US20070193181A1 - Dry-cast concrete block - Google Patents
Dry-cast concrete block Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20070193181A1 US20070193181A1 US11/342,753 US34275306A US2007193181A1 US 20070193181 A1 US20070193181 A1 US 20070193181A1 US 34275306 A US34275306 A US 34275306A US 2007193181 A1 US2007193181 A1 US 2007193181A1
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- Prior art keywords
- mold
- block
- top surface
- concrete
- extending
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- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 27
- 239000004575 stone Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 10
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 claims description 16
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 claims description 7
- 230000006835 compression Effects 0.000 claims description 4
- 238000007906 compression Methods 0.000 claims description 4
- 238000005266 casting Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 238000010438 heat treatment Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 238000003825 pressing Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 16
- 238000007667 floating Methods 0.000 description 6
- 238000000465 moulding Methods 0.000 description 6
- 238000005056 compaction Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000011435 rock Substances 0.000 description 3
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000001788 irregular Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000012423 maintenance Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 2
- 229910000831 Steel Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- WYTGDNHDOZPMIW-RCBQFDQVSA-N alstonine Natural products C1=CC2=C3C=CC=CC3=NC2=C2N1C[C@H]1[C@H](C)OC=C(C(=O)OC)[C@H]1C2 WYTGDNHDOZPMIW-RCBQFDQVSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000011449 brick Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000004568 cement Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000007796 conventional method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000593 degrading effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000001934 delay Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000013461 design Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000001815 facial effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000010413 gardening Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000004886 head movement Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000007246 mechanism Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000008439 repair process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000000717 retained effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000000630 rising effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000004065 semiconductor Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000005507 spraying Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000010959 steel Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000000007 visual effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002699 waste material Substances 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E04—BUILDING
- E04C—STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS; BUILDING MATERIALS
- E04C1/00—Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings
- E04C1/39—Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings characterised by special adaptations, e.g. serving for locating conduits, for forming soffits, cornices, or shelves, for fixing wall-plates or door-frames, for claustra
- E04C1/395—Building elements of block or other shape for the construction of parts of buildings characterised by special adaptations, e.g. serving for locating conduits, for forming soffits, cornices, or shelves, for fixing wall-plates or door-frames, for claustra for claustra, fences, planting walls, e.g. sound-absorbing
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B28—WORKING CEMENT, CLAY, OR STONE
- B28B—SHAPING CLAY OR OTHER CERAMIC COMPOSITIONS; SHAPING SLAG; SHAPING MIXTURES CONTAINING CEMENTITIOUS MATERIAL, e.g. PLASTER
- B28B3/00—Producing shaped articles from the material by using presses; Presses specially adapted therefor
- B28B3/02—Producing shaped articles from the material by using presses; Presses specially adapted therefor wherein a ram exerts pressure on the material in a moulding space; Ram heads of special form
- B28B3/021—Ram heads of special form
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B28—WORKING CEMENT, CLAY, OR STONE
- B28B—SHAPING CLAY OR OTHER CERAMIC COMPOSITIONS; SHAPING SLAG; SHAPING MIXTURES CONTAINING CEMENTITIOUS MATERIAL, e.g. PLASTER
- B28B3/00—Producing shaped articles from the material by using presses; Presses specially adapted therefor
- B28B3/02—Producing shaped articles from the material by using presses; Presses specially adapted therefor wherein a ram exerts pressure on the material in a moulding space; Ram heads of special form
- B28B3/022—Producing shaped articles from the material by using presses; Presses specially adapted therefor wherein a ram exerts pressure on the material in a moulding space; Ram heads of special form combined with vibrating or jolting
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B28—WORKING CEMENT, CLAY, OR STONE
- B28B—SHAPING CLAY OR OTHER CERAMIC COMPOSITIONS; SHAPING SLAG; SHAPING MIXTURES CONTAINING CEMENTITIOUS MATERIAL, e.g. PLASTER
- B28B7/00—Moulds; Cores; Mandrels
- B28B7/0029—Moulds or moulding surfaces not covered by B28B7/0058 - B28B7/36 and B28B7/40 - B28B7/465, e.g. moulds assembled from several parts
- B28B7/0035—Moulds characterised by the way in which the sidewalls of the mould and the moulded article move with respect to each other during demoulding
- B28B7/0041—Moulds characterised by the way in which the sidewalls of the mould and the moulded article move with respect to each other during demoulding the sidewalls of the mould being moved only parallelly away from the sidewalls of the moulded article
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B28—WORKING CEMENT, CLAY, OR STONE
- B28B—SHAPING CLAY OR OTHER CERAMIC COMPOSITIONS; SHAPING SLAG; SHAPING MIXTURES CONTAINING CEMENTITIOUS MATERIAL, e.g. PLASTER
- B28B15/00—General arrangement or layout of plant ; Industrial outlines or plant installations
- B28B15/005—Machines using pallets co-operating with a bottomless mould; Feeding or discharging means for pallets
Definitions
- the present invention relates generally to the manufacture of concrete wall blocks. More specifically, the present invention relates to the manufacture of concrete wall blocks using the dry-cast method wherein the blocks have two or more adjacent decorative faces.
