GB2582688A

GB2582688A - Wall panels

Info

Publication number: GB2582688A
Application number: GB1917085.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Gaffney Philip; Baker Simon
Original assignee: Monolith Brick And Stone Ltd
Current assignee: Monolith Brick And Stone Ltd
Priority date: 2019-11-22
Filing date: 2019-11-22
Publication date: 2020-09-30
Anticipated expiration: 2039-11-22
Also published as: GB2582688B; GB201917085D0

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel includes; providing a back mould with a plurality of separated moulding cavities formed in a main surface; providing a reinforcement member extending over at least a part of said surface of the back mould from at least one said moulding cavity to at least one other said moulding cavity; providing a front mould extending over least a part of said surface of the back mould and comprising a plurality of separated moulding through-openings two or more of which are each in register with a respective one of two or more said separated moulding cavities to each reveal a respective part of the reinforcement member thereat; the method including; casting a plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould and in to the front mould therewith to encapsulate said respective parts of the reinforcement member therebetween; applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material while said material is in a self-supporting un-cured state.

Description

WALL PANELS

FIELD

[1] The invention relates to brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panels and methods for their manufacture.

BACKGROUND

[2] Brick-effect or masonry-effect products are designed to present the visual appearance of genuine brickwork or masonry. Examples include cladding applied to the external surfaces of houses or other buildings, as part of a renovation work or other reasons. Such products are desirable when the use of genuine brickwork or masonry on the building is not possible or is undesirable. This may be so if the cost of genuine brickwork or masonry is prohibitive.

[3] Existing brick-effect products may be manufactured by moulding thin 'brick slips' which consist of a relatively thin rectangular slab or plate of cured mortar moulded typically as a thin slab or 'slip' having the external shape and profile appearance of the side of a brick when the 'slip' is viewed face-on. This is the view one would normally have of a brick in situ within a built structure (e.g. the wall of a house etc.). By mounting a multitude of such brick slips upon a wall surface, in a suitably regular array, the outward appearance of the wall can be make to mimic courses of whole bricks. A veneer of cement may be placed upon the wall within gaps formed between parallel edges of adjacent brick slips, in the regular array, so as to mimic the appearance of cement one would otherwise use to bind real bricks together in a real course of bricks.

[4] However, a drawback of the process of moulding brick slips is that the surface texture and appearance of those parts of the brick slip that were in contact with a mould surface, during the moulding process, present a surface which reciprocates the surface texture of the mould surface. This is often a smooth and regular surface texture. In approximating a realistic brick-like surface texture and appearance, this moulding process usually produces mediocre results in terms of the likeness to the rough and slightly irregular brick-like surface it is supposed to replicate in appearance. In particular, these moulding methods produce unrealistic surface finishes -e.g. too smooth.

[5] The present invention aims to provide means and methods which may be employed to address these issues.

SUMMARY

[6] In a first aspect, the invention provides a method of manufacturing a brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel comprising: providing a back mould comprising a plurality of separated moulding cavities formed in a surface thereof; providing a reinforcement member extending over at least a part of the surface of the back mould from at least one said moulding cavity to at least one other said moulding cavity; providing a front mould extending over least a part of the surface of the back mould and comprising a plurality of separated moulding through-openings two or more of which are each in register with a respective one of two or more said separated moulding cavities to each reveal a respective part of the reinforcement member thereat; the method including: casting a plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould and in to the front mould therewith to encapsulate the respective parts of the reinforcement member therebetween; applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material while the material is in a self-supporting un-cured state. The method may include removing the front mould part and subsequently applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material thereby released from the front mould while said material is in a self-supporting un-cured state.

[7] In this way, a wall panel having an array of moulded pieces or slabs (e.g. brick slips) may be formed in which at least two are joined together by the reinforcement member, and in which each moulded slab is provided with a shape defined by the shape of a mould, but with a surface texture and appearance defined independently of the mould. The brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern may be applied to the un-cured, released material either manually or by any suitable automated (e.g. mechanical) process or apparatus, as desired by the manufacturer. Irregularities, such as would normally be seen on the side surface of a real brick or masonry piece, or regular patterns or any desired complexity, may be applied at will to the receptive, compliant and malleable surface of the un-cured but self-supporting surface parts of the moulded pieces. The self-supporting state of the moulded pieces permits the overall moulded shape to be preserved without significant distortion due to gravity-driven flow of the material.

