CONNECTOR SYSTEM AND BUILDING COMPONENTS FOR USE IN BUILDING CONSTRUCTION

Abstract

An example connector system embodiment may be used to quickly align and interconnect two framing members, planar panels or other building components, e.g. during erection of prefabricated or component housing. The connector system includes a male connector and a female connector. The connectors can be attached to, or may be integrally formed with, respective building components to be interconnected. The male connector comprises a tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in the direction of protrusion, so as to impart a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension. A corresponding female connector comprises a receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion. The taper may facilitate centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector during mating of the connectors. Depending on the orientation of the connectors, the facilitation of centering may be enhanced by gravity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure pertains to a connector system and building components for use in building construction, such as during the erection of prefabricated, modular or component housing for example.

BACKGROUND

Various approaches for erecting prefabricated houses, or other structures, are known. One approach has been to build an entire house, such as a container home, in a factory, transport the completed house to a building site and attach it to a foundation. For this approach to be possible, it may be necessary for the house to be manufactured so as not to exceed maximum transportation load sizes that may be imposed by law. Even if possible, it may be impractical to transport an entire house from a factory in view of potential transportation difficulties such as physical obstacles on roadways between the site and factory (e.g. bridges, tunnels, overhead obstructions and the like). Indeed, the potential difficulty and cost of transportation may be a deterrent for using this approach, particularly as the distance between the building site and the factory increases.

Another approach has been to build a house in several modular pieces at a factory, transport the pieces to the building site, and assemble the pieces on the foundation. The pieces may be interconnected on site and may be covered by an appropriate rendering, e.g. mixtures of sand, cement and/or waterproofing mix. Although the pieces will be smaller than the entire house, the cost of transportation may still be a deterrent for using this approach, and legal or practical size limitations may still need to be observed.

Yet another approach has been to build on site in the traditional manner but with some of the material, such as roof trusses, being preassembled.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a connector system for interconnecting two building components, the connector system comprising: a male connector comprising a connector body for attachment to a building component; and a tapered protrusion protruding from the connector body, the tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in a direction of protrusion, thereby imparting a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension; a female connector comprising: a connector body for attachment to another building component; and a receptacle defined within the connector body of the female connector, the receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion of the male connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector, wherein the taper of the tapered protrusion is for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension through sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during the mating of the male connector with the female connector.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a pair of building components for use in building construction, the pair of building components comprising a first building component comprising an integrally formed male connector, the male connector having a tapered protrusion, the tapered protrusion protruding from the connector body, the tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in a direction of protrusion, thereby imparting a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension; a second building component comprising an integrally formed female connector having a receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion of the male connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector, wherein the taper of the tapered protrusion is for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension through sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during the mating of the male connector with the female connector.

In a further aspect of the present disclosure, there may be provided a structural panel comprising the above connector system or the above pair of building components.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the figures which illustrate exemplary embodiments:

FIGS. 1-4 illustrate a perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively, of an exemplary male connector of an exemplary connector system;

FIGS. 5-8 illustrate a perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively, of an exemplary female connector of an exemplary connector system;

FIGS. 9 and 10 are cross-sectional views of exemplary framing members onto which the male or female connectors may be mounted;

FIGS. 11-14 illustrate a top view, side view, bottom view and perspective view, respectively, of the male connector mounted to an example framing member;

FIGS. 15-19 illustrate a bottom view, side view, top view, perspective bottom view and perspective top view, respectively, of the female connector mounted to an example framing member;

FIGS. 20-25 illustrate the interconnection of two example framing members connected through the mating of the male and female connectors of FIGS. 1-4 and 5-8, respectively;

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the framing member of FIGS. 11-14 interconnected to the framing member of FIGS. 15-17;

FIG. 27 illustrates use of the framing members of FIG. 26 for anchoring a wall to a foundation;

FIG. 28 is a cross sectional view of the framing members of FIG. 26 with the wall board attached to both sides;

FIGS. 29-31 illustrate an example of an enclosed framing member, with a female connector attached thereto, in perspective view, side view and end view, respectively;

FIGS. 32-33 illustrate an alternative embodiment of the male and female connectors, respectively, in perspective view;

FIG. 34 illustrates the male and female connectors of FIGS. 32 and 33, in perspective view, with the connectors having been mated;

FIG. 35 illustrates the interconnected male and female connectors of FIG. 34, in front view, with each connector being attached to a respective framing member;

FIGS. 36 and 37 illustrate a first building component comprising an integral male connector, in plan and side view, respectively;

FIGS. 38 and 39 illustrate a second building component comprising an integrally formed female connector, in plan and side view, respectively;

FIGS. 40, 41 and 42 illustrate the framing members of FIGS. 36-37 and 38-39 with the male and female connectors having been mated, in perspective view, front view and side view, respectively;

FIG. 43 illustrates, in perspective view, a further alternative embodiment of the female connector;

FIGS. 44 and 45 illustrate, in perspective view, an alternative embodiment of a male connector that is formed from a female connector and an adapter;

FIG. 46 illustrates, in perspective view, the adapter of FIG. 44;

FIGS. 47 and 48 illustrate, in perspective view, one half of the adapter of FIG. 44;

FIGS. 49-53 illustrate, in perspective view, plan view, front view, side view and cross sectional view, respectively, an alternative embodiment of a male connector;

FIGS. 54-57 illustrate, in perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively, an alternative embodiment of a female connector; and

FIGS. 58-62 illustrate, in perspective view, plan view, front view, side view, and cross sectional view, respectively, the male connector of FIGS. 49-53 connected to the female connector of FIGS. 54-57.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In this document, the term “exemplary” is understood to mean “an example of” and does not necessarily connote that the example is preferred or exceptional in any way.

In overview, an exemplary connector system may be used to quickly align and interconnect two adjacent framing members, planar structural panels or other building components, e.g. during erection of prefabricated or modular housing. The connector system includes a male connector and a female connector. The connectors can be attached to, or may be integrally formed with, respective building components to be interconnected.

An exemplary male connector comprises a tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in the direction of protrusion, so as to impart a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension. The at least one dimension may be transverse or longitudinal with respect to the male connector body. In other words, upon attachment of the male connector to a building component having an elongate shape (e.g. a framing member or an edge of a structural panel), the dimension of tapering may either be transverse to the longitudinal axis of the building component, or parallel to that axis (or both). A corresponding female connector comprises a receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion. The taper of the tapered protrusion facilitates centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension. The centering is facilitated by sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during mating of the male connector with the female connector. Depending on the orientation of the connectors, the facilitation of centering may be enhanced by gravity.

In one embodiment, the tapered protrusion may be hollow and may have a generally frusto-pyramidal shape with a polygonal (e.g. rectangular or square) cross-sectional shape. The shape of the receptacle may be complementary to that of the tapered protrusion, e.g. may define a frusto-pyramidal recess. The complementary three-dimensional shapes of the tapered protrusion and corresponding receptacle may collectively facilitate a predetermined rotational alignment between the male connector and the female connector (and of any building components attached to or integrally formed with the male and female connectors respectively) during mating of the male connector with the female connector. The reason is that full seating of the male connector within the female connector may require a predetermined rotational alignment of the connectors, at one or more predetermined angles with respect to one another.

Some embodiments of the connector system may not inherently promote rotational alignment between the male and female connectors during mating thereof. The cross-sectional shape of the tapered protrusion and/or of the complementary receptacle of such embodiments may not be polygonal. For example, they may instead be circular, e.g. as in the case of a conical or frusto-conical tapered protrusion and complementary circular receptacle for example. A desired alignment between adjacent building components may instead be achieved by using multiple connectors along each edge of a building component, as described below.

The relative rotational angles at which the male and female connectors can be mated may accordingly depend upon the cross-sectional shapes of the tapered progression and complementary recess (e.g., 0° or 180° in the case of a rectangular cross-sectional shape; 0°, 90 °, 180°, or 270° in the case of a square cross sectional shape; any value from 0° to 3600 in the case of a circular cross-section; and so forth, to name but several examples).

In one embodiment, the recess may be more than twice as wide as it is deep.

The base of the tapered protrusion of the male connector (i.e. the proximal end that is opposite from the distal end or tip) may be sized so as to span most or all of a width of a building component (e.g. framing member) to which the male connector is to be attached or with which it is integrally formed. Similarly, the receptacle of the female connector may be sized so as to span most or all of a width of another building component (e.g. another framing member) to which the female connector is attached or with which it is integrally formed. This relative sizing of the base and receptacle to their respective building component widths may facilitate interconnection of the connectors in the field. For example, presuming the tapered protrusion is hollow, the relatively large size of the base may facilitate access to an interior of the tapered protrusion, e.g. for accessing a receptor that is used for interconnecting the male connector with the female connector. Alternatively or in conjunction, when the opening defined by the receptacle has a relatively large size, even just an approximate alignment of the male and female connectors should result in some overlap between the tip of the tapered protrusion of the male connector and the receptacle of the female connector. Once that overlap has been achieved, the centering effect described above may more easily proceed, possibly with the help of gravity (again, depending on the orientation of the connectors). The cross-sectional area of the tip of the tapered protrusion may intentionally be made significantly less than the cross-sectional area of the opening defined by the receptacle, in order to contribute to this result (e.g. the cross-sectional area of the tip of the tapered protrusion may be less than 15% of the cross-sectional area of the opening defined by the receptacle; other percentages are also contemplated).

The tapered protrusion of the male connector may be hollow, have an open base and an open tip. As a result, it may be possible to see through the male connector, from the tip through the connector body or vice-versa. A rationale for the open base and/or open tip may simply be a desire to less material during manufacture of the connectors than would otherwise be used if the base or tip were not open.

The cross-sectional area of the base of the tapered protrusion may be much larger than that of the tip of the tapered protrusion (e.g. ratio of 6:1 or higher).

