Wall-Building Element System and Building Element for Use in the System

Abstract

Wall-building element system comprising sole elements, basic wall-building elements adapted to be assembled to a wall, and beams adapted to be fitted between each horizontal layer of the basic wall-building elements. The basic wall-building elements are prefabricated with a central, load bearing core member and form-stable layers of thermal insulation on both sides thereof. The core member and the thermal insulation layers are mutually adapted in a tongue-and-groove system while the beams are made in an “H”-profile corresponding thereto. The core member typically consists of a plate-shaped main body provided with laterally extending, vertically oriented ribs.

Claims

1-12. (canceled)

13. A wall-building element system comprising: a plurality of sole elements (15) adapted to be assembled to a sole arranged to support insulated wall-building elements; a plurality of basic wall-building elements (11) adapted to be assembled horizontally and vertically to a wall, at least one basic wall-building element (11) stacked on top of another basic wall-building element; and a plurality of beams (14), each beam being adapted to be fitted horizontally between each stacked basic wall-building element (11), wherein the sole elements (15) and basic wall-building elements (11) have respective widths that are adapted to one another, and each of the sole elements (15) has a top profile that is adapted to a bottom side of a basic wall-building element (11) of the plurality of basic wall-building elements (11), the basic wall-building elements (11) are prefabricated with a central load-bearing core member (12) with a form-stable layer of thermal insulation (13) on each side thereof, each core member (12) having a top (12c) and a bottom (12d), each thermal insulation layer has a linear recessed region (13a) extending along each side of the respective core member's top (12c) and a linear recessed region (13c) extending along each side of the respective core member's bottom (12d), the core member tops each have a top edge that protrudes from its respective recessed level of the thermal insulation layer and the core member bottoms each having a bottom edge that protrudes from its respective recessed level of the thermal insulation layer, the top and bottom edges protruding to a level between the respective recessed level (L13a) of the thermal insulation layer and a non-recessed level (L13) of the thermal insulation layer, while along one vertical side of each basic wall-building element, the core member (12) protrudes to form a tongue (12a) while along an opposite side of the basic wall-building element, the core member (12) is recessed to constitute a groove (12b) adapted to receive the tongue (12a) of an adjacent wall-building element, and each of the beams (14) has an H-shaped cross section with a width adapted to the total width of the linear recessed region (13a) along both sides of the core member and a height adapted to a combined height of the top recessed region (13a) and the bottom recessed region (13c) of the wall-building elements (11).

14. The wall-building element system as claimed in claim 13, wherein each of the core members (12) comprises a plate shaped main body (120) provided with laterally extending and vertically oriented ribs (121).

15. The wall-building element system as claimed in claim 14, wherein each of the ribs (121) has an upper edge that coincides with the level (L13a) of the recessed region (13a).

16. The wall-building element system as claimed in claim 13, wherein each of the ribs (121) has an upward bend along the imaginary lines at the outermost ends of the recessed (13a) regions.

17. A prefabricated basic wall-building element (11), comprising a load bearing core member (12) with a plate-shaped main body (120) having a vertical orientation in its assembled position, said main body (120) being covered by and attached to a thermal insulation layer (13) at one or more sides thereof, wherein the core member (12) further comprises ribs (121) extending laterally from the main body (120), with a vertical orientation, the ribs having a lateral extension that is less than a thickness of the thermal insulation layer (13).

18. The prefabricated basic wall-building element (11) of claim 17, wherein the main body (120) is attached indirectly to the respective thermal insulation layer (13).

19. The prefabricated basic wall-building element (11) of claim 17, wherein the main body (120) is attached directly to the respective thermal insulation layer (13).

20. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, further comprising a thermal insulation layer (13) positioned at each side of the main body (120) of the load bearing core member (12).

21. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, further comprising ribs (121) extending laterally from both sides of the main body (120) of the load bearing core member (12).

22. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 20, further comprising ribs (121) extending laterally from both sides of the main body (120) of the load bearing core member (12).

23. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, wherein the thermal insulation layer (13) is made of a dimensionally stable material.

24. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 23, wherein the plate shaped main body (120) of the core member (12) extends vertically from linear recessed areas of the thermal insulation layer (13) on both sides of the core member (12).

25. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, wherein the thermal insulation layer (13) is made of foamed recycled plastic material having a density within a range of 25-35 kg/m.sup.3.

26. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, wherein the load bearing core member (12) has a density within a range of 80-130 kg/m.sup.3 and comprises a material selected from the group consisting of honeycomb polymer structure, composite materials, plywood, or a combination thereof.

27. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 26, wherein the load bearing core member (12) comprises honeycomb polymer structure formed from recycled polymer material.

28. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 20, wherein the load bearing core member (12) comprises honeycomb polymer structure formed from recycled polymer material.

29. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 25, wherein the load bearing core member (12) has a density within a range of 80-130 kg/m.sup.3 and comprises a material selected from the group consisting of honeycomb polymer structure, composite materials, plywood, or a combination thereof.

30. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 17, wherein the upper and lower edges of an exterior side of the thermal insulation layer (13) has an inclination 131 formed therein.

31. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 25, wherein the upper and lower edges of an exterior side of the thermal insulation layer (13) has an inclination 131 formed therein.

32. The prefabricated wall-building element (11) as claimed in claim 27, wherein the upper and lower edges of an exterior side of the thermal insulation layer (13) has an inclination 131 formed therein.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] FIG. 1A is a schematic top view of two basic wall-building elements according to an embodiment, in a state not yet assembled.

[0022] FIG. 1B is a schematic top view of the two basic wall-building elements from FIG. 1A as assembled.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a schematic top view of two basic wall-building elements according to an embodiment different from the one shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, in a state not yet assembled.

[0024] FIG. 3A is a schematic side short end view of two basic wall-building elements according, one above the other, not assembled.

[0025] FIG. 3B is an enlargement of a part of FIG. 3A.

[0026] FIG. 3C is a schematic side end view of the elements shown in FIG. 3A, assembled.

[0027] FIG. 4A is a schematic top view of an entire basic wall-building element as shown in FIG. 2.

[0028] FIG. 4B is a schematic top view of a preferred embodiment of a basic wall-building element.

[0029] FIG. 4C is a schematic top view of another preferred embodiment of a basic wall-building element.

[0030] FIG. 4D is a schematic top view of yet another preferred embodiment of a basic wall-building element.

[0031] FIG. 5A is a side sectional view of the basic wall-building element shown in FIG. 4D.

[0032] FIG. 5B is a side sectional view of a variant of the basic wall-building element shown in FIG. 4D.

[0033] FIG. 6A is a schematic side end view of a basic wall-building element and a sole element.

[0034] FIG. 6B is a schematic side end view of a slightly different sole element.

[0035] FIG. 6C is a schematic side end view of a yet a variant of the sole element.

[0036] FIG. 7 is a schematic side end view of an assembled wall structure according to an embodiment.

[0037] FIG. 8 is a schematic side end view of an assembled wall structure according to another embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] FIG. 1A shows schematically end sections of two wall-building elements 11 according to a disclosed embodiment, the right-most part of one element and the left-most part of an adjacent similar element. Each element has a core member 12, which is the load-carrying element, and on both sides thereof, a thermal insulation layer 13. The core member is made in a material with a compressive strength sufficient to take up all vertical forces applied when the elements are assembled to complete walls and a roof being put on top of the walls. The thermal insulation layer 13 is preferably made from recycled plastic materials, which are subsequently foamed to a density beyond a minimum density level. The thermal insulation layer exhibits integrity in the sense that it is rigid and dimensionally stable.

[0039] At one short side of the wall-building element, shown as the right part of the left-most element in FIG. 1A, the core members protrudes from the thermal insulation layer, thereby forming a tongue 12a. At the other side of the wall-building element, shown as the left part of the right-most element in FIG. 1, the core member 12 is recessed as compared to the thermal insulation layer 13, thereby forming a groove 12b of a width adapted to the width of the load bearing core member 12.

[0040] As illustrated by FIG. 1B, the elements may be assembled in accordance with s tongue and groove principle in the lateral direction, due also to the inherent rigidity and dimension stability of the thermal insulation layer.

[0041] FIG. 2 shows schematically a top view of an embodiment of the wall-building element according to an embodiment which is rather similar to the one shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the sole difference being that the thermal insulation layer 13 at both sides of the groove 12b, is tapered 13b to allow easy assembly of the wall-building elements.

