C O V E R S Y S T EM

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 07/355,788, filed May 19, 1989, which is a divisional of application Serial No. 07/174,516 filed March 28, 1988.

The present invention concerns architectural structures, and more particularly, relates to an archi¬ tectural cover panel system for covering structural support members. Architectural cover panels are typically employed to provide aesthetically pleasing coverings over structural support members such as bridge girders, building columns, and beam members, such as I-beams. These cover panels also provide some protection to the structural support member from the elements and may other¬ wise serve to seal the underlying support structure from intrusions, such as for example bird nestings.

Conventional architectural cover panels are generally configured as flat sheets of relatively thick material which are attached to an exposed side of a structural support member. On example of a conventional architectural cover panel is illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 3,538,664 to L. Frandsen et al. Because of their generally planar configuration, conventional architectural cover panels require significant rigidity and strength to resist wind loading forces which could otherwise deform, dismember or dislodge the panel. Accordingly, conven¬ tional cover panels can add significant weight to the entire load supported by the underlying structural member. Fitting conventional architectural cover panels to a structural support member can also be an expensive, labor and time intensive effort since the panels have to be cut and trimmed in order to fit a variety of complex curves

SUBSTITUTESHEET

and shapes of the structural support member. Thus there still exists a need for a light-weight architectural cover panel which is adaptable to the varying dimensions and shapes of differing structural support members but ade- quately resistant to wind loading forces.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, and in general terms, the present invention provides a light-weight architectural cover panel system which is both resistant to wind loading forces and also readily adaptable to structural support members having a variety of dimensions and surface shapes without excessive ^' trimming or cutting of individual panels.

More specifically, the present invention resides in a system of adaptive architectural cover panels made from relatively thin sheet material and formed in a generally convex cross-sectional shape, whether of curved or angular configuration or otherwise. The panels are provided with corrugations lying in the cross-sectional plane, allowing the panel the flexibility to either expand or contract along any desired axis so as to conform to the shape of a structural support member while further pro¬ viding significant reinforcement against wind loading forces. Adjacent panels may be overlapped or nested at their ends with the result that a plurality of panels can be efficiently and economically joined contiguously to attractively and uniformly cover the full extent of a com¬ plexly shaped structure.

In one preferred embodiment of the architectural cover panel system of the present invention, the individ¬ ual panels further may be provided with edge portions pro¬ jecting from the longitudinal margins or sides of the convex portion of the panels. The edge portions also may

be corrugated, with these corrugations lying generally parallel to and intersecting the corrugations of the convex panel portion. The edge portions provide a simple method of attaching the panel to a structural support member and further provide additional resistance to wind loading forces.

In another embodiment of the invention, a cover panel is formed with radial corrugations, allowing the panel to be formed into various geometric configurations such as a dome, which can respond to fluctuations in temperature or wind forces without changing the overall shape of the cover. This has particular advantages in applications where it is important to maintain the align¬ ment and configuration of the cover, relative to an axis of symmetry, as for example where the cover is for an antenna the operation of which would be adversely affected by changes in the cover configuration.

In yet another embodiment of the invention, the panels have corrugations which are diagonal relative to the edges of the panel. This type of corrugation pattern allows the panel to deform along two dimensions. These bidirectional panels may also have corrugations along their edge portions to allow flexibility therealong. In a further aspect of the invention panels having corrugated body portions that are raised relative to corrugated edge portions can be combined back-to-back with other like panels to form brick-like structures that provides both sound and heat insulating properties.

The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention, together with further objectives and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following detailed description con¬ sidered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers designate like elements. It should

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be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for purposes of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the inven¬ tion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the adaptive architectural cover panel system of the present invention installed over an illustrative architectural structure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one preferred embodiment- of an individual adaptive architectural cover panel of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of yet another preferred embodiment of an individual adaptive archi¬ tectural panel of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the individual architectural panel illustrated in FIG. 2 attached to an exemplary structural support member.

