Patent Application
20050028464
The invention relates to coping structures for buildings and more particularly to sheet metal copings.
Coping assemblies are commonly used in capping walls or parapets extending above the edge of a roof. The coping assemblies function as water barriers to prevent seepage of water into the wall and function as decorative covers to enhance the appearance of a building.
Coping assemblies are typically built from either stone or from sheet metal. The stone coping assemblies include a plurality of stones that arranged in an end to end relationship along the wall. The stones are joined by mortar, and the combination of the stones and the mortar joints provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance. The sheet metal coping assemblies provide a long lasting and less expensive alternative to the stone coping assemblies. The metal coping assemblies connect a plurality of coping sections in an abutting end to end relationship such that the joints are not visible from a distance. Although the metal coping assemblies are more cost effective, the uniform appearance of the metal coping assemblies may be less attractive than the stone and mortar appearance of the stone coping assemblies.
The coping assembly of the present invention provides a stone and mortar appearance by positioning a splice plate between adjacent ends of two coping sections, the splice plate including a grooved portion visible between the adjacent ends of the coping sections. The splice plate of the present invention is compatible with existing coping assemblies and therefore existing coping assemblies can be simply modified to include the splice plate and achieve a stone and mortar appearance.
The present invention is directed to a coping assembly for covering the top of a wall. The wall includes a top surface, a forward face, and a rear face. The coping assembly includes a first elongated coping section, a second elongated coping section, and a splice plate. The first coping section includes an end and is mounted on the top of the wall to cover a first portion of the wall. The second coping section includes an end and is mounted on the top of the wall to cover a second portion of the wall. The second coping section is positioned in an end to end relationship with the first coping section and spaced from the first coping section. The splice plate is positioned beneath a portion of the first and second coping sections and includes a portion that extends between the first and second coping sections. The portion of the splice plate between the first and second coping sections includes a formed groove that has the appearance of a mortar reveal.
The present invention is also directed to a coping assembly for covering the top of a wall. The wall includes a top surface, a forward face, and a rear face. The coping assembly includes a supporting structure, a first elongated coping section, a second elongated coping section, and a splice plate. The supporting structure is adapted to be mounted to the top of the wall. The first elongated coping section includes an end and is mounted to the supporting structure to cover a first portion of the wall. The second elongated coping section includes an end and is mounted to the supporting structure to cover a second portion of the wall. The second coping section is positioned in an end to end relationship with the first coping section and spaced from the first coping section. The splice plate is coupled between the supporting structure and the first and second coping sections and includes a portion that extends between the first and second coping sections. The portion of the splice plate includes a formed groove that has the appearance of a mortar reveal. The first and second coping sections include inverted channel configurations and include top faces, forward faces, and rear faces. The top faces are adapted to cover the top surface of the wall. The forward faces extend downwardly from the top faces of the coping sections and are adapted to cover a portion of the forward face of the wall. The rear faces extend downwardly from the top faces of the coping sections and are adapted to cover a portion of the rear face of the wall.
Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following detailed description, claims, and drawings.
Before one embodiment of the invention is explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways. Also, it is understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including” and “comprising” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. The use of “consisting of” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass only the items listed thereafter. The use of letters to identify elements of a method or process is simply for identification and is not meant to indicate that the elements should be performed in a particular order.
Illustrated in
With further reference to
An upper portion 32 of the plate portion 24 of the anchor bar 18 extends above the top of the nailer 22, and a flange 34 projects rearwardly from the rearward surface 28 of the vertical plate 24. The flange 34 has a horizontal lower surface 36 adapted to engage the top of the nailer 22 at the junction of the top of the nailer 22 with its vertical face. The flange 34 supports the anchor bar 18 against downward movement with respect to the wall 12. The rearwardly projecting flange 34 and the plate portion 24 of the anchor bar 18 are integrally joined such that the flange 34 is rigid with respect to the vertical plate portion 24 of the anchor bar 18.
