Steel column to beam connectors

Abstract

Steel connections of a column and beam(s) for a building structure with heavy loads are presented. First option is a single plate that is inserted through a slot in the W column flange(s) and attached to the column's web and flange(s). In the field, a W beam with a flange slot is inserted through the column connector plate and attached. Option 2 is the same as Option 1, except, two connector plates are provided for attachment to the beam web and flanges. Thirdly, brace frame connections are presented.

1 . A structural joint connection comprising:
 a. a column capable of supporting heavy loads of a building or a structure;   said column having
 i. a web, which is a column web, the column web having a face, and 
 ii. two flanges, with at least one flange of said two flanges, which is a column flange, having one vertical slot, the vertical slot being a column flange slot, the vertical slot having an interior, which has an edge, the edge of the interior of the vertical slot being an interior vertical slot edge, the interior vertical slot edge being aligned with, and flush with, the face of said column web, the vertical slot having a width and a height, the column flange being the at least one flange of the two flanges of the column; 
   b. a connector plate with a thickness and a height,
 i. the height of the connector and the width of the connector being less than the height of said column flange slot and the width of the column flange slot, respectively; 
 ii. said connector plate having a plurality of holes for fastener connections, the plurality of the holes of the connector plates are connector plate holes; and 
   c. a beam having a length, an end, a web, a top flange, and a bottom flange, the web of the beam being a web beam;
 i. a beam flange having a horizontal slot, the horizontal slot of the beam being a beam flange slot, the beam flange being at least one of the top flange and the bottom flange of the beam; 
 ii. the horizontal slot having a length, a width, and an interior, and the interior of the horizontal slot having an edge along the length of the slot, the edge of the interior along the length of the horizontal slot, being an interior long edge of the horizontal slot, the interior long edge of the horizontal slot abuts the end of said beam and extends in a direction along said length of the beam, the width of the horizontal slot being a horizontal slot width; 
 iii. said interior of the long edge of the horizontal slot being flush with, the face of said beam web; 
 iv. said horizontal slot width being greater than the thickness of said connector plate, so that the connector plate can slide into the horizontal slot; 
 v. said beam-web having holes, for fastening the beam web to said connector plate holes, the holes of the beam web are beam fastener holes; 
   
       wherein said connector plate is inserted through at least one said column flange slot, and the connector plate is rigidly attached to said column web, the top flange of the beam, and the bottom flange of the beam; said connector plate extends outward beyond at least one of the top flange of the beam and the bottom flange of the beam; and 
       wherein the connector plate has an extended portion, the extended portion has a top edge and a bottom edge and said beam flange slot is slid over the top edge or the bottom edge of said extended portion of said connector plate, so that the extended portion of the connector plate extends though the beam flange slot; said beam fastener holes in the web-beam are positioned relative to said connector plate holes, said beam and said connector plate are rigidly attached creating a moment connection. 
     
     
         2 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 1 , wherein said connector plate is, at least in part, shop fillet welded to the said column web and the two flanges of the column. 
     
     
         3 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 1 , said connector plate further includes a beveled top plate edge that conforms to a shape associated with a curved fillet transition of said beam flange; 
       wherein the beam flange slot of the bottom flange of the beam is more easily lowered through a lop beveled edge of said connector plate than were the beveled top plate edge not beveled; when said beam is fully inserted, the top beveled edge of the connector plate abuts and conforms to a shape associated with a curved fillet transition of the top flange of the beam, thereby providing a beam seat aiding in aligning the connector plate and the beam fastener holes for fastening together the connector plate and the beam. 
     
     
         4 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 1 , the connector plate having a bottom, and said connector plate extending outward beyond said column flange further comprising a beveled bottom edge that conforms to a shape associated with a curved fillet of said bottom flange of the beam; 
       wherein a slot of said top flange of the beam is lifted to slide over the connector plate so that as a result said beveled bottom edge of the connector plate slides through the slot, more easily than were the beveled bottom edge of the connector plate not beveled; 
       wherein the beveled bottom edge of the connector plate abuts and conforms to said shape associated with the curved fillet of the bottom flange of the beam, thereby providing an abutting corner intersection suitable for a horizontal fillet welding of the bottom of said connector plate to the bottom flange of the beam; 
       wherein a top edge of said connector plate extends above the top flange of the beam and is fillet welded on each side of the said connector plate to the top flange of the beam; and 
       wherein an edge of a vertical web of the beam is fillet welded to the said connector plate, and an edge of the connector plate is welded to said beam web to form a fillet. 
     
