A termination bar for covering an edge of a sheet of roofing material applied to an outer surface of a building includes a planar body, a cover and a hinge for pivotally connecting the cover to the planar body, all formed as an integral unit. Opposite longitudinally extending edges of the planar body are thicker than a central portion of the body and apertures for receiving fasteners are formed in the central portion. After the termination bar has been attached to the building over the edge of the roofing material by suitable fasteners, the cover is pivoted into a superposed position on the planar body. The cover is maintained in position by a first latching means formed on the planar body and a cooperating second latching means formed on the cover.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates generally to the construction of roofs for 
buildings and, in particular, to a termination bar for finishing the edge 
of installed roofing materials. 
Many horizontal, curved or sloped roofs, especially on commercial or 
agricultural buildings, are covered with sheets of roofing material. The 
roofing material typically is manufactured in standard widths of a 
predetermined continuous length wound in a roll for transportation and 
storage. The roofing material is unrolled as is applied to the roof and 
cut to length. Typically, two or more strips must be installed 
side-by-side to cover the entire roof. The strips are attached to the roof 
by a suitable adhesive. In the case of a roof surrounded by a low wall, 
the strips of roofing material are typically are cut longer than required 
for the roof and are extended up onto the inwardly facing generally 
vertical surfaces of the surrounding wall. 
The roofing material is formed of a synthetic rubber or similar material 
which provides a watertight barrier. However, the joints between adjacent 
strips and the ends of the strips have a tendency to lift away from the 
surface to which they are adhered thereby allowing water to flow under the 
roofing material causing damage to the roof. One method of preventing the 
lifting of the edges of the roofing material is to utilize a termination 
bar which is held in place by fasteners and which applies pressure to the 
roofing material to maintain it adhered to the underlying surface. 
Currently available types of termination bars do not cover the heads of 
the fasteners which can produce an untidy and unsightly impression with 
respect to the newly installed roof covering. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention concerns a termination bar formed from a flexible 
material for ease of storage, transportation and installation. The present 
invention also solves the problems associated with the prior art or known 
termination bars in that the termination bar according to present 
invention includes a hinged cover and latching mechanism for covering and 
hiding the fastener heads from view. The termination bar is formed as a 
continuous strip, typically by extruding a plastic material, which 
includes a generally planar central portion having a fastener receiving 
apertures formed therein at a predetermined regular spacing. The opposite 
longitudinally extending edges of the planar portion are thickened to 
concentrate the pressure along a pair of generally parallel sealing lines 
when the fasteners are installed. 
Along one of the edges of the planar surface there is formed a hinge to 
which is pivotally attached a generally longitudinally extending cover. 
The opposite edge of the cover from the hinge includes one portion of a 
latching mechanism, the other portion of which is formed on the other one 
of the thickened edges. In a first embodiment, the latching mechanism on 
the cover is a generally U-shaped inwardly extending lip which engages a 
longitudinally extending flange formed on the cooperating thickened edge 
of the planar portion. 
In a first alternate embodiment, the cover portion has an outwardly 
extending male latching mechanism shaped like an arrowhead in cross 
section which cooperates with a similarly shaped longitudinally extending 
groove formed in the thickened edge. In a second alternate embodiment, an 
inwardly facing groove is formed in the thickened edge to accept an edge 
portion of the cover.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
An embodiment of a termination bar in accordance with the present invention 
is shown in FIGS. 1-3. The termination bar 11 has a generally planar, 
longitudinally extending body 12. An aperture 13 is formed through a 
central portion of the body 12 and is representative of a plurality of 
such apertures which are typically spaced predetermined distances apart 
for accepting fasteners as will be discussed below. Opposite, generally 
parallel, longitudinally extending edges 14 and 15 of the planar body 12 
are formed thicker than a central portion 16. The central portion 16, the 
first edge 14 and the second edge 15 are similar in cross-sectional shape 
to a prior art termination bar 11' shown in FIG. 4. The prior art 
termination bar 11' includes a central planar portion 16' attached to a 
first enlarged thickness edge 14' and an opposite parallel extending 
second enlarged thickness edge 15'. The first edge 14' includes an 
outwardly facing, generally flat, longitudinally extending side wall 17' 
and the second edge 15' includes a similar outwardly facing, generally 
flat, longitudinally extending surface 18'. 
In the present invention, the prior art flat surfaces 17' and 18' have been 
replaced by a hinge and a portion of a latching mechanism respectively. As 
shown in FIG. 1, attached to an outer side wall of the first edge 14 is a 
hinge 19 which in turn is connected to a cover 20. Extending from a side 
wall of the second edge 15 is a longitudinally extending flange 21 which 
forms a portion of a cover latching mechanism as will be discussed below. 
