GB2042620A

GB2042620A - Mountings of Electric Elements

Info

Publication number: GB2042620A
Application number: GB8000549A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: HJALMAR AASS AS
Current assignee: HJALMAR AASS AS
Priority date: 1979-01-22
Filing date: 1980-01-08
Publication date: 1980-09-24
Also published as: SE8000464L; NO790214L; NO142851C; GB2042620B; NO142851B

Abstract

An electric element (10), such as an electric space heating panel or a light fitting, has a mounting device for suspending it from a ceiling or other surface in such a way that the mounting or removal of the element (10) is simple and the element can be accurately positioned but can expand and contact with temperature changes. The device comprises a pair of angle-shaped brackets (1) which are fixed to the surface by screws (1a, 1b), and anchoring members (12a, 12b) which are fixed to the element 10 and engage with the brackets. The anchoring members (12a, 12b) have edges which fit in notches (2, 3) in the brackets (1) and rest on parts of end portions (4, 5) of the brackets. The part of one of the end portions (4 or 5) on which the member (12a or 12b) rests can be bent inwards to allow the member to enter the notch (2 or 3) and is then bent back again to allow the member (12a or 12b) to rest on it. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Mountings of Electric Elements This invention relates to electric elements, such as a light fitting or a panel space heater, having a mounting device for adjustably mounting the element on a ceiling, wall, or other surface. The mounting device comprises at least one bracket adapted to be fixed to the surface, for example by means of screws, and the element has supporting means for attaching the element to the bracket.

The mounting is particularly intended for hidden suspension of the element where there is orily a small space between the rear of the element and the surface, for example a ceiling, from which the element is suspended.

When mounting elements of various types, and particularly when electric elements are concerned, in buildings, such as dwelling houses or working premises, there are a number of requirements, imposed for example by building regulations. From such regulations in some countries and for other reasons there may be the following requirements: It must not be possible to remove a suspended eleetric fitting without using a tool.

In the case of electric heaters, in particular radiant heating panels, it is important to have the least possible contact area and hence the smallest possible heat conduction path between the heater and the adjacent ceiling or wall surface to which the heater is fixed.

The mounting must be simple and easy to ruse, i.e. it must be easy to understand from instructions how to mount the element, because faulty mounting may cause injury or accidents.

Brackets adapted to be attached to a supporting surface must be able to be supplied detached from or hinged to the element so as to reduce the packaging volume as far as possible.

The requirement for exact measurements in connection with fixing the mounting should be reduced to a minimum.

The mounting bracket and the rest of the assembly must be well suited for mass production and should consist of the smallest practicable number of parts.

In the case of heat producing elements, in particular radiant heaters, the arrangement must allow a certain longitudinal expansion of the element with respect to the supporting surface, without producing noise.

To the extent practically possible the suspension arrangement should not be visible to a casual observer when the element has been mounted.

In addition to easy mounting it must also be simple to dismantle and remove the element for possible later maintenance, etc.

The arrangement should make possible a fine adjustment of the position of the element at least in one direction subsequent to the fixing of the bracket or brackets to the supporting surface, while at the same time it is necessary that the element be held in a fixed position after completing the mounting operation.

In attempts to satisfy the above and other possible requirements, various mountings for electric elements and in particular for electric heaters have been proposed, but none of these mountings have properties which to a sufficient degree satisfy the above requirements. A common mounting comprises suspension brackets which are attached to the element either by means of screw connections or by means of mounting members which co-operate with slits on the rear side of the element. The fixing to the surface, for example a wall, is then usually effected by two screws which are inserted into the surface without being screwed fully home so that their heads project. The suspension bracket is provided with keyhole-shaped holes which can be passed over the screw heads. The final fixing of the element can then be carried out by means of an additional screw on the other side or end of the element.This common form of mounting has, inter alia, the disadvantage that parts of the suspension arrangement must necessarily be visible at least when viewed from one side of the element.

This example of a previously used common form of mounting can be quite useful for mounting a heater or other element on a conventional wall, but is not well suited for suspension from ceilings, where there are substantially more strict requirements as to the final appearance, after mounting, of the element.

These requirements are particularly strict in the case of installations in private dwellings.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved suspension arrangement of electric elements, such as heaters which, to a high degree satisfies the above requirements.

To this end, according to this invention, we provide an electric element having a mounting device for adjustably mounting the element on a ceiling, wall, or other surface, the device comprising at least one bracket adapted to be fixed to the surface and the element having supporting means for attaching the element to the bracket, wherein the supporting means comprises a pair of parallel, rail-like anchoring members having a pair of engaging edges directed towards each other, one of the pair of engaging edges being provided along its length with a series of indentations or recesses with projections between them, the, or each bracket comprises a plate member arranged to extend substantially at right angles to the length of the anchoring members when the element is mounted in position, the plate member being provided at its ends with outwardly open notches in which the engaging edges of the anchoring members are arranged to fit, the distance between the inner ends of the notches on the, or each plate member is somewhat smaller than the distance between the bottoms of the indentations or recesses of one engaging edge and the other engaging edge of the pair, and the end portions of the, or each plate member are bendable by means of a hand tool so that the element can be mounted by bending the end portion at one end of the, or each plate member, engaging one engaging edge in the notch at the other end of the, or each plate member and then bending the bent edge portion back again so that the other engaging edge is engaged in the notch at the one end of the plate member.

An example of an element in accordance with the invention, in the form of a ceiling space heating panel particularly intended for use in private houses or dwellings, will now be described with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which: Figure 1 is an elevation as seen from one end of the panel; Figure 2 shows a detail from Figure 1 to a larger scale and during fitting of the panel to the bracket; Figure 3 is an elevation as seen from one side of the panel; and Figure 4 is a plan view.

An elongated, box-shaped electric element 10, which in this example is a ceiling heater panel which heats a space by radiation, is suspended by means of brackets 1 and 1' which are fixed to a ceiling by means of screws 1 a and 1 b. As shown in Figures 1, 3 and 4, the brackets 1 and 1' are mounted in such a way that they co-operate with anchoring members 1 2a, 1 2b and 1 3a, 1 3b respectively. The anchoring members are arranged in pairs and are fixed on the upper side of the panel 10 extending in the longitudinal direction thereof.As will appear in particular from Figure 3, care must be taken when mounting the brackets 1 and 1 that the spacing therebetween takes into account the spacing between and the lengths of the anchoring members 1 2a, 1 2b and 1 3a, 1 3b. Thus, the brackets 1 and 1' shown in full lines in Figure 3 are at about the maximum distance apart, whereas the minimum spacing of these brackets is shown in dotted lines in Figure 3.

The suspension brackets 1, 1' are, in this example, each made of a metal angle section of which one leg serves for attachment to the ceiling by means of the screws 1 a and 1 b and the other leg of which forms a plate member 11 which protrudes at right angles to the ceiling and is also fixed so that it extends approximately at right angles to the length of the anchoring members 1 2a, 1 2b or 1 3a, 1 3b. The plate member 11 is similarly shaped at both ends and is provided with a stamped-out notch 2, 3 respectively at each end portion 4, 5. The notches 2, 3 co-operate with engaging portions or edges 22a and 22b and 23a, 23b on the anchoring members 1 2a, 1 2b and 13a, 13b.

In order to facilitate the fitting of the edges 22a, 22b and 23a, 23b in the notches 2 and 3, the end portions 4 and 5 of the plate member 11 are bendable with respect to the plane of the plate member 11, as indicated with dotted lines in Figure 4. This bending is intended to be effected by a simple hand tool. In order to facilitate this bending the plate member 11 is provided with weakened portions by forming it with stampedout slots 6, 7 which define the above-mentioned end portions 4 and 5 of the plate member 11. As will appear particularly from Figure 1, that leg of the angle section which serves for attachment to the ceiling, is cut-off a little inwardly of the slots 6, 7 in order that bending of the end portions 4, 5 can take place. The tool used for bending may be a screw driver which is inserted in one of the grooves 6 or 7 and is then used as a lever.

The dimensions of and in particular the material of which the bracket 1 is made, must of course be such as to make possible the above bending by means of a simple hand tool. A suitable material can for example be hot dip galvanized steel of suitable gauge, which will be able to withstand bending in the weakening portions as much as 1 5-20 times before the fatigue failure occurs. As will be understood, this is fully sufficient for the mounting and dismantling purposes to which such a heating panel may be subjected.

Other details regarding the co-operation between the engaging edges of the anchoring members and the notches at the ends portion of the plate members 11 are shown in Figure 2.

Underneath the notch shown in Figure 2 there remains a small plate piece 14 the upper edge of which lies generally parallel to the ceiling so that the lower surface of the engaging edge 22b on the anchoring member will rest on this edge when mounting of the panel is completed. At the inner end of the notch there is a depression 1 5 which facilitates the mounting of the panel from the starting point in an inclined position as indicated in Figure 2.

Each pair of the anchoring members or rails 1 2a, 1 2b and 1 3a, 1 3b are fixed at a distance from each other which corresponds to the spacing between the inner ends of the notches 2 and 3 in the plate member 11. More specifically, the spacing between the inner ends of the notches 2 and 3 must be a little smaller than the clear distance between the two engaging edges of the anchoring members which are to be fitted into the notches. Moreover, it is an important feature that the engaging edge of one anchoring member in each pair is provided with indentations or recesses, with protruding tongues or teeth 32 'between them. The teeth make possible an adjustable fixing of the panel 10 in the longitudinal direction of the brackets 1 and 1'.

Thus, in Figure 2 such a tongue 32 is shown in dotted lines at the rear side of the plate member inwardly of the inner end of the notch.

The method of mounting a ceiling heating panel with its mounting device in accordance with the invention, is as follows:- The brackets 1 and 1' are fixed to the ceiling at the location chosen and with a suitable distance between them. The panel 10 is then suspended from those anchoring members which are provided with indentations and tongues 32, so that it can hang in an inclined position as shown in Figure 2. With the panel hanging in this position the end portions 4 and 5 at the ends of the brackets 1 and 1' remote from the indented anchoring members are bent-out as indicated in Figure 4, whereafter the panel may be swung up into correct position, with the engaging portions 22a and 23a on the opposite side coming into a position corresponding to the notches in the end portions of the brackets at this side.Then these end portions 4 and 5 are bent back in order that interengagement is obtained between these end portions and the engaging edges.

The function of an arrangement in accordance with the invention does not depend upon the exact shapes of the various parts and members as shown in the illustrated example which inter alia relates to the co-operating notches and engaging portions or edges on the anchoring members. For example, instead of consisting of rails having approximately a Z-shaped cross section, the anchoring members can be formed directly by part of a back plate of the panel or other element.

Moreover, the number of brackets used may vary according to the size of the element to be suspended. What is important is that when several brackets are used, these should be mounted in alignment, so that one end portion may perform a hinge-like function with the indented anchoring members during mounting.

The mutual distances and dimensions described with respect to notches and engagement edges, may be adapted to result in a connection having more or less play between the brackets and the element.

Claims

1. An electric element having a mounting device for adjustably mounting the element on a ceiling, wall, or other surface, the device comprising at least one bracket adapted to be fixed to the surface and the element having supporting means for attaching the element to the bracket, wherein the supporting means comprises a pair of parallel, rail-like anchoring members having a pair of engaging edges directed towards each other, one of the pair of engaging edges being provided along its length with a series of indentations or recesses with projections between them, the, or each bracket comprises a plate member arranged to extend substantially at right angles to the leagth of the anchoring members when the element is mounted in position, the plate member being provided at its ends with outwardly open notches in which the engaging edges of the anchoring members are arranged to fit, the distance between the inner ends of the notches on the, or each plate member is somewhat smaller than the distance between the bottoms of the indentations or recesses of one engaging edge and the other engaging edge of the pair, and the end portions of the, or each plate member are bendable by means of a hand tool so that the element can be mounted by bending the ends portion at one end of the, or each plate member, engaging one engaging edge in the notch at the other end of the, or each plate member and then bending the bent edge portion back again so that the other engaging edge is engaged in the notch at the one end of the plate member.

2. An element according to Claim 1, in which there is a weakened part at the junction between each end portion and the remaining part of the, or each plate member in order to facilitate the bending.

3. An element according to Claim 2, characterized in that the weakened part is formed by making a recess or opening in the plate member at each junction.

4. An element according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, in which the notches are substantially Vshaped.

5. An element according to any one of the preceding Claims, in which the anchoring members are integral parts of a back plate of the element.

6. An element according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, in which the anchoring members are rails of substantially Z-shaped cross section fixed to a rear face of the element.

7. An element according to any one of the preceding Claims, the element being elongated and the anchoring members extending in the longitudinal direction of the element.

8. An element according to Claim 1, substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.