Field of the Invention

The invention relates to an insert member, a locking arrangement comprising such insert member and a framework structure on a load bearing structure of a building.

Background Art

When mounting things to a framework structure on a load bearing structure of a building the work is often performed on heigh heights. When personnel are working on heigh heights it is important that the work can be performed in an easy and safe way. One example of such work is when a fence or a wall is mounted to a beam of a framework structure of a balcony. The wall or fence is mounted to a beam which surrounds a plate that already may be mounted on the exterior wall of the house. Today there are different methods for mounting the wall or fence to the beam, for example with a plurality of carriage bolts, with the help of rivets or with screws. All of the methods have different disadvantages and advantages. The common problem for the different techniques is that all of them are time consuming in one or the other way. Screws are fastened in pre-formed threaded holes in the beam. Since the beam must be galvanized after the threaded holes are made, it is not possible to directly use the holes since the galvanisation process creates dross. The holes must be threaded again to make it possible to use them. One way to solve the need of threading the holes again is to use some kind of insert that is pre-threaded by a machine. US 3 700 020 provides an example of a threaded insert that can be used, where a special nut is inserted in a keyhole-shaped opening and then locked in place by a plug of plastic or rubber. There is however still a need for a solution that is easier to mount and hence less time consuming, more weather resistant and with a longer life length.

Summary of the Invention

It is an object of the invention to provide an insert member, addressing at least some of the problems mentioned in the technical background, namely that the insert should be easy to mount, be more weather resistant, have a longer life length and provide a higher safety for both the personnel working on heigh heights and for the end user of the mounted object.

These and other objects are met by an insert member configured to lockingly engage a plate, the insert member comprising; a body having a height along a longitudinal centre line extending along a first direction and a width extending along a second direction, the second direction being perpendicular to the first direction; the body having an outer envelope surface extending along the first direction, the envelope surface having a first longitudinally extending recess and a second longitudinally extending recess, the first and the second recesses extending in parallel to each other and perpendicular to the first direction and on opposite sides of the longitudinal centre line; wherein the first and second recesses virtually divide the body as seen in the first direction into a top portion, a waist portion and a bottom portion; wherein the body is configured to slidingly engage opposing edge portions of a through-going opening in the plate by said opposing edge portions being received in the first and second recesses respectively; and wherein a first and a second lower wall portion of the top portion as seen in a virtual plane extending in the first and second directions each is angled downwardly towards the bottom portion, whereby the height of the first and second recess respectively as seen closest to the envelope surface is smaller than the height of the first and second recess respectively as seen closest to the waist portion of the body, thereby allowing the first and second lower wall portions to frictionally engage the opposing edge portions of the plate.

Accordingly, an insert member is provided that is easy to install which is important for the personnel working at the framework structure on a building. Working on a framework structure on a building imply working on high heights and that the product is easy to install is important for the safety of the personnel. The provided insert member is easy to produce in big quantities due to its shape and that it in its easiest form only consists of a body with two recesses and bent top portion. Hence, a cost-efficient product is provided. The insert member will also have a longer life length due to that the first and the second lower wall portions of the top portion are angled, hence lockingly engaging with the opposing edge portions of the plate by friction. This will lock the insert member in place without any use of other means to keep the insert member in place. This makes the product more weather resistance since there is no need of any extra plug. With a more weather resistant product the wear of the product will be less significant, and the long-term safety of the mounted object will be improved.

By the recess having different heights as described above, the insert member will frictionally lock to the plate. Depending on the cross section of the body, the height closest to the waist portion of the body may in some embodiment slidingly receive the opposing edge portion of the plate first as the insert member is moved in view of the plate. Thereby a guiding effect is provided which facilitates the insertion of the insert member. One such example is in the event the body has a circular cross section.

The body may further comprise a longitudinally extending hole extending in the first direction. Said hole may be threaded.

With the body comprising a hole, the insert member will be possible to adapt to work with the most common types of screws and bolts.

In one embodiment the cross-sectional geometry of the body may be circular. In one other embodiment the cross-sectional geometry of the body may be quadrangular. In a further embodiment the envelope surface of the body may be hexagonal. In yet another embodiment the cross-sectional geometry of the body may be octagonal.

