Interlocking Building Blocks with Cap Attachments for Thermal Stability

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing non-masonry interlocking mortarless building blocks are costly to produce, not reusable, require clean assembly to interlock successfully, and do not account for expansion and shrinkage due to temperature changes, leading to structural instability.

Innovation Solution

A system of eleven hollow prefabricated, non-masonry, mortarless interlocking building blocks made of polymer plastic or composite materials with threaded rods for vertical reinforcement, featuring male and female French dovetail joints for easy assembly and disassembly, and cap attachments for structural integrity and versatility in angles.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If traditional non-masonry interlocking mortarless building blocks are used, then assembly speed is improved, but manufacturing cost increases and reusability is lost

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveassembly speedVSAvoidmanufacturing cost

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The building block is divided into a base portion and a cap portion that can be separately manufactured and then assembled. This segmentation allows each part to be produced independently using cost-effective methods while maintaining the interlocking functionality, thereby reducing manufacturing costs without sacrificing assembly speed

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The cap portion is designed as a removable component that can be detached and reused on different base portions. This recoverability feature eliminates waste, allows repeated use of the same cap across multiple blocks, and significantly reduces long-term manufacturing costs while maintaining rapid assembly capabilities

Inventive Principle:

Principle #34Discarding and recovering

2Ease of operation

If traditional interlocking building blocks are used, then assembly simplicity is improved, but structural stability deteriorates due to expansion and shrinkage

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveassembly simplicityVSAvoidstructural stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The cap portion is designed with flexible attachment mechanisms that allow it to accommodate thermal expansion and contraction of the base portion. The dynamic connection enables the structure to adapt to temperature changes without compromising stability, while maintaining simple interlocking assembly procedures

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The design explicitly accounts for thermal expansion by creating clearance and flexible connection points between the cap and base portions. This allows the material to expand and contract with temperature changes without creating excessive stress that would destabilize the structure, thereby maintaining both assembly simplicity and structural stability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #37Thermal expansion

3Productivity

If traditional interlocking building blocks are used, then construction speed is improved, but reusability is lost due to permanent filling

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconstruction speedVSAvoidreusability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

By separating the block into removable cap and base portions, the design enables complete disassembly and reuse of components. The cap can be detached and transferred to another base portion for continued use, eliminating the need for permanent filling and allowing rapid reconstruction in different locations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The cap portion is designed as a reusable component that can be recovered and reused on different base portions after disassembly. This recoverability feature maintains construction speed while enabling multiple cycles of use, thereby achieving both rapid construction and reusability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #34Discarding and recovering

4Ease of operation

If traditional interlocking building blocks are used, then assembly ease is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveassembly easeVSAvoidgeometrical dimension precision

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

Dividing the block into cap and base portions allows each component to be manufactured with relaxed tolerances independently. The segmentation reduces the cumulative precision requirements compared to manufacturing a single complex interlocking block, while still achieving easy assembly through the simplified cap-to-base attachment mechanism

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS10787810B2Building block system of prefabricated non-masonry mortarless interlocking building blocks with cap attachments

Publication Date: 2020.09.29 BERGOLLO HARRY

AI summary

A building block system of a plurality of transportable, lightweight, and reusable hollow prefabricated non-masonry interlocking mortarless building blocks that have corresponding mating formations being protuberances and concavities that run vertically up the building blocks being joined together and when aligned in a staggered manner upwardly are held together with threaded reinforcement rods extending vertically between and connected to the top and bottom channels through connectable couplings and capped off with complementary cap attachments.