The subject of the invention is gutter connector for sheet metal gutters and a method for connecting gutters made of steel sheet.

Traditional drainage systems with gutter lines and downspouts connected with socket type connectors are known. In solutions of this type, the connector is not separated within the gutter; the gutter has an inlet and an outlet with the inlet diameter greater than the outlet diameter, and the gutter has the shape of a hollow section of a truncated cone tapered over its full length according to a specific constant gradient, which allows for molding such gutters by pushing them into one another, wherein the gutter line descends toward the gutter outlets. According to these solutions, guttering can be made of any material traditionally used for this purpose, including wood and natural stone. The disadvantage of this type of solution is leakage of the system on the connectors due to the lack of fit between the spigot end of one gutter and the socket of the other, which may be problematic in case of backflow or stoppage of rainwater in the gutter, and which is why in modern drainage systems, these types of connectors are used almost exclusively in downspouts.

Also known are steel gutter connectors that are metal troughs of a certain length and wherein the diameter is larger than the connected gutters, with a comb seal placed in the trough on which the ends of two successive gutters in the gutter line are resting while pressed against the gasket, and which connectors are arranged in the gutter line at a certain distance from one another, which takes into account the type of gutter, the way it is mounted, as well as its placement. This connector may be combined with a hook, as in the Polish utility model RWU.065961, which allows for making the gutter line appear as one seamless gutter.

Solutions and methods for fastening the gutters in gutter hooks made of metals and plastics, using the elastic properties of these materials, are known, wherein the gutter hook has a tip or a front projection directed outward from the hook and a rear catch descending toward the inside of the hook bend, while the gutter is mounted in the hook such that its front flange is placed onto the hook tip and rests on it, whereupon it is led in an arc in relation to the tip until it is fixed in its working position in the hook bend, wherein in the last phase of this operation, the rear edge of the gutter is bent towards the front of the hook to allow for its insertion under the rear catch, whereupon the gutter's grip is released, which immobilizes the gutter in this hook.

The invention is a gutter connection for gutters, in particular semicircular or square gutters, made of steel sheet of the socket type, characterized in that the mouth of the socket of the first connected gutter is flush with the outer plane of the gutter trough, and the second connected gutter has a spigot end of a certain length xi, constituting a section of the gutter trough, without flanges, with free edges, embossed parallel to the plane of the trough of the second gutter, towards the inside of the trough by one gutter thickness, and a strip on the side of the socket, with a length of X2=xi of the rear flange of the first connected gutter is separated by a cut transverse to the gutter reaching the gutter wall into the catch tongue and, in the setting prior to assembly, outside the area of the first combined gutter trough.

The solution according to the invention is a development of the traditional solution of the gutters socket connection, which enables the gutters to be installed easily, also by people who are not trained in this field, by fixing the gutters in the working position, without use of force, and then fixing this position by clamping the catch tongue, which is a separate fragment of the gutter flange in the working position, it is restored to its original shape after tightening. According to the presented solution, it is possible to manufacture a gutter, and then carry out the assembly of the gutter line with high precision, and to obtain a permanent connection, and at the same time more difficult to see by a user due to lack of other fastening elements within the connection, in relation to the gutter itself and its mounting components, such as catch tongues or additional embossing, which significantly affects aesthetics of the gutter line. This solution is characterized by the minimalistic external appearance of the connection, which makes it acceptable from the point of view of some trends in modem architecture, drawing in particular from ideas of Scandinavian architects. Although, according to the solution, the gutters are oriented in the socket/spigot end arrangement, it is also possible to shorten them by cutting off a fragment of the gutter on the socket side, in a situation whereby the socket remains not separated in the gutter plane, and therefore to select gutters and hooks during assembly to hide the gutter seam within the hook. According to the invention, the gutter connector is characterized by particularly advantageous performance parameters when used with modem adhesives and sealants with high adhesion.

