SE1550442A1 - Facade element and lifting rail for lifting the facade element - Google Patents

Description

15 20 25 30 35 building structure, i.e. the vertical edges of the façade element will run in slots while hoisted. This will make the hoisting procedure less sensitive to weather conditions, such as wind, since the façade elements run steadily in the slots. The guiding-rails are mounted on the building structure all the way up to the floor that is beneath the floor to be mounted, i.e. with this method the façade elements are mounted from the bottom and up.

When the façade elements have reached the floor on which they are to be mounted they are pushed in a horizontal direction towards the building and attached appropriately to the building.

In the method disclosed in WO20l0070082, the façade elements are moved from the conveyor to the guiding rails by an elevator unit provided with a gripping device for gripping the façade element. In operation, the elevator unit angles out such that the gripping may grip the façade element. As the elevator unit then moves upwards the façade element is moved inwards towards the building and enters into the guiding rails.

The gripping device may also first be moved into a gripping position whereby the façade elements subsequently are moved into engagement with the gripping device.

However, although the gripping device of WO20l0070082 has proved to be useful, it suffers from some drawbacks. In particular it is bulky and it is cumbersome and time consuming to move the gripping device in position for gripping a façade element.

An altemative to using a gripping device is to provide the façade elements with two eyebolts. The two eyebolts are arranged at the two upper comers of the façade element and adapted to receive a hook that is fastened to a wire of a crane. The façade element comprises a façade material, which may be glass (windows), concrete, or any other suitable material or combinations of materials. The material is surrounded and held by a frame into which frame the eyebolts are fastened. This solution with eyebolts and hooks is the predominating way of lifting façade element today. One problem with this procedure is that the frame has to be designed to withstand high loads, especially point loads at the upper comers of the frame. In fact it is these high point loads when lifting the façade element that determine the dimensions of the frame and thus the Who le façade element. 10 15 20 25 30 Thus, it is an object of the present invention to achieve a façade element With dimensions that are limited by the conditions that prevail When mounted to the building structure and not by the lifting process. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to achieve a façade element With thinner frames than are used today. A further object of the present invention is to achieve a lifting device for engagement With the façade element, Which in an easy Way may be connected to a crane, a lifting jig or the like.

Summary of the invention According to a first aspect of the present disclosure at least one of these objects is achieved by a façade element, comprising a frame and façade material, Wherein the frame is provided to surround and hold the façade material. The frame has an upper side With a length L. An elongate recess With an undercut is extending at least along a major part of the length L of the upper side of the frame. The recess With the undercut is adapted for receiving a lifting rail in a locking engagement.

The elongate recess of the façade element may according to one embodiment extend along the entire length L of the upper side of the frame.

According to some embodiments the façade element may be provided With a recess that is substantially L-shaped or a recess that is substantially anchor-shaped.

According to a second aspect of the present disclo sure at least one of these objects is achieved by a lifting rail for lifting a façade element. The façade element comprises a frame and façade material. The frame is provided to surround and hold the façade material, said frame having an upper side With a length L. The lifting rail comprises a L- shaped lifting portion, a shoulder and a locking mechanism, Which all are adapted to be received by and in locking engagement With an elongate recess of the façade element.

The recess is formed With an undercut and extends at least along a major part of the length of the upper side of the frame, the length of the recess corresponding to the a length of the lifting rail. When the lifting rail is in an engaged state the L-shaped lifting 10 15 20 25 30 portion is inserted in the recess of the frame and the shoulder rests on an upper side surface at one side of the recess and the looking mechanism rests on an upper side surface at another side of the recess.

Furtherrnore, the locking mechanism is pivotable between an open position, in which the lifting rail is insertable into the recess of the frame and a looked position, in which is the lifting rail is in locking engagement with the recess of the frame.

According to an exemplary embodiment the looking mechanism is provided with a spring biased looking ball adapted to engage a oavity of the lifting rail, when the locking mechanism is in the looked position.

With such a façade element provided with a recess having an undercut the frame of the façade element may be designed with smaller dimensions then is oustomary. Since the load, when lifting the façade element, now is distributed along a major part of the length of the upper side of the frame the lifting procedure is no longer limiting the design and dimensions of the frame. Thus, by altering the way to lift façade elements it is now possible to design much thinner and also much wider façade elements, which is advantageous to the building process.

