Patent Publication Number: US-6655106-B1

Title: Corner studs for prefabricated building systems

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/148,883, filed Aug. 13, 1999. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to corner studs for prefabricated building systems. More particularly, this invention relates to corner studs that directly interconnect and align with other structural components to form complete, structurally sound corners. 
     The construction industry has attempted to provide simple economical building systems that can be used to construct stable habitable structures in the shortest possible time using the least possible amount of construction materials and labor—while also attempting to provide these systems with as much freedom of design as possible. One such known building system includes generally rectangular structural wall panels that join together to form a desired structure. A disadvantage of such a system, however, is that direct connections between the vertical edges of adjoining panels cannot be made at corners. This results in the central alignment planes of the panels (i.e., the vertical plane cutting across the center of the panel from the middle of one vertical edge to the middle of the opposite vertical edge) not meeting where the panels intersect. Accordingly, a complete and regular alignment of the central alignment planes cannot be maintained throughout the structure, causing a disruption in the structure&#39;s geometric order. This can result in nonuniform distribution and transmission of loads and forces. Moreover, when central alignment planes do not meet at panel intersections, panel dimensions cannot be easily regularized (if at all), which can complicate the on-site assembly process. 
     Another disadvantage of this known building system is that the rectangular panels cannot be easily used, if at all, to form structurally sound non-90° corners, as is common in many architecturally aesthetic structures. To form such non-90° corners, other construction methods and materials may have to be used, causing a loss of uniformity and homogeneity while increasing construction time and costs. 
     Another known prefabricated building system includes wall panels that have vertical studs with an edge that includes two converging sides ending at a vertex. The vertex is pointed away from the parallel sides of the stud. While corners formed with such interconnected wall panels maintain alignment of central alignment planes, the corners are incomplete (e.g., not squared). Thus additional materials, labor, and time are often required to square the corner. Moreover, this system also cannot be easily used, if at all, to form complete, structurally sound non-90° corners. 
     In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to provide a corner stud that readily maintains alignment of central alignment planes and that readily interconnects to form complete, structurally sound corners of various angles. 
     It would also be desirable to provide such a corner stud that can be used to form structural wall panels of a prefabricated building system. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of this invention to provide a corner stud that readily maintains alignment of central alignment planes and that readily interconnects to form complete, structurally sound corners of various angles. 
     It is also an object of this invention to provide such a corner stud that can be used to form structural wall panels of a prefabricated building system. 
     In accordance with this invention, a corner stud is provided that includes two substantially parallel sides spaced a distance apart, each side having a first end and a second end. A third side connects the two parallel sides at their first ends, which are juxtaposed. The third side also forms an angle with each of the two parallel sides, neither angle equaling 90°. Corner studs of the present invention can be fabricated with different angles to form corners of different angles. The corner studs also can be fabricated with either a solid or hollow interior. Hollow interior studs can include end segments connected to the second ends of the parallel sides. Studs of the present invention can be preferably used to form several types of structural wall panels for use in prefabricated building systems. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a plan view of corner connections between one type of known structural wall panels; 
     FIG. 2 is a plan view of corner connections between another type of known structural wall panels; 
     FIG. 3 is a plan view of a corner connection between the panels of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view of a preferred embodiment of a corner stud in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a plan view of another preferred embodiment of a corner stud in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 6 is a plan view of another embodiment of a corner stud in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIGS. 7-9 are plan views of corners formed with corner studs of the present invention; 
     FIG. 10 is a plan view of another corner formed with a corner stud of the present invention; 
     FIG. 11 is an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment of a structural wall panel in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional plan view of the wall panel of FIG. 11; 
     FIGS. 13-17 are cross-sectional plan views of other exemplary embodiments of structural wall panels in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 18 is plan view of a corner formed with two studs of FIG. 5; and 
     FIG. 19 is a plan view of an embodiment of a corner track in accordance with the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides corner studs that can be used to form complete, structurally sound corners of various angles for stable habitable structures. These corner studs maintain alignment of central alignment planes and can be preferably used in the prefabricated building system disclosed in Sucre F U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,594, issued Jul. 1, 1997, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     FIG. 1 shows a known building system  100  that includes generally rectangular structural wall panels, as described above. Central alignment planes  102 ,  104 , and  106  do not meet where wall panels  108 ,  110 , and  112  meet. Instead, central alignment planes  102  and  104  intersect beyond the intersection of the vertical edge of panel  108  and a side of panel  110 , and central alignment planes  104  and  106  intersect beyond the intersection of the vertical edge of panel  110  and a side of panel  112 . Accordingly, such a structure is not considered properly aligned, and the geometric order of the structure is thus not preserved. This can cause nonuniform distribution and transmission of loads and forces, and can complicate panel dimensioning and on-site assembly. 
