Patent Application
20220009123
The present invention is generally directed to methods and systems for building and constructing roof trusses.
In the construction industry, manufactured roof trusses are used in the construction of houses, apartments, offices, garages, and many other types of commercial and residential buildings and structures. The manufactured roof trusses are pre-built/assembled before they are delivered to construction sites for use in constructing the roofs of the overall structures that are being built at the construction sites. Manufactured roof trusses are typically, though not uniformly, triangular in shape and they typically have a top portion, a bottom portion, and outside edges.
A standard manufactured roof truss is comprised of several longer boards that are called chords, and several shorter boards that are part of the web. The top portion of the standard manufactured roof truss is comprised of top chords that span what will be the top part of a completed structure's roof, while the bottom portion is comprised of bottom chords that span what will be the bottom part of the completed structure's roof. The top chords and bottom chords of the manufactured roof truss are interconnected to each other by the shorter web boards that link the top chords and bottom chords. The top chords and bottom chords are typically also joined together at the outer edges of the manufactured roof truss that will typically roughly correspond to the outer edges of the completed structure in which the roof trusses are incorporated. Typically the top chords, bottom chords, and web boards are all joined together at their joints (places where the boards intersect each other) by means of truss plates that are hammered and/or pressed into both sides of the boards at the joints to hold all of the boards of the manufactured roof truss together. While there are variations on the various interrelationships, shapes, and components used in the building of manufactured roof trusses, the basic terms and typical structures described above will be well understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art of constructing manufactured roof trusses.
Large-sized roof trusses are typically assembled in large manufacturing plants or big workshops using very large gantry type systems or large, permanently affixed work tables with manually set jigs for positioning individual boards such as top chords, bottom chords, and interconnecting web boards, before those boards are joined together to form a manufactured roof truss by means of multiple truss plates that are hammered and/or pressed into the boards at the joint locations. Such large gantry systems or large work tables are often not practical for use in constructing small to moderate size manufactured roof trusses, and such large systems or tables require a large space for operation. Such large systems are also frequently much less flexible in terms of rearranging in order to switch from construction of one type of roof truss assembly to a different type of roof truss assembly in which trusses of different size and shape must be built using different sized chord and web boards. And while there are automated systems that exist for re-positioning jigs on large work tables to different configurations, such automated systems are typically prohibitively expensive for small to moderate size manufacturers. What is needed is a relatively inexpensive system that can be quickly assembled, disassembled, and re-assembled while capable of use in a smaller space for construction of manufactured roof trusses.
The present invention is a roof truss assembly system that involves using multiple moveable pedestals, some of which are track-mounted pedestals that are repositionable at different locations along a linear length of stationary floor track, and others of which are independent pedestals that are totally independent of the stationary floor track and are completely repositionable at varying locations on either side of the track-mounted pedestals and the stationary floor track. Each of the moveable pedestals of the system, whether track-mounted pedestals attached to the floor track, or the repositionable, independent pedestals that are independent of the stationary floor track, will cooperate to provide a repositionable jig system at their tops. The tops of the pedestals are comprised of two elongate, parallel arm members and one or more perpendicularly positioned cross member. The two parallel arm members do not move and are affixed to tops of leg members of their respective pedestal, but the cross members may be moved and temporarily connected between the arm members to provide a variety of positions for jig placement at the top of the pedestals. Since the pedestals themselves are moveable, the cross members at the tops of the pedestals are repositionable in relation to the arm members, and the jigs themselves may be temporarily inserted and connected at various locations on the arm members and cross members of the pedestals, various placements/configurations of jigs are possible when using the roof truss assembly system for construction of varying shapes, geometries, and sizes of manufactured roof trusses.
The roof truss assembly system also features a multiplicity of rollers that may be pneumatically, hydraulically, or mechanically raised or lowered above or below the tops of the pedestals in order to facilitate moving a completed, manufactured roof truss off of the tops of the pedestals once the construction of the roof truss is complete. The rollers allow a completed roof truss to simply be rolled off the tops of the pedestals so that it can be stacked for shipment to a customer or storage. Some of the rollers will be part of, or mounted on, the track-mounted pedestals, while other rollers may be part of the independent pedestals in some embodiments. However, more frequently the system will primarily include rollers that are attached to the track-mounted pedestals rather than rollers that are mounted on the independent pedestals. The roof truss assembly system will also typically include one or more separate, moveable pipe roller assemblies that are freely repositionable as desired at any location in relation to the floor track, the track-mounted pedestals, and the independent pedestals. These pipe roller assemblies' function is to assist in the lifting and rolling off of the completed, manufactured roof trusses from the top of the roof truss assembly system.
A more thorough understanding of the roof truss assembly system and its components and subassemblies can be obtained from a review of the appended drawings and the following description provided below corresponding to those drawings.
The following description is to be read in conjunction with the identified drawing figures that are included as a part of this patent application.
As discussed above in the summary section, embodiments of the roof truss assembly system disclosed herein are comprised of multiple moveable pedestals of two main types and also moveable pipe roller assemblies, all of which cooperate to provide a repositionable jig system whereon a roof truss can be assembled in a desired shape and size using chord and web boards that are held in a desired geometric alignment during assembly operations by the repositionable jigs. In most embodiments the system is comprised of multiple track-mounted pedestals that can be moved to various positions along a linear, stationary floor track and then temporarily locked into desired positions along the floor track while they are in use for building the roof truss(es). The multiple track-mounted pedestals and the floor track on which they are positioned can be viewed as a subassembly of the overall roof truss assembly system. In most embodiments the system also includes one or more independent pedestals and one or more pipe roller assemblies. The independent pedestals and pipe roller assemblies are not necessarily in contact with the stationary floor track, and if desired, they can be moved to various locations away from the floor track where they may be temporarily positioned for use in constructing and/or lifting the roof truss(es) that are the workpiece of the invention.
Most embodiments of the track-mounted pedestal 100 will further include a roller lift 70 that may be used in cooperation with other roller lifts 70 that are attached to other track-mounted pedestals 100 in order to lift a completed, manufactured roof truss up and off of the arm members 10 and cross members 20 of the multiple moveable pedestals and also above the various jigs 22 located on those arm members 10, 20 following assembly of the truss in order to then be able to roll the completed truss off the assembly system for subsequent storage or transport. As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As illustrated in
As can be understood when viewing
In a preferred embodiment, the track-mounted pedestals 100 that comprise the floor-track subassembly 1000 are made of heavy duty square tubes and steel plates so that they are extremely rigid and stable. In the preferred embodiment, the track-mounted pedestals 100 are installed on a straight floor track T having two rails that is securely mounted to the floor of a workshop or manufacturing plant. In the preferred embodiment, the floor track T is made of two elongate steel rails running parallel to each other with a space between the rails, each of the rails having a flat top. Such steel rails when used as a floor track T will be extremely durable and sturdy and will allow for the track-mounted pedestals 100 to be repositioned along the length of the floor track T as desired and also temporarily locked and held in place on the tops of the rails during operations. In the preferred embodiment of the track-mounted pedestals 100, the track wheels 60 are steel caster wheels that are located on the bottom portions of the pedestals 100 and placed in contact with the flat tops of the steel floor track T such that the casters allow the track-mounted pedestals 100 to be easily moved to any location along the length of the floor track T when such pedestals 100 are not being held in place in relation to the floor track by the temporary locking means, such as the rod locks 55. In the preferred embodiment, the rod locks 55 are threaded screws or bolts that may be simply tightened down against the top flat surfaces of the floor track's rails in order to make the pedestals 100 virtually immoveable when they are temporarily locked down in a desired position along the length of the floor track T for roof truss assembly operations. As previously disclosed, the preferred embodiment of the track-mounted pedestal 100 also features track guides 65 that are guides or channels that help maintain the track-mounted pedestal 100 on the rails of the floor track T so that it will not derail from the floor track T during movement before or after truss assembly operations.
Unlike the track-mounted pedestals 100, the independent pedestals 200 will include free movement means, such as wheels, casters, or some type of mobile track driven system, all of which will not be connected to the floor track T and all of which may be lowered or raised in relation to the main body of the independent pedestals 200 such that the movement means may be brought into rolling or similar type of contact with the floor when the independent pedestal 200 is to be moved, or may be removed from contact with the floor when the independent pedestal 200 is positioned in a desired location on the floor of a shop or manufacturing facility. This ability to move the independent pedestals 200 into a desired position and then temporarily hold the independent pedestals 200 in that position in relation to the floor will typically be accomplished by means of an arm lever 47 that will lower or raise the movement means toward or away from contact with the floor, combined with temporary securement means to help secure the independent pedestals 200 in place at a desired position on the floor, such as rubber stoppers placed on the bottom of the independent pedestals 200 that come into contact with the floor when the movement means are raised and thereby taken out of contact with the floor.
As shown in
As can be understood when viewing
In a preferred embodiment, the leg members 30 and shelf support members 40 of the independent pedestals 200 are made of heavy-duty square tubes with a solid 4″ thick 24″×24″ steel plate for the base plate. These construction specifications provide the weight needed for stability when the independent pedestal 200 is lowered into position on the floor for manufacturing operations. As discussed above, in the preferred embodiment temporary securement means are provided by rubber feet grips 77 located on the bottoms of the pedestal rests 68 that come into contact with the floor of the shop or manufacturing facility firmly making the independent pedestals 200 very stable when in position for truss assembly operations. Optionally, one of the four rubber feet grips 77 may be made adjustable up or down to potentially take the teeter out of the independent pedestals 200. The preferred embodiment of the independent pedestal 200 makes use of four 5″ rubber tire casters as the floor wheels 69 that are mounted to the floor wheel base 64 located near the bottom of the pedestal, and which may be pushed down by an arm lever 47 on each side which raises the independent pedestal 200 and pulls the rubber feet grips 77 of the pedestal rests 68 away from contact with the floor, thereby allowing the independent pedestal 200 to be moved to any location on the floor desired. Optionally, there is also a handle extension that can be stored on a pin welded to the frame of the pedestal.
The independent pedestals 200 may, but typically will not, feature an attached roller lift and roller assembly actuator 80. The independent pedestals 200 of the preferred embodiment are extremely stable because of their heavy duty construction, and the solid four pedestal rests 68 with rubber feet grips 77 that rest on the floor when they are in position and the movement means are raised out of contact with the floor. The arm levers 47/hand grips 39 system for the movement means allows the independent pedestals to be lifted clear from the floor in order to move them much more easily. There is no need for metal flooring or magnets to hold the independent pedestals 200 in position when they are lowered into contact with the floor and are not being moved.
As shown in
As shown in
In each pipe roller assembly 300, the pipe roller 90 is rollingly supported by a total of four support rollers 91, with two support rollers 91 being provided by each of the tripod support stands 95. As can be seen in
As discussed, the swivel plate 86 of each tripod support stand 95 is rigidly connected on its bottom plate to a roller tube lift 97. The roller tube lift 97 is a vertically oriented tube that may be motivated upward or downward in relation to the tripod support stand 95 by means of a roller actuator 93. The roller actuator 93 may use pneumatic, hydraulic, or mechanical means to move the roller tube lift 97 upwards or downwards. As can be understood, the movement of the roller tube lift 97 upwards will raise the swivel plate 86, the support roller housing 92, the support rollers 91, and the pipe roller 90. This is useful when a completed roof truss needs to be lifted above the arm members 10, cross members 20, and jigs 22 of the moveable pedestals and then slid off the assembly for subsequent storage or transport.
With the ability to lift or lower and also to rotate the support rollers 91 and the pipe roller 90 that they support as desired, the pipe roller assemblies 300 may be positioned at any angle in relation to the other component parts and subassemblies of the system and in relation to a truss being built, which makes them quite useful. Furthermore, in the preferred embodiment of the pipe roller assembly 300, the tripod support stands 95 and their support rollers 91 will accept pipes of any length longer than 24″, which makes the pipe roller assemblies 300 extremely versatile to use for essentially any truss configuration.
As discussed above, the upward and downward motivating force for lifting or lowering the roller lifts 70 will be provided by a roller assembly actuator 80 located on the base plate 50 that extends or retracts a roller piston 78. Likewise, the upward and downward motivating force for lifting or lowering the pipe rollers 90 will be provided by a roller actuator 93 located on the tripod base plate 94. As previously explained, the roller assembly actuator 80 and the roller actuator 93 may be pneumatic, hydraulic, or motorized mechanical lifting devices. However, the inventor has determined that the best mode for the raising and lowering of the roller lifts 70 and pipe rollers 90 is accomplished by means of a pneumatically actuated air cylinder situated in an air cylinder housing. Thus, to the extent that the invention has been reduced to practice, the roller assembly actuators 80 and the roller actuators 93 are pneumatically actuated air cylinders situated in air cylinder housings that are rigidly affixed to the respective base plates 50, 94 and feature a respective push rod 78, 97 extending vertically upward from the air cylinder and capable of pushing the roller lifts 70 and pipe rollers 90 upwards, which occurs when the air cylinder is pneumatically actuated. Air supply hoses 83, 99 may be connected to each of the respective pneumatically actuated air cylinders and each such air supply hose 83, 99 may be coupled or decoupled with an air supply line that runs the full length of the floor track T and features multiple connection points. When in use, the pneumatically actuated air cylinders of multiple track-mounted pedestals 100 and pipe roller assemblies 300 may all be used to raise all of the roller lifts 70 and pipe rollers 90 in unison by means of air flowing through the air supply line. This facilitates removal of the completed roof truss W from the top of the assembly system for subsequent storage or transport. The air supply for all of the air cylinders/pistons of the entire system may be controlled by one lever so that the whole completed truss is simultaneously raised by the roller lifts 70 and pipe rollers 90 moving upwards in unison above the pedestals 100, 200 and the jigs 22 for easy ejection/removal of the completed truss from the assembly system.
In a preferred embodiment, each of the moveable pedestals 100, 200 will also feature a mid-level shelf 45 that is positioned between the bottom portion and top portion of each of the pedestals 100, 200. The shelf 45 may be used to store various items such as hammers or, more advantageously, truss plates that will be used to connect the boards of the truss at each joint during manufacturing operations after the boards have been placed into a desired orientation using the repositionable jigs 22 (and possibly clamps C) at the top of the pedestals 100, 200. In a preferred embodiment the shelf will be constructed from plywood and will be positioned at a height that is 30″ off the level of the floor (bottom of the pedestal), which would create a comfortable working position without the need for excessive bending in order to pick up a truss plate for hammering it into place at a joint.
In a preferred embodiment the repositionable jig system for each of the pedestals 100, 200 may be accomplished through an adjustable jig mounting structure comprised of multiple lengths of Unistrut. As is well known, Unistrut is a galvanized steel rail material having a slotted C-channel structure that features evenly spaced, open slots/holes that are disposed at regular intervals through its central web. Using Unistrut for the repositionable jig system's structure allows for jigs 22 in the form of angle iron stops or pucks to be detachably connected at desired locations along the arm members 10, cross members 20, and supplemental cross members 25 that are located at the tops of the pedestals 100, 200 for use in jigging the truss during manufacturing. For this reason, the arm members 10, cross members 20, and supplemental cross members 25 have been primarily illustrated in the drawing figures as being constructed from Unistrut material. In a preferred embodiment, the repositionable jig system, including the arm members 10, cross members 20, and any supplemental cross members 25, is entirely comprised of heavy duty 1.5″ Unistrut that can accept jigs 22 in the form of angle iron stops or pucks that are used to jig the truss during assembly operations, with the angle iron stops or pucks being capable of detachable connection to the arm members 10, cross members 20, and any supplemental cross members 25 for readily repositioning them to hold various chords and web boards of various sizes and orientations in various desired locations and alignments for building various size/shape/geometry roof trusses. As shown, the preferred embodiment repositionable jig system features arm members 10 that are two parallel lengths of Unistrut material that are rigidly affixed to the tops of the leg members 30 of the pedestals 100, 200 and thereby form the top portion of the pedestals 100, 200, and also features a removable