- Concrete blocks are used to form free standing and retaining walls. In such applications, the visible face or faces of the blocks are often provided with a textured or decorative appearance. Concrete blocks for forming walls are used in a variety of applications from small gardening applications to large-scale construction projects. Blocks are stacked in horizontal rows called courses. Multiple successive courses may be used to create a vertically rising wall of a desired height.
- the concrete blocks used in constructing such walls are often manufactured using the dry cast process, which uses dry-cast block machinery to form blocks at a relatively high rate of speed.
- material is fed into an open top mold from the top side.
- the conventional mold consists of stationary sides, to define the sidewalls of the block, and an open bottom.
- a removable pallet is used to temporarily close the open bottom of the mold and serve as a base during the block forming operation.
- the material introduced through the open top collects on top of the pallet and is bounded by the end and side panels.
- a compression head is then pressed downwards under high pressure onto the material through the open top of the mold to compact the material therein.
- the head forces material into the mold so as to conform to the shape of the mold.
- the mold may also be vibrated during compaction to promote uniform compaction.
- the head may also be provided with one or more shoes that have relief defined therein in order to impart detail into the material that is contacted by the head's movement.
- the head follows the pallet and the newly made product downward while the sides of the mold remain in position, and when the product clears the bottom of the mold, the pallet moves away from the mold and another pallet moves in place to make the next product.
- the head returns to its original position and the feed drawer brings more material into the mold to make the next product.
- the molding machinery is able to cycle several times per minute.
- U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,015 teaches the use of conventional dry cast molding methods to form a twinned concrete slug in the molding machinery. The slug is then split into two blocks after being cured. It should be appreciated that the top surface of the finished wall block made according to the conventional dry cast manufacturing method is formed by the surface of the steel pallet. The bottom of the block is accordingly formed by the stripper shoe.
- One common current method of producing a wall block with a decorative front surface is to split a cured block (or a twinned slug) so that the front surface of the block has a fractured concrete surface that looks somewhat like split rock. This is done by forming a slug in a mold and providing one or more grooves in the slug to function as one or more splitting planes. The slug is then split apart to form two or more blocks. The appearance of the face of such block is exhibited by U.S. Pat. No. D380,560. This gives the front face of structures built with these blocks some visual depth that makes the structure look more natural. The number of facets and their arrangement can be varied to provide for different looks such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. D429,006.
- U.S. Patent Pub. Nos. 2003/0126821 and 2003/0182011 disclose a block machine that stamps a face on the front surface of a block while also providing a tapered sidewall to the block by use of pivoting sidewalls.
- this system does not teach the ability to impart a complex decorative face on the side surfaces of the blocks.
- the mold must be taken apart to a degree that makes it difficult to perform maintenance or repairs of the biasing mechanisms. This difficulty can cause undesirable delays in production. Accordingly, there remains a need to provide an improved machine and method of making dry-cast concrete blocks that is maintenance friendly and can produce blocks having complex decorative patterns on at least two adjacent faces.
- the concrete wall block according to certain embodiments of the present invention provides advantageous adjacent decorative surfaces and can be manufactured using the dry cast process. Moreover, the decorative faces do not need to be formed by a secondary splitting, weatherizing or texturizing process after curing.
- a concrete wall block manufactured using the dry cast process includes a top surface and a bottom surface. Opposing front and rear surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface. Opposing first and second sidewall surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface, and between the front and rear surfaces. The front surface and the first sidewall surface have a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon. The rear surface and the second sidewall surface may be smooth. The texturing on the front and first sidewall surfaces may generally resemble natural stone.
- FIG. 1 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a first position.
- FIG. 2 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a second position.
- FIG. 3 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention showing both the first and the second position.
- FIG. 4 is a side view of a pair of end liners and a compression head assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 5 is a top view of a pair of end liners and a compression head assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are top views of a floating connection according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 8A is a perspective view and FIG. 8B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 9A is a perspective view and FIG. 9B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 10A is a perspective view and FIG. 10B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 11A is a perspective view and FIG. 11B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 12A is a perspective view and FIG. 12B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIGS. 1-3 there can be seen a dry-cast block mold 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. I depicts block mold 100 in the “release” or “strip” position.
