Patent Application
20060118772
The present invention relates to the field of prefabricated fencing panels and, in particular, to a decorative polymeric fence construction that is lightweight and permits shipping in a stacked array.
There are numerous examples of prefabricated fence sections that can be assembled to form a continuous structure. Earlier prefabricated fences were assembled from individual sections made of wood. Usually, each section had a fence post at each end for anchoring in the ground. Other fence sections were made with pilings or panels attached to supporting frame members and the frame members were assembled to pre-set fence posts
U.S. Pat. No. 42,166, discloses a portable fence. The fence consists of panels of longitudinal strips attached parallel to upright bars, a single nail or bolt passing through the strips and bars at the intersections. The panels are connected together and secured to the ground by means of stakes which pass through metal loops or eyes attached to the ends of the panels. The panels may be arranged in straight line, zigzag or other form and may be utilized on level or inclined ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 174,973, discloses a portable fence. The fence consisting of panels, constructed of a number of rails secured together by vertical bars. Eyelets are secured to the ends of the rails by tangs fitting in grooves along the rails. The panels are connected together and secured to the ground by means of stakes which pass through the eyelets attached to the ends of the panels. A brace consisting of a stanchion is placed about midway along the length of the panels. The stanchion includes looped ends through which stakes are driven into the ground to secure the panels.
U.S. Pat. No. 197,806, discloses a portable fence. The fence consisting of panels, constructed of a number of rails secured together by vertical bars. Eyelets are secured to the ends of the rails and stakes having hooks secured thereto are driven into the ground through the eyelets until the hook contacts the uppermost eyelet.
U.S. Pat. No. 326,902, discloses a farm fence constructed of a number of rails secured together by vertical bars. Wire strands extend between the upper portions of the vertical bars to prevent livestock from leaning against the fence sections and eyelets are secured to the ends of the rails. Stakes having hooks secured thereto are driven into the ground through the eyelets until the hook contacts the uppermost eyelet.
More recently, wood, wire and ropes have been replaced with man-made materials such as polymers, pressed board, fiberglass, etc. These materials offer advantages in uniformity of shape, ease of assembly, upkeep, and longevity. One such prefabricated fence is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,772,998. The fence assembly comprises a plurality of post members, a plurality of rail members and a plurality of paling members. The post members are connected to the rail members via openings on the inside face of the post members and projections at the end of the rail. The connection between the paling members is established by passing the paling members through a plurality of openings in the rail members. The bottom of the post member may be connected to a foot. Typically the foot is a precast concrete block. The block may have a cavity extending downwardly from the top wall to a depth suitable to hold the fence post. The cavity may be enlarged at one side to accept a holding wedge.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,096, discloses a fence characterized by interchangeably mountable fence sections each having a front and a rear surface, and parallel pairs of vertical and horizontal edges. A mounting member having a mast-receiving opening therein is disposed adjacent each vertical edge of the wall portion of each of the fence sections. Each mounting member has a mating surface thereon disposed in the same plane as the mating surface provided on the other mounting member. When the first mating surface on the wall portion of a first fence section is matingly engaged with a mating surface provided on the other of the mounting members on a next-adjacent fence section, the mast-receiving openings therein are disposed in vertical registration. The fence section, including the wall portions and the mounting members, are integrally fabricated of a plastic material.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,753, discloses a moldable edge connecting apparatus that can optionally be employed as a hinge. It is suitable for use as fencing and is particularly applicable to removable fencing. It employs integrally molded connecting fingers that are designed without deep slots, lips thereover, or fully circumscribed openings. The entire structure is substantially coplanar with segments to be connected, even when used as a hinge, and utilizes half-round grooves that are substantially no deeper than the radius of the groove.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,498,660, discloses a fence structure consisting of modular panels mounted on posts. The modular panels are of thermoplastic or thermoset material having a rail portion and a connector at each end for fitting over the posts. The connector has an integral expansion joint in its central passage and each connector is offset in opposite directions to the longitudinal center of the panel to provide a hinged effect with the connectors of adjacent panels in the fence. The construction is readily adaptable to sloping ground and variation in height between panels and provides simplified installation-by easy alignment.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,484,081, discloses a pre-fabricated picket fence. The picket fence consists of a series of repeating units hingedly engaged with each other to form a fence. Each unit includes a vertically elongated picket and a pair of rails mounted to each picket. One rail is mounted adjacent the upper portion of the picket and one rail is mounted adjacent the lower portion of the picket. Each rail having a tongue horizontally extending from one side of the picket and a pair of flanges forming a groove adapted to receive a tongue extending from the other side of the picket. The tongues and flanges are vertically aligned and a sharpened dowel is placed through aligned apertures and driven into the ground to secure the fence.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,609,327, discloses a portable fence panel for use on a support surface. The fence includes a rectangular frame member having a pair of side frame portions and a top and bottom frame portion. The frame portions have an outer and inner surface defining an aperture through the frame member. The panel includes cross-members in the frame aperture for restricting passage therethrough. One of the side frame portions has at least one first connector portion extending therefrom defining a connector surface and having at least one aperture therethrough. The panel also includes at least one second connector portion extending-from the other side frame portion having a connector surface which is substantially coplanar with the connector surface of the first connector portion. The second connector portions extend in a direction opposite the first connector portion and have at least one aperture therethrough. The panel also includes supports extending from the bottom frame portion. The supports have a contact portion supported by the support surface and a connector portion having at least one aperture therethrough. To connect a plurality of fence panels, a pin is positioned through one of the connecting portion apertures in a connector portion of a first and second panel and a second pin is positioned in a second connector portion aperture of the first panel and a connector portion aperture in a third panel.
