ADAPTABLE MODULAR CONSTRUCTION SYSTEM BASED ON METAL STRUCTURES JOINED AND TENSILE-COMPRESSED BY STEEL CABLES

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the present invention relates to construction systems for walls or ceilings, particularly walls or ceilings constructed from structural panels, more particularly structural panels are metal structures joined and tensile compressed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various types of panels are known, made in different ways and for different applications.

There are known dry construction systems with gypsum plasterboard for forming walls or cladding that offers good impact resistance and high load-bearing capacity for ceilings, walls and internal dividing walls. These boards have a core of dihydrated gypsum where their faces are covered with sheets of resistant fiber cellulose paper, having between 10 mm and 20 mm of thickness.

It is a form of construction that is based on plasterboard indoors, while fiber cement boards are used outdoors.

There are variants which also allow for acoustic insulation, achieving more comfortable environments, making them ideal for music rooms, movie theaters, and commercial premises.

The plasterboards of this construction system mainly provide the following properties: resistance given by the natural hardness of the plaster and the strength of the cellulose coating; insulation if insulating materials such as glass wool or polystyrene are used in dividing walls, coverings or ceilings; and resistance to combustion since the core of these boards is bihydrated plaster, which delays the action of fire by acting as a barrier and preventing its spread. The plates can be screwed or nailed onto frames made of any material used as support, compatible with wood, glass or frames.

There are also anti-humidity plasterboard panels specially designed for environments with high humidity, such as kitchens, changing rooms, showers or bathrooms. With this construction system, you can create ceilings, wall coverings and divide rooms in a house or apartment, as well as in an office, with anti-humidity panels.

It can be used in many kinds of projects and provides several advantages over traditional construction. Its installation is simple and fast, it provides high levels of comfort and can generally be adapted to any design.

One of the most important characteristics is that no water is used in the construction process, making it an agile, versatile and clean material. Since no water is used in its construction, it does not suffer from fungi or pests.

Depending on the materials used, the panels in this construction system simultaneously provide acoustic and thermal insulation. Being plasterboard, it is a very light construction material, quick to install and produces less waste, generating lower costs. The plates do not expand or contract in the event of changes in humidity, and they are also able for heat situations, providing structures that do not rust. It facilitates electrical installations, making them much simpler and faster than in common masonry.

Although this construction system has advantages, it also has defects such as the following: it requires a structure of sole and stud profiles where the wall or partition will be raised and on which the plates must be mounted with fixing means, the different properties imply the need to use plates of different types, the plates do not support high loads and must be separated from the floor, placing plates on both sides of the structure leaves a filling space, and everything must be assembled on site.

There are construction panels for building walls or roofs that are normally made from expanded polystyrene sheets (EPS, Expanded PolyStyrene) covered with smooth or corrugated sheets of steel or iron galvanized by an electroplating process or coated with an alloy of 55% aluminum and 45% zinc that are more resistant to corrosion and have greater thermal reflectivity.

To form walls or ceilings, these sheets normally have a side flap and a step on the opposite side in order to join several sheets one after the other by means of a partial overlap and allow them to be fixed together with adhesive and/or screws.

The unit measurements of these plates will depend on the size of the wall to be raised or the roof to be built.

These panels are not structural and when adding several panels the resulting structures lack tensile compression and load capacity.

It is therefore necessary to have a construction system consisting of structural panels that can be assembled on site and have tensile compression applied to them, allowing the construction of walls, roofs and dividing walls for houses, apartments, offices and warehouses or commercial sheds. In short, structural foam construction panels are needed, and the construction structures must have tensile compression.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the drawbacks of prior art, an adaptable modular construction system is proposed based on metal structures joined and tensile compressed by steel cables, where:

• • The metal structures are made up of rectangular section tubes determining rectangular frames that make up individual panels in such a way that the ends of the tubes of each frame project vertically and horizontally, fitting inside the ends of the tubes of adjacent frames in such a way as to form joints that form a continuum;
  • A plurality of steel cables are mounted vertically and horizontally inside the rectangular section tubes of the rectangular frames to form a single tensile-compressed metal structure consisting of a plurality of frames;
  • The tubes of the metal structures have tensioners mounted at one end and anchor stops at the opposite end for the steel cables that pass through their interior;
  • Rectangular frames comprise plates of an insulating element framed inside; and
  • Optionally, the faces of the individual panels made up of the rectangular frames are coated.

