Patent Application
20110173916
The invention relates to a fixing construction for terrace floors and similar applications.
In most cases, terrace floors are made of wood and comprise a supporting structure made of square timbers with a rectangular cross section, hereinafter called support beams, which are arranged in parallel to each other. Wooden boards, hereinafter called bearing planks, are fixed to the support beams in a predetermined distance to each other.
The simplest kind of fixing is that of using screws which, however, have to be driven in from above so that the screw-heads are visible. Therefore, to an always greater extent, kinds of fixing are preferred, where the fixing elements are positioned below the bearing planks, that is, are covered by them, or are arranged between the bearing planks and engage into recesses provided at the side faces thereof, such as described in the document DE 10 2005 030 780 A1, for example.
Several requirements are set on terrace floors of such design. In most cases, a terrace is not roofed and, therefore, is completely exposed to meteorological conditions. Wood which a terrace floor is made of, expends and contracts, respectively, by the effect of wetness and temperature differences. This applies to the bearing planks and to the support beams as well. In principle, expansion and contraction of wood can be reduced by using special kinds of wood or by impregnating it, by which, however, higher costs are caused. Therefore, there is the requirement to use woods left in their natural state, which, in addition, are lower in cost. Also, wood is susceptible to permanent wetness. Therefore, constructions have to be designed so that any obstruction of wetness does not occurs.
Object of the invention is to eliminate those disadvantages known from terrace floors according to prior art and, especially, to provide low-price and long-life terrace floors.
This object is solved by a fixing construction for terrace floors according to claim 1, which comprises the following features: Support beams preferably arranged in parallel to each other on the terrace soil. Furthermore, bearing planks orthogonally arranged to the support beams and fixed to them by using fixing elements. The fixing elements are pairs of rectangular plastic plates, wherein each of the plastic plates has a predetermined thickness and comprises a strip-like shoulder which extends in parallel to the front edge of plate, and wherein the section with the shoulder is double as thick as the plate itself. The invention results from the shape of the plastic plates and the kind of fixing them to the support beams and to the bearing planks. The plastic plates are fixed to the bottom side of the bearing planks through their shoulders so that a gap each is formed between that part of the plastic plate, which extends from the shoulder, and the bearing plank, and in addition, are fixed to the support beams through that part extending from the shoulder. Also, plastic plates are fixed to the bottom side of the bearing planks at the opposite side thereof through their shoulders so that a gap each is formed between that part of the plastic plate extending from the shoulder and the top side of the support beam. In the joint state, that part of the plastic plate extending from the shoulder engages into the corresponding one of the gaps mentioned above, and in this way, a form-locking joint is set up.
The kind of fixing the plastic plates can freely be chosen, however, the use of screws is preferred.
The advantage of this kind of terrace floor construction is that only those plastic plates fixed to a bearing plank near one side edge thereof are also fixed to the corresponding one of the support beams through that part extending from the shoulder. Thus, expansions of wood, which are caused by fluctuations of moisture and/or temperature, can be compensated. Therefore, it is not necessary to use special kinds of wood, which are very expensive. In addition, by this floating construction, occurrence of big forces at the fixing spots, which are caused by expansions, can be avoided. Therefore, in case of a screw connection, smaller-sized screws can be used. As the bearing planks are arranged on the support beams by a predetermined distance to them, air can stream between them, which helps to prevent the wood from digesting with water.
Of course, the invention can also be used for other applications such as vertical casings, for example. In addition, the structural elements to be joined with each other must not necessarily be made of wood.
According to claim 2, the plastic plates are wider than the support beams by at least 10%. This development of the invention is advantageous in that the support beams are covered by the plastic plates so that water will drain from the edges of this plates and does not flow onto the support beams, whereby the support beams are protected from wetness very effectively. This is an especially preferred embodiment of the invention.
According to claim 3, protective right is claimed for the fixing elements according to claim 1 for making a fixing construction according to claim 1.
Below, the invention will be described in more detail by means of the accompanying drawings, wherein features matching each other are marked by the same signs.
a, b, c shows a pair of plastic plates 3a, 3b, by means of which a terrace planking shown in
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2008-048 559.4 | Sep 2008 | DE | national |
| 10 2008 048 560.8 | Sep 2008 | DE | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB09/07343 | 9/23/2009 | WO | 00 | 3/22/2011 |
