Device for supporting at least one cladding panel which can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor

Abstract

The invention relates to a device (1) for supporting at least one cladding panel (2) that can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor. In order to make supporting cladding panels (2), in particular larger-area cladding panels (2) that are relatively heavy, more secure, the device (1) has at least two clamping units (3, 4) and at least one adjusting device (5) connected to the two clamping units (3, 4), with which a distance between the two clamping units (3, 4) can be varied such that the cladding panel (2) can be clamped between the two clamping units (3, 4) via oppositely arranged panel edges (6, 7) of the cladding panel (2).

Description

Technical field

[0001] The invention relates to a device for supporting at least one cladding panel which can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor, comprising at least two clamping units and at least one adjusting device which is connected to the two clamping units and with which a distance between the two clamping units can be varied in such a way that the cladding panel can be clamped between the two clamping units via oppositely arranged panel edges of the cladding panel, wherein the adjusting device has at least one threaded rod which can be screwed into a threaded bore of one clamping unit and can be guided through a through bore on the other clamping unit, and at least one clamping component which can be screwed onto an end section of the threaded rod which is arranged on a side of the clamping unit provided with the through bore which is remote from the clamping unit provided with the threaded bore. State of the art

[0002] When installing cladding panels, such as tiles, which are to be attached to a wall or floor using mortar or adhesive, a mortar or adhesive is usually first applied to the back of the cladding panel, after which the cladding panel coated with the mortar or adhesive is carried to the location where the cladding panel is to be attached to the wall or floor.

[0003] It is known to use a carrying device for such a carrying process, which has at least one suction cup that can attach itself to a front side of the cladding panel that is not provided with mortar or adhesive.

[0004] For example, DE 20 2004 001 014 U1 discloses a tile vacuum for picking up and positioning tiles on walls and floors. A tile and the suction cup are temporarily connected by a vacuum. This connection can be released again using a push button and opening mechanism.

[0005] It has been found that the capabilities of a conventional support device with at least one suction cup can be overtaxed if the cladding panel has a rough and / or textured surface. This is because the suction cup attached to such a cladding panel is no longer completely sealed against the cladding panel, causing air to be sucked into the suction cup and the negative pressure within the suction cup to be progressively reduced in a relatively short time, sometimes within a few seconds. This can cause the suction cup to detach from the cladding panel in an uncontrolled and unpredictable manner, particularly during a carrying process.A cladding panel with a rough and / or textured surface cannot therefore be safely carried with such a conventional carrying device and there is a high risk of injury to persons and damage to the cladding panel if the cladding panel becomes detached from the suction cup and falls.

[0006] US 2004 / 0 217 532 A1 discloses a portable, adjustable workpiece holding device comprising a base support having an arcuate front view profile, a flat bottom view profile, and a top and bottom surface. A pair of opposing jaws are provided connected to the base support, at least one of the jaws being slidably mounted to the base support and having a locking mechanism disposed thereon for locking and unlocking the slidably mounted jaw in a plurality of positions along the base support.

[0007] US 2006 / 0 261 319 A1 discloses a straightening device comprising a main rod portion connected to a handle at one end and a flat steel plate at the opposite end. The flat plate consists of two shoulders formed by the curved edges of the flat plate. The shoulders can be fixed or adjustable to accommodate different material thicknesses.

[0008] CH 709 166 A2 relates to a clamping and holding tool for temporarily securing slab edge formwork panels, comprising a clamping plate that can be moved vertically relative to a support tube. Using a sliding or locking sleeve, the position of the clamping plate can also be moved parallel to the support tube.

[0009] DE 85 20 829 U1 relates to a device for adjusting the height of covers on shafts, in particular cable shafts and the like, comprising a retaining clamp with two clamping plates, in one of which a threaded hole for a threaded rod is arranged and in the other of which a through hole with a larger diameter than the thread diameter is arranged, wherein both clamping plates are connected by at least one expandable spring clip. Disclosure of the invention

[0010] One object of the invention is to make the carrying of cladding panels, in particular cladding panels with a rough and / or structured surface, safer.