Preferably, the tensioners are mounted at the ends of the cross members of the metal structures and the anchor stops at the opposite ends.

Preferably still, the tensioners are mounted at the ends of the columns of the metal structures and the anchor stops at the opposite ends.

Also preferably, the tensioners are threaded elements with tension generating lock.

In essence, the number of individual panels that make up a wall is 4 or less in simple construction systems, and 4 or more panels in double and composite construction systems.

In particular, the steel cables that run through the inside of the tubes of the metal structures are subjected to a tension compression that joins the individual panels that varies from 980.7 N (100 kgf) to 3,432.3 N (350 kgf) of compression per tensioner, generating from 1,961.3 N (200 kgf) to 6,864.7 N (700 kgf) of tension compression per wall or ceiling.

In a preferred form, the modular construction system of the invention comprises a multiplicity of metal structures joined and tensioned together, constituting a structural panel made up of a multiplicity of individual panels that make up a wall or a ceiling.

Also in preferred form, the plates framed by the rectangular frames provide acoustic, thermal insulation, or both.

Still in preferred form, the plates framed by the rectangular frames are made of a material selected from high-density expanded polyurethane foam, high-density polyethylene foam, silicone foam, polystyrene foam, sprayed cellulose, mineral wool, glass wool, cork, and combinations thereof.

Essentially, the plates framed by the rectangular frames are made of high-density expanded polyurethane plates.

In a preferred form, one side of the individual panels made up of rectangular frames is coated.

Alternatively, both sides of the individual panels made up of the rectangular frames are coated.

Mostly, the exterior cladding is selected from sheet metal, wood, plastic, cement, and particularly, their combinations.

Mostly, the interior cladding is also selected from sheet metal, plaster, plastic, cement, and their combinations.

In particular, the internal or external coating is coated with a paint.

Specifically, the faces of the individual panels made up of the rectangular frames comprise plasterboard on an additional support structure fixed to the metal structures of the panels.

Preferably, the plasterboards on an additional supporting structure fixed to the metal structures of the panels are coated with a paint.

More preferably, the metal structures are modulated from 800 mm to 1,400 mm horizontally and from 2,500 mm to 7,000 mm vertically as required by the project.

Also preferably, the individual tensile-compressed panels are joined together by anchoring to the floor at the corners using bolts or rigid anchors in the angles of the construction and to the ceiling panels.

Preferably, a wall is furthermore made up of a plurality of individual panels unified horizontally using a simple tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within the crossbars, where the steel cables are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said wall.

Typically, a first horizontal steel cable is located at the top of the panel and a second horizontal steel cable is 2,000 mm below the first.

Specifically, a roof arranged in the direction of a ridge made up of a plurality of individual panels unified horizontally using a simple tension system comprising up to 4 steel cables arranged in parallel and longitudinally within crossbars every 5 meters, where the steel cables are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said roof.

In particular, the simple tension system consists of 2 steel cables per wall or roof deck arranged in parallel within cross members for the construction of single-story houses.

Also in a special form, two or more walls are made up of a plurality of individual panels unified horizontally in different planes using a composite tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within crossbars, also comprising a concrete pouring on the tension upright and a stop on walls and ceiling.

Mostly, two or more superimposed walls are made up of a plurality of individual panels unified horizontally using a double tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within cross members, and an additional vertical tension system to achieve the connection between walls mounted perpendicularly comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within columns, where the steel cables are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said superimposed walls.

