STRUCTURAL BLOCK WALL SYSTEM AND METHOD

Abstract

A structural block wall system for building a block wall, the system comprising: a plurality of spaced apart upright sleeved structural members being anchored to an underlying structure upon which the block wall system is being erected upon, each structural member having a height that is substantially less than a height of the block wall, the sleeved structural members comprising a hollow cavity extending along the height of the structural member; a plurality of corresponding structural posts comprising an in-use bottom section configured to be received into respective sleeved structural members to extend along the height of the sleeved structural member; prefabricated blocks configured to be stacked upon each other to form the block wall, each block having opposing end faces with a core therebetween, the core comprising one or more slots for receiving the sleeved structural members and/or the posts.

Claims

1-24. (canceled)

25. A structural block wall system for building a block wall, the system comprising: a plurality of spaced apart upright sleeved structural members being anchored to an underlying structure upon which the block wall system is being erected upon, each structural member having a height that is substantially less than a height of the block wall, the sleeved structural members comprising a hollow cavity extending along the height of the structural member; a plurality of corresponding structural posts comprising an in-use bottom section configured to be received into respective sleeved structural members to extend along the height of the sleeved structural member; prefabricated blocks configured to be stacked upon each other to form the block wall, each block having opposing end faces with a core therebetween, the core comprising one or more slots for receiving the sleeved structural members and/or the posts; a sleeved bracket with a bracket sleeve being dimensioned to receive an in-use top section of the structural posts and wherein at least some of the prefabricated blocks comprise slots for accommodating the sleeved bracket between the end faces of said at least some of the prefabricated blocks.

26. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 25 wherein the sleeved bracket further comprises one or more bracket plates attached to the bracket sleeve and extending outwardly from the outer walls of the bracket sleeve for allowing structural support members to be attached to the bracket plate during use.

27. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 26 wherein one or more of the bracket plates further comprise a corresponding cradle plate that is orthogonally arranged relative to said one or more of the bracket plates to support the structural support member attached onto the bracket plate in a transverse configuration relative to the structural post.

28. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 25 wherein one or more of the prefabricated blocks comprise an internal void to accommodate the sleeved bracket and structural support members attached to the sleeved bracket.

29. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 25 wherein two of the spaced apart structural posts are joined by a plurality of bracing members extending between the two or more structural posts to form a bracing structure.

30. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 25 wherein the bracing members extend diagonally between two structural posts to form the bracing structure.

31. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 wherein in-use upper sections of the spaced apart posts of the bracing structure comprises a connection arrangement for receiving additional bracing structures.

32. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 wherein each bracing member comprises spaced apart bracing sleeves joined by the bracing members, the bracing sleeves being dimensioned for receiving the structural posts and arranging the posts in the spaced apart configuration to form the bracing structure.

33. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 wherein the bracing members comprise bracing bracket plates for facilitating attachment of the bracing members.

34. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 wherein one or more of the prefabricated blocks comprise internal openings between the opposed sides of each block to accommodate the bracing members of the bracing structure during use.

35. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 wherein the sleeved structural member comprises an anchoring plate for engaging with the underlying structure and facilitating anchoring of the sleeved structural member thereon with the sleeve extending upwardly from the anchoring plate to receive the in-use bottom sections of the supporting posts therein.

36. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 28 further comprising a securement arrangement to secure the in-use bottom section of the post within the sleeved structural member and prevent withdrawal of the post from the sleeved structural member.

37. A method of constructing a block wall system, the method comprising the steps of: anchoring a plurality of spaced apart upright sleeved structural members to an underlying structure upon which the block wall system is being erected upon, each structural member having a height that is substantially less than a height of the block wall, the sleeved structural members comprising a hollow cavity extending along the height of the structural member; stacking prefabricated blocks on each other, each block having opposing end faces with a core therebetween, to form the block wall by positioning the upright sleeved structural members within one or more hollow slots located within the core of the blocks; positioning a plurality of structural posts into the core of the blocks through said hollow slots and inserting in-use bottom sections of the plurality of corresponding structural posts comprising into respective sleeved structural members to allow the bottom section to extend along the height of the sleeved structural member.

