Abstract:
An improved mudsill anchor is provided with tabs is its attachment arm or arms for fastening the anchor temporarily to a form board without nails to achieve significant savings in labor and improvement in lateral stability of the anchor during installation of a concrete slab foundation. Further improvements include a bendable tab formed from the lower end of the anchor leg for tying the leg to a reinforcing bar and a bent tab proximate the upper end of the leg that is embedded into the form board to prevent the reinforcing bar from pulling the mudsill anchor up from the form board.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 06/900,416, filed Aug. 26, 1986, now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE PRIOR ART 
     This invention relates generally to anchors embedded in concrete and in particular to mudsill anchors. 
     The mudsill anchors of the prior art included a variety of configurations from simple bolts embedded in the concrete slab which were adapted to be received in a hole in the mudsill and be held in place by a nut and washer combination to complex configurations of strap metal and fasteners. 
     One anchor included a pair of metal straps attached at their lower end and embedded at an angle in the concrete. The upper end of each strap was designed to be fastened to each vertical side of the mudsill and bent over the top of the mudsill for nailing on the top horizontal surface of the mudsill. 
     Another mudsill anchor included a pair of attachment arms attached to an anchor leg that depended downwardly into the concrete slab at an angle. The anchor leg was temporarily nailed to the form board defining the periphery of the slab during construction. 
     It was necessary to rigidly fasten the mudsill anchor to the form board during construction to prevent its dislodgement during installation. 
     Dislodgement during construction could be caused during a number of steps in construction included the attachment of reinforcing rods to the mudsill anchor leg, pouring of concrete around the anchor leg, using vibrators in the concrete during pouring, screeding the concrete during and after pouring using the form board as a guide and final finishing of the surface of the concrete using mechanical trowels. 
     Unless the mudsill anchor of the prior art was firmly nailed to the form board, necessitating a significant expenditure in labor and time, the anchor could be loosened during pouring of the concrete and then would have a tendency to twist or turn relative to the form board if it happened to be struck by a mechanical trowel during finishing of the concrete slab surface. 
     In addition, any mudsill anchors that were installed in error and had to be relocated were sometimes damaged and made unusable if the fastening nail had to be removed, usually by a claw hammer. 
     Summary of the Invention 
     The mudsill anchor of the present invention is a significant improvement over the prior art devices in that a new and useful method of temporary attachment to the form board is used in which means are incorporated in the attachment arm for frictionally engaging both sides of the form board with sufficient force to hold the mudsill anchor in place during construction. 
     In addition, the improved mudsill anchor combines attachment tabs with a nailable tab or gripper prongs and a reinforcing bar tab to substantially reduce installation time and labor. 
     This improvement comprises a pair of spaced apart first and second attachment arm tabs depending downwardly proximate the sides of the attachment arm. When the attachment arm is placed on the top edge of the form board, the end of each tab is adapted to grasp or frictionally engage the outside surface of the form board in cooperation with a gripper member or pressure plate proximate the point of connection of the anchor leg to the attachment arm, which gripper member or pressure plate is adapted to engage the inner surface of said form board to maintain the tabs in frictional engagement with the outer surface of the form board. 
     If the mudsill anchor utilizes a pair of spaced apart attachment arms, an attachment tab is provided in each arm. 
     It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved mudsill anchor. 
     It is a further obJect of the present invention to provide a mudsill anchor that can be attached to a form board with a minimum of labor. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a mudsill anchor in which a pair of spaced apart attachment tabs are located in the attachment arm and are adapted to frictionally engage the outer surface of a form board in cooperation with a gripper or compression member frictionally engaging the inner surface of the form board. 
     It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a mudsill anchor in which there is further provided tabs, proximate the end of the anchor leg imbedded in the concrete slab, for attaching a reinforcing member to the anchor leg, the reinforcing bar being disposed parallel to the periphery of the concrete slab. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a mudsill anchor in which uplift of the anchor is prevented using a tab deformed from the upper end of the anchor leg that is nailable into the inner surface of the form board. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become manifest upon study of the following detailed description when taken together with the drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a plan view of the mudsill anchor of the present invention starting with the sheet metal blank from which the anchor is made and showing the location of bend lines and shear lines prior to deforming the blank into the completed anchor. 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of the completed mudsill anchor sheared and bent according to the shear and bend lines of FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the completed mudsill anchor of the present invention shown attached to a typical form board prior to pouring of concrete. 
     FIG. 3A is a reduced scale side elevational view of the mudsill anchor of FIG. 3 showing how the anchor is attached to the form board. 
