Improvements in the Construction of Artificial Stone Slabs, Bricks, Tiles, and the like.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Apr., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 11th Jan., 1896-Accepted, 29th Feb., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Construction of Artificial Stone Slabs, Bricks,
Tiles, and the like.
C
I ROBERT WALKER of Birkenhall Stifford in the County of Essex, Builder'
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to construct or form, flat, curved, or multishaped,
slabs, bricks, tiles and the like, of artificial stone, pottery, earthenware, fireclay, or
other suitable substances; having on one or more sides projections and corresponding
cavities, so formed, that the projections and cavities of abutting slabs, &c., may fit
and key into each other, and. hold the slabs &c. together with or without the aid
of a cementing matrix. Slabs &c., formed as described, admit of being arranged
in such a manner, that by "breaking joint" in every direction, a continuous rigid
structure may be formed with or without a cementing matrix, and the slabs &c. are
for use in the construction of walls, fire proof floors, arches, roofs, sewers, drains,
and for any other constructional purposes for which they are suitable.
Dated this 16th day of April 1895.
ROBERT WALKER.
Improvements in the Construction of Artificial Stone Slabs, Bricks,
Tiles, and the like.
I ROBERT WALKER, of Birkenhall, Stifford, in the County of Essex, Builder,
do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained. in and by the following.
statement:-
This invention has for its object to enable structures such as.a wall, partition,
conduit or the like to be readily built up with smooth and even surfaces and if
desired without the aid of cement or mortar and consists essentially in forming the
walls of the structure of bricks or slabs adapted to interlock with one another so
that by arranging the sets of bricks or slabs to break joint with one another in
every direction a continuous rigid structure is built up. The structure may be
formed solid of such bricks or slabs or hollow and the hollow parts can be filled
with cement, concrete or mortar.
In the accompanying sheet of illustrative drawings
:―
Fig. 1 is an isometric view of a hollow wall filled up with concrete constructed
according to this invention;
Fig. 2 is an isometric view of a wall built up entirely of bricks or tiles;
Fig. 3 is an isometric view of a pipe conduit for sewers and the like, and
Fig. 4 is a similar view to Fig. 2 showing a stronger and thicker construction.
Referring to Fig. 1 the faces of the structure are formed by slabs a having
dovetailed grooves 6 with corresponding projections c on their back surfaces. The
slabs of each face are secured together by grooved blocks d securing in their

page_text: relative positions two adjacent slabs a in one row and another slab a situated in the
adjacent row and breaking joint with the two slabs. At intervals there are double
grooved blocks e that tie the two faces together. The hollow space between the
two faces is shown filled up with concrete.
may be faced with slabs or bricks which are keyed to the concrete body by single
If desired only one face of the structure
ended blocks similar to the blocks e.
In the arrangement shown in Fig. 2 the structure is built up entirely of slabs a
the projections c on one slab fitting into the grooves 6 in the adjacent slabs. In
this case also the slabs of the two faces are arranged to break joint in every direction
both vertically and horizontally. The corner pieces are slightly modified in shape
being of shape and are placed alternately in opposite directions as shown. The
corner of each outside piece is formed with a dovetail recess in which fits a
The parts may be rigidly secured by a cement
projection on the inside piece f.
or other jointing.
The circular conduit shown in Fig. 3 is built up of the inside slabs and the
outside slabs which are arranged to break joint both horizontally and vertically.
An egg or other shaped sewer can be built up in a similar way with suitably shaped
slabs or bricks.
In the structure shown in Fig. 4 the one face of the wall has the grooves b and
projections in the slabs a arranged horizontally and the other face vertically and
the two faces are keyed together by intermediate bricks m.
C
It will be obvious that the shape and size and proportions of the slabs and bricks
can be varied considerably without departing from the nature of this invention, and
the grooves b may be made larger than the projections so as to allow space for
cement or other binding material.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. A building block or brick, consisting of a base and equally spaced dovetailed
ribs situated on and extending across one face, the width of the said brick being a
multiple of the distance between the centre lines of the ribs and the dovetail
ribs being equal in size to or less than the grooves left between the ribs.
2. A building block or brick, consisting of a dovetailed grooved block, the grooves
extending across the block and being equally spaced and of such size that the groove
is exactly the same size as or larger than the projection left between two grooves
and the width of the block being a multiple of the distance between the centre lines
of the grooves.
3. The improvements in building construction, substantially as described with
reference to the drawings.
Dated this 10th day of January 1896.
WHEATLEY & MACKENZIE,
40 Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Agents.