Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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LAWN EDGING DEVICE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to the field of landscape barriers, and
particularly to the design of flexible landscape edging sections utilizing
stakes
for attachment to the soil in which the sections are joined together by a
connector.
The segregation of various areas of a garden or landscape scheme
from a dissimilar neighboring landscape is often aesthetically and
functionally
desirable. Problems often arise when installing the flexible edging materials
into the soil. A number of well-known landscape barrier systems are currently
available, including wooden logs, flexible metal strips, flexible plastic
strips, clay
forms, stone, and brick. All of these systems satisfactorily segregate the
landscape schemes with certain differences noted in their overall
performances.
Of all of the landscape barrier systems commercially available,
flexible strips made of materials such as metal and plastic are among the most
popular due to their flexible design options, durability and low cost. These
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systems allow for end-to-end series attachment of like sections of the system.
This permits the construction of a continuous and uninterrupted landscape
barrier of any length desired. The systems can be used to block the growth of
roots between vegetation and incompatible neighboring vegetation, or between
vegetation and a non-living landscape scheme. The edging system is often
placed low into the soil to block the growth of roots across the edging line.
Such
systems can also be used to decoratively segregate dissimilar landscape
schemes
where root blocking is not the objective. In these instances, it is not
necessary to
place the edging as deeply into the soil. In either case, it is advantageous
to
attach the edging system to the soil with stakes. The stakes are positioned
intermittently along the length of the flexible strip.
One well-recognized problem with landscape edging products,
particularly in colder climatic areas, where freezing and thawing cause the
ground to heave in response to temperature variations between freezing and
thawing. Such ground movements have the tendency to force landscape edging
out of the ground over time. It is, of course, desirable not to have the
landscape
edging products gradually move upwardly out of the ground as the ground
heaves.
Another problem with known systems involves the ability, or lack
thereof, to conform the system to a specific installation geometry. Typical
edging systems generally comprise a plurality of edging strips which are
connected together and curved in a geometrical shape (such as a circle) which
requires the ends of the strip to be connected together. Many different shapes
of
edging strips have been conceived for connecting the ends of strips together,
many of them requiring a separate connector coupling or a specific
relationship
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of the edging ends to the stakes which hold the edging in the ground.
Preferably, the connector scheme should be easily and efficiently implemented.
Such requirement is particularly evident when using one strip
curved so that the two ends thereof are to be connected together. To avoid the
use of a separate connector, some edging devices provide specially-prepared
ends of complementary configurations which permit the ends to be spliced to
one another. However, such designs require predetermined special lengths of
edging material for different shapes and sizes of installations since they
preclude
cutting the edging strips at any desired length at the installation site.
The usual practice among landscape architects is to first assemble
the edge strips alongside of the trench into which the edging strip is to be
placed. This procedure gives the landscape architect an opportunity to
visualize
the arrangement and place any required bends into the edging strip before the
edging strip is assembled and laid into the trench. However, one problem
associated with known edging strip assemblies, is that when the edging strips
are connected end-to-end and oriented alongside the trench, an effort to move
the connected edging strips into the trench will oftentimes result in the
edging
strips becoming disconnected. Accordingly, an interconnection feature between
the edging strip sections should not become disconnected as the edging strip
is
moved outside of the trench therefor. Moreover, a lawn edging device which can
easily be assembled, modified as needed and installed into the trench is
highly
desired.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The above-described and other problems with prior art lawn
edging devices have been resolved by this invention. In one embodiment, the
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lawn edging device of this invention is constructed from a flexible
thermoplastic
material such as PVC or the like and manufactured in elongate, typically 8
foot
long, sections. The individual sections are joined together by a connector
that is
nested within open channels on one face of the lawn edging device and secured
in place to the adjacent lawn edging sections by one or more buttons that
releasably seat within holes in the lawn edging section. Each section can be
cut
to size, if needed, to tailor the joined sections to a particular landscape
scheme.
The lawn edging device is generally symmetric in cross section
about a horizontal equator of the device. Opposed hook-shaped connectors
project from one face of the lawn edging device to form the channel and mate
with the connector. On the opposite face of the lawn edging device, a pair of
spaced longitudinally extending ribs project on either side of a central
portion of
the device. The upper and lower edges of the device each include a generally
rounded bead.