[0011] This object is achieved by the independent patent claims. Advantageous embodiments are recited in the dependent patent claims, the following description, and the figures, wherein these embodiments, each taken individually or in combination of at least two of these embodiments, may represent an advantageous and / or further developing aspect of the invention. Advantageous embodiments of the device may correspond to advantageous embodiments of the method, and vice versa, even if this is not explicitly referred to below.

[0012] A device according to the invention for supporting at least one cladding panel that can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor has at least two clamping units and at least one adjusting device connected to the two clamping units, wherein the adjusting device can vary a distance between the two clamping units such that the cladding panel can be clamped between the two clamping units via oppositely arranged panel edges of the cladding panel, wherein the adjusting device has at least one threaded rod that can be screwed into a threaded bore of one clamping unit and can be guided through a through-bore on the other clamping unit, and at least one clamping component that can be screwed onto an end section of the threaded rod that is arranged on a side of the clamping unit provided with the through-bore that is remote from the clamping unit provided with the threaded bore,wherein the clamping component has at least one nut which can be screwed onto the end section of the threaded rod and at least one grip sleeve which is axially connected to the nut on a side of the nut facing away from the clamping unit provided with the through-bore, is connected to the nut in a rotationally fixed manner and can be slipped onto the end section.

[0013] The invention provides a device that can be coupled to the cladding panel to be supported by a clamping process, i.e., a mechanical connection, without the conventional use of a suction cup. Thus, a mechanical connection can be established between the device according to the invention and the cladding panel clamped thereto, whereby this mechanical connection is independent of whether the cladding panel has a rough and / or structured surface or not. This also makes it possible, in particular, for larger or heavier cladding panels with a rough and / or structured surface to be securely supported using the device according to the invention.

[0014] The two clamping units can be displaced relative to one another, preferably linearly, by means of the adjustment device. Upon actuation of the adjustment device, at least one of the two clamping units is displaced while the other clamping unit remains stationary, or both clamping units are displaced relative to one another, in particular toward one another, simultaneously. This allows the distance between the two clamping units to be varied, which can also enable the device to be adapted to cladding panels of different sizes.

[0015] By means of the two clamping units, the respective cladding panel can be clamped between the two clamping units in such a way that the clamping forces generated by the two clamping units act on oppositely arranged panel edges of the cladding panel and lie or act in one extension plane of the cladding panel.

[0016] The through-hole of the other clamping unit does not have an internal thread, so that the clamping unit provided with the through-hole, when plugged onto the threaded rod, can be guided along the threaded rod in a linearly displaceable manner. The clamping unit provided with the through-hole can therefore also be referred to as a movable or free clamping unit. The threaded hole can be designed as a threaded through-hole, so that the threaded rod can be guided through the clamping unit provided with the threaded hole, such that an end section of the threaded rod protrudes from the latter clamping unit on a side of the clamping unit provided with the threaded hole facing away from the clamping unit provided with the through-hole. The clamping component can have a threaded hole, in particular a threaded through-hole, into which the threaded rod can be screwed.The clamping component can be partially or completely sleeve-shaped. The clamping component can be partially or completely made of a metal or a metal alloy, in particular stainless steel. By actuating the clamping component, in particular manually, while it is in contact with the clamping unit having the through-bore, this clamping unit can be displaced linearly along the threaded rod in the direction of the other clamping unit, into whose threaded bore the threaded rod is screwed, in order to thus clamp the cladding panel between the two clamping units. The clamping component can be designed to be actuated manually and / or by means of a tool. In one embodiment, the clamping component can be used to support the device with a cladding panel clamped thereto.In this case, the device can additionally have at least one support unit, for example sleeve-shaped, which can be arranged on the end section of the threaded rod that protrudes from the clamping unit provided with the threaded bore. This support unit can then be used in addition to the clamping component to support the device and a cladding panel arranged thereon, in particular for carrying by two people. By appropriately selecting the length of the threaded rod, the device can be adapted to different dimensions of the cladding panel to be supported. For example, the device can thus be used to support cladding panels with dimensions aligned parallel to the threaded rod, which can, for example, be in a range of 30 cm to 3 m.