U.S. Pat. No. D427,322, illustrates an ornamental design for a fence section. having a cross lattice shape on the upper portion and a vertical lattice shape on the lower portion.
Included in the broad field of prefabricated fencing, lattice screens are well known for decorative use, as well as, for providing a barrier. One advantage of this structure is the lessened wind resistance. The lattice is usually mass produced of a series of small thin longitudinal pieces laid over a series of small thin lateral pieces at a ninety degree angle and fastened together leaving interstices of varying sizes. Again, the traditional wooden construction has given way to plastics and other synthetic materials. Examples of such structures are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,398,193; 6,308,487 and 6,286,284.
Typically the prior art utilizes rectangular corner posts and are thus designed for joining in straight lines or right angles. For example, the posts generally have bores or slots extending through the posts at right angles to each other allowing the panel supports to be aligned or oriented normal to each other. Any other angular relationship may require some modification of the posts or the panel sections or both.
Prior art fences are also semi-permanent in that placement of the fence posts usually results in a post anchored into a hole in the ground that may be filled with concrete. Adjustment of the fence requires substantial labor.
In addition the prior art fencing is heavy and difficult to ship. The sections must be dismantled and the pieces spaced apart within the packaging to prevent damage during shipment.
What is needed in the art is a fencing system that provides secure privacy, adaptability in layout, ease of changing the fence line and can be installed without damage to the fence posts. The fencing system should also be lightweight and should be constructed for stacked packaging in a nested arrangment for ease of shipment.
An objective of this invention is to provide a low-cost fence that is lightweight, highly durable, easy to install, and provides a visual barrier to screen an interior area from view.
Another objective of this invention is to provide preconstructed fence panels that are stackable in a nested configuration for storage and shipping purposes.
A further objective of this invention is to provide identical molded panels with integrally formed reinforced brackets on each end of the panels disposed to interlock with a tubular fence post such that a series of panels can be installed along uneven surfaces.
Yet another objective of this invention is to provide fence posts cooperating with the interlocking brackets to link the panels together and anchor the panels to the ground without damage to the fence posts.
Still yet another objective of this invention is to provide the brackets and posts with complementary shape permitting the panels to be assembled in an infinite angular array.
A still further objective of this invention is to provide a novel bracket configuration which provides increased strength characteristics using minimal plastic.
Still yet a further objective of this invention is to provide legs at each end of each panel extending below the lower margin for ground clearance.
The outdoor screen fence 10, shown in
Referring to
In one embodiment, the legs 15, 16 extend above and below the panel 14. The foot 28 of the leg 15 rests on the ground or other surface and-supports the weight of the fence section 11 along with the foot 29 of leg 16. The space 30 between the ground and the bottom frame rail 27, along with the openings 24, allow air to circulate through the outdoor screen fence 10 to reduce loads caused by wind.
As shown in
The outer surface of leg 15 is formed with two integrally formed brackets 31 projecting outwardly, as shown in
It should be appreciated that the shell-like construction of the fence sections 11 result in a lightweight fence section construction capable of distributing forces such as wind-loads over an increased area. The shell-like panel construction also permits the panels 11 to be stacked in a nested arrangement, as shown in
Referring to
A number of embodiments of the present invention have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited by the specific illustrated embodiment but only by the scope of the appended claims.
