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FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates generally to a support device for temporarily holding construction sheet material in place prior to final securement, and, more particularly, to a stepped or offset support device with an orthogonal set of planar surfaces capable of temporarily supporting construction sheet material, such as gypsum board, in a vertical, horizontal, or angular orientation prior to final securement of the sheet.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Temporary support devices for construction sheet material have the general function of temporarily supporting sheet material such as gypsum board (also known as sheetrock or drywall board) prior to final securement of the sheet material to the underlying support structure. Such sheet materials are commonly used in residential, commercial and industrial buildings for covering walls or ceilings and are manufactured in standard sizes, such as 4×8 feet or 4×12 feet. Due to the size and weight of these sheet materials, fastening of the sheets to horizontal, vertical, or angular studs, joists, rafters or trusses can be tiring and awkward, especially when only one or two installers are on the job site.  
           [0003]    To assist in the installation of such construction sheet material, various temporary support devices have been employed. A commonly known temporary support is the “dead man” brace, which is typically fabricated from at least two pieces of 2×4 stud lumber in a “T” orientation, and is generally used to temporarily support sheetrock during ceiling installation. This type of temporary support is generally fabricated on the job site in order to accommodate a specific height dimension, is large and cumbersome in its size, and is not easily transported from one job site to the next.  
           [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,224,309 entitled “Temporary Cleat For Sheet Goods” describes a relatively thin and wide multi-piece assembly that temporarily supports sheet material and is adjustable to accommodate sheet material of various thicknesses. This type of temporary support is relatively costly in comparison to other supports not involving multi-piece assemblies.  
           [0005]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,249, 405 entitled “Drywall Support” describes a relatively thin and wide unitary device with a right angle offset and a piercing end for the temporary support of drywall material. The piercing end can be inserted into the underlying support structure to various depths by a skilled artisan, thereby accommodating various sheet thicknesses. This type of temporary support relies on a single anchor point and requires a degree of skill for adequate, yet not excessive, depth of insertion in the underlying support structure.  
           [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,183 entitled “Drywall Installation Tool” describes a relatively thin and wide unitary device with a flat leg having two mounting holes and an angled leg having a frictional surface for the temporary support of drywall material. Accurate placement of the installation tool by a skilled artisan will produce a variety of distances between the underlying support structure and the angled leg, thereby accommodating various sheet thicknesses. This type of temporary support requires a degree of skill for appropriate placement of the tool with regard to the distance between the drywall to be installed and the angled surface of the tool.  
           [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,361 entitled “Displaceable Support Bracket For Drywall Panel Installation” describes relatively thin and wide unitary devices having a long flat leg and a short right-angled leg, or a long flat leg and a short offset leg, or a long flat leg, a short right-angled leg, and a short offset leg, for the temporary support of drywall material. Keyhole features in the long flat leg provide a way to temporarily fasten the support bracket to the underlying support structure. This type of temporary support provides limited surface engagement for large sheets, thereby increasing the number of brackets required for large sheet installations, and, since this type of temporary support is typically fabricated from a metallic material, multiple brackets would result in an increase of weight that a single installer would be required to handle when installing large sheets.  
           [0008]    Thus, it would be beneficial to provide a support device for temporarily supporting a variety of construction sheet materials that is compact and easily transported, of unitary construction for low cost, provides a plurality of anchor points, requires limited skill in its use, has broad surface engagement for large sheet installations, and is fabricated from lightweight material in order to minimize the combined weight when multiple supports are used by an individual installer.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a temporary support device for installing sheet material in a building construction is provided with a multitude of rectangular and perpendicular surfaces and a rectangular pair of offset surfaces for temporarily supporting a variety of sheet materials in a variety of orientations. The temporary support device is provided with large surface areas having a width dimension in excess of the thickness of a sheet of construction material to provide a degree of surface engagement that distributes the stress of the construction sheet material over a large surface area, thereby minimizing damage to the edge of the construction sheet material. For example, when sheetrock is supported on its edge by a narrow object, the weight of the sheetrock on the narrow edge will cause an overstress condition to the sheetrock, thereby resulting in damage to the edge of the sheetrock, which is an undesirable condition.  
           [0010]    Countersunk through holes integral to the support device accept standard screw hardware for temporarily mounting the support device to the building substructure. The pair of offset surfaces provide clearance for loosely supporting the sheet material before final securement of the sheet to the building substructure. The support device may be provided with cored out sections, thereby enhancing the utility and handling of the device by providing through holes for hanging the support device and by reducing the overall weight of the support device.  
