GB2587649A

GB2587649A - Clamp

Info

Publication number: GB2587649A
Application number: GB1914281.9A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Tuthill James; Paul Johannes; Nicholls Simon; Windham William
Original assignee: Hebe Studio Ltd
Current assignee: Hebe Studio Ltd
Priority date: 2019-10-03
Filing date: 2019-10-03
Publication date: 2021-04-07
Also published as: GB201914281D0

Abstract

A clamp for connecting a plurality of wire mesh panels together comprises first and second elongate panels 15, 17 that are releasably coupled to one another by a fixing. The elongate panels 15, 17 cooperate to provide a first channel into which a portion of a first wire mesh panel can be push-fitted and a second channel into which a portion of a second wire mesh panel can be push-fitted. The clamp further comprises a first retainer 41a operable to retain said portion of the first wire mesh panel in said first channel, and a second retainer 41c operable to retain said portion of said second wire mesh panel in the second channel.

Description

CLAMP

Field

This disclosure relates to clamps, for example to clamps for coupling together wire mesh panels of an animal cage. In one illustrative arrangement, the clamp may be used to enable users to construct an animal cage in the form of a geodesic dome.

The clamps disclosed below are described with particular reference to their use in connection with the assembly of an animal cage in the form of a geodesic dome, but it will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the clamps disclosed herein may be used in a variety of other applications and/or to construct other types of cage, and hence that the present disclosure should not be interpreted as being limited only to the use of such clamps in the assembly of animal cages, or indeed animal cages in the form of a geodesic dome.

Background

It has previously been proposed to keep animals in wire mesh cages. Due to packaging constraints, such wire mesh cages may be provided as a number of separate wire mesh panels, which are then assembled together to form a cage.

In our UK Patent No. 2563317 we have disclosed a geodesic dome animal cage comprised of a plurality of hexagonal and pentagonal panels. We have also disclosed, in our European Patent No. 3211251, a ring clip that can be used (inter alia) to couple the aforementioned panels of the geodesic dome together.

Whilst the clip disclosed in our European Patent does enable the panels to be coupled together to form a geodesic dome of the type disclosed in our UK patent, it can be time consuming for users -particularly those who are assembling the cage on their own -to assemble the cage as panels that are coupled together by such a clip can pivot relative to one another. US Patent No. 3323820 discloses a clamp that prevents clamped elements from moving relative to one another, but this arrangement is not suitable for use with wire mesh panels.

The clamp disclosed herein has been devised with the foregoing in mind.

Summary

In one presently envisaged implementation, there is provided a clamp for connecting a plurality of wire mesh panels together, the clamp comprising first and second elongate panels that are releasably coupled to one another by a fixing, the elongate panels cooperating to provide a first channel into which a portion of a first wire mesh panel can be fitted and a second channel into which a portion of a second wire mesh panel can be fitted, the clamp further comprising a first retainer operable to retain said portion of said first wire mesh panel in said first channel, and a second retainer operable to retain said portion of said second wire mesh panel in said second channel.

The first panel may include a ledge extending from a face of the first elongate panel towards said second elongate panel. The ledge may include a locating formation operable to co-operate with a locating formation included in said second elongate panel to locate the second elongate panel with respect to the first elongate portion.

The first and second retainers may each be operable to retain the first and second wire mesh panel portions respectively in a gap between each said retainer and the ledge.

Each said retainer may be able to move between a first position where access to said gap is obstructed and a second position where access to said gap is enabled. Insertion of a wire mesh panel into a said channel may urge the retainer associated with said channel to move between said first and second positions. Each said retainer may be resiliently moveable between said first and second positions.

Each said retainer may comprise a ramped body having a first height relative to one of said first and second panels at a point proximate an entrance to the channel with which the retainer is associated, and a greater height at a point distal from the entrance to the channel. The retainers may extend from said first panel into the channels with which they are associated.

Each said retainer may be partly circumscribed by a slot, so that at least part of the retainer can move into and out of the plane of the first panel.

In one implementation, the fixing may divide said first channel from said second.

The clamp may comprise a third retainer associated with said first or said second channel. The clamp may comprise a spacer operable to space the first and second elongate panels. In one envisaged implementation, the fixing extends through the spacer.

