The present invention relates to a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors.

Disclosure of the Invention

The aim of the present invention is to provide a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors that is structurally simple, achieving savings in their production. Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors that is particularly resistant to the loads applied thereto.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors provided with the safety systems required by the standards applicable to the field.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors that is easy to use.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors that can be manufactured with known systems and technologies.

This aim and these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors, comprising: - an upright, which can be fixed at its end to a supporting strut that rests on the ground,

- a supporting head for at least one beam for supporting a formwork for floors, which is coupled so that it can slide along said upright, said supporting head being provided with safety abutment elements for the end of the supporting beam during the setup and removal of the

formwork of said supporting beam,

- means for reversibly locking said supporting head in a preset position defined along said upright, characterized in that said supporting head comprises: - two plates, which are arranged mirror-symmetrically so that they are laterally adjacent to opposite sides of said upright and are suitable to delimit laterally a region for accommodating the end of the at least one supporting beam,

- at least two recesses for guiding the insertion and containment of a supporting portion of the corresponding supporting beam, each recess being provided on a respective one of said plates, a single prism-shaped element being welded to the bottom of each recess, being wider than the thickness of the plate and being suitable to support the supporting portion of the supporting beam, - a transverse element for connecting said two plates, which is suitable to support temporarily an inclined lower portion of the supporting beam during the setup and removal of the formwork of said beam. 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 thereof, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device according to the invention, with a supporting beam for formwork of floors associated therewith; Figure 2 is a partially sectional side view of the device of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is at top view of the device of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a partially sectional front view of the device of Figure 2, with a supporting beam for formwork of floors associated therewith. Ways of carrying out the Invention With reference to the figures, a falling head support device for

supporting beams of formworks for floors according to the invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 10.

The support device 10 comprises a tubular upright 11, which has a square cross-section and, at the upper end, a T-shaped portion 12. A flat bracket 13 is provided at the lower end of the upright 11, and a shank 14 protrudes downward from said bracket so as to be substantially aligned with the upright 12; the shank is designed to be inserted in a corresponding tubular supporting strut that rests on the ground (not shown in the figures) and is provided with a complementary plate to which the flat bracket 13 is locked by means of bolts.

A supporting head 15, in this embodiment for two supporting beams of a formwork -for floors, is coupled slidingly to the upright 11 ; a single beam, designated by the reference numeral 16, is shown in Figures 1 and 4.

The supporting head 15 comprises a base plate 17, to which two plates 18 are welded edgeways and are arranged in a mirror-symmetrical fashion so that they are laterally adjacent to opposite sides of the upright 11 and are suitable to delimit laterally a region 19 for accommodating the end of the supporting beam 16.

In this embodiment, each plate 18 is symmetrical with respect to a vertical centerline axis, and as a pair the plates 18 consequently form two regions 19 for accommodating the ends of contiguous and aligned supporting beams 16.

The base plate 17 is provided centrally with a through hole 20 in order to allow its sliding along the upright 11 ; in particular, sliding is allowed for a single initial portion Ha of the upright 11, which is comprised between the flat bracket 13 and two stroke limiters 21, which are arranged on opposite sides of the upright 11 in an intermediate position thereof.

Means 22 for reversibly locking said supporting head in a preset position defined along the upright 1 1 , described hereinafter, are associated with the supporting head 15.

Two recesses 23, suitable for resting the end of respective supporting beams 16, are provided on each plate and are arranged symmetrically with respect to the vertical centerline axis.

The recesses 23 of respective mirror-symmetrically matching plates 18 are useful for supporting the end of a respective supporting beam 16, as described hereinafter.

In particular, the recesses 23 have a substantially V-shaped profile and guide the insertion and containment of a supporting portion 24 of the corresponding supporting beam 16. In particular, the surface for supporting the supporting portion 24 of the supporting beam 16 is formed by the bottom 25 of the recess 23 of each plate 18 and by the lateral edge 26 of a respective plate-like element 27, which is arranged rigidly laterally adjacent to the plate 18, so that the lateral edge 26 is substantially at the same height as the bottom of the recess 23. The supporting portion 24 is constituted by the lower portion of an inverted T-shaped body, which is welded at its end to the supporting beam 16.

