US2412253A - Wall panel - Google Patents

Description

M. 1. DIGGS WALL PANEL Dec. 10, 1946.

Filed Dec. 17, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 M. DIGGS WALL PANEL Dec. 10; 1946.

Filed Dec. 17, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 latented 10, 1946 WALL PANEL Maury I. Diggs, New Orleans, La., assignor' to Higgins Industries, Inc., New Orleans, La., a corporation of Louisiana I Application December 17,1945, Serial No. 635,525

9 Claims.

'all around so that an integral wall core may be formed by pouring concrete in the space defined within a plurality of such panels arranged contiguously.

Another object of the invention is to provide a wall panel comprislnga pair of spaced parallel Figure 3 is a section taken along the line 33 of Figure 1, the lower part of the panel being broken away;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view of the inside of one of the panel sheets, showing a finger unit in fiat condition;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional .view of one of the panel sheets, taken diametrically through one of the finger units, showing the fingers bent up from the plane of the sheet;

Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view, partly in section, showing the cooperative relationship of the finger units of the respective panel sheets,

and the spacing collar, in forming the bonding metallic sheets, each having fixed thereto a plul5 p a rality of spaced inwardly projecting fingers, the Figure 7 is a diametrical cross-section through spacing pattern for the cooperating sheets being the bonding pillar, the cementitious filling being so related that corresponding fingers of 'the reomitted; f spective sheets lie in juxtaposition, each group Figure 8 is a top plan view of a, wall portion ing of juxtaposed fingers being embedded in a pillar 2o eluding a corner, fabricated from contiguous wall of set cement, whereby the fingers are bonded panels; in fixed position and the sheets thereby fixedly Figure 9 is a perspective view of a clip for sesecured in spaced relation. curing adjacent wall panels in end to end abut- A further object of the invention is to provide ment; I a wall panel, as above described, in which the Figure 10 is a perspective view of a corner clip. groups of juxtaposed fingers are surrounded by Referring now to the drawings, the wall panelv collars which may be cheaply made of paper or I, comprises two spaced sheets 2 and 3, of metal, fiberboard, of uniform height, which determine congruently arranged in spaced parallel relation. the parallel spacing of the sheets, and which The margins of the sheets are folded twice, at serve as forms into which the pillars of cement right angles, to 'give the panel flat side andv end are cast about the juxtaposed fingers. faces in a width direction, and to form channel Still another object of the invention is to proflanges 4, extending around all sides of the sheets, vide a wall panel as described, in which the bonddefining an inner peripheral channel 5. The ing fingers are tack-welded to the respective flanges 4 face inwardly when the sheets are set sheets in fiat position, and later bent up from up in the panel bounding an open slot 6, which the surface of the sheet preparatory to assemextends about the entire perimeter of the panel. bling the panel. This permits the sheet to be Each sheet is provided on its inner face, at handled fiat in further processing, as for example, spaced intervals, bot'iinlengthwise and widthwise, to receive the frit when the outer faces of the with finger units 1. By -way of example, for an sheets are to be porcelain enameled, and permits 40 8 by 4' sheet there may be'fifty finger units, unithe sheets to be stacked fiat for transportion to formly spaced apart, five to a row widthwise, the the place where the panel is assembled. spacing pattern being identical for all sheets of Other objects of the invention will appear as a size, and equidistant from opposite edges, so the following description of a preferred and that regardless of how the length dimension of practical embodiment thereof proceeds. the sheets of a pair are relatively oriented in con- In the drawings which accompany and form a structing the panel, the spacing centers of the part of the following specification; clips, for both sheets, will be in precise transverse Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wall panel, ali embodying the principles of the invention, the Figure 4 Shows t n r nits e intermediate portion being broken away, and the in the flat, consist of a sheet metal base plate spacing pattern for the bonding fingers being inin the form of a ring 8, having stampedout findicated; gers 9, with arcuate base portions in emanating Figure 2 is a, section taken along the line 2-2 from corresponding sides of outwardly extendin of Figure '1, showing also part of an adjacent welding lugs 8a and which follow the curvature wall panel; I of the ring, and tangentially extending end por- 3 tions Ii, the tangential end portions extending in the same direction with respect to the circumference of the ring. The end portions each preferably terminates in an enlarged head l2.

. The fingers 9 are displaced at 90 intervals, and have weakened fold lines l3, defining their bases,

diametrically opposite fold lines being parallel to a diameter 'of the ring.

The clips I are positioned concentric with the spacing centers, and oriented until the fold lines l3. at the bases of opposite pairs of fingers are offset with respect to diameters of the ring paraliel to the respective length and width dimensions of the sheet. This assures that when the complementary sheet is in position, the fingers of the respective sheets'will be out of meta-lliccontact, as shown in Figure 7. The finger units are the fingers 9 being left free. The finger units are arranged identically on both sheets, so that all then tack-welded to the sheet, as indicated at H, Y

of the fingers of all of the finger units extend in l the same direction, that is, all clockwiseor all counterclockwise.

