Universal tray for laying tiles or paving stones

Abstract

Title: A tray intended for use in laying tiles, comprising a back wall and a side wall defining a lateral envelope of the tray extending all around the back wall, so as to define an interior space open at the top, is characterized in that an intermediate wall, in particular vertical, is mounted in the interior space so as to divide it into two interior sub-spaces, each open at the top, at least one spacer, preferably a plurality of spacers being received in one of the two sub-spaces and at least one wedge, preferably a plurality of wedges being received in the other of the two sub-spaces. Figure for the abbreviation: Fig. 1

Description

Title of the invention: Universal tray for laying tiles or paving stones

[0001] The present invention relates to a tray intended to be used for laying tiles or paving stones.

[0002] Typically, when laying tiles, a tiler uses a rinsing tray with a horizontally mounted grid, positioned away from the bottom of the tray. The grid is immersed in a cleaning liquid, typically water collected in the tray. The tiler can thus clean a sponge that was previously used to collect or remove excess grout between two adjacent tiles during the grouting process. The sponge can be pressed against the grid. Typically, the tiler wipes the grout on the floor with the sponge, presses the sponge against the grid immersed in the cleaning liquid, typically water, and then wrings the sponge out on rotating rollers, usually positioned at the top of the tray.

[0003] The preliminary operation of grouting the tiles does not require the use of this rinsing tray. To position two adjacent or contiguous tiles at exactly the same height, it is known to use a system of spacers and wedges or a system of spacers and dials. A spacer in a system of spacers and wedges consists of a horizontal base and a separating plate with a window, the separating plate extending perpendicularly from the base, substantially from the middle of the latter. The spacer is positioned between two tiles so that its base is overlapped by the two tiles on either side of the separating plate, the latter projecting beyond the upper surface of the tiles so that its window can be passed through by a wedge pushed through it along the upper surface of the two tiles.A wedge-shaped piece of chamfered wood is inserted into the part of the window that extends above the panes. This wedge is pressed increasingly firmly into the window, thereby exerting increasing pressure on the panes to level them. A crossbar in a system of crossbars and dials consists of a horizontal base and a separating plate from the upper edge of which a threaded rod protrudes. The separating plate extends perpendicularly from the base, approximately from its midpoint. The crossbar is positioned between two panes so that its base is overlapped by the two panes on either side of the separating plate. The latter protrudes beyond the upper surface of the panes, creating a dial roughly in the shape of a cone, terminated at its apex by a... The threaded bore can then cover the crossbar, the crossbar's stem being received in the bore and the lower edge of the cone bearing against the tiles to be leveled. The bore is then screwed more and more tightly into the threaded stem, thus exerting increasing pressure on the tiles, thereby leveling them.

[0004] For laying tiles, the tiler must therefore have on hand a container containing spacers, a container containing wedges or dials, a container containing tools, including pliers to press the wedge into the spacer or screw the dial into the threaded rod, as well as a hammer and / or a trowel and / or a spatula, and a rinsing tray.

[0005] We would like to simplify the work of the tiler, and in particular reduce the amount of material he has to carry with him during a tiling operation, especially from the moment the tiles are laid on the floor until the moment the grout is washed.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the invention, a tray intended to be used for laying tiles or ceramic tiles, comprising a bottom wall and a side wall defining a lateral envelope of the tray by extending all around the bottom wall, so as to define an interior space open on the top, is characterized in that an intermediate wall, in particular vertical, is mounted in the interior space so as to separate it into two interior sub-spaces each open on the top, at least one cross member, preferably a plurality of cross members being received in one of the two sub-spaces and at least one wedge or dial, preferably a plurality of wedges or dials being received in the other of the two sub-spaces.

[0007] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the intermediate wall is mounted removably relative to the tray.

[0008] Preferably, means are provided for maintaining the removable intermediate wall in a first position, in particular vertically, in which it separates the interior space into two sub-spaces open at the top, and means for maintaining the removable intermediate wall in a second position, in particular substantially horizontally, in which it is at a distance from the bottom wall of the tank.

[0009] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the removable intermediate wall is in the form of a grid, thus allowing the tray to be used as a rinsing tray for squeezing the sponge, for cleaning excess grout, in particular after using the same tray to transport spacers and wedges or dials for leveling the tiles along the surface to be tiled.

[0010] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, means are provided for fixing, in particular in a removable manner, rotating rollers to the upper edge of the tray.

[0011] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, means are provided for holding tools suspended from the tray, in particular a mallet and / or a trowel and / or a glue comb and / or a pair of pliers.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, these holding means consist of a wire sufficiently rigid to be self-supporting and sufficiently flexible to be reversibly deformable, for example a metal or plastic wire, fixed so as to extend substantially along at least a part of the upper edge of the side wall of the tray, preferably at a small distance outside of it, the distance being small in the sense that it allows the passage between the wire and the tray of a part of the held tool and does not allow the passage of another part of the held tool, so as to ensure the holding by suspension of the tool between the wire and the side wall of the tray.

