Framing system for building construction

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6318044
  • Patent Number
    6,318,044
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, October 13, 1999
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, November 20, 2001
    22 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Kent; Christopher T.
    Agents
    • Seed IP Law Group PLLC
Abstract
According to existing methods of frame building construction, a concrete foundation is formed on which wooden floor joists are laid. Walls are constructed on the foundation and floor using wooden wall studs, and a roof is constructed on the walls using wooden rafters, beams and trusses. These methods require skilled carpenters and high quality wood materials, both of which are increasingly expensive. There is therefore a need for a system for framing houses or other buildings which uses prefabricated steel framing and which is quick and easy to construct. The invention provides a prefabricated system for framing a complete building on a foundation. Folding telescopic framing units are used for vertical partitions and horizontal floor panels. The invention therefore provides a prefabricated system of framing units forconstructing a building comprising: a) proving a foundation; b) securing vertical beams having open upper ends to the foundation at spaced locations; c) securing horizontal beams between the upper ends of the vertical beams; d) erecting and securing folding, telescopic floor joists on the foundation; and e) erecting and securing folding, telescopic roof trusts at spaced locations on the horizontal beams. The invention also provides a framed building comprising: a) a foundation; b) vertical beams having open upper ends secured to the foundation at spaced locations; c) horizontal beams secured between the upper ends of the vertical beams; d) erected folding, telescopic floor joists secured on the foundation; and e) erected folding, telescopic roof trusts secured at spaced locations on the horizontal beams.
Description




TECHNICAL FIELD




The invention relates to the field of building construction and in particular to prefabricated framing units for constructing interior and exterior walls, floors and roofs, some of which are telescopic and fold for easy shipment and installation.




BACKGROUND ART




According to existing methods of frame building construction, a concrete foundation is formed on which wooden floor joists are laid. Walls are constructed on the foundation and floor using wooden wall studs, and a roof is constructed on the walls using wooden rafters, beams and trusses. These methods require skilled carpenters and high quality wood materials, both of which are increasingly expensive. There is therefore a need for a system for framing houses or other buildings which uses prefabricated steel framing and which is quick and easy to construct.




DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION




The invention provides a prefabricated system for framing a complete building on a foundation. Folding telescopic framing units are used for vertical partitions and horizontal floor panels.




The invention therefore provides a prefabricated system of framing units for constructing a building comprising:




The invention also provides a method of framing a building comprising:











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS




In drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention:





FIG. 1

is a side elevation view of a framing system unit according to the invention;





FIG. 1A

is an end elevation view of a framing system unit according to the invention;





FIG. 2

is an elevation view of a first module for use with the framing unit shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is an elevation view of a second module for use with the framing unit shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 4

is an elevation view of a third module for use with the framing unit shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 5

is a perspective view of two beams in conjunction with a post as shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 6

is a cross-section view taken on line


6





6


of

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 7

is a top view of a floor joist framing unit according to the invention in collapsed, condition;





FIG. 8

is a top view of the floor joist framing unit shown in

FIG. 7

in partly raised condition;





FIG. 9

is a perspective view of the floor joist framing unit shown in

FIG. 7

in raised position, with the extended condition shown in phantom outline;





FIG. 10

is a perspective view of the floor joist framing unit shown in

FIG. 7

in raised tended position;





FIG. 11

is a perspective view of a floor panel unit;





FIG. 12

is a schematic view of the V-clip for the floor panel unit shown in

FIG. 11

;





FIG. 13

is an elevation view of a collapsible roof truss framing unit according to the in collapsed condition;





FIG. 14

elevation view of the collapsible roof truss framing unit shown in

FIG. 11

in raised condition; and





FIG. 15

is a detail of a window wall module.











BEST MODE(S) FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION




With reference to the accompanying drawings (not to scale), which illustrate the invention by a simplified structure having a smaller number of components than would be the case in an actual construction, and with certain components not in place for ease of illustration, a prefabricated framing system


10


is shown constructed on concrete foundation


12


. Alternatively, vertical foundation piers (not shown), whether concrete or steel, may be used instead of a concrete foundation, with horizontal foundation beams secured to their upper ends to form a foundation for the structure. Secured at the lower ends thereof to concrete foundation


12


at regular intervals are hollow, vertical steel posts


16


, shown in more detail in FIG.


5


. Secured to the top of posts


16


are horizontal steel beams


18


, also as shown in more detail in FIG.