           [0011]    The support device may be manufactured out of lightweight machinable or castable material, such as, for example, machinable aluminum, extruded aluminum, aluminum diecast, zinc diecast, or wood. Alternatively, the support device may be manufactured out of a lightweight and moldable material, such as, for example, thermoset plastic or thermoplastic plastic. Suitable thermoset plastics would include, but are not limited to, polyester, polyester-glass, phenolic, phenolic-glass, epoxy, epoxy-glass, melamine, or melamine-glass. Suitable thermoplastic plastics would include, but are not limited to, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyester, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), acrylics, nylons, spandex-type polyurethanes, polyamides, polycarbonates, fluorocarbons, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), acetal, and cellulosics.  
           [0012]    Materials that can be temporarily supported by the support device include, but are not limited to, gypsum board (also known as sheetrock or drywall board), plywood, particle board, bead board (representative of wanes coating), fiber board, or sheet insulation, where the thickness of the sheets range, for example, from ⅛ inch to 1½ inch.  
           [0013]    The support device of the present invention has the advantage of being a unitary device fabricated from a lightweight material, but of sufficient design and strength to support at least a portion of the weight of a sheet of construction material, of having a compact design for ease of transportation, of requiring limited skill in its use, of having broad surface engagement for large sheet installations, and of being of low cost. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 illustrates a first perspective view of a temporary support device incorporating the features of the present invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 illustrates a second perspective view of the temporary support device of FIG. 1;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 3 illustrates a partial side elevation view of a plurality of the temporary support devices of FIG. 1 temporarily supporting sheet material on a wall, an angled ceiling, and a horizontal ceiling;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 4 illustrates a front elevation view of a plurality of the temporary support devices of FIG. 1 for temporarily supporting sheet material on a wall; and  
         [0018]    [0018]FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate alternative partial section views through a bore hole of the temporary support device of FIG. 1. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0019]    Temporary Support Device  
         [0020]    Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a generally rigid box shaped structure  100  is constructed having a first planar surface  102 , a second planar surface  104 , and a third planar surface  106 , conjoined by end wall sections  108  and  110 , side wall sections  112  and  114 , and step riser wall section  116 . The substantially perpendicular relationship of planar surfaces  102 , 104 , and  106  to wall sections  108 ,  110 , 112 , 114 , and  116 , accommodating both part tolerances and mold draft angles, result in planar surfaces  104  and  106  being in stepped relationship to one another, and planar surfaces  104  and  106  being in an opposing relationship with planar surface  102 , or alternatively, planar surfaces  104  and  106  being in a face-to-face relationship with planar surface  102 . As a result of the foregoing, planar surfaces  104  and  106  are substantially parallel to planar surface  102 .  
         [0021]    The step riser wall section  116  creates a predefined offset “d” between planar surfaces  104  and  106 . The predefined offset “d” is provided to create a clearance condition between planar surface  106  and a sheet of temporarily supported construction material  202 , as seen by referring to FIG. 3, when planar surface  104   b  of temporary support device  100   b  is held in surface contact with construction material  200  by mounting hardware  128 . The temporarily supported sheet material  202  is loosely supported in order to provide the installer with the ability to maneuver the sheet material  202  into its final position on wall studs  208  prior to final securement. The predefined offset “d” is preferably between {fraction (1/16)} and {fraction (9/16)} inches, more preferably between ⅛ and {fraction (7/16)} inches, even more preferably between {fraction (3/16)} and {fraction (5/16)} inches, and is most preferably ¼ inch. In general, variations from any noted preferred dimensions, such as but not limited to part tolerances, that do not detract from the intended function of the temporary support device are considered within the scope of the invention.  
         [0022]    The height of end wall section  108 , as illustrated by dimension “h” in FIG. 1, provides broad surface areas, as illustrated by surfaces “A” on side wall sections  112  and  114 , and surface “B” on end wall section  108 , to distribute the contact stress when the weight of a panel of sheet material is supported by either surface A or B, as illustrated in FIG. 3 where surface A of temporary support device  100   a  is shown in a supporting relationship with sheet material  204  for a ceiling installation on ceiling joists  210 . The dimension “h” is desirably greater than the thickness of a typical sheet of sheetrock material, which is generally between ⅜ and ⅝ inches. Thus, dimension “h” is preferably between ¾ and 2 inches, more preferably between ⅞ and 1¾ inches, even more preferably between 1 and 1½ inches, and is most preferably 1⅛ inches.  
