Small palate of louver material and exterior louver

Abstract

To provide a small palate made of synthetic resin attached to an end part of a louver material, in which a drainage part of rainwater entering the inside of the louver material is not visible from the outside of the louver material and rainwater is reliably discharged to the outside of the louver material.SOLUTION: On the inner surface of a lid face part 31 for closing an end opening of a louver material 2, peripheral side wall parts 32, 32 fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the end part of the louver material 2, a projecting piece part 33 fitted to a crosspiece part 25 provided inside the back side of the louver material, and drainage grooves 34, 34 extending from both sides of the projecting piece part 33 to the end part on the side closing the back surface side of the louver material 2 are integrally provided to form a small palate 3.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a small lid attached to an end portion of a louver material constituting an exterior louver.

Background Art

[0002] Exterior louvers may be installed along the outer wall surface of a building for purposes such as hiding a space, adjusting light, or accentuating the appearance. As a louver material constituting such an exterior louver, a louver material in a form in which a surface of an aluminum profile having a substantially rectangular cross section is decorated with painting or attachment of a decorative sheet is often used.

[0003] A plurality of the louver materials are arranged horizontally and parallel to each other vertically to form a horizontally extending louver, or arranged vertically and parallel to each other horizontally to form a vertically extending louver. Small lids made of aluminum or synthetic resin are attached to the open end portions of the respective louver materials so that the end openings are closed. In the case of a vertically extending louver, round drain holes are formed in advance at the factory or at the construction site in a small lid attached to the lower end portion of each vertically extending louver material so that rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material is drained therefrom.

[0004] In addition, in a light-shielding lid attached to an end portion of a hollow member such as a synthetic resin deck material or louver material formed by extrusion molding, when the light-shielding lid is attached to the open end portion of the hollow member, a stepped portion is provided at an edge portion of the light-shielding lid that fits along the longitudinal side of the hollow member, and the hollow portion of the hollow member communicates with the outside through this stepped portion so that ventilation and drainage can be achieved (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In a vertical exterior louver installed at a high position on the outer wall surface of a building, when a person looks up from the ground, the round drain holes formed in the lower edge cover of each louver material are noticeable. Instead of forming round holes in the lower edge cover, even if a stepped portion like the aforementioned light-shielding cover is provided along the edge of the lower edge cover, drainage inside the louver material is possible. However, also in this case, when the lower edge cover is attached to the lower end of the louver material, a gap appears between the end of the louver material and the stepped portion provided on the lower edge cover. Therefore, in a vertical exterior louver installed at a high position, when looking up, the gap appearing along the lower edge of each louver material will still be noticeable. Even if the surface of the louver material is decorated, if the round holes formed in the lower edge cover are visible, the appearance of the exterior louver will be impaired.

[0007] Also, when round holes or stepped portions are provided in the lower edge cover, rainwater that has entered the louver material will be drained through the round holes to the stepped portion, that is, through the surface of the lower edge cover. The sight of rainwater running down from the surface of the lower edge cover of the louver material after the rain has stopped will make the viewer recognize that the louver material is hollow and rainwater has accumulated inside. Draining the rainwater accumulated in the louver material is preferably done on the back side of the louver material, which is less noticeable from the outside, rather than from the surface of the lower edge cover, in order to improve the appearance of the exterior louver.

[0008] In view of such problems of the prior art, the present invention aims to solve the problem that the drainage part of rainwater that has entered the louver material is not noticeable from the outside of the louver material and can reliably discharge the rainwater to the outside of the louver material in a synthetic resin lower edge cover attached to the end of the louver material.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a small lid made of synthetic resin attached to the end opening of a louver material, comprising a lid surface portion that closes the end opening of the louver material, a peripheral side wall portion that protrudes from the inner surface of the lid surface portion and fits into the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material, and a projecting piece portion that fits into a crossbar portion provided inside the back side of the louver material, characterized in that a groove portion for drainage is provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion up to the end on the side that closes the back side of the louver material.

[0010] In the small lid having the above configuration, the groove portion for drainage can be provided so as to extend from both sides of the projecting piece portion to the end on the side that closes the back side of the louver material. Also, in the small lid having the above configuration, a through hole may be formed at the base portion of the projecting piece portion, and a groove portion for drainage may be provided so as to extend from the through hole to the end on the side that closes the back side of the louver material.

