Abstract:
The present invention is an improved method of making cornice assemblies and other trim members utilizing the process of pultrusion. The cornice assemblies and the other trim members made by the method of the present invention exhibit superior strength to weight ratios, low expansion and contraction due to changes in temperature and humidity, as well being less labor intensive to install.

Description:
CLAIM OF PRIORITY 
     This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 13/187,804 filed on Jul. 21, 2011, which is a Division of Ser. No. 11/321,988, filed on Dec. 29, 2005, which is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/079,086, filed on Feb. 20, 2002, U.S. Pat. No. 7,318,282, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/274,808 filed Mar. 9, 2001 all of which are incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to building structures, and more particularly to trim members for protecting, covering and decorating the area from the base of the roof to the upper portion of the outer wall of a building structure, such as a home or office or other commercial building, where the trim members are manufactured by pultrusion. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In the United States, most residential or light weight-building systems employ wood or metal rafters, which extend from six to twenty-four inches beyond the outer wall. The outer wall is typically constructed of masonry or wood construction. Typically, the rafters and the sub-fascia (a member that connects the rafter ends together) support roof decking which forms the base of the roof. Shingles or other roofing materials cover the roof decking. Typically, the entire area from the lower edge of the roof decking to the upper portion of the outer wall of the building structure is covered with a cornice assembly, usually made of wood or wood covered with aluminum or vinyl. Aluminum or vinyl is a preferred material because of the high maintenance of wood trim pieces, which require repainting every few years (but in fact, vinyl cannot be painted at all). A fascia, usually the upper trim member of the cornice assembly, typically covers the sub-fascia or the outer portion of the rafter ends. This fascia protects the sub-fascia or rafter ends from the elements, and provides a decorative cover. The soffit, another trim member of the cornice, typically extends horizontally between the bottom inside edge of the fascia to the upper portion of the outer wall. The third trim member of the cornice assembly, known as the frieze, is a decorative member that starts at the soffit and runs down the outside surface of the top of the outer wall. The frieze is usually made of the same material as the fascia and soffit. 
     One problem associated with decorative and protective cornice assemblies is the labor required to install the several component parts, such as the fascia, the soffit, the frieze, and decorative moldings associated therewith. A second problem occurs when wood is used, which may rot and which requires regular repainting. A third problem is denting of aluminum products, and a fourth problem is expanding and contracting of aluminum and vinyl. Numerous fastening means, such as nails, staples, and the like must be used to attach the component parts together and/or to the building. This practice adds significant time and expense to the construction of a conventional building structure. 
     In addition, a problem associated with aluminum or vinyl cornice assemblies is the shearing of the fasteners used to fasten the cornice assembly or the enlarging of the holes created for fastening the assembly to the building structure. This shearing/enlarging problem is due to the relatively large amount of expansion and contraction due to temperature or moisture variations, which also causes buckling of the aluminum or vinyl material. As a result, the cornice assembly may become detached from the building structure or may appear warped. 
     In the past, a cornice assembly has had to be fabricated in place. Each portion of the cornice assembly is attached to the building individually. When a wood backing is used in conjunction with vinyl or aluminum assembly, yet another aspect of the assembly must be attached individually. This process is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and difficult to attain professional looking results. 
     A known method of manufacturing articles which have a lineal profile and a constant cross-section is called pultrusion. Pultrusion is the opposite of extrusion. It is a continuous pulling process in which rovings or strands of fibers are impregnated with resin and are then pulled through a heated die which cures the resin while also providing the cross-sectional shape to the piece. The cured piece is cut to length as it comes off the line. See, for example, “Pultrusion for Engineers” (Trevor F. Starr ed., CRC Press, 2000), which is hereby incorporated by reference. Pultruded material can be colored during manufacture, but unlike vinyl, also has surface that can accept and permanently retain paint. 
     Therefore, pultrusion is desirable to provide an improved method for the manufacture of the cornice assembly (or other trim members used in home construction), to protect the interface between the roof decking and the upper portion of the outer wall of a building structure. Pultrusion would provide a cornice assembly that minimizes structural instability by eliminating expansion and contraction of the cornice assembly and minimizes the use of fasteners while providing a less labor-intensive fabrication process. In addition, a pultruded cornice assembly is desirable to reduce production and labor costs, including the elimination of the need to paint the trim after assembly—although painting remains an option if color change is desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention includes improved methods for fabricating cornice assemblies and other trim members used in house construction. The cornice assemblies and trim members are fabricated through a process of pultrusion. Improved cornice assemblies are disclosed, which include at least a fascia, a soffit and a frieze with crown molding, all of which may be integrated into a unitary structure. The improved cornice assemblies may be constructed from one, two or more trim members. Also disclosed is a method of trimming a building structure using the cornice assemblies and trim members made by pultrusion. The dies utilized in the pultrusion of the cornice assemblies and trim members are also disclosed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a cross-section of a cornice assembly made of a unitary construction which includes a facia, a soffit, a crown, a frieze and a gutter. 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-section of a cornice assembly made of two trim members. 