[8] Preferably, each moulded piece is joined to at least one other moulded piece via the reinforcement member. Preferably, each moulded piece is joined to each immediately adjacent/neighbouring moulded piece via the reinforcement member. The reinforcement member may be a single member which is connected to, and connects, each moulded piece within the wall panel.

[9] The casting of plastically flowable and curable material in to the front mould may take place while plastically flowable and curable material resides in the back mould in an un-cured state. In the manufacturing method, the cementitious material the process of casting the plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould and in to the front mould, may comprise a single step or multiple separate and successive steps. When this process is a multistep process, the first casting action of casting the plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould, may come after the step of providing the back mould but before the steps of providing the reinforcement member extending over the back mould, or of providing the front mould over the reinforcement member, or of casting of plastically flowable and curable material in to the front mould. Preferably the plastically flowable and curable material cast via the front mould bonds to the plastically flowable and curable material cast into the back mould at an interface between the two.

[10] This would mean that the plastically flowable and curable material is made to flow into the moulding cavities alone. Next, the step of providing the reinforcement member may take place, and this may include positioning the reinforcement member upon (i.e. in contact with, preferably pressed into the surface of) the curable material which fills the moulding cavities so that material in at least two (preferably each/all) of the filled cavities is simultaneously in contact with the reinforcement member, as desired.

[11] Next, the step of providing the front mould may occur, and when the moulding through-openings are suitably aligned and registered with filled moulding cavities, an additional quantity of the plastically flowable and curable material may then be made to flow into the moulding through-openings towards the surface of the un-cured flowable material that fills the moulding cavities.

[12] The flowable material may thereby flow around, and encapsulate, the parts of the reinforcement member revealed by the through-openings which is located between the back mould and the front mould. This casting step may thereby fill the moulding through-openings and also place the flowable material into direct contact with the un-cured flowable material filling the moulding cavities, while simultaneously encapsulating the reinforcement member within the material. The immediate result is an array of integrally-formed moulded pieces of un-cured flowable material mutually joined by the reinforcement member.

[13] Accordingly, the method may include casting a first quantity of the material into a plurality of the moulding cavities. Desirably, the method includes positioning the reinforcement member upon exposed surfaces of the curable material at two or more separate said moulding cavities to extend between the respective exposed surfaces. Preferably, the method includes positioning the front mould over the surface of the back mould to reveal the exposed surfaces and the respective parts of the reinforcement member thereat. Desirably, the method includes casting a second quantity of the material into each one of the two or more moulding through-openings to bond with the first quantity of the material at the exposed surfaces thereof.

[14] Alternatively, when the casting/moulding process is a single step, the casting action may come after the steps of providing the back mould, providing the reinforcement member extending over the back mould, and providing the front mould over the reinforcement member, such that the plastically flowable and curable material is made to flow into the moulding cavities via the moulding through-openings, and around the reinforcement member located between them, as to fill the moulding cavities and the moulding through-openings and simultaneously to encapsulate the reinforcement member within the material.

[15] Desirably, the method includes removing the back mould to release the brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel from the back mould when the first quantity of material is in a cured state. Alternatively, removing the back mould to release the brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel from the back mould may occur when the first quantity of material is in an un-cured self-supporting state. The wall panel may be given the necessary time to fully cure after release from the back mould.

[16] The method may include applying a mould-release composition to surfaces of the moulding through-openings before casting the material therein. The method may include applying a retardant composition to surfaces of the moulding through-openings before casting the material therein, therewith to retard the transition of the material from an uncured state to a cured state at the surfaces of the moulding through-openings. This allows the material cast within the moulding cavities of the back mould and within those parts of the front mould not immediately adjacent the surfaces of the moulding through-openings of the front mould, to advance further along the curing process than those parts of the material within the front mould that are in contact with the surfaces of the moulding through-openings. This means that the moulded pieces are less likely to suffer damage during subsequent removal of the front mould because the greater part of the moulded pieces are more advanced along the curing process and stronger as a result. At the same time, the surface parts of the moulded pieces that are revealed when the front mould is removed, are more compliant to the subsequent application of surface textures to them.

[17] Preferably, the reinforcement member comprises a mesh, grating or grid. The gauge of the mesh, grating or grid may be selected to be sufficiently large to permit ease of flow of the plastically flowable and curable material through it. The mesh, grating or grid may comprise a wire mesh, grating or grid, or a plastic mesh, grating or grid, or a plastic-coated wire mesh, grating or grid. The mesh, grating or grid may be reticulated, and may comprise an interlaced network of linear strands crossed to form an array of rectangular (e.g. square-shaped) through-openings between them. The mesh, grating or grid may comprise a framework of spaced lines, threads or strands that are parallel to and/or cross each other.

