TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to slab bolster uppers that support rebar enforcements in a concrete form, and more particularly to interconnecting slab bolster uppers that utilize a snap-fit connection.

BACKGROUND

Reinforced concrete typically includes steel rebar reinforcement that is held within the concrete mold by supports commonly known as slab bolster uppers. Slab bolster uppers, which may be plastic or metallic, come in a variety of heights so that the user can position the rebar at a selected location within the mold before the concrete is poured. In addition to a variety of heights, slab bolster uppers may be provided in fixed lengths, and placed end to end at the concrete forming site when the dimensions of a given concrete mold are greater than the length of one slab bolster upper. The industry has seen fit to provide strategies for joining slab bolster uppers end to end to provide a continuous rebar support surface across a complete dimensional span of the concrete mold. Unfortunately, many of these end to end joining strategies suffer from a variety of drawbacks, including but not limited to introducing a weak spot where the slab bolster uppers are joined that can be easily broken. In addition, many connection strategies permit some swiveling about the connection location that can undermine the ability to lay out the precise grid of rebar supports in a given concrete mold. Other strategies inhibit the ability of joined slab bolster uppers to be easily moved and relocated in a mold area prior to the concrete being poured.

The present disclosure is directed toward one or more of the problems set forth above.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, a plurality of slab bolster uppers include a first slab bolster upper that is identical to a second slab bolster upper. Each includes a body having a rebar contact surface separated a height distance from a ground contact surface along a vertical axis. The rebar contact surface extends from a first end to a second end of the body along a horizontal axis. The first end terminates at a first vertical planar abutment surface that is one side of a thickness profile. The second end has a different shape than the first end, and includes a second vertical planar contact abutment surface, and includes a snap-fit connector shaped to receive the thickness profile of the first end. The first and second slab bolster uppers are movable from a disconnected configuration to a connected configuration exclusively responsive to sliding the second end of one of the bolsters relative to the first end of the other slab bolster upper along the vertical axis while the respective second vertical planar abutment surface is in contact with the respective first vertical planar abutment surface.

In another aspect, a method of joining a first slab bolster upper to a second slab bolster upper includes positioning the first slab bolster upper and the second slab bolster upper in a disconnected configuration. The second slab bolster upper is moved relative to the first slab bolster upper from the disconnected configuration to a connected configuration that is characterized by respective horizontal axes of the first and second bolster uppers being coincident. The moving step includes sliding a second vertical planar abutment surface of the second slab bolster upper along a vertical axis relative to, and in contact with, a first vertical planar abutment surface of the first slab bolster upper. During this process, a thickness profile of one end of the first slab bolster upper is received into a snap-fit connector of the second slab bolster upper. The first vertical planar abutment surface is a terminal end of the first slab bolster upper.

