Method and device for fixing prefabricated walls or the like to the load-bearing structures of buildings

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and device for fixing prefabricated walls to the load-bearing structures of buildings. The invention provides a bracket (3) anchoring the prefabricated wall (1) to the carrying structure (2, 102), this bracket being fixed with an anchoring plate (4) to the said carrying structure (2, 102) in such a way that it can be adjusted along an axis perpendicular to the prefabricated wall (1) and along an axis parallel to the prefabricated wall (1), and being fixed to the prefabricated wall (1) with at least one supporting extension (5) which can be superposed on one face of the said prefabricated wall (1) by means of a transverse connecting pin (6) which passes through coinciding holes (105, 101) in the supporting extension (5) and in the prefabricated wall (1), the hole (101) in the prefabricated wall (1) being formed directly during the assembly operation of the said wall, using as a guide the hole (105) of the supporting extension (5) of the anchoring bracket (3) previously fixed to the carrying structure (2, 102).

Description: The invention relates to a device for fixing prefabricated walls, such as front walls or the like, to the load-bearing structures of buildings. The invention is intended to provide a device for fixing prefabricated walls or the like to the load-bearing structures of buildings in such a way that, by virtue of the use of simple and economical arrangements, a more convenient and rapid fixing is permitted in any conditions and to any type of carrying structure. A further object of the invention consists in the provision of an extremely stable and reliable connection between the walls and the carrying structure, eliminating the disadvantages arising from dimensional divergences of the supporting structure and/or the walls, and impeding the transmission of stresses, particularly those of a vibratory nature, between the walls and the carrying structure. From "Cahier du CSTB", vol. 1587, 28 May 1979, Paris, pages 1-16, FERODO "Avis sur le panneau de facade DBF" a method is disclosed for fixing prefabricated walls to the load bearing structures of buildings, characterised in that it provides a bracket anchoring the prefabricated walls to the carrying structure, this bracket being fixed with an anchoring plate to the said carrying structure in such a way that it can be adjusted along an axis perpendicular to the prefabricated wall and along an axis parallel the prefabricated wall, with at least one supporting extension, by means of a transverse connecting pin which passes through holes in the supporting extension. From "The Architect & Building News" vol. 211, no. 12, 21 March 1957, London, pages 370-388, Mills E "Curtain Walling", a bracket is disclosed similar to the one disclosed in the above mentioned article from the "Cahier du CSTB", vol. 1587, 28 May 1979, Paris, pages 1-16, but in which a prefabricated element is secured between two flanges by means of coinciding holes. The main disadvantage of both the above prior art structures resides in the fact that the prefabricated wall is rigidly connected to the carrying structure so that any stresses, particularly those of a vibratory nature, are trasnmitted between the walls and the carrying structure. It is the object of the invention to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art devices. The problem is solved by providing a device for fixing prefabricated walls to the load bearing structures of buildings, comprising a bracket anchoring the prefabricated wall to the carrying structure, this bracket being fixed with an anchoring plate to the said carrying structure in such a way that it can be adjusted along an axis perpendicular to the prefabricated wall and along an axis parallel to the prefabricated wall and being fixed to the prefabricated wall with at least one supporting extension by means of a transverse connecting pin which passes through holes in the supporting extension, in which the elastic supporting bushes are inserted in the said holes, and in which the said elastic supporting bushes are provided with a radial slotted hole extending from their central region and with a projecting edge on their front side external to the supporting extension and are housed rotatably in the holes of the said supporting extension, while the connecting pin has a length such that it projects slightly beyond the external front side of each elastic supporting bush and has at its ends threaded terminal extensions of a smaller diameter, forming a spacing shoulder for retaining washers on the front side of the corresponding elastic supporting bush, these retaining washers being inserted on the said threaded terminal extensions and tightened against the said spacing shoulder by means of locking washers and nuts. For the formation of the hole passing through the prefabricated wall during the assembly operation, tubular guides are provided for the perforating tool, for example a drill bit, with an internal diameter substantially equal to or slightly larger than that of the connecting pin, but smaller than that of the holes in the supporting