Abstract:
A roof construction has a primary ridge member with a king post depending from the ridge member. A pair of secondary ridge members are secured in sockets in the king post at different heights.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to roof constructions.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Roofs for buildings are typically formed from a framework of supporting members extending between the sidewalls and providing an inclined surface to shed water. A typical roof construction has a ridge with rafters running perpendicular to the ridge to the top of the sidewalls. An impermeable covering is then attached to the rafters, either directly or on top of sheathing so that a stable water-tight structure is obtained.  
         [0003]     Ceilings are usually provided beneath the roof by horizontal joists running between vertical walls to which a horizontal ceiling material is secured. In many applications however, it is preferred that a cathedral ceiling is provided in which the ceiling material runs parallel to the ceiling joist. In some cases, it is desirable that the rafters are exposed for aesthetic reasons in which case the sheathing material may be secured to the topside of the rafters leaving the body of the rafter exposed from within the building.  
         [0004]     The use of a cathedral ceiling provides an open interior that is favoured in many designs. However, cathedral ceilings do not particularly lend themselves to the incorporation of one or more intersecting galleries. The intersection of the roofs in the galleries requires an arrangement of rafters to provide support for the intersecting ridges that is structurally complex or visually unattractive or, the use of tie beams to support the ridges of the intersecting hip galleries. The tie beams however, encumber the interior space and visually are not as elegant as the unencumbered cathedral design. Typically, the structure utilises a post extending from the floor to the hinge to provide support. However, this encumbers the floor plan and interrupts the open area within the building.  
         [0005]     It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a roof construction in which the above disadvantages are obviated or mitigated.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     In general terms, the present invention provides a roof construction in which a king post is suspended from a primary ridge and at least one other secondary ridge is supported by the king post below the primary ridge.  
         [0007]     Preferably, a pair of secondary ridges arc secured to opposite sides of the king post at different levels and as a further preference, the secondary ridge is extended orthogonally to the primary ridge. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]     An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a schematic representation of a building;  
         [0010]      FIG. 2  is an enlarged view of a portion of the roof structure shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0011]      FIG. 3  is a view on the line III-III of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0012]      FIG. 4  is a view on the line IV-IV of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0013]      FIG. 5  is a view on the line V-V of  FIG. 1 ; and  
         [0014]      FIG. 6  is a detailed view of a portion of the structure shown in  FIG. 2 .  
         [0015]      FIG. 7  is a view in the direction of arrow A of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 8  is a view on the line VIII-VIII of  FIG. 7 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]     Referring therefore to the drawings, a building generally indicated  10  has a main gallery  12  and side galleries  14 ,  16 . Each of the galleries  12 ,  14 ,  16  is defined by sidewalls  18  supporting pitched roof structures  20 ,  22 ,  24  respectively. The wall structures  18  may be of any conventional form such as frame construction, masonry, or log construction depending upon the particular type of building. As may be seen in  FIG. 3 , a balcony  25  extends across the gallery  16  to provide a vantage point to view the interior of the main gallery  12 .  
         [0018]     The roof structure  20  includes a primary ridge member  22  extending between endwalls  24  and supported in an elevated position by gable ends  30 . Inclined rafters  26  extend from top plates  28  to the primary ridge  22  and are secured by suitable fastenings such as nails, spikes, or bolts. The rafters  26  may be supported on the upper surface of the ridge  22 , as shown and may be cut to provide support for the rafters through conventional birdmouths or the like. The rafters  26  run at right angles to the axis of the ridge member  22 .  
         [0019]     A king post  32  is located on the primary ridge member  22  and depends from the ridge member  22 . The king post  32  is located on the center line of the intersection of the galleries  14 ,  16  and is used to support respective front and rear ridge members  34 ,  36  so that they are suspended from the ridge number  22 . The front ridge member  34  is supported on the gable end  38  of the gallery  14  and rafters  38  on the sidewalls  18   a.    
