Suspended woodbeam ceiling

Claim 2

A unitary beam for a suspended beam ceiling structure, said beam comprising: first and second beam side members each of said beam side members being L-shaped, said beam side members each having an upwardly facing lip and having a downwardly directed face, and said faces lying in a plane; a beam center between said beam side members and attached to said beam side members and maintaining said beam side members in a spaced relationship, said beam center having a downwardly directed beam center being spaced above said plane of said faces substantially the same distance as said upwardly facing lips of said beam side members are spaced above said plane; said beam center being made of wood and said beam side members each being made of wood, said beam side members each being rabbeted with said beam center extending into said rabbets and being secured to both of said beam side members within said rabbets whereby said beam is a unitary structure so that said lips are maintained in the same plane.

Claim 3

A suspended beam ceiling structure having at least two beams, one of said beams being a main beam and the other of said beams being a cross beam, each of said beams having first and second beam sides, each of said beam sides being L-shaped, and each of said beam sides having an upwardly facing lip and having a downwardly directed face, said faces of said beam sides of each of said beams lying in a plane; a beam center between said beam sides and attached to said beam sides and maintaining said beam sides in a spaced relationship, said beam center having a downwardly directed lower surface which lies above said plane, said beam center and said beam sides each being made of wood and said beam center being attached to both said beam sides, each of said beam sides having an upstanding flange extending above said lip and above said beam center, said cross beam being configured for endwise joining against the side of said main beam with said plane of said faces of said cross beam lying substantially in said plane of said faces of said main beam, and with said beam sides of said cross beam substantially abutting one of said beam sides of said main beam; and locking means attached to said cross beam and engaging over and around said upstanding flange on said beam side of said main beam against which said beam sides of said cross beams abut.

Claim 4

A suspended beam ceiling structure having at least two beams, one of said beams being a main beam and the other of said beams being a cross beam, each of said beams having first and second beam sides, each of said beam sides being L-shaped, and each of said beam sides having an upwardly facing lip and having a downwardly directed face, said faces of said beam sides of each of said beams lying in a plane; a beam center between said beam sides and attached to said beam sides and maintaining said beam sides in a spaced relationship, said beam center having a downwardly directed lower surface which lies above said plane, said beam center and said beam sides each being made of wood and said beam center being attached to both said beam sides, each of said beam sides having an upstanding flange extending above said lip and above said beam center, said cross beam being configured for endwise joining against the side of said main beam with said plane of said faces of said cross beam lying substantially in said plane of said faces of said main beam, and with said beam sides of said cross beam substantially abutting one of said beam sides of said main beam; and locking means attached to said cross beam and engaging over and around said upstanding flange on said beam side of said main beam against which said beam sides of said cross beams abut.

Claim 5

The suspended beam ceiling structure of claim 2 wherein said locking means is permanently attached to said cross beam and is detachably engaged around the top of said upstanding flange on said beam side adjacent said cross beam and is engaged interiorly of said upstanding flange so that said locking means extends toward said beam center so that said cross beam is detachably attached to said main beam.

Claim 6

The suspended beam ceiling of claim 2 wherein said locking means is a locking block secured to said cross beam and said locking block engages upon said main beam to lock said crossbeam to said main beam.

Claim 7

The suspended beam ceiling structure of claim 4 wherein said locking block is attached to said crossbeam and said locking block has a rabbeted groove therein which engages over said upstanding flange of said main beam to lock said cross beam to said main beam.

Claim 8

The beam of claim 2 wherein said beam center is spaced above said plane and is rabbeted into both of said beam sides.

Claim 9

The beam of claim 6 wherein said beam center is spaced above said face substantially the same distance as said lips are spaced above said plane.

Claim 10

A suspended woodbeam ceiling structure comprising: a main beam having a lower face for lying in a ceiling plane and having a pair of oppositely directed lips positioned above said ceiling plane, said main beam being made of wood; a plurality of crossbeams, each of said crossbeams having a lower face for lying in the ceiling plane and each of said crossbeams having a pair of oppositely directed lips positioned above said ceiling plane, said crossbeams having locking means thereon for locking with said main beam, said crossbeams being made of wood; said main beam and said crossbeams each having the same cross-section, each of said beams being formed of a pair of spaced beam sides, each having an upstanding flange extending above said lip and each having its lip extending outward away from each other, each of said beam sides being made of wood, an inwardly directed rabbet in each of said beam sides positioned away from said face substantially the same distance as said lips and a wooden beam center positioned in and secured in said rabbets in said beam sides so that said beam side and beam center are secured together as an integral beam structure; said locking means being secured to said crossbeams and extending over the adjacent upstanding flange of said main beam and toward said wood beam center of said main beam to retain both said beam sides of said crossbeam adjacent the beam side of said main beam to detachably engage each crossbeam on its adjacent main beam and support each crossbeam from its adjacent main beam; and a wall hanger, said wall hanger being L-shaped and having a lower face for lying in said ceiling plane and having a lip thereon, said wall hanger being for securing to a wall and said wall hanger being made of wood, at least one of said beams engaging against said wall hanger and resting on said lip of said wall hanger to support said beam, said beams and said wall hanger being positioned so that said lower surfaces of said main beam, said crossbeams and said wall hanger are in the same plane and said lips of said main beam, said crossbeams and said wall hanger are in the same plane so that a drop-in ceiling panel can rest on said lips.

Claim 11

A suspended woodbeam ceiling structure comprising: a main beam having a lower face for lying in a ceiling plane and having a pair of oppositely directed lips positioned above said ceiling plane, said main beam being made of wood; a plurality of crossbeams, each of said crossbeams having a lower face for lying in the ceiling plane and each of said crossbeams having a pair of oppositely directed lips positioned above said ceiling plane, said crossbeams having locking means thereon for locking with said main beam, said crossbeams being made of wood; said main beam and said crossbeams each having the same cross-section, each of said beams being formed of a pair of spaced beam sides, each having an upstanding flange extending above said lip and each having its lip extending outward away from each other, each of said beam sides being made of wood, an inwardly directed rabbet in each of said beam sides positioned away from said face substantially the same distance as said lips and a wooden beam center positioned in and secured in said rabbets in said beam sides so that said beam side and beam center are secured together as an integral beam structure; said locking means being secured to said crossbeams and extending over the adjacent upstanding flange of said main beam and toward said wood beam center of said main beam to retain both said beam sides of said crossbeam adjacent the beam side of said main beam to detachably engage each crossbeam on its adjacent main beam and support each crossbeam from its adjacent main beam; and a wall hanger, said wall hanger being L-shaped and having a lower face for lying in said ceiling plane and having a lip thereon, said wall hanger being for securing to a wall and said wall hanger being made of wood, at least one of said beams engaging against said wall hanger and resting on said lip of said wall hanger to support said beam, said beams and said wall hanger being positioned so that said lower surfaces of said main beam, said crossbeams and said wall hanger are in the same plane and said lips of said main beam, said crossbeams and said wall hanger are in the same plane so that a drop-in ceiling panel can rest on said lips.

Claim 12

The suspended woodbeam ceiling structure of claim 8 wherein said locking means on said crossbeam is a locking block positioned on said beam center and between said upstanding flanges on said crossbeam and said locking block has a slot therein to engage over said upstanding flange on said main beam.

Claim 13

The suspended woodbeam ceiling structure of claim 9 wherein another locking block is positioned on said crossbeam where said crossbeam engages said wall hanger, said locking block adjacent said wall hanger being positioned on said beam center of said crossbeam and extending over said wall hanger.