     FIG. 2 shows another known building system  200 , as also described above, that includes wall panels formed with a vertical stud having an edge that has two converging sides ending at a vertex. While this system maintains alignment of central alignment planes, as shown by the intersect-ion of alignment planes  202  and  204  at the intersection of wall panels  208  and  210 , and the intersection of alignment planes  204  and  206  at the intersection of wall panels  210  and  212 , the corners are incomplete. Corner section  301 , as shown in FIG. 3, for example, requires additional materials and labor (and thus additional costs) to form a complete, structurally sound corner. Squaring corners formed with such panels is particularly important for structural stability and load bearing capacity in multi-level structures. 
     FIG. 4 shows a preferred embodiment of a corner stud in accordance with the present invention. Stud  400  includes preferably parallel sides  414  and  416  and a third side  418  connecting sides  414  and  416 . Side  418  is preferably substantially straight, but can be accordingly dimensioned and shaped to be directly interconnected with another stud. Side  418  forms an angle  420  with side  414  and an angle  422  with side  416 . The sum of angles  420  and  422  preferably equals about 180° and preferably neither angle equals 90°. Stud  400  preferably includes end segments  424  and  426 , which are preferably substantially perpendicularly connected to parallel sides  414  and  416 , respectively. Alternatively, end segments  424  and  426  may be connected to respective sides  414  and  416  non-perpendicularly. 
     Advantageously, many dimensions of stud  400  (e.g., lengths and widths of sides  414 ,  416 , and  418 , and of end segments  424  and  426 ) can be varied relative to each other, along with the number and configuration of end lo segments, without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention. For example, FIG. 5 shows another preferred embodiment of a corner stud in accordance with the present invention. Stud  500  includes preferably parallel sides  514  and  516 , third side  518  connecting sides  514  and  516 , and end segments  524  and  526  connected respectively to sides  514  and  516 . Stud  500  also preferably includes end segment  528 , which is preferably connected substantially perpendicularly to end segment  526 . Alternatively, end segment  528  may be connected to end segment  526  non-perpendicularly. As with stud  400 , the sum of angles  520  and  522  preferably equals about 180° and preferably neither angle equals 90°. 
     Studs  400  and  500  can each have instead of end segments (or no end segments) a fourth side connecting the ends of the parallel sides opposite the third side. Also, studs  400  and  500  each have a preferably hollow interior that can remain hollow or be filled-in with, for example, insulating or reinforcing material. 
     Alternatively, corner studs of the present invention can have a solid interior, as shown in the corner stud embodiment of FIG.  6 . Stud  600  has preferably parallel sides  614  and  616  and sides  618  and  630  connecting respective ends of sides  614  and  616 . Similar to sides  418  and  518 , side  618  forms angles  620  and  622  with sides  614  and  616 , respectively, preferably neither angle equaling 90°. Although side  630  is shown as straight and perpendicularly connected to sides  614  and  616 , side  630  can be alternatively neither. 
