APPARATUS FOR LAYING TILES

Abstract: The disclosure describes an apparatus for laying tiles (19) or the like on a surface. The apparatus holds the tile over a surface portion which is covered with an adhesive material and on which the tile is intended to be laid, and allows it to contact the adhesive. A vibration is produced so that when the tile is in contact with the surface portion covered with the adhesive material, it becomes embedded therein thereby being fixed on the surface portion. Thereafter, the tile is released. The apparatus advantageously replaces the common practice of laying tiles by hand.

Description: This invention relates to an apparatus for laying tiles or the like. More particularly, the invention relates to a device which enables to lay tiles on a surface with ease and uniformity, and has the advantage that the work can be done by an inexperienced worker. The laying of tiles on a surface, such as a floor or a wall, is normally carried out by hand. To do this, the surface is first covered with an adhesive material such as a cement or a mortar, and the tile is placed in its proper location and is lightly knocked down into the adhesive material until it attains the exact position which is desired. This, of course, needs highly skilled workers and is quite time-consuming. In addition, no matter what care is being taken to cover a surface with tiles, it is nearly impossible to achieve near perfection in this type of work. From DE-A-16 83 154, there is known an apparatus for laying tiles on a surface, having the features mentioned in the preamble of appended claim 1. Such an apparatus is certainly useful in that it provides convenient holding, vibration and releasing means for the tiles. However, it affords no help with regard to a regular arrangement of the tiles at a given distance from neighbouring already laid tiles. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which enables an unskilled laborer to lay tiles and easily arrange them on a surface at low cost and with high efficiency. It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which enables to produce a tile-covered surface which is near perfect. These and other objects of the present invention can be achieved by means of an apparatus exhibiting the above-mentioned features and those mentioned in the characterizing clause of claim 1. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the holding means comprises a suction cup mounted on the enclosure and means to operatively connect the cup to an air compressor, the suction cup being capable of holding the tile when operatively connected to the air compressor and of releasing the tile when contact with the air compressor is closed. According to another embodiment of the invention, the vibration means comprises a vibrator mounted in the enclosure to induce a vibration in the enclosure, the vibration being thereby communicated to the suction cup and consequently to the tile when the latter is being laid on the surface portion. According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the enclosure comprises a vacuum generator. The vacuum generator is operatively connected to the suction cup for operating it. A handle is mounted on the enclosure, air outlet means are provided on the handle for connection to the air compressor by means of an air hose. An air duct is provided in the handle which also includes a manifold. The latter is connected to the air duct and has a first and a second outlet. A first air connection is provided between the first air outlet and the vacuum generator, and a second air connection is provided between the second air outlet and the vibrator. There is a vacuum valve at the first air outlet and a vibrator valve at the second air outlet, so that by opening the vacuum valve, the vacuum generator becomes operative to enable the suction cup to hold a tile, and by opening the vibration valve, the vibrator induces a vibration in the enclosure to cause the tile to vibrate when being laid onto the surface portion. According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the apparatus comprises bubble levels on the arms to adjust the horizontal level of the tile. According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the apparatus comprises a rectangular side arm which is perpendicular to both extendable lateral arms, and an adjustable leg is provided on the outer side of the rectangular side arm. The rectangular side arm is provided with joint spacers which are dependent from both lateral sides of the rectangular side arm, and second bubble levels to adjust the vertical level of a tile mounted on a wall. According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the apparatus comprises a secondary rectangular handle laterally projecting from the enclosure opposite the rectangular side arm to further help in placing a tile in a proper location. The invention will now be illustrated by means of the annexed drawings which are given only by way of illustration and in which: FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a device according to the invention FIG. 2 is a view from the top part of the enclosure being cut away to show its interior; and FIG. 3 is a view showing air ducts and controls associated with the vacuum generator and the vibrator; FIG. 4 is a view in elevation of another device according to the invention; and FIG. 5 is a view from the top of the device illustrated in FIG. 4. With reference to the drawings, it will be seen that the apparatus according to the invention mainly consists of enclosure 1, a suction cup 3, a vibrator 5, a control handle 7, laterally extendable arms 9a and 9b, each provided with corresponding extendable legs 11a, 