GB2292398A - Brickwork cladding support member; adjustable mounting - Google Patents

Abstract

A brickwork support member comprises an anchor member 13 for securing to a support 11. The anchor member carries, either integrally or by means of a rigid connection, a re-entrant channel member 15. A bolt 18 extends from the channel member 15 with its head 21 trapped within the channel, the bolt 18 carrying a support angle 17 by means of an elongate aperture provided in the support angle 17. Shims 16, 24 may be provided between the support and the anchor member and/or between the channel member 15, 30 and the support angle 17 to adjust the spacing of the support angle 17 from the support 11. Vertical and lateral adjustment are possible due to movement of the bolt 18 relative to the channel member 15, 30 and relative to the support angle 17. <IMAGE>

Description

BRICKWORK SUPPORT MEMBER.

This invention relates to a brickwork support member.

The term brickwork used herein to refer to structures built from building bricks, building blocks, and other regular elements which are assembled and bonded together to form walls and the like. Brickwork support members in accordance with the invention will often be used in buildings where an outer brickwork leaf is supported by either an inner leaf, an assembly of metal frames, or cast concrete components such as floor slabs, and will often be used where it is necessary to support brickwork over an aperture in the brickwork leaf.

It is an object of the present invention to provide, in a simple and convenient form, using a minimum number of individual components, a support member in which the brickwork supporting component can be adjusted relative to its point of anchorage vertically and horizontally in the plane of the brickwork, and towards and away from the point of anchorage.

In accordance with the present invention there is provided a brickwork support member comprising an anchor member for attachment to a support by means permitting the introduction of one or more packing shims between the anchor member and the support, the anchor member including, an elongate, entrant channel member with its open face presented away from the support, and, a support angle having a first limb positioned parallel to the channel member in use and a second limb extending substantially at right angles thereto and projecting outwardly away from the channel member to receive brickwork on an upper face thereof, said support angle being secured to said channel member by bolt means whereby the support angle can be adjusted in position along the length of the channel member and whereby packing shims can be introduced between the support angle and the channel member to alter the spacing of the support angle from the channel member, said one limb of the support angle having an aperture through which said bolt means extends.

Desirably said aperture in said one limb is an elongate slot whereby the support angle can be adjusted in position relative to the channel member substantially at right angles to the length of the channel member in use.

Preferably said bolt means is a single bolt having a head engaged within the entrant channel member, the screw threaded shank of the bolt extending from the channel member through the elongate slot of said one limb of the support angle and any shims which may be interposed between the support angle and the channel member, and having a nut engaged therewith to clamp the support angle and any interposed shims against the channel member.

Preferably the head of the bolt and the face of the entrant channel member with which the bolt cooperates are serrated to facilitate locking of the bolt means and the support angle in position along the length of the channel member when the bolt means is tightened.

Preferably the support angle is an elongate component, and said elongate slot in said one limb thereof extends parallel to the length of the support angle.

Preferably the support angle has further anchor member and entrant channel members associated therewith at spaced points along its length so that a single support angle can be anchored to the support at a plurality of points along its length in use.

The anchor member may comprise an anchor plate, the channel member being rigidly secured to the anchor plate with the open face of the channel member presented away from the anchor plate. The channel member is conveniently welded to the anchor plate.

Alternatively, the anchor member may be defined, at least in part, by the wall of the channel member opposite the open face thereof.

The invention will further be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevational view partly in section of a brickwork support member, Figure 2 is a view, partly in section, in the direction of arrow A in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a view in the direction of arrow B in Figure 1, Figures 4 and 5 are cross-sectional views of alternative channel members suitable for use in the brickwork support member of Figures 1 to 3, Figure 6 is a view of an alternative brickwork support member, and Figures 7 and 8 are views of shims suitable for use in the brickwork support member of Figure 6.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, reference numeral 11 indicates a support structure in the form of a cast concrete floor slab, the face 12 being a vertical edge of the floor slab. It is to be understood however that the brickwork support member can be used in conjunction with a wide variety of supports, and for example the support 11 could be a cast concrete pillar, a cast concrete wall, a metal structural member of a metal frame building, or a metal support plate secured to, for example, a rolled steel beam or girder of a building structure. The brickwork support member is intended to support courses of brickwork which may form part of an outer leaf of the wall of the building. The member can support blocks and other similar building elements all of which are intended to be embraced by the term "brickwork".

