FR2722225A1 - Hollow multi=purpose construction block - Google Patents

Abstract

The block, made from prefabricated concrete or equivalent material, has two vertical lengthwise walls, two vertical end walls (3,5) and at least one intermediate partition (4) forming vertical channels (6,7,8). At least some of the transverse walls/partitions are notched (10) at the bottom to receive horizontal reinforcing elements. Each of the end walls and intermediate transverse partitions has two flat bottomed notches (10-13) which are at least as wide as the lengthwise walls. In addition, each lengthwise wall has an inner rib (16) extending along its entire height, designed to act as a stop for a straddling block placed on top of two lower blocks in a retaining wall with gaps.

Description

 The invention relates to a multipurpose prefabricated element for the construction of retaining structures and masonry walls.

 It relates more particularly to the prefabricated elements of concrete or equivalent material comprising two vertical and longitudinal walls connected by vertical and transverse walls, namely, an extreme front wall, an extreme posterior wall and at least one intermediate wall, these various walls delimiting vertical corridors that can receive concrete or mortar, reinforced or not.

 Such elements are commonly used to form masonry walls. In this case, generally mounted dry, they are aligned with their longitudinal walls in line with one another to form rows which are superimposed, the elements of each row being offset by a fraction of their length relative to those of the underlying row and so that the vertical corridors of one row communicate with those of the other row to form, at least locally, vertical chains.

 As described in WO-A-83/04423, it is already known to provide on the lower edge, at least certain transverse walls, that is to say on all the walls of the elements, possibly, except of the visible front wall of the blocks which are intended for producing the angles, notches opening downwards and serving for the passage of concrete bars forming part of a horizontal chaining. These notches, whether central or double and lateral, have a depth much greater than the value of the thickness of the irons. It is also because of their importance that these notches are not made in the visible front wall of the corner blocks, so as not to favor the pouring of mortar separating the facing.

 Such prefabricated elements are also used to form retaining structures, of the cell wall type with fruit. In this case, dry mounted, they are arranged in each row, side by side, with a spacing and with their parallel longitudinal walls, each element itself being astride the longitudinal edges of two elements of the lower row, and set back towards the elements of this lower row. Under these conditions, the longitudinal edges of the upper elements rest either on the longitudinal edges of the lower elements (the spacing between two blocks being at the maximum), or on the upper edges of the transverse walls of the lower elements (the space between two blocks being then more reduced).

 If the contacting surfaces are not free of sand or gravel, or if one of them is not perfectly flat, which frequently happens due to the conditions of manufacture of the elements, the upper element does not carry perfectly on the lower elements. When it only carries by its central part, the vertical load exerted on it can cause it to break and thus reduce the effectiveness of the support. The resistance of the block to bending forces can be improved by incorporating a reinforcement in the concrete, but this practically prohibits any mechanized and automated production system, such as the widely used block presses, pavers and curbs.

 Note that, due to their position and their depth, the notches of WO-A-83/04423 only complicate the positioning and do not improve the stability of each element, so that such an element cannot not be used for the construction of retaining structures in cellular walls.

 This is also the case for most of the elements used for the construction of walls which, in the absence of any particular arrangement, cannot be wedged in translation relative to the lower elements, so that they resist the thrusts of the ground and ensure their support function well.

 The present invention aims to remedy these drawbacks by providing a versatile prefabricated element which can be used, on the one hand, for the construction of classic vertical masonry walls, by creating the reserves necessary for the passage of irons for horizontal chaining, and on the other hand, for the construction of retaining structures with fruit, in cell assembly, by providing the stability and the desired wedging.

 To this end, in the versatile element according to the invention, each of the transverse, extreme and intermediate walls, comprises, on its lower edge and on the upper edge, two lateral notches with flat bottom, of width at least equal to the thickness of a longitudinal wall, the lateral notches formed respectively on the upper edge and on the lower edge of each intermediate transverse wall being deeper than the lateral notches formed on the respectively upper and lower edges of the extreme front wall, while each of the two longitudinal walls carries, projecting from its internal face and in the anterior vertical corridor juxtaposed with the extreme front wall, a locking notch in longitudinal translation of the front wall of the superposed element.