     Studs of the present invention are preferably formed from galvanized metal, stainless steel, solid wood, solid reinforced PVC, solid special plastics, waste-plastic composites, cellular fiber plastics, extruded structural components and derivatives, and any other solid materials, solid reinforced materials or hollow materials with the structural capacity and strength required for the construction of a habitable structure. 
     Advantageously, studs of the present invention can be fabricated to form corners of various angles. For example, a substantially 90° corner can be formed with two studs  400 , as shown in FIG.  7 . Each stud  400  is fabricated is with angle  420  equaling about 45° and angle  422  equaling about  1350 . The two studs  400  are interconnected at sides  418  to form the corner. Note that central alignment. planes  402  and  404  meet at the intersection (sides  418 ) of the two studs  400 . Interconnected sides  418  prevent relative movement in preferably at least two directions between the studs and provide load bearing capacity for the corner. 
     Corners of other angles also can be easily formed. A substantially 108° corner (which can be used to build pentagonal structures) can be formed with two studs  400  each having angles  420  equaling about  540  and angles  422  equaling about 126°, as shown in FIG.  8 . Again, central alignment planes  402  and  404  are properly aligned. To build a hexagonal structure, corners of substantially 120° can be formed with two studs  400  each having angles  420  equaling about 60° and angles  422  equaling about 120°, as shown in FIG.  9 . Stud  400  can be advantageously fabricated with values of angles  420  and  422  ranging from preferably about 20° to about 85° to form corners of various angles. Moreover, stud  400  can interconnect with other types of studs or wall panels to form various corner configurations of various angles. For example, FIG. 10 shows stud  400  fabricated with angle  420  equaling about 45° interconnected with a stud  1032  to form a substantially 135° corner. Note that in both FIGS. 9 and 10, central alignment planes are properly aligned. Also note that while various embodiments of stud  400  were used in the above examples, various embodiments of studs  500  and  600  also can be fabricated to form corners of various angles. 
     Advantageously, studs of the present invention can be used to form structural wall panels, such as, for example, those similar to the wall panels of the prefabricated building system disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,594. For example, FIGS. 11 and 12 show a wall panel  1100  incorporating stud  400  in accordance with the present invention. Panel  1100  includes upper stud  1134  and lower stud  1136  generally horizontally positioned parallel to each other. Studs  1134  and  1136  are preferably “␣” shaped, having two parallel sides joined perpendicularly along juxtaposed free ends with a third side. Stud  400  connects upper and lower studs  1134  and  1136 . Upper and lower studs  1134  and  1136  can both be open-ended, as shown by upper stud  1134  at open-end  1135 , or closed-ended, as shown by lower stud  1136  at closed-end  1137 . Closed-end  1137  is dimensioned and shaped to receive and preferably securely position stud  400 . When necessary, depending on the length of the panel, one or more stiffener elements  1138  of any desired configuration may be used as shown. Each stiffener element  1138  is preferably aligned vertically within the panel between upper and lower studs  1134  and  1136 , and is preferably generally perpendicular to at least lower stud  1136 . 
     Stud  400  also preferably can be incorporated in other types of structural wall panels in accordance with the present invention, such as, for example, those shown in FIGS. 13-17. FIG.  13 . shows wall panel  1300 , which includes a vertical stud  1340  at an end of the panel. Vertical stud  1340  finishes the vertical edge of that end of anel  1300 . 
     FIG. 14 shows a wall panel  1400  that includes a vertical stud  1440  having one or more male connection elements  1442  at an end of the panel. Male connection element  1442  is dimensioned and shaped such that the distance between its parallel sides is preferably slightly less than the distance between the parallel sides of upper and lower studs  1134  and  1136 . This allows male connection element  1442  to fit preferably snugly into studs  1134  and  1136  (e.g., into panel  1100  at the end opposite stud  400 ). Male connection element  1442  preferably can have any other desired configuration that will fit into an adjoining panel or stud to provide proper interconnection. 