38. A method in accordance with claim 37 further comprising the step of positioning a bracket within an internal void of one or more of the prefabricated blocks to allow an in-use top section of the structural post to be received into a bracket sleeve of the bracket.

39. A method in accordance with claim 37 wherein the bracket further comprises one or more bracket plates attached to the bracket sleeve and extending outwardly from the outer walls of the bracket sleeve, the method comprising the attachment of structural support members to the bracket plate.

40. A structural block wall system for building a block wall, the system comprising: a plurality of spaced apart upright structural sub-assemblies being anchored to an underlying structure upon which the block wall system is being erected upon, each structural anchoring sub-assembly having at least two spaced apart structural anchoring members, each structural anchoring member having a generally vertical portion with a height that is substantially less than a height of the block wall, the spaced apart structural members being configured to be arranged with a gap therebetween to define a receiving volume between the vertical portions of the structural members; a plurality of corresponding hollow structural posts comprising an in-use bottom section configured for engagement with each structural anchoring sub-assembly to extend along the height of the vertical portions of the spaced apart structural members; prefabricated blocks configured to be stacked upon each other to form the block wall, each block having opposing end faces with a core therebetween, the core comprising one or more slots for receiving the structural sub-assemblies and/or the posts.

41. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 40 wherein structural anchoring member comprises an anchoring portion adapted to engage the underlying structure for anchoring thereto wherein the vertical portion is generally perpendicular relative to the anchoring portion.

42. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 40 wherein during engagement, the bottom use section comprises a hollow internal volume to receiving and engaging the vertical portions of the spaced apart structural members.

43. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 40 wherein the structural sub-assembly further comprises a substantially solid reinforcement insert adapted to be positioned in the gap between the spaced apart structural anchoring members wherein during use the vertical portions and the reinforcement insert therebetween is received into the hollow internal volume of the bottom section.

44. A structural block wall system in accordance with claim 40 further comprising a fastening arrangement for fastening the bottom section of the hollow structural post to the spaced apart vertical portions of the structural anchoring members during use.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0039] FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view of a structural block wall system 1000 in accordance with a first embodiment.

[0040] FIG. 2 is a top view of the structural block wall system 1000 depicting the spaced apart structural members anchored on an underlying structure.

[0041] FIG. 2A is an enlarged in-use view of the structural member 100.

[0042] FIG. 3 is a side view of the structural block wall system 1000 in a partially erected configuration.

[0043] FIG. 4 is an isolated view of a bracket 300C.

[0044] FIG. 5 depicts in-use views of brackets 300A and 300C.

[0045] FIG. 6 is an isolated view of the structural member 100.

[0046] FIG. 7 depicts isolated views of brackets 300A and 300B.

[0047] FIG. 8 depicts in-use view of bracket 300D.

[0048] FIGS. 9 to 12 depict installation of the hollow structural post assembly 250 with structural sleeved members 100.

[0049] FIGS. 13 and 14 depict top views of the structural block wall system 1000.

[0050] FIGS. 15 and 16 depict perspective views of the structural block wall system 1000 in partially erected configurations.

[0051] FIGS. 17 to 19 depict in-use views for brackets 300B and 300D respectively.

[0052] FIGS. 20 and 21 depicts the use of brackets 260 for supporting load bearing support S.

[0053] FIGS. 22 to 24 depict an alternative embodiment of a structural sleeve member 100.

[0054] FIGS. 26 and 27 depict the use of bracing structures 250 in the structural block wall system 1000.

[0055] FIGS. 28 to 33 illustrate various views of the structural block wall system 1000.

[0056] FIGS. 34 to 36 illustrate various views of modular bracing structures 250.

