Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 5
Claim 1
Independent Claim
164 words
A method of manufacturing steam-hardened cellular concrete slabs comprising the steps: (a) molding from a concrete mass a cellular body of at least approximately parallelepipedic shape that in a certain stage of solidification of the mass is self-supporting but still capable of being cut into regular pieces, (b) making a plurality of vertically spaced, horizontally extending cuts in said body while the same is resting on a first support to thereby divide said body into a plurality of slab-forming slices, (c) removing said slices one-by-one by lifting away from said first support the body slice that from time-to-time is the uppermost one, (d) canting said lifted slices and depositing them in succession in their canted position in side-by-side but mutually spaced relationship on a second support, so that their broad sides are exposed for subsequent steam contact, and (e) forwarding said second support with the canted body slices thereon into an autoclave, in which the slices are subsequently steam-hardened to form the desired slabs.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
164 words
A method of manufacturing steam-hardened cellular concrete slabs comprising the steps: (a) molding from a concrete mass a cellular body of at least approximately parallelepipedic shape that in a certain stage of solidification of the mass is self-supporting but still capable of being cut into regular pieces, (b) making a plurality of vertically spaced, horizontally extending cuts in said body while the same is resting on a first support to thereby divide said body into a plurality of slab-forming slices, (c) removing said slices one-by-one by lifting away from said first support the body slice that from time-to-time is the uppermost one, (d) canting said lifted slices and depositing them in succession in their canted position in side-by-side but mutually spaced relationship on a second support, so that their broad sides are exposed for subsequent steam contact, and (e) forwarding said second support with the canted body slices thereon into an autoclave, in which the slices are subsequently steam-hardened to form the desired slabs.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said vertically spaced, horizontally extending cuts in said body are all made before any one of the slice is removed from said first support.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
82 words
The method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said body slices are removed one-by-one from said first support by means of a movable gripping device operative as a suction head, the upper face of each body slice to be removed being caused to adhere by suction to a backing surface on said gripping device, and wherein canting of said lifted body slices is effected by swinging said gripping device together with the body slice carried thereby through 90° about a horizontal axis.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
56 words
The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein each body slice to be removed from said first support is separated from any remainder of the body resting on said support by being elevated from such body remainder by suction exerted through said gripping device before coming into contact with said backing surface of said gripping device.