MOUNTING CLIP FOR BUILDING BOARDS

Abstract

A mounting clip for attaching building boards to a support structure of a wall has a fixation arrangement attaching the mounting clip to a stud of the support structure. After that the mounting clip has been attached to the support structure, attachment tongues receive a respective groove of a building board, thus holding the building boards to the support structure. Each attachment tongue has at least one barbed grip member for locking the building board in an innermost position on the mounting clip. The innermost position has a deepest distance that the attachment tongue has been inserted into the groove of building board.

Description

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the production of inner walls in buildings and edifices. Particularly, the invention pertains to a mounting clip for attaching building boards to a support structure of a wall.

Today, there are many solutions for mounting cladding, for example in the form of wooden panels and similar on the walls of a house. Moreover, there are established methods for mounting other kinds of wall coatings inside a room, such as boards of plaster, wood fiber or laminated wood. A common denominator for the latter methods is that they require particular measures to accomplish good looking joints between the different wall elements of the coating. To combine an aesthetically appealing look with an uncomplicated and cost-efficient manufacturing has proven to be especially challenging.

One example of a relatively cost-efficient design is a system where plasterboards are pre-wallpapered with wallpaper extending around the edges of the plasterboards. Further, the plasterboards are provided with hidden attachment means on the backside or at the edges of the boards for fitting the boards onto a wall structure. This allows a room to be completed for occupancy in a very short time.

Nevertheless, also these prefabricated systems may be improved further. In particular, the quality and cost efficiency of the attachment means for securing building boards onto a supporting structure can be enhanced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is therefore to provide an improved mounting clip for attaching building boards to a support structure.

According to one aspect of the invention, the object is achieved by the initially described mounting clip, wherein the at least one attachment tongue includes at least one barbed grip member configured to lock the at least one building board in an innermost position on the mounting clip. The innermost position is given by a deepest distance that the at least one attachment tongue has been inserted into the groove of at least one building board.

This mounting clip is advantageous because the proposed attachment tongues allow convenient connection of the building boards while ensuring that the building boards are fixated in adequate positions on the supporting structure.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the mounting clip has a base member in the form of a flat plate. The at least one attachment tongue further includes at least one flange extending in parallel with the flat plate, and the at least one barbed grip member is included in the at least one attachment tongue. This configuration is beneficial because it both facilitates attaching the mounting clip to the support structure and enables convenient attachment of the building boards to the mounting clip.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the at least one attachment tongue includes at least one leg plate connecting the at least one flange with the base member. The at least one leg plate extends in a direction perpendicular to the flat surface of the base member. Preferably, the at least one barbed grip member is arranged on the at least one flange, such that a perpendicular distance between the at least one barbed grip member and the base member is smaller in a gap portion proximate to the at least one leg plate than in an origin portion proximate to a tip of the at least one flange, which tip is located opposite the at least one leg plate. Namely, this configuration is desirable since it accomplishes a both efficient and simple locking function for the building boards relative to the mounting clip.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the fixation arrangement includes a clamp leg and a clamping member. The clamp leg extends in a direction perpendicular to the flat plate, and the clamping member, in turn, extends in a direction perpendicular to the clamp leg.

The fixation arrangement is configured to attach the mounting clip to a stud of a support structure by an interconnection line between the clamp leg and the clamping member adjoining an edge line of the stud, which edge line delimits a first outer surface of the stud from a second outer surface of the stud. In other words, the clamp leg and the clamping member grasp around the stud, at least partially, and the mounting clip is held in place by friction forces. This is advantageous because it renders particular fasteners for the mounting clip superfluous.

Alternatively, or additionally, the fixation arrangement contains at least one opening configured to receive a fastener (e.g. a nail, a screw or a rivet) so as to fixate the mounting clip to the stud. Fasteners of this kind are desirable, since they are capable of securing the mounting clip to the support structure very strongly. A combination of friction-based attachment and attachment via fasteners is advantageous because the mounting clip can be held in place by friction until the fasteners have been applied.

According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the mounting clip includes first and second attachment tongues. The first attachment tongue is configured to be received in a first groove of a first building board. The first attachment tongue is received in a first direction. The second attachment tongue is configured to be received in a second groove of a second building board. The second attachment tongue is received in a second direction opposite to the first direction. In other words, the first and second building boards meet at the mounting clip and they are also linked both to one another and to the support structure at this point. This is highly beneficial with respect to convenience as well as mounting efficiency.

According to still another embodiment of the invention, the at least one attachment tongue has been formed by punching out at least one opening in the base member. Namely, such a design is very beneficial with respect to cost efficiency because no welding or other assembly of pieces is required. Moreover, if the mounting clip includes said first and second attachment tongues, these are preferably separate from one another and have been formed by punching out a respective opening in the base member.

Alternatively, the first and second attachment tongues instead share a common leg plate. This ensures that the first and second building boards meet at a common point on the mounting clip. However such a design typically does not allow forming the attachment tongues by punching out an opening in the base member.