When the male connector has been mated with the female connector, a receptor (e.g. a threaded hole) in the tapered protrusion of the male connector may be aligned with a corresponding receptor (e.g. a similar threaded hole) in the receptacle of the female connector. A fastener (e.g. screw) may be passed through the aligned receptors along an axis common to the receptors, in order to interconnect the male and female connectors.

When male and female connectors are separate components from the building components to which they will respectively be attached, each of the connectors may have one or more flanges for attaching the respective connector to its respective building component. The flange of a connector may have an access hole for accessing the receptor of the same connector. In the case of the male connector, the access hole may be on the opposite side of the connector from the receptor to be accessed. In this case the receptor may be accessible from within the interior of the tapered protrusion, which may be hollow. In the case of the female connector, the access hole may be on the same side of the connector as the receptor to be accessed. In this case, the receptor may be accessible from the exterior of the receptacle.

The access hole by which a receptor is to be accessed, whether it is on the male connector or the female connector, may be positioned such that the common axis of the aligned receptors passes therethrough when the male and female connectors are mated. This may be to facilitate insertion of a fastener into the receptor, through the access hole, along the axis. The axis may be angled away, by a predetermined angle (e.g. 30 degrees), from being perpendicular to a wall of the tapered protrusion, or may simply be perpendicular to the wall. The angle may be chosen to facilitate use of a tool for inserting the fastener in tight quarters.

The male and female connectors may have receptors and access holes on both sides in mirror image, in order to provide flexibility as to which side is used (either one or both) to interconnect the male and female connectors, depending upon which access hole(s) is/are accessible in a construction environment. When the male and female connectors are integrally formed with their respective building components, which may be C-sections or hollow framing members for example, the access holes may be formed in flanges or walls that define a widthwise extent of those building components.

As alluded to above, multiple male connectors may be spaced at predetermined distances along a building component (e.g. a framing member or planar structural panel), and multiple female connectors may be spaced at the same predetermined distance along another building component (e.g. another framing member or another panel). This may facilitate quick alignment and interconnection of the building components at multiple interconnection points, even in the case where the male and female connectors can be mated at any relative rotational angle (e.g. when the tapered protrusion and complementary receptacle are both circular).

Referring to FIGS. 1-8, an exemplary embodiment of a connector system 100 is illustrated. The connector system 100 includes a male connector 102 and a female connector 152.

The male connector 102 is illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, in perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively. The male connector 102 may be formed from sheet metal (e.g. progressive stamped sheet metal) or another rigid material. The exemplary connector is slightly longer than it is wide, although this is not necessarily true of all embodiments.

Referring first to FIG. 1, it can be seen that the exemplary male connector 102 comprises a connector body 103 and a tapered protrusion 106 protruding from the body 103. The connector body 103 comprises a plate 104 and opposing flanges 108 and 110 extending from opposite sides of the plate 104 in a direction opposite to the direction of taper of the tapered protrusion 106. As will become apparent, the flanges 108 and 110 are for attaching the male connector 102 to a building component such as a framing member or planar panel. In the illustrated example, the plate 104, flange 108 and flange 110 are formed from a single piece of sheet metal, with the flanges 108 and 110 being bent at right angles to the plate 104. This construction may facilitate manufacture, and may contribute to the structural integrity, of the male connector 102. However, the flanges could be made in other ways in other embodiments (e.g. the flanges could be attached to the plate 104, e.g. by welding). The flanges 108 and 110 may have various shapes in different embodiments.

The cross-sectional extent of the tapered protrusion 106 of the illustrated embodiment decreases monotonically, in two dimensions, in the direction of protrusion, giving the tapered protrusion a two-dimensional taper in a direction away from the connector body 103. The height of the tapered protrusion (i.e. the distance it protrudes from the body 103) of the present embodiment is about half of the width of the tapered protrusion at its foot 140 (see FIG. 3). The tapered protrusion 106 of the exemplary embodiment has a frusto-pyramidal shape, with a rectangular cross-section. The exemplary tapered protrusion 106 is hollow, has an open base 111 and has an open tip 112. As such, an open passage (in this case, a frusto-pyramidal passage) is defined through the tapered protrusion 106. The open passage extends through the connector body 103. As a result, it is possible to see through the male connector 102 to the other side (e.g. as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2). In some embodiments, this passage might help a user to visually align the male connector 102 with a corresponding female connector 152, although this may not be possible if the building component to which the male connector is attached obstructs this view. In some embodiments, an open tip may allow less material to be used and cost of manufacturing the connector to be reduced as a result. In some embodiments, an open tip may facilitate stamping of the tapered protrusion 106 from a single piece of flat sheet metal. For example, in a progressive stamping process, a flat sheet of sheet metal may be progressively deformed, in multiple steps or passes, until the desired shape is achieved. If the tip of the tapered protrusion 106 were to remain closed, it may be difficult or impossible to stamp the tapered protrusion 106 in this way without over-stretching or tearing the metal at the tip location, i.e. at the distal end of the tapered protrusion 106 (the “peak of the pyramid”). An open tip relieves the manufacturer from this burden. This factor may be less of a concern for other types of manufacture, such as injection die casting.

As perhaps best seen in the plan view of FIG. 2, the frusto-pyramidal shape of tapered protrusion 106 is defined by four sloping side walls 114, 116, 118 and 120, each wall having a trapezoidal shape. In this description, walls 114 and 118 may be referred to as side walls 114 and 118, wall 116 may be referred to as the back wall 116, and wall 120 may be referred to as the front wall 120. These labels are for ease of reference only and should not be understood to necessarily imply a particular orientation of the male connector 102 during use.

As shown in FIG. 2, side wall 114 has three holes 122 therethrough, and side wall 118 also has three holes 124 therethrough. These holes 122, 124 may be referred to generically as receptors because the holes 122 and 124, or at least a subset of holes 122 and/or 124, are intended to receive interconnectors or fasteners (e.g. screws, bolts, rivets, or the like) that will serve to interconnect or fasten the male connector 102 with/to the female connector 152 (described below) during use. The number of receptors 122, 124 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments of the male connector.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, flanges 108 and 110 have an access hole 128 and 130 for accessing the receptors 124 and 122 of the opposing side wall 118 and 114, respectively, during interconnection of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152. More particularly, the access hole 128 permits access to the receptors 124 of the opposing side wall 118 (i.e. from within the hollow interior of the tapered protrusion 106), while the access hole 130 similarly permits access to the receptors 122 of the opposing side wall 114. During use, a tool, such as a screwdriver, may be passed through the access hole 128, 130 for the purpose of inserting interconnectors or fasteners (e.g. screws, bolts, rivets, etc.) into the receptors 124, 122 (respectively), during interconnection of male connector 102 with female connector 152. As will be described, it is possible that only one of the access holes will actually be used for this purpose during installation.

The access holes 128 and 130 may be round, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, or they may have a different shape, e.g. square, obround or rectangular, to name but a few examples. Access holes having a horizontally elongate shape (e.g. obround, rectangular, oval, etc.) may facilitate ready access to each of the multiple receptors 122, 124 during use, given the arrangement of those receptors in a horizontal row in the illustrated embodiment.

As also shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, each of flanges 108 and 110 has a pair of holes 132 and 134, respectively, for use in attaching or mounting the male connector 102 to a framing member 200, which is notionally shown in dashed lines (end view) in FIG. 3. This will be described in greater detail below.

The female connector 152 is illustrated in FIGS. 5-8, in perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively. The example female connector 152 may similarly be formed from sheet metal or another rigid material.

Referring to FIG. 5, it can be seen that the example female connector 152 comprises a connector body 153 and a receptacle 156 defined within the body. In the present embodiment, the connector body 153 comprises a plate 154 with flanges 158 and 160 extending downwardly from opposite sides of the plate 154 so as to flank the receptacle 156. The flanges 158 and 160 are for attaching the female connector 152 to another building component, such as a framing member or planar panel, to be interconnected with the building component to which the male connector 102 is attached. In the illustrated example, the plate 154, flange 158 and flange 160 are formed from a single piece of sheet metal, with the flanges 158 and 160 being bent at right angles to the plate 154. As with the male connector 102, this construction may facilitate manufacture of the female connector 152 and may contribute to its structural integrity. However, the flanges could be made in other ways in other embodiments (e.g. from separate pieces attached by welding). The flanges may have various shapes in alternative embodiments.

The receptacle 156 is shaped to receive the tapered protrusion 106 upon mating of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152. In the present example, the receptacle 156 has a two-dimensional taper similar to that of the tapered protrusion 106. In particular, the receptacle 156 defines a three-dimensional frusto-pyramidal recess that is complementary to the frusto-pyramidal shape of the tapered protrusion 106. This may promote predetermined rotational alignment of the male and female connectors 106 and 156, since full seating of the male connector with the female connector during mating will only be possible, in the exemplary embodiment, when the male connector is at 0 degrees or 180 degrees rotation in relation to the female connector. This is in view of the rectangular cross-sectional of the tapered protrusion 106 and complementary rectangular cross-sectional shape of the receptacle 156. The cross-sectional area of the tip 112 of the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector 102 (see FIGS. 2 and 4) may be significantly less (e.g. 15% or less) than the cross-sectional area of the opening defined by the receptacle 156. This relative sizing may help to initiate seating of the tapered protrusion 106 within the receptacle 156 during interconnection because even approximate alignment of the connectors may be enough for the tip to become situated within the receptacle. The illustrated recess is more than twice as wide as it is deep. This ratio may differ in other embodiments.

The floor 162 of the receptacle (i.e. the deepest part of the receptacle-see FIGS. 6 and 7) is open in the present embodiment. As such, the receptacle 156 defines an open passage that extends through the connector body of the female connector 156. As a result, it is possible to see through the female connector 152 to the other side (e.g. as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6). The reasons for keeping the floor 162 open may be similar to the reasons for keeping the tip of the tapered protrusion 106 open (see above). The floor 162 of the receptacle is not necessarily open in all embodiments.