11b, rectangular side arm 13 also provided with an extendable leg 13a, and a secondary placement handle 15. More particularly, the enclosure 1 has the general shape of a box with the top 17 being slightly curved mainly for design purposes. The suction cup 3 is of a type well known to those skilled in the art with the lowermost portion being shaped somewhat like an inverted teacup so as to hold a tile 19 over a surface portion 20 on which the tile is intended to be disposed by means of an adhesive such as mortar as shown in Fig. 1. This is made possible by having the suction cup connected to an air compressor (not shown). More details of the operation will be given hereinbelow. As shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 2, the suction cup 3 is operatively connected in known manner to a vacuum generator 21 of standard construction, and both the vibrator 5 (of known construction) and the vacuum generator 21 are mounted in known manner on the base 23 of the enclosure 1. It will therefore be seen by any one skilled in the art that once the vibrator 5 starts to vibrate, this will produce a corresponding vibration in the entire enclosure 1 and therefore the suction cup 3 will start to vibrate. The U-shaped control handle 7 consists of an upper straight bar 25 and two downwardly extending legs 27,29 fixed in known manner to the enclosure 1. The handle 7 has an air outlet 31 which is intended to be connected to air hose 33 which, in turn, is connected to an air compressor (not shown). An air duct 35 (shown in dotted lines in Figs. 1 and 2) extends through the upper straight bar 25 of the handle 7 until it reaches a manifold 37 illustrated in Fig. 3, which is connected in known manner to the air duct 35. The manifold 37 has two air outlets 39,41. In addition there is an air connection 43 between air outlet 41 and the vacuum generator 5, and another air connection 45, the latter being mounted between air outlet 39 and the vibrator 5. At the air outlet 41, there is a vacuum valve 47 (of known construction) and at the outlet 39, there is a vibrator valve 49 (also of known construction). In this manner, when the air hose is connected to the air compressor, the vacuum valve 47 is opened and the vacuum generator 5 becomes operative to enable the suction cup 3 to hold a tile 19 as shown in Fig. 1. Then, by opening the vibrator valve 49, the vibrator 5 starts to induce a vibration in the enclosure 1 to cause the suction cup 3 and thereby the tile 19 to vibrate when the latter is laid on a surface portion. We shall now describe the front arm 9a and the back arm 9b which are both identical. The arms 9a, 9b are mounted in known manner in the enclosure 1 at connection points 51 (only the one for arm 9a being shown) provided therefor. As shown, the arms 9a, 9b laterally extend from the front and back side of the enclosure along a common straight line. Each arm 9a, 9b comprises an adjustable leg 11a, 11b which is mounted in a longitudinal slot 53a, 53b provided in arm 9a, 9b. The leg is provided with a threaded member 55a, 55b which extends through the slot 53a, 53b and the adjustment of the leg 11a, 11b along arm 9a, 9b is made possible by tightening the threaded member 55a, 55b with a wing nut 57a, 57b at a desired location along the arm 9a, 9b. Each leg 11a, 11b is provided with a well known height adjustable pad 59a, 59b. In addition to the legs 11a, 11b, each arm 9a, 9b is provided with a spacer housing 61a, 61b terminated by a spacer 62a, 62b. The upper end of each spacer housing 61a, 61b is provided with a threaded member 63a, 63b similar to threaded member 55a, 55b. The spacer 63a, 63b can be placed at a desired location by sliding the housing 61a, 61b along slot 53a, 53b and tightening it by means of wing nut 65a, 65b. A bubble level 67 is mounted in known manner on arm 9a to adjust the horizontal level of the apparatus and therefore of the tile 19. As mentioned above, the apparatus according to the invention also comprises a rectangular side arm 13. As shown, this side arm 13 is rectangular and is mounted in known manner on the enclosure 1 to be perpendicular to both laterally extending arms 9a, 9b. The adjustable leg 13a is similar to legs 11a, 11b except that it is not movable along the outer side 67 of the rectangular side arm 13. The two lateral sides 69,71 of the rectangular side arm 13 are formed with slots 73,75 to permit the mounting of spacer housings 77,79 which are similar to housings 61a,61b. The spacer housings 77,79 are therefore provided with spacers 81,83, threaded members 85,87 and wing nuts 89,91. In addition, the rectangular side arm is provided with a bubble level 93 to adjust the vertical level of the apparatus and therefore of the tile when tiling a wall. Finally, as shown in fig. 1, the apparatus comprises a secondary rectangular handle 15 which laterally projects from the enclosure opposite the rectangular side arm 13. This secondary handle will further assist in placing a tile in a proper location. According to the invention, the vibrator 5 is used instead of having to knock on the tile 19 until the latter is in proper place, while the tile 19 is still held by the suction cup 3. The vibrator 5 goes on and forces the tile to set in the mortar (not shown) until all air bubbles have been removed and proper location of the tile on the surface portion 20 such as a floor or wall has been achieved. It will be realized that this operation can be carried out by an untrained laborer at very low cost and while achieving a perfect placement of the tile. It has been mentioned that each extendable arm 9a,9b and side arm 13 is provided with joint spacers 61a,61b,81,83. Each joint spacer has the thickness of a predetermined width of