[0057] FIGS. 37 and 38 illustrate top and side in-use views of the sleeved structural members 100 in combination with structural posts 200. Resin may be added in between the inner walls of the sleeve member 100 and the outer walls of the structural post 200.

[0058] FIGS. 39 to 47 illustrate various views of a structural block wall system 2000 in accordance with another embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0059] FIGS. 1 to 19 illustrate a first embodiment of the structural block wall system 1000 in accordance with the invention. The system comprises a plurality of spaced apart upright sleeved structural members that are generally denoted by 100. The sleeved structural members are anchored to an underlying structure such as a concrete slab (See FIGS. 1 to 3, 22 to 23) or a wooden floor structure (See FIGS. 29 to 34). Each sleeved structural member 100 comprises an anchoring plate 110 with a hollow tube 120 that extends upwardly from the anchoring plate 110. The anchoring plate 110 comprises holes for receiving anchoring bolts for anchoring the sleeved structural members 100 to the underling structure.

[0060] The system 1000 also includes prefabricated blocks denoted generally denoted by 500 that can be stacked upon each other. Each prefabricated block 500 comprises opposed end faces 502 and 504 with a core 506 in between the two opposed end faces. The core includes a hollow slot 508 that is dimensioned to receive the hollow sleeved structural members 100. Typical installation of the block wall system involves stacking the prefabricated blocks 500 above starting blocks 510 that are placed on the underlying slab (See FIGS. 2 and 3) and aligning the slot with the fixed sleeved members 100 to ensure that the slot 508 for the blocks 500 receives the fixed sleeved structural members 100. It is important to appreciate that in at least some embodiments, the slots 508 may be formed on site by way of drilling through the core 506 of the prefabricated blocks 500. In other embodiments, the slot or bore 508 may be prefabricated within the blocks 500. It is also important to note that the prefabricated blocks 500 comprises a horizontal channel extending along a top portion of the block and a tongue portion that extends along the bottom portion of the block 500. Such an arrangement allows the blocks to be easily stacked on top of each other. The use of the starting blocks 510 is not limiting and in at least some embodiments, the tongue portion of some of the blocks 500 may be removed or cut for starting the first row of blocks while erecting the block wall.

[0061] The assembly of the blocks 500 for building the block wall assembly 1000 involves aligning the slots 508 for each row of blocks 500 to ensure that the slots 508 are aligned to form a long and hollow internal passage extending along the height of the block wall. The provision of the long and hollow internal passage allows a supporting post 200 to be inserted into the passage. Specifically, a bottom section of the post 200 is inserted into the anchored sleeved members 100. The bottom section of the post 200 is then secured to the walls of the sleeve 120 by using fasteners such as but not limited to a bolt or a screw that can be drilled through the outer faces of the prefabricated block 500 surrounding the anchored supporting member 100. The aforementioned configuration provides a key advantage over prior art systems. Specifically, the prior art block wall systems use upright posts or support structures that are anchored to the underlying floor or slab and stacking of the blocks requires the installers to lift each block from the ground to the height of the support and then align and insert the support post into a hollow opening within the internal core of the prefabricated block. Prefabricated blocks can be heavy and lifting of the blocks by a substantial height for arranging every row of blocks can be time consuming and labour intensive. The provision of the anchoring structural members 100 with a sleeve 320, whereby the sleeve 320 has a substantially lower height than the block wall's height addresses this key issue and provides a system 1000 which is much simpler and easier to erect. It is important to note that even though the figures illustrate a square shaped cross section for the post 200 and the sleeve portion 120 of the anchoring support member 100, the shape of the post 200 and the sleeve portion 120 is not limiting. For example, the post 200 and the corresponding sleeve portions 120 may have a cylindrical shape without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

