A support for raised floors

Abstract

A support for raised floors includes a base and a head coupled to the base, the head having a support body and a tilting element laid on the support body, the tilting element having a plate-shaped portion with an upper surface that is partially flat for supporting a building elements, protrusions emerging from a circular crown of the lower surface of the plate-shaped portion to create a profile shaped as a spherical cap ring, the outer edge of the circular crown being near the outer perimeter of the plate-shaped portion, the support body having an upper surface defining a cavity that is counter-shaped to the spherical cap ring at the protrusions emerging from the tilting element.

Claims

1. A support for raised floors comprising: a base adapted to be positioned on a support surface; and a head operatively coupled to said base, said head comprising a support body and a tilting element laid on said support body, said tilting element having: a plate-shaped portion having an upper surface that is at least partially flat so as to support a building element, and a lower surface; and one or more protrusions emerging from a circular crown of the lower surface of said plate-shaped portion to create an overall profile shaped as a spherical cap ring, an outer edge of said circular crown being shaped to be received adjacently to an outer perimeter of said plate-shaped portion, said support body having an upper surface, with a cavity defined therein that is at least partially counter-shaped to said spherical cap ring at least at said one or more protrusions of said tilting element.

2. The support according to claim 1, further comprising stable coupling means of said tilting element on said support body.

3. The support according to claim 1, wherein said base has a cylindrical through hole centrally.

4. The support according to claim 3, wherein said head is coupled to said base with a threaded connection.

5. The support according to claim 4, wherein said threaded connection comprises a first thread provided on a lateral surface of said head and a second thread provided on an inner surface of said cylindrical through hole of said base.

6. The support according to claim 5, wherein said head is coupled to said base via an interposition of an extension element.

7. The support according to claim 6, wherein said extension element is a cylinder having, at each end, coupling means to said base or to another extension element, said cylinder comprising an inner surface threaded to stably couple with said first thread provided on the lateral surface of said head.

8. The support according to claim 7, wherein said coupling means are of bayonet coupling means.

9. The support according to claim 1, wherein said one or more protrusions are the spherical cap ring in filled form.

10. The support according to claim 1, wherein said one or more protrusions comprise a plurality of radial ribs.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] Further features and advantages of the invention will become more evident in light of the detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of a support for raised floors according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example with the aid of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0043] FIG. 1 represents a support for raised floors according to the invention in axonometric view;

[0044] FIG. 2 represents the support of FIG. 1 in sectioned view;

[0045] FIG. 3 represents the support of FIG. 1 in exploded view;

[0046] FIGS. 4 and 5 show details of a support according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME PREFERRED EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

[0047] With reference to the above figures, a support 1 for raised floors is described.

[0048] Like the known supports, it is modular being made by assembling multiple components. In this sense, the support 1 of the invention comprises a base 2, which can be positioned on a support surface, and a head 3 operatively coupled to the base 2.

[0049] In turn, the head 3 comprises a support body 4 and a tilting element 5 laid on the support body 4. It follows that the head 3 is of the tilting type.

[0050] However, according to an aspect of the invention, the support 1 comprises stable coupling means 8 of the tilting element 5 to the support body 4. Consequently, the head 3 can be both fixed and tilting, advantageously decreasing the number of components to be produced to obtain supports 1 for any need.

[0051] As far as the tilting element 5 is concerned, it comprises first of all a plate-like portion 10 having the upper surface 11 partially flat to support the building elements constituting the walking area of the raised floor. It is clear that the dimensions and the shape of the flat parts of the upper surface 11 of the plate-like portion 10 can be of any type without any limit for the invention. In particular, the aforementioned upper surface 11 can be totally flat.

[0052] In order to achieve the tilting movement with respect to the support body 4, the tilting element 5 also comprises a plurality of protrusions 12 emerging from a circular crown of the lower surface 14 of the plate-like portion 10 in order to achieve an overall profile shaped as a spherical cap ring.

[0053] In deeper detail of the described embodiment, the aforementioned protrusions 12 are a plurality of radial ribs. However, such aspect must not be considered as limiting for the present invention. According to some variant embodiments not shown in the drawings, in fact, circular ribs joining the radial ribs are added to the radial protrusions. Furthermore, in a particular embodiment the emerging protrusion is constituted by a full spherical cap ring.

[0054] In any case, to ensure the tilting movement, the support body 4 has a cavity 20 on the upper surface 21. This cavity 20 is partially counter-shaped on the aforementioned spherical cap at the emerging protrusions 12 of the tilting element 5.

[0055] Previously the objective was to make a support 1 composed of the fewest possible components and ensuring the widest possible range of heights. In these terms, the lowest heights are undoubtedly the most problematic to obtain. In particular, the association between the head 3 and the base 2, whether direct or, as will be seen shortly, through the interposition of further elements, must be able to provide the minimum heights.