By using a lifting rail having substantially the same length as the elongate recess and which is designed to interact with the undercut of the elongate recess spot loads are avoided.

Brief description of drawings The invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 shows a schematio view of an exemplary embodiment of a façade element; 10 15 20 25 30 Fig .2 is an enlarged side view of an upper side of the façade element, showing an exemplary L-shaped recess; Fig. 3 is an enlarged side view of the upper side of the façade element, showing an exemplary anchor-shaped recess; Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a lifting rail; Fig. 5 shows an enlarged side view of the lifting rail; Figs. 6-8 show enlarged views of different steps of the procedure of when lifting rail is brought into locking engagement with the recess of the façade element; Fig. 9 shows a partial front view of the lifting rail, with the locking mechanism in an open position, and Fig. 10 shows a partial front view of the lifting rail, with the locking mechanism in a locked position.

Detailed description of the embodiments Embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings in order for those skilled in the art to be able to carry out the invention. The invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclo sure will be thorough and complete, and will fially convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Thus, the invention is only limited by the appended claims.

Figure 1 shows a schematic view of an exemplary embodiment of a façade element 2.

The façade element 2 comprises two vertical sides 4, guiding blocks 6, guiding pins 8, a 10 15 20 25 30 recess 10, a frame 12, an upper side 13, façade material 14, 16 and a reinforcement frame 18. The main components of the façade element 2 are the façade material 14, 16 and the frame 12. The façade material may by any material suitable used for building multi-story buildings, such as glass, Concrete, metal, bricks, insulation etc. The façade element 2 may comprise one or more façade materials in different combinations. In the exemplary embodiment of the façade element 2 in figure 1, the façade material comprises glass (Windows) 14 and a combination of aluminum and insulation 16. The aluminum/insulation combination corresponds in this exemplary embodiment to the ceiling structure of the building, i.e. it Will cover the ceiling structure When mounted to the building structure.

The façade material 14, 16 is surrounded and held by the frame 12. In the exemplary embodiment disclosed in figure 1, the façade element 2 is fiJrther reinforced by the T- shaped reinforcement frame 18. The use of such a reinforcement frame 18 is optional and depends on Which size the façade element 2 has. As is realized by a person skilled in the art there may be numerous Ways to design reinforcement frame 18 and it is believed to be Within in the capabilities of such a person to design a suitable reinforcement frame taking the dimensions of the façade element into account. However, there may also be other considerations than strength, such as the appearance of a façade element 2, When designing the reinforcement frame.

The upper side 13 of the façade element 2 is provided With a recess 10 and has a length L.

The recess 10 is designed and adapted to receive a lifting rail, With help of Which the façade element 2 may be lifted to its mounting position. The recess Will be closer described in conjunction With figures 2 and 3 and the lifting rail will be closer described in conjunction With figures 4 and 5. The interaction between the recess 10 and the lifting rail and how they are brought into a locking engagement is closer described in conjunction With figures 6 to 8.

As mentioned above the façade element 2 fiirther comprises guiding blocks 6 and guiding pins 8 provided at the vertical sides 4 of the façade element 2. The guiding pins 8 are 10 15 20 25 30 adapted to cooperate with a mounting tool used to guide the façade element 2 into its final position when mounting it to the building structure. This process is closer described in a co-pending Swedish patent application no. 1451229-7. The façade element 2 is furtherinore provided with guiding blocks 6 on the vertical side 4 of the façade element 2.

As is apparent in figure 1, the guiding blocks 6 are provided on the same vertical line A as the guiding pins 8. The horizontal width or extension of the guiding blocks 6 is greater than the diameter of the guiding pins 8. The fianction of the guiding blocks 6 are also described closer in the above referenced co-pending Swedish patent application.

Turning now to Figure 2 an exemplary embodiment of the recess 10 will be described.

The recess 10 is provided on the upper side 13 of the frame 12. Figure 2 shows an enlarged side view of the upper side 13 of the façade element 2. The recess 10 is provided with an undercut 11, i.e. it has a hollow space under the surface 15 of the upper side 13 of the frame 12. The undercut ll is, in the embodiment of figure 2, defined as being the ho llow space that is to the left of an axis X that is perpendicular to the upper side 13 and running adj acent to the opening of the recess 10. The undercut ll is an important feature when bringing the lifting rail into locking engagement with the recess 10 as will be explained further below. The shape of the recess 10 as seen in the enlarged side view of figure 2 may be defined as L-shaped or boot-shaped.