[18] Desirably, the reinforcement member is flexible. Preferably, the back mould part is flexible (e.g. a flexible plastic or rubber such as silicone rubber). The front mould is preferably rigid, such as a plastic, wood or metal.

[19] Desirably, the reinforcement member is a single piece and the method includes positioning the reinforcement member to extend over each moulding cavity of the back mould.

Desirably this positioning also permits the reinforcement member to extend beyond a moulding cavity only across a gap formed between adjacent edges of neighbouring said moulding cavities.

[20] Preferably, the front mould and the back mould are mutually shaped such that a shape defined by the perimeter of a moulding through-opening replicates the shape defined by the perimeter of a moulding cavity. That mutual shape may be a rectangle. Preferably, when a given moulding through-opening of the front mould is placed in register with a corresponding moulding cavity, the periphery of the moulding through-opening coincides with periphery of the corresponding moulding cavity along the whole length of each. Accordingly, the structure of the front mould may be such that the plastically flowable cementitious material cast into the back mould and the front mould is prevented from occupying the intermediate spaces between moulding cavities of the back mould. These intermediate spaces may be occupied solely by parts of the reinforcement member extending between moulded pieces of the wall panel, such that the reinforcement member remains exposed there within the resulting wall panel when manufacture is completed.

[21] The exposure of the reinforcement member at the intermediate spaces, e.g. between parallel edges of adjacent moulded pieces (e.g. brick slips), allows a means by which either the panel may be attached to a wall surface (e.g. by fastening the reinforcement member to a wall there) and/or by which an applied cement may 'grip' the panel when applied to the intermediate spaces to mimic the cement one would otherwise see in a real course of bricks or masonry. The application of cement to the intermediate spaces also protects the exposed reinforcement member form fire damage in the event of a fire at the external surface of a building bearing the wall panel and, accordingly, if the applied cement is more secure then the wall panel will be better able to resist fire damage to the reinforcement member. The reinforcement member is preferably fire-resistant.

[22] Preferably, a moulding cavity comprise a flat rectangular cavity base or floor surrounded four linear cavity walls of which one, some or all walls are either substantially perpendicular to the cavity base/floor or are chamfered (e.g. so as to diverge) such that the distance between two opposite walls at the entrance of the cavity exceeds the distance between those two opposite walls at the base/floor of the cavity. This chamfering assists in releasing the moulded pieces from the back mould without damaging them.

[23] Preferably, the front mould is substantially planar and one, some or all moulding through-openings within it comprises four flat, linear walls. Preferably one, some or all of the walls of the moulding through-openings are substantially perpendicular to the plane of the front mould.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[24] In order to allow a better understanding of the invention, but without limiting the scope of the invention, an example of an embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, or which: [25] Figure 1 shows a back mould having a plurality of separate moulding cavities which are shown as empty; [26] Figure 2 shows the back mould of Figure 1 with separate quantities of cementitious material filling each of the plurality of separate moulding cavities of the back mould; [27] Figure 3 shows the filled back mould of Figure 2 with a single-piece, flexible reinforcement mesh located over the back mould above the filled moulding cavities and the cementitious material within them; [28] Figure 4 shows the arrangement of Figure 3 with the reinforcement mesh placed upon and in contact with the back mould and the top surfaces of the cementitious material within each filled moulding cavity of the back mould; [29] Figure 5 shows the filled back mould and reinforcement member of Figure 4 with a single-piece, rigid front mould located over the reinforcement member such that through-openings of the front mould are in register with the filled moulding cavities and the cementitious material within them; [30] Figure 6 shows the arrangement of Figure 5 with the front mould placed upon and in contact with the reinforcement member top surface; [31] Figure 7 shows the arrangement of Figure 6 in which the front mould is loaded with cementitious material; [32] Figure 8 shows the arrangement of Figure 7 in which the front mould is separated from the back mould to release the front parts of an array of brick slips in an un-cured, self-supporting state in situ within the back mould; [33] Figure 9 shows the array of brick slips in an un-cured, self-supporting state in situ within the back mould following removal of the front mould as shown in Figure 8; [34] Figure 10 shows the removal of the array of brick slips from the back mould support position shown in Figure 9; [35] Figure 11 shows a wall panel comprising the array of brick slips of Figure 10, held together by a reinforcement mesh embedded within each brick slip; [36] Figure 12 shows a process flow chart corresponding to the steps illustrated in figures 1 to 11.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[37] In the drawings, like items are assigned like reference symbols. The Purpose of this manufacturing process described below is to produce a panel (see Fig.11) of 12 brick slips arranged in 6 courses of 2 bricks, having an internally bonded, fire-resistant mesh to hold the brick slips in position to aid installation.

