Abstract:
The invention relates to a retaining means ( 10 ) for fixing panel-form material, for example, glass panes ( 12 ) of a glass facing, to a substructure ( 14 ). The invention proposes constructing the retaining means ( 10 ) with a support ( 16 ), in which supporting elements ( 22 ) projecting pivotally to the side are insertable, to which the glass panes ( 121 ) can be displaceably fixed. The invention has the advantage that in a simple and inexpensive manner it permits stress-free fixing of glass panes ( 12 ) so that thermal expansion is compensated.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to a retaining means for fixing panel-form material to a substructure. The retaining means is intended in particular for fixing glass panes of a glass facing to a construction comprising cross-members and posts. Solar panels, for example, can also be fixed to a wall or to a roof therewith. 
     When fixing glass panes to a glass facing, the problem arises that the fixing ought to be able to compensate for manufacturing tolerances in order to be able to fix the glass panes so that they are not under stress. The fixing should also be capable of compensating without stress for changes in the size of the glass panes in relation to the substructure, such changes possibly being caused by changes in temperature. At the same time, the fixing should hold the glass pane at its intended positions. Furthermore, the fixing should be inexpensive to manufacture and capable of being mounted with little effort. A further requirement is the appearance of the fixing; it should detract from the visual impression of the glass facing as little as possible. 
     The invention is based on the problem of providing a retaining means for fixing panel-form material, especially glass panes of a glass facing, which satisfies the above requirements. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     That problem is solved in accordance with the present invention. The retaining means according to the invention comprises a support fastenable to a substructure, for example a construction comprising posts and cross-members. Fixing of the support can be effected by screwing the support to a post of the post/cross-member construction. The support forms a base part of the retaining means according to the invention. A supporting element is fastened to the support so as to be movable in a plane parallel to the plane of the panel-form material, for example, the glass panes. The panel-form material is fastened to the supporting element. The mobility of the supporting element in the plane of the panel-form material enables both manufacturing tolerances and thermal expansion of the panel-form material in relation to the substructure to be compensated. The invention has the advantage that it permits stress-free mounting of panel-form material on a substructure and compensates for manufacturing inaccuracies. 
     For the purpose of fastening the supporting element to the support so that the former is movable in the plane of the panel-form material, a construction of the invention provides for a pivot-mounting of the supporting element on the support. The pivot-mounting enables the mobility of the supporting element in the plane of the panel-form material to be achieved in a simple and inexpensive way. 
     In a preferred construction, the fixing of the supporting element to the support is releasable, in order to be able to exchange the supporting element. 
     In order to stabilise the position of the support on the substructure, in a construction of the invention the support comprises a connecting device, with which the support is fastenable to the substructure by form fit locked against rotation. The connecting device can be, for example, a groove of the width of a post of the cross-member/post construction, in which a post of the substructure lies. The fastening of the support to the substructure locked against rotation is especially important when the support is fastened, for example, by a screw to the substructure. The form fit means that the support is independent of the tightening moment of the screw and is permanently secured against twisting even when under load. 
     In a development of the invention, the retaining means comprises several supporting elements for fixing, for example, several glass panes. For example, the device comprises four supporting elements, which are arranged in the form of a star on the support. With this device, four glass panes can be fastened at their edges facing one another. To fix two glass panes at their adjacent side edges, two of the four supporting elements are removed and the two glass panes are fixed to the two opposite supporting elements remaining. 
     To form a fixed point, in a construction of the invention a locating device is provided, with which the supporting element is fixable. In this way, it is possible, for example, to fix a glass pane immovably at one point, for example, at a corner and hence to position it (fixed bearing). The remaining fixing points of the glass pane are movably fixed (movable bearing) with further devices according to the invention, in order to obtain the desired facility for compensating for manufacturing tolerances and thermal expansion. The locating device can be of adjustable construction for positioning the glass pane. 
     A further construction of the invention provides a guide, especially a sliding guide for fixing the panel-form material to the supporting element of the retaining means according to the invention. This guide also serves for compensation of manufacturing tolerances and thermal expansion. 
