CA1145921A - Retainer strip assembly for flexible sheet material - Google Patents
Retainer strip assembly for flexible sheet materialInfo
- Publication number
- CA1145921A CA1145921A CA000386654A CA386654A CA1145921A CA 1145921 A CA1145921 A CA 1145921A CA 000386654 A CA000386654 A CA 000386654A CA 386654 A CA386654 A CA 386654A CA 1145921 A CA1145921 A CA 1145921A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- strip member
- sheet material
- recess
- bottom strip
- strip
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
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- Buffer Packaging (AREA)
- Extrusion Moulding Of Plastics Or The Like (AREA)
Abstract
Docket 2573 RETAINER STRIP ASSEMBLY FOR FLEXIBLE SHEET MATERIAL
Abstract of the Disclosure A flexible sheet of material such as plastic film is attached to a supporting surface by a two-piece retainer strip assembly including a bottom strip member and a top strip member extruded from a semi-rigid plastics material and having the same width. The bottom strip member has a recess with undercut portions defined by opposing inwardly project-ing protuberances, and the top strip member has an inner portion with outwardly projecting protuberances, one of which is formed with a cam surface. In one embodiment, the bottom strip member has projecting bottom corner portions which assure an air-tight seal between the bottom strip member and the supporting surface.
Abstract of the Disclosure A flexible sheet of material such as plastic film is attached to a supporting surface by a two-piece retainer strip assembly including a bottom strip member and a top strip member extruded from a semi-rigid plastics material and having the same width. The bottom strip member has a recess with undercut portions defined by opposing inwardly project-ing protuberances, and the top strip member has an inner portion with outwardly projecting protuberances, one of which is formed with a cam surface. In one embodiment, the bottom strip member has projecting bottom corner portions which assure an air-tight seal between the bottom strip member and the supporting surface.
Description
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Docket 2573 -1-RETAINER STRIP ASSEMBLY FOR FLEXIBLE SHEET ~ATERIAL
Background of the Invent7on Thts inventton relates to an improved retain7ng strip arrange-ment for gripping and supportins plastic sheet material. Prior retaintng strips are shown in the following United States patents:
Saling, U. S. paten~ No. 3,187,801 issued June a, 1965 is relevant to the invention as showing a two-piece strip for retaintng plastic sheet material. A rectangular plastic insert is forced into a groove of the same shape formed tn a metal retainer to wedge the plastic sheet ~herebetween and to cause tenston to be placed on the sheet.
Cuddeback, U. S. patent No. 3,302,260 issued February 7, 1967 is relevant as showing another form of ~lexible sheet retainer in which a generally C-shaped retainer member partially enctrcles an elongated bead to capture the material therebetween.
Keegan et al, U. S. patent No. 3,371,702 issued March 5, 1968 shows a two-piece plastic retainer in which a bottom piece formed with a semi-circular opening may be nailed directly to the underlying structure, and a round elongated bead of plastic matertal is snapped into the groove formed in the base member to capture the plastic sheet therebe~ween.
Abel, U. S. patent No. 3,991,806 tssued November 16, 1976 is relevant as showtng a base member ~ormed of metal or other rigid mater7al and ;n which a hollow oval shaped rstainer or rod is pressed into a groove formed by the base member for retaining a sheet of plastic material, Recks~n, lJ. S. patent No. 4,084,360 issued April 18, 1978 ts relevant as showing a two-piece retainer ~or screening which is formed wtth a base member configured to accept either a hollow elongated rod or a rigid spline for retaining the screening material between the spltne or the rod and the base member.
La Barge, U. S. patent No. 3,421,276 issued January 14, 1969 is also relevant as showing a plastic sheet retainer in whtch a C-shaped opentng is formed in a base member and a rod of plastic material is pressed 7nto the opening to retain a sheet o~ plasttc 35 material.
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Swanson, U. S. patent No. 2,526,912 issued October 24, 1950 and.disGloses an extruded ~lexible retai~er assembly for attashing adjacent edge portions of fabric panels to a support frame so that the panels are flush or form a corner.
Keegan et al, U. S. patent No. 3,371,702, 7ssued March 5, 1968, illustrates a~ extruded triangular retainer strip which mounts .within a corner of a window frame and has a groo~e for receivtng an extruded resilient cylindrical bead.
Bloomfield, U. S. patent No. 3,987,835 discloses various embodiments of a retainer assembly for a flexible sheet material, each of which incorpora~es an extruded metal channel for r~ceiving an extruded flexible or foldable retai~er stripO
Summary of the Invention The present invention is distinguished by the provision of an elongated two-piece retainer for flex7ble sheet material in which a top strip member is particularly configured to engage by pivotal movement into a bottom or base retaining member, to cause a predeter-mined stretch7ng or tensioning in the sheet material and which, when assembled, is essentially self locking and holding in that tension ~; 20 applied to the sheet material causes the retainer or insert to be urged agaTnst cooperating latching portions formed on the base member and on the insert.
