Patent Application
20130161215
Not Applicable
1. Field of Invention
This invention pertains to protecting outdoor heating and air-conditioning units and the like against theft. More particularly, this invention pertains to a condenser cover for enclosing outdoor heating and air conditioning units and the like to prevent access and theft.
2. Description of the Related Art
Theft of copper condensing units has been an ongoing problem that has continued to grow in recent years. Law enforcement officials report a dramatic rise in the theft of copper wiring and refrigeration copper tubing from business and utility facilities. The scrap value of metals such as steel, copper, and aluminum, are at historically high levels. Thousands of dollars in damages can result from the acquisition of as little as one hundred dollars in metals.
Often the thieves will remove an entire unit so that it can be dismantled in a more convenient location. However, an efficient thief can often gut a condensing unit in as little as fifteen minutes. Copper theft leaves an air conditioning unit badly damaged or completely destroyed. The business or homeowner is left with expensive repairs and possibly loss of business.
While businesses and government buildings have had the most obvious vulnerability due to the downtime of weekends or long periods of inactivity, as in school buildings, residential areas have also become targets. Homes that are empty due to being for sale or between rentals are especially vulnerable. Thieves also scout neighborhoods to determine when homes are empty.
Residential air conditioning units have historically been very vulnerable to tampering, even though the problem has seen significant increase only recently. For aesthetic reasons, the units are often located out of view from both the road and from the areas of the home that are most often in use.
As the theft and destruction of air conditioning units has increased many solutions have been offered to combat the problem. Various kinds of steel cages, covers, or enclosures, have been introduced into the marketplace to secure the units against theft or unwanted access. Custom built enclosures provide security specific to the exact environment but are not readily adaptable to varying models and shapes of units. While many enclosures are removable after a fashion, they are often cumbersome to deal with and often require what amounts to a reinstallation after being removed for repairs or other necessary access. Some enclosures are secured directly to the ground, pad, or concrete, via bolts or anchors, while others require being secured directly to the unit itself.
What is needed is an enclosure or cover that is simple to install that also provides ease of access to the protected air conditioning unit.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, an enclosure for protecting an air conditioning condenser unit is provided. The enclosure includes a frame having panels to cover the rear, front, each side, and the top of a condenser unit. The panels include a mesh portion bordered on each edge by a metal bar. The side panels are connected opposite each other to the rear panel and fold around each side from the rear of the condenser unit. The top panel is connected to the top of the rear panel and folds over the top of the condenser unit from the rear. The front panel is connected to the top panel, opposite the rear panel, and folds over the front of the condenser unit from the top. The panels are interconnected with hinges secured to the inside of the enclosure. The front panel and the back panel include an aperture for securing a bar to the enclosure. The bar includes a hook portion and a fastener portion, the fastener portion also including a hole. The hook portion of the bar is attached to the aperture of the rear panel and the fastener portion protrudes through the aperture of the front panel providing availability to the hole for securing the enclosure with a lock.
Another embodiment provides a cover for enclosing an outdoor condenser unit, the cover including (1) a metal frame for folding around and over the outdoor condenser unit, the metal frame including a plurality of panels, interconnected to at least one other panel and each panel having a plurality of metal edges, each panel sized for a corresponding section of the outdoor condenser unit, and each panel also includes a metal mesh extending between the metal edges, and (2) a metal security bar for interconnecting opposite panels via extension of the security bar underneath the outdoor condenser unit, whereby when folded around the outdoor condenser unit, the cover substantially approximates the shape of the outdoor condenser unit.
In one embodiment, the interconnected panels are adjoined via hinges.
In one embodiment, the metal security bar includes a hook portion and a fastener portion at opposite ends, with the fastener portion including a hole. In one embodiment, the fastener portion includes a tongue portion so that the hole is in the tongue portion, and the fastener portion includes an offset portion perpendicular to a main bar portion of the metal security bar, so that the tongue portion is offset from the main bar portion.
In one embodiment, one panel includes a first aperture adjacent one of the metal edges, and sized for receiving the hook portion of the metal security bar. One other panel includes a second aperture adjacent one of the metal edges, and sized for receiving the tongue portion.
In one embodiment, the metal security bar has a length exceeding that of the outdoor condenser unit.
In one embodiment, the hook portion of the metal security bar further includes a lip portion for insertion into the first aperture to secure the hook portion to a panel.
In some embodiments, the metal mesh is formed from expanded metal.
