Classifications

• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E04—BUILDING
  • E04F—FINISHING WORK ON BUILDINGS, e.g. STAIRS, FLOORS
  • E04F13/00—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings
  • E04F13/07—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor
  • E04F13/08—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor composed of a plurality of similar covering or lining elements
  • E04F13/0862—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor composed of a plurality of similar covering or lining elements composed of a number of elements which are identical or not, e.g. carried by a common web, support plate or grid
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B44—DECORATIVE ARTS
  • B44C—PRODUCING DECORATIVE EFFECTS; MOSAICS; TARSIA WORK; PAPERHANGING
  • B44C1/00—Processes, not specifically provided for elsewhere, for producing decorative surface effects
  • B44C1/28—Uniting ornamental elements on a support, e.g. mosaics
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B44—DECORATIVE ARTS
  • B44C—PRODUCING DECORATIVE EFFECTS; MOSAICS; TARSIA WORK; PAPERHANGING
  • B44C3/00—Processes, not specifically provided for elsewhere, for producing ornamental structures
  • B44C3/12—Uniting ornamental elements to structures, e.g. mosaic plates
  • B44C3/123—Mosaic constructs
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E04—BUILDING
  • E04F—FINISHING WORK ON BUILDINGS, e.g. STAIRS, FLOORS
  • E04F13/00—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings
  • E04F13/07—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor
  • E04F13/08—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor composed of a plurality of similar covering or lining elements
  • E04F13/14—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor composed of a plurality of similar covering or lining elements stone or stone-like materials, e.g. ceramics concrete; of glass or with an outer layer of stone or stone-like materials or glass
  • E04F13/142—Coverings or linings, e.g. for walls or ceilings composed of covering or lining elements; Sub-structures therefor; Fastening means therefor composed of a plurality of similar covering or lining elements stone or stone-like materials, e.g. ceramics concrete; of glass or with an outer layer of stone or stone-like materials or glass with an outer layer of ceramics or clays

