WO2020024070A1

WO2020024070A1 - Construction system for connecting wood panels

Info

Publication number: WO2020024070A1
Application number: PCT/CL2018/050060
Authority: WO
Inventors: Juan Cristobal KARICH PEREZ
Original assignee: Celulosa Arauco Y Constitución S.A.
Priority date: 2018-07-31
Filing date: 2018-07-31
Publication date: 2020-02-06

Abstract

The invention relates to a construction system formed by wood panels (600) and plastic connectors, which comprises: female connectors (100), male connectors and wood panels, wherein the female connectors comprise a pair of plates (101) having a rectangular surface (102) with rounded distal corners (103), with a first perforation (104) in the distal area, said first perforation being rectangular with rounded ends (105), and a second perforation (106) at the proximal end, said second perforation being rectangular with rounded distal ends (107) and adjacent to a curved raising border (108) running along its distal perimeter and which extends to form lateral sections (109) adjacent to the proximal end of the rectangular surface, both plates being connected by the top edges (110) of the lateral sections. The wood panels include one or more recesses (602) that fit together with the border of each female connector, one or more female connectors being assembled to one or more male connectors.

Description

CONSTRUCTION SYSTEM TO CONNECT PANELS OF

WOOD.

Summary of the invention:

The present invention describes a construction system composed of wooden panels and plastic connectors, which are manufactured by injection or 3D printing, and allow connecting parts made of MDF wood panels 9mm thick or 9mm thick plywood.

The system consists of inserting a female connector under pressure

(Figures 1, 2, 3) in a piece of wood (for example MDF wood panels), which has notches in its outline (Figures 8, 13). Subsequently a male connector (Figures 4, 5, 6, 7) is inserted over said female connector fixed in the piece of wood, in order to connect two or three panels according to different predetermined angles and directions.

These connectors are made of Nylon, polyamide, ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) or polyethylene and are repositionable. The connectors allow joining wooden panels at different angles (Figures 9, 10, 1 1, 12) and configurations being the main 90 °, 180 °, 135 °, there are also triple, quadruple connectors, hinges or flat connectors. This constructive system allows to configure and build furniture or games with mechanized wood panels that can be disassembled again and again, also avoiding, thanks to its construction, the deterioration of the wood panels, every time the construction is disassembled and reassembled .

Scope:

The present invention has application in the furniture and toy industry. More specifically the construction system is

i composed of agglomerated and plywood panels, with fixed plastic connectors (female connectors) and repositionable (male connectors) of structural characteristics that allow defining different angles (90 °, 135 °, 180 °). The proposed joining system allows the pieces to be easily inserted and removed while maintaining stability and allowing an action that can be performed repeatedly without wearing down the wooden panel either on its surface or on its edge.

State of the art:

At present there are constructive systems of games that combine pieces to be able to conform different figures and shapes, these are usually made of plastics or wood, most of the time with bright colors or natural materials such as wood.

There are also furniture to assemble, marketed in kit with accessories and hardware to perform the assembly and achieve stable elements to create chairs, tables, desks or shelves.

Current products are limited to solving a game or functional situation but they can hardly solve both situations in an alternate way, that is, being able to assemble a piece of furniture to later disassemble it and be able to assemble a toy or propose combined solutions of games and furniture.

On the other hand, toys or furniture to assemble currently do not consider an evolution in time where the pieces and their combination can adapt to changing anthropometry during user growth.

The existing construction systems join the panels mainly in the corners and do not have an intuitive indication of the location they should have on the panel. On the other hand, by not having an anchor piece as the proposed system these can present a joint that is not repositionable or that may have wear effects on the edge of the wood.

Thus, in DE 2921599, connectors are described for releasably securing wall and / or ceiling panels, especially glass, wood, plastics or similar panels, used in counters, furniture or divisions. The connectors are provided with slots to receive the corners of the panels. The connectors can be classified into those capable of receiving vertical panels and those capable of receiving horizontal panels, in addition, they can be provided to receive and one or more panels, the latter can be arranged in an angular separation that can vary between 90 ^Q and 180 ^Q , the connectors include a hole that allows to secure at least one pair of connectors between them when necessary.

