BUILDING ELEMENT

Abstract: In the building of log cabin walls, inner walls and floors, tongued timber is used, each unit of timber often being so heavy that it cannot be carried by one person. The present invention relates to a unit (6) which can without difficulty be carried by one person. The unit consists of a plastic core (1) having two opposing layers (2 and 3) of hard material.

Description: BUILDING ELEMENT * The present invention relates to an elongate building element, preferably with tongue and * groove. The building element is of thick gauge and is thus too heavy to be carried by one * person alone. Such building elements are used for constructing outer and inner walls and also floors. Grooves and tongues are arranged to cooperate to ensure a coherent surface 5 when the elements are fitted together. It is also possible to build walls out of logs dovetailed at the corners, in which case each building element, besides have tongue and groove, will be provided with a transverse recess with a width corresponding to the thickness of the element and a depth generally half the height of the element Instead of tongues and grooves, a pole may be passed through building elements stacked one on top 10 of the other in order to hold them together. The object of the present invention is to produce a thick building element equivalent to the above but having the great advantage that the element can without difficulty be carried by one person without it feeling heavy. This is achieved according to the invention in that a core of plastic is used which has two opposite hard layers, suitably consisting of sheet 15 metal, to which the plastic is adhered. The latter building element may also be provided with tongue and groove, in which case said layers are shaped so that their extensions also cover the vertical walls of the tongue and groove. A building element according to the present invention is most suitably manufactured by using a mould, said layers being placed on the inner sides of the mould. Once this has 20 been done, the space between the two layers is filled with plastic in liquid form which is then allowed to solidify. A suitable liquid plastic is polyurethane which also has the ability to adhere to the inner surfaces of the layer. Additional characteristics of the present invention are revealed in the appended claims. The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying t 25 seven sheets of drawings in which Figure 1 shows a building element according to the present invention, Figure 2 shows the same building element as Figure 1 but with two recesses, Figure 3 shows a wall constructed out of two building elements, Figure 4 shows how a comer is formed with the aid of building elements Figure 5 shows a surface unit comprising building elements of a first further develop- ment, Figures 6 and 7 show the further developed building element seen in perspective in two different directions Figure 8 shows how the building elements are combined together, Figure 9 shows a surface element with a second further development of the building element Figures 10 and 11 show the building element used in Figure 9, from two different directions Figure 12 shows how the building elements according to Figure 9 are combined, Figure 13 shows a covering strip used in all surface units, Figure 14 shows a surface unit under construction, using building elements according to a third further development, Figure 15 shows the surface element used in Figure 14, and Figure 16 shows how two surface elements as shown in Figure 15 are joined together. A building element is shown in Figure 1 which has a plastic core 1 and two opposite layers 2 and 3, preferably of sheet metal. Said layers are also bent to form the vertical surfaces of a tongue 4 and groove 5.. A building element according to Figure 1 is suitably manufactured by placing the two layers 2 and 3, one in each side of a mould. The mould is then filled with liquid polyurethane foam which then solidifies, thus forming the building element shown in Figure 1. Since the building element according to Figure 3 has a plastic core, extremely thick units can be produced which, thanks to the plastic, are so light that they can be carried by one person. Since the building element is provided with tongue and groove, a wall can easily be built by stacking a number of building elements one on top of the other. Thus building a sturdy wall, such as a partition in a living area, presents no great difficulty to a layman. Figure 3 shows how two building elements 6 and 7 at stack one above the other. If a building element is provided with a transverse recess 10 as wide as the width of a building element and as deep as up to half the height of a building element, a comer wall looking like the dovetailed comers of a log cabin can be produced with the aid of two beams 8 and 9 as shown in Figure 4. Figure 2 shows a building element 9 for inclusion in a comer wall according to Figure 4. The building element 9 is identical to the element shown in Figure 1 with the exception of the recess. The surface unit according to Figure 5 is composed of building elements as shown in Figures 6 and 7. The building element has a plastic core 12 and two hard layers 13 and 14. The building element is provided with a tongue 16 and a groove 15. Figure 8 shows how two building elements are joined together, the right-hand element being provided with two outer layers 13 and 14 which at the left-hand ends are shaped to form a tongue 21, the external wall of the tongue being covered by the layer 13. The left-hand ° end of the extended layer is bent over into a lip 24. This lip, the bottom part and the opposite side form a channel for the dispersal of damp. The tongue 21 is inserted into a groove 20. The walls of the groove are covered by the layer 18 and the groove increases in width from right to left. The groove is provided centrally with a guiding tongue 22 cooperating with a guiding groove 21A in the right-hand building element A cover unit 5 is arranged on the outer side of the join in the combined surface element, said unit being in the form of a metal strip 25. A flange-like part 26 extends from this metal strip, its free end being bent over at 27. The flange is inserted far enough between the two building elements 11 for the bent portion 27 to snap past the comer at the outer end of the groove. Thanks to the tongue 22 and groove 21 A, two building elements are joined in o exact alignment. Within the joined unit, at each join, is a channel for the removal of damp. Said channel is formed by the edge 24, the subsequent bottom and opposite side formed by the layer 13. Figure 13 shows the cover strip 17 with its two parts 30 and 31. Said parts have bent edges 33 and 32, respectively. A flange 26 bent at its free end extends from the cover 5 strip. The bent portion is of course designated 27. Figure 10 shows a second embodiment of a building element with core of plastic and two layers 35 and 36 forming the exterior surfaces of the building element. The building element has a groove 15 and a tongue 16 and is designated 34. Figure 10 shows clearly that the exterior surface 36 is curved inwardly, the outer surface thus forming a channel o which runs from right to left. Figure 9 shows a roof assembled from building elements like those shown in Figure 10 but with the curved surface facing upwards. A covering strip 17 of the type shown in Figure 13 is shown. Arranging building elements in this manner provides natural flow channels for rain from the top and down. Hgure 12 shows how two building elements 34 are joined. The method of joining is identical to that described in conjunction with Figure 8 except that a special drainage channel 36 is provided and also a raised portion 35 against which the flange 32 can be bent or snapped in. Figure 15 shows building elements 37 obtained by dividing the building element 34 vertically. The building element is designed to be placed on top of a roof covered with roofing felt The remaining groove and tongue parts cooperate in the same way as before and the curved surface faces upwards so that the roof covered with roofing felt has the same appearance as in Figure 9 where a number of parallel channels are formed for rain water to run off. An example of such a roof covered with felt is shown in Figure 14, the roofing felt being designated 38. Figure 16 shows how two building elements are joined and it will immediately be noted that the joint agrees with that in Figure 8 and that the covering strip 17 is identical to that used in Figure 8. A unit 39 nailed into the roofing felt 38 is used to anchor the building elements to the roofing felt 38. Said unit 39 has a hook-like inner end 40 which cooperates with the flange 24.

