BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
a is a cross-sectional view of a skirting board arrangement in accordance with the invention in the installed state and FIG. 1b is a frontal view thereof,
FIG. 2 shows a first embodiment of a connecting element in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of a connecting element in accordance with the invention,
FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of a connecting element in accordance with the invention, and
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the connecting element taken along line 1-1 in FIG. 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows a skirting board arrangement 1 with a skirting board 3 attached to a wall 2, a one-piece connecting element 4 being introduced from the outside through the skirting board 3 into a common drill hole 5 of the skirting board 3 and the wall 2 and being connected non-positively to the wall 2. The drill hole 5 is produced by drilling through the skirting board 3 and by directly subsequently drilling into the wall 2 in a continuous drilling process. The skirting board 3 is held by the connecting element 4 in a form-fit and force-fit manner on the wall 2 and adjoins the floor 6. In the lengthwise direction, the skirting board arrangement 1 has a plurality of other drill holes 5 and other connecting elements 4 (FIG. 1b) which are located at regular distances, and which are designed for similarly fastening of the skirting board 3 to the wall 2.
In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1a, 1b, the fastening body 7 of the connecting element 4 has been driven in the drill hole 5. The fastening body 7 has a plurality of ribs 8 which extend radially outward, which are located near one another in the lengthwise direction, and which, when the connecting element 4 is driven into the drill hole 5, are deformed against the driving direction, at least in the edge region, and in doing so, form a force-fit connection to the wall 2. The ribs 8 have a disk-shaped cross-sectional shape, the diameter of the ribs 8 being at least slightly larger than the inside diameter of the drill hole 5. Otherwise, the ribs 8 can be bent at least so far that it is possible to drive the fastening body 7 into the drill hole 5 and anchor it. When the fastening body 7 is driven completely into the wall 2, the head 9 of the connecting element 4 rests against the skirting board 3, by which it is pressed against the wall 2.
The drill hole 5 is drilled on the outside to form a countersinking hole 10, the countersinking hole 10 being made conical. In the installed state the head 9 of the connecting element 4 which is likewise made conical is countersunk into the countersinking hole 10 and rests against the shoulder 11 of the skirting board 3. In this way, the skirting board 3 is fixed in its position to the wall 2. Between the head 9 and the fastening body 7, there is a neck 12 which can be easily bent in order to facilitate countersinking of the head 9 into the countersinking hole 10.
FIGS. 2 to 4 show alternative embodiments of the connecting elements 4, the connecting element 4 shown in FIG. 3 corresponding to the connecting element 4 shown in FIG. 1. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the fastening body 7 has an outside thread 14 as ribs. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 & 3, the fastening body 7 has ribs 8 which are arranged distributed over the length of the fastening body 7 essentially with the same distance and parallel to one another. The fastening body 7 in addition to the ribs 8 has a base body 13 which is cross-shaped in the lengthwise direction. This is shown in FIG. 5. The ribs 8 and the base body 13 are made in one piece. The regular arrangement of the ribs 8 on the base body 13 ensures high stability of the fastening body 7. Force-fit attachment of the connecting element 4 in the wall 2 is enabled by the outside thread 14 and the ribs 8 in both embodiments.
FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of a connecting element 4 which, likewise, has a head 9, a neck 12, and a fastening body 7 with an outside thread 14. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the head 9 is arranged eccentrically to the lengthwise center line Y of the connecting element 4. The eccentric arrangement of the head 9 makes it possible to adjust the distance of the skirting board 3 from the floor 6 in the installed state of the skirting board arrangement 1 by turning the connecting element 4 around its lengthwise axis. The prerequisite here is that the other connecting elements 4 which are intended for fastening the skirting board 3 in the lengthwise direction of the skirting board 3 allow the corresponding adjustment.
Otherwise the head 9 of the connecting element 4 as shown in FIG. 4 has a side flange 15 on its outside 16 which projects in the radial direction beyond the head 9 such that the annular gap present in the installed state between the head 9 and the drill hole wall of the countersinking hole 10 in the skirting board 3 is overlapped by the flange 15. In this way, the head 9 is not perceived as such by the observer; this is aesthetically pleasing. Moreover, the head 9 has a slot 17 on its outer end 16 which is used as the action section for a turning tool (not shown).
To open the drill hole 5 by drilling, a specially adapted drill (not shown) can be used; it has a drill shaft with a drill tip and a flat head section spaced apart from it. The selected distance between the tip of the drill shaft and the flat head section makes it possible to drive the drill hole 5 deep enough into the wall 2 so that the fastening body 7 can be screwed or driven completely into the wall 2. The drill with the drill shaft and flat head section makes it possible to first drill through the skirting board 3 in one working or drilling process and to drive the drill hole 5 into the wall 2. When the drill hole 5 has reached a given depth in the wall 2, the flat head section engages the outer side of the skirting board 3, the drill hole 5 on the outside of the skirting board 3 being opened into a countersinking hole 10 by drilling. After the drilling process, the connecting element 4 is driven or screwed into the drill hole 5 so deep that the skirting board 3 is held by a press-fit in the hole and a form-fit against the wall 2 by the head 9 of the connecting element 4 which acts against the shoulder 11 of the skirting board 3.
Furthermore, it can be provided that the outside of the head 9 and the outside of the skirting board 3 have the same color and/or the same grain, and the surface of the head can be matched to the different base surfaces. For example, there can be a head surface on the visible side in shades or grains: natural beech, flat beech, oak, maple, heat treated wood (dark brown to black), exotic wood (dark brown to red), white or silver (see, FIG. 1b). This contributes to an esthetically pleasing overall impression of the skirting board, the head of the connecting element being perceived only little or not at all as an integral component of the skirting board.