- FIG. 2 depicts block mold 100 in the “fill” position. Both the strip position and the fill position are shown in FIG. 3 , with the strip position shown in dashed lines and the fill position shown with solid lines.
- Dry-cast block mold 100 is generally comprised of a pair of side bars 102 , 104 and a pair of side plates 106 , 108 that define an open interior region.
- Division plates 110 span side bars 102 , 104 , creating multiple mold cavities 112 .
- a front end liner 114 and a rear end liner 115 are disposed in each mold cavity 112 .
- the number of divider plates may be varied to increase or decrease the number of mold cavities, and accordingly, the respective number of end liners.
- Front end liners 114 are connected and controlled by a front end liner connector assembly 116 .
- Front end liners 114 are each connected to a front end liner push member 120 .
- Front end liner push members 120 are coupled to one another by a front end liner push bar 122 , to which each front end liner push member 120 is connected with a fastener 124 .
- An actuator attachment member 126 and floating connector 128 are also connected to front end liner push bar 122 .
- An actuator 144 attached to actuator attachment member 126 can therefore control all front end liners 114 simultaneously.
- Rear end liners 115 are actuated by a rear end liner connector assembly 118 .
- Rear end liners 115 are connected to rear end liner push members 130 which are linked to one another by a rear end liner push bar 132 to which they are attached with fasteners 134 .
- Rear connector members 136 are similarly attached to rear end liner push bar 132 and run along side plates 106 , 108 where they connect to a connector bar 140 .
- Also attached to connector bar are two actuator attachment members 140 with floating connectors 142 to which actuators 145 , 146 can be attached to control movement of rear end liner connector assembly 118 . Actuators 145 , 146 attached to actuator attachment members 140 can therefore control all rear end liners 115 simultaneously.
- each front end liner 114 is also attached to a pair of guide members 121 that are aligned parallel to end liner push members 120 .
- each rear end liner 115 is attached to a pair of guide members 131 .
- Guide members 121 , 131 are function to maintain the alignment of end liners 114 , 115 and to resist rotational forces throughout the molding process.
- Mold box 100 will generally rest in the strip position shown in FIG. 1 when the machine is idle.
- the machine is moved into the fill position depicted in FIG. 2 so that it can be filled with dry-cast concrete mixture. This is done by actuating a front end liner actuator 144 attached to front end liner connector assembly 116 that pushes front end liners 114 forward towards the middle of cavities 112 .
- Rear actuators 145 , 146 attached to rear end liner connector assembly 118 also pull rear end liners 115 forward towards the middle of cavities 112 .
- the mold cavities 112 are then filled with mold material and the actuators 144 , 145 , 146 hold the end liners 114 , 115 in place while the mold is filled, vibrated and compacted.
- front end liners 114 are pulled back and rear end liners 115 are pushed back to the strip position by their respective actuators 144 , 145 , 146 .
- Actuators 144 , 145 , 146 move front end liners 114 and rear end liners 115 in opposite directions at the same time. Front actuator 144 and rear actuators 145 , 146 are thus operated out of phase from one another, because while one end liner set is pushed the other is pulled. Front actuator 144 is preferably a core puller, such as those sold by Besser Company of Madisona, Michigan. The normal stroke of such a core puller, which is about 19 inches, is limited by a mechanical stop 148 which confines the core puller's stroke to about 2 inches. Rear actuators 145 , 146 are preferably 2 ” air cylinders attached to the core puller's frame.
- front and rear actuators may be used, for example, hydraulically actuated cylinders or other pneumatically actuated cylinders.
- Gear or linkage based actuators may also be used without departing from the scope of the present invention.
- the outside edges of the head shoe 154 , 156 of the head assembly 150 are given cooperating relief to the top portion of the faces of each pair of end liners 114 , 115 .
- This configuration allows both the head shoe 152 and the end liners 114 , 115 to fully contact the mold material, and thus impart a higher quality face, when the end liners 114 , 115 are in the fill position and the head shoe 152 is being used to compress the material. It will be appreciated that the use of both a head shoe and end liners to provide a face to the block allows a block to be produced that has a decorative appearance on as many as three consecutive sides.
- End liners 114 , 115 may be used to either impart a decorative pattern or to provide a taper to the block sides as the user desires.
- mold box may have identical end liners on both of its ends.