[0011] The small lid having the above configuration is attached to the end of the louver material by applying the lid surface portion to the end opening of the louver material and inserting the peripheral side wall portion and the projecting piece portion protruding from the lid surface portion into the inside of the louver material. The small lid attached to the end of the louver material has the lid surface portion overlapping and closing the end opening of the louver material. The peripheral side wall portion fits into the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material, and the projecting piece portion fits into the crossbar portion of the louver material. The peripheral edge of the inner surface of the lid surface portion overlaps the peripheral edge of the end of the louver material except for the portion where the groove portion is provided, and the inside of the louver material to which the small lid is attached communicates with the outside through the groove portion provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion. The small lid can be fixed by screwing a fastening screw such as a screw from the back side of the louver material through the projecting piece portion into the crossbar portion of the louver material and screwing the projecting piece portion to the crossbar portion.

[0012] According to the small lid with the above structure, when it is attached to the lower end of the vertically extending louver material, rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material can be discharged from the groove provided on the inner surface of the lid surface to the outside of the louver material. That is, the rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material can flow down along the inner surface of the louver material to the inner surface of the lid surface of the small lid, and can be drained to the outside of the louver material through the groove provided on the inner surface of the lid surface. Since a drainage groove is provided inside the small lid, there is no need to form round holes for drainage on the lid surface. Also, since the groove is provided so as to reach the end on the side that closes the back side of the louver material of the lid surface, the groove is not noticeable when the vertically extending louver material is viewed from below, and the appearance of the exterior louver is not impaired.

[0013] In the small lid with the above structure, a drainage groove that leads to the end on the side that closes the back side of the louver material of the lid surface can be provided between the peripheral side wall portion and the projecting piece portion on the inner surface of the lid surface. The inside of the louver material is hollow, partitioned by crossbars provided inside on the back side thereof. As described above, the small lid is attached to the end opening of the louver material, with the peripheral side wall portion fitting onto the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material and the projecting piece portion fitting onto the crossbar of the louver material. Since a drainage groove is provided between the peripheral side wall portion and the projecting piece portion, rainwater that has entered the hollow inside of the louver material partitioned by the crossbars can be reliably drained to the outside of the louver material through the groove.

[0014] In the small lid with the above structure, it is preferable that a thin-walled region communicating with the drainage groove is provided on the inner surface of the lid surface. According to this, the thin-walled region provided on the inner surface of the lid surface functions like a water collecting trough that collects rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material, and the rainwater that has flowed into the thin-walled region can be drained through the groove.

[0015] As described above, when the small lid of the present invention is attached to the lower end opening of the louver material that constitutes the vertically extending exterior louver, rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material can be drained to the outside of the louver material through the groove portion formed on the inner surface of the small lid. Since the groove portion is provided such that its end is located on the back side of the louver material, the groove portion is not noticeable when looking at the lower end portion of the louver material to which the small lid is attached from below, and the appearance of the exterior louver is not impaired. In addition, the small lid of the present invention can be used as a lid for closing the ends of both vertically extending and horizontally extending louver materials, and may be attached to the left and right end openings of the louver material that constitutes the horizontally extending louver. Further, it may be used by attaching it to the end opening of the louver material of the vertically extending or horizontally extending interior louver.

Effects of the Invention

[0016] According to the small lid of the present invention, the drainage part of the rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material is not noticeable from the outside of the exterior louver, and it is possible to reliably discharge the rainwater to the outside of the louver material. Conventionally, in the case of vertically extending louvers, round holes for drainage were formed in the small lids attached to the lower end portions of the louver materials at factories or construction sites. However, by molding the small lid having a drainage part using a synthetic resin material, processing at the factory or construction site becomes unnecessary. Also, in the case of aluminum small lids, an aluminum plate was cut out and formed for each louver material to be used, resulting in high processing costs. However, synthetic resin small lids can be mass-produced with a single molding die, and the processing costs can be kept low.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0017]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0018] A preferred embodiment of the exterior louver and the small lid of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the technical idea of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0019] FIG. 1 shows the appearance of an exterior louver 1 of an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from below. As shown in the figure, this exterior louver 1 is a vertically extending louver in which a plurality of louver materials 2 made of aluminum extrusion profiles are arranged vertically, and the back side of each louver material 2 is supported by a support material 4, and a small lid 3 is attached to and closes the lower end opening of each louver material 2. Although not shown, a small lid 3 is similarly attached to and closes the upper end opening of each louver material 2. Note that the outer surfaces of the louver material 2 and the small lid 3 may be decorated by coloring with an appropriate color, attaching an uneven pattern, or attaching a decorative sheet.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2, the louver material 2 has a groove-shaped mounting portion 24 provided with inwardly bent pieces 23, 23 that are bent at right angles inwardly at the ends of the side portions 22, 22, where the side portions 22, 22 are bent rearward from both sides of the front portion 21 that is visible. A crossbar portion 25 is arranged between the inner side portions 22, 22 on the rear side and is formed in a hollow rectangular box shape. Further, a pair of screw holes 26, 27 protruding into the hollow portion are respectively provided on the inner surface of the front portion 21 facing the hollow portion of the louver material 2 and on the inner surface of the crossbar portion 25.

