surface, the holes 207a, 207b,..., etc.. are drilled only for the lower part of said element. Similarly, the special element 212 of Figures 13-14 has a smooth lower surface and the holes 208a, 208b,..., etc.. are placed only in the upper part of the same element. Special elements 213 and 214 shown in figures 15-16 are elements to be placed, for example, in the lateral side of a wall when it remains visible for specific needs, so that the lateral visible surface is smooth.
An alternative embodiment of the present invention eliminates the need to perform conduits along the wall. Considering the predominantly horizontal development of networks plant that commonly are in service in houses, there are additional special elements that enable these networks to follow the necessary path not only vertically, but also horizontally.
For this purpose a further special modular element 215 is realized, as shown in figure 17, characterized by the presence of an additional hole that is transversal to those realized vertically, made along the longitudinal direction and such to intercept the vertical holes of a row.
The modular element and the special modular elements described above, preferably made of wood material, can be alternatively made of plastic or metallic material. The choice of material will be dictated by the estimated application, and also by the dimensional and functional characteristics of the structure that it is necessary to realize. The wood material, for example, can be chosen according to the properties of transpiring, diffusing, and as an insulation material, for the building of a few house units, while the metallic material is chosen for its characteristics of load resistance for higher structures and the plastic material can be chosen for its lightness and therefore the ease to transport, for example in case of temporary applications such as exhibition stands or scenic elements.
The constituent material of the connecting element of cylindrical shape may be wood, but to ensure resistance to cross stress and deformation, it is preferably made of plastic or metal material.
Regarding the size of a standard modular element, they can be in example of 32 cm x 16 cm x 12 cm: one of the two dimensions at the bottom is the double of the other, in order to achieve that a modular element has exactly the same length of two other and adjacent elements placed transversely and below.
According to the specific use of modular elements, it can be chosen a size of the modular elements equal to multiples or sub-multiples of said standard element size.
Furthermore, the modular elements and the modular special elements have been proposed in a basic format with each element having two parallel rows of four holes, but it will be possible to realize elements with longitudinal dimensions such as to have one, two, or more rows of a number of holes less or more than four, based on need, just for the construction, for example, of said lintel of a window.
Therefore, the above examples show that the present invention achieves all the proposed objectives.
It allows in particular, in case of application in construction engineering, to achieve a wall with extreme simplicity, without the need for special training for the workers, and with extreme rapidity of realization. The shape of the cylindrical protrusions placed on the upper surface of the modular element allows a mechanism of interlocking with corresponding cavities placed on the lower surface of a overlying modular element. The used material, preferably of wooden nature and from recycling processes, is easily recyclable.
The innovative mounting systems on top, bottom and laterally, and the connection system in elevation obtained with the use of a cylindrical element, give to the built masonry characteristics of solidity and resistance, particularly suitable to cope with the stresses of seismic events. In particular, the connection system formed by the insertion of cylindrical elements in the holes of each element belonging to the wall performs the functions of a real reinforcement.
The assembled structure is further characterized by the fact that it is not necessary, once raised, the intervention of finishing works at the surface of the wall.
The cavity inside the cylindrical elements of connection and the possibility of using special modular elements where to place, even horizontally, cables and piping networks that commonly serves the buildings, make it possible to avoid any additional work on the surface in order to achieve conduits.
The possibility of making the elements of various sizes allows the use of the modular element, object of the present invention, also to make parts of items of furniture, for home and office use, giving rise also in this case to advantages in terms of rapidity of realization, of ecological materials, and using the cavities within the elements to solve the common problem of positioning the cables of computers, printers, televisions, lamps, various appliances, etc.
The ease of assembly of the various elements and the speed of execution, finally, is such that the modular elements can be used not only by specialized workers in the field of construction engineering or the field of home furnishings, but can be easily used by any person in a domestic environment for the realization of structures and furnishings of different types.
While particular embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made with out departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

Modular interlocking element (200), preferably in wood material, for the construction of building structures and furniture characterized by:
- preferably a parallelepiped shape;

- an upper surface and a lower surface, respectively, with protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.) of preferably cylindrical shape, distributed on said upper surface, and with cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above protrusions (201 a, 201b,..., etc.), distributed on said lower surface, which represent a first interlocking system in the vertical direction;

- side surfaces respectively equipped with a protrusion (205) with geometric shape of a parallelepiped, with length equal to the height of the modular element, and a cavity (206) having a geometrical shape complementary to that of the above mentioned protrusion (205), to constitute a second interlocking system in the longitudinal direction;

