Abstract:
Disclosed is a modular poured concrete wall system that addresses the needs not optimally met by the prior art, where inexpensive small light interlocking forms are quickly and readily assembled, to produce the desired aesthetically pleasing appearance of a brick wall system. The forms remain in place as part of the final structure and finished surface of the walls. Thus, a footer track assembly is affixed to a standard concrete footer or foundation. Then the modular forms are assembled upon the footer track, stacked together to produce the appearance of a brick wall. As each row or two of forms are assembled, the forms are filled with concrete. Following the concrete pour, additional forms are assembled on the top of the prior forms, to produce additional rows. By repeating this process, the full height of the wall can be quickly reached. The method may include steel rebar, such as for horizontal bond beams and for vertical strength. In an alternative embodiment, curved modular forms may be assembled to produce a circular column, where the exterior surface is finished as a decorative brick appearance.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not applicable. 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not applicable. 
       REFERENCE TO MICROFICHE APPENDIX 
       [0003]    Not applicable. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    This invention relates to a system of components and a method of use for creating a concrete wall system. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    Conventional masonry walls are typically built of poured concrete or stacked cinder or concrete blocks or bricks. These two types of construction, poured concrete and block, are used additionally for walls in commercial buildings, such as warehouses and hotels, and in residential homes. In preparing concrete walls for structural walls, a support element is needed to retain the concrete while it hardens. The support element conventionally takes the form of wooden form boards and steel bracing to retain the concrete wall as it hardens. The wooden forms are removed from the site once the concrete hardens. Such wooden forms may be re-used once or twice, but soon the repeated exposure to poured concrete deteriorates the wood past the point of serviceability, and the wood forms must be removed from the jobsite and discarded. Additionally, steel-reinforced poured concrete, while strong, tends to leave a finished surface with little aesthetic appeal. 
         [0006]    Cinder or concrete block and bricks hold advantages over poured concrete in that there is no need to bring forms onto the site and then remove them. They also readily offer a more aesthetically pleasing finished product. However, laying cinder blocks is physically taxing, often requiring the services of an unskilled laborer to port them, and also requires the use of a skilled mason to properly align and set each block. Thus laying bricks and blocks is a difficult, time-consuming, and labor intensive procedure. 
         [0007]    The use of steel reinforcing bars “rebar” within the hollows of the concrete blocks or the space within the forms of a poured concrete wall system significantly increases the strength of the resulting structure. In both instances there is a significant time element to position and properly secure the reinforcing bar prior to pouring the concrete, or in positioning the rebar in the opening of the blocks, before adding concrete in the hollows of the cinder or concrete blocks. 
         [0008]    Thus in U.S. Pat. No. 6,176,059, Cantarano teaches a modular construction system and method of use for creating a concrete wall system. The system uses wall form panels having connectors and structural tie plates. The wall form panels have interlocking protrusions around the edges such that the panel is reversibly symmetric. This method requires the removal of the forms, and is time consuming in its application. 
         [0009]    Alternately, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,962,028 Banova teaches the use highly contoured masonry articles, comprising a contoured first header, a contoured second header, a contoured front face, a back face, a contoured lower base and an upper base. This art does not avoid the use of rather have masonry units however, and although it saves time over other prior art, it remains labor intensive. 
         [0010]    In U.S. Pat. No. 4,037,816 Scott teaches a method to incorporate to apply an elastic mold into a poured concrete wall to simulate the formation of bricks. This construction of the mold involves several steps, which like the wooden forms must be removed and is subject to deterioration upon repeated use and subsequently disposed of. 
         [0011]    The prior art has demonstrated there exists a need for a wall system that combines the preferred features of poured concrete and the aesthetic features of stacked block or brick masonry without the drawbacks of either. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0012]    Disclosed here in the present invention is a modular poured concrete wall system that addresses the needs not optimally met by the prior art, where inexpensive small light metal interlocking forms are quickly and readily assembled, to produce the desired aesthetically pleasing appearance of a brick wall system. The key departure from the prior art is that the assembly of the metal forms is intended to remain in place as part of the final structure and finished surface of the walls. 
