US1944457A - Metallic protective sheathing for surfaces and method of applying metal foil - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 23, 1934. PERKlNs 1,944,457

METALLIC PROTECTIVE 'SHEATHING FOR SURFACES AND METHOD OF APPLYING METAL FOIL Filed June 6; 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Ar-ro 121v 1 H. F. PERKINS Jan. 23, 1934.

METAIJLIC PROTECTIVE SHEATHING FOR SURFACES AND METHOD OF APPLYING METAL FOIL Filed June 6. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 23, 1934 METALLIC rno'rno'rrvn SHEATllING ron SURFACES AND METHOD or APPLYING- METAL FOIL Harry Perkins, Clayton, Mo., assignor to Metalfoils, Incorporated, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Application June 6, 1931. Serial No. 542,545

8 Claims.

This invention relates to protective sheathings for roofs, walls, ceilings and other surfaces, and particularly, to protective sheathings of the type that are formed from strips or pieces of metal foil joined together by locked seams, as disclosed in the pending application for patent of William T. Deacon, Serial No. 432,414, filed March 1, 1930, and the pending application of William T. Deacon and Harry F. Perkins, Serial No. 476,208, filed August 18, 1930.

The main objects of my present invention are to provide a metal protective sheathing 'of the general type referred to, in which the strips of foil constituting the sheathing, are arranged in a a novel manner that enables the strips of foil to be applied without the necessity of building a scaffolding or staging at the edge of the surface being covered; that enables foil to be applied easily to a surface arranged between two perpendicular walls; enables several crews of workmen to be employed at the same time in the operation of installing the sheathing; reduces the necessity for workmen to walk upon the adhesive used to secure the sheathing to the surface being covered; reduces to a minimum the wastage from trimming the strips of foil in covering a tank roof or other surface of substantially cone or spherical shape, and enables the strips of foil to be applied to such a roof or surface rapidly and evenly and substantially free from wrinkles.

Another object is to provide a method of covering a surface with metal foil, that enables the operation to be carried out quickly, efliciently, conveniently, with minimum wastage of the foil 6 used in the operation, and without the necessity of erecting a scaffolding or staging at the outer edge of the surface being covered, said method being applicable to the laying of the foil by hand or by a machine, and also applicable to the laying of strips of foil that are either lapped or joined together by locked seams.

And still another object of my invention is to provide a novel way of producing water-tight joints between strips of foil that are disposed at an angle to each other. Other objects and desirable features of my invention will be hereinafter pointed out.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a top plan view, illustrating my invention in connection with a substantially cone-shaped tank roof.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view, illustrating the co-acting upstanding flanges or portions on two adjacent strips of foil prior to bending, curling or deforming said flanges to produce a locked seam between the strips.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective view, illustrating the seam produced by interlocking said flanges.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view, illustrating one method of constructing the runway or tread surface with which the sheathing is provided.

Figure 5 is a top plan view, illustrating the key strips and angularly-disposed strips before the co-acting flanges on same have been curled or deformed to produce locked seams.

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view on the line 66 of Figure 5.

Figure '7 is a vertical sectional view, similar to Figure 6, but showing the co-acting flanges on the laterally-branching strips curled to produce a locked seam. Figure 8 is a sectional view, similar to Figure 6, showing co-acting portions on the key strip and laterally-branching strips bent upwardly preparatory to curling said portions; and

Figure 9 is a sectional view after said coacting portions have been curled to produce a locked seam between the key strip and the laterallybranching strips.

Briefly stated, my broad idea consists of a protective metal sheathing for a surface, composed of strips of metal foil lapped or joined together by locked seams, and arranged so that one end of the strips terminate at or adjacent to the outer edge of the surface covered by the strips, and the other end of the strips terminate at an intermediate portion or portions of said surface. At the points where the inner ends of the strips terminate they are joined by locked scams or lapped over an intermediate strip or strips of foil, which, for convenience, I have referred to as a key strip or key strips. In laying the strips they are started at the outer edge of the surface being covered and are run inwardly from said outer edge, thereby overcoming the necessity of building a scaffolding or staging at the outer edge of the surface being covered, so as to support the workman or apparatus used in the operation of applying the foil. In the method heretofore used to apply metal foil to a tank roof, such a staging was absolutely essential, whether the strips of foil were laid by hand, or laid mechanically by means of a foil-laying machine having provision for supporting a supply coil of foil, and constructed in such a way that the machine can be moved or drawn over the surface being covered so as to progressively apply a strip of foil under pressure and roll said strip in such a way that it will lie fiat and substantially free from wrinkles.

