US3751870A

US3751870A - Frame structure system

Info

Publication number: US3751870A
Application number: US00112944A
Authority: US
Inventors: L Vesei
Original assignee: ELKHART WLDING AND BOILER WORKS
Current assignee: ELKHART WLDING AND BOILER WORKS
Priority date: 1971-02-05
Filing date: 1971-02-05
Publication date: 1973-08-14
Anticipated expiration: 1990-08-14

Abstract

A frame structure system having a plurality of spaced parallel perimeter beams of U-channel configuration and including cross members extending into the perimeter beams between the upper and lower flanges and being rigidly secured to the beams to form a rigid structure. The cross members may be of a C-channel configuration and may be of substantially the same height as the perimeter beams, or be of a lesser height, and secured to said beams with the upper surface thereof on substantially the same plane as the upper surface of the beams. Fixtures are secured to said ends of said cross members and are preferably secured to the beams by riveting.

Description

4 Sheets-Sheet Patented Aug. 14, 1973 ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 14, 1973 3,751,870

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. LASZLO M6 vase! ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 14, 1973 4 Sheets-Shoet MR R 1. Mn N E 0 on m w @l M BY k a ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 14, 19 73 3, 751,870

4 Sheets-Sheet i FIG. 9

huf f GET L a. INVENTOR. LASZLO M. VESEI BY 7, 1% 2 m ATTORNEYS FRAME STRUCTURE SYSTEM In the construction of steel floor frames for mobile homes, modular homes and similar building structures, the perimeter beams are usually of tubular shape, I shape or C-shape in cross sectional configuration, and the joists and other cross members are welded to the beams, thus forming a rigid structure which can be transported in one piece from the fabricating plant to the mobile or modular home builder. In some fabricating practices, the beams, joists, and other cross members are cut to size and are shipped unassembled to the home builder where welders assemble and secure the frame members together. Each of these two procedures required skilled and experienced welders and their equipment to assemble the frame members to form the final rigid structure. Other methods of assembling the frame members, such as riveting and bolting, have been time consuming, expensive or otherwise impractical from a commercial point of view. Further, many of the frame members of the prior structures have required special design and construction and special fittings to incorporate them in the structure during fabrication, thereby again increasing the cost, and requiring skilled workmen to perform the special cutting and assembling operations, and often necessitating the use of special jigs and fixtures. It is, therefore, one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide a frame structure system for mobile homes, modular homes and similar building structures, which is constructed of premeasured and cut perimeter beams and joists and cross members, secured together by mechanical means to form a rigid frame structure, and which includes standard structural members which can be utilized without substantial change in the design of the members, to form a variety of different final structural designs.

Another object of the invention is to provide a floor system which can be rapidly assembled on site or in a factory by unskilled workmen and without the aid of any special or expensive tools, and which utilizes predrilled or pre-punched holes for riveting the members together, and case hardened nails to secure the flooring and subflooring to unpunched or undrilled steel members.

Still another object is to provide a frame structure system of the aforesaid type which utilizes U-shaped perimeter beams in combination with either U-shape, C-shape or truss constructed joists and other cross members, and which can be installed on pier supports or on continuous foundation walls.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, perspective view of one embodiment of the present frame structure, illustrating the manner in which the structural members are assembled and connected to one another and attached to a continuous foundation;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention, illustrating the manner in which the frame structure system is' assembled and incorporated into a building structure;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of the frame structure system in FIG. 1, illustrating the manner in which the structure is assembled;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of the frame structure system in FIG. 2, illustrating the manner in which the members are assembled and secured to one another;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are elevational and cross sectional views of a fabricated C-shaped joist or other cross member;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view ofa mobile home frame, illustrating a further embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary, cross sectional view of the frame structure shown in FIG. 7, the section being taken on line 8-8 of the latter figure;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary vertical cross sectional view of the frame structure shown in FIG. 7, the section being taken on line 9-9 of the latter figure; and

FIGS. 10 and 11 are end and side elevational views of a suitable blind driven rivet used with the present structure.

