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Simulated graniteSimulated granite description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060037267, Simulated granite. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The invention relates generally to synthetic stone, and more particularly to a ceramic synthetic stone that is a brick material that is comparable in appearance to grades of granite. [0003] 2. Prior Art [0004] The patent prior art describing "Artificial Stone" using vitrified or refractory materials dates back to Marc Laffont in U.S. Pat. No. 501,794, where he disclosed fusible clay that is suitable for purposes of building and paving. This was followed shortly thereafter by William and Albert Roach in U.S. Pat. No. 720,739 where they teach an artificial stone comprised of clay, sand, lime, and fluorspar that is fused between 1538 to 1982.degree. C., and then annealed at 204.degree. C. August Deidesheimer, in U.S. Pat. No. 1,062,771 disclosed paving blocks consisting of comminuted natural or artificial stony material, preferably from basalt, granite, porphyry, lava, syenite, quartz, glass, slag, etc., in admixture with clay. Alfred Plant in U.S. Pat. No. 728,290 discloses a floor tile comprised of feldspar, cornwall stone, baryta, glass, fret, quartz, and clay. To impart a marble color, the die is sprinkled with layers of white and bluish dust of metal oxide prior to adding the clay mix, compressing, and firing. [0005] Clay formulations suitable for sewer pipe were disclosed by Carter et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 2,019,619. Russell Dunmire in U.S. Pat. No. 2,601,105 teaches that color can be added to a clay ceramic by dusting the molded product with a colorant prior to firing. A method for making a synthetic stone that resembles a natural stone is taught by Ralph Atkinson in U.S. Pat. No. 1,949,524. In the method, black specks such as cobalt oxide or ore, are indiscriminately distributed therein. The resulting product resembles hornblende granites. Granite is described as, igneous rock of visible crystalline formation and texture. It is composed of feldspar (usually potash feldspar and oligoclase) and quartz, with a small amount of mica (biotite or muscovite) and minor accessory minerals, such as zircon, apatite, magnetite, ilmenite, and sphene. Granite is usually whitish or gray with a speckled appearance caused by the darker crystals, albeit it is also available in various other grades, including earth tone browns, a full range of cool grays to warm grays, various pinks, red, black, green, blue and admixtures thereof. It is an important building stone that is load bearing and being resistant to weathering. [0006] Typical kiln fired bricks utilized in masonry construction are made of clay or shale. The bricks are typically molded, dried and burned in kilns. There are several methods of molding bricks and other building blocks. There are several qualities of bricks and other building blocks, quality being determined by strength, durability, etc. One of the major problems associated with masonry construction is the nonuniformity of building block dimensions due to shrinkage, warping, twisting, etc. Because of these characteristics, mortar is necessary, not only to bond the bricks or other building blocks together, but also to smooth out the irregularities thereof. [0007] M. A. Lefevre teaches an apparatus for grinding bricks or the like in U.S. Pat. No. 3,292,310. The apparatus grinds all six sides of a brick, wherein in successive passes a pair of opposing sides are ground forming right angle edges. After three passes all the opposing sides of the finished brick are in parallel planes. The finished brick is substantially a rectangular parallelepiped. [0008] Bricks ground using Lefevre's apparatus are suitable for bonding using more modern adhesives, instead of mortar, as there is no need to accommodate distortions. Another advantage of not using mortar is that, in many respects, mortar is the weak link in masonry construction. It normally has less compressive and tensile strength than the building blocks it joins. The shear strength of masonry is a function of the bond strength of mortar to the associated brick or other building block, and frictional resistance at the building block-mortar interface. The water tightness of masonry construction is primarily dictated by the characteristics of the mortar, which is more water permeable than brick and most other building block materials. While so much depends on the quality of mortar used, mortars are typically mixed at the job site and can easily be incorrectly mixed or used beyond its useful mix life. Thus, even though masonry construction has been utilized for centuries, there are still some inherent problems pertaining to the lack of uniformity of quality and dimensions in the brick or other building blocks, and to the weaknesses associated with the mortars used therewith. [0009] What is desired is a ceramic synthetic stone product that has the desired building characteristics of brick based materials, the appearance of granite, and the tight tolerances that would enable the use of bonding substrates other than mortar. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0010] The invention is a ceramic synthetic stone product that has been mechanically ground to a precise shape and dimension, wherein the ceramic synthetic stone product is comprised of a brick material selected, such that when ground, the grinding exposes an interior surface that is similar in appearance to a grade of granite. The interior surface is typically a blend of crystalline components and amorphous components. The interior surface can be whitish or gray with a speckled appearance caused by the darker crystals, earthtone browns, a full range of cool grays to warm grays, various pinks, red, black, green, blue and admixtures thereof. The ceramic synthetic stone product is load bearing and resistant to weathering. [0011] The shape of the ceramic synthetic stone product is typically that of a vitrified brick, a tile, an architectural stone, a curvilinear block, a trapezoidal block, or a decorative plate. The ceramic synthetic stone product is comprised of a brick composition that typically is based on shale and clay, clay being substantially Al.sub.20.sub.3.2Si0.sub.2.2H- .sub.20. The clay can additionally contain spodumene and petalite. Spodumene is largely Li.sub.20.Al.sub.20.sub.3.Si0.sub.2. Other well documented brick material additives include silica; oxide pigments such as cobaltic oxide, cobaltous oxide, iron oxide, titanium oxide, nickel oxide, chromium oxide, antimony oxide, magnesium oxide, alkali oxides, and zinc oxide; other metal