More particularly, the invention provides an improved elongated two-piece retainer strip assembly adapted 25 to be mounted on a surface surrounding a window for gripping and retaining a panel of flexible sheet material, said strip assembly compr.isirly an extruded single piece bottom strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said bottom strip member beiny symmetrical about a longitudinally extending 30 center plane, and including a generally flat base wall being pierceable by a plurality of longitudinally spaced nails adapted to project perpendicular from said base wall to secure said bottom strip~member to the surface, a front wall and a back wall projecting from said base wall and cooperating therewith to define a generally channel-shaped recess, said front and back walls each having a protuberance extending inwardly in partially overlying relation to said recess to form opposing undercut portions of said recess between said protuberances and sa}d base wall, an extruded single piece top strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said top strip member being non-symmetrical about a longitudinally '~"
-extending center plane and having an inner portion with protuberances projecting outwardly into said undercut portions of said recess for capturing the sheet material within said recess with the sheet material overlylng said front and back walls, said top strip member including an outer portion having opposite outwardly projecting edge flanges overlying said front and back walls of said bottom strip member and providing said top strip member with a width generally the same as the width of said bottom strip member, one of said edge flanges on said top strip member cooperating with the underlying said protuberance on said top strip member to define a groove having a depth greater than the depth of the groove defined by the opposite said edge flange and the underlying said protuberance to provide for inserting said semi-rigid top strip member and the sheet material into said bottom strip member while providing for conveniently removing said top strip member from said bottom strip m~nber, and said bottom strip member including longitudinally extending flexible bottom corner portions projecting laterally outwardly from said front and back walls and downwardly from said base wall to provide an air-tight seal between said bottom strip member and the supporting surface between the nails.
The two-piece retainer str7p of the present invention Is particularly useful in retaining a wide variPty of flexible sheet materials 7n a wlde variety of applications. One appltcation is that of several of the references Tdentlfied above, for use in retaining clear plasttc film mater7al about the margins of an exist7ng w7ndow, to create a storm window. The same retainer may be used 7n the summer months to support flexible v7nyl screening. The retainer strip may be employed on boats and campers to hold canvas in place and may also be employed on trash bins and waste baske~s and the like to retain plastic linings along the margins of the container opening, for exampleO
It is accordtngly an object of the invention to provide a two-ptece r~tainer strip assembly in which top and bottom strip members interlock to provide positive gripping of flexible sheet material retained therebetween and ~o provtde a self-locking feature. When the retainer top strtp member is in place, it provides forwardly and rearwardly e~tending proJections which respectively overlie the front ,~, .
Zl - 3a -and rear wa11s of the base member to cover the base member from view and to provlde protection for the sheet material gripped therebetween.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.
Brief Description of the Drawing FIG. I is a perspective view showlng a window to which the retainer strip of the present invention has been appti~d;
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Docket 2573 ~4~
FIG. 2 is a perspeçtive section view of top and bottom retainer strip members constructed in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the manner in which the top retainer member is.pivoted or rocked into interlockin~ relation with the bottom retaining member;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3 showing the top and bottom retaining members in assembled relation with a sheet of plastic material captured therebetween;
FIG. 5 is a sectional view through a sligh~ly modi~ied form of the invention;
FIG. 6 is a section of separated top and bottom strip members .constructed in accordance with a modification of the invention;
FIG. 7 is a section showing the strip members of FIG. 6 in position for clamping a flexible sheet of materia~;and FIG. 8 is a section similar to FIG. 7 and showing the strip members assembled with the sheet material locked therebetween.
Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring first to FIG. 1, a window is shown in which a two-piece retainer strip assembly 10 of this invention is shown as being applied to the marginal window Framing and mitered at corners to provide an auxiliary framing at the window for supporttng a sheet 12 of clear plastics material. The two-piece retainer in a ~irst embodiment of the invention, as shown in FIGS. 2-1~, includes a bottom member 15 which may be extruded of rigid or semi-rigid plastic material such as acrylonltrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) or polystyrene resins.
The bottom strip member 15 has an outer or bottom surface 16 whlch ts adapted for fastening to the window framing or the like.
Natls may be drlven dtrectly through the bottom, or, where desired, apertures or holes 17 may be preformed in the back wall 18 for the purpose of easily accepting retaining nails 19 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
The bottom member is generally channel-shaped as it is formed with a front wall 20 and the back wall 18, which are spaced apart on a base or bottom wall 21 to define ~herebetwee~ a generally : channel-shaped recess.
~ The front wall 20 has means thereon def;ning a ~5~
Docket 2573 5 smoothly ~urved protuberance 25 whicll extends in~ardly in partially overlying relation to the recess 22 thereby forming an undercut recess 26 be~ween the protu~erance 25 and the base 21 of the bottom member lS.