As perhaps best seen in the plan view of FIG. 6, the frusto-pyramidal receptacle 156 of the female connector 152 is defined by four sloping side walls 164, 166, 168 and 170, each wall having a trapezoidal shape. In this description, walls 164 and 168 may be referred to as side walls 164 and 168, wall 166 may be referred to as the back wall 166, and wall 170 may be referred to as the front wall 170. These labels should not be understood to necessarily imply a particular orientation of the female connector 152 during its use. In the illustrated embodiment, side walls 164 and 168 are each angled 30 degrees from the vertical, and side walls 166 and 170 are each angled 45 degrees from the vertical. These values may differ in alternative embodiments.

Side wall 164 has three holes 172 therethrough, and side wall 168 similarly has three holes 174 therethrough. Like the holes 122, 124 of the male connector 102, the holes 172, 174 of the female connector 152 may be referred to generically as receptors. The reason, as earlier noted, is that the receptors 172 and 174, or at least a subset of receptors 172 and/or a subset of receptors 174, are intended to receive fasteners that will serve to interconnect the female connector 152 with the male connector 102 during use. The number of receptors 172 and 174 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments of the female connector 152 but will normally match the number and arrangement of corresponding receptors 122 and 124, respectively, of the male connector 102.

Flanges 158 and 160 each have an access hole 178 and 180 for accessing the receptors 172 and 174 of the adjacent side wall 164 and 168, respectively, during interconnection of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152. More particularly, the access hole 178 permits access to the receptors 172 of the adjacent side wall 164, while the access hole 180 permits access to the receptors 174 of the adjacent side wall 168. Notably, each access hole 178, 180 is used to access receptors 172, 174 (respectively) of the adjacent side wall (i.e. the side wall on the same side of the female connector 152 as the flange), rather than the opposite side wall (i.e. the side wall on the other side of the female connector 152 from the flange). That is to say, access to the receptors 172, 174 through the access holes 178, 180 is not from the interior side of the receptacle walls 164, 168, as described above in the case of the male connector 102, but rather from the exterior side of the receptacle walls 164, 168, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 8, the access hole 180 may be horizontally offset from the receptors 174 (i.e. offset vertically in FIG. 5). This may be to accommodate an inclined trajectory T (see FIG. 7) of access to the receptors 174, e.g. using a tool such as a screwdriver, when interconnectors or fasteners such as screws are inserted. The trajectory T, which may coincide with an axis that is common to a receptor 174 of the female connector 152 and the corresponding receptor 124 of the male connector 102 when the two connectors are mated, may be perpendicular to side wall 168 of the receptacle 156. In the illustrated embodiment, the trajectory T is thus angled 30 degrees from the horizontal.

Like the access holes 128 and 130 of male connector 102, the access holes 178 and 180 are not necessarily round, but instead may have another shape such as square, obround, oval or rectangular, to name but a few examples. The shape may be chosen to facilitate access to the receptors 172, 174 of the embodiment in question.

Each of flanges 158 and 160 also has a pair of holes 182 and 184, respectively, for use in attaching or mounting the female connector 152 to a framing member 202, which is notionally shown in dashed lines (end view) in FIG. 7.

It will be appreciated that, in the exemplary connector system 100 described above, flanges 108 and 110 are spaced apart by a distance D (see FIG. 3) that approximately matches a width of the framing member 200 to which the male connector 102 will be attached. This is intended to facilitate secure attachment of the male connector 102 to the framing member 200. Similarly, the flanges 158 and 160 of the female connector 152 are spaced apart by the same distance D for similar reasons. The attachment of the male connector 102 and female connector 152 to their respective framing members is described below.

Moreover, on the male connector 102, the foot 140 of the tapered protrusion 106 (i.e. its widest portion, at or near the point where the tapered protrusion 106 meets with the connector body 103—see FIG. 3) spans substantially the entire width of the framing member 200. Similarly, the receiving end of the receptacle 156 of the female connector 152 spans substantially the entire width of the other framing member 202. This may facilitate interconnection for various reasons, as alluded to above.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are cross-sectional views of example framing members onto which the connectors 102 or 152 may be anchored or mounted. In FIG. 9, a light steel framing member 900 is shown. This type of framing member might be made through progressive bending of sheet metal, e.g. by using rollers in a roll-forming machines employed to manufacture framing members for the construction industry, to the desired cross-sectional shape. The framing member 900 of FIG. 9 has a wall 902, two flanges 904 and 906, each with an overhanging portion 908 and 910 respectively, and an open area 912, resulting in a cross sectional C-shape. Framing member 900 may be referred to in shorthand as a C-section for this reason. The overhanging portions 908, 910 may not exist in some embodiments. In some embodiments, the sheet metal may be steel. In some embodiments, the metal may have a thickness of 1 mm or less.

Referring to FIG. 10, two C-sections 900A, 900B may be joined together, in mirror image, to create a “composite” hollow framing member 1000 whose cross section is enclosed rather than open. This may be referred to as a “boxable section.” The achieve this, one flange 904 of each of the framing members 900A, 900B may be made slightly longer than the other flange 906, so that the longer flange of one C-section can accommodate the shorter flange of the other C-section. The two C-sections may be screwed together at set intervals (e.g. between 600 mm to 900 mm) to allow the transfer of the structural load from one C-section to the other and to allow the framing member 1000 to act a single structural unit. In this arrangement, the outermost (longer) flanges 904 may be considered to define walls of the framing member 1000. The walls may be considered to define a widthwise extent E of the framing member 1000 (see FIG. 10).

FIGS. 11-14 illustrate a male connector 102 attached to an example framing member 200 having a C-shaped cross section. FIGS. 11-13 constitute a top view, side view, and bottom view, respectively. FIG. 14 is a perspective view. The framing member 200 may be sized according to typical industry sizes. For example, the framing member 200 may have a cross-sectional width of 89 mm and a cross-sectional height of 41 mm.

As illustrated, the male connector 102 is attached to the framing member at a square opening 212 that has been punched through the sheet metal of framing member 200. The male connector 102 is placed inside the C-shaped framing member 200 so that the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector 102 protrudes through the opening 212. As best seen in FIG. 11, the overhanging portions 908, 910 of the flanges 904, 906 of the C-section 200 in the area of opening 212 may be removed to facilitate placement of the male connector 102 within the C-section 200. This is not necessarily true for all embodiments. For example, it may be possible to place the connector 102 in position by inserting it through the opening 212. In the present embodiment, the longitudinal extent of the male connector 102 is greater than that of the opening 212, resulting in overlap longitudinally between the plate 104 of male connector 102 and the transverse edges of the opening 212. The distance D between the flanges 108, 110 of the exemplary male connector 102 (see FIG. 3) is such that the flanges 108, 110 are snugly received, or “nested,” between the surrounding flanges 904, 906 of the framing member 200.

The male connector 102 may be attached or mounted in position by interconnectors or fasteners, such as screws, bolts, rivets, or the like, which pass through holes in the framing member 200 that are aligned with holes 132 and 134 in the flanges 108 and 110 of the male connector 102. In the result, the male connector 102 is removably or permanently attached to the framing member 200, with most of tapered protrusion 102 protruding through the opening 212. This is perhaps best seen in FIGS. 12 and 14.

The framing member 200 has a pair of access holes 214 (only one of which is visible in FIGS. 12 and 14) in its flanges which align with the access holes 128 and 130 of the male connector 102. This is so that access to the holes 122 and 124 through access holes 130 and 128, respectively, is not obstructed by the flanges of the C-section framing member 200 after the male connector 102 has been attached thereto.

FIGS. 15-19 illustrate a female connector 152 attached to an example framing member 202 that, like framing member 200 of FIGS. 11-14, has a C-shaped cross section. FIGS. 15-17 constitute a bottom view, side view, and top view, respectively. FIGS. 18 and 19 are bottom and top perspective views, respectively.

Like the male connector 102, the female connector 152 is attached to its respective framing member 202 at a square hole 222 that has been punched through the sheet metal of the framing member. This may be in addition to other holes 975 punched for use in anchoring the framing member 202 to a foundation. The female connector 152 may be placed inside the C-shaped framing member 202 so that the receptacle 156 is aligned with the hole 222. In the illustrated example, the longitudinal extent of the female connector 152 is greater than that of the hole 222, resulting in overlap 965 (see FIG. 15) longitudinally between the plate 154 of female connector 152 and the transverse edges of the hole 222. The female connector 152 may be attached to the framing member 202 by interconnectors or fasteners, such as screws, bolts, rivets or the like, which pass through holes in the framing member 202 that are aligned with holes 182 and 184 in the flanges 158 and 160 of the female connector 152. In the result, the female connector 152 is attached to the framing member 202 such that receptacle 156 extends into framing member 202. This is perhaps best seen in FIG. 19.

Also, as was the case with framing member 200 to which the male connector 102 is attached, framing member 202 has a pair of access holes 224 (see FIG. 18) in its flanges which align with the access holes 178 and 180 of the female connector 152. This is so that access to the holes 172 and 174 through access holes 178 and 180, respectively, for installation purposes for example, is not obstructed by the flanges of the framing member 202 after the female connector 152 has been attached thereto.

In some embodiments, the male connector 102 may be attached to C-section 200 so that the tapered protrusion points away from the C-section 200 on the open area 912 side of the “C” (see FIG. 9), rather than through an opening 212 that has been punched through the sheet metal wall 902 of the “closed side” of the C-section 200 as in FIGS. 11-14. Similarly, in some embodiments, the female connector 152 may be attached to a C-section 200 so that the receiving end of the receptacle is on the open area 912 side of the C-section 200, rather than being aligned with an opening 222 that has been punched through the sheet metal 902 of the “closed side” of the C-section 200, as in FIGS. 15-19.