- holes (203a, 203b,..., etc.) drilled along the vertically length of the element placed at each respective protrusion and cavity that are located on the said upper and lower surfaces;

- an internally hollow element (204), called spine or rod, cylindrical in shape, with a diameter corresponding to that of the holes in the element modular and with height preset and higher than the one of the single element, to be inserted in the holes themselves to mutually connect two or more similar elements,
in such a way that the modular elements are mutually connected and joined together by means of the above mentioned systems of interlocking achieved with the aforementioned protrusions and cavities on the top, bottom and side surfaces and through the hollow cylindrical element that passes through in the vertical direction two or more overlapping elements, and in such a way that the hollow cylindrical element constitutes a possible housing for the cables of the building.
Modular interlocking element (200) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to the previous claim, characterized in that:
- the modular element of parallelepiped shape, including the protrusions preferably of cylindrical shape (201a, 201b,..., etc.) is made from recycled material preferably wood;

- the cylindrical element (204), hollow inside, is made from recycled material, preferably wood.
Modular interlocking element (200) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- said protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.) and cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) are dimensioned in such a way that the protrusions (201 a) of a given element goes to fully occupy the cavities (202a) of an overlying element;

- the said protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.) and cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) are distributed respectively on the upper surface and the lower surface of the modular element in such a way that two overlaying elements and the holes drilled in them are perfectly centered;
Modular interlocking element (200) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to previous claim 3, characterized in that:
- said protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.) are cylindrical in shape and the cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) are cylindrical too, having a shape complementary to that of said protrusions (201a, 201b,..., etc.).
Modular interlocking element (200) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- said protrusions (205) and cavities (206), placed on the lateral surfaces of the element, are dimensioned in such a way that the protrusion (205) of a given element goes to fully occupy the cavity (206) of an adjacent element;

- said protrusions (205) and cavities (206) placed on the side surfaces of the element are geometrically distributed on the side surfaces of the modular element in such a way that two adjacent elements are perfectly centered in the longitudinal direction.
Modular interlocking element (211) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- when the element (211) has to be the upper terminal element of a wall or parts of a wall or in a cabinet, the upper surface of said element is smooth, thus not having said protrusions (201 a, 201 b,..., etc..) and holes (203a, 203b,..., etc..).
Modular interlocking element (211) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to claim 6, characterized in that:
- said lower surface presents however the cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.), in such a way as to overlay and to be jointed to a basic element.
Modular interlocking element (211) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to claim 7, characterized in that:
- element is drilled for half of its height (207a, 207b,..., etc.) in correspondence with each cavity (202a, 202b,..., etc.) in such a way as to partially contain the internally hollow cylindrical connecting element (204) and still be solidly connected to the underlying element.
Modular interlocking element (212) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- in case where the element (212) has to be the lower terminal element of a wall or parts of a wall or in a cabinet, the lower surface of the said element is smooth, thus not having said cavities (202a, 202b,..., etc.) and holes (203a, 203b,..., etc.).
Modular interlocking element (212) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to claim 9, characterized in that:
- the upper surface presents however the protrusions (201 a, 201 b,..., etc.), in such a way as to be placed under and to be jointed to a basic element.
Modular interlocking element (212) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to claim 10, characterized in that:
- the element is drilled for half of its height (208a, 208b,..., etc.) and in correspondence of each protrusion (201 a, 201 b,..., etc.) in such a way as to partially contain the internally hollow cylindrical connection element (204) and still be solidly connected to the underlying element.
Modular interlocking element (213, 214) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- when said element (213, 214) has to be a terminal lateral element of a wall or part of a wall or in a cabinet, the lateral surface of the said element is smooth, thus not having said protrusion 205 or, alternatively, said cavity 206.
Modular interlocking element (213, 214) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to claim 12, characterized in that:
- the lateral surface that has not been made smooth is however equipped with the protrusion 205 or, alternatively, the cavity 206, in order to be jointed with the adjacent element.
Modular interlocking element (215) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- when the element (215) is at a height of the wall such that it can be useful the passage of the service cables in the longitudinal direction in addition to the vertical direction, said element has got a hole (210) additional and transverse to those (201 a, 201b,..., etc., 209a, 209b,..., etc.) realized in the vertical direction, made along the longitudinal direction and such as to intercept the vertical holes of a row.
Modular interlocking element (215) in wood material for the construction of building structures and furniture, according to one or more of previous claims, characterized in that:
- said element (204) instead of being internally empty is internally full, so that the entire assembled structure results to be stable and solid.