~he back wall 18 is formed with a somewhat outwardly sloping inner surface 30 tenminating, along its upper marginal edge in an inwardly projecting latching portion 32. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the back wall 18, in this embodiment, is somewhat thicker in transverse dimension than the front wall 20 to receive the nails or fasteners 19.
The two-piece retainer includes an extruded top member or insert 40 which is also preferably formed of plastic material, such as polystyrene, which may be hollow as shown in Figs. 2-4 or solid as shown in Fig. 5. The top ~: member 40 has a transverse top 41 which is proportioned when assembled, to overlie the exposed upper surfaces of the back and front walls 18 and 20. Thus, the top 41 has a forward ex'cension po~tion 42 which overlies the ~ront wall 20 and a rearward extension portion 43 which overlies the back wall 18 and which overlies the heads 44 o~ ~h~
~ nails or ~asteners so that they are hidden ~rom view wh~n ~ the parts are asse~led.
The top member 40 also has a depending insext 25 por~ion illu~trated generally a~ 45 which is configured in generally con~orming relatio3~ to the r~cess 22 and is insertable into the reoess to capture the sheet ma~cerial 12 therebe~weet~ with the shee~`material overlying the tops of the front~ an~ rear walls and extending outwardly of the front wall 20, as shown in Eig. 4. Also, the ~ront wall 2~
: is formed with a downwardly ~apering upper sur~ace 48 which ` de~ines a~ outwardly tapering slot 50 with the forward extension edge 42 of the upper member 40. The slot 50 provides relie from any ctrain on the sheet material 12 at ~he exit xegion of the retalner strip of this invention.
s notedJ ~he inser~ portio~ 45 o~ the top me~ber . 40.is co~figured in genexally conformi~g relation to ~h~
~.: :- , , , ' - ~' ' . ~: , ,: , . , ' ' ' . . .
Docket 2573 -6-recess 22 so as to capture the sheet material therebetween with the sheet material overlying the front and rear walls. Thus,the insert portion 45 is formed with an outwardly protruding or extending bottom portion 52 which is proportioned to be received with the undercut or recess 26 formed beneath or underlying the inwardly extending protuberance 25. The bottom of the insert is slightly relieved as shown at 55 to provide a clearance space with the base 21 of the lower member 15 so as to provide a slight clearance space to receive the heads of nails or fasteners driven through the bottom member, as shown in Fig. 5. The top member 40 further includes a cooperating outwardly extending latch 60 which is adapted to be captured in underlying relation to the inwardly extending latching portion 32 of the back wall 18, as shown in Fig. 4.
In the operation of the invention, the plastic material 12 is stretched across the opening or recess 22 and across the upper surfaces of the front and back walls of the lower member 15, and the top member is inserted first by engaging the forward portion or protuberance 52 into the recess 26 as shown in Fig. 3, and then pressing down to bring the latch 60 into engagement with the latching protuberance portion 32, as shown in Fig. 4.
The upper member 40 is shown in the embodiments of Figs. 2-4 as being hollow, and this construction is preferred where relatively large components are employed, in order to conserve material. However, in the embodi-ment of Fig. 5, a solid member 40a is shown.
In the operation of the invention, the plastic material 12 is stretched across the opening or recess 22 and across the upper surfaces of the front and back walls of the lower member 15, and the top member is inserted first by engaging the forward portion or protuberance 52 into the recess 26 as shown in Fig. 3, and then pressing down to bring the latch 60 into engagement with the latching protuberance portion 32, as shown in Fig. 4.
This movement applies a stretching force to the sheet material and prevents its dislodgment since the sheet material is first captured along the curvature of the forward wall during the insertion process. It will also be seen that any tension applied to the sheet material will be in the direction of the arrow 65 as shown in Fig.
4. The sheet material tends to straighten itself out along the generally S-shaped path or curvature defined 32~
Docket 2573 ~7 between the top member 40 and the Front wall 20, thus causlng a force to be applied to the insert portion Lj5 in the direction of the arrow 66, which thereby causes the insert to be pressed even tighter against the cooperating latch portions 32 and 60.
In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 5, a slightly modified form o~ the bottom member is shown at 15a as includ-ing a downwardly depending flange 70 formed as a part of the back wall 18. The flange 70 may be employed for mounting, as shown in FIG. 5, by driving nails therethrough~ However, if desired, the flange 70 may be omitted to permit flush mounting of the bottom member by suitable nails driven through the bottom member with the heads received within the clearance 55 formed thereunder. In this embodiment, the top member 40a has essentially the same outer configuration as that of the member 40, except that it is formed solid. Both parts may conveniently be formed of a substantially rigid polystyrene material which can easily be cut and trimmed to shape with a sharp pocket knife.
Another embodiment of the invention is illus-trated in FIGS.
