WO2013106891A1

WO2013106891A1 - Swimming pool floor system, swimming pool and work methods to adjust the height of a movable swimming pool floor

Info

Publication number: WO2013106891A1
Application number: PCT/BE2013/000003
Authority: WO
Original assignee: Moortgat Bvba
Priority date: 2012-01-16
Filing date: 2013-01-15
Publication date: 2013-07-25
Also published as: BE1020373A3

Abstract

Swimming pool floor system (2) for installation in a swimming pool (1) that consists of a swimming pool floor (3) that can move vertically in a swimming pool (3) filled with water (23) in order to achieve various vertical use positions in which the swimming pool floor (3) floats in water (23) or can be made to float, characterised as such that a continuous layer (7) is formed over the surface of the swimming pool floor (3) by at least a part of the chambers (9) in which the layer (7) is formed by at least two horizontal synthetic plates connected by ribs that define the chambers (9) together.

Description

Swimming pool floor system, swimming pool and work methods to adjust the height of a movable swimming pool floor.

The current invention concerns a swimming pool system, a swimming pool and work methods to adjust the height of a movable swimming pool floor.

It is possible to have swimming pool floors that are adjustable in height so the swimming pool can have a depth that is tuned to the user, and the swimming pool floor in its highest setting can be used as a continuous part of the surrounding terrain.

Such a swimming pool floor is part of a swimming pool system which furthermore includes the means for vertical movement of the swimming pool floor and for fixing it in a number of positions.

Traditionally, these means are often one or more scissor mechanisms on which the swimming pool floor rests which can be placed in a higher or lower position by means of a propulsion system.

However, the disadvantages of such systems are that they are expensive, susceptible to faults and that their installation depth is relatively deep, meaning that even in their most compact state they still take up a lot of room so that the swimming pool floor, even in its lowest setting, is still relatively high in the swimming pool, which means that the usable depth of the swimming pool is limited, or, . alternatively, the swimming pool needs to be extra deep in order to obtain a specific desired depth of the swimming pool fitted with a swimming pool floor system.

The sidelong stability of these types of scissor mechanisms are limited resulting in an unstable feeling swimming pool in higher positions.

There are also known systems, such as EP 1.857.613 in which a swimming pool floor can be moved up and down with an adjustable buoyancy.

The disadvantage, however, is that there is a large risk of the swimming pool floor being askew or even getting stuck for which guide rods and such need to be installed in the swimming pool that are visually unattractive and reduce the usable room in the swimming pool .

Such swimming pool floors are also not very stable, but wobble along with the user's movements.

Height-adjustable swimming pool floors in their highest position also function as thermal insulation of a swimming pool. At lower exterior temperatures, they slow down the heat emission of the swimming pool water keeping it at temperature. However, the existing swimming pool floors only do so to a limited extent. The current invention's objective is to offer a solution to at least one of the aforementioned - and other - disadvantages by providing a swimming pool floor system for mounting in a swimming pool that concerns a swimming pool floor that can be moved vertically in a swimming pool filled with water to achieve various vertical user settings in which the swimming pool floor floats in the water or can be made to float and in which the swimming pool floor system is fitted with means to pull down the swimming pool floor.

This allows for easy and reliable upwards and downwards movement of the swimming pool floor without the need for drive systems or guides that stick, out above the swimming pool floor.

Furthermore, such a swimming pool floor system can be provided with a relatively thin swimming pool floor resulting in a limited installation depth so a relatively large usable depth of the swimming pool remains or so the swimming pool does not need to be needlessly deep.

In a preferred implementation, the swimming pool floor system is equipped to have the swimming pool floor undergo a downward force using the materials and an upward force using the water both during upward and downward movements of the swimming pool floor. The advantage is that the movement of the swimming pool floor is controlled and that there is less risk of the swimming pool floor tilting or even getting stuck.

In another preferred implementation, the swimming pool floor is fitted with closed-off chambers to make the swimming pool floor float and a continuous layer along the surface of the swimming pool floor is formed by at least a part of the chambers, in which the layer is formed by at least two horizontal synthetic plates that are connected to each other with ribs that define the chambers together with the plates.

Such a layered material is available commercially, for example to create light-weight partition panels allowing for a relatively cheap manufacturing of swimming pool floor system as discussed above.

Furthermore, such a layer provides good thermal insulation so the swimming pool floor can provide its insulating function better than the traditional swimming pool floors.

Thus, such a layer provides the desired buoyancy as well as thermal insulation.

