In tilt-to-clean windows as currently manufactured, when sashes are tilted for cleaning, the only barrier between the room and the outside weather is insect screen fabric, which is pervious to rain, snow, hot winds, cold and humidity. This limits the times desirable for cleaning the windows. The design submitted herewith resolves that issue: To clean the windows, even in inclement weather, all that is required to block off the entire window opening from the weather is to pull on a cable grip conveniently clipped to the sill, which draws an impervious membrane across the outside face of the window.
In addition to satisfying the above need, the window design submitted herewith limits the visible presence of view-restricting screens to the times when a window is open for ventilation and screening is actually needed to protect occupants from flying insects.
This application continues development of the ideas presented in my U.S. Pat. No. 9,932,769 and my USPTO Application Ser. No. 17/975,573.
In a single-hung, tilt-to-clean window frame of standard configuration, said frame is fitted with a non-sliding upper sash and a vertically sliding lower sash, wherein lifting of the lower sash for ventilation pulls screen fabric off a spring-loaded self-storage roller concealed in a cavity in the sill. That action forms a barrier against flying insects between the edge areas along each vertical side of the screen and the weatherstripping fitted along the shoulders provided in the frame weatherward of the lower sash, the length of said screen fabric being at least as great as the travel of the lower sash, which fabric is attached to and immediately precedes a membrane impervious to wind and precipitation.
When it is time to clean the windows, both sashes are closed and a rigid horizontal tube resting at the juncture of the lower sash and the sill, proximate to the room side of the screen, is pulled across the top of the sill to the weather side of the window by way of a rigid rod passing thru said tube, each end of said rod being drawn along a guide groove recessed into each of the two opposing jambs by a cable at each of said rod's ends, each said cable being routed from said rod, through the frame, up to the head and down to the center of the room side of the sill, where the two cables are attached to a grip handle clipped to the sill, the grip handle remaining clipped to the sill during the window's normal ventilation mode. Pulling the unclipped grip handle away from the sill pulls the cables until the rod in the tube comes proximate to the outside face of the frame, at which time the guide grooves in the jambs direct the rod to travel vertically upward to the head, which causes the screen fabric to be pulled up towards the head, with said membrane following. As said tube rises, the screen fabric moves over the tube, traveling from the weather side to the room side of the tube, bringing the membrane's edge areas over the weather side faces of the jambs until the tube contacts the head, whereupon said rod is latched to prevent further travel, which establishes a temporary closure all across the window, blocking out flying insects and inclement weather. (Cleaning of the sashes is then accomplished as is customary for tilt-to-clean windows.)
In a second embodiment the impervious membrane is followed off the self-storing roller by a second section of screen fabric, allowing light-restricting characteristics of the membrane to provide shade to the window and allowing, after the membrane is set in place, for the lower sash to be raised and to provide natural ventilation as desired.
The advantages are several, in particular:
With respect to conventional, tilt-to-clean windows, cleaning the sashes' exteriors can be accomplished without ever enduring the troubles of disagreeable weather.
With respect to conventional, fixed-in-place screening, visibility through the window is increased since the degradation of visibility that comes with looking through screens is reduced to only the times a window sash is actually open for ventilation and even then the degradation of visibility is limited to the area of the ventilation opening and not the entire viewing area as is common to many screening systems.
With respect to conventional, fixed-in-place screening, the undesirable affinity of insect screens to collect atmospheric dust and pollutants, that can limit visibility and decompose screen fabric, is limited to only the times a window sash is open.
With respect to conventional, fixed-in-place screening, the screen fabric is subjected to the degrading UV rays of the sun only when a window sash is open.
With respect to conventional, fixed-in-place screening, the designs disclosed herein eliminate the objections of those who dislike seeing building exteriors having windows covered over with dark, dirty screens.
With respect to many conventional, fixed-in-place screening, the design disclosed herein prevents the loss of screens to strong winds.
With respect to screening systems afforded by attaching storm-windows to in-situ windows, the design disclosed is more convenient to operate.
With respect to screening systems afforded by attaching storm-windows to in-situ windows, visual clutter is reduced since the assembly disclosed herein retains the insect screens as part of the window itself.
