US3388515A

US3388515A - Surface covering and method of applying same

Info

Publication number: US3388515A
Application number: US537252A
Authority: US
Inventors: Gruettner Jack Eaton
Original assignee: Gruettner Jack Eaton
Current assignee: JACK EATON GRUETTNER
Priority date: 1966-02-09
Filing date: 1966-02-09
Publication date: 1968-06-18
Anticipated expiration: 1985-06-18

Description

June 18, 1968 J. E. GRUETTNER 3,38 1

SURFACE COVERING AND METHOD OF APPLYING SAME Filed Feb. 9. 1966 ii M11, y if W2 J. E. 3 5E522 5 BY Fig. 4. a ain 4 rune.

United States Patent 3,388,515 SURFACE COVERING AND METHOD OF APPLYING SAME Jack Eaton Gruettner, 1635 Woodside Lane, Elm Grove, Wis. 53122 Filed Feb. 9, 1966, Ser. No. 537,252 6 Claims. (Cl. 52-222) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A covering which is adapted for application to a surface having exposed supporting members such as beams, joists or studs, which covering comprises a plurality of flexible panels whose length exceeds the spacing of the supporting members and wherein each panel is secured near one edge thereof to a supporting member, the body of the panel is flexed and the other end is snapped into seating engagement with a projecting edge of a panel previously installed.

Background In many instances, ceiling or wall surfaces of a building are left unfinished by the home builder so that the basement ceiling exposes the rough flooring and the attic ceiling and wall exposes the rough roofing and/or exterior wall structure with supporting joists extending downwardly or inwardly therefrom. Under modern home construction practice, these joists are generally two by six, eight, ten or twelve inch timbers mounted on predetermined uniform centers. The result is an unattractive dirt collecting, non-insulated, noise-transmitting ceiling for the basement.

It has heretofore been proposed to cover such surfaces with sheets or panels which fit and are retained between the joists or other supporting membersvHowever. such previously proposed coverings have generally required special treatment of the supporting members or the addition of special attachment devices thereto for afllxing the panels. For example, the covering shown in U.S. Patent No. 2,311,170 to Hain requires that the supporting members be notched or grooved to receive the covering. This is also true of the covering proposed in U.S. Patent No. 2,615,211 to Gardner. In addition to the increased expcnse attendant the required notching of the supporting members, such a covering does not provide a surface which completely conceals the supporting members.

In other instances, the proposed surface covering requires a special mounting structure to fasten the sheets or panels to the supporting members. Again, however, such coverings are relatively expensive and time-consuming to apply due to the need for carefully affixing the mounting devices and then attaching the panels, and in many instances a continuous, generally smooth exterior is still not obtained.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an improved covering for a surface having exposed supporting members which provides a continuous exterior to completely hide the supporting members and enclose pipes and other structures lying therebetween While permitting access thereto Whenever desired.

Another object of this invention is to provide a covering for a surface having exposed supporting members which provides a generally even and continuous exterior without resultant sharp ridges or protrusions, thereby lending a high degree of aesthetic appeal to the covering.

A further object of this invention is to provide an extremely attractive surface covering which may be simply and easily applied directly to the exposed supporting members without any need whatsoever for special treat- "ice ment of those members or the use of special mounting structures or means which normally decrease available head space or floor area.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a covering Which may be applied to a surface having exposed members Without the use of any special tools or equipment and with a maximum retention of room area.

An additional object of this invention is to provide an improved surface covering which may be readily adapted to meet diverse conditions and which also provides improved insulation, acoustics and room illumination.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide a novel and improved method or system of etfectively and eificiently covering ceilings and walls in an extremely simple, rapid and economical manner.

A further object of this invention is to provide a covering which may be precut into standard lengths and widths to facilitate installation on a surface having exposed supporting members to greatly minimize the cost of such covering.

A still further object of this invention is to provide an attractive surface covering which may be conveniently stored, transported, handled, and applied.

Summary Briefly, the present invention provides a covering for a surface having exposed supporting members, which covering comprises normally fiat panels of relatively resilient material fastened along the exposed faces of said supporting members and each having one marginal edge thereof extending beyond the face of the supporting member to which it is secured to provide an overhanging lip. The remainder of each panel forms a free unattached portion which is resiliently retained by the overhanging lip formed by an adjacent panel to position the panels between the supporting members and provide a continuous, generally smooth and unbroken covering for the surface.

The drawings The invention will be more fully understood and better appreciated by reference to the following specification and drawings, forming a part thereof, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of the covering of the present invention showing its application to a ceiling having exposed joists;

FIGURE 2 is a transverse section view showing, in further detail, the application of the covering to a joist supported ceiling;

FIGURE 3 is an end view of a resilient panel forming the present covering;

FIGURE 4 is a top view of a single panel forming the covering of the present invention;

FIGURE 5- is a top view of a strip containing a plurality of panels detachably secured to each other; and

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary transverse section illustrating a somewhat modified embodiment of the invention wherein sheet metal panels or the like are utilized.

Detailed description Referring now to the drawing, th improved covering is shown therein as typically applied to a ceiling 6 having exposed joists 8. However, as indicated hereinabove, it may be applied to any surface having exposed supporting elements such as studs, joists or beams.

The covering it} is comprised of a plurality of normally flat sheets or panels 12 of resilient material. As shown, the panels 12 are generally square or rectangular, and may consist of individual sections or strips of individually separable panel sections. The panels may be of any desired lengths, but the width thereof must be somewhat greater than the exposed area between the joists which it is intended to cover plus the width of the face of the supporting joist to which it is to be attached.

The panels 12 may be constructed of any suitable resilient material suchv as sheet metal, plastic, resin impregnated glass mats, heavy paperboard or the like which will retain its resiliency while being flexed. To apply the covering 10, the panels 12 are secured in edge abutting relationship along the entire length of the exposed faces 14 of the supporting members 8 as by means of nails or staples 16. If desired, holes 15 for receiving nails 16 may be predrilled in the panels 12 at the time they are cut to size.

In accordance with my invention, the panels 12 are each fastened to the exposed face of a selected one of the supporting members 8 with a marginal edge of the panel protruding slightly beyond the face of the member 8 as at 18 to thus form an overhanging lip along one side of the supporting member.

The main body of the panel 12 thus protrudes freely beyond the other side of the supporting member 8 to cover the area between such member and the adjacent member 8.

Accordingly, after a panel or series of abutting panels 12 are secured in like fashion to the adjacent joist or supporting member 8, the free hanging main body portion of the first panel 12 is forced inwardly, under pressure applied in the direction of the arrow in FIGURE 2, into the free area between joists until the free end of the panel 12 is seated on the inside of lip 18. The panel 12 is retained in this position by its inherent resiliency which causes a constant pressure to be exerted by its free end against the inner supporting surface of the lip 18 of the panel carried by the adjacent joist 8, and there is accordingly no need for physically attaching the main body of the panel 12 to a support.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that the width of panels 12 is determined primarily by the width between supporting members 8 and additionally by the desired configuration of the finally installed panels 12. For example, if it is desired to have the panels 12 lie relatively flat, the width of the main body portion 13 of each panel 12 should be approximately equal to the distance between joists 8. On the other hand, if it is desired to arch or bow the panels 12, as shown in FIGURE 2, the width of the free main body portion 13 should be in excess of the width between joists 8. While the extent of arching or bowing of the panels is a matter of choice, the embodiment shown in FIGURE 2 has some advantage in that the inherent resilient pressure created by arching or bowing the panels 12 forces the free edge of the panel behind the overhanging lip 18 of the cooperating panel and into abutment with joist 8, thereby more firmly locking each panel 12 in position. This more positively prevents accidental dislodgment of panels 12 and renders the covering somewhat more suitable for use on a vertical surface.

It is apparent that the covering 10 of the present invention completely hides the supporting members or joists 8, including the exposed faces 14 thereof. Additionally, the covering provides a generally smooth and unbroken surface devoid of sharp ridges or protrusions, thereby lending the highest degree of aesthetic appeal to the covering. The panels 12 may furthermore be constructed of transparent or translucent material to furnish illumination as from lights which may be mounted between supporting members 8. Also, a printed or relief design or decorative effect may be applied to the surface of the panels 12 to lend distinctiveness to the covering. Panels 12 may also be formed in shapes other than rectangles, such as trapezoids, to provide further decorative effects to the covering. The panel sheets 12 may be laminated with a facing, backing, or both, such as shown by 20 in FIGURE 2 to supply heat insulation, sound insulation, fire retardation or other desired properties to the covering, or they may be of single ply material.

Although the foregoing description refers to the free and unattached main body portions as being bowed or arched inwardly between the supporting members, it should be understood that such portions may be bowed or arched outwardly as illustrated by the panels 10 and body portions 12' in FIGURES l and 2. This enables the covering of pipes 22 or the like without reducing head room or floor space, and if desired, a uniform pattern can be followed as by alternately arching the panel body portions 12, 12' in opposite directions or all may be arched outwardly.

Referring now to FIGURE 6, it may sometimes be desirable, particularly in the case of side wall coverings, to form the panels of metal sheets and provide some means for preventing accidental displacement of the free ends of the panels. In such instances, the panels 30, as shown in FIGURE 6, may be formed in a suitable known manner with interlocking

edges

33, 34 along the lip portion 38 and the main body portion 32 respectively of each panel. Thus, after the panels are attached to the supporting members and the free body portions thereof are positioned within the areas between the supporting members as hereinabove described, the interlocking

edges

33, 34 are brought into interlocking engagement as shown and these edges coact and tend to prevent inadvertent displacement.

In instances wherein the covering is to be applied to surfaces of a standard length, the panels 12 may be precut in length so that a single sheet may traverse the entire length of the surface between two adjacent supporting members 8, thus eliminating seems or cracks. To facilitate storage, transportation and handling of the panels 12, they may be manufactured in strip form with spaced scoring, as in FIGURE 5, whereby the individual panels may be detached or separated as needed. Also, the fastening devices 16 may be formed with decorative exposed heads, or the panels may be secured to their supports as by means of suitable adhesives or the like.

While the covering disclosed and described herein constitutes the preferred form of invention, it will, be understood that it is capable of alteration without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, and all modifications that fall within the scope of the appended claims are intended to be included therein. It is also contemplated that certain descriptive terminology employed herein shall be given the broadest possible interpretation consistent with the disclosure.

Various modes of carrying out the invention are contemplated as being within the scope of the following claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter that is regarded as the invention.

I claim:

1. A surface covering for a series of laterally spaced and substantially parallel supporting members having substantially coplanar exposed surfaces, said covering comprising, a plurality of flexible panels which are substantially flat in their normal relaxed condition secured in- Wardly of one edge thereof to the exposed surfaces of the supporting members, the free edge of each of said panels projecting beyond the exposed surface of its supporting member to provide a supporting lip, and the opposite edge of each of said panels being supported on the lip of a panel secured. to an adjacent supporting member with the spanning portion of each panel between the supporting members being arcuately flexed in a stressed condition.

2. A surface covering according to claim 1, wherein the spanning portion of each panel between the supporting members is bowed inwardly relative to the coplanar surfaces.

3. A surface covering according to claim 1, wherein the spanning portion of each. panel between the supporting members is bowed outwardly relative to the coplanar surfaces.

4. A surface covering according to claim 1, wherein the said opposite edge of each panel is freely supported on the lip of the adjacent panel and bears against the supporting member thereof.

5. A surface covering according to claim 1, wherein the said opposite edge of each panel is interlocked with the lip of the adjacent panel.

6. The method of applying a surface covering to a plurality of supporting members, which comprises, selecting supporting members to be covered which are positioned in substantially parallel relation predetermined distances apart with substantially coplanar exposed surfaces, securing flexible panels which are substantially fiat in their normal relaxed condition and of a width exceeding the predetermined spacing of the supporting members to the exposed surfaces of said supporting members inwardly of one edge of each panel with the edge adjacent the secured portion projecting beyond the exposed surface and the other edge overlapping the secured edge of the next adjacent panel, flexing the rnidportion of the panel inwardly of the supporting surfaces while forcing the overlapping unsecured edge thereof over the projecting edge of the ('5 said adjacent panel to seat said unsecured edge on the inner face of said adjacent panel, whereby the portions of the panels between the supporting members are maintained in a stressed and somewhat arcuate condition.

References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 1,659,762 2/1928 Bonsall 52-478 X 2,311,170 2/1943 Hain 52-223 2,575,941 11/1951 Brunnzell 52-629 X 2,615,211 10/ 1952 Gardner 52-495 3,173,523 3/1965 Mote 52-222 3,186,712 6/1965 Kessler 52-222 X FOREIGN PATENTS 690,473 7/ 1964 Canada.

657,044 2/ 1938 Germany.

604,065 6/ 1948 Great Britain.

HENRY C. SUTHERLAND, Primary Examiner.