         [0013]    Thus, a metal footer track assembly as described in this disclosure is affixed to a standard concrete footer or foundation. Then the modular metal forms of the present invention are assembled upon the footer track, stacked together in such a way as to produce the appearance of a brick wall. With every few rows of modular metal forms, such as two rows, the forms are filled with poured concrete. Following the concrete pour, additional metal forms are assembled on the top of the previous forms, to produce about two additional rows, and more concrete is then poured again. By repeating this process, the full height of the wall can be quickly reached. The method lends itself readily to inclusion of steel rebar, such as for horizontal bond beams and for vertical members as well. 
       OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a strong poured concrete wall system that will produce an aesthetically pleasing brick wall appearance. 
         [0015]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a system where the forms can be rapidly assembled, without the cost of skilled labor, and where the need for physical strength and stamina in the laborer presently required for stacked cinder block methods is significantly reduced. 
         [0016]    It is another object of the present invention to produce an affordable poured concrete wall system that eliminates the costs associated with the labor in removing the modular forms, of cleanup, and also the costs associated with disposing of the forms, including the burden upon municipal landfills. 
         [0017]    It is also an object of the present invention to afford a concrete wall system that has the excellent fire resistant properties of metal and concrete construction materials, and produces a stronger wall than other methods. 
         [0018]    It is also an object of the present invention to afford a concrete wall system where the modular forms are more compact, and therefore less expensive to transport and store. 
         [0019]    Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0020]    The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention.  FIG. 1  is a view of a basic modular form unit. 
           [0021]      FIG. 2  is a detailed view of the left end of the basic modular form unit. 
           [0022]      FIG. 3  is a detailed view of the right end of the basic modular form unit. 
           [0023]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of two types of exterior corner modular form units as assembled. 
           [0024]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of two types of terminal end modular form units as assembled. 
           [0025]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an interior corner modular form unit. 
           [0026]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of an exterior corner modular form unit and part of a basic modular form unit as assembled illustrating an optional surface texture. 
           [0027]      FIG. 8  is a side and a perspective view of the footer track assembly. 
           [0028]      FIG. 9  is a cross section view of two rows of the modular wall. 
           [0029]      FIG. 10  is a view of a curved modular form unit. 
           [0030]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of an incomplete round concrete column with a plurality of curved modular form units. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
       [0031]    Referring to the drawings in detail, wherein like numerals indicate like elements,  FIG. 1  illustrates a basic modular form unit  10  as part of the concrete wall system in accordance with the present invention. This basic modular form unit  10  provides the outside face of a single “brick”. A plurality of the basic modular form units  10 , along with other special purpose adaptations of the basic modular form unit, are assembled together to produce the overall wall system. The basic modular form unit  10  is fabricated out of metal of suitable properties and thickness. The basic modular form unit is approximately rectangular with flanges at each end, and at the top and bottom edges as well. In  FIG. 1  there is shown a top single flange  11  that runs the length of the modular form unit. It is continuously connected to the single flange  12  on the left end of the basic modular form unit  10 . The single flanges  11  and  12  are parallel to the surface of the rectangular area of the basic modular form unit. 
         [0032]    Also shown in  FIG. 1  are the double flanges on the bottom edge of the basic modular form unit  10 . The double flange consists of an outer flange  13  and an inner flange  14  separated by a gap, where the gap is of the same dimension as the thickness of top flange  11  and the left end flange  12 . As the basic modular form units are assembled, the double flanges  13  and  14  straddle and grip the single flange  11  of the basic modular unit immediately below it. Similarly, the double flanges  15  and  16  of the right end have the single flange  12  at the left end of the next adjacent basic modular form unit inserted between them. 
         [0033]      FIG. 2  is a detail of the left end of the basic modular form unit, where the top and left edges have single male flanges  11  and  12  respectively.  FIG. 2  also shows the double flanges  13  and  14  on the lower edge. To simulate the appearance of a brick, the basic modular form unit is formed or bent to the form a box, where the face  17  is raised from the plane of the flanges  11 ,  12 , and  13 . The edges  18  of the raised face are of a dimension to simulate brick and mortar joints visually, and a preferred dimension of the edge  18  is about ¼″. 
         [0034]      FIG. 3  is a detail of the right end of the basic modular form unit  10 , where the top edge has a single male flange  11 .  FIG. 3  also shows the double flanges  13  and  14  on the lower edge, and double flanges  15  and  16  along the right edge of the basic modular form unit  10 .  FIG. 3  also illustrates how the basic modular form unit  10  is formed or bent to the form of a box, where the face  17  is raised from the plane of the flanges  11 ,  13 , and  15 . The edges  18  of the raised face are of a dimension to simulate brick and mortar joints visually, and a preferred dimension of the raised edge  18  is about ¼″. 