Although, this document describes connectors that have a physiognomy similar to the male connector of the present invention and also serve to join two wooden panels, by inserting the respective panel into the connector slot, however the grooves of said connectors always have two obstruction walls, which only allows two panels to be joined at their corners, while in the present invention they only have one obstruction wall, the latter allows the connectors to join two panels in areas that go beyond their corners, the latter being free.

Also known from the state of the art, document AT 41341 1 describes a partition system consisting of glass panels and connection elements, characterized in that for the lateral fixing of the glass sheets to each other, a retention clip system is provided of a piece from a resilient plastic material, each retention clip comprises at least one substantially U-shaped receptacle for receiving the glass sheet, said Receptacle consists of a base portion with two mutually slightly tapered arms that has a clamping action on the region of the insertable edge of the glass sheet.

While the connector presented in this document meets the same functionality as the male connector of the present invention, that is, it can join two panels (in this case glass) by its side edges, and can be located in any side section of the panel, Without being restricted to its corners or ends, the male connector of the present invention has a particular design different from that of said document.

There are several publications related to wooden parts toys that are connected with connectors of different materials, which only have a male connector, which does not have the same physical characteristics as the current male connector of the present invention. Such publications correspond to companies such as The Toy Man with its “Bionic Blox” toy, or the “Educational Advantage BR-10 Wooden Brackitz Set, 48 Pieces” toy, offered by Amazon on its website.

And finally there is the “Lookid” toy in the state of the art, which has male connectors and pieces of wood with holes, where the male connectors are connected to join two pieces of wood.

However, in the state of the art there is no mention of a male-female system that allows the assembly-disassembly-assembly of different structures, avoiding the deterioration of the pieces of wood when removing the connectors to build a new structure.

Brief description of the invention:

The present invention describes connectors (male and female) made of recycled plastic made of injected plastic or 3D printing that allow connecting parts made of MDF or plywood panels 9mm thick. These connectors are manufactured in Nylon or polyamide or ABS or polyethylene and are repositionable. The connectors allow wood panels to be connected at different angles and configurations, the main ones being 90 °, 135 ° and 180 °, with triple or quadruple connectors. The connector system is inserted over the notched wood edge that the pieces of wood have, it is composed of a female connector that corresponds to a piece that is fixed and pressed in the wood, and a corresponding male connector to a repositionable moving part that is inserted over the part fixed on the panel (female connector). These connectors allow you to configure and build furniture or games with mechanized wood panels.

To build or shape furniture or games, the male connectors are manually placed on the edge of the panel where the female connector is located, the male connectors can be placed and removed manually, a notch in the female connector, fixed on the panel indicates the correct place where the male connector must be inserted and the correct position of the latter is indicated at the time of insertion by a slight sound of fitting of the male connector clamp, this thanks to the coupling of the shape of the female connector with the relief inside the clamp of the male connector. The different angles of the connectors allow the creation of panel configurations with different shapes and functions.

Description of the figures:

For a better explanation of the invention, a description will be made of the connectors and their assembly, in relation to the illustrative and non-restrictive figures, where:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of the closed female connector.

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the open female connector. Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of the female connector closing.

Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a 90 ° male connector.

Fig. 5 shows a perspective view of a triple male connector.

Fig. 6 shows a perspective view of a 180 ° male connector.

Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of a 135 ° male connector.

Fig. 8 shows a perspective view of a wooden panel with notches and female connectors prior to insertion.

Fig. 9 shows a perspective view of two wooden panels with female connectors around them, where the panels are joined with three male connectors of 90 °.

Fig. 10 shows a perspective view of three wooden panels with female connectors around them, where the panels are joined with three triple male connectors.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of two wooden panels with female connectors around them, where the panels are joined with three 180 ° male connectors.

Fig. 12 shows a perspective view of two wooden panels with female connectors around them, where the panels are joined with three 135 ° male connectors.

