AU2013202592A1

AU2013202592A1 - A Fence

Info

Publication number: AU2013202592A1
Application number: AU2013202592A
Authority: AU
Inventors: John Frank Kralic
Original assignee: BlueScope Steel Ltd
Current assignee: BlueScope Steel Ltd
Priority date: 2012-10-16
Filing date: 2013-04-05
Publication date: 2014-05-01
Also published as: AU2013100419B4; AU2016231466A1; AU2016231466B2; AU2013100419A4; AU2013100419C4

Abstract

A fence is disclosed. The fence includes a base member 13 that extends along at least a part of a bottom portion of the fence and a fascia panel 15 mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence. 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321 .AU CY' CY,' co w~ co w coI

Description

5 A FENCE TECHNICAL FIELD 10 The present invention relates to a fence. The present invention relates particularly, although by no means exclusively, to a post and rail fence made from steel. More particularly, although by no means exclusively, the present invention relates to a steel post and rail fence that includes a base member that at least partially 15 fills a gap between a bottom rail of the fence and a ground surface. SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE In broad terms, the present invention provides a fence that includes a base 20 member that extends along at least a part of a bottom portion of the fence, and a fascia panel mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence. The fascia panel may be a decorative fascia panel that creates a visual impression that is the same as the visual impression created by the other parts of the front face of the fence. 25 The fascia panel may be a decorative fascia panel that creates a visual impression that is different to the visual impression created by the other parts of the front face of the fence. For example, in situations where the other parts of the front face of the fence are painted, the fascia panel may be colour-matched and painted the same or different 30 colour depending on the required visual impact. By way of further example, in situations where the other parts of the front face of the fence are textured or have physical features such as ribs that affect the visual impression, the fascia panel may have the same or different features depending on the required visual impact. 35 The fascia panel may be formed from a flat sheet of steel. The fascia panel may be formed from other than a flat steel sheet. For example, 1 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321 .AU 5 the fascia panel may include profiled ribs. The ribs may be purely decorative and provide no structural integrity to the base member. The fascia panel may be mounted to the base member by any suitable means. The fascia panel may be permanently fixed or replaceable. 10 The fascia panel may be mounted to the base member via fasteners, such as fasteners in the form of clips, screws, bolts, rivets or other mechanical elements or may be anchored thereto by adhesives or other chemical options. The fascia panel and the base member may be provided with complementary mechanical elements to mount the fascia panel to the base member. The 15 complementary mechanical elements may include tongue and groove elements or two piece snap and lock elements. The complementary mechanical elements may be integral with the fascia member and the base member respectively or complementary parts attached thereto. The base member may be made from any suitable material and be any suitable 20 construction. The base member may be formed to optimize the structural requirements for the bottom portion of the fence. The fascia panel may be formed to optimize the aesthetic appearance of the bottom portion of the fence. 25 The base member may be formed of extruded plastics material. The extruded plastics base member may be solid or honeycombed or hollow. The base member may also be formed of cementitious material (such as aerated cement or concrete), fibre board, roll formed steel, timber or other suitable material. The base member may be generally rectangular in transverse cross-section. 30 The base member may have opposed external side walls and opposed external top and bottom walls that define a hollow core. The base member may include at least one internal wall, whereby the side walls, top and bottom walls, and the internal wall or walls define multiple hollow cores. The internal walls may extend between the side walls. 35 The fence may be any suitable fence. 2 4207784_1 (GHMatter) P91321.AU 5 The applicant is interested particularly with a post and rail fence, with the base member and the fascia panel at least partially filling a gap between a bottom rail of the fence and a ground surface and forming the bottom portion of the fence. The post and rail fence may include at least two spaced-apart upright support posts extending from the ground surface, a top rail and a bottom rail extending between 10 an adjacent pair of posts, one or more than one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails. With a post and rail fence, the fascia panel may be in the form of a flat sheet extending the length of the base member and may have ends extending between the posts. 15 The infill panel may be made by roll-forming or pressing or otherwise forming steel strip into a suitable profile. The infill panel may be formed from steel strip that is less than or equal to 3.5 mm gauge steel. The infill panel may be formed from 3.5 mm gauge steel strip. 20 The infill panel may be made from corrosion resistant metal alloy-coated steel strip. The profile of the infill panel may be any suitable profile. An example of a suitable profile is a corrugated profile. Another example of a suitable profile is a profile that comprises flat pans 25 separated by ribs. The ribs may be a series of parallel ribs extending along the length of the panel. The ribs may be open ribs or closed ribs. The ribs may be at least 20 mm deep. The width of the ribs may be at least 80 mm. 30 The infill panel may be rectilinear and include two parallel sides and two parallel ends. The infill panel may be at least 860 mm long and at least 700 mm wide. Each rail may be an elongate channel having a base and opposed sides extending from the base, with the sides defining an open mouth, with ends of the panels 35 extending through the open mouths and received in the channels of the rails. 3 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU 5 The rails may be formed from corrosion resistant metal alloy-coated steel strip that is less than or equal to 3.5 mm gauge steel. The posts may be channel-shaped in transverse cross-section. Each post may include an elongate channel having a base and opposed sides extending from the base, with the sides defining an open mouth, with sides of the 10 panels, ends of the rails, ends of the base member, and ends of the fascia panel extending through the open mouths and received in the channels of the posts. The posts may be spaced-apart by at least 860 mm, measured between the centres of the posts. The posts may be formed from corrosion resistant metal alloy-coated steel strip 15 that is less than or equal to 3.5 mm gauge steel. The posts may include post stiffeners. The post stiffeners may be rigid elongate members, such as steel plates, secured to the channel-shaped posts. The posts and the rails may be formed from corrosion resistant metal alloy 20 coated 3.5 mm gauge steel strip. The fence may include two or more than two infill panels between the adjacent pair of posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails. Adjacent panels may have overlapping side edges. The fence may include a plurality of fasteners securing the panels and the rails 25 together at the overlap of the panels to improve the structural integrity of the fence. The fence may include a plurality of fasteners securing each panel and the rails together to improve the structural integrity of the fence. The fence may include a plurality of unit lengths, with each unit length including the pair of spaced-apart adjacent upright posts, the top rail and the bottom rail 30 extending between the posts, the at least one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, and the base member and the fascia panel at least partially filling the gap between the lower rail and the ground. The present invention also provides a fence kit for constructing the above 35 described fence that includes a plurality of the posts, rails, infill panels and fasteners. 