The strips of foil constituting the major portion of the sheating preferably extend parallel to each other and run inwardly from the outer edge of the surface to a key strip or intermediate strip. While I have herein described my invention applied only to tank roofs, I wish it to be understood that the invention is applicable to other kinds of roofs, to ceilings, to side walls and to various kinds of surfaces.

Figure l of the drawings illustrates a metal protective sheathing for a substantially coneshaped tank roof, made up of a plurality of strips of foil A of less length than the diameter, cord or width of the roof and arranged in parallel relation, and an intermediate strip or strips of foil B, which, for convenience, I will refer to as a key strip or intermediate strip. In the form of my invention herein illustrated the strips of foil A have their longitudinal edges joined together by locked seams :1: (see Figure 3) which are produced by progressively curling, bending or deforming upstanding flanges 11 on adjacent strips in the manner disclosed in the two pending applications previously referred to. The inner edges of the strips A are also joined by similar locked seams to the key strip or strips B. As previously stated, however, it is immaterial, so far as my broad idea is concerned, whether the strips of foil are joined by locked seams or lapped joints that are made gas and liquid-tight by a suitable adhesive. The strips of foil constituting the protective sheathing are either secured directly to the surface 2 being covered by means of an adhesive, or they may be secured by an adhesive to felt, paper or any other suitable material that will serve as a supporting base for the sheathing and which is attached in any suitable way to the supporting structure of the roof or to the surface 2 protected by the sheathing. If desired, anchoring devices that are rolled into the seams of the sheathing and attached to the protected surface, may be used to prevent the sheathing from moving with relation to said surface, and to produce good electrical contact.

In laying the strips of foil I prefer to use a portable laying machine which is of such con struction that when said machine is moved over the roof, a length or section of foil will be drawn from a supply coil or roll carried by the machine, superimposed upon or. applied to the roof, and subjected to a pressing operation orrolling operation that smooths out the foil and causes it to lie flat and free from wrinkles and air pockets. In covering a substantially cone-shaped tank roof of relatively great diameter, for example, the roof of a tank having a diameter of approximately 120 ft., a strip of foil B is started at the center of the roof and run outwardly towards the outer edge of the roof, the outer end of said strip t'erminating anywhere from a few inches to two feet from the edge of the roof. Another strip of foil B is then started at the center of the roof and run outwardly in such a direction that the two strips B are arranged in longitudinal alignment with each other on the roof diameter, and thus, in effect, form a transversely-disposed key strip that practically divides the surface of the roof into two zones or portions, each of which comprises substantially one-half of the roof. The strips of foil A are then applied to the roof by starting each strip at the outer edge of the roof and running it inwardly to the key strip or intermediate strip that extends diametrically across the roof. On large flat roofs or surfaces, it may be found expedient to run more than one key strip.

In the operation of installing the strips A a foil laying machine of the kind previously described can be used advantageously to apply said strips to the roof, because no staging or scaffolding has to be built at the outer edge of the roof, owing to the fact that it is not necessary to run the foil laying machine beyond the edge of the roof, as would be necessary if the strips A extended unbrokenly across the entire diameter of the roof. In other words, in the above described method of applying the strips A, the supply coil or roll from which the strips are drawn, is moved inwardly from the outer edge of the roof to an intermediate point on the roof, and when the point of termination of each strip is reached, the supply coil or roll is still located at a point in advance of the inner end of the strip. This is also true in the event the strips of foil are laid by hand as the supply coil or roll of foil must be held beyond the edge of the roof in applying the foil to the peripheral portion of the roof.

When the key strip is reached the length of foil that has. just been applied will be severed from the supply coil or roll and the foil laying machine thereafter returned to the outer edge of the roof, after which the laying machine is again moved inwardly to the key strip to apply another length of foil. From the foregoing it will be seen that at the termination of the operation of laying each length of foil A, the laying machine is sustained or supported by an intermediate portion of the roof, whereas, if the strip A were started at one edge of the roof and run continuously across the diameter of the roof, it would be necessary to provide a staging or scaffolding at the opposite side of the roof to support the foil laying machine and permit said machine to be moved far enough (in some cases 4 ft.) beyond the edge of the roof to cause the pressing roller' of the laying machine to act properly on the terminal portion of the strip of foil.