6-8 and is similar to the embodiment shown in flG. 5. In this embodiment, a base or bottom strip member 80 is extruded of a semi-rigid plastics material and includes a generally flat base wall 82which integrally connects a front wall 84 and a back wall 86 to form a channel~like cross-sectional configuration. The bottom strip member 80 is symmetrical about a center plane P, and each of the walls 8l~
and 86 includes an tnwardly projecting protuberance 87 defining a recess 8~ having undercut portions 89 under the protuberances 87.
The bottom corner portions 91 project outwardly and downwardly from the base wall 82 to form V-shaped corners having slight flex7bility.
The retainer strip assembly shown in FIG. 6 also includes a top strip member 95 which is preferrably extruded from the same 30 semi-rigid plastics material as the bottom strip member 80 and has a cross-sectional configuration subs~antially the same as the strip member 40a described above in reference to FIG. 5. Thus the top strip member 95 includes an inner portion 96 with a cam surface 98 along ~ one side and a rounded protuberance 99 along the other side, resulting;~ 35 in the top strip member 95 beirig non-symmetrical abou~ the center-~ plane P. The outer portion 102 of the top strip member 95 has a rounded outer surface 103 which extends to form opposite tapering edge portions or flanges 104 defining an overall width which is .
~5~32~
Docket 2573 -8-substantially the same as the overall width of the bottom strip member 80. As apparent from FIG. 6, the protuberance 99 and the overlying edge flange 104 of the top strip member 95 define a groove 106 which has a depth greater than.the depth oF the groove 108 defined between the cam surface 98 and the overlying edge flange 104 of the top strip member.
As shown in FIG. 7, the bottom strip member 80 is attached to the flat surface 114 of a wooden window frame member 115 by a series of longitudinally spaced fasteners or nails 116. When the nails are driven through the bottom wall 82 of the bottom strip member 80, the.corner portions 91 of the bottom strip member assure a con- :
tinuous air-tight seal between the bottom strip member and the surface 114 by acçommodating irregularities in the flatness of the surface 114 between the nails 116. When the top str7p member 95 is inserted into the recass 88 of the bottom strip member 80 with a sheet S of flexible material therebetween, the top strip member 95 is rolled into the recess 88. The cam surface 98 i5 effective to separate or press the protrusions 87 apart slightly until the groove.108 receives the mating protrusion 87 when the top strip member 95 snaps into the bottom strip member 80, as shown in FIG. 8.
After the assembly of the strip members 80 and 95, the film or sheet material S is positively captured and retained between the strip members. The outer edge portion of the sheet S may then be cut or trimmed flush with the back or outer surface of the bottom strip member 80, as shown in FIG. 8. When it is desired to separate .
the strip members to remove the sheet S, the back edge flange 10l~ ?
7s lifted or snapped back to the position shown in FIG. 7 causing the back protrus7On 87 to be cammed out of ~he groove 108 and a slight spreading of the protrusions 87.
It will therefore be seen that this ;nvention provides a two-piece retainer strip assembly which is adapted to grip and support a wide variety of flexible sheet materials and which is adapted to be mounted on a wtde varTety of underlytng surfaces. For example, the invention is not limited to use with clear plastic sheet materials, and may be employed for supportTng flexible vinyl screening or the like, or may be used to grip and support upholstery material or other cloths, or may be employed to grip and retain the marginal edge of a canvas. The r~taining str7p may be reused, and the top or ;nsert ~53'h''1 Docket 2573 -9-strip member is easy to assemble by employing the rocking motion as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7. The rigidity o~ the strip assembly provides for the snap action and also prevents bow;ng or sagging of the strip members between the nails. The assembly also provides a neat and attractive appearance. The embodiment shown in FIGS. 6-8 further stmpli~ies the mounting of the bottom strip member 80 since the mem-ber is symmetrical about the center plane P and thus does not re-quire orientation. In addition, the flexible corner portions 91 provide for a continuous air-tight seal between the bottom strip member 80 and its supporting sur~ace.
While the forms of strip assemblies herein described con-stitute preferred embodiments of this invention, It is to be under-stood that the invention is not limited to these precise assemblies, and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention. What is claimed is:
Docket 2573 -1-RETAINER STRIP ASSEMBLY FOR FLEXIBLE SHEET ~ATERIAL
Background of the Invent7on Thts inventton relates to an improved retain7ng strip arrange-ment for gripping and supportins plastic sheet material. Prior retaintng strips are shown in the following United States patents:
Saling, U. S. paten~ No. 3,187,801 issued June a, 1965 is relevant to the invention as showing a two-piece strip for retaintng plastic sheet material. A rectangular plastic insert is forced into a groove of the same shape formed tn a metal retainer to wedge the plastic sheet ~herebetween and to cause tenston to be placed on the sheet.
