Improvements in the Construction of Floors and Ceilings.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd July, 1894
Complete Specification Left, 11th Apr., 1895-Accepted, 18th May, 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Construction of Floors and Ceilings.
1, JOHN FRENCH GOLDING, of 400 Twenty-sixth Street, Chicago, Illinois,
United States of America, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My invention relates to fire-proof floors and ceilings, and is a development of or
improvement upon the invention described in the Specification of my former Patent
No. 2894 of 1892.
The floors or ceilings constructed according to this present invention are designed
to be used as substitutes for the hollow tile and solid concrete filled structures
supported between iron girders now generally employed, my improved structure
being both lighter and stronger than those heretofore in use.
My improved concrete floor or ceiling consists of a series of arches formed of
concrete and strengthened by metal; supports for the ends of said arches; and
concrete spans connecting the arches, the series of arches and spans being also
bound together by continuous sheets of open-work metal laid across them.
According to one method of carrying out my invention, I form the framing of
the floor of I-beams which serve as girders to support the arches which are
constructed of metal bars, preferably of channel iron, having their ends supported
upon the flanges of the aforesaid beams. The bars are bent to the curvature
desired in the arch, of which they form a part, and they are preferably placed with
their flanges standing upward. After these arch bars have been placed in position
on the girders, planks are placed along each side of each bar so as to inclose it,
the planks standing on edge and also resting preferably at their ends upon the
flanges of the I-beams. False or temporary floors of centering boards are now
placed between each arch and its neighbour arch or arches, these centering boards
resting at each end upon the planks which form the temporary sides or being
otherwise suitably supported. I next lay preferably over both the arches and the
covering interspace spans, a web of expanded or equivalent open-work metal,
consisting of continuous sheets and having meshes sufficiently large to permit the
ready passage through them of the soft concrete. The sheets are laid across the
several arches and intervening spans so as to tie them together. This structure
being in readiness, the concrete is next applied and forced through the meshes of
the open metal until the spaces above the arch beams and between the side boards
are entirely filled therewith, and also until the entire area of both arches and
interspaces is built up to a thickness to give the interspans the necessary strength.
The coucrete thus forms an integral and homogeneous mass uniting the arches and
conferring their strength upon the lighter portions between them. The web of
openwork metal not only possesses great tensile strength but is firmly anchored in
the material of the arches, and is thus enabled to impart great resistance and
supporting power to the connecting spans wherein a comparatively small amount of
concrete is used. When the concrete applied in this manner has set, the side
planks and centering boards may be removed by first tipping the boards over on to
their sides.
The arches may be employed in such manner as is requisite to give the floor
very great solidity and strength, and the connecting spans may be as light as the
burdens likely to be placed upon them will permit.

page_text: Where it is desired that the ceiling should present a flat surface, a false covering
or ceiling may be applied below the structure already described by extending
across the structure, and under the girders, a series of rods adapted to sustain said
false ceiling. These rods are each made in two or more parts connected by a turn
buckle, and they are secured to the girders by wire clips, each of said clips having
eyes to receive the said rods, and being bent over at the ends so as to clamp the
flanges of the I-beams. At their ends, the rods are hooked around the eyes of the
clips. The sagging of the rods is overcome by attaching them by wire fastenings
to a bar extending across the series of rods and sustained by hangers, which are
provided with nuts at their upper ends, and have such ends passed through the
centre of the arched bars. Metal lathing is then attached to the rods by any
suitable means and a coating of plaster is applied in the usual manner.
Where the framing of the floor is of metal, the I-beams will ordinarily be
properly braced, so that any tendency by the floor to spread and thus crowd the
beams out of position will be effectually resisted. It may be essential however, at
times to tie the supports of the arches together in order to overcome the spreading
strain; in one such construction for example the arches are supported upon brick
walls, and angle iron abutments are employed upon which the ends of the arches
rest. The abutments are suitably bolted together, so that a chord is formed
adapted to prevent any spreading. The under surfacing ceiling hereinabove
described may be employed with this structure if desired.
Dated this 23rd day of July 1894.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in the Construction of Floors and Ceilings.