     In a preferred construction of the invention, the support is of constant cross-section over its thickness and/or the supporting element has a constant longitudinal section over its width. The purpose of this construction of the invention is to be able to cut the support and/or the supporting element from a, for example, extruded profiled rod. This enables the support and/or the supporting element to be inexpensively manufactured. A constant cross-section and longitudinal section respectively shall be understood to mean that the support and the supporting element respectively are constructed to be cut from a profiled rod, that is, the support or the supporting element in one direction has a cross-section that is constant in respect of shape and size, regardless of whether the transverse or longitudinal section is actually concerned. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention is explained in detail hereinafter with reference to an exemplary embodiment illustrated in the drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 shows a front view of a retaining means according to the invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the retaining means of FIG. 1 along the line II—II in FIG. 3; and 
     FIG. 3 is a further illustration of the retaining means of FIG. 1 in front view. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The retaining means  10  according to the invention illustrated in FIG. 1 is intended for fixing panel-form material  12  to a substructure  14 . In the illustrated embodiment, glass panes  12  of a glass facing are fixed with the retaining means  10  to a post  14  of a substructure, the remainder of which is not shown, consisting of (vertical) posts  14  and (horizontal) cross-members. The retaining means  10  comprises as base part a star-shaped support  16  (compare also FIG.  3 ), having four outwardly extending supporting ribs  18  arranged at right angles to one another. On notional bisecting lines between the supporting ribs  18  the support  16  has outwardly open grooves  20  of circular cross-section, which form pivot bearing sockets  20 . The support  16  has a constant cross-section over its entire thickness, corresponding to the end face illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3. Thickness here means the extent of the support  16  perpendicular to the plane of drawing in FIG.  1 . The constant cross-section enables the support  16  to be manufactured by cutting from an extruded profiled rod of aluminium. In this way, the support  16  can be manufactured inexpensively. 
     Supporting elements  22  are inserted in the pivot bearing socket  20  of the support  16 . The supporting elements  22  are in the form of flat bars having at their inner ends an enlargement  24  of circular cross-section complementary to the pivot bearing sockets  20 . The enlargement  24  forms a pivot bearing shaft  24 , with which the supporting elements  22  are located pivotally in the pivot bearing sockets  20  of the support  16 . The supporting elements  22  project outwardly from the support  16  in the form of a star at angles of approximately 90° with respect to one another. The supporting elements  22  are pivotable in the plane of the glass panes  12 . 
     The supporting elements  22  are inserted into the support  16  by sliding the supporting elements  22  with their pivot bearing shafts  24  longitudinally into the pivot bearing sockets  20  of the support  16 . The supporting elements  22  are secured by means of a central collar nut  26 , the circumferential collar of which engages in slots  28  in the pivot bearing shafts  24  of the supporting elements  22  (see FIG. 2; in FIG. 2, the supporting element  22  on the right in the drawing has been omitted for clarity). At their outer ends, the supporting elements  22  have a fork  30  with a longitudinal slot  32  (FIG.  3 ). 
     For fixing, locked against rotation, to the post  14 , the support  16  of the retaining means  10  according to the invention has on its rear side facing the post  14  a flat, rectangular groove or rebate  34 , the width of which corresponds to the width of the post (FIG.  2 ). The rebate  34  forms a connecting device  34 , in which the post  14  is located. In this way, the support  16  is held on the post  14  by form fit locked against rotation. Fixing of the support  16  is effected by means of a central bolt  36 , which is pushed through the post  14  and a central hole  38  in the support  16  and screwed into the collar nut  26 . 
     The supporting elements  22  in the form of flat bars have a constant longitudinal section across their width, which corresponds to the side face of the supporting elements  22  visible in FIG.  1 . In this way, the supporting elements  22  can also be inexpensively manufactured by cutting from an extruded profiled rod of an aluminium alloy. 