Cuddeback, U. S. patent No. 3,302,260 issued February 7, 1967 is relevant as showing another form of ~lexible sheet retainer in which a generally C-shaped retainer member partially enctrcles an elongated bead to capture the material therebetween.
Keegan et al, U. S. patent No. 3,371,702 issued March 5, 1968 shows a two-piece plastic retainer in which a bottom piece formed with a semi-circular opening may be nailed directly to the underlying structure, and a round elongated bead of plastic matertal is snapped into the groove formed in the base member to capture the plastic sheet therebe~ween.
Abel, U. S. patent No. 3,991,806 tssued November 16, 1976 is relevant as showtng a base member ~ormed of metal or other rigid mater7al and ;n which a hollow oval shaped rstainer or rod is pressed into a groove formed by the base member for retaining a sheet of plastic material, Recks~n, lJ. S. patent No. 4,084,360 issued April 18, 1978 ts relevant as showing a two-piece retainer ~or screening which is formed wtth a base member configured to accept either a hollow elongated rod or a rigid spline for retaining the screening material between the spltne or the rod and the base member.
La Barge, U. S. patent No. 3,421,276 issued January 14, 1969 is also relevant as showing a plastic sheet retainer in whtch a C-shaped opentng is formed in a base member and a rod of plastic material is pressed 7nto the opening to retain a sheet o~ plasttc 35 material.
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Swanson, U. S. patent No. 2,526,912 issued October 24, 1950 and.disGloses an extruded ~lexible retai~er assembly for attashing adjacent edge portions of fabric panels to a support frame so that the panels are flush or form a corner.
Keegan et al, U. S. patent No. 3,371,702, 7ssued March 5, 1968, illustrates a~ extruded triangular retainer strip which mounts .within a corner of a window frame and has a groo~e for receivtng an extruded resilient cylindrical bead.
Bloomfield, U. S. patent No. 3,987,835 discloses various embodiments of a retainer assembly for a flexible sheet material, each of which incorpora~es an extruded metal channel for r~ceiving an extruded flexible or foldable retai~er stripO
Summary of the Invention The present invention is distinguished by the provision of an elongated two-piece retainer for flex7ble sheet material in which a top strip member is particularly configured to engage by pivotal movement into a bottom or base retaining member, to cause a predeter-mined stretch7ng or tensioning in the sheet material and which, when assembled, is essentially self locking and holding in that tension ~; 20 applied to the sheet material causes the retainer or insert to be urged agaTnst cooperating latching portions formed on the base member and on the insert.
More particularly, the invention provides an improved elongated two-piece retainer strip assembly adapted 25 to be mounted on a surface surrounding a window for gripping and retaining a panel of flexible sheet material, said strip assembly compr.isirly an extruded single piece bottom strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said bottom strip member beiny symmetrical about a longitudinally extending 30 center plane, and including a generally flat base wall being pierceable by a plurality of longitudinally spaced nails adapted to project perpendicular from said base wall to secure said bottom strip~member to the surface, a front wall and a back wall projecting from said base wall and cooperating therewith to define a generally channel-shaped recess, said front and back walls each having a protuberance extending inwardly in partially overlying relation to said recess to form opposing undercut portions of said recess between said protuberances and sa}d base wall, an extruded single piece top strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said top strip member being non-symmetrical about a longitudinally '~"
-extending center plane and having an inner portion with protuberances projecting outwardly into said undercut portions of said recess for capturing the sheet material within said recess with the sheet material overlylng said front and back walls, said top strip member including an outer portion having opposite outwardly projecting edge flanges overlying said front and back walls of said bottom strip member and providing said top strip member with a width generally the same as the width of said bottom strip member, one of said edge flanges on said top strip member cooperating with the underlying said protuberance on said top strip member to define a groove having a depth greater than the depth of the groove defined by the opposite said edge flange and the underlying said protuberance to provide for inserting said semi-rigid top strip member and the sheet material into said bottom strip member while providing for conveniently removing said top strip member from said bottom strip m~nber, and said bottom strip member including longitudinally extending flexible bottom corner portions projecting laterally outwardly from said front and back walls and downwardly from said base wall to provide an air-tight seal between said bottom strip member and the supporting surface between the nails.
The two-piece retainer str7p of the present invention Is particularly useful in retaining a wide variPty of flexible sheet materials 7n a wlde variety of applications. One appltcation is that of several of the references Tdentlfied above, for use in retaining clear plasttc film mater7al about the margins of an exist7ng w7ndow, to create a storm window. The same retainer may be used 7n the summer months to support flexible v7nyl screening. The retainer strip may be employed on boats and campers to hold canvas in place and may also be employed on trash bins and waste baske~s and the like to retain plastic linings along the margins of the container opening, for exampleO
It is accordtngly an object of the invention to provide a two-ptece r~tainer strip assembly in which top and bottom strip members interlock to provide positive gripping of flexible sheet material retained therebetween and ~o provtde a self-locking feature. When the retainer top strtp member is in place, it provides forwardly and rearwardly e~tending proJections which respectively overlie the front ,~, .