     
         5 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 4  further comprises:
 a. a vertical slot in at least one said column flange; 
 b. a connector plate with a height less than said vertical slot of the column flange; 
 c. a diagonal brace member having an end, a web, a top flange, and a bottom flange; each of said a top flange and a bottom flange of the diagonal brace member having a slot with the same width as a t width of the vertical slot of the column; said vertical slot of the column abuts the end of said diagonal brace member and extends along a length of said diagonal brace member; and said interior of the long edge of the horizontal slot is aligned with the web of said diagonal brace member; 
 
       wherein said connector plate is inserted through at least one said vertical slot of the column flange and rigidly attached directly to the said column web and both flanges of the column; said connector plate extends outward beyond at least one flange; 
       wherein a slot of a top of the diagonal brace and a slot of the bottom flange are slid over said connector plate top or bottom edge, so that the connector plate top or bottom edge extends through the slot of at least one of the top diagonal brace and the slot of the bottom flange, and at least one of said brace flanges and web of the diagonal brace member are rigidly attached directly to said connector plate for a rigid brace connection. 
     
     
         6 . A structural joint connection comprising:
 a. a beam having a length, which is a beam length, a web, a top flange, and a bottom flange with at least one said top flange and said bottom flange having a slot along a central portion of said beam and extending along said beam length, the slot being a beam slot; and said beam slot having a length and an interior, which has an edge extending along the length of the slot, the edge that extends along the length of the slot being the long edge of the interior, the long edge of the interior is aligned with the said beam web, the beam slot having a length, which is a beam slot length;   b. a connector plate with a thickness that is less than the slot width and the connector plate having a horizontal length that is less than said slot length, so that the connector plate can slide into the beam slot;   c. at least one diagonal brace member having a web, which is a brace web, a top flange, and a bottom flange; each of said top flange of the diagonal brace and bottom flange of the diagonal brace each having a slot, which is a flange slot, whose width matches the beam slot width; said flange slot abuts the end of a brace member and extends along a length of said brace member; an edge of an interior of each flange slot that extends along a length of the slot is aligned with a web of the said brace member;   
       wherein said connector plate is inserted through at least one said flange slot and rigidly attached to the said beam web, the top flange of the beam, and bottom flange of the beam; said connector plate extends beyond at least one beam flange; 
       wherein said diagonal brace has slot in a top flange or a slot in a bottom flange, the slot in the top flange and the slot in the bottom flange are slid over said top edge of the connector plate or bottom edge of the connector plate so that the top edge of the connector plate or bottom edge of the connector plate extend through the slot in the top flange of the diagonal brace or the slot in the bottom flange of the diagonal brace, and said brace web and top flange of the diagonal brace or bottom flange of the diagonal brace is rigidly attached to said connector plate for a rigid connection. 
     
     
         7 . A structural joint connection comprising:
 a. a column capable of supporting loads of a building; said column having a web and two flanges, the web being a column web, the column web having at least one face; at least one flange said two flanges having two vertical slots disposed on each side of said column web, the two vertical slots being column flange slots, each of said column flange slots having an interior vertical edge aligned with each face of said column web;   b. two connector plates with a thickness and a vertical height less than a thickness and a height, respectively, of said column flange slots; said connector plates having a plurality of holes for fastener connections, the plurality of holes being connector plate holes;   c. a beam having a length, which is a beam length, a web, which is a beam web, a top flange, and bottom flange, the beam web having at least two sides, with at least one of said top flange and said bottom flange having two horizontal slots disposed and centered on each side of said beam web with a thickness greater than a thickness of at least one connector plate of said connector plates; said two slots having an interior, the interior having a length, and a width, the length of the interior being an interior length, the at least two slots having an edge associated with the interior length, the edge associated with the interior length being an interior long slot edge, the two slots abut an end of said beam and extend along said beam length with the interior long slot edges separated by a distance associated with the thickness of the said column web; said beam web has holes for fastening to said plurality of connector plate holes, the two slots of flange of the beam being beam flange slots, the top flange and the bottom flange of being beam flanges;   
       wherein the said two connector plates are inserted through at least one said column flange slots and are rigidly attached to the said column web and both flanges; said two connector plates each having an extended portion that extends outward beyond at least one column flange of the column flanges; 
       wherein said connector plates having a top edge and a bottom edge, said beam flange slots are slid through said extended portion of the top edge or the bottom edge of the connector plates, so that the top edge of the connector plates or bottom edge of the connector plates extend through at least one of the beam flange slots; and said beam web and beam flanges are rigidly attached to said connector plate for a moment connection. 
     
     
         8 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 7 , wherein said connector plates are, at least in part, shop fillet welded to the said column web and column flanges. 
     
