Patent Publication Number: US-9890532-B2

Title: Structural component

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation and claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 120 of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/169,982 filed on Jun. 1, 2016 and titled Structural Component. This application also claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/171,268 titled Structural Component, filed on Jun. 5, 2015, the entire contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference except to the extent that any disclosure therein conflicts with any disclosure here. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for building construction components. Specifically, the present invention relates to a composite, insulated structural component comprised of a structural member and insulating material. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Many structures are built utilizing wood framing components often referred to as studs. Structures built utilizing wooden studs are often insulated by placing insulation in the cavities between the studs. This creates a structure lacking a continuous thermal barrier as there is no insulation incorporated into known studs. 
     Other attempts to address this problem include structural insulated panels that sandwich foam between two layers of structural board and adding foam insulation to the outside of a framed wall. However, these solutions are significantly more expensive than standard building materials. 
     Accordingly, there exists a need to provide a structural component, or a stud, that addresses the deficiencies mentioned above. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     With the above in mind, embodiments of the present invention are related to a structural component for use in building construction including a first support material member, a second support material member, an insulating material, and a first securing member. 
     The first support material member may have a first length and a first edge. 
     The second support material member may have a second length and a second edge. The second support material member may oppose the first support material member. 
     The insulating material may be disposed between the first support material member and the second support material member. 
     The first securing member may be adapted to contact the first edge and the second edge. 
     The securing member may be welded to the first support material member and the second support material member. 
     The insulating material may extend along the entirety of the first length and the second length. 
     The securing member may extend along an entirety of the first edge of the first support material member and the second edge of the second support material member. 
     The structural component may also include a first routing passageway or a second routing passageway. 
     The first routing passageway may be located through the entirety of a thickness of the insulating material. 
     The second routing passageway may be located through an entirety of a thickness of the securing member and positioned to align with the first routing passageway. 
     A removable insert may be removably carried by the first routing passageway. 
     The first length may be equal to the second length. 
     The securing member may have a length equal to the first length of the first support material member. 
     The first support material member may further include a first channel adapted to receive the insulating material. The second support material member further may include a second channel adapted to receive the insulating material. 
     The structural component may also include a second securing member adapted to contact a third edge of the first support material member and a fourth edge of the second support material member. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front elevation view of a structural component according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a side perspective view of the structural member depicted in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a detailed perspective view of the section of the structural member labeled  3  in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4  is a front perspective view of the structural component according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a top plan view of the structural component depicted in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is a front perspective view of an edge of the structural member depicted in  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 7  is a partial perspective showing internal portions of the structural member taken through the  7 - 7  line in  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Those of ordinary skill in the art realize that the following descriptions of the embodiments of the present invention are illustrative and are not intended to be limiting in any way. Other embodiments of the present invention will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. 
     Although the following detailed description contains many specifics for the purposes of illustration, anyone of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that many variations and alterations to the following details are within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following embodiments of the invention are set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, the invention. 
     In this detailed description of the present invention, a person skilled in the art should note that directional terms, such as “above,” “below,” “upper,” “lower,” and other like terms are used for the convenience of the reader in reference to the drawings. Also, a person skilled in the art should notice this description may contain other terminology to convey position, orientation, and direction without departing from the principles of the present invention. 
     Furthermore, in this detailed description, a person skilled in the art should note that quantitative qualifying terms such as “generally,” “substantially,” “mostly,” and other terms are used, in general, to mean that the referred to object, characteristic, or quality constitutes a majority of the subject of the reference. The meaning of any of these terms is dependent upon the context within which it is used, and the meaning may be expressly modified. 
     An embodiment of the invention, as shown and described by the various figures and accompanying text, provides a structural member  100  constructed by sandwiching an insulating material  101  between two support material members  102 . More specifically, the structural member  100  according to embodiments of the present invention provides a continuous thermal barrier by incorporating an insulating material into the structural member  100 , which may be used as a stud member in building construction applications. 
     The inventive stud is a structural member  100  that may be used similarly to known studs, with the advantage of adding insulating material  101  to the structural member. The similarities between existing studs and the structural member  100  are advantageous as they increase the rate of acceptance and utilization of the structural member  100 . The structural member  100  may be adapted and substituted for structural building components, including, but not limited to, joists, rafters, headers, sills, or the like. The structural component  100  may have different dimensions and relative geometry based on its intended structural use. 
     An additional benefit of the structural member  100 , according to embodiments of the present invention, is decreased sound transmission. By incorporating an insulating material  101  into the structural member  100 , less sound may be transmitted through walls built with the structural component  100  because the insulating material  101  may serve as a sound dampener as well as a thermal barrier. 