         [0035]      FIG. 4  illustrates two special modular form units  40  and  41  for use in forming outside corners of the wall system. These two related forms are generally needed to simulate the appearance of a traditionally laid brick wall where the spaces between the adjacent bricks are staggered from layer to layer. Thus a “right” laying form  40  has a longer side to the right of the corner, and a shorter side to the left, while a “left” laying form  41  has its longer side to the left while its shorter side extends to the right of the corner. 
         [0036]      FIG. 5  illustrates two special modular form units  50  and  51  for use in forming a terminal edge of the wall system. Such terminal end forms may be used where the wall ends without additional structures, or alternately may be used at the window or door openings of the wall system of the present invention. These two related forms  50  and  51  are generally needed to simulate the appearance of a traditionally laid brick wall where the spaces between the adjacent bricks are staggered from layer to layer. Thus a “long” modular form unit  50  is illustrated on the bottom, while a “short” modular form unit  51  rests on top of it. 
         [0037]      FIG. 6  illustrates a special modular form unit  60  for inside corners. By analogy to  FIG. 4  illustrating the principles of outside corners, modular form unit  60  is needed in two variations, necessary to simulate the appearance of a traditionally laid brick wall where the spaces between the adjacent bricks are staggered from layer to layer. Thus a “left” laying inside corner form  60  has a longer side to the left of the corner, and a shorter side to the right, while a “right” laying form has a longer side to the right of the corner while its shorter side extends to the left. 
         [0038]      FIG. 7  illustrates a “right” outside corner modular form unit  40  assembled with a basic modular form unit  10 , where the raised surfaces of both forms  10  and  40  incorporate an optional textured finish  70 . Such optional textured finishes are included where it is desired to improve the aesthetic appearance of the finished wall system. Such optional textured finishes may be of any desired design where, for example a stone composite is suggested in  FIG. 7 . Other natural aggregate patterns may be used, or regular geometric designs, or figures, or symbols may be incorporated into the raised surface of the modular form units. 
         [0039]      FIG. 8  illustrates a side view and a perspective view of a footer track assembly  80  used to provide the initial alignment of the other forms, and attachment of such forms to a concrete footer. The footer track  80  comprises a pair of side rails  81  fixed in a standard uniform distance apart from each other by cross members  82 , which are also regularly spaced with respect to each other. The side rails  81  are lengths of metal strips formed in a right angle. The side rails  81  and cross members  82  may be joined by any suitable means such as by welding, by means of screws, or in the illustration of  FIG. 8 , by means of rivets  84 . 
         [0040]    Also illustrated in  FIG. 8  are holes  83  located approximately centered in the cross braces  82 . These holes function to locate centering pins, nails, brads, or screws that attach the footer track assembly  80  to a concrete footer. 
         [0041]      FIG. 9  is a cross section view showing how the forms and other components come together. The component parts  81  and  82  of the footer track assembly ( 80  in  FIG. 8 ) rest upon and are affixed to the concrete footer  100  by means of a centering pin  85 , nail, screw or the like. On the left are arranged vertically are two layers of the basic modular form units  10  that will form the exterior wall of the building, ultimately resulting a finished brick appearance. 
         [0042]    On the right side of  FIG. 9  arranged vertically are two layers of the forms  90  that will form the interior wall of the building, such wall showing a flat finished appearance. These two interior modular form units  90  lack the raised edge ( 18  in  FIGS. 2 &amp; 3 ) and face ( 17  in  FIGS. 2 &amp; 3 ) of basic modular form units  10 , and are preferred where the builder may wish to finish the interior surface with gypsum board drywall, or wood paneling, or other means, and may also include between the concrete wall and the finished interior surface a layer of insulation, as well as pipes, wiring and other utilities. Optionally, the builder may also use basic modular form unit  10  for the interior wall surface, where the builder prefers the finished brick appearance of such forms. 
