Method for insulating a wall

Abstract

The present invention relates to a masonry wall comprising a plurality of building blocks arranged in superimposed lines, each building block comprising at least two parallel wings and at least one through core to form at least one cell intended to be filled with an insulating material, characterized in that the building blocks of said wall are arranged so that, on at least one portion of said wall, the cells of the building blocks of said portion are all communicating in order to form a single cavity, said single cavity being filled with an insulating material in hardened liquid form.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of wall insulation, in particular for concrete block walls. Prior art

[0002] Wall insulation is currently done by installing insulating panels. These insulating panels are glued or fixed to the surface of the wall to be insulated. These panels are installed on the exterior or interior face of the wall.

[0003] On the inside of the wall, this installation of panels impacts the living space, whereas on the outside, the installation of panels requires the installation of a covering to hide the said insulation.

[0004] To avoid this, there is the installation of insulating panels in wooden structures, but this type of construction is not common. Indeed, the majority of current constructions are made from concrete blocks that are assembled and joined to form walls.

[0005] A known solution is to use blocks that are pre-filled with an insulating material, this insulating material being in the form of foam or polystyrene-type material. Thus, in the factory, the block is filled with the insulating foam which, when hardening, forms a compact insulating material. In the case of a polystyrene-type material, this comes in the form of plates that are slid into the blocks.

[0006] The disadvantage of these blocks is that they do not provide perfect insulation. Indeed, the blocks need to be joined using mortar. However, the presence of this joint between the blocks makes the insulation non-continuous, which leads to performance losses. In the case of a material such as polystyrene, it can be damaged when inserted into the blocks, which leads to a loss of performance. Summary of the invention

[0007] The present invention seeks to solve the problems of the prior art by providing a method for insulating a building block wall during the construction of said wall.

[0008] In this respect, the invention relates to a masonry structure of the wall type comprising a plurality of building blocks arranged in the form of superimposed lines, each building block comprising at least two parallel wings and at least one through core to form at least one cell intended to be filled with an insulating material, characterized in that the building blocks of said wall are arranged so that, on at least one portion of said wall, the cells of the building blocks of said portion are all communicating in order to form a single cavity, said single cavity being filled with an insulating material in the form of hardened liquid foam.

[0009] According to one example, the building blocks are all identical, the continuous space is the result of an arrangement of the building blocks such that building blocks of two adjacent lines are offset by a length equal to half a block, and in that said work further comprises branching means 15 allowing building blocks to communicate with each other.

[0010] In one example, the continuous space is the result of an arrangement of the building blocks such that building blocks of adjacent rows are offset so that each cell of each block in a row communicates with two cells in an adjacent row.

[0011] According to one example, said structure further comprises branching means 15 allowing cells of building blocks to communicate with each other.

[0012] According to one example, the bypass means comprises at least one groove or opening arranged on a block communicating with at least one groove or opening arranged on a contiguous or adjacent block.

[0013] In one example, the branching means comprises at least one groove or opening arranged on a block to allow the cells of the building block to communicate.

[0014] According to one example, said wall comprises several sections, each section comprising at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity.

[0015] According to an example, wherein said at least one portion of said wall, all the cells of the building blocks of said portion are communicating in order to form a single cavity.

[0016] According to one example, for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall.

[0017] According to one example, at least one building block comprises a transfer means.

[0018] The invention further relates to a method of constructing an insulating wall, said method comprising the following steps: Provide building blocks; Assemble the blocks to form said wall, each building block comprising at least two parallel wings and at least one through core to form at least one cell intended to be filled with an insulating material, said assembly of the building blocks being carried out so that, on at least one portion of said wall, the cells of the building blocks of said portion are all communicating in order to form a single cavity; Provide a filling machine designed to dispense liquid insulating material; Fill the single cavity with liquid foam insulating material; Allow said liquid insulating material to harden.

[0019] According to one example, for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall, said filling machine then comprising at least one end piece in the form of a rod, the filling step consisting of equipping the rod of the filling machine to slide it into the rectilinear portion of the single cavity, the filling being carried out by injecting the insulating material in liquid form and then raising the rod depending on the filling level.