In a further preferred implementation, the swimming pool floor around at least the largest part of its 30 circumference is fitted with a reversible expandable seal flush with the continuous layer or higher than the continuous layer.

This provides both the continuous layer and seal with an even better heat-insulating effect.

Moreover, this relatively high placement of the seal is achieved so there are no relatively deep gaps in which goods could fall that can be hard to remove.

In a special implementation, the swimming pool floor is fitted with compartments that are open at the bottom which are intended to increase buoyancy during use by placing air in the compartments.

In this way, extra buoyancy can be provided to the swimming pool floor. This makes it possible to slightly raise the swimming pool floor above the water surface so the top surface of the swimming pool floor can reach a level that forms a continuous whole with the edge of the swimming pool and the terrain around it.

In another preferred implementation, the swimming pool floor is fitted with supports for the swimming pool floor that can be placed in a folded up storage position and a folded out support position.

This way, the swimming pool floor in its highest position is extra stable. In yet another preferred implementation, the means include a winding shaft attached underneath the swimming pool floor to which a pull strap

that can be wound is connected that is a part of a connection between the swimming pool floor and the swimming pool bottom, meaning the bottom of the basin in which the swimming pool floor is situated. This way, a compact system for downward motion, and specifically downward pulling, of the swimming pool floor can be realised so the thickness of the swimming pool floor can remain limited. The invention also includes a work method to adjust a movable swimming pool floor's height in a swimming pool filled with water; when there is an upward motion, it is caused by the buoyancy of the swimming pool floor and in which, when a downward motion takes place, it takes place as a result of a downward pulling force achieved by means to execute a pulling force.

With the insight of better demonstrating the characteristics of the invention, what follows, as an example without any restrictions, is a description of a preferred implementation of a swimming pool floor system according to the invention referring to the accompanying drawing in which : Figure 1 schematically and in cross-section displays a swimming pool fitted with a swimming pool floor system according to the invention in a first use position; figure 2 displays the swimming pool of figure 1 in an intermediate position between a first and second use position;

figure 3 displays the swimming pool of figure 1 in a second use position;

figure 4 displays a bottom view according to line IV-IV in figure 3 of the swimming pool floor system, figure 5 displays a top view according to line V-V in figure 2.

The swimming pool 1 according to the invention as

displayed in^: the figures is fitted with a swimming pool floor system 2. This swimming pool floor system 2 primarily consists of a swimming pool floor 3 with two electric engines 4 fixed to it for powering two winding shafts 5 and fitted with four fold-out supports 6.

Moreover, the swimming pool floor system 2 also includes the necessary peripheral equipment not displayed in the figures, such as a control system, a compressed air compressor and a power supply and mains.

The swimming pool floor 3 is made up out of two horizontal layers; a support layer 7 and a finishing layer 8. This finishing layer 8 consists of natural stone tiles, for example, equal to the terrain finish around the

swimming pool 1. In this example, the support layer 7 consists of a double walled layer of polypropylene fitted with ribs between the walls that define approximate cube-shaped sealed air chambers 9.

Beneath the support layer 7, reinforcing ribs 10 have been applied made from the same material as the support layer 9, but perpendicularly attached to it. Additionally, it is possible to optionally apply steel reinforcing profiles.

The reinforcing ribs 10 are partly fitted with holes, allowing compartments 11 formed by the reinforcing ribs 10 to form together larger sets of mutually communicating compartments 11.

The exterior reinforcing ribs 10 are fitted with drain openings 12 that can be sealed and opened by means of a valve 13. The supports 6 are installed near the corners and can be placed in a horizontal storage position and in a vertical support position by means of a compressed air actuator 14. Pull straps 15 are wound around the winding shafts 5. One end of these pull straps is anchored to anchor points 16; in this example in the shape of rings that are attached to the bottom 17 of the swimming pool 1.

The swimming pool floor 3 is manufactured in such a way that it floats, meaning that it is designed in such a way that the weight of the swimming pool floor 3 is less than the upward force exerted by the water in the swimming pool 1 on the swimming pool floor 3.

From the bottom 17 of the pool, air pipes 18 run to every set of compartments 11.

Inside the bottom 17 of the pool, there are a central drain 19 and four nozzles 20.

These nozzles 20 are oriented in such a way that their openings point in the same direction, meaning that when viewed from above, they all point clockwise or counter-" clockwise .

The drain 19 and the nozzles 20 are connected by means of a pump and filter system 21.

