GB2383594A

GB2383594A - Rafter with end capping at eave

Info

Publication number: GB2383594A
Application number: GB0130927A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Adrian Redshaw
Original assignee: Eurocell Profiles Ltd
Current assignee: Eurocell Profiles Ltd
Priority date: 2001-12-27
Filing date: 2001-12-27
Publication date: 2003-07-02
Anticipated expiration: 2021-12-27
Also published as: GB0130927D0; GB2383594B

Abstract

A rafter (2), which may be a glazing bar, to support a roof panel or glazing panel of a roof canopy, for example of a conservatory, comprises a supporting beam (4) on which upper and lower cappings 10, 22 are mounted. An end cap (34) covers ends of the beam and cappings at an end of the rafter. A bracket (36) is mounted on the rafter and the bracket and end cap have catch elements (18,76) which become engaged to hold the end cap in position over the end of the rafter, so as to cover the rafter end, when the cap is pushed towards the rafter end. Preferably, the end cap (34) is pivoted to the bracket(36). The two may be integrally formed, for example of a plastics material. The end cap may be fitted to the rafter end prior to mounting the rafter in position for use.

Description

RAFTERS This invention concerns glazing bars or rafters.

It is known to construct a roof canopy of a structure or building wherein the roof canopy comprises rafters supporting roof panels, and in which the rafters slope, for example in the case of a ridge roof, and have lower ends which may be exposed, for example at eaves, so that if the rafters are constructed with voids therein the weather may enter the rafters at said exposed ends. Thus it is known to provide end caps at the ends of rafters to cover those ends for protection and neatness of appearance.

The invention has a particular though not exclusive application to glazing bars or rafters used in the construction of conservatories, wherein the roof panels may be of any suitable material and may be glazing panels formed, for example, of glass or polycarbonate.

An object of the invention is to provide a glazing bar or rafter in combination with an end cap which may be fitted to an end of the rafter prior to the rafter being mounted in position, for example prior to being secured to a ring beam, for example in the construction of a conservatory, whereby access problems to an end of a rafter adjacent to a gutter (for example a gutter integral with a ring beam) may be reduced or eliminated, and any fixing screws at the end of the rafter may be masked by the end cap.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a rafter to support a roof panel or glazing panel of a roof canopy, said rafter comprising a supporting beam having upper and lower cappings mounted thereon, an end cap provided to cover ends of the beam and cappings at said rafter end, a bracket mounted on the end of the rafter, and said

bracket and end cap being provided with respective catch elements which become engaged to hold the end cap in position over said rafter end to cover the latter when the cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards said rafter end.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a rafter to support a roof panel or glazing panel of a roof canopy, said rafter comprising a supporting beam having upper and lower cappings mounted thereon, an end cap provided to cover ends of the beam and cappings at said rafter end, said end cap being pivotably mounted on a bracket mounted on an end of the rafter whereby said end cap can pivot between an end of rafter uncovered attitude and an end of rafter covered attitude, and the bracket and end cap being provided with respective catch elements which become engaged to hold said end cap in position over said rafter end to cover the latter when the cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards said rafter end.

In either aspect, the roof canopy to comprise said rafter may be a roof canopy of a conservatory.

In either aspect, the end cap may be pushed, for at least part of its movement, towards said rafter end, generally or substantially along a longitudinal axis of the rafter.

A first said catch element may be mounted on the bracket and a second said catch element may be mounted on the end cap, and when said end cap is pushed towards the end of the rafter one of said catch elements may cam or slide over the or the other catch element until one said catch element engages or hooks behind the other. The first and second said catch elements may be a push snap-fit one behind the other. Each catch element may have a chamfered or sloping contact surface whereby at least

one said catch element may slide or cam relatively over the other catch element when the contact surfaces contact as the end cap is pushed towards the end of the rafter, and each catch element may have a respective engaging shoulder which engages against the other consequential to said sliding or camming. The engagement of said shoulders may hold the catch element together against separation.

The bracket and end cap may be formed of plastics material.

The bracket and end cap may be formed integrally one with the other.

The end cap may be pivotally mounted on the bracket by hinge means integral with the end cap and bracket. Said hinge means may comprise a plastics web integral with the end cap and bracket. Said plastics web may provide substantially a line hinge between the bracket and end cap.

The end cap and bracket may have respective first and second chamfered surfaces adjacent to said hinge, whereby the first and second surfaces may be disposed relatively to one another substantially in the disposition of a mitre joint when the end cap is in the end of rafter covered attitude. The bracket and/or the end cap may be formed with voids or notches adjacent to either end of said hinge.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is an exploded view of an end of a fragment of a rafter in combination with an end cap, wherein said combination is formed according to the first or second aspect of the invention;

Figure 2 is a side view, with parts broken away, of a fragment of the rafter in Figure 1 in combination with the end cap thereof in a non-covering attitude, and Figure 3 is a perspective view of the fragment of the combination in Figure 1 with the end cap in its covering attitude.