     
         9 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 7 , said connector plates further include edges that are beveled at a top plate of the connector plates, the edges that are beveled at the top plate of the connector plates, being beveled top plate edges, the beveled top plate edges conform to a shape associated with a of curved fillet of the beam flange; 
       wherein said beam flange slots of the bottom flange are more easily slid over said connector plates' beveled top plate edges, so that the connector plates beveled top edges extend through the beam flange slots; and whereby after said beam is fully inserted, the said connector plates' beveled top plate edges abut and roughly conform to said shape associated with a curved fillets of the top flange of the beam flange; thereby providing a beam seat that aids in the alignment of beam web and plate fastener holes for field fastening. 
     
     
         10 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 7  further comprising:
 a. a shim rigidly attached to each side of said beam web around fastener holes; 
 
       wherein said shim provides a composite beam web that is thicker than the beam web in a location around said fastener hole that matches the thickness of said column web. 
     
     
         11 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 7 , said two connector plates further comprise: beveled bottom plate edges that conform to a shape associated with said beam flange curved fillet; 
       wherein said beam top flange slots are more easily slid over said two connector plates' beveled bottom edges, so that the two connector plates' beveled bottom edges extend through the beam top flange slots than were the connector plates beveled bottom edges not beveled; and 
       wherein after said beam is fully inserted, the plate' bottom beveled edges abut and conform to the shape of said beam flange curved fillet; thereby providing a corner suitable for a horizontal fillet welding of the vertical plate to bottom flange of the beam; 
       wherein top edges of said two connector plates extend above the top flange of the beam flanges and are fillet welded to the said top flange of the beam flanges; 
       wherein a far end of vertical edges of said two connector plates are fillet welded to said beam web. 
     
     
         12 . The structural joint connection recited in  claim 11  further comprises:
 b. two vertical slots in at least one column flange of said column flanges; 
 c. the two connector plates having a height slightly less than said vertical slots of the column flange; 
 d. a diagonal brace member having a web, which is a diagonal brace member web, a top flange, which is a diagonal brace top flange, and a bottom flange, which is a diagonal brace bottom flange; each of the top flange and bottom flange of the diagonal brace having two slots abutting an end of said brace member and extending along a length of said brace member; and each slot of the brace member having an interior, the interior of the slot of the brace member having an edge extending along a length of the slot, which is a flange slot interior long edge, each said flange slot interior long edge being separated by the a distances associated with the thickness of said column web; 
 
       wherein the two slots of said diagonal brace top flange and the two slots of the diagonal brace bottom flange slid over a top edge and a bottom edge of said two connector plates, so that the two connector plates extend through the two slots of the diagonal brace top flange and the two slots of the diagonal brace flange, and the diagonal brace flanges and diagonal brace web are rigidly attached to said connector plate for a brace connection. 
     
     
         13 . A structural joint connection comprising:
 a. a beam having a central portion, a length, which is the beam length, a web, which is the beam web, a top flange, and bottom flange with at least one of said top flange and the bottom flange having two horizontal slots along the central portion of said beam and extending along said beam length; and said two horizontal slots having interiors, the interiors having edges of extending along the length of the slots, which are interior long edges, interior long edges of the slots are flush with the said beam web;   b. two connector plates, each of the two connector plates having a thickness that is slightly less than a thickness of the beam flange slot and each of the two connector plates having a horizontal length that is less than a length of said beam flange slots;   c. at least one diagonal brace member having a web and a top flange and a bottom flange; each of said top flange of the diagonal brace and said bottom flange of the diagonal brace having two slots abutting an end of said brace member, and the two slots of said top flange of the diagonal brace and said bottom flange of the diagonal brace extend along said brace member length; each of the two slots of said top flange of the diagonal brace and of said bottom flange of the diagonal brace having an interior, the interior of the two slots of said top flange of the diagonal brace and of said bottom flange of the diagonal brace having an edge extending along a length of the slot of the two slots of said top flange of the diagonal brace and of said bottom flange of the diagonal brace, which is a long edge of the two slots of said top flange of the diagonal brace and said bottom flange of the diagonal brace, which that is flush with the face of said brace member web;   
       wherein said two connector plates are inserted through at least one of the two slots of said beam flange and are rigidly attached to the beam web and the top flange and bottom flange of the beam; said two connector plates extend beyond at least one beam flange; 
       wherein the two slots of said diagonal brace flanges are slid over edges of top plate connector and bottom plate connector, respectively, so that the top plate connector and bottom plate connected extend through the two slots of the diagonal brace flanges, respectively, and the two slots of said diagonal brace flanges are rigidly attached to said connector plate.