         FIG. 3  is a pultrusion die with a channel for a unitary construction cornice assembly with a facia, a soffit, a crown, a frieze and a gutter. 
         FIG. 4  is a pultrusion die for a trim member including a soffit and a crown. 
         FIG. 5  is a pultrusion die for a trim member including a facia and a gutter. 
         FIG. 6  is a pultrusion die for a trim member including a frieze. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-section of a cornice assembly made of three trim members. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-section of a cornice assembly made of two trim members. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-section of a trim member including a facia, a soffit and a gutter and a longitudinal section of the soffit including an area of vent holes. 
         FIG. 10  is a cross-section of a trim member including a facia and a soffit without gutter. 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-section of a trim member including a crown and a frieze where the frieze includes a slotted opening to receive wood, metal or vinyl siding. 
         FIG. 12  is a cross-section of a trim member including a crown and a frieze where the frieze includes a slotted opening to receive brick veneer. 
         FIG. 13A  is a cross-section of a outside edge cap trim member. 
         FIG. 13B  is a cross section of an inside edge cap. 
         FIG. 14  is a cross-section of a belt board trim member. 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-section of a rake trim member. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a cornice assembly  10  according to the invention is shown. The cornice assembly  10  includes portions a facia  12 , a soffit  14 , a crown  16 , and a frieze  18 . Optionally, the cornice assembly may also include a gutter  20  in which case the facia  12  forms the back side of the gutter  20 . 
     A significant advantage may be gained through a unitary construction (formed as one piece) of the cornice assembly  10  in terms of the amount of labor needed to install the cornice assembly  10 . With a unitary construction, effort need only be spent on attaching the cornice assembly  10  to the building structure, while effort spent on fabricating the cornice assembly  10  is completely eliminated. 
     The cornice assembly  10  may be used in with walls made of any suitable outer sheathing building material known in the art, such as plywood, fiber board, celotex, OSB (oriented strand board) and the like. 
     In a second embodiment, as best seen in  FIG. 2 , the cornice assembly  22  may be made of two or more trim members which are connected together to form the overall cornice assembly  22 . For example, one trim member may comprise the gutter  20 , the facia  12  and the soffit  14 , while another trim member includes the crown  16  and the frieze  18 . In this embodiment, the trim members are preferably constructed such that they may be press fit together. However, any suitable means of connecting the trim members to form the cornice assembly  22  may be used, including adhesives, bolts, nails or screws. By using press fit connections, the effort of fabricating the cornice assembly  22  on the job site is reduced as compared to traditional cornice assemblies. First, trim members capable of being press fit can be connected without the use of tools. Second, because press fitting connections are separate from the means for attaching the cornice assembly  22  to the building structure, the cornice assembly  22  can be fabricated at ground level as opposed to during attachment to the building structure. This saves both on the effort needed to fabricate the cornice assembly  22  and to attach the cornice assembly  22  to the building structure. 
     The cornice assemblies and trim members of the present invention are preferably manufactured through the process of pultrusion. Pultrusion is an economical technique which is especially suited for the manufacture of cornice assemblies and other trim members because they have uniform cross-sections and also benefit from the high strength to weight ratio provided by pultrusion. 
     Of importance to the pultrusion process is the die through which the resin impregnated reinforcements are pulled. Die include multiple metal blocks, which, when assembled, has a through-hole or channel in the shape of the desired cross-section of the trim member.  FIG. 3  shows a die  24  with a channel  25  which would be used to manufacture an entire cornice assembly in a unitary construction. As can be seen, a total of ten different blocks  26 - 44  make up the die  24  for the unitary construction of the cornice assembly. The various blocks of the die  24  are held together with bolts, screws or other suitable fasteners  46 .  FIG. 4  shows a die  48  which is used to manufacture a portion of a cornice assembly including a soffit  14  and a crown  16 . The soffit/crown trim member made with die  48  would be connected to a trim member including a gutter  20  and a facia  12  made with die  50 , shown in  FIG. 5 , and to a trim member including a frieze  18  made with die  52 , shown in  FIG. 6 . Together the trim members created by these die  48 ,  50  and  52  would fit together to form a cornice assembly  54 , shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     Selection of the particular resin and reinforcements that may be used in the pultrusion of cornice assemblies and trim members are well within the design capability of those skilled in the art. Exemplary reinforcements include continuous strands of fiberglass, aramid fibers, and graphite. In addition, chopped strand, continuous strand or swirl mats may also be used as reinforcements. A useful reinforcement is glass fiber because it is economically priced as compared to other fibers, such as carbon fibers, and has a high strength to weight ratio. Exemplary resin include polyurethane, polyesters, vinyl esters, epoxy resins, acrylic and phenolic resins. 