         [0020]     Similarly, the rear ridge member  36  extends from the king post  32  to the gable end  42  of the rear gallery  16  where it is supported by suitable support structure. Rafters  44  extend from the rear ridge member  36  to the top plate  46  to support roof sheathing.  
         [0021]     The details of the king post and its connection to the ridge members  22 ,  34 ,  36  can best be seen in  FIGS. 2 through 8 . The king post  32  is built up from multiple plies  48  to form a solid structure of the required cross-section. Of course, a solid stock may be used as an alternative. A rectangular opening  50  is formed in the king post  32  and is dimensioned to receive the main ridge beam with a sliding fit. The aperture  50  may be formed with conventional wood working techniques by drilling and routing the opening through the post  32 . The king post  32  is secured to the main ridge beam by through bolts  52  that pass through the king post and the main ridge beam to locate it axially. The upper end  49  of the post  32  is cut at an angle to conform to the upper edge of the rafters  26 .  
         [0022]     An aperture  54  is formed in the king post  32  between oppositely directed side faces  55 ,  57  to receive one end of the front ridge beam  34 . Similarly, an aperture  56  is formed between the side faces  55 ,  57  intermediate the ridge beam  22  and the aperture  54  to receive the rear ridge beam  36 . The apertures  54 ,  56  are similar in construction although oriented in opposite directions.  
         [0023]     Referring therefore to  FIG. 8 , the aperture  54  has a through mortice  58  dimensioned to receive a tail portion of the ridge beam  34  as will be described in more detail below. A rabbet  62  is formed around the mortice  58  in the side face  55  facing the front ridge beam  34 . It will be appreciated that a similar rabbet  64  is formed in a mortice  66  forming aperture  56  in the face  57  to receive the rear ridge beam  36 . The periphery of the rabbets  62 ,  64  correspond to the cross-section of the respective ridge beams  34 ,  36 . Each of the ridge beams  36 ,  38  has a tail portion  60  as can be seen in  FIG. 6 , that is formed by removing the flanks of the ridge beams by a thickness corresponding to the width of the rabbet  62  so that the tails  60  are a smooth sliding fit within the mortices  58 ,  66 . The shoulder formed at the intersection of the ridge beam and tail thus is a snug fit within the rabbet  62  and locates the front ridge beam  34  within the king post  32 . Each of the tails  60  project through the king post  32  and have a slot  68  to receive wedges  70 .  
         [0024]     Wedges  70  are retained in situ by a fastener, such as a screw, that passes through the wedges and is received in the body of the king post  32 .  
         [0025]     The king post  32  is also stabilized with respect to the main ridge member  22  by braces  74  secured at one end to the main ridge member  22  and the opposite end to the king post  32 . The braces  72  are shown as arcuate but may of course be alternative configurations.  
         [0026]     In order to assemble the roof structure  20 , the king post  32  is slid along the primary ridge member  22  which is then supported in the gable ends  30 . The king post  32  is located at the intended position of the front and rear ridge members  34 ,  36  and may be either temporarily or permanently secured by means of the bolts  52 . The tail of the front ridge member  34  and rear ridge member  36  are then inserted into respective apertures  54 ,  56  and the opposite ends located in the gables  38 ,  42  respectively. The shoulders on each of the ridge members is located within the rabbets  62 ,  64  and wedges inserted in the slots  68 . The wedges are then driven into the slot and the bolts  52  secured to locate the king post on the primary ridge  22  if not previously attached. The braces  72  are then secured to maintain the king post  32  in a vertical disposition and inhibit lateral or pivotal movement that could translate into longitudinal displacement of the front and rear ridge members.  
         [0027]     With the ridge members secure, the rafters may be laid up to the ridge and the sheathing completed in a conventional manner.  
         [0028]     The interior of the galleries is maintained relatively open with only the single vertical king pin interrupting the unencumbered ceiling line of the structure. A support post is not required allowing an open floor plan.  
         [0029]     Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as outlined in the claims appended hereto. The entire disclosures of all references recited above are incorporated herein by reference.