WO2004097137A1 - Glass brick and method of production thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a brick for use in construction of a structure, the brick comprising a hollow blow moulded body having an opening leading from the interior of the body to its exterior and a seal secured to the body to close the opening and prevent ingress of foreign material, the brick further comprising a resilient mating component which is secured to the exterior of the body and provides a male or female mating feature through which the brick is able to be coupled to another, similarly formed, brick within a structure.

Description

DESCRIPTION

GLASS BRICK AND METHOD OF PRODUCTION THEREOF

The present invention relates to a brick for use in construction. In

particular, the invention relates to a brick capable of being manufactured by

blowing and to a method of using the brick in the construction of structures.

Glass bricks have been used for a number of years in a range of

applications, such as for constructing partition walls and transparent grid covers.

There are a number of problems associated with such glass bricks. Glass bricks

are generally produced from two hollow cup shaped pieces, which are joined

together either by welding the two hollow cups together with a bead of molten

glass or by pressing the two hollow cups into a brick shape whilst still molten.

This method of fabrication is not only time consuming, but also expensive.

Construction of structures utilising this type of glass brick is also time consuming,

requiring specialist tools a d technical skills and often a supporting structure is

required prior to positioning of the bricks. Each brick is usually held together by

means of a concrete or silicone adhesive further increasing the complexity and

expense of building such structures.

Commonly, the glass bricks are arranged in between metal guides and

concrete is injected to bind the glass bricks together, the guides being removed

after the concrete has set. Users may therefore be deterred from using such glass

bricks due to the complex nature of construction."

A number of improvements to glass bricks and the method of constructing stractures using glass bricks have been proposed in order to address some of the

problems associated with them. GB 590,921 discloses improvements in or

relating to glass building bricks and structures formed therefrom. The glass bricks

are formed with recesses in opposed faces and keyed blocks engage recesses in

adjacent bricks which are then secured by means of mortar or like adhesive.

Although this method of construction appears to be an improvement on previous

methods, the bricks still require an adhesive of some kind to secure the bricks in

place and it is still expensive and time consuming to build structures.

WO 96/30605 discloses a procedure for the construction of vertical walls

using glass bricks and a reinforceable modular element. A layer of reinforceable

glass modular bricks are provided with an external retaining structure and placed

on a row of other glass bricks. EP-A-1127993 discloses a similar procedure for

producing glass brick structures, but relies upon the glass bricks being layered in

horizontal runs between spaced elongate vertically extending support frame

members, the wall having horizontally extending elongate separation strips

between adjacent horizontal runs. Both procedures involve a number of parts

which can prove time consuming to fit together and the procedures usually require

concrete or similar material in order to cover the unsightly separation parts.

EP-A-1039062 discusses a procedure which relies on upstanding end

frame members for defining the boundaries of the structure and separation strips

for location between adj cent courses of bricks, the separation strips being capable of engaging the end frame members. Furthermore, US 5,740,646 describes glass bricks layered in horizontal runs between end frame members with a resilient

separation stripe between horizontal runs, allowing for cured structures. US

5,791,108 suggests the use of partition members positioned in a 'pigeon hole'

arrangement, whereby the glass bricks are placed within the apertures. Although

these documents disclose structures built of glass bricks, which is done by a more

accessible means than previously, the bricks are still secured to each other by

means of adhesive. Indeed, the glass bricks and their associated

supporting/joining members are expensive and once the structure has been fixed

firmly in place, it is difficult to dismantle the structure without damage to the

glass bricks.

DE 4010501 discloses a glass bottle formed with a short neck and

detachable spout so that, when empty, the bottle can be used as glass brick for

building a wall so that the bottle material is not wasted. Although such a glass

brick is inexpensive, the brick would require adhesive. Furthermore, the glass

brick has an open neck so that moisture could enter the brick and produce

unsightly condensation in addition to algae growth.

