Curtain wall

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

This invention is a wall for buildings, which has been especially devised for buildings with several storeys, and it is a floating wall, which covers the entire exterior wall with the soundproofing and heat insulation that is required for each particular case, and does so quickly, economically, efficiently and in a flexible way.

The front wall that is the subject of the invention can be applied to residential buildings and homes, but it is also valid for other types of buildings, and can provide the benefits of a ventilated front wall, at a cost that is similar to a conventional vertical exterior wall and the way in which it is laid in place and in which the quality is controlled are extremely efficient.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

In an overwhelming majority of cases, the classic exterior wall system for front walls that is currently used for homes and residential buildings, is based upon manufactured material comprising bricks or blocks, which are either made of ceramic material or concrete.

On each storey of the building, these materials lie freely on the lower floor and are secured to the upper one with mortar, and theoretically their stability is acceptable, although in many cases there is no such stability because of the dimensional tolerance levels at the edges of the floor slabs " in situ", which is often 5 cm, so the support of these materials on the edge of the floor slabs may only be a few centimetres, which seriously affects the stability.

Furthermore, it is not possible to reliably guarantee the airtightness of these exterior walls, in view of the craftsmanship used when erecting them.

There are a certain number of industrialised solutions available on the market for dealing with these exterior walls, but for a variety of reasons none of them have been fully implemented. They are generally systems that are based upon the use of different types of panels, and it is concrete panels that are predominantly utilised for residential or dwelling purposes, whether this is exclusively for the exterior wall, or for structural purposes. Some of these panels incorporate an insulation system, but they generally have major insulation bridges. The openings in the larger ones are open, but this means that such panels have to be specifically constructed for each particular solution.

Other types of panels are the light variety, commonly referred to as sandwich panels, which are composed of two external sheets, generally made of metallic plating, plastics or wooden sheeting, and one internal sheet that joins the aforementioned ones together and serves to insulate and soundproof, which could be made of such materials as polyurethane, polystyrene or high-density mineral wools. This type of panel requires an auxiliary structure that is usually made up of steel piping. They are extensively used for office buildings, shopping centres and similar constructions, but not for homes, in view of the fact that they are very expensive.

There is no comprehensive industrialised solution of this type in which the front wall is equipped with a ventilated chamber and for which the problem of the openings has been overcome.

However, there are front walls that are provided with a ventilated chamber, but their use is very limited, almost exclusively to luxury homes, where the chamber in question is formed with layers of stone secured to conventional manufactured materials by means of costly systems. To be specific, they are well-known systems in which the stone pieces are fixed with pieces of high-technology stainless steel that are very expensive, and they usually leave chambers of about 5 cm, from which the zone taken up by the insulation and soundproofing material has to be deducted, between 2 and 3 cm, and these systems include those manufactured by " STROW", which are anchorage systems based upon brickwork or concrete walls.

There are also systems that include fixing and exterior sheet, designed for ceramic pieces or vertical roof tiles, or also for panels of any type, which are weatherproof.

The system involving attachment to manufactured materials or concrete walls generally involves the use of strips, normally two sequences, and the insulation material is inserted between them. The thickness of the chambers is similar to the aforementioned case. In the case of the panels, some systems have an open joint, such as Naturvex, while others have a closed one, such as Knauf.

Thus, the common problem that is inherent to the ventilated front wall systems for residential buildings and similar ones that are currently used, revolves around their high price and the limited number of benefits provided.

With a view to overcoming this problem, in the publication by BRAICOVICH E: "THE CURTAIN WALL TURNS ITSELF INTO THREE". NUOVA FINESTRA, TECNOMEDIA, MILAN, IT, Vol. 21, no. 2, 2000, Pages 116-120, XP000970398 ISSN: 0394-321, a description is given of a floating wall for multi-story buildings, of the type that is equipped with a ventilated chamber, especially suitable for residential buildings on any level, which are structured by means of an intermediate support lining (6) serving as a support element for the rest of the facing and as an element that can withstand the stresses caused by the weight of those elements and the overburden caused by the wind (6), supplemented with an outer lining (11), which constitutes a barrier against adverse weather conditions, which serves as the outer surface of the facing and to which the support lining (6) is attached, in such a way that a ventilated chamber is formed between them, and finally an inner lining (1), which gives the inside of the room the required surface finish and which constitutes the sheeting for the support lining (6).

