US1902796A - Ceiling construction - Google Patents

Description

March 21, 1933.

c. R. BIRDSEY ET AL CEILING CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 12, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l March 21, 1933. R B|RD$EY 5- AL 1,902,796

CEILING CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 12, 1950 a Sheet-Sheet 2 INVENTOR awn/e1. E5 E1 B/IEDSEK BY HEEBE/PT 14/- E554.

ATTORNE Patented Mar. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CHARLES R. IBIRDSEY, OF OAK PARK, AND HERBERT W. REEL, OF HINSD'ALE, ILLINOIS,

ASSIGNORS TO UNITED STATES GYPSUM COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A COR- PORATION OF ILLINOIS CEILING CONSTRUCTION Application filed December 12, 1930. Serial No. 501,834.

This invention relates to building constructions and has reference more particularly to the construction of precast ceilings.

In the construction of precast ceilings for buildings, it is desirable to have a construction in which the lower face of the precast tile lies in a single plane, and is without waves or depressions, so that the lower face of the tile may be plastered and present a smooth, even surface. It is also desirable that the precast ceiling tiles be so constructed that they may be installed in the ceiling with a minimum of labor. In certain cases a type of floor construction is used, known as the battleship floor, in which metal plates are welded to the top of structural beams. In such a construction, it becomes necessary to hang the ceiling structure from the'lower flanges of the floor beams. In order to secure ease o'f erection, it is generally desirable to use a grillage system of small parallel structural strips suspended below the main beams of the floor.

An object of this invention, therefore, is to provide a precast ceiling construction, in which the lower faces of the precast tiles present a smooth, even surface for the reception of plaster.

Another object is to provide a ceiling construction which may be erected with a mini-- mum of labor.

A further object of the invention is to provide a ceiling construction suspended from grillage members. and adapted for attachment to the lower flanges of the floor beams; also to improve building constructions in other respects hereinafter specified and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of our improved ceiling construction, 7

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation on a larger scale through the construction,

Fig. 3 is a sectional view through a modified form of the ceiling construction taken on theline 33 of Fig. 4,

Fig. 4 is a sectional elevation through the modified form of ceiling construction shown in Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the ceiling construction located near a vertical wall,

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the other end of the ceiling construction shown in Fig. 5 adjacent a second vertical wall,

Fig. 7 is a sectional elevation through'the ceiling construction shown in Fig. 5,

Fig. 8 is a sectional elevation through the ceiling construction shown in Fig. 6, taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6,

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation of a modified form of ceiling construction,

Fig. 10 is a sectional elevation showing a modified method of suspending the grillage system, and

Fig. 11 is another sectional elevation showzilrg the suspension system disclosed in Fig.

In the construction of buildings,horizontal floor beams 15 are usually arranged in parallel, spaced relation, being supported at their ends 011 the walls or the vertical structural members of the building. Thebeams 15 may be of any desired structural shape, such as I beams as shown, havingupper flanges 16 andlower flanges 17. While our improved ceiling construction may be used in conjunction with any type of floor construction, we have shown it applied to one form of construction known'as the battleship construction, in whichmetallic plates 18 rest upon thetop flanges 16 of the floor beams, being welded together and to said top flanges bywelded seams 19.

The ceiling is formed by a plurality of precast slabs ortiles 20 of gypsum or other cementitious material such as concrete. Interposed between the slabs ortiles 20 and thelower flanges 17 of the floor beams, we prefto theWeb 23 of thechannels 21 by a. bolt or is shown in Figs. 3 and 4, in which an L- shaped clip has ahook flange 26 resting on the upper surface of thebeam flange 17. The lower end of theclip 25 is bent inwardly and then downwardly so as to form ashoulder 26, which engages the lower face of theupper flange 27 of thegrillage channels 21. A bolt orrivet 26a then connects a slottedbottom flange 28 ofclip 25 to theweb 23 of the grillage channel. In this way theshoulder 26 .on theclip 25 engages thechannel flange 27 so as to prevent rotation of saidclip 25 about thebolt 26a, and thus prevents thehook 26 from being inadvertently disengaged from theflange 17 Another means of attaching thegrillage channels 21 to the beams 15.is shown in Figs. 10 and 11. In this form of attachment, a U shaped piece ofstrap iron 30 is formed so as to engage the edge of thebeam flange 17. A heavy wire is bent at its center so as to form aloop 31 engaging the opposite edge offlange 17, then passing transversely of said lower flange and through a pair of openings formed in theclip 30 at the U-bend. Thefree ends 32 of the wire are then bent downwardly so that said wire engages theclip 30 and confines theflange 17 between said clips and thewire loop 31. The lower ends of thewire 32 are then twisted at 33 below thegrillage channel 21 to suspend said grillage channel at a proper height below thebeams 15.

