The invention relates to a joint employed in the process of angular connection of hollow profile members used to form parallelepipedal frames for doors or windows such frames being filled with glazing or shutter panels.
A variety of joints is used in the angular connection of hollow profile members with their edges being cut at an angle of 45° and brought in matching contact to form door or window frames, partitions or other applications. The hollow profile members are cut at an angle of 45° in each corner of the generally rectangular frame of either the frame profile member that is fixedly mounted onto the wall surrounding a door or window opening or of the sash profile member operationally mounted therein. A joint item is thereafter being introduced within abutting chambers of a pair of hollow profile members being brought in matching contact at each one of the corners of the aforementioned generally rectangular frame, the joint providing a stable connection of such profile members.
Prior art joints generally comprised spring activated button means detachably engaging into suitable apertures provided at the corners of the hollow profile members being connected, such joints being adapted to stabilize the angular connection thereof. These prior art joints required, prior to employment thereof, the opening of apertures at accurately selected locations of the hollow profile members wherein are engaged the abovementioned spring activated buttons. This process is awkward and time consuming due to the accuracy required in marking and drilling of the apertures and often leads to an imperfect fit of the profiles and to a structure of reduced aesthetics and functionality due to the erroneous alignment of the hollow profile members brought in matching contact or to a loosening of tightening of the joint in the course of time.
WO 2004/033837 of Athanasios Leontaridis discloses a joint for the angular connection of frames for doors and windows, such joint comprising a slide base portion with side parts inserted within the abutting chambers of a pair of hollow profile members being connected and an analogously configured sheet metal mobile portion superimposed thereupon, the sheet metal mobile portion including upwardly extending legs with indenting edges, a bolt passing through a single hole that is required in this disclosure, ach bolt being employed in the tightening process of the joint, wherein after the joint has been inserted into the hollow profile members being brought together for connection, the bolt acts so as to exert an upwardly raising force onto the sheet metal mobile portion, whilst maintaining the slide base portion at a fixed position, and subsequently leading the sharp indenting edges of the sheet metal portion to produce an indentation effect into the walls of the corresponding chambers of the hollow profiles being angularly connected with the joint, as the bolt is being tightened, thereby resulting in a robust, self aligned connection of the hollow profile members. The hereinabove angular joint disclosed in WO-2004/033837 with its symmetrical arrangement on either side of a plane of symmetry passing though the plane of matching contact of the hollow profile members being connected has contributed in overcoming the aforementioned problems of joints of the prior art, since it substantially facilitates the user, i.e. the technician who assembles doors or windows through angularly connecting previously cut profile lengths to produce the frames, which must subsequently filled, e,g, with a glass panel or a shutter. The user is in particular facilitated due to the requirement of a single handily marked and drilled hole in place of the plurality of holes posing awkward precision marking and drilling requirements in the angular joints of the prior art, thereby providing a decreased cost in the usage thereof. Furthermore, the joint disclosed in WO-2004/033837 has provided a strong and reliable connection that in the course of time is much less vulnerable in preserving its high standard of performance.
However, whilst the hereinabove described joint that was disclosed in WO 2004/033837 has had a warm international welcome, the extensive use thereof highlighted a drawback related to its use for the angular connection of hollow profile members of relatively larger dimensions, wherein the upwardly bent sections of the sheet metal mobile portion being adapted to indent the walls of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected have to extent at a long distance thereby resulting in a deficient and uncertain indentation of the sharp edges thereof into the walls of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected.
It has in particular been established that certain geometrical parameters applicable in the manufacturing of the joint that specifically relate to the slope of the upwardly extending members of the sheet metal mobile portion and of the geometry of impact thereof onto the walls of the hollow profile members being indented do play a significantly important role in achieving an optimum indentation into the walls of the hollow profile members being connected. An important role is also played by the angle formed by the wall of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected onto which is mounted the base portion of the joint with a straight line passing through a terminal point E1 of contact of the inwardly bent side surface of the sheet metal mobile portion with the section surface of the base portion prior to the upward bending thereof into the upwardly extending member and through a point E2 of impact of the upwardly extending member of the sheet metal mobile portion onto the opposing wall of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected. The angle formed by the wall of the hollow profile members being indented with a line transversally crossing the indenting edge of the sheet metal mobile portion is also important. It has further been observed that the aimed indentation of the edges of the sheet metal mobile portion onto the walls of the aforementioned chambers is deficient because of an aberrant sharp edge thereof that is being created at one side of a terminal edge of the sheet metal during the cutting process from a sheet metal web.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide advantageous modifications of the joint disclosed in WO 2004/033837 with a scope of addressing the abovementioned disadvantages and shortcomings through the disclosure of new features of the slide base portion and of the sheet metal mobile portion superimposed thereupon and of certain geometrical parameters thereof so as to improve and to strengthen the capacity of the upwardly extending members of the sheet metal mobile portion to achieve an efficient indentation of the walls of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected regardless of the dimensions of the latter.