a joint to be formed between two adjoining tiles. So, when placing tile 19 adjacent two other tiles, it is merely necessary to visually rely on the joint spacers to make sure that a space corresponding to the joint to be formed between the two tiles will be left between them. With reference to Figs. 4 and 5, the suction cup 101 is of a type well known to those skilled in in the art with the suction portion 111 forming the lowermost portion of the suction cup 101 and shaped somewhat like an inverted teacup so as to hold a tile 113, as shown in Fig. 4. This is made possible by having the suction cup connected to an air compressor (not shown) and more details of the operation will be given hereinbelow. As shown, the vibrator 103 is mounted over the suction cup 101 and is associated therewith by any known means so as to induce a vibration in the suction cup 101 when the vibrator 103 is operatively connected to a source of power (not shown) capable of inducing vibrations in the vibrator. A vertical support consisting of a pair of posts 115, 117 is mounted on the suction cup 101 in the manner shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, to extend on both sides of and above the upper surface of the vibrator 103. A control handle 105 consisting of a straight bar is mounted on the vertical support consisting of the two posts 115, 117, again as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings. The handle 105 has two air outlets 119, 121 which are intended to be connected to air hose 123 which, in turn, is connected to an air compressor (not shown). Air duct 125 extends from the control handle 105 to the vibrator 103 to produce a a vibration therein and in the suction cup 101. This is made possible by providing a vibrator switch 129 which will enable air to be introduced through duct 125 to initiate operation of the vibrator in known manner. Alternatively the vibrator could also be electrically operated in which case it could be controlled by means of an ON/OFF switch 133 known to those skilled in the art, which is connected in known manner to the vibrator and to a source of power (not shown). Air duct 125, on the other hand, extends from the control handle 105 to the suction cup 101 via vacuum pump 126 and is responsible for creating the desired suction in the suction cup 101. At the connection of the duct 127 to the handle 105 there is an alternate air release/air suction switch 131 which enables to release all suction in the suction cup 101 when it is desired to remove contact between the suction cup 101 and the tile 113. When it is required to get hold of a tile 113 and to place it over a surface, the desired suction in the cup is again induced by means of the switch 131. We shall now describe the arms 107a, 107b, 107c and the legs 109a, 109b, 109c. In the embodiment illustrated, there are provided three arms 107a, 107b, 107c. Two of those arms 107a and 107b are mounted on the posts 115, 117 in known manner to project from the suction cup 101, in the manner shown in the drawings. It will be noted that these two arms are in continuation of one another along a straight imaginary line. The other arm 107c is perpendicular to the first two arms 107a, 107b and is mounted on the vibrator 103, such as shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings. Each arm 107a, 107b, 107c contains an extendable portion 135a, 135b, 135c which can be adjusted to any desired length by means of any well known means schematically illustrated at 137. As shown, the legs 109a, 109b, 109c, are also extendable and this is made possible by providing a member 139 which can slide over the fixed portion 141 of the leg 109a, 109b, 109c. A mechanism 143 similar to the mechanism 137 enables to fixedly adjust the length of the leg 109a, 109b, 109c. Finally, the extendable portion 135a, 135b, 135c of the arm 107a, 107b, 107c has mounted thereon a tilt bubble level 145a, 145b, 145c. In addition, each fixed portion 141 of legs 109a, 109b, 109c has a sliding portion 139a, 139b, 139c which contains a tilt bubble 147. The idea is to enable to lay a tile 113 in a perfect horizontal position whether or not there are tiles adjacent the the tiles to be laid. For a better understanding of the invention, reference will be made to the three arms 107a, 107b, 107c and corresponding legs 109a, 109b, 109c illustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawings. If it is intended to lay a tile 113 when there are already existing tiles 113a and 113b, leg 109b and leg 109c are shortened by the distance corresponding to the thickness of tiles 113a and 113b, while leg 109c is fully extended, as particularly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, to rest on the floor. It is then possible to lay the tile 113 and to adjust the level thereof by means of the tilt bubble levels 145. According to the invention illustrated in Fig. 4 and 5, a vibrator is used instead of having to knock on the tile until the latter is in proper place, while the tile 113 is still held by the suction cup 101. The vibrator 103 goes on and forces the tile to set in the mortar (not shown) until all air bubbles have been removed and proper location of the tile on the surface portion 120 such as a floor has been achieved. It will be noted that each extendable arm portion 135a, 135b, 135c is provided with joint spacers 149. Each joint spacer 149 has the thickness of a predetermined width of a joint 151 to be formed between two tiles 113 and 113a. So, when placing tile 113 adjacent tiles 113a and 113b, it is merely necessary to visually rely on the joint spacers 149 to make sure that a space 151 corresponding to the joint to be formed between the two tiles will be left between them.

