Patent Publication Number: US-11377800-B2

Title: Apparatus for laying a paver

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/096,820, filed Oct. 26, 2018, which is a national stage application filed under 35 USC 371 based on International Application No. PCT/CA2017/050512 filed Apr. 26, 2017 and claims priority under 35 USC 119 of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/327,893, filed Apr. 26, 2016. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure is directed at an apparatus for laying a paver. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Pavers are blocks, such as paving stones, flagstones, tiles, and bricks, that can be dry laid to manufacture a surface. That surface may, for example, be the surface of a patio, roof deck, or balcony. Various techniques exist for aligning and laying pavers so that the resulting manufactured surface comprises consistently spaced pavers and can be manufactured with relative ease. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to a first aspect, there is provided an apparatus for laying a paver. The apparatus comprises a body portion having a top side and an underside, the underside comprising a hollow portion; and a raised paver guide located on the top side, the raised paver guide positioned to receive the paver when the paver is against the top side. 
     The hollow portion may comprise a paver guide receiver shaped to receive the raised paver guide such that a first instance of the apparatus is stackable on a second instance of the apparatus by inserting the raised paver guide of the second instance of the apparatus into the paver guide receiver of the first instance of the apparatus. 
     The body portion may be shaped as a closed curve, such as a circle, disc, or oval. 
     The body portion may be shaped as a polygon, and the paver guide receiver may comprise a channel that extends from one side of the polygon to another side of the polygon. 
     The polygon may be a square or rectangle, and the channel may extend from one side of the square or rectangle to an opposing side of the square or rectangle. 
     The raised paver guide and the paver guide receiver may be cruciform and centered on the top side and underside of the body portion, respectively. 
     The paver guide may taper from a maximum height at a center of the body portion to a minimum height at a periphery of the body portion. 
     The paver guide may comprise continuous lines. Alternatively, the paver guide may comprise discrete line segments. At least some of the line segments may be aligned with each other. 
     The underside may comprise support columns, each of which may comprise a hollow interior and may extend from the top side to the underside. The hollow portion may comprise the hollow interior of each of the support columns. 
     Each of the support columns may have a hexagonal footprint. Each of the support columns may alternatively have a circular footprint. 
     The body portion and raised paver guide may be manufactured using an elastomeric polymer. 
     According to another aspect, there is provided an apparatus for laying a paver. The apparatus comprises a square body portion having a top side and an underside; a raised, cruciform paver guide located on the top side, the raised paver guide centered on the top side and positioned to receive the paver when the paver is against the top side, and the underside comprises a paver guide receiver centered on the underside and shaped to receive the raised paver guide. The paver guide receiver comprises a first channel extending between one pair of opposing sides of the body portion and a second channel extending between another pair of opposing sides of the body portion, and the first and second channels intersect at a center of the underside. The underside also comprises hexagonal support columns, each of which has a hollow interior and extends from the top side to the underside. 
     According to another aspect, there is provided a surface, comprising multiple apparatuses for laying a paver, wherein each of the apparatuses is laid on a substrate and comprises a body portion having a top side and an underside, the underside comprising a hollow portion; and a raised paver guide located on the top side, the raised paver guide positioned to receive the paver when the paver is against the top side. The surface also comprises pavers laid on the top side of each the apparatuses, and each of the pavers is received by at least one of the raised paver guides. 
     This summary does not necessarily describe the entire scope of all aspects. Other aspects, features and advantages will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one or more example embodiments: 
         FIG. 1  is a top perspective view of an apparatus for laying a paver, according to one example embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a top plan view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a partial cutaway, right side elevation view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  is a bottom plan view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  shows a surface manufactured with pavers laid using multiple instances of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a top plan view of an apparatus for laying a paver, according to another example embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Pavers may be used to manufacture a variety of different types of surfaces. In one example in which the surface is laid directly on soil, the soil is excavated, compacted, and levelled prior to the pavers being set on it. The pavers are then set and sand is used to fill the spaces between the pavers. The sand and pavers are tamped, excess sand is swept away, and the resulting surface is ready for use. 
       FIGS. 1 to 6  show an example apparatus for laying a paver P. In the depicted embodiment, the apparatus comprises a pad  100  of elastomeric material, such as a rubber polymer that may be recycled, that is cast from a mold. The pad  100  comprises a main body portion  102  having a top side  104  and an underside  106 . The underside  106  of the pad  100  rests on a substrate S when the pad  100  is used to lay pavers P, while the pavers P are laid against the top side  104  of the pad  100 . 
