Patent ID: 9670640
Date: 2017-06-06
CPC Classifications: E02D,E04B,E04C

Claim:
1. A modular wall system for constructing a freestanding retaining wall for retaining a loose material of a predetermined height, the retaining wall having a rear face for placement against the loose material to be retained, an exposed front face and a predetermined base width and total mass per unit length sufficient for maintaining the retaining wall upright against a pressure exerted by the loose material at the preselected height, the system comprising backer blocks stackable against the loose material and into a continuous rear wall portion of the preselected height, for forming the rear face, the rear wall portion having a first mass; facing blocks stackable into a continuous front wall portion of the preselected height for forming the front face, the front wall portion having a second mass, a sum of the first and second mass being less than the total mass; connectors for connecting each facing block in the front wall portion with at least one backer block in the rear wall portion to form an intermediate hollow space of fixed volume between the front and back wall portions, the fixed volume being defined by the preselected height of the retaining wall and a length of the connectors, the intermediate space being separated from the loose material by the rear wall portion; one or more setback plugs for engagement with the retaining structures to create a setback for facing blocks or backer blocks in consecutive rows; and an amount of loose filler material of a known density for filling the fixed volume, the length of the connectors being selected for a width of the retaining wall being at least equal to the base width and the amount of loose filler material having an overall third mass constituting at least the remainder of the total mass; wherein the connectors each have a connector body with at least two connecting ends for respective interlocking engagement with a facing block and backer block and each of the facing and backer blocks having multiple spaced apart retaining structures for respectively receiving one of the connecting ends, the connector body being rod or web shaped for minimizing a volume taken up by the connectors in the intermediate space and maximizing a volume of the filler material in the intermediate space.