         [0043]    Also shown in  FIG. 9  is a metal spreader strut  110 , where a plurality of such spreader struts  110  periodically spaced serve to maintain the spacing between exterior forms  10  and interior forms  10  or  90 . The metal spreader strut  110  is quickly set into suitable preformed holes on the interior lip of forms  10  or  90 . The plurality of metal struts  110  also serve as support for horizontal rebar bond beams shown in cross section as  111 , which may be secured to the struts  110  by iron wire or other techniques known in the prior art. 
         [0044]      FIG. 10  illustrates a curved modular form unit  160  for use as part of a concrete system in accordance with the present invention. Such curved forms when used together can form a concrete column with the appearance of a brick finish. It comprises the same features as the basic modular form unit  10  as shown in  FIG. 1 , where there is a top single flange  11  that runs the length of the modular form unit. It is continuously connected to the single flange  12  on the left end of the curved modular form unit  10 . 
         [0045]    Also shown in  FIG. 10  are the double flanges on the bottom edge of the curved modular form unit  160 . The double flange consists of an outer flange  13  and an inner flange  14  separated by a gap, where the gap is of the same dimension as the thickness of top flange  11  and the left end flange  12 . As the curved modular form units are assembled, the double flanges  13  and  14  straddle and grip the single flange  11  of the curved modular units immediately below it. Similarly, the double flanges  15  and  16  of the right end have the single flange  12  at the left end of the next adjacent curved modular form unit inserted between them. 
         [0046]      FIG. 11  shows how the modular form units  160  may be combined to form a circular column. Because the forms  160  are curved as a circular arc section, when several curved forms  160  are assembled end to end upon a concrete footer  161 , a complete circle is formed. For the layer attached to the concrete footer  161 , a track in the manner of that of  FIG. 8  may be used, where instead of linear shape, the track is curved to a suitable radius. Additional layers or rows of a plurality of curved forms  160  may then be added until the column height reaches the desired height. 
         [0047]    It is generally not necessary in the case of building a concrete column to completely fill with concrete  166  the area formed by the outside curved modular form units. The cost of the additional concrete that would be required may be avoided by use of an inner form so that the column is hollow. A plurality of inner curved forms, with a smaller radius may be incorporated as a concentric circle inside the outer ring. Alternately, because this will not be part of the visible exterior finish, the inner form may be fashioned from other devices, such as, for example, a single piece of cylindrical tubing of suitable dimensions. Thus  FIG. 11  shows a large diameter section of tubing  162 , such as PVC tubing or cylindrical metal duct, that comprises an inner section that will reduce the quantity of concrete needed to fill the assembled modular form unit column. Such large diameter PVC tubing is readily available, such as for air ducts for chemical fume hoods, or other applications where resistance to corrosion is desired. As with the linear concrete wall embodiment, the column embodiment as shown in  FIG. 11  may contain a plurality of steel reinforcing bars  165  as needed. 
         [0048]    An alternate application for the curved modular form units  160  illustrated in  FIG. 10  is found in concrete wall construction. One or a plurality of the curved modular form units of a suitable enclosed angle or degree of curvature may be used in each row as part of the concrete wall systems where for aesthetic reasons, a rounded corner is desired as opposed to a square or other sharply angled corner. 
         [0049]    The dimensions of the modular form units may be any suitable length. Because the building industry has in many cases standardized on 16 inch on-center distances, for example in the spacing of wood frame studs, of standard cinder or concrete blocks, and incorporated into the 4 foot width of standard gypsum boards or wood paneling, designs that produce a repeating on-center spacing of 16 inches between the basic modular form units are one preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0050]    Thus the dimensions of the basic modular form unit  10  in this preferred embodiment may be 15¼″×2½″ for the raised surface  17  of basic modular form unit  10 , with flanges of ¾″ width, and further with the distance of the edge  18  of said raised surface  17  at about ¼. Somewhat larger or smaller dimensions for the edge  18  depth may also be used if convenient or aesthetically desired. Alternately, the standard 16″ on-center spacing may be achieved with a plurality of shorter basic modular units  10 , where two such units of dimension 7¼″×2½″ for the raised surface  17  will produce a similar result. The male flanges  11  and  12  should have a width of about ½″, and the female flanges  13 ,  14 ,  15  and  16  should also be about ½″ width. Other forms, such as the exterior corner forms  40  and  41 , or the interior corner forms  60 , or the terminal forms  50  and  51  have corresponding and compatible dimensions. 