With respect to screening systems afforded by attaching storm-windows to in-situ windows, fewer glass and sash surfaces require cleaning.
With respect to providing shade from the sun, the second embodiment provides more efficient heat protection than the use of interior shades since its barrier to sunlight is to the sunny side of the glazing, where it does not trap heat between the glazing and the shade material.
In the window's ventilation mode, raising the lower sash 313 up from the sill 302 causes screen fabric 331 to be dispensed from the spring-loaded self-storing roller unit 330, completely filling the ventilation aperture even as said aperture may be adjusted from time to time. When said sash is lowered to close the window, the spring in the self-storing roller unit retracts the screen fabric and rolls it up onto said unit for storage. Adjustments to increase or decrease the ventilation work similarly.
When it is time to clean the exteriors of the sashes' glazing, lower sash 313 is placed tight to the sill 302 to ensure exclusion of flying insects. Then cable grip 343 is manually detached from the sill and manually pulled away from the sill until the cables 340 connected to each end of rigid rod 336 cause said rod, passing through rigid tube 335, to force said loosely fitted tube to travel across the sill and up the jambs until said tube is met by the head 303, said rod being guided by rod guide grooves 337 and vertical sections of rod guide grooves 338. Said rod is then prevented from further travel by a latch or latches 345. In this manner impervious membrane 334 closes off the opening surrounded by said window frame.
Then the bottom sash is raised above the sill a distance as will accommodate the tilting of the lower sash. The sashes are then tilted and cleaned according to the window manufacturer's instructions.
When cleaning is complete, the sashes are returned to their default vertical positions, as is standard for tilt-to-clean windows, with the lower sash placed tight to the sill. Then said cable grip is pulled the short distance required to release the latching holding the rod. Should said roll up unit be of a common arrangement controlled by a pawl, the configuration of said latches shall provide sufficient movement of said rod for release of said pawl. With release of said latches, the spring in said self-storage roller unit draws the impervious membrane, and the screen fabric attached to said membrane, back onto said roller unit for storage while also drawing said cable grip back to the sill where said grip may be manually reattached to said sill.
In the second embodiment, operation is the same as for the first embodiment except that when the sashes are to be cleaned and it is desired to exclude wind, the lower sash is carefully raised only as far as necessary to free said sash for rotation without interference from the sill, and except that the additional feature of providing shade to the window when an occupant so desires is executed by performing the same operation as drawing the impervious membrane across the window opening in preparation for sash cleaning. Also, after the membrane is latched into place and ventilation is desired, raising the lower sash draws the impervious membrane upward which in turn places screen fabric across the window opening to approximately the same height above the sill as the sash is raised above the sill.
Accordingly, the reader will see that, because of the apparatus described, a single-hung window of the tilt-to-clean variety can be comfortably cleaned irrespective of blowing rain or other inclement weather conditions, as well as furnish clearer views to room occupants while conveniently protecting against intrusion of flying insects when the moving sash is opened for ventilation, said protections being furnished by an impervious membrane and by insect screen fabric stored out of sight on a spring-loaded, self-storing roll-up unit in the window frame's sill construction and said membrane being drawn across the entire window opening by a grip handle—connected to cables attached to a traveling tube arrangement—being manually pulled into the room. Thus, the convenience of tilt-to-clean windows is enhanced by providing more convenient opportunities for cleaning the glazing, as well as, by providing clearer views for room occupants, particularly when the sashes are closed and insect screens are not needed.
Although the descriptions above provide much specificity, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments but as merely providing illustrations of several embodiments. For example, the singular cable grip could be replaced by a pair of pulls, each stored in a recess in each of the window's jambs during the window's ventilation mode.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1349438 | Samplawski | Aug 1920 | A |
1909640 | Tomlinson | May 1933 | A |
6167936 | Stover | Jan 2001 | B1 |
9863180 | Haberland | Jan 2018 | B2 |
9932769 | Woolery | Apr 2018 | B2 |
20050072075 | Maier | Apr 2005 | A1 |
20070199665 | Studney | Aug 2007 | A1 |
20180010387 | Woolery | Jan 2018 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20230392433 A1 | Dec 2023 | US |