Patent Application
20240360664
The present invention relates generally to construction materials. More specifically, the present invention related to self-adhesive furring strips that are able to withstand exposure to various weather conditions.
Furring strips are commonly used in the construction industry to assist in the installation of certain wall materials such as drywall, plaster, and paneling. Furthermore, furring strips have been shown to be necessary to allow for the installation of insulation and ventilation materials, which can improve the energy and thermal efficiency of the wall system and promote healthy and safe standards of indoor air quality with the building. Traditionally these furring strips have been attached to walls using fasteners such as screws and nails however, this method of attaching the furring strips to the walls is a time-consuming process that requires a certain level of experience and skill to install properly. Additionally, the use of mechanical fasteners can create thermal bridging, especially at the location of the fastener hole, as these fasteners compromise the thermal barrier, which can compromise the insulation properties of the system. Not only do the existing furring strips affect insulation properties, however they may also restrict the airflow, as the prior art only provides solid piece strips wherein air cannot pass through.
To avoid the problems associated with furring strips attached using mechanical fasteners, self-adhesive furring strips have shown a viable solution. These self-adhesive furring strips comprise an adhesive backing that allows them to easily be applied to a wall without having the need for tools, without causing damage to the application surface, and without the user requiring the skills traditionally required to install the furring strips. Self-adhesive furring strips also offer several advantages over traditional furring strips including faster and easier installation, reduced labor costs, and improved thermal performance.
One problem with the prior art is that the adhesive on existing furring strips is that they are unable to withstand exposure to weather conditions such as rain, snow, and prolonged exposure to high temperatures, which can be attributed by direct solar exposure. Additionally, another problem with existing self-adhesive furring strips is that they do not effectively adhere to all surfaces. The furring strips within the prior art disclose inventions that lack the capabilities of adhering to uneven, bumpy, or otherwise irregular surfaces. The irregularities of the wall, inhibit the prior art furring strips from making the necessary contact with the adhered surface, which in many cases will lead to failure of the system. This improper contact can lead to the furring strips peeling away from the wall over time and thus compromising the integrity of the finished surface. Furthermore, self-adhesive furring strips within the prior art are not able to support the weight of the finished surface, even in instances where proper contact is made as the adhesive backing does not provide an adherent enough surface to securely fasten the strips to the wall without the additional support of screws and nails. For example, if the finished surface is over a weight threshold, the finished surface may detach from the wall potentially causing damage or injury. Additionally self-adhesive furring strips within the prior art may not be able to accommodate certain types of wall finishes such as painted or textured walls, especially if these walled surfaces are located on the exterior of a building. Another problem with the existing self-adhesive furring strips is that they may not provide sufficient insulation or more importantly ventilation, as is required in specific circumstances. In some cases, the prior art furring strips may compromise the ventilation properties of the system by reducing the air flow between the wall and the finished surface.
In conclusion the prior art fails to sort effectively solve the problem of effective adhesion to certain surfaces, the inability to withstand prolonged exposure to weather conditions, and restricts the ventilation required in particular instances; thus, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a solution for these aforementioned failures of the prior art.
An objective of the present invention is to provide a self-adhering furring strip. The present invention provides a furring strip with an adhesive backing that is capable of withstanding prolonged exposure to weather conditions. Furthermore, an additional objective of the present invention is to provide a furring strip that does not restrict the movement of air flow. The present invention comprises a furring strip with a plurality of through channels that promote air flow throughout the system.
The present invention related to a self-adhesive furring strip apparatus for construction comprising a rigid membrane and an adhesive. The rigid membrane comprises a plurality of through channels, allowing for improved ventilation. In some embodiments of the present invention, the adhesive comprises a weatherproof butyl adhesive for enduring prolonged exposure to weather conditions. In some embodiments, the present invention comprises a removable backing that removably attaches to the adhesive, wherein prior to installation, users may peel the removable backing off from the adhesive and thus adhere the furring strip to the desired location on a wall or other surface.
All illustrations of the drawings are for the purpose of describing selected versions of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.
