A modular frame for defining and profiling the edges of wells, canalizations for openings in general

Abstract: This invention relates to a modular frame wich is made up of a suitable plastic material and is capable of giving the correct L-shaped profile to the upper edges of wells or of canalizations or of openings in general and is prepared so as to give the possibility of anchoring the same strongly to the cement mortar employed for its installation.

Description: This invention relates to a modular frame which is made up of a suitable plastic material and is capable of giving the correct L profile to the top edges of wells or of canalizations or to the edges of openings in general, said frame being arranged so as to be strongly anchored to the cement mortar that fixes it in the installation of the same. The characteristics of the frame in question and the advantages deriving therefrom will be evident from the following disclosure which is given with reference to the figures shown in the enclosed three drawing sheets, wherein: Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the angular member of said frame; Figs. 2 and 3 are a top plan view and a bottom plan view of an intermediate member of the frame, respectively; Fig. 4 illustrates some structural details of the components shown in Figures 1 and 2, which have been cross-sectioned along the line IV-IV; Fig. 5 and 6 illustrate the components shown in Figures 1 and 2, as viewed from the fronts which are shown respectively by the arrows H and K; Fig. 7 and 8 illustrate some possible compositions of the modules for the realization of the modular frame in question; Figs. 9, 10 and 11 show the top plan view of the various members involved in the realization of the angular portion of the frame. It is known in the prior art, from the document NL-A-41198, a modular frame having four equal members, each one having a corner portion and a straight portion in a monolithic body. The modular frame which is the object of this invention is made by mold injection of any suitable plastic material provided with a good resistance to physical-chemical stresses and having a heat expansion coefficient close to that of the cement mortar employed for the installation of the frame itself. The frame is made up mainly of two pieces. It consists of a member that defines the 90° angular portions of the frame as shown for instance by A-A'-A" and A"' in the Figures 1-9-10-11, and of at least an intermediate, straight-line member B as shown in Figure 2. Both elements A-A'-A″-A″′ and B are provided at their ends with fixing means so that they can be connected to each other in a very rapid way, for instance with raised members or with dovetail profile cavities (see further in this disclosure). Figure 7 illustrates two consecutive sides of a frame which is made up of an angular member A, in the shape of a square, and of a member B which is connected to an end of A for extending at one's will the side of the frame. Figure 8 illustrates on the contrary three consecutive sides of a frame which are formed by the reciprocal connection of two angular members A. The variants of the angular members or of the end members of the frame, shown by the letters A'-A" and A"' and illustrated in Figures 9, 10 and 11, will be considered further in the present disclosure. In order to meet the various requirements of the market, the members A-A'-A"-A"' and B can be manufactured in combination with different sizes. With reference now to Figure 4, the particular profile of the members A-A'-A"-A"' and B will be now disclosed. The profile comprises a part 1 in the shape of a U, whose outer side 101 is lower and preferably of less thickness than the inner side 201. The part 1 is structurally stiffened by means of inner cross members 301 and it is provided on its base portion 401 with wide openings 2, which ensure a strong incorporation of the same portion of section bar into the layer S of cement mortar which is employed for the installation of the frame according to the present invention. The openings 2 can also be employed for the passage of any possible anchoring member (not shown) for the installation of the frame. The cross members 301 go along the whole height of the side portion 101 whereas they go just along a portion of the height of the side part 201, so that the upper edge of the same cross members is at a slope and the cross members themselves are completely enclosed within said layer S. About at the middle of the inner side 201 of the part 1 mentioned above the end of the part 3 is fixed, said part being in the shape of an inverted L, so as to realize with the upper portion and viewing the side part 201 an S profile that defines the ledge C of the frame in question, said ledge being suitable to receive the cover, the grid, the door or any other movable closure member. The part 3 is coplanar at its lower portion to the part 1 mentioned above, and is connected to the same by means of inner stiffening cross member 103. The inner cavity of the part 3 is also in engagement with the cement mortar employed for fixing the frame when installing the same. It is to be understood that any possible openings can be provided on the length out of sight of the side part 201, in order to ensure an incorporation of the frame into the mortar layer S of even higher efficiency. Such openings could be open at the lower edge of the side part 201 and might be obtained with no particular complications in the structure of the mold for the production of the components A and B in question, all that being easily understandable and accomplished by those who are skilled in the art. Some cross members 301 and 103 close the ends of the members A-A'-A" and B, forming in this way the planar fronts. The intermediate members B (Figure 2) are formed by a portion of suitable length of the section bar disclosed with reference to Figures 4-5-6, for instance of 10 cm length. The angular member A (Figure 1) is made up of two pieces of equal length (for instance of 10 cm length) of the section bar disclosed above, which pieces are integral at one end and such as to form inner Z angles of 90°. The outer side 101 of the member A is rounded at the angular portion as shown by 101' and it is provided at the intermediate point with a break 4 that is also present in the base portion 401 of said section bar. At the points corresponding to the break 4 the profiled parts 1 are provided with cross members 301' having preferably a thickness lower than that of the cross members 301 mentioned above. The break 4 in the angular portion of the member A allows the plastic materials which said member is made up of to shrink during the cooling phase next the molding step and avoids the occurence of undesired deformations of the same member A. From Figures 1-6 it can be observed that two restraining coupling means are provided on the front portions of the member A and B, and, more precisely, a seat 5 which is in the shape of a dovetail, and a raised portion 6 which also has a dovetail shape and is complementary to said seat. The longitudinal axis of the restraining or fixing means 5 and 6 is at right angles to the ideal plane that contains the base portion 401 of the section bar disclosed above. The raised portion 6 is provided at the point where the seat 5 is provided, on the other end of each element A and B, and in addition, as it can be seen from the detailed illustration of the Figures 5 and 6, a seat 5 is open in the upward direction on one end of the members A-B, whereas it is open downwards on the other end. As a consequence, the raised portions 6 of the two ends of the members A-B are staggered in a suitable way along their heights. The restraining or fixing means so realized and so arranged ensure a very precise, strong and reliable connection of the members A and B to each other. The end member A' illustrated in Figure 9 comes out of the production mold with a U-shape as a plan view and is provided with means 5 and 6 at its ends for realizing the coupling with the straight-line members B. The angular member of Figure 10 is derived from the angular member A of Figure 1, by total removal of the sides of such member. The member A"' shown in Figure 11 is made up, on the contrary of the member A, just for one half of its structure and of the member A" of Figure 10 for the other half of its structure. The cut 4 in the angular portion can be provided or it can also not be provided, as shown in Figure 11. It is to be understood that the disclosure is referred to some preferred embodiments of the present invention to which small changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of this invention as claimed in the enclosed claims. In the claims given below, the reference symbols in parentheses have been reported with the object to make it easier to read the claims themselves so that such symbols .are not to be interpreted in a limitative way as regards the scope of the same claims.

