EP0953693A1

EP0953693A1 - Universal system for the insulation of roofs and/or walls

Info

Publication number: EP0953693A1
Application number: EP98106967A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Vanni Padovan
Original assignee: Gazzarri Aldis
Current assignee: Gazzarri Aldis
Priority date: 1998-04-16
Filing date: 1998-04-16
Publication date: 1999-11-03

Abstract

The invention is a new panel for the implementation of coverings and walls, comprising a flat layer of insulating material provided with raised elements (R) obtained through the application of suitable profiles. These profiles make it possible to combine different materials and to obtain suitable shapes, so that the panel can be used both horizontally and vertically, either for ventilated roofs and ventilated walls and for any type of covering or upper and/or lower finish.

Description

The invention concerns the sector of building construction and in particular the implementation of a system for the insulation of roofs having also other functions, like the function to provide for ventilation, for the housing of the covering, finishing and structural function, which can be universally used on any type of structure, roof or wall with any kind of covering, and for which it is possible to use any kind of material having simple shape, for example flat plates and elements that can be obtained through cutting or profiling processes.
It is known that roofs in particular are generally constructed with a plurality of systems and the variants regard the way in which the bearing structure is constructed: inclined bearing structures constituted by a continuous bearing surface (that is, with the same bearing function in any point, for example, reinforced concrete and hollow tiles mixed floor); inclined bearing structures constituted by a discontinuous bearing surface (that is, with bearing functional only through lines and/or points: for example, wooden structures).
According to the requirements of each single project, discontinuous bearing structures can have very different shapes upon implementation; in some of them the elements of the primary frame are parallel to the ridge lines - solutions with purlins -, in other bearing structures the primary frames are perpendicular to the ridge line - solutions with false pontoons -, others, for example those with truss, can have either of the two arrangements, depending on the dimensions and on the project.
Depending on the different types of structure, different methods for the construction, insulation and covering of roofs and walls are known; according to the traditional systems, the bearing surface can be made of various materials, like reinforced concrete and hollow tiles, precast slabs, roof boarding, different types of frame, etc.; as far as the most used insulation system is concerned, this consists in the application of panels made of insulating material, such as foam polystyrene, extruded foam polystyrene, cork, wood derivatives, fibreglass wool, etc. on roofs and walls. These insulating layers are then covered as required, for example with curved tiles, tiles, slate, continuous elements of various materials, etc. through the construction of apposite structures, mortar edges, various types of frame, profiled stringers, etc.
In addition to the traditional systems that, as explained above, consist of a complex series of successive operations, it is important to remember that different solutions for the roofing and insulation of various types of structures have been developed in the industrial field: each one of these solutions is aimed at solving a specific problem and therefore several products are actually available, each one of which is particularly suitable for a specific application. Metal profiles with prearranged joints, thermoformed elements made of polypropylene with housing cradles, pre-shaped panels made of materials like moulded polystyrene, injected polyurethane, milled panels, etc. In these last cases, considering the need to obtain complex shapes, in the production phase it has been necessary to select the few materials that can be processed through moulding or injection (moulded foam polystyrene, injected polyurethane), thus reducing the range of materials from which it is possible to choose.
The main covering and insulation functions can be conveniently combined with other functions, in order to improve the performance of the materials and keep them efficient over time, to improve comfort and to ensure the desired architectural solution.
Ventilation and micro- ventilation will facilitate the elimination of steam, avoid irregular melting and collapsing of snow, improve the duration of the structures, optimize energy saving, guarantee the right thermal-hygrometric balance.
For the solutions in which the surfaces facing the inside remain visible, it is often advisable that the finish also has the architectural function desired by the designer or the customer; for this purpose finishes in different materials, plaster boards, matchboarding, sound-absorbing products, etc. are used instead of raw panels. When it is necessary to find also structural solutions, these are achieved through the use of profiles, ribs, listels, reinforcements in various materials.
At present these functions are assigned to different products, which individually serve for one specific purpose and are applied in successive steps. For example, the first step consists in the preparation of the bed for the insulating materials with boarding, ventilation can then be provided through a frame made of listels, the structure is constructed through the interposition of reinforcement elements, for example squared timber or metal elements.
For insulation purposes, besides insulating panels and plates laid on the structures and then covered and ventilated through the systems described, it is also possible to use panels having a definite shape, generally made of moulded foam polystyrene or injected shaped polyurethane, on the larger surface of which appropriate seats for the most common tiles, curved tiles or roofing elements are obtained. The panels are applied with their continuous larger surface in contact with the structure or wall to be insulated and with the raised elements on the side opposite said surface. The raised elements can be provided or are already provided with crosspieces, on which the various roofing elements are then laid. Said panels with raised elements are obtained through expansion moulding or cutting and milling of a squared parallelepiped panel. These methods present considerable limits, since they impose the use of the few insulating materials that can be treated as described; besides being complex, in some cases they also become expensive and produce considerable waste material (cutting, milling). Another limit is represented by the fact that these complex shapes can be adapted from time to time to a reduced number of applications and cannot have multiple functions, thus making it necessary to adopt traditional solutions.
The object of the invention is the implementation a new system for the covering and insulation of external walls, which also serves for other functions, like ventilation, structural and finishing functions, can be universally applied on continuous and discontinuous structures and can be covered with any kind of tile, curved tile and roofing element, while being obtained with the use of materials having simple, flat and/or linear shapes.
Each element of the new insulating system does not comprise a single element, rather, it is the assembly of various elements having simple shape and constituting an insulating product characterized by a suitable number of raised elements positioned at the desired intervals, capable of serving for several functions and adaptable to different structures and roofing elements.
The new insulating system must guarantee a plurality of functions, complementary to or connected with the main insulating function, for example, structural, ventilation, microventilation, covering and finishing functions, and it must also be adaptable to specific parts of buildings and if necessary permit use for external finishes.
