GB2404711A

GB2404711A - Panel connector

Info

Publication number: GB2404711A
Application number: GB0318212A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Paul Chudley; Paul John Baggett; Robert Mcgowan Mann; Robert Sydney Cox
Original assignee: T & W Ide Fire Products Ltd; Lorient Polyproducts Ltd
Current assignee: T & W Ide Fire Products Ltd; Lorient Polyproducts Ltd
Priority date: 2003-08-02
Filing date: 2003-08-02
Publication date: 2005-02-09
Anticipated expiration: 2023-08-02
Also published as: GB2404711B; GB0318212D0

Abstract

A panel sheet connector, particularly for fixing sheets of glazing to create an internal wall within a building, comprises first and second lock members 14, 18 attached to first and second panel sheets 15, 20 respectively. The lock members have opposed lock formations 44, 45 and are held in engagement by a pair of clamping means 24. Each clamping means preferably comprises a pair of clamp jaws 26, 28 and a clamping member 29 acting to retain the clamping jaws in a closed position. Intumescent material 80 is provided between at least one locking member and the edge of the panel. Under fire conditions, heat is conducted by the lock member to the intumescent material which expands to form a foamed mass which urges the lock members into abutment to maintain them in their locked position irrespective of the structural integrity of the clamp jaws.

Description

The present invention relates to a panel sheet connector assembly, in particular to a connector assembly which enables panel sheets of glazing to be fixed edge to edge to create a screen or internal wall within a building. The invention also relates to a method of assembling a screen or internal wall in a building using the connector assembly to join panel sheets edge to edge. Various aspects of the present invention are hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :- Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view through adjacent panel sheets joined edge to edge by a connector assembly according to one embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a schematic view similar to Figure 1 showing the connector under fire conditions. The panel sheet connector assembly 10 illustrated in Figure 1 includes a first lock member 14 which is attached to a first panel sheet 15 and a second lock member 18 which is attached to a second panel sheet 20. The lock members 14, 18 are held in engagement by a pair of clamping means 24. Each clamping means 24 includes a pair of clamp jaws 26,28 and a clamping member 29 which acts to retain the clamping jaws 26,28 in a closed, clamping condition. In the illustrated embodiment, the connector assembly is shown joining, in an edge to edge relationship, panel sheets 15,20 which are formed of a planar sheet of material having a predefined thickness. The planar sheet material is preferably a glazing assembly which is a laminated structure comprising layers of glass Lg and layers of a clear intumescent material Li. A suitable material is PYROSTOP (RTM) as supplied by Pilkington. This material is suitable for use as an internal wall partition or screen in a building as it has desirable integrity and insulation characteristics under fire conditions. It will be appreciated that other materials having similar characteristics may be used. Each lock member 14,18 has an elongate body formed from a suitable material which retains structural integrity under fire conditions and which is preferably heat conductive. Preferably the elongate body of each lock member is formed from a suitable metal such as steel. Under fire conditions (see Figure 2), the lock members 14,18 engage one another in order to restrain the joined panel sheets 15,20 from moving laterally relative to one another, i.e. in a direction perpendicular to the inner and outer faces 30,31 of the panel sheets 15,20. To achieve this function, each lock member 14,18 is adapted to be connected to its respective panel sheet so as to be restrained from moving laterally in the direction perpendicular to the inner ands outer faces 30,31. This is preferably achieved by providing the body of each lock member with an edge accommodating channel 35 which has channel sides 37,38 which overlie the marginal portions of the inner and outer faces 30,31 respectively located adjacent to the panel sheet edge 40. In addition, the lock members 14,18 when engaged have to co-operate to restrain relative lateral movement in the direction perpendicular to the inner and outer faces 30,31. This is preferably achieved by providing the body of each locking member 14,18 with locking formations 44,45 which when engaged perform this desired function.Preferably, as shown the locking formation on one locking member is a projection and on the other locking member is a projection accommodating recess. Preferably the projection is in the form of a ridge which extends along the length of the lock member and the recess is in the form of a groove which extends along the length of the lock member. Preferably the elongate body of each lock member is formed by extrusion or a pressing operation in order to create the edge accommodating channel 35 and respective locking formations 44,45. The clamp jaws 26,28 each preferably comprise an elongate body which is of channel like form and which is