WO2000019041A1

WO2000019041A1 - Weightable foil sheet

Info

Publication number: WO2000019041A1
Application number: PCT/NO1999/000275
Authority: WO
Inventors: Arne Hageseter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1998-09-30
Filing date: 1999-09-02
Publication date: 2000-04-06
Anticipated expiration: 2001-03-30
Also published as: NO984583L; AU5659299A; NO308321B1; NO984583D0

Abstract

A weightable foil sheet (3) for use in the mounting of a suspended roof construction, which may comprise horizontally extending, tensile elements (wires, ropes) (1, 2), which parallel, longitudinal elements (1) can be weighted by means of water-tight hoses (5) or similar hollow bodies. In said roof construction there are arranged, in addition to the longitudinal, supporting wires (1), transverse, flexible rope-like stretching elements (2). To achieve a stabilization of the foil sheets (3) on the substructure (1, 2) and a securing thereto, the foil sheet (3) is provided, at least at two opposite side edges, with weightable hoses/hollow bodies (5) in the form of integrated pockets/hems. Besides, in the vicinity of the opposite edges with integrated pockets/hems, the foil sheet (3) is provided with holes (4) through which said transverse stretching elements (2) may be passed and thus secure the foil sheet (3) to the adjacent longitudinal wires (1).

Description

WEIGHTABLE FOIL SHEET

The present invention relates to a weightable foil sheet of rectangular circumferential shape, intended to be incorporated, preferably together with several other foil sheets, into a roof construction consisting of a supporting substructure comprising essentially parallel elongate elements, preferably in the form of wires, extending in the longitudinal direction of the roof construction, wherein said foil sheets can be weighted by means of water-tight hoses or similar hollow bodies, and wherein, in said roof construction, there are arranged transverse, flexible, ropelike stretching elements in addition to the longitudinally extending supporting elements.

By many types of makeshift, temporary roof constructions/covers in agriculture and industry, for example in the form of a suspended roof protecting trees underneath against excessive precipitation, there is a need to allow the foil sheet to be attached and detached with respect to the supporting, suspended substructure of, for example, suspended, essentially parallel wires extending in the longitudinal direction of the covering roof construction, and for stabilizing and securing, possibly locking, the foil sheet (s) in the mounted condition.

From the German patent publication 26 33 963 is known that such a foil sheet may be stabilized over the substructure by means of water or sand filled into a hem provided in the respective foil sheet. This known solution assumes that the upper edge of the foil sheet is secured to the substructure, for example by a screw or clamping arrangement, and that the weight of the filled hem is so great that it may withstand the prevailing wind force, so that the foil sheet is not blown off the substructure by the edge where the filled/fillable hem is.

However, this known solution cannot be used by a suspended substructure, since the points of attack of possible mechanical fastening means would change all the time, according to the external forces affecting the foil sheets and the rest of the roof construction. Further, such a construction is unnecessarily heavy, with corresponding dimensioning of the substructure, since the water pockets must be dimensioned to receive maximum wind loads to prevent the foil sheets from being blown off.

The object of the present invention has been, by a weightable foil sheet of the initially mentioned kind, to enable stabilization and locking of the foil sheet (s) on the hanging substructure of wire or similar. Regardless of the cross- sectional shapes formed by a number (for example by three, five etc.) of wires when being loaded, it should be possible for the stabilization and locking of the foil sheet (s) to be maintained, as the foil sheet (s) should be able to hang free and stretched.

In accordance with the present invention the object is realized by the foil sheet, or each foil sheet whose sheet material is either undivided or consists of pieces of foil sheet joined together in the functional state of the foil sheet, being provided, at least at two opposite edges, with weightable hoses/hollow bodies in the form of integrated pockets/hems, which in the mounted state of the foil sheet come to hang freely down from the longitudinal elements, and that adjacent to each pocket/hem, the foil sheet, or each foil sheet, is formed with holes therethrough, through which transverse stretching elements in the form a of locking line may be passed and thus stabilize and possibly secure the foil sheet to the respective longitudinal elements.