With reference to Figures 1 and 2, a glazing bar or rafter is indicated at 2 intended to form part of a roof canopy (not shown) of a structure or building (not shown). Said roof canopy may comprise a plurality of said rafters 2 and roof panels which, in the case of the structure or building being a conservatory, may be glazing panels, for example glass or polycarbonate panels.

The rafter 2 comprises a longitudinal supporting beam 4 of an inverted Tshape wherein the stem of the T is indicated at 6 comprising two spaced walls 7, and the arms of the T are indicated at 8. The rafter 2 may be formed of metal, for example aluminium, and may be an extrusion.

An upper trimming or capping 10, extending longitudinally, surmounts the supporting beam 4 and has diverging flanks 12. The capping 10 may be resilient and may be formed of a plastics material, for example by extrusion moulding. At an underside of the capping 10 there is formed a longitudinal receptor channel 14 between spaced resilient side walls 16 having at their lower edges inturned beadings or lips of suitable known kind to engage in a known push snap-fit manner with notches or grooves 18 of a known locking formation 20 extending longitudinally along an upper edge of the stem 6. The capping may be removable from the beam 4, and, as an alternative to push snap-fitting, the receptor channel 14 may engage the locking formation 20 as a longitudinal sliding fit therealong.

A lower trimming or capping 22, extends longitudinally of the supporting beam 4, surrounds outer faces of the arms 8, and is removably attached to the supporting beam by a known headed beading 24 integral with the capping. The head of that beading 24 is retained in a channel 26, in an underside of the supporting beam 4, by a longitudinal sliding engagement of the head with known shoulders either side of an entrance slot leading to the channel from the lower face of the arms 8. Lower capping 22 may be of plastics material and may be formed, for example, by extrusion moulding.

At each side of the rafter 2 is a longitudinally extending slot 28 defined between pliant sealing strips 30 and 32 each mounted on a respective lower or upper lip 34 or 35 of the upper capping 10 or the lower capping 22. Each slot 28 is intended to receive and hold an edge of the roof panel of the kind as discussed above with the sealing strips making a weathertight sealing contact with the opposite faces of the panel.

In the drawing the end of the rafter 2 shown is likely to be a lower end when the rafter is in use, for example on a ridge-roof where the aforementioned rafter end is at the eaves.

An end cap for the rafter end is indicated at 34 and is integral with a slender tag or bracket 36 of an inverted T-shape. The end cap 34 and mounting bracket 36 may be formed of resilient plastics material. The inverted T bracket 36 has arms 38 of the T at a lower end of the stem of the T which is formed with two holes 39. At their lower edge, the arms 38 have an integral lower lip 40 at substantially 90 to the plane of the arms. The end cap 36 has a main, generally planar cover part 42 of hexagonal shape with a peripheral rim wall 44 along five sides of the cover part, leaving the sixth side 46 free of wall. The peripheral shape of the end cap 36 corresponds generally to the profile of the rafter 2 viewed

end on, though somewhat larger than that profile so that when the end cap is in its rafter end covering attitude shown in Figure 3 there may be a generous clearance between the cap wall 44 and the top and the two opposite lateral regions of the rafter. Substantially centrally of the cap side 46, the cap is integral with the bracket lip 40 by a thin, narrow web (of cap and bracket material) forming substantially a line hinge 48 between the cap and bracket in which the hinge substantially coincides with the side 46. Either side of the line hinge 48, the hinging action is facilitated by adjacent edges of the lip 40 and cover part 42 being chamfered at 50 in the case of the lip and at 52 over a portion of the cap side 46 and by voids or notches 54 (Figure 3) in the cap side 46 at opposite ends of line hinge 48 and extending completely through the cover part. The chamfers 50 and 52 may each be a substantially 45 chamfer and may thus come together as a mitre joint when the end cap 34 is in the attitude of Figure 3.

The bracket 36 is mounted on the end of the rafter using self-tapping screws 56 through the holes 39. These screws 56 enter void 58 between the opposite walls 7 of beam stem 6 and threadably engage the material of the inner sides of the walls 7. Such threaded engagement may be improved by providing screw-engaging ribs 60 on the inner sides of the walls 7 to define screw-engaging passages more positively at the top and bottom of the void 58.

If desired, and as shown in Figures 1 and 2, a roof panel stop 62 may, using the screws 56 engaging the beam stem 6, be used to clamp the bracket 36 against the end of the supporting beam 4. The stop 62 has lateral abutments or cranked wings 64 each disposed between the stem 6 and a said lip 34 and 35 whereby the wing acts as an abutment or stop for a roof panel of the kind discussed above received in a said slot 28.