I, JOHN FRENCH GOLDING, of 400, Twenty-sixth Street, Chicago, Illinois,
United States of America, Engineer, 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 :-
My invention relates to fire-proof floors and ceilings designed to be used as
substitutes for the hollow tile and solid concrete-filled structures supported between
iron girders now generally employed, my improved structure being both lighter
and stronger than those heretofore in use.
My improved concrete floor or ceiling consists of a series of arches formed of
concrete strengthened by metal, supports for the ends of the said arches, and
concrete spans connecting the arches, the series of arches and spans being also boun 1
together by continuous sheets of open-work metal laid across them.
In laying the floor I first take bars of metal, preferably of the kind known as
channel iron, and bend them to the curvature required for the under surface of the
arches, and then place such bars in position with their flanges standing upward and
their ends resting upon I-beams or girders, or upon the walls of the building.
I then secure, at each side of these arched bars, wood planking set edgewise and
enclosing the space above the bars and extending upward nearly to a level
corresponding to the plane desired for the under surface of the spans covering the
interspaces. The ends of this side planking may be supported upon the same
girders or walls which support the arched bars. A trough-like space is thus
inclosed by the arch bar and the side planking, adapted to hold the concrete.
The area of the interspaces is next floored over with a temporary flooring of
centering boards at the proper level for the under surfaces of the connecting spans.
This temporary floor may be supported in any suitable manner, but I prefer to

page_text: support it upon the upper edges of the side planking used to comme the concreto
in the arches.
I also place inclined boards by the side of the girders to receive the concrete
which is to enclose said girders. I then proceed to fill with concrete to the level
of the upper surface of the temporary or false flooring the troughs formed by the
side planking and the arches and also the troughs at the sides of the girders.
I next preferably place over the whole area of the floor or ceiling continuous sheets
of expanded or equivalent open-work metal having meshes large enough to permit
the passage through them of the soft concrete, and I then cover the entire structure
with a sufficient thickness of concrete to give the interspace spans the requisite
strength. The concrete thus forms an integral and homogeneous mass, uniting the
arches, and conferring their strength upon the lighter portions of the floor or
ceiling between them. The web of open-work metal is laid with its sheets
extending across the several arches and spans, a sufficient quantity being employed
to cover over the entire area of both arches and interspaces, so that it may not only
possess great tensile strength but also be firmly anchored in the material of the
arches, and thus be enabled to impart great resistance and supporting power to the
connecting spans, wherein a comparatively small amount of concrete is used.
The false floor and side planking of the arches support the concrete until it is
sufficiently hardened, after which they are removed.
The nature of the structure as well as the method of constructing it are more
fully set forth below and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein :-
Figure 1 is a vertical section of a portion of a floor embodying my invention,
and showing one of the supporting arches in longitudinal elevation;
Figure 2 is a section thereof taken on the line 2, 2 of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a vertical section showing the temporary floor for the spans, and the
temporary sides for the arches used in constructing the floor or ceiling.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the floor in process of con-
struction, showing the metal parts and the temporary planking for supporting the
concrete;
Figure 5 is a perspective illustration of the metallic connections for supporting
the under surface or ceiling employed where it is desirable to give the ceiling a
uniform flat surface;
Figure 6 is a view of a detail of one of the parts shown in Figure 5;
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a modified construction hereinafter described.
Figure 8 is an underside perspective view and section of my improved floor
with the flat ceiling omitted, the section being taken in a vertical plane inter-
mediate of the arches.
Figure 9 is a perspective view of the temporary sides of the arches in position.
Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts throughout the drawings.
