Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A FENCING APPARATUS
Technical Field
The invention retates to the provision of a fencing apparatus. It
will be readily apparent that the apparatus can be used in the creation of
bailastrades, divider walls, and other similar structures. For the sake of
convenience this invention will be described in relation to a fencing
apparatus but it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited
l0 thereto as it may be applied in situations other than fences.
Background of the Invention
There are many known types of fencing structures currently in use.
i5 These known structures range from traditional wooden fencing systems to
frames for supporting panels and like structures.
With the increasing use of fencing structures made from light
weight artificial materials, such as plastics materials, there has been an
2o increasing use of fencing frames.adapted to accommodate such panels
and like structures formed of this artificial material. These structures tend
to be complicated and difficult to construct.
For example, NZ207439 to Costanza Pty Limited describes a
25 lightweight fencing structure which may be readily assembled from
standard components. The fencing structure disclosed is of a standard
type which requires the presence of specialised posts to receive rails
specifically adapted to be held by the posts. As such the structure is not
particularly adaptable and is not readily useable with existing structures.
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tt is also known to have fencing type apparatus adapted to be
positioned between walls Ee.g, child safe gates at the top of stairs for
example). Such fences, however, are not able to receive alternative
panellings nor are they able to be readily extendable to any great extent.
Such fence-like structures include an integral panel wall or barrier with the
emphasis being on non-damaging connection to internal walls. These
fences are not intended for general external use and are not generally
adaptable in terms of length or looks.
C?biect of the Invention
It is an object of the invention to provide a fencing apparatus
which is capable of meeting the deficiencies in prior devices or at least to
provide the public with a useful choice.
Summary of the invention
In a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a fencing
apparatus which includes a pair of opposing, spaced apart, rails, each rail
including a central longitudinal channel adapted to receive an edge of a
panel therein, and at least one attachment means at or adjacent an end of
at least one rail adapted to attach the rail to an external member.
Preferably the opposed rails include attachment means at or
adjacent each end thereof.
Preferably, the panel is secured within the central longitudinal
channel of the top rail.
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Preferably the apparatus, when in use, has a top and bottom rail
and a first edge of the panel is secured within the channel of the top rail
by screws, rivets, nails, cord, clips or the tike.
Preferably a second edge of the panel is also secured within the
central longitudinal channel of the bottom rail.
Preferably the attachment means is a separate individual bracket
which is adapted to attach to the rail to the external member to which the
fencing apparatus is to be attached.
Preferably the individual bracket is a hinge and preferably the
fencing apparatus is a gate.
Preferably the fencing apparatus further includes a guide rail
secured to the external member to which the fencing apparatus is to be
attached, the guide rail extending between the top and bottom rails and
including a central longitudinal channel adapted to receive a third edge of
the panel.
Preferably the guide rail extends to a position adjacent the top and
bottom rails.
Preferably the guide means is an elongated hinge or other pivoting
bracket device.
Preferably the fencing apparatus includes at least one jointer which
extends between the top and bottom rails, and the jointer including
longitudinat channels on either side thereof, one channel being adapted to
receive the faurth edge of the panel and the other channel being adapted
to receive an edge of a second panel therein.
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Preferably the rails, guide rails, and jointers are adapted to receive
covers which enclose the rails, guide rails and jointers.
Preferably the apparatus includes an open mesh panel such as a
trellis or other lattice type structure.
Preferably the panel is formed of a synthetic material.
l0 Preferably the synthetic material is manufactured from high-density
polyethylene.
In a second aspect the invention is directed to a fencing apparatus
including:
(i) at least two opposed spaced apart rails, each rail having
two ends and each rail including a central longitudinal
channel, the channel of the first rail adapted to receive a
first edge of a panel therein and the channel of the second
rail adapted to receive the second edge of a panel therein;
(ii) attachment means adapted to attach to an external
member, positioned at or adjacent the end of at least one of
the opposed rails; and
(iii) a guide rail securable to the external member to which the
attachment means is attached, the guide rail including a
longitudinal guide channel adapted to receive the third edge
of the pane! therein.
Preferably the apparatus further includes at least one jointer
extending between the opposed rails, the jointer including a longitudinal
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channel on either side thereof, one of the jointer channels being adapted
to receive the fourth edge of the panel therein and the other jointer
channel being adapted to receive an edge of another panel therein.
5 Preferably. tfi~e guide rail and the attachment means include hinge
attachments.
Preferably the guide rail is attached to the two opposed rails.
l0 Preferably the opposed. rails, guide rail, and jointer are adapted to
receive removable covers thereon.
In a third aspect, the invention is a kit of parts, the kit including at
least the rails, a guide rail and a jointer as defined above.
Drawings
A preferred form of the invention is shown in the attached figures.
20 Figure 1: shows a diagrammatic plan view of a preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
FieLures 2 to 7: show cross sectional views of individual components
of the preferred form of the preferred embodiment of
the invention shown in Figure 1;
Figure 8: shows a blown up representation of the attachment of
one part of the preferred embodiment of the invention
shown in Figure 9 to an external member; and
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Figure 9: shows an exploded representation of the attachment
of another part of the preferred embodiment of the
invention shown in Figure 1 to an external member
Detailed Description of the Invention
in general terms the invention relates to a fencing apparatus which
allows panels of fencing, or other partitioning, material to be supported in
a simple and cost effective manner. The fencing apparatus is particularly
adapted to be used with existing structures (walls, fences etc.) external to
the apparatus which require a partition to be positioned between them. It
is not required that the fencing apparatus include posts or other support
means as such supports can be provided by such existing structures.
The panelling which can be used in conjunction with the fencing
apparatus can be any suitable panelling as will be known to a person
skilled in this particular art. The panelling could be a solid sheet of
material constructed of a composite board material such as hardboard or
the like, or could be a solid sheet of a synthetic plastics material or
aluminium. Further options will include glass, wood, fibrolite, and steel
but the makeup of the panel is not intended to be limiting. As shown in
Figure 1, the panelling can also be of an open mesh or lattice type such as
a trellis or like material. The construction and style of the panel material
to be supported within the fencing apparatus is not crucial to the present
invention. It is preferred however that the panelling material is of a
relatively light weight in order to allow the cost of the fencing apparatus
to be minimised. Should the panelling be of a heavier material (if used as
partitioning for example? then the fencing apparatus will need to be
constructed of a material having adequate strength.
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The panelling material, in the most preferred form, is a trellising
made of high density polyethylene such as that sold by the Plastics
Research Corporation under the trade mark TUFF-BUILT.
5 The fencing apparatus is preferably constructed from aluminium as
will be known in the art. The material used could also be a plastics
material or steel or other suitable material as will be known in the art but
the makeup of the apparatus is not intended to be limiting.
10 With reference to Figure 1, a preferred .form of the fencing
apparatus 1 is shown. The side of the fence indicated by A is shown in a
"final" form while the side of the fence indicated by B is shown in a cut-
away and exploded form.
i5 The preferred form of the fencing apparatus 1 as shown in Figure 1
has been attached to a post 2 having a cap 3. This post 2 could readily
be replaced by an existing wall or perimeter fence to which the fencing
apparatus 1 is to be attached. The fencing apparatus 1 could readily be
attached to any other type of external member as needed with appropriate
20 screws, nails, rivets, dynobolts or the like.
With reference to the side of the fencing apparatus 1 indicated by
B' the fencing apparatus 1 includes a bracket 4 which is attached to the
side of the post 2 by screws (not clearly shown in Figure 1 ). The
25 positioning of the screws is shown in an exploded manner at 5. The
bracket 4 receives a rail 6 in a maleJfemale manner with rail 6 being
secured to the bracket 4 by a screw 7. This relationship can best be seen
in Figure 8 which shows in magnified farm the relationship between the
bracket 4 and the rail 6.