- a smooth non-tapered end liner is used on one side while the opposing end liner includes three dimensional relief to imprint three dimensional texture in the side face adjacent to the top face. It should be appreciated that a portion of the side of the head shoe 152 may need to be provided with complimentary relief to conform to the relief in end liner 114 . Otherwise, a tight tolerance between the head shoe 152 and end liner 114 will not be possible and material may undesirably flow into the gap formed therebetween during the forming process.
- End liners 114 , 115 can provide decorative appearances with greater detail and relief than can be provided using conventional techniques, such as splitting and tumbling.
- Such decorative appearances include broken rock, stacked rocks, natural stone, brick, striated or roughened texture.
- Persons of skill in the art of concrete block manufacturing using the dry-cast process will recognize that various decorative appearances can be imparted on the front surfaces of the blocks, and that the present invention is not limited to a specific decorative facial appearance unless specifically indicated in a given Claim.
- end liners 114 may be heated. Heat is provided to end liners 114 by operatively connecting at least one heat element (not shown) to end liners 114 . Suitable heat elements include resistance elements that may be hard wired, solid state, or semiconductor circuitry. Head shoe 152 may also provided with a heat source 158 , as is known in the art. The divider plates and mold cavities may also be heated.
- Floating connector 125 includes a female portion 128 , which is connected to end liner connector assembly by an attachment member 126 , and a male portion 129 , which is connected to actuator by an attachment member 127 .
- the male connector portion 129 simply slides into the female connector portion 128 downwardly from the top surface of female portion 129 or upwardly from the bottom surface of female portion 129 .
- Floating connector 125 allows for up and down vibration during the molding process, but constrains movement in the front to back and side to side directions. This holds the assembly in place to allow end liners to impart relief in the mold material, but allows sufficient motion to minimize the likelihood of failure of the connecting members.
- Block 200 comprises a front surface 202 and opposing rear surface 204 , a top surface 206 and opposing bottom surface 208 , and opposing first 210 and second 212 side surfaces.
- Front surface 202 has a decorative appearance imparted by the head shoe because front surface 202 faces up in the mold.
- Side surface 212 has a decorative design imparted by either a front or rear end liner having decorative relief defined therein. End liner 114 of FIG. 4 can be used to make the decorative side surface 212 shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B .
- the opposing end liner is smooth to provide for a smooth side surface 210 .
- block 300 may be provided with decorative faces on front surface 302 and both first 310 and second 312 side surfaces. This is done by providing the mold with both front and rear end liners having decorative relief.
- FIGS. 10A and 10B is to provide a block 400 with decorative side surfaces 410 and 412 and a smooth front surface 402 . In such an application, textured front and rear end liners are used while the head shoe is smooth to create a smooth front surface.
- the pattern given to decorative faces can vary depending on the desired appearance for a particular wall or wall section, as explained previously. Decorative faces in a particular block may have the same or different appearance.
- FIGS. 11A-11B depict another embodiment of a concrete block 500 that can be made using the dry cast block mold 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- Block 500 comprises a front surface 502 and opposing rear surface 504 , a top surface 506 and opposing bottom surface 508 and opposing first 510 and second 512 side surfaces.
- Front surface 502 has a decorative appearance imparted by the head shoe.
- Side surfaces 510 , 512 are both tapered. Blocks with one or more tapered side surfaces are particularly adapted to create serpentine or otherwise curved walls.
- End liners similar to the end liner 115 depicted in FIGS. 4 and 5 are used to make such a block 500 .
- FIGS. 12A-12B depict a concrete block 600 that includes a decorative front surface 602 with an opposing rear surface 604 , a top surface 606 and opposing bottom surface 608 , and first 610 and second 612 opposing side surfaces.
- This block 600 is formed, however, using one textured face end liner and one smooth tapered end liner, such that side surface 612 is tapered and side surface 610 has a decorative appearance.
- Blocks made according to the present invention may also be provided with an interlocking extension to facilitate stacking of blocks and create a setback between courses of blocks.
- a mold for creating such a block is disclosed in commonly-owned copending application Pub. No. 2004/0218985, incorporated by reference above.
- a notch in the shape of the desired protrusion is added to the division plates as disclosed in the above publication.
Abstract
A concrete wall block manufactured using the dry cast process includes a top surface and a bottom surface. Opposing front and rear surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface. Opposing first and second sidewall surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface, and between the front and rear surfaces. The front surface and the first sidewall surface have a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon. The rear surface and the second sidewall surface may be smooth. The texturing on the front and first sidewall surfaces may generally resemble natural stone.
Description
- The present invention relates generally to the manufacture of concrete wall blocks. More specifically, the present invention relates to the manufacture of concrete wall blocks using the dry-cast method wherein the blocks have two or more adjacent decorative faces.
