GB2479390A - System of low surface area paving blocks - Google Patents

Abstract

A system of paving blocks that are not in themselves complete shapes, but produce regular patterns when a number of identical blocks are interlocked together, and complementary infill slabs and planting containers designed to match with and locate into the matrix patterns thus formed. The blocks themselves occupy only a small proportion of the total surface area of ground covered by the resulting pattern, leaving voids between the blocks that can be filled with granular materials such as gravel, earth and plants, or solid slabs, either uniformly or in combination. The blocks locate accurately by means of interlocking male tabs and female recesses, have a tapered cross-section, and incorporate integral lugs to support infill slabs. The blocks may have reinforcing meshes or webs built in during moulding. The system includes paving blocks in various shapes, infill slabs, planting containers and modified blocks which can be stacked in a vertical plane.

Description

A SYSTEM OF LOW SURFACE AREA PAVING BLOCKS

DESCRI PTION

This invention relates to paving materials, and proposes a novel method of providing a system of interlocking paving blocks that produce the effect of a cellular matrix pattern of regular or s tesselated interlocking shapes (Figure 1). The patterns thus produced enclose voids (Figure 2) which may be filled with a variety of different materials, either uniformly or in any combination (Figure 3), while an individual paving block by itself does not include a completely surrounded void or completed shape.

The cellular surface resulting from the combination of a plurality of paving blocks offers advantages over traditional, continuously paved surfaces made from stone or concrete slabs, cast concrete or tarmacadam or other materials, which require considerable timeconsuming site preparation before laying, and often prevent the substrate ground from directly absorbing rainwater, which must run off around the perimeter of the paved area, often contributing to a modified local water-table and local flooding, which are known to be problems associated with increasingly large areas of hard paving in towns and the countryside. In addition to these problems, large areas of solid paving may cause the underlying soil to become stale, as lack of access to air suppresses natural enzymes and insect life in the soil. This in turn can make the soil barren and further contribute to landscape erosion. The matrix of paving blocks described herein will allow the free passage of both water and air from the atmosphere to the underlying soil.

Practical advantages of the system proposed herein include: ease and speed of laying; minimum site preparation prior to laying; ability to inf ill quickly with cheap and readily available materials; no grouting is required between blocks; low surface area of the blocks themselves and resulting open pattern allows good drainage and minimises water runoff; can be used with a wide variety of infill materials in any combination; can be filled with soil and planted; achieves an attractive finished appearance.

The paving blocks may in one embodiment of the invention produce a matrix of hexagonal shapes (Figure 1), close packed to form a honeycomb effect. In another embodiment the blocks combine to produce a matrix of circular or elliptical voids (Figure 1), and other blocks may be devised to produce matrices based on voids of different interlocking shapes.

The blocks may be formed from cast or moulded concrete or other cementitious material, from stone or reconstituted stone or ash or cinders or a combination thereof or may be moulded from plastics or fabricated from timber, sheet metal or other materials suitable for paved surfaces outdoors or inside buildings. The voids created when several blocks are fitted together on level or sloping surfaces may be hexagonal, circular, elliptical, or of other shapes, and they may be filled with gravel, earth, sand or other pourable or granular materials.

Alternatively they may be tiled over with rigid shaped slabs, tiles or inf ill panels.

In an embodiment where the material filling the voids is earth or sand or some other growing medium or combination thereof, the voids may accommodate living plants.

Site preparation may be simpler than in former methods: merely levelling the area to be paved and laying the paving blocks in their regular pattern is sufficient in most cases, followed by infilling the voids thus produced with the chosen inf ill materials or a combination thereof.

The cross-section of paving blocks may taper (Figure 11) so that the uppermost and visible face of a block is narrower than its base, thus allowing a combination of a slim visible profile with a strong overall shape. This tapered cross-section also allows for easy separation of cast or moulded blocks from their moulds, while, in addition, allowing a textured surface to be applied to the plane of the mould which determines the texture of the uppermost and visible surface of the shaped block, so that paving blocks may be produced with a textured finish on the visible upper suiiace.

A paving block incorporate wires, meshes or webs that are strongly fixed to it by casting in (Figure 4), moulding in or otherwise fixing to the block, for additional strength, rigidity or improved conformity with the substrate.

The paving blocks may be linked together in pairs (Figure 5) or small numbers to assist in handling and accurate positioning when combining them together to form a path or larger surface. This linking may be accomplished by moulding iii, casting in or otherwise firmly attaching wires, meshes or webs made from metal or plastic or the block material itself, and may contribute to the stability of the finished surface when a plurality of paving blocks are assembled together in a pattern along with the infill materials.

A paving block may include interlocking tabs and recesses or housings (Figure 6) similar to a loose-fitting mortise and tenon joint, which may be on the underside of the paving block, and thereby not visible in the finished pattern, to assist with accurate positioning of the block one with another, so that a regular and repeatable pattern of voids results and does not dislocate when laid over over large areas. The tab, or male component of the interlock, may be of a sloping profile when viewed in elevation from the side, and its slope may be at a greater divergence from the horizontal plane when compared with its counterpart slope in the recess, or female counterpart of the interlock (Figure 7). In this aspect, the differential slopes of the neighbouring tab and recess allow minor discrepancies in level to be accommodated by the pattern without one paving block becoming excessively out of level with its neighbour, thus avoiding spoiling the visual consistency of flatness of the resulting overall pattern.

