A WINDOW FOR INSTALLATION IN A ROOF STRUCTURE AND A MOUNTING BRACKET FOR USE IN THE INSTALLATION

Abstract: The window comprises a frame with a top member (6), a bottom member (7) and two side members (4, 5), which are connected with each other in corner joints, and a plurality of mounting brackets (10). The side members and the top and bottom members of the frame in the mounted position of the window extend essentially parallel to rafter (2) and batten (3, 8, 9) elements, respectively, in the roof structure. Each mounting bracket (10) comprises a first leg portion (11) for connection with an associated frame member and a second leg portion (12) which is essentially perpendicular to the first leg portion and is to be fastened to the roof structure, each mounting bracket being designed as a gusset where the first leg portion (11) is designed as two leg sections (11a, 11b) essentially perpendicular to each other for connection with adjacent frame members at the joint between these.

Description: A window for installation in a roof structure and a mounting bracket for use in the installation The present invention relates to a window for installation in a roof structure, comprising a frame with a top member, a bottom member and two side members mutually connected in corner joints, and a plurality of mounting brackets, where the side members and the top and bottom members of the frame in the mounted position of the window extend essentially parallel to rafter and batten elements, respectively, in the roof structure, and where each mounting bracket comprises a first leg portion for connection with an associated frame member and a second leg portion which is essentially perpen- dicular to the first leg portion and is to be fastened to the roof structure. A window of this kind, e.g. known from the international publication no WO 88/04348, is anchored in the roof structure in the way that a number, usually four or six, of fixing angles sectionally L-shaped are by one leg fastened to the side members of the frame, and the window is then mounted in the roof opening and fastened by the second leg by screws to the subjacent roof structure, the rafters or the battens. Prior to the mounting, however, the spacing between the battens and their positioning must be measured in order to avoid that a mounting bracket is placed opposite a cut batten end, when mounted on the subjacent roof structure, whether a rafter element or alternatively a counter batten situated parallel to and on said rafter element. This measuring is an obvious source of error and can be the reason for considerable delays during mounting, as an erroneous measuring implies that the mounting bracket has to be removed after the window has been mounted in the roof opening. In particular, when mounting two or more windows next to each other, this measuring is critical since the leg of the mounting bracket perpendicular to the frame side member must necessarily have a certain length in order to assure a good abutment against the roof structure and, depending on the distance between the windows, it may thus result in the mounting brackets on two adjacent frame side members of neighbouring windows not being placed opposite each other. Therefore, it is the object of the invention to provide a window with associated mounting brackets having as a result an optimal rationalization in connection with the mounting of the window and, at the same time, the risk of erroneous measuring and mounting is minimized. According to the invention, this is obtained in the way that each mounting bracket is designed as a gusset, said first leg portion being formed as two leg sections essentially perpendicular to each other for connection with adjacent frame members at the joint hereof . By such a window, the desired simple mounting is obtained in the way that the window can easily be positioned correctly without previous measuring and without particular considerations to the spacing of the battens . The window is put up in the roof opening with a mounting bracket provided at each frame corner joint and is placed on either continuous battens above or under the frame top and bottom members, respectively, or auxiliary batten pieces extending preferably parallel hereto and being positioned parallel to the other battens. Subsequently, the window is fastened to the roof structure by screwing mounting screws in the second leg portion of the mounting bracket through the batten element and down in the subjacent rafter structure. In an advantageous embodiment, the second leg portion of the mounting bracket is designed as two plate-shaped leg sections placed in one plane, each being perpendicular to and integrally connected with an associated leg section of the first leg portion. In this way, a further improved abutment between the window and the roof structure is obtained just as an actual reinforcement of the corner joints is achieved. The two leg sections of the second leg portion are preferably designed essentially symmetrically in relation to a bisecting plane for a corner joint of two adjacent frame members and with sides extending paral- lei to the associated frame member. In addition to obtaining a standardization, as the one and same bracket can be mounted at all the corner joints of the window, this embodiment entails that the mounting