4 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU 5 In more specific terms, the present invention provides a post and rail fence that includes at least two spaced-apart upright support posts extending from a ground surface, a top rail and a bottom rail extending between an adjacent pair of posts, one or more than one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, a base member that at least partially 10 fills a gap between the bottom rail and a ground surface, with the base member being a hollow elongate member extruded from plastics material, and a fascia panel mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 15 Notwithstanding any other forms which may fall within the scope of the fence of the invention as set forth in the Summary, a specific embodiment will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 20 Figure 1 is a front view of a section of an embodiment of a fence in accordance with the present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded view of the fence shown in Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a perspective view of the base member shown in Figures 1 and 2, which is one embodiment of a base member in accordance with the present invention. 25 DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS The embodiment of the fence 3 in accordance with the present invention shown in the Figures includes: 30 (a) a plurality of spaced-apart support posts 5 secured in footings 25 in the ground 37 (only two of which posts 5 are shown in the Figures), (b) a top rail (not shown) and a bottom rail 9 extending between and connected to each adjacent pair of posts 5, (c) an infill panel 11 having (i) opposed sides positioned between and retained 35 by each adjacent pair of posts 5 and (ii) opposed ends supported by the top rail (not shown) and the bottom rail 9 respectively, extending between each adjacent pair of posts 5, 5 4207784_1 (GHMatter) P91321.AU 5 (d) a base member 13 extending between and connected to each adjacent pair of posts 5 and at least partially filling a gap between the bottom rail 9 of the fence 3 and the ground 37, and (e) a decorative fascia panel 15 mounted to the base member 13 and forming part of a front face of the fence (i.e. the face visible in Figure 1). 10 Whilst not shown, the fence 3 may include fasteners securing the panels 11 and the rails together and post stiffeners in the form of elongate plate members secured to the posts 5. Each pair of posts 5, the top rail (not shown) and the bottom rail 9 extending between the posts 5, the panel 11 positioned between the posts 5 and the top rail (not 15 shown) and the bottom rail 9, the base member 13, and the decorative panel 15 form a unit length of the fence 3 which can be repeated as required to form a desired length of the fence 3. The infill panel 11 is formed from steel strip that has been roll-formed or pressed or otherwise formed into a profile comprising a series of parallel ribs 17 20 separated by flat pans 19. The panel 11 may be painted. The top rail (not shown) and the bottom rail 9 are in the form of elongate channels each having a base 31 and sides 33 extending from the base 31 and defining an open mouth that is shaped to receive and retain respective ends of the infill panel 11. Each post 5 includes two elongate channels 23, with each channel 23 having a 25 base 27 and sides 29 extending from the base 27 and defining an open mouth that is shaped to receive and retain the sides of the infill panel 11, the ends of the rails and the ends of the base member 13. The bases 27 of the channels 23 are connected together to form a rigid post, with the channels opening in opposite directions. As can best be seen in Figure 3, the base member 13 is a hollow elongate 30 member extruded from plastics material. More particularly, the base member 13 is generally rectangular in transverse section and has opposed external side walls 41, opposed external top and bottom walls 43, and two internal walls 45 that define three hollow cores 47. The base member 13 is straightforward to manufacture and forms an effective structural member to at least partially fill a gap between the ground surface 37 35 and the bottom rail 9. 6 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU 5 The decorative fascia panel 15 is intended to create the same visual impression created by the other parts of the front face of the fence. Typically, the panel 15 is formed from a flat sheet of steel and has the same surface finish and colour, if any, of the remainder of the front face of the fence. The use of the decorative fascia panel 15 makes it possible to focus the construction of the base member 13 on the structural 10 requirements of the base member rather than on aesthetic considerations. The panel 15 may be connected to the base member 13 by means of adhesive or any other suitable option, including mechanical options. The fascia panel 15 may be permanently connected to the base member 13 or be replaceably connected so that the fascia panel 15 can be replaced as may be required from time to time. 15 Many modifications may be made to the embodiments of the invention described herein with reference to the Figures without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. By way of example, whilst the fascia panel 15 is a decorative panel formed from a flat sheet of steel, the present invention is not so limited and extends to any suitable 20 fascia panel, decorative or non-decorative, formed from any suitable material. By way of further example, whilst the above-described embodiment of the fence 3 is a post and rail fence, the present invention is not so limited and extends to any fence that requires a base member 13 to extend along at least a part of a bottom portion of the fence. 25 By way of further example, whilst the base member 13 of the above-described embodiment of the fence 3 includes hollow cores 47, the present invention is not so limited and the base member may include concrete or other suitable filler material in the cores. The filler material may be required for structural reasons associated with the construction of the fence. 30 By way of further example, whilst the base member 13 shown in the Figures includes two internal walls 45 that define three hollow cores 47, the present invention is not so limited and the base member may include any suitable number of internal walls 45 forming any required number of cores. By way of further example, whilst the base member 13 is formed from plastics 35 material, the present invention is not so limited and the base member may be formed from any suitable material. 7 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU 5 By way of further example, whilst the fascia panel is shown in the Figures as being mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence, the fascia panel may form part of a rear face of the fence. In addition, a fascia panel may be applied to both faces of the fence. By way of further example, whilst the posts 5 are formed from channel members 10 23, the present invention is not so limited and the post 5 may be any suitable structure. For example, the posts 5 may be in the form of a central web with flanges along the longitudinal edges of the web, with the web and the flanges defining two channels opening in opposite directions. In the claims which follow, and in the preceding description, except where the 15 context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" and variations such as "comprises" or "comprising" are used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of the fence as disclosed herein. 20 8 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU

Claims

1. A fence that includes a base member that extends along at least a part of a bottom portion of the fence, and a fascia panel mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence. 10

2. The fence defined in claim 1 wherein the fascia panel is a decorative fascia panel.

3. The fence defined in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the fascia panel is formed from a flat sheet of steel.

4. The fence defined in any one of the preceding claims wherein the base member is has opposed external side walls and opposed external top and bottom walls that define a hollow core.

5. The fence defined in claim 4 wherein the base member includes at least one internal wall, whereby the side walls, top and bottom walls, and the internal wall or walls define multiple hollow cores. 20

6. The fence defined in any one of the preceding claims in the form of a post and rail fence having at least two spaced-apart upright support posts extending from the ground surface, a top rail and a bottom rail extending between an adjacent pair of posts, one or more than one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, with the base member and the 25 fascia panel at least partially filling a gap between the bottom rail of the fence and the ground surface and forming the bottom portion of the fence.

7. The fence defined in claim 6 wherein each rail is an elongate channel having a base and opposed sides extending from the base, with the sides defining an open mouth, with ends of the panels extending through the open mouths and received in the channels 30 of the rails.

8. The fence defined in claim 6 or claim 7 wherein each post is an elongate channel having a base and opposed sides extending from the base, with the sides defining an open mouth, with sides of the panels, ends of the rails, ends of the base member, and ends of the fascia panel extending through the open mouths and received 35 in the channels of the posts.

9 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU 5 9. The fence defined in any one of claims 6 to 8 includes one or more than one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the adjacent pair of posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails.

10. The fence defined in claim 9 includes two or more infill panels between the adjacent pair of posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, with 10 adjacent panels having overlapping side edges, a plurality of fasteners securing the panels and the rails together at the overlap of the panels to improve the structural integrity of the fence, and a plurality of fasteners securing each panel and the rails together to improve the structural integrity of the fence.

11. The fence defined in any one of claims 6 to 9 includes a plurality of unit lengths, 1 with each unit length including the pair of spaced-apart adjacent upright posts, the top rail and the bottom rail extending between the posts, the at least one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, and the base member and the fascia panel at least partially filling the gap between the lower rail and the ground. 20

12. A post and rail fence that includes at least two spaced-apart upright support posts extending from a ground surface, a top rail and a bottom rail extending between an adjacent pair of posts, one or more than one infill panel formed from steel strip positioned between the posts and having upper and lower ends supported by the rails, a base member that at least partially fills a gap between the bottom rail and a ground 25 surface, with the base member being a hollow elongate member extruded from plastics material, and a fascia panel mounted to the base member and forming part of a front face of the fence. 10 4207784_1 (GHMaters) P91321.AU