In addition to permitting the strips of foil A to be applied rapidly, properly and without the necessity of erecting a scaffolding at the end of the roof, as previously described, the above described method of applying the strips of foil makes it possible for several crews of workmen to be employed at the same time, in the operation of installing the sheathing, thereby enabling a roof or otherv surface of relatively large area to be covered quickly. This, of course, is due to the fact that the intermediate strip or key strip divides the roof into two zones, each of which can be worked upon by two crews of workmen of the roof to points adjacent the edge of the roof, so that the roof will support the foil laying machine during the final portion of the operation of applying the key strips to the roof, the segmental portions of the roof beyond the outer ends of the key strips being covered by relatively short strips of foil C that can be applied by hand. Another advantage of the above described methodof applyingfoilisthatthefoilcanbekept clean. because the. workmen have access to their operations without walking over the adhedve used to secure the foil to the surface being covered.

It is not absolutely essential that the key strip or strips be located at the exact center of the roof, or that the key strip extend diametrically across the roof, for if desired, the key strip or intermediate strip may extend diagonally and may be located at any point disposed in such relation with the outer edge of the roof that will permit the roof to be used to support the workmen or the foillaying machine at the termination of the operation of laying one strip or one length of foil. I have not herein illustrated the foil laying machine that I prefer to use to apply the strips of foil to the roof, and I have not herein illustrated the machine or tool that is used to interlock the upstanding flanges v on the longitudinal edges of the adjacent strips of foil, so as to lock-seam the strips of foil together, as it is immaterial what types of laying machine or lock-seaming tool is used. Suffice it to say that in producing a protective sheathing embodying the preferred form of my invention, strips of metal foil provided with co-acting upstanding flanges, are applied to the surface being covered, and the strips of foil are joined by locked seams produced by means of a tool or apparatus that progressively curls, bends or deforms coacting portions on two adjacent strips of foil, so as to produce a gas and liquid-tight seam or joint between said strips.

As previously stated. one feature of my present invention consists of a novel method for lockseaming adjac'ent strips of foil that are disposed at an angle to each other. Figures 5 to 9, inclusive, illustrate said method used for joining a key strip B to angularly-disposed strips A that branch laterally from the key strip. As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the key strip B is provided at one of its longitudinal edges with a folded portion 1/, that is doubled over the body portion of said key strip before the laterally-branching strips A are applied. After the co-acting portions on the parallel strips A have been turned upwardly to produce the flanges y, the terminal portions of said flanges that overhang the doubled or folded portion of the key strip are cut so as to form a terminal notch 11 in said flanges, as shown in Figure 6. The next step in the operation is to curl or deform the flanges 1 so as to form a locked seam :c, as indicated in Figure'l, the terminal portion of said seam which overhangs the key strip, being of reduced height or thickness on account of the removal of the terminal portions of the flanges y to form the notch 11, previously referred to. The folded portion 3 of the key strip B and the terminal ends of the strips A that lap over the key strip are then 'bent upwardly, as shown in Figure 8, so as to form co-acting portions on the key strip B, and on the laterallyprojecting strips A. Thereafter, said upturned co-acting portions are curled or deformed so as to produce a locked seam :c, as shown in Figure 9, that extends continuously or unbrokenly along the edge of the key strip, and which has incorporated in same the terminal portions of the laterally-branching strips A, including the terminal portions of .the locked seams a: between the strips A. This method of forming a locked seam between strips that are disposed at an angle to each other enables the laterally-branching strips to be joined to the key strip quickly and in such a mannerthat there are no cracks or openings at the points where the locked seams a: between the strips A terminate at the seam a." which extends along the edge of the key strip, and form a liquidtisht Joint.