Interconnection of example framing members 200 and 202 by way of male and female connectors 102 and 152 is illustrated in FIGS. 20-25. FIGS. 20, 22 and 24 illustrate centering and rotational alignment of the male and female connectors 102 and 152 during mating of the connectors, as viewed from the ends of the respective framing members 200 and 202. In FIGS. 20, 22 and 24, the X and Z dimensions are shown horizontally and vertically, respectively. FIGS. 21, 23 and 25 illustrate the connectors 102 and 152 of FIGS. 20, 22 and 24, respectively, in plan view, i.e. in the X and Y dimensions. In all of FIGS. 20-25, it is presumed that female connector 152 is attached in position (e.g. its framing member 202 may be attached to a foundation) while the male connector 102 and the framing member 200 to which it is attached are free to move. It will be appreciated that, in other embodiments, the male connector 102 may be anchored in position while the female connector 152 is free to move, or the connectors and the building components to which they are respectively anchored may both be free to move, with neither building component being anchored to any foundation or other structure.

Referring to FIG. 21, the initial positioning of framing member 200 over framing member 202 is such that the male connector 102 is offset in both the X and Y dimensions from the female connector 152. This offset may simply be due to inadvertent misalignment of the connectors by a construction worker who is tasked with the interconnection of the framing members 200 and 202. With a view to mating the male and female connectors 102 and 152, the framing member 200 is lowered, i.e. moved downwardly in the Z dimension, as illustrated by arrow L1 in FIG. 20.

Referring now to FIGS. 22 and 23, once the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector 102 is lowered just into the receptacle 156 of the female connector 152, the exterior of the right side wall 118 of the male connector 102 contacts the interior of the right side wall 168 of the receptacle 156. The contact point is shown at reference character C of FIG. 22. This contact is due to the misalignment of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152 in the X dimension. After making contact C, the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector 102 slidably engages the interior of the side wall 168 of the receptacle 156. As a result of the taper of the tapered protrusion 106, here in combination with the slope of wall 168, the male connector 102 and attached framing member 200 are translated in the X dimension as it is lowered in the Z dimension with the assistance of gravity. The translation and lowering are collectively denoted by reference character L2 of FIG. 22.

Moreover, due to similar sliding engagement of the exterior side of back wall 116 of tapered protrusion 106 upon the interior side of the back wall 166 of the receptacle 156 or the back edge of the rectangular opening defined by the receptacle 156 (not expressly shown), translation of the male connector 102, and attached framing member 200, also occurs in the Y dimension, in addition to the translation in the X dimension described above, as the framing member 200 is lowered. The resulting translation in the X and Y dimensions, which is collectively indicated by arrow M of FIG. 23, serves to center the male connector 102 with respect to the female connector 152, in those two dimensions, as the tapered protrusion 106 of the former is seated within the receptacle 156 of the latter. This may relieve a construction worker from the trouble of having to manually center the two framing members 200 and 202 with respect to one another.

Ease of centering may be particularly valuable in construction projects wherein the building components to be connected or erected are structural wall panels with drywall or other cladding already affixed to both sides. In such cases, any gaps resulting from improperly centered or ill-positioned building components might be readily apparent on the face of the drywall or cladding that already forms part of the structural panel. This may differ from conventional construction techniques, wherein a frame is erected first and then covered with drywall or cladding at a later stage of construction. In the latter case, it may be possible to hide gaps or imperfections in the frame by later covering them with the drywall or cladding. This may not be a feasible option for pre-cladded structural panels.

It will also be appreciated that the 3D shape of the frusto-pyramidal tapered protrusion 106, together with the 3D shape of the receptacle, facilitate rotational alignment of the male connector 102 with respect to the female connector 152 during mating of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152. For example, if, prior to mating of the connectors 102 and 152, the orientation of the male connector 102 had initially been rotationally misaligned, say, by 5 degrees in relation to female connector 152 in the X-Y dimensional plane (e.g. through inadvertent mis-orientation, i.e. rotational misalignment, by a construction worker), the orientation of the male connector 102 would tend to self-correct to zero degrees (i.e. the male connector 102 would tend to become rotationally aligned with respect to female connector 152) as the tapered protrusion 106 becomes fully seated within the receptacle 156, during the mating of the connectors 102 and 152. The reason is that the male and female connectors of the illustrated embodiment only fit together properly at 0° and 180° rotation relative to one another (in view of the rectangular cross-section). This design may facilitate interconnection of the two framing members 200 and 202 at predetermined relative orientations, particularly when only one connector system 100 (i.e. one male-female pair of connectors 102, 152). As noted above, rotational alignment may not be important in some embodiments.

FIGS. 24 and 25 show framing member 200 after it has been fully interconnected with framing member 202 through the mating and interconnection of the male connector 102 with the female connector 152. Centering and rotational alignment of male connector 102 with respect female connector 152 has been achieved as a result of the centering effect illustrated in FIGS. 22 and 23 and the rotational alignment effect described above. Notably, both of these effects are facilitated by gravity in the present example, since the connectors 102 and 152 are horizontal. The facilitating effect of gravity would be present regardless of whether the male connector 102 were being lowered onto the female connector 152, as shown in FIGS. 20-25, or whether the female connector 152 were being lowered onto the male connector 102. The centering and rotational alignment effects would also be achieved if the male and female connectors were mated with the connectors being vertical rather than horizontal, however, gravity may help only slightly or not at all in this case.

When the male connector 102 has been mated with the female connector 152, the receptors 122 and 124 of the male connector 102 will be aligned with corresponding receptors 172 and 174, respectively, of the female connector 152. The aligned receptors of the male connector 102 and female connector 152 are coaxial in the illustrated embodiment. It may be desirable to account for the thickness of the sheet metal of framing members 200 and 202, within which the male and female connectors 102 and 152 are mounted, when drilling or stamping the receptors 122, 124 and 172, 174 in the male and female connectors respectively, so that the receptors will align when the male and female connectors, mounted within their respectively framing members, are mated as shown in FIG. 24. The connector system 100 may provide for alignment within acceptable limits across a range of material thicknesses (e.g. 0.75 mm to 1 mm) of the framing member sheet metal, particularly when an interconnector or fastener with a tip that is narrower than its body, such as a self-threading screw, is used.

Once the male and female connectors 102 and 152 have been mated as shown in FIG. 24, they may be interconnected or fastened together with interconnectors or fasteners such as screws 230 and 232, to achieve the goal of interconnecting framing members 200 and 202. For example, a screw 230 may be inserted from the upper right of FIG. 24, through access hole 130 of male connector 102, and threaded from within the hollow interior of the tapered protrusion 106, e.g. using a screwdriver, through receptor 122 of male connector 102 and also through receptor 172 of female connector 152. Conversely, screw 232 may be inserted from the bottom right of FIG. 24, through access hole 118 of female connector 152 and threaded through receptor 174 of female connector 152 and receptor 124 of male connector 152, i.e. from the exterior of both the receptacle 156 and the tapered protrusion 106. Once the male and female connectors 102 and 152 have been so interconnected, only the head of screw 230 and the end of screw 232 will be visible, when the connectors are viewed from the top (see FIG. 25). The interconnected framing members 200, 202 are shown in perspective view in FIG. 26.

The illustrated example of FIG. 25 shows two screws 230 and 232 interconnecting the male and female connectors 102 and 152. Because the total number of aligned hole pairs 122-172 and 124-174 in the present example is larger than two (i.e. six—three per side), more screws (up to six in this example) could be used to interconnect the male and female connectors. Alternatively, only one screw, such as either screw 230 or 232, might be sufficient for some applications. The number of screws or other fasteners that are used may vary for different applications, e.g. depending upon the loads or shear forces that are anticipated to be borne by the interconnected framing members 200 and 202 and associated male and female connectors 102 and 152.

Also, the choice of which receptor(s) to use may depend in part on ease of access to access holes 128, 178 versus access holes 178, 180 in a construction environment. Referring to FIG. 24, the reason that the receptors 122, 172 are accessed from the interior side of the male and female connectors 102 and 152 while the receptors 174, 124 are accessed from the exterior side of the male and female connectors 102 and 152, may be that obstructions in the construction environment may only allow convenient access to the right side of the framing members 200, 202 of FIG. 24. Because access from a single side may be sufficient for fastening the connectors, construction time may be reduced in relation any construction technique that requires access to both sides of a wall during its erection.

For example, say that the framing members 200, 202 were being used to attach a wall, cladded on both sides with wallboard or drywall, to a foundation. Referring to FIG. 27, a lower framing member 202, with a strip of drywall 242 attached to each of its flanges, may be anchored to a foundation 238 to define a base of a wall. The strips of drywall 242 may have a hole 252 drilled therethrough so as to align access holes 178 and 180 of the female connector. Wallboard or drywall 240 that will form an upper part of the wall may be attached to each of the flanges of the upper framing member 200. A lower portion of the wallboard or drywall 240 may have a hole 250 drilled therethrough so as to align with access holes 128 or 130 of the male connector. In this example, it may be easier to access access hole 130 via trajectory T1 (FIG. 28) than access hole 180 via trajectory T2, because the surface of foundation 238 might interfere with a tool handle (e.g. screwdriver handle) that is to be used to insert a fastener.

Conversely, if convenient access to framing members 200, 202 were only available from the left side, then the interconnection of framing members 200, 202 may be performed in mirror image to what is shown in FIG. 24 or 27, i.e. with screws being inserted only from the left.

The option of interconnecting the male connector 102 and female connector 152 from either side, or possibly from both sides, and the option of inserting interconnectors or fasteners either downwardly from the top (e.g. through the access hole(s) 128, 130 of the male connector 102 in the illustrated examples) or upwardly from the bottom (e.g. through the access hole(s) 178, 180 of the female connector 152 in the illustrated examples) may provide some flexibility in the manner in which the connectors 102, 152 can be used.

When two framing members have been interconnected using the connector system 100 as shown in FIG. 27, the joints between adjacent wallboard portions may be finished e.g. by taping. The holes 250 and 252 (providing access to access holes 128, 130, 178 and/or 180) can be plugged as part of the taping process.

