Abstract:
An apparatus and a method of producing the same are disclosed. The apparatus comprises a panel, a plurality of fasteners, and a plurality of bricks secured to the panel by the fastener.

Description:
[0001]    The patent application claims priority to and herein incorporates by reference Provisional Patent Application No. 61/106,057, entitled “Masonry Structure” and filed on Oct. 16, 2008. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Field 
         [0003]    The present disclosure is related to the field of masonry structures, and more specifically to factory-built masonry structures. 
         [0004]    2. Background 
         [0005]    Traditional masonry structures such as fireplaces, countertops, brick walls and other hearth products are constructed by a mason and thus can be expensive. Furthermore, they are built on-site and can require significant time to be completed. Because of the above, in recent years, pre-built fireplaces have become popular. Also, factory built fireplaces are an attractive alternative because they can be installed in multi-level buildings. 
         [0006]    In designing factory-built fireplace, one goal has been to design fireplaces that resemble traditional masonry built fireplaces. For example, recent designs of factory-built fireplaces have incorporated refractory panels. However, such refractory panels, and other similar designs, have been incapable of achieving the desired masonry look. In an attempt to create a better masonry look, designers have added bricks to the firebox areas of the factory built fireplaces. However, such construction designs have shown to be structurally unstable, often falling and breaking, and thus unable to provide an adequate retention of the bricks. Additionally, in such designs, bricks are usually poorly aligned and do not tend to be capable of providing multiple brick pattern arrangements. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    In one aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus includes a panel, a plurality of fasteners, and a plurality of bricks secured to the panel by the fasteners. 
         [0008]    In another aspect of the disclosure, a method of assembling a masonry structure includes arranging a plurality of bricks with a panel, and securing the bricks to the panel with a plurality of fasteners. 
         [0009]    In yet another aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus includes a panel, a plurality of bricks, and means for fastening the bricks to the panel. 
         [0010]    In a further aspect of the disclosure, a fireplace includes a firebox having a plurality of walls defining an area for a fire, each of the walls having a panel, a plurality of fasteners, and a plurality of bricks secured to the panel by the fasteners. 
         [0011]    It is understood that other aspects of the present disclosure will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, wherein it is shown and described only exemplary aspects of the disclosure by way of illustration. As will be realized, the disclosure includes other and different aspects and its several details are capable of modification in various other respects, all without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]    Various aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1A  is an elevated frontal view of a factory-built fireplace having masonry panels installed therein. 
           [0014]      FIG. 1B  is a side view of the fireplace of  FIG. 1A . 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the fireplace illustrated in  FIG. 1A  illustrating the masonry panels installed on the rear wall, sidewalls and base of the fireplace cavity. 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is a top view of a masonry panel for the base of the fireplace having a herringbone pattern. 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  illustrates a secure placement of a plurality of bricks on a panel 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  shows a rivet inserted into a brick. 
           [0019]      FIG. 6  shows the rivet of  FIG. 5  after it has been expanded due to the full insertion of its mandrel. 
           [0020]      FIG. 7  shows the rear view of the panel of  FIG. 4 . The panel comprises a plurality of stiffeners. 
           [0021]      FIG. 8  illustrates a structure of one of the stiffeners from  FIG. 7 . 
           [0022]      FIG. 9  illustrates a method of fastening bricks  95   a  onto the panel of  FIG. 4 . 
           [0023]      FIG. 10  illustrates one method of cutting of the panel with installed bricks. 
           [0024]      FIG. 11  illustrates another method of cutting the panel with installed bricks. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0025]    The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various aspects of the present disclosure and is not intended to represent all ways in which the present disclosure may be practiced. The detailed description may include specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the present disclosure; however, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the various aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are summarily described and/or shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the concepts of the present disclosure. 
         [0026]    With reference to  FIGS. 1A and 1B , masonry fireplace  100  according to an exemplary embodiment is illustrated therein, in this configuration, the panels  40   b,    50   b,  and  60   b  are factory built, and the whole structure can be assembled on site using the factory built panels. The fireplace  100  generally comprises a firebox  10  having a front end  12  and a rear end  14 . The firebox  10  defines a cavity  30  and panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are preferably disposed in the cavity  30 . In the illustrated embodiment, the fireplace  100  has a chimney outlet  20 . However, the fireplace  100  can be vent free, thus not requiring a chimney outlet. The fireplace  100  can be adapted to burn various types of materials. For example, the fireplace  100  can be a wood and/or gas burning fireplace. 
         [0027]      FIG. 2  illustrates the fireplace  100  of  FIG. 1  with the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  removed. The cavity  30  has a frame with a rear area  40   a,  side areas  50   a  and a base area  60   a.  The frame can comprise of at least one rail that defines the periphery of the cavity  30 . The frame can optionally comprise a plurality of panels, such as a rear wall  40   a,  sidewalls  50   a  and a base  60   a.  Optionally, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can comprise the frame areas  40   a,    50   a,    60   a.    
         [0028]    The panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are preferably removably attached to the rear area  40   a,  side areas  50   a,  and base area  60   a,  respectively. For example, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can be riveted, bolted, screwed, welded, or connected with other connectors or fasteners to the cavity frame areas  40   a,    50   a,    60   a.  In the illustrated embodiment, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are in the form of masonry panels configured to receive bricks. 
         [0029]    The panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are preferably made of metal. For example, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can be made of steel. Optionally, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can be made of a sheet metal commonly used in the fireplace industry. However, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can optionally be made of any material providing the necessary structural, thermal, and other characteristics required in fireplace construction. 