A single plate-like element 27 is associated with each plate 18 and is longer than the distance between the recesses 23 of a same plate. In this manner, a lower portion 16a of the beam 16 may also rest on the lateral edges 26 of the plate-like elements 27 (as shown in Figure 4) discharging part of the weight from the welds of the inverted T-shaped body (welded at its end to the beam 16) that forms the supporting portion 24.

Further, each plate-like element 27 is suitable to abut, with its lateral edge 26, against a respective stroke limiter 21.

Moreover, each plate-like element 27 forms, together with its corresponding element, a pair of containment and guiding elements for the head 15 on the upright 1 1.

On opposite sides of the through hole 20, transversely with respect to the plates 18, there are two guiding plates 28 for sliding on the upright 11,

which are suitable to form in practice a pair of elements for containing and guiding the head 15 which is perpendicular with respect to the pair formed by the plate-like elements 27.

The supporting head 15 is provided with safety abutment elements 29 for the end of the supporting beam 16 during the setup and removal of the formwork of said beam.

In particular, the safety abutment elements 29 are constituted by hook-shaped portions 30, which protrude, as a continuation of the upper portions of the recesses 23, outward and toward the upper region of the plates 18.

The concave region of the hook-shaped portions 30 is substantially directed toward the upright 1 1.

The hook-shaped portions 30 prevent the supporting beam 16, once it is disengaged from one of the two heads that support it at its end, from disengaging accidentally from the remaining one, falling disastrously onto the workers below.

In particular, it is the inverted T-shaped body, which forms the supporting portion 24 of the end of the beam 16, that engages by way of the laterally protruding parts the hook-shaped portions 30. Further, the supporting head 15 is provided with a transverse element

31 for connecting the two plates 18, which is suitable for temporarily supporting an inclined lower portion 32 of the supporting beam 16 during the setup and removal of the formwork of the beam, thus facilitating these steps. The transverse element 31 is constituted by a cylindrical pin, which is welded at the end to the two plates 18.

In summary, the means 22 for locking reversibly the supporting head

15 comprise a frame 33, which is provided centrally with a through cavity that is shaped substantially so as to form two separate portions: a first portion (not shown in the figures, since it is superimposed on other

components), which is substantially equal to the width of the initial portion 11a of the upright 11, and a second portion 34, which is larger than the dimensions in plan view of the cross-section of the initial portion 11a.

In this initial portion 11a, the upright has, on opposite sides, two wings 35, on the upper ends of which the first portion of the frame 33 rests so that it can slide.

The base plate 17 of the supporting head 15 rests on the frame 33 thus arranged; said head, therefore, cannot fall, since it is supported by the frame.

Advantageously, the edge of the frame 33 at the first portion is inclined upward toward the second portion 34.

By pushing the frame 33 on the side that corresponds to the second portion 34 toward the upright 11, said frame slides on the upper ends 36 of the two wings 35 until the second portion 34 is located at them: since it cannot be supported by the wings 35 because the second portion 34 is wider than the upright 11 with the wings 35, said frame falls down to reach the bracket 13, together with the supporting head 15.

It should be noted that the two guiding plates 28 for sliding on the upright 11 guide the head 15 along the upright 11, in practice being arranged laterally adjacent to the wings 35 (and an extension 35a of the wings 35 that is separated from them in order to allow the support of the frame 33).

In practice it has been found that the invention thus described achieves the intended aim and objects.

A falling head support device for supporting beams of formworks for floors has in fact been provided which is structurally simple and achieves savings in its production.

The number of components of the device is in fact reduced with respect to commercially known solutions, and the method of assembly is also easier, reducing the number of welds to be provided. Although the structure of the device has been lightened and

simplified, its load bearing strength is optimum.

In practice, the materials employed, so long as they are compatible with the specific use, 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.