     FIG. 15 shows a wall panel  1500  that includes a stud  1540  having an edge, as described above, that has two converging sides ending at a vertex. Wall panel  1500  is advantageous for forming multiple wall panel intersections, particularly 4-wall “+” intersections. 
     FIGS. 16 and 17 show wall panels  1600  and  1700 , respectively, that each includes a stud  400  at each end of the panel. As shown, each stud  400  can have the same or opposite orientation as the other stud  400  of the panel. 
     Note that studs  400  having angles  420  and  422  different than those shown in FIGS. 12-17, as well as studs  500  and  600  having various angles  520 ,  522 ,  620 , and  622  also can be used to construct these wall panels. 
     Wall panels  1100 ,  1300 ,  1400 ,  1500 ,  1600 , and  1700  are preferably hollow, and may therefore be handled, transported, and installed easily by a single person. Moreover, these panels permit, when necessary, the installation of any desired insulation or acoustical material, and provide flexibility when placing electrical and plumbing lines and equipment within the panels. 
     Panels  1100 ,  1300 ,  1400 ,  1500 ,  1600 , and  1700  can be positioned on either horizontal side, such that, for example, rather than having side  418  of stud  400  facing southwest, as shown in FIGS. 12-15, the panel can be positioned upside down to have side  418  facing northwest. 
     Although shown as constructed from three separate studs, wall panels  1100 ,  1300 ,  1400 ,  1500 ,  1600 , and  1700  can be alternatively constructed with stud  400  and upper and lower studs  1134  and  1136  formed and assembled from a one-piece element stud, as similarly disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,594. 
     Studs of the present invention, and wall panels incorporating such studs, can be directly and easily attached to each other or to other structural components by coupling and fixing together the third side of a stud (e.g., sides  418 ,  518 , and  618 ) to either another such third side or a vertical edge of another type of compatible panel or stud. Studs and panels to be joined can be welded, screwed, pinned, bolted, glued, or otherwise directly fastened to one another. This advantageously reduces costs and construction time. Furthermore, various types of connection elements formed and appropriately shaped and dimensioned on studs of the present invention, similar to those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,594, for example, also can be used to connect adjoining studs and panels. 
     Further, third-piece connection elements can be alternatively or additionally used. For example, FIG. 18 shows two adjoining studs  500  connected together via one or more staple-like connection elements  1844  that fit into optional recessed receiving areas  1846  (alternatively, just receiving holes can be provided). Any desired number of elements  1844  in various arrangements (e.g., parallel or crossing over to form “X” configurations) may be used. Connection elements  1844  are preferably angled to accommodate the corner angle formed by the adjoining studs, and are preferably shaped and dimensioned for both outside (as shown) and inside corner fastening. 
     Alternatively or additionally, adjoining studs of the present invention, or adjoining wall panels incorporating such studs, can be positioned within a preferably single-piece corner track as shown in FIG. 19 in accordance with the present invention. Corner track  1900  is dimensioned and shaped to receive and preferably securely position a pair of adjoining studs (e.g., studs  600  shown in phantom). Corner track  1900  is angled to accommodate the corner angle formed by the adjoining studs, and preferably has a generally “␣” shaped cross section. Adjoining studs may be secured with both an upper and lower track  1900  or, depending upon the circumstances, just an upper or just a lower track  1900 . 
     Advantageously, studs of the present invention, and panels incorporating such studs, interconnect such that the central alignment planes meet where the vertical edges of adjoining studs and panels intersect, thus maintaining geometric order throughout the structure. Interconnections of these studs and panels therefore create a regularized structural skeleton that uniformly distributes and transmits loads and forces, and allows panel dimensions to be regularized to simplify the on-site assembly process. 
     Moreover, studs of the present invention are not limited to use in prefabricated building systems, but also can be used, for example, in “stick-built” structures. 
     Thus it is seen that easily aligned and readily interconnected corner studs are presented. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other than the described embodiments, which are presented for purposes of illustration and not of limitation, and the present invention is limited only by the claims which follow.