Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1(3436S4
This invention relates to a kit for attaching
sheet material to a support, an example of which is the cons-
truction of a temporary of semi-permanent greenhouse s~ructure
comprised of a framework over which sheet material, such as
polyethylene film, is stretched to form an enclosure.
Fre~uently these structure~ are provided ~lth varlous
temperature and other atmo~pherlc controlllng devlces whlch
re~uire that the enclo~ure,be relatively tight to ~eal out
the outslde weather yet must be Or a nature that permits
at least partlal dlsas~embly durlng the Orr season whlle at
the same tlme belng low cost both rrom the standpolnt Or ma-
'terlal~ used and the labor involve~ ln assembly and dlsas~embly.
, Ih thls connectlon then, lt hae become a readlly ac-
cepted practlce to employ the use o~ polyethylene rllm whlch
horetorore has been attached to a rramework through the use Or
lath~ or strlp~ Or wood whlch are nalled to the support ln such
a,mannér that the rllm 18 dl~posed between tho lath and the
,eupport and thuo held ln place. Thls has been less than satl~-
ractory, however, because Or the tendency ror;the plaetlc ma-
ter~al to tear at the polnt that the nalls are drlven-through
the lath an~ the ~ilm and because-,or the wlnd actlon whlch
tends to caùse the rll~ to pull loose thus maklng the structure
le~ than alr tlght ln addltlon damaging the polyethylene rllm.
~ It 1~ thererore a very lmportant obJect Or our lnven-
tlon to provlde an assembly ror qulckly and eaolly a¢tachln~
oheet materlal ln the natuxe Or polyethylene rllm to a ~ra0e-
~ork such a~ mlght be round ln the constructlon Or greenhouseo
'and the llke. - ' '
Another very lmportant obJect Or the lnventlon 18 to
provlde an attachlng assembly ror sheet materlal ln whlch the
msterlal 18 clamped by the assembly and held wlthout damage to
~the material such a8 by the puncturing of hole8 therein.
A ~t~ll ruither ~portant obJe-t Or our ln~entlo ~18
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1043~54
tho provlslon of a materla} holding assembly ln wh~ch the
materlal ls po~ltlvely held-and ln whlch lncreased ten~lon
on the.materlal wlll lncrease the grlp Or the as~embly on
thc materlal thu~ clamplng lt tlghter.-
. A stlll ~urther lmportant.obJect o~.the lnventlon
1~ the provl810n Or a ~aterlal holdlng assembly ln which ahoidlng element ls releasably held ln a channel withou~. the
u~e o~ auxllllary ~asten~r~ yet wh1ch 18 capable o~ be~ng
e~lly and qulckly removed rrom the channel.
Accord$ng to the present invention, a kit is
provided for attaching sheet material to a support, said
kit or the assembly being of the type including a first
bar def ining a channel and a second bar complementary
with said channel and adapted to be laterally inserted
into the channel to thus grip a sheet material therebetween,
Bai~ channel of ~aid fir~t bar being defined by a first l ~
~ide wall, a second side wall and a bottom wall extending .:
between interior margins of said side walls; said first
~ide wall being concavely curved to define an arcuate
- 20 shape in lateral cross-section; said second side wall
being generally planar and being of a width generally
corresponding to the depth of said channel as measured
at said second side wall; said side walls being so arranged ;
with respeot to each other that the width of said channel
increase~ in a direction laterally away from said bottom wall,
reaching its maximum at about mid-depth thereof and again
decreasing in the direction to~aras exterior margi~s of
said side walls; said second bar being of a lateral cross-
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~043654
section generally complementary with the lateral cross-section
of the channel of the first bar, said second bar including
a first convexly curved side wall ana a second generally
planar side ~all; said convexly curved side wall being
~e~erally comple~,entary with said concavely curved side
wall, said second, generally planar side ~iall of the
second bar being generally comple~entary with said side
wall of the fir8~ bar~ where~y said second
bar can be inserted into the channel of the first bar
with a sheet disposed therebetween to grip the sheet
between the respective side walls, the insertion being
effected by moving said second bar generally laterally
relative to the first bar such that the convex ~ide of the
8econd bar is first nested in the concave side wall and
the second bar is then tilted to bring its generally planar
side wall into a generally parallel relationship with the
generally planar side wall of said channel, and whereby
the ~eed for spreading apart the side walls of the first
bar or contracting the side walls of the second bar when
attaching a sheet is eliminated.
In the drawlngs: ~.
. ~ ~lgure 1. 18 a rragme,ntary pers~ectlve vlew or a
greenhouse or the llke employlng the u~e Or a sheet materlal
coverlng, such as polyethylene rllmJ whlch l~ attached to a
~ramework through the use Or an attachlng kit for sheet
materlai made accordlnR to the present lnvent~on; - ,
- 2a -
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11~4~
Flg. 2 1~ a rragmentary, enlarged, exploded, cross-
sectlonal v~ew lllustratlng the relative dlspo~ltlons Or a i-
base member and hold~ng element o~ the attaching assembly
.wlth respect to the sheet materlal a~ they would appear lmmedl- ..
