FR2703092A1 - Device for fixing a glazing to a supporting structure. - Google Patents

Abstract

Device for fixing a glazing to a supporting structure, characterized in that it comprises, for each glazing element 1, a set of fixing elements, each comprising a rigid rod 2, one end of which is associated with means of non-swiveling clamping on said glazing 1 and the other end of which is associated with a ball joint system by which it is connected, with the possibility of angular movement, to said supporting structure.

Description

DEVICE FOR FIXING A GLASS

ON A CARRIER STRUCTURE

  The present invention relates to a device for fixing a glazing to a load-bearing structure, constituted for example by a building frame, this facade glazing which can in this case be constituted by a large

  number of glazing elements - in principle square or rectan-

juxtaposed gulars.

  The suspension of this type of glazing poses delicate mechanical problems, mainly due to the significant weight of the glass (laminated and / or toughened), the thickness of which can range from 8 to 19 mm and which in certain applications can be arranged in duplicate. glazing The problem also results from the fact that these glazings have a large surface area for taking in the wind and can therefore undergo very severe bending stresses, to which are added the differential deformations of the framework or of the load-bearing facade, due differential mechanical expansions (for example folding the frame), or

  thermal (effect of sunshine on the glazing).

  The problem of tolerances must also be taken into account.

these mounting.

  The purpose of the present invention is to solve all these problems, and for this purpose, a device according to the invention, of the type mentioned at the start, is characterized in that it comprises, for each glazing element, a set of 'fastening elements, each comprising a rigid rod, one end of which is associated with non-swiveling clamping means on said glazing and the other end of which is associated with a ball-joint system by which it is connected, with the possibility of angular movement,

to said supporting structure.

  The ball joint system has the advantage of a large

  ease of absorption of assembly play or deformation

  facade for any external cause, the debate-

  angular ment of said rigid rod which can be very large. This general arrangement of the invention will also offer a great possibility of absorption (or reduction) of the stresses arising from the differential expansion of the facade and its structure under the

  thermal stresses due for example to sunshine.

  A device according to the invention may also

  be characterized in that said clamping means comprise

  a front stud is engaged in a bore in the glazing by the outer face of the latter, this stud comprising on the one hand a threaded body projecting from the inner face of the glazing and suitable for receiving a tightening nut on this face, and on the other hand a threaded housing suitable for receiving a threaded end of said rigid rod Thanks to this threaded end of the rigid rod, engaged in the threaded housing of the facade stud, it will be possible to adjust conveniently, at each fixing point, the spacing between the glazing and its supporting structure Once this adjustment has been made, it can be blocked by providing, for example, that the threaded end of said rod carries a lock nut

  suitable for being clamped against the end of said threaded body.

  Advantageously also, it is possible to provide that said front stud comprises towards the outside an enlarged head bearing on a bearing of corresponding shape of said bore of the glazing; it may in particular be a conical head to obtain a good distribution of the compression loads on the external face of the glazing, in each

attachment point.

  For the same purpose, it can advantageously be provided that a ring of synthetic material is interposed between

  said head of the facade stud and said span of the glazing.

  For the same reason, the clamping means

  which have just been defined may include advantageous-

  a washer of synthetic material interposed between the

  inner face of the glazing and said clamping nut.

  In the case of double glazing, consisting of two glass plates spaced from each other, a device for

  fixing according to the invention will preferably be characterized

  laughed in that a spacer is engaged on said body of the facade stud, so as to maintain the desired spacing between the two said glass plates at the level of said clamping means, and in that a seal, surrounding said spacer , is sandwiched between the two said glass plates. Now for the ball joint system,

  arranged on the side of the supporting framework or facade, the invention

  tion provides means which could of course be

  whatever the type of glazing.

  In this aspect, the fixing device according to the invention may also be characterized in that said ball-joint system comprises, at said other end of the rigid rod, a spherical head capable of being held in a ball-and-socket joint in a shaped receptacle complementary, which is formed in a fixing piece subject to said supporting structure Advantageously, said fixing piece comprises on the one hand a tapped hole whose bottom has a spherical bearing for said head, and into which hole can be screwed a screw end in the form of a concave spherical cap, so as to be able to slow down the rotation of said spherical head of the rod or at least adjust its play, and on the other hand a clean threaded body to pass through the opening of a plate of fixing, and to be tightened there thanks to a locking nut engaged on said body. This will allow rapid assembly of the ball joints, and conveniently adjust the clamping force of

  the lock nut, or at least adjust the clearance.

