Claims
- 1. An expansion joint cover installation, comprising
- first and second building members defining an expansion gap,
- an elongated cover panel having a longitudinal axis, an internal face, an external face and side edges, the cover panel having a width transverse to the longitudinal axis such as to span and conceal the expansion gap and to overlie at least a portion of the building member on at least one side of the gap,
- and releasable fastener means for attaching the cover panel to at least one of the building members and retaining the cover panel in a position concealing and covering the expansion gap, the releasable fastener means being the sole means for retaining the cover panel in said position and being releasable upon application of a force on the cover panel in a direction away from the building members.
- 2. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 1 wherein the releasable fastener means includes at least two spaced apart first releasable fasteners joining the cover panel to the first building member, and at least two spaced apart second fasteners joining the cover panel to the second building member.
- 3. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 2 wherein the releasable fastener means further includes at least two slide tracks attached to the internal face of the cover panel in spaced-apart relation lengthwise of the cover panel, each slide track being perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and having a portion positioned to overlie the second building member, and a movable slider received in each slide track for movement along the track, and wherein one of said first releasable fasteners joins each slider to the first building member.
- 4. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 3 wherein each slide track is recessed into the internal face of the cover panel, and one edge of the cover panel is slidable with respect to a surface of the first building member.
- 5. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 4 wherein said surface of the first building is a surface of a recessed portion of a building member, the recessed portion having an edge spaced apart from the expansion gap.
- 6. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 3 wherein each slide track extends across the cover panel such that a portion of each slide track overlies the second building member, a non-movable slide member is received in each slide track in said portion and is fixed therein against movement, and one of the second releasable fasteners is connected between a non-movable slider and the second building member.
- 7. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 3 wherein edge portions of the internal face of the cover member adjacent the side edges of the cover panel overlie substantially coplanar surfaces of the first and second building members.
- 8. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 7 wherein each slide track extends across the cover panel such that a portion of each slide track overlies the second building member, a non-movable slide member is received in each slide track in said portion and is fixed therein against movement, and one of the second releasable fasteners is connected between a non-movable slider and the second building member.
- 9. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 7 wherein each slide track is recessed into the internal face of the cover panel, and each edge of the cover panel slidably engages a surface of a building member on a corresponding side of the expansion gap.
- 10. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 3 wherein the cover panel has a substantially uniform profile in transverse cross-section along its length and is substantially thicker at the longitudinal axis than adjacent the edges.
- 11. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 10 wherein the external face of the cover panel is convexly curved laterally.
- 12. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 11 wherein the internal face of the cover panel is substantially planar.
- 13. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 1 wherein the cover panel is made of a composite material that includes a fiber filler and a resin binder.
- 14. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 13 wherein the fiber filler is fiberglass.
- 15. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 13 wherein the external face of the cover panel has a covering of a sheet material that is adapted to receive paint or wallpaper.
- 16. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 15 wherein the covering is a textile fabric or paper.
- 17. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 1 wherein a portion of the cover panel adjacent at least one of the edges is received in a recessed portion of a building member on one side of the expansion gap, and the edge of the cover panel overlies the recessed portion in slidable relation.
- 18. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 17 wherein deflector means is provided for displacing the cover panel out of the recessed portion when an edge of the panel engages or comes close to engaging an edge of the recessed portion.
- 19. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 18, wherein the deflector means includes at least one deflector member extending from the internal surface of the cover panel such as to engage a retainer.
- 20. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 18, wherein the deflector means includes a sloping surface on either a side edge of the cover panel or a side edge of the recessed portion.
- 21. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 17 wherein a flexible gasket is connected between each edge of the cover panel and an edge of a surface adjacent the recessed portion of the building member.
- 22. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 17 wherein the cover panel is of substantially uniform thickness throughout and its external surface is substantially flush with said edge of a surface adjacent the recessed portion.
- 23. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 1 wherein at least one tethering arrangement connects the cover panel to a member attached to the building member adjacent the expansion gap such as to retain the cover panel proximate to the building member in the event of release of the fasteners.
- 24. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 23 wherein the tethering arrangement includes at least two resilient flexible elements that extend across the expansion gap in spaced apart relation and are joined to the cover panel, the flexible elements being biased to pull the cover panel toward the building members and forming a fence that keeps the cover panel from entering the expansion gap.
- 25. An expansion joint cover installation according to claim 23 wherein the tether is a flexible cable.
Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/340,036 filed Nov. 14, 1994, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,181.
US Referenced Citations (7)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
614711 |
Dec 1948 |
GBX |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
340036 |
Nov 1994 |
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