F igure 3 shows another exemplary embodiment of the recess 10. In this embodiment the recess 10 is provided with two undercuts l 1, ll' instead of one. The principles for the undercut are the same as in figure 2 and will therefore not be described again. The second undercut ll' in figure 3 is a mirror image of the first undercut ll in figure 2, which gives the recess 10 an anchor-like shape or upside-down T-shaped. One advantage with having a recess with double undercuts is that the lifting rail may be inserted into the recess 10 from two different directions, which may be beneficial during the lifting process of the façade elements 2. As is understood by a person skilled in the art, the recess may be designed in a variety of ways. As mentioned above it is import that the recess has an undercut in order to create a locking engagement with the lifting rail. The important feature is that the undercut is adapted such as it may receive the lifting rai120, and 10 15 20 25 30 especially the lifting portion 21 of the lifting rail 20. In the described embodiments the lifting portion 21 of the lifting rail 20 is shown as L-shaped, but may for example also be J -shaped or any other suitable shape adapted for locking engagement with a mating recess 10 having an undercut ll.

Figure 4 shows a perspective view of a lifting rail 20 and Figure 5 shows an enlarged side view of the lifting rail 20, having J-shaped profile. The lifting rail 20 comprises a lifting portion 21, a shoulder 22, a hook 23 and locking mechanism 24. The lifting rail 20 may be manufactured in aluminum, steel or any other suitable metal or material with the mechanical properties for lifting a façade element 2. The hook 23 is adapted to be received by some kind of lifting device, such as a lifting rig also having a J -shaped rail for lifting the façade element 2 in the lifting rail. The functions of the different features of the lifting rail 20 will be described below in conjunction with figures 6 to 10. Figures 6 to 8 show enlarged views of different stages of the procedure when the lifting rail 20 is brought into locking engagement with the recess 10 of the façade element ll.

In Figure 6 a first stage of the locking engagement between the lifting rail 20 and the recess 10 is shown. In this stage the lifting rail 20 is angled and the L-shaped lifting portion 21 of the lifting rail 20 is inserted into the recess 10. As soon as the L-shaped lifting portion has been inserted into the recess 10, the lifting rail 21 is rotated in the direction of the arrow T into an upright position, i.e. perpendicular to the surface of the upper side 13 of the frame 12. During this movement the L-shaped lifting portion 21 will slide into the undercut 11.

In Figure 7 the lifting rail 20 is shown in its upright position. In this position the upper part of the L-shaped recess 10 is almost completely filled out by the L-shaped lifting portion 2l. The shoulder 22 of the lifting rail 20 is designed such that it abuts the surface of the upper side 13 of the frame 12 when the lifting rail 20 has reached its final upright position. In this position the lifting rail 20 cannot be rotated anymore in the direction of arrow T, since the abutment of the shoulder 22 works as a stopper for the rotational movement in the direction of arrow T. Also the design of the L-shaped lifting portion 21 10 15 20 25 30 of the lifting rail 20 and the undercut ll of the recess 10 acts as a stopper, since the L-shaped lifting portion 21 will abut the surface of the undercut 11 when the lifting rail 20 is in its final upright position. Thus, the lifting rail 20 is securely fixed into recess 10 and may withstand forces applied in the direction of the arrow T. However, if forces are applied in an opposite direction of the arrow T the lifting rail 20 will reverse its previous movement and fall out of the recess 10. To prevent such a movement and securely fix the lifting rail 20 in the upright position the lifting rail 20 is provided with a locking mechanism 24. In figure 7 the locking mechanism 24 is shown in an open position, i.e. the lifting rail 20 has not been securely fixed into the recess 10.

Turning now to Figure 8 the locking mechanism 24 is shown in a locked position. In figure 8, the area of the locking mechanism 24 is also shown in an enlarged view in order to better understand how the looking mechanism 24 flinctions. The locking mechanism 24 may be a block that is pivotally attached to the lifting rail 20. When the locking mechanism 24 is in its closed position one end surface of the locking mechanism 24 is in abutment with the surface of the upper side 13 of the frame 12. In this position the lifting rail 20 is in a locking engagement with the recess 10. In a preferred embodiment the locking mechanism 24 may furtherrnore be provided with a spring-biased ball 26. The spring-biased ball 26 is adapted to interact with a cavity 29 provided on the lifting rail 20.