  It can also be provided that a lock washer is interposed between said brake nut and said fixing plate, and also, that a dust cover is arranged around said rigid rod so as to be applied against

  said fixing piece, this to protect the ball joint.

  The device can also be characterized in that said rigid rod exits from said fastening part by a conical hole flared outwards, the opening angle of this conical hole possibly being of the order of 300, this value

being however only one example.

  This provision allows for a great debate-

  ment of the rigid rod in said fixing piece (+ 150, -15), which makes it possible either to absorb the deflection of the facade (wind stress for example), or to absorb the play in the assembly of the facade distribution of deflections can be calculated at the design of the facade and distributed for example as follows: + / 7.50 for the deflection and + / 7.50 for mounting, the deflection limit being given by choice

(calculation) of the thickness of the glass.

  Other important provisions of the invention relate to the means of connection between the load-bearing framework and what have been called "fixing parts" above,

  that is to say the parts which receive the ball joints.

  Considering that the glass plates of the glazing will be juxtaposed squares or rectangles, and that they will be connected to the support structure by their angles, the invention may also be characterized in that said ball-joint systems are connected to the support structure either four by four, by means of fixing plates in the form of cross-pieces, or two by two, by means of fixing plates in the form of legs, these fixing plates being connected by their central part to rigid bars of connection to said structure,

either still individually.

  Thanks to this arrangement, it will be possible to obtain, for the fastening parts of the ball joints, mounting clearances on the fixing plates vertically for some of them, laterally for others and even in these two.

  directions for yet other fasteners.

  A cross-shaped fixing plate with four branches can thus be characterized, for example, in that it comprises at the ends of these branches a hole whose diameter is very slightly greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing part, a hole having in the horizontal direction a dimension appreciably greater than said thickness, a hole whose diameter is appreciably greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing piece and finally a hole having in the vertical direction a dimension appreciably greater than

said thickness.

  Similarly, a fixing plate in the form of a leg with two branches may be characterized in that it comprises at the ends of these branches a hole whose diameter is very slightly greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing part, and a hole having in

  horizontal or vertical direction a notable dimension-

  ment greater than said thickness.

  These provisions make it possible to obtain the necessary mounting tolerances, as well as to absorb the reduction in the glass chord under a stress, for example due to the wind. The stresses in the glass are thus reduced to

their minimum.

  In addition, there will be no pairing of glass origin in the four-position plates or in the two-position plates, thanks to the positioning of the

ball joints in these plates.

  The same benefits will of course be found

with double glazing.

  Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of non-limiting examples, with reference to the figures of the attached drawing in which: Figure 1 shows two elements for fixing a single glazing on a load-bearing structure , one in axial section, the other in elevation;

  the figure shows it, before mounting, the different

  your parts of the non-swiveling clamping means of the rigid rod on the glazing; Figure 1b is a similar view of the ball system; Figure 2 shows a variant of the ball joint system; Figure 3 shows the non-swiveling clamping means of the rigid rod on a double glazing; FIG. 4 is a partial view in elevation of a glazing suitable for being mounted by means of a fixing device according to the invention; FIGS. 5 a and 5 b are views, respectively from the front and from the side, of a fixing plate in the shape of a tab with two branches; and FIGS. 6 a and 6 b are respectively similar views of a cross-shaped fixing plate with

four branches.

  In Figures 1 and the elements of the glazing have been referenced 1; 'these elements, that is to say the glass plates, of variable thickness, can be separated by seals 1' a few mm thick The fixing of this

  glazing on a load-bearing framework (not shown) is made

  kills on the one hand thanks to non-swiveling clamping means of a rigid rod 2 on the elements 1, on the other hand thanks

to a ball joint system.

