Devices for closing the joints of prefabricated wall panels

Claim 1

A WALL STRUCTURE COMPRISING JOINED STRUCTURAL PANELS, EACH OF SAID PANELS COMPRISING A PAIR OF RIGID FACING SHEETS AND A LAYER OF HEAT-INSULATING MATERIAL THEREBETWEEN, A SPACE ALONG THE ABUTTING ENDS OF ADJACENT PANELS, SAID PANELS, BEING ALINGED, AND HAVING THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID ABUTTING ENDS CLOSED BY A DEVICE, SAID DEVICE INCLUDING A VERTICALLY DISPOSED FIXED RODS IN SAID SPACE, A PAIR OF OPPOSED MEANS OVERLYING SAID SPACE ON OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF, A TUBULAR MEMBER SURROUNDING SAID FIXED ROD IN ROTATABLE RELATION THERETO, SHEET METAL MEMBERS FIXED TO OPPOSED SIDES OF SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AND TO THE RESPECTIVE OPPOSED MEANS, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID MEANS COMPRISING A STRIP, SAID TUBULAR MEMBER BEING UNDER TORSIONAL STRESS WITH SAID MEANS CLAMPED TO THE EXTERIOR SURFACES OF SAID PANELS AND MEANS LOCKING SAID TUBULAR MEMBER UNDER SAID TORSIONAL STRESS, WHEREBY RELEASE OF SAID LOCKING MEANS WILL RELEASE SAID TORSIONAL STRESS AND PERMIT SAID TUBULAR MEMBER TO ROTATE TO ITS RELAXED STATE THUS RELEASING SAID MEANS FOR CLAMPING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID PANELS.