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The fencing apparatus 1 also includes a second rail 8 of similar
form to the rail 6. The second rail 8 is attached to post 2 by bracket 9
which is of similar form to bracket 4. The relationship of rail 8 with
bracket 9 is shown in magnified form in Figure 9. The second rail 8 and
bracket 9 are aligned in the same plane with rail 6 and bracket 4 and have
a mirror image relationship thereto to allow a pane! 1 1 to be held therein.
Both rails 6, 8 include-a central longitudinal channel 10 which is wide
enough to releasably receive the panel 11. The construction of rails 6, 8
can best be seen in Figure 3 which shows a cross sectional representation
of the rails 6, 8.
As seen in Figure 3, the rails 6, 8 include channel 10 and flanges
12 having Pips 13 at the distal ends thereof.
15 With reference again to Figure 1; the fencing apparatus 1 also
includes a guide rail 14 which extends between the rails 6 and 8 and is
attached to post 2 at positions 15 by screws. As seen in Figure 1, the
ends of guide 14 extend to a point adjacent rails 6, 8. The ends of guide
14 could extend to a position flush with rail 6, 8 or could be positioned
further from rails 6; 8 as maybe desired by the user.
The construction of guide 14 is best seen in Figure 5 which shows
a cross sectional representation of one half of the guide 14. As can be
seen from Figures 1 and 5, the guide 14 is constructed of two
25 components 14a aligned side by side on post 2 (as shown in Figure 1 ).
Component 14a includes arms 16, 17 ending in flanges 18, 19. When in
place, and as shown in Figurel, arm 17 will be attached to post 2 with
arm 16 extending outwardly at a substantially right angle from post 2. A
second component 14a will then be placed in a mirror image relationship
30 with the first component such that the two arms 16 form a guide channel
therebetween which will accept the pane! 11 therein. As will be readily
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apparent to a person skilled in this particular art, guide 14 need not be
constructed of two separate components 14a but may be a single
component which includes the guide channel created by the arms 16.
Further alternatives such as the use of hinges in place of guide 14 (either
5 a series of individual hinges or one extended hinge or similar pivoting
bracket device) are also possible. As will be readily apparent this would
be coupled with a replacement of.the brackets 4, 9 with hinge
attachments for the rails 8, 8. The brackets 4, 9 and guide 14 could be
angled with the fence extending at an angle from the external member
to (e.g. post or wall etc.). A further alternative would be that the apparatus
have hinged attachments for the rails 6, 8 and the guide 14 is not
present. This would be preferable for low weight panels.
Figures 8 and 9 show, in magnified form, the relationship of rails 6,
15 8 with brackets 7, 9 and with guide 14. The guide 14 as shown in Figure
9 is seated against or adjacent to the rail 8. As stated previously, the
guide 14 could be positioned away from the rail 8. This would be
particularly so if the panel is of lightweight construction. The essential
feature being, of course, that the channel in the guide 14 and the channel
20 10 in rail 8 lie in the same plarie~to allow the panel to be positioned in
both channels.
The fencing apparatus 1 as shown in Figure 1 also includes an
jointer 20 which extends between rails 6 and 8 in a like manner to guide
25 14. In the preferred embodiment of fencing apparatus 1 as shown in
Figure 1, jointer 20 is attached to rails 6, 8 by screws 21 (not shown for
rail 8). The construction of jointer 20 is best seen in Figure 7.
Figure 7 shows a cross sectional view of jointer 20. Jointer 20
30 includes two channels 22, 23 which are created by parallel arms 24
which end in lips 24a. The channels 22, 23 are separated by wall 25.
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with the channel 22, 23 openings facing in opposite directions. The
jointer 20 thus acts as a guide for two panels (e.g. as indicated at 11 in
Figure 1 ) one panel guided within channel 22 and the other guided within
channel 23. Jointer 20 thus allows for a series of panels to be linked to
5 create an extended fence system between two external members such as
post 2 or the like as shown in Figure 1. Jointer 20 also includes 2
arcuate parts extending from the.distal ends of wail 25 centraliy of walls
24. The arcuate parts 26 are adapted to receive and hold screws 21 (as
shown in Figure 1 ) and thus secure the jointer 20 to rails 6 and 8. As wilt
IO be readily apparent to a person skilled in this art, jointer 20 will only
required if more than one panel 11 is to be used. Further, it will be
apparent that the jointer 20 need not be attached to the opposed rails.
The jointer could be adapted to simply join together two or more panels
held between a single pair of rails.
IS
In an alternative embodiment the jointer 20 could be replaced by
two separate components of identical shape as would be created if the
wall 25 between arms 24, was removed. In this case, the two
components referred to as 20a for convenience) would lie against an
extended panel and would be secured to rails 6, 8 substantially as shown
in Figure 1 by screws 21. In effect, a corridor would be created by
joining the channels 22, 23 as shown in Figure 7, through which the
panel (as indicated for example by 11 in Figure 1 ? would pass. In this
situation, the components 20a would be used as a support for an
aesthetically pleasing cover as will be discussed further below. If needed
the two parts 20a could be attached to the panel 11 and to each other by
screws or rivets or like devices.
fn the embodiment of the invention as shown in Figure 1 the panel
11 is secured to at least rail 6 by at least one screw as indicated at 27.
The panel 11 could also be secured to rail 8, and also guide 14 and jointer
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20, if desired. Where the panel 1 1 is secured to rail 6 only, the panel
will, in effect, be suspended from rail 8 via the screws such as at 27 and
will simply rest in guide 14 jointer 20 and rail 8. In an alternative
embodiment, panel 11 need not be secured in rail 6 by screws such as at
27 at all. In that case, the panel 11 would be supported by resting on the
base of channel 10 in rail 8.
With reference to Figure 1 and Figures 2, 4 and 6, it can be seen
that the fencing apparatus 1 also includes covers 30, 31, 32 and 33.
The construction of covers 30 and 33 is best shown in Figure 2.
This Figure shows a cross sectional view of the covers 30, 33 which
include a wall 35 which is formed substantially into a "U" shape. The
distal ends of wail 35 end in flanges 36 which are adapted to receive the
lips 13 of rails 6, 8 (as shown in Figure 3) therebetween. The covers 30;
33 may therefore simply be clipped into position over rails 6, 8 thus giving
a finished appearance to the top and bottom of the fencing apparatus 1 as
can be seen in the part indicated by A.
The construction of cover 31 is best seen in Figure 4 which shows
across sectional representation of the cover. As seen in Figure 4, the
cover 31 includes a wall 37 which includes flanges indicated at 38 and 39
at the distal ends thereof. In a similar manner to the operation of cover
30, 33 discussed above, the flanges 38 and 39 are adapted to receive Pips
18 and 19 respectively of component 14a (of guide 14), therebetween.
In this manner a finished look can be given to the guide '! 4 as can be seen
in the part of the fence apparatus 1 as indicated by A in Figure 1.
In a similar manner to the operation of cover 31 discussed above,
cover 32, as best seen in cross section in Figure 6, clips on to either side
of jointer 20. As can be seen in Figure 6, the cover includes wall 40
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which has been formed substantially into a "U" shape. The distal ends of
wall 40 include flanges 41 which are adapted to receive the lips 24a of
jointer 20 (see Figure 71 therebetween. In this manner, cover 32 can be
easily clipped onto either side of jointer 20 covering the arcuate parts 26
of jointer 20 from sight thus giving a finished appearance to the fencing
apparatus 1 as can be best seen in the part indicated by A.
The particular form that covers 30, 31, 32 and 33 take need not
be in the particular shape as shown in the Figures. Alternative looks to
these covers, as will be known in this art, may also be used. The shapes
shown in the Figures are not intended to be limiting.
As will be readily apparent, references to the use of screws to
secure the various components should not be seen to be limiting. The use
of nails, rivets, ties or like devices could be readily be used where
appropriate.
The foregoing describes the invention including a preferred form
thereof. Alterations and modifications as will be readily apparent to a
person skilled in this particular art are intended to be included within the
spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the attached claims.