extensions, which may be engaged removably in the holes of the said supporting extensions and may be tightened against the corresponding side of the prefabricated wall to form means of locking the prefabricated wall in position. The anchoring plate is associated with an undercut guide section which is incorporated in the carrying structure and is capable of slidably engaging the enlarged heads of two threaded pins, each of which passes through one of the slotted holes of the fixing plate and interacts with a female screw thread. By virtue of what has been described above, the method and device according to the invention enable the front walls to be assembled rapidly and very securely to the load-bearing structures. Since the prefabricated walls are drilled during the building work and the fixing is adjustable along two additional orthogonal axes, it is possible to absorb dimensional tolerances between the carrying structure and the walls. The elastic support of the connecting pin of the prefabricated walls in the holes of the supporting extensions also ensures the absorption of jolting and oscillating movements, due for example to earth tremors, to the wind, or to other external causes, and the absorption of vibrations caused by external or internal agents and transmitted by the structures. By virtue of its particular design, the device according to the invention may be used universally with all types of structure without the need for constructional variations. The invention also relates to other characteristics which further improve the method and device described above and which form the subject of the subsidiary claims. The particular characteristics of the invention and the advantages derived therefrom will be understood in greater detail from the description of a preferred embodiment, illustrated as a non-restrictive example in the attached drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows an anchoring bracket according to the invention; Fig. 2 shows the anchoring bracket according to Fig. 1 in the assembly state for anchoring a prefabricated wall to a carrying structure; Figs 3 to 5 show various positions of use of the bracket according to Fig. 1; and Fig. 6 shows the anchoring bracket according to Fig. 1 with the associated guiding means for making the through holes in the prefabricated wall. With reference to Figs 1 and 2, the device for anchoring prefabricated walls 1, in particular front walls, to the load-bearing structures 2 of buildings comprises an anchoring bracket 3 connectable to both the wall 1 and the carrying structure 2. The anchoring bracket 3 consists of an anchoring plate 4 whose length is greater than the thickness of the wall 1 and which is intended to be fixed to one side 102 of the carrying structure 2, this side being oriented transversely with respect to the said wall 1. The median region of the anchoring plate 4 has attached to it two flat supporting extensions 5 which are oriented transversely with respect to the longitudinal extension of the anchoring plate 4, and in particular orthogonally with respect to this plate. The two supporting extensions 5 are spaced apart by a distance such that the edge of the prefabricated wall 1 may be inserted between them with the extensions superposed on the corresponding side of the wall 1. At their free terminal regions, the two supporting extensions 5 have coinciding holes 105 through which a connecting pin 6 is made to pass and passes from one side to the other of the prefabricated wall 1 through a coinciding through hole 101 (Fig. 2). In the section projecting beyond each supporting extension 5, the anchoring plate 4 has a slotted hole 8 for a pin 7 (Fig. 2) which is oriented parallel to the supporting extension 5. As seen in Fig. 2, the pin 7 is fixed to the corresponding side 102 of the carrying structure 2 in such a way that it projects perpendicularly from this structure and can slide along an axis oriented in the longitudinal direction of the anchoring plate 4, in other words perpendicularly to the slotted holes 8. This is achieved by virtue of an undercut guide section 9, in which the enlarged heads 107 of the pins 7 slidably engage. The guide section 9 may easily be incorporated in the corresponding side 102 of the carrying structure 2 and may be open at its top ends to permit the insertion of the pins 7, or closed, with the use of hammer-headed or anchor-headed pins. The anchoring plate 4 is tightened against the carrying structure 2 by nuts 10 screwed on to the pins 7. In this way the anchoring plate 4 may be fixed initially with only a certain degree of force to the carrying structure 2, so that it is securely held in position with a certain degree of friction which enables it to be displaced along two axes perpendicular to each other and parallel to the plane of support of the anchoring plate 4, that is to the side 102 of the carrying structure 2. The pin 6 connecting the prefabricated wall 1 to the supporting extensions 5 has a central part having a diameter considerably smaller than that of the holes 105 in the supporting extensions 5, and having a length slightly greater than the distance between the external sides of the supporting extensions 5. The