GRAZIOSO, Luca (Via Taraschi, 13 Teramo, Franzione Sant'Atto, I-64020, IT)
| ■ io CLAIMS 1. A heated outdoor awning of the type that comprises a supporting structure for at least two cross-members (2), which can slide with respect to said structure and are adapted to support and retain at least one canvas (3) that constitutes the actual covering awning, characterized in that at least one of said cross-members (2) comprises, on the face (7) that lies opposite the surface for retaining the canvas (3), a locking member (8) for at least one laminar heating element (9), said at least one heating element (9) being substantially parallel to the at least one canvas (3). 2. The outdoor awning according to claim 1, characterized in that said laminar heating element (9) comprises a sheet (10) whose dimensions are not larger than those of the covering canvas (3), multiple electrically powered laminar heaters (11) being coupled to said sheet (10), at least one band (12) of said sheet (10) that comprises at least one laminar heater (11) being locked on said cross-member (2) by way of said locking member (8), said heating element (9) being adapted to consume electric power and deliver heat energy. 3. The outdoor awning according to claim 1, characterized in that said locking member (8) comprises at least one main body (13), which is provided with a plate (14) that is shaped substantially complementary to the surface/face (7) of said cross-member (2) on which it is to be installed, and with a rail (15) that lies opposite said plate (14), at least one support (16), which has at least one portion (17) that is accommodated so that it can slide, in order to compensate thermal dimensional variations, in said rail (15) of said main body (13), and a fastening plate (18) that can be coupled to the free face (19) of said support (16) with the interposition of a part of said heating element (9). 4. The outdoor awning according to claims 2 and 3, characterized in that at least one band (12) is interposed between the free face (19) of said support (16) and said fastening plate (18), the mutual fastening of said plate (18) to said free face (19), with consequent clamping of said sheet (10), being provided by way of a threaded means (20) that is adapted to pass through said fastening plate (18), engaging said support (16). 5. The outdoor awning according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said locking element (8) comprises a lid (22) provided with elastically interlocking teeth (23) for anchoring in corresponding seats (24) of said fastening plate (18), the fitting of said lid (22) concealing said threaded means (20) adapted to fasten the plate ( 18) on the support (16), with consequent clamping of said sheet (10). 6. The outdoor awning according to claim 1, characterized in that said main body (13) of said locking member (8), at said plate (14) that is shaped substantially complementary to the surface/face (7) of said cross-member (2) on which it is to be installed, is provided with areas (25) for the engagement of through screws (26), which are adapted to engage the underlying cross-member (2), with consequent stable anchoring of the main body (13) on the respective cross-member (2). 7. The outdoor awning according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said heaters (11) comprise electric circuits that have a known electrical resistance, the flow of an electric current producing a heating of said circuits due to the Joule effect, according to the formula P(thermal) = R x I2, with consequent release of heat, thermal energy, to the surrounding space. 8. The outdoor awning according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that all of said heating elements (9) are fed by means of a control and management unit provided with a voltage transformer designed to reduce the mains voltage value to a value that is compatible with the operating value of said heaters (11), the adjustment of the electric values of the power supply of the heaters (11), such as voltage, current, frequency and waveform, causing a consequent adjustment of the thermal energy that is transferred to the environment by said heaters (11) and therefore an adjustment of the temperature in the space below the awning (1). 9. The outdoor awning according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said sheet (10) comprises a plurality of conductors that originate from said control and management unit and are designed to supply power to respective heaters (11). 10. A heating kit for outdoor awnings, characterized in that it comprises a laminar heating element (9) and a locking member (8), which can be associated stably with a cross-member (2) for supporting and coupling the awning, for the stable support of said element (9) arranged so as to hang from said cross-member (2), said support being provided by means of said locking member (8). 11. The heating kit according to claim 10, characterized in that said locking member (8) comprises a main body (13), which can be coupled by means of fixing screws (26) to said cross-member (2), said main body (13) being provided with a rail (15) for the sliding accommodation, so as to compensate thermal dimensional variations, of a support (16), which is suitable for stable coupling to a fastening plate (18), at least one band (12) of said heating element (9) being interposed between said support (16) and said plate (18). |
Technical field
The present invention relates to a heated outdoor awning.
Background Art
Outdoor spaces have reached excellent levels of comfort and design by virtue of covering structures that are particularly sophisticated and functional and by virtue of increasingly ergonomic and pleasant furnishings.
For this reason, the use of outdoor spaces is no longer limited only to spring and summer months: the user prefers such a pleasant space in cold months as well.
Many heating elements for open spaces are known (it is sufficient to mention mushroom-shaped burners, which create an area with more pleasant temperatures in their vicinity, stoves fueled by pellets or petroleum derivatives and/or high-efficiency radiating panels).
These solutions give assurance to the user of recreating outdoors, for example under an awning and/or a pergola, pleasant temperature conditions that allow its use even in the middle of winter.
However, these solutions are not integrated within the furnishings, much less within the shapes and the structure of the awning and/or pergola, thus generally spoiling the aesthetic impact and the design of the created space.
