Patent Application
20100218447
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a thin brick and a method of manufacturing such thin bricks for forming a thin brick facade on a building or other structure. More specifically, the present invention relates to a thin brick and a method of forming such a thin brick that provides uniform spacing between adjacent thin bricks and that does not require additional spacing or support structure when forming a facade on a wall or other surface.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Architectural thin face brick, commonly referred to as “thin brick,” is typically kiln dried brick units that have height and width dimensions similar to those dimensions of conventional brick, but have a relatively small thickness. Some other thin brick units are formed from concrete, such as those manufactured by Western Thin Brick and Tile in Phoenix Ariz. Such thin brick is typically used as a decorative element to an existing architectural structure. The thin brick is typically applied to the structure with an adhesive and then grouted with mortar to give the resulting panel the appearance of “real” brick. Such a thin brick panel, however, is much lighter than a wall formed from conventional brick, is typically less expensive than a conventional brick wall, and can be applied to the facade of a newly constructed building or a building that has been in existence for some period of time.
One of the problems identified early on with applying thin brick is the ability to hold the brick in place during the installation process. That is, when a row of thin brick is first applied to an existing wall and the adhesive is still wet, the brick will slip if the brick is not held in place until the adhesive cures. In addition, without some structural support for aligning the brick during the installation process, a skilled brick layer must be employed to properly lay the brick. As such, several attempts have been made in the art to provide structural support for the individual brick members.
One such panel system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,470 to Bauer et al. Bauer teaches the use of a bonded vacuum formed polystyrene and extruded polystyrene foam. The outer portion is configured to secure bricks in place by a friction fit until the mortar is laid. Channel bars separate the bricks in a vertical direction.
Another brick support structure is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 4,662,140 which includes a sheet of metal having a plurality of tabs punched therein and extending outward from a first side thereof. Also positioned on the first side of the sheet metal panel are adhesive strips for permanently affixing bricks to the panel's first, or outer, side with the bricks positioned in a given spaced array on the panel by the tabs extending therefrom. The tabs provide support for the bricks when initially positioned upon the panel.
Yet another brick panel apparatus, disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,311,714 to Passeno, a stiff backing member such as an extruded polystyrene insulted board is laminated to a water impermeable sheet. A plurality of integrally formed projections are disposed in a plurality of horizontal rows on the impermeable sheet whereby these projections and the sheet constitutes a one-piece structure. The thin bricks are disposed between the rows of projections. Brackets are utilized to attach the thin sheet and backing member to a vertical substrate. The brackets have a planar portion for allowing the fastener to pass through it, through the thin sheet and through the backing member to a vertical structural member. These brackets also have a top portion which supports the bottom of the brick and is configured to engage with the mortar.
A similar thin brick panel assembly to Passeno is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,501,149 to Francis et al. Francis teaches abrick panel system which includes a backing member formed from a sheet of material adapted to retain individual thin brick tiles. The backing member has a generally uniform cross-section throughout its entire length, providing channels which allow the thin brick tiles to lay uniformly across each row. The channels are defined by retaining bars which hold the thin brick tiles in place. The retaining bars include mortar lock notches which are adapted to provide a dovetail connection between the mortar an the backing board, as well as a path for moisture and water to escape from the brick panel assembly.
The forgoing attempts to provide a way of applying thin brick to an existing structure each have significant disadvantages. For example, the use of dual layer systems, i.e.! a first layer configured to hold the brick during installation attached to a second layer comprised of foam, are expensive to manufacture and difficult to adapt to structures that are not planar. Such two layer systems are provided because the foam layer is comprised of an extruded polystyrene. The adhesives used to attach the brick to the panel will disintegrate such foam. Therefore, the foam layer must be protected from adhesive contact. In addition, expensive adhesives must be used to bond the brick to such two layer panel systems.
Another problem with extruded polystyrene is that mortar will not adhere to it. As such, as previously discussed, some of the panel systems of the prior art include brackets which become embedded in the mortar during installation. Such brackets are provided to presumably hold the mortar relative to the panel system. Temperature variations, however, will cause such brackets to expand and contract at a different rate that the mortar, thus causing the mortar joints to crack and/or become dislodged.