Furthermore, a paving block may additionafly include integral lugs to support rigid infill panels or slabs (Figure 6) instead of pourable inf ill materials. Such inf ill panels or slabs (Figure 8) may be made from concrete, metal, plastic, timber, stone, reconstituted stone or other suitable strong material. These infill panels may be shaped to suit the paving blocks, for example as hexagons, circular or oval discs, or other shapes to fit closely with other interlocking patterns.

They may be solid or they may be pierced to reduce weight and/or assist with drainage or the passage of air. When the lugs are positioned at the junction of two arms' (Figure 6) of the paving block, they serve to thicken the cross-section of the block and thereby reinforce the loca' strength of the block.

Where the paving blocks do not naturally combine to produce a surface with a straight perimeter, for example where the paving blocks produce a hexagonal honeycomb, partial blocks (Figure 9) will be available that use the same constructional principles as the paving blocks described above, but are shaped to fill in between the complete paving blocks and convert the perimeter of the overall pattern to a straight or approximately straight line; in this example the partial shaped block could be in the shape of a bisected hexagon.

The uses for these systems of interlocking shaped paving blocks include but are not limited to garden areas, patios, pathways, driveways, hard standing, yards, roads, embankments, goods storage areas, car parks, verges, atriums, roof gardens, green roofs, interior planting, parks, playgrounds, recreational areas, sports arenas and their environs.

The weight of the paving blocks, the resulting pattern and its infill materials, for example gravel, used collectively may be used to stabilise sloping surfaces which might otherwise be subject to erosion by the runoff of rainfall or surface water, or cause flooding on adjacent flat surfaces, with or without additional fixings between the paving blocks and the ground or substrate, thereby ameliorating problems which are known to occur in such situations as motorway and railway embankments or steeply sloping gardens and other areas.

As a supplementary adjunct to this system of paving blocks, planting containers may be made available that will reflect the forms created by the matrix of paving blocks and will fit into, or interlock with, the shaped voids thus produced (Figure 10), for example, a planting container in the shape of a vertically extruded hexagon fitting into a cell of a hexagonal matrix, or a cylindrical container fitting a cell in a matrix of circles, could be provided.

In an alternative aspect of the invention, similar blocks may be provided with modifications which allow the construction of vertical walls for internal or external screening or division of spaces, by stacking these modified blocks in a vertical pattern, where the voids in the interlocking pattern may be left open for visibility or ventilation, or filled with opaque, semi-transparent or transparent materials.

It should be understood that any feature described in connection with any aspect of the invention may also be combined with a feature of another aspect, and that protection for any such combination may be sought through this patent application.

DRAWINGS

The drawings relating to this invention and accompanying this application are as follows: Figure 1 -illustrates the open or incomplete shape of the paving blocks and the way they combine in a matrix to form closed or complete shapes when a plurality of blocks are laid down together, and that the resulting visible area of the surface thus created comprises less than 25% paving block area against 75% or more void area.

Figure 2 -illustrates the voids formed when a plurality of blocks are laid together in a matrix pattern.

Figure 3 -illustrates the way in which the voids may be filled with different materials, either uniformly or in any combination, regular or random.

Figure 4 -illustrates that wires, webs or meshes may be moulded into, or otherwise made an integral part of the paving blocks.

Figure 5 -illustrates the way in which pairs of, or a plurality of, blocks may be linked together in fixed groups prior to laying down in the final matrix pattern.

Figure 6 -illustrates examples of the ways in which moulded-in lugs may be integrated into the paving blocks in order to support inf ill tiles or slabs while reinforcing the cross-section of the blocks for additional strength.

Figure 7 -illustrates the way in which the slopes on the male tab and female recess or housing may differ to allow for minor discrepancies in level of neighbouring blocks when laying on an uneven surface.

Figure 8 -illustrates the effect when inf Ill slabs or tiles are placed over the voids in the matrix, resting on the integral lugs.

Figure 9 -illustrates an example of a shape, the hexagon, that does not naturally produce a straight line perimeter when laid in a matrix pattern, and the partial slabs or partial tiles that may be provided to achieve a straight or nearly straight perimeter when laid with full-shaped blocks.

Figure 10 -illustrates examples of planting containers that may be produced and locate within the voids produced by a matrix pattern of the blocks.

Figure 11 -illustrates how the paving blocks may be made with a tapered cross-section.

TYPICAL EXAMPLE

One example of a paving block made with the features described herein, but not excluding other possible shapes, may be a hexagonal block such as that illustrated in Figure 6. This single block does not form a complete hexagon, but when laid in combination with three or more identical blocks will describe a completed hexagon or matrix of hexagonal shapes, where the surface area of the upper surface of the blocks is 25% or less of the surface area of the entire surface covered by the matrix. This example includes both the male tabs and the female recesses for accurate positioning of one block alongside its neighbour. This example also includes the lugs moulded into the block in order to support an infill tile or slab. The example in Figure 6 also includes a web or mesh, though this may not be present in all examples of paving blocks described in this invention.