EP3865623B1 - Joint profile - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a joint profile for laying down sections of a floor covering made of a floor material which is at least partially free-flowing or creeping during processing and later solidifies, preferably made of concrete.

In the production of large-area floor coverings, such as industrial floors made of concrete, there is the physical problem of the floor material shrinking during drying. There is a risk that the floor covering will crack, which can lead to its complete unsuitability.

Such flooring must therefore be made in smaller sections to limit shrinkage. The floor covering to be produced is divided into sections, so-called concreting sections or daily sections, which in turn are separated from one another by construction joints.

More precisely, the present invention relates to a joint profile which comprises a first delimiting component for delimiting the edge of a first floor covering section and a second delimiting component for delimiting the edge of a second floor covering section which adjoins the first floor covering section in a joint area.

In this case, the first and the second delimiting component are arranged opposite one another and are coupled to one another so as to be vertically non-displaceable relative to one another.

The term "boundary" is to be understood in such a way that the limiting component at least a part of the peripheral edge of the respective Floor covering section (day field) defined. Typically, multiple joint profiles are joined together to define the entire perimeter of a section of flooring.

A joint profile as described above without a removable cover is, for example, from EP 1293606 B1 known.

When the floor material solidifies, the first and second delimiting components are anchored in a form-fitting manner in the respective floor covering section and move away from one another when the floor material shrinks, forming a construction joint.

After the concrete has dried completely, the construction joint between the boundary components is grouted with a suitable joint material to make it permanently elastic.

The delimiting components, which are usually essentially made of steel, serve to prevent the floor material from breaking off at joint edges and to protect them. In the known floor covering, at least part of the delimiting components is usually exposed at the top. The transition between the floor material and the delimiting component and between the delimiting component and the joint therefore remains visible and perceptible in the known joint profiles, in particular when driving over the joint. In addition, the joints must be maintained regularly.

Furthermore, it is known to subsequently cut an expansion joint into a given floor covering area and to fill it with a particularly elastic joint material. It is also known, in the case of a floor covering with a generic joint profile, to subsequently at least partially remove the joint profile and to fill the resulting gap with a joint material, for example the brand Quiflex ^® to fill what is referred to as "liquid joint". However, this solution is very labor intensive.

DE 202005008762 U1 discloses a joint profile with a first delimiting component for delimiting the edge of a first floor covering section and with a second delimiting component for delimiting the edge of a second floor covering section adjoining the first floor covering section in a joint area. The first and the second limiting component are arranged opposite one another and are coupled to one another by means of a dowel plate so as to be vertically immovable relative to one another. In order to protect the joint area, the joint profile also has a cover in the form of a flat cover plate that can be firmly connected to the first and/or the second delimiting component but can be removed from it and is designed to cover the joint area at the top when installed. The cover plate basically remains on the joint profile after the floor covering has been produced, but can be removed for the purpose of maintenance or cleaning of the joint area.

The pamphlets US4643542A and US5450699A each disclose a joint profile in which a first wall section or a second wall section, arranged opposite the first wall section, of a one-piece delimiting component serves to delimit a first floor covering section or a second floor covering section adjoining the first floor covering section in a joint area. The joint profile also has a cover which can be firmly connected to the one-piece delimiting component but can be removed from it, the cross-sectional shape of which tapers continuously downwards and which is designed to cover the joint area at the top when installed. In the method for producing a floor covering according to these documents, the limiting component is on a Positioned underground and the soil material is introduced in at least partially flowable or creeping form in the delimited by the delimiting component areas. After the floor material has solidified sufficiently, the cover is removed from the delimiting component and a joint material is then filled into the resulting joint between the floor covering sections.

Against this background, the object of the present invention is to further develop the joint profile known from the prior art and the known method.

This object is achieved by a joint profile with the features of claim 1 or by a method with the features of claim 8.

According to the invention, the joint profile also has a cover which can be firmly connected to the first and/or the second delimiting component but is designed to be removable therefrom and which is designed to cover the joint area at the top in the assembled state.

Insofar as terms such as "above", "below", "horizontal", "vertical" or the like are used in the present application, these refer, unless explicitly stated otherwise, to a joint profile set up in the usual way on a horizontal substructure. “Removable” means that the connection is designed as a detachable connection, preferably as a non-destructively detachable and re-establishable connection, for example in the form of a screw connection.

After the floor material has completely hardened, the cover can be easily removed from the delimiting components, resulting in a recess in the joint area that is shaped as a negative of the cover, which can then be used to form a particularly homogeneous and smooth surface can be filled with a suitable elastic joint material.

In particular, it can be achieved that no metal parts are visible or perceptible on the surface of the floor covering, which makes it possible to drive over the floor covering with particularly little vibration.

For this purpose, a transverse extent on an upper side of the cover is preferably not smaller than and preferably larger than a maximum transverse extent of the rest of the joint profile in a height range over which the cover extends when the joint profile is installed.

The installation state is the state in which the joint profile is set up on a subsurface to set down a floor covering section and before the floor material is introduced.

The joint profile according to the invention can be produced in different heights, for example for concrete floors with a thickness of preferably up to 25 cm. The length of the joint profile is also variable, so that lengths between 1.5 m and 3 m can be used, for example

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, it can be provided that the cover comprises a first and a second cover element, which are formed separately from one another, wherein the first cover element can be connected firmly to the first delimiting component and is designed to be removable from it, and the second cover element is fixed can be connected to the second delimiting component and is designed to be detachable from it. In this case, while the floor material shrinks during drying, the two cover elements move away from one another together with the associated limiting components.

However, it should also not be ruled out that the cover can be designed in one piece and only be detachably attached to one of the delimiting components.

In order to make it easier to remove the cover upwards and also to reduce the risk of edges of the floor material breaking off, it is provided according to the invention that the cover has a cross-sectional shape that tapers downwards at least in sections.

In this case, the term cross section refers to a vertical sectional plane that runs essentially perpendicularly to a horizontal direction of extent of the joint area.

According to the invention, the cross-sectional shape of the cover tapers downwards, at least in sections, in a stepped manner.

According to a preferred development, the cover has at least one planar sloping surface section which, when installed, runs at an angle with the horizontal to the joint area of between 30° and 60°, preferably between 35° and 55°, particularly preferably between 40° and 50 degrees.

A structurally simple and secure connection of the cover to the delimiting component or delimiting components that can be released quickly and easily can be implemented by the cover being removably fixed to the first and/or second delimiting component by at least one screw connection, preferably by a large number of screw connections .

Provision can be made for at least one anchoring structure to be provided or fastened to the first and/or the second delimiting component, which is designed to do this after the soil material has solidified bring about a form-fitting connection between the delimiting component and the associated floor covering section, the cover being detachably attached to the anchoring structure or anchoring structures. Since the anchoring structure functionally protrudes into the floor covering section, this makes it possible to detachably but securely fix the cover on the delimiting component at a desired distance from the joint area.

In a simple embodiment variant, the joint profile can be designed as a longitudinal profile for positioning exactly two floor covering sections that adjoin one another in a joint area that runs in a straight line.

Alternatively, the joint profile can be designed as a corner profile for setting off two or more, preferably three or four, floor covering sections adjoining one another in a corner area.

Floor covering sections of any shape and size can be formed by connecting longitudinal and corner profiles with suitable connecting elements.

According to a further aspect, the present invention also proposes a method for producing a floor covering with a first and a second floor covering section from a floor material that is at least partially flowable or creepable during processing and later solidifies, the method comprising the following steps: positioning of a joint profile according to the invention on a substrate, introducing the soil material in at least partially flowable or creeping form onto the substrate in areas delimited by the first and the second delimiting component of the joint profile, allowing the material introduced into the areas to solidify to form the first and the second Flooring section, being due to a with the Solidification associated shrinkage of the floor material in the joint area between the first and the second delimiting component of the joint profile creates a joint, and filling a joint material into the joint.

Furthermore, the method according to the invention comprises the further following step: removing the cover from the first and/or second delimiting component after the floor material has solidified sufficiently and before the joint material is filled in. "Sufficiently solidified" here means that the shrinkage process is complete or largely (roughly more than 90%) complete, which can take different lengths of time depending on the soil material used, for example about three months after the introduction of the soil material in the case of concrete.

Fig. 1

eine Seitenansicht eines ersten Ausführungsbeispiels eines erfindungsgemäßen Fugenprofils in Form eines Längsprofils,

Fig. 2

den Gegenstand von Fig. 1 in einer perspektivischen Ansicht,

Fig. 3

eine Querschnittsansicht des Gegenstands von Figur 1 längs der dort mit A-A bezeichneten Schnittebene,

Fig. 4

eine Querschnittsansicht des Gegenstands von Figur 1 längs der dort mit B-B bezeichneten Schnittebene,

Fig. 5

eine Querschnittsansicht des Gegenstands von Figur 1 längs der dort mit C-C bezeichneten Schnittebene,

Fig. 6

eine Ausschnittvergrößerung des in Fig. 2 mit D bezeichneten Bereichs in einer anderen perspektivischen Ansicht und Explosionsdarstellung,

Fig. 7

eine Ausschnittvergrößerung des in Fig. 2 mit E bezeichneten Bereichs in einer anderen perspektivischen Ansicht,

Fig. 8

eine Explosionsdarstellung des in Fig. 6 mit F bezeichneten Bereichs,

Fig. 9

eine perspektivische Ansicht eines zweiten Ausführungsbeispiels eines erfindungsgemäßen Fugenprofils in Form eines Eckprofils zur Abstellung von zwei in einem Eckbereich aneinander angrenzenden Bodenbelag-Abschnitten,

Fig. 10

eine Explosionsdarstellung des Gegenstands von Fig. 9,

Fig. 11

eine perspektivische Ansicht eines dritten Ausführungsbeispiels eines erfindungsgemäßen Fugenprofils in Form eines Eckprofils zur Abstellung von drei in einem Eckbereich aneinander angrenzenden Bodenbelag-Abschnitten,

Fig. 12

eine Explosionsdarstellung des Gegenstands von Fig. 11,

Fig. 13

eine perspektivische Ansicht eines vierten Ausführungsbeispiels eines erfindungsgemäßen Fugenprofils in Form eines Eckprofils zur Abstellung von vier in einem Eckbereich aneinander angrenzenden Bodenbelag-Abschnitten, und

Fig. 14

eine Explosionsdarstellung des Gegenstands von Fig. 13.

The present invention is described in more detail below with reference to some preferred exemplary embodiments which are illustrated in the attached figures. show:

1

a side view of a first embodiment of a joint profile according to the invention in the form of a longitudinal profile,

2

the object of 1 in a perspective view,

3

a cross-sectional view of the article of FIG figure 1 along the section plane marked AA there,

4

a cross-sectional view of the article of FIG figure 1 along the sectional plane marked BB there,

figure 5

a cross-sectional view of the article of FIG figure 1 along the sectional plane marked CC there,

6

an enlargement of the in 2 area marked D in a different perspective view and exploded view,

7

an enlargement of the in 2 area marked E in another perspective view,

8

an exploded view of the in 6 area marked F,

9

a perspective view of a second embodiment of a joint profile according to the invention in the form of a corner profile for setting down two floor covering sections adjoining one another in a corner area,

10

an exploded view of the item from 9 ,

11

a perspective view of a third exemplary embodiment of a joint profile according to the invention in the form of a corner profile for setting down three floor covering sections adjoining one another in a corner area,

12

an exploded view of the item from 11 ,

13

a perspective view of a fourth exemplary embodiment of a joint profile according to the invention in the form of a corner profile for setting down four floor covering sections adjoining one another in a corner area, and

14

an exploded view of the item from 13 .

All of the figures are simplified and schematic representations which are essentially intended to illustrate the basic principle of the invention and are in particular not to be understood to scale.

In order not to overload the figures, not all features are always provided with reference symbols, but essentially only those features that are required to explain the respective figure. This applies in particular if several features of the same type are recognizable in one figure.

First, based on the Figures 1 to 8 the first embodiment of a joint profile 10 according to the invention will be described.

As the Figures 1 and 2 show, it is a longitudinal profile for storing exactly two, for example in figure 3 indicated floor covering sections B1 and B2, which adjoin one another in a joint area 15, which in the present example extends along a plane which is vertical and orthogonal to the plane of the drawing 3 runs.

The joint profile 10 comprises a first delimiting component 12.1 and a second delimiting component 12.2, which lie opposite one another, are essentially identical and/or mirror-symmetrical to one another and are largely made up of folded sheet metal.

Furthermore, the joint profile 10 according to the invention comprises a cover 17 which can be firmly connected to the first delimiting component 12.1 and the second delimiting component 12.2 but can be removed therefrom and which, in the installed state, covers the joint area 15 at the top.

Each of the delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 can comprise a lower profile element 14 and an upper profile element 16, which are U-shaped brackets 18 provided preferably at regular intervals on the two delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 are firmly connected to one another, for example by welded connections.

This multi-part structure makes it possible to produce profile elements of different heights with a limited number of different components.

A plate 20 is arranged between the upper profile elements 16 and the lower profile elements 14 of both delimiting components 12.1, 12.2, which is also encompassed by the U-shaped brackets 18 and serves, among other things, to transmit transverse forces (cf. Figures 3-5 ).

Because of this construction, the first and the second delimiting component 12.1, 12.1 are coupled to one another so that they cannot be moved vertically relative to one another.

In the present example, the lower profile elements 14 are each designed as an L-shaped profile with a vertical leg 14v and a horizontal leg 14h, the upper profile elements 16 are each designed as a U-shaped profile with a vertical leg 16v, a longer lower horizontal leg 16h1 and a shorter upper horizontal leg 16h2.

The horizontal legs 14h of the lower profile elements 14 and the lower legs 16h1 of the upper profile elements 16 are in contact with the plate 20 from below or above.

In the vertical legs 14v, 16v of the lower and upper profile elements 14, 16 through openings 14o, 16o are provided for mounting screws 22 which, together with corresponding mounting nuts 24, respectively, the upper profile elements 14 of the first and second limiting component 12.1, 12.2 and the lower profile elements 16 of the first and second delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 in the shown installed state temporarily fixed to one another.

The assembly screws 22 and assembly nuts 24 are primarily used to facilitate assembly when assembling the joint profile 10 and are removed before the floor material is installed, or they are designed in such a way that they cannot withstand the forces that occur when the floor material shrinks, so that each Delimiting component 12.1, 12.2 moves together with the associated floor covering section B1, B2 during shrinkage in the horizontal direction away from the joint area 15, while the screw connections between the mounting screws 22 and the mounting nuts 24 break open. For example, plastic screws and nuts can be used at this point.

In order to anchor the delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 in the associated floor covering section B1, B2, two different types of anchoring structures 28 are provided in the present exemplary embodiment, on the one hand U-shaped anchoring brackets 30 and on the other hand anchoring straps 32. When the ground material shrinks, the delimiting components 12.1 anchored therein move, 12.2 move away from each other and thus absorb the shrinkage movement, which prevents uncontrolled tearing of the floor covering.

In the figure 5 Easily recognizable anchoring tabs 32 are provided both on the upper and on the lower profile element 14, 16 at a small angle to the horizontal and are each designed in the form of an elongated flat plate. At its distal end, each of the anchoring tabs 32 forks into two end sections 32e1, 32e2, one of which is bent slightly upwards and the other slightly downwards, so that the end sections 32e1, 32e2 diverge in a V-shape.

The U-shaped anchoring brackets 30 have a lower horizontal leg 30h1, a vertical leg 30v and an upper horizontal leg 30h2, the lower horizontal leg 30h1 being attached to the respective lower profile element 14, the upper horizontal leg 30h2 to the respective upper profile element 16, in turn each preferably by a welded joint.

In the present exemplary embodiment, fastening structures 34 for a detachable fastening of the cover 17 are provided at regular intervals on the upper horizontal legs 30h2.

How in particular 4 As can be seen, the fastening structures 34 each comprise, for example, a plurality of hollow-cylindrical sleeves 36 with internal threads arranged in a row, the sleeves 36 being fastened at their lower ends to the associated upper horizontal leg 30h2, preferably by a welded connection.

The sleeves 36 provided in a row on the same delimiting component 12.1, 12.2 can each be connected to one another by a web 38. An annular disk 40 is preferably fixed to the outer sleeves 36 at a predetermined height. The respective inner sleeves 36 can additionally be fixed to the associated upper profile element 16, for example by engaging with part of their outer circumference in complementary recesses 16a, which are provided on the outer edge of the upper horizontal leg 16h2, and where sleeve 36 and upper profile element 16 are preferably also welded together.

In contrast to the delimiting components 12.1, 12.2, the cover 17 is preferably not made of metal but, for example, of a plastic, preferably of polyamide, for example PA 66.

The cover 17 is preferably designed in two parts, with a first cover element 17.1 assigned to the first delimiting component 12.1 and a second cover element 17.2 assigned to the second delimiting component 12.2, which are preferably configured identically and/or mirror-symmetrically to one another.

Like the cross-sections of the Figures 3 to 5 show, the cover 17 has a stepwise downwardly tapering cross-sectional shape.

Each cover element 17.1, 17.2 comprises on its underside from the outside inwards (towards the joint area) an outer inclined surface section 17s1, an outer horizontal bearing section 17h1, an inner inclined surface section 17s2 and an inner horizontal bearing section 17h2.

In the mounted state, the inclined surface sections 17s1, 17s2 each run at an angle a of between 40° and 50° with the horizontal towards the joint area 15, preferably at an angle of approximately 45°.

In the assembled state, the outer horizontal support section 17h1 rests on the ring disks 40, the inner horizontal support section on the upper horizontal leg 16h2 of the respective upper profile element 16.

Fastening screws 45, preferably countersunk screws, passed through assembly openings 17o in the cover elements 17.1 and 17.2 are screwed into the internal threads of the sleeves 36 and enable a firm but nevertheless easily detachable connection of the cover 17 to the delimiting components 12.1 and 12.2.

In order to avoid soiling the screw heads, they can be covered temporarily, for example with adhesive tape, before the pourable or creepable soil material is introduced.

In particular, in the example shown, a transverse extent d17 of the cover 17 on its upper side is greater than a maximum transverse extent dmax of the rest of the joint profile 10 in a height range h over which the cover 17 extends when the joint profile 10 is installed (cf. 4 ).

If, after the floor material has set, the cover 17 is removed and the resulting recess is filled with a suitable jointing material (e.g. a Quiflex ^® liquid joint solution), then no component of the joint profile 10, in particular no metal component, can be seen or felt on the surface .

Only at the height of the anchoring tabs 32 is the transverse extent of the joint profile 10 greater than the transverse extent d17 on the upper side of the cover 17 (cf. figure 5 ), but at this height the boundary components 12.1, 12.2 are completely embedded in the floor material after it has been laid, so that there is no risk of metal parts protruding from the surface of the floor covering.

The Figures 9 to 14 show three further exemplary embodiments of joint profiles according to the invention.

Those features of the further embodiments which correspond to features of the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals as the corresponding features of the first embodiment, and the further embodiments are also only described insofar as they differ from the first exemplary embodiment, to the above description of which reference is otherwise made.

In contrast to the first embodiment, the joint profiles 10 according to the Figures 9 to 14 designed as corner profiles.

More precisely, the joint profile 10 is in the figures 9 and 10 illustrated second exemplary embodiment for the storage of exactly two floor covering sections B1, B2 adjoining one another in a corner area and comprises two delimiting components 12.1 and 12.2 which, in contrast to the first exemplary embodiment, are not straight but in an L-shape when viewed from above.

The joint profile 10 of the figures 11 and 12 The third exemplary embodiment shown is designed to set down exactly three floor covering sections B1, B2, B3 adjoining one another in a corner area and includes three delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 and 12.3, one of which is straight and two are L-shaped in a plan view from above.

The joint profile 10 of the figures 13 and 14 The illustrated third exemplary embodiment is designed to set down exactly four floor covering sections B1, B2, B3, B4 adjoining one another in a corner area and includes four delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 and 12.3, which are each L-shaped in plan view from above.

In each of the aforementioned exemplary embodiments, each of the delimiting components 12.1, 12.2 and, if applicable, 12.3 and 12.4 is assigned a separate cover element 17.1, 17.2, 17.3, 17.4, which is detachably fixed to the respective delimiting component 12.1, 12.2, 12.3, 12.4, preferably with a screw connection .

As the figures show, the corner profiles can Figures 9 to 14 essentially be made up of the same basic components as the longitudinal profile of the Figures 1 to 8 .

The longitudinal and corner profiles described above can be assembled using connecting elements 19 in order to define day fields of different shapes and sizes. The connecting elements 19 can be connectors, for example, which are preferably provided permanently, for example welded, to a joint profile 10 and into which an adjoining joint profile 10 can then be inserted.

The joint profiles according to the invention allow a particularly homogeneous floor covering to be produced quickly and with little effort, which avoids visible or perceptible thresholds in the joint area and thus in particular enables the floor covering to be driven over with little vibration and noise.

Claims (8)

1. Joint profile (10) for separating portions of a floor covering made of a flooring material that is at least partially flow- or creep-resistant during processing and solidifies later, wherein the joint profile (10) comprises:

   a first delimiting component (12.1) for delimiting the edge of a first floor-covering portion (B1),

   a second delimiting component (12.2) for delimiting the edge of a second floor-covering portion (B2) adjoining the first floor-covering portion (B1) in a joint region (15),

   wherein the first and the second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2) are arranged opposite one another and are coupled to one another so as to be non-displaceable vertically relative to one another,

   wherein the joint profile (10) further comprises a cover (17), which is fixedly connectable to, yet detachable from, the first and/or the second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2), the cross-sectional shape of which cover tapers incrementally downwards at least in portions, and which cover is designed to cover the top of the joint region (15) in the assembled state.
2. Joint profile (10) according to claim 1,
   characterized in that a transverse extension (d17) of the cover (17) on its upper side is not smaller than, and is preferably larger than, a maximum transverse extension (dmax) of the remaining joint profile (10) in a height region (h), over which the cover (17) extends in an installed state of the joint profile (10).
3. Joint profile (10) according to either claim 1 or claim 2,
   characterized in that the cover (17) comprises a first and a second cover element (17.1, 17.2) which are formed separately from one another, the first cover element (17.1) being fixedly connectable to, and detachable from, the first delimiting component (12.1), and the second cover element (17.2) being fixedly connectable to, and detachable from, the second delimiting component (12.2).
4. Joint profile (10) according to any of the preceding claims,
   characterized in that the cover (17) has at least one planar oblique surface portion (17s1, 17s2) which, in the assembled state, tapers to the joint region (15) at an angle (α) to the horizontal which is between 30° and 60°, preferably between 35° and 55°, particularly preferably between 40° and 50°.
5. Joint profile (10) according to any of the preceding claims,
   characterized in that the cover (17) is detachably fixed to the first and/or the second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2) by at least one screw connection.
6. Joint profile (10) according to any of the preceding claims,
   characterized in that at least one anchoring structure (28) is provided in each case on or attached to the first and/or the second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2), which anchoring structure is designed to bring about an interlocking connection between the delimiting component (12.1, 12.2) and the associated floor-covering portion (B1, B2) after solidification of the flooring material, the cover (17) being detachably fastened to the anchoring structure (28) or the anchoring structures (28).
7. Joint profile (10) according to any of the preceding claims,
   characterized in that the joint profile (10) is designed as a corner profile for separating two or more, preferably three or four, floor-covering portions (B1, B2, B3, B4) adjacent to one another in a corner region.
8. Method for producing a floor covering having a first and a second floor-covering portion (B1, B2) from a flooring material that is at least partially flow- or creep-resistant during processing and solidifies later, comprising the following steps:

   positioning a joint profile (10) having the features of any of the preceding claims on a substrate;

   introducing the flooring material in an at least partially flow- or creep-resistant form onto the substrate in regions delimited by the first and the second delimiting component of the joint profile (10),

   allowing the material introduced into the regions to solidify to form the first and the second floor-covering portions (B1, B2), a gap forming in the joint region between the first and the second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2) of the joint profile (10) owing to shrinkage of the flooring material associated with the solidification,

   filling a joint material into the gap, detaching the cover (17) from the first and/or second delimiting component (12.1, 12.2) after the flooring material has sufficiently solidified and before the joint material is filled.

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