Yet another problem with such extruded foam systems is that manufacturers are not able to produce extruded foam over a thickness of about 1.5 inches. Because of the extrusion process used to form such panels, thicker panels become warped and unusable for brick panel systems where walls must remain planar and where any warping in the foam panel would be noticeable in the finished brick wall.
The use of metal sheets is not desirable as such materials often have sharp edges making them dangerous to handle. In addition, temperature variations in such sheets will cause the sheet to expand and contract. The expansion and contraction rate of the metal sheet will be different than that of the mortar, causing the mortar to crack and/or become dislodged. Furthermore, systems which use individual brackets to hold the brick in place require additional time to install.
Dislodgement of thin bricks or mortar could be dangerous to passersby if the thin brick units or mortar were to become dislodged and fall to the ground. The prior art systems configured to attach thin bricks to an existing structure, however, have problems with bricks and/or mortar becoming dislodged. Indeed, the mortar used to fill gaps between bricks will not bond to the prior art panel systems. As previously described with the prior art systems, it is often the case that a lining sheet of material, such as plastic or metal, is placed between the foam and the brick. Because such materials will have different expansion and contraction rates due to temperature variations than the adhesive, mortar and brick, the mortar is caused to crack and the brick and mortar will become dislodged.
Thus, it would be an advantage to provide a thin brick that does not require additional structure to support the thin bricks during installation.
It would be another advantage to provide a thin brick that allows bonding of the mortar to the underlying structure without the need for additional structural support.
It would also be advantageous to provide a thin brick which is simple and relatively inexpensive to manufacture,
It would be a further advantage to provide a thin brick that provides proper spacing between adjacent thin bricks without the need for additional structural elements.
It would be another advantage to provide a thin brick that is configured to prevent the brick thin and mortar attached thereto from being easily dislodged.
These and other advantages will become apparent from a reading of the following summary of the invention and description of the illustrated embodiments in accordance with the principles of the present invention.
Accordingly, a thin brick comprises a generally rectangular base portion having a plurality of laterally extending tabs extending therefrom. An outer perimeter edge of each tab and a respective opposite side of the base portion having a relatively precise dimension. A decorative upper portion is integrally formed with the base portion and has a generally rectangular shape, sized and shaped to substantially match the size and shape of the base portion. The upper portion extends from the base portion and has a thickness that is at least equal to a thickness of the base portion.
The present invention also includes a method of forming a thin brick. The method comprises forming a base member having a generally rectangular perimeter with a plurality of laterally extending tabs extending therefrom. An outer perimeter edge of each tab and a respective opposite side of the base member have a relatively precise dimension. A thin brick having an outer decorative texture is attached to the base member such that a perimeter of the back side is substantially aligned with the generally rectangular perimeter of the base member. A mold is formed by inserting the thin brick and base member into the mold material until a back side of the base member is substantially flush with a top surface of the mold material. The mold material is allowed to cure and the thin brick and base member are removed from the mold to form a mold cavity. A cementitious material is inserted into the mold cavity and allowed to cure into a thin brick. The thin brick is then removed from the mold.
The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiments, is better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings embodiments that illustrate what is currently considered to be the best mode for carrying out the invention, it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the specific methods and instruments disclosed. In the drawings:
Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals indicate like elements throughout, there is shown in
A thin brick 10 according to the present invention is formed by first obtaining an actual thin brick 30 having a desired external decorative texture 32. The thin brick 30, is thus a pre-manufactured component that may be of the type that is to be installed using conventional thin brick installation methods known in the art. A sheet of material, such as one quarter inch thick MDF (medium density fiber board), is cut and thus formed as by CNC milling or other cutting process into a base member 34 as shown. Using computer controlled milling techniques to form the base member 34, ensures that the perimeter edges of the base member 34 have exacting tolerances to ensure that each thin brick formed using the molding techniques described herein have consistent dimensions. This ensures that the spacing of adjacent thin bricks according to the present invention can be precisely controlled when installing the thin bricks.
The base member 34 has a generally rectangular portion 36 that is sized to substantially match the size of the bottom 38 of the thin brick 30. Laterally extending flanges or tabs 40, 41 and 42 are formed on the perimeter of the base 34. The tabs 40, 41 and 42 form portions in the base 34 that make the base 34 wider and longer at the locations of the tabs 40, 41 and 42. The thin brick 30 is then attached to the base 34 as with a construction or industrial adhesive in order to bond the thin brick 30 to the base member 34 and thus form a mold piece, generally indicated at 50, that is in the configuration of a finished thin brick according to the present invention.