[0017] The grip sleeve preferably has an axial length such that it can be grasped or gripped with all fingers of one hand simultaneously. This allows the clamping component to be operated without tools or purely manually. The grip sleeve can be designed without an internal thread.

[0018] The device according to the invention can be used, in particular, for supporting at least one cladding panel in the form of a wall tile or floor tile that can be arranged on a wall and / or floor. The device according to the invention can also be referred to as a support device, in particular a cladding panel support device. Cladding panels of any size can be supported with the device according to the invention, for example, even square cladding panels with sides of up to 3 m.

[0019] A further object of the invention is a use of the device according to the invention for supporting at least one cladding panel which can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor.

[0020] According to an advantageous embodiment, each clamping unit has a horizontally alignable support surface onto which a respective edge section of the cladding panel can be placed, wherein the support surfaces are arranged in a common plane. As a result, the cladding panel can not only be clamped between the clamping units, but can also be gripped around the edges and thus supported or carried from below or the floor. This makes carrying the cladding panel even safer. At the same time, the clamping forces required by the clamping units and the adjustment device can be lower than in the case where no corresponding support surfaces are present on the clamping units. The respective support surface can extend over part of the length of the edge section of the cladding panel that can be placed on the support surface, or over the entire length of this edge section.Accordingly, the respective wing can have a length running parallel to the edge section, which can, for example, range from 20 cm to 3 m. The cladding panel can, for example, first be brought into contact with the wings, after which the adjustment device can be actuated to clamp the cladding panel, which is in contact with the wings or resting on the wings, between the clamping units.

[0021] According to a further advantageous embodiment, at least one clamping unit has at least one base-side bend that projects toward the other clamping unit, and whose upper side, facing away from the base, forms the supporting surface. The bend can be formed, for example, on a component of the clamping unit, for example by bending the component, in particular at a right angle, which can be formed from a sheet metal, in particular stainless steel sheet, or the like. Both clamping units can also each be equipped with at least one corresponding base-side bend.

[0022] According to a further advantageous embodiment, a rubber layer is arranged at least partially on an outer surface of the grip sleeve. This increases the friction between the grip sleeve and a hand or glove, allowing larger torques to be transferred from the hand to the grip sleeve without having to significantly increase the gripping force. The device can therefore generate relatively large clamping forces for clamping or clamping the cladding panel with relatively little effort. The rubber layer can be formed, for example, by a rubber sleeve fitted over the grip sleeve.

[0023] According to a further advantageous embodiment, the device has at least one handling tube which can be plugged onto the threaded rod, one end section of which is provided with an external thread which can be screwed into a threaded blind bore on the clamping unit provided with the threaded bore and the other end section of which is guided axially displaceably in a blind bore of the clamping unit provided with the through-bore, wherein the threaded blind bore is arranged on a side of the threaded bore facing the clamping unit provided with the through-bore and has a larger inner diameter than the threaded bore and wherein the blind bore is arranged on a side of the through-bore facing the clamping unit provided with the threaded bore and has a larger inner diameter than the through-bore.The end section of the handling tube provided with the external thread can be screwed into the threaded blind bore, for example until an axial end of the handling tube abuts against the bottom of the threaded blind bore. The bottom of the threaded blind bore can be annular. The bottom of the threaded blind bore can be formed on a circumferential shoulder, via which the threaded blind bore can merge into the threaded bore. The other end section of the handling tube not provided with an external thread can be guided axially or linearly and freely displaceably in the blind bore on the clamping unit provided with the through bore. The bottom of the blind bore can be annular. The bottom of the blind bore can be formed on a circumferential shoulder, via which the blind bore can merge into the through bore. The device with the cladding plate arranged thereon can be carried orbe handled by grasping the handling pipe or its accessible pipe section arranged between the two clamping units with one hand. By appropriately selecting the length of the handling pipe, the device can be adapted to different dimensions of the cladding panel to be supported. For example, the device can be used to support cladding panels with dimensions aligned parallel to the threaded rod, which can, for example, be in a range of 30 cm to 3 m. The blind hole and / or the threaded blind hole preferably has a depth or axial length of at least 20 mm in order to be able to create a robust connection between the clamping units and the handling pipe.