The components of the brickwork support member are conveniently formed in corrosion resistant stainless steel, but it is to be understood that other metals could be used where the application permits. The brickwork support member comprises a plane, generally rectangular anchor plate 13 having a circular aperture 14 adjacent its edge which will be uppermost in use, the aperture 14 being provided to accommodate a securing bolt. An elongate entrant channel member 15 is rigidly secured, conveniently by welding, to the plate 13 and extends parallel to the length of the plate 13 with its centre line aligned with the centre line of the plate 13. The channel member 15 extends along the plate 13 from the end thereof remote from the aperture 14 and terminates short of the aperture 14.

The cross sectional shape of the channel member 15 is best illustrated in Figure 2 from which it can be seen that the channel member 15 has a base wall 15a in facial contact with and welded to, the plate 13; spaced parallel side walls 15k which project outwardly from the plane of the base wall 15a and the plate 13, and inturned regions 15s at the free edges of the side walls 15k which provide the channel member with its entrant nature. The free edges of the inturned portions 1 5g are serrated as is apparent from Figure 1. It should be noted that for convenience the depth of the channel member 15 illustrated in Figure 2 is greater than that of the channel member 15 illustrated in Figure 1.

Reference to this will be made hereinafter.

The channel member 15 and anchor plate 13 define a sub-assembly which can be mounted to the support 11, either with the plate 13 in facial contact with the surface 12, or alternatively with one or more packing shims 16 interposed between the plate 13 and the surface 12.

The remaining components of the brickwork support member are a metal support angle 17 and bolt means 18 for securing the support angle 17 to the sub-assembly of channel member 15 and plate 13. The support angle 1 7 is an elongate, rigid, metal component comprising first and second limbs 17a, 17k at right angles to one another. The limb 17a is intended to be vertical in use, and thus in use the limb 1 7k will extend horizontally and is intended to receive the brickwork to be supported.

The limb 17a is formed with an elongate slot 19 extending parallel to the length of the support angle and in use the outer face of the limb 1 7a is clamped to the front, open, face of the channel member 15 by the bolt means 18 which comprises a screw threaded bolt the head 21 of which is received within the channel member 15 and has serrations engagable with the serrations on the inturned edges of the channel, and the shank 22 of which extends through the open face of the channel and the elongate slot 19 in the limb 17a of the support angle to receive a nut 23 which, when tightened, clamps the limb 1 7a against the channel member 15. It will be recognised that one or more shims 24 can be interposed between the limb 1 7a and the channel member to adjust the position of the support angle towards and away from the channel member.Such shims 24 are apertured to receive the shank of the bolt 22 but do not need to have elongate slots. As is apparent from Figure 2 a load spreading washer can be interposed between the nut 23 and the face of the limb 1 7a to provide a load spreading and locking action.

In use the anchor plate 13 is secured to the support 11 by means of a bolt extending through the aperture 14. The nature of the bolt will be determined by the nature of the support 11. Thus where the support 11 is a cast concrete structure then it may have a nut for cooperation with the bolt cast therein. However, other forms of fixing may be provided, and for example a horizontally extending entrant channel member similar to the channel member 15 may be cast into the support 11 with its open face exposed at the surface 12, the bolt which serves to secure the anchor plate 13 in position having a head received within the channel and a shank extending forwardly through the aperture 13 and any intervening shims 16. A nut is then engaged with the projecting portion of the shank to clamp the plate 13 against the support 11.The elongate horizontal channel allows horizontal adjustment of the position of the anchor plate relative to the support, and the provision of a range of shims 16 allows adjustment of the position of the anchor plate towards and away from the support 11. Alternatively, where the support 11 is a metal component then it may be pre-drilled, or provided with a pre-drilled support plate receiving a captive nut of metal, or nylon construction. It will be recognised that there is a wide variety of ways in which the plate 13 may be anchored to the support 11.

