Insulated building component

An insulated building component which includes two concrete halves having an insulating layer interposed between them. The insulating layer is made from a material with good compression strength and disallows any direct contact between the top half and the bottom half. The top, bottom, end and side surfaces of the building component are parallel or perpendicular with respect to each other and present similar surfaces to those of a standard building block. A plurality of mated walls extend between top and bottom surfaces of the component and are angled to prevent vertical movement of the half members. The facing surfaces of the half members and the outermost edges of the walls are sloped, oppositely with respect to each other, to prevent width-wise lateral movement of the halves. The insulation layer, while retaining its strength in compression between the two halves, serves to decrease the thermal conductivity of the building component.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of Invention 
This invention relates to building components, more particularly, to 
thermally insulated concrete blocks. 
2. Description of Prior Art 
Concrete blocks are used extensively in the building industry. They are 
economical, durable, and readily available. Additionally, concrete has the 
advantageous property of being strongest in compression. These and other 
attributes make concrete blocks an attractive choice for builders. 
However, concrete blocks have comparatively poor insulating properties. 
While the insulating properties of a concrete block may be improved by 
manufacturing the block in a lighter weight form, the block loses its 
structural capability for heavy load requirements, such as use in exterior 
wall construction. 
Attempts have been made to increase insulating properties by filling in the 
cores of standard concrete blocks with insulation, but the results have 
been minimal. A typical 120 pound to 140 pound per cubic foot structural 
block of eight inch standard width has a R value of 0.9. Filling the cores 
with insulation produces R values of 2 or 3. An R value of up to 5 may be 
obtainable if a lighter weight block is manufactured whereby the block 
tends to insulate itself, but again, its use in heavy load situations is 
therefore limited, reducing its utility. 
The major problem is that concrete of the thickness utilized in concrete 
blocks is a good thermal conductor, therefore it consistently transfers 
cold exterior temperatures from its exterior facing side to its interior 
facing side, forcing the interior heating means to work harder to maintain 
desired interior temperature, thereby requiring the consumption of more 
energy. 
Any attempt to place a layer of insulation between standard blocks or to 
essentially cut the block in two and then place an insulating layer 
between, would not adequately solve the problem. Extreme problems would 
result from shifting of the blocks or the halves with respect to one 
another, thereby undermining the structural stability of the block singly 
and in combination with other blocks. No acceptable method for completely 
insulating two halves of a concrete block has seen developed. 
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an insulating 
concrete block which produces a high R value. 
Another object of this invention is to provide an insulating building 
component which contains an insulating layer between two halves of 
concrete, and does not allow any concrete-on-concrete contact between the 
two halves. 
Another object of this invention is to provide an insulated building 
component made of two halves wherein any movement pushes the two halves 
together rather than pulls them apart thus preventing separation of the 
halves. 
Another object of this invention is to provide an insulated building 
component which can be made of heavy concrete. 
A further object of this invention is to provide an insulated building 
component which is aesthetically attractive so that it may be used for 
exterior and interior purposes. 
Another object of this invention is to provide an insulated building 
component which is strong, durable and economical, and yet easy of 
manufacture. 
Additional objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become 
apparent with reference to the specification and the accompanying 
drawings. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention utilizes two concrete halves having an insulating layer 
placed between them so that the R value of the resulting block is 
significantly higher than that of a unitary standard concrete block. The 
core of the block is constructed in such a manner that the two halves are 
retained as to one another to disallow separation of the halves. This 
construction still maintains either the one or two core openings as in 
standard concrete blocks. 
The top and bottom halves present parallel and flat exterior surfaces in 
accordance with standard concrete blocks. Flat, angularly extending walls 
extend between these exterior flat surfaces in a configuration which 
interlocks the two halves into retaining positon with the insulating layer 
disposed in between. 
This interlocking system of walls prohibits vertical or horizontal 
displacement of the halves in both the lengthwise and widthwise 
directions. Different embodiments achieve this result by angling the 
walls, sloping the interior surfaces of the top and bottom halves, and 
sloping of the outer edges of the walls to oppositely correspond with the 
sloped interior surfaces. 
The top and bottom halves may be made from any concrete substance but in 
particular, may be made from standard concrete used in standard concrete 
blocks in the range of 120 pounds to 140 pounds per cubic foot, or may be 
made of heavier concrete. The insulating layer may be made of a rigid 
urethane styrofoam which retains good insulating properties even under 
compression.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
In reference to the drawings, and particularly FIG. 1, there is shown a 
building component 10 having a top member 12 and a bottom member 14 
interlocked with one another but having an insulating layer 16 interposed 
between, completely separating any physical contact between the two 
members 12 and 14. Walls 22 and 24 extend convergingly from top plate 
member 18 of top half member 12 downwardly towards bottom half member 14. 
