APPARATUS FOR TILE LEVELING AND SPACING

Abstract

A leveling spacer may include a base, a connecting piece having a breakage portion, a threaded shaft and a pressure applicator. In one embodiment, the breakage portion of the connecting piece is disposed at right angles to the base, and the other end thereof is connected with the threaded shaft. The pressure applicator is configured to engage and remove the threaded shaft, and more specifically, the pressure applicator may include a female threaded chamber to correspondingly engage with the threaded shaft. When the pressure applicator is rotated down the shaft, it can also apply pressure to level and immobilize the substrate.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 (e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/758,860, filed on Nov. 12, 2018, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a leveling spacer for tiles, and more particularly to an apparatus that ensures that all tiles used in an installation will be properly spaced apart from one another and level with one another.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Tile has become a popular decorative and functional article for use in floors, walls, countertops, and the like. Both professional tile installers and do-it-yourselfers spend a great deal of time aligning and leveling tiles as the tiles are being placed on a substrate's surface. Positioning a large plurality of tiles on a floor in such a way that all of the tiles are properly aligned and spaced apart from one another and level relative to one another when the job is complete is a difficult task. Spacing the tiles apart from one another is problematic, and most installers just align and space the tiles as best they can by relying upon the well-known “eyeballing” technique.

Laying and leveling tile can be difficult because many substrates are uneven, such as the ground substrate when laying tile for an outdoor patio. In this case, it can be difficult to raise the low areas of the substrate with mortar or other objects so that all the tiles are level. Further, tiles can shift and sink into mortar as the mortar dries. It has traditionally been necessary to continually monitor newly laid tiles as the mortar dries to ensure that the tiles remain level. Tile installers have used a variety of devices and methods to maintain quality the installation while completing the installation process as fast as possible. One basic method uses markings on the substrate surface. Marking the installation surface requires the mortar to be carefully applied such that the marks remain visible. Although this technique aids in the alignment of the tiles, it does not keep the tiles level as they are laid in the mortar. Further, the use of this marking technique increases the amount of time required for the installation which results in increased cost.

Proper alignment and leveling of each tile is important for a number of reasons. One reason is that if one tile is improperly placed, the error will accumulate and continue in adjacent tiles such that the installation will be unacceptable and the tiles will have to be replaced and/or ground and polished until the tiles are level or flat. In addition to aesthetic reasons for properly laying tile, a level surface is essential in tile floors so that people do not trip and fall on unevenly laid tiles. Replacing or otherwise correcting errors in tile installation takes time that adds to the total cost of the tile installation. Therefore, there remains a need for a new and improved leveling spacer that has a simple structure and easy to use to overcome the problems stated above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a leveling spacer that is easy and intuitive to use both in the step of assembly for the immobilization of the tiles, and in the step of removal for the subsequent filling of the gaps.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a leveling spacer that can be used without subjecting the tiles to an unwanted lateral thrust that risks affecting the correct positioning thereof.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a leveling spacer which can be used simply by manually screwing the pressure applicator on the threaded stem.

In one aspect, a leveling spacer may include a base, a connecting piece having a breakage portion, a threaded shaft and a pressure applicator. In one embodiment, the breakage portion of the connecting piece is disposed at right angles to the base, and the other end thereof is connected with the threaded shaft. The pressure applicator is configured to engage and remove the threaded shaft, and more specifically, the pressure applicator may include a female threaded chamber to correspondingly engage with the threaded shaft to allow easy and quick insertion or removal of the pressure applicator. It is noted that the breakage portion can be relatively weaker with reduced thickness for instance, so it is breakable following an external force of a minor extent.

In one embodiment, the pressure applicator can be made by Nylon and glass fiber, and is configured to engage with and rotate on the threaded shaft to apply pressure to immobilize and level different types of substrate surfaces including, but not limited to porcelain, ceramics and nature stone. In another embodiment, the pressure applicator 140 can be made by pure plastic materials.

When in use, one or more leveling spacers can be arranged below the tiles (not shown) through the base. The pressure applicator can then be disposed on each leveling spacer, and engage with the threaded shaft with the female threaded chamber, so the pressure applicator can rotate on the threaded shaft to apply pressure to immobilize and level the tiles.

The pressure applicator can be further rotated on the threaded shaft in the same direction to remove the threaded shaft from the base. More specifically, as discussed above, the breakage portion is relatively weaker, so the force of continuing to rotate the pressure applicator on the threaded shaft would likely cause the breakage of the connecting piece from the breakage portion. Namely, the threaded shaft along with the connecting piece can be both removed from the base.

In one embodiment, the pressure applicator may further include a guiding channel that can be used after the removal of the connecting piece and the threaded shaft. More specifically, the guiding channel can be used to guide different types of connecting pieces out of the pressure applicator after the removal process. It is noted that after the removal of the connecting piece and the threaded shaft out from the pressure applicator, the pressure applicator should be reusable.

