Building block set and method for building with such a block set

Claim 2

Building method by means of a block set comprising at least two block types formed by base blocks and/or joined base blocks comprised by a united combination of identical or different base blocks, a first base block having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at the one end thereof by two flanges each extending in the extension of a side surface of said portion over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, the latter having a hollow volume extending through the block over the whole height thereof, a second base block the horizontal cross-section of which is fork-shaped, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of said second block being substantially equal to the flange length of the first base block, the tolerance allowed for the above defined length and distances being substantially equal to the thickness of the walls of the parallelpiped-shaped portion, no anchoring means being provided at the lower and upper edges of the blocks, while the lower or upper edges of the latter are situated in the same plane, said method comprising first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, the blocks being arranged relative to one another so as to form vertical shafts with at least every third block row open sidewise towards an adjacent shaft, along a continuous channel letting the binder fed to the shaft concerned flow out partly by overflowing substantially under the weight thereof, towards the adjacent shaft or shafts which are not yet filled with binder, with such a speed and flow rate which are at most equal to the allowable speed and flow rate as determined by the block pressure strength.

Claim 3

Method as defined in claim 1, in which channels are formed with a slanting to the horizontal in the range from 50° to 60°.

Claim 4

Method as defined in claim 1, in which the blocks are laid in such a bond that below a hollow space in the parallelepiped-shaped portion of a block of the first base type, is formed a stepped slanting channel bounded by the block flanges, in such a way that when pouring the binder, a cascade action is obtained which allows to slow down or brake the fall speed and the flow rate of the binder passing through said channels in sequence from one shaft to another.

Claim 5

Method as defined in claim 1, in which after superposing a number of block rows, the binder is poured in sequence in the hollow spaces of the top row blocks by starting with the begin of walls or wall portions, along the direction of the horizontal component of the binder flow resultant in the slanting channels, while passing from the hollow space in one block to the one in the following block but after filling that channel reaching said hollow space.

Claim 6

Method as defined in claim 1, in which the blocks are so arranged that the slanting channels join the vertical shafts together and end at the bottom block row, thus insuring when pouring the binder into said channels, a continuous air discharge at succeeding levels, through shafts which are crossed by the channels under consideration.

Claim 7

Method as defined in claim 1, in which ends of the block flanges are directed when erecting a structure, in the direction along which the block row is formed, while taking care that said direction corresponds to the direction of the horizontal component of the resultant along which the binder will flow through the slanting channels obtained during the pouring thereof through said channels.

Claim 8

Method as defined in claim 6, in which two portions of one and the same wall in the extension of one another and in which the horizontal components of the resultant along which the binder will flow through the respective channels in each wall portion are directed towards one another, are joined by a shuttering comprising two panels applied on either side against the facing ends of both wall portions, so as to form between said portions and the panels, a shaft through which the binder can flow.

Claim 9

Method as defined in claim 7, in which said shuttering panels are joined by fasteners passing through the formed shaft.

Claim 10

Method as defined in claim 7, in which for erecting a wall, two wall portions lying in the extension of one another are built by starting with the laying of the blocks in a row for each wall portion, at one corner of the wall to be erected, along the direction of the other wall portion, until the spacing between the wall portions is shorter than the length of the smallest block used, so as to thus form between said wall portions, a column-like space, said space then being bounded sidewise by said shuttering to form that shaft through which the binder can be poured.

Claim 11

Method as defined in claim 7, in which to form an expansion joint between two wall portions lying in the extension of one another, there is provided inside the shaft formed between said wall portions over the whole height thereof, a compressible element the width of which is substantially equal to the wall width.

Claim 12

Method as defined in claim 1, in which an opening provided in a wall, such as a door or window opening, is bounded sidewise by a "U"-shaped vertical shuttering through which the binder can be poured.

Claim 13

Method as defined in claim 1, in which a reinforcement is arranged inside the vertical shafts and/or slanting channels before pouring the binder.

Claim 14

Method as defined in claim 1, in which to form a concrete floor bearing on the walls, a reinforcement is embedded into said floor with the reinforcement ends anchored into the shafts or channels of said walls.

Claim 15

Method as defined in claim 13, in which substantially half-way in each wall, a reinforced-concrete column is provided anchored in said wall, the top ends of the columns in the various walls being connected together by a reinforcement of polygonal shape.