Correspondingly, walls 26 and 28 extend divergingly upward from bottom 
plate member 20 of bottom half member 14 to present a V-shaped 
configuration which fits inside of walls 22 and 24 of top half member 12. 
This structure forms V-shaped core opening 30 and prohibits vertical 
displacement of top member 12 from bottom member 14. 
Additionally, lateral displacement of half members 12 and 14 is prevented 
by wedge-shaped section 34 of top plate member 18 and the angling of walls 
28 and 24, which is shown in greater detail in FIGS. 2 and 4. Top plate 
member 18 has a sloped surface wedge-shaped section 34 existing between 
walls 22 and 24. The uppermost edges of walls 28 and 26 of bottom half 
member 14 are correspondingly sloped oppositely wedge 34 so that when 
building component 10 is assembled, the exterior surfaces of top plate 18 
and bottom plate 20 are flat and parallel to one another. Walls 28 and 24 
are disposed parallel to one another, as are walls 22 and 26. However, 
walls 28 and 24, in combination, are not parallel to the combination of 
walls 22 and 26, but rather are angled away, as shown in FIG. 4. This 
angling prevents lateral movement of top half member 12 with respect to 
bottom half member 14 in the direction of the outward angling. 
Correspondingly, the wedge-shaped section 34 and sloped edges of walls 26 
and 28 prevent lateral movement in the opposite direction. Notice that on 
FIG. 2, the insulation has been cut away to show the surface of 
wedge-shaped section 34. 
FIGS. 3 and 4 show the construction of wedge-shaped section 34, the sloped 
edge of wall 28 (which is identical to wall 26), and angled walls 28 and 
24 in greater detail. 
Building component 40, a modification of building component 10, is shown in 
FIGS. 5 and 6. As with building component 10, there is a top half member 
42 and a bottom half member 44 having an insulating layer 46 interposed 
between them. Top half member 42 has a top plate member 48 from which 
extend converging walls 52 and 54 downward. Bottom half member 44 has a 
bottom plate member 50 which has divergingly upward extending walls 56 and 
58 which form the V-shaped core opening 60. Wedge-shaped section 62 exists 
between walls 52 and 54 on top plate member 48 and functions like 
wedge-shaped member 34 of building component 10, matingly corresponding 
with sloped ends of walls 56 and 58. The modification exists in having 
wedge-shaped sections 64 and 66 of bottom plate member 50 which slope in 
an opposite direction of wedge-shaped section 62. The downwardmost edges 
of walls 52 and 54 are correspondingly sloped oppositely to sections 64 
and 66. Therefore, lateral movement in either forward or backward 
directions is prevented. Wedge-shaped sections 64 and 66 take the place of 
the angling of walls 28 and 24 of building component 10. Insulation 46 is 
cut away in FIG. 6 to show wedge-shaped section 62. 
Another modification is disclosed in FIGS. 7 and 8. With particular 
reference to FIG. 7, building component 70 having top half member 72 and 
bottom half member 74 with insulating layer 76 interposed between, is 
shown. Top plate member 73 of top half member 72 has three downwardly 
extending walls 78, 80 and 82. Walls 80 and 82 attach adjacent to one 
another to top plate 73 and extend divergingly downward forming a V-shaped 
core opening 92. Wall 78 extends downward and convergingly with wall 80. 
Reciprocally, bottom plate member 75 has walls 84, 86, and 88 which extend 
upwardly in such a manner as to interlockingly adjoin walls 78, 80 and 82 
of top half member 72. Bottom half walls 84 and 86 extend divergingly 
upward, from V-shaped core opening 90, and are positioned inside of walls 
78 and 80. Wall 88 extends convergingly towards wall 86 of bottom plate 
member 75, both of which secure walls 80 and 82. Top plate member 73 has 
wedged-shaped section 94 between walls 78 and 80, while bottom plate 
member 75 has wedge-shaped section 96 between walls 86 and 88. The top 
edges of walls 84 and 86 are sloped oppositely wedge-shaped section 94 as 
are the ends of walls 80 and 82 with respect to wedge-shaped section 96. 
This configuration presents a building component having two core openings, 
while still preventing lateral movement of the top half member 72 with 
respect to bottom half member 74. FIG. 7 has cut aways of insulation layer 
76 to show the surface of wedge-shaped sections 90 and 92. 
All three embodiments 10, 40 and 70 disclose a building component which has 
two separate and non-attached halves which have an insulating layer 
interposed completely between the halves and yet, are interlocked so that 
movement between the two halves is prevented. Furthermore, any force which 
attempts to displace the halves with respect to one another, only serves 
to cause the halves to move a tighter interlocking configuration with one 
another. 
The top and bottom members of the embodiments may be made of concrete while 
the insulating layer may be made of rigid urethane styrofoam. 
The above described descriptions are to the preferred embodiments of the 
invention, however, it is to be understood that changes can be made in the 
preferred embodiments herein.