         [0030]    The panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are preferably sized to substantially cover the entire frame areas  40   a,    50   a,    60   a,  respectively. Additionally, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  are preferably configured to provide adequate structural support to masonry material disposed thereon. For example, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can have a thickness capable of providing said structural support. 
         [0031]    According to the illustrated embodiment, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  comprise a running bond pattern. However, the panels  40   b,    50   b,    60   b  can comprise other patterns, such as a herringbone pattern, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . 
         [0032]      FIG. 4  illustrates a secure placement of bricks  95   a  on a panel  90 . The panel  90  provides a means for holding the bricks  92 . The panel may be made of metal, similar to the panels  40   b,    50   b,  and  60   b  described in  FIG. 2 . The panel  90  comprises a number of holes  91 . The bricks  95   a  are attached to the panel  92  by rivets  96 . At least one rivet  96  gets inserted into each brick  95   a.  At least one blind hole  93  in each brick  95   a  is aligned with one hole  91  in the panel  90 . Through each aligned pair of holes  91  and  93 , a rivet  96  is passed to fasten one brick  95   a  to the panel  90 . The rivets provide means for fastening the bricks to the panel. 
         [0033]      FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6  show the rivet  96  as inserted into a brick  95   a  of the panel  90 , through the hole of the brick  93  and the hole of the panel  91 . Each rivet  96  has a shaft  97  and a mandrel  98 . The rivet  96  has a head  80 , and may be made of aluminum. The dimension of the hole of the brick  93 , in an area adjacent to the hole of the panel  91 , is wider than the dimension of the hole of panel  91 . The hole of the panel  91  extends from one side  102  to another side  103 . For example, the hole of the brick  93  may be approximately ¼″ wide and the diameter of the hole in the panel may be approximately 3/16″. The diameters of the holes  91  and  93  with respect to one another would have to be selected carefully to assure that adequate support is obtained, especially in view of the size of the rivet  96  and the size of brick  95   a  being used The brick  95   a  has an upper gap  200  which its diameter extends from one side  104  to another side  105  surrounding the tail  70  of the rivet  96 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , once the top  75  of the mandrel  98 , gets fully inserted into the shaft  97 , it  98  causes the tail  70  of the rivet  96  to expand. The expanded tail  70  portion of the rivet  96 , forms a lock  99  inside each brick  95   a,  and thereby further secures the brick  95   a  to the panel  90 . The brick  95   a  is locked into place when the tail  70  expands because it wedges against the side of the hole  93  in the brick  95   a  and the tail  70  expands to a diameter larger than the diameter of the hole in the panel  91 . 
         [0034]      FIG. 7  shows the rear view of the panel  90  of  FIG. 4 . The panel  90  may be reinforced with a number of stiffeners  85 . The stiffeners  85  provide means for stiffening the panel so that the panel can securely and without bending, hold the bricks  95   a  attached to it on the other side. An exemplary structure of a stiffener  85  is shown in  FIG. 8 . The stiffener  85  may be formed as a channel and may be made of metal or another substitute material. The stiffeners  85  runs along the grouting on the opposite side of the bricks. 
         [0035]      FIG. 9  illustrates a method of fastening bricks  95   a  onto the panel  90  of  FIG. 4 . The method illustrated in  FIG. 11  entails placing a number of bricks  95   a  on the panel  90  in the following way. For each brick  95   a,  the side with at least one blind hole  93 , must face the panel  90 . Next the holes of the bricks  93  need to be aligned with the holes of the panel  91 . To help the alignment process, a frame  95  may be used. First, the frame  95  is placed on the panel and then the bricks  95   a  are placed in each of the holders  95   b  of the frame  95 . At this point, the holes of the panel  91  are aligned with the holes of the bricks  93 , and the rivets  96  are passed through the holes of the panel  91  and then through the holes of the bricks  93 . Once the bricks  95   a  are fastened, then the frame  95  is removed. Next, the area in between the bricks  86 , may be grouted by a grouting material such as cement. 
         [0036]      FIG. 10  illustrates one method of cutting of the panel  90  once the bricks  95   a  are installed. As shown, a cut is made to form an edge  88  which is at an angle. This is done to fit the cut panel  90  in an area which has an edge with a similar angle. For example, each side of the lower panel  60   b  in  FIG. 2  is cut at an angle to fit the lower base part  60   a  of the fireplace  100 .  FIG. 11  illustrates another method of cutting the panel  90  with installed bricks  95   a.  Here the cut is made along an edge  77  that is tapered. This for placing two panels  90  side to side at an angle with respect to one another. For example, in  FIG. 2 , the back panel  40   b  and one of the side panels  50   b  may be cut along an edge  77  to stand next to one another. 
         [0037]    In general, some of the configurations described above are for factory-built secured masonry surface coverings, so that they could be installed in a time and cost efficient manner, for various applications. The configurations are specially suited for fireplaces wherein the on-site building of such structures are difficult and/or prohibited by local safety regulations. 
         [0038]    While the configurations described above are directed towards fireplaces, it should be construed that the configurations are in no way limited to fireplace implementation. The various configuration disclosed herein can be used to form fire pits, brick walls, brick counters, and other structures that can be made of bricks. For example, disclosed embodiments can form at least a portion of a countertop of an outdoor barbecue. 
         [0039]    The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language of the claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated, but rather “one or more.” Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described though out this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for” or, in the case of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase “step for.”