In some embodiments, when it is desired to anchor a framing member to a surface such as a concrete building foundation 260, an enclosed framing member 1000 (see FIG. 10) or “boxable section” may be chosen rather than a C-section. An example of such an enclosed framing member 1000, with a female connector 152 attached thereto, is illustrated in FIGS. 29, 30 and 31, in perspective view, side view and end view, respectively.

As illustrated, tie down bolts 262 may used to secure framing member 1000 to the concrete foundation 260. The tie down bolts 262 may vary in size depending on the expected wind loads for the region of construction, for example. A typical size may be M12 in some regions. Openings 264 may be made in the upper side of the framing member 1000 to allow access for tools to attach the tie down bolts 262 to the foundation 260. The framing member 1000 may be shimmed at or near the tie down bolts 262 to ensure that the framing member 1000 is level over the entire foundation area. In the result, the framing member 1000, and possibly others like it, may collectively define a perimeter of a house or other building, which may provide a level base for assembling a building such as a house or commercial structure. The creation of a level foundation is usually important since components may be engineered to fit together without much room for adjustment.

FIGS. 32-35 illustrate an alternative connector system embodiment 300. FIGS. 32 and 33 illustrate a male connector 302 of system 300 and corresponding female connector 352 of system 300, respectively, both in perspective view. FIG. 34 illustrates the male and female connectors 302, 352 after having been mated. FIG. 35 illustrates the mated connectors 302 and 352 attached to respective framing members 400 and 402.

Referring FIG. 32, it can be seen that the connector body 303 of example male connector 302 is similar to that of earlier described male connector 102. That is, connector body 303 comprises a plate 304 and flanges 308 and 310 extending upwardly on opposite sides of the plate 104. As well, connector body 303 has a hollow tapered protrusion 306 protruding downwardly therefrom. However, the three-dimensional shape of the tapered protrusion 306 in this embodiment is different from that of tapered protrusion 106 of the earlier discussed embodiment. In particular, two opposing walls 311 of the protrusion 306 (only one of which is visible in FIG. 32) are flat and have a pentagonal “house” shape, while the complementary two walls 313 (only one being visible) have a triangular shape. The triangular walls 313 are bent to align the edges of these walls 313 with the edges of the pentagonally shaped walls 311. The cross-sectional shape of the tapered protrusion is rectangular. The tapered protrusion 306 has a pointed tip 312.

Each of the two walls 313 has a single receptor 315 (here, a threaded hole) therethrough for receiving an interconnector or fastener during interconnection of the male connector 302 with the female connector 352. The number of receptors 315 and their positioning or arrangement may differ in other embodiments. Each of flanges 308 and 310 has a pair of holes 332 for use in attaching the male connector 302 to a building component such as a framing member 400, as shown in FIG. 35.

Referring to FIG. 33, the female connector 352 is illustrated in perspective view. The example female connector 352 comprises a connector body 353 and a receptacle 356 defined within the connector body 353. The receptacle 356 defines a two-dimensional opening (here, rectangular) that is complementary to a cross-sectional shape of a foot 357 of the tapered protrusion (here, also rectangular). Unlike the embodiment described above, the receptacle 356 of the present embodiment does not have a two-dimensional taper. In the present embodiment, the connector body 353 comprises a plate 354 with flanges 358 and 360 extending downwardly on opposite sides of the plate 354 so as to flank the receptacle 356. The flanges 358 and 360 are for attaching the female connector 352 to another building component, such as a framing member 402.

The receptacle 356 is shaped to receive the tapered protrusion 306 when the male connector 302 is mated with the female connector 352. In the present example, the receptacle 356 defines a rectangular opening that accommodates the rectangular 357 of the tapered protrusion 306. The longitudinal walls 363 of receptacle 356, only one of which is visible in FIG. 33, each have a receptor 365 (here, a threaded hole) which aligns with the receptor 315 of male connector 302 when the connectors 302 and 352 are mated. The number and position of receptor(s) 365 may differ in other embodiments of the female connector 352 but will normally match the number and arrangement of corresponding receptor(s) 365 of the male connector 302.

Flanges 358 and 360 each have an access hole 379 for accessing the receptor 365 of the adjacent longitudinal wall 313 during interconnection of the male connector 302 with the female connector 352. The access holes 379 is not necessarily round in all embodiments, but instead may have another shape such as square, obround, oval or rectangular, to name but a few examples.

Each of flanges 358 and 360 also has a pair of holes 383, for use in attaching or mounting the female connector 352 to a framing member 402, as shown in FIG. 35.

Interconnection of framing members 400 and 402, by way of male and female connectors 302 and 352 that are respectively attached thereto, is illustrated in FIG. 35, in elevation view. Mating of the connectors 302 and 352 is performed similarly to the mating of the connectors 102 and 152, described above, with similar centering and rotational alignment effects. Once the connectors 302 and 352 are mated (e.g. as shown in FIG. 34), a screw or other interconnector or fastener (not expressly shown) may be inserted through access hole 379 in flange 358 and threaded through receptors 365 and 315. This serves to interconnect the male connector 302 with the female connector 352. The same may (optionally) be repeated on the other side, using a fastener through the access hole 379 in flange 360, depending upon whether one or two fasteners are warranted for the application in question.

It will be appreciated that the interconnector(s) or fastener(s) that is (are) inserted into receptors 315, 365 is (are) inserted from the exterior side of the receptacle wall. That is, insertion of an interconnector or fastener from the interior side of the triangular wall 313 of the tapered protrusion 306 may be difficult or impossible because of the horizontal axis of the holes and the absence of a convenient window or access hole for accessing the interior side of the wall on an angle with a tool at a horizontal or near-horizontal insertion angle. In this regard, the connector system 100 described above may provide greater flexibility of installation.

In some embodiments, connectors 302, 352 may be interconnected using a single fastener that spans the entire width of the mated connectors. When the exemplary connectors 302 and 352 are mated, the pair of receptors 315 in the opposing walls of male connector 302 will become substantially aligned with the corresponding pair of receptors 365 in the adjacent walls of the female connector 352, i.e. the four holes will be substantially coaxial. A long fastener, such as a self-threading screw, can be inserted so as to span the width of both connectors, thereby attaching each connector to the other at two points of interconnection. The fastener may be inserted from either side of the female connector 352, through either one of the two access holes 379. A user may elect to use the connector system 300 away from tight corners of a building under construction in order to avoid potential difficulties inserting the fastener using a tool such as a screwdriver.

It is possible that building components, such as steel framing members, which may be manufactured using roll forming machines, may be manufactured with integrally formed male and female connectors. This may eliminate the need for a separate manufacturing step of attaching male and female connectors as described above to formed metal framing members. A pair 500 of such building components is illustrated in FIGS. 36-42. FIGS. 36 and 37 illustrate a first building component 501 (a framing member) comprising an integrally formed male connector 502, in plan and side view, respectively. FIGS. 38 and 39 illustrate a second building component 551 (another framing member) comprising an integrally formed female connector 552, in plan and side view, respectively. FIGS. 40, 41 and 42 illustrate the framing members of FIGS. 36-37 and 38-39 with the male and female connectors 502 and 552 having been mated.

Referring to FIGS. 36 and 37, it can be seen that the first framing member 501 has an integrally formed male connector 502. The framing member 501 is essentially what would result if framing member 200 and attached male connector 102 of FIGS. 11-14 were integrally formed. The male connector 502 has a tapered protrusion 506 with a frusto-pyramidal shape. The exemplary tapered protrusion 506 is defined by four sloping side walls 514, 516, 518 and 520 (see FIG. 36), each wall having a trapezoidal shape. Side wall 514 has three receptors 522 therethrough, and side wall 518 also has three receptors 524 therethrough. The number of receptors 522, 524 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments.

As shown in FIG. 37, wall 510 of the framing member 501 has an access hole 530 for accessing the receptors 522 of the opposing side wall 514 of the tapered protrusion 506 during interconnection of the male connector 502 with the female connector 552. There is an analogous access hole (not visible in FIG. 36 or 37) in the opposite wall 508 of framing member 501 for accessing receptors 524 from the opposite side. The access holes may be round, as illustrated, or they may have a different shape, e.g. square, obround or rectangular, to name but a few examples.

Referring to FIGS. 38 and 39, it can be seen that the second framing member 551 has an integrally formed female connector 552. The framing member 551 is essentially what would result if framing member 200 and attached female connector 152 of FIGS. 15-19 were integrally formed. The female connector 552 has a receptacle 556 that is shaped to receive the tapered protrusion 506 upon mating of the male connector 502 with the female connector 552. In the present example, the receptacle 556 has a two-dimensional taper similar to that of the tapered protrusion 506. The floor 562 of the receptacle is open in the present embodiment. This is not necessarily true in all embodiments.

As perhaps best seen in the plan view of FIG. 38, the frusto-pyramidal receptacle 556 of the female connector 552 is defined by four sloping side walls 564, 566, 568 and 570, each wall having a trapezoidal shape. Side wall 564 has three receptors 572 therethrough, and side wall 568 similarly has three receptors 574 therethrough. The number of receptors 572 and 574 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments of the female connector 552 but will normally match the number and arrangement of corresponding receptors 522 and 524, of the male connector 502.

As shown in FIG. 39, wall 560 of the framing member 551 has an access hole 580 for accessing the receptors 574 of the adjacent side wall 568 during interconnection of the male connector 502 with the female connector 552. There is an analogous access hole (not visible in FIG. 38 or 39) in the opposite wall 558 of framing member 551 for accessing receptors 574 from the opposite side. The access holes may be round, as illustrated, or they may have a different shape, e.g. square, obround or rectangular, to name but a few examples.

As shown in FIG. 39, the access hole 580 may be offset from the receptors 574 within wall 560. This may be to accommodate an inclined trajectory of access to the receptors 574, e.g. using a tool such as a screwdriver, when interconnectors or fasteners such as screws are inserted, as described above (see FIG. 7 and accompanying description).