The main advantages offered by this new system are represented by the possibility to use a wide range of materials, the elimination or minimization of waste material, simple installation, adaptability to the different types of structure, the possibility to be covered with any material, the wide range of internal finishes available, the possibility to obtain proper ventilation spaces.
The new system substantially comprises a suitable flat layer of insulating material, on which one or more raised elements are provided, characterized by the possibility to create a ledge that can even be rather thick. The flat layer of insulating material can be made of a wide range of materials produced or available in plates, sawn foam polystyrene plates, blocks, extruded foam polystyrene plates, flat cork, polyurethane, cellular glass panels, etc.
The contact edges of the fours sides of the insulating layer are preferably shaped like a step, in such a way as to facilitate the positioning of adjacent panels and their adjustment ensuring a certain slack that is important to match with the imperfections that sometimes can be found on old coverings or irregular walls or to adjust the distance between the raised elements, thus making it possible to adopt any pitch between the tiles. The raised elements can be made of the same insulating material or of other suitable materials, like for example solid wood, plywood, laminar wood, plastic or metal sections, mixed materials of any kind, coupled or layered materials.
The raised element/s that form the ledge - even a thick ledge - and characterize the new insulating system can be indifferently obtained through the cutting, for example the symmetrical cutting of thicker plates of the same insulating material as shown in Figure 1b or through the coupling of profiled or cut elements made of another material with the flat plate of insulating material, as shown in Figure 2b. The coupling of said elements with the insulating plate can be obtained simply through glueing or by means of pins, or through a groove-and-tongue joint obtained with a protrusion on the profiled element and a groove on the panel, or through a dovetail or other types of joint.
The mechanical coupling can be reinforced with the use of glues or adhesives, through the thermal welding of the contact surfaces, or through any other system suitable for making die elements integral with one another.
The new basic insulating system thus implemented will be suitable for use on any type of structure, in fact it can be applied perpendicularly to the ridge (vertical use) or parallely to the ridge (horizontal use).
When the insulating system is used vertically, for example on structures with purlins, the covering will be laid on listels positioned on the raised elements of the base plate by means of apposite clips fixed on the raised elements themselves, as shown in Figures 1a and 1c.
Said clips, shown in Figure 3, can have an overturned U-section (channels) with the terminal edge towards the inside. On their upper surface the clips are provided with two fins obtained through the U-cutting of a part of the upper surface and the successive bending upwards. The clips are applied onto the raised elements in such a way as to envelop the upper part of the raised elements themselves and so that the edges bent towards the inside penetrate in the sides of the raised elements themselves.
Any suitable means, for example nails, screws or glues guarantee the fastening of the clip onto the raised element. The listels on which the covering, for example curved tiles, is laid are positioned between the upper fins of the clips and if necessary fixed to them, in such a way as to avoid any relative movement between the listels and the insulating system. Figures 1a and 1c show the insulating system in a vertical application.
The new insulating system in the situation described guarantees several functions with one operation only, that is, the structural and ventilation function, the possibility to lay the covering with any pitch and to provide proper finish of the inner walls (for example, as shown in Figure 1a, in which it is possible to see the lower plaster board). According to the different needs, the insulating system described can be provided with the desired finish of the inner walls. In fact, it will be sufficient to combine the flat plate of the basic system with the required finish, like plaster boards, plywood, matchboarding, etc.
When the insulating system is used horizontally, for example on false pontoon structures, the tile covering can be directly laid onto the raised element of the insulating system itself. In this case, as an alternative to the listels, the raised element of the basic system will be provided with apposite shapes capable of housing any type of covering with any pitch, in fact it will be sufficient to adjust the overlapping and position of the single elements according to the various pitches, thanks to the ledges provided on the four sides of the base elements. Figure 2b shows the insulating system in a horizontal application. Even when used horizontally, the panel serves for several purposes.
The panels of the new insulating system described above can be easily and quickly produced, are easy to assemble and to install; the clips and listels for the vertical application can be easily and quickly fixed and it is also easy to lay the covering on the shaped raised elements in the horizontal applications of the system. The panels with raised elements of the new insulating system have considerable structural characteristics and can support any kind of wall covering or the various kinds of covering presently available on the market. The insulating system described, consisting of panels with raised elements that can even be considerably thick and are obtained neither through the removal of material, nor through moulding or inejction, but through the cutting or addition of elements integrally fixed to the flat panel, is a universal system, in fact it permits the use of coverings with purlin structures, false pontoons, truss and vertical walls. The panels of the new insulating system are multifunctional, in fact they can have many functions: they can have structural functions, be used to provide proper ventilation (this system is better than any other system in which ventilation is limited), house any finishing cover and also have an architectural function, since they make it possible to choose the desired finish.
The following is an example of a practical application among many of the invention in question, illustrated in the enclosed drawings.
Figure 1a shows the new base element in which the raised elements are obtained by cutting a thicker flat plate.
Figure 1b shows how the raised element, even very thick, can be obtained without waste through the symmetrical cutting of plates having suitable thickness.
The series of figures 2a shows some examples of possible joints between the elements. All the figures show clearly how the new insulating system can be obtained starting from materials having simple shape, like flat plates or profiled or cut elements.
Figure 2b shows how the new base element characterized by raised elements having even considerable thickness is obtained by joining profiled or cut elements to a flat plate.
Figure 1c shows the new vertical insulating system for application on purlins with plaster board inside finish. Figure 3 shows the clip (3) consisting of a channel, preferably made of metal, with the edges (6) towards the inside. The upper surface of the clip (3) is provided with two fins (7) obtained through the cutting and bending of a part of the upper surface of the clip (3). The upper surface of the clip (3) is also provided with holes or cuts to hold the clip (3) on the raised element (4).
Figure 2b shows the new insulating system in the horizontal version for application on structures with, false pontoons (P), while showing also one of the possible shapes of the raised elements (R ) for the direct positioning of tiles and curved tiles.
Figure 1c also shows how the new insulating system is suitable for providing ventilated insulation of walls.

