Static structures (e.g. – buildings) – Lapped multiplanar surfacing; e.g. – shingle type
Reexamination Certificate
2001-11-26
2004-01-20
Friedman, Carl D. (Department: 3635)
Static structures (e.g., buildings)
Lapped multiplanar surfacing; e.g., shingle type
C052S557000, C052S554000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06679020
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method for making multi-layered shingles, and to roofing shingles made thereby. The shingles are uniquely thickened to enhance the appearance of a roof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have been many approaches by the roofing industry to the task of covering a roof deck with shingles which are both protective and aesthetically pleasing. Whatever their appearance, suitable shingles have been made sufficiently durable and weatherproof for prolonged protection of the roof. The shingles' visual appeal has been attained in various ways, such as by providing particular butt edge contours and surface treatments which function to simulate more traditional, and in most cases more expensive, forms of roof coverings, including thatch, wooden shakes, slates, and even tiles of various forms.
Simulation of such more traditional roof coverings is afforded by asphalt shingles of the laminated type. These shingles provide depth or its appearance on the roof, thus more or less giving the look of the wood or other natural appearing shingles. U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,358 provides an example of such composite shingles. After describing the futile attempts in the past to achieve the irregular, bulky, butt edge profile and surface contour characteristic of wood roofing shingles, this patent presents an improved composite shingle comprising a rectangular sheet having a headlap portion and a butt portion. The butt portion is divided into a series of spaced apart tabs and a strip is secured to the sheet in a position underlying the tabs and filling the spaces therebetween. While the resultant bilaminate structure suggests somewhat the substantial and imposing architectural appearance of the more expensive roofing materials, such as wood shingles, the structure still diverges considerably in appearance from them.
For many years roofing manufacturers have offered a variety of two-layered shingles of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,358 in the attempt to present a thicker and more attractive appearance. A structure markedly different from these prior art bilaminate shingles is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,942. This structure, which has an exposed butt portion three layers in depth, with tabs two layers in depth, and an additional strip under the cut-outs, gives the shingle an appearance that goes well beyond the bilaminates in simulating wood and tile shingles.
Although the asphalt composite shingles have significant cost, service life and non-flammability advantages over wood shingles, the latter type are still seen by many to be a much more desirable roofing material for aesthetic purposes. A key reason for wood shingles' continuing aesthetic appeal stems from their greater thickness relative to the composite shingles, in spite of the many efforts in the past to simulate this thickness. Accordingly, it would be most beneficial to find ways to enhance the appearance of depth in the composite shingles without sacrificing these shingles' advantageous features.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an asphalt shingle that simulates very closely the thickness of wood or other traditional roof coverings, and also possesses those attributes desired in roof coverings, including waterproofness, durability and fire-resistance.
It is a further object of the invention to enhance the appearance of a laminated shingle through the use of multiple layers of the butt portion of the shingle.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a simple, efficient and economical manufacturing process for the continuous production of a laminated shingle from a single indefinitely long roofing sheet.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The foregoing and other objects of the invention have been achieved by a roof shingle which is multi-layered for enhancement of the shingle's visual appeal and thickness. The composite shingle comprises a headlap portion and a butt portion having three or more layers. The headlap portion may also be multi-layered, comprising two or more layers. The butt portion is divided into a series of spaced apart tabs. The spacing between the tabs significantly exceeds that of the slots which have been formed over the years in the manufacture of multi-layered shingles, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,209,802 and 5,426,902. Such narrow openings, which are typically less than one inch, e.g., about ¼ to ⅝ inch, do not provide the openly spaced and particularly deep wells of a roof surfaced by the shingles of the present invention. The spacing between the tabs of the inventive shingles is greater than 1 inch, preferably greater than 2 inches.
The multi-layered shingle is of the laminated type. The butt portion of this shingle composite is made of at least three laminae, and may have four, five or more laminae. The laminae are preferably constructed of felted material comprising organic or inorganic fibers or a mixture of both. The fibers are usually held together with a binder and are coated, saturated, or otherwise impregnated with an asphaltic bituminous material. The laminae lie one above another in the composite, and are exposed to view as a bulky composite when the shingle is installed on a roof. Inherent in this laminated construction is an appreciable difference in surface elevation between the top surface of the tabs of one shingle and the top surface of the tabs of the underlying shingle(s). The perception of depth is greatly magnified when the array of shingles on the roof is viewed. The viewer's eye will naturally go from the deep wells formed by the adjoining tabs of one shingle to those of the next upper or lower shingle(s) and so forth over the roof.
A preferred laminate manifesting the inventive shingle's unique structure, incomparable to any of the prior art, comprises an asphalt shingle having a headlap portion and a butt portion which extends from the lower boundary of the headlap portion to the butt edge of the shingle and comprises a series of composite tabs which are separated by spaces, each extending from the side edge of one composite tab to that of the next adjacent composite tab, and each of which comprises at least three layers. The type of laminated shingle consisting of a single overlay member and a single underlay tab is well-known and illustrated, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,998,685 and 5,052,162.
In accordance with the process of the invention, one or more fibrous sheets, which are to be made into the shingles, are treated with a cementitious waterproofing composition, such as asphalt or other bituminous material. The treatment includes surfacing the sheet or sheets with sufficient waterproofing material to which is adhered granules such as crushed rock, slate or other surfacing material. While the entire outer face of the shingle, i.e. the face which is uppermost when the shingle lies on a roof, is desirably covered over its full extent with granular matter, the portion of the outer face which is important for colorful effects is that portion which is exposed to view when the shingles are laid together in overlapping courses on a roof. Accordingly, the sheet portions which ultimately become these exposed portions are profitably surfaced with colorful granules so as to provide areas of distinctive coloration, and lower cost, less decorative granular material is employed to surface the sheet portions which are to become the covered or hidden areas of the final assemblage.
The process is advantageously carried out continuously with the sheet(s) being transported along a production line for sequential processing. The continuous process is especially useful in the production of laminated shingles from a single elongate sheet. In the process, the top surface of the sheet is coated with asphalt and a coating of granules is applied to this surface. At least two narrow elongate sheets or strips are cut from the total elongate sheet to yield a main sheet and the narrow portions cut therefrom. The narrow el
Becker Walter F.
Freeman Shelby L.
Rooks Keith A.
Certain-Teed Corporation
Friedman Carl D.
Katcheves Basil
Paul & Paul
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