[0020] According to one example, for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall, said portion of wall comprising a filling opening, said filling machine then comprising a pipe provided with at least one end piece capable of cooperating with the filling opening, the filling step consisting of connecting the end piece to said opening and carrying out the filling by injecting the insulating material in liquid form. Description of figures

[0021] Other features and advantages will become clear from the description given below, for information purposes only and in no way limiting, with reference to the attached drawings, in which: there [ Fig. 1 ] represents a view of a wall; the figures 2 to 5represent views of building blocks used for the wall according to the invention; the [ Fig.6 ] represents a schematic view of an example of wall construction; the [ Fig.7 ] represents a schematic view of an example of wall construction; the [ Fig.8 ] represents a schematic view of an example of wall construction; the [ Fig.9 ] represents a schematic view of a construction of a wall in which the blocks allow to have a single cavity with a rectilinear portion; the figures 10 And 12 represent a schematic view of the filling of the wall according to the invention; the [ Fig. 11 ] represents a schematic view of a building block with transfer means; the figures 13 and 14 represent a schematic view of a building block with branching means; Detailed description

[0022] To the [ Fig. 1], a wall or masonry structure 1 is shown. A wall according to the invention comprises a plurality of building blocks 10. A wall according to the invention is a wall of a multi-story construction and has a maximum height of 3 to 4m. These building blocks, visible in figures 2 to 5 , each comprise at least two smooth, parallel wings 11 in order to simultaneously produce the two opposite faces of a wall, these two wings are connected to each other by at least one through core 12. This through core can be rectilinear or have a more complex shape. Each building block can thus comprise one, two, three or more cores. These cores can be distributed regularly or not. A block with at least two cores then has at least two spaces or cells 13, these spaces being delimited by three or four vertical walls. The cores can extend over at least 50% of the height of the block up to the entire height of the block.

[0023] A first example of building block 10 comprises two parallel wings and three parallel cores making it possible to define three spaces or cells 13.

[0024] A second example of block 10 comprises two parallel wings connected by two parallel webs arranged at the ends. The block further comprises a square-shaped island cavity connected to the two wings, or even to the two webs.

[0025] In one embodiment, the wall comprises a plurality of blocks 10 identical to each other.

[0026] In another embodiment, the wall comprises a plurality of building blocks 10, these being divided into at least two series of different blocks. These blocks 10 may differ in the number of cells 13 or differ in size, in particular their length.

[0027] In its construction, the wall is presented in the form of a superposition of L lines of 10 building blocks. We then understand that the wall comprises a first line which is arranged on the ground and a last line which is the line furthest from the ground. Between two lines directly overlapping, the building blocks are offset from each other.

[0028] According to the invention, the wall 1 is constructed in such a way that, in at least one portion P of said wall, the building blocks 10 are arranged so as to form only one cavity C. It is understood by this that the building blocks 10 of the portion P all communicate with each other, in particular at the level of at least one cell 13, so that the blocks 10 form a continuous space E.

[0029] This arrangement of the building blocks 10, allowing for a continuous space E, makes it possible to fill this single space. More specifically, this space E is filled using an insulating material that is poured and hardens. More precisely, the insulating material is a mineral foam. This mineral foam, in liquid form, is then injected into the single space of this portion of wall in order to fill it with said foam. This liquid mineral foam then hardens. This mineral foam preferably has low-carbon and recyclable characteristics without needing to separate it from the block at the end of its life. It is then understood that the final hardened material has the characteristics of a foam, in particular air bubbles.

[0030] This wall configuration requires that the building blocks are first assembled in such a way that the joint (mortar) used does not obstruct the cells of the building blocks.

[0031] In a first non-limiting example of construction visible at [ Fig.6 ], each building block comprises two wings connected together by three cores to form a two-cell building block. The construction of the wall then consists of having an offset between two lines equal to half a block. This offset makes it possible to have each cell 13 of the building block 10 opposite a cell of a block located on the upper line and a cell of a block located on a lower line. The cells opposite each other are perfectly aligned, that is to say that 100% of the surface of a cell communicates with 100% of the surface of another cell.

[0032] In a second construction example, the building block 10 comprises two wings connected together by three cores in order to form a two-cell building block 13. The construction of the wall is such that the offset between the blocks 10 of two lines is equal to at least a quarter of a block as visible in the [ Fig.7 ]. This offset allows each cell to communicate with two cells in the upper row and two cells in the lower row. This second example allows double the number of cells to be filled. We understand that each cell is not opposite, that is to say that 100% of the surface of one cell does not communicate with 100% of the surface of another cell.

[0033] In a third construction example, the building block 10 comprises two wings connected together by four webs to form a three-cell building block. The construction of the wall 1 is such that the offset between the blocks 10 of two lines is equal to at least one-third of a block as seen in the [ Fig.9 ]. This offset allows each cell to communicate with two cells in the upper row and two cells in the lower row.

[0034] In the second example and the third example, we understand that each cell communicates with at least two cells of the upper line and two cells of the lower line. This construction allows to have a continuous space E larger than when the offset between the blocks of two superimposed lines is equal to half a block.

[0035] Of course, other construction examples are possible depending on the configuration of the 10 blocks.