Zl - 3a -and rear wa11s of the base member to cover the base member from view and to provlde protection for the sheet material gripped therebetween.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.
Brief Description of the Drawing FIG. I is a perspective view showlng a window to which the retainer strip of the present invention has been appti~d;
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Docket 2573 ~4~
FIG. 2 is a perspeçtive section view of top and bottom retainer strip members constructed in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the manner in which the top retainer member is.pivoted or rocked into interlockin~ relation with the bottom retaining member;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3 showing the top and bottom retaining members in assembled relation with a sheet of plastic material captured therebetween;
FIG. 5 is a sectional view through a sligh~ly modi~ied form of the invention;
FIG. 6 is a section of separated top and bottom strip members .constructed in accordance with a modification of the invention;
FIG. 7 is a section showing the strip members of FIG. 6 in position for clamping a flexible sheet of materia~;and FIG. 8 is a section similar to FIG. 7 and showing the strip members assembled with the sheet material locked therebetween.
Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring first to FIG. 1, a window is shown in which a two-piece retainer strip assembly 10 of this invention is shown as being applied to the marginal window Framing and mitered at corners to provide an auxiliary framing at the window for supporttng a sheet 12 of clear plastics material. The two-piece retainer in a ~irst embodiment of the invention, as shown in FIGS. 2-1~, includes a bottom member 15 which may be extruded of rigid or semi-rigid plastic material such as acrylonltrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) or polystyrene resins.
The bottom strip member 15 has an outer or bottom surface 16 whlch ts adapted for fastening to the window framing or the like.
Natls may be drlven dtrectly through the bottom, or, where desired, apertures or holes 17 may be preformed in the back wall 18 for the purpose of easily accepting retaining nails 19 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
The bottom member is generally channel-shaped as it is formed with a front wall 20 and the back wall 18, which are spaced apart on a base or bottom wall 21 to define ~herebetwee~ a generally : channel-shaped recess.
~ The front wall 20 has means thereon def;ning a ~5~
Docket 2573 5 smoothly ~urved protuberance 25 whicll extends in~ardly in partially overlying relation to the recess 22 thereby forming an undercut recess 26 be~ween the protu~erance 25 and the base 21 of the bottom member lS.
~he back wall 18 is formed with a somewhat outwardly sloping inner surface 30 tenminating, along its upper marginal edge in an inwardly projecting latching portion 32. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the back wall 18, in this embodiment, is somewhat thicker in transverse dimension than the front wall 20 to receive the nails or fasteners 19.
The two-piece retainer includes an extruded top member or insert 40 which is also preferably formed of plastic material, such as polystyrene, which may be hollow as shown in Figs. 2-4 or solid as shown in Fig. 5. The top ~: member 40 has a transverse top 41 which is proportioned when assembled, to overlie the exposed upper surfaces of the back and front walls 18 and 20. Thus, the top 41 has a forward ex'cension po~tion 42 which overlies the ~ront wall 20 and a rearward extension portion 43 which overlies the back wall 18 and which overlies the heads 44 o~ ~h~
~ nails or ~asteners so that they are hidden ~rom view wh~n ~ the parts are asse~led.
The top member 40 also has a depending insext 25 por~ion illu~trated generally a~ 45 which is configured in generally con~orming relatio3~ to the r~cess 22 and is insertable into the reoess to capture the sheet ma~cerial 12 therebe~weet~ with the shee~`material overlying the tops of the front~ an~ rear walls and extending outwardly of the front wall 20, as shown in Eig. 4. Also, the ~ront wall 2~
: is formed with a downwardly ~apering upper sur~ace 48 which ` de~ines a~ outwardly tapering slot 50 with the forward extension edge 42 of the upper member 40. The slot 50 provides relie from any ctrain on the sheet material 12 at ~he exit xegion of the retalner strip of this invention.
s notedJ ~he inser~ portio~ 45 o~ the top me~ber . 40.is co~figured in genexally conformi~g relation to ~h~
~.: :- , , , ' - ~' ' . ~: , ,: , . , ' ' ' . . .
Docket 2573 -6-recess 22 so as to capture the sheet material therebetween with the sheet material overlying the front and rear walls. Thus,the insert portion 45 is formed with an outwardly protruding or extending bottom portion 52 which is proportioned to be received with the undercut or recess 26 formed beneath or underlying the inwardly extending protuberance 25. The bottom of the insert is slightly relieved as shown at 55 to provide a clearance space with the base 21 of the lower member 15 so as to provide a slight clearance space to receive the heads of nails or fasteners driven through the bottom member, as shown in Fig. 5. The top member 40 further includes a cooperating outwardly extending latch 60 which is adapted to be captured in underlying relation to the inwardly extending latching portion 32 of the back wall 18, as shown in Fig. 4.