~até~y~pr`-ror to lnsertion o~ the materlal and the holdlng element
lnto a channel Or the ba~e member;
Fig. 3 18 rragmentary, enlarged, cross-sectlonal vlew
lllu~tratlng the holdlng element and the materlal partially ln-
serted ln the channel Or the-base member; and
~lg. 4 i8 a rragmentary, enlarged, cross-sectlonal vlew
~lllustratlng the materlal holdlng as~embly as it would appear
when ln clamplng engagement wlth the sheet materlal.
A kit, broadly desl~naeed bg the numeral 10, 18
provlded ror.the attachment or sheet materlal, 9uch as polyethylene
rllm or the llke ldentirled by the numeral 12, ror use ln con-
-~ ~tructlng a greenhouse 14 or ror u~e ln other sltuatlono whero
lt 1~ de~lred to.releasably hold a plece Or sheet materlalsuch
a~ ror swlmmlng pool covers, 8110 covers, or ror cons~ructlon
protection. -
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10436S4 ~ -
The kit 10 is comprised of an elongated base member 16
(also referred to as "a first bar"), adapted to be attached
to a support, such as a sideboard 18, which in turn is affixed
to a frame structure 20 of the greenhouse 14. The member
16 may be attached in any conventional manner such as
through the use of flathead screws, (not shown) which
cooperate with pre-punched holes (not shown) provided in
the member 16.
The member 16 may be of any desired length
depending on the particular application, with ten foot
lengths normally being recommended, or may be cut into
shorter lengths for following various contours such as
for a gable end of the structure 20. Disposed longitudinally
along the member 16 is a generally C-shaped channel 22
having an arcuate surfacé or first side wall 24 disposea
tranQversely of the longitudinal axis of the member 16
and generally planar second siae wall 26 so that the width
of the channel 22 first increases in the direction from
the bottom wall to reach a maximum at about mid-aepth of
the channel and then again decreases. The side wall extends
perpendicularly to the bottom of the channel and thus
- defines the depth of the channel.
The assembly 10 further includes an elongated
material holding element 28 (also referred to as a ~second -~
bar") also being generally C-shaped in transverse cross-
section corresponding to the configuration of the channel
22 and likewise including an arcuate surface or first side
wall 30 disposed longitudinally therealong and transverse
to the longitudinal axis of the element 28. It is to be here
noted that the arc of curvature of the surface 24 of the
channel 22 is somewhat larger than is the arc of curvature
of the surface 30 of the element 18. An elongated arm 32
~ 4
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104;~6S4
defining a second, generally planar side wall of the second
bar extends longitudinally along the entire length of the
element 28 and defines the normally lower leg of the C-
shaped element ~8. Elongated flange means 34 and 36, per-
pendicular to the arms 32, extend longitudinally along
the outer edge of the arm 32 and are disposed exteriorly
of the channel 22 when the element 28 is nested therein.
As best seen in Figure 4, the lower flange 36 abuts
against the outer edge of side wall 26 to thus limit the
tilting movement of the two bars bringing their mutual
arrangement from the state as in Figure 3 to that of
Figure 4.
Means for retaining the element 28 in the channel
22 are provided in the form of an angular, normally down-
wardly pro~ecting leg 38 which is a part of the member
16 and extenas longitudinally therealong ad~acent the
normally upper edge of the channel 22, the transverse
distance between the arm 32 and the leg 38 defining the-
previously mentioned opening 26. The leg terminates
in an arcuate, enlarged, material engageable lip 40
_ coextensive in length with the leg 38. A series of inter-
~ locking, opposed and relatively offset gripping ribs
; 42 and 44 are provided on the arm 32 of the element 28
and on a normally lower arm 46 of the member 16 respectively.
~he ribs 42.and 44 extend longitudinally along their
respective arms 32 and 46, the ribs 44 being disposed in
the cavity 22 while the ribs 42 are on the normally lower
or underside of the leg 32. A plastic or rubber beading, .
partially embedded in the arm 32, might be provided in
lieu of the ribs 42; the beading being seated between
the ribs 44 when the element 28 is inserted in to the channel
22. -: :
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In addition to ~he~ eg 38 and the ribs 42 and 44,
the element retaining means also includes an elongated,
transversely arcuate stretch 48 extending longitudinally
along the element 28 and defining the normally upper leg
thereof. The stretch 48 is disposed behind the leg 38
when the element 28 is in the channel 22 such that the
arcuate surfaces Z4 and 30 are in their opposed relationship.
The member 16 and the element 28 may be made of any convenient,
durable, lightweight material such as extruded aluminum.
It will be appreciated on examination of Figure 4
that the clearance between respective side walls of the two
bars generally corresponds to or is slightly less than t~Jice
the thickness of sheet 12. When comparing Figur~ 3 and 4, and
realizing that in both figures the sheet 12 is disposed
between the two bars, it will be appreciated that the distance
between the leading edge of the generally planar side wall
of the second bar ~at the bottom left as viewed in
Figure 3) and an imaginary line parallel with elongation
of the second bar and most remote from the leading edge
i~ less than the maximum width of the channel in the
first bar. The said distance, of course, is in excess
of the width of the second bar. The cross-sectional
views of the drawing ~how a generally ideal dimensioning
of the respective bars.