[0056] For this reason, according to another aspect of the invention, the outer circumference of the circular crown which delimits the protrusions 12 is in proximity, if not coincident, with the outer perimeter 25 of the plate-like portion 10.

[0057] Since the spherical cap ring thus identified is responsible both for the mechanical support on the support body 4 of the tilting element 5 and for the inclination of the latter, the maximization of the radius of the outer circumference of the circular crown allows to maximize even more the radius of the inner circumference. In other words, the displacement of the circular crown towards the periphery of the plate-like portion 10 allows to increase the area of possible contact between the spherical cap ring and the support body 5, or to reduce the dimensions of the circular crown with the same contact area.

[0058] In the second case, which coincides with the maximization of the radius dimension of the inner circumference of the circular crown, the thickness of the spherical cap ring identified by the protrusions 12 is minimized, thus allowing to minimize the thickness of the whole head 3.

[0059] Advantageously, therefore, for the same base 2 the head 3 results reduced in thickness allowing to obtain minimized floor raising heights. In other words, advantageously, the head 3 of the support 1 of the invention can be used for any raised floor, even in the case of particularly limited raised floors.

[0060] What follows, still advantageously, is a considerable reduction of the components to be produced for the realization of supports 1 for any type of raising of a floor since the head 3 is unique both in the need to have supports with a tilting head and in the need to have supports with a fixed head, as well as in respect of any desired raising.

[0061] According to another aspect of the invention, head 3 and base 2 are coupled by screw means 30. More in detail, the base 2 centrally presents a substantially cylindrical through hole 31 having a second thread 32 on the inner surface 33. At the same time, the support body 4 of the head 3 is also cylindrical and has a first thread 35 on the lateral surface 34 which is adapted to mesh with the second thread 32 of the base 2.

[0062] In this way, advantageously, a slightly thick head 3 like the one just described, which must be screwed into the through hole 31 of the base 2 also allows the base 2 to be slightly thick to ensure the stability of the coupling. Advantageously, therefore, the raising of such support 1 can be minimized by obtaining very limited heights.

[0063] However, it is clear that also this aspect should not be considered as limiting for the invention, the coupling between base 2 and head 3 being able to be obtained also with different modes.

[0064] Earlier it was also stated that it is often necessary to obtain high raising heights. In this sense, according to a further aspect of the invention, the head 3 can be coupled to the base 2 by the interposition of one or more extension elements 36.

[0065] In other words, the extension elements 36 are shaped to allow the support to be modularly extended to any heights. Also in this context, therefore, the advantage is obtained of being able to use the same base 2 and the same head 3 to make any support 1 necessary for the raised floor that is being laid. The only additional element is, advantageously, only the extension element 36 which is also unique and whose number determines the effective height to be reached with the support 1.

[0066] It is therefore evident that both the production phase of such a support 1 with respect to the equivalent supports of prior art is advantageously improved, and the warehouse management of the components thereof which, in fact, are only three.

[0067] Since the extension element 36 must couple with the head 3, in the embodiment described it is cylindrical and has the inner surface 37 threaded.

[0068] At the same time, it must mate either with other extension elements 36 or with the base 2. Since the latter is not very thick and at the same time having to ensure the stability of the support even in case of particularly high raising heights, according to another aspect of the invention the extension element 36 has at each end coupling means 38 to the base 2 or to another extension element 36. More in detail, the coupling means 38 are of the bayonet type.

[0069] Advantageously, therefore, the coupling of the extension elements 36 to each another or to the base 2 is quick and easily obtainable.

[0070] Still advantageously, the bayonet coupling allows a strong mechanical stability of the coupling in a limited space allowing to maintain head 3, base 2 and extension elements 36 of limited thickness in order to ensure the obtainment of any raising desired.

[0071] In light of the foregoing, it is understood that the support for raised floors of the invention achieves all the prefixed purposes.

[0072] In particular, with respect to the known art the support has minimized number of components that constitute itself and which allow any raising to be obtained.

[0073] In fact, regarding the head, it is either tilting or fixed by the use of a single accessory.

[0074] The head, base and extension element can be made particularly short so as to allow any raising height among those necessary in the prior art.

[0075] Moreover, it follows that the support of the invention achieves all the prefixed purposes with a minimum number of components to be produced and managed in the warehouse. This number, however, is much lower than what occurs for the equivalent supports of the prior art.

[0076] The invention might be subject to many changes and variants, which are all included in the appended claims. Moreover, all the details may furthermore be replaced by other technically equivalent elements, and the materials may be different depending on the needs, without departing from the protection scope of the invention defined by the appended claims.