[38] Figure 1 shows a back mould (1) comprising a plurality of separate moulding cavities (2) which are shown as empty. The back mould is approximately 6mm thick and has a series of 2.5mm deep moulding cavities or pockets formed within its upper surface which correspond to the size, shape and pattern of brick slips to be produced. A plastically flowable cementitious material (mortar) will be cast into each of the moulding cavities. Each moulding cavity comprises a flat rectangular cavity base or floor surrounded four linear cavity walls each of which is chamfered so as to diverge such that the distance between two opposite parallel walls at the entrance of the cavity exceeds the distance between those two opposite walls at the base/floor of the cavity.

[39] The back mould is a pre-formed silicone rubber or polyurethane mould (1) placed on a suitable flat surface, having been previously cleaned. If desired, and where necessary, a mould release product (e.g. liquid film) may be applied to the surfaces of the moulding cavities (pockets, 2) to assist in removing the back mould from the moulded pieces within them at the end of the manufacturing process.

[40] Figure 2 shows the back mould of Figure 1 with separate quantities of a plastically flowable cementitious material (brick slip mortar) cast into each of the moulding cavities. The brick slip mortar is a plastically flowable and curable material which is applied into the moulding cavities (pockets 2; Fig.1) by means of a suitable trowel, or any other suitable means, and any excess mortar is removed to provide a flat uppermost surface of un-cured brick slip mortar in each moulding cavity filled to be flush with the peripheral edge of the filled cavity at the back mould surface within which the cavities are formed.

[41] Figure 3 shows the filled back mould of Figure 2 with a single-piece, flexible reinforcement member (4), in the form of a reticulated grid or mesh, located over the back mould (1) above the filled moulding cavities and the cementitious material (3) within them.

[42] Figure 4 shows the arrangement of Figure 3 with the reinforcement mesh (4) placed upon and in contact with the back mould (1) and the flush top surfaces of the cementitious material within each filled moulding cavity of the back mould. The reinforcement member is a pre-cut piece of flat, flexible and fire-resistant reinforcing mesh shaped with an outer peripheral edge matching the periphery of the wall panel to be manufactured. This reinforcement member is immediately placed over, and pressed to embed within, the wet (un-cured) brick slip mortar residing within the filled moulding cavities (2) and pressed into place.

[43] Figure 5 shows the filled back mould (1) and reinforcement member (4) of Figure 4 with a single-piece, rigid front mould (5) located over the reinforcement member such that through-openings (6) of the front mould are in register with the filled moulding cavities and the cementitious material within them. The front mould (5) is substantially planar and each moulding through-openings (6) within it comprises four flat, linear inner walls that are substantially perpendicular to the plane of the front mould. The front mould comprises a 10mm thick sheet of a suitable rigid plastic, having a series of through-openings (6) or cut-outs corresponding in size, shape and pattern to the size, shape and pattern of the moulding cavities (2) of the back mould (1).

[44] Figure 6 shows the arrangement of Figure 5 with the front mould (5) placed upon and in contact with the reinforcement member top surface (4). The front mould (5) is placed immediately over, and in contact with, the reinforcing mesh (5) and the back mould (1) with the wet brick slip mortar (3) and reinforcing mesh (4) in situ within/over the moulding cavities (pockets, 2) of the back mould (1). The edges of the each one of the through-openings (6) in the front mould (5) are aligned with the edges of a respective one of the pockets (2) formed in the back mould (1) to ensure correct positioning of the through-openings in register with the pockets.

[45] The front mould is then filled with the remaining brick slip mortar to encapsulate those parts of the reinforcing mesh apparent via the through openings. This encapsulates portions of the reinforcing mesh between the brick slip mortar of the front and back moulds. Any desired additional finishing colours and patterns are added. Figure 7 shows the arrangement of Figure 6 in which the front mould (5) is loaded with brick slip mortar (7).

