BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Recent investigations related to the effects of earthquakes upon building structures has demonstrated the advantages of having a continuous wire embedded in the mortar joint of anchored veneer walls. These investigations have resulted in the incorporation of a requirement for this type of continuous wire reinforcement in the Uniform Building Code for seismic zones. The code requires that this wire is to be secured to the tie anchor which is fastened to the support structure. The use of a continuous wire in masonary veneer walls has been found to have additional benefits in providing protection against problems arising from thermal expansion and contraction and improving the uniformity of the distribution of the lateral forces in a structure.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a seismic construction system which allows the incorporation of continuous wire reinforcement in the mortar joint of anchored veneer walls.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a seismic construction system which allows for the installation of continuous wire reinforcement in a rapid labor saving manner.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a seismic construction system which incorporates continuous wire reinforcement and which allows a degree of vertical adjustibility while providing listed horizontal movement.

It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a seismic construction system which comprises a limited number of component parts which are economical of manufacture resulting in a relatively low unit cost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a seismic construction system which includes a vertical channel member, a veneer anchor member, a wall tie member, a clip member and a reinforcing wire. The vertical channel member is part of an inner wythe construction which may be in the nature of rigid wall board and a conventional insulation layer. The veneer anchor member is attached to the vertical channel member by means of a pair of screws and the wall tie member is attached to a projecting portion of the veneer anchor member. The clip member, comprising one of the novel features of the present invention, is attached to the wall tie member. The clip member has a plurality of channels two of which accept leg portions of the clip member. Additional channels are proportioned to accept a continuous reinforcing wire or rod. The clip member is attached to the wall tie member and its placed in the mortar joint during the construction of an outer wythe and a continuous reinforcing wire is placed in one of the channels of the clip member. As construction of the outer wythe continues, the clip member, the ends of the wall tie member and the continuous reinforcing wire are covered by mortar forming a rigid and seismically effective connection between the inner and outer wythes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description hereinafter when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a seismic construction system fabricated in accordance with the principles of the present invention with the system shown in use;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the clip member of the system of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4--4 of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly, to FIG. 1 thereof, there is depicted a new and novel seismic construction system, generally denoted by the reference numeral 10 and fabricated in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

The system comprises a vertical channel member 12, a veneer anchor member 14, a wall tie member 16, a clip member 18, a reinforcing wire or rod member 20, an inner wythe 22, and an outer wythe 24. The outer wythe 24 which is herein illustrated by a plurality of individual brick members 26 but, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, may be constructed of stone, cinder blocks or other similar masonry materials which may have regular or irregular configurations.

In a similar manner, the inner wythe 22 may be constructed of any suitable material. It is noted that in the preferred construction, the inner wythe 22 includes a rigid wall board layer 28 and an insulation layer 30, preferably of expanded foam material.

The veneer anchor member 14 comprises a backing plate member 32 and a projecting bar portion 34. The projecting bar portion 34 is punched out from the central portion 36 of the backing plate member 32 so as to result in a centrally disposed aperture 38, of substantially rectangular configuration, being formed in the backing plate member 32. The projecting bar portion 34 is thereby disposed in substantially parallel relationship with respect to said backing plate member 32. The backing plate member 32 is provided with bores 40 at the upper and lower ends 42,44 thereof the purpose of which will presently be described.

The veneer anchor member 14 includes end members 46,48 which are bifurcated as shown at end 46 to form prong portions 50,52. The projecting bar portion 34 is sufficiently spaced from the plate member 32 so as to form a slot 54 which is adapted to receive the wall tie member 16.