     One or more stiffening ribs may be attached to the building structure side of the cornice assemblies and trim members. In  FIG. 8 , stiffening rib  55  included in a two piece cornice assembly made of a trim member with a gutter  20 , a facia  12  and a soffit  14  and a trim member with a crown  16  and a frieze  18 . These stiffening ribs may be pultruded from the same die as the cornice assemblies or trim members. The stiffening ribs provide extra support for the cornice assemblies and trim members against forces applied there against. This bracing prevents damage which may result from the placement of ladders against the cornice assemblies and trim members, particularly placement of ladders at the frieze  18 . Furthermore, nailers  57 ,  61 , which form a nailing surface for nailing the cornice assembly or trim member to the building structure. 
     The available cross-sections for trim members is unlimited. Exemplary cross-sections, in addition to the ones previously shown with regard to the die  48 - 52 , include a trim member  56  which includes a gutter  20 , a facia  12  and a soffit  14  shown in  FIG. 9 , a trim member  58  which includes a facia  12  and a soffit  14  shown in  FIG. 10 , a trim member  60  which includes a crown  16  and a frieze  18  (adapted for use with exterior sheet siding) shown in  FIG. 11 . shown in  FIG. 12 . The friezes shown in  FIGS. 8 and 11  show a relatively narrow channel  63  for accepting exterior sheet siding (such as aluminum, vinyl, wood, or the like). The frieze shown in  FIG. 12  has a relatively wide channel  65  designed to accept brick or stone veneering. The trim members  56 - 62  may be mixed and matched to achieve the desired cornice assembly. 
     Other trim members which may be pultruded include caps for covering vertical edges, as shown in  FIG. 13A , which are used to cover an outside edge cap where two pieces of siding come together. Belt boards as shown in  FIG. 14 , which are used to transition from one siding material  71  to another  FIG. 13B  shows an inside edge cap. One trim member which may be pultruded is a rake, which is used along the gable side of the intersection between the siding material  71  and the roof deck  73 , as seen in  FIG. 15 . 
     One or more vent holes may be made in the soffit allow circulation of air and escape of moisture. These vent holes may be made shortly after the time of fabrication of the pultruded member or at the job site, as dictated by the needs of the installer. Vent holes  64  in the soffit  14 , are shown in a longitudinal view of the soffit portion  14  of trim member  56  in  FIG. 9 . 
     Preferably, the method of attaching the trim members to each other are press fit connections  59 , as best seen in  FIG. 11 , because such fasteners are easily constructed during the pultrusion process. However, because of the thermal stability of pultruded members, any fastening means may be used without concern about the expansion and contraction due to variations in temperature or moisture. Cornice assemblies and trim member manufactured via pultrusion expand and contract less than 1/26 th  of that of steel over a given temperature range. Thus, fasteners will not be sheared by pultruded cornice assemblies and trim members. 
     Various fastening slots are needed in aluminum and vinyl siding trim members to facilitate expansion and contraction that occurs after installation around the fastening nail after installation. However, such fastening slots are not necessary with pultruded members because, as discussed above, the pultruded cornice assemblies and trim members of the present invention do not expand or contract due to changes in temperature or moisture. Thus, when fastening pultruded cornice assemblies to building structures, the step of having to form slots can be eliminated. Also, trim members made from aluminum or vinyl and more difficult to install than pultruded members because they cannot be firmly nailed to the sheathing but must be loosely nailed so that they literally “hang” from the mounting nails by way of the slots. Pultruded members can be nailed firm just like wood can be nailed to other wood. 
     Because the pultruded cornice assemblies and trim members of the present invention have superior rigidity and strength to weight ratios, a significantly fewer fasteners are needed to attach the cornice assemblies and trim members to building structures. 
     In combination with the pultruded cornice assemblies of the present invention and other trim members, a variety of butt joint caps, corner caps, and end caps may be used to complete the trimming of a building structure. Butt joint caps are used to bridge the area where two linear sections of a cornice assembly or trim member come together. 
     Corner caps are used to bridge the area where two linear section of a cornice assembly or trim members come together at a corner. Both inside and outside corners are needed. While not suitable for manufacturing by pultrusion, butt joint, end, and corner caps may cost effectively be manufactured by other conventional methods such as foam injection, plastic injection, urethane casting, and the like. Caps are preferably attached with two-sided tape. 
     End caps are used to close off the ends of cornice assemblies and trim members to prevent dirt and water from penetrating behind the cornice assembly and potentially damaging the building structure. 
     While the invention has been specifically described in connection with certain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not of limitation, and the scope of the appended claims should be construed as broadly as the prior art will permit.