Another embodiment provides a cover for enclosing an outdoor condenser unit, the cover including a metal frame for folding around and over the outdoor condenser unit, the metal frame including (1) a plurality of panels, each having a plurality of metal edges, and each panel further including a metal mesh extending between the metal edges. The plurality of panels includes (a) a first panel sized for a corresponding first side of the outdoor condenser unit, (b) a second panel, adjoined to a first metal edge of the first panel, and sized for a corresponding second side of the outdoor condenser unit, so that the second panel is foldable to cover the second side of the outdoor condenser unit, (c) a third panel adjoined to a second metal edge of the first panel that is opposite the first metal edge, and the third panel is sized for a corresponding third side of the outdoor condenser unit opposite the second side of the outdoor condenser unit, and the third panel is foldable to cover the third side of the outdoor condenser unit, (d) a fourth panel adjoined to a third metal edge of the first panel, where the third metal edge is between the first metal edge and the second metal edge of the first panel, and the fourth panel is sized for a corresponding fourth side of the outdoor condenser unit, and is foldable to cover the fourth side of the outdoor condenser unit, the fourth panel being adjacent to the first, second, and third panel, and (e) a fifth panel adjoined to the fourth panel opposite the third panel, and sized for covering a portion of a fifth side of the outdoor condenser unit, (2) the first panel including a first aperture adjacent to a fourth metal edge of the first panel, that is opposite the third metal edge; (3) the fifth panel including a second aperture adjacent to a metal edge opposite the fourth panel, (4) a metal security bar that includes a hook end and a fastener end, where the fastener end is offset from the hook end, so that the metal security bar is for interconnecting the first panel and the fifth panel, so that the hook end is inserted into the first aperture, the metal security bar is extended underneath the outdoor condenser unit, and the fastener end is inserted into the second aperture, so that when folded around the outdoor condenser unit, the cover substantially approximates the shape of the outdoor condenser unit and prevents access to the outdoor condenser unit.
Another embodiment provides a cover for enclosing an outdoor condenser unit, wherein the cover includes (1) a metal frame for folding around and over the outdoor condenser unit, and the metal frame includes panels, each panel with a plurality of edges, where (a) a first panel is sized for a corresponding first side of the outdoor condenser unit, (b) a second panel is adjoined to a first edge of the first panel, sized for a corresponding second side of the outdoor condenser unit, and foldable to cover the second side of the outdoor condenser unit, (c) a third panel is adjoined to a second edge of the first panel, opposite the first edge, sized for a corresponding third side of the outdoor condenser unit opposite the second side of the outdoor condenser unit, and foldable to cover the third side of the outdoor condenser unit, (d) a fourth panel is adjoined to a third edge of the first panel, between the first edge and the second edge of the first panel, sized for a corresponding fourth side of the outdoor condenser unit, and foldable to cover the fourth side of the outdoor condenser unit, where the fourth panel is adjacent to the first, second, and third panel, and (e) a fifth panel is adjoined to the fourth panel, opposite the third panel, sized for covering a portion of a fifth side of the outdoor condenser unit, (2) the first panel includes a first aperture adjacent to a fourth edge opposite the third edge of the first panel, (3) the fifth panel includes a second aperture adjacent to an edge opposite the fourth panel, (4) a security bar that includes a hook end and a fastener end, with the fastener end offset from the hook end, for interconnecting the first panel and the fifth panel, where the hook end is inserted into the first aperture, the security bar is extended underneath the outdoor condenser unit, and the fastener end is inserted into the second aperture, so that when folded around the outdoor condenser unit, the cover substantially approximates the shape of the outdoor condenser unit and prevents access to the outdoor condenser unit.
Other systems, methods, features and advantages of the present invention will be or become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following drawings and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features and advantages be included within this description and be within the scope of the present disclosure.
The above-mentioned features will become more clearly understood from the following detailed description read together with the drawings in which:
A condenser cover for enclosing outdoor heating and air conditioning units is disclosed. The condenser cover folds around and encloses the units to protect against theft or other unwanted access, while also allowing ease of access for maintenance and repairs.
In one embodiment, adjoining panels 112 are connected via a hinge 130 secured to each of the panels 112. In one embodiment, the hinge 130 is a butt hinge. In the illustrated embodiment, there are two hinges 130 connecting each pair of adjoining panels 112. The hinges 130 are affixed to the inside of each adjoining panel 130 so that the frame 110 cannot be disassembled from the outside of the condenser cover 100.
A security bar 120 extends from the rear panel 112b to the front panel 112e. The security bar 120 has a hook end 320 (see
In one embodiment, the rear panel 112b, both side panels 112a, 112c, and the top panel 112d are substantially the same size, while the front panel 112e has a height that is less than the height of the remaining panels 112a, 112b, 112c, 112d. In such embodiments, the panels 112 are substantially square with the exception of the front panel 112e.
