CONSTRUCTION PANEL
This application relates to a light-weight, multi-purpose construction panel. The panel may be formed, for example, from molded plastic. Each panel includes a substantially planar deck on a first side thereof and a second side comprising alternating male and female sleeves arranged in honeycomb-like compartments defined by a plurality of wall elements. A pair of panels may be releasably coupled together with their respective second sides facing inwardly to form a construction assembly. When a pair of panels is coupled together, the male sleeves of one panel matingly fit within the females sleeves of the other panel, and vice versa. Each panel may also include guide tubes which are aligned when the panels are coupled together. A plurality of channels may be formed in the deck on the first side of the panel and spaced-apart apertures may be arranged in the channels in alignment with the guide tubes for insertion of fasteners therein or to allow water drainage through the assembly. The wall elements may include spaced-apart notches which together define conduits extending through the interior of an assembly when a pair of panels are coupled together. The conduits are sized to receive fluid delivery tubes for delivering fluid, such as heated air or water, through the panel assemblies. The panel assemblies may be used for many different construction applications including flooring, roofing and wall structures.
This application relates to a multi-purpose construction panel.
BACKGROUNDModular panels may be used for many different types of construction applications. For example, interlocking panels may be used to form temporary flooring, roofing or wall structures. Other potential commercial applications are described in applicant's co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/689,409 filed 21 Mar. 2007 entitled MULTI-PURPOSE CONSTRUCTION MODULE, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
There is a need for light-weight, economical construction panels particularly suitable for sale directly to consumers at building supply retail outlets and the like. There is a particular need for construction panels which may be quickly and easily coupled together without the need for specialized tools or skills to form a wide variety of construction assemblies.
SUMMARY OF INVENTIONIn accordance with the invention, a construction panel having a first side and a second side is provided. The first side comprises a substantially planar deck and the second side comprises a plurality of first wall elements defining a plurality of compartments therebetween and a plurality of sleeves each located in one of the compartments. The sleeves may include a first group of female sleeves having a first height and a second group of male sleeves having a second height exceeding the first height, wherein the male sleeves of one of the panels are sized to fit within the female sleeves of another one of the panels (i.e. when a pair of panels are coupled together with their respective second sides facing inwardly). The male and female sleeves may be arranged in an alternating array on the second side of each panel.
In one embodiment, at least some of the wall elements may include notches formed on an edge portion thereof. When a pair of panels are coupled together to form a construction assembly, the notches together define a conduit extending through the interior of the assembly. A fluid delivery tube may be deployed within a conduit for circulating fluid through the assembly, such as heated air or water for regulating the temperature or other physical characteristics of the assembly.
The invention comprises both single construction panels and construction assemblies formed from two or more panels.
In drawings which describe embodiments of the invention but which should not be construed as restricting the spirit or scope thereof,
Throughout the following description, specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the invention. However, the invention may be practiced without these particulars. In other instances, well known elements have not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the invention. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative, rather than a restrictive, sense.
This application relates to a multi-purpose construction panel 10. In the illustrated embodiment panel 10 is generally rectangular in shape. As shown in
Each panel 10 has a first side 14 and a second side 16. As shown in
Panel second side 16 is subdivided into a plurality of compartments 24 by wall partitions 26, as shown in
As best shown in
The bottom or innermost surface 40 of panel second side 16 is generally flat. However, as best shown in
As shown, for example, in
A plurality of construction panels 10 may be conveniently coupled together to form assemblies 12 having many different possible shapes and sizes. As shown in
As will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, although the terms “base” and “top” have been used in the example above, assembly 12 may be configured in many different orientations. For example, since each panel 10 of assembly 12 is identical in this embodiment, and hence assembly 12 is symmetrical, assembly 12 may be flipped 180 degrees so that the “top” panels form part of the base and vice versa. Further, assemblies 12 may be oriented vertically, for example as part of a wall structure, or in other non-horizontal orientations.
Once panels 10 have been assembled as desired to form assembly 12, panels 10 may be secured together with fasteners. For example, bolts (not shown) may be inserted through selected apertures 22 on one side of assembly 12 and into tubes 36. Once they are fully inserted, bolts may be secured, such as with nuts, on the opposite side of assembly 12.
In some applications it may be desirable that assembly 12 be fluid-impervious. For example, in chemical warehouses and the like it may be important that flooring be impervious to fluid chemicals to prevent soil and groundwater contamination. In such applications, grooves 20 on panel first surfaces 14 may be filled with caulking or other sealants after panels 10 have been fastened together. In other embodiments, panels 10 may be manufactured with no apertures 22 or with only a small number of apertures 22 necessary to secure panels 10 together. This would avoid the need to seal unfilled apertures 22.