  The non-swiveling clamping means comprise a front stud 3 with an enlarged cone-shaped head 9, engaged in a bore of corresponding shape 4-10 of the plate

  glass 1, with interposition of a ring of synthetic material

  than 11, for example in ERTALON; the outer face of the head 9 of this pad 3 has a mirror polish to guarantee the aesthetics of the facade, and has small bores 9 'allowing it to immobilize in rotation This pad 3 has a threaded body 5 on which is engaged a tightening nut 6, with the interposition of a ring 12, for example also made of ERTALON, this nut being able to be driven in rotation thanks to small bores 6 ', until the tightening of the

pad 3 on plate 1.

  The rigid rod 2 is screwed to the desired position, by its threaded end, * in a threaded axial housing 7 of the stud 3, and is fixed in position by means of a lock nut 8 tightened on the end of the threaded body 5 In the case of double glazing (FIG. 3), the clamping means which have just been described are completely similar, and their various constituents therefore have

  have been designated by the same references.

  The device further comprises a plastic spacer 13 engaged on the body 5 of the front stud 3, to maintain the desired spacing between the two glass plates 1a and 1b; this spacer is surrounded by a seal 14 and is provided on its two faces

  an O-ring 36 and a butyl filling 37.

  The swiveling system can be the same in all cases; it has therefore only been shown in FIGS. 1 and 1b. This system comprises, at the end of the rod 2, a

  spherical head 15, held in a fixing part 16.

  This part has an enlarged head 30, by means of which it can bear against the end of a branch of fixing plate 23, when its threaded body 21 is

  engaged in an opening 24 of this plate The subject

  This part can then be secured by means of a nut 22, locked in rotation on the body 21 by means of a lock washer 25. The fastening part 16 further comprises a tapped hole 17, terminated by a bearing in the form of a spherical sector. 18 and into which a screw 19 can engage, after engagement of the rigid rod 2 in the part 16 This screw 19 carrying at the end a concave spherical cap 20, it can be seen that its screwing in the tapped hole 17 will make it possible to brake the rotation of the head 15 in its housing, or at least to avoid the existence of games around

this head.

  The hole 26 through which the rod 2 leaves the part 16 has the shape of a cone flared outwards, the angle of which

  opening hours, as already indicated above, will be preferred

  tally of the order of 300, which gives the rod 2 a great freedom of conical travel, with for

  therefore the advantages mentioned above.

  A dust cover 28 in the form of a flexible washer, engaged on the rod 2 and applied to the fixing part

  16, will protect the patella during these debates-

  and thus avoid jamming.

  Figure 2 shows a variant of the ball joint system.

  In this system, a fixing part 16 ′ is used which is fixed to the end of a fixing plate 23 by means of a screw 31 The ball joint 15 of the rigid rod 2 is trapped in the part 16 ′ by means of a screw 32 applying the ball 15 against

  a spherical bottom 33 of said part.

  As in the previous embodiment and for the same purpose, the rod 2 comes out of the screw 32 through a hole

conical, referenced here 26 '.

  In FIG. 4, we have diagrammed the fact that the glazing elements 1, contiguous, can be connected to the bearing structure:

  by cross-shaped fixing plates

  lons 23 with four branches, similar to that which is represented in FIGS. 6 a and 6 b, this at the interior locations in which four glazing elements 1 meet; by fixing plates in the form of legs 23 ′ with two branches, similar to that which is represented in FIGS. 5 a and 5 b, this at the external locations in

  which only two glazing elements 1 are joined

  annoy; and directly, by rigid bars similar to the bar 27 in FIG. 1, at the location of the four angles

glazing.

  As a result, said fixing plates 23 and 23 ′ comprise: central holes 34 making it possible to connect them to the support structure by rigid bars 27, tightened on the plates by nuts 35 (FIG. 1); and at the ends of their branches, holes 24 and 24 'or 24' 'for the reception of fasteners 16 or 16', either without play (holes 24), or with play in a vertical or horizontal direction (holes 24 ' ), or again with play in all directions (24 '' holes), this

  providing the benefits also mentioned above.