In one embodiment, the rear panel 112b and the side panels 112a, 112c are of the same height while the length of the top panel 112d corresponds to a front to back measurement of the outdoor unit. That is, the length of the top panel 112d is the same as the width of the side panels 112a, 112c, and the width of the top panel 112d is the same as the width of the rear panel 112b. Such dimensions correspond to an outdoor unit that has a front to back measurement that exceeds the width when viewed from the front.
Each panel 112 includes four edges 210 assembled to form the perimeter of a rectangular shaped panel 112. In the illustrated embodiment, the rear panel 112b, each side panel 112a, 112c, and the top panel 112d are substantially square in shape. The actual shape of each panel 112 for a particular embodiment is dependent upon the actual shape of the particular outdoor unit that is enclosed within the condenser cover 100. Each edge 210 is formed from a metal bar of sufficient strength to provide rigidity to the panel 112. It will be appreciated that various types of metal may be used to form the edges 210 according to the strength and rigidity necessary to securely enclose the particular outdoor unit. In one embodiment, the edges 210 of the rear panel 112b, each side panel 112a, 112c, and the top panel 112d, have dimensions of 3/16 inch×1 inch×36 inches. In such an embodiment, the front panel 112e has two edges 210e of similar dimensions and two additional edges 210e having dimensions of 3/16 inch×1 inch×28 inches. In other embodiments, the length of the respective edges 210 will vary according to the dimensions of the outdoor unit that is enclosed. In still other embodiments, the width and thickness of the edges 210 may be increased or decreased according to the necessary strength and rigidity required for larger or smaller outdoor units respectively.
The respective edges 210 are joined at each corner of the respective panel 210. That is, the rear panel 112b is assembled from four edges 210b that form a rectangular shaped panel 112. The edges 210b are joined at each corner of the rear panel 112b. In one embodiment, each edge 210b is welded to each adjacent edge 210b of the panel 112b. Similarly, the edges 210a, 210c, 210d, 210e are welded to each adjacent edge 210a, 210c, 210d, 210e of the respective panel 112a, 112c, 112d, 112e. Those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that in addition to welding, other methods of adjoining or fastening the edges 210 may be applicable according to the type of metal from which the edges 210 are formed.
Each panel 112 includes a mesh 220 portion extending throughout that portion of the panel 112 between the edges 210. In the illustrated embodiment, the respective panels 112a, 112b, 112c, 112d, 112e include a corresponding mesh 220a, 220b, 220c, 220d, 220e. In one embodiment, the mesh 220 is made from expanded metal. In one such embodiment, the mesh 220 is welded to the edges 210 on each side of the panel 112. It will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that many combinations of metals and/or materials may be used to form the mesh 220 of the panel 112. The mesh 220 reduces and/or eliminates access to the outdoor unit and also does not interfere with ventilation of the unit. The air flow in and around the outdoor unit is substantially unaffected by the mesh 220.
Expanded metal is also referred to as perforated metal, and is a metal stock that typically has diamond-shaped voids surrounded by interlinked bars of the metal. The expanded metal is formed by shearing a metal plate in a press to stretch the metal. One method for manufacturing expanded metal is to slit and stretch the material in one motion. Some common uses for expanded metal are grates, fencing, and guards to protect against contact with hot surfaces or dangerous machinery. Expanded metal also finds application such as in walls or other areas where its presence increases the difficulty in breaching the location. The use of expanded metal increases the difficulty in accessing a location without specialized cutting equipment.
The expanded metal in the mesh 220 of the panels 112 is of sufficient strength to prevent unwanted access or damage to the outdoor unit. In one embodiment, the mesh 220 is ¾ inch #9 expanded metal. Those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that other grades of expanded metal, or even other materials may be used to provide the mesh 220 for the panel 112. In such embodiments, the mesh 220 need only allow for adequate ventilation of the outdoor unit, i.e. does not substantially interfere with air flow, while also providing sufficient strength to protect against unwanted access.
In one embodiment the rear panel 112b includes a rear aperture 230 near the center of and adjacent to the edge 210b opposite the edge 210b that connects to the top panel 112d. The rear aperture 230 is an opening of sufficient size for receiving the hook end 320 (see
Similar to the rear panel, in one embodiment the front panel 112e includes a front aperture 240 near the center of and adjacent to the edge 210b opposite the edge 210b that connects to the top panel 112d. The front aperture 240 is an opening of sufficient size for receiving the fastener end 330 (see
It should be noted that the rear aperture 230 and the front aperture 240 typically are not located directly opposite each other in the sense of parallelism with the top panel 112d. That is, since the front panel 112e height is less that the rear panel 112b height, the front aperture 240 is closer to the top panel 112d than the rear aperture 230. In other words, the rear aperture 230 is closer to the base level of the condenser cover 100, whereas the front aperture is raised some distance above the base level of the condenser cover 100. The base level of the condenser cover 100 generally corresponds to the bottom of the outdoor unit. This difference in height allows for the shape of the security bar 120 where the fastener end 330 is offset from the hook end 320.