This object of the invention is achieved by optimizing the design and the orientation of the sheet metal mobile portion as will be described in detail hereinafter:
a) providing the slide base portion with upwardly bent terminal side surfaces, thereby forming sockets on either side thereof appropriately configured for nesting the equivalently bent terminal side surfaces of the sheet metal mobile portion.
b) treating the sharp edges of the sheet metal mobile portion following cutting thereof from a sheet metal web with a scope of alignment in the longitudinal direction of the sheet metal mobile portion of an aberrant sharp edge resulting from the cutting blade having been driven perpendicularly into the web of the sheet metal, thereby obtaining an appropriate form of the sharp edges that would facilitate indentation of the walls of the hollow profile members being connected.
c) selectively orienting the upwardly bent members of the slide base portion and of the sheet metal mobile portion with a scope of complying with certain predetermined geometrical parameters to be described hereinafter, including providing the sheet metal mobile portion with a zigzag extension of the upwardly bent member thereof in the case of use of the joint in the connection of hollow profile members having chambers with larger dimensions.
Additionally or alternatively, the above object is being achieved through use of a slide base portion that advantageously approaches the region of the walls in the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected wherein the indentation of the sheet metal mobile portion takes place, such effect being obtained with the employment of an elevated slide base portion that achieves rapprochement of the walls of the chambers intended to be indented by the sheet metal mobile portion, the same result being alternatively achieved by using the standard slide base portion in combination with an additional base raising member provided with legs adapted to raise the slide base portion at a desired level for the sheet metal mobile portion to effect an efficient indentation of the walls of chambers of the hollow profile members being connected, as well as by using a specially configured slide base portion of the type of joints being used in association with a mechanical press assembly comprising cutting blades used to cut strips of material of the walls of the hollow profile members being connected and embed such strips within specially configured recesses on either side of the slide base portion. This last method of connection of hollow profile members to form frames for doors and windows as used in the prior art requires the single element of the joint to have side arms that firmly fit within the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected and are glued therein prior to employment of the mechanical press assembly and as a result a poor performance thereof might result from use of the press assembly and embedding of the aforementioned strips before the glue has adequately dried. Further this method of angular connection of profiles necessitates use of joints of varying sizes to fit chambers of correspondingly varying sizes, thereby increasing costs.
It is therefore a further object of the invention to propose an embodiment of the joint of the invention wherein the slide base portion is provided with side parts firmly fitted within chambers of the hollow profile members being brought in matching contact and a sheet metal portion with indenting sides is superimposed thereupon, whereby the employment of the mechanical press assembly that is used in the prior art with a scope of cutting strips of material of the walls of the chambers to embed them within recesses of the joint or the use of glue to stabilize the connection is merely an optional choice and not a necessary requirement.
These and other objects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention over the prior art will become apparent in the detailed description hereinbelow.
The abovementioned object of achieving an improved strong, handy and low cost angular connection of hollow profile members is implemented with a joint comprising a slide base portion fixedly mounted within chambers of a pair of hollow profile members being brought in matching contact and a sheet metal mobile portion superimposed thereupon and adapted to move through tightening of a bolt passing along the plane of matching contact of the profile members being connected that also is the plane of symmetry (xx′) of the joint until the sharp edges of its upwardly extending sides appropriately indent the walls of the chambers and effect a strong connection of the pair of hollow profile members, wherein the sheet metal mobile portion is manufactured from a hard metal (e.g. steel) substantially harder than the material of construction of the walls of the chambers being indented (e.g. aluminium or plastic), wherein the joint of the present invention satisfies the following characteristics:
The slide base portion extends on either side into an upwardly bent terminal side surface being oriented in a direction parallel to the plane of symmetry (xx′), wherein these upwardly bent terminal side surfaces in association with the side parts of the slide base portion define sockets adapted to nest the upwardly bent surfaces with sharp indenting edges of the sheet metal mobile portion.
