SIMULATED BRICK PANELS

• US 3,740,910 A
• Filed: 11/01/1971
• Issued: 06/26/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Charles E. Nichols Jr, Taylor L. James
• Original Assignee: Charles E. Nichols Jr, Taylor L. James
• Inventors: Taylor, L. James, Nichols, Charles E. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abbott, Frank L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Raduazo, Henry E.
• Application Number:
  US05/194,276
• Time in Patent Office: 603 Days
• Field of Search: 52/314,315,311,420,419,417,416,606,396,403,394,393
• US Class Current: 52/315
• CPC Class Codes: B44F 11/06 Imitation of ceramic patterns
• CPC Class Codes: B44F 9/04 of stone surfaces, e.g. marble

Abstract

A simulated brick panel that can be applied to any type building structure to give the appearance of full-size masonry construction. The panel includes a dense backing sheet coated with a uniform layer of water-impermeable epoxy resin adhesive and faced with several courses of thin facing slabs. The panel has longitudinal upper and lower edges and transverse side edges, one of the longitudinal edges and one of the side edges being plain and the other longitudinal edge and side edge each having a central caulking groove cut therein with the side wall of the groove adjacent the inner side of the panel of less height than the height of the groove side wall adjacent the outer side of the panel. The bottom course of slabs projects below the lower edge of the panel so that the slabs will partially overlie the upper part of a panel therebeneath. Caulking compound in excess of that required to fill the grooves is applied so that it can flow laterally toward the inner and outer faces of the panel as the upper panel is pressed downwardly against a lower panel and laterally against the end of an adjacent panel. All exposed portions of the joints between the panels are sealed with adhesive, and then sand is applied thereto before the adhesive sets. The blank spaces at the vertical joints between adjacent panels, when present, are filled by adhesively bonding a flat filler slab in place. Blank spaces in the panels at the corner of a building are filled by similarly applying L-shaped filler slabs.

Claims

1. In a building structure, a first rectangular panel having longitudinal edges, and side edges;

a second rectangular panel having longitudinal edges, and side edges, said panels being positioned with the longitudinal edge of one panel above and confronting the longitudinal edge of the other panel, one of said confronting edges being plain and the other having a centrally located groove extending throughout the length thereof, and lands on opposite sides of said groove, said groove having a bottom wall and opposed side walls, one of said side walls being of a greater height than the other;

a coating of water impermeable adhesive on one side of each of said panels;

a plurality of courSes of slab material embedded in said adhesive, said slabs being spaced apart to simulate a mortar joint therebetween, the groove side wall of greater height being nearest to said one side of said panels having said slab material thereon; and

caulking material filling said groove and extending between said lands and the plain confronting edge of said other panel and spacing the panels apart a distance equal to said simulated mortar joint.

2. A building structure as defined in claim 1, in which the confronting longitudinal edge of the one panel contains the groove, and the confronting longitudinal edge of the other panel is plain.

3. A building structure as defined in claim 1, in which the confronting longitudinal edge of the one panel is plain and the confronting edge of the other panel has the groove.

4. A building structure as defined in claim 1, wherein one of the side edges of the first and second panels each has a centrally located groove extending throughout its length and wherein each groove has a bottom wall and opposed side walls, one of said side walls being of greater height than the other, the groove side wall of greater height being nearest to the one side of the panels having the slab material thereon.

5. A building structure as defined in claim 1, in which the lowermost course of slabs on the first panel projects beyond the lower edges of said first panel and onto the upper portion of the second panel.

6. A building structure as defined in claim 5, wherein the exposed adhesive material simulating the mortar joints is coated with fine sand, and wherein adhesive material is added to the longitudinal joint between the first and second panels at the spaces between adjacent slabs to conceal the joint, and wherein the added adhesive is coated with fine sand.

7. A building panel, comprising:

a generally rectangular backing sheet of high density, asphalt-impregnated material or other suitable backing having longitudinal upper and lower edges, and side edges;

a coating of water impermeable adhesive on one side of said sheet; and

several courses of slab material embedded in said adhesive, said slabs being of substantially uniform length and width and being substantially equally spaced apart to simulate mortar joints therebetween, one of said longitudinal edges and one of said side edges of said sheet each having a centrally located caulking groove extending throughout the length thereof, said grooves having a bottom wall and opposed side walls, one of said side walls of each groove being of greater height than the other, said sidewall of greater height being nearest said one side of said sheet having said slab material thereon.

8. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the adhesive at the simulated mortar joints is coated with sand to present the appearance of cement mortar.

9. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the grooves are formed in the upper edge and one side edge of the panel and the lower edge and the other side edge of the panel are plain.

10. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the grooves are formed in the lower edge and one side edge of the panel and the upper edge and the other side edge of the panel are plain.

11. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the courses contain the same number of slabs, and wherein the end slab in alternate courses is closer to one side edge of the backing sheet than the corresponding end slab in the intermediate courses.

12. A building panel as defined in claim 11, wherein the distance between the end slab of said alternate courses from the one side edge of the backing sheet is slightly less than half the length of a slab.

13. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which each course of slabs is spaced from the side edges of the backing sheet and wherein the end slabs of adjacent courses are spaced different distances from the respective side edges of the backing sheet.

14. A building panel as defined in claim 7, wherein the spacing distancE of the end slabs in the courses from one side edge of the backing sheet is equal to about one-third the length of the slab and the spacing distance at the opposite end of the backing sheet is equal to about two-thirds the length of a slab.

15. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the end slabs of alternate courses project beyond one side edge of the backing sheet, and in which the slabs in the intermediate courses are spaced inwardly from both side edges of the backing sheet.

16. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the slabs in the lowermost course adjacent to the lower edge of the sheet project beyond said lower edge, and wherein the upper course of slabs is spaced from the upper edge of the sheet a distance equal to the projecting portion of the lowermost course of slabs, plus the width of the mortar joint between the courses of slabs, whereby when the panel is mounted in place above a similar panel, the projecting slabs will overlap the upper portion of said similar panel.

17. A building panel as defined in claim 7, in which the end slabs in all of the courses project beyond one side edge of the backing sheet.

18. A building panel as defined in claim 17, in which the end slabs in alternate courses project beyond one side edge of the backing sheet a distance slightly less than one-half the length of a slab.

19. A building panel as defined in claim 12, in combination with a similar panel, and arranged in end-to-end relation therewith, and wherein filler slabs are mounted in the spaces in the alternate courses, straddling the joint between the ends of the panels and forming continuous courses of slabs.