In the operation of the invention, the plastic material 12 is stretched across the opening or recess 22 and across the upper surfaces of the front and back walls of the lower member 15, and the top member is inserted first by engaging the forward portion or protuberance 52 into the recess 26 as shown in Fig. 3, and then pressing down to bring the latch 60 into engagement with the latching protuberance portion 32, as shown in Fig. 4.
The upper member 40 is shown in the embodiments of Figs. 2-4 as being hollow, and this construction is preferred where relatively large components are employed, in order to conserve material. However, in the embodi-ment of Fig. 5, a solid member 40a is shown.
In the operation of the invention, the plastic material 12 is stretched across the opening or recess 22 and across the upper surfaces of the front and back walls of the lower member 15, and the top member is inserted first by engaging the forward portion or protuberance 52 into the recess 26 as shown in Fig. 3, and then pressing down to bring the latch 60 into engagement with the latching protuberance portion 32, as shown in Fig. 4.
This movement applies a stretching force to the sheet material and prevents its dislodgment since the sheet material is first captured along the curvature of the forward wall during the insertion process. It will also be seen that any tension applied to the sheet material will be in the direction of the arrow 65 as shown in Fig.
4. The sheet material tends to straighten itself out along the generally S-shaped path or curvature defined 32~
Docket 2573 ~7 between the top member 40 and the Front wall 20, thus causlng a force to be applied to the insert portion Lj5 in the direction of the arrow 66, which thereby causes the insert to be pressed even tighter against the cooperating latch portions 32 and 60.
In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 5, a slightly modified form o~ the bottom member is shown at 15a as includ-ing a downwardly depending flange 70 formed as a part of the back wall 18. The flange 70 may be employed for mounting, as shown in FIG. 5, by driving nails therethrough~ However, if desired, the flange 70 may be omitted to permit flush mounting of the bottom member by suitable nails driven through the bottom member with the heads received within the clearance 55 formed thereunder. In this embodiment, the top member 40a has essentially the same outer configuration as that of the member 40, except that it is formed solid. Both parts may conveniently be formed of a substantially rigid polystyrene material which can easily be cut and trimmed to shape with a sharp pocket knife.
Another embodiment of the invention is illus-trated in FIGS.
6-8 and is similar to the embodiment shown in flG. 5. In this embodiment, a base or bottom strip member 80 is extruded of a semi-rigid plastics material and includes a generally flat base wall 82which integrally connects a front wall 84 and a back wall 86 to form a channel~like cross-sectional configuration. The bottom strip member 80 is symmetrical about a center plane P, and each of the walls 8l~
and 86 includes an tnwardly projecting protuberance 87 defining a recess 8~ having undercut portions 89 under the protuberances 87.
The bottom corner portions 91 project outwardly and downwardly from the base wall 82 to form V-shaped corners having slight flex7bility.
The retainer strip assembly shown in FIG. 6 also includes a top strip member 95 which is preferrably extruded from the same 30 semi-rigid plastics material as the bottom strip member 80 and has a cross-sectional configuration subs~antially the same as the strip member 40a described above in reference to FIG. 5. Thus the top strip member 95 includes an inner portion 96 with a cam surface 98 along ~ one side and a rounded protuberance 99 along the other side, resulting;~ 35 in the top strip member 95 beirig non-symmetrical abou~ the center-~ plane P. The outer portion 102 of the top strip member 95 has a rounded outer surface 103 which extends to form opposite tapering edge portions or flanges 104 defining an overall width which is .
~5~32~
Docket 2573 -8-substantially the same as the overall width of the bottom strip member 80. As apparent from FIG. 6, the protuberance 99 and the overlying edge flange 104 of the top strip member 95 define a groove 106 which has a depth greater than.the depth oF the groove 108 defined between the cam surface 98 and the overlying edge flange 104 of the top strip member.
As shown in FIG. 7, the bottom strip member 80 is attached to the flat surface 114 of a wooden window frame member 115 by a series of longitudinally spaced fasteners or nails 116. When the nails are driven through the bottom wall 82 of the bottom strip member 80, the.corner portions 91 of the bottom strip member assure a con- :
tinuous air-tight seal between the bottom strip member and the surface 114 by acçommodating irregularities in the flatness of the surface 114 between the nails 116. When the top str7p member 95 is inserted into the recass 88 of the bottom strip member 80 with a sheet S of flexible material therebetween, the top strip member 95 is rolled into the recess 88. The cam surface 98 i5 effective to separate or press the protrusions 87 apart slightly until the groove.108 receives the mating protrusion 87 when the top strip member 95 snaps into the bottom strip member 80, as shown in FIG. 8.