A sharpened edge of the upwardly bent surfaces of the sheet metal mobile portion is formed through alignment in the longitudinal direction of the mobile portion of an aberrant sharp edge resulting from a cutting blade being driven perpendicularly into a web of the sheet metal used in the manufacture of the sheet metal mobile portion.
The sheet metal mobile portion has a structure that complies with a set of geometrical parameters as follows:
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the upwardly bent sides with the sharp indenting edges of the sheet metal mobile portion are provided with a zigzag extension that advantageously displaces the point of impact onto the walls being indented in a desired position that ensures optimal indenting of the walls of chambers of the hollow profile members being connected, such zigzag extension comprising a first segment being provided past a first bending point located at the end of the upwardly extending terminal side surface of the slide base portion, wherein this first segment is bent outwardly through a predetermined arc in a direction away from the plane of symmetry (xx′) and a second segment being provided past a second bending point located at the end of the outwardly bent abovementioned first segment, wherein this second segment is being bent inwardly through an equivalent predetermined arc in a direction of rapprochement of the plane of symmetry (xx′), whereby the sheet metal mobile portion with such zigzag extension is preferably being used in the connection of hollow profile members with chambers having a width within a range of 13-25 mm.
Additionally or alternatively, the above object is being achieved through use of a slide base portion that advantageously approaches the region of the walls in the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected wherein the indentation of the sheet metal mobile portion takes place, such effect being obtained with the employment of an elevated slide base portion that achieves rapprochement of the walls of the chambers intended to be indented by the sheet metal mobile portion, the same result being alternatively achieved by using the standard slide base portion in combination with an additional base raising member provided with legs adapted to raise the slide base portion at a desired level for the sheet metal mobile portion to effect an efficient indentation of the walls of chambers of the hollow profile members being connected, as well as through use of a joint with a slide base portion of the type of joints of the prior art that have a pair of side members fitting within the adjacent chambers of hollow profile members being brought in matching contact and used in association with a mechanical press assembly adapted to cut strips of the material of the walls of the chambers and embed those strips within recesses of the abovementioned side members of the joint to ensure stabilization thereof, wherein in the case of the joint of the invention the mechanical press assembly effecting cutting and embedding the strips to stabilize the joint are optional since an adequate stabilization thereof is already implemented with the indentation of the walls of the hollow profile members by the sharp edges of the sheet metal mobile portion.
The invention will be made apparent to those skilled in the art by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
The joint of the invention relates to the angular connection of aluminium profiles without being limited thereto, as it may also be used in the connection of profile members made from other soft metals or plastics. In most circumstances, the hollow profile members to be connected are perpendicularly oriented and their ends are cut at 45° so as to obtain an aesthetically optimal matching contact and connection thereof. The drawings depict connection of perpendicularly oriented hollow profile members, without however excluding the possibility of connection at any other obtuse or acute angular orientation. Thus the joint of the invention is particularly proposed for the connection of hollow profile members used in the construction of door and window frames, such frames being adapted to house a glass or a shutter panel or an insect repellent textile surface, etc. The joint of the invention may however also be used in the connection of hollow profile members adapted to form partition panels, racking structures, railings, frames for pictures and paintings, furniture assemblies and other varying applications as appropriate. With the inventive features of the present invention, the proposed joint is appropriately adjusted for the connection of hollow profile members irrespective of the size of the receiving chambers thereof. An illustrative embodiment of such a hollow profile member 50 is presented in
The joint of the present invention as shown in the exploded view of
The sheet metal mobile portion 1, comprises side parts symmetrically extending on either side of a base 10, wherein each one of these side parts comprises a first planar side surface 11 extending into an inwardly bent second planar side surface 12 that eventually extends to an upwardly bent terminal side surface 13, such upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 having sharpened edges being adapted to indent the walls in the chambers 53a, 53b of the hollow profile members 50 being connected. The upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 have a straight line configuration in a first embodiment of a sheet metal mobile portion 1 shown in
A bolt 5 is employed in providing interconnection of the elements of the joint of the invention, the bolt 5 having a bore and a threading such that it may be screwed using an Allen key 51, which as shown in
With a scope of achieving an optimal indentation effect of the walls of chambers 53a, 53b of the hollow profile members 50 being connected and taking into account that these chambers may have a variable width, the sheet metal mobile portion 1 with the linearly configured upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 of the first embodiment is preferably used with chambers 53a, 53b having a width within a range of up to about 10-12 mm and the sheet metal mobile portion 1′ with the zigzag extension 14, 15 of the second embodiment is preferably used with chambers 53a, 53b having a larger width that reaches up to about 25 mm, thereby advantageously displacing the line of indentation of the walls of chambers 53a, 53b by the sharpened edge of the upwardly bent parts of the sheet metal mobile portion in a direction away from the plane of symmetry xx′ at a distance increased in comparison with the distance of elongate upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 with a straight line configuration. The zigzag extension 14, 15 of the aforementioned second embodiment serves to provide an optimally effective indentation effect in hollow profile members comprising chambers 53a, 53b having a larger width that reaches up to about 25 mm.