     A raised paver guide  110  is located on the pad&#39;s  100  top side  104 . In the depicted embodiment, the paver guide  110  is cruciform and is centered on the center of the pad  100 . The pad&#39;s  100  underside  106  includes a hollow portion in the form of a paver guide receiver; the paver guide receiver in the depicted embodiments is a pair of cruciform channels  112  that are also centered on the center of the pad  100 . The channels  112  and paver guide  110  are shaped and positioned such that a first instance of the pad  100  is stackable on a second instance of the pad  100  by inserting the paver guide  110  of the second instance of the pad  100  into the channels  112  of the first instance of the pad  100 . Stacking the pads  100  in this way facilitates space efficient transport of the pads  100 . 
     The paver guide  110  in the depicted embodiment of the pad  100  comprises two continuous and linear raised portions that intersect at the center of the body portion  102  of the pad  100 , thereby creating a cruciform paver guide  110 . The channels  112  on the underside  106  of the pad  100  are accordingly similarly cruciform. 
     The underside  106  of the pad  100  also comprises multiple support columns  114 , each of which has a hollow interior. The hollow portion on the underside  106  of the pad  100  comprises the hollow interior of each of the support columns  114 . In the depicted embodiment of the pad  100 , each of the support columns  114  that is not bounded by one or both of the channels  112  and the periphery of the pad  100  has a hexagonal footprint and the columns  114  accordingly collectively give the underside  106  a honeycomb shaped appearance. In different embodiments (not depicted), one or more of the support columns  114  may have differently shaped footprints; for example, in one different embodiment one or more of the support columns  114  may have a circular footprint, while in another different embodiment the support columns  114  may have non-hexagonal polygonal footprints. In certain other embodiments (not depicted), the support columns  114  may comprise two or more different footprints. In certain other embodiments (not depicted), the underside  106  of the pad  100  may not comprise any repeating pattern. In certain other embodiments (not depicted), the support columns  114  may have a filled or solid interior, and the space between the support columns  114  may be hollow and accordingly comprise the underside&#39;s  106  hollow portion. 
       FIGS. 3 to 5  show the dimensions of an example pad  100  in inches. As shown in these figures, the depicted pad  100  has a square body portion  102  with sides of 5.840 inches and a height of 0.5 inches. The length of the paver guide  110  from one of the sides of the pad  100  to an opposing side of the pad  100  is 5.570 inches. The width of the paver guide  110  at its base is 0.145 inches while the height of the paver guide  110  is 0.280 inches. Each of the support columns  114  has a height of 0.444 inches. The thickness of the outer wall of the pad  100 , which also acts as a wall for some of the support columns  114 , is an eighth of an inch, while the thicknesses of the other walls of the support columns  114  is 0.120 inches. The length between the interior of opposing sides of the underside  106  of the pad  100  is 5 23/32 inches. At its widest, the channels  112  have a width of 0.232 inches. In different embodiments any one or more dimensions of the pad  100  may differ from those of the depicted example pad  100 . 
       FIG. 6  shows an example surface being constructed using multiple pads  100 . In  FIG. 6 , four of the pads  100  are used to lay three of the pavers P. The pads  100  are laid on a firm substrate S, such as packed soil or a rooftop. Each of the pavers P is positioned to lay flat against a portion of the top surface of at least one of the pads  100 . The leftmost paver P in  FIG. 6  is positioned to lay on the bottom left and top left quadrants of the leftmost pads  100 ; the middle paver P in  FIG. 6  is positioned to lay on the bottom right quadrant of the top left pad  100 , the bottom left quadrant of the top right pad  100 , the top right quadrant of the bottom let pad  100 , and the top left quadrant of the bottom right pad  100 ; and the rightmost paver P in  FIG. 6  is positioned to lay on the bottom right and top right quadrants of the rightmost pads  100 . The pavers P are pressed horizontally against the paver guides  110 , thus helping to ensure consistent spacing between the pavers P. Furthermore, the elastomeric polymer has a relatively high coefficient of friction compared to other potential raw materials, such as hard plastic, thus inhibiting movement of the pavers P while they rest on the pad  100 . Furthermore, the elastomeric polymer is inherently flexible and a shock and noise absorbing material; the pad  100  depicted in  FIGS. 1 to 5  accordingly has anti-vibration properties and experimentally has been found to withstand a total load exceeding 12,000 pounds, which when the pad  100  measures 6″×6″ is equivalent to over 350 psi. The resulting surface manufactured using the pavers P and the pads  100  accordingly is stable, able to absorb shock, comprises equally spaced pavers P, and does not require any adhesive or bonding agent. Additionally, the channels  112  on the underside  106  of the pads  100  may help with drainage in that they may help to channel runoff along the substrate S to a drainage area (not shown). The corners of the surface manufactured using the pavers P may be spaced higher than the rest of the surface to facilitate water runoff. 