The problem that is caused by this type of facing lies in the fact that it is based upon an "in situ" shaping system for roofs, that is to say, for the works themselves, by means of seaming machinery from aluminium or steel sheeting coils. This means that the surface is apparently made up of trays, with small ribs (approximately 75 mm), which have to be reinforced so that they can withstand the stresses exerted. Furthermore, the thickness of the sheeting is limited by the machinery to be transported to the works.

The aforementioned system uses an intermediate lining to which a series of lock-work elements of complex design have to be added, which make it possible to lay an outer coat, in such a way that the only role played by the inner lining is to make it airtight, and it is necessary to place sections between slabs in order to withstand the effects of the wind, and to be able to transfer the weight of the coat onto the structure.

As a result, the system described above requires certain elements such as vertical reinforcement sections to transfer loads onto the structure, as well as continuous or discontinuous transition elements to keep the outer coat in place, which complicate the mounting process and serve to increase the final cost of the product.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The floating front wall that is proposed in the invention overcomes the above-mentioned problem in an entirely satisfactory way, so it is a solution that, as has already been pointed out, completely covers the exterior wall with soundproofing and thermal insulation, and does so quickly, economically, flexibly and efficiently. The exterior wall is light, it is assembled dry, allows different " coats" to be placed and can contain all the vertically running facilities that a residential building requires.

It is a multi-layered exterior wall that is based upon the concept of the ventilated front wall, with a chamber in the exterior through which the air can flow freely, which allows for better interior comfort conditions, at any time of the year, all of which is available at a price that makes the system affordable to the whole construction area, including buildings of the " council house" type, where there is little room for extra economic costs.

With a view to this, the front wall that is specifically advocated is structured on a bearing sheet, which takes the form of series of grooved plates that are responsible for withstanding the stresses exerted by the weight of all the front wall elements and the wind overloads, and it is this bearing sheet that makes the exterior wall solid and serves to support the rest of its elements, these plates running from the floor to the roof, passing immediately in front of the floor slabs. This bearing sheet transmits all the stresses, not only those exerted by gravity but also those caused by wind, to the building structure.

The bearing sheets affects several storeys of the building and can affect the entire building, given that their height is only restricted by the transporting of the trays, because the profilers from which they are obtained theoretically give unlimited lengths.

The trays adapt to the edge of the different floor slabs with the aid of different duly attached fittings so that any unevenness in the floor slab finish can be corrected, and the plates are ballistically driven into these fittings, this being a very quick and simple process, especially if one takes into account the fact that those fittings can simply take the form of an L-shaped section.

These grooved plates, serving as trays, are arranged vertically in such a way that the folds at their side edges serve not only as vertical structural ribs but also as the joining point between plates to create the bearing sheet. Furthermore, these side branches serve as front spacers as strips for the exterior sheet or " epidermis", which is to constitute the exposed face of the front wall.

This exterior sheet, which serves to protect against the weather and is equipped with whatever finish or decoration might be necessary, is positioned at the right distance from the bearing sheet to leave room for the ventilated chamber between them, and this chamber is sufficiently large to enable installations to run through.

The exterior sheet can either be directly attached to the vertical ribs of the trays that constitute the bearing sheet, or fitted with the aid of strips, depending on the type of material that is used for the exterior sheet, given that this can be obtained using ceramic pieces or stone pieces hanging from those strips, by means of cellulose-cement panels or wooden panels, duly treated with plastic material or sheets of glass, etc.

The front wall is also equipped with an inner sheet, which serves to provide the interior with the required surface finish. It is attached to the rear of the bearing sheet that creates a chamber for the interior fittings.

As a supplement to the structure described, the intermediate sheet is lined, both on the outside and the inside, with layers of material, which serve to both soundproof and insulate it, the exterior being equipped with a protective film, in such a way that this, as it also passes in front of the floor slabs, prevents the considerable strong insulation bridges that occur in this zone. The insulation material can be incorporated into the tray at the beginning.

