Patent ID: 8910455

Claim:
A composite I-beam member to provide support to a structure, comprising: a confined top flange comprising a wooden core and a metal jacket wrapped around an outer perimeter of the wooden core and two opposing inner side walls of a rectangular channel slotted within the wooden core, wherein the metal jacket is pre-stressed to confine the wooden core, providing a two-way lateral interaction normal to an interface between the metal jacket and the wooden core and, when subjected to compression, providing an amount of support to the top flange surpassing the sum of amount of support provided by the metal jacket and the wooden core when being used separately; a confined bottom flange comprising substantially a mirror image of the confined top flange; and a composite laminated web, having a top edge portion inserted into and locked with the confined top flange and a bottom edge portion inserted into and locked with the confined bottom flange using metal connectors that penetrate an entire width of the confined top and bottom flanges through the two inner side walls of the rectangular channel, wherein the composite laminated web comprises: a wooden web sandwiched between two pieces of light-gauged metal covers, the metal covers being bonded to the wooden web and being laterally supported by the wooden web which provides a one-way lateral interaction normal to an interface between the metal covers and the wooden web, and when subjected to shear forces, providing an amount of support to the structure surpassing the amount of support provided by the metal covers when being used without the wooden web, wherein the metal covers each comprise a plurality of teeth that bind a metal sheet to the wooden web, wherein the metal connectors penetrate the two inner side walls of the rectangular channel and six-layers of metal jackets including both metal jackets of outer side walls of a composite flange perimeter, both metal jackets of the inner side walls of the rectangular channel of the top or bottom flange, and both metal jackets of long sides of a perimeter portion of the composite laminated web engaged within the slotted rectangular channel of the top or bottom flange.