After the assembly of the strip members 80 and 95, the film or sheet material S is positively captured and retained between the strip members. The outer edge portion of the sheet S may then be cut or trimmed flush with the back or outer surface of the bottom strip member 80, as shown in FIG. 8. When it is desired to separate .
the strip members to remove the sheet S, the back edge flange 10l~ ?
7s lifted or snapped back to the position shown in FIG. 7 causing the back protrus7On 87 to be cammed out of ~he groove 108 and a slight spreading of the protrusions 87.
It will therefore be seen that this ;nvention provides a two-piece retainer strip assembly which is adapted to grip and support a wide variety of flexible sheet materials and which is adapted to be mounted on a wtde varTety of underlytng surfaces. For example, the invention is not limited to use with clear plastic sheet materials, and may be employed for supportTng flexible vinyl screening or the like, or may be used to grip and support upholstery material or other cloths, or may be employed to grip and retain the marginal edge of a canvas. The r~taining str7p may be reused, and the top or ;nsert ~53'h''1 Docket 2573 -9-strip member is easy to assemble by employing the rocking motion as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7. The rigidity o~ the strip assembly provides for the snap action and also prevents bow;ng or sagging of the strip members between the nails. The assembly also provides a neat and attractive appearance. The embodiment shown in FIGS. 6-8 further stmpli~ies the mounting of the bottom strip member 80 since the mem-ber is symmetrical about the center plane P and thus does not re-quire orientation. In addition, the flexible corner portions 91 provide for a continuous air-tight seal between the bottom strip member 80 and its supporting sur~ace.
While the forms of strip assemblies herein described con-stitute preferred embodiments of this invention, It is to be under-stood that the invention is not limited to these precise assemblies, and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention. What is claimed is:
Claims
1. An improved elongated two-piece retainer strip assembly adapted to be mounted on a surface surrounding a window for gripping and retaining a panel of flexible sheet material, said strip assembly comprising an extruded single piece bottom strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said bottom strip member being symmetrical about a longitudinally extending center plane, and including a generally flat base wall being pierceable by a plurality of longitudinally spaced nails adapted to project perpendicular from said base wall to secure said bottom strip member to the surface, a front wall and a back wall projecting from said base wall and cooperating therewith to define a generally channel-shaped recess, said front and back walls each having a protuberance extending inwardly in partially overlying relation to said recess to form opposing undercut portions of said recess between said protuberances and said base wall, an extruded single piece top strip member of semi-rigid plastics material, said top strip member being non-symmetrical about a longitudinally/extending center plane and having an inner portion with protuberances projecting outwardly into said undercut portions of said recess for capturing the sheet material within said recess with the sheet material overlying said front and back walls, said top strip member including an outer portion having opposite outwardly projecting edge flanges overlying said front and back walls of said bottom strip member and providing said top strip member with a width generally the same as the width of said bottom strip member, one of said edge flanges on said top strip member cooperating with the underlying said protuberance on said top strip member to define a groove having a depth greater than the depth of the groove defined by the opposite said edge flange and the underlying said protuberance to provide for inserting said semi-rigid top strip member and the sheet material into said bottom strip member while providing for conveniently removing said top strip member from said bottom strip member, and said bottom strip member including longitudinally extending flexible bottom corner portions projecting laterally outwardly from said front and back walls and downwardly from said base wall to provide an air-tight seal between said bottom strip member and the supporting surface between the nails.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000386654A CA1145921A (en) | 1981-09-25 | 1981-09-25 | Retainer strip assembly for flexible sheet material |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000386654A CA1145921A (en) | 1981-09-25 | 1981-09-25 | Retainer strip assembly for flexible sheet material |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1145921A true CA1145921A (en) | 1983-05-10 |
Family
ID=4121027
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000386654A Expired CA1145921A (en) | 1981-09-25 | 1981-09-25 | Retainer strip assembly for flexible sheet material |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1145921A (en) |
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4665670A (en) * | 1985-07-19 | 1987-05-19 | Den Burg Wouter M Van | Two-piece lock for securing polymeric sheeting over greenhouses |
| US4926605A (en) * | 1988-05-09 | 1990-05-22 | Les Milliken | Construction assembly for closure structure |
| US5647176A (en) * | 1988-05-09 | 1997-07-15 | Milliken; Les | Construction assembly for closure structure |
-
1981
- 1981-09-25 CA CA000386654A patent/CA1145921A/en not_active Expired
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4665670A (en) * | 1985-07-19 | 1987-05-19 | Den Burg Wouter M Van | Two-piece lock for securing polymeric sheeting over greenhouses |
| US4926605A (en) * | 1988-05-09 | 1990-05-22 | Les Milliken | Construction assembly for closure structure |
| US5647176A (en) * | 1988-05-09 | 1997-07-15 | Milliken; Les | Construction assembly for closure structure |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry |