Patent Application
20140113541
The invention relates to the field of ventilation devices for mounting in a wall of a building and vent flappers or covers for use with a ventilation system.
As is well known in the ventilation industry, there are a variety of ventilation devices that can be used to provide outside or external air to the interior of a building. A simple form of such a device is a movable window sash that can be pivoted or otherwise moved to an open position to allow outside atmospheric air to enter the building interior. However, there are known difficulties with current systems and methods for providing curtain walls and window walls mounted on the exterior of a building which arise from the need to provide fresh air ventilation through the curtain wall or window wall. Although fresh air can be provided in some of these known systems by opening a section of a curtain wall, the known ventilation systems can be problematic due to safety requirements. In particular, building codes for curtain walls and window systems may not allow a window to be opened beyond a certain specified distance due to safety concerns. The distance that the window sash can be opened may be as small as four inches and such a small distance may not allow adequate ventilation to enter the room or building.
Also providing a ventilation system that does not result in a large heat loss to the outside atmosphere in cold weather conditions can be a problem for a building owner or building user. For example, if the ventilation opening is only covered by a thin non-insulated panel during cold weather, there can be substantial heat loss from the building through the ventilation passage despite the panel cover or closure.
Another difficulty that can be encountered with known ventilation systems that extend through an exterior wall or roof is the possibility of moisture or rain entering through the ventilation passage and possibly causing damage to the interior of the building. Preferably therefore a ventilation system on an exterior building wall should provide some form of rain screen to prevent rain from entering the building even if the ventilation passage itself is open. Sound transmission through the ventilation system can also pose difficulties, particularly if the exterior of the building is likely to be exposed to fairly large sound volumes. Accordingly, it is desirable for a ventilation system that extends through an exterior wall to have some sound attenuating capability, particularly when the ventilation passage is closed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,364 issued Sep. 27, 1977 to Gretsch-Unitas GmbH describes a ventilating device for mounting on a wall which has an air flow passage therethrough. This known device has a generally rectangular housing with a back wall which is mounted on brackets secured to the building wall interior. An insulation layer is secured to the top and bottom walls of the housing and to a movable cover, which is pivotal between open and closed positions and, in the open position, extends downwardly from the housing.
The present invention satisfies a previously unappreciated need for an improved ventilation device for mounting in a wall of a building, this device employing a vent flapper mounted in a supporting framework for selective movement within the supporting framework between a closed position and an open position where air can flow into the building interior. Thermal insulation material is fixedly mounted on the vent flapper to help prevent heat loss through the air flow passage.
According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a ventilation device for mounting in a wall of a building includes a supporting framework adapted for mounting in the wall and forming an air flow passage for flow of air from one side of the wall to an opposite side facing an interior space of the building. A vent flapper is pivotally mounted in the framework for selective movement within the supporting framework between a closed position where air flow through the passage is prevented and an open position where air flows through the passage is allowed. There is also a body of thermal insulation material fixedly mounted on the vent flapper and arranged to extend across the air flow passage in the closed position of the vent flapper. A handle is mounted on an interior side of a vent flapper for moving the vent flapper between the closed position and the open position.
In one exemplary version of this ventilation device, the vent flapper is elongate and extends between opposite flapper ends each of which is pivotally connected to a respective side of the supporting framework. This vent flapper has two longitudinal panel sections which extend substantially at all acute angle to each other as viewed from one end of the vent flapper.
According to another exemplary embodiment of a present disclosure, a vent flapper for use with a ventilation system is mountable in a wall of a building and is usable to open or close an air flow passage in the wall. The vent flapper includes two outer panel sections connected to one another along adjacent edges to form an exterior of the vent flapper and at least major portions of these panel sections extend at an acute angle to each other. There is a body of thermal insulation material connected to at least one of the outer panel sections. Two pivot mechanisms are arranged at opposite ends of the panel sections for pivotally mounting the vent flapper to respective support frame members so that in use the vent flapper can be pivoted between open and closed positions. A sealing flange extends along a distal edge of at least one of the two panel sections, the distal edge being spaced from the adjacent edges of the panel sections. The sealing flange is adapted to engage an elongate flexible seal of the ventilation system in a closed position of the vent flapper.
In one exemplary version of this vent flapper, the outer panel sections are made of metal and are integrally connection at the adjacent edges of the panel sections.
In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a curtain wall apparatus for mounting on an exterior of a building is capable of providing ventilation for an interior of the building. The apparatus includes a window framework for supporting at least two parallel spaced apart vision glass lights on the exterior of the building, this framework being adapted for mounting on the exterior and including a plurality of rigid elongate frame members connected together to form the framework. There is also a vent structure arranged on one side edge of the window framework and connected to the window framework on an outer side of one of the frame members located opposite to an inner side thereof that faces the space between the glass lights. The vent structure forms with the one frame member and air flow passage that during use of the curtain wall, extends from a first end at an exterior side of the curtain wall to a second end at an interior side of the curtain wall. The apparatus further has an insulated vent flapper mounted in the vent structure for pivotal movement between a closed position where air flow through the air flow passage is prevented and an open position where air flow through the passage is allowed.
In one exemplary version of this curtain wall apparatus, the vent flapper is elongate, is located below the window framework, and extends at least most of the horizontal width of the window framework.
These and other aspects of the disclosed ventilation device, vent flapper and curtain wall will become more readily apparent to those having ordinary scale in the aft from the following detailed description taking in conjunction with the drawings provided herewith.
Other advantages, features and characteristics of the present invention, as well as methods of operation and functions of the related elements of the structure, and the combination of parts and economies of manufacture, will become more apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying photographs, the latter being briefly described hereinafter.
The description herein makes reference to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views and wherein:
Illustrated in
Turning now to the components of a vision glass support system or curtain wall illustrated in
Turning now to the details of the bottom frame member shown in
The bottom frame member 28 forms a chamber 58 for desiccant material 60. The open top of this chamber is covered by a removable cover member 62 which can be made of a suitable resilient plastics material. After moving the aforementioned interior sash to an open position along with the interior glass light and removing the cover member 62, it is possible to replace the desiccant material and then cover the new body of desiccant material with the cover member,
An exemplary form of the vent flapper is insulated with a body of thermal insulation material 94 fixedly mounted on the vent flapper and arranged to extend across the air flow passage 74 in the closed position of the vent flapper as illustrated in
The ventilation device can also include a handle 102 which, as illustrated, can take the form of an integral flange arranged on an interior side of the vent flapper for moving the vent flapper between the closed position and the open position and optionally to an intermediate position as described below. The handle can extend most of the length of the vent flapper, if desired, or it can be a short member. The handle may comprise more than one handle formed on the flap member if desired, for example, one handle at each end of the flap member.
In the illustrated curtain wall construction, there is also an additional bottom frame metal member 106 which is separated from the bottom frame member 28 by the air flow passage 74 and the vent flapper. It should be appreciated that the bottom frame member 28 which is part of a window frame can also be described as an upper metal frame member since it is an upper part of the supporting framework for the ventilation device and is located above the bottom frame member 106. The frame member 106 has a hollow interior at 108 which can be filled with a suitable insulating material (not shown). The frame member 106 can be covered on its interior side by a relatively flat cover member 110 formed with a pair of resilient connecting hooks or flanges 112 and 114 arranged to detachably engage cooperating connecting hooks formed on the interior side of frame member 106. This cover member can be made of pultruded polyurethane that can be colored as desired to match the building interior.
The bottom support frame 106 can be secured in place by two or more angle-shaped anchor clips 116 that can be secured to the floor structure by means of screws or bolts 118. Each anchor clip is adjustable by means of micro serrations 120. In one particular embodiment, the amount by which each clip can be adjusted inwardly or outwardly of the building floor varies by + or −20 mm. An upper end of anchor clip fits into a downwardly facing channel 122 formed in the bottom of the frame member 106. Extending downwardly and forwardly from this channel is an extruded aluminum flashing 124. Mounted at the inner end of this flashing is an elongate, extruded silicone seal 126 that engages a vertical interior wall of the channel. This arrangement provides an effective means for preventing water and other moisture from entering the building at the bottom of the curtain wall.