5


. Steel floor joists


52


, described in further detail below, are secured to foundation


12


between posts


16


. Posts


16


, floor joists


52


and beams


18


thus form rectangular openings


20


which can receive wall modules


22


. Wall module


22


shown in

FIG. 1

has a small window


24


formed in a sandwich


21


of coated drywall, foam insulation and finished particle board by way of example. A variety of such pre-finished materials can be used for the interior and exterior surfaces. Wall module


22


shown in

FIG. 1A

has a door opening


28


formed between slabs of foam insulation


29


and a reinforcement base


30


. A suitable material, for example would be a laminates of a finished drywall interior, rigid foam insulation and a finished particle board exterior layer. A mesh exterior surface may be provided to permit the application of an exterior stucco surface. Outside gable end sill plates


13


fill in the space between the beams


16


at the ends of the unit. Module


22


is shown in isolation in

FIG. 15

with foam core


90


to which are bonded pre-finished interior and exterior panels


92


,


94


. Ceiling panels are constructed in a similar manner.




Various modules


22


for use with the system are shown in

FIGS. 2-4

, namely a door opening


28


, a large window opening


30


, and a standard framing section


32


. Each module


22


is adapted to be folded about hinges


31


and to fit within space


20


when the post and beam frames are constructed. On site, the different modules are interchangeable to custom design a particular house or building. Each module is designed to fit a standard space, such as 4′×8′. The modules can be pre-fabricated with insulation, wiring etc. to save time on construction. Studs


36


can be hingedly connected to the horizontal members


34


at hinges


31


by metal screws or systems like TOGGLE LOCKS™. Steel members


34


and


36


are preferably 28 gauge galvanized steel channel, either C-shaped channels or tubular elements which are rectangular in cross-section for vertical studs


36


.




Roof


25


is secured to beams


18


by means of roof trusses


26


, shown in further detail in

FIG. 13 and 14

. Steel Z-bars


27


are secured to roof trusses


26


in parallel fashion and corrugated steel roof panels (not shown) are secured to Z-bars


27


to form the roof.




As shown in

FIG. 5

, the ends of steel beams


18


have perpendicular, downward extensions


15


sized to extend snugly into the upper opening


19


in hollow, vertical steel posts


16


where they can be bolted securely in place. Steel beams


18


are hollow light gauge steel. To form a corner, comer posts


16


are utilized which can receive the beams


18


at right angles, with the extensions


15


being received in the upper open end of compartment


16


B. This is achieved, as shown in

FIG. 6

, by providing side compartments


16




b


at right angles to each other, and attached to the central compartment


16




a.







FIG. 6

illustrates the construction of a floor according to the invention. Horizontal beam


14


is secured on foundation


12


to support folding, telescopic floor joists, with a post


16


bearing on beam


14


at either end thereof. Folding, telescopic floor joist frame panels


52


, shown in further detail in

FIGS. 7-10

extend from one side of the foundation to the other between posts


16


. Each floor joist frame panel


52


comprises transverse members


54


and parallel members


56


. A standard floor joist framing unit


52


is designed to support 8 foot by 4 foot pieces of floor sheeting, for example, so preferably when fully unfolded and extended is 7 foot 9 ½ inches wide (to sit between compartments


16




b


and post


16


) and multiples of 8 feet long, with the overlap sections of outer and inner members


60


,


62


supported on beam


14


. Liner pieces


33


space the floor joist framing unit


52


from beam


16


. Members


54


are hingedly connected to the members


56


at hinges


58


, which typically are metal screws or TOGGLE LOCKS™. Members


56


are preferably galvanized steel channel. Transverse members


54


comprise outer members


60


and inner members


62


as shown in

FIG. 10

, which can be either C-shaped channels as shown or tubular elements which are rectangular in cross-section The inner members


62


to slide freely within outer members


60


to permit extension and retraction of the studs. Members


56


are screwed to foundation


12


once in place and the overlapping section of members


54


are screwed to beam


14


. Alternatively members


54


can be pre-drilled to receive bolts (not shown) which are pre-installed in beam


14


to fasten members


54


to beam


14


using nuts, to expedite the installation process.