oxides, such as calcium oxide, yttrium oxide, molybdenum oxide; and various polymeric (i.e., cellulosic polymers, polyethylene, polyvinyl alcohol) and cement (i.e., calcium aluminates) binders. The brick material can be further comprised of feldspar, kaolin, and various granite materials, including granite dust and ground granite. The reader is reminded that feldspar is any of a group of hard crystalline minerals that consist of aluminum silicates of potassium or sodium or calcium or barium, and is the major precursor to clay and kaolin. [0012] The brick materials are wetted, mixed, extruded, molded, dried and vitrified in a kiln. Nominally, the firing temperature is from about 1100 to about 1650.degree. C. Organic binders are burned off, and the hydrates are substantially dehydrated, forming glass materials. [0013] The surface texture of brick affects its overall appearance, but whether the texture is die skin smooth, wirecut or matt semi-smooth, or thorn face rough, an exterior surface of the molded brick material tends to be disproportionately composed of the more plastic components (e.g., alumina) of the composition. [0014] As discussed in the Background, during the firing in the kiln the dimensions of bricks change due to shrinkage, warping, twisting, loss of water, and uneven heating. The typical size for standard U.S. bricks is 21/4 inches by 33/4 inches by 8 inches with 3 or 10 core holes. Modular U.S. bricks are 21/4 inches by 35/8 inches by 75/8 inches; English bricks are 3 inches by 41/2 inches by 9 inches; Roman bricks are 11/2 inches by 4 inches by 12 inches; and Norman bricks are 23/4 inches by 4 inches by 12 inches. As a rule-of-thumb, the larger the brick, the more apparent is the distortion. Because of the distortion, mortar is necessary not only to bond the bricks or other building blocks together, but also to smooth out the irregularities thereof. Ceramic tiles, architectural stones, curvilinear blocks, trapezoidal blocks, and decorative plates (i.e., trivets), likewise are available in a variety of size and shapes. The more common tile sizes are from 41/4 inches by 41/4 inches up to 12 by 18 inches, and these tiles can be similarly distorted. It is recognized that in addition to rectangles, tiles are also available in many other shapes, such as polygons, and most commonly hexagons. Tiles are individually mounted using a grout type mortar to smooth out the irregularities thereof. [0015] In the instant invention, it is anticipated that bricks and ceramic tiles will be the more common application of the ceramic synthetic stone product. The ceramic synthetic stone product is purposely formed over-sized to allow for a thickness equal to or greater than a thickness of the die skin on at least one side to be ground away, therein exposing the underlying interior surface(s). The exposed interior surface has the appearance of granite when similarly ground. The grinding can initially be coarse, followed by a fine grind that in essence polishes the exposed interior surface of the ceramic synthetic stone product. With products like brick and tiles, it is typically preferable to grind a face side, and two or more perimeter sides. [0016] Furthermore, the starting product can be sufficiently over-sized to allow any distortion to be ground away, as well as the die skin. After grinding, the finished product is uniform and free of distortion that was in the over-sized precursor product exiting the kiln. Similarly, if a purpose of the grinding is also to expose an interior surface, then the product coming out of the kiln must be sufficiently over-size that the grinding does not reduce the dimensions of the finished product to less than the desired size. [0017] As noted in the Background of the Invention, Martial Lefevre, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,292,310, has invented an apparatus for reducingly grinding the six sides of a brick using an apparatus that in successive passes grinds a pair of opposing sides, forming a finished brick, wherein after three passes all the opposing sides are parallel. It is anticipated that conceptually Martial Lefevre's apparatus could potentially be adjusted to grind away the die skin on at least one side of the ceramic synthetic stone product, and in applications where it is desired that all the opposing sides be parallel, the Lefevre apparatus could be employed to grind out distortion and grind away the die skin on all the sides. In applications, such as tiles, where the edges are typically beveled, the Lefevre apparatus is not suitable. In general, the Lefevre apparatus is limited to forming square edges, and in ceramic synthetic stone products, where it is desired that the die skin be ground away, but that the opposing sides are not parallel, then the Lefevre apparatus would not be suitable. [0018] A first example of such a non-square edge product is a trapezoidal shaped brick (i.e., voussoir, keystone or springer), which is used in an arch and in other structures having a curvilinear shape, where there are at least two sides that are not in parallel planes. In the instant invention, the ceramic synthetic stone product is ground, therein exposing the interior surface that is similar in appearance to a grade of granite. The brick is mechanically ground to a precise shape and dimension, so that the interior surface is exposed, and, when installed, the trapezoidal side of one brick is flush with the trapezoidal side of an adjacent brick. [0019] Other examples of non-square edged products are bullnosed shaped bricks, sills, and thresholds. OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION [0020] A principal object of the invention is to provide a brick based synthetic stone product that has a ground and/or polished surface that is similar to grades of granite. [0021] Another object is to provide an engineered material product that is a building material that has weather resistance comparable to brick or tile, and superior to cement-based materials. Continue reading about Simulated granite... Full patent description for Simulated granite Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Simulated granite patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Simulated granite or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Tile Next Patent Application: Reinforced sidings Industry Class: Static structures (e.g., buildings) ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Simulated granite patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 0.15107 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Computers: Graphics , I/O , Processors , Dyn. Storage , Static Storage , Printers 174 |
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