Claims

Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls, characterized in that it comprises a layer of insulating material with mainly flat section and one or more raised elements forming a space in which air circulates and suitable for the positioning of any kind of covering.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claim 1, characterized in that it is carried out by using materials with simple shape, like flat plates and elements that can be obtained through cutting and/or profiling.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that raised elements, even with considerable thickness and section, are obtained by cutting flat plates.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that raised elements, even with considerable thickness and section, are obtained by coupling the lower flat insulating layer with profiled or cut elements through fixing and/or glueing.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, characterized in that it is made of one material only or more materials and of joined elements made of the same or different material.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, characterized in that it can be used on any kind of structure, continuous or discontinuous, with any inclination.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, characterized in that it can be used with horizontal or vertical arrangement and therefore can be used indifferently on discontinuous structures of different types (purlins, pontoons, trusses, frames, etc.).
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, characterized in that it is possible to work its edges in such a way as to obtain variable pitches and/or permit horizontal and vertical adjustments.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, characterized in that it is possible to guarantee that the assembly of the laid panels will be waterproof.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, characterized in that the raised elements can have different shapes suitable for the various kinds of covering.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, characterized in that accessories made of metal or other materials, having any shape and suitable for facilitating laying down and the successive operations can be slided and/or locked on the raised elements.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, characterized in that on its inner side it can be coupled, spread, painted with finishing materials of any type.
Insulating panel for the insulation of roofs and ventilated walls according to claims 1, 2, 3, 4, chatacterized in that the system can also provide soundproofing thanks to the presence of cavities or holes.