Suitable modulation for the trays that form part of the intermediate or bearing sheet, as well as in the exterior or interior sheets, make it easy to create holes or openings for doors or windows, the required finishes helping to form these elements, and the tops of the corners, roof frames and lower finish also form part of the front wall.

The continuity of the structure so described is interrupted by the openings in the front wall, these holes forming the windows and the doors, where there are frames that are formed by means of a section of plating that can be joined to the exterior wall structure, not only at the sides but also at the top and bottom, and these frames serve as pre-frames where the final carpentry or metalwork will be fitted.

The ventilated chamber is suitably designed to enable it to house all types of installations such as the plumbing, electricity, telecommunications, ventilation, gas fittings, etc., which can be accessed from the exterior without causing any inconvenience to the users.

As can be deduced from the aforementioned, the main advantage of the invention system, lies in the industrialised nature of all its components, in such a way that on a works level, i. e. " in situ", all that are necessary are the mounting activities, which allows for a greater control over the workers' performance, the machinery and the materials, etc.

It will be easy to dismantle the front walls, so they can be given "top quality" recycling treatment when they have come to the end of their useful working life.

The fact that it is much easier to give quality assurance for this invention when compared to conventional front walls means that it can be guaranteed that there will be a lower number of incidents, faults and pathologies, while at the same time the benefits can be guaranteed where airtightness, soundproofing and insulation are concerned.

The appearance of the front wall can be easily changed, without it being necessary to dismantle it, except in the case of the exterior sheet, and it is easy and quick to repair and replace, with the consequent cutting of costs. The ease with which changes, improvements and replacements can be made also applies to the installations.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to complement the description that is being made and with the aim of allowing a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention, according to an example of the preferred embodiment of same, we include a set of drawings of an illustrative and non-restrictive nature, representing the following:

• Figure 1.- This shows a partial diagram in perspective of a floating front wall erected in accordance with the object of this invention, in which the constituent elements are shown sectioned or duly cut off so that the interior of the structure can be clearly seen.
• Figure 2.- This shows a representation similar to Figure 1, where a different type of material is used for the exterior sheet or exposed face of the front wall.
• Figure 3.- This shows a diagram in profile and section of the front wall, duly connected to two floor slabs, which also portrays in diagram form and with arrows, its effectiveness where insulation is concerned, and it also shows the upper finish given to the front wall at roof level.
• Figure 4.- This shows a close-up of the section similar to Figure 3, but for an area of the front wall in which a communications opening is placed linking with the exterior.
• Figure 5.- This shows a close up of a cross section at the height of the opening in question.

REALISATION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

It can be observed from the figures, how the floating front wall that is the object of the invention is structured from an intermediate sheet that contains a series of profiled steel trays (1), made of either galvanised or pre-enamelled plates, arranged vertically from the floor to the roof, whose side branches (2) are L-shaped in profile, with the end branch (3) facing either inwards or outwards, depending on the type of commercial tray that is chosen, so it can be attached to the adjoining plates or trays, these side and double branches of the plates forming the supports for the rest of the elements that constitute the front wall.

The trays (1), with a duly modulated middle branch, 60 cm wide for example, is fixed through the middle branch to the edge of the floor slabs (4), as can be seen in Figure 3, and the resources that are used to attach the trays (1) to the floor slabs (4), for example bolts or screws (5), can also be simultaneously used to secure to the front of those trays (1) insulating and soundproofing plates (6), preferably made of glass wool or rock wool, equipped with a protective film.

The elbowed edge (3) of the side branches (2) of the trays (1), which protrudes outwards considerably with respect to the insulation and soundproofing layer (6), is used to attach the exterior sheet (7), and there is also a suitable distance between them to create the ventilated chamber (8), which runs throughout the entire height of the front wall.

The exterior sheet (7) can be obtained using small modules (9), arranged in a coplanar way, fixed or suspended from strips (10) duly locked to the uprights formed by the side branches of the trays (1), as can be seen in Figure 1, or those strips (10) may not be provided, as shown in Figure 2, when the exterior sheet (7) takes the form of larger panels (11), such as panels made of steel plating, cellulose-cement, wood-cement, treated wood, cellular polycarbonate, polymethacrylate or other plastics materials, sheet glass or even natural stones.