[0024] According to a further advantageous embodiment, at least one clamping unit has a material block on which the respective bores are formed, and at least one metal sheet, wherein the metal sheet is arranged on the material block in such a way that a through-bore formed on the metal sheet is arranged coaxially to the two bores of the clamping unit, wherein an inner diameter of the through-bore formed on the metal sheet is greater than or equal to the inner diameter of the bore of the clamping unit arranged adjacent to this through-bore, and wherein the base-side bend of the clamping unit is formed by a bend in the metal sheet. By using a solid material block, the clamping unit is very durable and robust, so that it can also absorb relatively large forces, in particular clamping forces. Alternatively, a hollow body can be provided instead of the material block, which would reduce the weight of the clamping unit.Both clamping units can also be designed accordingly, in particular identically. The two sheets can also be designed identically, for example. Using identical parts reduces the costs of manufacturing the device. The material block and / or the sheet metal arranged on it can, for example, be made partially or entirely of stainless steel.

[0025] In the following, the invention is explained by way of example with reference to the attached figures using a preferred embodiment, wherein the features explained below can represent an advantageous and / or further developing aspect of the invention both individually and in different combinations with one another. Short description of the characters

[0026] It shows: Fig. 1 a schematic sectional view of an embodiment of a device according to the invention; Fig. 2 a schematic side view of a clamping unit of the Fig. 1 shown device; and Fig. 3 a schematic view of the Fig. 1 shown device from above (top view). Detailed description of the characters

[0027] In the figures, identical or functionally identical components are provided with the same reference numerals. A repeated description of such components may be omitted in detail to avoid unnecessary repetition.

[0028] Fig. 1 shows a schematic sectional view of an embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention for supporting at least one cladding panel 2 which can be arranged on a wall (not shown) and / or a floor (not shown).

[0029] The device 1 has two clamping units 3 and 4 and an adjusting device 5 connected to the two clamping units 3 and 4. With the adjusting device 5, a distance between the two clamping units 3 and 4 can be varied such that the cladding panel 2 can be clamped between the two clamping units 2 and 3 via oppositely arranged panel edges 6 and 7 of the cladding panel 2.

[0030] Each clamping unit 2 or 3 has a horizontally aligned support surface 8 or 9, onto which a respective edge section of the cladding panel 2 is placed. The two support surfaces 8 and 9 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing. Fig. 1 standing common level.

[0031] Each clamping unit 2 or 3 has a bottom-side bend 10 or 11, which projects in the direction of the other clamping unit 3 or 2 and whose top side, away from the bottom, forms the respective supporting surface 8 or 9.

[0032] The adjusting device 5 has a threaded rod 12 which is screwed into a threaded bore 13 of the clamping unit 4 and is guided through a through bore 14 on the clamping unit 3.

[0033] Furthermore, the adjusting device 5 has a clamping component 15 which can be screwed onto an end section of the threaded rod 12, which is arranged on a side of the clamping unit 3 provided with the through-bore 14 facing away from the clamping unit 4 provided with the threaded bore 13.

[0034] The clamping component 15 has a nut 16 screwed onto the end portion of the threaded rod 12. Furthermore, the clamping component 15 has a grip sleeve 17 axially adjoining the nut 16 on a side of the nut 16 facing away from the clamping unit 3 provided with the through-bore 14, connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the nut 16, and slipped onto the end portion of the threaded rod 12. A rubber layer (not shown) can be arranged at least partially on an outer surface 18 of the grip sleeve 17.