     Although not depicted in  FIG. 6 , shims may be used to adjust the heights of one or more of the pavers  100  in order to adjust the height of the surface manufactured using the pavers P, as desired. For example, if the substrate S is not level, shims may be used to adjust the height of the pavers P so that the resulting manufactured surface is nonetheless level. 
     As depicted, the pad  100  is square and the channels  112  connect all four sides of the pad  100 . However, in different embodiments (not depicted) different types of paver guide receivers may be used and, additionally or alternatively, the pad  100  may be a non-square shape. For example, more generally in certain embodiments the pad  100  may be polygonal and may comprise a channel  112  that extends from one side of the pad  100  to another side of the pad  100 ; in a subset of these embodiments, the channel  112  may extend between two sides of the pad  100  that are not directly adjacent to each other. For example, as evident particularly in  FIGS. 2 and 5 , the cruciform channels  112  of the depicted pad  100  comprise one channel  112  that extends between a first pair of opposing sides of the pad  100  and a second channel  112  that extends between a second pair of opposing sides of the pad  100 ; in different embodiments of the pad  100  (not depicted), the pad  100  may comprise only one of the pairs of channels  112  shown in  FIGS. 2 and 5 . Similarly, the pad  100  in certain embodiments may be rectangular and comprise either a pair of channels  112  extending between opposing sides of the pad  100 , similar to what is shown in  FIGS. 2 and 5 , or comprise only one of the pairs of channels  112 . 
     The paver guide  110  shown in the figures has substantially constant height along its length. However, in different embodiments (not depicted), the paver guide  110  may vary in height. For example, in one embodiment the paver guide  110  may be cruciform and centered on the pad  100  and have a maximum height at a center of the body portion  102  and taper to a minimum height at a periphery of the body portion  102 . In another different embodiment, for example as depicted in  FIG. 7 , the paver guide  110  may comprise discrete line segments as opposed to the continuous lines shown in  FIGS. 1 to 5 ; in some embodiments, these discrete line segments may be aligned so as to permit alignment of pavers P in a manner similar to that permitted by the depicted continuous paver guide  110 . In various other embodiments (not depicted), the paver guide  110  may be any one or more of shaped differently to accept non-square or non-rectangular pavers, not centered on the pad  100 , and differently shaped to allow a single one of the pavers P to cover more or less than the approximately one quarter of the top side  104  of the pad  100  that the paver guide  110  of the pad  100  of  FIGS. 1 to 5  allows. For example, in one different embodiment (not depicted) the paver guide  110  of the depicted pad  100  is rotated by 45 degrees so that the paver guide  110  extends across the pad&#39;s  100  corners. Additionally or alternatively, the pad  100  may be cut so as to permit only portions of the pad  100  to be used for certain portions of the surface (e.g., corners). 
     In different embodiments (not depicted), the apparatus may be manufactured differently than as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 6 . For example, instead of comprising a pad of elastomeric material cast from a mold, the apparatus may be assembled from distinct components that are one or both of fitted and fastened together. Alternatively, the apparatus may be unibody but manufactured differently than as described above, such as by using injection molding, compression molding, or 3D printing. 
     Directional terms such as “top”, “bottom”, “upwards”, “downwards”, “vertically”, and “laterally” are used in this disclosure for the purpose of providing relative reference only, and are not intended to suggest any limitations on how any article is to be positioned during use, or to be mounted in an assembly or relative to an environment. 
     Additionally, the term “couple” and variants of it such as “coupled”, “couples”, and “coupling” as used in this disclosure are intended to include indirect and direct connections unless otherwise indicated. For example, if a first article is coupled to a second article, that coupling may be through a direct connection or through an indirect connection via another article. 
     Furthermore, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” as used in this disclosure are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. 
     It is contemplated that any part of any aspect or embodiment discussed in this specification can be implemented or combined with any part of any other aspect or embodiment discussed in this specification. 
     While particular embodiments have been described in the foregoing, it is to be understood that other embodiments are possible and are intended to be included herein. It will be clear to any person skilled in the art that modifications of and adjustments to the foregoing embodiments, not shown, are possible.