Claim 16

Method as defined in claim 1, in which to form a beam such as a lintel, "U"-shaped blocks are laid in a row one against the other with the back downwards and the flanges upwards, so as to form a gutter in which is arranged a reinforcement the ends of which project on either side of said gutter over a long enough distance for anchoring the beam into a wall, and in which gutter is then poured concrete as binder, said blocks thus being used as shuttering.

Claim 17

Method as defined in claim 1, in which the binder is poured into the block hollow spaces by means of a pump having a flow rate between 10 and 20 m 3 /h.

Claim 18

Method as defined in claim 1, in which when using building blocks having a recess in the one edge of the cross-wise walls thereof, said edges face downwards when laying the blocks.

Claim 19

Building method by means of a block set comprising at least two block types formed by base blocks and/or joined base blocks comprised by a united combination of identical or different base blocks, a first base block having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at the one end thereof by two flanges each extending in the extension of a side surface of said portion over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, the latter having a hollow volume extending through the block over the whole height thereof, a second base block the horizontal cross-section of which is fork-shaped, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of said second block being substantially equal to the flange length of the first base block, the tolerance allowed for the above defined length and distances being substantially equal to the thickness of the walls of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, no anchoring means being provided at the lower and upper edges of the blocks, while the lower or upper edges of the latter are situated in the same plane, said method comprising first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, which comprises, on the one hand, arranging the blocks relative to one another so as to form vertical shafts with at least every third block row open sidewise towards an adjacent shaft, along a continuous slanting channel letting the binder fed to the shaft concerned flow out partly by overflowing substantially under the weight thereof, towards the adjacent shaft or shafts which are not yet filled with binder, with such a speed and flow rate which are at most equal to the allowable speed and flow rate as determined by the block pressure strength, and, on the other hand, laying the blocks of the first base type in rows on top of one another in such a way that the flanges thereof are facing in the same direction for one and the same wall portion and a specific block in a row is laid in a recessed position relative to that block on which it bears mainly in the preceding row, over a distance which is substantially equal to the flange length of said block in said row, the blocks of the second base type being substantially used for starting walls or wall portions so as to allow adjusting the laying of the first-type blocks in the above-described way and at the ends of walls or wall portions to terminate same substantially vertically, base blocks may be replacaed by joined base blocks.

Claim 20

Building method by means of a block set comprising at least two block types formed by base blocks and/or joined base blocks comprised by a united combination of identical or different base blocks, a first base block having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at the one end thereof by two flanges each extending in the extension of a side surface of said portion over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, the latter having a hollow volume extending through the block over the whole height thereof, a second base block the horizontal cross-section of which is fork-shaped, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of said second block being substantially equal to the flange length of the first base block, the tolerance allowed for the above defined length and distances being substantially equal to the thickness of the walls of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, no anchoring means being provided at the lower and upper edges of the blocks, while the lower or upper edges of the latter are situated in the same plane, said method comprising first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, which comprises, on the one hand, arranging the blocks relative to one another so as to form vertical shafts with at least every third block row open sidewise towards an adjacent shaft, along a continuous slanting channel letting the binder fed to the shaft concerned flow out partly by overflowing substantially under the weight thereof, towards the adjacent shaft or shafts which are not yet filled with binder, with such a speed and flow rate which are at most equal to the allowable speed and flow rate as determined by the block pressure strength, and, on the other hand, laying the blocks of the first base type in rows on top of one another in such a way that the flanges thereof are facing in the same direction for one and the same wall portion and a specific block in a row is laid in a recessed position relative to that block on which it bears mainly in the preceding row, over a distance which is substantially equal to the flange length of said block in said row, the blocks of the second base type being substantially used for starting walls or wall portions so as to allow adjusting the laying of the first-type blocks in the above-described way and at the ends of walls or wall portions to terminate same substantially vertically, base blocks may be replacaed by joined base blocks.

Claim 21

Method as defined in claim 18, in which to form a right-angled corner or junction between two walls, a right-angled corner is formed with blocks of the first base type and/or of the second base type by directing the flanges thereof outwardly relative to said corner and by bringing forward that end bearing the overthickness of the one block along the flange direction thereof relative to the outer side surface relative to the corner of the other block over a distance which is at the most substantially equal to the wall thickness of that block portion of parallelpiped shape, in that case where the block width is larger than the flange length thereof.