In other applications, it may be important that a large number of apertures 22 remain open after assembly 12 is assembled and deployed. For example, assembly 12 may be used in applications, such as temporary walkways, where it is desirable to avoid collection of water on the surface thereof. In such applications water can be collected within channels 20 and drain through tubes 36 into the ground or other support surface underlying assembly 12. Apertures 22 also enable any water or water vapour within the interior of assembly 12 to escape to the surrounding environment. This may be important in northern climates having frequent freeze/thaw weather cycles.
Construction panels 10 may be formed from molded plastic or other light-weight materials in one embodiment of the invention. By way of non-limiting example, each panel 10 may be 32″×48″ in size have a thickness of approximately 2″. In this example, each compartment 24 is approximately 8″×8″ in size and each longitudinally extending conduit 46 (
Construction panels 10 may be used to form assemblies 12 useful in a wide variety of applications. For example, assemblies 12 may be used in flooring, roofing and wall construction applications in both indoor and outdoor environments. By way of non-limiting examples, assemblies 12 may be used in walkways, roadways, parking lots, driveways, decking and roofing. In some applications, assemblies 12 may be mounted on top of existing structures, such as decking joists or beams, or may be covered by other materials, such as roofing materials. Since panels 10 are lightweight and easy to handle, and relatively inexpensive to manufacture and transport, they will be useful in many consumer applications. Other potential consumer and industrial applications for construction panels and the like are described in the applicant's co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 11/689,409 filed 21 Mar. 2007 entitled MULTI-PURPOSE CONSTRUCTION MODULE which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
As described above, assemblies 12 may be deployed in applications where it is desirable to regulate the temperature or other physical characteristics thereof. For example, heated assemblies 12 may be used as temporary driveway covers in winter months to prevent snow and ice accumulation. The temperature of assemblies 12 may be regulated by circulating fluids in a flow path through the interior of each assembly 12. For example, as shown schematically in
By way of further example, assemblies 12 may be connected to form panels suitable for use as heated flooring, roofing or wall panels. For example, heated flooring, walls or roofing comprising construction panels 10 could be used in barns, stables, greenhouses, storage sheds or other temporary structures where it is important to control indoor temperature or avoid snowfall or ice accumulation. As indicated above, other materials could be placed over assemblies 12 such as dirt, mulch, bedding, rubber matting, styrofoam or other roofing materials, depending upon the particular application.
As indicated above, assemblies 12 could be temporarily installed in outdoor parking lots, driveways, roadways and the like to melt snow during winter months in northern climates. Assemblies 12 could similarly used on roofing to reduce or prevent snow accumulation. Assemblies 12 could be configured so that they are heated only during particular climatic conditions or during particular times of day. At the end of the winter season the panels 12 could be quickly and easily disassembled and removed if desired.
Depending upon the application and range of operating temperatures, the distance between conduits 46 could be adjusted. For example, in very cold conditions the number of conduits 46 carrying heated water in tubes 48 could be increased to reduce the distance between adjacent conduits and ensure that the entire assembly 12 is evenly heated. As will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, in alternative embodiments of the invention the flow path of conduits 48 could also be varied (e.g. by using non-linear flow paths) to achieve substantially even heating or to suit particular applications.
As will be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, construction panels 10 may be formed in many different shapes and sizes. For example, in addition to rectangular shapes, panels 10 could be constructed in hexagonal, pentagonal or other geometric shapes or combinations thereof.
As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing disclosure, many alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of this invention without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be construed in accordance with the substance defined by the following claims.
Claims
1. A construction panel having a first side and a second side, wherein said first side comprises a substantially planar deck and said second side comprises:
- (a) a plurality of first wall elements defining a plurality of compartments therebetween; and
- (b) a plurality of sleeves each located in one of said compartments.
2. The panel as defined in claim 1, wherein said deck has a plurality of spaced-apart channels formed therein.
3. The panel as defined in claim 2, wherein said channels subdivide said deck into a plurality of quadrilateral or triangular shaped deck segments.
4. The panel as defined in claim 2, comprising a plurality of spaced-apart apertures extending through said panel between said first and second sides.
5. The panel as defined in claim 4, wherein said apertures are located in said channels.
6. The panel as defined in claim 1, wherein said sleeves comprise a first group of female sleeves having a first height and a second group of male sleeves having a second height exceeding said first height, wherein said male sleeves of one of said panels are sized to fit within said female sleeves of another one of said panels.
7. The panel as defined in claim 6, wherein said sleeves are cylinders each having an open end at a location furthest from said deck.
8. The panel as defined in claim 7, wherein said female sleeves have a diameter exceeding a diameter of said male sleeves.
9. The panel as defined in claim 6, wherein said first wall elements have a height substantially the same as said first height.
10. The panel as defined in claim 6, wherein said female and male sleeves are arranged within said compartments in an alternating array.