[0062] The block wall system 1000 also comprises sleeved brackets generally denoted by 300. The bracket 300 includes a bracket sleeve 310 that is dimensioned to receive a top section of the post 200. Once again, suitable fasteners such as screws or bolts may be used to fasten the bracket sleeve 310 with the outer walls of the post 200. The sleeved bracket 300 can also include one or more bracket plates 320 that are attached to the bracket sleeve 310 and extending outwardly from the outer walls of the bracket sleeve 310 for allowing structural support members S to be attached to the bracket plate during use. FIGS. 5 and 7 illustrates bracket embodiments 300A and 300B with an upwardly extending bracket plate 320A (a first plate) and a bracket plate 320B extending from either the left-hand side or the right-hand side (see comparison in FIG. 7). Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a cradle plate 325 is provided to support or cradle a building support (such as a load bearing beam S). Referring to FIG. 8, bracket embodiment 300D includes two of the upwardly extending brackets 320A and 320A arranged at right angles to one another. Such a bracket is beneficial particularly when two block walls meet at a corner and load bearing supporting structures need to be installed at right angles to each other. Once again, it would be understood that the slot 508 in the prefabricated blocks 500 are suitably sized or dimensioned to receive the bracket sleeve 310 within an internal volume of the prefabricated block 500. Furthermore, as evident in FIGS. 17 and 18, the internal volume of the core 506 in the prefabricated block 500 may be hollowed out to accommodate the load bearing support S and parts of the bracket plate 320B whereby the bracket plate 320 is fastened to the load bearing support S by using screws or bolts.

[0063] Advantageously, provision of the anchoring structural members 100 also allows their use for installation of bracing structures 250 (shown in FIGS. 1, 9 to 16). Each bracing structure 250 comprises a pair of posts 200 that are dimensioned such that a bottom section of the posts 200 can be received into the hollow sleeve of the anchoring structural members 100. As previously discussed, the bottom sections of the posts 200 may be fastened to the sleeve 120 of the structural anchoring member 100 by using screws or bolts (See FIGS. 24 and 25). The pair of posts 200 in each bracing structure 250 is interconnected by diagonally oriented bracing members 255 to form K-shaped bracing members. It would be understood that the orientation of the bracing members 255 may be varied without departing from the scope of the invention described. Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, in particular, the core 506 of the prefabricated blocks 500 may be hollowed to accommodate the bracing members 255 extending between the two posts 200. It is preferable to install the bracing structure 250 onto the anchoring support members 100 before positioning the prefabricated blocks 500 with the hollowed out internal core to stack the blocks 500 on top of each other to surround the bracing structure 250. Referring to FIGS. 20 and 21, top sections of the posts 200 in the bracing structure 250 include sleeved brackets 260 with bracket plates and a supporting cradle being provided to support a transversely oriented load bearing support S. The sleeved brackets 260 have a similar structure to the previously discussed sleeved brackets 300.

[0064] Referring to FIGS. 24 to 27, the anchoring support members 100 may be embedded within a precast concrete floor P with a top portion of the sleeve 120 extending outwardly from the floor surface. The bracing structures 250 or the supporting posts 200 may be used in conjunction with the embedded anchoring support members 100 in the same manner as previously described.

[0065] FIGS. 28 to 36 illustrate another embodiment of the block wall system 1000 in which the anchoring support members 100 are anchored onto an underlying wooden floor system. Specifically, the anchoring support member 100 are anchored onto floor joists by bolting the anchoring plate 110 to the floor joists. In some instances (best shown in FIG. 33), a cross member (M) may be affixed in between two adjoining floor joists to support the anchoring support member 100 at least partially on a floor bearer. Once the anchoring support members 100 have been anchored to the underlying wooden floor structure, the bracing structure 250 and/or the supporting posts 200 may be positioned into sleeve 120 of the anchoring support structures 100 in a similar manner as previously described in the earlier sections. FIGS. 34 and 35 shows optional embodiments of the bracing structure 250 which is formed from a plurality of bracing sub-structures 250A, 250B and 250C which are telescopically connected. Each sub-structure includes telescoping connecting portions along top and bottom sections of the support posts forming each bracing sub-structure which enables the easy erection of the bracing structure 250 during construction.