According to the invention, the gutter connector may have a spigot edge of the second connecting gutter beveled at an angle, preferably at 15°, to smooth the gutter lumen, in particular for applications of the connector in accordance with the solution in the variant of simultaneous bonding of the gutters with glue. According to the solution, the gutter connector may furthermore have a catch tongue with rounded spigot end corners to increase comfort and reduce risk of injury to a user, in particular when the catch tongue is clamped by hand. According to the invention, in the gutter connector, the first connected gutter or the second connected gutter, including both, may be coated steel gutters, in particular galvanized or polyurethane coated.

According to the solution, a method for connecting gutters, in particular made of sheet metal semicircular or square gutters, characterized in that a socket-type connection is used in which the outlet of the first connecting gutter socket is flush with the external surface of the gutter trough, while in the second connected gutter, the spigot end of some length xi is separated and then deprived of the flange in this section of the gutter trough, and is then pressed parallel to the plane of the gutter trough, towards the inside of the trough, by one gutter thickness, and a strip with a length of X2=xi is separated from the side of the socket from the rear flange of the first gutter, connected by a transverse in relation to the gutter cut into the hook tongue, which moves this tongue out of the first connected gutter trough, and then the front edge of the spigot end of the second connected gutter is inserted frontally, with the second connected gutter being inclined at an angle to the horizontal plane, into the frontal flange of the first connected gutter, mounted in the supporting hook of the first connected gutter mounted on a rafter, and having encountered resistance, the front edge of the spigot end of the second connected gutter resists against the front flange of the first connected gutter and in the supporting hook of the second connected gutter mounted on the rafter and in relation to this line of constriction, rotates the second connecting gutter towards the interior of the trough of the first connected gutter until the rear edge of the spigot end of the second connected gutter is fixed below the catch tongue base and then it clamps the catch tongue on this rear edge. The catch tongue may be clamped onto the rear edge of the spigot end of the second connected gutter by hand, particularly in the case of gutters up to 0.6 mm thick, or with a small press with a clamp modeling the shape of the rear flange of the first connected gutter.

In the method according to the invention, prior to inserting the second connected gutter into the first connected gutter or during connection of the second connected gutter towards the interior of the trough of the first connected gutter, the inside of the socket of the first connected gutter, at the place of the intended contact between the socket of the first connecting gutter and the spigot end of the second connecting gutter, may be coated by users with an adhesive or sealant of their choice. The constriction of the front edge of the spigot end of the second connected gutter on the front flange of the first joint gutter allows precise maneuvering of the second connected gutter and appropriate dosing of sealant or glue to reduce losses and avoid contamination of the assembled system, and following tightening of the catch tongue, tightening of the gutters to minimize the dilatation between them and to increase tightness of the gutter line. The subject of the invention has been shown in the exemplary embodiments in the attached drawing, in which the individual figures show:

Fig. 1 Overview of the gutter with a connector placed in the mounting hook Fig. 2a Forward view, from the socket side, of the gutter with a connector Fig. 2b Forward view, from the side of the spigot end of the gutter, of the gutter with a connector

Fig. 3 a Detail A Fig. 1 of the drawing - general view of the clamped catch tongue Fig. 3b Detail A Fig. 1 of the drawing - view from the bottom (from the gutter’s trough) - clamped catch tongue.

Fig. 3 c Detail A Fig. 1 of the drawing - general view of pulled away catch tongue Fig. 3d Detail B Fig. 1 of the drawing - fragment of the spigot end of the gutter with an embossing

Fig. 4a Frame from an assembly of the gutter line using the method according to the invention

Fig. 4b Detail C Fig. 4a of the drawing - a close-up of a frame from the assembly process of the gutter line using the method according to the invention

Fig. 5a An example of gutter connection after assembly using the method according to the invention

Fig. 5b Detail D Fig. 5a of the drawing - a close-up of the gutter connection after assembly with the method according to the invention