         [0023]    The length “L” of planar surface  106  provides for sufficient engagement of a panel of sheet material during the temporary supporting of the sheet material, as illustrated in the wall installation of FIG. 3 where length “L” engages sheet material  202  by dimension “e”. The engagement dimension “e” is generally chosen by the installer, but is usually less than or equal to length “L”. In order to provide for sufficient engagement “e”, length “L” is desirably, but not necessarily, equal to or greater than 1½ times the thickness of a typical sheet of sheetrock material. Thus, length “L” is preferably between ¾ and 2 inches, more preferably between ⅞ and 1¾ inches, even more preferably between 1 and 1½ inches, and is most preferably 1¼ inches.  
         [0024]    The dimensions “W”, “D” and “L”, which define planar surface  104 , provide for a sufficient surface area of engagement between planar surface  104  and the underlying panel of sheet material, as shown by  100   b  and  200  in FIG. 3, such that securement of mounting hardware  128  through generally rounded bore holes  118   a,b  adequately secure temporary support device  100   b  against the sheet material  200  without overstressing the sheet material  200 , thereby preventing undesirable pressure indentations on the sheet material  200 . Planar surface  104  is typically in face contact with the sheet material  200  during wall construction, as shown by  104   b  and  200  in FIG. 3, but either planar surfaces  102  or  104  may be in face contact with the underlying sheet material during ceiling construction, as shown by  104   a  and  202 , and  102   c  and  214 . Dimensions “W”, “D” and “L” are also chosen so as to provide for generally rounded bore holes  118   a,b . Generally rounded bore holes  118   a,b  are appropriately sized to loosely accept standard sheetrock screws, which are typically #6 or #8 in size, and are substantially perpendicular to planar surfaces  102  and  104 , accommodating both part tolerances and mold draft angles. Dimension “W” is preferably between 1½ and 5½ inches, more preferably between 2½ and 4½ inches, even more preferably between 3 and 4 inches, and is most preferably 3½ inches. Dimension “D” is preferably between 3½ and 8½ inches, more preferably between 4½ and 7½ inches, even more preferably between 5½ and 6½ inches, and is most preferably 6 inches.  
         [0025]    Generally rounded bore holes  118   a,b  are sized to loosely accept standard sheetrock screws, and include countersink surfaces  120  to define contoured surfaces, recessed from planar surfaces  102  or  104 , that interact with the contoured surface on the underside of the flathead of a sheetrock screw, generally depicted by  128  in FIG. 3, thereby providing for distribution of the hoop stresses associated with a tightened flathead screw. FIGS. 5 a  and  5   b  show alternative embodiments of the contoured surface of countersink  120 . In FIG. 5 a , contoured surface  120   a  is generally conical in shape for accepting a standard flathead screw that has a generally conical drive head  220   a . In FIG. 5 b , contoured surface  120   b  is generally fluted in shape for accepting a sheetrock flathead screw that has a generally fluted drive head  220   b.    
         [0026]    The temporary support device  100  may be provided with only one generally rounded bore hole  118 , but two generally rounded bore holes  118  provide for additional securement and anti-rotation. FIG. 4 shows a first support device  100   d  with its bore holes horizontally aligned, and a second support device  100   e  with its bore holes vertically aligned. By first arranging both support devices with their respective bore holes in a horizontal alignment and securing them to the wall stud with a single fastener, as shown by  100   d  and  128   a , a second panel of sheet material, not shown, can be put in place above the first panel  200 , and then the support devices can be rotated in a vertical orientation, as shown by  100   e , for final securement of the panel of sheet material. Depending on the weight of the panel of sheet material, such as sheetrock versus insulation board, one screw  128   a  may be used, or two screws  128   a ,  128   b  may be used. The desire to use two screws for support and anti-rotation may be of more significance when installing sheetrock on a vaulted or cathedral ceiling, as shown in the foreground in FIG. 3 by  100   f  and  206 , since the support device must support a substantial portion of the weight of the supported panel  206 . FIG. 3 illustrates a cathedral ceiling arrangement in the foreground, and a horizontal ceiling arrangement in the background.  