[0035] The device 1 also has a handling tube 19 which is attached to the threaded rod 12. An end section, namely the Fig. 1 The end section of the handling tube 19 shown on the left is provided with an external thread (not shown) that is screwed into a threaded blind bore 20 on the clamping unit 4 provided with the threaded bore 13. The other end section of the handling tube 19 is axially displaceably guided in a blind bore 21 of the clamping unit 3 provided with the through bore 14. The handling tube 19 can be made of stainless steel.

[0036] The threaded blind bore 20 is arranged on a side of the threaded bore 13 facing the clamping unit 3 provided with the through bore 14 and has a larger inner diameter than the threaded bore 13. Between the threaded bore 13 and the threaded blind bore 20, a circumferential shoulder 22 is arranged, via which the threaded bore 13 merges into the threaded blind bore 20 and which forms an annular bottom of the threaded blind bore 20.

[0037] The blind bore 21 is arranged on a side of the through-bore 14 facing the clamping unit 4 provided with the threaded bore 13 and has a larger inner diameter than the through-bore 14. Between the through-bore 14 and the blind bore 21, a circumferential shoulder 23 is arranged, via which the through-bore 14 merges into the blind bore 21 and which forms an annular bottom of the blind bore 21.

[0038] Each clamping unit 3 or 4 has a material block 25 or 24, respectively, on which the respective bores 14 and 21, or 13 and 20, respectively, are formed. The respective material block 24 or 25 is solid, for example, made of stainless steel.

[0039] In addition, each clamping unit 3 or 4 has a sheet 27 or 26, which is fixed to the respective material block 25 or 24 via four screw connections 28, of which Fig. 1, only two screw connections 28 are shown. The respective sheet 26 or 27 is arranged on the respective material block 24 or 25 in such a way that a through-bore 29 formed on the respective sheet 26 or 27 is arranged coaxially to the two further bores 13 and 20 or 14 and 21 of the respective clamping unit 4 or 3. An inner diameter of the through-bore 29 formed on the respective sheet 26 or 27 is greater than or equal to the inner diameter of the bore 14 or 13 of the respective clamping unit 3 or 4 arranged adjacent to this through-bore 29.

[0040] The screw connections 28 of the respective clamping unit 3 or 4 can be loosened to adapt the device 1 to different purposes. Subsequently, the respective sheet 27 or 26 can be detached from the respective material block sheets 25 or 24 and rotated by 180° around an imaginary vertical axis, so that the respective bend 11 or 10 can be adjusted to the Fig. 1. In this state, the sheet metal 27 or 26 can then be fastened again to the respective material block 25 or 24 by means of the screw connections 28. The device 1 can then be used to carry the cladding panel 2 without the cladding panel 2 being supported on the ground by means of the device 1. The cladding panel 2 is then fixed or held on the device 1 solely by the clamping force applied by the device 1. This has the advantage that the cladding panel 2 can then be laid down at the respective installation location directly next to an already installed cladding panel 2 by loosening the device 1 or thereby releasing the cladding panel 2.

[0041] The base-side bend 10 or 11 of the respective clamping unit 4 or 3 is formed by a right-angled base-side bend of the respective sheet 26 or 27, whereby the respective sheet 26 or 27 is thereby L-shaped. The respective sheet 26 or 27 can be made of stainless steel.

[0042] Fig. 2 shows a schematic side view of a clamping unit 3 of the Fig. 1 shown device 1. In particular, the four screw connections 28 are shown, via which the sheet 27 is connected to the covertly arranged behind the sheet 27 and therefore in Fig. 2 is connected to the material block 25 indicated only by a dashed line. The bottom-side bend 11 of the clamping unit 3 is also Fig. 2 is arranged in a hidden manner and is therefore only indicated by a dashed line.