The gutters are long-length elements, and the drawings show gutter sections with a connector of an exemplary length, for a better illustration of the invention. A hook is understood to mean every load-bearing element, and a rafter means every plane to which the gutter string is to be attached in the working position, in particular a building wall or other plane of a similar nature. According to the invention, assembly can also be performed prior to embedding the first connected gutter or the second connected gutter in the hooks. In an embodiment of the invention, in the product category, according to the invention, the connection is used in semicircular gutters with a diameter of 15 cm, made of 0.6 mm sheet metal, in which the mouth of the socket 2 of the first connected gutter R1 is flush with the outer plane of the gutter Rl, and the second connected gutter R2 has a spigot end 1 with a length of 3.5 cm, constituting a section of the gutter trough, without flanges, embossed with embossing 6 parallel to the plane of the gutter trough R2, towards the inside of the trough by one gutter thickness of R1 and R2, and a strip on the side of the socket 2 with a length of 3.5 cm of the rear flange 5 of the first connected gutter R1 is separated by a cut-out 4 in the catch tongue 3 transversely to the gutter and moved away, and in the setting prior to assembly, left outside the area of the trough of the first connected gutter Rl. The catch tongue 3 has rounded corners of the spigot end. The edge of the spigot end 1 of the second connected gutter R2 is beveled at an angle of 15°. In this embodiment, the first connected gutter Rl and the second connected gutter R2 are coated steel gutters, that is, galvanized and then coated with polyurethane.

In an embodiment of the invention in the method category, in square gutters with a trough with a width of 125 mm and a depth of 71 mm, made of sheet metal 0.6 mm thick, a socket-type connection is used in which the mouth of the socket 2 of the first connected gutter Rl is flush with the outer plane of the gutter Rl trough, and in the second connected gutter R2, the spigot end 1 with a length of 3.5 cm is separated and constitutes a section of the gutter trough, from which the flanges are removed and which and is pressed with a rib 6 parallel to the plane of the gutter R2 trough, towards the inside of the trough by one gutter Rl and R2 thickness , as well as a strip is separated from the side of the socket 2 with a length of 3.5 cm of the rear flange 5b of the first connected gutter Rl with a cut-out 4 in the catch tongue 3 transverse to the gutter and takes this tongue out of the area of the first connected gutter Rl, coating at the point 9 of the intended connection of the socket 2 of the first gutter Rl connected to the spigot end 1 of the second connected gutter R2 with glue, and then the front edge 8a of the spigot end 1 of the second connected gutter R2 is introduced frontally, with the deviation of the second connected gutter R2 by an angle of 45 ° -75 ° in relation to the horizontal plane, into the front flange 5a of the first connected gutter Rl, mounted in the supporting hook of the first connected gutter HI, mounted on the rafter K, and when it meets resistance, the front edge 8a of the spigot end 1 of the second connected gutter R2 is constricted on the front flange 5a of the first connected gutter R1 and in the supporting hook of the second connected gutter H2 mounted on the rafter K and in relation to this line of constriction 7, turns the second connected gutter R2 towards the interior of the first connected gutter R1 trough, at the same time adding sealant on as- needed basis, until the rear edge 8b of the spigot end 1 of the second connected gutter is positioned below the base of the catch tongue 3, and then clamps the catch tongue onto this rear edge 8b using a clamp modeling the shape of the rear flange 5b of the first connected gutter R1.

References

K Rafter

R1 First connected gutter

R2 Second connected gutter

HI Supporting hook for the first connected gutter

H2 Supporting hook for the second connected gutter

1 The spigot end of the gutter

2 Gutter socket

3 Catch tongue

4 Cut-out of the catch tongue 5a Gutter front flange 5b Gutter rear flange 6 Embossing on the spigot end of the gutter

Constriction line for the spigot end of the gutter when installing the

7 gutter line

8a Front edge of the spigot end of the gutter

8b Rear edge of the spigot end of the gutter

9 Contact plane of the spigot end of the gutter with the gutter socket