     FIG. 4 a side elevational view of the mudsill anchor of the present invention after the concrete slab is poured and after the form board has been removed and the attachment arm attached to the mudsill. 
     FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the mudsill anchor of FIG. 4. 
     FIG. 6 is a top view of the mudsill anchor of FIGS. 4 and 5. 
     FIG. 7 is a plan view of a further embodiment of a mudsill anchor of the present invention having two attachment arms starting with the sheet metal blank from which the anchor is made and showing the location of the bend lines and shear lines prior to deforming the blank into the completed anchor. 
     FIG. 8 is a top view of the completed mudsill anchor of FIG. 7 sheared and bent according to the shear and bend lines of FIG. 7. 
     FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of the completed and installed mudsill anchor of the present invention shown attached to a typical form board after pouring of concrete. 
     FIG. 10A is a side elevational view of the mudsill anchor of the present invention showing a detail of the gripper members used to prevent the anchor from being removed from the form board. 
     FIG. 10B is a front elevation view of the mudsill anchor of FIG. 10A. 
     FIG. 11 is a plan view of a blank for a further embodiment of the mudsill anchor the the present invention fabricated from a strip of sheet metal showing the location of shear and bend lines prior to deformation of the metal strip into the complete anchor. 
     FIG. 12 is a top or plan view of the mudsill anchor fabricated from the blank shown in FIG. 11. 
     FIG. 13 is a side elevational view of the mudsill anchor of FIG. 12 as from the blank shown in FIG. 11. 
     FIG. 14 is a plan view of a mudsill anchor of the completed mudsill anchor of the present invention similar to the anchor of FIG. 1 but utilizing a single mudsill attachment tab. 
     FIG. 15 is a side elevational view of the mudsill anchor of FIG. 14 shown attached to a typical form board prior to pouring concrete. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     With reference to FIG. 1, mudsill anchor 10 of the present invention is manufactured from a single mudsill anchor of sheet metal blank 12 with the shear lines shown solid and the bend line shown dashed. 
     Initially, sheet metal blank 12 is bent at a 90 degree angle along anchor leg-attachment arm bend line 14, proximate the mid-point of sheet 12, to thus define an anchor attachment arm 16 and an anchor leg 18 which are the basic elements of the anchor. 
     Attachment arm 16 comprises a pair of tabs 20 and 22 defined by shear lines 24 and 26, respectively, and bend lines 28 and 30, respectively, proximate the outer edge on each side of attachment arm 16. 
     Attachment arm 16 is further provided with a set of stiffening deformations 34, 36, 38 and 40 to limit bending to anchor leg-attachment arm bend line 14 and mudsill side bend line 100 shown during field installation of the anchor. 
     Nail holes 42, 44, 46, 48, 50 and 52 are also provided in attachment arm 16 which are adapted to receive the nails used to attach attachment arm 16 to the mudsill (See FIG. 3). 
     Anchor leg 18 comprises side member 90 and 92 bend lines 60 and 62, respectively, and reinforcing bar support and attachment tab 64 defined by shear line 66 and bend line 68. Stiffener deformation 69 is also provided in tab 64. 
     The upper end of anchor leg 18 further comprises a form board nailable tab 72 defined by shear line 74 and bend line 76 (coincident with bend line 80). 
     A further anchor leg-gripper member bend line 80 (a portion of which is coincident with bend line 76) is provided to define gripper member or pressure plate 70 proximate the upper end of anchor leg 18 between attachment arm-anchor leg bend line 14 and bend line 80. 
     At bend line 80, anchor leg 18 is bend at an obtuse angle to gripper member or pressure plate 70 so that it projects downwardly at an angle into the concrete slab when attached to the form board. 
     With reference to FIG. 2, there is illustrated a top view of the completed mudsill anchor of the present invention in which the sides of leg 18 have been bent along bend lines 60 and 62 to define side members 90 and 92, respectively. 
     Attachment arm tabs 20 and 26 have been bent to project downwardly at right angle to the plane of attachment arm 16. 
     Form board nailable tab 72 is shown in its deformed position ready to be driven into the form board. 
     It will be noted in FIGS. 1 and 2 that a further bend line 100 is shown in attachment arm 16 between stiffener members 34, 34 and 38, 40. 
     The location of mudsill side bend line 100 will depend upon the thickness of the mudsill being installed on the completed concrete slab. In FIG. 2, bend line 100 happens to be located proximate the inner surface of tabs 20 and 26. 
