Mounting Frame

Abstract

The invention relates to mounting frames for receiving coverings for surfaces such as walls, floors or ceilings of rooms which are detachably fastenable together by projection and recess connections, bolted connections, or by separate connections. The mounting frames are formed of a baseplate and sidewalls, the latter of which have associated with them a device enabling the connections between adjacent mounting frames to be made. Such devices are generally in the form of one or more parts of the connections.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to mounting frames for parts of a surface covering.

It is known to provide floors, walls and also the ceilings of rooms with coverings for which purpose various materials of various qualities, colors, shapes, and so on are used. Particularly because of their ease of handling and the large choice of colors, qualities, and patterns and because of their sound absorbing properties, preferred materials are pieces of carpeting, textiles, felt, and soft plastics.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a mounting frame for parts of a surface covering, comprising a baseplate rectilinear sidewalls framing said baseplate to define therewith an insertion space and having a depth greater than the thickness of the baseplate, and at least one device associated with each said sidewall for the detachable fastening of adjoining sidewalls of juxtaposed mounting frames.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Several embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of one form of construction of a mounting frame according to the invention, in which the sidewalls and fastening elements are shown on a larger scale in relation to the overall dimensions, for the sake of greater clarity;

FIG. 2 is a section through the mounting frame illustrated in FIG. 1, taken along the line II-II;

FIG. 3 shows, on a much larger scale, a section of the adjoining side surfaces of two juxtaposed mounting frames of the type illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, and illustrates the cooperation of the connecting elements;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a number of juxtaposed mounting frames;

FIG. 5 shows, in perspective, part of a surface covering assembled from mounting frames according to another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line A-A of FIG. 5 showing two juxtaposed mounting frames fastened together by a connecting element;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of part of a mounting frame on the sidewall of which there is disposed an edge member forming the outer termination of the surface covering; and

FIGS. 8 to 12 show sections through still further forms of construction of two juxtaposed mounting frames fastened to one another by a connecting element.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The mounting frame illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a square baseplate 10 and four sidewalls 11, 12, 13, and 14. The outer side of each of the sidewalls extends upwards at right angles from the baseplate, while its inner wall is inclined in such a manner that the area of the mounting frame enclosed on the upper side of the baseplate is larger than the area enclosed by the top inner edges of the sidewalls (FIG. 2). Each of the sidewalls has two fastening elements 15, 16 or 17, 18 or 19, 20 or 21, 22, which subdivide the side surface into three portions of equal length in its longitudinal direction and which are disposed halfway up the height of the sidewalls. The fastening elements consist of holes 16, 18, 20, and 22 and of pins 15, 17, 19, and 21 projecting at right angles from the sidewall and provided at their front end with a spherical thickened portion. A the height of the upper side of the baseplate, a slot 23 is also provided in the sidewall 13. The four outer edges are provided with notches 25, 26, 27, and 28 which extend parallel to the baseplate and which are disposed halfway up the height of the sidewall, their width corresponding to the diameter of the holes. The underside 29 of the baseplate is roughened by a pattern of intercrossing notches similar to a file.

The outer side length of the mounting frame illustrated is 30.4 cm. and the width of the sidewalls and their top end is 0.2 cm., so that the free area enclosed by the sidewalls is suitable for the insertion of square pieces having a side length of 30 cm. The inclination of the inner sides of the sidewalls is so selected that at their bottom end they have a minimum width of 0.17 cm. The thickness of the baseplate amounts to 0.1 cm. and the total height of the sidewalls from the bottom to the top edge amounts to 0.9 cm. The diameter of the hole provided as fastening element and the width of the notches provided at the edges amounts to 0.25 cm., while the diameter of the cylindrical portion of the projecting pin amounts to 0.28 cm. and the diameter of the spherical thickening provided at the end of the pin is 0.33 cm. The overall length of the pin amounts to 0.3 cm. The slot at the bottom end of one sidewall has a width of 0.15 cm. The mounting frame described is made of plastics material and produced in one piece by the injection-moulding method.

The notches 25, 26, 27, 28 at the four corners of the mounting frame are provided for the insertion of projecting bolts, when the above described square mounting frame is for example to be joined to a rectangular mounting frame having a longer side length.

In FIG. 3, adjoining sidewalls 11' and 13 of two juxtaposed mounting frames are illustrated in section. The pin 15' which is made of a plastics material which is deformable under pressure, is pressed through the hole 20 and forms a durable but detachable fastening between the sidewalls.

In FIG. 4, nine assembled mounting frames 30--38 are illustrated, in which because of the above-described arrangement of the fastening elements a pin always encounters a hole and can be pressed into the latter independently of the selected mutual position of the mounting frames, so that each mounting frame is detachably connected on each side at two points to the adjoining mounting frame.

