Rail for the hanging and movable support of wall elements, especially on a seagoing vessel
A one-piece metal or plastic rail with lateral indentations and undercut sections addresses the challenge of high load accommodation and dirt prevention in wall element systems, ensuring secure attachment and cleanliness on seagoing ships.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- DE202024103569
- Authority / Receiving Office
- DE · DE
- Patent Type
- Utility models
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-07-01
- Publication Date
- 2024-12-19
- Estimated Expiration
- 2034-07-31
AI Technical Summary
Existing rail systems for hanging and moving wall elements on seagoing ships face challenges in accommodating high loads while maintaining simplicity in manufacture and preventing dirt ingress and ensuring secure attachment.
A one-piece metal or plastic rail with lateral indentations for roller support, incorporating undercut sections for brushes and slots for secure attachment, and grooves for alignment, designed to withstand high loads and prevent dirt ingress.
The solution provides a robust, easy-to-manufacture rail system that supports high loads, ensures secure attachment, and prevents dirt ingress, enhancing the durability and cleanliness of the wall element movement system.
Smart Images
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Abstract
Description
[0001] The invention relates to a rail for the hanging and movable support of wall elements, preferably for forming a wall, in particular on a seagoing vessel, wherein the wall elements are equipped with rollers.
[0002] Walls can be formed from wall elements by placing them together. The wall elements can also be glass elements, allowing individual glass elements to form a glass wall. Such glass walls are used particularly on ocean-going vessels to open or close lounge or living areas to the outside.
[0003] Such wall elements, especially on seagoing vessels, can be subject to forces from wind loads and precipitation. Added to this is the relatively high mass of the wall elements, especially if they are made of glass or predominantly of glass.
[0004] Rail systems have already been proposed for handling and picking up such wall elements. The rails for such rail systems can be attached to ceilings, for example, to foundation slabs, and the wall elements then hang from the rails. The wall elements then typically have rollers on their upper edges, allowing them to rest on sections of the rail.
[0005] The invention is based on the object of providing a rail of the type mentioned at the outset which can absorb high loads while being simple to manufacture.
[0006] This object is achieved according to the invention in that the rail has support surfaces for rollers and is made in one piece from a metal or a plastic.
[0007] The single-piece design of the rail simplifies its production. The rail does not require multiple components to be assembled; it can be made of metal or plastic. It still provides support surfaces for the wall element's rollers.
[0008] The rail can be made of aluminum or a metal alloy. Especially for the installation of such a rail on a seagoing vessel, a seaworthy aluminum or a seaworthy metal alloy can be used.
[0009] The rail preferably has lateral recesses in vertical section to accommodate the rollers. The rollers can protrude laterally from the wall elements or from structures connected to the wall elements and thus protrude into lateral recesses in the rail. The rollers then rest on a section of the rail, allowing the wall elements to be moved.
[0010] In vertical section, the rail has a narrow section at the level of the lateral recesses. Below this narrow section is a widened section with undercut sections. Brushes can be inserted into these undercut sections, which, when rails according to the invention are arranged parallel to one another, span the distance between two adjacent rails. The wall elements can be guided through these brushes; the brushes enclose the sections of the wall elements that have been guided through them, preventing dirt from penetrating the area of the support surfaces for the rollers and the rollers.
[0011] According to a further development of the invention, it is provided that the rail also has undercut sections in a widespread area above the indentations.
[0012] The rail preferably also has undercut sections in an upper end face. T-nuts can be inserted into these undercut sections and attached to the foundation slab or a room ceiling. The rail itself is thus attached to a foundation slab, for example.
[0013] The rail can also preferably have undercut sections in the lower end face. Covers for the rail can be inserted into these undercut sections using suitable T-nuts.
[0014] A further development of the invention provides that each undercut section comprises a recess in the transformation of the rail.
[0015] Furthermore, it can be provided that recesses are arranged in the surface of the rail on both sides of the undercut section. The rail can be guided along provided projections with these grooves during installation, thus securing its position.
[0016] Grooves can be provided in the individual undercut sections to facilitate the insertion of drilling tools.
[0017] An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the drawing. It shows: Fig. 1 a sectional view of a rail according to the invention for receiving wall elements, Fig. 2 a sectional view of a foundation plate with five rails according to Fig. 1 and with partial views of wall elements.
[0018] The rail in Fig. 1 is formed in one piece, for example from aluminum. It has lateral recesses 1. These recesses 1 create a widened area 2 below the recesses 1 and a widened area 3 above the recesses 1. Each of these areas 2, 3 has undercut sections 4, 4'. The upper and lower end faces of the rail also have undercut sections 5 and 6. Each undercut section 4, 4', 5, 6 comprises a recess in the wall of the rail.
[0019] Recesses 7 are recessed into the surface of the rail on both sides of the undercut section 5. A groove 8 is recessed into each undercut section 4, 4', 5, 6 and into each recess 7.
[0020] Fig. Figure 2 shows the foundation plate 9, to which five rails according to the invention are attached via sliding blocks 10. Each sliding block 10 is inserted into an undercut section 5 of the rails. The rails are aligned parallel to each other and brought close to each other; in the spaces between the rails, installation spaces 11 are arranged for the passage of cables or drive elements for the wall elements 12.
[0021] The wall elements 12 are suspended from the rails via rollers 13. Each wall element 12 is guided via a structure 14 between two adjacent rails. The structure has rollers 13 on both sides that rest on the adjacent rails. The rollers 13 protrude into the recesses 1 of the rails and are supported by the lower, widened areas 2 of both rails.
[0022] Fig.Figure 2 shows that undercut sections 4' arranged in the lower widened area 2 are filled with brushes 15 which are opposite each other in the case of two adjacent rails and bridge the distance between the rails.
[0023] T-nuts 16 are also inserted into the undercut sections 6 in the lower end faces of the rails. These T-nuts 16 carry a cover 17 for the rail. Additional T-nuts can be inserted into the undercut sections 4, 6 and secured with grub screws, which are then available for further use when the rail is deployed.
Claims
[1] Rail for the hanging and movable support of wall elements, preferably for forming a wall, in particular on a seagoing vessel, wherein the wall elements are aligned with rollers, characterized by that the rail has support surfaces for rollers (13) and is made in one piece from a metal or a plastic. [2] Rail according to claim 1, characterized by that it is made of aluminum or a metal alloy. [3] Rail according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that in vertical section it has lateral indentations (1) for receiving the rollers (13). [4] Rail according to claim 3, characterized by that it has undercut sections (4') in a widened area (2) below the indentations (1). [5] Rail according to claim 4, characterized by that brushes (15) are inserted into the undercut sections (4') of the widened area (2). [6] Rail according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized by that it has undercut sections (4) in a widened area (3) above the indentations (1). [7] Rail according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it has undercut sections (5) in an upper end face. [8] Rail according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that it has undercut sections (6) in a lower end face. [9] Rail according to one of claims 4 to 8, characterized by that each undercut section (4, 4', 5, 6) comprises a recess in the wall of the rail. [10] Rail according to one of claims 7 to 9, characterized by that in the upper end face on both sides of the undercut (5) there are recesses (7) in the surface. [11] Rail according to one of claims 6 to 9, characterized bythat grooves (8) are arranged in the surface of the lower end face on both sides of the undercut (6). [12] Rail according to one of claims 8 to 10, characterized by that in each recess (7) and in each undercut section (4, 4', 5, 6) at least one groove (8) is arranged in the surface.