connecting pin 6 has threaded terminal extensions 106 which are coaxial with and of considerably smaller diameter than the central part and project beyond the corresponding supporting extension 5. The ends of the central part of the connecting pin 6 engage in the holes 105 in these with the interposition of an elastic supporting bush 12. The elastic supporting bushes 12 are rotatable in the holes 105 of the supporting extensions 5 and have projecting supporting edges 112 on their sides external to the supporting extensions 5. The connecting pin 6 projects beyond the external front side of the elastic supporting bushes 12 through a slotted hole 212, forming a spacing shoulder 206 for a retaining washer 13 on the front side of the elastic supporting bushes 12. The retaining washer 13 is tightened against the spacing shoulder 206 by means of a lock washer 14 and a nut 11 screwed on to the corresponding threaded terminal section 106. The slotted hole 212 extends radially from the central region of the elastic supporting bushes 12 towards their edges. The whole assembly enables the connecting pin to be secured so that it cannot become unscrewed, while ensuring the separation of the prefabricated wall 1 from the carrying structure 2 with regard to the transmission of vibrations and related jolting movements or movements of other types. The anchoring bracket 3 may be used in various positions. In the first case, in Fig. 3, it enables the prefabricated wall 1 to be fixed to an upper horizontal side 102' of the carrying structure 2, for example a beam or the like. In the second case (Fig. 4), the wall is anchored to a lower horizontal side 102'' of the carrying structure 2, while in the example in Fig. 5 the prefabricated wall 1 is fixed to a vertical side 102, transverse with respect to the said wall 1, of the carrying structure 2. In each of these positions, the elastic supporting bush 12 may always be rotated into its correct supporting position with the slotted radial hole 212 oriented upwards in the vertical position. In accordance with the method according to the invention, the absorption of dimensional tolerances is ensured not only along the two axes orthogonal to each other and oriented in the direction of sliding of the anchoring plate 4, but also along a further axis perpendicular to these and to the anchoring side 102 of the carrying structure 2. For this purpose, the through hole 101 is to be made through the prefabricated wall 1 for the connecting pin 6 during the assembly operation of the said wall 1. With reference to Fig. 6, the anchoring bracket 3 is associated with guiding means 15 for a drilling tool, for example a drill bit P. The guiding means 15 consist of guide bushes which may be removably inserted in the holes 105 of the supporting extensions 5 and may be tightened against the corresponding side of the prefabricated wall 1 in such a way as to lock it in position. The diameter of the central hole of the bushes 15 is substantially identical to that of the central part of the connecting pin 6. The guide bushes 15 may form part of a tool which is attached removably with ease and rapidity to the anchoring bracket 3. Each guide bush 15 is supported in a bush 17 provided in a position coinciding with the hole 105 of the corresponding supporting extension 5 on a bush-carrying plate 16 which is oriented parallel to the supporting extensions 5. The guide bushes 15 are externally threaded and engage in an internal thread of the bushes 17, while the latter have an external diameter corresponding to that of the holes 105 in the supporting extensions 5 and project from the facing sides of the corresponding bush-carrying plates 16 in such a way that they enter the holes 105 of the supporting extensions 5. One of the bush-carrying plates 16 is fixed to the end of a perpendicular supporting arm 18. The opposite bush-carrying plate 16 is slidable in both senses in the longitudinal direction of the supporting arm 18. It is provided with a slide 19 which engages slidably on the supporting arm 18. The slide 19 consists of a tubular section with a cross-section complementary to that of the supporting arm 18 and is screwed on to the said arm. The slide 19 is provided with means 20 of locking it in position, for example a threaded pin which is engaged in a threaded hole of the slide 19 and which can be tightened perpendicularly against the supporting arm 18, and with means 21 for adjusting the inclination of the bush-carrying plate 16 relative to the supporting arm 18, for example an adjusting screw with variable projection within the slide 19 oriented parallel to the bush-carrying plate 16. In this way, it is possible from time to time to compensate for deviations, due to wear of the supporting arm 18 and of the slide 19, from the correct position of the sliding bush-carrying plate 16 parallel to the stationary plate. The guide tool enables the holes 101 to be made with great rapidity and ease in the prefabricated wall 1, ensuring their perfect coaxial orientation with respect to the holes 105 in the supporting extensions 5, even when the drilling has to be carried out in hollow parts with a consequent increased risk of misalignment of the entry and exit holes.