         [0027]    Generally rounded bore holes  118   a,b  are located on an imaginary central line “C.L.” that bisects the edge of surface “B” and runs central to planar surface  102 . A first bore hole  118   a  is proximate the end wall section  108 , and a second bore hole  118   b  is proximate the predefined offset “d” that defines the step riser wall  116  between planar surfaces  104  and  106 . Bore holes  118   a,b  are surrounded by cylindrical rib sections  122 . Rib sections  122  are conjoined with each other and wall sections  108 ,  110 , 112 ,  114  and  116  by planar rib sections  124 . In-between rib sections  122  and  124  are voids  126 , which are typically referred to as cored regions. Rib sections  122  and  124  are substantially perpendicular to planar surfaces  102 ,  104  and  106 , accommodating both part tolerances and mold draft angles. The use of ribs and cored regions provide for structural integrity within the part, while optimizing material usage and part weight.  
         [0028]    Use of Temporary Support Device  
         [0029]    Temporary support device  100  is primarily intended for temporarily supporting one end of a panel of construction sheet material while the opposite end is being secured by the installer. FIGS. 3 and 4 show alternative arrangements where support device  100  is used to temporarily support panels for a vertical wall construction, a horizontal ceiling construction, or an angled ceiling construction (vaulted or cathedral ceilings). As shown in FIG. 4, the support device  100   e  may be initially oriented vertically, with imaginary line “C.L.” oriented perpendicular to the panel edge  200   a , thereby establishing an engagement dimension “e”. Alternatively, support device  100   d  may be initially oriented horizontally, with imaginary line “C.L.” oriented parallel to the panel edge  200   a , and then moved to a vertical orientation to establish an engagement dimension “e”. Sheetrock screws  128  are fastened through bore holes  118   a,b  to temporarily secure support device  100  to the underlying substructure, which may comprise sheetrock, wall studs, ceiling joists, scissor truss joists, or roof rafters.  
         [0030]    If the vertical orientation of support device  100   e  in FIG. 4 is initially employed, the lower edge  202   b  of the panel of sheet material  202  to be installed must first be lifted over the end  110   b  of support device  100   b  and then placed in spaced relationship to planar surface  106   b , as best seen by referring to  100   b  and  202  in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 also shows lower edge  202   b  of panel  202  abutting top edge of panel  200 , where the abutting edges are identified by the lower dimension line of engagement dimension “e”, or alternatively identified by the demarcation line  218  between panels  214  and  216 . Once the first lower edge  202   b  of the panel of sheet material  202  is temporarily supported by support device  100   b , the opposite edge can be readily secured by the installer by sheetrock screws, or the equivalent, not shown.  
         [0031]    If the horizontal orientation of support device  100   d  in FIG. 4 is initially employed, the lower edge of the panel of sheet material  202  to be installed, shown in FIG. 3, can be simply moved into position to abut the upper edge of the bottom panel  200  already in place. The support device is then vertically oriented as shown by  100   e  in FIG. 4 and the panel  202  secured in place by sheetrock screws, or the equivalent, not shown.  
         [0032]    Installation of a panel of sheet material on a horizontal ceiling is best done by using the support device in a horizontal orientation, as shown by  100   a  and  204  in FIG. 3. Since the dimensions “h” and “D” of support device  100  are selected to produce a broad support surface area, represented by surface “A”, use of surface “A” to support ceiling panel  204  will provide for greater distribution of the stresses resulting from the weight of ceiling panel  204  than if surface “B” were used. Thus, use of surface “A” as opposed to surface “B” will permit fewer support devices  100  to be used for installing the ceiling panels.  
         [0033]    While this invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

Summary:
A temporary support device for installing sheet material in a building construction is provided with a multitude of perpendicular surfaces and a pair of offset surfaces for temporarily supporting a variety of sheet materials in a variety of orientations. Countersunk through holes integral to the support device accept standard screw hardware for temporarily mounting the support device to the building substructure. The pair of offset surfaces provide clearance for loosely supporting the sheet material before final securement of the sheet to the building substructure. The support device may be manufactured out of lightweight material, such as, for example, aluminum, wood, or plastic, and may include cored out sections, thereby enhancing the utility and handling of the device. Materials that can be temporarily supported by the support device include, but are not limited to, sheetrock, insulation board, plywood, and particle board.