[0043] Fig. 3 shows a schematic view of the Fig. 1 from above (top view). Concealed features and / or components and / or component sections of the device 1 that are essential for the clamping function of the device 1 are shown in Fig. 3 indicated by dashed lines. List of reference symbols 1 device 2 cladding panels 3 clamping unit 4 clamping unit 5 Adjustment device 6 platemark of 2 7 platemark of 2 8 wing area of ​​4 9 wing area of ​​3 10 bottom-side bending of 4 11 bottom-side bending of 3 12 threaded rod 13 threaded hole 14 Through hole 15 clamping component 16 mother of 15 17 grip sleeves of 15 18 outer surface of 17 19 Handling tube 20 threaded blind hole 21 Blind hole 22 Shoulder between 13 and 20 23 Shoulder between 14 and 21 24 material block of 4 25 material block of 3 26 sheets of 4 27 sheets of 3 28 screw connection 29 Through hole at 26, 27

Claims

[1] Device (1) for supporting at least one cladding panel (2) which can be arranged on a wall and / or a floor, comprising at least two clamping units (3, 4) and at least one adjusting device (5) connected to the two clamping units (3, 4), with which a distance between the two clamping units (3, 4) can be varied in such a way that the cladding panel (2) can be clamped between the two clamping units (3, 4) via oppositely arranged panel edges (6, 7) of the cladding panel (2), wherein the adjusting device (5) comprises at least one threaded rod (12) which can be screwed into a threaded bore (13) of one clamping unit (4) and can be guided through a through bore (14) on the other clamping unit (3), and at least one on an end section of the threaded rod (12),which is arranged on a side of the clamping unit (3) provided with the through-bore (14) facing away from the clamping unit (4) provided with the threaded bore (13), has a screw-on clamping component (15), , characterized by that the clamping component (15) has at least one nut (16) which can be screwed onto the end section of the threaded rod (12) and at least one grip sleeve (17) which is axially connected to the nut (16) on a side of the nut (16) facing away from the clamping unit (3) provided with the through-bore (14), is connected to the nut (16) in a rotationally fixed manner and can be slipped onto the end section. [2] Device (1) according to claim 1, characterized by that each clamping unit (3, 4) has a horizontally alignable support surface (8, 9) on which a respective edge section of the cladding panel (2) can be placed, wherein the support surfaces (8, 9) are arranged in a common plane. [3] Device (1) according to claim 2, characterized bythat at least one clamping unit (3, 4) has at least one bottom-side bend (10, 11) which projects in the direction of the other clamping unit (3, 4) and whose top side remote from the bottom forms the supporting surface (8, 9). [4] Device (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized by that a rubber layer is arranged at least partially on an outer surface (18) of the grip sleeve (17). [5] Device (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized byat least one handling tube (19) which can be plugged onto the threaded rod (12), one end section of which is provided with an external thread which can be screwed into a threaded blind bore (20) on the clamping unit (4) provided with the threaded bore (13), and the other end section of which is guided axially displaceably in a blind bore (21) of the clamping unit (3) provided with the through-bore (14), wherein the threaded blind bore (20) is arranged on a side of the threaded bore (13) facing the clamping unit (3) provided with the through-bore (14) and has a larger internal diameter than the threaded bore (13), and wherein the blind bore (21) is arranged on a side of the through-bore (14) facing the clamping unit (4) provided with the threaded bore (13) and has a larger internal diameter than the through-bore (14). [6] Device (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized bythat at least one clamping unit (3, 4) has a material block (24, 25) on which the respective bores (13, 20; 14, 21) are formed, and at least one sheet (26, 27), wherein the sheet (26, 27) is arranged on the material block (24, 25) in such a way that a through-bore (29) formed on the sheet (26, 27) is arranged coaxially to the two bores (13, 20; 14, 21) of the clamping unit (3, 4), wherein an inner diameter of the through-bore (29) formed on the sheet (26, 27) is greater than or equal to the inner diameter of the bore (13, 14) of the clamping unit (3, 4) arranged adjacent to this through-bore (29), and wherein the bottom-side bend (10, 11) of the clamping unit (3, 4) is formed by bending the sheet metal (26, 27).

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