It is not secondary to note that these heating units are independent of the structure (be it an awning or pergola) and therefore require a specific power supply (petroleum derivatives or pellets or electric power). The poor level of aesthetic integration within the structure is therefore also accompanied by problems of a technical nature, since the user necessarily has to tolerate the presence of electric power supply cables or of gas supply pipes or must fill the fuel tanks rather frequently.
Another problem that affects outdoor structures such as awnings and pergolas is linked to the possibility to easily bear a load of snow. If furniture or other items are present below the awning and/or pergola, it is in fact not advisable to retract the awning to prevent snow from damaging it by resting on it: retraction in fact would cause exposure to snowfall of anything that lies below the awning.
At the same time, it is necessary to remove all the furnishings below it in order to retract the awning as as soon as possible for preventing the snow load from damaging it in any of its parts.
Disclosure of the Invention
The aim of the present invention is to provide a heated outdoor awning in which the heating elements are provided so as to lead to greater practicality and convenience in operation.
Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a heated outdoor awning that is adapted to raise the temperature of the space below the awning with limited energy consumption.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a heated outdoor awning that is adapted to remain in the extended configuration even during atmospheric events such as hailstorms and snowfalls.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a heating kit for outdoor awnings that is adapted to be installed even in awnings that are already in service, improving their performance and usability.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a heated outdoor awning that has a low cost, is relatively simple to provide in practice and safe in application.
This aim, as well as these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter, are achieved by the present heated outdoor awning of the type that comprises a supporting structure for at least two cross- members, which can slide with respect to said structure and are adapted to support and retain at least one canvas that constitutes the actual covering awning, characterized in that at least one of said cross-members comprises, on the face that lies opposite the canvas retaining surface, a locking member for at least one laminar heating element, said at least one heating element being substantially parallel to the at least one canvas.
Brief description of the drawings
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the heated outdoor awning, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a detail, in enlarged scale, of a heated outdoor awning according to the invention;
Figure 2 is a schematic side view of some components of a heating kit for outdoor awnings according to the invention;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a heated outdoor awning according to the invention in the folded configuration.
Ways of carrying out the Invention
With reference to the figures, the reference numeral 1 generally designates a heated outdoor awning.
The awning 1 comprises a supporting structure for at least two cross- members 2: generally, there is a plurality of cross-members 2 that slide in mutually parallel conditions.
The larger the number of cross-members 2 (remaining in any case within reasonable numbers that ensure easy gathering of the awning 1 and optimum lightness of the entire structure), the higher the rigidity and load bearing capacity of the structure and of the awning 1.
The cross-members 2 can slide with respect to the structure and are designed to support and retain a canvas 3 that constitutes the actual covering awning.
The figures show that one possible embodiment provides for the canvas 3 arranged above each cross-member 2: in the case shown in the figures, a series of flexible bands 4 is associated with the canvas 3, identifying an end bolt-rope 5 (a flexible border that is adapted to reinforce the edges and increase their thickness in order to retain them within a suitable contoured seat).
The cross-member 2 has a corresponding contoured slot 6, which is adapted to accommodate the bolt-rope 5, locking it stably, like the bending of a sail, in the contoured groove of the respective mast.
At least one of the cross-members 2 (conveniently, according to one embodiment that is particularly interesting from a practical and application viewpoint, it is convenient for this condition to occur for all the cross- members 2) comprises, on the face 7 that lies opposite the retention surface of the canvas 3, a locking member 8 for at least one laminar heating element 9.
The heating element 9, thus associated with the cross-members 2, is therefore substantially parallel to the at least one canvas 3. The heating element 9, in order to ensure the effect for which it is intended, is adapted to consume electric power and deliver heat energy.
According to one embodiment of particular interest in practice and in application, the laminar heating element 9 comprises a sheet 10 whose dimensions are substantially similar to those of the covering canvas 3.
Multiple electrically powered laminar heaters 11 are coupled onto the sheet 10.
At least one of the bands 12 of the sheet 10 is aligned with a respective cross-member 2 to lock the sheet 10 on the cross-member 2 by way of the locking member 8.
The locking member 8 comprises at least one main body 13, which is provided with a plate 14 that is shaped substantially complementary to the surface 7 of the cross-member 2 on which it is to be installed.
The main body 13 further comprises a rail 15 that lies opposite the plate 14.
At least one support 16, which has at least one portion 17 that is accommodated so that it can slide, in order to compensate for thermal dimensional variations, in the rail 15 of the main body 13, constitutes one of the two components required to lock the heating element 9.
The other component is a fastening plate 18, which can be coupled to the free face 19 of the support 16 with the interposition of a part of the heating element 9, which once assembly has occurred will be perfectly clamped between them.
In particular, at least one of the bands 12 of the sheet 10 is interposed between the free face 19 of the support 16 and the fastening plate 18.
Mutual clamping of the plate 18 and the free face 19, with consequent clamping of the sheet 10, is provided conveniently by way of a threaded means 20, which is adapted to pass through the fastening plate 18, engaging the support 16: in particular, the means 20 engages within an internal cavity 21 of the support 16 whose walls are contoured specifically in order to optimize grip of the crests of a thread. The band 12, and therefore the sheet 10 (and more generally the heating element 9), is clamped between the face 19 of the support 16 and the fastening plate 18.