Claim 22

Method as defined in claim 19, in which to form a junction between two walls crossing at right angle, an area is bounded in the crossing location with four blocks those walls of which bear an overthickness are arranged along the sides of a square or rectangle and the flanges of which are directed outwardly to the square or rectangle.

Claim 23

A wall portion obtained by performing the building method utilizing a block set comprising at least two block types formed by base blocks and/or joined base blocks comprised by a unit combination of identical or different base blocks, a first base block having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at the one end thereof by two flanges each extending in the extension of a side surface of said portion over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, the latter having a hollow volume extending through the block over the whole height thereof, a second base block the horizontal cross-section of which is fork-shaped, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of said second block being substantially equal to the flange length of the first base block, the tolerance allowed for the above defined length and distances being substantially equal to the thickness of the walls of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, no anchoring means being provided at the lower and upper edges of the blocks, while the lower or upper edges of the latter are situated in the same place, said method comprising first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, the blocks being arranged relative to one another so as to form vertical shafts with at least every third block row open sidewise towards an adjacent shaft, along a continuous channel letting the binder fed to the shaft concerned flow out parly by overflowing substantially under the weight thereof, towards the adjacent shaft or shafts which are not yet filled with binder, with such a speed and flow rate which are at most equal to the allowable speed and flow rate as determined by the block pressure strength.

Claim 24

A wall portion obtained by performing the building method utilizing a block set comprising at least two block types formed by base blocks and/or joined base blocks comprised by a unit combination of identical or different base blocks, a first base block having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at the one end thereof by two flanges each extending in the extension of a side surface of said portion over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, the latter having a hollow volume extending through the block over the whole height thereof, a second base block the horizontal cross-section of which is fork-shaped, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of said second block being substantially equal to the flange length of the first base block, the tolerance allowed for the above defined length and distances being substantially equal to the thickness of the walls of the parallelepiped-shaped portion, no anchoring means being provided at the lower and upper edges of the blocks, while the lower or upper edges of the latter are situated in the same place, said method comprising first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, the blocks being arranged relative to one another so as to form vertical shafts with at least every third block row open sidewise towards an adjacent shaft, along a continuous channel letting the binder fed to the shaft concerned flow out parly by overflowing substantially under the weight thereof, towards the adjacent shaft or shafts which are not yet filled with binder, with such a speed and flow rate which are at most equal to the allowable speed and flow rate as determined by the block pressure strength.

Claim 25

The wall portion of claim 21 in which the blocks of the first base type are in rows on top of one another in such a way that the flanges thereof face in the same direction and a specific block in a row is laid in a recessed position with respect to a block of the preceding row over a distance which is substantially equal to the flange length of said block in said row so as to lay over a distance which is substantially equal to the length of the parallelepipedic portion on said block of the preceding row, the block of the second base type being located at the beginning and the end of said wall portion to terminate same substantially vertically.

Claim 26

The wall portion of claim 22 wherein the base blocks are replaced by joined base blocks.

Claim 27

Building method utilizing hollow blocks having at least two flanges, extending at a cross-wise wall of the blocks and generally in the plane of a side surface of the blocks over such a distance as to enable a binder to flow between said flanges and which method includes first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, said method comprising: arranging the blocks relative to one another so that a cross-wise wall of a block of a predetermined row extends substantially in the extension of a cross-wise wall of a block of the adjacent lower row and is displaced with respect to the cross-wise walls of the blocks of the adjacent upper row, the two neighboring cross-wise walls of said predetermined row situated on each side of the above mentioned cross-wise wall extending substantially in the extension of a cross-wise wall of a block of the adjacent upper row and being displaced with respect to the cross-wise walls of the blocks of the adjacent lower row, the said displacement being such as to enable the passage of the binder between a pair of cross-wise walls extending substantially in the extension of each other and a neighboring pair of cross-wise walls extending substantially in the extension of each other, these two pairs of cross-wise walls being located in two adjacent pairs of rows.