If desired, the pins on the outer sides of the mounting frame can be broken off, in order that projecting pins will get in the way when it is desired to cover a large area.

If the pieces to be inserted into the mounting frames are easily deformable or elastic and have approximately the same thickness, they can be inserted into the individual mounting frames after the latter have been assembled. If the pieces to be inserted are not flexible or are very thin and if they are intended for mounting frames which are to be fastened on a wall or ceiling, these parts are advantageously cut to a size which is slightly larger than the free area enclosed by the mounting frame and then inserted from the side through the slot 23 into the mounting frame. It is then also possible for additional underlays to be pushed through this slot into the space between the inserted covering piece and the baseplate, in order to raise the inserted piece in the mounting frame and to fill the entire depth of the latter.

FIG. 5 illustrates four mounting frames 50, 51, 52 and 53 of a surface covering. The mounting frame 50 (and every other mounting frame) contains a baseplate 54 and four sidewalls, of which only the sidewalls 55, 56, and 57 can be seen in the Figure. In contrast to the form of construction illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, in the case of these mounting frames the device for detachable fastening them together is in the form of a recess 58 disposed in the middle of each sidewall. Each of the recesses extends over the surface and the inner side of the sidewall and into the adjoining portion of the baseplate. In addition, a projecting pin 59 is provided in the portion of the recess situated in the baseplate. The two juxtaposed mounting frames 50 and 51 are joined with the aid of a connecting element 60. The connecting element 60 corresponds in shape to the recesses in the two juxtaposed mounting frames and is inserted into said recesses. In each of its two projections 61 and 62, which are intended for insertion into the portions of the recesses which are situated in the baseplate, the connecting element has a bore into which the pins 63 and 64 respectively are inserted in order to hold the connecting element on each of the mounting frames.

The connection of two juxtaposed mounting frames with the aid of a connecting element is illustrated in FIG. 6, which is a sectional view taken along the line A-A in FIG. 5. The Figure shows the two mounting frames 50' and 51' and the connecting element 60'. As can be seen from the Figure, in the region of the recess, the inner side of the sidewall (for example of the sidewall 56') extends parallel to the outer side, whereby the fitting of the connecting element over the juxtaposed sidewalls is facilitated. In addition, the pins 63' and 64' projecting upwards out of the portions of the recess which extend in the baseplates (for example the baseplate 54') can be seen, which are introduced into the bores in the projections 61' and 62', in order to secure the connecting element more satisfactorily.

The above-described connecting element enables any desired number of mounting frames to be detachably secured together rapidly and securely over any surface. Since the shape of the connecting elements matches the recesses in the mounting frames, the insertion space of each of the mounting frames is bounded by continuous smooth interior walls, which is important for the insertion of pieces simply cut to shape.

In order to ensure that the outer sidewalls of surface coverings composed of a plurality of mounting frames will not have uncovered recesses, these recesses can be covered by half a connecting element, formed by dividing an element into two parts along the broken line 65 shown in FIG. 6.

In FIG. 7 an edge piece 70 is shown, which is advantageously used as a side termination of surface coverings, where a bevelled transition is desired between the surface to be covered and the surface covering, as is the case particularly with floor coverings. The edge piece has a portion 71 which has a wedge-shaped section and which is at least as long as a sidewall of a mounting frame. The edge piece also has a fastening element 60" which is disposed in the longitudinal center of the wedge-shaped portion, its shape corresponding to a fastening element 60 symmetrically divided in its transverse direction, i.e. longitudinally of the sidewall.

It is obvious that the above-described form of construction of the mounting frame can also be modified so that more than one recess for the insertion of connecting elements is provided along each sidewall.

In the form of construction of a mounting frame which is illustrated in FIG. 8, the recesses are in the form of notches 75, 76. These notches extend along the joint between the baseplate 77 or 78 and the inner surfaces of the sidewall 79 or 80 respectively. A clip 81 which is made of elastic material and which embraces the two sidewalls is used as connecting element.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 9, the mounting frame has recesses 83, 84, and 85 in the form of blind holes. These blind holes are disposed at regular intervals along the edge between the baseplate 86 and the inner surface of the sidewall 87. In this embodiment juxtaposed mounting frames are held together with the aid of springs 88, 89, and 90 engaging in the blind holes. It is naturally also possible for the blind holes to be replaced by continuous bores and for a spirally wound connecting element to be used instead of the spring clips.