The locking member 8 comprises a lid 22 provided with anchoring teeth 23, with elastic interlocking, on corresponding seats 24 of the fastening plate 18.
The fitting of the lid 22 is intended to conceal the threaded means 20 adapted to fasten the plate 18 on the support 16, with consequent clamping of the sheet 10.
The main body 13 of the locking member 8, at the plate 14 that is shaped substantially complementary to the surface 7 of the cross-member 2 on which it is to be installed, has areas 25 for the engagement of through screws 26 that are adapted to engage the underlying cross-member 2, with consequent stable anchoring of the main body 13 to the respective cross- member 2. It is possible to use self-tapping screws 26, which engage in the cross-member 2, creating the containment thread that is complementary thereto. As an alternative, the possibility is not excluded of providing holes in the cross-member 2 at the insertion points of the screws 26, of threading said holes with an appropriately provided tool, and only subsequently inserting and screwing the screws into said holes, locking the main body 13.
The heaters 11, according to a particular embodiment of particular interest in practice and in application, comprise electrical circuits that have a known electrical resistance; the flow of an electric current produces in said circuits a heating by Joule effect, according to the formula
P(thermal) = R x I 2
Such thermal power is dissipated in the outside environment by means of a consequent release of heat, thermal energy, to the surrounding space.
The type, characteristics and structure of these circuits depend on the type of application and on the thermal requirements of the installation itself (depending on the thermal gradient that one wishes to establish between the area subtended by the awning 1 and the outside environment it is convenient to choose different types of heater 11 and optionally increase or decrease their number with respect to a standard project).
All the heating elements 11 are supplied with power by means of a control and management unit provided with a voltage transformer, designed to reduce the value of the mains voltage to a value that is compatible with the operating value of the heaters 11.
The adjustment of the electrical values of the power supply of the heaters 1 1, such as voltage, current, frequency and waveform, causes a consequent adjustment of the thermal energy that is transferred to the environment by the heaters 11 and therefore an adjustment of the temperature in the space that lies below the awning 1.
The sheet 10 comprises a plurality of conductors that originate from the control and management unit and are designed to supply power to respective heaters 11 : the circuit complexity of said sheet shall be determined by the need to supply power, according to groups of different heaters, to small portions of heating element 9 for each line. The various lines are mutually connected in parallel (except for the case in which each line receives a power supply that is controlled specifically and individually by the control and management unit), whereas the heaters 1 1 of each line can be connected in series or in parallel depending on the installation requirements.
Positively, it should be noted that the fact that the support 16 can slide within the rail 15 of the main body 13 ensures that structural tensions caused by dimensional variation (of a thermal nature) of one of the components cannot occur.
A solid body varies its own dimensions depending on the temperature at which it is: generically, a body expands when it is subjected to high temperatures and contracts at low temperatures.
In this case, the cross-members 2 are subjected to the external temperature and therefore have a certain dimension.
During heating of the heating element 9, if it were rigidly coupled to the cross-member 2, expansions might occur which compromise the correct operation of the awning 1 (the cross-member 2 that no longer performs correctly the translational motion but jams, for example); the interposition of the rail 15 within which the portion 17 of the support 16 slides causes a disconnection between the heating element 9 and the cross-member 2 and eliminates all the problems linked to thermal dimensional variations.
It should be stressed that the described embodiment also lends itself to the provision of a heating kit for outdoor awnings that comprises a heating element 9 and a locking member 8, which can be associated stably with a cross-member 2 for supporting and retaining the awning.
The locking member 8 is designed to stably support the heating element 9 arranged in a configuration in which it hangs from the cross- member 2.
The locking member 8 comprises a main body 13, which can be coupled by means of fixing screws 26 to the cross-member 2; the main body 13 is provided ' with an accommodation rail 15, which can slide to compensate for thermal dimensional variations, for a support 16.
The support 16 is of a type suitable for stable coupling with a fastening plate 18.
At least one band 12 of the heating element 9 is interposed between the support 16 and the plate 18.
Advantageously, the heated outdoor awning 1 according to the invention therefore has heating components that are integrated with the other components of the awning 1 (these are not distinct elements), providing greater practicality and convenience in operation.
Positively, the awning 1 is adapted to raise the temperature of the environment below the awning 1 with limited energy consumption.
Conveniently, the awning 1 can remain in the extended configuration even during atmospheric events such as hailstorms and snowfalls: the heat released by the heating elements 9 is such as to cause the progressive and continuous melting of the snow that settles.
One should further not neglect the possibility of adopting a heating kit for outdoor awnings that are already installed and in service, improving their performance and usability.
The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; all the details may further be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.
In the exemplary embodiments shown, individual characteristics, given in relation to specific examples, may actually be interchanged with other different characteristics that exist in other exemplary embodiments.
Moreover, it is noted that anything found to be already known during the patenting process is understood not to be claimed and to be the subject of a disclaimer. In practice, the materials used, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.
Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.