Fig. 13 shows a perspective view schematically illustrating the process of installing the female connector on a wooden panel in three stages, open, closing and inserted.

Detailed description of the invention: The construction system according to the present invention comprises: female connectors (100), male connectors (200, 300, 400, 500) and wooden panels (600).

The construction system can comprise different construction modalities, where the modalities that have been represented in the figures, consist of:

• two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 90 ^Q male connectors (200) (figure 9);

· Three or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more triple male connectors (300) (figure 10);

• two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 180 ^Q male connectors (400) (figure 1 1);

• two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 135 ^Q male connectors (500) (figure 12).

In Figure 2, the female connector (100) comprising a pair of plates (101), each being of rectangular surface (102) with rounded distal vertices (103), with a first perforation (104) arranged in the FIG. distal zone, generally rectangular with rounded ends (105), with a second perforation (106) disposed at the proximal end, generally rectangular with rounded distal ends (107), which is adjacent to a curved rising strip (108) its distal perimeter and which extends in lateral sections (109) equally curved, in turn adjacent to the proximal end of the rectangular surface (102), both plates (101) being connected by the upper edges (1 10) of said lateral sections (109), whereby the female connector (100) can acquire a position fully extended or open, such as that illustrated in Figure 2, where the rectangular surfaces (102) of both plates (101) are aligned in the same plane, or it can acquire a completely closed position, where the rectangular surfaces ( 102) of both plates (101) are equidistant apart from each other, such as that illustrated in Figure 1, or you can acquire any of the intermediate positions such as, for example, the one illustrated in Figure 3.

Each female connector (100) further comprises a male-female connection means consisting of a shoulder (1 1 1) disposed on the upper surface (1 12) of one of the strips (108) and in a recess (1 13) arranged on the upper surface (1 12) of the other strip (108), so that when the plates (101) are in the closed position, said projection (1 1 1) and said recess (1 13) fit together.

In order to position the female connectors (100) on one or more panels (600) each female connector (100) is connected and fixed to the perimeter edge (601) of the panel (600), which includes one or more recesses (602) which fit the strip (108) of each female connector, while the inner faces of the rectangular surface (102) meet the opposite walls (603) of the panel (600).

Each construction system will comprise female connectors (100) fixed to different panels (600) and one or more female connectors (100) will be assembled with one or more male connectors (200, 300, 400, 500), depending on the construction modality that you want to get.

The 90 ^Q male connector (200) of Figure 4, comprises two external flat rectangular sections (201) bent at right angles, with rounded vertices (202), with beveled outer edge (203), with a circular perforation (204) which crosses from side to side and is arranged in an internal rectangular projection (205) arranged in the junction area of both external sections (201), and from the vertex distal (206) of said projection (205) emerge two internal flat rectangular sections (207) also bent at right angles, with rounded vertices (208), with beveled outer edge (209), in addition, the two inner faces (210) of the projection (205) have a respective rectangular projection (21 1), the inner faces (212) of both external sections (201) have a respective rectangular projection (213), the inner faces (214) of both internal sections (207) have a respective rectangular highlight (215).

In one of the embodiments of the invention, according to Figure 9, in order to assemble a first female connector (100) with a 90 ^Q male connector (200), said first female connector (100) being in the closed position , and being also positioned in a first panel (600), it is inserted between a pair of the external (201) and internal (207) sections of said 90 ^Q male connector (200), so that the external walls (1 14 ) of the female connector (100) meet the inner faces (212, 214) of the 90 ^Q male connector (200), until reaching a position where the rectangular projection (21 1) fits with the perforation (106), to the Once the rectangular projections (213, 215) fit the perforation (104).

