Wall construction

Abstract

A sound attenuating wall employing studs and panels, wherein the studs mounted in a line have alternately reversed flanges of greater and lesser resiliency, and the panels have their edges at and fixed to the less resilient flanges and their centers at the more resilient flanges.

I claim: 
     
       1. In a sound attenuating wall between parallel fixed structures of a building, the improvements comprising: a series of formed elongated spaced building wall studs of the web and double flange type between and anchored at their ends to said building structures, with each stud when formed and anchored in line having a more resilient flange and a less resilient flange;   with the studs being arranged in reversed alternation so that the more resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions and equally the less resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions;   in combination with wall panels on one side of the line of studs arranged so that edge portions are adjacent each other and adjacent the less resilient flanges of such side and are affixed to such less resilient flanges;   and central portions of such panels are adjacent the more resilient flanges of such one side .Iadd.and bear against these flanges, with each of such more resilient flanges being substantially smooth and substantially free of external protuberances; so that substantially the entire area of each such more resilient flange provides a resilient, overall, bearing area for the adjacent central portion of a panel. .Iaddend.   
     
     
       2. In a sound attenuating wall between parallel fixed structures of a building, the improvements comprising: a series of formed elongated spaced building wall studs of the web and double flange type between and anchored at their ends to said building structures, with each stud when formed and anchored in line having a more resilient flange and a less resilient flange;   with the studs being arranged in reversed alternation so that the more resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions and equally the less resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions;   with the studs being so formed and mounted that in the mounted line of studs there are flanges which have greater resiliency and flanges which have lesser resiliency;   in combination with wall panels on one side of the line of studs offset with respect to wall panels on the opposite side so that central portions on one side are opposite edges of the opposing panels;   and the edges of panels on one side are opposite central portions of panels on the other side;   with the edges of the panels on one side being affixed to the less resilient flanges on such side;   and with the central portions of the panels on one side being adjacent the more resilient flanges on such side .Iadd.and bear against these flanges, with each of such more resilient flanges being substantially smooth and substantially free of external protuberances; so that substantially the entire area of each such more resilient flange provides a resilient, overall, bearing area for the adjacent central portion of a panel..Iaddend.  .[.   
     
     
       3.  A wall construction according to claim 2, wherein the flanges as formed are initially equal in resiliency, with the studs being so anchored that these flanges retain substantially their original resiliency without substantial impairment..]. 
     
     
       4. A wall construction according to claim 2, wherein the flanges are initially .[.equal.]. .Iadd.unequal .Iaddend.in resiliency with the ends of the more resilient flanges being so free of the fixed structures as to retain substantially their original resilience without substantial impairment, whereas the less resilient flanges are so anchored at their ends to the fixed structures so as to lose substantial portions of their original resilience. 
     
     
       5. A wall construction according to claim 2, wherein the greater resilience flanges are initially formed to be of greater resilience than the less resilient flanges, and are free of the fixed structures so as to retain their resilience without substantial impairment when the studs are anchored by anchoring the ends of the less resilient flanges to such fixed structure. .Iadd. 6. In a sound attenuating wall between parallel fixed structures of a building, the improvements comprising: a series of formed elongated spaced building wall studs of the web and double flange type between and anchored at their ends to said building structures, with each stud when formed and anchored in line having a more resilient bearing flange and a less resilient mounting flange;   said bearing flange and said mounting flange being substantially parallel and aligned on opposite sides of said web, said web including first and second legs interconnected by a transverse member, said transverse member being nonparallel relative to said bearing flange and said mounting flange;   each bearing flange and its juncture with the web being so formed that the entire bearing flange will deflect a greater amount, from the web-flange juncture to the free end of the flange, than the deflection of the mounting flange from its web-flange juncture to its free end under the same loading at the same distance from the respective web-flange junctures;   said mounting flange providing a stiffer, less resilient mounting for the adjacent edges of a pair of panels so that when the panels are fastened to a mounting flange the panels are retained firmly and snugly against the mounting flange in a manner to avoid deflection inwardly or outwardly from the plane of such panels;   said bearing flange providing a more resilient bearing for the center of a panel having its edges fastened to a pair of mounting flanges, so that the center of the panel and the bearing flange flex inwardly resiliently for sound attenuation, but with the center of the panel being free of outward bias from the bearing flange, which bearing flange is formed to be free of a tendency to deflect outwardly, though it is resilient enough to be flexed inwardly by outward sound waves impinging against the panel, said bearing flange and said mounting flange each being subststantially smooth and substantially free of internal and external protuberances between its edges; so that substantially the entire area of each such bearing flange provides a resilient overall bearing area for the adjacent central part of a panel;   with the studs being arranged in reversed alternation so that the more resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions and equally the less resilient flanges of spaced adjacent studs face in opposite directions;   in combination with wall panels on one side of the line of studs arranged so that edge portions are adjacent each other and adjacent the less resilient flanges of such side and are affixed to such less resilient flanges;   and central portions of such panels are adjacent the more resilient flanges of such one side and bear against these flanges, with each of such more resilient flanges being substantially smooth and substantially free of external protuberances; so that substantially the entire area of each such more resilient flange provides a resilient, overall, bearing area for the adjacent central portion of a panel. .Iaddend.