Claims: Apparatus for laying tiles on a surface in a predetermined arrangement, wherein each tile is laid individually at a given distance from neighbouring, already laid tiles, which comprises an enclosure (1); holding means (3, 101) mounted on said enclosure (1) for holding a tile (19) over a surface portion covered with an adhesive material, said surface portion being intended to receive said tile (19), said holding means (3,101) further permitting said tile to contact said adhesive material; vibration means (5, 103) associated with said enclosure (1) and operative when said tile (19) is in contact with said surface portion covered with said adhesive material, said vibration means causing said tile to become embedded in said adhesive material and become fixed on said surface portion; and releasing means (47, 131) enabling said holding means to release said tile after said tile has been fixed on said surface portion; characterized in that it further comprises : a pair of extendable arms (9a, 9b; 107a, 107b) laterally extending from said enclosure on front and back sides thereof; an adjustable leg (11a, 11b; 109a, 109b) at the end of each of said arms, wherein one of said adjustable legs is placed on a tile (19) which has been laid while the other of said legs is directly placed on said surface portion; joint spacers (62a, 62b; 149) dependent from each of said arms and parallel with said legs for correctly spacing a tile relative to adjoining tiles so as to form a joint of predetermined width between adjoining tiles; levelling means (67, 93) for adjusting said enclosure (1) to a horizontal or vertical level. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said holding means comprises a suction cup (3) mounted on said enclosure and means (31, 33, 129, 131) to operatively connect said cup to an air compressor, said suction cup being utilized for holding said tile when operatively connected to said air compressor and for releasing said tile when contact with said air compressor is closed. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said vibration means comprises a vibrator (5) mounted in said enclosure to induce a vibration in said enclosure, said vibration being thereby communicated to said suction cup (3) and consequently to said tile (19) when the latter is being laid on said surface portion. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said enclosure further comprises a vacuum generator (21), said vacuum generator being operatively connected to said suction cup for operation of same, a handle (7) mounted on said enclosure, air outlet means (31) on said handle for connection to said air compressor by means of an air hose (33), an air duct (35) provided in said handle, said handle also including a manifold (37), said manifold being connected to said air duct, said manifold having a first outlet (41) and a second outlet (39), a first air connection (43) between said first air outlet and said vacuum generator (21), and a second air connection (45) between said second air outlet (39) and said vibrator (5), a vacuum valve (47) at said first air outlet and a vibrator valve (49) at said second air outlet, so that by opening said vacuum valve, said vacuum generator becomes operative to enable said suction cup to hold a tile, and by opening said vibrator valve, said vibrator induces a vibration in said enclosure to cause said tile to vibrate when being laid onto the surface portion. Apparatus according to claim 4, which further comprises first bubble levels (67) on said arms to adjust the horizontal level of said tile. Apparatus according to claim 5, which comprises a rectangular side arm (13) perpendicular to both said extendable arms (9a, 9b), an adjustable leg (13a) provided on the outer side of said rectangular side arm, said joint spacers (81, 83) being dependent from both lateral sides of said rectangular side arm, and second bubble levels (93) on said rectangular side arm to adjust the vertical level of a tile mounted on a wall. Apparatus according to claim 6, which comprises a secondary rectangular handle (15) laterally projecting from said enclosure opposite said rectangular side arm to further help in placing a tile in a perfect location.

Inventors: VALENTE, PIETRO
Applicants: ANTONIETTA INVESTMENTS LTD.
Application year: 1987
Main classification: E04F21
IPC codes: E04F21