formed, preferably by extrusion, from a plastics material which has sufficient rigidity to perform the clamping operation. Rigid polyvinylchloride is a suitable plastics material. Each clamp jaw 26,28 is attached to a respective lock member. Preferably this is achieved by providing the clamp jaw with an outer sidewall 50 which is of a predefined thickness to enable it to reside in-between the inner or outer face 30,31 and the opposing channel side of the edge accommodating channel 35. The sidewall 50 due to its overlap with the channel side of the locking member secures the jaw to the locking member and in addition serves the added benefit of providing a relatively soft packing between the locking member and the panel sheet. When using the connector assembly to join panel sheets edge to edge, one lock member 14 preferably, with clamp jaws 26,28 already attached, is presented to the edge of one panel and pressed onto the panel sheet so that the edge is introduced into the edge accommodating channel 35. The other lock member 18 is similarly pressed onto the edge of the other panel sheet. The panel sheets are then erected to an upright position with their edges 40 opposed and defining a gap therebetween. The lock members 14,18 are then moved laterally toward one another in order to bring the locking formations 44,45 into engagement, i.e. to bring the lock members into a locked condition. The lock members 14,18 are held in their locked condition by clamp member 29. Clamp member 29 is preferably formed as an elongate body having a channel 65 the opposed sides 66,67 of which abut bottom walls 55 of the clamp jaws 26,28 to maintain the lock members in their locked condition. Preferably the clamp member 29 also serves the purpose of defining a decorative trim which conceals the clamp jaws 26,28 and lock members 14,18 from view. Preferably the clamp member 29 is formed from a stainless steel strip, but other materials such as aluminium or wood may be used. In a typical installation the panel sheets 15,20 will be of a large size, for example 3 metres x 2 metres and may not be perfectly square or accurately cut to size. A clearance gap G between the opposed faxes of lock members 14,18 is therefore provided to provide a tolerance for accommodating the fact that the sheets may not be perfectly square and/or accurately cut to size. In use, the size of gap G will therefore vary along the length of each lock member 14, 18. This gap G is not detrimental to support of the panel sheets 15, 20 since in use they are primarily supported along their top and bottom edges. Under fire conditions on one side of an erected screen or internal building wall " the fire side" it is expected that the clamp jaws 26,28 will at first soften and then be destroyed. Accordingly in the absence of an alternative lock activating system for maintaining the lock members in their locked condition, the lock members would be able to move apart and the structural integrity of the join provided by the connector assembly would be lost. To overcome this problem, intumescent material 80 is located in the edge accommodating channel of lock member 14 in-between the base of the channel 35 and the edge 40 of the panel sheet. Under fire conditions heat is conducted by the lock member to the intumescent material, when the temperature reaches activation temperature, the intumescent material intumesces to form a foamed mass Fm which acts to urge the lock members into abutment and positively maintain their locked condition irrespective of the structural integrity of the clamp jaws 26,28. As seen in Figure 3, under fire conditions, the layers of intumescent material Li intumesce and so cause the outer layers of glass Lg closest to the fire side to move outwardly. This causes the sheet panel to in effect expand in its widthwise direction and so ensure that the lock members 14,18 are securely held on the edge of the panel sheets. It will be noted that the clamp member 29 together with the clamp jaws 26,28 define an enclosed space either side of the gap between the opposed edges 40. Preferably intumescent material 85 is provided within the clamp jaws 26,28 so as to provide an insulative barrier after intumescence to help maintain the structural integrity of the panel sheets. Preferably the intumescent material 80,85 is a sodium silicate based material. In the illustrated embodiment intumescent material 80 is provided in the channel 35 of lock member 14 only, however it is appreciated that in addition or as an alternative, intumescent material 80 may be provided in the edge accommodating channel 35 of lock member 18. The connector assembly of the present invention enables a screen of internal building wall to be erected from panel sheet materials and have a desired fire rating without detracting from the fire rating of the panel sheet itself. For example, when using PYROSTOP as the material for the panel sheets, a fire rating for fire resistance and insulation of up to 60 minutes has been achieved under the fire exposure conditions of BS EN 1364-1. For this test it is necessary for the protected side of the connector assembly and sheets (i.e. the side opposite to the fire side) to be kept, by the assembly, to a temperature rise of less than 140[deg] in order to qualify for a valid insulation performance.