The coping assembly 10 also includes snap-on coping sections 38 adapted to cover the top of the wall 12. The coping sections 38 are secured in an end to end relationship to the anchor bar 18 such that the coping sections 38 are secured to the wall 12. The coping sections 38 are generally inverted U-shaped channels adapted to extend along the length of the wall 12 and include top generally horizontal faces 40 having forward portions 42 and rear portions 44. Forward faces 46 extend downwardly from the forward portions 42 of the horizontal faces 40, and the forward faces 46 include lower edges 48. The lower edges 48 of the forward faces 46 include inwardly and upwardly extending lips 50 adapted to hook to the anchor bar 18. The coping sections 38 also include rear faces 52 that extend downwardly from the rear portions 44 of the top faces 40. The rear faces 52 are adapted to be spaced from and parallel to the generally vertical rear face 52 of the wall 12 and the nailer 22.
The upper portion 32 of the anchor bar 18 is adapted to rigidly support the forward portions 42 of the coping sections 38 at the juncture of the top faces 40 and the downwardly extending forward faces 46. The upper portion 32 of the anchor bar 18 includes a forwardly projecting flange 54 having an upper surface 56 adapted to support the forward portions 42 of the top faces 40 of the coping sections 38. The flange 54 of the anchor bar 18 is rigid and accordingly provides a rigid supporting surface for the forward portions 42 of the coping sections 38 along the entire length of the wall 12. The upper surface 56 of the flange 54 is inclined to complement the incline of the top faces 40 of the coping sections 38.
The anchor bar 18 also includes a lower edge 58 adapted to engage the lower edges 48 of the forward faces 46 so as to secure the coping sections 38 in position. The lower edge 58 of the anchor bar 18 includes a downwardly and forwardly inclined portion 60 and a downwardly extending flange 62 spaced outwardly from the face of the wall 12. The downwardly extending flange 62 terminates in a lower edge 64, and the lips 50 of the forward faces 46 are adapted to extend upwardly under the lower edge 64 of the flange 62 such that the coping sections 38 can securely engage the lower edge 64 of the anchor bar 18.
The rear portions 44 of the coping sections 38 are resiliently supported in spaced relation from the top of the nailer 22 such that the coping sections 38 are firmly held in place with respect to the wall 12 and the nailer 22. More specifically, the supporting structure 16 includes a plurality of cleats 66 that are spaced apart along the length of the top of the nailer 22 and are secured in place by fasteners 68 extending downwardly into the wooden nailer 22. Each cleat 66 is approximately one-foot wide and spaced apart along the top of the wall 12 on four foot centers. Each cleat 66 is comprised of sheet metal and includes a central horizontal wall 70 secured to the nailer 22 by the fasteners 68. A rear wall 72 of the cleat 66 extends downwardly from the rear edge of the horizontal wall 70 and generally parallel to the rear face defined by the nailer 22 and the wall 12. A lower edge 74 of the rear wall 72 of the cleat 66 is inclined downwardly and outwardly and is adapted to engage and support lips 76 of lower edges 78 of the rear faces 52 of the coping sections 38.
The cleat 66 also includes a forward wall 80 which is inclined upwardly and forwardly and is housed under a retaining lip 82 of the anchor bar 18. The retaining lip 82 projects rearwardly and downwardly with respect of the top of the anchor bar 18 and defines a cavity 84 extending along the length of the anchor bar 18 for housing the upwardly inclined forward wall 80 of the cleat 66.
The cleat 66 also includes resilient coping support springs 86 supported by the upper surface of the cleat 66 and adapted to support the rear portions 44 of the coping sections 38 at the juncture of the top faces 40 and the rear faces 44 of the coping sections 38. The coping support springs 86 provide sufficient upward force on the coping sections 38 to keep the lower edges 78 of the coping sections 38 in engagement with the lower edge 74 of the rear wall 72 of the cleat 66.