 When this element is used in a retaining structure such as a cell wall with fruit, it relates to the lower elements, on the one hand, by the bottoms of the notches formed on the lower edge of its front wall resting on the upper edges of the longitudinal walls lower elements, and, on the other hand, by the rear part of the lower edges of the longitudinal walls, bearing on the bottom of the notches of the posterior end transverse walls of the lower elements. These widely spaced spans cannot be thwarted by the support of the longitudinal walls of the lower and upper elements with the intermediate walls of the elements, respectively upper and lower, since these longitudinal walls are housed in the notches which, formed in these transverse walls, are deeper than those of the extreme walls. As a result, the element is very stable and is able to support, without breaking, the vertical loads acting on it.

 Furthermore, the lower edge of the front wall of the upper element abuts against the rear face of the notches formed in the lower elements and ensures effective wedging in translation of the upper element on the lower elements.

 These arrangements do not hinder the use of the element for the realization of vertical masonry walls because the front notches of the corner block are very small and insufficient to let the mortar flow.

 Other characteristics and advantages will emerge from the description which follows with reference to the appended diagrammatic drawing representing, by way of example, an embodiment of this element.

Figures 1 and 2 are perspective views of an element, when it is respectively in the use position and returned from 1800,
FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views showing, respectively, a fragment of retaining structures in cellular assembly and a fragment of wall in conventional vertical masonry implementing the element according to the invention,
Figure 5 is a partial sectional view along VV of Figure 3 showing the stacking conditions of the element in a retaining structure.

 This prefabricated element is composed of two longitudinal and vertical walls 2 which are connected by several vertical and transverse walls, namely a front wall 3, two intermediate walls 4 and an extreme rear wall 5.

The transverse walls 3, 4, 5 define, between them, vertical corridors 6, 7 and 8 which may have different dimensions, as shown in the figures, or be of the same dimension.

 According to the invention, all the transverse walls, namely the front 3, the intermediate 4 and the rear 5, are provided, on their upper edges, respectively 4a and Sa and on their lower edges 3b, 4b, 5b, with notches lateral, respectively, upper 11 for wall 3, 12 for wall 4 and 13 for wall 5, and lower, respectively, 10 for wall 3, 14 for walls 4 and 15 for walls 5.

 According to another characteristic of the invention, the depth E of the upper 12 and lower 14 notches, formed in the intermediate walls 4, and of the lower notches 15 of the rear wall 5, has a value greater than the depth e of the other notches, namely the upper 11 and lower 10 of the front wall 3, and upper 13 of the rear posterior wall 5.

 Finally, as shown in more detail in FIG. 1, each of the two longitudinal walls 2 of the element comprises, projecting from its internal face and in the anterior passage 6, a notch 16 formed here by a vertical bar extending over the entire height of the element.

 When, as shown in Figure 3, the versatile elements according to the invention are assembled to form a retaining structure and are therefore each placed astride two underlying elements spaced apart and organized in a row with their longitudinal walls parallel to each other other, the notches 10 on the front face 3 of the upper element cover the longitudinal walls 2 of the underlying elements, while said front wall 3 abuts against the notches 16 of the two underlying elements. FIG. 5 shows that, under these stacking conditions, the lower edges 2b of the longitudinal walls 2 of the upper element pass freely through the deeper notches 12 of the intermediate walls 4 of the lower prefabricated elements and come to rest on the bottoms of the notches 13 of the rear transverse walls 5 of the lower elements. Likewise, the upper edges 2a of the longitudinal walls 2 of the lower elements bear only with the bottom of the lower notches 10 of the front face 3, since they cannot come into contact with the bottom of the deeper notches, respectively 14 of the intermediate walls 4 of the upper element and 15 of the rear wall 5.

 It therefore appears that, under these stacking conditions, each upper element rests on the lower elements only in the zones referenced A and B in FIG. 5, zones which, due to their spacing, ensure the stability of the element and the distribution of the loads which it supports.

