CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon and claims benefit of copending U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 62/026,268 entitled "CONNECTING KEY SYSTEM FOR MODULAR BUILDING UNITS," filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on July 18, 2014 by the inventor herein, the specification of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to modular building construction, and more particularly to a connecting system for joining wall panels of a modular building unit to a corner column.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRIOR ART

Modular building units typically comprise a skeletal metal (e.g. steel) frame, a solid roof and floor, and wall panels that are inserted into the frame. The frame comprises an important structural element of the overall assembly, with the corner posts of the frame playing a primary support role for the remainder of the structure. In modular building configurations, it is desirable to maintain the corner posts as a principal support member to ensure proper support of the roof structure of the building unit, even if portions of the modular building unit other than the principal structural frame are to be replaced.

The wall panels of the modular building units are often attached by providing a U- shaped profile bracket along the long vertical edges (such as by connecting such U-shaped profile to the structural corner posts of the frame) to receive a wall panel having a rectangular cross section. However, such fixed U-shaped profile brackets provide a fixed dimension capable of receiving a wall panel of a single thickness. Different installations may require or desire walls of differing thicknesses, but allowing the replacement of one wall panel with another, differently configured wall panel can be difficult, requiring replacement of such U- shaped brackets and possibly other structural elements in order to accommodate such a change.

Thus, there remains a need in the art for a wall panel connecting system for a modular building unit capable of receiving panels of differing configurations, and more particularly for a wall panel connecting system that maintains the full skeletal support frame structure (including the corner support posts) of the modular building unit when reconfiguring the wall panel connections, and that allows reconfiguration of the wall panel connecting system without excessive effort or expense.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Disclosed is a connecting system for connecting wall panels to the support frame, and more particularly to the rigid corner support posts of a support frame, of a modular building unit. The connecting system includes a modular bracket assembly and is configured so that two modular connecting brackets attach to each corner vertical support column, which modular brackets are configured to receive the vertical edge of a wall panel. The brackets themselves are configured for easy replacement and/or adjustment through minimal effort, and particularly without removing, altering, or otherwise disturbing the corner vertical support column of the frame of the modular building unit.

In accordance with certain aspects of an embodiment of the invention, a wall panel connecting system is provided for a modular building unit, comprising: a modular building unit corner support post fixedly attached to a frame of said modular building unit, the corner support post having a first exterior face, a second exterior face, a first interior face, and a second interior face; a plurality of wall panels; and a modular wall panel connector configured for attachment to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of the corner support post, the modular wall panel connector further comprising an exterior portion detachably connectable to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of the corner support post and positioned to abut one of the wall panels at an exterior face of the wall panel, and an interior portion detachably connectable to the exterior portion and to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of the corner support post and positioned to abut the wall panel at an interior face of the wall panel.

In accordance with further aspects of an embodiment of the invention, a wall panel connecting system is provided for a modular building unit, comprising: a rigid, fixed modular building unit frame having a plurality of corner support posts, a bottom rail extending between adjacent pairs of corner support posts, a top rail extending between adjacent pairs of corner support posts, and a plurality of wall panels extending between the corner support posts, the top rails, and the bottom rails, each corner support post having a first exterior face, a second exterior face, a first interior face, and a second interior face; and a modular wall panel connector attached to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of each corner support post, the modular wall panel connector further comprising an exterior portion detachably connected to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of the corner support post and abutting one of the wall panels at an exterior face of the wall panel, and an interior portion detachably connected to each of the exterior portions and to each of the first interior face and the second interior face of the corner support post and abutting one of the wall panels at an interior face of that wall panel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The numerous advantages of the present invention may be better understood by those skilled in the art by reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a modular building unit in accordance with certain aspects of an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a top-down, sectional view of the modular building unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a close-up, top-down view of an exemplary modular wall panel bracket and corner support post for use with the modular building unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a close-up, top-down view of joined wall panels of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a front view of an exterior portion of a modular wall panel bracket of FIG. 2

FIG. 6 is a top-down, cross-sectional view of the exterior portion of the modular wall panel bracket of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a front view of an interior portion of a modular wall panel bracket of FIG. 2 FIG. 8 is a top-down, cross-sectional view of the interior portion of the modular wall panel bracket of FIG. 7.