[0021] As shown in the same figure, the louver material 2 is attached to the support material 4 by a fixing member 5 including a fixing bracket 51 having a recess on the upper surface for engaging the bolt head, a bolt 52 which is a fastening screw, and a nut 53. That is, with the fixing bracket 51 inserted into the mounting portion 24 of the louver material 2, the outer surfaces of the bent pieces 23, 23 of the louver material 2 are overlapped with the front surface of the support material 4, and the front portion 21 protrudes forward of the support material 4. The fixing member 5 inserted into the mounting portion 24 is engaged with the inner surfaces of the inwardly bent pieces 24, 24. The threaded portion of the bolt 52 with the bolt head fitted into the fixing bracket 51 is inserted into the mounting hole formed in the support material 4. A nut 53 is screwed onto the threaded portion protruding to the rear side of the support material 4, and the nut 53 is tightened against the rear surface of the support material 4, so that the louver material 2 is attached to the support material 4.

[0022] FIG. 3 shows the side external appearance of the small lid 3, and FIG. 4 shows the internal surface external appearances of the front side and the rear side, respectively. The small lid 3 is a member formed by injection molding using a synthetic resin material and having a size that fits into the end opening of the louver material 2 to close the opening. As shown in both figures, the small lid 3 includes a lid surface portion 31 having a rectangular shape in plan view for closing the end opening of the louver material 2, circumferential side wall portions 32, 32 protruding perpendicularly from the inner surface of this lid surface portion 31 and fitting onto the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material 2, and protruding pieces 33 also protruding perpendicularly from the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 and fitting onto the crossbar portion 25 of the louver material 2. Drainage groove portions 34, 34 for discharging rainwater that has entered the interior of the louver material 2 to the outside are provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31.

[0023] Specifically, when the small lid 3 is attached to the end opening of the louver material 2, the lid surface portion 31 is formed in a rectangular shape in plan view with a size such that its periphery exactly overlaps the periphery of the end portion to close the end opening. The peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 are portions that protrude along the periphery of the lid surface portion 31 with a space equal to the thickness of the louver material 2 from the periphery of the lid surface portion 31, and both are bent in a U-shape in plan view. When the small lid 3 is inserted into the end opening of the louver material 2, the outer surfaces of the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 are formed so as to be in pressure contact with the inner surfaces of the front surface portion 21 and the side surface portions 22, 22 of the louver material 2 and the inner surface of the crosspiece portion 25 on the side where the screw holes 27 of the louver material 2 are formed, sandwiching the pair of screw holes 26, 27 of the louver material 2. The protruding piece portion 33 is a plate-like protruding portion that protrudes from the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 on the rear side of the portion where the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 of the small lid 3 protrude. When the small lid 3 is inserted into the end opening of the louver material 2, it is formed so as to be in pressure contact with the back side of the louver material 2 where the screw hole 27 of the crosspiece portion 25 is not formed. A hole portion 33a is formed in the protruding piece portion 33 for screwing and fastening to the crosspiece portion 25 through a fastening screw (not shown) when fixing the small lid 3 to the louver material 2.

[0024] The drain grooves 34, 34 are portions with a reduced thickness provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31, and are formed so as to extend from between the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 and the protruding piece portion 33 through both sides of the protruding piece portion 33 to the end on the side closing the back side of the louver material 2 of the lid surface portion 31 (see FIG. 7). Also, a thin-walled region 35 with the same reduced thickness as the grooves 34, 34 is provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31. The portion indicated by the diagonal lines in FIG. 5 is the portion with a reduced thickness. The thin-walled region 35 is connected to the grooves 34, 34, and as will be described later, rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material 2 and flowed down onto the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 is collected in the thin-walled region 35, and can be discharged to the outside of the louver material 2 through the grooves 34, 34.

[0025] As shown in Fig. 6, the small lid 3 is attached to the end of the louver material 2 by applying its lid surface portion 31 to the end opening of the louver material 2 and inserting the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 and the projecting piece portion 33 protruding from the lid surface portion 31 into the inside of the louver material 2. As shown in Fig. 7, the small lid 3 with the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 and the projecting piece portion 33 inserted into the inside of the louver material 2 is fixed to the end of the louver material 2 by inserting a fastening screw, which is a fixture 5, from the back side of the louver material 2 into a hole portion 33a formed in the projecting piece portion 33 and screwing it toward the cross bar portion 25 of the louver material 2, and screw-fastening the projecting piece portion 33 to the cross bar portion 25.