[46] The front mould is then removed while the brick slip mortar that has been moulded by the front mould, is still un-cured but is in a self-supporting state. This reveals the un-cured, self-supporting edges of the moulded brick slips, while leaving the base of the formed brick slips in place on the back mould. Figure 8 shows the arrangement of Figure 7 in which the front mould (5) is separated from the back mould to release the front parts of an array of brick slips (7) in an un-cured, self-supporting state in situ within the back mould. Figure 9 shows the resulting array of brick slips (7) in an un-cured, self-supporting state in situ within the back mould (1) following removal of the front mould (5) as shown in Figure 8.

[47] A brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern is then applied to the un-cured but self-supporting brick slip material while it is supported upon the back mould (1) while that material is in a self-supporting un-cured state. This means that a desired pattern and/or texture can be applied to the parts of the brick slip which were covered by the walls of the moulding through-openings of the front mould, but are now revealed. This texturing may be such as to give the brick slips a realistic brick-like appearance.

[48] When the brick slips have had sufficient time to dry, after the texturing or patterning has been applied, the whole brick panel (i.e. comprising multiple brick slips joined by a common reinforcing member) is removed from the base mould (1) which is then cleaned, ready for reuse. The finished brick slip panel may then be put aside for further drying, if that is necessary, before packing. Figure 10 shows the removal of the array of brick slips (8) from the back mould (1) support position shown in Figure 9. Figure 11 shows the resulting wall panel (8) comprising the array of brick slips of Figure 10, held together by a reinforcement mesh (4) embedded within each brick slip.

[49] Figure 12 shows a process flow chart corresponding to the steps illustrated in figures 1 to 11. The process comprises the following steps: [50] Step S1: Provide back mould having separated moulding cavities formed in a surface thereof.

[51] Step S2: Cast a plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould.

[52] Step S3: Provide reinforcement member extending over at least a part of the surface of the back mould from at least one moulding cavity to at least one other moulding cavity.

[53] Step S4: Provide a front mould extending over least a part of the surface of the back mould having separated moulding through-openings two or more of which are each in register with a respective one of two or more separated moulding cavities to each reveal a respective part of the reinforcement member thereat.

[54] Step S5: Cast a plastically flowable and curable material in to the front mould therewith to encapsulate the respective parts of the reinforcement member between curable material in the back and front moulds.

[55] Step S6: Remove the front mould part and applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material thereby released from the front mould while the material is in a self-supporting un-cured state.

Claims

CLAIMSA method of manufacturing a brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel comprising: providing a back mould comprising a plurality of separated moulding cavities formed in a surface thereof; providing a reinforcement member extending over at least a part of said surface of the back mould from at least one said moulding cavity to at least one other said moulding cavity; providing a front mould extending over least a part of said surface of the back mould and comprising a plurality of separated moulding through-openings two or more of which are each in register with a respective one of two or more said separated moulding cavities to each reveal a respective part of the reinforcement member thereat; the method including; casting a plastically flowable and curable material in to the back mould and in to the front mould therewith to encapsulate said respective parts of the reinforcement member therebetween; applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material while said material is in a self-supporting un-cured state.
2. A method according to any preceding claim including removing the front mould part and subsequently applying a brick-effect or masonry-effect surface texture or pattern to the material thereby released from the front mould while said material is in a self-supporting un-cu red state.
3. A method according to any preceding claim comprising: casting a first quantity of said material into a plurality of the moulding cavities; positioning the reinforcement member upon exposed surfaces of said curable material at two or more separate said moulding cavities to extend between the respective exposed surfaces; positioning the front mould over said surface of the back mould to reveal said exposed surfaces and said respective parts of the reinforcement member thereat; casting a second quantity of said material into each one of said two or more moulding through-openings to bond with said first quantity of said material at said exposed surfaces thereof.
4. A method according to any preceding claim comprising removing the back mould to release the brick-effect or masonry-effect wall panel from the back mould when said first quantity of material is in a cured state.
5. A method according to any preceding claim comprising applying a mould-release composition to surfaces of the moulding through-openings before casting the material therein or applying a retardant composition to surfaces of the moulding through-openings before casting said material therein, therewith to retard the transition of the material from an uncured state to a cured state at said surfaces of the moulding through-openings.
6. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the reinforcement member comprises a mesh or grid.
7. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the reinforcement member is flexible.
8. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the back mould part is flexible.
9. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the back mould part comprises a silicone rubber or polyurethane.
10. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the front mould is rigid.
11. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the reinforcement member is a single piece and the method includes positioning the reinforcement member to extend over each moulding cavity of the back mould and to extend beyond a said moulding cavity only across a gap formed between adjacent edges of neighbouring said moulding cavities.