FIG. 5 is a side view of yet another embodiment of the present invention adapted to be a one piece cover for a microwave antenna;

FIG. 6 is a top view of the cover in FIG. 5; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a section of the cover in FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a top view of a bidirectional panel embodying the present invention;

FIG. 9a is a front view of the panel in FIG. 8;

FIG. 9b is a rear view of the panel in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of yet another embodiment of a bidirectional panel;

FIG. 11 is a side view of a particular mounting method of an adapted panel of FIG. 8;

FIG. 12 is a top view of yet another mounting method for the panel of FIG. 8;

FIG. 13 is a side view of the mounting of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a top view of a modified form of the panel of FIG. 8 for use in the mounting of FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a side view of the orthogonal channel as used in the mounting of FIG. 11.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the figures, and more particularly FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown an illustrative application of the present inventive adaptive architectural panel system (10) covering the edges of structural support members (13) forming a monorail track and monorail station platform structure. The ends of adjacent panels (10) may be overlapped and nested to obscure the junctures of the panels and provide a cleaner, more aesthetically appealing architectural appearance to the underlying support mem¬ bers. Although relatively light, and therefore adding little to the total structural weight load born by the structural support member (13) , the panels (10) are still sufficiently strong to resist high wind loading.

One preferred embodiment of an individual panel (16) that forms part of the panel system (10) is more fully illustrated in FIG. 2. As shown, the panel (16) is

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made from a square or generally rectangular sheet of relatively thin material and is formed into a panel having a generally convex cross-section. The panel (16) is also provided with a plurality of corrugations (18) , oriented perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the panel and parallel to the plane of the panel cross-section. The corrugations (18) add enhanced flexibility to the panel (16) while simultaneously providing additional structural rein orcement. The configurations illustrated in FIG. 2 characterize only one type of fold pattern contemplated by the present invention. As illustrated, the corrugations of the panel (16) provide generally flat surfaces (19) meeting at varying angles with alternating surfaces (20) lying in essentially parallel planes. Other corrugation patterns could also be used such as, for example, where the alternating flat surfaces (20) would lie in non- parallel planes and every third flat surface would lie in a parallel plane.

The corrugations permit expansion or contraction along the entire width and length of the panel (16) to accommodate support members (13) of varying dimensions, and further allow for localized panel expansion or con¬ traction so as to conform the panel (16) to the surface curvature of the support member (13) . Thus, the corruga- tions allow the same adaptive cover panel (16) to be used in conjunction with several different types of structural support members of varying dimensions and surface shapes without the need for excessive cutting or trimming. At the same time, however, the corrugations further permit use of lighter materials, such as sheet metals, plastics or composite materials, for the construction of the panel 16 while still retaining sufficient rigidity to resist wind loading. The corrugations (18) also facilitate the overlapping placement of adjacent panels (16) so as to obscure the junction of the panels (16) and provide cleaner architectural lines as discussed above.

„„ ,„_,„_ PCT/US91/06841 92/05327

Differences in the thermal expansion coefficients of the panels (16) and support members (13) are also accommodated by the adaptive expansion and contraction of the panels (16).

In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG.

2, the panel (16) is further provided with edge portions (21) projecting from the longitudinal sides of the convex body portion (24) . The edge portions (21) are also pro¬ vided with corrugations (27) which are oriented perpendi- cular to the longitudinal axis of the panel and thus lie parallel to and intersect with or merge into the corruga¬ tions (18) of the convex body portion (24) in an "inter- corrugated" manner as shown in FIG. 2, whereby the corru¬ gations (27) of the edge portions (21) are formed reversely to the corrugations (18) of the convex body portion (24) . Because of the intercorrugation pattern tension or compression stresses created in the individual surfaces forming the pattern, caused by bending the panel to cover architectural curvatures or due to thermal effects, are translated into forces which rotate about the apex of the angeles between the corrugated surfaces. This facilitates desirable flexure of the panel while contin¬ uing to provide high strength to normal forces, such as wind loading. Additionally, these edge portions (21) permit the adaptive panels (16) to be very easily mounted on to a structural support member while maintaining the adaptive character of the panel (16) and adding to its wind loading resistance.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, this preferred embodi- ment of the panel (16) may be mounted onto an illustrative structural support member (30) by attaching channel members (33) onto the opposing edges of the support member (30) . The edge portions (21) of the panel (10) may then be affixed within the channels (33) by any convenient means such as, for example, screws, rivets or other

mechanical fasteners. It should be understood that for the purposes of the present invention, however, the panel (16) could also be directly attached to the structural support member (30) .

