The present invention relates to faQade and roof cladding for buildings of different kinds, and more specifically to a cladding panel of sheet metal > e.g. surface— reated steel , aluminium, or copper sheeting for faφades, walls and roofs, said panel including a middle portion with folded-up side edge portions, of which at least one has an edge portion folded downwards and outwards to form a standing seam for joining one panel to a juxtaposed panel in accordance with the invention.

For cladding building fa ades and also roofing cladding there are a number of different sheet metal cladding panels on the market, all of which having the disadvantage that the erection of such panels is complicated and time-consuming. This is due to that for their attachment the known cladding panels require special fastening elements in the form of metal strips and fastening clips which are attached to the substructure with the aid of screws DΓ nails for carrying the panel and positionally fixing it laterally. These fastening elements must thus be fastened exactly at the joint between two panels, which requires acurate positional measurement for each fastening element before they can be screwed or nailed. When the panel itself is then lifted into place, the fastening elements are folded over the side edge of the panel by hand, and when the next panel is put in place with its folded seam half gripping over the upstanding side edge of the first panel this element is then folded up around the seam half, and not until this has been done can seaming take place with the aid of a seaming machine. In addition, the known cladding panels which are mutually joined by seaming require an adaption of configuration to joining panels, which takes place by the appropriate parts of the sheet panel being cut away, which is also a time consuming work operation requiring great precision for

maintaining closely fitting overlapping and seaming between the panels.

The object of the present invention is therefore to provide a sheet metal cladding panel which does not have the above- mentioned drawbacks, and can be erected simply and quickly and which does not require for its erection any special fastening elements such as fastening strips or clips, but only conventional fastening elements such as screws or nails, neither does it require any adaption of configura ion to joining cladding panels, which means that cladding panels in accordance with the present invention can be supplied ready-formed from the factory.

This object is achieved by the cladding panel in accordance with the present invention having been given the distinguishing features disclosed in the accompanying claims, and in principle by the side edge of the panel provided with the folded—over half seam being formed by first folding over the edge portion, the half seam thus being of double thickness, to form a fastening flange projecting from the lower part of the upstanding side portion such as to provide for fastening the panel to a substructure. To advantage, this fastening flange can be arranged in line with the middle portion of the panel.

The invention will now be described in more detail and with reference to the accompanying drawings, on which Figure 1 is a perspective view seen from above of an embodiment of the present cladding panel; Figure S is an end view of this panel,

Figure 3 is the developmenτ of a cut out corner portion of a metal sheet which is to be folded into the panel illustrated in Figure 1, Figure •+ is a perspective view seen from above of an

embodiment of the present cladding panel for connecting to a flashing;

Figure 5 is a perspective view seen from below of a corner portion of the panel according to Figure ■■+; Figure <_> is the development of this corner portion,

Figure 7 illustrates in perspective, seen from above, the erection of the cladding panel in accordance with the invention;

Figure 8 is a section along the line VIII-VIII in Figure 7 ^aπ

Figure 9 is a perspective view seen from the front of the joint between a cladding panel and a flashing.

On the drawings, a cladding panel in accordance with the present invention is generally denoted by the numeral 1 and comprises a thin sheet of aluminum, copper or surface- treated steel, and is intended as outer wall or roof cladding. Each panel includes a middle portion E, which can be completely flat, as illustrated on the drawings, or it ^csn have a convex or concave cross section. This portion does not need to be completely flat, as shown on the drawings, but can be given some form of ridged cross section in its transverse and/or longitudinal direction, thus to obtain increased load carrying sτrength properties, which primarily applies to panels intended for use as roof cladding and which should preferably have a concave cross section for facilitating the run-off of water. If the inventive cladding panel is to be used exclusively for outer wall or faφade cladding, its middle portion Ξ can be provided with embossing or the like of ornamental character for obtaining a decorative surface structure.

At one longitudinal edge portion 3, each panel has en upstanding flange or side edge •+ of at least the same extension in length as the middle portion S. At its other

longitudinal edge portion 5, the element 1 is provided with an attachment flange 6, formed integrally with the middle portion 2, and which can be in the same plane as this portion, as illustrated in figures 1 and 2 or somewhat below the plane or lowest point of this portion, at least to an extent corresponding to the sheet thickness. The upper side 7 of the attachment flange can thus be in line with the bottom side 8 of the middle portion, or at a distance below this portion, as indicated by a dashed line 9 in Figure 2. The attachment flange 6 is provided with holes 10 at suitable mutual spacing for fastening means such as nails, screws or the like.

Between the middle portion 2 of the panel and the integrally formed attachment 6 there is formed an upstanding double- wall flange or edge side 11, the upper portion of which is downwardly folded to form a half seam 12 forming an acute angle with the edge side 11. The distance from the tip 13 of this half seam to the upper side 7 of the attachment flange shall be greater than the height of the longitudinal edge side *■*., which in turn shall have a height somewhat less than the distance between the upper side of the attachment flange and the apex of the half seam 1Ξ, so that the edge side H of the panel can be taken in behind the half seam 12 of an already fixed cladding panel 1 in accordance with the invention, as illustrated in figures 7 and 8.

The ends 1«+, 15 of the attachment flange 6 are shortened a suitable distance inside the end edge line of tne middle portion to obtain necessary overlap between two edge portions 17 and 16 of the panel. It is also suitable here that the outer wall portion of the double-walled edge side 11a is terminated level with the end edge 1**+ or 15 of the attachment flange, as is also the case for the inner wall part 12a of the double-walled seam half, as will be clearly

seen from Figure 3. Figure 3 is the development of a portion of a sheet before folding into the panel 2, and shows the end portions of the edge side 5 before bending along the dashed lines 18 to form the panel illustrated in Figure 1. The necessary shaping of the sheet blank can and should thus take place before folding it into its intended shape.

Another embodiment of the present cladding panel 1 is illustrated in Figure ••+, and differs from the one in Figure 1 in that the edge sides and 11 extend past the end edge 16 of the middle portion such as to form projecting tongues 19 and 20, which have their undersides 21 cut at an angle, which is best seen in Figure 6, which illustrates the development of the end portions of the longitudinal edge portion 5 of this panel, whiςh will be formed by folding the blank along the folding lines 18.

The embodiment of the cladding panel in accordance with the invention illustrated in Figure ■*. is also provided, as distinct from the embodiment according to Figure 1, with a flap 22 at the end 16 of its middle portion, this flap being folded at an acute angle towards the back of the middle portion to form a seam half, as illustrated in Figure 5.

This inventive panel is intended for connectio.n to a conventional flashing 23, as illustrated in Figure 9, this flashing having a folded-over edge or half seam 2*-+ which is hooked into the folded over edge 22 of the panel when the panel is put in place. The extended edge sides •**. and 11 of the panel extend along the vertical part 25 of the flashing towards its downwardly sloping, projecting part 26. The panel 1 here has its attachment flange 6 fastened to a vertical timber batten 27.

In Figure 7 there is illustrated the erection of inventive cladding panels on transverse battens 28. The panels denoted la and lb in this Figure are already fastened by screws 29 through their attachment flanges 6 to the battens 28, the panel denoted by lb having its edge side inserted in the half seam 12 of the panel denoted la, as illustrated in Figure 8. All that then remains is seaming with the aid of a seaming machine. To erect the panel denoted by lc, it is only required that its edge side ■-*. is taken in under the half seam 12 of the panel lb, both then being folded down into engagement against the battens 28 to which the uni1lustrated attachment flange 6 of the panel is fastened with the aid of screws 29 or nails, thus completing erection of this panel to enable continuation of erection of the next panel in the same easy manner without needing to use any other fastening elements than screws or nails. Seaming can then take place with the aid of a seaming machine, no attention needing to be paid to sheet strips and other fastening details required for fastening known sheet metal cladding panels.

The present invention is not restricted to what has been described above and illustrated on the drawings, and can be altered and modified in many different ways within the scope of the inventive concept disclosed in the claims.