Patent Application
20080184644
The invention relates to suspended ceiling systems and, in particular, to accessories for customizing the appearance of standard rectangular grid supported ceilings.
Typically, suspended ceilings in commercial buildings and like applications use a rectangular metal grid carried by suspension wires hung from overhead supporting structure. The grid, most frequently, is made up of main runners and cross runners both with inverted tee shaped cross sections. Panels are laid onto the lower flanges of the tees to complete the ceiling. Ordinarily, the grid pattern is an array of square or rectangular modules typically on 4′ or 5′ centers, or like metric dimensions, and fractions thereof. Suspended ceiling systems as described have evolved to the point that they can be economical to produce and install. The panels are available with various surface textures and designs on their visible faces and various edge treatments to provide different appearances in the finished ceiling. Similarly, the grid tees are produced with different widths and/or are assembled with the panels to be partially or fully concealed. These variants can produce a range of different looks in the finished ceiling, but there remains a continued interest in obtaining still greater variation in the basic planar regular square or rectangular repeating pattern.
The invention combines unique grid stabilizer bar and grid trim members that allow the grid runner spacing to be varied to any desired dimension and/or the planar expanse of the finished ceiling surface to be interrupted with parallel feature trim strips. The stabilizer bar has the basic shape of a simple angle section with unique cutouts at its opposite ends. By adjusting the longitudinal spacing of the cutouts at opposite ends of the bar, the bar can be used to achieve essentially any desired spacing between a pair of parallel tees. The trim members or strips are assembled on main runner grid tees as a feature that gives a distinctive linear look to the ceiling and thus differentiates it from conventional rectangular grid installations.
The stabilizer bar is arranged to be installed on a pair of main runner grid tees of conventional construction by simple manipulation of these elements and without the need for separate fasteners. Similarly, the trim members can be assembled on known styles of grid tees with limited assembly effort and without separate fasteners when it is used with the stabilizer bar of the invention.
When the stabilizer bar and trim member are used together, the stabilizer bar is formed with an integral tab or flag that, prior to assembly with the trim member, is bent out of the original plane of its parent sheet stock and when assembled with the trim member is bent down to its original plane. In this returned position, the tab or flag captures a part of the trim member and prevents the trim member from moving out of its installed position. In the preferred embodiment, the trim member is arranged to project, fin-like, downwardly from the plane of the ceiling panels and is thereby enabled to give a distinctive linear look to the ceiling.
Referring now to the drawings, there is partially shown a suspended ceiling system 10 having parallel main runners or main grid tees 11 and cross runners or grid cross tees 12. U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,580, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein, illustrates an example of the construction of the tees in greater detail. The illustrated tees 11, 12, are of the open slot or bolt slot style, where a ceiling panel supporting flange 16 on the lower side of the tee is a hollow box-shaped structure with a slot 17 on its lower face. The flange 16 is channel-like with the letter “C” lying on its side. The slot 17 is symmetrically arranged on both sides of a central plane defined by a double wall web 13. The illustrated tees 11, 12, are made of a single strip of sheet metal, typically steel. The tees 11, 12 have a hollow rectangular upper reinforcing bulb 14. Margins of the lower sides or parts 19 of the box-like flange 16 that forms the boundary of the open slot 17 each have an internal hem 21 formed by a fold of the sheet metal extending a short distance away from the slot 17 and terminating at an edge 22.
The cross runners or cross tees 12, as is conventional, are provided with an end connector 26 at each of their ends. The end connector 26 is received in a through slot in the web 13 of the main tees 11, the slots being formed at regularly spaced locations along the length of the main tee. As indicated in
The cross tees 12 can have a cross-section identical or similar to that of the main tees 11. Ceiling panels 28 are commonly rabbetted at their peripheries in a manner that when assembled on the grid tees 11, 12, the lower visible faces of the panels are flush, i.e. coplanar with the lower sides of the lower flange parts 19.