Each of the foil sheets mentioned above may be configured of two or more joined/joinable pieces, two of them being provided with an integrated pocket/hem along a side edge and a series of holes (preferably with eyes) parallel with the pocket/hem, and within same, these two pieces of foil sheet of the joined foil sheet being oriented so that said joined foil sheet exhibits an integrated pocket/hem along two opposite sides, each having a parallel series of holes arranged thereto for the transverse, rope-like stretching element .

Thereby is achieved that a foil sheet in the state of use in the form of an undivided foil sheet with weightable elements along opposite side edges, or a joined foil sheet comprising two pieces of foil, each having a weightable element along at least one side edge, hangs freely and adequately stretched between its two opposite, weightable edges. Experiments have shown that such foil sheets are stabilized and secured in a highly satisfactory manner on a suspended substructure. After use the foil sheets exhibit very little wear, and the foil sheets may easily be placed on the hanging wires and be detached therefrom. The transverse holes for the locking ropes are located above (within) adjacent water- filled (weightable) , water-tight pockets/hoses/hems and under the longitudinal elements/wires of the suspended substructure, so that the ropes passed through said holes extending through the respective foil sheet near an adjacent wire, form coupling means between the foil sheet and the wire or another elongate, suspended stretch-receiving roof construction element of the kind in question.

Foil sheets integrated into a suspended substructure of the kind specified, and which may form, together with this, an overlying, covering roof construction especially for protection outdoors of trees, equipment etc. underneath, are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 shows a schematic end view/cross section of four suspended roof constructions placed one beside the other in the transverse direction thereof;

Fig. 2 is a perspective sectional view at a larger scale, seen in the direction of the arrows II of Fig. 1, showing a cut piece of a foil sheet which is in the position of use;

Fig. 3 shows a perspective sectional view of a suspended roof arrangement which may for example comprise two or more freely-suspended roofs, placed one beside the other, of the kind shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 shows a planar view of a rectangular foil sheet formed of one undivided piece of foil, provided with an integrated pocket/hem along two opposite side edges and holes running along each edge within the hem/pocket;

Fig. 5 shows a planar view corresponding to Fig. 4, in which two pieces of foil, each formed with an integrated he /pocket along one side edge, are joined with an intermediate piece of foil, said pieces of foil being provided, at adjacent edge portions, with parallel, adjacent series of holes for the joining of the foil pieces;

Fig. 6 corresponds to Fig. 5, but here the intermediate piece has been omitted, two "half", identical but opposite (mirror- symmetrical) foil sheets being joined together along adjacent side edges exhibiting a series of holes each.

According to Fig. 1 there is shown four suspended roofs, placed one beside the other.

Each suspended roof construction, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment exhibiting the embodiment of a saddle roof, is built of a number (three, five etc.) of longitudinal, parallel, elongate, tensile elements 1, preferably in the form of suspended wires which are suitably suspended by their end portions in not shown poles/columns, or secured to the ground.

Transverse, flexible, rope-like tension-receiving elements 2 which form, together with the longitudinal, mainly horizontal elements/wires 1, the substructure of the roof construction arrangement, Fig. 1, and which in another embodiment might have been arranged for each individual roof, consisting of two or three longitudinal wires, may constitute the connecting or locking lines between the longitudinal wires of the substructure 1,2 and a foil sheet 3, by the foil sheet 3 being provided, at its two opposite edges extending mainly horizontally in the position of use, with holes 4 for the passing of the connecting/locking line 2, see Figs. 2 and 3.

Said holes 4 are located near, but somewhat withdrawn from the adjacent free edge of the foil sheet, which is formed by a weightable, for example tillable with water, hose/hollow body 5 in the form of an integrated hem/pocket . Each foil sheet 3 has such a weightable, integrated pocket/hem 5 at least at two opposite side edges.

The transverse connecting/locking line 4 may be suspended at each end as schematically indicated in Fig. 1.