 The setting in longitudinal translation of each element is ensured by the contact of its front wall 3 with the bars 16 which, by their nature, are largely sufficient to resist the thrust forces communicated to the block.

 Figure 4 shows that the blocks according to the invention are versatile since they can also be used to constitute masonry walls. In this case, they are stacked in rows in each of which they are arranged with their longitudinal walls parallel and in the extension of each other, with offset of the elements of a row relative to those of the underlying rows.

 Under these conditions, the lower notches of each element form, with the upper notches of the lower elements, lateral channels which can be used for the placement of concrete irons constituting or reinforcing chaining. It will also be noted that, under these stacking conditions, the notches 10 formed in the front face 3 of the corner element disposed at the end of the row, are insufficient to allow a consequent escape of the mortar, and that of all the more so since they do not coincide with similar notches formed on the underlying element.

 To avoid the presence of the notches 10 and 1 1 of the polyvalent element arranged at an angle that spoils the aesthetic appearance of the wall, it is possible, in a variant of this polyvalent element, to replace it with a special angle element, having no notch in its front face 3 and at least no upper notch 11.

 In the construction of walls, the bars 16 of each element do not fulfill any wedging function and, by their arrangement, do not cause any discomfort.

 In an alternative embodiment, not shown, the lateral notches 12 and 14 formed in the intermediate walls 4 are formed by the ends of a single notch extending between the two longitudinal walls. This arrangement can also be applied to the front 3 and rear 5 walls if, for the construction of walls, the polyvalent element is associated with the special corner element without notch in its front wall.

 In the accompanying drawings, the external faces of the elements are shown without any pattern, but it is obvious that they may include, coming from molding, any decorative pattern.

 The arrangements of the invention have been described in the context of their application to an element comprising a posterior transverse face set back with respect to the posterior vertical edges of the element to form a recess favoring the installation of a bonding mortar. or a mortar with a vertical chaining, but it is obvious that they can also be applied to elements having posterior end faces in the extension of the posterior vertical edges of the element.

Claims (4)

 1. Multipurpose prefabricated element for the construction of retaining structures and walls, composed of two longitudinal and vertical walls (2) connected by several vertical and transverse walls, namely an extreme front wall (3), an extreme rear wall ( 5), at least one intermediate wall (4), these various walls delimiting vertical corridors, and in which at least certain transverse walls are notched on their lower edge for the passage of horizontal chaining concrete irons, this element being able, for the construction of walls, be superimposed on a row of identical elements aligned with their longitudinal walls in the extension of each other, and, for the construction of retaining structures, be placed astride two underlying elements, arranged with spacing, side by side, and with their parallel longitudinal walls, characterized in that each of the transverse walls, ext rims (3, 5) and intermediates (4), comprises, on its lower edge and on the upper edge, two lateral notches with flat bottom (10 to 15), of width at least equal to the thickness of a longitudinal wall ( 2), the lateral notches (12 and 14) formed respectively on the upper edge and on the lower edge of each intermediate transverse wall (4) being deeper than the lateral notches (11, 10) formed on the upper and lower edges respectively of the extreme front wall (3), while each of the two longitudinal walls (2) carries, projecting from its internal face and in the anterior vertical corridor (6) juxtaposed with the extreme front wall (3), a notch (16 ) blocking in longitudinal translation of the front wall (3) of the superimposed element.

 2. Multipurpose prefabricated element according to claim 1, characterized in that the lateral notches (15) formed on the lower edge of the rear posterior wall (5) have the same depth (E) as the notches (14) of the intermediate walls ( 4) and therefore have a depth greater than that (e) of the notches (10) formed on the lower edge of the front wall (3).

 3. Multipurpose prefabricated element according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the lateral notches (15) formed, at least in the intermediate transverse walls (4), are formed by the ends of a single notch s 'extending between the two longitudinal walls (2).

 4. Multipurpose prefabricated element according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that each of the notches of the anterior vertical corridor (6) is constituted by a bar (16) extending vertically over the entire height of the element .