When the plate 13 is anchored in position the operative position of the limb b of the support angle can be adjusted as necessary to accommodate tolerances in the positioning of the brickwork relative to the support 11. Thus by releasing the bolt means 12 the support angle 1 7 can be adjusted in the direction of the length of the channel member 15, and generally this will correspond to a vertical adjustment of the position of the support angle 17 in use. Moreover, the position of the support angle can be adjusted along the length of the elongate slot 19 and the spacing between the support 11 and the brickwork can be further adjusted by the provision of a range of shims 24 of different thickness to be interposed between the support angle 17 and the channel member 15.

In many applications the support angle 17 will be of such a length that more than one anchorage is necessary to support the brickwork adequately from the support 11. Thus the limb 1 7a of the support angle 17 will be provided with a plurality of slots 19 regularly spaced along its length, and each slot 19 will have a similar plate 13 and channel member 15 sub-assembly associated therewith. Thus a single support angle may have a plurality of sub-assemblies fixing it to the support 11, each having its own adjustment so as to be able to accommodate tolerances in all three planes.

There may be situations in which the gap between the support 11 and the brickwork is too large to be accommodated by the maximum permissible thickness of shims 16 and shims 24. To accommodate this possibility a range of plate and channel member sub-assemblies can be provided utilising different depths of channel member 15. This possibility is illustrated by comparing Figure 1 and Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings where it can be seen that in Figure 1 the channel member 15 is relatively shallow, but in Figure 2 the channel member 15 is of considerably greater depth.As an alternative a subassembly can be provided in which a spacing member is welded between the base of the channel member and the plate 13, and such a spacing member could for example be a further length of channel member positioned so that the two channel members are welded together base wall to base wall, the open face of the "spacing" channel member being welded to the plate 13.

In order to improve the rigidity of the support member, it is desirable to use a channel member 15 having a base 1 spa of relatively large width. If the sidewalls of the channel member 15 were perpendicular to the base isa of such an embodiment, the open face of the channel member 15 would also be of relatively large width requiring the use of bolt means 18 having a head 21 of relatively large diameter. In order to avoid the use of such bolt means 18, the sidewalls of the channel member 15 can be angled towards one another as shown in Figures 4 and 5 in order to provide a channel member 15 having a base 15a of relatively large width but with a relatively narrow opening in the open face thereof.

Alternatively, channel members 15 having substantially parallel side walls may be used, the free edges of the side walls being inturned and having a relatively large radius of curvature such that the separation of the inturned edges is sufficiently small to permit the use of a bolt having a relatively small head.

Figure 6 illustrates a modification to the embodiment illustrated in Figures 1 to 3. In the modification illustrated in Figure 6, the channel member 15 and anchor plate 13 of the first embodiment are replaced by a single channel member 30 which includes a base wall 30a and a pair of sidewalls 30b which are angled towards each other, although a parallel sided channel member could be used. The free edge of each sidewalls 30k is rolled so as to extend generally towards the base wall 30a, the channel member 30 defining a entrant shape.

The base wall 30a is provided with an aperture 32 which is arranged to receive a threaded support bolt or the like in order to secure the channel member 30 to the support member. As in the first embodiment, shims may be inserted between the base wall 30a of the channel member 30 and the support member in order to adjust the separation therebetween.

In order to provide access to the base wall 30a surrounding the aperture 32 to permit a nut or the like engaged with the bolt to the tightened, the sidewalls 30k of the part of the channel member 30 adjacent the aperture 32 are cut away.