of more windows beside or above each other can take place in a simple and advantageous manner. In a further development of this embodiment, the leg sections are essentially shaped as parallelograms, in which the mounting bracket seen from above is arrow- headed. This further entails an advantage as to produc- tion technique and storage, because several mounting brackets can be produced from a strip material blank and, having been folded to form the two leg portions, can be piled one on top of the other. In a preferred embodiment, the frame has, at least in an area at the corner joint between two adjacent frame members, a groove extending in the longitudinal direction of each frame member, and in the end opposite in relation to the second leg portion, the mounting bracket is provided with a flange perpendicular to each leg section of said first leg portion to be inserted in said groove. This embodiment provides a particularly good and secure connection between the bracket and the frame and a further simplified mounting, the assembler being instructed where to mount the mounting bracket in the vertical direction of the frame members, and thus the positioning of the window in relation to the surrounding roofing is determined. In a particular embodiment, which is in particular advantageous when mounting windows next to and/or above each other, engagement means are provided at each lateral edge of the leg section of the second leg portion for connection with the mounting bracket of a neighbouring window, whereby the mounting and aligning work of thus situated windows is considerably facili- tated. These engagement means are preferably designed as at least one projection-recess pair. In order to provide a simple outside insulation of the frame in the mounted position of the window, the mounting bracket is appropriately provided with at least one partially punched flap which, in the mounted position, is folded in the direction towards the roof structure. This flap marks the distance to a batten element above and below, respectively, the top and bottom member of the frame such that e.g. a plate of insulating material can be inserted between the frame and the roof structure. In another aspect of the invention, a mounting bracket with the features stated in claims 9-16 is obtained. The invention will in the following be explained in more detail with reference to the schematic drawings, in which Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a window according to the invention mounted in a pitched roof, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a mounting bracket according to the invention, Fig. 3 is a plane view of a second embodiment of the mounting bracket according to the invention, Fig. 4 is, on a small scale, a plane view showing an integration of four windows according to the invention by means of several of the mounting bracket shown in Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is a plane view of yet another embodiment of the mounting bracket according to the invention during a manufacturing step, and Fig. 6 is, on a small scale, a plane view showing a material blank for manufacturing of a series of mounting brackets as shown in Fig. 5. In Fig. 1, a window 1 is shown in a mounted position in a pitched roof structure comprising rafters 2 extending in the direction of the roof pitch and battens 3 placed perpendicular hereto. For the sake of clearness, only the exterior frame of the window 1 is shown with two side members 4, 5 extending parallel to the rafters 2 and a top member 6 and a bottom member 7 extending parallel to the battens. An auxiliary batten 8 is placed above the last continuous batten 3 below the bottom member 7, just as an auxiliary batten 9 has been placed above the top member 6. In a not shown mounting situation, at least the lower auxiliary batten is placed at an appropriate distance from the nearest continuous roof batten in order to give way to positioning of the roofing material in such a way that the flashing can subsequently be placed in a satisfactory way, preferably without having to adapt it by an irregular deformation in order to obtain a secure waterproof flashing. The frame members 4-7 are connected with each other in corner joints, by which the frame via mounting brackets 10 is anchored in the roof structure in that screws (not shown) are led through the auxiliary battens 8, 9 and further down in the subjacent rafters 2. In Figs. 2-6 are shown different embodiments of such a bracket. Parts with identical or analogue functions will all have same reference numbers when the various embodiments are described. As shown in Fig. 2, the mounting bracket 10 is designed as a symmetrical gusset with a plane of symmetry corresponding to the bisecting plane of the corner joints. The bracket 10 has a first leg portion 11 consisting of two rectangular leg sections 11a, lib meant to be fastened to e.g. the frame bottom member 7 and the side member 5, respectively. Two plate- shaped leg sections 12a, 12b extend perpendicular to the leg sections 11a, lib, and form together a second leg portion 12 which is meant, in a mounted position, for abutment against the top side of a batten 3 or, as indicated in Fig. 1, preferably against the lower or upper auxiliary batten 8 or 9. The leg sections 12a, 12b are essentially shaped as