Basically, two or more walls attached to a roof are made up of a plurality of individual panels unified horizontally using a double tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within the cross members of the wall and the roof, and an additional vertical tension system to achieve the connection between the walls and the roof comprising up to 2 steel cables arranged in parallel within columns of the walls that extend along the roof to the ridge, where the steel cables are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said walls and the ridge of the roof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

FIG. 1 shows a view of the inner side of a preferred embodiment of the adaptable modular construction system based on metal structures joined and tensioned by steel cables of the present invention, where each metal structure is made of rectangular section pipes and is constituted by a plurality of individual panels unified by tensioned steel cables arranged in parallel inside the crossbars, and where the frames contain plates of an insulating element and the joined metal structures have an exterior coating.

FIG. 2 shows a detail of the joint between rectangular section pipes that serves to form the rectangular section pipe structure of the individual panels of the construction system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a preferred embodiment of a steel cable anchor mounted at one end of a crossbar of an adjustment panel of the construction system of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a preferred embodiment of a steel cable tensioner mounted at one end of a crossbar of an adjustment panel of the construction system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a view of the exterior side of the preferred embodiment of the adaptable modular construction system based on metal structures joined and tensile compressed by steel cables of FIG. 1, where the joined metal structures have an exterior covering in corrugated sheet metal.

FIG. 6 shows a view of the interior side of the preferred embodiment of the adaptable modular construction system based on metal structures joined and tensile compressed by steel cables of FIG. 1, where the joined metal structures have an interior cover in gypsum boards assembled on an additional supporting structure fixed to the metal structures of the panels. Additionally, the metal structures comprise framed inside a plate of an insulating element, preferably high density expanded polyurethane plates.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the deficiencies of the state of the art, an adaptable modular construction system is proposed based on metal structures (1) joined and tensile compressed by steel cables (2).

The metal structures (1) are made up of rectangular section tubes (3) formed from sheet metal in such a way that the ends of the panels can fit inside the ends of the neighboring panels in an alternating manner in such a way as to form joints (6) forming a continuum.

The number of tensioners (8) used in the metal structures (1) consisting of a plurality of panels varies according to the technical requirements.

These metal structures (1) together form a single structural panel with tension compression, the resulting length of which depends on the number of metal structures (1) joined and tension compressed as necessary.

In this way, the union of a multiplicity of structures, for example 2, 3 or 4 metal structures (1), constitute a structural panel to raise a wall or a partition, or build a roof.

By wall or partition, it should be understood a vertical structure of any material used to divide or close an architectural space. By roof, it should be understood a structural surface that closes a room or covered space at the top.

The metal structures (1) comprise a plate (10) framed inside with an insulating element of different types such as high-density expanded polyurethane foam, high-density polyethylene foam, silicone foam, polystyrene foam, sprayed cellulose, mineral wool, glass wool, cork, and their combinations depending on the objective sought, whether it be acoustic or thermal insulation or both.

In a preferred embodiment, the metal structures (1) form the support of the panels whose central portion framed by said structures is made up of high-density expanded polyurethane plates (10), also comprising an exterior coating (13) and an interior coating (14) as required.

For their part, the structural panels preferably comprise an exterior covering (13) that is made of sheet metal or covering materials selected according to design and architecture such as wood, plastic, cement, and combinations thereof. The outer coating (13) can also be painted.

Likewise, the interior lining (14) is selected from cement, plaster, plastic, sheet metal, and their combinations. Additionally, the inner lining (14) can be painted.

In another alternative embodiment, plasterboards can be applied on an additional support structure (15) fixed to the metal structures (1) of the panels. Additionally, the outer coating (13) can be painted.

The metal structures (1) that make up the structural panels have tensioners (8), such as threaded elements that generate tension with a lock, mounted on the ends of the crossbars (11) of the panels on one side, and anchor stops (9) for steel cables that cross through their interior, linking the central panels with the side panels and providing compression tension to them to form the metal structures (1).

In principle, metal structures (1) can be of any size according to the architectural project.

