This invention is in the field of parapets or fences. More particularly, the invention relates to a parapet or fence having an improved fastening system for the structural and retaining elements forming it.

Conventionally, currently known parapets and fences comprise several elements joined to each other, including: structural elements, such as uprights or posts, which are secured to the walking surface or to a supporting surface in general; infill elements, e.g. made of glass, metal or other materials, i.e. retaining walls arranged vertically or otherwise perpendicularly to the supporting surface, used as a safety measure and also for ornamental purposes; systems for fastening and/or joining structural elements to retaining elements.

Specifically, with regard to the fixation of the infill elements or panels, the execution of such procedure is highly variable due to the lack of standardisation of the features of the panels available on the market today; more specifically, the procedure for the fixation of the panels is particularly laborious in the case of handmade structures, particularly if they are made of wrought iron and/or obtained using handcrafted processes.

Because of the special processing required in these cases, the tolerances that can be achieved are never high, and in any case they are not free from defects which, however small, are certainly detrimental to the speed, simplicity and costs of installing the structures, which always require highly specialised labour to carry out the commissioning.

The aim of this invention is to provide a fastening system for parapets or fences, particularly made of wrought iron, capable of solving the aforementioned problems by means of a fastening system which is simple to make and install.

Another aim of the invention is to significantly reduce the time and trouble involved in installing parapets or fences such as those described, by means of a parapet or fence equipped with an innovative fastening system capable of compensating for the imperfect tolerances of the retaining elements.

Another objective of this invention is to make the parapets and fences of the type described more easily usable and installable by a larger number of people by providing a simple installation procedure within the reach of everyone, thus eliminating the need for highly skilled labour.

Therefore, an object of the invention is a fastening system of an infill element equipped with an upper frame, to a supporting structural element perpendicular to the ground for the fabrication of a parapet or a fence; such system comprises a clamping element or pliers having a first jaw and a junction, wherein the junction is adapted to be coupled to the structural element in order to place such first jaw perpendicularly to the structural element itself, and wherein the first jaw comprises an internal surface adapted to accommodate a portion of the upper frame of the infill element by means of gravity.

Advantageously therefore, the infill panel may be placed in front of the supporting element and be placed alongside an adjoining panel to form a single seamless surface.

Further, the first jaw may have a first frontal surface and the clamping element may comprise a second jaw equipped with a second frontal surface, complementary to the first frontal surface of the first jaw, so as to provide a wedge fixing between the first jaw and the second jaw, thus defining a seat wherein to accommodate and reversibly fix the portion of the upper frame of the infill element.

This advantageously increases the safety and stability of the fixation of the infill panel, preventing accidental removal of the panel itself.

In addition, the first frontal surface may comprise a first protruding locking profile and the second frontal surface may comprise a second re-entrant locking profile; the first locking profile and the second locking profile are complementary to each other so that the first locking profile must be inserted into the second locking profile by means of a rotational movement. Thus, the fixation of the two jaws advantageously is quick and easy also for unskilled workers.

Again, according to the invention, the first jaw and the second jaw may comprise locking means for the mutual fixation of the jaws.

Thereby, the safety of the system is advantageously further increased.

Another object of the invention is a structural kit for making a parapet or fence, comprising an infill element having an upper frame and an upright, wherein a fastening system of the invention is included.

This invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example, according to some of its preferred embodiments, with reference to the attached figures, wherein:

Figure 1 A is an embodiment of a portion of a parapet coupled to the fastening system according to the invention;

Figure 1 B is a schematic representation of a possible embodiment of the fastening system according to the invention;

Figures 2A, 2B and 2C show three different embodiments of the fastening system mounted on three different structural elements;

Figures 3A-3D show different views of detail elements of a first component of the fastening system;

Figures 4A-4D show different views of detail elements of a second component of the fastening system;

Figures 5A-5B show two possible ways of joining the fastening system to a vertical supporting element;

Figures 6A-6B show a detail of the frames of the infill elements inserted in the fastening system according to the invention.

Figures 1A and 1 B show the fastening system 100 according to the invention, wherein there are pliers 1 comprising two jaws, which are complementary to each other, a first jaw 3, or lower jaw, and a second jaw 2, or upper jaw; said jaws 2, 3 are adapted to grip the ends 41 of the frame of the infill panel 4 to support it in position.

With reference to Figures 2A-2C, the fastening system 100 includes a joining portion 5 for connecting the pliers 1 to a supporting structural element 60, an upright 60 in the example shown; it has a base 61 for anchoring to a walking surface.