parallelograms such that the mounting bracket 10 seen from above is arrow- headed where the head points away from the corner joints of the frame, as it appears from Fig. 1. In the opposite direction, a flange 13a, 13b extends perpendicular to each leg section of the first leg portion 11, only one flange 13a being shown in Fig. 2. The flanges 13a, 13b are meant for insertion in grooves in the frame members which can be provided either with one circular groove, with more circular grooves in different heights on the frame or with grooves which are only provided at the corner joints themselves. The second leg portion 12 is, in the dividing line between the two leg sections 12a, 12b and at a distance from the connection with the first leg portion 11, provided with a partially punched flap 14 which before mounting, preferably during the manufacture, is folded downwards in the direction towards the first leg portion 11, i.e. in the mounted position towards the roof structure. In the folded and mounted position, this flap abuts against the side of the subjacent batten or auxiliary batten and entails that the batten element always keeps a minimum distance to the top or bottom member of the frame such that e.g. a plate of insulating material can be inserted in this interspace. In other roof structures, as e.g. concrete roofs or other "plane" structures where the bracket will be placed directly on the plane supporting portion, the flap will be bendable backwards so that it is flush with the leg portion 11. Finally, the mounting bracket 10 in the second leg portion 11 has a number of preferably recessed holes 15 serving to receive screws which are screwed down in the batten element and further down in the subjacent rafter structure after the mounting bracket 10 is positioned around a frame corner and the flanges 13a, 13b are fitted into the associated grooves in the frame members. In the preferred mounting situation, the auxiliary battens are thus serving as mere support or spacer pieces, and the auxiliary batten may be divided into two separate parts. A structure is thus obtained where the load transmission is passed directly from the mounting bracket and down in the subjacent rafter structure via the mounting screws which provides the most secure load transmission where the quality of the roof battens is secondary. A further embodiment of the mounting bracket is shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Only differences in relation the above-stated embodiment are described in details. In the lateral edge of one leg section 12a of the second leg portion 12, a semicircular cylindrical projection 16 is provided having a complementary shape in relation to a recess 17 on the lateral edge of the second leg section 12b. For production-technical reasons which will be explained further in the following, the flange 13a has a corresponding recess 18 which has, however, no influence on the fastening of the mounting bracket to the frame member. Furthermore, the flange 13b can at its end facing away from the plane of symmetry be provided with a flap 13c which has been folded downwards in an angle of preferably 45° around the dashed folding line 13d. Thus, by boring one hole at a frame groove, it can be assured that the bracket 10 can be mounted in one way on the frame, i.e. by having the flap 13c entering the hole. As shown in Fig. 4, the projection 16 and the recess 17 serve as engagement means for fixation of the brackets in relation to each other when integrating two windows beside and, in this case, above each other. The mounting bracket 10 for the window 1 is thus in engagement with a corresponding mounting bracket 110 on a window situated at the side and a mounting bracket 210 on a window 201 situated below. The mounting brackets 110 and 210 are at each their side in engagement with a mounting bracket 310 on a fourth window 301. All four mounting brackets 10, 110, 210, 310 are on the manner described above fastened to the batten 3 and rafter 2 of the roof structure and the folded flaps 14, 114, 214, 314 abut against the side of the batten 3 whereas the rafter 2 unobstructedly avoids the flaps. Fig. 5 shows a step during manufacturing of a mounting bracket 10 according to the invention. From a strip material blank shown in Fig. 6 and comprising four future mounting brackets, the various details of the finished mounting bracket are punched, i.e. the flap 14, the fastening holes 15, engagement means 16, 17 and further engagement means 19, 20 together with a slot 21 forming the dividing line between the two leg sections 11a and lib in the first leg por- tion. After dividing the strip material blank into four parts, each part is folded in relation to the second leg portion 12 along the dot-and-dash lines 22a, 22b and the dashed folding lines 23a, 23b to form the flanges 13a, 13b and the leg sections 11a, lib of the first leg portion, respectively, and finally the flap 14 is folded in the desired angle in relation to the plane through the second leg portion 12. Even though the mounting bracket has essentially the same shape in the embodiments described above, modifications are certainly possible within the frame of the following claims. E.g. the brackets can be provided with two flaps 14 (not illustrated) symmetrically positioned in each their leg section 12a, 12b.