Claims (1)

CLAIMS 1 Device for fixing a glazing unit to a supporting structure, characterized in that it comprises, for each glazing element (1), a set of fixing elements, each comprising a rigid rod (2), one end of which is associated with non-swiveling clamping means on said glazing (1) and the other end of which is associated with a ball-joint system by which it is connected, with the possibility of angular movement, to said supporting structure. 2 Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said clamping means comprise a stud (3) of facade engaged in a bore (4) of the glazing (1) by the outer face of the latter, this stud (3) comprising d on the one hand a threaded body (5) projecting from the inner face of the glazing (1) and suitable for receiving a nut (6) for tightening on this face, and on the other hand a threaded housing (7) suitable for receiving a threaded end of said rigid rod (2). 3 Device according to claim 2, characterized in that the threaded end of said rod (2) carries a lock nut (8) adapted to be tightened against the end of said threaded body (5). 4 Device according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that said front stud (3) has outwardly an enlarged head (9) bearing on a bearing (10) of corresponding shape of said bore (4) of the glazing ( 1). Device according to claim 4, characterized in that a ring (11) of synthetic material is interposed between said head (9) of the facade stud (3) and said bearing surface (10) of the glazing (1). 6 Device according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that said clamping means further comprise a washer (12) of synthetic material interposed between the inner face of the glazing (1) and said nut tightening (6). 7 Device according to any one of claims 2 to 6, of the type in which said glazing (1) is double glazing (la, lb), namely that it comprises an outer glass plate (la) and a inner glass plate (lb), characterized in that a spacer (13) is engaged on said body (5) of the facade stud (3), so as to maintain the desired spacing between the two said glass plates ( la, lb) at said clamping means. 8 Device according to claim 7, characterized in that a seal (14) surrounding said spacer (13) is sandwiched between the two said glass plates (la, lb). 9 Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said ball-joint system comprises, at said other end of the rigid rod (2), a spherical head (15) suitable for being held in a swiveling manner in a receptacle of complementary shape, which is formed in a fixing part (16, 16 ') secured to said support structure. 10 Device according to claim 9, characterized in that said fixing part comprises on the one hand a threaded hole (17) whose bottom has a spherical bearing (18) for said head, and in which hole can be screwed a screw ( 19) with end in the form of a concave spherical cap (20), so as to be able to slow down the rotation of said spherical head (15) of the rod (2) or at least to adjust the clearance thereof, and on the other hand a threaded body (21) adapted to pass through the opening (24) of a fixing plate (23), and to be tightened therein by means of a locking nut (22) engaged on said body. 11 Device according to claim 10, characterized in that a lock washer (25) is interposed between said brake nut (22) and said fixing plate (23). 12 Device according to any one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that said rigid rod (2) comes out of said fixing piece (16, 16 ') through a conical hole (26, 26') flared towards the 'outside. 13 Device according to claim 12, characterized in that the opening angle of said conical hole is of the order of 300. 14 Device according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that a dust cover (28) is arranged around said rigid rod (2) so as to be applied against said fixing part (16, 16 '). 15 Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the said ball-joint systems are connected to the support structure either four by four, by means of fixing plates (23) in the form of cross-pieces, or two in pairs, by means of fixing plates (23 ′) in the form of legs, these fixing plates being connected by their central part to rigid bars (27) connecting to said structure, or even individually. 16 Device according to claim 15, characterized in that said fastening parts (16, 16 ') of the ball joint system are engaged in holes (24) provided at the ends of the branches of said braces (23) or lugs (23' ), and in that at least some of these holes (24 ', 24' ') have, at least in a determined direction, a dimension greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing piece (16, 16'). 17 Device according to claim 16, characterized in that a fixing plate (23) in the form of a cross with four branches has at the ends of these branches a hole (24) whose diameter is very slightly greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing piece (16, 16 '), a hole (24') having in the horizontal direction a dimension appreciably greater than said thickness, a hole (24 '') whose diameter is significantly greater than the thickness of the corresponding fixing part (16, 16 ') and finally a hole (24') having in the vertical direction a dimension notably greater than said thickness. 18 Device according to claim 16, characterized in that a fixing plate (23 ′) in the form of a tab with two branches comprises at the ends of these branches a hole (24) whose diameter is very slightly greater than   The thickness of the fixing piece (16, 16 ') corresponds to   te, and a hole (24 ') having in the horizontal or vertical direction a dimension significantly greater than said thickness.