Another envisaged implementation provides a kit for constructing an animal cage, the kit comprising a plurality of wire mesh panels, and a plurality of clamps as described herein. Some of said plurality of wire mesh panels may comprise hexagonal wire mesh panels Some of said plurality of wire mesh panels may comprise pentagonal wire mesh panels. Some of said plurality of wire mesh panels may comprise trapezoidal wire mesh panels. In one implementation the panels and said clamps may be assembled to form an animal cage in the form of a geodesic dome.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Various aspects of the teachings of the present invention, and arrangements embodying those teachings, will hereafter be described by way of illustrative example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is schematic representation of part of an animal enclosure in the form of a geodesic dome; Fig. 2 is a schematic rear isometric view of a hexagonal mesh panel with two clamps attached thereto; Fig. 3 is a schematic rear isometric view of a hexagonal mesh panel coupled at either end to a trapezoidal mesh panel; Fig. 4 is a schematic front isometric view of a clamp; Fig. 5 is a schematic rear isometric view of the clamp depicted in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a schematic exploded front isometric view of the clamp depicted in Figs. 4 and 5; Fig. 7 is a schematic rear elevation of the clamp shown in Figs. 4 to 6; Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view along the line A-A in Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a schematic rear elevation of the clamp shown in Figs. 4 to 8; Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view along the line B-B in Fig. 9; and Fig. 11 is a rear isometric view of a component of the clamp depicted in Figs. 4 to 10.

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of part of an animal enclosure in the form of a geodesic dome 1. As described in our UK Patent No. 2563317, the dome 1 comprises a plurality of hexagonal panels 3 and a plurality of pentagonal panels 5 that have been coupled together by clamps 7 of the type described in our co-pending UK patent application number 1914230.6. Constructing a dome from individual substantially planar panels is advantageous as it greatly reduces the volume of the packaging required to transport such a cage to a user.

Around the periphery of the dome 1 that will be lowermost in use, the hexagonal panels 3 are interspersed with trapezoidal panels 9 that are each coupled at opposing ends to a hexagonal panel 3 by left and right handed clamps 11a, 11 b respectively. The trapezoidal panels each carry a clip 13 that allows a base (not shown) to be removeably coupled to the dome 1.

In an illustrative assembly process for the dome 1, a user first push-fits a hexagonal mesh panels 3 into two clamps 11, as depicted in Fig. 2, so that a left-handed clamp is attached to a panel apex at a left-hand end of one panel side and a right-handed clamp 11 b is attached to a panel apex at a right-hand end of the same panel side. As shown in Fig. 2, when attached, the clamps extend in parallel from the left and right hand sides, respectively, of the panel. The user then push-fits an apex at one end of the longest side of a trapezoidal mesh panel into each of the clamps 11a, 11 b as depicted in Fig. 3 attached to the hexagonal panel.

The user then continues to attached hexagonal and trapezoidal panels to one another using left and right handed clamps, as appropriate, until a generally circular panel assembly has been constructed. The user can then connect hexagonal and pentagonal panels, as shown in Fig. 1, preferably using clamps of the type described in our co-pending UK patent application number 1914230.6, to complete the assembly of the geodesic dome 1.

Fig. 4 is a schematic front isometric view of a right-handed clamp 11 b, or in other words, a clamp configured to be attached to the right hand end of the longest side of a trapezoidal wire mesh panel. The left-handed clamp 11a is functionally identical but structurally reversed with respect to the right-handed clamp, and for brevity will not further be described herein. Fig. 5 is a schematic rear isometric view of the clamp depicted in Fig. 4, and Fig. 6 is a schematic exploded front isometric view of the clamp depicted in Figs. 4 and 5.