In u8e, the member 16 18 attached to the 81deboard 18 a8
prevlou81y de8crlbed and ln a po81tlon to permlt the materlal 12
to bo 8tretched oVer the 8tructure 20 as 8een ln Flg. 1. The ma-
terial 12 18 then po81tloned relatlve to the member 16 ~uch that a
portlon 50 o~ the materl~l 18 adJacent the openlng 26, lt belng
noted that sur~lcient length 18 provlded to permlt the
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1043~54
materlal to extend beneath or beyond the assembly lO at all
tlmes. The ele~ent 28 i~ then lnserted lnto the channel 22
such that the arcuate stretch 48 18 leadlng and enters the~
channel rlrst, rorcing the portlon 50 Or the materlal 12
through the openlng as ~een in Flg. 3. ~rter the,arcuate
stretch 48 has been dl~posed behlnd the leg 38,.the arm 32 ls
then pressed into the cavlty such that the portion 50 ls not
only dl~posed between the member 16 and element 28 but l~ also
~clamped or grlpped between the cooperatlng rlbo 42 and 44.. A
llght pre88ure on the rlanges 34'and 36 18 normally surrlc.lent
, to ~e~tthe arm 32 lnto the channel 22.
me ra¢t that the element 28 must be tllted about lto
,longltudlnal axi~ such that the stretch 48 leads when lnserted
'~ through the openlng 26 and lnto the channel 22 permlto the
, otretch 48'to be "nestedn'behln~ the leg 38 preventlng the element
rrom belng pullod out Or the channel 22 ln re~ponse to any pulllng i
~orce th,ay.may.be appll d..thiough the materlal 12.ouch a~ by wlnds,¦
trotchlng oi otherwlse. In ract, a rorc'e ~uch ao~ust de~crlbed
. .
t . 'would ten~ to tighten the clamplng actlon o~ the element 28 on.
~,
20 tho portlon 50 Or th~e materlal 'ln that the stretch 48 would be
, , , , , .~ . . , . . .
. pulled lnto t~ghter contact wlth the materlal ln the reglon Or ,.
- the leg 38 and the lip 40. Th~ ribs 42 and 44 $ncrease the
grip on the portion 50 of the material normally effecte~
, by the cooperating planar sides of the two bars to prevent
$ its being pulled through the cavity 22 during the exertion ¦"''
of such previously mentioned tension. ', '
' me.removal Or the ele~ent 28 to release the materlal , . . .
. . ~ . .
,l 12 rrom the assembly lO 1B easily accompllshed by insertlng a ',. , ,'
sQrewdriver or other prylng tool behlnd the rlange 34 such that ~,'
',,1 30 the shank Or the screwdrlver plvots about the lip 40 whlch serves .',,
,j as a rulcru~ polnt and, by exertlng pres~ure on the handle Or the ,'
.' ~crowdrlver Sn the dlrectlon Or the rramework 20 the arm 32 Or
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1043~S4
the element 28 ie prted outwardly rrom the channel 22 thus re-
lea~ng the latter and the clamped portlon 50 o.~ the material 12.
An alternate to the UBC Or a screwdrlv,er or othèr ~rylng tool
1~ the provlslon o~ an element lnsertlng and removlng tool
(not shown) havlng elongated, oppooed llp~ wh~ch are.placed
behlnd the stretch 48 and the rlsnge 34 to owlng the element
28 into and out Or the channel 22 as prevlously deocrlbed.
.-. ., Fro~ the roregoing deocrlption lt wlll be ~ppreciated
,that there:has been here dlsclosed a no~el assembly ror tho
atta¢hment Or polyethylene rllm or other sheet material whl¢h
pe~mlt~ qul¢k and e¢onomlcal lnstallatlon Or the oame ln a
po~ltl~o manner doe~ not~have a tenden¢y to become loo~o or
otherwlso unatta¢hed and does not regulre puncturing or other-
~i~e tearlng/tge.materlal in order to rirmly attach the same. 1 i
Tho as~embly 10 18 partlcularly wéll-oulted rOr use ln pro~ldin~
.
rolat~vely tlght enclosures whl¢h are Or a temporary nature and
~hl¢h are eubJo¢t to repeated-a~sembly and dloa~ombly. The
~ntcriocklng reature Or the assembly 10 permlt~ unllmlted
~ ro-u~e theroor lna~much as the-asoembly 10 18 not ouoceptlble ¦
¦ 20 to ~amago during the cour~e Or normal u~e. ; . ..'
The kit as described above i~ believed to be the
best embodiment of the present invention and ~ therefore ..
preferred. Yet, tho~e s~illed in the art will readily
conceive further embodiments differing to a greater or
le6ser degree from the preferred embodiment but still falling
within the scope of the present invention as defined in the
accompanying claims.
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