         [0051]    The overall length of footer track assembly  80  should be approximately the length of several basic modular units. Thus one preferred embodiment of the footer track assembly  80  to secure  5  basic modular units  10  would have a length of about 80″. The width of the footer track assembly  80  is determined by the length of the cross members  82 , and will establish the spacing between the two sides of the modular form assemblies. This may be any desired width, provided the minimum requirements of structural engineering for the wall are met. For many applications, an approximate 4″ width is contemplated. Thus the distance between the vertical parts of the footer assembly rails  81  should be about 4″. The spreader struts  110 , if used, accordingly should be set about 3¾″ length. 
         [0052]    The modular form units are intended to remain as part of the finished wall, and therefore must be constructed of durable materials. The preferred materials are sheet metal such as steel or aluminum. If steel is used, it should be a corrosion resistant specification, such as stainless steel or other steel alloys with good corrosion properties. Alternatively, galvanized steel may be used. If sheet metal steel is used, the preferred thickness of the steel should be about 26 gauge or similar. 
         [0053]    Alternate metals may be used. One especially preferred metal is aluminum. Corrosion resistant grades of aluminum are especially preferred. A preferred thickness of sheet aluminum is 0.040″. Alternately, the aluminum may be formed by casting techniques. 
         [0054]    Alternate materials may also be used, such as polymeric materials. Thus a preferred embodiment would be polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or other polymeric material suitable for construction. For strength, suitable thickness of the polymeric should be used, which can be readily calculated from the known and published physical properties of the polymeric materials. If PVC is selected, it will need to be painted or otherwise protected from deterioration in sunlight. 
         [0055]    In the method of practicing the present invention, the footer track assemblies  80  are aligned on the standard concrete footers or foundations. They are then secured by pins  83  or nails or screws or the like to the footer. Then the preformed modular form units are placed upon the footer track rails  81 , where the female flanges  13  and  14  fit upon the upward edges of the footer track rails  81 . Simultaneously, the male flanges  12  of each modular form unit are inserted into the female vertical flanges  15  and  16  of adjacent modular form units. Corner modular form units  40 ,  41 , and  60 , etc., or terminal end modular form units  50  and  51  can be incorporated as needed in the plans. Significant lengths of the form can be quickly assembled in a few minutes with a minimum of tools. 
         [0056]    When a few rows of modular form units, such as one, two, or more rows have been assembled, the top of the forms are secured by the metal spreader struts  110  or by a separate jig or tool designed specifically to hold them apart at the required distance. As needed, rebar can be placed into the forms, and secured by steel wire or other techniques well known in the art. 
         [0057]    Then the concrete is poured into the forms, which are tapped and manipulated to secure the flow of the concrete into all parts of the form. Although different cement based aggregates may be used such as mortar or grout, concrete is generally preferred for its superior ultimate strength, and for is superior rigidity soon after pouring. 
         [0058]    Because the concrete sets quickly and soon has strength sufficient to support a modest load, assembly of the next few rows, such as one, two, or more rows may commence soon after the concrete has been poured and settled into the forms from the prior rows. The next pour of concrete may be performed within a short time, in as little as a couple hours after the prior pour. In this manner, the construction of the walls of the structure will be rapid, and therefore afford a significant savings in labor costs. 
         [0059]    An alternative embodiment of the present invention includes changing the placement of the single and double flanges of the basic modular unit. Thus, while the various Figures show a single flange at the left edge of each basic modular unit, and double flanges at each right edge, it is obvious that an alternate embodiment of the same invention would comprise a general system where the single flange of each basic modular unit is located on the right edges, and the double flanges on the left edges. Similarly another alternate embodiment of the same invention comprises the single flange of each basic modular unit being located on the bottom edge, and the double flanges located on the top edges. In this event, the track assembly  80  as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , which serves to provide the initial alignment of the other modular forms, and attachment of such forms to a concrete footer would incorporate a double flanged rail. Other variations of the specific arrangement of the single and double flanges of the modular units will be readily obvious to a person skilled in the art. 
         [0060]    Although the foregoing embodiments of the present invention have been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for purposes of clarity and understanding, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that certain changes and modifications may be practiced within the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the description and examples presented herein should not be construed to limit the scope of the present invention, the essential features of which are set forth in the appended claims.