[0036] In a variant, the wall is divided into sections S, each section comprising at least one portion P of wall whose building blocks are arranged so as to form only one cavity. It is then understood that each section S can comprise several portions P, at least one of which is arranged so that its building blocks 10 are arranged so as to form only one cavity C. Preferably, each portion P of the section S is arranged so that its building blocks are arranged to allow there to be only one cavity C.

[0037] Preferably, the portion P for which the building blocks 10 are arranged so as to form only one cavity C extends over the entire extent of the section.

[0038] In another variant, the entire wall is arranged so that the building blocks 10 form only one cavity C. This variant is advantageous in that it allows for a wall without breaking the insulation.

[0039] Preferably, in said portion of said wall, the building blocks 10 are arranged so as to form only one cavity C, this cavity C being such that from the top of the wall, it is possible to see the bottom as visible in [ Fig.9 ]. In other words, the single cavity C of the wall portion P is such that it forms a light from top to bottom, that is to say that a rectilinear axis can be inserted there. This preference in the arrangement of the building blocks 10 allows the insulating material to be injected in a clever manner.

[0040] Indeed, depending on the nature of the insulating material in liquid form that is injected into said single cavity, it is not necessarily advisable to pour it from a significant height. This injection from a great height can result in degrading the liquid material and thus causing it to lose its capacities during its hardening. In particular, in the case of an insulating material in the form of a mineral foam in liquid form, falling from too great a height can cause the foam to break. A liquid foam is made up of an abundance of gas bubbles separated by a liquid which, itself, forms a continuous phase. Thus, the stress exerted by the fall can break the bubbles so that the trapped gas escapes. The foam then becomes a liquid which then reacts differently and which no longer allows it to have the same properties.

[0041] Now, with a single cavity C arranged to form a lumen from top to bottom, it is then possible to insert a filling machine 20 therein. This filling tool can be lowered to the desired height to fill said single cavity without degrading the insulating material in liquid form.

[0042] In a first embodiment, the filling of the single cavity is then done by means of a filling rod 24. This filling rod consists of a rigid or flexible rod connected to a reservoir 21 associated with a pump 22. The filling rod 24 is connected to the pump-reservoir assembly by a pipe 23. This filling machine 20 makes it possible to inject the insulating material.

[0043] This rod is then, beforehand, lowered along the lumen of the single cavity to a defined height. This rod is inserted from the top or upper end of the wall. This height is defined according to the specificity of the insulating material to be injected. The rod can then be lowered to a height of a few millimeters from the ground to, for example, halfway up the wall.

[0044] The liquid insulating material is then injected through the rod. The rod is then lifted as the single cavity is filled. Thus, the single cavity is filled in one go with a liquid foam material which, after solidification, retains its foam characteristics.

[0045] For filling an entire wall, at least one filler rod is considered. The number of rods depends on the number of unique cavities and the wall width and configuration.

[0046] In fact, in the case of a wall comprising several sections, each section can be filled independently.

[0047] In the case of using several rods, these can be independent, that is, each connected to a pumping machine. But it is possible that they are all connected to the same machine as seen in the [ Fig. 12 ].

[0048] In a second embodiment, the filling is carried out from below. It is then understood that the filling machine 20' comprises a reservoir 21 associated with a pump 22. The machine 20' further comprises a filling nozzle 24' connected to the pump-reservoir assembly by a pipe 23. This filling machine 20 makes it possible to inject the insulating material.

[0049] The filling nozzle 24' is arranged to fit into an opening O. This opening is, according to this variant, arranged in a building block 10. More precisely, this opening O is arranged in one of the wings 11 of said block 10. This opening then allows the nozzle to be housed there, connected. The insulating material in liquid form is then injected.

[0050] The presence of the single cavity C makes it possible to fill the portion for which the building blocks 10 are arranged to form said single cavity C.

[0051] Each portion of building blocks 10 arranged to form a single cavity comprises at least one block provided with an opening. It is then understood that several blocks 10 can comprise this opening O.

[0052] The building block 10 comprising said opening is arranged at the level of the first lines. The first lines encompass the first 3 to 4 lines of the wall. It is understood by this that said opening is arranged at least at the level of the first line, that is to say the line in contact with the ground.

[0053] Alternatively, the building block 10 comprising said opening O is arranged at the level of the second line, i.e. the line in contact with the first line.

[0054] This bottom filling is advantageous when using an insulating material based on mineral foam that hardens. As mentioned above, in the case of an insulating material in the form of mineral foam in liquid form, falling from too great a height can cause the foam to break. Filling from the bottom helps avoid this type of inconvenience.

[0055] In one variant, the building blocks 10 are designed to have at least two cells 13: one cell intended to be filled with the insulating material and one cell intended to be filled with air. This configuration makes it possible to have two “insulating layers” in the block: an insulating blade and an air blade. These two cells can have different shapes and be arranged differently in the building block. In one example, the two cells are identical and extend parallel along the length of the building block 10.

