Patent ID: 8128851

Claim:
A method of making a concrete block having a three-dimensional patterned face; the method comprising steps of: (a) providing a mold having a plurality of solid aperture-free side walls defining a mold cavity; the mold including: an open mold bottom closed by a pallet; and, a mold surface having a three-dimensional pattern thereon with: a mirror image of the three-dimensional patterned face; and, a maximum relief, in the three-dimensional pattern, of at least about 0.5 inch; (i) the mold surface, of the mold provided, having a three-dimensional pattern resulting from: selection of a three-dimensional pattern of one or more existing objects; digital scanning of the selected three-dimensional pattern to create scanned data in XYZ coordinates that is representative of the selected three-dimensional pattern; creation, from the scanned data in the XYZ coordinates, of a digital data set that is representative of a desired three-dimensional patterned face based on the scanned data; and, use of the digital data set to create the mold surface as a mirror image of the desired block face; (b) introducing dry cast concrete into the mold cavity; (c) compacting the dry cast concrete in the mold cavity to form a pre-cured concrete block with the mold surface having the mirror image of the desired block face forming the desired three-dimensional patterned face on the pre-cured block; (i) the pre-cured concrete block including a rear face opposite the three-dimensional patterned face, an upper face, a lower face opposite the upper face, opposite side faces with at least one side face converging toward the other in extension across the entire distance from adjacent the front face having the three-dimensional patterned face thereon to the rear face; (d) discharging the pre-cured block from the mold cavity onto the pallet; and, (e) curing the pre-cured concrete block.