METHOD OF REDUCING THE VOLUME OF CONCRETE NECESSARY FOR CONSTRUCTION OF CONCRETE ELEMENTS

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial Number 61/127,375 filed which was filed on May 13, 2008 and Serial No. 61/127,354 which was filed on May 12, 2008. The entire content of this application is explicitly incorporated herein as reference.

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to constructing concrete structures, which typically employ filler material to reduce the amount of concrete necessary for the construction of concrete elements.

Background of the Invention

Currently, when forming various concrete elements using molds such as to manufacture walls or floors, a filler is often mixed into the wet concrete to reduce the weight of the concrete elements by reducing the volume of concrete necessary to construct the concrete elements. An example of such a filler is Styrofoam.

Summary of the Invention

A method of reducing the volume of concrete necessary for constructing a concrete element is provided. The method includes the steps of providing a plurality of filler elements and a wire assembly, coupling each of the plurality of filler elements to the wire assembly, disposing the wire assembly into a

concrete element form, and filling the concrete element form with concrete for producing the concrete element with the wire assembly and coupled plurality of filler elements embedded therein.

The invention is also directed to a concrete element having a reduced volume of concrete. The concrete element includes concrete, a wire assembly, and a plurality of filler elements coupled to the wire assembly such that the wire assembly and the coupled plurality of filler elements are embedded in the concrete element, thereby reducing the volume of concrete required to form the concrete element .

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. It should be further understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.

Brief Description of the Drawings In the drawings, like reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the different views. Also, the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead generally being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention.

Fig. IA is an illustrative diagram of an empty plastic bottle with a wire coupled thereto, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. IB is an illustrative diagram of the plastic bottle of Fig. IA with a cap attached thereto. Fig. 1C is an illustrative diagram of the plastic bottle with a cap and attachment hook coupled thereto, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an illustrative diagram of a wire assembly that includes ^' empty plastic bottles coupled to the wire mesh of the wire assembly, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 3 is an illustrative cross-sectional side view of a hollow concrete element form with a wire assembly including a plurality of coupled empty plastic bottles disposed therein, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 4 is an illustrative perspective diagram of a slit aluminum can, according to one embodiment of the invention . Fig. 5 is an illustrative diagram of a wire assembly that includes aluminum cans coupled to the wire mesh of the wire assembly, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 6 is an illustrative cross-sectional side view of a hollow concrete element form with a wire assembly including a plurality of coupled slit aluminum cans disposed therein, according to one embodiment of the invention .

Fig. 7 is an illustrative diagram of an aluminum can including a pull tab with a hook coupled thereto, according to one embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

The present invention involves a method for using a plurality of filling elements, such as empty (e.g. , used, etc.) , plastic bottles or cans to reduce the volume of concrete necessary for the construction of concrete elements, such as concrete walls, floors, and ceiling slabs, and thereby also reduce the weight of the concrete elements .

Referring to Figs. IA and IB, in one embodiment, an empty (i.e. , used) plastic bottle 102 (e.g. , empty water, soda, or juice bottle) is shown. One end of an attachment wire 110 is wrapped around an existing threaded portion 106 of the bottle 102 where a cap is typically secured. The bottle 102 is then closed/sealed with its corresponding cap 104, or some other plug such that the one end of the attachment wire 110 is secured between the threading or a top ridge 106, and the cap 104. In one embodiment, the attachment wire 110 is a flexible braided wire made of stainless steel.

Referring to Fig. 1C, in another embodiment, instead of the attachment wire 110, an attachment hook 115 is coupled to the cap 104 using various methods known in the art .

Referring to Fig. 2, in one embodiment, a plurality of the plastic bottles 102 are attached/coupled to a 6'x 6' wire assembly 208 by a second end of the attachment wires 110 (or by the attachment hooks 115) . The wire assembly 202 includes a wire mesh 202 supported and reinforced at appropriate points known to those skilled in the art with support or reinforcing bars 204. In some embodiments, the wire mesh 202 is made of stainless

steel, and the reinforcing bars 204 are made of stainless steel or rebar.

Referring to Fig. 3, after the plurality of plastic bottles 102 are attached/coupled to the wire assembly 208, one or more wire assemblies 208 (including the bottles 102) , are placed into a concrete element form or mold 300 through an opening 312 prior to the addition of wet concrete into the form 300. Thereafter, wet concrete 310 is pumped through a port 302 in the bottom of the form 300 via a hose 304. As the concrete fills the form, the bottles "float" but remain tethered to the wire assembly 208 by the wires 110. After the form 300 is filled with wet concrete 310, the port 302 is sealed and the concrete is allowed to harden with the wire assembly 208 and plurality of plastic bottles 102 embedded therein. Thereafter, corrosion of the attachment wires 110 or the attachment hooks 115 is of no concern because the bottles are secured by the hardened concrete .

