U.S. patent application number 16/393625 was filed with the patent office on 2019-11-07 for shower shelf.
The applicant listed for this patent is Schluter-Systems KG. Invention is credited to Werner Schluter.
Application Number | 20190335955 16/393625 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 66251707 |
Filed Date | 2019-11-07 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20190335955 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Schluter; Werner |
November 7, 2019 |
Shower Shelf
Abstract
Shower tray (1) for installation on two vertical walls (15, 16)
which extend essentially perpendicularly to one another, together
form a corner (12) and are clad with tiles (14) separated from one
another by horizontal joints (13), said shower tray (1) having a
flat, one-piece formed plate element (2) with an underside (3), an
upper side (4) which forms a tray surface and defines a plate
thickness (S) together with the underside (3) and at least three
end faces (5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 18) which connect the underside (3) of
the plate and the upper side (4) of the plate to one another and of
which two extend perpendicularly to one another, outwardly
projecting fastening projections (10) being provided on the two end
faces (5, 6) which extend perpendicularly to one another, and the
maximum overall height (H.sub.max) of the shower tray (1)
corresponding to the maximum plate thickness (S.sub.max).
Inventors: |
Schluter; Werner; (Iserlohn,
DE) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Schluter-Systems KG |
Iserlohn |
|
DE |
|
|
Family ID: |
66251707 |
Appl. No.: |
16/393625 |
Filed: |
April 24, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47K 3/281 20130101;
A47K 5/02 20130101; A47K 5/04 20130101; A47K 2201/00 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A47K 3/28 20060101
A47K003/28 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 26, 2018 |
DE |
20 2018 102 357.8 |
Claims
1. Shower tray (1) for installation on two vertical walls (15, 16)
which extend essentially perpendicularly to one another, together
form a corner (12) and are clad with tiles (14) separated from one
another by horizontal joints (13), said shower tray (1) having a
flat, one-piece formed plate element (2) with an underside (3), an
upper side (4) which forms a tray surface and defines a plate
thickness (S) together with the underside (3) and at least three
end faces (5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 18) which connect the underside (3) of
the plate and the upper side (4) of the plate to one another and of
which two extend perpendicularly to one another, wherein outwardly
projecting fastening projections (10) are provided on the two end
faces (5, 6) which extend perpendicularly to one another, and
wherein a maximum overall height (H.sub.max) of the shower tray (1)
corresponds to a maximum plate thickness (S.sub.max).
2. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein a height (h) of
the fastening projections (10) is in the range from 0.7 to 2.5
mm.
3. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein a height (h) of
the fastening projections (10) is less than the plate thickness
(S).
4. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein the plate
thickness (S) is in the range from 3 to 6 mm.
5. Shower tray (1) according to claim 4, wherein a height (h) of
the fastening projections (10) is less than the plate thickness
(S).
6. Shower tray (1) according to claim 5, wherein the fastening
projections (10) provided on one end face (5, 6) are each arranged
offset relative to one another in the direction of the plate
thickness (S) in such a way that, when the fastening projections
(10) are inserted in horizontally extending joints (13) separating
tiles (14) arranged on the walls (15, 16) from one another, a
predetermined slope of the upper side (4) of the plate element (2)
relative to the horizontal is set.
7. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein two end faces (5,
6) extending perpendicularly to one another and are connected to
one another via a further end face (11), the length (l) of which is
at least 20 mm.
8. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein the plate element
(2) is provided with passage openings (9) extending from the
underside (3) to the upper side (4).
9. Shower tray (1) according to claim 1, wherein the plate element
(2) is made of stainless steel or aluminium.
10. A method of using a shower tray (1) according to claim 1,
comprising: inserting all fastening projections (10) of the plate
element (2) in the horizontally extending joints (13) which
separate the tiles (14) from one another and meet at right angles.
Description
[0001] The present invention relates to a shower tray for
installation on two vertical walls which extend substantially
perpendicularly to one another, together form a corner and are clad
with tiles separated from one another by horizontal joints, having
a flat, one-piece formed plate element with an underside, an upper
side which forms a tray surface and defines a plate thickness
together with the underside and at least three end faces which
connect the underside of the plate and the upper side of the plate
and of which two extend perpendicularly to one another.