The finger units 1 are left fiat until the time comes to assemble the sheets into a wall panel. when in flat position they are below the level of the flanges 4, so that they create no impediment to the flat handling or stacking of the sheets. A

large stock of identical sheets may be prepared at one place and shipped stacked fiat to the place a of assembling. Since the spacing pattern is symmetrical with respect to the opposite sides of the sheet, there is no problem in matching the ends of the sheet in setting up the panel. To fabricate the panel, all of the fingers 9 of the sheet are bent out perpendicular to the plane of the sheet along the fold lines l3, by means of pliers or a special tool. The perpendicular fingers will be 1 in groups of four, one group for each finger unit, two of which fingers will have their width dimensioned parallel to the length edges of the sheet, while two will be parallel to the width edges.

Collars or tubes I5 are provided for each group,

. said collars being in the form of cylinders of uniform height, open at both ends and of a diameter to snugly embrace the fingers about their 3 arcuate portions 9 and to enclose thearcuate ends l3a of the lugs 8a. The cylinders may be t of plural ply paper, waterproofed with shellac.

One of the sheets is now laid flat with the fingers uppermost, and a collar I5 is slipped over each group of four fingers until the lower'end of the collar rests upon the sheet. The collars are self-centering, since they are guided by the cam surfaces afiorded by the arcuate portions In of the fingers. Now, a settable cement composition which preferably has thermal insulation properties, is poured into each collar in plastic state, to fill the same and to embed the fingers.

' The tangential portions ll of the fingers extend inwardly toward the axis of the group and are deeply embedded in the cement. The-heads l2 assist in keying the fingers in the cement. Next, he complementary sheet with projecting fingers ,is inverted and brought down parallel and con- V erect, are parallel respectively to the length and width dimensions of the sheet, and since they I are offset from diameters through the spacing centers parallel to the respective length and width dimensions of the panel, the interleaved fingers from opposite sheets will bearranged in the bonding pillar in pairs, as shown in Figure '7, the fingers of opp ite pairs lying in I spaced parallel planes, the pairsbeing 90 displaced. This arrangement affords maximum re-' inforcement against shearing stresses transmitted through the sheets comprising the panel;

as well as stresses tending to separate the sheet. .Weights are placed upon the top sheet sumcient to hold it in contact with all vof the collars while the cement is setting. This straightens out any wind in the sheets incident to the stamping of the peripheral flanges, or warping imparted during the process of porcelain enameling, so

that the faces of the panel are in true planes. I

When the cement in the collars has become set, the weights are removed and the panels are complete.

Figure 3 shows that when the fingers I are bent into erect position, the-arcuate base portions 9 cause the tangential end portions ll, Fi ure 4, to become deflected inwardly toward the axis of the bonding pillar of cement which embeds the fingers, and since it is the tangential.

portions of the fingers of the respective sheets which interdigitate, these embrace and confine a portion of the cementitious mass so as to cause it to compressively resist any force tending to separate thev sheets in the direction of the thickness dimension of the panel.

It is preferred to cast marginal tie wires in the panel, useful for reinforcing the poured concontiguous panels, in the wall. This is done by perforating some or all of the collars I! in the peripheral border of the spacing pattern, as indicated at II in Figure 2, and inserting the legs or wire loops l8 through said perforations, so' as to enter or intersect the space within said collars.

position and the loops thus fixed. Thebights of the loops $10178 of the wall-panel, as shown in Figure 1, but for convenience in handling the panel, they may be temporarily bent so as to lie within the confines of I the panel.

The wall panels may be variously arranged in fabricating them into a wall, one of which arrangementa for example, is shown in Figure 2, in which two panels I and, la are shown, placed in endwise juxtaposition withadiacent fiat faces in abutment, being temporarily secured together by the resilient clips l9, which spring over adjacent flanges 4. One of these clips is shown in perspective in Figure .9, having flared sides 29,

. crete mass which intersects the joints between The legs become embedded in thecementcoml8 extend beyond the peripheral which spread when the .clip is pressed against the flanges l, to let the flanges into the channel seats 2|. The reinforcing wire loops l8 are shown extending from the respective panels,- each into the peripheral channel 8 of the other panel, l in lapped relation intersecting the plane of the joint'22 between the panels. Concrete is poured into the space defined within the contiguous panels and about the binding pillars forming an integral wall core. Thus the panels function as self sustaining forms for the concrete, no other forms being required. The concrete, is preferably of heat insulating nature.