While the above described problems relate to glass bricks, there is the

alternative of forming bricks from plastics, which may of course be transparent.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome one or more of the

problems associated with existing bricks and their use in building structures. In

particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a brick that is

inexpensive to produce and easy to use to assemble into a structure. An additional object of the present invention is to provide a method of producing such a brick.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is a brick

for use in construction of a structure, the brick comprising a hollow blow moulded

body having an opening leading from the interior of the body to its exterior and a

seal secured to the body to close the opening and prevent ingress of foreign

material, the brick further comprising a resilient mating component which is

secured to the exterior of the body and provides a male or female mating feature

through which the brick is able to be coupled to another, similarly formed, brick

within a structure.

The body may comprise glass. Alternatively the body may comprise

plastics. A range of plastics may be suitable for producing the brick and such

plastics will be evident to the skilled addressee.

The use of a blow moulding technique provides an economical and rapid

way to manufacture the body of the brick. By closing the opening produced in the

body by this technique, problems of interior contamination and condensation are

avoided. The provision at the brick's exterior of resilient mating components

provides a straightforward facility for coupling bricks together potentially suitable

for individuals without specialist skills, and without necessitating use of

elastomeric or otherwise resilient material for the body itself. The present

invention allows for easy construction of a structure without the need for

specialist skills or training.

The hollow body is preferably substantially cuboid or cube shaped, but may alternatively be produced in a number of shapes such as hexagonal, octagonal

and triangular. Bricks of half the normal size may also be provided in order to

allow a structure to be constructed flush with other structures.

The seal may comprise a removable stopper. Preferably, the stopper is

made from a resilient material. Preferably, the stopper and/or the mating

component is made from a plastics or rubber material. Other resilient materials

may also be used. The seal may comprise a removable stopper or alternatively the

stopper may be permanently secured in place.

A brick as described herein above may have at least one depression formed

on its exterior and serving to mount the mating component. Preferably, the

mating component is fixed within a depression.

The stopper may also be adapted to couple the brick to a neighbouring

brick in a structure. Preferably, the stopper comprises a desiccant, in order to

prevent condensation from forming inside the brick and to allow the brick to be

used in different climates. Furthermore, a stopper may be provided that allows for

the passage of electrical wires. The electrical wires could supply electricity to a

bulb or lamp within the brick in ordef to provide light to a room or to provide for

a novel decoration in a room.

In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention, there is

provided a method of producing a brick for use in construction of a structure, the

method comprising blow moulding a hollow body having an opening leading

from the interior of the body to its exterior, closing the opening and thereby sealing the body to prevent ingress of foreign material, and securing to the exterior

of the body at least one resilient mating component shaped to provide a male or

female mating feature through which the brick is able to be coupled to another,

similarly formed, brick within a structure.

Preferably, the opening is closed by a seal secured to the body.

Alternatively, the opening may be sealed during the method of production by

manipulating the material of the body, e.g. by pinching off or twisting a neck to

close the opening formed therein by the moulding process.

The total volume of glass to the size of brick ratio may be varied according

to the required strength of the brick. It will be apparent that brick may be

strengthened in a number of ways, for example allowing a greater amount of glass

or plastics material to rest at the internal corners of the brick, or elsewhere in the

interior of the brick.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is a kit of

parts for construction of a structure, comprising a plurality of bricks according to

the first aspect and a plurality of coupling parts formed separately from the bricks,

the coupling parts being shaped to engage with the respective mating features of

two neighbouring bricks thereby coupling the two bricks together.

The kit may further comprise one or more wedge shaped elements to

facilitate the construction of a curved structure. The kit may yet further comprise

guide members for defining at least two sides of a structure, a guide member

comprising at least one mating feature for releasably coupling a guide member to a brick or a wedge shaped element. Preferably, guide members are also suitable

for defining at least two sides of a structure. It will be apparent that guide

members may be used to define where a structure may be constructed on a floor

and a wall, but may also define two sides of the structure including a top guide

member defining the top of a structure.