[0002] Such shower trays, which are used in the shower as trays for
shower gel, shampoo or the like, are known in the prior art in
various designs. They are normally made of bent sheet of a
stainless material and have a flat, onepiece formed plate element
with an underside, an upper side forming the tray surface and at
least three end faces, of which at least two end faces extend
perpendicularly to each other. For the attachment of such shower
trays to tiles arranged in the wall corner area, it is known that
the two end faces extending perpendicularly to each other are each
formed as upwardly or downwardly bent flanges defining a tile
contact surface. The tile contact surfaces of the flanges can then
be bonded to the tiles using an adhesive, in particular a
silicone-based adhesive. Alternatively, the fastening can also be
carried out using screws which are guided through through-holes
provided in the flanges and plugged into the wall. However, the
latter variant is disadvantageous if a surface seal is provided
between the wall and the tiles, as this is damaged by the screws. A
further possibility is to provide the flanges with a large number
of openings, as described for example in DE 10 2012 015 574 A1. In
this case, the shower tray is positioned between tiles arranged one
above the other when the walls are tiled, so that the plate element
of the shower tray is arranged in the area of the horizontal joints
separating the tiles from each other. This type of shower tray
attachment has the main advantage that it is very stable. A
disadvantage, however, is that the shower tray can only be attached
to already tiled walls by removing the tiles above and below the
position where the shower tray is to be attached. On the one hand,
this involves a great deal of effort. On the other hand, the tiles
can easily be damaged when they are removed, so that appropriate
replacements must be available.
[0003] Based on this state of the art, it is an object of this
invention to create a shower tray with an alternative
structure.
[0004] To solve this object, the present invention creates a shower
tray of the type mentioned at the beginning, which is characterized
in that outwardly projecting fastening projections are provided on
the two end faces extending perpendicular to each other, and that
the maximum overall height of the shower tray corresponds to the
maximum plate thickness. In other words, it is proposed to replace
the aforementioned flanges extending perpendicularly to the plate
element by outwardly projecting fastening projections which do not
project beyond the planes spanned by the underside and the upper
side of the plate element. Compared to the known flanges, such
fastening projections have the advantage that only a small amount
of material is required to form the fastening projections. On the
other hand, the plate thickness can be freely selected, since no
bending processing is required to produce the shower tray according
to the invention. Accordingly, the shower tray according to this
invention can be given a very high-quality design by a
comparatively large plate thickness. A further advantage is that
the shower tray according to this invention can be installed either
as part of the tiling process or retrospectively. In the former
case, the fastening projections only have to be pressed into the
not yet hardened joint grout. After the joint grout has hardened,
the shower tray is then securely attached to the walls. For a
subsequent installation, only the joint grout in the installation
area of the shower tray must be removed. This can then be replaced
with new joint grout or a silicone compound or similar, in order to
then insert and fasten the projections of the shower tray.
[0005] The height of the fastening projections is preferably in the
range from 0.7 to 2.5 mm and is thus selected in such a way that
the fastening projections can be used in conventional joint
widths.
[0006] According to a design of the present invention, the height
of the projections is less than the plate thickness, wherein the
plate thickness is preferably in the range of 3 to 6 mm. A plate
thickness in the specified plate thickness range leads to a very
high-quality appearance of the shower tray according to the
invention.
[0007] A plurality of fastening projections are preferably provided
on at least one end face, whereby a better hold of the shower tray
in the area of a joint is achieved.
[0008] It is advantageous that the fastening projections provided
on one end face in each case are arranged offset relative to one
another in the direction of the plate thickness in such a way that,
when the fastening projections are inserted in horizontally
extending joints separating tiles arranged on the walls from one
another, a predetermined slope of the upper side of the plate
element relative to the horizontal is set. Accordingly, water
accumulating on the upper side of the plate element can run off
when the shower tray is installed.
[0009] In accordance with a design of the present invention, the
two end faces extending perpendicularly to each other are connected
by another end face, the length of which is at least 20 mm. Due to
this additional end face, an opening is created between the tiles
and the shower tray in the corner area. On the one hand, water can
flow off through this opening. On the other hand, such an opening
facilitates the cleaning of tiles and shower tray in the corner
area.
[0010] The plate element is preferably made of stainless steel or
aluminium. For example, it can be cut out of a corresponding metal
plate and then finished using material-removing processes.
[0011] The present invention also proposes to use a shower tray in
accordance with the invention in such a way that all the fastening
projections of the plate element are inserted in horizontally
extending joints which separate tiles from one another and meet at
right angles.
[0012] Further characteristics and advantages of the present
invention become clear by the following description of a shower
tray according to the design of the present invention with
reference to the enclosed drawing. There's
[0013] FIG. 1 a perspective view of a shower tray according to a
first embodiment of the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 a side view of the shower tray in the direction of
arrow II in FIG. 1;
[0015] FIG. 3 another side view of the shower tray in the direction
of arrow III in FIG. 1;
[0016] FIG. 4 a perspective view of the shower tray shown in FIG. 1
during its installation;
[0017] FIG. 5 a top view of a shower tray according to a second
embodiment of the present invention;
[0018] FIG. 6 a side view in the direction of arrow VI in FIG. 5
and
[0019] FIG. 7 another side view in the direction of arrow VII in
FIG. 5.
[0020] In the following, identical reference numbers refer to
identical or similar parts or components.