Alternatively or in addition to selective use of either the sheet metal mobile portion 1 or 1′ in order to achieve an optimal line of impact and indentation onto the walls of chambers 53a, 53b, varying embodiments of the base portion 2, 2′, 2″ might be employed, such alternative embodiments being described hereinafter.
As mentioned hereinabove the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ comprises an upper base 10 that is being disposed onto an underlying upper base 20 of the base portion 2. In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the upper base 10 and the upper base 20 are configured as obtuse angles with the vertex of these angles passing through the plane of symmetry xx′ of the joint of the invention.
According to a first embodiment of the invention the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ is provided with side parts symmetrically arranged on either side of the base 10 and each one of these side parts comprises a first planar side surface 11 extending into an inwardly bent second planar side surface 12, wherein the abovementioned first planar side surface 11 has a length generally equivalent to the length of an underlying corresponding first section 21 and the inwardly bent planar side surface 12 abuts onto a correspondingly sized upwardly sloped section 22 of base portion 2 and has a length generally equivalent to the length of this underlying corresponding upwardly sloped section 22 of the slide base portion 2, 2′, 2″, such upwardly sloped sections 22 being adapted to provide, when bolt 5 is being tightened, a sliding platform for the inwardly bent flat surfaces 12, this sliding leading to the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ being lifted and thereby being brought at a position enabling indentation of the walls of the chambers 53a, 53b of the hollow profile members being connected. The inwardly bent planar side surfaces 12 of the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ are bent upwardly through an arc of 180°, thereby forming the upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13, which are oriented in a direction parallel to the plane of symmetry xx′. Accordingly, the aforementioned upwardly sloped sections 22 of base portion 2 are also bent upwardly through an arc of 180°, thereby forming terminal side surfaces 23, which are oriented in a direction parallel to the plane of symmetry xx′, such terminal side surfaces 23 in combination with the upwardly sloped sections 22 thereby defining sockets 22-23 adapted to receive the correspondingly inwardly bent planar side surfaces 12 followed by the upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 of the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′.
According to the second embodiment of the invention wherein the sheet metal mobile portion 1′ is employed to serve connecting of larger profile chambers 53a, 53b having a width within a range of 13-25 mm, the upwardly bent terminal side surfaces 13 extend into zigzag extensions 14-15, such zigzag extensions 14-15 being adapted to shift the line of impact and indentation of the sheet metal mobile portion 1′ in a direction away from the plane of symmetry xx′ of the joint of the invention. In the case of the sheet metal mobile portion the intended zigzag extension 14-15 is implemented with a pair of bending points along the upwardly bent parts of the mobile portion 1′, a first bending point being provided at the end of the aforementioned upwardly extending terminal side surfaces 23 of base portion 2, whilst a first portion 14 of the zigzag extension 14-15 is bent outwardly through a predetermined arc in a direction away from the plane of symmetry xx′ and a second bending point being provided at the end of the outwardly bent first portion 14, whereby a second portion 15 of the zigzag extension 14, 15 is being bent inwardly through the same aforementioned predetermined arc in a direction of rapprochement of the plane of symmetry xx′. It is therefore clear that in this second embodiment of the invention the upwardly bent side of the sheet metal mobile portion 1′ consists of three successive linear segments, i.e. a first linear segment 13 that is encased within the socket formed in between the upwardly extending terminal side surface 23 and the upwardly sloped section 22 of base portion 2, a second linear segment 14 extending between the aforementioned first and second bending points and a third linear segment 15 downstream of the second bending point, the latter inwardly bent linear segment 15 achieving displacement of the line of impact onto the wall of the chamber of the hollow profile member 50 in a position that ensures an optimal indentation thereof.
It is a requirement of the joint of the invention to provide the sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ made from a relatively hard metal, such as steel or other, so that it may have the capacity of indentation of the walls of the profile members 50 being connected, the latter being made from a relatively softer material, such as aluminium or plastic or other.