At its top the bracket 36 has an integral upper lip 66 at substantially 90 to the plane of the bracket and extends in the same direction as the lower lip 38 to which the upper lip is substantially parallel. The free end of the upper lip 66 has an integral catch element 68 in the form of an upwardly pointing barb which with the upper lip 2 forms a hook having an engaging shoulder 70 from an upper edge of which extends a downwardly sloping or chamfered contact face 72 of the catch element. Another lip or flange 74 is formed integrally with the cover part 42 on an inner face thereof.

The flange 74 has a free end provided with an integral catch element 76 in the form of a barb which with the flange 74 forms a hook having an engaging shoulder 78 with an edge remote from the flange, and from which edge extends a sloping or chamfered contact face 80 of the catch element. In the disposition shown in Figure 1, the two catch elements 68, 76 are of similar orientation in that they both point upwards.

When the end cap 34 is pivoted upwardly about the line hinge 48, the catch element 76 becomes inverted relative to the catch element 68 and when the end cap is pushed towards the end of rafter 2 (approximately along the rafter axis) the contact faces 72,80 slide or cam one over the other until the hook 74,76 resiliently snap-fits behind the hook 66,68 whereby engagement of the opposed shoulders 70,78 holds the end cap in place on the rafter end as shown in Figure 3. In that position, the cap rim wall 44 overlies part of the top and side faces of the rafter 2 adjacent to the end cap 34.

Claims

1. A rafter to support a roof panel or glazing panel of a roof canopy, comprising a supporting beam having upper and lower cappings mounted thereon, an end cap provided to cover ends of the beam and cappings at said rafter end, a bracket mounted on the end of the rafter, and said bracket and end cap joined together being provided with respective catch elements which become engaged to hold the end cap in position over said rafter and to cover the latter when the cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards said rafter end.

2. A rafter to support a roof panel or glazing panel of a roof canopy, comprising a supporting beam having upper and lower cappings mounted thereon, an end cap provided to cover ends of the beam and cappings at said rafter end, said end cap being pivotably joined to a bracket mounted on an end of the rafter whereby said end cap can pivot between an end of rafter uncovered attitude and an end of rafter covered attitude and the bracket and end cap being provided with respective catch elements which become engaged to hold said end cap in position over said rafter end to cover the latter when the cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards said rafter end.

3. A rafter according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the end cap is pushed or otherwise moved, for at least part of its movement, towards said rafter end, generally or substantially along a longitudinal axis of the rafter.

4. A rafter according claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3 wherein said catch elements comprise a first catch element mounted on the bracket and a second catch element mounted on the end cap, and when said end cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards the end of the rafter one of said catch

elements cams or slides over the other catch element until one said catch element engages or hooks behind the other.

5. A rafter according to claim 4 wherein the first and second catch elements are a push snap-fit one behind the other.

6. A rafter according to claim 4 or claim 5 wherein each said catch element has a chamfered or sloping contact surface whereby at least one said catch element is able to slide or cam relatively over the other catch element when the contact surfaces contact as the end cap is pushed or otherwise moved towards the end of the rafter, and each catch element has a respective engaging shoulder which engages against the other consequential to said sliding or camming.

7. A rafter according to claim 6 wherein the engagement of the shoulders holds the catch elements together against separation.

8. A rafter according to any preceding claim wherein the bracket and end caps are formed of plastics material.

9. A rafter according to claim 8 wherein the bracket and end cap are formed integrally one with the other.

10. A rafter according to any preceding claim wherein the end cap and bracket are pivotally joined by hinge means retained to the end cap and bracket.

11. A rafter according to claim 10 wherein the hinge means is integral with the end cap and bracket.

12. A rafter according to claim 11 wherein said hinge means comprises a plastics web integral with the end cap and bracket.

13. A rafter according to claim 12 wherein said plastics web provides substantially a line hinge between the bracket and end cap.

14. A rafter according to any of claims 10 to 13 as dependent from claim 2 wherein the end cap and bracket have respective first and second chamfered surfaces adjacent to said hinge means, whereby the first and second surfaces may be disposed relatively to one another substantially in the disposition of a mitre joint when the cap is in the end of rafter covered attitude.

15. A rafter according to claim 14 wherein voids or notches are formed at the bracket and/or the end cap adjacent to either end of said hinge means to facilitates the hinge action.

16. A roof canopy including a rafter as claimed in any preceding claim.

17. A roof canopy according to claim 16 which is a roof canopy of a conservatory.

18. A rafter substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

19. A roof canopy including a rafter substantially as described herein with reference to the accomp anying drawings.