The cross-sectional geometry of the body can be of many different geometries to adapt for its intended use.

The height of the top portion may be smaller than the height of the bottom portion. With a difference in the height between the bottom portion and the top portion it is possible to adapt the height of the bottom portion to the strength requirements of different types of screws and bolts. The height of the top portion can be made so thin that it during manufacturing can be plastically bent toward the bottom portion. The top portion will thereby allow frictional engagement with the opposing edge portions of the plate during mounting of the insert member to the plate.

The height of the top portion may be between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, preferably between 1 and 3 mm.

By the top portion being thin, an object, such as a post of a fence, to be mounted to the support surface, and hence on top of the insert member, will be close to the support surface. There is an advantage to be able to mount things close to the support surface from an aesthetic view. Further, the object will also be more stable because of the support for the object from the plate. The reduced height, and hence the thickness of material also makes the top portion of the body more flexible which makes it possible for the top portion to bend as it comes in contact with the opposing edge portions of the plate as the insert member is moved in view of the plate. This flexing is of importance, not only to provide for the frictional engagement between the insert member and the plate, but also to better adapt to any surface irregularities and tolerances in material thicknesses. A typical example of surface irregularities are burrs or defects in any surface coating of the plate.

According to another aspect, the invention refers to a locking arrangement comprising an insert member according to the first aspect and a plate, wherein the plate comprises an insertion portion configured to allow the insert member to be inserted into the insertion portion by moving the insert member along the first direction relative to the plate, and a locking portion with opposing edge portions configured to slidingly receive the first and second recesses of the insert member when the insert member is moved in a transversal direction relative to the first direction from the insertion portion to the locking portion thereby frictionally interconnecting the insert member and the plate.

Accordingly, the locking arrangement with its insert member and the through- going opening may be seen as a type of bayonet coupling which requires a mutual movement in two different directions in order to provide a locking effect. With the locking arrangement an easy way to use the product is provided for. Further, only two single movements are required to lock the insert member with the plate. The insertion portion may have a width exceeding the width of the envelope surface of the body and the locking portion may have a width that is smaller than the width of the envelope surface of the body but larger than a width of the waist portion of the body. With the two widths of the insertion portion and the locking portion respectively, it is possible to easy connect the insert member in the through-going opening.

The insertion portion may merge with the locking portion via an intermediate guiding portion. With the guiding portion the insert member is easier to transfer from the insertion portion to the locking portion since the guiding portion will guide the insert member to the locking portion where it will be received. The guiding portion allows time savings during installation of the insert member. Further, the guiding portion makes the insert member easier to use. The guiding portion may have an angle between 10° and 70° and preferably 45° as measured in view of a longitudinal centreline of the through-going opening extending from the insertion portion to the locking portion. With this angle a smooth transition is provided for.

The through-going opening may define two opposing edge portions configured to be slidingly received in and by friction lockingly engage with wall portions of a respective recess of the insert member. By the through-going opening having two opposing edge portions, the insert members will be safely received and locked in place by friction.

The two opposing edge portions of the through-going opening may be mirror symmetric as seen along a longitudinal centreline of the through-going opening extending from the insertion portion to the locking portion.

The plate may be a wall portion of a hollow beam. The wall portion may by way of example be a top wall or a side wall of a hollow beam. The plate may alternatively be a standalone plate configured to be mounted on a support, The support may as such have any spatial extension.

According to yet another aspect, the invention refers to a framework structure on a balcony, a roof, a pergola, or the like, the framework structure comprising a hollow beam directly or indirectly having a plurality of through-going openings, each opening being configured to receive an insert member according to the first aspect.

The openings may be arranged directly in a wall portion of the beam. Alternatively, the openings may be formed in a plate that is configured to be supported by said beam. Thus, in such case, the beam indirectly has a plurality of openings.

With a plurality of through-going openings, the inserts member in each through-going opening may create a jointed friction force to keep a mounted object, such as a fence, in place. Hence, a safer construction is provided for.

Each through-going opening may comprise an insertion portion, a guiding portion and a locking portion. The guiding portion provides a guiding effect when an insert member is moved from the insertion portion to the locking portion.

The insertion portion, the guiding portion and the locking portion are preferably linearly arranged one after the other as seen along a longitudinal centreline of the through-going opening extending from the insertion portion to the locking portion.