The swimming pool floor 3 is fitted around its circumference with reversible, expandable seals in the shape of inflatable bellows 22.

The working of the swimming pool 1 is simple and as

follows .

The swimming pool 1 is filled with water 23. In the first use position of figure 1, the swimming pool floor 3 is in its lowest position near the bottom 17 of the swimming pool 1.

The supports 6 are in a folded position and the pull straps 15 have been wound around the winding shafts 5. In order to raise the swimming pool floor 3, air is forced into the compartments 11 via the air pipes 18 which exerts an increased upward force on the swimming pool floor 3. Furthermore, the tension on the pull straps 15 is lessened so the swimming pool floor 3 will move upwards thus unwinding the pull straps 15 from the winding shafts 5. In this case, it is preferred that the pull straps 15 are kept slightly taut by means of engine control 4 or simply due to their resistance so the swimming pool floor 3 is subjected to both an upward force and a downward force.

Ά position in which the swimming pool floor 3 is positioned above the bottom 17 during an upward motion is displayed in figure 2.

Once the swimming pool floor 3 is positioned at the top of the swimming pool 1, the finishing layer 8 is positioned slightly above the edge of the swimming pool 1.

It is important to note that, as the swimming pool floor 3 also floats without air in the compartment 11, the air in the compartments 11 is optional for achieving upward movement .

However, as soon as the swimming pool floor 3 is partly raised above the water surface, the upward force exerted by the water 23 diminishes until it is no longer sufficient to cause upward movement. The air in the compartments 11 is hereby necessary to maintain sufficient upward force during the final part of the upward movement. Subsequently, the supports 6 are folded out by activating the actuators 14.

Then, the valves 13 in the drain openings 12 are opened, which allows the air to flow from the compartments 11.

Subsequently, the pull straps 15 are pulled slightly taut by the engines 4 to achieve a good, stable support of the swimming pool floor 3 on the supports 6, the bellows 22 are inflated to create a seal between the edge of the swimming pool floor 3 and the swimming pool 1 wall.

As the swimming pool floor system 2 is designed in such a way that the swimming pool floor 3 can stick out slightly above the surrounding swimming pool edge, there is room for the supports 6 to make their fold-out movements and to obtain stable support by pulling the pull straps 15 taut, after which the finishing layer 8 is exactly flush with the surrounding surface. The finishing layer 8 can now be used as a continuous part of the surrounding surface, as a terrace, for example. Furthermore, thanks to its air chamber 9 structure, the support layer 7 excellently prevents heat transfer of the water 23 via the swimming pool floor 3 to the surrounding air.

To subsequently put the swimming pool 1 in use position, the air in the bellows 22 is released and the pull straps 15 are slackened, or, possibly, the compartments 11 are filled with air again.

Subsequently, the supports 6 are folded in by means of the actuators 14 and the swimming pool floor 3 is pulled down by turning the engines 4 through which the pull straps 15 are wound around the winding shafts 5. To this end, the winding shafts 5 can be fitted with guide partitions 24.

The combination of engines 4, winding shafts 5 and pull straps 15 is necessary to pull down the swimming pull floor 3. However, other means are possible, too.

When the swimming pool floor 3 is in its lowest position, the swimming pool 1 is ready for swimming once again.

It is also possible to put the swimming pool floor 3 in a position between its highest and lowest position to create a shallow swimming pool.

A swimming pool floor system 2 according to the invention can be manufactured and installed together with a swimming pool 1. However, such a swimming pool floor system 2 can also be installed in an existing swimming pool 1. The current invention is in no way limited to the described examples and implementations displayed in the figures; however, such work methods, the swimming pool

and the swimming pool floor system can be realised according to various variations without falling outside the context of the invention.

Claims

Conclusions .

1.- Swimming pool floor system (2) for installation in a swimming pool

(1) that consists of a swimming pool floor (3) that can move vertically in a swimming pool (3) filled with water (23) in order to achieve various vertical use positions in which the swimming pool floor (3) floats in water (23) or can be made to float, characterised as such that

a continuous layer (7) is formed over the surface of the swimming pool floor (3) by at least a part of the chambers (9) in which the layer (7) is formed by at least two horizontal synthetic plates connected by ribs that define the chambers (9) together with the plates.

3.- Swimming pool floor system (2) according to conclusion 1, characterised by the fact that it is fitted with supports (6) for the swimming pool floor (3) that can be folded in a storage position and a folded out support position.