Building structure

Claim 1

A panel for use with other identical panels in erecting a space enclosing structure in the form of a partial icosahedron, said panel comprised of six elements, said elements being two sheets of plywood each in the form of a right triangle whose hypotenuse is equal to twice the base and positioned to abut along their altitudes to form a two part equilateral triangular panel, an equilateral triangular frame for supporting said panel, said frame comprising three identical elongated braces, each brace being the length of said hypotenuse and shaped as follows: each brace is four sided in cross section with a first side adapted to rest on an edge area of said panel, second and third parallel sides extending inwardly of said panel and away from the edges of said first side at an angle of approximately 69° and a fourth side at right angles to said parallel sides and at an angle to said first side of approximately 21°, each brace cut at both ends at 30° to the long axis and at right angles to said first side to form two faces each trapezoidal in shape, the six faces of said three braces being placed in face to face abutting pairs, and connected together to form a rigid equilateral triangular frame with said first sides lying in a common plane, said frame mounted on said panel with said first sides in engagement with the edge areas of said panel and the said three pairs of abutting faces bisecting the three apexes of said panel, said frame being securely affixed to said panel, and a single nailing strip rectangular in cross section and overlapping and abutting altitude edges of said sheets, said nailing strip cut at one end to form two diverging equal sized parallelograms whose bottom and top edges are at 60° to each other and at 30° to the longitudinal axis of said strip, and the faces of said parallelograms are at 69° to the bottom of said strip, said faces abutting the inner sides of said braces immediately adjacent the inner edges of that pair of abutting trapezoidal faces that are aligned with said abutting altitude edges of said sheets, said nailing strip extending along said abutting edges to a position at which its other end, which is cut crosswise at 69° to its bottom, is in engagement with the inner side of the opposite brace at its mid-point, and the abutting edges of said sheets being securely affixed to said nailing strip.

Claim 10

The method of making 15 units in the form of equilateral triangles to be used in constructing an icosahedron type building having five roof units and 10 wall units, said method comprising the steps of cutting each of fifteen 4 by 8 foot plywood sheets diagonally to form two pieces of which a first piece is shaped as a right triangle with a 4 foot base and an 8 foot hypotenuse, and a second piece is shaped in the form of a quadrilateral including two 8 foot sides, sawing away a rectangular end portion from five of said 15 second pieces to form five additional pieces shaped as right triangles the same as said first pieces, thereby to provide 20 first pieces and 10 second pieces, assembling said 20 first pieces in pairs to provide 10 equilateral triangular wall panels with 8 foot sides, assembling said ten second pieces in pairs to provide five equilateral triangular roof panels with 8 foot sides and with extensions from one side, and then securing all said pairs of pieces to equilateral triangular frames to form 15 completed units whereby said units can then be assembled to provide a circumferential wall of 10 units and a roof of five units with the said extensions overhanging said wall.

Claim 11

The method of making 15 units in the form of equilateral triangles to be used in constructing an icosahedron type building having five roof units and 10 wall units, said method comprising the steps of cutting each of fifteen 4 by 8 foot plywood sheets diagonally to form two pieces of which a first piece is shaped as a right triangle with a 4 foot base and an 8 foot hypotenuse, and a second piece is shaped in the form of a quadrilateral including two 8 foot sides, sawing away a rectangular end portion from five of said 15 second pieces to form five additional pieces shaped as right triangles the same as said first pieces, thereby to provide 20 first pieces and 10 second pieces, assembling said 20 first pieces in pairs to provide 10 equilateral triangular wall panels with 8 foot sides, assembling said ten second pieces in pairs to provide five equilateral triangular roof panels with 8 foot sides and with extensions from one side, and then securing all said pairs of pieces to equilateral triangular frames to form 15 completed units whereby said units can then be assembled to provide a circumferential wall of 10 units and a roof of five units with the said extensions overhanging said wall.