The present inventive adaptive architectural cover panel need not be restricted to convex configura¬ tions which are generally curved in cross-section such as the panel (16) shown in FIG. 2. By way of illustration, another preferred embodiment of an individual adaptive panel (22) of the present invention is further shown in FIG. 3. In this embodiment the panel (22) has a convex configuration which is generally truncated triangular in cross-section with the internal intersections (36) of the body portion (39) forming angles generally exceeding ninety degrees. The body portion (39) is also provided with corrugations (42) generally oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the panel (22) and generally parallel to the cross-sectional plane of the panel (22) . As shown in FIG. 3, the lateral sides of the truncated triangular cross-section can be intercorrugated with the top of the body portion (39) . This embodiment may further, but need not necessarily, be provided with edge portions (45) attached to the lateral sides of the body portion (39) forming further corrugations (48) oriented parallel to and intersecting or merging with the corruga¬ tions (42) of the body portion (39) in an intercorrugated manner as shown in FIG. 3. As with the embodiment dis¬ cussed above in connection with FIG. 2, the panel (22) of this embodiment can similarly be expanded and contracted along its entire length or width to adapt the panel (22) to structural support members of varying dimensions with¬ out specialized tailoring. Additionally, localized expan¬ sion and contraction of the corrugations (42) and (48) permit curvature of the panel (22) so as to adapt to the complex surface curvatures of various structural support members.

The panels described above are "unidirectional" panels because they are able to change shape along essen¬ tially a single axis. In many applications the unidirec¬ tional panel provides sufficient flexibility, however, there also is a need for panels which are able to change shape in two directions. Examples of such "bidirectional" panels are illustrated in FIGS. 5 through 10.

FIGS. 5-7 illustrate one type of bidirectional panel containing intercorrugations of the same general type as described above. More particularly the cover panel is in the configuration of a conical type surface, suitable for a roof structure or other application. In the specific case of FIG. 5 the dome is intended as a cover for a microwave antenna installation. In FIG. 5 there is shown a cover (50) having a center (52) from which a body portion (54) extends radially downward. At the outer diameter of the body there is edge (56) which extends to the side (58) .

Referring to FIG. 7, cover (50) has a side portion (58) with side corrugations (60) . The cover has edge portion (56) with edge corrugations (62) , and a body portion (54) with body corrugations (64) . The body, edge and side corrugations allow the cover to flex and accommo¬ date expansion and contraction due to thermal effects and avoid disturbing the original orientation, the axis of symmetry or the overall dimensions of the cover (50) . Desirable results are obtained when the orientation and the axis of symmetry of the cover do not change. The cover can be more firmly mounted to a structure (not shown) through the side corrugations (58) and minimize the risk of the cover geometry being disturbed by any means. In some applications, such as microwave antenna covers, the need to retain the overall dimensions and alignment of the cover is very important in order to assure good per- formance of the antenna. Microwave antennas frequently

are adapted to have a bore sight alignment to another microwave antenna at a distance, but at a line-of-sight location. Small changes in the antenna cover geometry can cause undesirable refractive effects which disturb the bore sight alignment between the antennas and degrade the performance of the antennas.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7 the side corrugations (60) are oriented perpendicular to the circumference of the cover (50) . These corrugations allow the cover to expand and contract along the circum¬ ference without disturbing the axis of symmetry of the cover and thus the effective alignment of the antenna. The side portion has base portion (66) which can be mounted in a ring type channel attached to the antenna structure (not shown) and can be mechanically attached to the antenna mounting channel with screws, bolts or rivets. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 7 the side portion (58) is perpendicular to the plane containing the circumference of the cover, however, it can be offset at an angle if desired.

The edge portion (56) has edge corrugations (60) which are triangularly shaped in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7. The edge portion is at an angle less than perpendicular to the circumference of the cover. The edge corrugations allow the cover to deform along its edge due to the effects of heat without disturbing the axis of symmetry of the cover and the shape of the cover edge (16) .

The body portion (54) has body corrugations (64) extending from the edge portion (56) radially inward. In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7 body corru¬ gations do not extend to the panel center (52) . The body portion is at an angle less than perpendicular to the cir¬ cumference of the cover. In the preferred embodiment

illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 7 the body portion is oriented at an angle less than the edge portion is oriented. Body corrugations (64) allow the body portion to deform along its circumference without affecting the overall shape of the panel (50) .

The cover uses the innovative intercorrugation structure to retain strength while minimizing weight. The body corrugations (64) are intercorrugated with the edge corrugations. In turn, the edge corrugations are inter- corrugated with the side corrugations. This intercorruga¬ tion adds to the mechanical strength and function of the cover and as a flexing mechanism that responds uniformly around the periphery of the panel to compensate for ther¬ mal effects on the cover and preserve the geometry and axis of symmetry of the cover.

The ability of the panel system of the present invention to adapt to deformations is best understood by studying the deformation of a portion of the cover as illustrated in FIG. 7. In FIG. 7 various points along the panel are defined by the letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G.