Once assembled, the mold piece 50 is used to form a mold 100, as shown in
The mold material 102 is poured into a mold frame 104. The mold piece 50 is then inserted face down into the mold material 102. As shown in
Once the mold material 102 has cured, mold pieces 50 are removed from the mold and the mold 100 may be removed from the mold frame 104 for use. To form thin bricks according to the present invention a cementitious molding compound is poured or otherwise applied to the inside of a mold cavities 106 and 108. If desirable, a suitable release agent may be disposed over the inside the mold cavities 106 and 108, prior to deposition of the molding compound used to form the thin bricks of the present invention. One such molding compound may be GFRC, glass fiber reinforced concrete, which contains fiberglass strands as a reinforcing material. The GFRC may include various substances to help reduce water content in the finished product such as REAL MIX 100 (a water reducer) as well as VIABOLD 235, which helps reduce efflorescence in the surface of the GFRC. The fiberglass F is introduced into the cement in the form of chopped fiberglass strands. The fiberglass strands act to reinforce the material and add strength to the finished product. The fiberglass strands may be formed of alkali resistant fiberglass in lengths of from about 0.25 inches to about 0.5 inches. The GFRC material may contain from about 3% to about 10% fiberglass, although a range of from about 6% to about 6.5% may be desireable. The GFRC may also contain polyurethane beads B, which reduce the overall weight of the finished component. The beads are generally of the size of approximately 1/32 inch to ⅛ inch in diameter. The beads also strengthen the GFRC and help reduce surface cracking.
The GFRC material may be disposed in the mold 100 by pouring or spraying therein with a specialized spray gun. Glass fiber F may be fed into the spray gun from a roll and cut off at appropriate lengths, beads B and uncured cement may also be fed into the spray gun. Such spray guns are known in the art.
In order to provide thin bricks of various colors and with various color variations to form thin bricks having a more realistic appearance, a coloring agent may be disposed in each mold cavity 106 and 108 prior to insertion of the molding compound. That way, a limited amount of coloring agent is needed since the entire mold compound mix is not being colored. In addition, by applying the coloring agent to the mold cavities 106 and 108, the coloring agent can be unevenly applied to provide varying shades of coloring in the outer decorative surface of the finished thin brick. Thus, coloring agents may be used to impart desired color to the finished component. Suitable coloring agents may include any solution or formulation which can impart color to a cementitious material. Coloring agents that are partially absorbed into the cementitious material may be desirable, as this allows the color to remain constant on a colored area, even when the component is scratched or if the component surface is acid washed to remove grime. Suitable coloring agents may include iron oxide pigments or polymer color agents. As previously discussed, the coloring agents may be randomly disposed in various locations of the mold cavities 106 and 108, as by placement through brushing, spraying or other methods.
The GFRC material may also contain an acrylic polymer in order to provide increased flexibility to the finished component. The polymer also slows the curing time to prevent cracking of the GFRC during the curing process. One such suitable polymer is commercially available under the name FORTON. FORTON is used as a curing agent to eliminate the need for moist curing.
Once the molding compound is disposed in the mold 100, it may be compacted, if necessary, by application of a compactor, such as roller or other device. Compaction of the molding material forces air out of the mix resulting in a stronger, more uniform finished component. Compaction may take place by rolling the upper exposed surface of the molding compound or as otherwise known to those of skill in the art. Once the molding compound has cured, the thin bricks according to the present invention may be removed from the mold. Formation of molds and the resulting formation of thin bricks according to the principles of the present invention result in thin bricks having base portions that have extremely type dimensional tolerances.
As shown in
As shown in
As further illustrated in
It is further contemplated that various other configurations of thin bricks may be formed according to the present invention. For example, as shown in
Also, as shown in
Reference herein to specific details of the illustrated embodiments is by way of example and not by way of limitation. It will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments described herein are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Various combinations and modifications of the embodiments described herein may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention and all modifications are meant to be included within the scope of the present invention. Thus, while certain exemplary embodiments and details have been described for purposes of describing the invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in the invention described herein may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention, which is defined in the appended claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/156,376 filed on Feb. 27, 2009, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61156376 | Feb 2009 | US |