If desired, the position of the twist '33 may be changed to replace theupper loop 31. In this modified form of construction thelegs 32 of the wire will be previously bent at right angles so as to support thechannels 21 at a predetermined distance below thebeam flanges 17 The lower ends of the wires may be bent into the form of hooks if desired, so

as to support thechannels 21 at a predetermined distance below thebeam flanges 17.

Each of theslabs 20 has anoutstanding tongue 35 formed on one upper edge thereof, and anoutstanding tongue 36 formed on the diagonally opposite, lower edge of said slab. Thesetongues 35 and 36 are adapted to interengage as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, so that thelower tongue 36 of one tile'supports theupper tongue 35 of the adjoining tile. In order to support the end of the tile adjacent thelower tongue 36. we provide a hook orhanger bar 37 embedded within thetile 20 and extending substantially parallel to thetongue 36. Pockets orrecesses 38 are formed in the top surface of the tile to give clearance space for attachinghooks 40 formed on the lower ends of aU-shaped bar 41 which straddles one of thegrillage channels 21. Thehook bar 37 has a pair ofofl'set sections 42 extending upwardly into therecesses 38 and supported in thehooks 40. Thetile 20 is thus supported at one end on thelower flange 36 of the adjoining tile, and at the other endis supported by thehook member 41 extending up over thegrillage channels 21.Outstanding tongues 35a are also formed on opposite, diagonal, longitudinal edges of theties 20, so that said tiles have interlocking tongues around their entire perimeter.

A reinforcingmat 44 is embedded within theslab 20 and has aportion 45 extending upwardly into the tile between the end of the tile and recess 38. Themat 44 then extends downwardly and outwardly to form aloop 46, embedded within thetongue 36. At the opposite end of thetile 20, aloop 47 is' formed on themat 44 and extends into thetongue 35 to reinforce the same. It will thus be seen that a rugged construction is provided and the tile is properly reinforced to prevent breaking.

It will be seen from an inspection of Figs. 1 and 2, that the portion of theslab 20 outside thehook bar 37 and including thetongue 36, constitutes a cantilever about said hook bar. Stresses set up in said cantilever due to the weight of the adjoining slab, are resisted by the reinforcingmat 44 so that said slab will not break longitudinally ofv saidhook bar 37. Therecess 38 andhook bar 37 may be spaced away from the tongue 36 a considerable distance so as to increase this cantilever action.

Where our precast ceiling meets the adjoining walls, special provisions are necessary in order to properly support the ceiling and make the tile fit into the space remainin to be filled. Near one of thewalls 50, one o thetiles 20 is supported with theupper tongue 35 adjacent the wall. At this point one of thehook rods 37a is loosely supported under thetongue 35 and notches '51 are cut out from thetongue 35 to permit theoffset sections 42a to extend upwardly into said notch to receive the supportinghook 40 of thehook bracket 41 which extends over thegrillage channel 21.

Near theopposite wall 52, a. space remains which is usually less than the width of the tile. In such a case, (Fig. 9) it is usually preferable to cut out a center section of the tile so that the two remainingpieces 53 and 54 added together will equal the space to be filled by the tile. Apiece ofstrap iron 55 having punched holes is then attached to the piece oftile 53 by means ofnails 56 driven inwardly through the holes into saidpiece 53. Holes are also punched at the top of thestrap iron 55 for receiving thehooks 40 of thehook bracket 41. It will be noted that thepiece 54 contains theoutstanding tongue 35 which rests on top of thelower tongue 36 thus supporting the piece in position, it being retained merely by the action of gravity.

In lieu of the arrangement shown in Fig. 9,

the end of the tile having thetongue 35 may be cut OH to leave a tile section 58 (Fig. 7

. face of thetile section 58 to give clearance for thehooks 40,"and a piece ofstrap iron 60;

is secured to the end of thetile section 58 by means ofnails 61, thestrap iron 60 being similar in shape to the piece and being adapted to engage thehooks 40 at its upper end.Grout 62 may then be poured into the space abovetongue 36 and into thenotch 59 so as to maintain the original thickness of the precastceiling at this point and make it uniformly firep-roof'over the entire area of the ceiling.

After erection, there might be some possibility that thehooks 40 might become disengaged from the offsetrod section 42 so that the ceiling tile would fall from their position. For the purpose of preyentin this, it is sometimes desirable to place a piece ofstrap iron 64 into the junction between the upper.tongue 35 and the adjoining tile. 'Thispiece 64 has a length such' that the upper end'engages the bottom of thegrillage channel 21, thus effectively preventing the tile from lifting up to a point where thehooks 40,1nay become disengaged from therod section 42.