- Concrete blocks are used to form free standing and retaining walls. In such applications, the visible face or faces of the blocks are often provided with a textured or decorative appearance. Concrete blocks for forming walls are used in a variety of applications from small gardening applications to large-scale construction projects. Blocks are stacked in horizontal rows called courses. Multiple successive courses may be used to create a vertically rising wall of a desired height.
- The concrete blocks used in constructing such walls are often manufactured using the dry cast process, which uses dry-cast block machinery to form blocks at a relatively high rate of speed. In a typical dry-cast block machine, material is fed into an open top mold from the top side. The conventional mold consists of stationary sides, to define the sidewalls of the block, and an open bottom. A removable pallet is used to temporarily close the open bottom of the mold and serve as a base during the block forming operation.
- During manufacture, the material introduced through the open top collects on top of the pallet and is bounded by the end and side panels. A compression head is then pressed downwards under high pressure onto the material through the open top of the mold to compact the material therein. The head forces material into the mold so as to conform to the shape of the mold. The mold may also be vibrated during compaction to promote uniform compaction. The head may also be provided with one or more shoes that have relief defined therein in order to impart detail into the material that is contacted by the head's movement.
- After compaction and vibration, the bottom pallet drops down, the head follows the pallet and the newly made product downward while the sides of the mold remain in position, and when the product clears the bottom of the mold, the pallet moves away from the mold and another pallet moves in place to make the next product. The head returns to its original position and the feed drawer brings more material into the mold to make the next product. The molding machinery is able to cycle several times per minute.
- U.S. Pat. No. 5,827,015 teaches the use of conventional dry cast molding methods to form a twinned concrete slug in the molding machinery. The slug is then split into two blocks after being cured. It should be appreciated that the top surface of the finished wall block made according to the conventional dry cast manufacturing method is formed by the surface of the steel pallet. The bottom of the block is accordingly formed by the stripper shoe.
- The need to eject the formed blocks through the bottom of the mold used in dry cast manufacture places limitations on the ability to create a decorative front face on the block because of the sidewalls of the mold shear across the side surfaces of the block when stripped from the mold. Therefore, efforts have been made to provide for a decorative front face on concrete wall blocks.
- One common current method of producing a wall block with a decorative front surface is to split a cured block (or a twinned slug) so that the front surface of the block has a fractured concrete surface that looks somewhat like split rock. This is done by forming a slug in a mold and providing one or more grooves in the slug to function as one or more splitting planes. The slug is then split apart to form two or more blocks. The appearance of the face of such block is exhibited by U.S. Pat. No. D380,560. This gives the front face of structures built with these blocks some visual depth that makes the structure look more natural. The number of facets and their arrangement can be varied to provide for different looks such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. D429,006.
- More recent patents, such as U.S. Pat. No. 6,321,740, disclose modification of the splitter blade used in splitting the cured block to provide edges that appear more weathered. Splitting, however, adds additional production costs by requiring an additional step to the manufacturing process and results in waste material. Furthermore, split-faced concrete blocks do not sufficiently resemble natural stone to satisfy some consumer needs.
- Another method to make blocks that have decorative front surfaces are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,078,940; 5,217,630; and 6,224,815. These patents describe a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a concrete block having an irregular surface. The irregular surface can be made to look similar to split stone. This method includes pouring uncured block material into a mold cavity and causing a portion of the material to be retained in place relative to the cavity walls when the block is removed from the cavity. The result is a somewhat split appearance for the surface, without having to perform the splitting operation. However, the block produced from this method still does not satisfactorily resemble natural stone.
- Other methods employed to provide for improved decorative appearance include spraying the front face of an uncured block to wash away some cement to leave exposed aggregate. Another method consists of “weathering” a cured block by tumbling it in a tumbler with tumbler chips that knock off random pieces of the block, which rounds the ends and creates a look closer to the appearance of weathered stone. These methods, however, are labor intensive and can damage the blocks, resulting in a higher overall cost of production.
- Commonly owned, copending application Pub. No. US 2004/0218985, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, discloses an alternative method of providing a decorative simulated natural stone face to the front surface of a block while using the dry cast manufacturing method. The molding apparatus is configured such that the front surface of the block faces up in the mold and can therefore be provided with a pre-defined decorative face because the shoe stamps or contacts it directly. This process, however, limits the ability to provide for sidewalls that deviate from conformance to the smooth vertical sidewalls of the mold box because the downward movement of the block through the mold prevents a mold with stationary angled sidewalls or relief from being used.