FIG. 11

illustrates a floor panel


70


, typically 4′ by 8′, which is installed on floor joist panels


52


. Each panel


70


has a central layer


72


of rigid foam insulation, a bottom layer


74


of corrugated metal such as galvanized steel to prevent access by insects or pests, and a finished upper surface


76


of linoleum, hardwood tiles or the like. The foam


72


extends into the ridges formed by the corrugated metal


74


. Panels


70


are removably installed on the upper surface of floor joist panels


52


by way of clips, for example. For example, V-shaped channels


78


shown in

FIG. 12

can be provided in members


54


to receive a protrusion


79


from the underside


74


of panels


70


at spaced locations which are wedged into the V-shaped channels. Similar pre-fabricated ceiling panels can also be installed to the underside of a second level of floor joist panels.





FIG. 13 and 14

illustrate the pre-fabricated, folding telescopic roof truss


26


to be used as a load-supporting roof or loft truss. A roof truss


26


, shown in

FIG. 13

,


14


comprises peak elements


82


,


82


′ joined by hinge


83


, and inner and outer cross-members


84


,


86


joined to peak members


82


′,


82


by hinges


85


,


87


respectively. Inner cross-member


84


telescopes within outer cross-member


86


. Peak members


82


′,


82


are comprised of elements


87


,


89


and


87


′,


89


′ wherein


89


and


89


′ have ends which telescope freely within elements


87


,


87


′. To erect the roof truss, the peak members


82


,


82


′ are raised, causing inner cross-member


84


to slide inside cross-member


86


and the ends of


89


and


89


′ to slide within elements


87


,


87


′. Reinforcing members


88


,


88


′ are then screwed by means of screws


81


to the respective beams as shown to secure the truss.




Interior non-load-bearing walls can also be framed using the inventor's prefabricated folding telescopic framing unit for non-loadbearing walls disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/729,697 which is incorporated herein by reference. Studs


36


are hingedly connected to the horizontal members


34


at hinges


38


, which typically are metal screws or TOGGLE LOCKS™. Horizontal members


34


can be, for example, galvanized steel channel, either C-shaped channels or tubular elements which are rectangular in cross-section. Pre-punched service openings


44


may be provided in various stud members for purposes of wiring and plumbing.




To frame a building using the invention, the various framing units are manufactured off-site and shipped to the site in collapsed condition where possible. The vertical posts


16


and corner posts


15


are secured in place to foundation


12


, as are transverse horizontal beams


14


. The floor joist panels


52


are then installed by laying the parallel members


56


in position on the foundation


12


. The opposite member


56


is grasped and unfolded to the position shown in

FIG. 9

with transverse members


54


aligned in parallel. One parallel member


56


is fastened in position on the foundation


12


with screws, toggle lock, nails or the like. The opposite parallel member


56


is grasped and extended to the position shown in

FIG. 10

, causing the inner members


62


to slide out from outer members


60


, until the opposite member


56


meets the beam


50


. The opposite member


56


is then fastened in position to the opposite side of foundation


12


. The outer and inner members


60


,


62


are then fastened by screws, toggle locks or the like to horizontal beam


14


in the overlap area. The desired floor panelling can then be attached to the framing unit to complete the floor, by fastening with screws etc. or clips such as the a V-notch arrangement described above.




The load-supporting floor joist system requires a sufficiently heavy gauge steel to support loads, typically 18 to 20 gauge. The necessary type and thickness of steel will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The size of the floor joist framing units may be typically 7′ 9½″ wide by 16, 24 or 32 feet long. The vertical exterior walls are constructed as follows. Beams


18


are secured to the posts


16


through extensions


15


by bolts, screws etc. The location for the different wall modules


22


is selected and each is installed according to the type of module. If a framing module as shown in

FIGS. 2-4

is used, then the required exterior and interior panelling can then be attached to the framing unit to complete the wall. Roof trusses


26


are then erected as described above and fastened to beams


18


at intervals as shown in FIG.


1


. Z-bars


27


are fastened to roof trusses


27


and roofing panels (not shown) are secured to the Z-bars to form the roof.




Various related elements as disclosed in International application no. PCT/CA97/00637, which is incorporated herein by reference, can be used to add to the usefulness of the present invention. For example, a related folding, telescopic header unit facilitates the framing of door or window units. A single telescopic stud can be used in conjunction with the invention. When a partition wall being constructed requires a framing unit which is less than a standard length, a single telescopic stud can be installed at the required length. Similarly a single stud can be installed at a location in a framing unit to frame a door or the like.




As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing disclosure, many alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of this invention without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. For example, different cross-section shapes and different sizes can be selected for the various beams and studs, and different materials are suitable for the components. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be construed in accordance with the substance defined by the following claims.