Preferably, the metal structures (1) are modulated by approximately 1,020 mm in a horizontal direction and approximately 2,500 mm to 7,000 mm in a vertical direction as required by the project.

In a simple tension system suitable for single-story homes, 2 tensioners (8) are used per wall or partition. Tensioners (8) unify the panels horizontally by tensioning at one end from an adjustment panel and anchoring a steel cable at the other end of the wall on a stop panel. In this way, a first horizontal tensioner (8) is located at the top of the panel and a second tensioner (8) approximately 2,000 mm below it.

Normally, the number of panels used to form a wall or partition that are joined by steel cables (2) is 4 or less in simple construction systems, and 4 panels or more in double and composite construction systems, varying from 980.7 N (100 kgf) to 3,432.3 N (350 kgf) of compression per tensioner (8) generating from 1,961.3 N (200 kgf) to 6,864.7 N (700 kgf) of tension compression per wall or partition. This tensile compression joins the panels, eliminating the use of interpanel anchors and in turn exponentially multiplying the load capacity of the walls.

The modular construction system uses individual (5) tensile-compressed panels joined together by tension compression which, to form a wall or ceiling of a home, are fixed to the floor by anchoring at the corners using bolts or rigid anchors in the angles of the construction and to the ceiling panels.

Specifically, structural panels are anchored to the floor at the corners of the panels using a bolt or rigid anchor.

Tensile walls are connected to each other by anchors to the floor, normally at the corners of the building, and to the ceiling panels.

In a preferred embodiment, to form a wall or partition using a plurality of individual panels (5) unified horizontally, a simple tension system is used comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) per wall or roof covering arranged in parallel within the crossbars (11) that are tensioned from one end of said wall or roof covering. In particular, the simple tension system then consists of 2 steel cables (2) per wall or roof deck arranged in parallel within the cross members (11) for the construction of single-story houses, where the steel cables (2) are tensioned from one end of a trim panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said wall.

Likewise, in roofs arranged in the direction of the ridge there may be up to 4 tensioners (8) in 5 meters of length. It should be noted that a ridge is an upper line of a roof that joins one slope of a single-pitched roof or two slopes of a gable roof, thus constituting a dividing line for rainwater.

Specifically, a roof arranged in the direction of a ridge made up of a plurality of individual panels (5) unified horizontally using a simple tension system comprising up to 4 steel cables (2) arranged parallel and longitudinally within crossbars (11) every 5 meters, where the steel cables (2) are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said roof.

In another preferred embodiment, a composite tension system can be used where a tensioner (8) joins 2 or more walls in different planes, also using concrete casting on the tension post in walls and in roofs.

In a special way, two or more walls are made up of a plurality of individual panels (5) unified horizontally in different planes using a composite tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) arranged in parallel within crossbars (11), also comprising a concrete pouring on the tension upright and a stop on walls and ceiling.

In yet another preferred embodiment, there is the possibility of using a double tension system by adding to the simple horizontal tension system between panels of a wall or partition, an additional vertical tension system to achieve the connection between walls mounted perpendicularly or with ceilings up to the ridge to unify walls and/or ceilings through vertically arranged tensioners (8).

In this way, two or more superimposed walls are made up of a plurality of individual panels (5) unified horizontally using a double tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) arranged in parallel within crossbars (11), and an additional vertical tension system to achieve the connection between walls mounted perpendicularly comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) arranged in parallel within columns (12), where the steel cables (2) are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said superimposed walls.

Likewise, two or more walls joined to a roof are made up of a plurality of individual panels (5) unified horizontally using a double tension system comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) arranged in parallel within the crossbars (11) of the wall and the roof, and an additional vertical tension system to achieve the union between the walls and the roof comprising up to 2 steel cables (2) arranged in parallel within columns (12) of the walls that extend along the roof to the ridge, where the steel cables (2) are tensioned from one end of an adjustment panel and anchored at the opposite end on a stop panel of said walls and ridge of the roof.