In another embodiment, the threaded shaft may have a top edge that has a predetermined angle to allow the pressure applicator to easily insert and remove from the shaft. The pressure applicator may have a guiding surface that is configured to guide the top edge into the female threaded chamber.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the leveling spacer in the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic view of the leveling spacer in the present invention when the pressure applicator rotates down.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the leveling spacer in the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view after the connecting piece and the threaded shaft are removed from the base in the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates different types of connecting pieces in the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description of the presently exemplary device provided in accordance with aspects of the present invention and is not intended to represent the only forms in which the present invention may be prepared or utilized. It is to be understood, rather, that the same or equivalent functions and components may be accomplished by different embodiments that are also intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although any methods, devices and materials similar or equivalent to those described can be used in the practice or testing of the invention, the exemplary methods, devices and materials are now described.

All publications mentioned are incorporated by reference for the purpose of describing and disclosing, for example, the designs and methodologies that are described in the publications that might be used in connection with the presently described invention. The publications listed or discussed above, below and throughout the text are provided solely for their disclosure prior to the filing date of the present application. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that the inventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue of prior invention.

As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a”, “an”, and “the” includes reference to the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the terms “comprise or comprising”, “include or including”, “have or having”, “contain or containing” and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, i.e., to mean including but not limited to. As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and, similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the embodiments. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

In one aspect, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a leveling spacer 100 may include a base 110, a connecting piece 120 having a breakage portion 121, a threaded shaft 130, and a pressure applicator 140. In one embodiment, the breakage portion 121 of the connecting piece 120 is disposed at right angles to the base 110, and the other end thereof is connected with the threaded shaft 130. The pressure applicator 140 is configured to engage and remove the threaded shaft 130, and more specifically, the pressure applicator 140 may include a female threaded chamber 142 to correspondingly engage with the threaded shaft 130 to allow easy and quick insertion or removal of the pressure applicator 140. It is noted that the breakage portion 121 can be relatively weaker with reduced thickness for instance, so it is breakable following an external force of a minor extent.

In one embodiment, the pressure applicator 140 can be made by Nylon and glass fiber, and is configured to engage with and rotate on the threaded shaft 130 to apply pressure to immobilize and level different types of substrate surfaces including, but not limited to porcelain, ceramics and nature stone. In another embodiment, the pressure applicator 140 can be made by pure plastic materials.

When in use, one or more leveling spacers 100 can be arranged below the tiles (not shown) through the base 110. The pressure applicator 140 can then be disposed on each leveling spacer 100 as shown in FIG. 1, and engage with the threaded shaft 130 with the female threaded chamber 142, so the pressure applicator 140 can rotate on the threaded shaft 130 to apply pressure to immobilize and level the tiles as shown in FIG. 2.

The pressure applicator 140 can be further rotated at the end of the threaded shaft 130 in the same direction to remove the threaded shaft 130 from the base 110. More specifically, as discussed above, the breakage portion 121 is relatively weaker, so the external force of continuing to rotate the pressure applicator 140 on the threaded shaft 130 would likely cause the breakage of the connecting piece 120 from the breakage portion 121. Namely, the threaded shaft 130 along with the connecting piece 120 can be both removed from the base 110 as shown in FIG. 4.

In one embodiment, the pressure applicator 140 may further include one or more guiding channels 141 that can be used after the removal of the connecting piece 120 and the threaded shaft 130. More specifically, the guiding channels 141 can be used to guide different types of connecting pieces (X-shaped, T-shaped and standard as 120) as shown in FIG. 5 out of the pressure applicator 140 after the removal process. It is noted that after the removal of the connecting piece 120 and the threaded shaft 130 out from the pressure applicator 140, the pressure applicator 140 should be reusable.

In another embodiment, the threaded shaft 130 may have a top edge 131 that has a predetermined angle to allow the pressure applicator 140 to easily insert and remove from the shaft 130. The pressure applicator 140 may have a guiding surface 143 that is configured to guide the top edge 131 into the female threaded chamber 142.

Having described the invention by the description and illustrations above, it should be understood that these are exemplary of the invention and are not to be considered as limiting. Accordingly, the invention is not to be considered as limited by the foregoing description, but includes any equivalent.

Claims

1. A leveling spacer comprising:

a base to be inserted underneath one or more substrates;

a connecting piece having one end, which is a breakage portion, extending from the base at right angle;

a threaded shaft vertically connected to the other end of the connecting piece; and

a pressure applicator configured to engage with the threaded shaft through a corresponding female threaded chamber to rotate and apply pressure to level and immobilize the substrates;

wherein the pressure applicator can be further rotated at the end of the threaded shaft to provide an external force to cause the breakage of the connecting piece on the base, so the connecting piece along with the threaded shaft are removed from the leveling spacer.

2. The leveling spacer of claim 1, wherein the pressure applicator includes one or more guiding channels to guide different types of connecting pieces along with the threaded shafts out of the pressure applicator after being removed from the base.

3. The leveling spacer of claim 1, wherein threaded shaft includes a top edge having a predetermined angle to allow the pressure applicator to easily insert and remove from the shaft, and the pressure applicator has a guiding surface configured to guide the top edge into the female threaded chamber.

4. The leveling spacer of claim 2, wherein threaded shaft includes a top edge having a predetermined angle to allow the pressure applicator to easily insert and remove from the shaft, and the pressure applicator has a guiding surface configured to guide the top edge into the female threaded chamber.

5. The leveling spacer of claim 1, wherein the pressure applicator is made of Nylon and glass fiber.