- U.S. Patent Pub. Nos. 2003/0126821 and 2003/0182011 disclose a block machine that stamps a face on the front surface of a block while also providing a tapered sidewall to the block by use of pivoting sidewalls. However, this system does not teach the ability to impart a complex decorative face on the side surfaces of the blocks. In addition, the mold must be taken apart to a degree that makes it difficult to perform maintenance or repairs of the biasing mechanisms. This difficulty can cause undesirable delays in production. Accordingly, there remains a need to provide an improved machine and method of making dry-cast concrete blocks that is maintenance friendly and can produce blocks having complex decorative patterns on at least two adjacent faces.
- The concrete wall block according to certain embodiments of the present invention provides advantageous adjacent decorative surfaces and can be manufactured using the dry cast process. Moreover, the decorative faces do not need to be formed by a secondary splitting, weatherizing or texturizing process after curing.
- According to certain embodiments of the present invention, a concrete wall block manufactured using the dry cast process includes a top surface and a bottom surface. Opposing front and rear surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface. Opposing first and second sidewall surfaces extend between the top surface and the bottom surface, and between the front and rear surfaces. The front surface and the first sidewall surface have a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon. The rear surface and the second sidewall surface may be smooth. The texturing on the front and first sidewall surfaces may generally resemble natural stone.
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FIG. 1 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a first position. -
FIG. 2 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a second position. -
FIG. 3 is a top view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention showing both the first and the second position. -
FIG. 4 is a side view of a pair of end liners and a compression head assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 5 is a top view of a pair of end liners and a compression head assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view of a mold apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 7A andFIG. 7B are top views of a floating connection according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 8A is a perspective view andFIG. 8B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 9A is a perspective view andFIG. 9B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 10A is a perspective view andFIG. 10B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 11A is a perspective view andFIG. 11B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 12A is a perspective view andFIG. 12B is a top view of a concrete block according to an embodiment of the present invention. - Referring to
FIGS. 1-3 , there can be seen a dry-cast block mold 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. I depictsblock mold 100 in the “release” or “strip” position.FIG. 2 depictsblock mold 100 in the “fill” position. Both the strip position and the fill position are shown inFIG. 3 , with the strip position shown in dashed lines and the fill position shown with solid lines. - Dry-
cast block mold 100 is generally comprised of a pair of side bars 102, 104 and a pair ofside plates Division plates 110 span side bars 102, 104, creatingmultiple mold cavities 112. Afront end liner 114 and arear end liner 115 are disposed in eachmold cavity 112. One of skill in the art will recognize that the number of divider plates may be varied to increase or decrease the number of mold cavities, and accordingly, the respective number of end liners. -
Front end liners 114 are connected and controlled by a front endliner connector assembly 116.Front end liners 114 are each connected to a front endliner push member 120. Front endliner push members 120 are coupled to one another by a front endliner push bar 122, to which each front endliner push member 120 is connected with afastener 124. Anactuator attachment member 126 and floatingconnector 128 are also connected to front endliner push bar 122. Anactuator 144 attached toactuator attachment member 126 can therefore control allfront end liners 114 simultaneously. -
Rear end liners 115 are actuated by a rear endliner connector assembly 118.Rear end liners 115 are connected to rear endliner push members 130 which are linked to one another by a rear endliner push bar 132 to which they are attached withfasteners 134.Rear connector members 136 are similarly attached to rear endliner push bar 132 and run alongside plates connector bar 140. Also attached to connector bar are twoactuator attachment members 140 with floatingconnectors 142 to whichactuators liner connector assembly 118.Actuators actuator attachment members 140 can therefore control allrear end liners 115 simultaneously. - Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 6 , eachfront end liner 114 is also attached to a pair ofguide members 121 that are aligned parallel to endliner push members 120. Similarly, eachrear end liner 115 is attached to a pair ofguide members 131.Guide members end liners -
Mold box 100 will generally rest in the strip position shown inFIG. 1 when the machine is idle. The machine is moved into the fill position depicted inFIG. 2 so that it can be filled with dry-cast concrete mixture. This is done by actuating a frontend liner actuator 144 attached to front endliner connector assembly 116 that pushesfront end liners 114 forward towards the middle ofcavities 112. Rear actuators 145, 146 attached to rear endliner connector assembly 118 also pullrear end liners 115 forward towards the middle ofcavities 112. Themold cavities 112 are then filled with mold material and theactuators end liners front end liners 114 are pulled back andrear end liners 115 are pushed back to the strip position by theirrespective actuators -