In order to prevent the foil sheathing of the roof from being punctured by operatives walking on same, I prefer to provide the sheathing with one or more rimways. As shown in Figure 4, a runway can-be formed from a piece J of fairly heavy gauge metal, preferably sheet aluminum, that is wide enough to form a walk and which is preferably corrugated or deformed in a manner that will impart stiffness to same and also produce a fairly rough tread surface that a person can walk on without liability of slipping. The side edge portions of the runway J are doubled or folded so that they will embrace attaching strips J preferably formed from metal foil, and are secured to said attaching strips by rivets J, or in any other preferred manner. The runway as an entirety is combined with or attached to the metal sheathing of which it forms a. part by lock-seaming the attaching strips J to the portions of the sheathing located at opposite sides of the runway, said locked seams a: being produced in the manner previously described, i. e., by bending, curling or deforming portions of the attaching strips J' and co-acting portions of adjacent strips of foil of the sheathing. If desired, an adhesive may be used to connect the runway J to the surface protected by the sheathing. This tread may also be laid over the sheathing and locked in like manner.

Instead of riveting or otherwise connecting attaching strips to the edges of the runway, as

above described, the runway member J can be interposed between two sheets of foil, with or without an adhesive, and the edge portions of said encasing sheets can be interlocked with co-acting portions of the sheathing so as to produce locked seams :c that join the runway to the adjacent portions of the sheathing. While I prefer to form the runway from metal of fairly heavy gauge, a runway can be produced from a sheet of rough material, such as saturated asbestos felt interposed between two sheets of metal foil, with or without an adhesive, and said encasing sheets of foil may thereafter be joined by locked scams 1; to the adjacent portions of the sheathing.

Having thus described my invention, what I 31852121838 new and desire to secure by Letters Paten 1. A method of joining a pair of strips of foil to a strip of foil which is disposed at an angle to said pair, consisting in arranging portions of the pair of strips in overlapping relationship. with a folded or doubled portion of the angularly-disposed strip, curling or deforming co-acting portions on the strips constituting said pair so as to form a locked seam between the same, and thereafter curling or deforming the doubled portion of the angularly-disposed strip and the overlapping portions of the strips constituting said pair, so as to produce a locked seam which has incorporated in same the terminal end of the locked seam between the strips constituting the pair.

2. A method of joining a pair of foil members to a third foil member at which said pair of members terminates, characterized by arranging the terminal portion of the pair of members in overlapping relationship with a folded or doubled portion of the third member, then curling or deforming upstanding flanges on the pair of members so as to produce a locked seam having a reduced terminal end, and thereafter curling or deforming the folded portion of the third memher and the overlapping terminal portions of the pair of members so as to produce a locked seam that has incorporated in same the reduced terminal end of the locked seam between the pair of members.

3. The combination of a pair of foil members that extend in the same general direction, a locked seam formed by deformed integral portions on said members, and a third foil member at which said pair of members terminates joined to same by a locked seam which has incorporated in same the terminal end of the locked seam between said pair of members.

4. A protective sheathing for a surface, comprising a plurality of parallel strips of metal foil of less length than the diameter, cord or width of the surface, and a key strip or intermediate strip located within the marginal edge of the surface and disposed at an angle to said parallel strips, the ends of said parallel strips being connected by liquid-tight joints to said key strip.

5. A sheathing for a surface, composed of strips of metal foil, said strips comprising a key strip that divides the surface into a plurality of zones, and said zones comprising parallel strips that run inwardly from the outer edge of said surface and terminate at said key strip, the ends of said parallel strips being joined by tight joints to said key strip.

6. A protective sheathing for a tank roof, composed of a key strip of metal foil that extends diametrically across said roof, and parallel strips of metal foil disposed at substantially right angles to said key strip and branching laterally in opposite directions from same, the longitudinal side edges of said parallel strips being joined together by liquid-tight joints and the ends of said parallel-strips being joined by liquid-tight joints to said key strip.

'7. A method of covering a surface, characterized by applying a key strip of metal foil to an intermediate portion of said surface so as to divide said surface into a plurality of zones, and thereafter covering said zones with parallel strips of foil disposed at anangle to said key strip and running inwardly from the outer edge of said surface to'said key strip.

8. A method of covering a circular tank roof, characterized by applying metal foil to said roof so as to form a key strip that extends diametrically across the roof, and thereafter covering the portions of the roof at opposite sides of said key strip by applying to said portions parallel strips of metal foil running inwardly from the outer edge of the roof and having their inner ends connected by liquid tight joints to said key strip.

HARRY F. PERKINS.

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