[0066] FIGS. 39 to 47 illustrate another optional embodiment of a structural block wall system 2000 in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. The system comprises a plurality of spaced apart structural sub-assemblies that are generally denoted by 400. Each of the structural sub-assemblies 400 comprises two spaced structural anchoring members 410A and 410B (generally denoted by 410) that are anchored to an underlying structure such as a concrete slab. Each structural anchoring member 410 is generally L-shaped and comprises a generally vertical portion 412 that extends along a vertical direction of the block wall with a height that is less than the height of the block wall. The vertical portion 412 extends vertically relative to a horizontal anchoring portion 414 that is anchored to the underlying supporting structure by use of fastening bolts 450. During use, the L-shaped anchoring members 410A and 410B are anchored in an opposed configuration such that the horizontal anchoring portions 414 for each of the spaced structural anchoring members 410A and 410B are anchored to an underlying structure by anchoring fastening bolts 450 to extend in mutually opposite directions as shown best in FIGS. 39 to 42.

[0067] Referring to FIG. 40 the structural block wall system 2000 further comprises a substantially solid reinforcement insert 440 that is adapted to be positioned in the gap between the vertical portions 414 for the oppositely arranged spaced apart structural anchoring members 410A and 410B. During use the spaced apart vertical portions 412 for the anchoring members 410A and 410B and the reinforcement insert 440 are received into the hollow internal volume of the bottom section of the hollow structural member 200. Once the bottom section of the hollow structural member 200 receives the spaced apart vertical portions 414 and the insert 440, fasteners in the form of fastening bolts 460 are passed through the vertical portions 414 to fasten opposed walls of the bottom section of the hollow structural member 200 with the anchoring member 410A and 410B. As shown in FIG. 42, in the preferred embodiment, the fastening bolts 460 extend in a transverse direction relative to the longitudinal axis of the hollow structural member 200 to pass through the reinforcement insert 440. The fastening bolts 460 may be installed after the prefabricated structural blocks 500 have been positioned by passing the structural hollow member 200 through the openings or slots provided in the prefabricated blocks 500.

[0068] Referring to FIG. 43 a tongue member 470 may be positioned to run along the underlying surface between two pairs of anchoring subassemblies 200. The tongue member 470 may be received with a groove 570 provided along an in-use lower portion of the prefabricated block 500.

[0069] Referring to FIG. 47, the system 2000 may also comprise a bracket 480 with spaced apart bracket members 482 that are dimensioned to receive and engage an in-use top portion of the hollow structural member 200. The brackets 480 in the preferred embodiment shown in FIGS. 47 to 49 comprises a generally H-shaped configuration comprising an in-use lower receiving portion and an in-use upper receiving portion. The in-use lower receiving portion 481 defines a receiving volume between spaced apart lower bracket plates 481A and 481B to receive the upper end of the hollow structural member 200. Fastening bolts 485 may be used for fastening the upper end of the hollow structural member 200 to the lower bracket plates 481A and 481B. The in-use upper receiving portion 483 defines a receive volume between spaced apart bracket plates 483A and 483B for receiving and supporting a transversely oriented structural beam 700 as shown in FIGS. 45 to 48. Once again fasteners in the form of fastening bolts 485 may be used for fastening the transversely oriented structural beam to bracket plates 283A and 283B.

[0070] Referring to FIGS. 45 and 46 L-shaped brackets 490 may also be used for supporting the transverse structural beam 700 in another configuration.

[0071] In compliance with the statute, the invention has been described in language more or less specific to structural or methodical features. The term comprises and its variations, such as comprising and comprised of is used throughout in an inclusive sense and not to the exclusion of any additional features.

[0072] It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to specific features shown or described since the means herein described comprises preferred forms of putting the invention into effect.

[0073] The invention is, therefore, claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the proper scope of the appended claims appropriately interpreted by those skilled in the art.