     Yet another benefit of the structural member  100  according to embodiments of the present invention is the incorporation of routing passageways  103  built-in to the insulating material  101 . The routing passageways  103  may be apertures adapted to allow wire, conduit, plumbing lines, and other types of lines that may be understood by the skilled artisan, to pass through the structural member  100  while eliminating the time consuming step of marking and drilling holes in conventional wood studs. Each routing passageway  103  may extend through the entirety of a thickness of the insulating material  101  from one side of the insulating material  101  to an opposing side. Each routing passageway  103  may carry a removable insert  118 . The removable inserts  118  may be removably carried by and contained entirely within the routing passageway  103  located within the insulating material  101 . The removable insert  118  may fill the entirety of the routing passageway  103 . The removable insert  118  may be secured to the insulating material  101  with a perforated connection, allowing the removable insert  118  to be disengaged from the insulating material  101  along the perforations with minimal effort or tools. The removable insert  118  may be constructed from the same material as the insulating material  101 . The removable insert  118  may be constructed by creating perforations within the insulating material  101 . 
     The support material member  102  may be solid wood or may be constructed from wood. In some embodiments, the support material member  102  may be an engineered material, including, but not limited to, laminated veneer lumber (LVL). The support material member  102  used in a single structural component  100  may be constructed from metal or composite material. The two support material members  102  used to construct a single structural component  100  may be made of different materials. Each support material member  102  may be made of non-uniform materials. Each support material member  102  may have a length, a first side, and a second side. The length of each support material member  102  may extend from a first end to a distal second end of the support material member  102 . The first side and second side of the support material member  102  may run along the entirety of the length of the support material member  102  and may oppose one another along that length. The two support material members  102  may have lengths equal or non-equal to one another. The support material member  102  may be a rectangular prism, wherein the first side is an inside face and the second side is the opposing outside face. A front face extending between the first and second sides may oppose a back face that also extends between the first and second sides. The front, back, inside, and outside faces may extend the length of the prism. The length of the support material member  102  may be significantly longer than the width of the inside, outside, front, or back face. 
     The insulating material  101  may be foam insulation. The foam may be open cell, closed cell, or a combination of same. It may be dense, loose, or a combination of same. In one embodiment, the insulating material  101  may be a solid, rigid foam insulation. The insulating material  101  may be a rectangular prism or essentially a rectangular prism with a left outside face opposing a right outside face. A front face extending between the left and right outside faces may oppose a back face that also extends between the left and right outside faces. The front, back, left outside, and right outside faces may extend the length of the prism. The length of the insulating material  101  may be significantly longer than the width of the front, back, left outside, or right outside face. The insulating material  101  may have a length equal to the length of one or both support material members  102 . The insulating material  101  may be located between a first support material member  102  and second support material member  102 . In such a configuration, the insulating material  101  may extend along an entirety of the first length of the first support material member  102  and a second length of the second support material member  102 . In such an embodiment, the first and second lengths may be, but are not required to be, equal to one another. 
     The first sides of each of the support material members  102  may be dimensioned equal to the left and right outside faces of the insulating material  101 , respectively. The first side of a first support material member  102  may be aligned with and secured to the right outside face of the insulating material  101 . The first side of the second support material member  102  may be aligned with and secured to the left outside face of the insulating material  101  and may oppose the first support material member  102 . The support material members  102  may be secured to the insulating material  101  and to one another using a securing member  108 , including, but not limited to glue, straps, dowels  104 , metal connectors, or any combination of these. 
     The support material member  102  may be secured to the insulating material  101  using an adhesive. In combination with an adhesive, or alone, one or more securing members  108 , which may include, but are not limited to, dowels  104 , may be utilized to improve structural integrity of the structural member  100 . Wooden dowels  104  may be used rather than metal nails to eliminate potential concerns regarding the use of metal nails in the structural member  100 . Use of wooden dowels  104 , or other wooden securing members  108 , may be particularly desirable when the support material members  102  are also constructed from wood. The use of wood throughout the structural component  100  may aid in allowing those skilled in the art to work with the structural component  100  in conventional ways, including, but not limited to, drilling holes through or hammering nails into one or more portions of the structural component  100 . By way of example, and not as a limitation, the dowels  104  may be made from wood, carbon fiber, metal, or the like. Glue may be applied to abutting faces of the insulating material  101  and respective support material members  102 . These faces may be aligned to one another and further secured to one another using one or more securing members  108 , which may include, but are not limited to, dowels  104 , straps, metal welds, elongate metal members, or a combination of these. In some embodiments, the securing member  108 , which may be straps or dowels  104 , may be removed after the glue has cured. In other embodiments, the straps, dowels  104 , or other securing members  108  may remain installed. 