     With reference to FIG. 3 there is illustrated a side elevational view of mudsill anchor 10 of the present invention shown attached to a typical form board 120 having an inner face or side 122 and an outer face or side 124. 
     Mudsill anchor 10 is shown prior to pouring of concrete along the inner face or side 122 of form board 120. The finished surface of the concrete slab is indicated by dashed phantom line 130. 
     In FIG. 3 gripper member or pressure plate 70 is shown bearing against the inner side 122 of form board 120 with tip 21 of tab 20 shown curved inwardly toward the outer face 124 of form board 120 to frictionally engage form board outer surface 124 with the help of gripper member or pressure plate 70. 
     In a like manner, tip 23 of tab 22 (not seen in FIG. 3 since it is located behind tab 20) is adapted to also grip outer surface 124 of form board 120. 
     Thus gripper member or pressure plate 70, in cooperation with tabs 20 and 22, will hold the vertical centerline plane of mudsill anchor 10 perpendicular to the plane of form board 120 and prevent lateral twisting or turning of anchor 10 during installation of the concrete slab. 
     To illustrate how the mudsill anchor 10 of the present invention is installed on form board 120, FIG. 3A is a reduced scale drawing of mudsill anchor 10 shown as it is initially placed on the top edge of form board 120. 
     In this position, the plane of attachment arm 16 is rotated or tilted so that the bottom surface of attachment arm 16 between tabs 20 and 22 and gripper member or pressure plate 70, rests on the corner of form board 120 defined by the intersection of its top edge 132 and outer face 124. 
     As attachment arm 16 is held in this position against the corner of form board 120, it is then moved to cause tip 21 of tab 20 and tip 23 of tab 22 to engage outer surface 124 of form board 120. 
     When tips 21 and 23 have engaged surface 124, leg 18 of mudsill anchor 10 is rotated downwardly, as indicated by arrow 133, causing gripper member or pressure plate 70 to initially bear against the the corner of form board 120 defined by the intersection of top edge 132 with inner surface 122. 
     As leg 18 of mudsill anchor 10 is further rotated downwardly to assume the position shown in FIG. 3, bearing or pressure plate 70 will finally bear against inner face 122 of form board 120 to maintain pressure on tab tips 21 and 23 against outer surface 124 of form board 120 thus holding mudsill anchor 10 in place without the need of additional nails. 
     To prevent any uplift forces on anchor leg 18 from rotating anchor 10 in the opposite direction, nailable tab 72 can be driven into inner face 122 of form board 120 as shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 3. 
     With reference to FIG. 4, there is illustrated a elevational side view of mudsill anchor 10 of the present invention as installed in a concrete slab having a surface 131. 
     As shown in FIG. 4, reinforcing rod tab 64 has been bent around reinforcing bar 140, as by a blow from a hammer or the like, to attach it to leg 18. 
     Nailable tab 72 in pressure plate 70 has been deformed back into its original slot from its nailed position shown dotted. 
     In addition, attachment arm 16 has been bent upwardly to engage the outside edge of mudsill 126, and bent again at bend line 100 to wrap around mudsill 126 and cover a portion of the top of mudsill 126 where attachment arm 16 is attached to mudsill 126 by nails 146. 
     In addition, tabs 20 and 22, formerly engaging outer surface 124 of form board 120 have been deformed back into their original slots as by a hammer blow or the like to provide a smooth and neat installation securely holding mudsill 126 in place. 
     With reference to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, there is illustrated a further embodiment of the mudsill anchor of the present invention utilizing a pair of first and second generally parallel attachment arms 216a and 216b, respectively. 
     Mudsill anchor 200 of FIGS. 7-9 comprises basically the same elements as mudsill anchor 10 of FIGS. 1-6. 
     Like mudsill anchor 10, mudsill anchor 200 of the present invention is manufactured from a single mudsill anchor sheet metal blank 212 bent at a 90 degree angle along bend line 214, proximate the mid-point of sheet 212 to define a pair of generally parallel anchor attachment arms 216a and 216b and an anchor leg 218. 
     Attachment arms 216a and 216b each include a pair of tabs 220 and 222 defined by shear lines 224 and 226, respectively, and bend lines 228 and 230, respectively, proximate the middle of each attachment arm 216a and 216b. 
     Attachment arms 216a and 216b are further provided with a set of stiffening deformations 234, 238, 238 and 240. 