The body corrugations (64) allow the body portion (54) to expand and contract circumferentially without affecting the boundaries marked by the triangle AFG, or disturbing an angle "Q" formed by the body and the axis of symmetry of the cover. The side corrugations (60) allow the side portion (58) to expand and contract circumferentially without affecting the boundaries of the rectangle BCED. The edge corrugations (62) serve two functions. The first function is to allow the edge portion (56) to expand and contract along the circumferences DE and FG without affecting the outer dimensions of the area DEGF. The second function is to allow the edge portion to expand and contract along radii FD and GE without affecting the over¬ all shape of the area DEGF. The radial deformations can be caused by radial deformations of body portion (54) or

deformations of side portion (58) along the axis perpen¬ dicular to the circumference of the cover (50) . Thus it can be seen that the body edge and side portions can all deform without affecting the overall shape of the boundary AFDBCEG. In this way the inventive panel system is able to reduce the affects that heat and wind can have on the performance of the microwave antenna.

Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, another type of bidirectional panel is illustrated. The bidirectional panel (65) is distinguished from the unidirectional panels of FIGS. 2-4 in part by the fact that the bidirectional panel includes edge portions (66,67,68) and (69) bounding the entire periphery of a body portion (71) . In other words, as illustrated in FIG. 8, there are edge portions on each side of the body portion, unlike the panels illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4. The edge portions have corrugations (72,73,74) and (75). Edge corrugations (73) and (75) are asymmetrical to each other; that is, where the edge corrugation (73) is at a peak (114) , the corresponding edge corrugation (75) is at a valley (112) . Similarly, edge corrugations (72) and (74) are asymmetri¬ cal, which has advantages that will become apparent in connection with FIG. 11 discussed below. The body portion (71) of the bidirectional panel (65) has corrugations (89) that are formed diagonally to the edge portions (66,67,68) and (69) .

Because the body corrugations are diagonal, increased flexibility of the body portion in both the X- and Y-axes results. If the panel (66) were fixed to a structural support member by a mechanical fastener, such as a bolt located at the corners (78) , it would still be able to deform in both the X- and Y-axes without the over¬ all shape changing. The edge corrugations (72) and (74) cooperate to allow flexibility along the Y-axis, while edge corrugations (73) and (75) allow flexibility along

the X-axis. This flexibility can be maintained even if additional fasteners are required to achieve the appropri¬ ate mechanical strength.

FIG. 10 shows yet another embodiment having similar bidirectional flexibility. In this embodiment, the panel (80) has edge portions (82) and a body portion (84) similar to the bidirectional panel (65) , with corners (92) that can be mechanically fastened to a support struc¬ ture. The edge portions (82) have corrugations (86) and (88) which allow for flexibility of the panel along both the X- and Y-axes. The body portion (84) likewise has diagonal body corrugations (90) which allow for flexure along both the X- and Y-axes, except that the corrugations are curvilinear and do not all extend in the same direction.

The embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 10 are particularly useful when greater structural strength is needed in the panels. By having a mechanical fastening means, such as bolts located along the edges and at the panel corners it is possible to obtain greater structural strength than by the panels attached to the structural support member as illustrated in FIG. 4.

FIG. 11 illustrates the bidirectional panel installed to create a "glass brick" effect. Due to the previously described asymmetry of the edge corrugation, the edge corrugations of two panels can fit or rest together when two panels are placed back-to-back and be placed in a channel (94) . The body corrugations (89) disturb the light traveling through the body portion such that images cannot clearly be seen through the corruga¬ tions, but light will travel through — the same effect as a glass brick. The mounting configuration in FIG. 11 also has heat insulating benefits from the fact that the com¬ bined panels form a substantially closed air pocket (96) .

The mounting configuration in FIG. 11 also has advan¬ tageous sound absorbing properties.

The bidirectional panel can also be installed to substantially eliminate the installation channel assembly from view as illustrated in FIG. 12. FIG. 13 shows the orthogonal channel (98) which retains adjacent bidirec¬ tional panels. A bidirectional panel (100) illustrated in FIG. 14 is adapted from the panel illustrated in FIG. 8, by removing edges (69) and (74) . When the adapted panel (100) is mounted in the orthogonal channel (98) , the panel side (102) will substantially cover the orthogonal channel. FIG. 15 illustrates the orthogonal channel showing gaskets (104) and (106) and fasteners (108) and (110).

It will, of course, be understood that modifica¬ tions of the present invention will be apparent to others skilled in the art. Consequently, the scope of the present invention should not be limited by the particular embodiments described above but should be defined only by the claims put forth below and equivalents thereof.