GB2268784A

GB2268784A - Device for fixing members to buildings.

Info

Publication number: GB2268784A
Application number: GB9312236A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Kenny; David Dennis Dunkley; Anthony Gillham
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-06-13
Filing date: 1993-06-14
Publication date: 1994-01-19
Anticipated expiration: 2013-06-14
Also published as: GB2268784B; GB9312236D0

Abstract

A door or window frame 60 is adjustibly mounted in a building opening by means of a device comprising a sleeve 10 expanded by a conical nut 12 engaged by a bolt 46. Projecting studs 26 on the conical nut 12 engage successively in apertures 14 in the sleeve 10, so that the bolt 46 may be unscrewed to adjust the frame without losing the grip of the device in the hole. Castellations 20 collapse to allow the frame 60 to be moved nearer the edge of the opening. The threads of the bolt 46 and the nut 12 are sinusoidal. The nut 12 and bolt 46 are glass fibre- nylon, and the sleeve 10 is nylon. <IMAGE>

Description

FIXING DEVICES DESCRIPTION The invention relates to fixing devices - in particular devices for fixing articles or members forming parts of articles (for example, window and door frames) to concrete, brickwork, blockwork or other material floors, ceilings and walls.

In this specification these various materials will hereafter be referred to as brickwork.

Typically an article, or member forming part of an article, such as a frame is fixable to a wall, floor or ceiling by drilling or otherwise forming a blind bore in the surface against which the member is to be fixed, in which bore a plug is placed. Thereafter a screw is passed through the member and into the bore until it enters the plug. Axial rotation of the screw thereafter enables it to cut into and bind with the plug and hold the member against the wall.

Other arrangements known to us provide that a plug or similar element is inserted in a surface, which plug threadably receives the end of a threaded bolt passed through an aperture in a member to be fixed against the surface, and into the bore. The bolt is then screwed into the plug to cause the plug to expand and grip against the sides of the bore in which it is located.

Each of these arrangements presents operational difficulties to a user - particularly if it is necessary to adjust the position of the member relative to the surface after the screw or bolt has been located in the plug in the bore.

An example of this typically arises when one is mounting a door or window frame in an opening in a brickwork wall and one wishes to adjust a side, top or bottom member of the frame to make the frame properly II II "square".

In these circumstances, when it is desired to slacken off a screw or bolt holding a frame member against the brickwork, the plug which is in the bore in the brickwork may rotate with the screw or bolt in the bore and tend to become released - causing wear to the bore in which it is located or unwanted movement of the plug in the bore making it difficult thereafter to properly relocate the screw or bolt in the plug.

Objects of the invention include the provision of a fixing device which alleviates and/or overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art known to us.

In one aspect the invention provides a fixing device enabling fixture of a member to brickwork, the device comprising a first part insertable in a bore formed in the brickwork and a second part releasably engagable with the first part and operable to cause permanent deformation of the first part so as to enable fixture of the first part in said bore.

The first part preferably comprises a first element in the form of a sleeve and a second element in the form of a plug, and the second part is operable to draw the plug into the sleeve to cause the sleeve to expand.

Desirably, the wall of said sleeve is of constant thickness over the major part odf its length whilst the plug is in the form of a truncated cone, the outer surface of the plug being adapted to engage the inner surface of the sleeve wall.

The outer surfaces of said plug may be provided with at least one upstanding stud, the or each stud being adapted to engage in ones of a plurality of apertures formed in the wall of the sleeve.

With advantage, the second part comprises a bolt member adapted to engage a threaded aperture in said plug, the bolt member having a head by means of which it may be rotated.

The bolt member may include a shank part of which is resiliently deformable.

The resiliently deformable part of the bolt member advantageously comprises one or more arms formed on the shank of the bolt member and movable between first and second positions.

The sleeve may be provided nn its outer surface with one or more raised portions, for example lands extending radially of the sleeve along at least the major part of its length.

An embodiment of the invention provides four upstanding lands each extending along the major part of the length of the sleeve.

Preferably, the sleeve is provided with one or more slots extending through its wall along a part of its length enabling the ready expansion of the sleeve.

Two such slots may be provided in the sleeve.

One end of the sleeve may be formed with castellations adapted to bear against an end of a nonthreaded portion of said second part.

With especial advantage the cooperating threads of the bolt and plug are each of pure sinusoidal form, the height of the thread of the bolt being less than the height of the thread in the plug.

Each of said first and second parts are preferably of moulded plastics material.

In a second aspect there is provided a method of mounting a member against brickwork using a device defined above, which comprises the steps of drilling a hole through the member and a blind bore in the brickwork, inserting said first part into said bore, passing said second part through the hole formed in the member and into the bore to engage said first part, rotating the second part such that a threaded portion thereof engages and causes permanent deformation of said first part such that said first part bears against and grips the wall of the bore and holds the first part in position in the bore.

The method may use a device having two or more resiliently deformable arms wherein the diameter of the hole drilled in the member is less than that of the head of the bolt member and of the spacing of the arms when in their first position, and wherein the spacing of the arms from the head of the bolt member is greater than the thickness of the member, the method providing that the arms are resiliently biased from their first towards their second positions as the bolt member passes through the hole and thereafter resiliently relax to their first positions trapping the member between themselves and the head of the bolt member.

The above aspects, features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following description of an embodiment of the invention now made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exploded side view of a fixing device embodying the invention, Figures 2 and 3 are sectional views drawn on the lines II-II and III-III of Figure 1, Figure 4 is a part sectional plan view showing the fixing device of Figure 1 in use supporting a frame member against brickwork, and Figure 5 illustrates a detail of part of the device of Figure 1.

The fixing device shown in the Figures is formed of a first part comprising a generally circular in section elongate sleeve 10 and a plug 12 in the form of a truncated cone.

The inner and outer diameters of sleeve 10 are substantially constant over the major part of its length.

The wall of sleeve 10 is formed with two rows of apertures 14 opposed to one another, each row extending along a major part of the length of sleeve 10.

The outer surface of sleeve 10 has four upstanding lands or wings 16 which extend along a major part of its length and two slots 18 are formed in sleeve 10 as shown running parallel to the wings 16 adjacent the apertures 14.

One end of sleeve 10 is castellated as indicated at 20.

Sleeve 14 is of unfilled moulded nylon.

Plug 12 is of 50% glass fibre filled moulded nylon and is in the form of a truncated cone flaring outwardly in moving away from its narrower end 22. End 22 of plug 12 is insertable in the end 24 of sleeve 10 and the inner surface of end 24 of the sleeve is tapered over a short distance to more readily receive end 22 of plug 12. The diameter of the other end of plug 12 - the end remote from sleeve 10 as shown in Figures 1 - is substantially the same at the outer diameter of the sleeve.

The outer surface of plug 14 adjacent its end 22 is provided with two upstanding studs 26 radially opposed to one another.

Plug 12 has a threaded axially extending central bore 28.

The second part of the fixing device comprises a 508 glass fibre filled moulded nylon bolt 30 having a first part 32 threaded to engage the threaded bore 28 of plug 12.

Bolt 30 has a second part 34 which is generally cruciform in section (see Figure 3) - a shoulder 36 being formed between the first and second parts 32 and 34 of the bolt 30.

Shoulder 36 is generally circular in section and has an outer diameter equal to the outer diameter of sleeve 12.

In moving away from part 32 the end of part 34 remote from shoulder 36 terminates in a generally circular shank 38 leading to two outwardly flaring arms 40 associated with undercuts 42 as shown. The arms 40 are, it will be appreciated, resiliently deformable. The bolt continues with a part 44 the diameter of which is equal to that of shank 38, of shoulder 36 and of sleeve 10. The bolt terminates in a head 46 of wider diameter which is slotted at 48 enabling the bolt 30 to be rotated with a screwdriver or the like.

Figure 4 shows the device in use fixing a frame member 60 to brickwork 62.

The -method of fixing is by first providing that the member 60 is generally aligned with the brickwork 62 in order that a drill may be used to form holes passing through each web 64 and 66 of the member 60 and to form a bore 68 in the brickwork.

The diameters, of the bore 68, and of the holes formed in the webs 64 and 66 is substantially the same as, or slightly greater than, the outer diameters of the sleeve 10, shoulder 36 of bolt 30 and the shank parts 38 and 44 of bolt 30; but less than the distance between the outermost edges of the arms 40 formed in the head of bolt 30 when those arms are relaxed.

End 22 of plug 12 is located in end 24 of sleeve 10 with the studs 26 on the outer surface of the plug located in the first (leftmost as viewed in Figure 1) aperture 14 formed in the wall of the sleeve 10.

The threaded part 32 of bolt 30 is passed along the hollow central part of sleeve 10 and into the bore 28 of plug 12 with which it threadably engages.

Thereafter the combination of the bolt 30, sleeve 10 and plug 12 is passed through the holes in webs 64 and 66 until such time as the arms 40 deform and pass through the web 64. After passing through the hole in web 64 the arms 40 relax and adopt the position shown so that the web 64 is trapped between the ends of arms 40 and the head 46 of the bolt.

At the same time the plug 12 and sleeve 10 pass into bore 68.

Thereafter rotation of bolt 30, e.g. by placing a screwdriver in slot 48 in its head 46, will cause plug 12 to be pulled more fully into sleeve 10, the sleeve will be caused to expand and bear against the side of bore 68, and the wings 16 will tend to cut into the wall of the bore.

This cont-nues until the plug and sleeve combination in the bore is firmly held in position, anchored, by the wall of sleeve 10 bearing against the wall of the bore.

As plug 12 is pulled more fully into sleeve 10 the studs 26 on its outer surface locate successively in different ones of the apertures 14 provided in the wall of the sleeve 12. Thus the plug 12 will becomes fixed in position in sleeve 10.

Further rotation of bolt 30 draws its head inwardly - acting to urge frame 60 more closely against the brickwork 62.

It will be appreciated that in this position it is possible to unscrew bolt 30 - to partially release bolt 30 from plug 12 whilst the plug 12 and sleeve 10 remain firmly held in bore 68 - the plug 12 being held in position in the sleeve by the frictional engagement of its outer surface with the inner surface of sleeve and by the location of studs 26 in apertures 16.

The presence of the wings 16 on the outer surface of sleeve 10 prevent its rotation as bolt 30 is being rotated (either into or out of the plug 12).

As bolt 30 is unscrewed from the plug 12 the free ends of the arms 40 bear on web 6 of member 60 tending to move the member away from the brickwork.

It will be seen therefore that with the fixing device of the present invention it is possible to adjust the position of the member 60 (e.g. by placement of shims 70 between web 66 and the brickwork 62) thus enabling the frame member to be properly "squared" against the brickwork 62.

If adjustment of the member is required in the other sense - that is to say the member 60 must be moved closer to the brickwork 62 it will be appreciated that by simply tightening the bolt 30, shoulder 36 will come to bear on the castellated end 20 of sleeve 10 allowing deformation of the castellations and adjustment of the member 60 more closely to the brickwork.

Once frame 60 is positioned as desired the cruciform part 34 of the bolt extends at least partially along and is a relatively tight fit in the bore 68 aiding support of frame 60 on the brickwork Desirably the threaded central bore 28 of plug 12 and the threaded part 32 of bolt 30 have threads of the form shown in section in Figure 5. Each thread is of pure sinusoidal form - the thread formed on part 32 of bolt 30 being of slightly less height than that of the thread of bore 28.

By adopting this particular shape and relative size of threads any tendency for the two parts to jam together is overcome - allowing the ready tightening of bolt 30 in plug 12 (when the parts A of the two threads bear one on the other) and the ready loosening of bolt 30 in plug 12 pushing member 60 away from the brickwork (when the parts B of the two threads bear one on the other).

With particular advantage the various elements of the fixing device are made from a moulded plastics material - e.g. a moulded nylon material.

It is to be found particularly efficacious if the sleeve is made of unfilled moulded nylon material whilst the plug and bolt elements are of a 50% glass fibre filled nylon material.

It will be appreciated that various modifications may be made to the described arrangement without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The length of the second part 34 of the bolt may be varied, as may be the overall length of the bolt. The number and disposition of the flaring arms 40 may be varied as may be the disposition and number of the wings 16 formed on the sleeve 10. The spacing of the ends of arms 40 from head 46 of bolt 30 may be varied to take account of the different thicknesses of web, or of member, which may be fixed to brickwork.

If desired the apertures 14 provided in the wall of the sleeve may be modified and/or removed - other suitable means being provided allowing the fixing of the plug in the sleeve. One proposed alternative arrangement is that the interior surface of the sleeve is serrated and engagable with serrations formed over at least a part of the outer surface of the plug.

Although described with reference to the fixing of a frame member to a brickwork wall it will be appreciated that the arrangement now described may be modified to allow the fixing of any article to concrete, brickwork, blockwork or other material floors, ceilings and walls.

Claims

1. A fixing device enabling fixture of a member to brickwork, the device comprising a first part insertable in a bore formed in the brickwork and a second part releasably engagable with the first part and operable to cause permanent deformation of the first part so as to enable fixture of the first part in said bore.

2. A device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the first part comprises a first element in the form of a sleeve and a second element in the form of a plug, and wherein the second part is operable to draw the plug into the sleeve to cause the sleeve to expand.

3. A device as claimed in Claim 2, wherein the wall of said sleeve is of constant thickness over the major part of its length whilst the plug is in the form of a truncated cone, the outer surface of the plug being adapted to engage the inner surface of the sleeve wall.

4. A device as claimed Claims 3, wherein the outer surfaces of said plug is provided with at least one upstanding stud, the or each stud being adapted to engage in ones of a plurality of apertures formed in the wall of the sleeve.

5. A device as claimed in any one of Claims 2, 3 or 4, wherein said second part comprises a bolt member adapted to engage a threaded aperture in said plug, the bolt member having a head by means of which it may be rotated.

6. A device as claimed in Claim 5, wherein said bolt member includes a shank part of which is resiliently deformable.

7. A device as claimed in Claim 6, wherein said resiliently deformable part of the bolt member comprises one or more arms formed on the shank of the bolt member and movable between first and second positions.

8. A device as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the sleeve is provided on its outer surface with one or more raised portions.

9. A device as claimed in Claim 8, wherein said raised portions on the outer surface of the sleeve comprise lands extending radially of the sleeve along at least the major part of its length.

10. A device as claimed in Claim 9, wherein said sleeve is provided with four upstanding lands each extending along the major part of the length of the sleeve.

11. A device as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 10, wherein the sleeve is provided with one or more slots extending through its wall along a part of its length enabling the ready expansion of the sleeve.

12. A device as claimed in Claim 11, wherein two said slots are provided in the sleeve.

13. A device as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 12, wherein one end of the sleeve is formed with castellations adapted to bear against an end of a nonthreaded portion of said second part.

14. A device as claimed in Claim 5 and any one of claims 6 to 13, wherein the cooperating threads of the bolt and plug are each of pure sinusoidal form, the height of the thread of the bolt being less than the height of the thread in the plug.

15. A device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein each of said first and second parts are of moulded plastics material.

16. A method of mounting a member against brickwork using a device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 15, which comprises the steps of drilling a hole through the member and a blind bore in the brickwork, inserting said first part into said bore, passing said second part through the hole formed in the member and into the bore to engage said first part, rotating the second part such that a threaded portion thereof engages and causes permanent deformation of said first part such that said first part bears against and grips the wall of the bore and holds the first part in position in the bore.

17. A method as claimed in Claim 16, using a device as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the diameter of the hole drilled in the member is less than that of the head of the bolt member and of the spacing of the arms when in their first position, and wherein the spacing of the arms from the head of the bolt member is greater than the thickness of the member, the method providing that the arms are resiliently biased from their first towards their second positions as the bolt member passes through the hole and thereafter resiliently relax to their first positions trapping the member between themselves and the head of the bolt member.

18. A fixing device as claimed in Claim 1 and substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

19. A method of fixing a member to brickwork as claimed in Claim 16 and substantially as hereinbefore described.