Claims: Device for fixing prefabricated walls to the load bearing structures of buildings, comprising a bracket (3) anchoring the prefabricated wall (1) to the carrying structure (2,102), this bracket being fixed with an anchoring plate (4) to the said carrying structure (2,102) in such a way that it can be adjusted along an axis perpendicular to the prefabricated wall (1) and along an axis parallel to the prefabricated wall (1) and being fixed to the prefabricated wall (1) with at least one supporting extension (5) by means of a transverse connecting pin (6) which passes through holes (105,101) in the supporting extension (5), characterized by the fact that elastic supporting bushes (12) are inserted in the said holes (105), and that the said elastic supporting bushes (12) are provided with a radial slotted hole (212) extending from their central region and with a projecting edge (112) on their front side external to the supporting extension (5) and are housed rotatably in the holes (105) of the said supporting extension, while the connecting pin (6) has a length such that it projects slightly beyond the external front side of each elastic supporting bush (12) and has at its ends threaded terminal extensions (106) of a smaller diameter, forming a spacing shoulder (206) for retaining washers (13) on the front side of the corresponding elastic supporting bush (12), these retaining washers (13) being inserted on the said threaded terminal extensions (106) and tightened against the said spacing shoulder (206) by means of locking washers (14) and nuts (11). Device according to claim 1, characterised in that the plate (4) anchoring the anchoring bracket (3) to the carrying structure (2, 102) is associated with an undercut guide section (9) which is incorporated in the carrying structure (2, 102) and may be provided with insertion apertures for the enlarged heads (107) of threaded pins (7) or may be without the said insertion apertures and used in combination with threaded hammer-headed or anchor-headed pins, these pins (7) interacting with the slotted holes (8) in the anchoring plate (4) and with nuts (10), the said pins (7) being slidably engageable in the said guide section (9), the said guide section (9) being oriented transversely with respect to the slotted holes (8) in the anchoring plate (4) and disposed in such a way that the pins (7) project perpendicularly outside the side (102) of the carrying structure (2) to which the anchoring plate (4) is fixed. Device according to Claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the holes (105) in the supporting extensions (5) are associated with the guiding means (15) for a drilling tool (P), for example a drill bit, these guiding means (15) being removably insertable in the said holes (105). Device according to Claim 3, characterised in that the guiding means (15) for the drill bit (P) consist of guide bushes whose internal diameter is substantially equal to the diameter of the drill bit (P) and which may be inserted coaxially in a removable way and in a way enabling them to be tightened against the corresponding side of the prefabricated wall (1) in the holes (105) of the supporting extensions (5). Device according to Claim 4, characterised in that the guide bushes (15) are externally threaded and are engaged, in such a way that they may be screwed and unscrewed, in internally threaded bushes (17) having an external diameter corresponding to the diameter of the holes (105) in the supporting extensions (5). Device according to Claim 4, characterised in that the guide bushes (15) are supported on jaws (16) which may be moved further away or nearer in a direction perpendicular to the supporting extensions (5) of a tool. Device according to Claims 5 and 6, characterised in that the bushes (17) are supported so that they project on the facing sides of two bush-carrying plates (16) oriented parallel to each other and which may be positioned parallel to the supporting extensions (5), one of the bush-carrying plates (16) being fixed perpendicularly to a supporting arm (18), while the other bush-carrying plate (16) is assembled so that it can slide along the said supporting arm (18). Device according to Claim 7 characterised in that the slidable bush-carrying plate (16) engages with the supporting arm (18) by means of a slide (19), preferably tubular and of complementary cross-section, which is provided with means of locking it in position (20) on the supporting arm (18) and with means (21) of adjusting the inclination of the associated bush-carrying plate (16) relative to the said supporting arm (18).

Inventors: COSTA GIOVANNI, RAVELLA FEDERICO, COSTA, GIOVANNI, RAVELLA, FEDERICO
Applicants: GL LOCATELLI SPA, GL LOCATELLI S.P.A.
Application year: 1992
Main classification: E04B2
IPC codes: E04B2