In one embodiment security bar 120 is formed from metal having thickness of ⅛ inch and width of 1 inch. The length of the security bar 120 exceeds the front-to-back length of the condenser cover 100 by a sufficient margin for the hole 126 to be accessible outside the front panel 112e. Those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that the specific dimensions of the security bar 120 will vary according to the size of the outdoor unit to be enclosed by the condenser cover 100. Larger units will, of course, require greater strength and/or rigidity for the security bar 120. In such embodiments, the security bar 120 may have increased thickness and/or width. Of course, the length of the security bar 120 will correspond closely to the measurements of the unit under which the security bar 120 extends.
The hook end 320 is sized and shaped to operate in concert with the rear aperture 230 of the rear panel 112b. In one embodiment, the hook end 320 includes a rear portion 322 that extends substantially perpendicular to the main bar 310. A lip 324 extends from the rear portion 322 toward the fastener end 330 and substantially parallel to the main bar 310.
The hook end 320 is sized for the lip 324 to fit within the rear aperture 230 of the rear panel 112b. That is, the length of the rear portion 322 exceeds the width of the corresponding edge 210b of the rear panel 112b. In one embodiment, the length of the lip 324 is substantially the same as the length of the rear portion 322. The lip 324 of the hook end 320 is inserted through the rear aperture 230 from the outside of the rear panel 112b so that the main bar 310 extends underneath the outdoor unit.
The fastener end 330 is sized and shaped to operate in concert with the front aperture 240 of the front panel 112e. In one embodiment, the fastener end 330 includes a front portion 332 that extends substantially perpendicular to the main bar 310. A tongue 334 extends from the front portion 332 and opposite the hook end 320. The tongue 334 is substantially perpendicular to the front portion 332, that is, substantially parallel to the main bar 310. In operation, the tongue 334 extends through the front aperture 240 of the front panel 112e so that the hole 122 is outside the front panel 112e.
In one embodiment, the length of the rear portion 322 is approximately 1½ inches and the length of the lip 324 is approximately 1½ inches. In one embodiment, the front portion 332 is approximately 9 inches and the length of the tongue is 1½ inches. In such an embodiment, the hole 122 in the tongue 334 is approximately 1 inch from the front portion 332. The hole 122 is sized to accept the lock or other security device that is used to prevent the condenser cover 100 from being opened for unwanted access or damage to an enclosed outdoor unit.
In one embodiment, the length of the main bar is 36½ inches. In various embodiments, the length of the main bar corresponds to the dimensions of the outdoor unit.
The opposing side panels 112a, 112c are wrapped around either side of the outdoor unit 400 from the rear so that the rear panel 112b and the opposing side panels 112a, 112b together enclose three sides of the outdoor unit 400.
A top panel 112d is attached to the rear panel 112b between the side panels 112a, 112c, so that the top panel 112d folds over the top of the outdoor unit 400 from the rear. A front panel 112e is attached to the top panel 112d opposite the rear panel 112b. When the top panel 112d is folded across the top of an outdoor unit 400, the front panel 112e is folded down to cover the front of the outdoor unit 400. The outdoor unit 400 is completely enclosed via the panels 112 when the rear panel 112b is situated at the rear of the outdoor unit 400 so that each side panel 112a, 112c is folded around opposing sides of the outdoor unit 400, the top panel 112d is folded over the top of the outdoor unit 400, and the front panel 112e is folded down over the front of the outdoor unit 400.
In the illustrated embodiment the panels 112 are adjoined to each other via hinges 130. The hinges 130 are attached so that they are on the inside of an installed condenser cover 100. In this way, the installed condenser cover 100 is not easily disassembled.
The security bar 120 is attached via the hook end 320 to the rear panel 112b and extends under the outdoor unit 400 to the front side of the outdoor unit 400. The front panel 112e is closed so that hole 122 of the tongue 334 extends through the front aperture 240. A lock can be inserted into the hole 122 to secure the condenser cover 100 and prevent unwanted access and damage to the outdoor unit 400 underneath.
From the foregoing description, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that a condenser cover 100, for preventing unwanted access or damage to an outdoor unit 400 such as an air conditioner condenser, has been provided
While the present invention has been illustrated by description of several embodiments and while the illustrative embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. The invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details, representative apparatus and methods, and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept.