As a preliminary matter, it will readily be understood by one having ordinary skill in the relevant art that the present disclosure has broad utility and application. As should be understood, any embodiment may incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed aspects of the disclosure and may further incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed features. Furthermore, any embodiment discussed and identified as being “preferred” is considered to be part of a best mode contemplated for carrying out the embodiments of the present disclosure. Other embodiments also may be discussed for additional illustrative purposes in providing a full and enabling disclosure. Moreover, many embodiments, such as adaptations, variations, modifications, and equivalent arrangements, will be implicitly disclosed by the embodiments described herein and fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Accordingly, while embodiments are described herein in detail in relation to one or more embodiments, it is to be understood that this disclosure is illustrative and exemplary of the present disclosure, and are made merely for the purposes of providing a full and enabling disclosure. The detailed disclosure herein of one or more embodiments is not intended, nor is to be construed, to limit the scope of patent protection afforded in any claim of a patent issuing here from, which scope is to be defined by the claims and the equivalents thereof. It is not intended that the scope of patent protection be defined by reading into any claim a limitation found herein that does not explicitly appear in the claim itself.
Additionally, it is important to note that each term used herein refers to that which an ordinary artisan would understand such term to mean based on the contextual use of such term herein. To the extent that the meaning of a term used herein—as understood by the ordinary artisan based on the contextual use of such term—differs in any way from any particular dictionary definition of such term, it is intended that the meaning of the term as understood by the ordinary artisan should prevail.
Furthermore, it is important to note that, as used herein, “a” and “an” each generally denotes “at least one,” but does not exclude a plurality unless the contextual use dictates otherwise. When used herein to join a list of items, “or” denotes “at least one of the items,” but does not exclude a plurality of items of the list. Finally, when used herein to join a list of items, “and” denotes “all of the items of the list.”
The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or similar elements. While many embodiments of the disclosure may be described, modifications, adaptations, and other implementations are possible. For example, substitutions, additions, or modifications may be made to the elements illustrated in the drawings, and the methods described herein may be modified by substituting, reordering, or adding stages to the disclosed methods. Accordingly, the following detailed description does not limit the disclosure. Instead, the proper scope of the disclosure is defined by the appended claims. The present disclosure contains headers. It should be understood that these headers are used as references and are not to be construed as limiting upon the subjected matter disclosed under the header.
Other technical advantages may become readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after review of the following figures and description. It should be understood at the outset that, although exemplary embodiments are illustrated in the figures and described below, the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented using any number of techniques, whether currently known or not. The present disclosure should in no way be limited to the exemplary implementations and techniques illustrated in the drawings and described below.
Unless otherwise indicated, the drawings are intended to be read together with the specification, and are to be considered a portion of the entire written description of this invention. As used in the following description, the terms “horizontal”, “vertical”, “left”, “right”, “up”, “down” and the like, as well as adjectival and adverbial derivatives thereof (e.g., “horizontally”, “rightwardly”, “upwardly”, “radially”, etc.), simply refer to the orientation of the illustrated structure as the particular drawing figure faces the reader. Similarly, the terms “inwardly,” “outwardly” and “radially” generally refer to the orientation of a surface relative to its axis of elongation, or axis of rotation, as appropriate.
The present disclosure includes many aspects and features. Moreover, while many aspects and features relate to, and are described in the context of a self-adhesive furring strip 1, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to use only in this context.
The present invention is a self-adhesive furring strip 1, as shown in
The rigid membrane 10 comprises a plurality of through channels 16, as shown in
In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the adhesive 20 is coupled to the underside 17 of the rigid membrane 10, as shown in
In some embodiments of the present invention, the self-adhesive furring strip 1 further comprises a removable backing 30, as shown in
In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the self-adhesive is manufactured using manufacturing methods including of 3D printing, machining, and other methods known to those in the art. Once the rigid membrane 10 is manufactured, the adhesive 20 is applied to one side of the rigid membrane 10. In some embodiments, the present invention may comprise a length of 48 inches to 96 inches, however the scope of the invention is not to be limited to such. In some embodiments of the present invention, the adhesive 20 is a rubber-based adhesive. Furthermore, in additional embodiment of the present invention, the adhesive is composed of a butyl adhesive. In the preferred embodiment, the rigid material is composed of a plastic polymer such as polypropylene.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
