Suspended ceiling assembly and stabilizer bar therefor
AssigneeAlcan Aluminum Corporation
InventorsJ. Lynn Gailey, Carl A. Wollam
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In a suspended ceiling assembly of panels carried by spaced, elongated stringers, stabilizer bars interconnecting the stringers for maintaining the stringers fixed in position relative to each other and preventing racking of the assembly. Each stabilizer bar is a rigid element having a tab at each end for snap-fitting insertion into a slot formed in a stringer, and also having flange portions adjacent each end for bearing against a stringer surface along spaced extended lines of contact, when the tab at that end is inserted in the stringer, to prevent angular movement of the stringer relative to the stabilizer bar.
Claims13
A stabilizer bar for interconnecting two adjacent ones of a plurality of spaced, elongated stringers in a suspended ceiling assembly wherein the stringers are individually suspended and cooperatively carry an array of ceiling panels, and wherein each of said two adjacent stringers has a longitudinally extending flat web portion facing the other of said two stringers, said stabilizer bar comprising
- (a) a rigid elongated element having opposed ends and dimensioned to extend between the two stringers such that the stringers are respectively disposed at said ends;
- (b) first and second interlocking means respectively formed at the ends of said element for respectively snap-fittingly engaging the two stringers to hold the element against longitudinal movement relative to the stringers;
- and
- (c) first and second means respectively formed adjacent the ends of said element for respectively bearing against the two stringers, upon engagement of the interlocking means with the stringers, to prevent relative angular movement of the stringers and the element and thereby, in cooperation with other like stabilizer bars interconnecting stringers of the assembly, to maintain the stringers fixed in orientation relative to each other and to prevent racking of the assembly,
- (d) each of said bearing means comprising a pair of flanges respectively having edges disposed to simultaneously abut a surface of the web portion of one of said two stringers, along extended lines of contact spaced transversely of the length of the stringer, upon snap-fitting engagement of the adjacent one of said interlocking means with said one stringer.
A stabilizer bar for interconnecting two adjacent ones of a plurality of spaced, elongated stringers in a suspended ceiling assembly wherein the stringers are individually suspended and cooperatively carry an array of ceiling panels, and wherein each of said two adjacent stringers has a longitudinally extending flat web portion facing the other of said two stringers, with transversely extending closed-ended slots of predetermined length formed in the web portions, said stabilizer bar comprising
- (a) a rigid elongated element having opposed ends and dimensioned to extend between the two stringers such that the stringers are respectively disposed at said ends;
- (b) first and second interlocking means respectively formed at the ends of said element for respectively snap-fittingly engaging the two stringers to hold the element against longitudinal movement relative to the stringers;
- and
- (c) first and second means respectively formed adjacent the ends of said element for respectively bearing against the two stringers, upon engagement of the interlocking means with the stringers, to prevent relative angular movement of the stringers and the element and thereby, in cooperation with other like stabilizer bars interconnecting stringers of the assembly, to maintain the stringers fixed in orientation relative to each other and to prevent racking of the assembly,
- (d) each of said interlocking means comprising a bifurcated planar tab insertable in one of said slots with the width of the tab aligned with the slot length, the tab being resiliently compressible from an uncompressed width greater than said predetermined length to a compressed width permitting insertion of the tab into one of said slots, the tab having opposed side edge portions for respectively engaging opposite ends of one of said slots, upon insertion of the tab therein and release of the inserted tab from compression, to lock the tab in the slot, and
- (e) each of said bearing means comprising a pair of flanges respectively having edges disposed, adjacent said opposed side edge portions of one of the tabs, to simultaneously abut a surface of one of said stringer web portions adjacent opposite ends of one of said slots, along spaced extended lines of contact extending transversely of the length of the slot, upon insertion and locking of said one tab in said one last-mentioned slot.
A stabilizer bar for interconnecting two adjacent ones of a plurality of horizontally elongated stringers in a suspended ceiling assembly wherein the stringers are individually suspended at a common elevation in spaced, parallel relation to each other and cooperatively carry an array of ceiling panels, each of the stringers having at least one flat web portion oriented at a substantial angle to the horizontal and extending longitudinally above the panels with closed-ended slots of predetermined length formed in each of the web portions and so disposed that respective slots of said two adjacent stringers are aligned in a vertical plane that contains their long dimensions and is perpendicular to the long dimensions of said two stringers, said stabilizer bar comprising:
- (a) a rigid, elongated, axially rectilinear element having opposed ends and dimensioned to extend between said two stringers such that aligned respective slots of said two stringers are respectively disposed at the ends of the element;
- (b) a pair of tabs, respectively formed at the opposed ends of the element and integral therewith, for respectively interlocking the element with said two stringers to prevent longitudinal movement of the element relative to said two stringers, each of said tabs being snap-fittingly insertable into a stringer slot disposed at the end of the element at which the tab is formed;
- and,
- (c) adjacent each end of said element, a pair of flanges formed integrally therewith and respectively having edges disposed to simultaneously abut the flat web portion of a stringer having a slot disposed at that end of the element, along vertically spaced lines of contact extending transversely of the last-mentioned stringer slot, upon snap-fitting insertion of the tab formed at that end of the element into the last-mentioned slot, for preventing relative angular movement of said two stringers and said element, thereby, in cooperation with other like stabilizer bars interconnecting stringers of the assembly, to maintain the parallelism of the stringers and to prevent racking of the assembly.
A suspended ceiling assembly comprising
- (a) an array of ceiling panels;
- (b) a plurality of individually suspended, spaced, elongated stringers cooperatively carrying said array of panels, each of said strongers having a longitudinally extending flat web portion facing an adjacent other one of said stringers;
- and
- (c) a plurality of stabilizer bars interconnecting stringers of the assembly for maintaining the stringers fixed in orientation relative to each other and for preventing racking of the assembly, each of said stabilizer bars interconnecting two adjacent ones of said stringers, and each two adjacent strippers being connected by at least two of said stabilizer bars,
- (d) each of said stabilizer bars comprising
- (i) a rigid elongated element having opposed ends and dimensioned to extend between two adjacent stringers such that the two last-mentioned stringers are respectively disposed at said ends;
- (ii) first and second interlocking means respectively formed at the ends of said element for respectively snap-fittingly engaging the two last-mentioned stringers to hold the element against longitudinal movement relative thereto;
- and
- (iii) first and second means respectively formed adjacent the ends of said element for respectively bearing against the two last-mentioned stringers, upon engagement of the interlocking means with the last-mentioned stringers, to prevent relative angular movement of the stringers and the element, each of said bearing means comprising a pair of flanges respectively having edges disposed to simultaneously abut a surface of the web portion of one of said stringers, along extended lines of contact spaced transversely of the length of the stringer, upon snap-fitting engagement of the adjacent one of said interlocking means with said one stringer.
A suspended ceiling assembly comprising
- (a) an array of ceiling panels;
- (b) a plurality of individually suspended, spaced, elongated stringers cooperatively carrying said array of panels, each of said stringers having a longitudinally extending flat web portion facing an adjacent other one of said stringers, with transversely extending closed-ended slots of predetermined length formed in the web portion of each stringer;
- and
- (c) a plurality of stabilizer bars interconnecting stringers of the assembly for maintaining the stringers fixed in orientation relative to each other and for preventing racking of the assembly, each of said stabilizer bars interconnecting two adjacent ones of said stringers, and each two adjacent stringers being connected by at least two of said stabilizer bars,
- (d) each of said stabilizer bars comprising
- (i) a rigid elongated element having opposed ends and dimensioned to extend between two adjacent stringers such that the two last-mentioned stringers are respectively disposed at said ends;
- (ii) first and second interlocking means respectively formed at the ends of said element for respectively snap-fittingly engaging the two last-mentioned stringers to hold the element against longitudinal movement relative thereto, each of said interlocking means of each stabilizer bar comprising a bifurcated planar tab insertable in one of said slots with the width of the tab aligned with the slot length, the tab being resiliently compressible from an uncompresed width greater than said predetermined length to a compressed width permitting insertion of the tab into one of said slots, the tab having opposed side edge portions for respectively engaging opposite ends of one of said slots, upon insertion of the tab therein and release of the inserted tab from compression, to lock the tab in the slot;
- and
- (iii) first and second means respectively formed adjacent the ends of said element for respectively bearing against the two last-mentioned stringers, upon engagement of the interlocking means with the last-mentioned stringers, to prevent relative angular movement of the stringers and the element, each of said bearing means comprising a pair of flanges respectively having edges disposed, adjacent said opposed side edge portions of one of the tabs, to simultaneously abut a surface of one of said stringer web portions adjacent opposite ends of one of said slots, along spaced extended lines of contact extending tranversely of the length of the slot, upon insertion and locking of said one tab in said one last-mentioned slot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.