A longitudinally extending edge 22 of the cover 20, opposite the hinge 19, 
is generally U-shaped and forms the remaining portion of the cover 
latching mechanism. 
There is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a portion of a generally horizontally 
extending roof 23. The edge of the roof 23 is bordered by a low, 
upstanding wall 24 which can be an extension of the side wall of the 
building. The roof 23 is covered by strips of roofing material. A first 
strip of roofing material 25 is adhered to the upper surface of the roof 
23 and extends up the walls 24. Since the strip of roofing material 25 is 
typically not wide enough to cover the entire roof, an edge 26 of the 
strip of roofing material 25 overlaps an adjacent edge of a second strip 
27 of the roofing material. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the end of the 
second strip 27 also extends up the inner face of the side wall 24 and 
terminates in an edge 28. 
The termination bar 11 according to the present invention can be formed of 
a flexible plastic material by any known manufacturing method such as 
extrusion. The termination bar can be cut to the desired length and 
installed along the edge 28 of the roofing material 27 as shown in FIG. 3. 
A fastener 29, such as a screw or a nail, is inserted through the aperture 
13 in the planar body 12 and engages the wall 24 to maintain the 
termination bar 11 in place. The first edge 14 and the second edge 15 of 
the termination bar 11 engage the outwardly facing surface of the roofing 
material 27 and each forms a sealing line through pressure applied by the 
fastener 29. 
During the installation of the termination bar 11, the cover 20 is in the 
position shown in phantom line in FIG. 3. After the fasteners 29 have been 
installed, a head 30 of each of the fasteners 29 is visible. The cover 20 
can then be rotated about the hinge 19 in the direction of an arrow 31 to 
the position shown in solid line in FIG. 3. The U-shaped edge 22 of the 
cover 20 will tend to flex and can be forced over the projecting flange 21 
and then returned to its original shape to lockingly engage the flange 21. 
Now all of the heads 30 of the fasteners 29 are hidden from view by the 
cover 20 which provides a pleasing appearance and a finished look to the 
new roof covering. As a final step, a caulking material 32 can be applied 
over the U-shaped edge 22, the edge 28 of the roofing material 27 and the 
adjacent inwardly facing surface of the wall 24 to seal against water and 
ice. 
The latching mechanism formed by the flange 21 and the Ushaped edge 22 is 
not limited to any particular form. As shown in FIG. 5, an alternate 
embodiment termination bar 41 has a planar body 42 with a cover 43 and 
generally parallel, longitudinally extending, enlarged thickness side 
edges 44 and 45. One edge of the cover 43 is attached to the first edge 44 
by a hinge 46 and the other edge of the cover 43 has a generally outwardly 
extending male fastener 47 formed thereon. The male fastener 47 is formed 
generally in the shape of an arrowhead in cross section, having a thicker 
outer edge portion and a thinner inner edge portion where it is attached 
to the edge of the cover 43. A longitudinally extending groove 48 is 
formed in an upper surface of the second edge 45 and has substantially the 
same cross section as the male fastener 47. The termination bar 41 is made 
of a flexible material which permits the cover 43 to pivot about the 
flange 46 and also permits the side walls of the groove 48 to be forced 
apart as the male fastener is inserted and then spring back to the 
original shape to retain the male fastener 47. 
A second alternate embodiment termination bar 51 is shown in FIG. 6. The 
termination bar 51 includes a generally planar body 52 and a cover 53. The 
body 52 has a first thicker edge 54 and a generally parallel extending 
second thicker edge 55. The cover 53 is attached to the thicker edge 54 
along one edge by a longitudinally extending hinge 56. An opposite edge of 
the cover 53 forms a longitudinally extending male fastener portion which 
engages a longitudinally extending groove 58 formed in the thicker edge 
55. The groove 58 opens generally in the direction of the first thicker 
edge 54 and functions as a female fastener for retaining the edge portion 
57 of the cover 53. Although several forms of latching mechanisms or 
fasteners have been shown for maintaining the cover of the termination bar 
in a closed position, other equivalent designs could be utilized. In the 
illustrated latching mechanisms, edge 22, the male fastener 47 and the 
edge portion 57 are first fastener means or first latching means. The 
flange 21, the groove 48 and the grove 58 are second fastener means or 
second latching means. 
In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present 
invention has been described in what is considered to represent its 
preferred embodiment. However, it should be noted that the invention can 
be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described 
without departing from its spirit or scope.