     Nail holes 242, 244, 246, 248, 250 and 252 are also provided in attachment arms 216a and 216b which are adapted to receive the nails used to attach attachment arms 216a and 216b to the mudsill (See FIGS. 9). 
     Anchor leg 218 comprises stiffener bend lines 260 and 262 and reinforcing bar support and attachment tab 264. 
     Reinforcing bar support and attachment tab 264 is obtained from the metal contained between the parallel attachment arms of the previous mudsill anchor sheet metal blank in the progressive manufacturing step. 
     Stiffener member 269 is also provided in tab 264 to support the weight of a reinforcing bar. 
     The upper end of anchor leg 218 further comprises a form board nailable tab 272 defined by shear line 274 and bend line 276 (coincident with bend line 280). 
     A further bend line 280 (a portion of which is also coincident with bend line 276) is provided to define a gripper member or pressure plate 270 proximate the upper end of anchor leg 218 between bend line 214 and bend line 280. 
     At bend line 280, anchor leg 218 is bend at an obtuse angle to gripper member or pressure plate 270 so that it projects downwardly at an angle into the concrete slab when attached to the form board. 
     With reference to FIG. 8, there is illustrated a top view of the completed mudsill anchor 200 of the present invention in which the sides of leg 218 have been bend along bend lines 260 and 262 to define side members 290 and 292, respectively. 
     Form board tabs 220 and 226 have been bent to project downwardly at right angles to the plane of attachment arms 216a and 216b. 
     Form board nailable tab 272 is shown in its deformed position ready to be driven into the form board. 
     It will be noted in FIGS. 7 and 8 that a further bend line 300 is shown in attachment arms 216a and 216b between stiffener members 238 and 240 and bend line 214. 
     The location of bend line 300 will depend upon the thickness of the mudsill being installed on the completed concrete slab. In FIG. 8, bend line 300 happens to be located proximate the inner surface of tabs 220 and 226. 
     With reference to FIG. 9 there is illustrated a side elevational view of mudsill anchor 10 of the present invention shown attached to a typical form board 320 having an inner face or side 322 and an outer face or side 324. 
     Mudsill anchor 200 is shown after pouring of concrete along the inner face or side 322 of form board 320. The finished surface of the concrete slab is indicated by line 330. 
     In FIG. 9, gripper member pressure plate 270 is shown bearing against the inner side 322 of form board 320 while tip 221 of tab 220 is shown curved inwardly toward outer face 324 of form board 320 to frictionally engage surface 324 with the help of pressure plate 270. 
     In a like manner, tip 223 of tab 222 (not shown in FIG. 9 since it is located behind tab 220) is adapted to grip the outer surface 324 of form board 320. 
     Thus gripper member or pressure plate 270, in cooperation with tabs 220 and 222, will hold the vertical center line plane of mudsill anchor 200 perpendicular to the plane of form board 320 and prevent lateral twisting or turning of anchor 200 during installation of the concrete slab. 
     Dashed lines show the position of nailable tab 272 when imbedded in form board 320 to prevent uplift forces from lifting mudsill anchor 200 up from form board 320. 
     Still with reference to FIG. 9, reinforcing rod tab 264 has been bent around reinforcing bar 340, as by a blow from a hammer or the like, to attach it to leg 218. 
     Shown in dotted lines are attachment arms 216a and 216b which have been bent upwardly to engage the outside vertical side of mudsill 326, and bent again at bend line 300 to wrap around mudsill 326 and cover a portion of the top of mudsill 326 where attachment arms 216a and 216b are attached to mudsill 326 by nails 346. 
     With reference to FIGS. 10A and 10B, there is illustrated a further embodiment of anchor 10 in the vicinity of the gripper member or pressure plate 70. 
     In FIG. 10A, in lieu of nailable tab 72, one or more gripper prongs 102 are provided which project inwardly toward inner surface or face 122 of form board 120. Tip 104 of gripper prong 102 is adapted to point upwardly so that it will incise and frictionally engage inner face 122 of form board 120 (shown in dashed or phantom lines) and prevent any uplift forces on anchor leg 18 from causing anchor 10 to be lifted off of the top edge of form board 120. 
     With reference to FIG. 11, there is illustrated a plan view of a blank 410 disclosing a further embodiment of the mudsill anchor 400 of the present invention fabricated from a strip of sheet metal showing the shear (solid) and bend or deformation (dashed) lines prior to deformation of the metal. 