Claims: P A T E N T C L A I M S 1. A window for installation in a roof structure, comprising a frame with a top member (6) , a bottom member (7) and two side members (4, 5) mutually connected in corner joints, and a plurality of mounting brackets (10) , where the side members and the top and bottom members of the frame in the mounted position of the window extend essentially parallel to rafter elements (2) and batten elements (3, 8, 9), respectively, in the roof structure, and where each mounting bracket (10) comprises a first leg portion (11) for connection with an associated frame member and a second leg portion (12) which is essentially perpendicular to the first leg portion and is to be fastened to the roof structure, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that each mounting bracket is designed as a gusset, said first leg portion (11) being formed as two leg sections (11a, lib) essentially perpendicular to each other for connection with adjacent frame members at the joint hereof. 2. A window according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said second leg portion (12) is designed as two plate-shaped leg sections (12a, 12b) placed in one plane, each being perpendicular to and integrally connected with an associated leg section (11a, lib) of the first leg portion. 3. A window according to claim 2, c h a r a c - t e r i z e d in that the two leg sections (12a, 12b) of the second leg portion are designed essentially symmetrically in relation to a bisecting plane for a corner joint of two adjacent frame members and with sides extending parallel to the associated frame member . 4. A window according to claim 3, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said leg sections (12a, 12b) are essentially shaped as parallelograms. 5. A window according to any of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the frame has, at least in an area at the joint between two adjacent frame members, a groove extending in the longitudinal direction of each frame member, and in the end opposite in relation to the second leg portion, the mounting bracket (10) is provided with a flange (13a, 13b) perpendicular to each leg section (11a, lib) of said first leg portion to be inserted in said groove. 6. A window according to any of the claims 3-5, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that engagement means are provided at each lateral edge of the leg section (12a, 12b) of the second leg portion for connection with the mounting bracket of a neighbouring window. 7. A window according to claim 6, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said engagement means are designed as at least one projection-recess pair (16, 17, 20, 19) . 8. A window according to any of the preceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the second leg portion (12) of each mounting bracket at a distance from the joint is provided with at least one partially punched flap (14) which, in the mounted position, is folded in the direction towards the roof structure. 9. A mounting bracket for mounting a window according to any of the claims 1-8 in a roof structure, comprising a first leg portion (11) and a second leg portion (12) essentially perpendicular to the first leg portion, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the mounting bracket is designed as a gusset, said first leg portion (11) being formed as two leg sections (11a, lib) essentially perpendicular to each other for connection with adjacent frame members of the window at the joint hereof. 10. A mounting bracket according to claim 9, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the second leg portion (12) is designed as two plate-shaped leg sections (12a, 12b) placed in one plane, each being perpendicular to and integrally connected with an associated leg section (11a, lib) of the first leg portion. 11. A mounting bracket according to claim 10, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the two leg sections (12a, 12b) of the second leg portion are designed essentially symmetrically in relation to a bisecting plane for the leg sections (11a, lib) of the first leg portion and with sides extending parallel to the associated leg section of the first leg portion. 12. A mounting bracket according to claim 11, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said leg sections (12a, 12b) are essentially shaped as parallelograms. 13. A mounting bracket according to any of the claims 9-12, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that on each leg section (11a, lib) of the first leg portion in the end opposite in relation to the second leg portion, a flange is provided (13a, 13b) perpendicular to said leg section. 14. A mounting bracket according to any of the claims 11-13, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that each lateral edge of the leg sections (12a, 12b) of the second leg portion is provided with engagement means. 15. A mounting bracket according to claim 14, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said engagement means are designed as at least one projection-recess pair (16, 17, 20, 19) . 16. A mounting bracket according to any of the claims 9-15, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the second leg portion (12) is provided with a partially punched flap (14) which is folded in the direction towards the first leg portion (11) .

Inventors: EDVARDSEN ALLAN, NIELSEN ELGAARD SCHANDORFF, EDVARDSEN, ALLAN, NIELSEN, ELGAARD, SCHANDORFF
Applicants: EDVARDSEN ALLAN, NIELSEN ELGAARD SCHANDORFF, VELUX IND AS, EDVARDSEN, ALLAN, NIELSEN, ELGAARD, SCHANDORFF, VELUX INDUSTRI A/S
Application year: 1998
Main classification: E04D13
IPC codes: E04B1, E04D13, E06B1