SIMULATED STONE, BRICK, AND MASONRY PANELS AND WALL STRUCTURES
Products and methods that may enhance the manufacturing, structure, appearance, assembly, or installation of synthetic building or construction products. In particular, exemplary embodiments include panels, wall structures, and other panel assemblies that may have contoured or textured surfaces to simulate the appearances of other building or construction products. For instance, exemplary embodiments of panels, wall structures, and other panel assemblies may have contoured and textured surfaces that may simulate the appearances of conventional building or construction materials including, but not limited to, stone, bricks, masonry, concrete, stucco, wood, other conventional building materials, and combinations of any of these materials.
1 . A method of manufacturing a simulated stone panel, said method comprising the steps of:
providing a mold configured to form a panel that is adapted to simulate the appearance of stones;
selecting materials adapted to simulate stone colors and textures;
providing an adhesive, said coloring and texturing materials, and a base resin charge in said mold such that said adhesive retains said coloring and texturing materials; and
molding at a temperature sufficient to accomplish melting fusion and form said simulated stone panel;
wherein at least one simulated stone juts out relative to at least one other simulated stone along an edge of said simulated stone panel.
2 . The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of preheating said mold.
3 . The method recited claim 1 wherein said adhesive is provided in said mold prior to said coloring and texturing materials and said base resin charge.
4 . The method of claim 1 wherein the step of providing said adhesive in said mold comprises coating a face of said mold with said adhesive.
5 . The method of claim 1 wherein said adhesive is a latex glue material.
6 . The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of allowing said adhesive to set in said mold until said adhesive flashes off substantially all water contained therein such that said adhesive is suitable for retaining said coloring and texturing materials.
7 . The method of claim 1 wherein said coloring and texturing materials are selected from the group consisting of tires, dried solids, sand, cement, organic materials, inorganic materials, pigments, mineral oxides, graded silica aggregates, color hardeners, and conditioning admixtures comprised of a combination of at least some of the aforementioned materials.
8 . The method of claim 1 wherein the ratio of the weight of said coloring and texturing materials to the weight of said base resin charge is between about 5% and about 20%.
9 . The method of claim 1 wherein said base resin charge comprises polyethylene.
10 . The method of claim 1 wherein said molding of said base resin charge comprises rotational molding.
11 . The method of claim 1 wherein said molding of said base resin charge comprises a molding process selected from the group consisting of blow molding, vacuum molding, compression casting, compression molding, injection molding, and vacuforming.
12 . The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of cooling said simulated stone panel.
13 . The method of claim 1 further comprising a foam injection step adapted to provide shape retention and sound deadening properties to said simulated stone panel.
14 . The method of claim 13 wherein said foam injection step comprises the addition of a foam backing to said simulated stone panel.
15 . The method of claim 1 wherein said simulated stone panel is adapted to be connected with at least one similar simulated stone panel to form a wall, a fence, or a barrier.
16 . A method of providing an assembly of simulated stone panels, said method comprising the steps of:
manufacturing a first simulated stone panel and a second simulated stone panel, said manufacturing of each of said first simulated stone panel and said second simulated stone panel comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a mold configured to form a panel that is adapted to simulate the appearance of stones;
(b) selecting materials adapted to simulate stone colors and textures;
(c) providing an adhesive, said coloring and texturing materials, and a base resin charge in said mold such that said adhesive retains said coloring and texturing materials; and
(d) molding at a temperature sufficient to accomplish melting fusion and form a simulated stone panel; and
connecting said first simulated stone panel to said second simulated stone panel;
wherein said first simulated stone panel and said second simulated stone panel have substantially the same overall shape; and
wherein first simulated stone panel has a different configuration of stones than said second simulated stone panel.
17 . The method of claim 16 wherein said manufacturing step further comprises the step of allowing said adhesive to set in said mold until said adhesive flashes off substantially all water contained therein such that said adhesive is suitable for retaining said coloring and texturing materials.
18 . The method of claim 16 wherein said molding of said base resin charge comprises rotational molding.
19 . A method of providing an assembly of simulated stone panels, said method comprising the steps of:
manufacturing a plurality of simulated stone panels, said manufacturing of each of said panels comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a mold configured to form a panel that is adapted to simulate the appearance of stones;
(b) selecting materials adapted to simulate stone colors and textures;
(c) providing an adhesive, said coloring and texturing materials, and a base resin charge in said mold such that said adhesive retains said coloring and texturing materials; and
(d) molding at a temperature sufficient to accomplish melting fusion and form a simulated stone panel;
manufacturing a simulated stone cap in similar manner as said simulated stone panels;
connecting said simulated stone panels together;
providing a trim component along an edge of said connected simulated stone panels; and
providing said simulated stone cap on said trim component.
20 . The method of claim 19 wherein each of said molding steps comprises rotational molding.