The remainder of the support member is as described with reference to the first embodiment and will not be described in detail.

This embodiment is advantageous in that it is not necessary to weld or otherwise secure the channel member to an anchor plate thus reducing the complexity of construction. The simpler nature of the support member does not, however, result in a reduction in the level of adjustment, the support member still being adjustable in three orthogonal directions as in the first described embodiment.

Figures 7 and 8 are plan views of shims 16, 24 suitable for use in the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3 and the embodiment of Figure 6. Figure 7 illustrates the shim 24 to be positioned between the channel member 15, 30 and the angle support 17 in order to adjust the separation thereof.

The shim 24 includes a slot 34 arranged to receive the shaft 20 of the bolt 18 used to secure the angle support 17 to the channel member 15, 30. In the illustrated embodiment, the slot 32 extends along part of the length of the shim 24, but it will be recognised that the slot 32 could extend in a different direction.

Figure 8 is similar to Figure 7 but illustrates a shim 16 for introduction between the channel member 30 or anchor plate 13 and the support 11, the shim 16 having a lateral slot 36 arranged to receive the shaft of the bolt used to secure the support member to the support.

It will be recognised that the brickwork support member can provide a wide range of adjustment in all three planes in a simple and convenient manner using a minimum of components. A single bolt arrangement secures the anchor plate to the support 11 and a single bolt arrangement secures the channel member 15 to the support angle.

Claims (12)

1. A brickwork support member comprising an anchor member for attachment to a support by means permitting the introduction of one or more packing shims between the anchor member and the support, the anchor member including, an elongate, re-entrant channel member with its open face presented away from the support, and, a support angle having a first limb positioned parallel to the channel member in use and a second limb extending substantially at right angles thereto and projecting outwardly away from the channel member to receive brickwork on an upper face thereof, said support angle being secured to said channel member by bolt means whereby the support angle can be adjusted in position along the length of the channel member and whereby packing shims can be introduced between the support angle and the channel member to alter the spacing of the support angle from the channel member, said one limb of the support angle having an aperture through which said bolt means extends.

2. A support member as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said aperture in said one limb is an elongate slot whereby the support angle can be adjusted in position relative to the channel member substantially at right angles to the length of the channel member in use.

3. A support member as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein said bolt means is a single bolt having a head engaged within the reentrant channel member, the screw threaded shank of the bolt extending from the channel member through the elongate slot of said one limb of the support angle and any shims which may be interposed between the support angle and the channel member, and having a nut engaged therewith to clamp the support angle and any interposed shims against the channel member.

4. A support member as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the head of the bolt and the face of the entrant channel member with which the bolt cooperates are serrated to facilitate locking of the bolt means and the support angle in position along the length of the channel member when the bolt means is tightened.

5. A support member as claimed in any one of Claims 2 to 4, wherein the support angle is an elongate component, and said elongate slot in said one limb thereof extends parallel to the length of the support angle.

6. A support member as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the support angle has further anchor members and reentrant channel members associated therewith at spaced points along its length so that a single support angle can be anchored to the support at a plurality of points along its length in use.

7. A support member as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the anchor member further comprises an anchor plate, the entrant channel member being rigidly secured to the anchor plate with the open face of the channel member presented away from the anchor plate.

8. A support member as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the channel member is welded to the anchor plate.

9. A support member as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 6, wherein the anchor member is defined, at least in part, by the wall of the channel member opposite the open face thereof.

10. A support member as claimed in Claim 9, wherein the anchor member is provided with an aperture, the side walls of the channel member adjacent the aperture being shaped so as to permit access to the part of the anchor member adjacent the aperture.

11. A support member as claimed in Claim 10, wherein the side walls of the channel are shaped by having parts thereof cut away.

12. A brickwork support member substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the accompanying drawings.