EP3027825B1

EP3027825B1 - Skirting board structure

Info

Publication number: EP3027825B1
Application number: EP14742529.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Gilberto TONEGUZZI
Original assignee: Progress Profiles SpA
Current assignee: Progress Profiles SpA
Priority date: 2013-07-31
Filing date: 2014-07-24
Publication date: 2018-04-18
Anticipated expiration: 2034-07-24
Also published as: EP3027825A1; HRP20181091T1; WO2015014719A1; ITPD20130040U1

Description

The present invention relates to a skirting board structure.
Nowadays the need is increasingly felt, for builders, interior designers and installers of coverings in general, to have skirting boards available that are simple to install and are at the same time highly versatile, i.e. easily fittable so as to define a solution selected from among a certain number of alternative variants, all of which are simple to make and to assemble at installation time.
Furthermore, there is ever-increasing demand for skirting boards that can be fitted with lighting elements, for example for applications in public spaces to light up pathways, or for decorative/ornamental or promotional uses.
Skirting boards are known today which are provided with LED lighting, in which the LEDs are highly integrated inside the metallic profile that supports them.
Similar such skirting boards require a major expenditure of labor and assembly time for mounting, with obvious consequent increase in the cost of the finished product for the purchaser.
Furthermore, very often such skirting boards with LEDs have the LEDs directly facing toward the environment, thus giving the visual effect of many lights that are more or less placed close together, which however, precisely because they emit light directly into the environment, can, over the long term, be bothersome to the eyes.
JP 2003 301598 A discloses a base board for lighting a passage, the base board body being covered with a light shielding film except for one part, or an irradiation part irradiating the light, and the light shielding film is formed by applying a recurrent reflective agent to its external surface along the longitudinal direction. The light accumulating agent is longitudinally applied to the external surface of the light shielding film, and the light of the light emitting body irradiated from the irradiation part is reflected by the recurrent reflective agent.
JP S56 153085 U discloses a duct comprising a rigid duct body having two channel members formed by bending a single sheet steel into a substantially three-letter shape. A pair of conductors are supported in an exposed state by edge supports provided in the upper and lower portions of the upper channel member of the duct body, and a plug main body is supported on the opening edge of the upper channel member. A pair of blades are arranged in contact with the hidden conductors.
The aim of the present invention is to provide a skirting board structure that is capable of overcoming the limitations of the known art.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a skirting board structure that is versatile in use, easy to configure and easy to fit according to the tastes and the technical requirements of the purchaser.
Another object of the invention is to provide a skirting board structure that is capable of emitting light in a manner that is less invasive than but equally effective as conventional skirting boards with LEDs.
In accordance with the invention, there is provided a skirting board structure as defined in the appended claims.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of the skirting board structure according to the invention, which is illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of the skirting board structure according to the invention;
Figure 2 is a detail of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a variation of the detail of Figure 2.

With reference to the figures, a skirting board structure according to the invention is generally designated with the reference numeral 10.
Such skirting board structure 10 comprises a contoured profile 11 that is constituted by a plate-like main body 12 from which extend:

a first cantilevered flap 13, upper, extending from a first longitudinal edge 14, upper in the configuration for use, inclined downwardly in the configuration for use,
a second cantilevered flap 15, lower, extending inclined downwardly from a second longitudinal edge 16, lower, of the plate-like main body,
the free edge 17 of the first flap 13 being contoured for coupling to a corresponding complementarily shaped edge 18 of a covering profile 19 extending straight downwardly when fitted.

The profile 11 is constituted by an aluminum extrusion.
The first 13 and second 15 flaps are inclined by an angle, A and B respectively, of 45° with respect to a line X that indicates the arrangement of the plate-like main body 12.
The inclination of the first flap 13 facilitates cleaning, makes it more difficult for dust to build up, and makes the skirting board structure according to the invention 10 aesthetically more pleasing, highlighting the color of the first flap 13.
The inclination of the flap 13 also serves to give structural substance, and nonetheless to make the skirting board structure 10 visually approach the thicknesses of traditional skirting boards.
The second flap 15 is inclined in order to facilitate the connection between the skirting board and the floor, and in order to cover any imperfections in the floor during installation.
The identical angles of inclination A and B of the two flaps 13 and 15 confer greater harmony on the skirting board structure 10 overall.
It should be understood that the angles A and B can also have other widths, independently of each other, according to the necessities and requirements of the maker and of the purchaser.
The plate-like main body 12, at the upper longitudinal edge 14, has a rounded projection 20 extending toward an application wall, in the configuration for use, which is adapted to contain and cover the layer of adhesive spread on the hidden surface 21 of the plate-like main body 12.
The rounded projection 20, which is constituted by the rounded edge, also serves to limit the evidence of possible imperfections of the wall during installation, which would be more evident if the edge was sharp.
The free edge 17 is fork-like in cross-section, and the complementarily shaped edge 18 of the covering profile 19 is inserted in the longitudinal channel 22 defined by such fork-like cross-section.
Such covering profile 19 is constituted by an extruded profile made of plastic material, and preferably made of rigid plastic material.
Such covering profile 19 has an exposed surface 24 that is flat and substantially parallel to the outer surface 26 of the main body 12 of the profile, and a hidden surface 25 that is inclined to face downwardly in the configuration for use.
The hidden surface 25 is in fact adapted for the installation of lighting elements, for example a strip of LEDs 27.
The covering profile can also be made of aluminum, and, as can be seen in Figure 3 where such covering profile is designated with the reference numeral 119, the main body 140 defines a longitudinally extended tubular channel 141, in order to allow the dissipation of heat generated by the applied strip of LEDs.
A covering profile 119 with a tubular channel 141 obviously can also be made of plastic material, for example PVC.
The covering profile, 19 and 119, made of plastic material, for example PVC, in addition to being of a different color and finish, can be covered by decorative film, for example with a marble effect, and by metallic trim, as well as with mirror film in order to bring out the elegance and the design.
Lighting elements 28 can also be arranged on the hidden surface 29 of the first flap 13.
The lighting elements 27 are thus directed toward the exposed surface 26 and toward the underlying second flap 15, which reflect the light radiation thereof.
In this manner the skirting board structure 10 is capable of illumination not with direct light, which can be bothersome, but rather with reflected light, which is thus more diffuse and less bothersome to the direct and indirect gaze of a passerby.
The covering profile 19 is thus a finishing element, a decorative element, a functional element and a completion element.
The application of such covering profile 19 is thus simple and intuitive, since all that is necessary is to manually insert the complementarily shaped edge 18 into the free edge 17 with fork-like cross-section.
In the free edge with fork-like cross-section 17 it is possible to insert the covering profile 19 in Figure 2, or, as an alternative, another closure system, for example a simple gasket.
The covering profile 19 in Figure 2 can also be termed a "closure", or cap, when the skirting board structure 10 is used as a support for a perimetric hem of a carpet or of a covering or lining of linoleum or other floor surface, applications for which it is necessary that situations do not arise where material is disconnected.
Such skirting board structure can therefore be a light source, a decorative object, a pathway light, and a promotional vehicle.
The light source is applied after installation.
The light is reflected in the outer surface 26, which is vertical in the configuration for use, and as a consequence is reflected onto the walking surface.
Such a skirting board structure 10 according to the invention has many fields of application: it is provided as a skirting board to be applied in "finished" environments for public, private, commercial or administrative use, easily installed.
It can be used for new construction, renovations, extensions, small repairs or subsequent building repairs.
Owing to its ease of installation, it can be fitted in any situation where there is a vertical support surface.
It lends itself to being used like any other type of skirting board with the characteristic that it can be provided with:

Lighting
Color plate at will
A carpet/linoleum floor connection system

It can also be used for different situations, including ceiling-mounted application, outdoor application, vertical application at the meeting point of two walls, and application on volumes or surfaces that are not necessarily identified as walls.
The profile 11 can be fixed by using a special silicone adhesive which is protected by a film to be removed, or alternatively by the application of silicone adhesive on the hidden surface 21.
It is also possible to fix the profile with screws and inserts positioned under/behind the covering profile; in this manner the heads of screws and inserts remain hidden from the view of passers-by and the overall visual impact remains unaltered.
The skirting board structure 10 according to the invention is devised especially, but not exclusively, for ceramic, wood and marble floors, i.e. for the most common types of floor.
The skirting board structure according to the invention is versatile, in that it is adapted both for lighting a floor, of any nature, and for lighting a ceiling, if installed rotated upwardly, in order to create an "almost suspended" effect of the wall.
In practice it has been found that the invention fully achieves the intended aim and objects.
In particular, with the invention, a skirting board structure has been devised which is versatile in use, easy to configure and easy to fit according to the tastes and technical requirements of the purchaser, thanks to the ease of assembly and disassembly of the covering profile 19, which, being made of plastic material, can be provided in shapes and colors at will according to the tastes of the maker and/or of the purchaser.
Furthermore, with the invention, a skirting board structure has been devised which is capable of emitting light in a manner that is less invasive than but equally effective as conventional skirting boards with LEDs, thanks to the lighting elements 27 and 28 which are directed downwardly and the light radiation which is reflected toward the walking surface by the outer wall, in view, 26 of the plate-like main body 12 of the profile 11.
The invention, thus conceived, is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims.
Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, such reference signs have been inserted for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

A skirting board structure (10), comprising a contoured profile (11) and a covering profile (19), the contoured profile (11) being constituted by a plate-like main body (12) from which extend:
- a first cantilevered flap (13), upper, extending from a first longitudinal edge (14), upper in the configuration for use, inclined downwardly in the configuration for use,

- a second cantilevered flap (15), lower, extending inclined downwardly from a second longitudinal edge (16), lower, of the plate-like main body (12),

- a free edge (17) of said first flap (13) being contoured for coupling to a corresponding complementarily shaped edge (18) of the covering profile (19) extending straight downwardly when fitted, characterized by said covering profile (19) having an exposed surface (24) that is flat and substantially parallel to the outer surface (26) of the main body (12) of the profile, and a hidden surface (25) that is inclined to face downwardly in the configuration for use,
said hidden surface (25) of said covering profile (19) having an installation of lighting elements, for example a strip of LEDs (27),
and/or lighting elements (28) being arranged on a hidden surface (29) of the first flap (13).
The skirting board structure according to claim 1, characterized in that said contoured profile (11) is constituted by an aluminum extrusion.
The skirting board structure according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said first (13) and second (15) flaps are inclined by an angle (A, B) of 45° with respect to a line (X) that indicates the arrangement of the plate-like main body (12).
The skirting board structure according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said plate-like main body (12), at the upper longitudinal edge (14), has a rounded projection (20) extending toward an application wall, in the configuration for use, which is adapted to contain and cover the layer of adhesive spread on a hidden surface (21) of the plate-like main body (12).
The skirting board structure according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said free edge (17) is fork-like in cross-section, and the complementarily shaped edge (18) of the covering profile (19) is inserted in the longitudinal channel (22) defined by such fork-like cross-section.
The skirting board structure according to claim 1, characterized in that said covering profile (19) is constituted by an extruded profile made of plastic material, and preferably made of rigid plastic material.
The skirting board structure according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the main body (140) of said covering profile (119) defines a longitudinally extended tubular channel (141), in order to allow the dissipation of heat generated by the applied strip of LEDs.