Claims

1. A panel sheet connector assembly for joining an edge of a first panel sheet to an opposed edge of a second panel sheet, the connector assembly including a first elongate lock member which in use extends along said edge of the first panel sheet and which is adapted for connection to said first sheet panel in order to restrain movement of the first lock member in a direction perpendicular to the inner and outer faces of the first sheet, a second elongate lock member which in use extends along said opposed edge of the second panel sheet and which is adapted for connection to the second panel sheet in order to restrain movement of the second lock member in a direction perpendicular to the inner and outer faces of the second sheet, the first and second lock members having opposed lock formations which in use are positioned within a gap formed between said edges of the first and second panel sheets, at least one of the first or second lock members being movable in a locking direction away from the edge along which it extends and toward the edge of the adjacent panel sheet in order to bring said opposed lock formations into an engaged condition whereat the opposed lock formations co-operate to restrain relative lateral movement between the first and second lock members in a direction perpendicular to said locking direction, clamping means for holding the first and second lock members in an opposed condition and intumescent means located between at least one locking member and the edge along which it extends, the intumescent means undergoing expansion when activated under fire conditions for causing said one locking member to be urged in said locking direction and thereby maintain the locking members in said engaged condition independently of said clamping means.

2. A connector assembly according to Claim 1 wherein said opposed lock formations on the lock members comprise at least one projection on one lock member and at least one projection accommodating recess on the other lock member.

3. A connector assembly according to Claim 1 or 2 wherein each lock member includes a channel extending along its length such that the edge of the panel sheet to be connected is insertable into the channel, the opposed inner sides of the channel co-operating with the inner and outer faces of the panel sheet to restrain said movement of the lock member in a direction perpendicular to said inner and outer faces.

4. A connector assembly according to Claim 3 wherein each lock member is formed from a metal which retains integrity under fire conditions.

5. A connector assembly according to Claim 4 wherein each lock member is extruded from metal to define said channel and lock formations.

6. A connector assembly according to Claim 4 wherein each lock member is a metal pressing which is shaped to define said channel and lock formations.

7. A connector assembly according to any preceding claim wherein the clamping means comprises at least one clamping assembly which in use is located on the inner or outer face of the connected panels, the clamping assembly including a pair of clamp jaws, a first of the jaws being engaged with one of the lock members and a second of the jaws being engaged with the other of the lock members, the pair of jaws being urged together by a clamping member.

8. A connector assembly according to Claim 7 wherein the clamping member is in the form of an elongate body having a jaw retaining channel extending along its length, the clamping member overlying the pair of jaws such that one jaw is engaged by one side of the jaw retaining channel and the other jaw is engaged by the other side of the jaw retaining channel.

9. A connector assembly according to Claim 8 wherein the elongate body and pair of jaws together define an enclosed space, intumescent material being located within the enclosed space such that under fire conditions the intumescent material intumesces to form a heat insulative barrier within said enclosed space.

10. A connector assembly according to any preceding claim adapted to provide an insulation rating of 60 minutes under BS EN 1364-1.

11. A connector assembly substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

12. A screen or building wall erected from a plurality of panel sheets joined edge to edge, adjacent panel sheets being joined by a connector assembly according to any preceding claim.

13. A screen or building wall according to Claim 12 wherein at least two adjacent panels each comprise a sheet of glass.

14. A method of erecting a screen or building wall according to Claim 12 or 13 including the steps of applying the first lock member to one edge of a first panel sheet, applying the second lock member to one edge of a second panel sheet, positioning the first and second panel sheets such that the first and second lock members are opposed to one another, and applying the clamping means in order to retain the lock members in an opposed condition.