The line 4 runs on the underside of the longitudinal substructure wire 1 and on the upper side of the weightable pockets/hems 5, and thus provides a simple securing/locking of each individual foil sheet 3 to the adjacent longitudinal wires 1, as the weightable flexible hoses/pockets 5, normally filled with water, will easily be able to follow the shifting course of the wires 1 by wind load.

In fig. 4 is shown, in a planar view, how one foil sheet ready for use may be formed, namely in one undivided, rectangular piece 3 with an integrated hem/pocket 5 along two opposite side edges.

According to Figs. 5 and 6 a foil sheet ready for use is formed of two or more rectangular pieces of foil sheet, which are/may be joined together along opposite, adjacent side edges .

According to Fig. 5 two of these pieces of foil, the outer pieces 3a, are identical and provided with an integrated hem/pocket 5a along one side edge. Just within this edge hem/pocket 5a there is formed a series of holes 4a parallel thereto and to the side edge. Along the opposite side edge of each of these outer pieces 3a are formed a series of holes 4a¹ for joining to adjacent edge portions of an intermediate piece 3b with a series of holes 4b along opposite side edges. Adjacent foil edge portions may be connected to each other by means of lines passed through the holes 4a', 4b and 4b, 4a', or other joining means and/or methods may be used.

Fig. 6 shows a joined, rectangular foil sheet consisting exclusively of the outer pieces 3a according to Fig. 5. The foil sheets 3a may for example be exchanged, by being slipped on to the wire 1 by their holes 4a' .

Depending on the physical size of the area of the foil sheet in the state of use, it may be practical for it to be made up/joined together of more than three pieces of foil.

Claims

C L A I M

1. A weightable foil sheet (3) of a rectangular circumferential shape, meant to be integrated, preferably together with several other foil sheets (3) , into a roof construction consisting of a supporting substructure comprising essentially parallel elongate elements (1) , preferably in the form of wires, extending in the longitudinal direction of the roof construction and in which said foil sheets (3) may be weighted by means of water-tight hoses or similar hollow bodies, and in which there is arranged in said roof construction, in addition to the longitudinal, supporting elements (1), transverse, flexible, rope-like stretching elements (2), c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that the foil sheet (3; 3a, 3a; 3a, 3b, 3a), or each foil s sheet whose sheet material is either undivided or consists of joined pieces (3a, 3b) in the functional state of the foil sheet, is provided, at least at two opposite edges, with weightable hoses/hollow bodies in the form of integrated pockets/hems (5; 5a) which in the mounted state of the foil o sheet (3; 3a, 3a; 3a, 3b, 3a) will be hanging freely down from the longitudinal elements (1) , and that in the vicinity of each pocket/hem (5; 5a), the foil sheet or each foil sheet is formed with through holes (4; 4a), through which the transverse stretching elements (2) in the form of a locking 5 line may be passed and thus stabilize and possibly secure the foil sheet (3; 3a, 3a; 3a, 3b, 3a) to the respective longitudinal elements (1) .

2. A weightable foil sheet according to claim 1, c ha r a c t e r i z e d i n that the foil sheet, or each 0 foil sheet (3) consisting of a rectangularly cut, undivided piece of foil sheet, has a hem/pocket along two opposite side edges .

3. A weightable foil sheet according to claim 1, chara c t e r i z e d i n that the foil sheet or each foil sheet consists of two or more, joined pieces of foil (3a, 3a; 3a, 3b, 3a), in which two outer pieces of foil (3a, 3a), which are preferably identical, have a hem/pocket (5a) along one side edge, which side edge hems/pockets are oriented in opposite directions, away from each other in the functional state of the joined foil sheet.

4. A weightable foil sheet according to claim 3, chara c t e r i z e d i n that in addition to the two outer foils (3a) , the foil sheet or each foil sheet has in its joined functional state, at least one intermediate foil piece (3b) joined to the adjacent side edges of the outer foils (3a) , or joined together among themselves if several intermediate pieces (3b) are interconnected.