Claim 28

Building method utilizing hollow blocks having at least two flanges, extending at a cross-wise wall of the blocks and generally in the plane of a side surface of the blocks over such a distance as to enable a binder to flow between said flanges and which method includes first laying blocks loosely on top of one another and next to one another to form walls through which extend downwards shafts and then pouring binder in the hollow block spaces of the top row to fill said shafts, said method comprising: arranging the blocks relative to one another so that a cross-wise wall of a block of a predetermined row extends substantially in the extension of a cross-wise wall of a block of the adjacent lower row and is displaced with respect to the cross-wise walls of the blocks of the adjacent upper row, the two neighboring cross-wise walls of said predetermined row situated on each side of the above mentioned cross-wise wall extending substantially in the extension of a cross-wise wall of a block of the adjacent upper row and being displaced with respect to the cross-wise walls of the blocks of the adjacent lower row, the said displacement being such as to enable the passage of the binder between a pair of cross-wise walls extending substantially in the extension of each other and a neighboring pair of cross-wise walls extending substantially in the extension of each other, these two pairs of cross-wise walls being located in two adjacent pairs of rows.

Claim 29

The building method of claim 24, wherein blocks are utilized having a portion in the shape of a straight rectangular parallelepiped which is extended at least one cross-wise wall thereof by two said flanges, said flanges defining a hollow volume extending over the whole height of the block.

Claim 30

The building method of claim 25, wherein the flanges extend over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped portion.

Claim 31

The building method of claim 26, wherein blocks are used having at the cross-wise wall opposite the cross-wise wall provided with said flanges an overthickness which is fittable between the free ends of another block's flanges, so as to enable an anchoring betweeen the blocks of the same row, said overthickness being so configured that a free space in which the binder can flow remains between the flanges of one block and the overthickness of another block cooperating with said flanges.

Claim 32

The building method of claim 25, wherein the blocks are laid in rows on top of one another with their corresponding flanges facing in the same direction within a given wall portion, and a specific block in a row is laid in a displaced position relative to at least one block of the preceding row, over a distance which is substantially equal to the total flange length of said block in said preceding row, so that at least one of the cross-wise walls of the specific block extends substantially above the other cross-wise wall of said block in the preceding row.

Claim 33

The building method of claim 28, wherein blocks are used having only two flanges extending at a cross-wise wall of the blocks.

Claim 34

The building method of claim 29, wherein blocks are used whose two flanges extending over a distance substantially equal to a fraction of the length of the parallelepiped-shaped block portion a specific block in a row being laid in a displaced position relative to that block on which it bears mainly in the preceding row, over a distance which is substantially equal to the flange length of said block in said preceding row.

Claim 35

The building method of claim 30, wherein in addition to blocks having a parallelepiped-shaped portion, auxiliary blocks are used having a horizontal fork-shaped cross-section, particularly U-shaped, the flange length of which is substantially equal to the flange length of the blocks having a parallelepiped-shaped portion, said auxiliary blocks being utilized to adjust the laying of the blocks having a parallelepiped-shaped portion in the above described way and to terminate the wall portions substantially vertically.

Claim 36

The building method of claim 31, wherein auxiliary blocks are used in which the cross-wise wall is provided with an overthickness which is fittable between the free ends of another block's flanges, said overthickness being so configured that a free space in which the binder can flow remains between the flanges of the one block and the overthickness of another block cooperating with said flanges.

Claim 37

The building method of claim 24, wherein to erect a wall, two wall portions lying in the extension of one another are built by starting with the laying of the blocks in a row, for each wall portion, at one corner of the wall to be errected, along the direction of the other wall portion, until the spacing between the wall portions is shorter then the length of the smallest block used, so as to form a column-like space between said wall portions, said space then being bounded sidewise to form a shaft through which the binder can be poured.

Claim 38

The building method of claim 24, wherein to form a right-angled corner or junction between two walls, a right-angled corner is formed by using blocks having only two flanges and by directing the latter outwardly relative to said corner for each wall or wall portion forming the corner.

Claim 39

The building method of claim 24, wherein to form a junction between two walls crossing at right angles, an area is bounded in the crossing location with four blocks arranged along the sides of a square or rectangle, the flanges of which are directed outwardly to the square or rectangle.

Claim 40

The building method of claim 24, wherein an opening provided in a wall, such as a door or window opening, is bounded sidewise by a "U"-shaped vertical shuttering through which the binder can be poured.

Claim 41

The building method of claim 24, wherein building blocks are used having a recess in one edge of a cross-wise wall thereof, said blocks being laid on top of one another and next to one another in such a way that the cross-wise walls which extend by pair in the extension the one of the other have their recess provided between said cross-wise walls, so that the binder can flow between two cross-wise walls which are extended in the extension the one of the other.

Claim 42

The building method according to claim 24, wherein the binder is poured into the block hollow spaces by means of a pump having a flow rate between 10 and 20 m 3 /h.