Figure 8 shows a wall arrangement, includin a corner, formed by the panel lb, placed at right angles to the panel I. with adjacent inner edges of said panels in linear abutment. These edges are temporarily held together by a corner-clip 23, shown in perspective in Figure 10, having sides 24, which spread when pressed against the flanges E to let the bases of. said flanges into the channel seats 25. The sides are then bent to embrace the ends of the flanges 4, as indicated at 26 in Figure 8. The outside of the corner is closed by an arcuate sheet 21, having longitudinal rabbets 29 terminating in flanges 30. This sheet is slidably inserted from the top between the adjacent outer corners ofthe panels I and lb. The

reinforcing wire loops l8 overlap in the corner When the concrete is poured in, it forms a mono-' lithic wall core extending about the corner. K,

In addition to providing continuity of the space within contiguous wall panels, the peripheral channel 6 which surrounds each Panel. af-

fords means for adjustably positioning and retaining adjunctive devices such as the roof rafter bolster Bl, shown in Figure 3. This consists of a sheet metal member having an upper convex rafter seat 32, of a width to overlie the peripheral channel 6, having longitudinal right-angled rabbets forming seats which rest upon the upper ends of the respective sheets of the wall panel and terminate in flanges 33, which press the inner sides of adjacent flanges 4 of the -wall panel through inherent resiliency. These flanges are thrust down into the soft concrete within the wall panel. The top of the bolster is formed with holes 34, through which more concrete may be introduced to fill the space within the bolster and unify it with the panel when the concrete has set. The convex shape of the rafter .seat permits rafters to be supported upon it at various pitch angles.

The invention contemplates making the faces lain enameled, or either or both faces may .be of stainless steel, plain metal bonderized for, wall paper, canvased or stippled, or provided with any type of finish that may be desired.

The panel construction is adapted for floors as well as walls, and for many other uses.

While I have in the above description disclosed what I believe to be a preferred and practical embodiment of the invention, it will be understood to those skilled in the art that the details of construction and arrangement of parts are by wayof example and not ing the scope of the invention.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. Wall panel comprising a pair of spaced sheets having bonding pillars between them at various points, said bonding pillars comprising spacing tubes of uniform length against the end of which the sheets abut, a cementitious mass within said spacing tubes, and fingers juxtaposed within said spacing tubes fixed to the respective sheets and embedded in the cementitious mass.

2. Wall panel comprising a pair of spaced metal sheets having bonding pillars between them at various points, said bonding pillars comprising spacing tubes of uniformlen th a ain t the ends of which the sheets abut, a cementitious mass within said spacing tubes and metal fingers juxtaposed within said spaclngtubes, fixed to the respective sheets and embeddedin the cementitious mass.

3. Wall panel comprising a pair of spaced sheets of the same size and shape, each having a peripheral fiange to one side, perpendicular to the plane of said sheet, the free end of said to be construed aslimit- "of the panels with a plain metal finish or porcesurrounding peripheral slot bounded by said side flanges, bonding pillars between said sheets at various points, said bonding pillars comprising spacing tubes of uniform length against the ends of which said sheets abut, each spacing tube containlng a cementitious mass, and fingers juxtaposed withln said spacing tubes fixed to the respective sheets and embedded in the cementitious mass.

4. Wall panel comprising a pair of spaced sheets oi the same size and shape, each having a, peripheral flange to one side, perpendicular to the plane of said sheet, the free endof said flange being lnbent to form a side flange parallel to the plane of said sheet, said sheets being positioned congru'ently in spaced relation to form a. surrounding peripheral slot bounded by said side flanges, bonding pillars between said sheets at various points, said bonding pillars comprisin spacing tubes of unlformlength against the ends of which said sheets abut, each spacing tube containing a body of cem'entitious mass, and surrounding groups of fingers fixed to the respective sheets, extending into the spacing tube from 0D- poslte ends into juxtaposition within said tube, v

rounding peripheral slot bounded by said side flanges, bonding pillars between said sheets at various points, said bonding pillars comprising spacing tubes of uniform length against the ends of which said sheets abut, each spacing tube containing a cementitious mass and surrounding groups of fingers of sheet material fixed to the respective sheets, extending into the spacing tube from opposite ends into juxtaposition within said tube and embedded in the cementitlous mass, said fingers being arranged with the major crosssectional dimension of some parallel to the length, and some parallel to the width, of said panel.

drical spacing tubes and united by cementitious pillars within said spacing tubes which embed I fingers projecting from both face elements, said face element comprising a metal sheet having. a peripheral flange surrounding one side thereof, a plurality of finger units each comprising a base plate, a plurality of fingers pliably joined thereto at their base ends, said fingers being of greater length than the depth-of said flange, said base plate being welded to the flange-surrounded side of said face element at points adjacent the base ends of said fingers.

8. In a wall panel of the type described, a face element comprising a metal sheet having a peripheral flange surrounding one side thereof, a

plurality of finger units, each comprising a base 6 flange being inbent to form a side flange parallel 7 plate having welding lugs extending outwardly beyond the periphery thereof at uniform circumierentially spaced intervals. said base plate being welded to the flange-surrounded side of said sheet at points in said lugs, and fingers integral with said lugs extending from a corresponding side of each in a direction away from said sheet in planes. substantially perpendicular thereto,

' said fingers extending outwardly beyond the out "ermost ends of the respective adjacent lugs.

9. Wall panel comprising a Pair of spaced sheets having bonding pillars between them at points, said bondi pillars comprising spacing tubes of uniform lensth against the ends or which the sheets abut. a set cementitious mass within said spacing tubes, each bonding v axis ofsaid pillar."

MAURY I. DIGGS.

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