Composite metal/concrete floor and method

A three-cell electrified metal floor comprising:

• a plurality of metal decking members each having a plurality of alternating coplanar crests and coplanar valleys connected by slanting sidewalls,
• the upper portion of each of said sidewalls having a groove adjacent the connection of the sidewall with the adjacent one of said crests,
• each of said valleys having laterally spaced longitudinal support means for engaging the lower ends of legs;
• and
• a plurality of snap-in cover plates each having a generally flat upper surface, outwardly convex and upturned lateral edges and a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending legs, each of said cover plates being dimensioned to overlie one of said valleys with said lateral edges engaging one of the grooves in said sidewalls and with the lower ends of said legs engaging said support means to thereby support the upper surface thereof generally coplanar with the adjacent ones of said crests,
• said cover plates being sufficiently resiliently compressible in a lateral direction to permit entry of said lateral edges into said grooves,
• said legs longitudinally partitioning the area bounded by said cover plate, the valley underlying said cover plate and the immediately adjacent sidewalls into three longitudinal electrical cells.

A composite concrete and electrified metal decking floor comprising:

• (a) a plurality of metal decking members each having a plurality of alternating substantially coplanar crests and substantially coplanar valleys connected by slanting sidewalls, the upper portion of each of said sidewalls having a groove adjacent the connection of the sidewall with the adjacent one of said crests,
• (b) a first plurality of elongated metal rails carried by the crests of said decking members in an end-to-end relationship in a direction transverse to said decking members,
• (c) a second plurality of elongated metal rails carried by said decking members in an end-to-end relationship parallel to and spaced from said first plurality of rails to thereby define the sides of a trench overlying said decking members,
• (d) a plurality of flat metal top plates carried in an end-to-end relationship by said rails to thereby define the top of the trench,
• (e) a plurality of substantially flat, substantially metal bottom members each having means at the ends thereof for engaging one of the grooves in the sidewalls of said decking members, said bottom members being dimensioned to overlie one of said valleys between the sides of the trench to thereby define with said crests the bottom of the trench;
• and
• (f) concrete overlying said decking and said bottom members to a depth sufficient to define with said top plates a planar floor.

A metal decking member comprising alternating coplanar crests and coplanar valleys connected by slanted sidewalls wherein the upper portion of each of said sidewalls includes a groove, the lower side of said groove being generally horizontal and the upper side of said groove being joined thereto and inclined to the horizontal at an angle between about forty and forty-five degrees,

• the radius of curvature of the junction of the two sides of said groove and the radius of curvature at the connection of the upper side of said groove and said crest being approximately equal, and
• the radius of curvature at the connection of the lower side of said groove and the lower portion of said sidewall being greater than the radius of curvature of the connection of the upper side of said groove and said crest by slightly more than the thickness of the metal decking,
• the connection of the upper side of said groove to said crest being substantially over the connection of the lower side of said groove to said sidewall,
• whereby said decking member may be stacked on an identical underlying decking member with the connection of the lower side of said groove and said sidewall supported by the connection of the crest and upper side of the groove of the underlying decking member to provide increased lateral support for said decking member when stacked.

A metal floor comprising:

• a plurality of decking members, each having a plurality of alternating substantially coplanar crests and substantially coplanar valleys connected by slanting sidewalls,
• the upper portion of each of said sidewalls having a groove adjacent the connection with the adjacent one of said crests;
• a plurality of snap-in cover plates each having a generally flat, apertured upper surface, outwardly convex lateral edges adapted to engage one of the grooves in said sidewalls to support said upper surface generally coplanar with the adjacent ones of said crests;
• and
• a preset insert including a housing having upright side and end walls, the lower portion of said end walls being adapted to overlie said cover plate in conformity therewith to thereby enclose an aperture in said upper surface, the lower portion of said side walls terminating in an outwardly convex lateral edge adapted to be received in the groove in said sidewalls in an overlying relation to the lateral edges of one of said cover plates.

A side rail for the lateral trench of an electrical distribution system in a composite metal/concrete floor comprising:

• a first elongated metal member including in cross-section an inverted U-shaped channel with outwardly extending horizontal flanges adapted to be secured to the crests of corrugated metal decking members,
• a second elongated metal member including in cross-section a horizontal center section, a downwardly extending section on the trench side thereof, and an upward and then horizontally outwardly extending section on the side thereof away from the trench,
• the bottom of said U-shaped channel and rail horizontal section having apertures aligned when said second member is disposed in an overlying relationship to said first member with the downward extending section in sliding contact with the wall of said U-shaped channel along the length thereof on the trench side thereof,
• threaded means for adjusting the vertical separation between said first and second members;
• and
• a plurality of generally U-shaped partitions each having a generally horizontal flange and a downwardly extending generally vertical flange curved at the lower end thereof away from the trench, said flange curving beneath the end of the decking members supporting the rail when said horizontal flange is positioned over the horizontal flange of said first member to thereby provide a smooth end surface for the decking members.

A side rail for a lateral trench of an electrical distribution system in a composite metal/concrete floor comprising:

• a first elongated metal member including in cross-section an inverted U-shaped channel with a horizontal flange on the side thereof away from the trench adapted to be secured to the crests of corrugated metal decking members, and an upwardly extending flange spaced from and generally parallel to said channel on the trench side thereof;
• a second elongated metal member including in cross-section a horizontal center section, a downwardly extending section on the trench side thereof, and an upward and then horizontally outward section on the side thereof away from the trench,
• the bottom of said U-shaped channel and said horizontal section having apertures aligned when said second member is disposed in an overlying relationship to said first member with the downward extending section of said second member in sliding contact with the upwardly extending flange of said first member along the length thereof on the trench side thereof, and
• threaded means for adjusting the vertical separation between said first and second members.

A method of installing a metal/concrete composite floor with three longitudinal cells at spaced intervals comprising the steps of:

• (a) installing metal decking having alternating longitudinally extending crests and valleys with grooves in the side walls adjacent the crests;
• (b) providing cover plates having two longitudinally extending, laterally spaced legs depending therefrom;
• (c) installing the cover plates over selected ones of the valleys in the decking with the lateral edges thereof engaging the grooves in adjacent side walls and with the two longitudinally extending legs engaging the valley along laterally spaced lines to provide support for the cover plate intermediate the crests and to divide the enclosed valley into three longitudinal cells;
• (d) installing upwardly extending preset inserts at spaced intervals along the upper surface of the installed cover plates with the lateral edges thereof engaging the grooves in the side walls of metal decking;
• and
• (e) pouring concrete over the decking, the cover plates and the preset inserts to a height slightly greater that the height of the top of the preset inserts to form a composite metal/concrete floor.