[0021] FIG. 1 shows a shower tray 1 according to a first embodiment
of the present invention. The shower tray 1 comprises a plate
element 2 with an underside 3, an upper side 4 forming a tray
surface, which defines a plate thickness S together with the
underside, and four end faces 5, 6, 7 and 8 connecting the plate
upper side 2 and the plate underside 3 to one another, the end
faces 5 and 6 extending perpendicularly to one another. The plate
element 2 is made in one piece from an aluminium or stainless steel
plate. The plate thickness S is preferably in the range from 3 to 6
mm. It is presently constant and thus corresponds to the maximum
height H.sub.max of the shower tray 1. The plate element 2 is
provided with several passage openings 9 extending from the
underside 3 to the upper side 4, which presently have the shape of
a circular arc segment for optical reasons. Alternatively, the
passage openings 9 can also have any other shape. The plate element
2 has at the two end faces 5 and 6 fastening projections 10
extending perpendicular to each other, which extend outwards and
are arranged in the area of the planes spanned by the underside 3
and the upper side 4, i.e. do not project upwards or downwards
above these. The fastening projections 10 have a depth tin the
range from 3 to 10 mm, preferably between 4 and 8 mm, and a height
h in the range from 0.7 to 2.5 mm and are essentially cuboid in
shape. In the embodiment shown, two fastening projections 10 are
provided on the end face 5, which are each arranged in the end
areas of the end face 5. The end face 6 has only one single
fastening projection 10, which is arranged in the end area of the
end face 6 adjacent to the end face 7. The number of fastening
projections 10 as well as their length and/or shape may vary
depending on requirements. The height h of the fastening
projections 10 is less than the plate thickness S. The fastening
projections 10, which are arranged adjacent to each other at the
end face 5 and at the end face 6, are arranged flush with the
underside 3 of the plate element 2, while the remaining fastening
projections 10 adjacent to the end face 8 are arranged flush with
the upper side 4 of the plate element 2. Due to this arrangement of
the fastening projections 10 offset in the direction of the plate
thickness S, a predetermined slope of the upper side 4 of the plate
element 2 to the horizontal is set when the shower tray 1 is
installed, which is explained again below. The two end faces 5 and
6 extending perpendicularly to each other may be connected by
another end face 11 whose length l is preferably at least 20 mm.
This further end face 11 is represented in FIG. 1 by a dashed
line.
[0022] For the installation of shower tray 1 on two vertical walls
15 and 16, which extend essentially perpendicular to each other,
together form a corner 12 and are clad with tiles 14 separated from
each other by horizontal and vertical joints 13, the tiles 14 are
fixed in a first step to the walls 15 and 16 in a familiar manner,
for example using a thin-bed mortar. Between the walls 15 and 16
and the tiles 14, a surface waterproofing not shown here should be
installed in advance. In a further step, the joints 13 are grouted
with a grout. Immediately after grouting, the fastening projections
10 of the shower tray 1 are pressed into a horizontal joint 13
extending over the corner area at the desired height. The shower
tray is securely attached to walls 15 and 16 when the joint grout
hardens. Due to the previously described offset arrangement of the
fastening projections 10 in the direction of the plate thickness S,
a predetermined slope of the upper side 4 of plate 2 to the
horizontal is automatically set during installation if, when
positioning the shower tray 1, all the fastening projections 10 are
pressed either against the top edges of the lower tiles 14 or
against the bottom edges of the upper tiles 14 when positioning the
shower tray 1. If the end faces 5 and 6 are not connected to each
other by the other end face 11, it is recommended that the slope
from corner 12 to the shower slopes downwards. If, on the other
hand, an opening 17 is formed between the shower tray 1 and the
walls 15 and 16 by the further end face 11, then the slope can also
be chosen the other way round downwards in the direction of corner
12.
[0023] FIGS. 5 to 7 show a shower tray 1 according to a second
embodiment of the present invention. This differs from the shower
tray described above in that the plate element 2 has a different
shape and, as a result, five end faces 5, 6, 7, 8 and 18. The end
faces 5 and 6 extend perpendicularly to each other and are each
provided with two fastening projections 10, which are all arranged
at a uniform level in the direction of the plate thickness S.
Accordingly, when shower tray 1 is installed, a slope with respect
to the horizontal does not occur automatically. A further
difference is that the number and shape of the passage openings 9
are different.
[0024] It should be noted that the designs of the invention shower
enclosure described above serve only as examples and do not
restrict the scope of protection defined by the claims.
REFERENCE CHARACTER LIST
[0025] 1 Shower tray [0026] 2 Plate element [0027] 3 Underside
[0028] 4 Upper side [0029] 5 End face [0030] 6 End face [0031] 7
End face [0032] 8 End face [0033] 9 Passage opening [0034] 10
Projection [0035] 11 End face [0036] 12 Corner [0037] 13 Joint
[0038] 14 Tile [0039] 15 Wall [0040] 16 Wall [0041] 17 Opening
[0042] 18 End face [0043] S Plate thickness [0044] H Height [0045]
h Height [0046] t Depth [0047] l Length
* * * * *