Definitions

• This invention finds application in the field of artwork methods, and particularly relates to an integrated mosaic structure.
• the invention further relates to a method of making it.
• Preassembled mosaic “sheets” are currently available, which are composed of a predetermined number of tiles, and are generally formed in two manners.
• the sheet-forming tiles may be held together by means of an adhesive film placed upon them, which is torn off after laying on site.
• the film may or may not be transparent and will be removed after laying.
• the mosaic is formed on a mesh, generally made of a composite material, whereto the tiles are attached.
• This arrangement also has a few well-known drawbacks.
• the mesh is embedded in the wall with the tiles.
• this arrangement has proved to cause durability problems, due to frequent tile detachment.
• the product so obtained is usually laid by attachment of tiles to the wall, obviously by their back side, and later removal .of the film, if the first laying method is used.
• This step is followed by the so called “grouting” step, in which the wall is finished by filling the joints between tiles with an adhesive material.
• the next step is the wall “cleaning” step, in which excess grout material is removed.
• IT1993FO0012 discloses a method for making mosaic tile panels, using a frame that is universally adaptable to the different requested configurations, which allows precise and fast placement of tiles.
• An undoubted drawback of this arrangement is that grouting is still required after laying the panels on the surface to be decorated.
• the object of this invention is to overcome the above drawbacks, by providing a mosaic structure that is highly practical and cost-effective.
• a particular object is to provide a mosaic structure whose laying is particularly practical and quick and does not require any assistance from professional personnel.
• Another object of the invention is to provide a structure that allows to reduce the number of laying and grouting steps, thereby minimizing the costs therefor.
• Yet another object of the invention is to provide a structure that can be also adapted to surfaces having shapes or inclinations other than flat horizontal of vertical ones.
• a further object of this invention is to provide a structure that assures stability and durability.
• Yet another object of the invention is to provide a mosaic structure with the highest tile alignment precision, thereby enhancing visual homogeneity and uniformity of the decoration.
• an object of the invention is to provide an easily repeatable and cost-effective method for making a mosaic structure.
• an integrated mosaic structure which comprises a plurality of tiles of a predetermined shape, having a top surface, a bottom surface and a side surface; a lattice support having a front face and a back face, which is designed to be turned toward a laying surface, said support comprising a plurality of receptacles in which the tiles are stably accommodated; characterized in that said receptacles have shapes complementary to those of said tiles and are substantially adjacent so as to define a joint therebetween, said front face of said support being substantially parallel to the top surfaces of said tiles.
• the integrated mosaic structure may be laid in a practical and quick manner, without requiring any assistance from professional personnel, which is highly expensive.
• the tiles may have a side surface with one or more inclined walls, which are preferably outwardly flared relative to their top and bottom surfaces.
• the receptacles in the support may have side walls having the same inclination as the side walls of the tiles.
• a further apparent advantage is that, after laying the mosaic on the surface to be decorated, no grouting step is required, which considerably reduces operating times and provides a cleaner artwork.
• the support structure may be made of a flexible and preferably transparent sheet material.
• the structure so obtained may be easily adapted to the specific structures to be decorated, without having to predetermine its shape and with virtually no restriction in the mosaic design.
• the back face of the support may have a plurality of recesses at the common edges of its receptacles, which are designed to be filled with a binding material for attaching the mosaic structure to the laying surface.
• the method of the invention allows to maximize the manufacturing yield.
• the layer of adhesive material may be applied using a frame with through holes formed at the joints.
• This feature of the invention optimizes the production of structures, by making it faster and homogeneous.
• FIG. 1 is a plan view of a mosaic structure according to the invention
• FIG. 2 is an axonometric exploded view of a detail of the structure of FIG. 1 ;
• FIG. 3 is an axonometric view of an element of the invention.
• FIG. 4 shows the element of FIG. 3, sectioned along a plane IV-IV;
• FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of a method for making a mosaic structure according to the invention.
• the mosaic structure of the invention may cover flat or irregular surfaces, such as walls, columns, floors or any other surface to be decorated.
• the mosaic structure generally denoted by numeral 1 , comprises a lattice support 2 that defines a predetermined number of adjacent receptacles in which one or more mosaic tiles 4 are stably accommodated.
• the receptacles 3 may have any shape and/or size, and receptacles 3 of different shapes and/or sizes may be provided in the same support 2.
• the lattice support 2 has a front face and a back face 6, the latter being designed to be turned toward the laying surface.
• the tiles 4 have a top surface 7, a bottom surface 8 and a side surface 9.
• the tiles 4 have a predetermined shape, that is but always complementary to the shape of the receptacles 3 of the support 2. They may have a square, rectangular, circular plan shape, or any other shape, not necessarily regular.
• front face 5 of the support 2 is substantially parallel to the top surface 7 of each tile 4.
• a preferably continuous joint 10 is defined between each pair of receptacles 3.
• the structure may have any plan shape, e.g. a square or rectangular shape or any other geometry, either convex or not, and have any number of receptacles.
• the side surfaces 9 of the tiles 4 may have inclined and outwardly flared walls, to substantially define a truncated pyramid.
• each receptacle 3 of the support 2 may have side walls 11 with an inclination substantially corresponding to the inclination of the walls that form the side surface 9 of the tile 4 that is designed to engage the receptacle 3.
• the side walls 11 may have a common edge 12.
• a layer of adhesive material 13, i.e. substantially grout, glue or another similar resilient material, may be hence interposed between the receptacles 3 and the side surfaces 9 of the tiles and in correspondence of the joints.
• the thickness of the receptacles 3, which is intended as the distance d between the faces 5 and 6 of the lattice support 2, may be substantially equal to the thickness s of the tiles 4 that are designed to engage them. This will further improve the stability of the whole structure and ensure a high visual uniformity.
• the tiles may have an irregular bottom surface 8 to improve adhesion of the binding material required for attaching the whole structure 1 to the laying surface.
• Such material may be a mortar or any other suitable adhesive material, not shown due to its being known.
• the mosaic structure will avoid the need of grouting the joints and ensure a considerable stability and durability of the whole work, while substantially reducing the risk of tile detachment from the covered surface and deterioration of the structure.
• the tiles 4 may be made of glass, ceramic, glass-ceramic, metal, plastic, a composite material or the like and may be colored, transparent or translucent, and tiles 4 having different colors and/or materials and/or shapes may be provided in the same structure 1.
• the line 10 may be a polyline and/or a broken line.
• a plurality of recesses 14 may be formed on the back face 6 of the support 2, preferably at the common edges 12 of the receptacles 3, for receiving the binding material.
• This feature will enhance the stability of the whole structure upon attachment thereof to the wall.
• the lattice support 2 may be made of any sheet material, which may be transparent, opaque or colored. Also, it may be covered with leather, fabric or the like.
• a method for making an integrated mosaic structure is composed of a succession of steps to form a mosaic structure having pre-filled joints 10.
• the first step a) consists in providing the tiles 4 that will form the structure and have a predetermined shape.
• a lattice support 2, with receptacles 3 having shapes complementary to the above tiles 4, is provided in the next step b).
• the tiles are arranged within a common tray container for making mosaics, not shown due to its being known. In this step, they will be arranged in such a manner as to form joints 10.
• the adhesive material 13 will be applied.
• the support 2 and the tiles 4 are anchored to each other so that their front face 5 is substantially parallel to the top surface 7 of each tile 4.
• the tiles 4 may be laid on the tray with their bottom surface 8 turned upwards, and the adhesive bead 13 is applied on the side surface 9 of the tiles 4.
• the tiles 4 may be laid on the tray with their top surface 7 turned upwards, and the adhesive bead 13 is applied on the side walls 11 of the receptacles 3.
• the adhesive material 13 filling the joints may be applied using a frame, a pad, a sponge or the like.
• the structure and method of the invention fulfill the proposed objects, and particularly provide a mosaic structure having pre-filled joints, whereby later laying of the overall decoration becomes much faster and simpler.
• the combination of the flexible support 2 and the tiles 4 will further provide a structure that can be adapted without limitation to surfaces having different shapes and inclinations.
• the structure and method of the invention are susceptible to a number of changes and variants, within the inventive concept disclosed in the annexed claims. All the details thereof may be replaced by other technically equivalent parts, and the materials may vary depending on different needs, without departure from the scope of the invention.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Architecture (AREA)
• Civil Engineering (AREA)
• Structural Engineering (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Ceramic Engineering (AREA)
• Dispersion Chemistry (AREA)
• Finishing Walls (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=37024202

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Cited By (5)

Citations (8)

• 2005
  • 2005-03-25 IT ITVI20050089 patent/ITVI20050089A1/it unknown
• 2006
  • 2006-02-24 WO PCT/IB2006/000379 patent/WO2006100551A2/en active Application Filing

Patent Citations (8)

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