Actuators front end liners 114 andrear end liners 115 in opposite directions at the same time.Front actuator 144 andrear actuators Front actuator 144 is preferably a core puller, such as those sold by Besser Company of Alpena, Michigan. The normal stroke of such a core puller, which is about 19 inches, is limited by amechanical stop 148 which confines the core puller's stroke to about 2 inches. Rear actuators 145, 146 are preferably 2” air cylinders attached to the core puller's frame. One of skill in the art will recognize that numerous other front and rear actuators may be used, for example, hydraulically actuated cylinders or other pneumatically actuated cylinders. Gear or linkage based actuators may also be used without departing from the scope of the present invention. - Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 5 , the outside edges of thehead shoe head assembly 150 are given cooperating relief to the top portion of the faces of each pair ofend liners head shoe 152 and theend liners end liners head shoe 152 is being used to compress the material. It will be appreciated that the use of both a head shoe and end liners to provide a face to the block allows a block to be produced that has a decorative appearance on as many as three consecutive sides. -
End liners FIGS. 4 and 5 as having taperedend liners 115 on one side and facedend liners 114 on the other, mold box may have identical end liners on both of its ends. In one preferred configuration, a smooth non-tapered end liner is used on one side while the opposing end liner includes three dimensional relief to imprint three dimensional texture in the side face adjacent to the top face. It should be appreciated that a portion of the side of thehead shoe 152 may need to be provided with complimentary relief to conform to the relief inend liner 114. Otherwise, a tight tolerance between thehead shoe 152 andend liner 114 will not be possible and material may undesirably flow into the gap formed therebetween during the forming process. -
End liners - To prevent concrete material from accumulating on
faced end liners 114 and degrading the quality of the decorative appearance imparted to the block surface,end liners 114 may be heated. Heat is provided to endliners 114 by operatively connecting at least one heat element (not shown) to endliners 114. Suitable heat elements include resistance elements that may be hard wired, solid state, or semiconductor circuitry.Head shoe 152 may also provided with a heat source 158, as is known in the art. The divider plates and mold cavities may also be heated. - Each actuator is connected to an end liner connector assembly by a floating
connector 125 depicted inFIGS. 7A and 7B . Floatingconnector 125 includes afemale portion 128, which is connected to end liner connector assembly by anattachment member 126, and amale portion 129, which is connected to actuator by anattachment member 127. To connect, themale connector portion 129 simply slides into thefemale connector portion 128 downwardly from the top surface offemale portion 129 or upwardly from the bottom surface offemale portion 129. Floatingconnector 125 allows for up and down vibration during the molding process, but constrains movement in the front to back and side to side directions. This holds the assembly in place to allow end liners to impart relief in the mold material, but allows sufficient motion to minimize the likelihood of failure of the connecting members. - Referring to
FIGS. 8A-8B , there can be seen an embodiment of aconcrete block 200 that can be made using the drycast block mold 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.Block 200 comprises afront surface 202 and opposingrear surface 204, atop surface 206 and opposingbottom surface 208, and opposing first 210 and second 212 side surfaces.Front surface 202 has a decorative appearance imparted by the head shoe becausefront surface 202 faces up in the mold.Side surface 212 has a decorative design imparted by either a front or rear end liner having decorative relief defined therein.End liner 114 ofFIG. 4 can be used to make thedecorative side surface 212 shown inFIGS. 8A and 8B . The opposing end liner is smooth to provide for asmooth side surface 210. Alternatively, as shown inFIGS. 9A and 9B , block 300 may be provided with decorative faces onfront surface 302 and both first 310 and second 312 side surfaces. This is done by providing the mold with both front and rear end liners having decorative relief. A further alternative, shown inFIGS. 10A and 10B , is to provide ablock 400 with decorative side surfaces 410 and 412 and a smoothfront surface 402. In such an application, textured front and rear end liners are used while the head shoe is smooth to create a smooth front surface. The pattern given to decorative faces can vary depending on the desired appearance for a particular wall or wall section, as explained previously. Decorative faces in a particular block may have the same or different appearance. -
FIGS. 11A-11B depict another embodiment of aconcrete block 500 that can be made using the drycast block mold 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.Block 500 comprises afront surface 502 and opposingrear surface 504, atop surface 506 and opposingbottom surface 508 and opposing first 510 and second 512 side surfaces.Front surface 502 has a decorative appearance imparted by the head shoe. Side surfaces 510, 512 are both tapered. Blocks with one or more tapered side surfaces are particularly adapted to create serpentine or otherwise curved walls. End liners similar to theend liner 115 depicted inFIGS. 4 and 5 are used to make such ablock 500. -
FIGS. 12A-12B depict aconcrete block 600 that includes a decorativefront surface 602 with an opposingrear surface 604, atop surface 606 and opposingbottom surface 608, and first 610 and second 612 opposing side surfaces. Thisblock 600 is formed, however, using one textured face end liner and one smooth tapered end liner, such thatside surface 612 is tapered andside surface 610 has a decorative appearance. - Blocks made according to the present invention may also be provided with an interlocking extension to facilitate stacking of blocks and create a setback between courses of blocks. A mold for creating such a block is disclosed in commonly-owned copending application Pub. No. 2004/0218985, incorporated by reference above. To modify the mold of the present invention to produce blocks with protrusions in addition to multiple faces or tapers, a notch in the shape of the desired protrusion is added to the division plates as disclosed in the above publication.