[0013] Preferably, the wire is mounted in the manner of a loop, being fixed at two points at a distance from each other from the outer surface of the side wall of the tank, in particular in two positions opposite each other, and a stop from the wire bears against the upper edge of the side wall of the tank, so as to prevent the wire from passing below this upper edge and thus allow the wire to be kept at a distance from the side wall of the tank.

[0014] In particular, the stop from the wire is a part of the wire bent twice into a U shape, the concavity of which is turned towards the outside of the tray.

[0015] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the container is mounted on casters, in particular on at least two casters.

[0016] According to a favorable embodiment, the container has two wheels, in particular rear, and two skids on the opposite side.

[0017] According to another favorable embodiment, the container has four casters, in particular two unidirectional casters at the rear and two multidirectional casters at the front.

[0018] By way of example, a preferred embodiment of the invention is now described by reference to the drawings, in which:

[0019] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a tank according to the invention;

[0020] Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the tank in Fig. 1 used in its rinsing tank position;

[0021] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a tank according to the invention;

[0022] Fig.4 is a view substantially identical to Fig.2 of the tray in Fig.3;

[0023] Fig. 5 represents in succession the six steps carried out by the tiler with spacers, wedges and wedge pliers when laying tiles for leveling;

[0024] Figure 6 shows the four stages of wiping the joint, the last stage during which the tray according to the invention is used; and

[0025] Fig. 7 represents a system of crossbars and dials.

[0026] In [Fig. 1], a container 1 of substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape comprises a bottom wall 2, two front and rear walls 3, 4, and two left and right lateral walls 5, 6. The front, rear, left, and right walls form a lateral envelope extending all around the bottom wall 2, so as to define with it a receiving space open at the top. A rectangular grid-shaped plate 7 is removably received into the interior space by being held vertically, substantially in the middle, so as to define two interior sub-spaces, each open at the top, on either side of itself.

[0027] For retaining the plate 7, two longitudinal grooves 8 are formed in the inner surface of the two left and right lateral walls 5 and 6, extending vertically and substantially complementary in shape to the field of the plate 7. However, a single groove, sufficiently deep, could also be used to retain the grid vertically. The arrangement is such that, in the vertical position, the plate 7 is received in the two grooves 8, thus ensuring vertical retention of the grid-shaped plate 7.

[0028] Similarly, a shoulder 9 extends peripherally along the inner surface of the side casing of the tank over a major portion of this surface, specifically over more than half of the peripheral extent of each of the two left and right side walls and over the entire peripheral extent of the front wall. The dimensions of the shoulder 9 and the plate 7, respectively, are such that the plate 7 abuts against the shoulder 9, thus being held horizontally in a position at a distance from the bottom wall 2, allowing the tank to be used as a rinsing tank for cleaning excess sealant. In this position, the grid covers approximately 70% of the surface of the bottom wall 2.

[0029] A handle 10 is pivotally mounted on both sides 3 and 4 front and rear of the tray, and can pivot freely to come over the tray for its transport and in particular its lifting, or underneath, as shown in [Fig.1], when it is not necessary to transport the tray, in particular when it is not necessary to lift it.

[0030] On the other hand, a metallic wire 11 (but which could be made of another material as long as it is rigid enough to hold its own, but flexible enough to be reversibly deformed, for example made of plastic) is also mounted pivoting on both sides of the two front and rear sides 3 and 4 of the tray. The wire 11 extends along the periphery of the upper edge of the side envelope of the tray and has a part 12 bent twice into a U, which butts against the upper edge of the tray to prevent the wire 11 from passing under this upper edge.

[0031] When this U-shaped portion 12 of the wire 11 comes against the upper peripheral edge of the tray, the wire 11 is held substantially at the same level as the upper edge, at a short distance from it, so that it is possible to insert part of a tool such as a mallet handle, while the other part of the tool, for example the anvil, cannot pass between the tray and the wire, thus allowing it to be suspended from the tray, thereby enabling the tool in question to be transported. This function can be seen in particular in the embodiment shown in [Fig. 3].

[0032] On the other hand, when the grid is positioned horizontally, as shown in [Fig. 2], rollers 15 can be added to the upper part of the tray to allow the grout cleaning sponge to be wrung out. This roller option is described in both the embodiment of [Fig. 2] and that of [Fig. 4].

[0033] In Figures 1 and 2, the embodiment shown comprises two unidirectional wheels 16 at the rear and two skids 17 at the front. In the embodiments of Figures 3 and 4, two unidirectional wheels 16 are provided at the rear and two multidirectional wheels 18 at the front.