A specific embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by

way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a brick embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a body formed in accordance with the

present invention;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a brick and a wedge shaped element;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a further brick and wedge shaped

element;

Figures 5a and 5b are respectively a top view and a cross-sectional view of

a mating component forming part of the brick illustrated in Figure 1;

Figures 6a and 6b are respectively a top view and a cross-sectional view of

a seal also forming part of the brick illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 7 is a side view of a wall constructed using the bricks.

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a further brick in accordance with the

present invention;

Figure 9 is a view of a wall constructed using bricks as illustrated in

Figure 8; and Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of mating components used in

conjunction with the brick illustrated in Figures 8 and 9

Figure 1 illustrates a glass brick 1 which can be used in construction of

structures such as partition walls. The main body of the brick is a hollow glass

body 3 of substantially cuboidal shape. In the present embodiment the length of

the glass body 3 is double the height and depth, so that its top 5 and bottom faces,

and also its front 7 and rear faces are rectangular. Other shapes could be used

without departing from the scope of the present invention. The glass used in body

1 is transparent, although it may be tinted for decorative effect.

The glass body 3 is formed by blow moulding and can be economically

manufactured with machinery conventionally used in fabrication of glass bottles.

An opening 11 is formed in the wall of the glass body 3 by the blow moulding

process but this is closed by means of a seal 13, which is omitted from Figure 1

but shown in Figure 6. The seal prevents ingress of foreign matter and so

prevents the interior of the brick from becoming dirty or suffering from

condensation, either of which could of course be unsightly.

To enable a structure to be rapidly and straightforwardly assembled, the

brick is provided with mating features which allow it to be coupled to other

similarly formed bricks. In the present embodiment this is achieved by providing

depressions such as 15 in the exterior of the glass body 1 and securing therein

separately formed mating components such as 17. The depressions 15 can be seen

in Figure 1 to be shallow and generally hemispherical, and are formed in the glass body 1 during the blow moulding process. The mating components 17 are formed

from a resilient material, and more specifically from an elastomer such as a

plastics polymer.

As shown in Figures 5a and 5b, the mating component 17 is shaped to be

received by one of the depressions 15, having a hemispherical lower surface 19

and a flat upper surface 21 which lies generally flush with the adjacent face of the

glass body 1 in the assembled brick (Figure 1). According to the present

exemplary embodiment the mating component 17 is secured to the glass body by

means of adhesive. An opening 23 in the mating component's upper surface leads

to a socket 25 for receiving a pin 27 (seen in Figures 3 and 4). The socket has a

constricted mouth encircled by a lip 29, leading to a broader base region 31 of the

socket. Insertion of the pin 27 deforms the lip 29 somewhat and consequently the

pin is embraced in a manner which resists its subsequent withdrawal. Hence two

adjacent bricks can be coupled together by means of a pin 27 received in

respective mating components. The coupling can be sufficiently secure for the

construction of a structure, while still permitting the bricks to be subsequently

separated, by application of sufficient force, so that the structure can be

dismantled and the bricks re-used.

The brick illustrated in Figure 1 is well suited to use in the type of

construction in which bricks in adjacent horizontal rows are "staggered". That is,

the joints between neighboring bricks within a row are misaligned from the joints between neighboring bricks within the row above and the row below. The principle is of course familiar in connection with conventional wall construction

using non-glass bricks, and allows for increased strength as compared with the

alternative of aligning bricks in adjacent rows to form a rectangular grid of bricks.

To permit such staggering, the brick 1 has in its top face 5 a pair of upwardly

facing mating features 33, 35 at spaced positions along the length of the brick.

Likewise the bottom face of the brick has a longitudinally spaced, downwardly

facing pair of mating features 37, 39. The mating features are each formed, as

hereinbefore described, by a recess in the glass body receiving a resilient mating

component. They are arranged on the brick's longitudinal centre line. As Figure

7 illustrates, the upwardly facing mating features 33, 35 of a brick 1 couple, in a

wall construction, to respective bricks 41, 43 in the row above while the

downwardly facing mating features 45, 47 couple to respective bricks 49, 51 in

the row below. Adjacent bricks within a row are coupled through further mating

features 53, 55 provided on the end faces 9 of the glass body 1.