In any case, an outer edge of the flange that extends in parallel with the flat plate is preferably toothed. Namely, this facilitates inserting the flange into the groove of a building board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will now be explained more closely by means of embodiments, which are described as examples, and with reference to the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a mounting clip according to a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a first side view of the mounting clip according to the first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 shows top view of the mounting clip according to the first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 shows a second side view of the mounting clip according to the first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates how the proposed mounting clip can be used to attach building boards to a support structure according to one embodiment of the invention; and

FIGS. 6-8 show perspective views of the mounting clip according to a second, third and fourth embodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a mounting clip 100 according to a first embodiment of the invention, which mounting clip 100 is adapted for attaching building boards to a support structure of a wall. FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 show a first side view, a top view and a second side view respectively of the first embodiment of the mounting clip 100.

The mounting clip 100 includes a fixation arrangement and at least one attachment tongue, here exemplified by 110, 120 and 130 respectively. According to the invention, the fixation arrangement is configured to attach the mounting clip 100 to a stud of the support structure by friction force, by fasteners, or both. In the first embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, however, the fixation arrangement is represented by a clamp leg 150 and a clamping member 160 that are adapted to grasp partly around the stud, so as to hold the mounting clip 100 in place by friction.

The attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 are configured to be received in grooves of building boards after that the mounting clip 100 has been attached to the stud. This will be discussed below, inter alia with reference to FIG. 5. When the attachment tongues 110 and 130 have been inserted into the groove of a first building board and the attachment tongue 120 has been inserted into the groove of a second building board, the first and second building boards are held to the support structure by the mounting clip 100, i.e. the building boards are mounted onto the support structure. More precisely, according to the invention, the attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 include at least one respective barbed grip member 110G, 120G and 130G, which each is configured to lock a building board in an innermost position on the mounting clip 100. The innermost position is here given by a deepest distance that the respective attachment tongue 110, 120 and 130 has been inserted into the groove of the building board.

Preferably, the mounting clip 100 has a base member 140 in the form of a flat plate. Moreover, each attachment tongue 110, 120 and 130 advantageously includes at least one flange 110F, 120F and 130F that extends in parallel with the flat plate. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 the attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 include one respective barbed grip member 110G, 120G and 130G.

Further preferably, the attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 include a respective leg plate 110L, 120L and 130L that connects the flanges 110F, 120F and 130F respectively with the base member 140. Each of the leg plates 110L, 120L and 130L extends in a direction perpendicular to the flat surface of the base member 140. In order to ensure that the edges of the building boards meet one another and line up in parallel at the mounting clip 100, the leg plates 110L, 120L and 130L should form a straight line along the base member 140 as can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Additionally, to obtain the desired locking function, i.e. that the building board is secured in an innermost position on the mounting clip 100, the barbed grip members 110G, 120G and 130G are preferably arranged on the flanges 110F, 120F and 130F respectively, such that a perpendicular distance d1 between the at least one barbed grip member 110G, 120G and 130G and the base member 140 is smaller in a gap portion proximate to the leg plate 110L, 120L and 130L respectively than a perpendicular distance d2 at an origin portion proximate to a tip of the at least one flange 110F, 120F and 130F. The tip is located opposite the at least one leg plate 110L, 120L and 130L respectively.

In the first embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, the fixation arrangement is represented by a clamp leg 150 and a clamping member 160. The clamp leg 150 extends in a direction perpendicular to the flat plate of the base member 140. The clamping member 160, in turn, extends in a direction perpendicular to the clamp leg 150.

Referring now to FIG. 5, we will explain how the fixation arrangement is configured to attach the mounting clip 100 to a stud 520 of a support structure. FIG. 5 specifically illustrates how the mounting clip 100 can be used to attach building boards 510a and 510b to a stud 520 with a rectangular cross section.

The mounting clip 100 is placed so that an interconnection line 155 between the clamp leg 150 and the clamping member 160 adjoins an edge line 520E of the stud 520. Since the stud 520 has a rectangular cross section, and the edge line 520E delimits a first outer surface of the stud 520 from a second outer surface of the stud 520, the first and second outer surfaces are perpendicular to one another.

First, the mounting clip 100 is attached to the stud 520 via the above fixation arrangement, which grasps around the stud 520 and thus holds the mounting clip 100 in place by friction force.

In other words, the mounting clip 100 is attached to the stud 520 by the interconnection line 155 between the clamp leg 150 and the clamping member 160 adjoining the edge line 520E as illustrated in FIG. 5, As mentioned above, the friction-based fixation of the mounting clip to the stud 520 may be supplemented by one or more fasteners through the mounting clip 100 (not shown in FIGS. 1-5).

