False Ceiling or False Wall Constituted by a Stretched Sheet Fastened

The present invention relate to a false ceiling or false wall constituted by a stretched sheet fastened, along its edges, to a support fixed to the wall or ceiling.

False ceilings are already known which comprise, on the one hand, a horizontal frame fixed to the upper part of the walls of a premises, this frame being formed by an outer longitudinal member itself constituted by butt-jointed sections and, on the other hand, a sheet stretched horizontally within this frame, this sheet being constituted by a sheet of plastics material or a fabric cloth. The sheet is maintained stretched due to the fastening, on the longitudinal member, of an edge integral with the sheet, forming to some extent a "harpoon", this edge presenting in cross section the form of a hook hooking on a shoulder of the longitudinal member.

Although such a false ceiling has proved relatively easy to position it has, however, raised certain problems at those points where, in a room where the false ceiling is positioned, there are water downpipes, central heating pipes, electric sleeves, etc..., such elements being placed against the wall or some centimeters therefrom. Various techniques have been envisaged to allow the sheet to go round these elements projecting with respect to the wall, but such techniques have not provded satisfactory as they generally render the process of assembly of the sheet complicated.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome these drawbacks by providing a false ceiling or false wall of particularly simple design, allowing easy passage of the projecting elements such as various pipes.

To that end, this false ceiling or false wall, constituted by a stretched sheet fastened, along its edges, to a support fixed to the wall or to the ceiling, is characterized in that the sheet bears, at the passage of an element projecting with respect to the wall, such as a pipe, a reinforcing or wall, this reinforcing plate presenting a cut-out allowing passage of the projecting element through it and through the sheet.

The invention will be more readily understood on reading the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective, from above, of a stretched sheet fastened on a longitudinal element, at the point where two vertical pipes pass.

FIG. 2 is a view in vertical section made along line II--II of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a view in perspective illustrating the use of a reinforcing plate for the passage of pipes located in a corner of a room.

FIG. 4 is a view in perspective of a variant embodiment of the invention.

Referring now to the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an embodiment of a false ceiling constituted by a sheet 1, constituted by a fabric cloth or a sheet of plastics material which is stretched and fastened, along its edges, to a support 2 fixed to the upper part of a wall 3. The support 2 is constituted by a horizontal longitudinal element extending all around the room and which is formed by sections of butt-jointed profiles. Each profile has a substantially L-shaped cross section and it presents, on its horizontal arm, a shoulder 4 on which is fastened an edge 5 of the sheet 1, in the form of a hook or harpoon.

According to the invention the stretched sheet 1 presents wherever there are vertical pipes 6 located at a certain distance from the wall, a reinforcing plate 7 which is glued on the upper face of the sheet 1. This reinforcing plate which may, for example, be a plate of translucent polyvinyl chloride, 2mm thick, is previously cut out so as to follow the shape of the or each pipe 6 which must pass through the sheet . In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, the reinforcing plate 7 which is generally rectangular in form, presents two parallel U-shaped cut-outs 8 both of which open out in the same longitudinal side of the plate 7. The two vertical pipes 6 are engaged in these two cut-outs 8. The reinforcing plate 7 thus maintains the sheet 1 perfectly in its zone close to the vertical pipes 6. Of course, those parts of the edge 5 in the form of a harpoon located beneath the inlet orifices of the cut-outs 8 are eliminated, and similarly, those parts of the sheet 1 which correspond to the rest of the surface of the cut-outs 8 are also removed so as to allow the reinforcing plate 7 to be freely engaged and glued to the sub-jacent sheet 1, between the two pipes 6 and on either side thereof.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of a reinforcing plate 7 located in a corner of the room where the false ceiling is mounted and where there are two vertical pipes 6. There again, the reinforcing plate 7 is cut out so as to present, opposite the two pipes 6, the two U-shaped cut-outs 8.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 4, the stretched sheet 1 bears a reinforcing plate 9 of rectangular form, which is pierced with a hole 10 tranversed by a vertical pipe 6, this hole 10 communicating with the edge 9a of the plate 9 which is located on the longitudinal element 2 side, via a slit 11 with contiguous lips. Of course, the subjacent sheet 1 is also split below the slit 11, in order to allow the sheet 1 and the reinforcing plate 9 glued thereto to be engaged around pipe 6, by opening the slit 11 and the corresponding slit of sheet 1 to a maximum, for this introduction.