[0042] FIG. 3A shows schematically a side view of parts of two wall-building elements in accordance with an embodiment, similar with or equal to the one shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. The view is from the short end of each element, which is with the largest horizontal extension of the elements perpendicular to the paper plane.

[0043] At both sides of the top edge of the core member 12 and adjacent thereto, the thermal insulation layer 13 exhibits recessed regions 13a. In these recessed regions 13a, the thermal insulation layer is recessed as compared to the level of the insulation layer farther away from the core member 12 and it is recessed also when compared with the core member 12.

[0044] A similar recessed region 13c is shown at the bottom of the upper element. FIG. 3A also illustrates the fact that the load bearing core member 12 extends vertically above the recessed region 13a but not quite to the top level of the thermal insulation layer 13.

[0045] An H-shaped beam 14 is used to connect the upper wall building element to the one below.

[0046] FIG. 3B is an enlargement of details encircled in FIG. 3A. The level differences mentioned above are seen more clearly in FIG. 3B. The three levels at the top of the wall-building elements are shown namely the top level L13 of the thermal insulation layer, the top level L12 of the load bearing core member 12 and the level L13a of the recessed region 13a of the thermal insulation layer 13. It is understood that the horizontal part of the H shaped beam 14 has a width or thickness that is about twice the level difference between levels L13 and L12 while the vertical extension of the H shaped beam is about twice the difference between the levels L13 and L13a.

[0047] Similarly, at the bottom of each wall-building element 11, the load bearing core member 12 extends below the recessed region 13c of the thermal insulation layer 13 but not quite to the lowermost level of the thermal insulation layer.

[0048] The wall-building element system according to one aspect comprises two additional components one being an H-shaped beam or rail 14 adapted to fit between different vertical layers of wall-building elements 11. The dimension of the H-shaped beam are adapted to the dimensions of the recessed regions 13a, 13c, and to the level difference between the top of the load bearing core member 12 and the top level of the thermal insulation layer 13.

[0049] FIG. 3C is a side view of the elements shown in FIG. 3A in assembled position, using the H-beam 14 as a stabilizing and load-transferring member between the layers. The H beam may be made in any strong, stable material. Typically, the H shaped beam 14 is made of light metal, composite materials or compact plastic material, with a density and compressive strength much higher than the thermal insulation layer and at least comparable with the density and compressive strength of the core member 12. The length of each H beam 14 may be different from the horizontal extension of the wall-building elements and the joints between the different H beam elements are typically positioned so as not to coincide with the joints between the wall-building elements. While the thermal insulation layer has an integrity and dimension stability in itself, the presence of the H shaped beams between each layer of wall-building elements still significantly enhances the stability of the complete, assembled building structure.

[0050] FIG. 4A shows a top view of an entire wall-building element similar to the ones shown in part in FIG. 2.

[0051] FIG. 4B shows schematically a top view of a preferred embodiment of a disclosed wall-building element. The difference from the embodiment shown in FIG. 4A is that the core member 12 exhibits lateral ribs 121 extending from both sides of the plate shaped main body 120 of the core member 12. The main body 120 and the ribs are typically casted as a single integrated structure and the vertical extension thereof is typically the same as the main body 120 with the exception that in the recessed region 13c of the thermal insulation, the vertical level of the ribs 121 typically coincide with the vertical level L13a of the thermal insulation layer 13 in the recessed region. Thereby the ribs 121 are allowed to support the beams 14 directly from underneath.

[0052] FIG. 4C shows schematically a slightly different variant of the wall-building element compared to the one shown in FIG. 4B, the only difference being an increased number of ribs 121 extending from the main body 120 of the core member.

[0053] FIG. 4D shows yet another variant in which the ribs are arranged symmetrically on both sides of the main body 120 of the core member.

[0054] The ribs shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C have several functions. They serve to make the core members 12 more rigid and twist-resistant, they serve to support and stabilize the thermal insulation layer and, in interaction with the H-shaped beams 14, they serve to distribute the forces transferred between the vertical layers of the structure over a larger area. In addition, as elaborated below, they serve to stabilize the different vertical layers of an assembled wall structure even with regard to lateral forces.