[0026] For the small lid 3 attached to the end of the louver material 2, its lid surface portion 31 overlaps and closes the end opening of the louver material 2, and the peripheral side wall portions 32, 32 are in pressure contact with the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material 2 and one side surface of the cross bar portion 25, and the projecting piece portion 33 is in pressure contact with the other side surface of the cross bar portion 24, respectively, and fits into the louver material 2. The thin-walled regions 35 provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 are respectively fitted into the cross bar portions of the louver material. The internal space of the louver material 2 with its end closed by the small lid 3 communicates with the outside through the thin-walled regions 35 and the groove portions 34, 34 provided on the inner surface of the small lid 3.

[0027] Since the small lid 3 configured as described above is attached to the lower end of the vertically extending louver material, it is possible to discharge rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material 2 from the groove portions 34, 34 provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 to the outside of the louver material 2. That is, the rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material 2 flows down along the inner surface of the louver material 2 to the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 of the small lid 3, is collected in the thin-walled region 35, and flows down to the outside of the louver material 2 through the groove portions 34, 34.

[0028] As described above, since the drain grooves 34, 34 are provided inside the small lid 3, there is no need to form round holes for drainage in the small lid 3. Also, as shown in Fig. 7, since the grooves 34, 34 are provided so as to reach the end on the closing side of the back side of the louver material 2 of the small lid 3, the grooves 34, 34 are not noticeable when the vertically extending louver material 2 is viewed from below, and the appearance of the exterior louver 1 is not impaired.

[0029] Fig. 8 shows another form of the small lid of the present invention. In this small lid 3, instead of arranging the grooves 34, 34 so as to pass through both sides of the projecting piece 33 as described above, a through hole 33b having an appropriate width is formed at the center at the base of the projecting piece 33 on the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31, and a strip-shaped groove 34 is provided from this through hole 33b to the end on the closing side of the back side of the louver material 2.

[0030] Also in the small lid 3 of this form, it is possible to let the rainwater that has entered the inside of the louver material 2, flowed down to the inner surface of the lid surface portion 31 of the small lid 3, and been collected in the thin-walled region 35 flow down to the outside of the louver material 2 through the strip-shaped groove 34 from the through hole 32b. Also, similar to the above form, since the groove 34 is provided so as to reach the end on the closing side of the back side of the louver material 2 of the small lid 3, the groove 34 is not noticeable when the vertically extending louver material 2 is viewed from below, and the appearance of the exterior louver 1 is not impaired.

[0031] The configuration of the exterior louver, the form of the louver material and the small lid described and illustrated above are examples, and the present invention is not limited to the configurations and forms described and illustrated, and other appropriate configurations and forms are possible. The small lid of the present invention may be attached to the opening end of the horizontally extending louver material, or may be used as a lid for closing the opening end of the louver material constituting the interior louver.

Explanation of reference numerals

[0032] 1 Exterior louver, 2 Louver material, 21 Front part, 22, 22 Side parts, 23 Inner folding part, 24 Mounting part, 25 Crossbar part, 26, 27 Screw holes, 3 Small lid, 31 Lid surface part, 32 Peripheral side wall part, 33 Projection part, 33a Hole part, 33b Through hole, 34 Groove part, 35 Thin-wall region, 4 Support material, 5 Fixing member

Claims

1. A small lid made of synthetic resin attached to an end opening of a louver material, comprising a lid surface portion that closes the end opening of the louver material, a peripheral side wall portion that protrudes from the inner surface of the lid surface portion and fits into the inner peripheral surface of the end of the louver material, and a projecting piece portion that fits into a crosspiece portion provided inside the back side of the louver material; The small lid of the louver material is characterized in that a groove portion for drainage is provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion up to an end portion on the side that closes the back side of the louver material.

2. The small lid of the louver material according to claim 1, wherein the groove portion for drainage is provided so as to reach an end portion on the side that closes the back side of the louver material from both sides of the projecting piece portion.

3. The small lid of the louver material according to claim 1, wherein a through hole is provided at the base portion of the projecting piece portion, and a groove portion for drainage is provided so as to reach an end portion on the side that closes the back side of the louver material from the through hole.

4. The small lid of the louver material according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a thin-walled region communicating with the groove portion for drainage is provided on the inner surface of the lid surface portion.

5. An exterior louver composed of a louver material having the small lid according to claim 4 attached to an end opening.

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