The seal 13 serves a dual function. It closes the opening 11 in the wall of

the glass body (the opening being the result of the body's fabrication by blow

moulding, as explained above) and it also forms a mating component for coupling

the bricks together. Looking at Figures 6a and 6b, the seal 13 is seen to be

generally similar in construction to the mating component 17. In particular it

comprises an opening 23', socket 25' and lip 29' for receiving and resiliently

embracing a pin 27. However the seal also has a circumferential locating groove

57 in its radially outer surface. The outer diameter of the seal 13 is larger than the diameter of the opening 11 so that during assembly of the brick the seal can be

pushed into the opening (being somewhat compressed in the process) until the

perimeter of the opening is received in the groove 57, thereby securing the seal in

position. Also at its base the seal 13 has a recess in which is mounted a desiccant

plug 59 serving to ensure that no unsightly condensation takes place upon the

inner surfaces of the glass body.

Looking again at Figure 1 it can be seen that a pair of grooves 61 is

provided in the exterior of the glass body, each groove extending around four

faces of the glass body. An 'O' ring, or a bead of sealant such as silicone sealant,

can be placed in each groove to form a seal between the brick and its neighbours.

Figure 2 illustrates a further glass body 70, the mating components being

omitted from this drawing so that depressions 15 can be clearly seen. The glass

body 70 is half the length of the body 1 shown in Figure 1 (so that it is in fact

cubic) and is used to form a straight end to a wall of bricks, as Figure 7 makes

clear.

In order to form curved structures, wedges may be interposed between

neighbouring bricks so that one brick s angled to another. Figure 3 shows an

"arch wedge" 72 to be interposed between vertically separated bricks to form an

arch, the wedge having through-going holes 74, 76 positioned to align with

mating features on the upper and lower faces of the bricks. Pins 27 are long

enough to pass through holes in the wedge and couple to bricks on either side of

it. Figure 4 shows a "curve wedge" 78 to be interposed between neighbouring bricks in the same row, having a single through-going bore 80. The wedges may

be formed from glass but could be of plastics or wooden construction, according

to the application.

The brick illustrated in Figure 8 differs from that of the preceding

drawings with regard to the components used to secure the brick to its neighbours.

It again comprises a hollow glass body, indicated in this drawing at 100, of

cuboidal shape. Running along the top face 102 and the bottom face 104 of the

body are depressions formed as elongate trenches 106, 108 each of which receives

a respective mating component 110, 112 formed as a shaped, elongate strip of

resilient material. An elastomeric plastics material is again favoured for these

components. Their cross section is seen in Figure 10 and comprises an elongate

channel-shaped socket 114 having a mouth 116 defined between projecting lips

118 and leading to a circular inner portion 119. The outer face 120 of the mating

component also carries a shallow recess 122 on either side of the mouth. At

intervals along its length the trench has part-spherical widenings 123, as Figure 8

shows.

To join the brick seen in Figure 8 to another, identically formed, brick an

elongate joining member 126 is used. This may be of plastics but other materials,

including metal, could instead be used. In cross section the joining member 126 is

seen to have two lobes 128, 130 for receipt within respective sockets 114. The

lobes are sized to be able to pass between the lips 118 due to resilient deformation

thereof and in this embodiment are circular in section, being joined to one another through a neck region 132. Longitudinally extending cavities 136, 138 facilitate

the necessary resilient deformation of the mating component 110, 112. A flange

134 locates, in an assembled structure, against the bottom of the recess 122. It

will be understood that two bricks can be pushed together, with the joining

member 126 being sandwiched between them, its lobes 128, 130 being received in

respective sockets of the two bricks in a "snap fit" manner and resisting

subsequent separation of the bricks.