- The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Furthermore, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described. While the preferred embodiment has been described, the details may be changed without departing from the invention, which is defined by the Claims.
Claims (15)
1. A dry-cast concrete wall block comprising:
a top surface;
a bottom surface opposing front and rear surfaces extending between the top surface and the bottom surface; and
opposing first and second sidewall surfaces extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, and extending between the front and rear surfaces wherein the front surface and the first sidewall surface have a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon.
2. The concrete wall block of claim 1 , wherein the rear surface and the second sidewall surface are smooth.
3. The concrete wall block of claim 1 , wherein the texturing on the front and first sidewall surfaces generally resembles natural stone.
4. The concrete wall block of claim 1 , wherein the texturing of the front and first sidewall surfaces covers their entire extent.
5. The concrete wall block of claim 1 , further comprising an interlocking protrusion extending below the bottom surface of the block.
6. A dry-cast concrete wall block comprising:
a top surface;
a bottom surface spaced apart from the top surface and defining a thickness of the block;
a first side surface extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, the first side surface having a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon;
a second side surface extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, the second side surface having a three dimensional texture imprinted thereon;
a third side surface extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, the third side surface opposing the second side surface;
a fourth side surface extending between the top surface and the bottom surface, the fourth side surface opposing the first side surface.
7. The concrete wall block of claim 6 , wherein the third side surface is tapered.
8. The concrete wall block of claim 6 , further comprising an interlocking extension extending below the bottom surface.
9. A dry-cast concrete wall block comprising:
a top surface;
a bottom surface spaced apart from the top surface and defining a thickness of the block;
a front surface extending between the top surface and the bottom surface;
a rear surface opposite the front surface and extending between the top surface and the bottom surface; and
opposing side surfaces spanning between the front and back surfaces, wherein the front surface and one of the opposing side surfaces are configured to simulate natural stone.
10. A method of manufacturing an uncured concrete block made using the dry-cast manufacturing process, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a mold, the mold comprising a pair of side walls, a pair of end walls, an open top side and an open bottom side defining a mold cavity;
providing a pallet;
providing an end liner within the mold cavity;
positioning the pallet with respect to the mold to temporarily close the open bottom side of the mold during a portion of the manufacturing process;
moving each a first end liner from a strip position to a fill position;
introducing a dry casting concrete mixture to the mold through the open top side;
vibrating the concrete mixture within the mold;
compacting the concrete mixture within the mold by pressing on the concrete mixture with at least one shoe attached to a compression head to impart a decorative face on the concrete mixture;
moving each the first end liner from the fill position to the strip position; and
releasing the concrete mixture from the mold by moving the pallet relative to the mold.
11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of forming a decorative pattern on a side face of the uncured concrete block with the first end liner.
12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of forming a tapered side face on the uncured concrete block with the first end liner.
13. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of providing a second end liner to each mold cavity disposed opposite the first end liner.
14. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of heating the first end liner.
15. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of providing a division plate within the mold to define multiple mold cavities.
Priority Applications (1)
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US11/342,753 US20070193181A1 (en) | 2006-01-30 | 2006-01-30 | Dry-cast concrete block |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
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US11/342,753 US20070193181A1 (en) | 2006-01-30 | 2006-01-30 | Dry-cast concrete block |
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US20070193181A1 true US20070193181A1 (en) | 2007-08-23 |
Family
ID=38426726
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US11/342,753 Abandoned US20070193181A1 (en) | 2006-01-30 | 2006-01-30 | Dry-cast concrete block |
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US20090235606A1 (en) * | 2008-03-20 | 2009-09-24 | Ness Inventions | System and method of making masonry blocks |
US20110041448A1 (en) * | 2008-08-28 | 2011-02-24 | Techo-Bloc Inc. | Casted concrete stone with opposed molded textured surfaces and method of manufacture |
US20150097312A1 (en) * | 2013-09-26 | 2015-04-09 | Keystone Retaining Wall Systems Llc | Block, block system and method of making a block |
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