The cavity 29, the ball 26 and the spring 28 are best shown in the enlarged view of figure 8. When the locking mechanism 24 is tumed from the open position to the locking position the spring 28 will push the ball 28 into the cavity 29 when the locking mechanism 24 has reached its final position and thereby securely fix the lifting rail 20 into the recess 10. As realized by a person skilled in the art there may be many other ways of securing the locking mechanism 24 in its locking position, such as spring-biased pins, pins and holes or a groove in the lifiing rail adapted to receive the locking mechanism when it is in its final position etc. It is of course also possible to provide the spring-biased ball on the lifting rail and the cavity in the locking mechanism instead.

Even if the steps of engagement between the lifting rail 20 and the recess 10 in figures 6 to 8 relate to a recess having a L-shaped cross section, the steps are of course also 10 15 20 25 30 10 applicable for the anchor shaped recess shown in figure 3 or any other suitable recess having an undercut.

Figure 9 and Figure 10 show a partial front view of the lifting rail with the looking mechanism 24 in is its open and looking position, respectively. The spring biased-ball 26 is indicated in the figures by dotted lines, since it is hidden by the looking mechanism 24 in figures 9 and 10. In figures 9 and 10 the full length of the lifting rail 20 is not show, but only the two ends where the looking mechanisms 24 are provided. The number of looking mechanisms 24 depends on the length of the lifting rail 20, and is preferably two for a façade element with a width (same as length of upper side 13) of 3 m. The length of the lifting rail 20 may in a preferred embodiment oorrespond to the length L of upper side 13 of the frame 12. Using the whole length L of upper side 13 of the frame will distribute the lifting load along the entire length L, which makes it possible to reduce the dimensions of the frame 12 with regard to the lifting forces it has to withstand. In other embodiments of the lifting rail 20 the length of the lifting rail 20 may oorrespond to 2/3 of the length L of the upper side of the frame 12. It is preferred that the lifting rail is at least half, i.e. a major part, of the length L of the upper side 13 of the frame 12.

Thus, it is believed that different embodiments have been described thoroughly for purpose of illustration and description. However, the foregoing description is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit example embodiments to the precise form disclosed.

Thus, modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of various altematives to the provided embodiments. The examples discussed herein were chosen and described in order to explain the principles and the nature of various example embodiments and its practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the example embodiments in various manners and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. The features of the embodiments described herein may be combined in all possible combinations of methods, tools, modules and systems. It should be appreciated that any of the example embodiments presented herein may be used in conjunction, or in any combination, with one another. 11 It should also be noted that the Word "comprising" does not necessarily exclude the presence of other elements or steps than those listed and the words "a" or "an" preceding an element do not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements. It should further be noted that any reference signs do not limit the scope of the example embodiments and that several "means", "units" or "tools" may be represented by the same item of hardware.

Claims (8)

