Incremental marked framing lumber product and method
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     There are many known devices for measuring lumber for use by carpenters, and more especially framing carpenters, to measure, cut and assemble lumber for the frame of a house or other structure. The most commonly used devices are tape measures, rulers and carpenter&#39;s squares. These devices enable a carpenter who desires to cut a piece of framing lumber to accurately measure and draw straight lines on the framing lumber for cutting and assembling. Using these devices involves several steps, including the additional necessity of a pencil or other marking tool, placing the measuring device on the lumber, holding it stable, and making a mark for cutting or assembly. Very often, this step has to be repeated in an identical manner on several pieces of lumber as required in a typical framing project. These steps, when factored in with other variables, such as the skill level of a professional framing carpenter who desires speed in execution, or an unskilled carpenter who lacks experience in making such measurements, are time consuming and can contribute to costly errors in framing. 
     It is desirable to provide a new and improved lumber product and method, including visible incremental marking lines printed or stamped thereon, which overcomes some of the disadvantages of the prior art and improves the speed and accuracy of the measuring, cutting and framing process for carpenters. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention concerns a lumber product, adapted for use in the measuring, cutting and assembling of lumber for the framing of a house or other structure. 
     The lumber product comprises a piece of lumber used for the framing of a structure which has a first and second end, a face and back surface and opposite edges, and has a plurality of visible markings imprinted or stamped or otherwise secured on at least one surface for measuring purposes. The lumber used is standard in the industry for framing, and may comprise a lumber piece known as a stud, which may be a 2×2, 2×3, 2×4, 2×6, 2×8, 2×10, or 2×12 framing stud of varying lengths, a 4×8 or 4×12 laminated framing lumber piece, such as plywood, of varying thickness, and may also be a 4×4 framing lumber piece of varying lengths. 
     The lumber product has visible marking lines spaced at 1/2&#34; intervals in a parallel manner and which lines extend substantially across the entire length of the lumber piece. At preselected intervals, such as 12 inches, 16 inches, and 24 inches or combinations thereof, additional visible marking lines are imprinted or stamped on the lumber piece. These visible marking lines may be of different colors or designs, or combinations thereof, to distinguish one selected marking from another, to enable the carpenter to see quickly and easily the measurements to be marked. While the embodiment described herein uses the English measurement system, it is acknowledged that other measurement systems may be used as necessary and desired. The visible marking lines extend substantially toward the center of the face surface of the lumber piece, and may also extend downwardly along the one or both edges of the lumber piece and represent a peripheral marking line for stud lumber, to further enhance identification for measuring. Visible marking lines may also be printed on the back surface of the lumber piece as desired. 
     The parallel visible marking lines on the face surface of the lumber piece are separated down the middle longitudinally by an unmarked section. This division provides for the separation of two identical sets of visible markings, comprised of lines and numerals defining the lines, which are at opposing ends of the face surface. These identical sets of markings are placed near the outer edge of the lumber piece and begin at the first, or left end, of the lumber piece as it faces the carpenter, with the number &#34;1&#34; at the 1 inch mark, and with consecutive numbers appearing at each 1 inch interval. Adjacent to the center of the face surface, above these consecutive numbers, additional consecutive numbers ranging from 1-11 will appear at each one-inch interval. In this numerical sequence, the number &#34;12&#34; does not appear as the 12 inch mark; rather, each 12 inch unit, or foot, is marked &#34;1&#34; for 12 inches, &#34;2&#34; for 24 inches and so on. The number &#34;12&#34; would only appear as an identifier of the twelfth foot. Each line that represents a multiple of 16 inches and 24 inches will be further differentiated by color and design and will also extend downwardly on each edge. The laminated plywood piece has similar visible markings lines on all four edges of the face surface. 
     The numbers and visible marking lines may be differentiated by a contrasting color or design or any combination thereof; including broken or dotted lines, geometric forms, and various color combinations that will enable the carpenter to easily distinguish the measurement units. In another embodiment, the visible marking lines may extend substantially across the entire width of the lumber piece, without an unmarked separating space. 
     Thus, the carpenter can determine at a glance the measurement that has to be taken both in inches, from the numbers adjacent the edges, and from the foot/inch indicators located directly above those numbers. The visible marking lines on the lumber piece eliminates the need for additional tools and implements, saves time and improves accuracy in measuring for framing purposes, where exact measurements are critical to the framing of the structure and repeated identical measurements are needed. 
     The invention will be described for the purposes of illustration only in connection with certain embodiments; however, it is recognized that those persons skilled in the art may make various modifications, changes, improvements and additions to the preferred or illustrated embodiments, all without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a portion of a framing system for a wall. 
     FIG. 2 is a cutaway, enlarged, top plan view of the lumber piece of the invention. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view from above of the invention of FIG. 2. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     In the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a portion of a framed structure 10, such as the wall of a house, with horizontal 12 and vertical 14 framing lumber pieces, commonly known as footer/header and studs respectively, measured and cut according to visible marking lines 22. A 4×8 plywood laminate framing lumber piece 30, is also shown with visible marking lines 24 and 26 imprinted or stamped along all four edges on the face surface 27. FIG. 1 also shows a window opening 18 created by simply cutting the marked lumber pieces 12, 14, and 30. 
     FIG. 2 shows an enlarged, cutaway top plan view of the lumber piece 20 with visible marking lines imprinted thereon. The top surface 28 is marked with inch indicators 38, half-inch indicators 40, foot/inch indicators 42, foot indicators 36, 16 inch spacer indicators 44 and 24 inch spacer indicators 46. In this embodiment, foot indicators 36 are shown within an inverted &#34;V&#34; shape, and 16 inch indicators 44 are shown within circles. Further, the 16 inch spacer indicators 44, are shown on the side 34 with a large letter &#34;C&#34; on the edges and in a double line design. It should be noted that the 16 inch and 24 inch increments are the industry standard for spacing framing studs, depending on the climate of the building area. 
     FIG. 3 shows the lumber piece of the invention 20 in perspective from above, with the edges 32 also having visible marking lines extending downwardly thereon for the 16 inch spacer indicators 44 and 24 inch spacer indicators 46. This additional marking enhances the carpenter&#39;s ability to assemble or cut the lumber piece quickly and easily. 
     In use, a carpenter, after determining the required measurements of the framework being constructed, may take one or more pieces of the marked lumber and cut and/or assemble them easily, accurately and quickly to construct the framework. This procedure can be accomplished without having to carry additional tools that may be cumbersome and time consuming to transport. Further, the invention enables the professional framer to identify quickly and easily where cuts have to be made and assembly take place. The invention also facilitates accuracy and ease of use for the non-professional carpenter, who is not experienced in combining measurement tools with lumber and is more likely to make errors when conducting repetitive measurements. In both cases the invention will aid in the accuracy of measurement, cutting and framing, which are critical in any framing project, saving the time and expense of errors.