In the fabrication of the seismic construction system 10, the vertical channel members 12 are initially secured in place. The vertical channel members 12 may be the standard framing members of an edifice. The rigid wall board 28 which may be an exterior grade gypsum board is positioned in abutting relationship with the front portion 56 of the vertical channel member 12. The inner wythe 22 may include an insulating layer 30 which is disposed in abutting relationship with the wall board layer 28. After placement of the insulating layer 30, the veneer anchor member 14 is secured to the channel member 12 by forcing the prong portions 50,52 through the insulating layer 30 and the wall board 28 until the prong portions 50,52 abuttingly engaged the front portion or surface 56 of the channel member 12, as is best shown in FIG. 2. Sheet metal screws 58,60 are inserted into the bores 40 to fasten the veneer anchor member 14 with respect to the channel member 12. Subsequently, the wall tie member 16 is inserted in the slot 54 formed between the projecting bar portion 34 and the back plate member 32 and the clip member 18 is attached to the wall tie member 16. Thereafter, fabrication of the outer wythe 24 is commenced utilizing the stones 26 with horizontal and vertical joints filled with mortar in a conventional manner which is not shown.

The wall tie member 16 is generally similar to the wall tie member which has been described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,990 and reference is had thereto for a discussion of the vertical adjustability and the limited horizontal movement of the wall tie member. Although, as indicated above, the wall tie member is generally similar to the wall tie of U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,990, attention is drawn to an important difference in that the end portions 62,64 of the wall tie 16 are spaced apart and are generally parallel to each other while the wall tie previously described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,990 has end portions which are in general relative coplaner alignment. The configuration of the end portions 62,64 of the wall tie member 16 cooperate with the clip member 18 and form a novel feature of the present invention, as will be presently described.

The clip member 18 is a member of unitary construction which includes a base portion 66 and a plurality of substantially parallel projecting leg portions 68,70,72,74,76 defining a plurality of open channels 78,80,82,84.

The spacing between projecting leg portions 68,70,72,74,76 is proportioned in a manner such that the channels 82,84 formed therebetween accept the end portions 62,64 of the wall tie member 16. The spacing between the projecting leg portions 68,70 and between the projecting legs 70,72 are sufficiently different such that continuous wires or rods 20 of two preselected diameters may be selectively inserted in the channel 78 or in the channel 80. The top portion of the projecting leg portions, 68,70,72,74 each include a lip portion 86 which aids in locking the ends of the wall tie member 16 and the continuous wire 20 to the clip member, as is shown in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the channels may be provided with interior longitudinally extending ridges, shown in phantom and designated by the reference numeral 91, to positionally secure the continuous wire and wall tie end portions within the channels. In this configuration the lip portions 86 may be retained or removed.

In the preferred embodiment of the clip member 18, shown in FIG. 4, the projecting leg portions 68,76 are somewhat shorter than the projecting leg portions 70,72,74. In accordance with the preferred embodiment, the channel 78 is proportioned to accept a nine gauge continuous wire 20 while the channel 80 is proportioned to accept a 3/16 inch diameter continuous wire. The channels 82,84 are each proportioned to accept a 3/16 inch diameter wire which forms the end portions 62,64 of the wall tie member 16.

It is clear that the proportions of the channels 78,80,82,84 may be varied in order to accommodate continuous wires of different diameters and wall ties which are formed of wire other than the 3/16 inch diameter of the tie in the preferred embodiment. In practice it is common to utilize wall ties formed of 3/16 inch diameter stock and accordingly alternative clip members are provided in which channel 78 is proportioned to receive a nine gauge continuous wire as previously indicated and channels 80,82,84 are each proportioned to receive 3/16 inch diameter wire. The clip member is preferably formed of an extrudable plastic such as rigid polyvinylchloride using an extrusion process. In practice, the ends of the reinforcing wire are disposed in overlapping relationship within the mortar joint. However, it is within the contemplation of the present invention to have the adjacent ones of the continuous wires positioned in abutting end-to-end relationship within a selected channel of a selected clip to thereby form the continuous reinforcement.

The bottom portion 88 of the clip member 18 has a plurality of parallel V-shaped or notched grooves 90 which facilitate the bonding of the clip member 18 to the mortar which fills the horizontal joints between the stones 26. During the construction of the outer wythe 24, the mortar also fills the channels 78,80,82,84 of the clip 18 thereby bonding the clip 18, the reinforcing wire and the wall tie member 16 together and forming a strong and well reinforced structure.

While I have shown and described the prefered embodiments of the present invention, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that there are many changes, modifications, and improvements which can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as hereinabove defined and envisioned and as hereinafter claimed.