     Mudsill anchor 400 of FIG. 11 comprises a blank strip 410 having a central bend section 412 whereby the blank is bent to bring the two straight end sections or legs &#34;A&#34; and &#34;B&#34; parallel to each other and wherein the two legs or straight sections &#34;A&#34; and &#34;B&#34; are twisted in opposite directions to bring the flat surface of each leg into a common plane. 
     By twisting the two legs or straight sections &#34;A&#34; and &#34;B&#34; in opposite directions so that their flat surfaces are in the same plane, bend section 412 will define a partial, generally frusto-conical section (as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13), that is, curved upwardly to receive a reinforcing bar as shown in FIG. 13, without the necessity of shearing or further deforming the strip of metal. 
     The remaining portions of each leg or generally straight end sections &#34;A&#34; and &#34;B&#34; are symmetrically sheared and deformed to define first and second leg members 418a and 418b, respectively, first and second attachment arm members 416a and 416b, respectively, and first and second gripper members or form board bearing or pressure plates 470a and 470b, respectively. 
     First leg member 418a is defined between bend section 412 and bend line 480a while second leg member 418b is defined between bend section 412 and bend line 480b. 
     First extension arm 416a is define between the outer end of section &#34;A&#34; to bend line 414a, while second extension arm 416b is define by the outer end of section &#34;B&#34; to bend line 414b. 
     First gripper member or form board bearing or pressure plate 470a is defined between bend lines 414a and 480a while second gripper member or form board bearing or pressure plate is defined between bend lines 414b and 480b. 
     A set of stiffening deformations 434a, 434b, 436a, 436b, 438a, 438b, 440a, 440b, 442 and 444 are provided to limit the flexing of the leg and extension arms of mudsill anchor 400. 
     Nail holes 446a, 448a, 450a and 446b, 448b, 450b are also provided in attachments arms 416a and 416b, respectively, to receive the nails used to attach attachment arms 416a and 416b to mudsill 432. 
     Mudsill anchor blank 410 further comprises a pair of form board attachment tabs 420a and 420b defined by shear lines 424a and 424b within attachment arms 416a and 416b, respectively. 
     Mudsill anchor blank 410 is further provided with form board nailable tabs 472a and 472b defined by shear lines 474a and 474b. 
     With reference to FIGS. 12 and 13 there is illustrated a plan view and side elevational view, respectively, of mudsill anchor 400 fabricated from blank 410 shown in FIG. 11 in which extension arms 416a and 416b have been bent at a 90 degree or right angle along bend lines 414a and 414b, respectively, and leg members 418a and 418b have been bent approximately 135 degrees along bend lines 480a and 480 to form an obtuse angle with form board bearing or pressure plate 470. 
     Attachment arm tabs 420a and 420b have also been bent at a right angle to the plane of the respective attachment arm to allow tips 421a and 421b to engage side 428 of form board 126. 
     Form board nailable tabs 472a and 472b are shown in their deformed position ready to be driven into side 429 of form board 426. 
     In FIG. 13, a reinforcing rod 450 is shown cradled in the deformed or bent section 412 of mudsill anchor 400 where it can be tied in place as by wire or the like. 
     Also shown in phantom lines is the location of mudsill 432 and the manner in which attachment arms 416a and 416b are wrapped around mudsill 432 to hold it in place after concrete has been poured level with the top of form board 426. 
     With reference to FIGS. 14 and 15, there is illustrated a further embodiment of the present mudsill anchor in which a single tab is used to attached the mudsill anchor to the form board. 
     The mudsill anchor 510 of FIG. 14 comprises, basically, a single attachment arm 516 comprising a single tab 520 approximately midway between the side edges of attachment arm 516 and located a distance from gripper member or pressure plate 570 approximately equal to the thickness of form board 522 defined by dotted line 524. 
     Nail holes 542, 544, 546, 548 and 550 are provided in extension arm 516 which are adapted to receive the nails used to attach attachment arm 16 to the mudsill (not shown in FIG. 14) 
     Additional holes 538 and 540 are provided in extension arm 516 to reduce the weight of mudsill anchor 510. 
     Mudsill anchor 510 further comprises an anchor leg 518 comprising side members 590 and 592 and reinforcing bar support member 564. Additional holes 534 and 536 are also provided in anchor leg 518 to further reduce the weight of the anchor. 
     For the mudsill anchor shown in FIGS. 14 and 5, it can be seen that gripper or pressure plate 517 in conjuction with tab 520 will prevent lateral forces from causing anchor 510 skewing or twisting on form board 522. 
     Although the mudsill anchor of the present invention has been described in detail, the above description is not intended to limit the scope of this invention except as stated in the claims.