Laminated Timber Tongue-and-Groove Insulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laminated timbers for building construction face challenges in balancing strength, fire resistance, thermal performance, and manufacturing cost, with previous solutions either sacrificing strength and fire resistance for improved thermal performance or increasing complexity and cost.
Innovation Solution
A laminated insulated timber design featuring a tongue and groove arrangement with a polymer-based foam insulation member sandwiched between side planks, where the top and bottom planks encase the insulation on four sides, providing structural rigidity and exceeding fire-resistant codes, while using a different material for the insulation to enhance thermal performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If central foam core timber is used to improve thermal performance, then R-value is improved, but strength and fire resistance are sacrificed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure combining wood planks with foam insulation material. The wood provides structural strength and fire resistance while the foam provides thermal insulation, creating a composite timber that achieves both mechanical performance and thermal performance simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The foam insulation is strategically placed in the core region between the wood planks, concentrating the thermal insulation function in the central area while leaving the outer wood planks to provide structural strength and fire resistance. This local differentiation of material properties resolves the contradiction between thermal performance and structural performance.
2Temperature
If central foam core timber is used to improve thermal performance, then R-value is improved, but fire resistance is sacrificed
Solution Approach 1:
The composite structure combines fire-resistant wood material with foam insulation. The wood planks form an outer shell that provides fire resistance while the foam core provides thermal insulation, achieving both fire safety and energy efficiency simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Fire resistance is localized to the outer wood planks that are exposed to potential fire sources, while the inner foam core focuses on thermal insulation. This spatial separation of fire protection and thermal insulation functions resolves the contradiction between fire resistance and thermal performance.
3Temperature
If central foam core timber is used to improve thermal performance, then R-value is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The manufacturing process merges the formation of the wood plank assembly with the insertion of foam insulation material into a single integrated process. The foam is inserted into the cavity formed by the wood planks and then the entire assembly is pressed together, combining multiple operations into one streamlined manufacturing step.
Solution Approach 2:
The wood planks are pre-assembled into a frame structure with a central cavity before foam insertion. This preliminary framing action creates a ready-made mold for the foam, eliminating the need for complex formwork or molds during the insulation installation phase and simplifying the overall manufacturing process.
4Temperature
If central foam core timber is used to improve thermal performance, then R-value is improved, but production time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pressing operation simultaneously compresses the foam insulation into the cavity and bonds the wood planks together, merging the insulation installation and structural assembly operations into a single time-efficient step that reduces total production time.
Solution Approach 2:
The wood plank frame is pre-assembled before foam insertion, allowing the foam to be placed into a pre-formed cavity without requiring time-consuming on-site formwork or molding operations, thereby accelerating the production process.
5Temperature
If central foam core timber is used to improve thermal performance, then R-value is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The composite timber uses standard wood planks and conventional foam insulation material, both of which are readily available and cost-effective. This combination avoids the need for expensive specialized materials or proprietary components, keeping manufacturing costs low while achieving improved thermal performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The manufacturing process merges multiple functions (structural assembly, insulation installation, and bonding) into a single integrated operation, reducing the number of separate manufacturing steps and associated labor and equipment costs, thereby making the improved thermal performance cost-effective.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution achieves improved strength, fire resistance, and thermal performance while reducing manufacturing complexity and cost, meeting code compliance and offering a more efficient construction method.
Implementation Method 1
an insulation member interposed between two of the plurality of side planks wherein the insulation member is composed of a different material than the planks
Data Source
AI summary
A laminated insulated timber is described possessing a laminate essentially composed of plurality of side planks, a top plank and a bottom plank that box in an insulation member. The planks are offset relative to one another to form a tongue and groove arrangement. In this manner, other like laminated insulated timbers join together along the tongue and groove arrangements to interlock and stack, thus forming a structural wall of laminated insulated timbers.