In addition, in order to assemble a second female connector (100) with said 90 ^Q male connector (200), said second female connector (100) being in the closed position, and also being positioned in a second panel (600), it is inserted into the second pair of the external (201) and internal (207) sections of said 90 ^Q male connector (200), so that the external walls (1 14) of the female connector (100) meet the faces interiors (212, 214) of the 90 ^Q male connector (200), until reaching a position where the rectangular projection (21 1) fits the perforation (106), while the rectangular projections (213, 215) fit with the perforation (104). The triple male connector (300) of Figure 5, comprises a first pair of rectangular flat sections (301) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other, with rounded vertices (302), with beveled outer edge (303), whose inner faces ( 304) have a respective rectangular projection (305), said first pair of flat sections (301) being connected to a rectangular central projection (306), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular projection (307), and whose outer faces include a perforation circular (308). In addition, the triple male connector (300) comprises a second pair of flat rectangular sections (309) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other and at the same time perpendicular to the first pair of flat rectangular sections (301), with rounded vertices (310), with beveled outer edge (31 1), whose inner faces (312) have a respective rectangular shoulder (313), said second pair of flat sections (308) being connected to the rectangular central shoulder (306).

In one of the embodiments of the invention, according to Figure 10, in order to assemble three female connectors (100) of three different panels (600), with a triple male connector (300), each female connector (100) being in the closed position, and being also positioned in each of the three panels (600), they are introduced into the sections (301, 309) of said triple male connector (300), so that the external walls (1 14) of Each female connector (100) meets the inner faces (304, 312) of the triple male connector (300), until reaching a position where the rectangular projections (307) fit the perforations (106), while the projections rectangular (305, 313) fit the perforations (104).

The 180 ^Q male connector (400) of Figure 6, comprises a pair of flat rectangular sections (401) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other, with rounded vertices (402), with edge bevelled exterior (403), whose inner faces (404) have a respective rectangular projection (405), said pair of flat sections (401) being connected to a rectangular central projection (406), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular projection (407) ), and whose outer faces include a circular perforation (408).

In one of the embodiments of the invention, according to Figure 1 1, in order to assemble two female connectors (100) of two different panels (600), with a 180 ^Q male connector (400), each female connector ( 100) being in the closed position, and also being positioned in said panels (600), they are inserted into the sections (401) of said 180 ^Q male connector (400), so that the outer walls (1 14) of each Female connector (100) meets the inner faces (404) of the 180 ^Q male connector (400), until reaching a position where the rectangular projections (407) fit the perforations (106), while the rectangular projections (405) fit the perforations (104).

The 135 ^Q male connector (500) of Figure 7, comprises a pair of flat rectangular sections (501), with rounded vertices (502), with beveled outer edge (503), whose inner faces (504) have a respective protrusion rectangular (505), said pair of flat sections (501) being connected to a folded rectangular central shoulder (506), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular shoulder (507), and whose outer faces include a circular perforation (508).

In one of the embodiments of the invention, according to Figure 12, in order to assemble two female connectors (100) of two different panels (600), with a 135 ^Q male connector (500), each female connector (100 ) being in the closed position, and also being positioned in said panels (600), they are introduced into the sections (501) of said 135 ^Q male connector (500), so that the external walls (1 14) of each connector female (100) they meet the inner faces (504) of the 135 ^Q male connector (500), until they reach a position where the rectangular projections (507) fit the perforations (106), while the rectangular projections (505) fit the perforations (104).

In addition, four male connectors (not shown in the figures) are included within the embodiments of the invention, which give the possibility of connecting 4 wooden panels to a quad connector, similar to that performed with the triple male connector (300).

There are modalities (not shown in the figures) that depending on the type of panel and its geometry, different amounts of female connectors (100) will be required, and these may be: 3, 4, 8, 9 and 20 (apart from the 12 female connectors represented in the figures). Whereby small triangle, small square, small rectangle or octagon, large triangle and large rectangle panels can be connected, apart from the large square type panel (600) represented as an illustration mode of the present invention in Figures 8 to 12.