We would state in conclusion that while the illustrated examples constitute a practi cal embodiment of our invention, we do not wish to limit ourselves precisely to these details, since manifestly, the same may be considerably varied without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described ouriinv'ention, we

claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a ceiling construction, the combination with a plurality of support bars in spaced parallel relation, of, a plurality of precast ceiling slabs arranged in a plane below said bars, an outstanding tongue formed along each opposite diagonal edge of a slab forming upper and lower tongues, the upper tongue on one edge of each slab being supported solely on the lower tongue of the adjoining slab, said -slab having a recess formed in the upper surface thereof adjacent the lower tongue, a hook bar embedded in said. slab and extending into said recess and hook means engaging said bar in said recess and attached to said support bar.

2. In a ceiling construction, the combination with a plurality of support bars in spaced parallel relation, of a plurality of precast ceiling slabs arranged in a plane below said bars, an outstanding tongue formed along each diagonal edge of the tile forming upper and lower tongues, the upper tongue on one edge of each slab being supported solely on the lower tongue of the adtongue, a hook rod embedded. in said slab and extending into said recess, and a U- shaped attaching member extendlng over a support bar engaging said hook bar within said recess so as to support said slab.

3. In a ceiling construction, the combination with a plurality of support bars in spaced parallel relation, of a plurality of precast ceiling slabs arranged in a plane below said bars, an'outstanding tongue formed along each diagonal edge of the tile forming upper and lower tongues, the upper tongue on one edge of each slab being supported solely on the lower tongue of the adjoining tile, said slab having a recess formed in its upper surface adjacent said lower tongue, a hook bar embedded in said slab and extending into said recess, attaching means engaging said hook bar within said recess and also engaging said support bar, and a .each slab beingsupported on the lower tongue of the adjoining tile, a hook bar embedded in said slab adjacent the lower tongue thereof, said slab having a recess formed in its upper surface spaced apart from the end of said tile into which the hook bar extends, and hook means extending into said recess and engaging said hook bar and said support-bar for supportingsaid slab.

5. In a ceiling construction, the combina-'v ti on with'a plurality of floor beams in spaced parallel relation, said beams having an outstanding lower flange, of a plurality of grillreinforcing mat embedded in said slab and age channels in spaced parallel relation in a plane below said floor beams, each of said channels having an outstanding flange, an attachingclip having a hooked portion engaging the lower flange of said floor beam, an offset section formed on said clip andextending into a position below the upper flange of said channel bar into contact with the web of said channel, attaching means for connecting said offset section, and a shoulder formed on said clip adjacent said offset section adapted to engage the upper flange of said grillage channel to prevent rotation of said attaching clip, and precast ceiling slabs secured to said grillage channels.

6. In a-ceiling construction,-thecombination with a plurality of floor beams in a horizontal plane in spaced parallel relation and adjacent the vertical wall of a buildingi v of a plurality of grillage channels arrange below said beams, a plurality of slabs below said channels each having an outstanding upper tongue formed on an edge thereof adjacent said wall, said tongue having a notch,

formed in the outer edge thereof, a hook bar extending below said tongue and having an offset section extendinginto said notch, and hook means engaging said ofiset section within said notch and also being attached to the supporting channel;

7. In a ceiling construction, the combination with a plurality of support bars in spaced parallel relation, the ends of said bars being positioned adjacent a wall of a building, of a plurality of precast ceiling slabs supported in a plane below said, bars, the V upper'surface of a slab adjacent said wallbeing provided with a recess, a hook bar embedded in said slab and extending into said recess, a hooked member engaging said bar within said recess and being attached to a support bar, an outstanding flange formed on said slab adjacent said reinforcing bar and adjacent said wall, an attaching member nailed to the opposite edge of said slab and extending between said opposite edge and the adjoining slab, and means for connecting said attaching member to a supporttbar'.

8. In a ceiling construction, the combination with a plurality of support bars in spaced parallel relation, of a plurality of precast ceiling slabs arranged in a plane below said bars, an outstanding tongue formed along each opposite, diagonal edge of a slab forming upper and lower tongues, the upper tongue on one edge of each slab being supported on the lower tongue of the adjoining slab, said slab having a recess formed in the upper surface thereof adjacent said lower tongue and spaced apart from said tongue to form a cantilever section, a hook bar embedded in said slab and extending into said recess, hook means engaging said hook bar in said recess andattached to a support bar,

and reinforcing means embedded in saidslab and cantilever section.

CHARLES R. BIRDSEY. HERBERT W. REEL.

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