11. The panel as defined in claim 10, wherein each of said compartments is further subdivided into a plurality of subcompartments defined by a plurality of second wall elements, each of said second wall elements extending between one of said first wall elements and one of said sleeves.
12. The panel as defined in claim 11, comprising a plurality of guide tubes, wherein each of said guide tubes is located within one of said subcompartments.
13. The panel as defined in claim 12, comprising a plurality of spaced-apart apertures extending through said panel between said first and second sides, wherein each of said guide tubes is aligned with one of said apertures.
14. The panel as defined in claim 13, wherein each of said guide tubes further comprises a support rib connecting said tube to a corresponding one of said sleeves.
15. The panel as defined in claim 13, wherein each of said tubes is said first height.
16. The panel as defined in claim 1, wherein at least some of said first wall elements comprise notches located at positions where said at least some wall elements intersect with other wall elements.
17. The panel as defined in claim 16, wherein said notches are linearly aligned.
18. The panel as defined in claim 17, wherein each of said notches has a semi-circular profile.
19. The panel as defined in claim 17, wherein said panel is rectangular and wherein some of said first wall elements extend longitudinally and other of said first wall elements extend transversely, whereby said compartments are generally square in shape.
20. The panel as defined in claim 19, wherein said panel is approximately 32″×48″ in size.
21. The panel as defined in claim 19, wherein at least some of said wall elements which extend longitudinally comprise said notches aligned linearly.
22. The panel as defined in claim 19, wherein at least some of said wall elements which extend transversely comprise said notches aligned linearly.
23. The panel as defined in claim 11, wherein at least some of said first wall elements and said second wall elements comprise notches located at positions where said at least some wall elements intersect with other wall elements.
24. The panel as defined in claim 23, wherein said notches are linearly aligned.
25. The panel as defined in claim 24, wherein each of said notches has a semi-circular profile.
26. A construction assembly comprising at least two construction panels as defined in claim 1 coupled together, wherein said second side of one of said panels releasably engages said second side of another one of said panels.
27. The assembly as defined in claim 26, wherein said assembly comprises a first group of said panels arranged adjacent one another with said first and second sides in alignment and a second group of said panels arranged adjacent one another with said first and second sides in alignment, wherein said second sides of said first group of panels engages said second sides of said second group of panels, wherein at least some of said panels in said second group overlap multiple panels in said first group to connect said multiple panels together.
28. The assembly as defined in claim 26, wherein said sleeves of each of said panels comprise a first group of female sleeves having a first height and a second group of male sleeves having a second height exceeding said first height, wherein said male sleeves of said one of said panels are sized to fit within said female sleeves of said another one of said panels and vice versa.
29. The assembly as defined in claim 28, wherein, in each of said panels, said female and male sleeves are arranged within said compartments in an alternating array.
30. The assembly as defined in claim 29, wherein, in each of said panels, each of said of said compartments is further subdivided into a plurality of subcompartments defined by a plurality of second wall elements, each of said second wall elements extending between one of said first wall elements and one of said sleeves.
31. The assembly as defined in claim 30, wherein each of said panels comprises a plurality of guide tubes, wherein each of said guide tubes is located within one of said subcompartments.
32. The assembly as defined in claim 31, wherein said guide tubes of said one of said panels is aligned with said guide tubes of said another one of said panels.
33. The assembly as defined in claim 32, comprising a plurality of spaced-apart apertures extending through each of said panels between said first and second sides thereof, wherein each of said guide tubes is aligned with an aligned pair of said apertures.
34. A construction assembly comprising at least two construction panels as defined in claim 17 coupled together, wherein said second side of one of said panels releasably engages said second side of another one of said panels, and wherein said linearly aligned notches of said one of said panels are aligned with said linearly aligned notches of said another one of said panels to together define an elongated conduit extending through the interior of said assembly.
35. The assembly as defined in claim 34, wherein each of said notches is semi-circular and wherein said conduit is generally cylindrical in profile.
36. The assembly as defined in claim 35, comprising a tube insertable in said conduit.
37. The assembly as defined in claim 36, wherein said tube is a fluid delivery tube for circulating fluid through said assembly.
38. The assembly as defined in claim 37, wherein said fluid delivery tube is connected to a fluid supply and a pump for flowing fluid through said tube.
39. The assembly as defined in claim 38, wherein said fluid is heated.
40. The assembly as defined in claim 39, wherein said tube is a cable for coupling a plurality of said panels together.
Type: Application
Filed: May 9, 2007
Publication Date: Nov 13, 2008
Inventor: Antonio RAPAZ (Chilliwack)
Application Number: 11/746,301
International Classification: E04C 2/34 (20060101); E04B 5/48 (20060101); E04F 15/024 (20060101);