Claims

1. A construction system composed of wooden panels (600) and plastic connectors (100, 200, 300, 400, 500), which are manufactured by injection or 3D printing, and allow connecting parts made of wooden panels, CHARACTERIZED because it includes:

• female connectors (100),

• male connectors (200, 300, 400, 500) and

• wood panels (600),

wherein the female connectors (100) comprise a pair of plates (101), each being of rectangular surface (102) with rounded distal vertices (103), with a first perforation (104) arranged in the distal zone, generally rectangular with rounded ends (105), with a second perforation (106) arranged at the proximal end, generally rectangular with rounded distal ends (107), which is adjacent to a curved elevation strip (108) that travels its distal perimeter and that it extends in lateral sections (109) equally curved, in turn adjacent to the proximal end of the rectangular surface (102), both plates (101) being connected by the upper edges (110) of said lateral sections (109);

wherein the wooden panels (600) include one or more recesses (602) that fit the strip (108) of each female connector, while the inner faces of the rectangular surface (102) meet the opposite walls (603) of the panel (600);

each female connector (100) is connected and fixed to the perimeter edge (601) of the panels through the recesses (602); and one or more female connectors (100) are assembled with one or more male connectors (200, 300, 400, 500).

2. The construction system according to claim 1,

CHARACTERIZED because by means of the upper edges (1 10) of said lateral sections (109), the female connector (100) can acquire a fully extended or open position, where the rectangular surfaces (102) of both plates (101) are aligned in a same plane, or it can acquire a completely closed position, where the rectangular surfaces (102) of both plates (101) are equidistant apart from one another, or it can acquire any of the intermediate positions.

3. The construction system according to claim 2,

CHARACTERIZED because each female connector (100) further comprises a male-female connection means consisting of a shoulder (1 1 1) disposed on the upper surface (1 12) of one of the strips (108) and in a recess (1 13 ) arranged on the upper surface (1 12) of the other strip (108), so that when the plates (101) are in the closed position said projection (1 1 1) and said recess (1 13) fit together.

4. The construction system according to the preceding claims, CHARACTERIZED in that the male connectors are selected from: 90 ° male connectors (200), triple male connectors (300), 180 ° male connectors (400), male connectors 135 ° (500) and quadruple male connectors.

5. The construction system according to the preceding claims, CHARACTERIZED because the wooden panels (600) can be of different geometric shapes, such as, small triangle, small square, small rectangle, octagon, large triangle, large rectangle and large square (600).

6. The construction system according to claim 5,

CHARACTERIZED because, depending on the geometry of the wooden panel (600), the number of female connectors (100) connected and fixed to the perimeter edge (601) of the panels will vary of the recesses (602); For a small triangle geometry 3 female connectors (100) will be needed, for a small square geometry 4 female connectors (100) will be needed, for a small or octagon rectangle geometry 8 female connectors (100) will be needed, for a geometry a large triangle will require 9 female connectors (100), for a large square geometry (600) 12 female connectors (100) will be needed and for a large rectangle geometry 20 female connectors (100) will be needed.

7. The construction system according to claim 4, CHARACTERIZED in that the 90 ° male connectors (200) comprise two external flat rectangular sections (201) bent at right angles, with rounded vertices (202), with bevelled outer edge (203 ), with a circular perforation (204) that crosses from side to side and is arranged in an internal rectangular projection (205) arranged in the junction zone of both external sections (201), and from the distal vertex (206) of said protrusion (205) two internal flat rectangular sections (207) emerge equally bent at right angles, with rounded vertices (208), with beveled outer edge (209), in addition, the two inner faces (210) of the protrusion (205) have a respective rectangular projection (21 1), the inner faces (212) of both external sections (201) have a respective rectangular projection (213), the inner faces (214) of both internal sections (207) have a respective projection rectangular (215).

8. The construction system according to claim 4, CHARACTERIZED in that the triple male connectors (300) comprise a first pair of flat rectangular sections (301) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other, with rounded vertices (302), with outer edge beveled (303), whose inner faces (304) have a respective rectangular projection (305), said first pair of flat sections (301) being connected to a rectangular central boss (306), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular boss (307), and whose outer faces include a circular bore (308); in addition, the triple male connector (300) comprises a second pair of flat rectangular sections (309) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other and at the same time perpendicular to the first pair of flat rectangular sections (301), with rounded vertices (310), with beveled outer edge (31 1), whose inner faces (312) have a respective rectangular shoulder (313), said second pair of flat sections (308) being connected to the rectangular central shoulder (306).