Referring now to Figs. 4 to 6, the clamp 11 b comprises first and second elongate panels 15, 17 that are coupled together by means of a releasable fixing 19, in this particular example a screw. The first elongate panel 15 is provided with a ledge 21 that extends generally perpendicularly from the panel and functions as a support for the second panel 17. An angled locating tab 23 extends from the ledge 21 and mates with a corresponding angled notch 25 in the second panel 17 to locate and align the second panel 17 with respect to the first 15 when the clamp is assembled. The second panel carries a formation for engaging with the fixing 19, in this particular example a nut 27. In this particular embodiment, as the clamp is configured for connecting wire mesh panels to form a dome, the first and second panels are generally arcuate. In addition, as the hexagonal panels are significantly larger than the trapezoidal panels, the clamp is configured so that a first region 20 (in the arrangement depicted, the left-hand part of the clamp) of the clamp to one side of the fixing (the part of the clamp that couples to the hexagonal panel) is larger than a second region 22 On this instance, the right-hand part of the clamp) of the clamp to the other side of the fixing. It will be appreciated, however, by persons skilled in the art that it is not essential for the clamp to be so configured. For differently shaped enclosures it may not be necessary for the clamp to be arcuate, it could instead be linear, angled (for example, right-angled) or curved. Similarly, depending on the panel sizes used to construct the enclosure, it may not be necessary for one region of the clamp to be a different size to the other, they could well be substantially the same size.

As is best shown in Fig. 11, a face 29 of the first panel 15 that faces towards the interior of the dome (when constructed) includes first and second spacers 31, 33 that abut against the second panel 17 when the panels are coupled together. A cowl 35, through which the fixing 19 extends for engagement with (in this instance) the nut 27, abuts against the nut 27 when the panels are coupled together. The spacers 31, 33, cowl 25 and nut 27 cooperate, when the panels are coupled together (as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, for example) to space the panels 15, 17 from one another in a transverse direction (i.e. in a direction parallel to that in which the fixing is inserted) and thereby form first 37 and second 39 channels to either side of the fixing into each of which a panel apex of a respective panel can be fitted.

As the panel edges of the trapezoidal and hexagonal panels are set at an angle of less than 90 degrees to the horizontal, in this particular example of a geodesic dome, the first and second spacers and the cowl are arranged to lie along a line that extends at an angle from the ledge 21 substantially the same as the angle at which the edges of the trapezoidal and hexagonal panels are set to the horizontal. This allows the spacers and the cowl to fit between respective peripheral edges of the trapezoidal and hexagonal panels when the panels are push-fitted into the clamp.

Referring now to Figs. 7 to 11, the first panel 15 includes a plurality of retainers 41a, 41b and 41c. In this particular example, the first region of the clamp includes two retainers 41a, 41b and the second region includes one retainer 41c but in other embodiments the clamp may include more or less retainers in each said region. The retainers function, as the name implies, to retain the wire mesh panels in the clamp once they have been push-fitted into the respective channels.

In this particular arrangement, each retainer comprises (as is best shown in Fig. 7) a ramped body 43 that extends from the face 29 of the first panel 15 that faces the interior of the enclosure in use, which ramped body increases transversely in size from a first point 45 proximate the channel entrances to a second point 47 proximate the ledge 21. The ramped body is sized longitudinally so as to leave a gap 49 between the retainer and the ledge 21 into which gap 49 a peripheral edge of a wire mesh panel can be fitted. As depicted, a wall of the retainer proximate the ledge 21 is generally parallel to the ledge so that the peripheral edge wire of a wire mesh panel tends to be retained in the gap 49.

As illustrated in Fig. 10, in an envisaged implementation the distance between the second point 47 of each said retainer and the face 29 of the first panel is less than the width of the channels when the clamp is assembled.

Each ramped body is partly circumscribed, in the particular example illustrated on three sides, by a slot 51 in the first panel so that the ramped body and the portion of the first panel 15 from which the ramped body extends can resiliently pivot into and out of the plane of the first panel 15, for example as a wire mesh panel is push fitted into the channel with which the retainer is associated.

In circumstances where more than one retainer is provided for a given channel, the clamp may be configured so that neighbouring retainers fit into neighbouring apertures in the wire mesh panel. Alternatively, if the apertures in the wire mesh panel are sufficiently large, more than one retainer may be fitted into a given aperture in the mesh.

As will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art, the arrangements described herein provide a particularly easy way for structures formed from wire mesh panels to be assembled. All a user need do is align an apex of a first panel with the first channel of the clamp, and push the panel into a first channel of the clamp (to drive the ramped body out of the plane of the panel) and past the ramped body (whereupon the ramped body will resiliently move to capture a wire loop of the panel in the gap). Once the first panel is secured in the clamp, an apex of a second panel can be aligned with the second channel and then push-fitted into the clamp. To release the panels from the clamp, a user need only loosen the fixing until the panels can be released from the clamp.