BEST MODE(S) FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The following description is of a particular embodiment of the invention, set out to enable one to practice an implementation of the invention, and is not intended to limit the preferred embodiment, but to serve as a particular example thereof. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they may readily use the conception and specific embodiments disclosed as a basis for modifying or designing other methods and systems for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalent assemblies do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.

Figure 1 provides a perspective view of a modular building unit 100 in accordance with certain aspects of an embodiment of the invention. Modular building unit 100 includes a skeletal frame formed by corner support posts 112, bottom rails 114, and top rails 116. This skeletal frame provides the key structural integrity for the modular building unit. Positioned between corner support posts 112, bottom rails 114, and top rails 116 are wall panels 118 that form the wall structures spanning each side of the modular building unit. Other standard building features, such as doors 120 and windows 122, may be provided and integrated with individual wall panels 118. Also visible in Figure 1 is the exterior portion of a wall panel bracket 210 that mounts to corner support posts 112 and prevents wall panels 118 positioned adjacent to corner posts 112 from moving outward, and that covers any gap that might exist between wall panels 118 and their adjacent corner support posts 112, all as discussed in greater detail below.

Figure 2 is a top down, sectional view of the modular building unit 100. As shown in Figure 2, a modular wall panel bracket 200 is provided at each corner support post 112 to join wall panels 118 to the frame of the modular building unit. With continued reference to Figure 2 and to the close-up, top down view of the modular wall panel bracket 200 and corner support post 112 of Figure 3, each modular wall panel bracket 200 has an exterior portion 210, an interior portion 230, and preferably an interior corner trim piece 250. As discussed in greater detail below, exterior portion 210 establishes an exterior flange that blocks wall panel 118 from outward movement, and interior portion 230 establishes an interior flange that blocks wall panel 118 from interior movement, while corner trim piece 250 covers the points at which exterior portion 210 and interior portion 230 connect to corner support posts 112.

With continued reference to Figure 3, each corner support post 112 has a first outer wall 302 and a second outer wall 304, both of which form the exterior corner of the modular building unit 100. First outer wall 302 and second wall 304 may, for example, be configured at right angles to one another, although other angles, rounded corners, and the like may likewise by used as might be desirable to obtain a particular aesthetic or other benefit. A first interior wall 306 extends inward (toward the interior of modular building unit 100) from an end of exterior wall 302, and a second interior wall 308 extends inward from an end of exterior wall 304, thus forming a corner support post having at least four distinct sides.

Interior walls 306 and 308 each have a length less than the lengths of the respective outer walls 302 and 304 to which they are attached in order to properly allow for connection of the modular wall panel bracket 200, as discussed in greater detail below.

A first connecting flange 307 extends from an end of first interior wall 306 toward an interior of support post 112, and a second connecting flange 309 extends from an end of second interior wall 308 toward the interior of support post 112, such that first connecting flange 307 is positioned generally perpendicular to second connecting flange 309.

Optionally, a first support rib 310 may be positioned on an interior face of first outer wall

302, and a second support rib 312 may be positioned on an interior face of second outer wall

304, each such support rib forming a right angle vertical member extending through corner support post 112. An insulation sheet 314 may also optionally be provided on an interior of support post 112, positioned to sit within opposing support ribs 310 and 312 on the interior of support post 112.

Modular wall panel brackets 200 join to support post 112 at first connecting flange 307 and second connecting flange 309. More particularly, and as shown in Figure 3, exterior portion 210 of wall panel bracket 200 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200 are each connected to each of first connecting flange 307 and second connecting flange 309 with a removable, threaded connector 316, such as a screw, a bolt and nut assembly, or such other removable connector as will be known to those of ordinary skill in the art. While a first end of each of exterior portion 210 of wall panel bracket 200 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200 are brought together for connection to the respective connecting flange 307 or 309 of support post 112, the opposite end of each of exterior portion 210 of wall panel bracket 200 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200 form a gap configured to receive the end of a wall panel 400, such that the end of the wall panel 400 extends into the open space between the ends of exterior portion 210 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200. Compressible foam gaskets 216 may be provided on the interior face of each of exterior portion 210 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200 and positioned to sit between each of exterior portion 210 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200 and the wall panel 400 positioned between them, thus providing a compressible seal against air and water infiltration into modular building unit 100.