     When dowels  104  are incorporated into the structural member  100 , one or more dowel  104  may be encircled by, or at least partially carried by, the insulating material  101  with a first end of the dowel  104  carried by one support material member  102  and a second, opposing end of the dowel  104  carried by the opposing support material member  102 . In one embodiment, one or more connecting apertures  105  may extend through the length of the support material member  102  from the first side to the second side. In such an embodiment, the connecting aperture  105  may be adapted to carry a dowel  104 . The connecting aperture  105  may be sized to secure a dowel  104  with a friction fit. In such an embodiment, a first connecting aperture  105  may extend through the first length of a first support material member  102  from the first side to the second side. A second connecting aperture  105  may extend through the second length of a second support material member  102  from the first side to the second side. A single dowel  104  may be at least partially located within and carried by the first connecting aperture  105 , extend through the insulating material  101  and be at least partially located within and carried by the second connecting aperture  105 . Each connecting aperture  105  may extend through the support material member  102  length from the first side to the second side in a plane orthogonal to the plane of the length of the support material member  102 . In such an embodiment, the connecting aperture  105  would be at the same height on both the first and second sides of the support material member  102 . In such an embodiment, the connecting aperture  102  opening on the first side of the support material member  102  is in horizontal alignment with the same connecting aperture  102  opening on the second side of the support material member  102 . In other embodiments, one or more connection apertures  105  may extend through the support material member  102  length from the first side to the second side in a plane that is both non-orthogonal and non-parallel to the plane of the length of the support material member  102 . In such an embodiment, the connecting aperture  102  would be at different heights on the first side and second side of the support material member  102 . In such an embodiment, the connecting aperture  102  opening on the first side of the support material member  102  is in horizontal misalignment with the connecting aperture  102  opening on the second side of the support material member  102 . 
     In other embodiments, a dowel  104  may secure only a single piece of support material member  102  to the insulating material  101 . Each dowel  104  may fit into a connecting aperture  105  disposed within at least one of the support material members  102  and the insulating material  101 . Connecting aperture  105  openings disposed on the support material member  102  may align with connecting apertures  105  openings disposed on the insulating material  101 . Connecting apertures  105  may extend the entire width of the support material member  102  from the first side to the second side or the connecting apertures  105  may begin at a first side of the support material member  102 , proximate the insulating material  101 , and terminate before extending through the second side of the support material member  102 , distal the insulating material  101 . Connecting apertures  105  may extend the entire width of the insulating material  101  from the left outside face to the right outside face or the connecting apertures  105  may begin at the left or right outside face and terminate before extending through the insulating material  101  to the opposing face. One or more dowels  104  may be used in each structural member  100 . In some embodiments, a plurality of dowels  104  may be evenly, unevenly, or irregularly spaced along the length of the structural member  100 . 
     In some embodiments utilizing dowels  104 , the dowels  104  may be inserted into the insulating material  101  or support material member  102  at an angle rather than orthogonally to the side of the material into which the dowel  104  is inserted. In an embodiment without an orthogonal insertion of the dowel  104 , the diagonal insertion of the dowel  104  may increase the structural integrity of the structural member  100 . The dowels  104  within a structural member  100  may be retained at different angles, and may have different diameters. The dowels  104  within a structural member  100  may have different diameters, lengths, or the like. The dowels  104  within a structural member  100  may be made of different materials. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , different support material members  102  within a single structural member  100  may have connecting apertures  105  positioned at different locations. These connecting apertures  105  may align with dowels  104  inserted through each support material member  102  in the structural member  100 . 
     In one embodiment, more than one connecting aperture  105  may be located in a first support material member  102 . The connecting apertures  105  within a single support material member  102  may be located a vertical distance from one another along the length of the support material member  102 . Each connecting aperture  105  located on a support material member  102  may have a corresponding connecting aperture  105  on an opposing support material member  102 . Corresponding connecting apertures  105  may be configured and adapted to retain opposing ends of a single dowel  104  extending between and carried by both opposing support material members  102 . The dowel  104  may be adapted to secure the opposing support material members  102  to one another. The vertical distance between two connecting apertures  105  on a first support material member  102  may be less than the vertical distance between two connecting apertures  105  on a second support material, and each may correspond to one of the connecting apertures  105  on the first support material member. Two connecting apertures  105  located on a single support material member  102  may be centered on a single plane extending parallel to the length of the support material member. In such a configuration, the connecting apertures  105  are in vertical alignment. Such an arrangement is depicted in  FIG. 2  and may create a diagonal configuration of one or more dowel  104 . 
     The connecting aperture  105  may be defined by walls surrounding the connecting aperture  105 . One or more retaining member apertures  119  may be located along a wall defining the connecting aperture  104  and extend through the support material member  102  to an exterior surface of the support material member  102 . The retaining member aperture  119  may extend between the wall defining the connecting aperture  105  and a front face or back face of the support material member  102 . The retaining member aperture  119  may extend between the wall defining the connecting aperture  105  and a first side or second side of the support material member  102 . The retaining member aperture  119  may be adapted to carry a retaining dowel  120 . The dowel  104  may have a dowel receiving aperture  121  located proximate an end of the dowel  104  and adapted to carry a retaining dowel  120 . The dowel receiving aperture  121  may be positioned to align with a retaining member aperture  119  when the dowel  104  is positioned within the support material member  102 . The retaining dowel  120  may be adapted to be carried by the retaining member aperture  119  and the dowel receiving aperture  121  located in the dowel  104 . 
     The insulating material  101  may have one or more routing passageways  103  extending from the front face through to the back face. The routing passageways  103  may be configured to allow wiring and plumbing components to pass through the structural member  100 . The routing passageways  103  may be evenly or irregularly spaced from one another or may be located at differing locations on the structural member  100 . 
     One or more support material member  102  may be adapted to have a first edge  116  and a second edge  117 . Both the first and second edge  116 ,  117  may be located on a portion of the support material member  102  proximate the insulating material  101  or proximate the opposing support material member  102 . In one embodiment, both the first and second edge  116 ,  117  may be located on a first side of the support material member  102 . The first edge  116  may be located proximate the intersection of a front or back face and the second edge  117  may be located proximate the intersection of a front or back face. A securing member  108  may be adapted to secure the first edge  116  of a first support material member  102  with an opposing first or second edge  116 ,  117  of a second support material member  102 . 
     The support material member  102  may be constructed with a channel  115  located between two opposing portions of the support material member  102  that extend the entirety of the length of the support material member  102 . The channel  115  may be a rectangular-shaped void extending the entirety of the length of the support material member  102  and defined on three sides by an interior surface of the support material member  102 . The channel  115  may be defined by opposing front and back faces, which each extend the entirety of the length of the support material member  102 . A side of each the front and back faces may secure to an outside face of the support material member  102 . The opposing side of each the front and back faces, respectively, which is not secured to the outside face of the support material member  102  may have an edge extending the entirety of the length of the support material member  102 . These edges may be the first and second edges  116 ,  117 . In such an embodiment, the support material member  102  may have a U-shaped configuration as depicted at least in  FIG. 6 . A securing member  108  may be adapted to secure to a first edge  116  of a first support material member  102  and an opposing first or second edge  116 ,  117  of a second support material member  102 , which opposes the first support material member  102 , 
     The first and opposing second support material members  102  may be constructed from metal. The securing member  108  may be an elongate metal member adapted to be welded to edges on both the first and opposing second support material members  102 . 
     The insulating material  101  may be adapted to be carried by a first channel  115  in a first support material member  102  and a second channel  115  in a second support material member  102 . The channels  115  may be adapted to receive the insulating material  101  along an entirety of the length of the channels  115 . A first securing member  108  may be adapted to secure to a first edge  116  of the first support material member  102  and an opposing edge  116 ,  117  of the second support material member  102 . The first securing member  108  may be welded to each the first and second support material members  102 . The first securing member  108  may be adapted to extend along or parallel to a front face of the insulating material  101 . A second securing member  108  may be adapted to secure to a second edge  117  of the first support material member  102  and an opposing edge  116 ,  117  of the second support material member  102 . The second securing member  108  may be welded to each the first and second support material members  102 . The second securing member  108  may be adapted to extend along or parallel to a back face of the insulating material  101 . 
     One or more support material members  102  may be formed from a monolithic piece of sheet metal. The metal may be stamped to form appropriate apertures and folded to create a channel  115 . 
     Some of the illustrative aspects of the present invention may be advantageous in solving the problems herein described and other problems not discussed which are discoverable by a skilled artisan. 
     While the above description contains much specificity, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presented embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments. While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, 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 or only mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the description of the invention. Also, in the drawings and the description, there have been disclosed exemplary embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms may have been employed, they are unless otherwise stated used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention therefore not being so limited. Moreover, the use of the terms first, second, etc. do not denote any order or importance, but rather the terms first, second, etc. are used to distinguish one element from another. Furthermore, the use of the terms a, an, etc. do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item.