The coping assembly 10 also includes a splice plate 88 that is coupled between the supporting structure 16 and adjacent portions of two coping sections 38. The coping sections 38 are secured to the supporting structure 16 as described above and spaced apart from each other to define a gap 90 between the coping sections such that a portion 92 of the splice plate 88 is visible through the gap 90 (
The splice plate 88 includes a rectangular top portion 94, a downwardly extending forward portion 96, and a downwardly extending rear portion 98. The top portion 94 is positioned between the top faces 40 of the coping sections 38 and the upper surface 56 of the anchor bar 18 and the coping support springs 86 of the cleat 66. The forward portion 96 of the splice plate 88 is positioned between the forward faces 46 of the coping sections 38 and the forwardly extending flange 54 and downwardly extending flange 62 of the anchor bar 18. The rear portion 98 of the splice plate 88 is positioned between the rear faces 52 of the coping sections 38 and the rear wall 72 of the cleat 66. The top portion 94 of the splice plate 88 includes strips 100 of adhesive tape that extend from the forward portion 96 to the rear portion 98. The strips 100 of adhesive tape mount the splice plate 88 to the top faces 40 of the coping sections 38 to further secure the position of the splice plate 88 relative to the coping sections 38.
The splice plate 88 also includes a groove 102 or mortar reveal that extends across the center of the splice plate 88. The groove 102 extends up the center of the forward portion 96, across the center of the top portion 94, and down the center of the rear portion 98. The groove 102 is formed into the splice plate 88 by deforming the sheet metal splice plate 88. The splice plate 88 is positioned between the coping sections 38 and the supporting structure 16 such that the groove 102 is positioned within the gap 90 between the adjacent ends of two coping sections 38. The color of the splice plate 88 is different from the color of the coping sections 38 such that the portion 92 of the splice plate that is displayed in the gap 90 between the coping sections 38 contrasts with the color of the coping sections 38 to give the coping assembly 10 the appearance of a stone and mortar joint coping assembly. For example, the coping sections 38 could be painted to resemble stone with a three-color splatter coating and the groove 102 could be painted a contrasting lighter color that resembles mortar.
During installation of the coping assembly 10 to the top of the wall 12, the elongated anchor bar 18 is secured by fasteners 20 to the face of the wall 12 and to the face of the nailer 22 with the lower surface 36 of the rearwardly extending flange 34 supported on the upper surface of the nailer 22. The cleats 66 are then installed, with the forward wall 80 of each cleat 66 first being inserted under the retaining lip 82 of the anchor bar 18, and then securing the cleat 66 in place with the fastener 68. The splice plate 88 is positioned over the supporting structure 16 such that the splice plate 88 is centered relative to the cleat 66. The coping sections 38 are then placed over the supporting structure 16 and the splice plate 88 such that the groove 102 is visible between the adjacent ends of the coping sections 38. The lips 50 at the lower edges 48 of the forward faces 46 of the coping sections 38 are hooked under the lower edge 64 of the downwardly extending flange 62 of the anchor bar 18. The rear faces 52 of the coping sections 38 are then forced downwardly against the force of the coping supporting springs 86 until the lower edges 78 of the rear faces 52 of the coping sections 38 hook under the lower edge 74 of the rear wall 72 of the cleat 66 thereby securing the position of the splice plate 88 and the coping sections 38.
The anchor bar 110 of this embodiment includes a rigid plate 114 that has a generally planar rearward surface 116 adapted to engage that portion of the rubber membrane 112 folded over the edge of the roof 14. The rigid plate 114 also clamps that portion of the membrane 112 securely against the vertical face or surface of the nailer 22. An upper portion 118 of the vertical plate 114 extends above the surface of the roof 14, and the remainder of the vertical plate 114 engages the vertical face of the nailer 22 forming the edge of the roof 14.
The anchor bar 110 also includes a flange 120 projecting from the rearward surface of the vertical plate 114. The rearwardly extending flange 120 includes a lower surface 122 that is adapted to engage the rubber membrane 112 and secure it downwardly against the upper surface of the nailer 22 such that the rubber membrane 112 cannot be pulled away from the surface of the roof 14 or away from the edge of the roof 14.
