Block forming apparatus and method

摘要

A mold and method for making a hollow core concrete block. The mold has two opposing side walls; a bottom wall; a front wall; a top side with an opening through which the block can be removed from the mold; a cover, and a rear side through which liquid, such as concrete, can be poured into the mold. Extending from the two side walls are a pair of trunnions about which the mold is rotatable, such that when the mold is suspended by the trunnions and the mold is empty, gravity rotates the mold from a block-removal orientation in which the top side faces upwards to a mold-filling orientation in which the rear side faces upwards. The trunnions are also positioned such that when the mold is filled with the liquid, gravity rotates the mold from the mold-filling orientation to the block-removal orientation.

主权项

1. A mold for making a block, said mold having an altered center of gravity when filled with a material as compared to when empty, wherein said altered center of gravity causes rotation of the mold by approximately 90° from a mold-filling orientation to a block-removal orientation, to facilitate removal of said block from within the mold, the mold comprising:
(a) two opposing side walls each having a trunnion aligned on a common axis about which the mold is rotatable, each of said trunnions extending away from an interior of the mold, wherein the trunnions are positioned on the side walls such that when the mold is filled with said material and suspended by said trunnions the mold rotates about said trunnions from said mold-filling orientation to said block-removal orientation; (b) a bottom wall sealingly engageable with the side walls; (c) a front wall sealingly engageable with the bottom and side walls, said front wall when said mold is in the mold-filling orientation being on a bottom of the mold and when the mold is in the block-removal orientation said front wall is rotated to a front of said mold; (d) a removable cover which sealingly engages the side walls and which forms a top side of the mold, wherein the top side faces upwards when the mold is in the block-removal orientation and said cover can be removed when the mold is in said block-removal orientation to permit removal of said block from said mold; and (e) a rear side through which said material can be introduced into the mold, wherein the rear side is on a top of the mold and faces upwards when the mold is in the mold-filling orientation and rotates approximately 90° to a rear of said mold when the mold is in the block-removal orientation; wherein the center of gravity of the mold when empty is offset from the common axis about which the mold is rotatable such that gravity causes the mold to pivot about the common axis to the mold-filling orientation when the mold is empty and supported by the trunnions, and wherein the altered center of gravity is offset from the common axis about which the mold is rotatable such that gravity causes the mold to pivot about the common axis to the block-removal orientation when the mold is filled with the material and supported by the trunnions.