The plurality of plastic bottles 102 attached to the wire assembly 208 serve as a filler in the concrete element form 300 so that the amount of concrete needed to fill the concrete element form 300 is reduced. In other words, the volume of concrete is reduced by the cumulative volume of the plurality of plastic bottles 102 and the wire assembly 208. Further, because less concrete is used, the resultant weight (and cost) of the completed concrete element is reduced.

Moreover, because of the viscosity of the wet concrete and the surface area of each of the plurality of plastic bottles 102, the plastic bottles 102 help keep the wire assembly 608 in a specific position

embedded within the concrete element 300 while the concrete hardens.

Benefits of the above-described invention include using less energy consuming concrete, reducing fuel consumed during transport of the concrete elements because of concrete elements' reduced weight, and reusing empty plastic bottles without expending energy for recycling or contributing to land fills.

In another embodiment, the invention involves a method for a plurality of filling elements, such as empty (e.g., used, etc.) aluminum cans to reduce the volume of concrete necessary for the construction of concrete elements, such as concrete walls, floors, and ceiling slabs, and thereby also reduce the weight of the concrete elements. Referring to Fig. 4, in one embodiment, an empty aluminum can 402 (e.g., aluminum soda can or beer can) is shown. A narrow slit 404 is cut along the length of the empty aluminum can 402 and approximately halfway through the top surface 406 and the bottom surface (not shown) of the empty aluminum can 402. The width of the slit 404 needs to be sufficient to allow mounting of the empty aluminum cans 402 in the manner described below. The slit 404, preferably, has a width of between 3/16" and 1/4" . Referring to Fig. 5, in one embodiment, a plurality of the slit empty aluminum cans 402 are slipped over wires 504 included in a 6'x 6' wire assembly 508 (i.e., the wire 504 slides into the slit 404) . The wire assembly 508 includes a wire mesh 502 supported and reinforced at appropriate points known to those skilled in the art with support or reinforcing bars 506. In

some embodiments, the wire mesh 502 is made of stainless steel, and the reinforcing bars 506 are made of stainless steel or rebar.

After the plurality of slit aluminum cans 402 are attached to the wires 504 (i.e., the wires 504 are disposed in the slits 404) , a securing means such as a clip 509, tape, glue, epoxy, or other filler material for closing the slit 404 (see Fig. 1) is attached over each of the slits 404 to cover the slit 404 and prevent the wires 504 from sliding out of the slits 404 to disengage the empty aluminum cans 402 from the wire assembly 508.

In another embodiment, after the plurality of slit empty aluminum cans 402 are attached to the wires 504 of the wire assembly 508, the slit empty aluminum cans 402 are filled with liquid plastic, which is allowed to harden to secure the slit empty aluminum cans 402 to the wire assembly 508.

Referring to Fig. 6, after the plurality of slit empty aluminum cans 402 are secured to the wire assembly 508, one or more wire assemblies 508 (including the cans 402) , are placed into a concrete element form 600 prior to the pouring or pumping of wet concrete into the form 600. Thereafter, wet concrete 610 is added through a port 602 in the bottom of the form 600 in any known manner, such as via a hose 604. After the concrete element form 600 is filled with wet concrete 610, the port 602 is sealed and the concrete is allowed to harden with the wire assembly 508 and plurality of aluminum cans 402 embedded therein. The plurality of empty aluminum cans 402 attached to the wire assembly 508 serve as a filler in the

concrete element form 600 so that the amount of concrete needed to fill the concrete element form 600 is reduced. In other words, the volume of concrete is reduced by the cumulative volume of the plurality of empty aluminum cans 402 and the wire assembly 508. Further, because less concrete is used, the resultant weight (and cost) of the completed concrete element is reduced. In another embodiment, the aluminum cut from the cans 402 to make the slits 404 is also mixed into the wet concrete and used as filler. It is noted that because of the viscosity of the wet concrete and the surface area of each of the plurality of aluminum cans 402, the aluminum cans 402 help keep the wire assembly 508 in a specific position embedded within the concrete element while the concrete hardens .

Referring to Fig. 7, in yet another embodiment each of the plurality of aluminum cans 402 comprises a pull tab 700, and each is attached to the wire assembly 508 via an attachment wire or hook 702 connected between the pull tabs and the wire assembly 508. The concrete element is thereafter produced as described above.

Thus, while there have shown and described and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, it is expressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or method steps which perform substantially the same

function in substantially the same way to achieve the same results are within the scope of the invention. Moreover, it should be recognized that structures and/or elements and/or method steps shown and/or described in connection with any disclosed form or embodiment of the invention may be incorporated in any other disclosed or described or suggested form or embodiment as a general matter of design choice. It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto.