EP4768677A1

EP4768677A1 - Reusable tile leveling system

Info

Publication number: EP4768677A1
Application number: EP24948581.4A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Marc PUIG TORREJÓN
Original assignee: Rubi Tools Group SA
Current assignee: Rubi Tools Group SA
Priority date: 2024-07-24
Filing date: 2024-07-24
Publication date: 2026-07-01
Also published as: WO2026022406A1; CN121969810A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a reusable system for levelling tiles comprising a hood having a bottom surface (11), gripping means (12) and a threaded hole (13) for mounting a flange (2). The flange comprises a plastic body (2a) provided with a mounting stud (21) for mounting on a hood (1) and an indicator (24) for indicating the rotational position of the flange (2), and a metal insert (2b). The metal insert comprises a rod (25) inseparably connected to the body (2a) of the flange (2), side wings (27) forming the means for supporting the bottom surface of the tiles (B) to be levelled on the flange, and a notch (28), defined in an area next to the side wings (27) and provided to break the rod (25) by twisting.

Description

Technical field

The invention relates to a reusable system for levelling tiles, applicable in the construction sector and more specifically in the laying and levelling of tiles.

Prior state the art

Different tile levelling systems that facilitate the levelling of the top surface of adjacent tiles, such that they are left flush and coplanar, are currently known.
A known type of tile levelling system comprises an operation cover or hood having a bottom surface for resting on the top surface of the tiles to be levelled and a threaded hole where a flange, which is positioned between adjacent tiles and which comprises a base which is arranged underneath said adjacent tiles, is mounted, such that, upon rotation of the operation hood, the bottom surface of the hood acts against the top surface of the tiles, pressing them against the base of the flange, causing them to become levelled.
Some levelling systems of the type indicated are disclosed in documents US2019093372 A1 , US 9.322.185 B1 and US 9.279.259 B1 .
In these tile levelling systems, the flange is entirely made of a plastic material and has a recess or breakage area above the base, which allows it to be broken once the material used to fix the tiles to the floor has set, said base being lost, which prevents the flange from being reused and involves the incorporation into the floor of a large number of plastic bases.
Also known in the state of the art are levelling systems wherein the flange comprises a plastic body provided with a stud for the threaded mounting of the hood and a metal insert fixed to the plastic body and having at its end side wings intended to be positioned under the tiles during installation.
These flanges can be retrieved for reuse by rotating the flange after the tiles have been levelled and before the tile fixing product has set. One of the problems this type of flange has is that if it is not removed during that time window, the metal insert cannot be extracted and, when forcing the rotation of the flange in order to try to remove it, the tile may break or come unstuck.
An additional problem with these flanges having a metal insert is that during the use of the levelling system, the metal insert is hidden by the tiles themselves, and upon rotating the flange to align the wings of the insert and remove it through the gap between adjacent tiles, the worker cannot know the direction of orientation of the wings of the insert, which makes it difficult to extract the latter.
The technical problem that is addressed is the development of a reusable tile levelling system, provided with a flange having a metal insert, which facilitates its use and reuse and allows a clean installation should the setting of the tile fixing product prevent the rotation of the wings of the metal insert and its extraction.

Description of the invention

The reusable system for levelling tiles, which is the subject matter of the invention, is of the type comprising: a hood having a bottom surface for resting on the top surface of the tiles to be levelled, gripping means for its rotational operation and a threaded hole for mounting a flange provided with a plastic body, and a metal insert with side wings for supporting the bottom surface of the tiles to be levelled.
The system of the invention comprises technical features that allow the above problems to be solved and a series of objectives to be achieved.
A first object of the invention is to provide the body of the flange, made of a plastic material, having a metal insert inseparable from said body, which gives the system a reusable character and which, at the same time, allows it to be used in recovery scenarios where conventional plastic flanges have been broken or have not been able to be inserted during the installation of the tiles.
Another object of the invention is to facilitate the manual gripping of the flange to rotate it to an operating angular position or to a metal insert removal position and to prevent its rotation during the tightening of the hood and the levelling of the tiles.
Another object of the invention is to provide the metal insert with a notch provided to break the metal insert by twisting and separate the side wings therefrom should the product used to fix the tiles to the floor have set and reached a hardness that prevents the flange from being rotated to a position where the metal insert can be extracted through the gap between the levelled tiles.
In order to achieve the proposed objects, the flange of the system of the invention comprises a plastic body where a metal insert suitable for acting against the bottom surface of the tiles to be levelled is inseparably fixed.
The plastic body of the flange comprises a threaded mounting stud for mounting in the threaded hole of the hood, and at least one indicator of the rotational position of the flange.
The metal insert of the flange comprises a rod aligned with the plastic flange body and inseparably and immovably connected thereto. Said metal insert comprises on its bottom end the side wings that form the means for supporting the bottom surface of the tiles to be levelled.
Said side wings are facing in the same direction as the angular or rotational position indicator of the flange body, which allows the worker to be able to know the orientation of the side wings of the insert, even though they are hidden by the tiles to be levelled, by observing the angular position indicator that is defined in the plastic body and remains visible at all times during the use of the system.
In order to be able to easily remove the flange once the tiles have been installed and levelled, it is very important to take the setting times of the tile fixing material into account. In this case, removing the flange within 5 hours from the start of installation to prevent the metal insert from becoming locked under the tiles is recommended.
An essential feature of the invention is that the rod of the metal insert comprises, in an area next to the side wings, a notch provided to break said metal insert by twisting and which always remains below the surface of the tiles, acting as a stress concentrator.
In the event that the metal insert is locked and unable to rotate beneath the tiles due to the setting of the tile fixing material, it is sufficient to apply a twisting force on the flange, with the fingers or some type of tool, to completely section the insert at the aforementioned notch, the side wings of the rod being separated. This breakage eliminates the possibility of reusing the flange but ensures a clean installation of the tiles, with no risk of the already levelled tiles shifting or coming unstuck.

Brief description of the contents of the drawings

As a complement to the description provided herein, and for the purpose of helping to make the features of the invention more readily understandable, the present specification is accompanied by a set of drawings which, by way of illustration and not limitation, represent the following:

Figures 1 and 2 show respective perspective and elevation views of an exemplary embodiment of the reusable system for levelling tiles according to the invention, with the hood mounted on top of the flange.
Figure 3 shows a perspective view of the flange.
Figure 4 shows an elevation view of the flange, sectioned by a longitudinal median plane.
Figures 5 and 6 show respective perspective and elevation views of the reusable system for fixing tiles in one position of use.

Detailed description of embodiments of the invention

In the exemplary embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, the reusable system for levelling tiles comprises a hood (1) having a bottom surface (11) with an annular configuration, gripping means (12) for its manual rotational operation and a threaded hole (13) for its threaded mounting on the flange (2).
In the example shown, the gripping means (12) consist of ribs defined between side windows of the hood (1), although they could be in any configuration suitable for manually communicating a rotational motion to the hood.
As can be seen more clearly in Figures 3 and 4, the flange (2) comprises a plastic body (2a) and a metal insert (2b) aligned and fixed inseparably and immovably relative to said plastic body (2a).
The body (2a) of the flange comprises a stud (21) suitable for its threaded mounting in the threaded hole (13) of the hood (1); said stud 21 has an extension (22) on its top end which, in the coupling position of the flange (2) to the hood (1), protrudes upwardly from the hood (1), facilitating the manual gripping of the flange (2) so as to arrange it in a certain rotational position or prevent said rotation.
The plastic body (2a) of the flange (2) comprises indicators (24) of the rotational or angular position of the flange (2), which, in the example shown, are arranged in a thickening (23) defined on the bottom end of the stud (21).
Said indicators (24) consist of two appendages protruding in opposite directions from the thickening (23), allowing them to be grasped with the fingers to apply a twisting force to the flange.
The metal insert (2b) of the flange (2) comprises a rod (25) aligned with the plastic body (2a), said rod (25) comprising on its top end a head (26) inseparably built into said body (2a) - in this specific example, in the thickening (23) - and on its bottom end two side wings (27) aligned and facing each other for supporting the bottom surface of the tiles (B) to be levelled.
The aforementioned side wings (27) of the metal insert (2b) are facing in the same direction as the indicators (24) of the rotational position of the flange (2), such that, during use of the levelling system, the user can know the orientation of the side wings (27) by simply observing the direction marked by the indicators (24), which are kept in a visible position through the side openings or windows of the hood (1), even though the tiles to be levelled obstruct the view of the metal insert (2b).
As can be seen in Figure 2, the rod (25) of the metal insert (2b) comprises, in an area next to the side wings (27), a notch (28) provided to break said metal insert (2b) by twisting, if the setting of the material for fixing the tiles to the floor prevents the side wings (27) from rotating to an insert release position, through the gap between the levelled tiles.
As shown in Figures 5 and 6, in the position of use of the reusable levelling system, the tiles (B) to be levelled are arranged resting on the side wings (27) of the metal insert (2b) of the flange (2), and the hood (1) is threadedly mounted, by means of the threaded hole (13), onto the stud (21) of the flange (2).
By gripping the extension (22) with one hand, the flange (2) is rotated until the indicators (24) of the rotational position, and consequently the side wings (27), of the metal insert (2b) are facing the tiles (B) to be levelled. Next, the hood (1) is rotated with the other hand until its bottom surface presses against the top surface of the tiles (B), thereby performing their levelling.
After a period of time has elapsed since the tiles (B) were installed and before the setting of tile fixing material occurs, the hood is loosened and the flange (2) rotated until the side wings of the metal insert are aligned with the groove between the levelled tiles, the flange being recovered for use.
Should the setting of the fixing product prevent the side wings (27) of the metal insert from rotating, it is sufficient to apply a suitable twisting force to the flange (2) to cause it to break at the notch (28), such that the side wings (27) remain under the tiles (B) and the flange (2) is rendered useless but likewise ensuring a clean installation by preventing the levelled tiles from breaking or shifting.
Having sufficiently described the nature of the invention, in addition to a preferred exemplary embodiment, it is hereby stated for the relevant purposes that the materials, shape, size and layout of the described elements may be modified, provided that they do not entail altering the essential features of the invention claimed below.

Claims

A reusable system for levelling tiles, comprising:
- an operation hood (1) comprising: a bottom surface (11) for resting on the top surface of the tiles (B) to be levelled; gripping means (12) for its rotational operation and a threaded hole (13) arranged centrally in its top area;

- a flange (2) comprising a plastic body (2a) provided with a mounting stud (21) for mounting in the threaded hole of the hood (1) and a metal insert (2b) inseparably connected to the plastic body (2a) and comprising a rod (25) aligned with the body (2a) and side wings (27) for supporting the tiles to be levelled;
characterised in that
the body (2a) of the flange (2) comprises at least one indicator (24) of the rotational position of the flange (2); the metal insert (2b) comprises in an area of the rod (25) next to the side wings (27) a notch (28) provided to break the metal insert by twisting, and the side wings (27) of said metal insert are facing in the same direction as the indicator (24) of the rotational position of the flange.
The reusable system according to claim 1, wherein the body (2a) of the flange comprises on the top end of the stud (21) an extension (22) protruding above the hood (1) and forming a manual gripping area of the flange (2).
The reusable system according to any preceding claim, wherein the indicators (24) of the rotational position or angular position of the flange (2) are arranged in a thickening (23) defined on the bottom end of the stud (21).
The reusable system according to claim 3, wherein the indicators (24) of the angular or rotational position of the flange (2) consist of two appendages protruding in opposite directions from the thickening (23).
The reusable system according to claim 3, wherein the rod (25) comprises on its top end a head (26) inseparably built into the thickening (23) of the body (2a) of the flange.