FIGS. 40, 41 and 42 illustrate, in perspective, end-on elevation and side elevation view, respectively, the mating of the pair 500 of framing members 501 and 551 of FIGS. 36-39. In FIGS. 40-42, the first building component 501 is on the bottom with the tapered protrusion 506 of the male connector 502 pointing upwardly, and the second building component 551 with female connector 552 is placed on top of the first building component 501. The illustrated orientation is merely exemplary and may vary in alternative embodiments, e.g. depending upon construction requirements. The process of centering of the male and female connectors with respect to one another is not expressly illustrated but may conveniently be performed with the assistance of gravity, essentially as described above with respect to FIGS. 20-25. An exception is that the centering in this case may entail (but does not necessarily entail) moving the female connector in relation to the male connector, rather than the opposite, in view of the inverted orientation of the connectors in comparison to that of FIGS. 20-25.

It is noted that, by using multiple interconnection points (e.g. two connector pairs A and B) spaced along framing members 501 and 551 as shown in FIG. 40, quick alignment of the building components 501 and 551 may be facilitated. Interconnection of male and female connector pairs may be performed as described above, e.g. in relation to FIG. 25.

As will be appreciated, various other modifications can be made to the embodiments described hereinabove or hereinbelow.

For example, it is not necessarily true that tapered protrusion 106 or 806 (see below) will be frusto-pyramidal in all embodiments. The tapered protrusion may have other shapes, such as pyramidal, conical, frusto-conical, or others, in alternative embodiments. As such, the tapered protrusion may not have any flat surfaces in some embodiments. Alternatively, the tapered protrusion may have one flat surface or more than one. Moreover, it is not required for the end 102 of the tapered protrusion 106 to be open as in the illustrated embodiment. A possible advantage of an open end, as described above, may be conservation of material and low cost or low weight. This might come at the expense of increased risk of contamination of the interior of the tapered protrusion with materials such as dirt or construction debris during use in some building environments.

In one of the above described embodiments, the height of the tapered protrusion of the male connector (i.e. the distance the tapered protrusion protrudes from its connector body or integral building component) is about half of the width of base of the tapered protrusion. In some embodiments, the relative height of the tapered protrusion may be even smaller than that. A small relative height may keep the profile of the male connector small enough for seating even in receptacles defined within relatively shallow building components. Alternatively, the height may be may be larger than half of the width of the base in some embodiments. This may provide for larger areas in the tapered protrusion for multiple receptors to be defined, for receiving a larger number of fasteners for example.

In some embodiments, the shape of the receptacle of the female connector may not be fully complementary to the shape of the tapered protrusion. For example, if the cross-sectional shape of the foot of the tapered protrusion of the male connector is square, then the receptacle in some embodiments may define an opening that is only partially square, e.g. leaving some gaps, possibly to save material. The shape of the receptacle may thus be only partially complementary to the shape of the tapered protrusion.

As noted above, the interconnectors and/or fasteners used in the above described embodiments may be of various types, some removable (e.g. threaded fasteners such as screws or bolts) and others non-removable or permanent (e.g. rivets). Also, the receptors into which interconnectors or fasteners are placed may be of various types, such as holes, whether threaded or unthreaded, slots, or other types of receptors.

In some embodiments, the cross-sectional shape of the tapered protrusion of the male connector and the complementary cross-sectional shape of the receptacle may be non-rectangular or non-square (e.g. it may be triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, etc.). The cross-sectional shapes may be irregular or asymmetrical.

In some embodiments, the flanges 108 and 110 of the male connector 102 and/or the flanges 158 and 160 of the female connector 152 (or of the corresponding flanges 308, 310 and 358, 360 of FIGS. 32 and 33, or flanges 808, 810 and 858, 860 of FIG. 49 or 54—see below) may be spaced at a distance that is slightly larger than distance D of FIG. 3 or FIG. 7. The reason is that, in some embodiments, the male and female connectors may not be intended to be attached to their respective C-section or boxable section framing members by having the flanges of the connectors “nested” between the flanges or walls of the respective framing member. Rather, in some embodiments, it may be suitable for the entire widthwise extent of the framing member to be snugly received between the flanges of the respective male connector 102 or female connector 152 for purposes of attachment. A possible disadvantage may be that the flanges may contribute to the width of the framing member at their points of attachment thereto, giving the framing member a non-uniform width over its length. This may complicate the application of wallboard or cladding for example. Nevertheless, it may be appropriate in some circumstances.

In the above embodiments, the access holes for accessing the receptors of the male and female connectors 102, 152, 352, 802, 852 are described as being situated in the flanges 108, 110, 158, 160, 358, 360, 808, 810, 858 and/or 860. In some embodiments, the access holes may be situated elsewhere in the connector body. Moreover, in some embodiments, the connector body 103, 153, 303 or 353 may not have two flanges for attachment of the connector to a framing member (or other building component). Only one flange may be sufficient for some embodiments. Alternatively or in conjunction, the flange or flanges may be coplanar or substantially coplanar with the connector body, as illustrated in FIG. 43 for example.

Referring to FIG. 43, a female connector 600, with a receptacle 601 similar to receptacle 156 of FIGS. 5-8, is shown attached to a framing member 599. The female connector 600 has a connector body 602 with flanges 604 and 606 extending longitudinally, with respect to the elongate framing member 599, on opposite sides of the connector 600. The illustrated flanges 604, 604 are substantially coplanar with the connector body 602. Two pairs of fasteners 608, 610 are used to attach flanges 604, 606, respectively, to the framing member 599. The number of fasteners may be greater or less than four in alternative embodiments. The flanges of a male connector may be similarly arranged. In an alternative embodiment, the flanges 604, 606 could extended transversely with respect to the framing member 599.

In some embodiments, the male connector may be formed from a female connector fitted with an adapter that converts the female connector to a male connector. The adapter may be seated within the receptacle of the female connector to create a tapered protrusion for the male connector. An exemplary embodiment of this type is illustrated in FIGS. 44-48.

Referring to FIGS. 44 and 45, an exemplary male connector 702 formed from a female connector 704 fitted with an adapter 706 is illustrated. The female connector 704 in this example is similar or identical to the female connector 152 of FIGS. 5-8. The adapter 706 that is used to convert the female connector 704 to a male connector 702 is essentially what would result if two frusto-pyramidal tapered protrusions, such as the tapered protrusion 106 illustrated in FIGS. 1-4 for example, were severed from their male connector bodies and attached together, base to base (i.e. wide end to wide end, in mirror image). One portion of the adapter 706 (the lower frusto-pyramidal side) is configured for seating within the receptacle of the female connector 704, while a second portion (the upper frusto-pyramidal side) is shaped to act as the tapered protrusion of the resultant male connector.

In use, the side that is inverted and hidden from view (see FIG. 44) is seated within the receptacle 708 of the female connector 704 and attached thereto. One or more fasteners such as screws may be inserted through access holes 710 and 712 of female connector 704, and passed through receptors 714 and 716 of receptacle 708 and further into receptors 718 and 720, respectively, of the adapter 706, to attach the adapter 706 to the female connector 704 and thus create the male connector 702. This may be done prior to use at construction site. Alternatively, in some instances it may be desirable to perform the assembly on-site, e.g. to avoid possible damage to adjacent wall sections during shipment from any connectors protruding from the wall. The upper frusto-pyramidal side of the adapter 706, i.e. the side that is right side up and is visible in FIG. 44, protrudes from the female connector body 710 and serves as the tapered protrusion of the resultant male connector 702. In other words, the protruding side is intended to be seated within the receptacle of another female connector (not illustrated) upon mating of the male connector 702 with that female connector.

The adapter 706 may be solid or hollow. In the latter case, the adapter 706 may be split into two halves 722, 724, as shown in FIG. 46, to facilitate manufacture. The halves may be connected (e.g. welded together) to facilitate use of the adapter 706 as a single unit, although this is not absolutely required. Receptors 726 and 728 on the upper portion of adapter halves 722 and 724, respectively, are intended to receive one or more fasteners for fastening the male connector 702 another female connector (not illustrated) during use.

Referring to FIGS. 49-62, a further embodiment 800 of a connector system is illustrated. The connector system 800, which may be referred to as a locking or snap-fit connector system 800, includes a male connector 802 and a female connector 852. As will become apparent, this connector system 800 differs from the connector system 100 described above, primarily in that the male and female connectors collectively define a snap-fit for joining the male connector 802 with the female connector 852 upon mating of the two and in that manufacture of the male connector and/or the female connector may be simplified.

The male connector 802 is illustrated in FIGS. 49-53, in perspective view, plan view, front view, side view and cross sectional view, respectively. The male connector 802 may be formed from a single piece of sheet metal (e.g. progressive stamped sheet metal) or another rigid material.

The exemplary male connector 802 comprises a connector body 803 and a tapered protrusion 806 protruding from the body 803. The connector body 803 comprises shelf portions 804 and 805 and opposing flanges 808 and 810 extending from the peripheral sides of the shelf portions 804 and 805, respectively, in a direction opposite to the direction of taper of the tapered protrusion 806. The flanges 808 and 810 are for attaching the male connector 802 to a building component such as a framing member or planar panel, in substantially the same manner as connector system 100 described above.

As perhaps best seen in FIG. 50, sloped walls 812, 814 each have a receptor 832, 834, respectively, therethrough. The receptors are intended to receive interconnectors or fasteners (e.g. screws, bolts, rivets, or the like) that will serve to interconnect or fasten the male connector 802 with/to the female connector 852 (described below) during use. The number of receptors 832, 834 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments of the male connector. Sloped walls 812, 814 also have a pair of threaded holes 833, 835, respectively, therethrough. As will be described, these may be used in some embodiments for disengaging the snap-fit mechanism should it be desired to disconnect the male connector 802 from the female connector 804.