[0055] Preferably, the ribs 121 are arranged in a fixed pattern, equally spaced and all ribs arranged in parallel with one another. The longitudinal direction is typically vertical and perpendicular to the main body 120 of the core member 12. The lateral extension is typically a little less than the thickness of the thermal insulation layer 13, thereby allowing the thermal insulation layer to fully cover the ribs and at the same time allowing the thermal insulation layer to be applied as one continuous element rather than a number of smaller elements separated by ribs.

[0056] FIG. 5A is a side sectional view along the line V-V in FIG. 4D, and generally illustrates the extension of the ribs 121 in relation to or comparison with the thermal insulation layer 13. In the recessed region 13a, it I essential that the ribs allow room for the H-shaped beam 14 and therefore exhibit flat areas corresponding to (at least) the width of the recessed region 13a of the thermal insulation layer 13. By following the upwards 90 degrees angle of the thermal insulation layer 13 at the imaginary line along the outermost side of the recessed region 13a, the ribs provide support for the H-beam even laterally, thereby contributing to the stability of the assembled structure also with regard to lateral forces between the vertical layers thereof.

[0057] FIG. 5B shows a slightly different variant from the one shown in FIG. 5A, the difference being that the upwards angle of the ribs 121 at the bending line along the outer side of the recessed region 13a, is somewhat larger than 90 degrees, making it slightly easier to fit the H-beam into the recessed region 13a while still providing lateral support.

[0058] While the profiles of the ribs 121 shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B are based on FIG. 4D, the ribs indicated in FIGS. 4B and 4C will typically have similar profiles, contributing to the stabilization of the complete structure when assembled with H-shaped beams 14 between each vertical layer of the wall structure.

[0059] Reference is now made to FIG. 6A. Beneath the lowermost vertical row of wall-building element 11, a particular sole element 15 is used, the top of which being provided with a profile adapted to the bottom surface of the wall-building elements. The upper surface of the sole element 15 thus exhibits extending flanges 15a, which fits into the recessed region 13c of wall-building element with a groove 15b there-between to allow space for the lower end of the core member, or more specifically, the main body thereof. The width of the sole element is adapted to the width of the wall-building elements, i.e. the sole element is typically as wide as—or somewhat wider than—the wall-building elements.

[0060] FIG. 6B shows a variant of the sole element 15, the difference being that the lower surface is corrugated to slightly penetrate the ground on which it is placed. FIG. 6C shows yet a variant where the lower surface is provided with long spikes to more deeply penetrate the ground.

[0061] FIG. 7 shows a view an assembled wall structure as seen from the short end of the wall-building elements. The wall structure consists of a bottom sole element 15 and three layers of wall-building elements 11 joined via H-shaped beams 14. FIG. 7 illustrates the fact that the ribs (shaded area) surrounds the H-beams from below and from above, thereby stabilizing the wall structure laterally while transferring the weight load via the H-beams vertically.

[0062] FIG. 7 also indicates the presence of a roof for context.

[0063] The number of floors are not indicated in FIG. 7. The height covered by the three elements on top of one another may correspond to one or more floors. When more than one floor is encountered, floor supporting elements (not shown) such as pillars, bars and/or beams (not shown) would typically be present since the wall structure is not designed to support floors.

[0064] FIG. 8 shows a variation of the wall shown in FIG. 7, the differences being that the wall elements are relatively higher but also that the upper and lower edges of the exterior side of the thermal insulation layer 13 are designed with an inclination 131 preventing water from penetrating the wall during rainfall.

Additional Features and Embodiments

[0065] The basic wall-building elements are typically symmetrical around the central load-bearing core, with the possible exception of a particular layer of UV resistant and/or moisture resistant material at its exterior side. In the drawings 1-7, all basic wall-building elements are shown as symmetrical in this respect.

[0066] While the exterior and the interior side of the wall-building elements may be identical to one another, there is also the possibility of providing at least one extra layer on the exterior side, to better protect against humidity and/or deterioration by sunlight.

[0067] While the wall-building elements are suitable for assembly of complete buildings, with the exception of a roof, the elements may also be used for providing thermal insulation in existing buildings.

[0068] For assembly in an already existing building, as a building within a building or as thermal insulation in an existing building, the basic wall-building element may assume a simpler design wherein a thermal insulation layer is provided at only one side of the core member. This allows the assembly of lighter elements which still provides a required degree of thermal insulation but which does not need to exhibit the same level of load bearing capacity, in particular since the inner wall made thereof will not be carrying an outer roof.