The additional bottom frame member 106 includes a generally horizontal top wall 130, a bottom wall 132, an exterior, vertical wall 134 and a vertical interior wall 136. An upwardly projecting extension of the interior wall 136 supports an elongate, flexible seal 140 which can be mechanically secured along the top edge of the interior wall. Optionally, there can also be provided on the top wall 130 an upwardly extending support flange 142 on which can be mechanically mounted another flexible elongate seal 144. These seals 140 and 144 can extend the length of the vent flapper 80. These seals act to seal the bottom side of the front flapper in the closed position. The vent flapper 80 has at least one longitudinal edge flange for engaging a flexible seal when the vent flapper is in the closed position. However, in the exemplary illustrated embodiment there are two of these longitudinal edge flanges indicated at 146 and 148. The edge flange 146 can be an integral downward extension of the inner panel section 96. The edge flange 148 can be part of a right-angled flange formed on the bottom of the panel section 98. This right-angle flange initially extends inwardly into the air flow passage and then downwardly in the closed position of the vent flapper. An elongate, flexible seal 150 can also be provided at the top of the vent flapper. Thus, in the closed position of the vent flapper illustrated in
An exemplary form of the ventilation device includes a vent cover device mounted on the supporting framework. This vent cover device 160 is fixedly mounted on the exterior side of the curtain wall at the exterior end of the air flow passage 74. An exemplary form of the vent cover device comprises elongate, parallel slats 162 preferably made of a weather resistant material such as aluminum alloy or a suitable rigid plastic. As shown in the drawings, these slats extend horizontally in use and they are spaced apart from one another by gaps 164. At least a top surface of each slat slopes downwardly in the direction of the exterior of the curtain wall during use of the ventilation device. In this way rain water entering between the slats will tend to flow back towards the exterior. The slats can be connected at their opposite ends to vertical supports of the cover, if desired, or they can be connected directly to the side frame members 30 by means of stainless steel screws using the screw races 166. The inside edge of each slat can be formed with an upwardly and inwardly extending edge flange 168 to better prevent water from passing through the gaps 164.
The ventilation device can also be provided with a suitable screen 170 mounted in the supporting framework at an exterior end of the air flow passage 74 and extending across the height and width thereof. The screen helps prevent insects and other objects from passing through the vent cover and into the central region of the air flow passage. The upper and lower edges of the screen can be mounted on elongate metal brackets 172, 174. The upper bracket 172 can be secured by bolts or screws to a mounting flange 176 formed on the bottom of the main bottom wall 34 of the window frame member. The bottom bracket 174 can be connected by screws or bolts to a short corner flange formed at an outer corner of the bottom frame member 106.
The panel section 98 is formed as a separate plastic or metal member with the handle 102. The panel section 96′ is connected to the panel section 98 by means of a hook connector 212 formed on the partial cylinder 180 described above. A hook or ridge at the end of the frame member engages into the groove 210 as shown in
In order to provide sealing at the ends of the vent flapper the two opposite ends of the semi-cylindrical connector 206 can be milled back at the location 220 to allow for 3M (trade-mark) tape seals at the respective end which marry with the gasket seal that runs longitudinally along the top of the vent flapper.
It will be seen from the above description and the drawings that the ventilation device described herein is capable of being integrated with a curtain wall or window wall and being located at floor level forming the bottom section of the curtain wall or window wall.
The sealing strip device enclosing one side of the dead air space 225 can be mounted to the window frame 28 by means of two or more plastic clips 242 which can be made of polyvinylchloride (PVC) and thus are resilient and flexible. The use of these clips provides both a thermal break for the strip device and an acoustical break. The clip devices can snap over ridges formed along the bottom edge of the exterior wall 234. Each clip has an angle-shaped transverse exterior cross section similar to the adjacent interior surface of the metal strip. The clips 242 and the metal strip device are held together using “counter compressive” snaps in their exemplary form, this form of connection forming a relatively strong, permanent connection. The aforementioned co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/629,680 provide further details concerning the sealing strip device and the clips 242 and the description and drawings of same are incorporated herein by reference.
While the present invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in exemplary embodiments, e.g. embodiments having particular utility for a ventilation device or system for a curtain wall or window wall, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the details shown herein, since it will be understood the various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the disclosed devices and systems may be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily adapt the present disclosure for various other applications without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.