The jaws 2, 3 are made in such a way as to be able to advantageously receive ends having different sections and sizes; the jaws 2, 3 themselves are however able to securely lock these different ends in position, as they are equipped with a wedge coupling system which will be described below. Advantageously, the fastening system 100 can also be positioned directly on a wall by means of its joining portion 5, by a simple modification of the junction 5 itself and/or by selecting suitable fixing means, without thereby affecting the reliability or the simplicity of use of the invention.

Figures 3A-3D represent plan, side and cross-sectional views of the upper jaw 2, which has an increasing variation in width, with a substantially linear trend, starting from the joining area 5 to a frontal surface 21 .

A seat 6 is obtained in the substantially central portion of the jaws 2, 3 of the pliers 1 (Figures 3B, 3D, 4A, 4C), the seat being used to accommodate the end or, in any case, a part of the external frame of the infill panels; advantageously moreover, the pliers 1 are able to receive and support the ends of up to two external frames of two respective adjacent panels, which are received in the shaped space between the two jaws 2, 3, as shown in Figure 6B.

Equally efficiently, as shown in Figure 6A, it is also possible to accommodate the horizontal portion of the frame of the infill element 4 in such a way that it passes through and slides in the seat 6, i.e. seamlessly; this allows for greater flexibility in the installation procedure, as it can also provide support for longer sections of parapets or fences, and provides the possibility of varying the position of individual panels even after they have been installed.

Figures 3B-3D show first locking means 7, for example a bushing obtained on the internal face of the upper jaw 2, which is coupled to the lower jaw 3 by means of a second locking element 8 (shown in Figures 4C and 4D) obtained on the internal face of the lower jaw 3 and complementary to the bushing 7 itself. The locking means 7, 8 may be simply coupled by wedging; advantageously, the jaws 2, 3 may also be locked in position by inserting a pin or other suitable fixing means into the bushing 7 and the locking element 8.

The jaws 2, 3 have a first recessed locking profile 9 and a second projecting locking profile 10 at the frontal surfaces 21 and 31 , respectively, which are adapted to be positioned parallel to the infill panels and which correspond to each other, which simplify the connection between the jaws 2 and 3 themselves by means of the mutual rotational insertion and subsequent wedging.

Operatively, the panel frame is positioned in the seat 6, on the internal surface 61 of the lower jaw 3 which has already been secured to an upright or wall; subsequently, it is covered by the jaw 2, which is mounted, to form the pliers 1 , first by bringing the respective upper corners of the locking profiles 10 and 9 into contact, then by rotating the jaw 2 itself until the bushing 7 is in a position adjacent to the locking element 8.

At this point, depending on the desired fixation method, either the bushing 7 may be forced onto the element 8 or a suitable pin may be positioned.

Figures 5A and 5B show two embodiments of the fastening system 100 with respect to the joining portion 5; the first shows a possible joining method to a vertical element, such as an upright, while the second shows a more suitable joining method, for example, for wall-mounting.

The two embodiments comprise the jaws 2 and 3, already described above, wherein the joining portions 5 differ in the way in which they are coupled to the structural element supporting them: as shown in Figure 5A, in the first variant, this joining portion comprises a "U" shape, having two opposing lateral surfaces 51 between which the upright 60 can be inserted. The lateral surfaces 51 are each provided with seats 52 wherein to position suitable fixing means 53.

The second variant, shown in Figure 5B, is useful in cases wherein the parapet or fence is not to be fixed to an upright, rather to a wall: in this case, the joining portion 5 comprises a plate or sheet 55, joined to the jaws 2 and 3, on which the seats 52 for the fixing elements are obtained.

Similarly to the previous embodiment, the plate 55 is placed against a wall and then fixed.

Advantageously, a system of the type described not only allows the ends of two infill panels to be accommodated within single pliers 1 , but also allows any imperfections and/or incorrect tolerances to be accommodated: the ends only rest in the seat 6 and may, at least initially, slide in the space identified by the seat 6 itself.

Thereby, it is possible for the average user to intervene quickly and easily to adjust the mutual distances between the panels, thus making up for the absence of skilled personnel, but achieving the same result.

At the end of the adjustment procedure, additional fixing elements may be inserted into additional seats 1 1 obtained in the lower jaw 3, which lock the end of the infill element, e.g. by friction.

The invention as it is conceived is susceptible to numerous modifications and variants, all falling within the scope of protection of the appended claims.

Further, all the details can be replaced by other technically-equivalent elements.

In practice, the materials used, as well as the contingent shapes and dimensions, can be varied according to the contingent requirements and the background art.

Where the constructional and technical features mentioned in the following claims are followed by signs or reference numbers, the signs or reference numbers have been used only with the aim of increasing the intelligibility of the claims themselves and, consequently, they do not constitute in any way a limitation to the interpretation of each element identified, purely by way of example, by the signs or reference numerals.