[0034] It would also be possible to provide only unidirectional wheels or only multidirectional wheels. However, both embodiments shown are advantageous in that they provide a good compromise between the need to compress the sponge, and therefore to have a tray that remains stable, and the need to transport the tray as one moves along the floor to be tiled.

[0035] In [Fig.5], different stages of tile laying are shown, in particular the stage of positioning spacers for a spacer and wedge system.

[0036] A cross member 100 comprises a horizontal base 101 from which extends vertically a vertical separating plate 102 pierced with at least one central window 103, having a shape allowing it to pass through to a certain point of a wedge 105 in the shape of a beveled wedge.

[0037] Conventionally, the wedge is pressed into the window 103 by a clamp 106, one of whose jaws bears against one side of the vertical plate 102 and the other jaw bears against one side of the wedge opposite the vertical plate 102, so as to press the wedge more and more against the two adjacent tiles and between which the crossbar has been placed with its vertical plate which separates the two tiles by bearing against each of them, so as to ensure that they are at the same level.

[0038] In [Fig.7], a cross-dial pair of a cross and dial system is shown.

[0039] A cross brace 200 comprises a horizontal base (not visible in the figure because it is hidden by the overlapping tiles) from which a vertical separating plate 202 extends from the upper edge, from which a central threaded rod 203 projects vertically. A conical dial 205 has at its apex a bore 206 which fits onto the threaded rod 203, the cone defining an internal space within it allowing the plate 202 to be covered. The threaded bore is then screwed as tightly as possible around the rod so as to press the lower edge of the cone against the tiles to be leveled.

[0040] Once the tiles are firmly pressed downwards, the vertical plate of the crossbar is simply broken, particularly at its thinned lower portion, as seen in [Fig. 5]. [Fig. 6] shows various stages of use of the bucket according to the invention, in its rinsing basin configuration.

Claims

Demands

1. Assembly comprising a tray (1) intended to be used for laying tiles or floor tiles, at least one spacer, preferably a plurality of spacers, and at least one wedge or dial, preferably a plurality of wedges or dials, the tray (1) comprising a bottom wall (2) and a side wall defining a lateral envelope of the tray extending all around the bottom wall, so as to define an interior space open on the top, characterized in that an intermediate wall (7), in particular vertical, is mounted in the interior space so as to separate it into two interior sub-spaces each open on the top, the at least one spacer, preferably the plurality of spacers being received in one of the two sub-spaces and the at least one wedge or the at least one dial, preferably the plurality of wedges or dials being received in the other of the two sub-spaces.

2. Assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the intermediate wall (7) is mounted removably relative to the tray (1).

3. Assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that it provides means for maintaining the removable intermediate wall in a first position, in particular vertically, in which it separates the interior space into two sub-spaces open on the top, and means for maintaining the removable intermediate wall in a second position, in particular substantially horizontally, at a distance from the bottom wall (2) of the tank.

4. Assembly according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the removable intermediate wall (7) is in the form of a grid, thus allowing the tray to be used as a rinsing tray for squeezing a sponge, for cleaning excess grout, in particular after using the same tray to transport spacers and wedges or dials for leveling tiles along the surface to be tiled.

5. Assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it provides means for fixing, in particular in a removable manner, rotating rollers (15) to the upper edge of the tray.

6. Assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it provides means for keeping suspended from the tray tools, including a mallet and / or a trowel and / or a glue comb and / or pliers.

7. Assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that the means for holding tools suspended from the tray consist of a wire (11) sufficiently rigid to be self-supporting and sufficiently flexible to be reversibly deformable, for example a metal or plastic wire, fixed so as to extend substantially along at least a part of the upper edge of the side wall of the tray, preferably at a small distance outside of it, the distance being small in the sense that it allows the passage between the wire and the tray of a part of the held tool and does not allow the passage of another part of the held tool, so as to ensure the holding by suspension of the tool between the wire and the side wall of the tray.

8. Assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that the wire (11) is mounted in the manner of a loop, being fixed at two points at a distance from each other from the outer surface of the side wall of the container, in particular in two positions opposite each other, and a stop from the wire bears against the upper edge of the side wall of the container, so as to prevent the wire from passing below this upper edge and thus allow the wire to be kept at a distance from the side wall of the container.

9. Assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the stop from the wire is a part (12) of the wire bent twice into a U shape, the concavity of which is turned outwards from the tray.

10. Assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the tray (1) has two wheels (16), in particular rear, and two skids (17) opposite.

11. Assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the container (1) has four casters, in particular two unidirectional casters (16) at the rear and two multidirectional casters (18) at the front.

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