A, A are I-beams forming part of the framing of a floor or ceiling, and serving
in this instance as girders to support the arches hereinafter described; B B are
metal bars, preferably of channel iron, having their ends supported upon the flanges
of the beams A, as clearly shown in Figure 1. The bars are bent to the curvature
desired in the arch, of which they form a part, and they are preferably placed
with their flanges b standing upward. After these arch bars have been placed in
position on the girders, planks C Figure 9 are ranged along the sides of each bar
so as to inclose the bars, the planks standing on edge and having their ends resting
preferably upon the flanges of the I-beams A. False or temporary floors of
centering boards D Figure 4 are now placed between each arch and its neighbour
or neighbours; these centering boards rest at each end upon the temporary
sides C. I also lay a row of boards C¹ alongside of each girder A and rest said
boards against the inclined ends of the planks C. These boards do not extend
across the trough-like spaces formed by each pair of planks C and arch B. The
boards D cover the interspaces between the girders and arches but do not cover
the troughs formed by the planks C nor do they cover the spaces between the
boards C and the girders. Having thus formed a temporary floor I proceed to

page_text: fill the troughs and spaces at the sides of the girders with concrete up to the level
of the upper. surface of the false floor, and I then lay preferably over both the
arches and the covering interspace spans, a web of expanded or equivalent open-
work metal E, consisting of continuous sheets and having meshes sufficiently open
to permit the ready passage through them of the concrete. The sheets are laid
across the several arches and intervening spans so as to tie them together. This
structure being in readiness, more concrete is next applied and forced through the
meshes of the open metal until the entire area of the arches and interspaces is built
up to a thickness to give the interspans the necessary strength. The concrete
portion of the arches thus formed, is indicated at F Figure 1, and the concrete
covering of the spans between the arches is indicated at G Figure 2. When the
concrete has been applied in this manner and has set, the side planks and centering
boards may be removed, the boards C being first tipped over on to their sides.
The compound arches formed by the arched bars B and concrete F may be
employed in such manner as is requisite to give the floor very great solidity and
strength, and the connecting spans may be as light as the burdens likely to be
placed upon them will permit.
When it is desired that the ceiling present a flat surface, a false covering or
ceiling may be applied below the structure above described by extending across the
structure and under the girders a series of rods H adapted to sustain such false
ceiling. These rods are each made in two or more parts_connected by the screw
link h, and they are secured to the girders by wire clips J (one of which is shown
separately in Figure 6) each having eyes i to receive the rods H, and being bent
over at the ends so as to clamp the flanges of the I-beams. At their ends the
rods H are hooked around the eyes i, as shown at h¹, Figure 5. The sagging of
the rods His overcome by attaching them to a bar K which extends across the
series of rods and which is sustained by hangers L. The said hangers are provided
with nuts at their upper ends, and have such ends passed through the centre of the
arched bars, as indicated in Figures 1 and 4. The rods are clipped to the bar K
by wire fastenings k. The metal lathing M is attached to the rods H, and a
coating of plaster is applied thereto in the usual manner.
When the framing of the floor is of metal, the I-beams will ordinarily be properly
braced, so that any tendency the floor may have to spread and thus crowd the
beams out of position will be effectually resisted. It may be essential however, at
times to tie the supports of the arches together in order to overcome the spreading
tendency; one such construction is shown in Figure 7, the arches being supported
in this instance upon brick walls, and angle iron abutments O being employed
upon which rest the ends of the arches. The abutments are suitably bolted
together by bolts o, so that a chord is formed adapted to prevent any spreading.
The under surfacing ceiling may also be employed with this structure; the rods H
thereof are indicated in the figure.
In the modification illustrated by Figure 8 the flat ceiling is omitted, the
exposed concrete surface being in this case faced with a layer of plaster to give it
the desired smooth finish.
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 floor or ceiling composed of supporting beams, a series of narrow arches
each consisting of a curved metal bar of chanuel or other section resting at its
ends upon the flanges of the supporting beams, a superimposed body of concrete,
concrete spans connecting the arches and covering the spaces between them, and a
binding web of open-work metal consisting of continuous sheets extending across
the series of arches and embedded in the concrete of the arches and spaus,
substantially as set forth.
2. The improvement in the method of building concrete floors and ceilings
herein described, consisting in first placing upon their supporting beams bent metal

page_text: bars adapted to form the under portion of the arches in the completed structure,
then temporarily inclosing the arches by means of side planking set edgewise, then
temporarily flooring the intervening spaces by centering boards supported upon
the top edges of said arch-inclosing planking, and then completing the structure by
laying the binding sheets of open-work metal across the arches and spans and filling
in the concrete, substantially as specified.
3. A floor constructed substantially as described with reference to Figures 1 to 6,
or to the modification illustrated in Figure 7, or to that illustrated in Figure 8.
Dated this 2nd day of Anril 1895.
JOHN FRENCH GOLDING.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.