Another form of construction of mounting frames is illustrated in FIG. 10, in which the recesses 91 and 92 practically correspond to the recesses 75 and 76 shown in FIG. 8. In contrast to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, the mounting frames shown in FIG. 10 are connected together by a connecting element in the form of a section bar 93. This section bar has a T-shaped cross section, while the outer ends of the crossbeam have extensions 95 and 96 respectively which lead to the baseplate of the mounting frames and which have at their bottom inner ends projecting flanges 97, 98 which engage in the recesses 91 and 92 respectively. The individual mounting frames are separated from one another by the vertical center web 99 of the T-shaped section bar, which is advantageous for certain purposes, and the flat crossbeam 94 of the section bar permits smooth termination of the sidewalls of the mounting frames assembled together to form a surface covering, fitting the pieces of material inserted in the mounting frames.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 11, the recesses are in the form of channels 100, 101 open on one side and extending on the outside of the sidewalls of the mounting frames, approximately halfway up their height and running in the longitudinal direction. The connecting element 102 fitting said channels is T-shaped and on its vertical central web is provided with two beads of approximately circular cross section.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 12, two identical mounting frames 105 and 106, the shape of which corresponds to the mounting frames as already described with reference to FIG. 10, are joined by a fastening element 107 which itself is in the form of a mounting frame. The fastening element contains a baseplate 108 and sidewalls 109, 110, which are pushed over the corresponding sidewalls 111 and 112 respectively of the two mounting frames 105 and 106 and fastened with the aid of the beads 113, 114 in corresponding recesses 115 and 116 respectively. It is obvious that the most important dimensions of this fastening element may be so selected that the latter can be inserted instead of a mounting frame between four mounting frames abutting by their outer edges.

The mounting frames are preferably made of plastics material, such as polystyrene, polypropylene, acryl, nylon, polyethylene, or of plastics material reinforced with glass or other materials, or of rubber, wood, metal or glass. They may be flexible, semistiff, or nonelastic. Instead of the above described hole, the fastening elements may comprise a threaded nut and the pin may be replaced by an open-ended bore for a bolt, which is practical or even necessary particularly when the mounting frame is made of a nonelastic material, or when it is not possible to make the mounting frame and the fastening elements in one piece. Finally, the baseplate may also be provided with one or more holes if the mounting frames are not laid horizontally but are to be fastened on a wall or ceiling without the use of rails or adhesive plastics. Instead of roughening the underside of the baseplate plate by scoring, the underside may also have a nonslip layer applied or adhesively bonded to it. The shape of the mounting frames is also not restricted to the above-described square shape, and any shapes which can be assembled to form larger areas may be used, such as triangles, rectangles, parallelograms, hexagons, and shapes derived therefrom by rectilinear parts. The possibilities of assembly are not limited to identical shapes, but different shapes may also be assembled, provided that dimensions adjusted to one another are used for all shapes and that the distances between the fastening elements are always the same.

Thus, particularly when using mounting frames of different shapes, it is possible to produce coverings for large surfaces in any desired pattern, which are secured against mutual displacement but can be changed or removed at any time. Moreover, the edges of the individual parts of the covering which are to be inserted are thereby effectively protected against wear, and parts of different thickness can be raised by the use of compensating pieces inserted between the inserted parts and the bottom plate of the mounting frames, in order to form a large flat surface, and finally through the fastening of individual mounting frames together, the nonslip surface on the underside of the mounting frames can prevent the displacement of the covering, particularly in the case of floor coverings.

It will be appreciated that other modifications may be made to the above-described mounting frame without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

I claim:

1. A mounting frame system for a surface covering comprising at least two mounting frames and a connecting element, each of said mounting frames comprising a baseplate adapted for fixation to a supporting surface and rectilinear sidewalls extending about the periphery of said baseplate on one side thereof and adapted to project away from said supporting surface, said sidewalls defining with the baseplates recesses for surfacing inserts, said sidewalls having a depth greater than the thickness of the baseplate, said mounting frames being arranged with their baseplates in a common plane with a sidewall of one of the frames adjacent a sidewall of another of the frames, each of said adjacent sidewalls having an undercut recess on the inner sides thereof adjacent the line of junction between the baseplate and the respective adjacent sidewall, said connecting element having a pair of limbs, the extremity of each of said limbs being directed inwardly of and extending into one of said recesses.

2. A mounting frame as defined in claim 1, comprising a one-piece unit formed by said baseplate and said sidewalls.

3. A mounting frame as defined in claim 2, wherein said one-piece unit is made of plastics material.

4. A mounting frame as defined in claim 1, wherein means is provided on the underside of said baseplate for protection against slipping.

5. A mounting frame as defined in claim 4, wherein the means for protection against slipping comprises a nonslip coating adhering to said underside of said baseplate.

6. A mounting frame as defined in claim 4, wherein said underside of said baseplate is roughened for protection against slipping.

7. A mounting frame as defined in claim 1, wherein the inner sides of said sidewalls are inclined inwardly from said baseplate so as to enclose at said baseplate a larger area at their outer edges and wherein said limbs of said connecting element are contoured to abut said inclined sides.

8. A mounting frame as defined in claim 1, wherein said recess is in the form of a notch extending parallel to the joint between said baseplate and the inner side of said sidewall.