Location of neighbouring bricks longitudinally is provided for by

virtue of enlarged heads 140 (Figure 9) provided at intervals along the joining

members 126. These are received in the aforementioned widenings 123 and so

determine the positions of bricks in one row 142 relative to the positioning of the

bricks in the neighbouring row 144. Like the Figure 1 embodiment, the brick

shown in Figures 8 to 10 is adapted to be laid in a conventional staggered or

"stretcher" pattern as seen in Figure 9 and to this end has two widenings 123 at

spaced intervals along the brick's length.

The Figure 8 brick may be used to build curved structures, in

similar manner to the brick shown in Figure 1.

The aforegoing embodiments serve as examples only of modes of

implementation of the invention and numerous variations are possible without

departure from the scope of the present invention. For instance while the

illustrated bricks are rectangular in section, other shapes such as hexagons,

octagons or triangles could be used. The illustrated embodiments use exclusively female sockets upon the brick itself with separate parts received by the sockets for

coupling bricks together, but complementary male and female mating features

could instead be provided upon the bricks. A zip-up framing arrangement may

additionally be used to allow for positive location of walls constructed using the

glass bricks into adjacent walls, floors and ceilings of a building to allow for discrepancies in wall length to block size. Another possible variant dispenses with the seal 13 used to close the hollow body to the exterior following the blow moulding process. This can be done by manipulating the material of the body

itself to seal the body, for example by forming the opening in a protruding neck, which is subsequently crimped or twisted to seal off the opening. Although the above embodiments comprise bodies of glass, other embodiments of the invention could utilize other materials such as suitable blow moulded plastics. The body may be tinted or coloured but is formed from a material which transmits light.

Claims

CLAI S

1. A brick for use in construction of a structure, the brick comprising a

hollow blow moulded body having an opening leading from the interior of the

body to its exterior and a seal secured to the body to close the opening and prevent

ingress of foreign material, the brick further comprising a resilient mating

component which is secured to the exterior of the body and provides a male or

female mating feature through which the brick is able to be coupled to another,

similarly formed, brick within a structure.

2. A brick as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the hollow body is substantially

cuboid or cube shaped.

3. A brick as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the body comprises glass.

4. A brick as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the body comprises a plastics

material.

5. A brick as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the mating feature

is adapted to releasably engage with a complementary female or male element.

6. A brick as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the mating feature

comprises a socket for receiving and fesiliently embracing a male feature.

7. A brick as claimed in claim 6, wherein the socket has a constricted mouth

formed by a projecting, resiliently deformable lip.

8. A brick as claimed in claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the socket is formed as

an elongate channel.

9. A brick as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the seal comprises a removable stopper.

10. A brick as claimed in claim 9, wherein the stopper is made from a resilient

material.

11. A glass brick as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the body has at

least one depression formed on its exterior and serving to receive the mating

component.

12. A brick as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the seal serves as the

mating component.

13. A brick as claimed in claim 14, wherein the seal further comprises a

desiccant.

14. A brick as claimed in any preceding claim which is cuboidal and has

mating features on two opposed pairs of faces.

15. A kit of parts for construction of a structure, comprising a plurality of

bricks as claimed in any preceding claim and a plurality of coupling parts formed

separately from the bricks, the coupling parts being shaped to engage with the

respective mating features of two neighbouring bricks thereby coupling the two

bricks together.

16. A kit of parts as claimed in claim 15 wherein the mating feature comprises

an elongate channel and the coupling parts are each formed as an elongate

member shaped to provide, in cross section, two lobes receivable in respective

channels.

17. A kit of parts as claimed in claim 16 wherein at least some of the channels are shaped to provide longitudinal registration features, at least some of the

coupling parts being shaped to provide complementary features, whereby adjacent

bricks coupled through a coupling part are located relative to each other.

18. A method of producing a brick for use in construction of a structure, the

method comprising blow moulding a hollow body having an opening leading

from the interior of the body to its exterior, closing the opening and thereby

sealing the body to prevent ingress of foreign material, and securing to the exterior

of the body at least one resilient mating component shaped to provide a male or

female mating feature through which the brick is able to be coupled to another,

similarly formed, brick within a structure.

19. A method as claimed in claim 19 wherein the opening is closed by a seal

secured to the blow moulded body.