Claims: A modular frame, of rectangular or square shape, for defining and providing a profile at the edges of wells, canalizations and orther openings, said frame being characterized in that it comprises in combination: corner members (A, A' A", A'") that make the 90 degree angle portions of the frame and a plurality of intermediate members (B) that form the sides of the frame; the members being manufactured by mould injection of a suitable plastic and/or of any other material, and being provided at their ends with complementary restraining or fixing means, preferably of the dovetail type, which allow said corner and straight members to be connected to each other rapidly and precisely in order to form the rectangular or square shaped frame, to the required modular size; each of said members comprise a part (1) having a U-shaped cross-section, with one side (201) being higher than the other side (101), with inner stiffening ribs (301) extending between the two sides which preferably have the same height as the lowest side at said side and which have just a portion of the height of the other side at the said other side, so that in use said ribs are fully enclosed in a layer (S) of cement mortar employed for the installation of the frame, which layer (S) passes through openings (2) which are provided in the bottom (401) of said U-shaped members, said openings being suitable for the passage of fastening members; the highest side of said U-shaped portion (1) being integral with the end of another portion (3) whose profile has the shape of an inverted L, which is stiffened internally by cross members (103) and which together with the U-shaped portion, in cross-section, has an approximately S-shaped profile, the upper part of the inverted L-shaped portion being suitable to define a ledge (C) of the frame for supporting a cover or a door or of any other closure means to the inside of the frame; means also being provided so that the corner members (A, A', A", A'") and the intermediate and straight members (B) of the frame be closed at their ends by cross members which realize a planar surface on which seats (5) and complementary raised portions (6) for realizing a fixed joint connection are provided. A modular frame according to claim 1, characterized in that the corner member (A- A'- A"- A"') is preferably with a break (4) in the angular portion which is external to the ledge (C), which regards both the outer side (101) and the base portion (401) of the part (1) which is in the shape of a U, and which is delimited by cross members (301') of such last portion, the whole structure being provided with the view to prevent deformations of said corner member from occurring during the cooling step after the formation step. A modular frame according to claim 1, characterized in that vertical seats (5) and vertical raised portions (6) whose profiles are in the shape of a dovetail are provided on each end of the corner members (A- A'- A"- A"') and of the intermediate straight members (B) for connecting said members to each other, provision being made so that the seats (6) of the two opposite ends of each member-be open, upwards on one side and downwards on the other side, and the raised portions are staggered along their heights, so that they can become coupled with said seats, so ensuring a stable and coplanar connection between the various members. A modular frame according to the preceding claims, wherein the corner member (A- A") is in the shape of a square or of an L in a plan view. A modular frame according to the claims 1-3, wherein the corner member (A') is in the shape of a U in a plan view and defines a frame of predetermined width. A modular frame according to the claims 1-3, wherein the corner member (A") is of a square shape in a plan view or is provided (A) with at least two consecutive equal sides at 90 degree angle to one another, on which the means (5-6) are provided for realizing a fixed coupling with the other members of the frame itself. A modular frame according to the preceding claims, wherein the corner member (A'") is of rectangular shape in a plan view, the fixing means (5-6) being on a minor side and at the right angles, at the points corresponding to the end of the side which is consecutive to the other minor side.

Inventors: SAVORANI SANDRA, SAVORANI, SANDRA
Applicants: EDIL PLAST SRL, EDIL PLAST S.R.L.
Application year: 1991
Main classification: E02D29
IPC codes: E02D29