The rearwardly extending flange 120 also includes an edge portion 124 extending along its length, the edge portion 124 being inclined upwardly. The inclined edge portion 124 is joined to the flange 120 by a curved lower surface 126 such that the surface of the flange 120 that engages the rubber membrane 112 does not include sharp corners which might pierce the membrane 112. The inclined edge portion 124 of the flange 120 prevents rainwater that accumulates on the membrane 112 from flowing over the anchor bar 110 and onto the ground below the roof 14.
A plurality of apertures 128 are provided through the vertical plate portion 114. The apertures 128 are spaced apart along the length of the anchor bar 110, and fasteners 130 extend through the apertures 128 to rigidly secure the anchor bar 110 to the wooden nailer 22 forming the edge portion of the roof 14.
The anchor bar 110 includes upper and lower edges 132, 134. The upper edge 132 includes a flange portion 136 inclined upwardly and forwardly. The lower elongated edge 134 of the anchor bar 110 similarly includes a second flange portion 138 which is inclined downwardly and forwardly and which terminates in a downwardly extending lip 140.
The coping assembly 10 of this embodiment also includes snap-on coping sections 142 adapted to cover the edge of the roof 14. The coping sections 142 are secured in an end to end relationship to the anchor bar 110 and extend along the length of the roof 14. The coping sections 142 include vertical faces 144, upper edges 146, and bottom edges 148. The upper edges 146 include rearwardly and downwardly extending lips 150 and the lower edges 148 include upwardly and rearwardly extending lips 152. The lips 150 of the upper edges 146 hook over the flange portion 136 of the upper edge 132 of the anchor bar 110, and the lips 152 of the lower edges 148 of the coping sections 142 are resiliently forced over the downwardly extending lip 140 of the lower flange portion 138 of the anchor bar 110. Once the lips 150 have been hooked over the upper flange 136 of the anchor bar 110, the lower lips 152 of the coping sections 142 can be forced over the lip 140 of the lower flange portion 138 and will resiliently hold the coping sections 142 onto the anchor bar 110.
In the illustrated construction, the anchor bar also includes a rib 154 that extends forwardly from a forward surface 156 of the plate 114. The rib 154 functions to support the coping sections 142 and to provide increased rigidity to the anchor bar 110.
The coping assembly 10 of this embodiment also includes a splice plate 158 that is coupled between the supporting structure 16 and adjacent portions of two coping sections 142. The coping sections 142 are secured to the supporting structure 16 as described above and spaced apart from each other to define a gap 160 between the coping sections 142 such that a portion 162 of the splice plate 158 is visible through the gap 160. The assembled coping sections 142 compress the splice plate 158 between the coping sections 142 and the supporting structure 16. These forces maintain the splice plate 158 in position relative to the coping sections 142 and the supporting structure 16.
The splice plate 158 includes a rectangular vertical portion 162 and a flange portion 164 that extends rearwardly and downwardly from an upper edge 166 of the splice plate 158. The vertical portion 162 is positioned between the vertical faces 144 of the coping sections 142 and the forward face 156 of the anchor bar 110. The flange portion 164 of the splice plate 158 is positioned between the flange portion 136 of the upper edge 132 of the anchor bar 110 and the lips 150 of the upper edges 146 of the coping sections 142.
The splice plate 158 also includes a groove 168 or mortar reveal that extends across the center of the splice plate 158. The groove 168 extends up the center of the vertical portion 162 and down the center of the flange portion 164 of the splice plate 158. The groove 168 is formed into the splice plate 158 by deforming the sheet metal splice plate 158. The splice plate 158 is positioned between the coping sections 142 and the supporting structure 16 such that the groove 168 is positioned within the gap 160 between the adjacent ends of two coping sections 158. Similar to the previously discussed embodiments, the color of the splice plate 158 is different from the color of the coping sections 142. For example, the coping sections 142 are covered with a paint splatter to resemble stone, and the splice plate is painted a contrasting color. The groove 168 of the splice plate 158 is displayed in the gap 160 between the coping sections 142 to give the coping assembly 10 the appearance of a stone and mortar joint coping assembly.
This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/951,616, filed Sep. 14, 2001, the entire contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 09951616 | Sep 2001 | US |
| Child | 10942388 | Sep 2004 | US |
