Patent Application
20220228380
This patent application relates generally to a concrete construction systems and methods, and more specifically, to systems and methods for constructing a concrete column using a round column form.
Residential and commercial construction typically involves creation of vertical members, such as columns. These vertical members may transfer loads from slabs and beams by compression. Such compression may cause the vertical members to transfer load ultimately to the soil below. In other words, these vertical members are what allow a building or structure to stand. Most building or structure failure is the result of poor column construction.
Reinforced concrete construction of columns may be an important type of concrete element in a building, especially a multi-story building. However, the design and formation of these vertical elements may vary greatly. Things like shape, length, location, and understanding of various forces must be considered in their construction. With all these considerations, most conventional approaches may be complex, costly, and cumbersome.
Thus, a simple, inexpensive, reliable, and scalable systems and techniques to prepare and construct one or more columns or other similar vertical members in any building or structure may be imperative.
Features of the present disclosure are illustrated by way of example and not limited in the following Figure(s), in which like numerals indicate like elements, in which:
For simplicity and illustrative purposes, the present disclosure is described by referring mainly to examples and embodiments thereof. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. It will be readily apparent, however, that the present disclosure may be practiced without limitation to these specific details. In other instances, some methods and structures readily understood by one of ordinary skill in the art have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure the present disclosure. As used herein, the terms “a” and “an” are intended to denote at least one of a particular element, the term “includes” means includes but not limited to, the term “including” means including but not limited to, and the term “based on” means based at least in part on.
As described above, reinforced concrete construction of columns may be an important type of concrete element in a building, especially a multi-story building. However, the design and formation of these vertical elements may vary greatly. Things like shape, length, location, and understanding of various forces must be considered in their construction. With all these considerations, most conventional approaches may be complex, costly, and cumbersome.
There may be several stages involved in the construction of columns, especially concrete columns. These may include, but not limited to: (1) column layout; (2) column reinforcement; (3) column formwork; and (4) pouring concrete into column. Column layout may generally be a stage that is determined early on in the design process and may occur practically in field. Column layout, for example, may include drawing, marking, and/or using rope-line measurements to place and position various columns in accordance with architectural drawings or layouts. Pouring concrete may be a relatively simple stage, assuming column reinforcement and formwork are established and completed. Pouring concrete may generally involve mixing concrete (machine, ready-mix, or otherwise) and pumping the mixed concrete into the established concrete form. The systems and methods described herein may be directed generally to aspects of (2) column reinforcement and/or especially (3) column formwork.
The systems and methods, as described herein, may provide a two-piece column form that is innovative and novel, in some examples, the systems and methods described herein may provide round column construction using overlaid plywood with excellent surface durability and/or for mirror gloss finishes or other finish. In some examples, panel construction may include a three-part, high-density, overlay on hardwood, such as a poplar/birch mixed inner ply. In some examples, a two-step technique, which may involve bonding using an adhesive, such as phenolic glue, and laminated with paper (e.g., #100 film) on both sides may also be involved to provide round column form.
It should be appreciated that after hours of 95° C. high temperature pressurized with molded half round forms, half round columns may set and formed permanently. In some examples, edges may be trimmed, e.g., tongue and groove, and calibrated to fit the round column.
Benefits and advantages of the systems and methods described herein may include ease of use, installation, removal and/or transportation of elements. The column forms and associated elements for the systems and methods described herein may also be easily cut, designed with grooves or notches, which help ensure stable interconnections that prevent or reduce concrete leakage. In addition, the column forms and processing techniques described herein may generally incorporate plywood that is light-weight and easy to handle. In some examples, the column forms may be used in a stacking configuration, e.g., up to 30 feet without use of a crane or other similar machinery. These and other advantages will be apparent in the detailed description provided below.
In some examples, the column form 100 may be a two-piece round column form, having a first form 100A and a second form 100B, as shown in
In some examples, the column form 100 may be bonded with an adhesive, such as phenolic glue, with outer layers laminating the hardwood inner ply. The outer layers, for example, may be thin film paper, such as #100 film paper. It should be appreciated that high temperature exposure and pressurization (e.g., 95° C.), the column form 100 may be molded into half-round forms, which can then be set and permanently used for column formwork and related construction.
It should be appreciated that the edges of the column form 100 may be trimmed as necessary to help ensure proper shape, size, and/or dimension of the column form 100. In some examples, the trimming of the edges may also involve providing a tongue-and-groove to ensure secure fit of the two half-pieces during column formwork stages of construction.