9. The construction system according to claim 4,

CHARACTERIZED because the 180 ° male connectors (400) comprise a pair of flat rectangular sections (401) parallel and arranged equidistant from each other, with rounded vertices (402), with beveled outer edge (403), whose inner faces (404) they have a respective rectangular projection (405), said pair of flat sections (401) being connected to a rectangular central projection (406), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular projection (407), and whose outer faces include a circular perforation (408 ).

10. The construction system according to claim 4,

CHARACTERIZED because the 135 ° male connectors (500) comprise a pair of flat rectangular sections (501), with rounded vertices (502), with beveled outer edge (503), whose inner faces (504) have a respective rectangular projection (505) ), said pair of flat sections (501) being connected to a folded rectangular central boss (506), whose inner faces include a respective rectangular boss (507), and whose outer faces include a circular perforation (508).

The construction system according to claim 7, CHARACTERIZED in that it comprises two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 90 ^Q male connectors ( 200), wherein a first female connector (100) fixed in the closed position on a first wooden panel (600), is connected to a 90 ^Q male connector (200), by means of a pair of external sections (201) and internal (207) of said 90 ^Q male connector (200), so that the outer walls (1 14) of the first female connector (100) meet the inner faces (212, 214) of the 90 ^Q male connector (200), until reaching a position where the rectangular projection (21 1) fits with the perforation (106), while the rectangular projections (213, 215) fit with the perforation (104); a second female connector (100) fixed in closed position on a second panel (600), is connected to said male connector of 90 ^Q (200), by means of the second pair of the external (201) and internal (207) sections of said 90 ^Q male connector (200), so that the outer walls (1 14) of the second female connector (100) meet the inner faces (212, 214) of the 90 ^Q male connector (200), until reaching a position where the rectangular projection (21 1) fits the perforation (106), while the rectangular projections (213, 215) fit the perforation (104).

12. The construction system according to claim 8, CHARACTERIZED in that it comprises three or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more triple male connectors (300), wherein three female connectors (100) of three different panels (600), fixed in closed position on each of the three panels (600), are connected with a triple male connector (300), by means of the sections (301, 309 ) of said triple male connector (300), so that the outer walls (1 14) of each female connector (100) meet the faces interior (304, 312) of the triple male connector (300), until reaching a position where the rectangular projections (307) fit the perforations (106), while the rectangular projections (305, 313) fit the perforations ( 104).

13. The construction system according to claim 9, CHARACTERIZED in that it comprises two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 180 ^Q male connectors (400 ), where two female connectors (100) of two different panels (600), fixed in closed position on each of the two panels (600), are connected with a 180 ^Q male connector (400), through the sections (401) of said 180 ^Q male connector (400), so that the outer walls (1 14) of each female connector (100) meet the inner faces (404) of the 180 ^Q male connector (400), until reaching a position where the rectangular projections (407) fit the perforations (106), while the rectangular projections (405) fit the perforations (104).

14. The construction system according to claim 10, CHARACTERIZED in that it comprises two or more wooden panels (600), 12 female connectors (100) on each wooden panel (600) and one or more 135 ^Q male connectors (500 ), where two female connectors (100) of two different panels (600), fixed in closed position on each of the two panels (600), are connected with a 135 ^Q male connector (500), through the sections (501) of said 135 ^Q male connector (500), so that the outer walls (1 14) of each female connector (100) meet the inner faces (504) of the 135 ^Q male connector (500), until reaching a position where the rectangular projections (507) fit the perforations (106), while the rectangular projections (505) fit the perforations (104).

15. The construction system according to any of the preceding claims, CHARACTERIZED in that the wooden panels (600) are made of MDF wood 9mm thick or plywood 9mm thick.

16. The construction system according to any of the preceding claims, CHARACTERIZED in that the female (100) and male (200, 300, 400, 500) connectors are made of recycled plastic of Nylon, polyamide, ABS (Acrylonitrile) Butadiene Styrene, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) or polyethylene.