In the configuration shown in Figure 3, wall panel 400 is positioned a distance away from support post 112, creating a gap 318 between wall panel 400 and support post 112 (surrounded on its sides by exterior portion 210 and interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200). Optionally, insulation may be fitted within gap 318 to further aid in preventing air infiltration into and out from modular building unit 100.

Figure 4 provides a close-up, top down view of joined wall panels 400 for use with the connecting system described herein. Each wall panel has a male connector edge 400a and a female connector edge 400b opposite male connector edge 400a. Male connector edge 400a has an inwardly stepped section 402 so as to form a narrowed head along male connector edge 400a. A connecting bracket 404 is provided along the exterior of male connecter edge 400a, and has an outer most portion 406 that defines the maximum width of wall panel 400, an inwardly turned step 407, a connecting edge 408 extending from step 407 to the end of male connector edge 400a, and a facing edge 410 extending between connecting edges 408 on either side of wall panel 400. Facing edge 410 of male connector edge 400a abuts facing edge 420 of female connector edge 400b of an adjacent panel 400, as discussed below.

With continued reference to Figure 4, female connector edge 400b includes a bracket 422 along the exterior of female connector edge 400b, matching in width the outer most portion 406 of bracket 404 on male connector edge 400a. Each bracket 422 forms a tongue engaging surface 424 sized to fit within step 407 of bracket 404 on male connector edge 400a, thus enabling the joining of two adjacent wall panels in a tongue and groove connection allowing movement, separation, and replacement of wall panels on modular building unit 100 if and as desired.

Figure 5 provides a detail front view of exterior portion 210 of modular wall panel bracket 200, and Figure 6 provides a top-down, cross-sectional view of such exterior portion 210. As mentioned briefly above, exterior portion 210 of modular wall panel bracket 200 has an outer face 211 which forms an exterior surface of modular building unit 100 positioned between each corner support post 112 and an adjacent wall panel 400, preventing movement of the wall panel toward the exterior of modular building unit 100. A distal end of outer face 211 has a slightly inwardly bending flange 212, thus preventing space between the interior of outer face 211 and the face of the wall panel 400 against which outer face 211 sits to accommodate a compressible gasket 216. An interior column-facing arm 213 extends generally at a right angle from outer face 211, which interior column-facing arm 213 is configured to abut first interior wall 306 of. corner support post 112. Interior column-facing arm 213 is preferably of smaller width than first interior wall 306 of corner support post 112, so that outer face 211 of exterior portion 210 (and thus the wall panel 400 that exterior portion 210 restrains) sits slightly recessed from the outer walls 302 and 304 to corner support posts 112, and from the outer faces of bottom rails 114 and top rails 116 of modular building unit 100. A connecting arm 214 extends at generally a right angle from interior column-facing arm 213, which connecting arm 214 is configured to abut connecting flanges 307 and 309 of corner support post 112. A plurality of openings 215 are provided along the length of connecting arm 214 through which fasteners may be placed to join exterior portion 210 of modular wall bracket 200 to corner support post 112. Such openings 215 may optionally be formed as elongate slots to allow vertical adjustment of exterior portion 210 of modular wall bracket 200 as may be necessary or desirable for varied installation

environments. The particular position and configuration of openings 215 are symmetrical along connecting arm 214 so as to avoid requiring identification of right or left edges or top and bottom portions during installation, thus allowing exterior portion 210 of modular wall panel bracket 200 to be attached at either side of corner support posts 112.