The through-going opening may define two opposing edge portions configured to be slidingly received in and by friction lockingly engage a respective recess of the insert member.

The two opposing edge portions of the through-going opening may be mirror symmetric as seen along a longitudinal centreline of the through-going opening extending from the insertion portion to the locking portion.

At least one through-going opening may be mirrored in view of the other through-going openings. With one through-going opening mirrored in relation to the other through-going openings, an object, such as a fence post, that is fastened in the beam will have an improved safety. With the mirrored through-going opening it is not possible for the object to move in the same direction as the key is pointing. This gives an overall improved stability to the construction.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig.1 discloses an overview of an embodiment of a typical balcony with a glazed fence.

Fig. 2A discloses an embodiment of the insert member with its recesses and a threaded hole.

Fig. 2B discloses a cross section of one embodiment of the insert member.

Fig. 2C discloses a cross section of one embodiment of the insert member.

Fig.3 discloses a portion of one embodiment of the support surface with a plurality of through-going openings, and also an enlarged view of one opening.

Fig. 4A-4E discloses a sequence of mounting insert members in through- going openings of the support surface and mounting a post thereto.

Fig. 5 discloses an embodiment of the plate with mirrored through-going openings.

Description of a Preferred Embodiment

The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which currently preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided for thoroughness and completeness, and to fully convey the scope of the invention to the skilled person.

The invention will in the following be described in the context of the framework structure being a framework structure of a balcony. The invention is equally applicable to other framework structures such as a roof, a pergola, or the like.

Turning to Fig.1 one example of a balcony arrangement 1000 with glazed fence is disclosed. The balcony arrangement 1000 comprises a concrete slab 230 mounted on an exterior wall 20 of a building. The concrete slab 230 is provided with a framework structure in the form of the least one beam 200. The fence is supported by the beam 200 which forms part of the floor structure of the balcony arrangement 1000. Although the fence is disclosed as being a glazed fence, it is realized that the fence with remained function may have another design, such as being provided by a plurality of posts 260 and a railing 270 only. The beam 200 may by way of example be hollow but it is to be understood that also other cross sections are applicable. One side of the beam 200 comprises a plate 210. The plate 210 may be formed by one of the walls of the beam 200. Alternatively, the plate may be configured to be fixedly mounted to the beam. The plate 210 is provided with a plurality of through-going openings 220. The through- going openings 220 will be further discussed in view of Fig. 3. The plate 210 is disclosed as being provided with two parallel lines of through-going openings 220 forming a rectilinear pattern of openings. The skilled person realizes that the plate 210 may be provided with any other pattern of through-going openings 220.

In some of the through-going openings 220 of the beam 200 there are insert members 300 mounted to make it possible to install the posts 260 of the glazed fence. The plurality of through-going openings 220 in the plate 210 together with the insert members 300 makes it possible to choose in which positions to install the post 260. To provide stability, each post 260 is preferably mounted to the plate 210 by using two or more insert members 300. The posts 260 are mounted by using bolts 400 that are inserted in through-going holes of the post 260 and screwed into the respective insert member 300. Thereby the risk of the post 260 to rotate is minimized. This should be seen as a non-limiting example. To further enhance the stability of the fence, the posts 260 may be connected to each other with a railing 270 and also by the glazing or any other protection.

Now turning to figures 2A-2C where an embodiment of the insert member 300 is disclosed. Fig. 2A is a perspective side view of the insert member 300 and Figs. 2B and 2C are cross sections of the insert member 300.

The insert member 300 comprises a body 310 having a height H along a longitudinal centre line L1 extending along a first direction Y and a width W extending along a second direction X, the second direction X being perpendicular to the first direction Y.

The body 310 has an outer envelope surface 320 extending along the height H of the body 310, i.e. along the first direction Y. The body 310 may be made of steel or any other metal material with a high mechanical strength.

The body 310 is in the embodiment of Figs. 2A-2C disclosed as having a cross sectional geometry that is circular. It is important to stress that the body 310 with remained function may have other cross-sectional geometries. In other, nondisclosed embodiments, the cross-sectional geometry of the body 310 may by way of example be quadrangular, hexagonal, or octagonal.

The body 310 comprises a threaded hole 360 extending in the first direction Y. The threaded hole 360 has a concentric extension along the longitudinal centreline L1. The threaded hole 360 may be through-going. The skilled person realizes that the threaded hole 360 with remained function may be a threaded blind hole, i.e. a hole having a non-through-going extension. No matter design of the hole, the longitudinal extension of the hole 360 and the number of threads should be adapted to the dimensioning load of the fence. This is of importance since the insert member 300 will serve as a nut.

The envelope surface 320 of the body 310 comprises a first longitudinally extending recess 311 and a second longitudinally extending recess 312. The first and the second recesses 311 , 312 extend in parallel to each other and perpendicular to the first direction Y and on opposite sides of the longitudinal centre line L1. It is realized that the body 310 with remained function can have more than one pair of mutual parallel recesses 311 , 312. By way of example, in the event of the body 310 having a quadrangular cross section, each pair of opposing side wall portions may be provided with recesses 311 , 312.

The recesses 311 , 312 divide the body 310 into three virtual portions, a top portion 330, a waist portion 340 and a bottom portion 350 as seen along the first direction Y. The body 310 is configured, as will be described below with reference to Figs. 3 and also 4A-4B, to slidingly engage opposing edge portions 252 of a through- going opening 220 in the plate 210 by said opposing edge portions 252 being received in the first and second recesses 311 , 312 respectively.

A first and a second lower wall portion 331 , 332 of the top portion 330 as seen in a virtual plane extending transverse to the longitudinal centreline L1 is angled downwardly towards the bottom portion 350. This is illustrated in Fig. 2B. An angle a formed between the virtual plane and the first and second lower wall portions 331 , 332 respectively may be in the range of 1-15 degrees and more preferred in the range of 1-10 degrees.

A radially extending outer most free edge A, see Fig. 4B of the first and second lower wall portions 331, 332 respectively are thereby allowed to frictionally engage the opposing edge portions 252 of the plate 210 during mounting of the insert member 300 to a through-going opening 220 in the plate 210. This will be better described below.

Now referring to Fig. 2C. As a result of said angling of the top portion 330, a first height H 1 of the first and second recesses 311, 312 respectively as seen closest to the outer envelope surface 320 of the body 310 will be smaller than a second height H2 of the first and second recess 311, 312 respectively as seen closest to the waist portion 340 of the body 310. Thereby a guiding effect is provided which facilitates the sliding movement of the insert member 300 along the through-going opening 220 in the plate 210.

The height H3 of the top portion 330 may be smaller than the height H4 of the bottom portion 350. The height H3 of the top portion 330 is preferably significantly smaller than the height H4 of the bottom portion 350. It is preferred that the height H3 of the top portion 330 is thin enough to allow it to be plastically bent down during manufacturing of the insert member 300 to form the angling of the top portion 330. The height H3 of the top portion 330 may by way of example be between 0.5 mm and 10 mm, preferably between 1 and 5 mm and even more preferred between 1 and 3 mm. When mounting an object, such as a post toward the insert member 300 with a bolt, it is an advantage if the mounted object ends up close to the plate 210 for the overall stability of the construction. Further it enhances the aesthetic impression of the construction when there are no gaps between the mounted object and the plate 210.

The reduced height H3, and hence thickness of material in the top portion 330 also makes the top portion 330 of the body 310 more ductile. The ductility makes it possible for the top portion 330 to be forced to bend as it comes in contact with the opposing edge portions 252 of the plate 210 as the insert member 300 is moved in view of the plate 210. This ductility, and hence ability to bend is of importance, not only to provide for the frictional engagement between the insert member 300 and the plate 210, but also to better adapt to any surface irregularities and tolerances in material thicknesses of the opposing edge portions 252 of the plate 210. A typical example of surface irregularities are burrs or defects in any surface coating of the plate 210 or even surface corrosion.

Now turning to the bottom portion 350. The height H4 of the bottom portion 350 is important to meet the strength requirements of different type of screws and bolts. More precisely, the bottom portion 350 of the body 310 is the main portion that the bolt is configured to threadingly engage. It is important that the height H4 of the bottom portion 350 is adapted to which bolt or screw that is intended to be used. The dimensioned height H4 of the bottom portion 350 and the height H3 of the top portion 330 respectively is not directly related to each other, but more related to their functions. The top portion 330 needs to have a height H3 that is small as described above to allow the ductility, whereas the bottom portion 350 needs a certain height H4 that is adapted to the required threaded engagement with the bolt. The main function of the bottom portion 350 may accordingly be described as a nut function. Accordingly and in other words, the body 310 as a whole but especially its bottom portion 350 should have a height H that allows a sufficient number of threads to meet the dimensioned load of the post or object to be mounted to the plate 210 by using the insert member 300.

T urning to Fig. 3 one embodiment of the geometry of the through-going opening 220 of the plate 210 is disclosed. In one embodiment, the plate 210 may be a wall portion of a hollow beam 200 as in Fig. 1. The wall portion may by way of example be a top wall or a side wall of the beam 200. It may also be a plate configured to be mounted to the beam. It is also understood that one or more walls of the beam 200 may be provided with through-going openings 220. In other embodiments the plate 210 may be a sheet of metal configured to be attached directly or indirectly to the concrete slab of the balcony. It is to be understood that the plate 210 may be other kind of surfaces or be made in other materials. No patter type, the plate may have any spatial orientation in its mounted condition. It is accordingly not restricted to a vertical or horizontal extension.

In the enlarged embodiment of Fig. 3 the through-going opening 220 comprises an insertion portion 230 which merges via a guiding portion 240 with a locking portion 250, thereby forming a keyhole shaped opening. The insertion portion 230, the guiding portion 240 and the locking portion 250 are disclosed as being linearly arranged one after the other as seen along a longitudinal centreline L2 of the through-going opening 220 extending from the insertion portion 230 to the locking portion 250. The through-going opening 220 may have another shape depending on the shape of the insert member 300. In some embodiments there may be only an insertion portion 230 merging with a locking portion 250. The through-going opening 220 may be elongated in a direction along the longitudinal centreline L2. In other, non-illustrated embodiments, the through-going opening 220 may be elongated in other directions. The elongation preferably differs from the main operational load direction of an object to be mounted to the plate 210 by the use of an insert member 300.

The insertion portion 230 has a cross-sectional geometry being larger than the cross-sectional geometry of the body 310 as seen in a direction transverse to the longitudinal centre line L1 of the body 310. Thereby the insert member 300 can be freely inserted into the insertion portion 230 by a linear movement along the first direction Y. The cross-sectional geometry of the insertion portion 230 may be of any form. The overall cross-sectional geometry of the insertion portion 230 may be different than the cross-sectional geometry of the body 310 of the insert member 300.

The locking portion 250 has a width W1 that is smaller than the width W of the envelope surface 320 of the body 310 of the insert member 300 but larger than a width W2 of the waist portion 340 of the body 310. Thereby the insert member 300 is allowed to be locked in the locking portion 250 with the top portion 330 and the bottom portion 350 of the insert member 300 on opposite sides of the plate 210. The locking portion 250 may have a length L as seen along the longitudinal centreline L2 of the opening 220 that exceeds the width W of the envelope surface 320 of the body 310. Thereby the full length of the first and second recesses 311 , 312 of the insert member 300 are allowed to be received in the locking portion 250 when the insert member 300 is mounted to the plate 210.

The guiding portion 240 merging the insertion portion 230 and the locking portion 250 may have an angle p in the range of 10-70 degrees and preferably between 30-50 degrees as measured between an edge portion of the guiding portion 240 and the longitudinal centreline L2 of the through-going opening 220. The guiding portion 240 forms a smooth connection between the insertion portion 230 and the locking portion 250 which facilitates the movement of the insert member 300 inside the opening 220 from the insertion portion 230 to the locking portion 250 when mounting the insert member 300 to the plate 210.

The two opposing edge portions 252 of the locking portion 250 may have a parallel extension or form an angle to each other. The two opposing edge portions 252 of the through-going opening 220 may be mirror symmetric as seen along the longitudinal centreline L2 of the through-going opening 220.

The two opposing edge portions 252 are configured to extend into the first and second recesses 311 , 312 respectively of the insert member 300. More precisely, the two edge portions 252 are configured to be slidingly received in and lockingly engage with wall portions of a respective recess 311 , 312 of the insert member 300. The locking engagement between the insert member 300 and the plate 210 is provided for by friction.

Now turning to Figs. 4A-4E, the sequence of mounting the insert member 300 and a post 260 to the plate 210 will described. Each step in the sequence will be further described below.

Fig. 4A discloses the plate 210 with a plurality of through-going openings 220 and the movement required to insert an insert member 300 into a respective through- going opening 220. The insert member 300 is inserted into the insertion portion 230 of the through-going opening 220 in the plate 210 by moving the insert member 300 linearly along the first direction Y relative to the plate 210.

Now turning to Fig. 4B, the next step is to transfer the insert member 300 into the locking portion 250 of the through-going opening 220. The insert member 300 is transferred from the insertion portion 230 to the locking portion 250 of the through- going opening 220 by moving the insert member 300 in a transversal direction relative to the first direction Y into the locking portion 250. Accordingly, the locking arrangement with its insert member 300 and the through-going opening 220 may be seen as a type of bayonet coupling which requires a mutual movement in two different directions in order to provide a locking effect between the plate 210 and the insert member 300. To be able to perform this movement, the recesses 311 , 312 of the insert member 300 needs to be aligned with the opposing edge portions 252 of the locking portion 250. During this movement, the insert member 300 will frictionally interconnect with the plate 210. The transversal direction relative the first direction Y may be in different directions depending on how the through-going opening elongates.

The guiding portion 240 of the through-going opening 220 guides the insert member 300 between the insertion portion 230 and the locking portion 250. In the disclosed embodiment with the body 310 of the insert member 300 having a circular cross section, the lower portion 331 , 332 of the respective recesses 311 , 312 as seen closest to the waist portion 330 of the body 310 will slidingly receive the opposing edge portions 252 of the plate 210 first, as the insert member 300 is moved in view of the plate 210 towards the locking portion 250. Accordingly, a circular cross section of the body 310 provides a guiding effect that facilitates alignment of the insert member 300 with the longitudinal extension of the through-going opening 220 of the plate 210 before the frictional and hence locking engagement is initiated.

The insert member 300 is frictionally locked in position in the locking portion 250 of the through-going openings 220. The frictional engagement is the result of the radially extending outer most free edges of the angled first and second lower wall portions 331 , 332 respectively frictionally engaging the opposing edge portions 252 of the plate 210 during the sliding movement of the insert member 300 towards the locking portion 250. Thus, the angled top portion 320 locks the insert member 300 to the plate 210 by friction. In other words, the insert member 300 lockingly engages with the plate 210 without the need for any additional accessories. In fact, any surface irregularities may even positively contribute to the locking effect.

Now turning to Figs 4C-4E. With the insert member 300 frictionally locked in place, a post 260 or another object, with through-going holes 261 for a threaded bolt 400 to each respective insert member 300, can be mounted to the plate 210. As is best seen in Figs. 4C and 4D the post 260 is mounted by screwing bolts 400 into the respective threaded holes 330 of the insert members 300. Accordingly, the mounted insert member 300 serves as a fixed nut. In Fig. 5, one embodiment of a plate 210 with a plurality of through-going openings 220 is disclosed. The openings 220 are arranged along two parallel lines. Every second 220’ opening in each line is disclosed as being mirrored in view of the adjacent openings 220. With one through-going opening 220 being mirrored in relation to the other through-going openings 220, an object, such as a post 260 that is to be fastened to the plate 210 will have an improved safety. With the mirrored through-going opening(s) 220’ it is not possible for the object to move in the direction which the keyhole is pointing. This gives an overall improved stability to the construction.

Each post has been exemplified as being mounted by two insert members and two bolts. The skilled person knows that the respective posts may be mounted with any other number of insert members and bolts. As a non-limiting and nonillustrated example, each post may cover four of the through-going openings and that way be mounted with four insert members and hence four bolts. The skilled person realizes that the post or any other objects may be mounted with one insert member only.

The body of the insert member has been disclosed as being provided with a threaded longitudinally extending hole to allow engagement with a bolt. The skilled person realizes that the hole must not be circular or be threaded, but instead may have a geometry complementary to an intended locking means.

Further, the plate has been exemplified as having two parallel lines with through-going openings. The skilled person realizes that other patterns of openings are possible.