The fixedly mounted slide base portion 2 as shown in
With the configuration described hereinabove a certain desirable necessary length of contact of the firmly mounted base portion 2 with the overlying sheet metal mobile portion 1, 1′ is ensured such length of contact providing an appropriate slide guide for the mobile portion 1, 1′.
The aforementioned upwardly bent terminal parts 13 of the sheet metal mobile portion 1 or 13-14-15 of the sheet metal mobile portion 1 respectively have a length such that, as shown in
As characteristically shown in the enlarged detail view of
As illustrated in
Alternatively or in addition to the raised slide base portion 2′ described hereinabove that is appropriately applicable in the connection of hollow profile members 50 with chambers 53a, 53b of a larger width, the standard slide base portion 2 might be employed to serve connection of such profile members by means of lifting it at the desired height through using an additional base raising member 3, which, as illustrated in
In
It is therefore made evident that the angular connection of varying sizes of hollow profile members necessitates using an appropriate base portion 2 or 2′ or 2″ in combination with an appropriate sheet metal mobile portion 1 or 1′ in order to implement an optimally reliable angular connection of the hollow profile members with the joint of the invention satisfying certain predetermined geometrical parameters as enlisted hereinbelow:
As mentioned in the introductory part hereinabove, an object of the present invention is to carry out an appropriate forming of the aberrant terminal edge of the sheet metal portion of the joint of the invention after cutting thereof with a scope of aligning it in the longitudinal direction of the planar sheet metal and of creating a sharpened edge thereof as appropriate for impacting and indenting the wall of the chambers of the hollow profile members being connected.
As illustrated in
It is herein noted that the aligned configuration of the terminal edge of the sheet metal portion is not visible to a naked eye, but it is observed as a change in the texture of the surface of the sheet metal portion 1 or 1′.
The use of the joint of the invention specifies an innovative method of angular connection of a pair of abutting hollow profile members made from aluminium and related materials, the method comprising the following steps:
a. Cutting the edges of the hollow profile members 50 adapted to being angularly connected, such cutting being made at an angle having half the value of the intended angle of connection of hollow profile members 50, e.g. for an intended connection of hollow profile members at an angle of 90°, profile edges are cut at an angle of 45°, and drilling of a hole 51a,b allowing driving of the key 51 used for tightening the bolt 5, wherein one half 51a of hole 51a,b is located centrally along the edge of chamber 53a of a first one of the hollow profile members 50 being connected and another half 51b of hole 51a,b is located centrally along the edge of chamber 53b of a second one of the hollow profile members 50 being connected.
b. Selecting a base portion 2 or 2′ of the joint of the invention with or without an additional base raising member 3 appropriately corresponding to the width of the chambers (53a, 53b) of the hollow profile members being connected or of a base portion 2″ in combination with a sheet metal portion 1 or 1′ and performing assembly of the joint through driving of the bolt 5 through the through hole 10a of the sheet metal portion 1 or 1′ and screwing the same into the nut 4 mounted onto the base portion.
c. Introduction of a first half of the assembled joint into the chamber 53a of a first one of the hollow profile members 50 being connected.
d. Bringing chamber 53b of a second one of the hollow profile members 50 being connected into matching contact with chamber 53a of the first one of the hollow profile members 50 being connected and inserting the second half of the assembled joint that projects outwardly from chamber 53a into the chamber 53b, whereby hole 51a,b is being formed through the abutment of matching half holes 51a and 51b.
e. Inserting the key 51 through the hole 51a,b and rotation thereof for screwing bolt 5 into the nut 4 until said upwardly bent parts 13 of the sheet metal portion 1 or 13-14-15 of the sheet metal portion 1′ impact and indent the walls of chambers 53a, 53b thereby resulting at a firm connection of the hollow profile members 50 and alignment of the joint due to its symmetrical arrangement on either side of the plane of symmetry xx′.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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20150100500 | Nov 2015 | GR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/GR2016/000062 | 11/18/2016 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2017/085521 | 5/26/2017 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3782054 | Goss, Jr. | Jan 1974 | A |
3848390 | Anderson | Nov 1974 | A |
3967910 | Tollefsrud | Jul 1976 | A |
4076438 | Bos | Feb 1978 | A |
6042298 | Mastrogiannis | Mar 2000 | A |
7509780 | Leontaridis | Mar 2009 | B2 |
20060059843 | Leontaridis | Mar 2006 | A1 |
20080152849 | Lenhardt | Jun 2008 | A1 |
20080263973 | Lenhardt | Oct 2008 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2904068 | Jan 2008 | FR |
2004033837 | Apr 2004 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20180334848 A1 | Nov 2018 | US |