Claims
  • 1. A prefabricated framing unit for constructing a roof truss comprising:a) a telescopic lower horizontal member; b) a folding upper peak member; and c) means for securing said folding upper peak member in a raised position; wherein said telescopic lower horizontal member has an adjustable length, and wherein the ends of said telescopic lower horizontal member are hingedly fastened to the ends of said folding upper peak member; and wherein said folding upper peak member comprises first and second elements hingedly connected.
  • 2. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 1, wherein said means for securing said folding upper peak member in a raised position comprises a plurality of bracing members adapted to be fastened at upper and lower ends thereof respectively to said upper peak member and lower horizontal member at spaced locations thereon.
  • 3. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 1 wherein said telescopic lower horizontal member comprises an outer element and an inner element within and aligned parallel to said outer element, said inner element being adapted to slide within and parallel to said outer element thereby lengthening or shortening said lower horizontal member.
  • 4. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 1 wherein said horizontal and peak members are manufactured from sheet metal.
  • 5. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 1, wherein said unit comprises two of said bracing members.
  • 6. A method of constructing a prefabricated roof truss comprising:a) providing a prefabricated framing unit for constructing a roof truss comprising i) a telescopic lower horizontal member; ii) a folding upper peak member; and iii) means for securing said upper peak member in a raised position; wherein said telescopic lower horizontal member has an adjustable length, and wherein the ends of said telescopic lower horizontal member are hingedly fastened to the ends of said folding upper peak member; and wherein said folding upper peak member comprises first and second elements hingedly connected; b) raising said upper peak member, thereby causing said telescopic lower horizontal member to shorten; and c) securing said upper peak member in said raised position.
  • 7. The method of claim 2 wherein said upper peak member is secured in said raised position by fastening bracing members to said upper peak member and telescopic lower horizontal member.
  • 8. A prefabricated floor joist framing unit for constructing a load-bearing floor comprising:a) a first horizontal member; b) a second horizontal member; c) a plurality of telescopic members hingedly fastened at first and second ends thereof respectively to said first and second horizontal members at spaced locations thereon; wherein each said telescopic member has an adjustable length and comprises an outer element and an inner element within and aligned parallel to said outer element, each said inner element adapted to slide within and parallel to said outer element thereby lengthening or shortening said telescopic member, and wherein a first end of one of said inner and outer elements is hingedly fastened to said first horizontal member and a first end of said other of said inner and outer elements is free to slide relative to said one of said inner and outer elements, and the second end of the other of said inner and outer elements is hingedly fastened to said second horizontal member and a second end of said other of said inner and outer elements is free to slide relative to said other of said inner and outer elements.
  • 9. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 8 wherein said horizontal and telescopic members are manufactured from sheet metal.
  • 10. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 8 wherein said unit comprises four telescopic members.
  • 11. The prefabricated framing unit of claim 8 wherein said unit comprises three telescopic members.
  • 12. A method of constructing a pre-fabricated floor on a foundation comprising:a) providing a floor joist framing unit for constructing a load-bearing floor comprising: i) a first horizontal member; ii) a second horizontal member; iii) a plurality of telescopic members hingedly fastened at first and second ends thereof respectively to said first and second horizontal members at spaced locations thereon; wherein each said telescopic member has an adjustable length and comprises an outer element and an inner element within and aligned parallel to said outer element, each said inner element adapted to slide within and parallel to said outer element thereby lengthening or shortening said telescopic member, and wherein a first end of one of said inner and outer elements is hingedly fastened to said first horizontal member and a first end of said other of said inner and outer elements is free to slide relative to said one of said inner and outer elements, and the second end of the other of said inner and outer elements is hingedly fastened to said second horizontal member and a second end of said other of said inner and outer elements is free to slide relative to said other of said inner and outer elements; b) securing said first horizontal member in position on said foundation; c) pivoting said second horizontal member to a position with said telescopic members aligned generally perpendicularly to said horizontal members; d) extending said second horizontal member until it is in place on said foundation, thereby causing said inner element to slide relative to said outer element; e) securing said second horizontal member in position on said foundation.
  • 13. The method of claim 12 further comprising providing a horizontal beam transversely between opposed sides of said foundation, and securing said telescopic members to said horizontal beam.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/056,892, filed Apr. 6, 1998 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,050,045, which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/729,697 filed Oct. 7, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,735,100.

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Continuations (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 09/056892 Apr 1998 US
Child 09/416919 US
Continuation in Parts (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 08/729697 Oct 1996 US
Child 09/056892 US