Unistrut cross member 20 that can be positioned perpendicular to, and between, the two parallel arm members 10 and detachably attached thereto during manufacturing operations. The Unistrut cross member 20 may be supplemented by one or more supplemental cross members 25 that are also constructed from Unistrut material. The cross members 10 and any supplemental cross members 25 are detachable/removeable and can be attached/connected at any desired location by using detachable attachment/connection means, such as for example, a bolt and wing nut, screws, pins, etc. that may be used to detachably attach each end of the Unistrut cross members 20 or supplemental cross members 25 to the parallel lengths of Unistrut that are the arm members 10. Once the cross member 20 and/or supplemental cross member 25 are detachably attached at each of their respective ends to one of the parallel lengths of Unistrut that are the arm members 10, jigs 22 in the form of angle iron stops or pucks may be detachably attached to the Unistrut arm members 10, cross members 20, and supplemental cross members 25 of the jig system in desired locations, and manufacturing operations may commence.
As discussed above, and as illustrated in some of the figures filed herewith, all of the pedestals 100, 200 of the system feature a repositionable jig system mounted at the top of the pedestals 100, 200. The repositionable jig system will allow for jigs 22 to be placed, removed, and replaced in various positions at the top of the pedestals 100, 200 so that different size and different shaped trusses can be constructed using the system, depending upon where the pedestals 100, 200 and where the jigs 22 atop the pedestals 100, 200 are positioned during manufacturing. The jigs 22 are used for positioning and alignment of the chord boards and the web boards during manufacturing, and the system allows for the jigs 22 to be moved to desired positions on top of the pedestals 100, 200, detachably attached in desired positions, and detached and moved to new, different positions for new detachable attachment in those new, different positions as may be desired for building different size/shape/geometry trusses using the system. In most embodiments the jig system will be comprised of two parallel rails with a multiplicity of evenly spaced positions along the arm members 10 that are two parallel rails for detachable attachment of the jigs 22, such as the Unistrut material discussed above regarding a preferred embodiment, and the system will be further comprised of a removable cross member 20 that can be detachably attached between, and perpendicular to, the two parallel rails, with the cross member 20 also featuring a multiplicity of evenly spaced positions along its length allowing for detachable attachment of jigs 22, and again, in the preferred embodiment this structure and function is achieved by using Unistrut material.
As stated previously, most roof truss assembly systems are large gantry type systems or extremely large stationary tables that require a very large space, not only to install the machine, but to operate it effectively. The roof truss assembly system hereby disclosed can be configured for use in a very small footprint, making it ideal for small to medium size shops and truss plants. It is also versatile, and easy to set up and use, without the extreme expense of an automated jig table type system. The table top working height of the pedestals and the optional middle level shelves also reduces fatigue and helps increase production.
The embodiments and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention may be best understood and appreciated with reference to the drawings, descriptions, and claims. Where used in the various figures of the drawings, the same numerals designate the same or similar parts. Furthermore, when the terms “top”, “bottom”, “upward”, “downward”, “linear”, “length”, “forward”, “backward”, “front”, “back”, “distal”, “proximal”, “lateral”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “central”, “first”, “second”, “third”, “inside”, “internal”, “outside”, “external”, “end”, “side”, “edge” and similar terms are used herein, it should be understood that, unless otherwise specifically stated or otherwise made specifically clear by context, these terms have reference only to the structure shown in the drawings as it would appear to a person viewing the drawings, and such terms are to be utilized in connection with the appended drawings in order to facilitate describing the invention and in order to facilitate a better understanding of the invention.
Although the invention has been described with reference to several specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments of the invention, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of the invention. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover such modifications that fall within the scope of the invention.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/050,092 filed on Jul. 9, 2020, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63050092 | Jul 2020 | US |
