Concrete wall forming system

A reinforced concrete wall system assembles rigid panels into two form walls in spaced apart relationship to securely hold poured concrete and reinforcing materials there between. The panels may include insulating foam. The panels are held securely side by side within a form wall by elongate connectors that have paired channels into which edges of the panels snugly fit. Each connector has brackets extending into the concrete space. Brackets are provided with perforations to receive tie rods. Each tie rod ties a bracket from one form wall to a bracket extending from the other form wall. This holds the space being filled with concrete together. The perforations are formed to resist releasing the tie rod once it has been inserted. Reinforcing steel is positioned by fastening to the tie rods.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a system of assembling rigid panels in spaced apart relationship to securely hold poured concrete and reinforcing materials therebetween while the reinforced concrete hardens. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,293,068 issued Sep. 25, 2001 and 5,649,401 issued Jul. 22, 1997, both to the applicant, teach rigid foam panels that are joined together by connector channels to form concrete-impervious, parallel spaced-apart walls.

The spaced-apart walls define a cavity between them for receiving steel reinforcing rods and poured concrete. The result is a reinforced concrete wall with foam insulation on both faces. The channels of one wall are spaced apart from the channels of the second wall by horizontal tie elements affixed at each end to one of the channels in each wall. It may be more useful and economic to provide different means of holding the channels apart.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an improved rigid panel reinforced concrete forming system that may be used with rigid panels that may include insulating foam on one or both sides of the wall, or may be made with other types of rigid panels, as required. It is another object of the invention to provide channels for the system that use separate tie elements that removably attach to the channels for enhanced versatility and economy of manufacture. It is another object of the invention to provide for the use of panels of sufficient rigidity that they may extend up high enough for a single story concrete pour so that only vertical channels are required.

The channels of the invention have parallel flanges connected by a web. They are provided with perforated brackets that extend outwardly from the face of the flange that will be contacted by the concrete. The perforations can receive tie rods or reinforcing bars of steel bent to define the spacing between the walls. These rods can in turn support reinforcing bars. The perforations in the brackets may take a shape that freely admits a rod, but resists removal of the rod. The brackets of the invention may comprise planar elements that are affixed to the channels. Alternatively, the brackets may comprise tabs formed by cutting slits in a portion of the flange and bending it outwardly to form a right angle to the balance of the flange.

These and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent when the detailed description is studied in conjunction with the drawings, in which like elements are designated by like reference characters in the various drawing figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now toFIGS. 1-5, a portion of a concrete wall forming system21of the invention is shown with a first concrete-impervious form wall1and a parallel second concrete-impervious form wall2held spaced apart by tie rods13. The tie rods support reinforcing bars14within a space12defined between the form walls into which concrete is to be poured. Each form wall is comprised of a plurality of rigid panels3that have straight edges5, and opposed broad faces4defining a first thickness24. The panels may include insulating foam, if desired. The panels are sufficiently rigid to support the poured concrete until it has set. The panels are also sufficiently impervious to the concrete until it has set. A plurality of elongate rigid panel connectors6holds the panels in place. In this embodiment of the invention, the long axes8of the connectors are all vertical, and the panels are eight feet tall to make a house wall in one pour. In other embodiments of this invention, some of the connectors may be horizontal such as those shown in applicant's earlier patents. Each panel connector6has two channels7. Each channel has a pair of opposed flanges9and10, and a web11joining the flanges. The web width25closely corresponds to the first thickness24of the panel so that the panel edge5will fit snugly into the channel. The connector6for joining together two panels side by side in a common plane has the two channels joined together along their webs11, as best seen inFIG. 5. A plurality of brackets15extend out orthogonally from the flanges9that will be in contact with the concrete. Each bracket15is provided with at least one perforation16to receive a tie rod therein. The perforations may be specially constructed to securely hold a rod inserted therein. The inner clear opening18is made smaller then the rod to be inserted. Radial cuts are made around the opening to form flexible barbs17or petals. When a rod is inserted, it bends the petals in the direction of rod motion. They are scraping against the sides of the rod. They act as barbs on a fishhook, resisting withdrawal of the rod. This is very useful in assembling the form wall, since it facilitates mounting the reinforcing rods14to the tie rods on one wall2as shown inFIG. 3before the second wall1is erected. The reinforcing steel may be individual reinforcing bars (rebars), or welded wire fabric, as desired. The tie rods are inserted into the brackets on wall2, the rebars or fabric is wired to the center of the tie rods, then the second wall is erected. As each connector of the second wall is positioned, the free end of each tie rods is inserted into its bracket. Then a panel is fitted into that connector, and the next connector is mounted onto the free edge of the panel. As best seen inFIG. 4, base channels26may be pinned to the slab to receive the connectors and panels at their bottoms. Corner connectors19join adjacent panels together at right angles with web of one channel adjacent the flange of the other channel. They also have brackets15to hold the corners in position.

The flanges10that will not be in contact with the concrete may be attached to a diagonal support strut22fixed to a base such as slab23to maintain the assembly vertical. Alternatively, the strut may be attached to a cap channel27that engages the tops of the channels and the tops of the panels.

Connectors may be constructed by forming brackets such as the single aperture bracket28ofFIG. 7, or the multiple aperture bracket29ofFIG. 8, that are then affixed to the connector by means well known in the art such as welding and riveting.

FIG. 6shows a connector30formed by extrusion. The two channels7share a common web11. An elongate wing31extends along the long axis8of the connector. Most of the wing is cut away to leave only the brackets32that are perforated.

FIGS. 9 and 10illustrate a connector33of the invention in which a portion of the flange34is punched out to form a tab35with specially shaped aperture36that is bent out at right angles to the flange.

FIG. 11illustrates a connector37of the invention for joining panels side by side at right angles. Channel38is made up of first member39and second member40spaced apart and joined by third member41. Channel42is made up of first member43and second member44spaced apart and joined by third member45. The first member39of channel38is joined along its length to the third member45of channel42so that two panels may be joined together side by side at right angles by inserting their edges into the channels. The brackets47are part of a base strip46that is interposed between members39and45at the time the two channels are joined together such as by welding, or riveting, for example.

FIG. 12illustrates a connector37′ of the invention for joining two panels side by side in a common plane. Channel38′ is made up of first member39′ and second member40′ spaced apart and joined by third member41′. Channel42′ is made up of first member43′ and second member44′ spaced apart and joined by third member45′. The third member41′ of channel38′ is joined along its length to the third member45′ of channel42′ so that two panels may be joined together side by side by inserting their edges into the channels. The plurality of spaced-apart brackets47′ are part of a base strip46′ that is interposed between members41′ and45′ at the time the two channels are joined together such as by welding, or riveting, for example. Brackets48extending from the connector to an area on the outer side of the form wall that will not be in contact with the poured concrete may be provided for attaching to support struts, such as the support strut22ofFIG. 4, or finish wall surfaces such as stucco, plaster or paneling.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise than as herein specifically illustrated or described, and that certain changes in form and arrangement of parts and the specific manner of practicing the invention may be made within the underlying idea or principles of the invention.