Fiber enforced thin brick sheet and process

Abstract

A fiber enforced sheet for use as a wall or floor covering which comprises of adhered thin bricks bonded to a fiber-reinforced, backing layer. Thin brick is adhered to the fiber enforced sheet. The fiber enforced backing increases strength and rigidity to the thin brick during handling, and installation permits the thin bricks to be adhered to proper specification and spacing to be cut using ordinary tile or thin brick tools.

1 . A fiber enforced thin brick sheet comprising:
 an anti-adhesive layer;   a fiber-reinforced backing layer, wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer is flexible and substantially non-stretchable, and wherein the anti-adhesive layer is removably positioned on a back side of the fiber-reinforced backing layer to inhibit adhering of the fiber enforced thin brick sheet to an external surface;   a thin brick layer comprising, a plurality of thin bricks positioned in a staggered orientation with a fixed horizontal spacing between each of the plurality of thin bricks, wherein the staggered orientation comprises.
 a first row of thin bricks aligned with a first edge and a second edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer, the second edge opposite the first edge; and 
 a second row of thin bricks underneath the first row of thin bricks, the second row of thin bricks laterally staggered relative to the first row of thin bricks; and 
   an adhesive layer adhering the plurality of thin bricks to the fiber-reinforced backing layer.   
     
     
         2 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of thin bricks comprises of multiple types of bricks, including at least one of clay brick, cast brick, or wire cut brick. 
     
     
         3 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the a staggered orientation comprises at least one of a running bond, stack bond, or English bond orientation. 
     
     
         4 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer is a fiber-reinforced sheet. 
     
     
         5 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 4 , wherein the adhesive layer comprises at least one of bonding adhesive, epoxy adhesive, and silicone adhesive. 
     
     
         6 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 4 , wherein the fiber-reinforced sheet comprises of at least one of graphite fibers, aramid fibers, carbon fibers, and fiberglass fibers. 
     
     
         7 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 6 , wherein the fiber-reinforced sheet is woven into a grid. 
     
     
         8 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1  wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer is poly fiber. 
     
     
         9 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer comprises spun bonded glass filaments.  10 - 29 . (canceled) 
     
     
         30 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of thin bricks are rectangular, and wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer is rectangular. 
     
     
         31 - 41 . (canceled) 
     
     
         42 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein a first brick of the second row of thin bricks overhangs the second edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer. 
     
     
         43 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 42 , wherein the first edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer extends beyond the second row of thin bricks defining a vacant area configured to receive a thin brick of another fiber enforced thin brick sheet. 
     
     
         44 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 43 , wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer extends beyond the second row of thin bricks a distance equal to a distance the first brick overhangs the second edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer. 
     
     
         45 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the adhesive layer comprises a first strip of adhesive adhering the first row of thin bricks to the fiber-reinforced backing layer, and a second strip of adhesive adhering the second row of thin bricks to the fiber-reinforced backing layer. 
     
     
         46 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 1 , wherein the fiber-reinforced backing layer comprises a first portion and a second portion, the second portion angled approximately orthogonal to the first portion, and wherein the second row of thin bricks is aligned with the second edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer. 
     
     
         47 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 46 , wherein the first row of thin bricks comprises a first thin brick on the first portion of the fiber-reinforced backing layer and a second thin brick on the second portion of the fiber-reinforced backing layer, the second thin brick comprising a length less than a length of the first thin brick. 
     
     
         48 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 47 , wherein the first edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer extends beyond the second row of thin bricks defining a vacant area configured to receive a thin brick of another fiber enforced thin brick sheet. 
     
     
         49 . The fiber enforced thin brick sheet of  claim 48 , wherein the second row of thin bricks comprises a first thin brick on the first portion of the fiber-reinforced backing layer and a second thin brick on the second portion of the fiber-reinforced backing layer, the first thin brick comprising a length less than a length of the second thin brick, the vacant area of the fiber-reinforced backing layer defined between the first thin brick and the first edge of the fiber-reinforced backing layer. 
     
     
         50 . A system of thin brick sheets comprising:
 a first thin brick sheet comprising a first fiber-reinforced backing layer and a first plurality of thin bricks adhered to the first fiber-reinforced backing layer using a first adhesive layer, wherein the plurality of thin bricks are positioned in a staggered configuration; and   a second thin brick sheet comprising a second fiber-reinforced backing layer and a second plurality of thin bricks adhered to the second backing layer using a second adhesive layer;   wherein at least one thin brick of the first plurality of bricks of the first thin brick sheet overhangs the first fiber-reinforced backing layer, the at least one thin brick overhanging the first fiber-reinforced backing layer configured to extend onto the second fiber-reinforced backing layer of the second thin brick sheet.   
     
     
         51 . The system of  claim 50 , wherein the second plurality of thin bricks are positioned in a staggered configuration substantially identical to the staggered configuration of the first plurality of thin bricks, and wherein the second fiber-reinforced backing layer extends beyond at least one thin brick of the second plurality of thin bricks defining a vacant area of the second fiber-reinforced backing layer, the at least one thin brick of the first fiber-reinforced backing layer overhanging the first fiber-reinforced backing layer and configured to extend into the vacant area of the second fiber-reinforced backing layer.