The lawn edging device is intended to be buried in the ground for
separating various planting or landscape areas. An elongate stake is driven
down at an angle through a slot in the lawn edging device to secure it in
place.
Advantageously, the lawn edging device is easily adapted and configured to a
particular landscape scheme because it is severable to meet size requirements.
Moreover, the connection system is easily and securely applied to the adjacent
sections and the sections are symmetric allowing for easy orientation and
installation.
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According to one aspect of the present invention there is
provided a landscape edging device comprising at least two elongate
flexible landscape edging sections each adapted to be implanted into the
ground, each landscape edging section having a front face, back face, top
edge, bottom edge and spaced lateral ends and a pair of holes in the
landscape edging section, each hole being located proximate one of the
lateral ends; at least one connector adapted to join a pair of the lateral
ends together such that the pair of lateral joined ends are juxtaposed in
contact with one another, each connector having a pair of buttons and
each button being adapted to be seated in one of the holes to releasably
join the lateral ends together; and a channel formed on the back face of
each landscape edging section and adapted to retain the connector therein.
According to a further aspect of the present invention there is
provided a landscape edging device comprising a plurality of elongate
flexible landscape edging sections adapted to be implanted into the
ground, each landscape edging section having a front face, back face, top
edge, bottom edge and spaced lateral ends; wherein each landscape edging
section is symmetric about a longitudinal plane; a pair of holes in the
landscape edging section, each hole being located proximate one of the
lateral ends; at least one connector adapted to join a pair of the lateral
ends together such that the pair of lateral joined ends are juxtaposed in
contact with one another; a pair of tangs on the connector, each tang being
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deflectable relative to a remainder of the connector; a pair of buttons each
located on a distal end of one of the tangs, each button being adapted to be
seated in one of the holes to releasably join the lateral ends together; a
channel formed on the back face of each landscape edging section and
adapted to retain the connector therein; a plurality of slots in each
landscape edging section; and a plurality of stakes each adapted to be
inserted either obliquely or parallel relative to the faces of the associated
landscape edging section and through one of the slots to secure the
landscape edging device in the ground.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The objectives and features of the invention will become more
readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of a section of
lawn edging according to this invention;
Fig. 2 is a rear perspective view of the lawn edging section;
Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of the lawn edging section;
Fig. 4 is one side elevational view of the lawn edging section;
Fig. 5 is a rear elevational view of the edging section;
Fig. 6 is an opposite side elevational view of the edging section;
Fig. 7 is a top elevational view of the lawn edging section;
Fig. 8 is a bottom elevational view of the lawn edging section;
Fig. 9 is a rear perspective view of an adjacent pair of lawn edging
sections joined together by a connector of this invention;
Fig. 9A is a front perspective view of the connector;
Fig. 1o is a cross-sectional view taken along line io-1o of Fig. 9
with the sections buried in the ground;
Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 1i-1i of Fig. 10;
Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the lawn edging section buried
in the ground;
Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional view of a stake securing the lawn edging
section in the ground;
Fig. 14 is a perspective view of a stake adaptor according to
another embodiment of this invention; and
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Fig. 15 is a cross-sectional view of the stake adaptor coupled to the
lawn edging device and secured in the ground by a stake according to this
embodiment of this invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
As shown in the attached Figs. 1-13, one embodiment of a lawn or
landscape edging device, indicated generally at io, according to this
invention is
shown. The lawn edging device to is adapted to be planted into the ground 12
to
create a border around gardens, flower beds, trees and other landscape
features.
The lawn edging device io includes basically three components; namely, lawn or
landscape edging sections 14, connectors i6 and stakes 18. The lawn edging
sections 14 are each preferably made of a rigid PVC material although other
thermoplastic materials may be used such as high-density polyethylene,
polypropylene or other suitably flexible and durable materials.
In one embodiment, each of the lawn edging sections 14 is
manufactured in roughly 8 foot lengths and the lawn edging section 14 has a
total height of approximately four inches. While one preferred material for
the
lawn edging section 14 is rigid PVC, due to the nature of that material and
the
elongate configuration of the sections 14, they are readily bendable to
pr6duce
curved lawn edging borders or the like. Moreover, the materials of the lawn
edging sections 14 are capable of being severed, sawed, cut or otherwise
trimmed to appropriate lengths as required for a particular application or
installation.
As shown in various views throughout Figs. i-8, one embodiment
of each lawn edging section 14 according to this invention is generally
symmetric about a longitudinal or horizontal plane. In other words, the top
and
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bottom halves of each section 14 are mirror images of one another. Therefore,
the detailed description of the invention herein may refer to a top or a
bottom
for orientation and clarification only, but it will be understood by one of
ordinary skill in the art that the lawn edging sections 14 may be reversed or
inverted without altering their function, description or utilization.
Each lawn edging section 14 includes a rounded elongate bead 20
along the top or bottom edge of the section. The bead 20 is joined to an
adjacent wall portion 22 of the lawn edging section 14 which is generally
planar
on a front face 24 of the section 14 and has an L-shaped hook 26 projecting
rearwardly from a back face 28 thereof. In combination, the top and bottom L-
shaped hooks 26 confront one another to define a channel 30 there between.
Each lawn edging section 14 also has a central wall section 32 extending
medially along the length of the section 14. One or more circular holes 34 are
provided at spaced locations in the central wall section 32 and the function
of
these holes 34 will be described later herein. The lawn edging section 14 also
includes a pair of stiffening ribs 36 which project from the front face 24 of
the
section 14 and corresponding grooves 38 on the back face 28 adjacent one of
the
channels 30. The stiffening ribs 36 are spaced on opposite sides of the
central
wall section 32 and include a series of spaced generally elongated oval-shaped
slots 40. The slots 4o are adapted to receive there through the stakes 18 to
secure the lawn edging section 14 in the ground 12 as will be described later
herein (Fig. 13).
As shown particularly in Figs. 9-11, terminal longitudinal ends 42
of adjacent lawn edging sections 14 are joined together by a connector 16
according to this invention. In one embodiment, the connector 16 is generally
symmetric about both a central vertical axis and a central longitudinal axis.
The
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connector 16 includes a generally plate-like structure 44 having a pair of
spaced
ribs 46 extending longitudinally on a front face 48 of the connector 16. The
ribs
46 are sized and configured to be seated within the grooves 38 on the back
face
28 of the edging sections 14. A generally circular button 50 is formed
adjacent
each longitudinal end of the connector 16 on a terminal end of a cantilevered
tang 52. The tang 52 is formed by a generally U-shaped slot or cut 54 in the
plate 44 of the connector 16. The cross-sectional configuration of the button
50
is generally circular and an upper face of the button includes a bevel 56
directed
toward the adjacent terminal end of the connector plate 16. The buttons 5o are
sized and configured to seat within one of the holes 34 in the central wall
section
32 of the lawn edging sections 14.
One advantage of this invention over many prior art lawn edging
devices is that the lateral ends 42 of the sections 14 are securely coupled
together with the connector 16 without the need to overlap the lateral ends 42
onto one another. In many cases, a secure and robust connection of the ends
requires an overlapping configuration which is often difficult and cumbersome
to achieve in the field, does not fully utilize the entire length of the
sections and
results in an unsightly joint. In other cases when a butt joint is used, the
connection is easily pulled apart or fails in use or during installation. This
invention obtains the benefits of a butt joint with a robust, secure
connection.
As shown in Fig. 13, the stakes 18 are generally L-shaped with an
elongate leg 58 and a short leg 60 oriented roughly 450 relative to one
another.
The stakes 18 are sized and configured to fit within the oval-shaped slots 40
of
the lawn edging section 14 to secure the assembled lawn edging device 1o in
the
ground 12. The stakes 18 may be buried below ground level upon installation as
shown in Fig. 13.
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In use, an installer will assemble the appropriate length and
member of lawn edging sections 14 adjacent a landscape area to be bound by the
lawn edging device io. Advantageously, the lawn edging sections 14 may be cut,
severed or otherwise trimmed to provide the appropriate length of lawn edging
device io once all of the sections 14 are joined together with connectors i6.
A
trench, slit or the like is formed in the ground 12 and adapted to receive the
assembled lawn edging device io therein. The lawn edging sections 14 are laid
end-to-end along the trench and advantageously, due to the symmetric
configuration of the sections 14, their orientation is not critical to proper
installation provided that the similarly configured faces 24, 28 of the lawn
edging sections 14 are similarly oriented so that the connectors i6 may be
appropriately installed.
To join the adjacent lawn edging sections 14 together, the
connector plate 44 is slid longitudinally into the terminal end 42 of one of
the
sections 14 with the ribs 46 on the connector i6 seated within the grooves 38
in
the lawn edging section 14. Likewise, the terminal longitudinal edges of the
connector i6 are seated within the hooks 26 projecting from the rear face 28
of
the lawn edging section 14 and the connector 16 is seated within the channel
30
defined by the hooks 26. The connector i6 is slid into the channel 3o and the
bevel 56 of the button 50 slides along the back face 28 of the central wall
section
32 while the tang 52 deflects rearwardly away from the back face 28. The
button
50 slides along the back face 28 of the center wall section 32 of the lawn
edging
section 14 until the button 5o reaches one of the holes 34 and becomes seated
therein. At that time, the cantilevered tang 52 pushes the button 50 through
the
hole 34 thereby releasably locking the connector 16 to one of the lawn edging
sections 14.
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A plurality of spaced holes 34 may be provided in the lawn edging
section 14 or only at the appropriately spaced distance from the terminal
longitudinal edge 42 of the lawn edging section 14 to receive the button 50 on
one end of the connector 16. If the lawn edging section 14 has been cut or
severed, then the installer may easily drill an appropriately sized and
positioned
hole 34 in the center wall section 32 to receive the button 50 of the
connector 16.
To complete the connection, the adjacent wall edging section 14 is slid onto
the
exposed half of the connector 16 projecting from the attached lawn edging
section 14 with the edges of the connector 16 seated within the hooks 26 and
channel 30 of the adjacent lawn edging section 14. The adjacent lawn edging
section 14 is slid onto the connector 16 until the terminal edges 42 of the
lawn
edging sections 14 abut with one another and/or the button 50 on the tang 52
of
the connector 16 is seated within one of the holes 34 in the adjacent lawn
edging
section 14. At this point, the lawn edging sections 14 are securely and
releasably
connected together for installation into the ground 12.
This connection process may be repeated until each of the lawn
edging sections 14 are assembled to form the lawn edging device to and then
the
entire device to inserted into the ground 12 or the lawn edging sections 14
may
be sequentially connected to the adjacent section 14 while being inserted-into
the trench into the ground 12. After the assembled lawn edging device to is in
the trench of the ground 12, the stakes 18 are driven through the slots 4o at
spaced locations in the device 1o to securely anchor the device to in the
ground
12 as shown in Fig. 13.
Another embodiment of this invention is shown in Figs. 14-15 in
which a stake adaptor 62 is coupled to the channel 30 of the lawn edging
section
14 and secured in the ground 12 by a spike, nail or stake 18a. In this
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embodiment, the stake 18a is driven into the ground 12 generally vertically as
opposed to the angular orientation shown in the embodiment of Fig. 13. In
some applications, the vertical orientation of the stake 18a may be preferred.
If
so, then the stake adaptor 62 is coupled to the lawn edging section 14 as
shown
in Fig. 15.
The stake adaptor 62 includes a generally rectangular plate 64
with a major dimension that is sized and configured to mate with the channel
30
of the lawn edging section 14. A generally U-shaped bracket 66 is formed on
the
back face of the plate 64 and includes top and bottom legs 68 projecting
perpendicularly from the plate64. A stake hole 70 is formed in each leg 68 of
the bracket 66 and is adapted to receive the stake 18a driven through the
bracket 66 to secure the stake adaptor 62 and attached lawn edging device 14
in
the ground 12. The stake adaptor 62 may be molded from rigid PVC and is
symmetric about a horizontal plane laterally bisecting the plate 64 and
bracket
66. Therefore, the stake adaptor 62 and lawn edging section 14 coupled
together form a symmetric unit that can be inverted top to bottom or bottom to
top without changing its function or utility.
In various alternative embodiments of the device shown in Figs.
14-15, the stake adaptor 62 may be utilized as a connector to join lateral
ends 42
of the sections 14 together and to receive the stake 18a there through.
Moreover, the arrangement shown in Figs. 14-15 may be utilized not only for a
landscape or lawn edging device, but also as a concrete form when pouring
sidewalks, driveways, curbs or the like. In such applications, the device is
re-
usable and each section 14 may have a planar front face 24 to retain the
concrete
until it is cured and the device removed.
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From the above disclosure of the general principles of this
invention and the preceding detailed description of at least one preferred
embodiment, those skilled in the art will readily comprehend the various
modifications to which this invention is susceptible. The scope of the
claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the
examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with
the description as a whole.