The illustrated pair of main tees 11 are spaced and held in parallel relation by a plurality of stabilizer bars 30 spaced at suitable locations along the length of the main tees. Such spacing can be the distance of a modular dimension of the ceiling system, typically, 4′ or 5′ or a metric equivalent. Other spacings of the stabilizer bars 30 can be used as appropriate. The stabilizer bar 30, preferably, is a relatively plain sheet metal part that can be made with simple tooling. With reference to
From the blanked flat configuration shown in
Two parallel slots 46, 47 are cut into the body of the blank 31 perpendicular to its longitudinal axis 32 at each end on each side. Adjacent slots 46, 47 create a tab or flag 48 which, when the stabilizer bar is first made, is bent out of the plane of the respective leg. The tabs 48 are bent so that they lie in a common horizontal plane when the stabilizer bar is in its initially installed position with its corner (formed on the bend line along its longitudinal axis 32) at the top and the legs 33 depending from the corner.
Various steps or techniques can be used to assemble the stabilizer bars 30 with the ceiling grid system 10. In one manner, the main tees 11 are suspended and, thereafter, the cross tees 12 and stabilizer bars 30 are assembled starting at one edge of the ceiling and working in the direction in which the cross tees 12 and stabilizer bars 30 extend. Assuming one or more rows of cross tees 12 are suspended in position according to regular practice, a row of stabilizer bars 30 can be assembled. Each stabilizer bar 30 is angled down from above the plane of the main tees 11 and the lower end is positioned, as indicated in
The spacing of the stabilizer bars 30 can be determined by the length of light fixtures, air vents, or other accessories disposed laterally between the associated main runners 11 and longitudinally between the stabilizer bars
The suspended ceiling system includes a trim strip 51 preferably formed as an extrusion of suitable material such as aluminum or a dimensionally stable plastic or composite. The trim strip 51 can be supplied as a straight elongated member of 10′ or 12′ in length or metric equivalent, for example. The strip 51 has an upper portion 52 that has the general cross-sectional configuration of the letter “G”. The wall areas of this configuration include a horizontal top 53, a vertical side 54, a horizontal part 55, a vertical short side 56, and a short narrow horizontal grip 57. A free edge of the grip 57 has its underside rounded or otherwise tapered at 58 so that preferably at least a portion of its local surface area has an upward inclination from the horizontal, preferably.
The illustrated trim strip 51 has a lower portion in the form of a hollow rectangular box section 61 formed at its top by the horizontal wall part 55, depending parallel vertical walls 62 and a lower wall 63. The trim strip 51 can be installed on the main tees 11 after the cross tees 12 and stabilizer bars 30 are assembled in place. It will be seen that the walls 53, 54 and 55 form a hollow zone 66 of sufficient width and height to fully receive the portion 67 of a connector 26 of a cross tee 12 that extends through the main runner web 13. The trim strip 51 is proportioned so that the underside surface of the horizontal top 53 rests n the upper edges of the connector portions 67 or immediately above these edges so that the connectors are able to assist in the retention of the trim strip on the main tee 11.
The trim strip 51 is installed by aligning it with a main tee 11, tilting it out of plumb and inserting the short wall 56 and grip 57 into the open slot 17. With the underside surface 58 of the grip 57 overlying the area of the flange 16 formed by the hem 21, the trim strip is pivoted to a plumb position where a distal or free edge 68 of the top wall 53 abuts the tee web 13. With the trim strip 51 provisionally held in this position manually or with suitable temporary clamping elements, the tabs or flags 48 can be manually bent downwardly to the position or elevation, shown in
The trim strip can be provided with any desired finish and/or color. Additionally, the trim strip can be modified to change its appearance such as by altering the height or width of the lower section 61 or eliminating it altogether. Ordinarily, the stabilizer bars 30 are used at specific areas in a ceiling while in surrounding or adjacent areas conventional cross tees are used to space parallel main tees. The stabilizer bars 30 can be used with standard non-slotted grid tees and can be used in applications where the trim strip is not used. In the latter case, the tabs 48 can be omitted, for example, by not cutting the slots 46, 47.
It should be evident that this disclosure is by way of example and that various changes may be made by adding, modifying or eliminating details without departing from the fair scope of the teaching contained in this disclosure. The invention is therefore not limited to particular details of this disclosure except to the extent that the following claims are necessarily so limited.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 11617143 | Dec 2006 | US |
| Child | 12098676 | US |