Referring more specifically to the drawings and to FIG. 1, numeral 10 indicates generally one embodiment of the present frame structure system for a first floor frame structure of a modular home construction, showing it mounted on a continuous concrete foundation 12, and secured thereto by a plurality of bolts 14. The frame structure system of FIG. 1 includes a perimeter beam 20 of a steel U-shaped channel shown sitting flat on the upper surface of the concrete foundation 12. The beam has upper and lower inwardly extending flanges 21a and 21b. The corresponding perimeter beam is normally provided on the opposite side of the building structure and at the two ends thereof. Since the structure on the opposite side is the same as the one shown, the structure on the opposite side is not shown in the drawings. Cross members orjoists 22 connect the two perimeter beams and are of steel C-channel members. Since the joists or cross members are of a lesser height than the perimeter beams, a fixture or bracket 24 is rigidly joined to and forms a part of the cross beam or joist structure. The fixtures are metal members welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the opposite ends of the joist and have a leg 25 giving the fixture a generally L-shaped configuration when viewed from the side. These fixtures are secured to the perimeter beams by rivets extending through holes 26 in the vertical side of each perimeter beam and through holes 28 in the corresponding end of fixture 24. While the structure is primarily constructed using cross member 22, modified cross members 30 may be used in special locations to obtain the desired final structural design or to give added strength and reinforcement to particular places along the building structure. Cross member 30 utilizes fixture 24 to connect it to the perimeter beam and utilizes a U-shaped channel 32 to connect it to a second cross beam 31, the latter likewise having a fixture 24 for connection with end perimeter beam 20'. Fixture 24 reinforces the web portion of the perimeter beams, minimizing crushing, and also reinforces the cross members, thereby preventing twisting. A second cross member 30 is shown in FIG. 3, having fixture 32 joined to a spacer 36, which in turn is connected to cross member 31 by rivets 37. Holes 38 are provided a in fixture 32 for receiving rivets 37 and holes 39 are provided in spacer 36 for connecting the spacer to the cross beam. The members of the frame structure, as shown in FIG. 3, may be used in a variety of different ways to obtain the desired structural configurations in the frame structure.

After the frame structure has been assembled in the manner suggested in FIG. 3 and illustrated in FIG. 1, a floor or subflooring 40 is secured to the upper surface of the perimeter beams and cross members by driving case hardened nails 42 through the flooring, which is preferably plywood, and into the upper flange of the U-channel beam and C-channel members. A plate 44 is then secured to the flooring and perimeter beams, and studding 46 secured to the plate extends upwardly therefrom to form the wall structure.

In the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4, U-shaped perimeter beams 20 on opposite sides are connected by C-shaped cross members 52 similar to the

cross members

30 and 31, but of substantially the same height as the perimeter beams. Fixtures 32 are welded into the ends of the C- channel members and contain a plurality of holes 38 for receiving rivets extending through holes 54 in the perimeter beams. While the perimeter beams are often of sufficient length to extend the full length of the building structure, ajoint may be formed to extend the perimeter beams by using a fixture 56 of a C-shaped structure having a plurality of holes 58 for rivets extending through matching holes in the adjoining ends of the two perimeter beams. The side and end perimeter beams 20 and 20' are connected by fixture 57 and secured thereto by rivets extending through holes 58 in the two perimeter beams and through holes 59 in fixture 57.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 2, the structure forms a second floor and is supported by studding 46 and a plate 60. Dry wall ceiling or ceiling panel is shown secured to furring strips 64, and a roof strip consisting ofjoist 66 and sheeting 68 is secured to the upper side of frame structure perimeter beam 20 and cross members 52. In both of the embodiments previously described herein, a fabricated truss structure may be used for the joists or other cross members, the one shown having upper and lower longitudinal members 70 and 72 of a pan shaped configuration, rigidly connected by vertically positioned spaced members 76. The flange 74 on member 72 may be utilized to support insulating board in the crawl space, or ceiling tile in homes having a basement.

While various types of rivets 37 may be used in connecting the structural members, the preferred type is a drive rivet, such as that shown in FIGS. and 11 consisting of a head, a shank with intersecting slits or slots 77 on the end opposite the head, and a center bore 78 with a drive pin 79 therein for spreading the ends of the shank when the pin is driven inwardly from the head end of the rivet. This type of rivet permits connection of the structural members from one side, using merely a conventional claw or ball hammer used on the head side of the rivet. However, other types of securing means such as machine bolts, self-tapping screws and conventional rivets may be used. The perimeter beams may be placed with the flanges of one facing toward the other beam or facing in the opposite direction away from the other beam, or the flanges on the two beams may face in the same direction. The foregoing rivets may be used in any one of these beam arrangements.

FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 utilize broadly the present concept for a mobile home frame, consisting of longitudinal beams 80 and 82 of a U-channel structure connected by a plurality of spaced cross members 84. The cross member 84 consists of a fabricated structure having an upper channel member 86, and a lower channel member 88 connected by members 90 to form a truss-like structure. The ends of the upper and lower elements extend between the upper and lower flanges 92 and 94 of the longitudinal beams and are secured thereto by rivets or welding. A plurality of spaced outriggers 96 are joined to the external surface of the two longitudi nal beams 80 and 82, preferably be welding. The longitudinal beams of the frame structure over the undercarriage are reinforced by interlocking U-shaped channel 100 welded or otherwise joined to the longitudinal beams. The reinforced structure is illustrated in FIG. 9 and, in this location of the frame structure, the cross members are welded at their ends to the inner reinforcing member 100. The frame structure is rigid and is sufficiently strong to support the mobile home walls and roof without substantial downward deflection after the frame has been mounted on an undercarriage. A tongue consists of members 102 and 104 joined to the respective longitudinal members 80 and 82 and at the outer ends to each other, to form a tongue-like structure for connection to a towing vehicle.

The manner in which the various structural elements and members of the present frame structure system are assembled and joined to one another have been described in detail herein. The members and the structure lend themselves to a variety of different types of buildings and may be modified or changed in various respects to satisfy structural requirements without departing from the scope of the present invention.

I claim:

1. A frame structure system for modular homes, mobile homes and similar building structures, comprising a plurality of spaced parallel perimeter beams of U- channel configuration having a web and upper and lower flanges thereon, cross members of lesser height than said perimeter beams connecting said perimeter beams and having laterally extending flanges, said members being disposed above said lower flanges on said perimeter beams, a fixture secured to each end of said cross members and having a vertical element substantially the same height as said web for seating against the surface of said web between said flanges, said fixtures including a portion extending downwardly from the underside of said cross members to hold the cross members on substantially the same plane as the upper surface of said beams, and means extending through said web and fixture between said laterally extending flanges near the center line thereof rigidly connecting said cross members to the web of said beams.

2. A frame structure system for modular homes, mobile homes and similar building structures, comprising a plurality of spaced parallel perimeter beams of U- channel configuration having a web and upper and lower flanges thereon, cross members connecting said perimeter beams and having laterally extending flanges, the flanges of each of said beams facing the other of said beams and said cross member extending into the U-shape configuration of each beam between said flanges, a fixture of U-shaped configuration secured to each end of said cross members with the flanges thereof in the ends of the cross members and having a vertical element substantially the same height as said web for seating against the surface of said web between said flanges, and a driven type rivet extending through holes in said web and through said fixtures between said laterally extending flanges near the center line thereof rigidly connecting said cross members to a re connected to the external surface of the perimeter the web of said beams. beams and extend outwardly therefrom in spaced rela- 3. A frame structure system as defined in claim 2 in tion to one another.

which outriggers of a generally triangular configuration

Claims

1. A frame structure system for modular homes, mobile homes and similar building structures, comprising a plurality of spaced parallel perimeter beams of U-channel configuration having a web and upper and lower flanges thereon, cross members of lesser height than said perimeter beams connecting said perimeter beams and having laterally extending flanges, said members being disposed above said lower flanges on said perimeter beams, a fixture secured to each end of said cross members and having a vertical element substantially the same height as said web for seating against the surface of said web between said flanges, said fixtures including a portion extending downwardly from the underside of said cross members to hold the cross members on substantially the same plane as the upper surface of said beams, and means extending through said web and fixture between said laterally extending flanges near the center line thereof rigidly connecting said cross members to the web of said beams.

2. A frame structure system for modular homes, mobile homes and similar building structures, comprising a plurality of spaced parallel perimeter beams of U-channel configuration having a web and upper and lower flanges thereon, cross members connecting said perimeter beams and having laterally extending flanges, the flanges of each of said beams facing the other of said beams and said cross member extending into the U-shape configuration of each beam between said flanges, a fixture of U-shaped configuration secured to each end of said cross members with the flanges thereof in the ends of the cross members and having a vertical element substantially the same height as said web for seating against the surface of said web between said flanges, and a driven type rivet extending through holes in said web and through said fixtures between said laterally extending flanges near the center line thereof rigidly connecting said cross members to the web of said beams.

3. A frame structure system as defined in claim 2 in which outriggers of a generally triangular configuration are connected to the external surface of the perimeter beams and extend outwardly therefrom in spaced relation to one another.