Patent ID: 7073302

Claim:
An improved wall construction for positioning a plurality of rigid, self-supporting panels to provide exterior walls and/or divide or partition interior building space, said panels having a substantially rectangular shape with an inner and outer face and a top, bottom, front and rear edge, said wall construction comprising: a plurality of parallel and coplanar orientated hat channel members, said hat channel members each having a substantially hat-shaped cross section that includes a large flange and a small flange joined together by a spine channel located therebetween, said large flange, small flange, and spine channel each having a substantially flat outer surface with said outer surfaces in substantially parallel respective position, said large and small flanges being in planar respective position; a first panel positioned adjacent to said large flange on a first hat channel member such that inner face of said first panel is in contact with outer surface of said large flange with said front edge of first panel in substantially parallel alignment with said first hat channel member and inner face of said first panel partially covers outer surface of said large flange, said first panel further being connected to said first hat channel by means of a plurality of penetrating connectors positioned through said large flange and terminating within said first panel; a second panel positioned with inner face adjacent to said outer surface of spine channel on first hat channel member such that said front edge of second panel is in substantially parallel alignment with said first hat channel member and inner face of said second panel covers a portion of the outer surface of said spine channel, said second panel further being connected to said first hat channel by means of a plurality of penetrating connectors positioned through said spine channel and terminating within said second panel, said second panel further having a plurality of symmetric recesses centered along said front edge, said recesses each being furnished with a symmetric connector inserted therein such that one-half of each symmetric connector extends outward from said front edge; a third panel positioned with inner face adjacent to outer surface of said large flange and said small flange and further being positioned with rear edge in abutted relation to said front edge of said first panel, said third panel further being connected to said first hat channel by means of a plurality of penetrating connectors positioned through said small flange and terminating within said third panel, and; a fourth panel positioned with inner face adjacent to said outer surface of said spine channel, said fourth panel further having a plurality of symmetric recesses centered along said rear edge, said recesses positioned to receive symmetric connectors located along front edge of said fourth panel is placed in abutted relation to front edge of said second panel.