10 15 20 25 30 12 CLAIMS l. A façade element (2) comprising a frame (12) and façade material (14; 16), Wherein the frame (12) is provided to surround and hold the façade material (14;16), said frame (12) having an upper side (13) With a length (L) characterized in that an elongate recess (10) With an undercut (11) is extending at least along a major part of the length (L) of the upper side (13) of the frame (12), said recess (10) with the undercut being adapted for receiving a lifiing rail (20) in a locking engagement. 2. The façade element (2) according to claim 1, Wherein the elongate recess (10) is extending along the entire length of the upper side (13) of the frame (12). 3. The façade element (2) according to claim 1 or 2, Wherein the recess (10) is substantially L-shaped. 4. The façade element (2) according to claim 1 or 2, Wherein the recess (10) is substantially anchor-shaped. 5. A lifting rail (20) for lifting a façade element (2), said façade element (2) comprising a frame (12) and façade material (14; 16), Wherein the frame (12) is provided to surround and hold the façade material (14; 16), said frame having an upper side (13) With a length (L), said lifting rail (20) comprising a L-shaped lifting portion (21), a shoulder (22) and a locking mechanism (24), Which are adapted to be received by and in locking engagement With an elongate recess (10) of the façade element (2), said recess (10) having an undercut (1 1) and extending at least along a major part of the upper side (13) of the frame (12), the length of the recess (10) corresponding to a length of the lifting rail (20), such that When the lifting rail (20) is in an engaged state the L- shaped lifting portion (21) is inserted in the recess (10) of the frame (12) and the shoulder (22) rests on an upper side (13) surface at one side of the recess (10) and the locking mechanism (24) rests on an upper side (13) surface at another side of the recess (10). 10 13 6. The lifting rail (20) according to c1aim 5, Wherein the 1ocking mechanism (24) is pivotable between an open position, in Which the lifting rail (20) is insertable into the recess (10) of the frame (12) and a locked position, in Which is the lifting rail (20) is in locking engagement With the recess (10) of the frame (12). 7. The lifting rail (20) according to claims 6, Wherein the looking mechanism (24) is provided With a spring biased locking ba11 (26) adapted to engage a cavity (29) of the lifting rail (20), When the locking mechanism (24) is in a locked position. 8. The lifting rail (20) according to any of claims 5 to 7, Wherein the lifting rail is provided With two locking mechanisms (24). Ansökningsnummer/ Patent application No: 1550442-6 I följande bilaga finns en översättning av patentkraven till svenska. Observera att det är patentkravens lydelse på engelska som gäller. A Swedish translation of the patent elaims is enclosed. Please note that only the English claims have legal effect. 10 15 20 25 30 12 PATENTKRAV

1. Ett fasadelement (2) innefattande en ram (12) och fasadmaterial (14;16), vari ramen (12) är ombesörjd for att omge och hålla fasadmaterialet (l4;l6), vari ramen (12) har en övre sida (13) med en längd (L) kännetecknad av att en längstäckt urtagning (10) med en underskärning (1 1) utsträcker sig åtminstone längs en större del av längden (L) av den övre sidan (13) av ramen (12), vari urtagningen (10) med underskärningen är anpassad att mottaga en lyftskena (20) i ett läsande ingrepp.

2. Fasadelementet (2) enligt krav l, vari den längsträckta urtagningen (10) utsträcker sig längs hela längden av den övre sidan (13) hos ramen (12).

3. Fasadelementet (2) enligt krav 1 eller 2, vari urtagningen (10) är huvudsakligen L-formad.

4. Fasadelementet (2) enligt krav 1 eller 2, vari urtagningen (10) är huvudsakligen ankar-forrnad.

5. En lyftskena (20) för att lyfta ett fasadelement (2), vari fasadelementet (2) innefattar en ram (12) och fasadmaterial (14;16), vari ramen (12) är ombesörjd for att omge och hälla fasadmaterialet (14;16), vari ramen har en övre sida (13) med en längd (L), vari lyftskenan (20) innefattar en L-formad lyftdel (21), en ansats (22) och en läsmekanism (24) som är anpassade att mottagas av och i läsande ingrepp med en längsträckt urtagning (10) hos fasadelementet (2), vari urtagningen (10) har en underskärning (11) och utsträcker sig ätminstone längs en större del av den övre sidan (13) hos ramen (12), vari längden av urtagningen (10) motsvarar en längd av lyftskenan (20) sä att, när lyftskenan är i ett ingreppstillständ, är den L-forrnade lyftdelen (21) införd i urtagningen (10) hos ramen (12) och ansatsen (22) vilar pä en övre sidoyta (13) vid en sida av urtagningen (10) och läsmekanismen (24) vilar pä en övre sidoyta (13) vid en annan sida av urtagningen (10). 10 13

6. Lyftskenan (20) enligt krav 5, vari läsmekanismen (24) är svängbar mellan en öppen position, i vilken lyftskenan (2) kan införas i urtagningen (10) hos ramen (12) och en läst position, i vilken lyftskenan (20) är i läsande ingrepp med urtagningen (10) hos ramen (12).

7. Lyftskenan (20) enligt krav 6, vari låsmekanismen (24) är försedd med en fiäderbelastad läskula (26) som är anpassad att ingripa med en fördjupning (29) hos lyftskenan (20) när låsmekanismen (24) är i en låst position.

8. Lyftskenan (20) enligt något av kraven 5 till 7, vari lyftskenan är försedd med två låsmekanismer (24).