Flanges 808 and 810 each have an access hole 828 and 830 for accessing the receptors 834 and 832 of the opposing side wall 814 and 812, respectively, during interconnection of the male connector 802 with the female connector 852, substantially as described for connector system 100 described above. The access holes 828 and 830 may be obround, as illustrated, or may have another shape.

The tapered protrusion 806 has a truncated V-shaped profile, perhaps best seen in FIG. 51 (below shelf portions 804 and 805), that is defined by two opposing, sloped walls 812 and 814 and a flat distal end 816. The slope of the walls 812 and 814 is such that the width of the tapered protrusion 806, in the X dimension (see FIGS. 49 and 51), decreases in the direction of protrusion. Moreover, a width of each sloped wall 812 and 814 also decreases in the direction of protrusion, i.e. the width of the walls 812, 814 in the Y dimension decreases or tapers towards the distal end 816. This is perhaps best seen in FIG. 52 at 820. A lower portion of exemplary wall 812 accordingly has a trapezoidal shape whose non-parallel sides are defined by the angled edges 826, 828 (see FIG. 52). A lower portion of wall 814 has a similar trapezoidal shape whose non-parallel sides are defined by the angled edges 836, 838 (see FIG. 49). The cross-sectional extent of the tapered protrusion 806 thus decreases in both the X and Y dimensions in a direction of protrusion.

An upper portion 813, 815 of each sloped wall 812, 814 is untapered, i.e. does not decrease in width in the direction of protrusion of the tapered protrusion 806 (see FIGS. 49 and 52). As will be appreciated, this untapered base section is for promoting abrupt seating of the tapered protrusion 806 within the receptacle 856 upon achievement of the centering of the male connector 802 with respect to the female connector 852 in the Y dimension (see FIG. 49 regarding what constitutes in the Y dimension).

Each sloped wall 812, 814 of the male connector 802 has a tab 822, 824, respectively (see FIGS. 51 and 53). As will be described, the tabs 822, 824 make up a male half of a snap-fit for joining the male connector 802 with the female connector 852.

The female connector 852 is illustrated in FIGS. 54-57, in perspective view, plan view, front view and side view, respectively. The example female connector 852 comprises a connector body 853 and a receptacle 856 defined within the body. In the present embodiment, the connector body 853 comprises a plate 854 with flanges 858 and 860 extending downwardly from opposite sides of the plate 854 so as to flank the receptacle 856. The flanges 858 and 860 are for attaching the female connector 852 to a building component.

The receptacle 856 is shaped to receive the tapered protrusion 806 upon mating of the male connector 802 with the female connector 852. In the present example, receptacle 856 includes two opposing resilient wings 862, 864 angled away from a receiving end of the receptacle. Each wing 862, 864 has a respective slot 871, 873 towards its distal end for receiving a corresponding tab 822, 824 of the male connector 802. The slots 871, 873 make up a female half of a snap-fit for joining the female connector 852 with the male connector 802.

Resilient wings 862, 864 also have receptors 872, 874, respectively, therein. The receptors 872, 874 are intended to receive interconnectors or fasteners that will serve to interconnect the female connector 852 with the male connector 802 during use. The number of receptors 872 and 874 and their arrangement may differ in other embodiments of the female connector 852 but will normally match the number and arrangement of corresponding receptors 822 and 824, respectively, of the male connector 802, so as to be aligned therewith when the connectors 802, 852 have been mated and when the snap-fit has been engaged. In addition, each of resilient wings 862, 864 has a pair of threaded holes 883, 885, respectively, therethrough. These holes 883, 885 are intentionally positioned so as to be misaligned with holes 833, 835 of the male connector 802 when the connectors have been mated. As will be described, one or more of holes 833, 835, 883 and 885 may be used for disengaging the snap-fit mechanism should it be desired to disconnect the male connector 802 from the female connector 804. Holes 833, 835, 883, and 885 are not necessarily present in all embodiments or may vary in location and number.

Flanges 858 and 860 each have an access hole 878 and 880 for accessing the receptors 872 and 874 of the adjacent resilient wing 862 and 864, respectively, during interconnection of the male connector 802 with the female connector 852 (much in the same way that the access holes 178, 180 of female connector 152, described above, are used). As shown in FIG. 57, the access hole 880 may be horizontally offset from the receptor 874 and/or holes 885 (i.e. offset vertically in the figure). This may be to accommodate an inclined trajectory of access to the receptor 874 and/or holes 885, e.g. using a tool such as a screwdriver, when fasteners such as screws are inserted.

The rectangular opening (i.e. the receiving end) of receptacle 856 may have opposed reinforced lips 857 and 859. These lips may be formed by bending sheet metal from which the connector 852 is made back and under the plate 854, for example. Each reinforced lip may help to support a weight of edges 826, 838 or edges 828, 838 of the tapered protrusion 806 of the male connector 802 during centering of the male connector 802 with the female connector 852 in the Y dimension (see FIG. 58).

Interconnection of connectors 802 and 852 is performed in a similar manner to the interconnection of connectors 102, 152, which is shown in FIGS. 20-25 and described above. To the extent that the male connector 802 is initially offset in the X or Y dimension from the female connector 852, the tapered protrusion 806 of the male connector 802 slidably engages the receptacle 856 to center the connectors with respect to one another. If the offset is in the X direction, then the exterior face of sloped wall 812 or 814 of the tapered protrusion 806 slides along the inner face of corresponding resilient wing 862 or 864, respectively, of the receptacle 856, with the slope of the wall 812 or 814, combined with the angle of the resilient wing 862 or 864, causing the male connector 802 to be translated in the X dimension as it is lowered in the Z dimension with the assistance of gravity. If the offset is in the Y direction, then the pair of angled edges 826 and 836, or the pair of angled edges 828 and 838, of the tapered protrusion 806 slide or ride along the reinforced lip 857 or 859 of the receptacle 856, respectively, until centering in the Y dimension is achieved. The reinforced lip 857 or 859 may keep the edges 826, 836 or 828, 838, which may carry weight from a building component to which the male connector 806 has already been attached, from deforming the plate 804 for example.

Once centering in the Y dimension has been achieved, the tapered protrusion 806 of the male connector 802 abruptly seats within the receptacle 856. This is by virtue of the untapered upper portions 813, 815 of the walls 812, 814 of the tapered protrusion 806, which allow the male connector to suddenly drop, in the Z dimension, fully into the receptacle 856 of the female connector 852. This drop may provide a human installer with tactile feedback of the centering having been achieved. When this occurs, the resilient wings 862, 864 of the receptacle 856 spread or deform slightly outwardly as the tabs 822, 824 of the tapered protrusion 806 force themselves between the inner surfaces of wings 862, 864 the Z dimension. When the tabs 822, 824 have aligned with slots 871, 873, indicating that the connectors 806 and 856 have been fully mated, the resilient wings spring back into their original, non-deformed position, with the slots snapping into place onto the tabs. The resulting engaged snap-fit is shown in cross-sectional view in FIG. 62.

As illustrated, the male connector 802 is now joined to the female connector 852, even before any fasteners, such as screws 890, have been inserted into receptor pairs 832, 872 or 834, 874. By virtue of the snap-fit, further movement of one connector in relation to the other, in the X, Y or Z dimension, is substantially limited or prevented, corresponding receptors 822, 872 and 824, 864 may be in alignment. This may facilitate interconnection using the fasteners. To the extent that connectors are oriented vertically during use (i.e. with the Z dimension of FIG. 58 being horizontal), then the snap-fit may be particularly beneficial in holding the connector 802 or 852 (depending upon which of the two connectors is freely moving) in place pending insertion of fastener(s) 890 along trajectory T1 or T2. One or two screws 890, or other interconnectors or fasteners, may then be used to more fixedly interconnect the connectors 802 and 852.

To the extent that it is desired to disconnect the male connector 802 from the female connector 852 (before any fastener 890 has been inserted), then it is possible to do so using one or more screws (not shown) in holes 833, 835, 883 or 885. The number of screws, and the choice of which holes 833, 835, 883, and/or 885, are to be used for this purpose may vary.

In the case of hole 833 or 835 (see FIG. 59), the screw may be inserted into the hole from above via access hole 830 or 828 respectively. As the screw is threaded into threaded hole 833 or 835, the tip begins to emerge from the other side of sloped wall 812 or 814. The emerging tip of the screw impacts upon the interior face of one of the resilient wings 862, 862 (given that the holes 833, 835 are intentionally misaligned with holes 883, 885 of the female connector 852), causing the impacted wing to deform outwardly. When the screw is inserted sufficiently far, the relevant slot 871, 873 in the deformed wing will be fully backed away from the relevant corresponding tab 822, 824, and the snap-fit mechanism may thereby be disengaged, at least on that side (which may be sufficient for separating the male connector 802 from the female connector 852).

In the case of hole 883 or 885, the screw is inserted into the hole from below via access hole 878 or 880 respectively. As the screw is threaded through the hole 883 or 885 in resilient wing 862 or 864, the tip begins to emerge from the other side. At this point, the tip of the screw will impact upon an exterior face of one of the sloped walls 812 or 814 of the male connector (again given that the holes 883, 885 are intentionally misaligned with holes 833, 835 of the male connector 802). Because the walls 812 and 814 are not resilient, the resilient wing 862 or 864 through which the screw is being threaded will begin to deform outwardly. When the screw is inserted sufficiently far, the relevant slot 871, 873 will be backed away fully from the relevant tab 822, 824, and the snap-fit mechanism may thereby be disengaged, at least on that side (which may be sufficient for separating the male connector 802 from the female connector 852).

Once the snap-fit has been disengaged and the connectors 802, 852 separated, any screw(s) used to disengage the snap-fit may be removed. The connectors 802 and 852 may then be re-used.

FIGS. 58-62 illustrate the male connector 802 connected to the female connector 852 with screws 890.

The design of connector system 800 may facilitate manufacture, e.g. by possibly reducing the number of steps in stamping when the connectors 802, 852 are made from sheet metal.