After having fastened the mounting clip 100 to the support structure, a first building board 510a is brought against the mounting clip 100 in such a manner that an attachment tongue (not shown in FIG. 5) of the mounting clip 100 is introduced into a first groove 501a of the first building board 510a. Thereby, the first building board 510a is attached to the mounting clip 100, and thus also to the stud 520 and the support structure. Subsequently, a second building board 510b is brought against the mounting clip 100 in such a manner that a flange 110F of another attachment tongue of the mounting clip 100 is introduced into a second groove 501 b of the second building board 510b. Hence, the second building board 510b is attached to the mounting clip 100 and the stud 520 of the support structure. Since each attachment tongue 110, 120 and 130 includes at least one barbed grip member 110G, 120G and 130G respectively the building boards 510a and 510b are locked in an innermost position on the mounting clip 100. The innermost position is given by a deepest distance D that the attachment tongue 110, 120 and 130 respectively has been inserted into the groove 501a or 501b of the first or second building board 510a or 510b respectively.

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the mounting clip 100 according to a second embodiment of the invention. As can be seen, the attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 have here been formed by punching out at least one opening 110P, 120P and 130P respectively in the base member 140. Then the punched out plate segments are bent into the desired profiles of the attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130.

The attachment tongues 110, 120 and 130 are also separate from one another with respect to their leg plates and each attachment tongue 110, 120 and 130 has been formed from a respective plate segment corresponding to a separate opening 110P, 120P and 130P respectively.

Moreover, the base plate 140 is provided with a fixation arrangement including openings 610 and 620 that are configured to receive a respective fastener so as to fixate the mounting clip 100 to the stud 520.

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the mounting clip 100 according to a third embodiment of the invention, where instead, the first and second attachment tongues 110 and 120 share a common leg plate 715. This means that the mounting clip 100 can be made very compact. However, it is typically not possible to form this type of attachment tongues 110 and 120 based on punched-out openings in the base plate 140.

FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of the mounting clip 100 according to a fourth embodiment of the invention.

Also here, the fixation arrangement contains openings 810, 820, 830 and 840 that are configured to receive a respective fastener so as to fixate the mounting clip 100 to the stud 520. However in this embodiment, no friction-based fixation arrangement is included. As a result, the mounting clip 100 becomes very compact.

In any embodiment of the invention, the mounting clip 100 an outer edge of the flange 110F, 120F and 130F extending in parallel with the flat plate is preferably toothed. Namely, this facilitates introducing the flange 110F, 120F and 130F into the grooves of the building boards.

The invention is not restricted to the embodiments, which have been described above with reference to the drawings, however it may be varied freely within the scope of the subsequent claims.

Claims

1. A mounting clip for attaching building boards to a support structure of a wall, the mounting clip comprising: a fixation arrangement configured to attach the mounting clip to a stud of the support structure; andat least one attachment tongue configured to be received in a groove of at least one building board after the mounting clip has been attached to the stud, the at least one attachment tongue thus holding the at least one building board to the support structure,wherein the at least one attachment tongue comprises at least one barbed grip member configured to lock the at least one building board in an innermost position on the mounting clip, the innermost position being a deepest distance that the at least one attachment tongue has been inserted into the groove of at least one building board.

2. The mounting clip according to claim 1, further comprising a base member in the form of a flat plate, the at least one attachment tongue comprising at least one flange extending in parallel with the flat plate, and the at least one barbed grip member being included in the at least one attachment tongue.

3. The mounting clip according to claim 2, wherein the at least one attachment tongue comprises at least one leg plate connecting the at least one flange with the base member, the at least one leg plate extending in a direction perpendicular to the flat surface of the base member.

4. The mounting clip according to claim 3, wherein the at least one barbed grip member is arranged on the at least one flange such that a perpendicular distance between the at least one barbed grip member and the base member is smaller in a gap portion proximate to the at least one leg plate than a perpendicular distance between the at least one barbed grip member and the base member in an origin portion proximate to a tip of the at least one flange, the tip being located opposite the at least one leg plate.

5. The mounting clip according to claim 2, wherein the fixation arrangement comprises a clamp leg and a clamping member extending in a direction perpendicular to the flat plate, and the clamping member extending in a direction perpendicular to the clamp leg; the fixation arrangement being configured to attach the mounting clip of the support structure by an interconnection line between the clamp leg and the clamping member adjoining an edge line, the edge line delimiting a first outer surface of the stud from a second outer surface of the stud.

6. The mounting clip according to claim 3, wherein the at least one attachment tongue comprises: a first attachment tongue configured to be received in a first groove of a first building board of the at least one building board, the first attachment tongue being received in a first direction; anda second attachment tongue configured to be received in a second groove of a second building board of the at least one building board, the second attachment tongue being received in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

7. The mounting clip according to claim 3, wherein the at least one attachment tongue has been formed by punching out at least one opening in the base member.

8. The mounting clip according to claim 7, wherein the first and second attachment tongues are separate from one another and have been formed by punching out a respective opening in the base member.

9. The mounting clip according to claim 6, wherein the first and second attachment tongues share a common leg plate.

10. The mounting clip according to claim 2, wherein an outer edge of the flange extending in parallel with the flat plate is toothed.

11. The mounting clip according to claim 1, wherein the fixation arrangement comprises at least one opening configured to receive a fastener so as to fixate the mounting clip to the stud.