     In FIG. 1, four glass panes  12  are secured in the region of corners facing one another of the glass panes  12  by means of the retaining means  10  according to the invention to the post  14  of the substructure, the remainder of which is not shown. For fixing, the glass panes  12  are provided with an undercut bore, in which an undercut glass anchor  40  is inserted. Since such undercut glass anchors  40  are known per se to the expert and do not form the actual subject matter of the invention, they are not described in detail. The undercut glass anchors  40  lie with a shank  42  in the longitudinal slots  32  of the forks  30  of the supporting elements  22 . In FIG. 3, the right-hand glass pane, including its undercut glass anchor, has been omitted for clarity, so that the fork  30  of the supporting element  22  is visible. In FIG. 1, the two upper supporting elements  22  form releasable bearings of the retaining means  10  according to the invention. The undercut glass anchors  40  of the two upper glass panes  12  in FIG. 1 are located slidably in the longitudinal slot  32  of the forks  30 ; the longitudinal slot  32  forms a sliding guide for the glass panes  12 , with which the glass panes  12  are held so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the supporting elements  22 . The additional pivotability of the two supporting elements  22  at the top in FIG. 1 ensures that the two glass panes  12  at the top in FIG. 1 are displaceable in all directions in the plane of the glass panes  12 . This mobility enables manufacturing tolerances and thermal expansion of the glass panes  12  in relation to the posts  14  to be compensated. The two supporting elements  22  at the top in FIG. 1 form releasable bearings for the glass panes  12 . 
     The supporting elements  22  can also be in the form of fixed bearings, which is shown at the bottom of FIG.  1 . To form individual supporting elements  22  as fixed bearings, two threaded holes  44  are made laterally side by side in each of the supporting ribs  18  of the support  16 . To form the two supporting elements  22  at the bottom in FIG. 1 as fixed bearings, two grub screws  46  are screwed into the downwardly directed supporting rib  18  of the support  16  and secured with screwed-down nuts  48 . The grub screws  46  project in opposite directions horizontally from the supporting rib  18 . The grub screws  46  support the supporting elements  22 , the supporting elements  22  having spaced from their pivot bearing shafts  24  protuberances  50  extending to each side, with which the supporting elements  22  abut the grub screws  46 . The grub screws  46  form locating devices for the supporting elements  22 , with which the angular position of the supporting elements  22  can be fixed. 
     To construct the fixed bearings, the undercut glass anchors  40  of the two lower glass panes in FIG. 1 are fixedly clamped in the forks  30  of the supporting elements  22 . A washer  52  (FIG. 2) is inserted between the undercut glass anchors  40  and the forks  30  for the clamping. The two lower supporting elements  22  in FIG. 1 therefore form fixed bearings, by which the glass panes  12  secured to them are fixed at their corners. Before the undercut glass anchors  40  are tightened, the undercut glass anchors  40  are displaceable in the forks  30  of the supporting elements  22 . By turning the grub screws  46 , the angle at which the supporting elements  22  extend from the support  16  is adjustable. In this way, the point at which the corners of the lower glass panes  12  in FIG. 1 are fixed is adjustable, and the glass panes  12  can be positioned on the substructure comprising the posts  14 . 
     To fix two glass panes  12  to a post  14  in the region of adjacent edges of the glass panes  12 , the support  16  of the retaining means  10  according to the invention is preferably mounted with horizontally projecting supporting elements  22  on the post  14 , as illustrated in FIG.  3 . The support  16  is therefore screwed down to the post  14  in a position rotated through 45° with respect to FIG. 1; the counter-sinking  34  forming the connecting device  34  is aligned correspondingly. Only two supporting elements  22  projecting to the side are inserted in the support  16 . The same retaining means  10  can therefore be used either for corner or for edge fixing of glass panes  12  to a post  14 . Fixing of just one glass pane  12  is also possible, only one supporting element  22  then being inserted in the support  16 . Also in FIG. 3, the supporting elements  22  can be constructed as fixed bearings, as shown, by being supported by the grub screws  46 , or as releasable bearings by omitting or unscrewing the grub screws  46 .