The front wall is supplemented by a non-continuous inner sheet (12), that is to say it runs between floor slab and floor slab (4), as can also be seen in Figure 3, this inner sheet (12) forming a self-supporting back consisting of panels of plaster sheeting on galvanised steel structures, such as "pladur®" type plates, although it can also be attached to the trays, improving the insulation conditions in the first case, but above all, improving

Another layer (13) of insulation and soundproofing materials can be inserted between this inner sheet and the bearing sheet or intermediate sheet, with a view to preventing the insulation bridges caused by the trays (1), through their side branches.

Metallic and angular sections (14) are secured to the floor slabs (4), in order to attach the latter to the trays (1), and those metallic and angular sections (14) can either be screwed into the concrete mass or fixed during the final stage when the compression layer is laid in place, but in any case it is necessary to position those sections (14) perfectly, so that their vertical branches are coplanar, in spite of any unevenness between the superimposed floor slabs and any differences in their respective sizes, thereby ensuring that the trays (1) are perfectly adjusted to those sections (14), and they must finally be driven in ballistically, that is to say, with piercing nails that are applied with a gun (for example HILTI-ENP2).

The diagram in Figure 3 uses arrows (R) to show the effects of the front wall on solar radiation, dissipated solar radiation and reflected solar radiation being generated, as well as a flow that is released by the ventilation in the chamber (8), only a minimum flow being transmitted to the interior, whereas the heat inside the zone in winter, which is shown in diagram form with a radiator (15), will be prevented from reaching the exterior thanks to the double barrier without insulation bridges that is formed by the exterior insulation and soundproofing layer (6) and the interior (13) insulation and soundproofing layer.

It must also be pointed out that it is possible to make the ventilation chamber (8) large, by merely designing the side branches (2) of the trays (1) properly, and that this chamber (8) can also be used to house the communal installations and fittings (16) for the homes, such as water, gas, electricity pipes, etc.

The modular nature of the front wall makes it possible, by suitably blocking off the trays (1) and by removing the modules (9) concerned from the exterior sheet (7), as well as also removing the portions of insulation and soundproofing layers (6) and (13) and from the inner sheet (12), to create openings in the front wall, which can serve as windows and/or balconies, these openings being finished with outer steel frames, which contain jambs, sills, flashing and drip rails, on which the closing and locking will be placed.

With a view to being more specific, Figures 4 and 5 show an opening for a balcony, involving a plated frame (17) the same size as the opening, in order to ensure, on the one hand, that it serves as a pre-frame for mounting the aluminium work (18) that makes up the exterior wall itself, which is screwed onto the frame (17), and this frame is finally finished with a plate on the zone that juts out with respect to the carpentry (18), using the same material that has been used to line the general surface of the front wall. It can particularly be observed in Figure 4, how the frame (17) goes quite a distance into the interior, as far as the interior lining for the front wall, where it is provided with a suitable incut for fitting a drawer or splayed (19) for a shutter, if there happens to be one.

Going back to Figure 3, it can be seen how the ventilated chamber (8) makes it possible to lay service piping (16) of considerable width, such as the (20) ventilation pipe that, once they have run past the roof (21) undergo a double orthogonal inflection in such a way that their outlet (22) is facing downwards, thereby ensuring that water cannot flow in.

In cases such as the one shown in Figure 3, where the roofing does not take the form of a real roof because the front wall itself protrudes above the roofing forming an outer frame for the building, it is planned that the top of the front wall is capped with a coping or saddle element (23), also made of plating, in the form of an inverted " U", which is screwed to the grooved plates (1) or secured using any other conventional method that is considered suitable, and that is especially designed to be conducive to creating air movement inside the ventilated chamber.

The extraction pipes from the kitchens and similar pipes may be arranged in the same way as the ventilation pipes (20), so that the former do not have to cross the roof, which is what generally happens, so that there is not risk of filtering at slope interchanges that are difficult to deal with.