It will be appreciated that whilst various aspects and embodiments of clamps have heretofore been described, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the particular arrangements set out herein and instead extends to encompass all arrangements, and modifications and alterations thereto, which fall within the scope of the appended claims. For example, as aforementioned, depending on the structure that is to be assembled, the first and second panels of the clamp may not be arcuate. It is also not necessary for the regions of the clamp to include different numbers of retainers.

The clamp could have the same number of retainers per region, for example one or two (or more) per region. Finally, whilst the arrangement disclosed by means of which the retainers can move is preferred (on the basis that manufacturing is simplified) it will be appreciated that any mechanism which enables the retainers to move resiliently as a wire panel is push-fitted into the clamp may instead be employed. For example, the retainer could comprise a plate that is hinged to the face 29 of the first panel at an end remote from the ledge and a resilient bias (such as a spring) between the plate and the face 29 of the first panel.

It should also be noted that whilst the accompanying claims set out particular combinations of features described herein, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the particular combinations hereafter claimed, but instead extends to encompass any combination of features herein disclosed.

Finally, it should be noted that any element in a claim that does not explicitly state "means for" performing a specified function, or "steps for" performing a specific function, is not to be interpreted as a "means" or "step" clause as specified in 35 U.S.C. Sec. 112, par. 6. In particular, the use of "step of" in the claims appended hereto is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. Sec. 112, par. 6.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A clamp for connecting a plurality of wire mesh panels together, the clamp comprising first and second elongate panels that are releasably coupled to one another by a fixing, the elongate panels cooperating to provide a first channel into which a portion of a first wire mesh panel can be push-fitted and a second channel into which a portion of a second wire mesh panel can be push-fitted, the clamp further comprising a first retainer operable to retain said portion of said first wire mesh panel in said first channel, and a second retainer operable to retain said portion of said second wire mesh panel in said second channel.
2. A clamp according to Claim 1, wherein the first panel includes a ledge extending from a face of the first elongate panel towards said second elongate panel.3. A clamp according to Claim 2, wherein said ledge includes a locating formation operable to co-operate with a locating formation included in said second elongate panel to locate the second elongate panel with respect to the first elongate portion.
3. A clamp according to Claim 2 or 3, wherein said first and second retainers are each operable to retain the first and second wire mesh panel portions respectively in a gap between each said retainer and the ledge.
4. A clamp according to Claim 3, wherein each said retainer can move between a first position where access to said gap is obstructed and a second position where access to said gap is enabled.
5. A clamp according to Claim 4, wherein insertion of a wire mesh panel into a said channel urges the retainer associated with said channel to move between said first and second positions.
6. A clamp according to Claim 4 or 5 wherein each said retainer is resiliently moveable between said first and second positions.
7. A clamp according to any preceding claim, wherein each said retainer comprises a ramped body having a first height relative to one of said first and second panels at a point proximate an entrance to the channel with which the retainer is associated, and a greater height at a point distal from the entrance to the channel.
8. A clamp according to Claim 9, wherein said retainers extend from said first panel into the channels with which they are associated.
9. A clamp according to Claim 8, wherein each said retainer is partly circumscribed by a slot, so that at least part of the retainer can move into and out of the plane of the first panel.
10. A clamp according to any preceding claim, wherein said fixing divides said first channel from said second.13. A clamp according to any preceding claim, further comprising a third retainer associated with said first or said second channel.14. A clamp according to any preceding claim, further comprising a spacer operable to space the first and second elongate panels.15. A clamp according to Claim 14 wherein the fixing extends through the spacer.16. A kit for constructing an animal cage, the kit comprising a plurality of wire mesh panels, and a plurality of clamps according to any preceding claim.17. A kit according to Claim 16, wherein some said plurality of wire mesh panels comprise hexagonal wire mesh panels.18. A kit according to Claim 16 or 17, wherein some of said plurality of wire mesh panels comprise pentagonal wire mesh panels.19 A kit according to any of Claims 16 to 18, wherein some of said plurality of wire mesh panels comprise trapezoidal wire mesh panels.20. A kit according to any preceding claim, wherein said panels and said clamps can be assembled to form an animal cage in the form of a geodesic dome.