Claims: C L A I M S 1. An elongate building element such as a log, beam, plank or the like, provided with first means for securing the building element to at least one similar building element, and preferably with second means for securing the building element perpendicularly to a similar building element, characterised by a core (1) of plastic such as polyurethane situated between two layers (2 and 3) of hard material such as sheet metal and adhering to these layers (2 and 3), said layers (2 and 3) alone forming the outer surface of a wall composed of several building elements (6 and 2). 2. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said layers (2 and 3) are also included in said first means (4 and 5). 3. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that when said first means comprise tongue (4) and groove (5) the side walls of these parts are covered by the layers (2 and 3). 4. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that the outwardly directed surface of a tongue (21) is wholly or partially covered by part of said layer (13) lying outside the element (11), and the outermost end (24) of the layer (13) on the tongue surface is directed outwardly so that a channel is formed having a bottom and two side walls and that the inwardly directed surface of the groove (20) is wholly or partially covered by said layer (18), the width of the groove preferably increasing from the outside to the inside so that an outer edge (28) appears having an angle less than a right angle. 5. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that at least one layer (36) between groove (16) and tongue (15) is so shaped or indented that a channel is obtained between groove (16) and tongue (15), the channel running parallel to them both. 6. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 3 or 4, in which two elements are joined together, characterised in that the joint between the two building elements is covered by an elongate strip (17) of preferably sheet-metal type, said strip (17) is provided with a part preferably in the form of a flange (26) protruding down in the joint and with a bent portion (27) having a snap action with said outer edge (28) of the groove (20). 7. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that from the bottom of a groove (20) a tongue (22) projects, preferably to cooperate with a groove (21A) cut in the tongue (21) provided with outer layer. 8. An elongate building element as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said means comprise at least one transverse recess (10) having a width corresponding to the thickness of the building element (6). 9. A method of manufacturing a building element as claimed in one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that the two layers (2 and 3) are placed opposite each other in a mould and that the space between the two layers is subsequently filled with plastic (1) which is allowed to solidify.

Inventors: ANDERSSON ARNE, ANDERSSON, ARNE
Applicants: ARNES PLAT AB, ARNES PLAAT AB
Application year: 1992
Main classification: E04C2
IPC codes: E04B1, E04B2, E04B7, E04C1, E04C2, E04D3