[0056] In another variant visible at [ Fig. 11], the building blocks 10 are designed to have at least two cells arranged to be filled with an insulating material. These two cells are communicating. This means that the two cells are connected by a transfer means 14 such as a groove or an opening allowing the insulating material filling one of the cells to fill the second. The presence of this communication between the cells facilitates their filling.

[0057] In a variant, the building blocks 10 are arranged to communicate with each other by branching means 15 as visible in figures 13 and 14 .

[0058] Indeed, when the building blocks 10 are arranged so that the cells 13 are aligned, that is to say when the blocks 10 are offset by an offset equal to at least half a block, said alignment of the cells prevents the filling from extending from one block to another, or even from one cell 13 to another. It is then understood that the vertical alignment of the cells forms the single cavity. In the present variant, the derivation means 15 of the building blocks 10 comprise at least one groove 150 or a through hole 151. This groove 150 and this through hole 151 are arranged to cooperate with a hole 151 or a groove 150 arranged on a contiguous or adjacent block 10. The block then comprises the hole or groove at at least one through core 12. The building blocks 10 may comprise several grooves and / or holes.Thus, when filling the cavity C, the diversion means 15 allow the filling material to diffuse into the cells of the blocks.

[0059] This variant allows the systematic or occasional use of blocks equipped with these means of derivation to form the continuous space. This variant can be used in addition to a specific alignment of the building blocks.

[0060] Of course, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated example but is susceptible to various variants and modifications which will appear to those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. Masonry structure (1) of the wall type comprising a plurality of building blocks (10) arranged in the form of superimposed lines (L), each building block comprising at least two parallel wings (11) and at least one through core (12) to form at least one cell (13) intended to be filled with an insulating material, characterized in that the building blocks of said wall are arranged so that, on at least one portion (P) of said wall, the cells of the building blocks of said portion are all communicating in order to form a single cavity (C), said single cavity being filled with an insulating material in the form of hardened liquid foam.

2. Work according to the preceding claim, in which the building blocks are all identical, the continuous space is the result of an arrangement of the building blocks such that building blocks of two adjacent lines are offset by a length equal to half a block, and in that said work further comprises branching means (15) allowing building blocks to communicate with each other.

3. Work according to the preceding claim, in which the continuous space is the result of an arrangement of the building blocks such that building blocks of adjacent rows are offset so that each cell of each block of a row communicates with two cells of an adjacent row.

4. Work according to claims 2 or 3, in which said work further comprises diversion means (15) allowing cells of building blocks to communicate with each other.

5. work according to one of claims 3 or 4, in which the diversion means (15) comprise at least one groove or opening arranged on a block 10 communicating with at least one groove or opening arranged on a contiguous or adjacent block 10.

6. work according to one of claims 3 to 5, in which the diversion means comprise at least one groove or opening arranged on a block 10 to allow the cells of the building block to communicate.

7. work according to one of the preceding claims, in which said wall comprises several sections (S), each section comprising at least one portion (P) of wall in which the cells (13) of the building blocks (10) are communicating to form a single cavity.

8. work according to one of the preceding claims, in which, in said at least one portion of said wall, all the cells of the building blocks of said portion are communicating in order to form a single cavity.

9. work according to one of the preceding claims, in which, for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall.

10. Work according to one of the preceding claims, in which at least one building block comprises a transfer means (14).

11. method for constructing an insulating wall (1), said method comprising the following steps: - Providing building blocks (10); - Assembling the building blocks (10) to form said wall, each building block comprising at least two parallel wings (11) and at least one through core (12) to form at least one cell (13) intended to be filled with an insulating material, said assembly of the building blocks being carried out so that, on at least one portion of said wall, the cells of the building blocks of said portion are all communicating in order to form a single cavity; - Providing a filling machine arranged to deliver an insulating material in liquid form; - Filling the single cavity with the insulating material in the form of liquid foam; - Allowing said insulating material in liquid form to harden.

12. method according to the preceding claim, wherein for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells (13) of the building blocks (10) are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall, said filling machine then comprising at least one end piece in the form of a rod, the filling step consisting of equipping the rod of the filling machine to slide it into the rectilinear portion of the single cavity from, the filling being done by injecting the insulating material in liquid form then raising the rod according to the filling level.

13. Method according to claim 11, wherein for said at least one portion of wall in which the cells of the building blocks are communicating to form a single cavity, said single cavity comprises a rectilinear portion extending over the entire height of said wall, said portion of wall comprising a filling opening, said filling machine then comprising a pipe provided with at least one end piece capable of cooperating with the filling opening, the filling step consisting of connecting the end piece to said opening and carrying out the filling by injecting the insulating material in liquid form.

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