It will be appreciated that the various features described above in conjunction with particular embodiments may be selectively incorporated into alternative embodiments. That is to say, when an embodiment is described as having a particular feature, that feature may also form a part of another embodiment. For example, the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector embodiments shown in FIGS. 1-4 could be modified to have an untapered base section (i.e. a base section untapered in the direction of protrusion) similar to that of the tapered protrusion 806 of FIG. 49. Such an untapered base section may provide tactile feedback of successfully mating the male connector with the female connector not only in the Y dimension, but also in the X dimension (see FIG. 21).

As will be appreciated, the male and female connectors described herein may be attached to, or integrally formed with, various types of building components including framing members, component panels, structural panels or the like. That is to say, the connector system described herein can be used with virtually any building components used for prefabricated, module or component housing. Such components Such components typically consist of either a framing structure (e.g. wood framing, light steel framing) or a structural panel and may contain any of the following components: light steel framing, wood framing, electrical components or wiring, plumbing components, insulation, doors, windows, lighting, HVAC ducting, roofing material, vapor barrier, vapor retarders, external cladding, internal cladding such as plasterboard and/or tiling. Each building component can vary in size depending on building design. For example, component panels or structural panels may range from 0.3 meters to 6.0 meters long by 2.4 meters high and 0.1 meters to 0.25 meters thick. These ranges of numbers are exemplary and are not necessarily applicable to all embodiments, although the above numbers may advantageously maximize shipping container usage of conventionally sized shipping containers.

The connector system may help reduce the need for skilled labour on site by permitting quick assembly of prefabricated components on site. For example, it may be possible to assemble prefabricated walls or panels to a lockup stage in a single day. The term “lockup stage” refers to a stage of completion in building construction wherein walls, ceiling and roofing have been applied, providing the ability to lock the building. The connector system may permit quick assembly with completed finished wall systems. The male and female connectors may be compatible with existing construction techniques and tooling, possibly requiring only a single conventional tool (e.g. screwdriver or rivet gun) and conventional fasteners (e.g. screws or rivets) for assembly. The fasteners may be removable (e.g. screws) or permanent (e.g. rivets, such as blind or pop rivets). The receptors may or may not be threaded. The connector system may be used equally easily with light steel frame construction and wood frame construction.

It will be appreciated that the various features described above in conjunction with particular embodiments may be selectively incorporated into alternative embodiments. That is to say, when an embodiment is described as having a particular feature, that feature may also form a part of another embodiment. For example, the tapered protrusion 106 of the male connector embodiments shown in FIGS. 1-4 could be modified to have an untapered base section (i.e. base section untapered in the direction of protrusion) similar to that of the tapered protrusion 806 of FIG. 49. Such an untapered base section may provide tactile feedback of successfully mating the male connector within the female connector not only in the Y dimension, but also in the X dimension (see FIG. 21).

It will be appreciated that any of the male and female connectors described above may be attached to prefabricated structural panels, such as pre-cladded wall panels, or other building components to create modular structural of various types that may be interconnected in various ways to create a building structure. By attaching, say, a pair male connectors, spaced apart, on each of a bottom and right side edge of a uniform structural panel, and by further attaching, say, a pair of female connectors, similarly spaced apart, on each of the top and left side edge of the structural panel, it may be possible for multiple instances of such a structural panel to be connected, edge-to-edge, horizontally and/or vertically. Anticipated loads on the structure may dictate the number of connectors that should be used to promote structural integrity for a particular construction project. A structure such as a house may have many structural panels of varying sizes. In one embodiment, they can be, e.g., up to 6 meters long and 2.4 m high. A single male or female connector on an edge of a panel or other building component may be sufficient in some cases, e.g. for lightweight or small panels or other types of building components.

Other modifications may be apparent to those skilled in the art and, therefore, the invention is defined in the claims.

Claims

1. A connector system for interconnecting two building components, the connector system comprising: a male connector comprising: a connector body for attachment to a building component; anda tapered protrusion protruding from the connector body, the tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in a direction of protrusion, thereby imparting a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension;a female connector comprising: a connector body for attachment to another building component; anda receptacle defined within the connector body of the female connector, the receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion of the male connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector,wherein the taper of the tapered protrusion is for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension through sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during the mating of the male connector with the female connector,wherein the male connector further comprises a male receptor and the female connector further comprises a corresponding female receptor, the male receptor and the female receptor being situated for alignment with one another upon mating of the male connector with the female connector, the male receptor and the female receptor both being configured to receive a fastener for interconnecting the male connector with the female connector, andwherein the tapered protrusion comprises a wall, wherein the male receptor is located in the wall of the tapered protrusion, and wherein the connector body of the male connector further comprises an access hole for accessing the male receptor from the interior side of the wall.

2. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the at least one dimension of taper is transverse to the connector body of the male connector.

3. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the at least one dimension of taper is longitudinal with respect to the connector body of the male connector.

4. The connector system of claim 1 further comprising a snap tit for joining the male connector with the female connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector.

5. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the tapered protrusion has a base section that is untapered in the at least one dimension, the base section for promoting abrupt seating of the tapered protrusion within the receptacle upon achievement of the centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension.

6. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the receptacle of the female connector comprises opposing resilient wings angled away from a receiving end of the receptacle.

7. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the cross-sectional extent of the tapered protrusion decreases monotonically in two dimensions in the direction of protrusion, such that the taper of the tapered protrusion is a two-dimensional taper, the two-dimensional taper for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the two dimensions.

8. The connector system of claim 7 wherein the tapered protrusion comprises two opposing, sloped walls and a flat distal end collectively defining a truncated V-shape profile of the tapered protrusion, and further wherein a width of each sloped wall decreases in the direction of protrusion.

9. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the connector body of the male connector comprises a flange extending in a direction opposite to a direction of taper of the tapered protrusion, wherein the access hole for accessing the male receptor is within the flange.

10. The connector system of claim 1 wherein the male receptor is a first male receptor, the wall of the tapered protrusion is a first wall, and the access hole in the connector body of the male connector is a first access hole, and wherein the tapered protrusion further comprises a second wall opposite the first wall, the second wall having a second male receptor that is opposite the first male receptor, and wherein the connector body of the male connector further comprises a second access hole opposite the first access hole, the second access hole for accessing the second male receptor from the interior side of the second wall.

11. A connector system for interconnecting two building components, the connector system comprising: a male connector comprising: a connector body for attachment to a building component; anda tapered protrusion protruding from the connector body, the tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in a direction of protrusion, thereby imparting a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension;a female connector comprising: a connector body for attachment to another building component; anda receptacle defined within the connector body of the female connector, the receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion of the male connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector,wherein the taper of the tapered protrusion is for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension through sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during the mating of the male connector with the female connector,wherein the male connector further comprises a male receptor and the female connector further comprises a corresponding female receptor, the male receptor and the female receptor being situated for alignment with one another upon mating of the male connector with the female connector, the male receptor and the female receptor being configured to receive a fastener for interconnecting the male connector with the female connector, andwherein the receptacle of the female connector comprises a wall, wherein the female receptor is located in the wall of the receptacle, and wherein the connector body of the female connector further comprises an access hole for accessing the female receptor from the exterior side of the wall of the receptacle.

12. The connector system of claim 11 wherein the connector body of the female connector comprises a flange that flanks the receptacle and wherein the access hole for accessing the female receptor is within the flange.

13. The connector system of claim 11 wherein the female receptor is a first female receptor, the wall of the receptacle is a first wall, the access hole in the connector body of the female connector is a first access hole, and wherein the receptacle further comprises a second wall opposite the first wall, the second wall having a second female receptor that is opposite the first female receptor, and wherein the connector body of the female connector further comprises a second access hole opposite the first access hole, the second access hole for accessing the second female receptor from the exterior side of the second wall of the receptacle.

14. The connector system of claim 11 wherein the female connector is a first female connector and wherein the male connector comprises a second instance of the female connector with an adapter for converting the second female connector to a male connector, the adapter having a first portion configured for seating within the receptacle of the second female connector and a second portion that constitutes the tapered protrusion of the male connector.

15. The connector system of claim 14 wherein the first and second portions of the adapter are pyramidal, frusto-pyramidal, conical or frusto-conical.

16. The connector system of claim 11 wherein the tapered protrusion has a pyramidal, frusto-pyramidal, conical or frusto-conical shape.

17. A pair of building components for use in building construction, the pair of building components comprising: a first building component comprising an integrally formed male connector, the male connector having a tapered protrusion, the tapered protrusion protruding from the first building component, the tapered protrusion having a cross-sectional extent that decreases monotonically, in at least one dimension, in a direction of protrusion, thereby imparting a taper to the tapered protrusion in the at least one dimension;a second building component comprising an integrally formed female connector having a receptacle for receiving the tapered protrusion of the male connector upon mating of the male connector with the female connector,wherein the taper of the tapered protrusion is for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the at least one dimension through sliding engagement between the tapered protrusion and at least part of the receptacle during the mating of the male connector with the female connector, andwherein the tapered protrusion comprises a wall, wherein the male connector further comprises a male receptor, wherein the male receptor is located in the wall of the tapered protrusion, and wherein the first building component further comprises an access hole for accessing the male receptor from the interior side of the wall.

18. The pair of building components of claim 17 wherein the tapered protrusion has an untapered base section to promote abrupt seating of the tapered protrusion within the receptacle upon achievement of the centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector.

19. The pair of building components of claim 17 wherein the receptacle of the female connector comprises opposing resilient wings angled away from a receiving end of the receptacle.

20. The pair of building components claim 17 wherein the cross-sectional extent of the tapered protrusion decreases monotonically in two dimensions in the direction of protrusion, such that the taper of the tapered protrusion is a two-dimensional taper, the two-dimensional taper for facilitating centering of the male connector with respect to the female connector in the two dimensions.