During column formwork, the one or more kickers 130 may be used. These kickers 130 may be used to help secure to column form 100 with a slab (or ground) below. The brace element 200 and straps 120 may also be used to help retain and hold the column form 100 together. It should be appreciated that the brace element 200 may be used at a predetermined distance from the top of the column form 100, as shown. In some examples, this predetermined distance may be 12 inches from the top of the column form 100. Details of the brace element 200 will be described in more detail with respect for
The strap 130 may include a 2-inch (or other dimension) strap and a fastener. In some examples, the strap 130 may be made of steel, or other suitable material, such as a nylon, polyester, wood, rubber, string, or pliable material that can be used to perform a similar feature. In some examples, the fastener may be any type of buckle, latch, or other similar fastening or securing mechanism to keep the strap 130 in place. As shown in
Although the systems and methods described herein are directed to round column forms with typical dimensions, it should be appreciated that there may or may not be any limits on the size, shape, width, length, height, material, or other dimensions for the column form 100 and associated elements, such as the strap 120, the kicker 130, etc. That said, in some examples, a diameter of the column form 100 may be in the 12- to 72-inch range. In some examples, the length (or height) of the column form 100 may be in the 4 to 20 feet range. In some examples, the plywood thickness may be 9 to 18 mm or ⅜ to ¾ inch (for a column form 100 having a 12- to 30-inch diameter) or 22 to 35 mm or ⅞ to 1⅜ inch (for a column form 100 having a 32- to 72-inch diameter). Although the sizes and ranges listed herein may be customary sizes in commercial or multi-story construction, other various sizes, dimensions, ranges, shapes, or values may also be provided for the column form 100.
It should be appreciated that a release be applied to the interior of the column form prior to each use. The release may be any release agent, such as any number or various of oils, jellies, or other agents. These may include, but not limited to castor oil, petroleum jelly, grease, wax, and/or other nonstick release agent. Application of the form release may help extend the number of uses of the column form 100 for column formwork and filling. In some examples, use of a release agent may extend the life of the life (number of uses) of the column form 100 by 50% or more.
In some examples, the lowermost or bottom (1st) strap may be placed at approximately ⅝″ from the floor/base. The height may vary, but the intention to provide a little space may simply be to avoid the concrete to adhere to the form, and to be ready for the next pour. It should be appreciated that the subsequent straps may be required to increase ⅓ quantity at the bottom portion, at every additional 10′ height of columns, as outlined in TABLE 1 below.
This may help with weight and load of concrete being poured into the forms and to help retain uniformity throughout the entire column, no matter how tall it is. It should be appreciated that the term “on-center,” sometimes often abbreviated “OC” or “o.c.,”” may be used in construction drawings, architectural plans, and woodworking designs. The term may indicate a relative dimension, and in this case, may refer to a distance between a center of one framing member to a center of a next member. In other words, the aforementioned spacings (in o.c.) may refer to the spacing between straps.
In an example, the systems and methods may follow column specifications as outlined below in TABLE 2.
In some examples, there may be recommendations for approximate maximum rate of pouring of concrete into the column form, as shown in the specifications outlined below in TABLE 3.
At 410, apply a release agent to an inner layer of a column form. In some examples, the column form may be a two-piece column form, as described herein. In some examples, the release agent may be any number of oils, jellies, or other agents, as described herein.
At 420, fasten at least one fastener around the column form. In some examples, the at least one fastener may help fit the two pieces of the column form, in accordance with examples described herein. The fastener, in some examples, may be a system of at least one brace and/or at least one strap made of various materials described herein. The fastener system may also include any number of kickers (e.g., attached to the brace) to provide stability to the column form. In some examples, the two-piece column form may be fastened in any by the at least one strap in an alternative
At 430, a concrete mixture may be poured into the concrete form to form a concrete column. As described herein, pouring concrete may generally involve mixing concrete (machine, ready-mix, or otherwise) and pumping the mixed concrete into the concrete form. It should be appreciated that any number of concrete mixtures may be used depending on specific application or use. For example, these may include various concrete mix/liquid/aggregate ratios. Fine, medium, or coarse aggregates may be used depending on application or use as well.
In some examples, paper linings (e.g., spiral paper tubes) may be used to help form concrete columns, piers, and/or footings. These paper linings may be customizable. For example, they may have 6″ to 60″ diameters and be configured for cut-to-length sizing using any number of basic cutting tools. In some examples, the paper linings may be made of recycled paperboard and include rain-resistant technology to keep rain or other source of moisture from impacting any concrete pour. Use of paper linings may minimize or eliminate need for cleaning, reassembly, or return freight costs. It may also provide setting and pouring multiple columns in a short timespan or overlapping time spans.
At 440, unfasten the at least one fastener to remove the column form. This may be done once the concrete mixture has sufficiently dried or cured. In some examples, depending on the concrete mixture, this may take a relatively short time with little manual labor. For example, it may take 2 people approximately 6-8 hours to provide the formwork and concrete pour.
It should be appreciated that the systems and methods described herein may provide any number of technical advantages. These may include ease of use, installation, removal and/or transportation of elements. The column forms and associated elements for the systems and methods described herein may also be easily cut, designed with grooves or notches, which help ensure stable interconnections that prevent or reduce concrete leakage. In addition, the column forms and processing techniques described herein may generally incorporate plywood that is light-weight and easy to handle. In some examples, the column forms may be used in a stacking configuration, e.g., up to 30 feet without use of a crane or other similar machinery. Accordingly, the column forms described herein may provide reduced construction time, greater consistency in quality column construction, reproducibility and scalability, and less required man-power, all of which may translate to higher construction efficiencies, reliability, strength, and manageability.
What has been described and illustrated herein are examples of the disclosure along with some variations. The terms, descriptions, and figures used herein are set forth by way of illustration only and are not meant as limitations. Many variations are possible within the scope of the disclosure, which is intended to be defined by the following claims—and their equivalents—in which all terms are meant in their broadest reasonable sense unless otherwise indicated.