As shown in Figure 5, connecting arm 214 need not extend the full length of interior column-facing arm 213, thus providing open space at the top and bottom of connecting flanges 307 and 309 on corner support posts 112, which may be desirable to maintain access to the interior of corner supports posts 112 or other portions or components of modular building unit 100.

Likewise, Figure 7 provides a detail front view of interior portion 230 of modular wall panel bracket 200, and Figure 8 provides a top-down, cross-sectional view of such interior portion 230. As mentioned briefly above, interior portion 230 of modular wall panel bracket 200 has an interior face 231 which forms an interior surface of modular building unit 100 positioned between each corner support post 112 and an adjacent wall panel 400, preventing movement of the wall panel toward the interior of modular building unit 100. A distal end of interior face 231 may be provided a connection hook 232 that is positioned to receive interior corner trim 250, as discussed further below. An interior wall stop arm 233 extends generally at a right angle from interior face 231, which interior wall stop arm 213 is configured to abut the end of a wall panel 400. Wall stop arm 233 is positioned with respect to interior walls 306 and 308 of corner support posts 112 to create gaps 318, which as mentioned above may be used to position insulation within the corner joints of modular building unit 100. A connecting arm 234 extends at generally a right angle from interior wall stop arm 233, which connecting arm 234 is configured to abut interior column-facing arms 213 on exterior portion 210 of bracket 200 and in alignment with connecting flanges 307 and 309 of corner support post 112. A plurality of openings 235 are provided along the length of connecting arm 234 through which fasteners may be placed to join interior portion 230 of modular wall bracket 200 to corner support post 112. Such openings 235 may optionally be formed as elongate slots to allow vertical adjustment of interior portion 230 of modular wall bracket 200 as may be necessary or desirable for varied installation environments. Likewise, as noted above with respect to Figure 5, the particular position and configuration of openings 235 are symmetrical along connecting arm 234 so as to avoid requiring identification of right or left edges or top and bottom portions during installation, thus allowing interior portion 230 of modular wall panel bracket 200 to be attached at either side of corner support posts 112.

As shown in Figure 7, connecting arm 234 need not extend the full length of interior wall stop arm 233, thus providing open space at the top and bottom of connecting flanges 307 and 309 on corner support posts 112, which may be desirable to maintain access to the interior of corner supports posts 112 or other portions or components of modular building unit 100.

As mentioned above, connection hook 232 may be provided at the distal end of interior face 231 of interior portion 230. With reference again to Figure 3, connection hook 232 may have preferably two or more openings to receive threaded connectors 316, which threaded connectors may be used to attached outer edges of an elongate corner trim piece 250 to interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket 200, thus providing a clean and finished appearance to the interior corner joints of modular building unit 100. Elongate corner piece 250 may likewise be joined to interior portion 230 with hook-and-loop fastening material, non-permanent adhesive, or such other non-permanent attachment mechanisms as may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art.

With this assembly, those skilled in the art will recognize that modification of wall panels is easily managed, including replacing wall panels of a certain thickness with wall panels of a differing thickness, as may be desirable to, for example, reduce material costs in environments with lower environmental stress concerns. Specifically, by simply removing corner trim piece 250 and changing only the interior portion 230 of modular bracket 200 (i.e., changing the length of interior wall stop arm 233), wall panels 400 of varying thicknesses may be easily and quickly accommodated. While interior portion 230 of wall panel bracket

200 may be provided with different dimensions of wall stop arm 233, interior wall stop arm 233 may alternatively be adjustable (in any of multiple manners as will be apparent to those skilled in the art) to allow a single set of components to be used with modular building unit configurations having varied wall thicknesses.

Also, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the components described herein may be modified from the specific examples presented without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For instance, the elements of modular wall bracket 200 may be comprised steel, but may likewise be comprised of, for example, PVC or other materials, for example to improve thermal insulation.

Having now fully set forth the preferred embodiments and certain modifications of the concept underlying the present invention, various other embodiments as well as certain variations and modifications of the embodiments herein shown and described will obviously occur to those skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with said underlying concept. It should be understood, therefore, that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically set forth herein.