Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6431979
-
Patent Number
6,431,979
-
Date Filed
Friday, December 22, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, August 13, 200222 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 062 2591
- 062 427
- 062 DIG 16
- 454 230
- 454 232
- 454 233
- 454 236
- 052 60
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A wall curb 10 for attachment to the exterior wall 32 of a building to removably secure a wall mounted HVAC unit 38 to the exterior surface 44 of the wall 32. The wall curb 10 serves to attach the supply air duct 34 from within the building to the supply air opening of HVAC unit 38 and to attach the return air duct 36 from within the building to a return air opening of the HVAC 38. An alternate embodiment of the invention 10A includes an outside air opening 60 with a controllable damper 62 for regulating the ratio of outside air verses return air from the building that enters the HVAC unit 38.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wall mounted curb that secures to the exterior of a wall so that both the supply duct and return air duct from the interior of the wall secure to the wall curb at corresponding openings that have been cut through the wall curb to align with and seal to the two ducts. A heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (hereafter referred to as HVAC) unit mounts to the wall curb on the exterior of the wall so that the supply air opening of the HVAC is aligned with and sealed to the supply air duct from the interior of the wall, and the return air opening of the HVAC is aligned with and sealed to the return air duct from the interior of the wall.
2. Description of the Related Art
Currently roof curbs are available that attach to the exterior surface of a roof of a building to attach a roof mounting HVAC unit to the roof. These roof curbs are located on the roof at a point on the roof to encompass the exits of the supply air duct of the building and the return air duct. Generally these roof curbs and their associated roof mounted HVAC units are used in large industrial or commercial buildings.
However, there are no wall curbs currently available for similarly mounting a wall mounted HVAC unit to an exterior wall of a building at the point where the supply air duct and return air duct exit the building. The present invention addresses this need by providing a wall curb for attachment to the exterior wall as a means of connecting the supply air duct and the return air duct from the interior of the building to the corresponding supply air opening and return air opening of a wall mounting HVAC located on the exterior of the building. The present invention also serves as a means of removably attaching the HVAC unit to the exterior of a building. Further, because the openings in the wall curb where the supply air duct and the return air duct attach to the wall curb are custom cut at the building site by installation personnel, a single type of wall curb will work with a wide range of sizes and shapes of supply air and return air ducts. The present invention come is two different styles, one without any outside air inlet and with an outside air inlet. The style of the present invention wall curb that has an outside air inlet is provided with a controllable damper for regulating the ratio of outside air verses return air form the building that enters the HVAC unit.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a wall curb for attachment to the exterior wall of a building to removably secure a wall mounted HVAC unit to the exterior surface of the wall. The wall curb serves to attach the supply air duct from within the building to the supply air opening of HVAC unit and to attach the return air duct from within the building to a return air opening of the HVAC. Openings in the wall curb where the supply air duct and the return air duct attach to the wall curb are custom cut at the building site by installation personnel. One embodiment of the invention does not have any outside air inlet, and a second embodiment of the invention does have an outside air inlet with a controllable damper for regulating the ratio of outside air verses return air from the building that enters the HVAC unit.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the present invention with an exterior wall of a building shown to the right of the invention in outline and a HVAC shown to the left of the invention in outline.
FIG. 2
is a front view of the invention of
FIG. 1
shown attached to a wall.
FIG. 3
is a right side view of the invention of
FIG. 2
taken along line
3
—
3
.
FIG. 4
is a top view of the invention of
FIG. 2
taken along line
4
—
4
.
FIG. 5
is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the present invention with an exterior wall shown to the right of the invention in outline and a HVAC shown to the left of the invention in outline.
FIG. 6
is a front view of the invention of
FIG. 5
shown attached to a wall.
FIG. 7
is a top view of the invention of
FIG. 6
taken along line
7
—
7
.
FIG. 8
is a right side view of the invention of
FIG. 6
taken along line
8
—
8
.
FIG. 9
is an enlarged cross sectional view of the damper of
FIG. 6
taken along line
9
—
9
showing the damper in a position for admitting only return air into the HVAC unit.
FIG. 10
is the damper of
FIG. 9
shown in position for admitting only outside air into the HVAC unit.
FIG. 11
is a cross section view taken along line
11
—
11
of
FIG. 9
showing the damper in a position for admitting only return air into the HVAC unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
THE INVENTION
Referring now to
FIGS. 1
,
2
,
3
and
4
there is illustrated a wall curb
10
constructed in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated in
FIG. 1
, the wall curb
10
is provided with a top
12
, a back wall
14
, and two parallel side walls
16
and
18
that secure together at approximately right angles to each other. For the wall curb
10
, two partitions
20
and
22
are provided within the wall curb
10
. Each of the partitions
20
and
22
extends from the back wall
14
to a front edge
24
provided on the front
26
of the wall curb
10
at the top
12
and along each side wall
16
and
18
. The first partition
20
of the two partitions
20
and
22
is spaced apart from the top
12
to define a supply air passageway
28
formed by the two side walls
16
and
18
, the top
12
, the back wall
14
, and the first partition
20
. The second partition
22
of the two partitions
20
and
22
is spaced apart from the first partition
20
to define a return air passageway
30
formed by the two side walls
16
and
18
, the back wall
14
, and the first and second partitions
20
and
22
.
As shown in
FIG. 3
, the wall curb
10
permanently secures to an exterior wall
32
of a building so that the wall curb
10
secures over the supply air duct
34
emanating from within the building and secures over the return air duct
36
also emanating from within the building for the purpose of providing a fast, easy and removable way of connecting a wall mounted HVAC system together, i.e. connecting a HVAC unit
38
to a building's supply air and return air ducts
34
and
36
.
Before the wall curb
10
is secured to the wall
32
, the back wall
14
of the wall curb
10
is solid and must be cut to provide two openings
40
and
42
therethrough, i.e. a first wall curb opening
40
to which attaches the supply air duct
34
from the building and a second wall curb opening
42
to which attaches the return air duct
36
from the building. It is preferable to cut the two wall curb openings
40
and
42
in the back wall
14
at the installation site so that the wall curb openings
40
and
42
can be created in the proper shape and size to match, respectively, the shape and size of the corresponding supply air and return air ducts
34
and
36
emanating from the building. Properly cut wall curb openings
40
and
42
allow the installer to make a good, air tight fit of the wall curb
10
with the supply air and return air ducts
34
and
36
.
As illustrated in
FIGS. 2
,
3
, and
4
, once the two wall curb openings
34
and
36
have been cut into the back wall
14
of the wall curb
10
, the back wall
14
of the wall curb
10
is then secured to an exterior surface
44
of the exterior wall
32
of the building. Although not illustrated, the wall curb
10
secures to the exterior surface of the wall with screws or other suitable fastening devices that extend through the back wall
14
of the wall curb
10
and into the supporting studs located within the exterior wall
32
of the building. The wall curb
10
is secured onto the wall
32
so that the two previously cut wall curb openings
40
and
42
align, respectively, with the supply air duct
34
and the return air duct
36
from within the building. The supply air duct
34
is fastened to the first wall curb opening
40
in the back wall
14
with suitable fastening devices and are taped together or otherwise secured to make an air tight seal between the supply air duct
34
and the supply air passageway
28
provided within the wall curb
10
. Likewise, the return air duct
36
is fastened to the second wall curb opening
42
in the back wall
14
with suitable fastening devices and are taped together or otherwise secured to make an air tight seal between the return air duct
36
and the return air passageway
30
provided within the wall curb
10
.
Although not illustrated, before the HVAC unit
38
is secured to the wall curb
10
, some type of sealant or sealing gasket is applied to the front edge
24
of the wall curb
10
and a front edge
46
of each partition
20
and
22
located within the wall curb
10
so that when the HVAC unit
38
is secured to the wall curb
10
, an airtight seal is formed between a return air opening (not illustrated) provided on the HVAC unit
38
and the return air passageway
30
in the wall curb
10
, and also an airtight seal is form between a supply air opening (not illustrated) provided on the HVAC unit
38
and the supply air passageway
28
in the wall curb
10
.
Next, the HVAC unit
38
is removably secured to the wall curb
10
. As best illustrated in
FIG. 3
, an upwardly extending U-shaped lip
48
is provided along the front edge
24
of the top
12
of the wall curb
10
to removably receive a downwardly extending lip
50
provided at the rear edge
52
of the top
54
of the HVAC unit
38
. Once the downwardly extending lip
50
of the HVAC unit
38
is received in the upwardly extending lip
48
of the wall curb
10
, the lip
48
of the wall curb
10
supports the HVAC unit
38
and the HVAC unit
38
hangs from the lip
48
of the wall curb
10
. Bolt openings
56
are provided in the front edge
24
near the bottom
10
of the wall curb
10
to accommodate cage nuts (not illustrated) as a means of securing the HVAC unit
38
to the wall curb
10
after the HVAC unit
38
has been hung on the upwardly extending lip
48
of the wall curb
10
. The installer inserts bolts (not illustrated) through the HVAC unit
38
to engage the cage nuts (not illustrated) that are attached to the bolt openings
56
of the wall curb
10
as the final step in removably securing the HVAC unit
38
to the wall curb
10
.
The first partition
20
within the wall curb
10
separates the supply air passageway
28
from the return air passageway
30
so when the HVAC unit
38
is secured and sealed to the front edge
24
of the wall curb
10
and the appropriate front edges
46
of the partitions
20
and
22
, the supply air passageway
28
seals to the supply air opening (not illustrated) provided on the HVAC unit
38
and the return air passageway
30
seals to the return air opening (not illustrated) provided on the HVAC unit
38
. When the HVAC unit
38
is thus sealed to the wall curb
10
, there is airtight communication between the supply air duct
34
, through the supply air passageway
28
of the wall curb
10
, and into the supply air opening (not illustrated) on the HVAC
38
. Likewise, when the HVAC unit
38
is sealed to the first embodiment wall curb
10
, there is airtight communication between the return air duct
36
, through the return air passageway
30
, and into the return air opening (not illustrated) of the HVAC
38
.
Referring now to
FIGS. 5-11
, an alternate second preferred embodiment
10
A of the present invention is illustrated. As best illustrated in
FIG. 5
, the alternate embodiment
10
A differs from the first embodiment
10
in that the alternate embodiment
10
A has an outside air opening
60
provided at the bottom
58
A of the alternate wall curb
10
A that communicates with the outside air. Because the outside air opening
60
is located at the bottom
58
A of the alternate wall curb
10
A, it is preferred that when the alternate wall curb
10
A is installed on the exterior surface
44
of the wall
32
, that the bottom
58
A of the alternate wall curb
10
A be located above ground level so that air can freely enter the alternate wall curb
10
A via the outside air opening
60
. This is illustrated in FIG.
8
.
Referring now to
FIGS. 8
,
9
and
10
, the alternate embodiment
10
A is provided with a controllable damper
62
that separates the outside air opening
60
from the return air passageway
30
A. Because the alternate embodiment
10
A contains this controllable damper
62
, this requires a slight increase in the thickness of the alternate embodiment
10
A as compared to the first embodiment
10
in order that the alternate embodiment
10
A has sufficient depth to can accommodate the damper
62
. This increase in thickness can be see by comparing
FIGS. 3 and 8
and by comparing
FIGS. 4 and 7
.
The controllable damper
62
is used to regulate the ratio of return air, as indicated by Arrow A in
FIG. 9
, to outside air, as indicated by Arrow B in
FIG. 10
, flowing into the return air opening (not illustrated) of the HVAC unit
38
. The damper
62
controls this ratio by moving between the positions
64
and
66
, as illustrated in
FIGS. 9 and 10
. In
FIG. 9
, the damper
62
is located in its fully closed position
64
where no outside air is admitted to the HVAC unit
10
A and only return air from the building is recirculated to the HVAC unit
10
A. In
FIG. 10
, the damper
62
is located in its fully open position
66
where no return air from the building is recirculated to the HVAC unit
38
and only outside air is admitted to the HVAC unit
38
.
The alternate wall curb
10
A differs from the first embodiment
10
in one other way. Only one partition
20
A is provided within the alternate wall curb
10
A. This difference is best illustrated in
FIGS. 5 and 8
. The alternate wall curb
10
A is provided with an inverted L-shaped partition
20
A that extends from the back wall
14
of the alternate wall curb
10
A to the front edges
24
of the alternate wall curb
10
A and extends downward at the front
26
of the alternate wall curb
10
A so that an upper edge
68
of the damper
62
is removably engagable with a lower leg
70
of the L-shaped partition
20
A. The supply air passageway
28
A of the alternate embodiment
10
A is formed by the two side walls
16
and
18
, the top
12
, the back wall
14
, and the L-shaped partition
20
A. The return air passageway
30
A for the alternate embodiment
10
A is formed by the two side walls
16
and
18
, the L-shaped partition
20
A and the damper
62
. The L-shaped partition
20
A separates the supply air passageway
28
of the alternate embodiment
10
A from the return air passageway
30
of the alternate embodiment
10
A.
Referring now to
FIGS. 9 and 10
, the L-shaped partition
20
A forces the air that is ultimately received by the air return opening (not illustrated) of the HVAC
38
to first flow past the damper
62
, thereby allowing the damper
62
to control the ratio of air it receives from the return air duct
36
and from the outside air opening
60
, i.e. the ratio of return air to outside air entering the HVAC unit
38
. As shown also in
FIG. 11
, the damper
62
can be operated by rotating the damper
62
on its axis
72
, thus moving or rotating the damper
62
between the fully closed and fully open positions
64
and
66
and through a plurality of positions lying intermediate between the fully closed and full open positions
64
and
66
. To achieve this control of air, the damper
62
can be rotated on its axis
72
either manually or automatically, depending on the type of control mechanism attached to the axis
72
.
While the invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is manifest that many changes may be made in the details of construction and the arrangement of components without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure. It is understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments set forth herein for the purposes of exemplification, but is to be limited only by the scope of the attached claim or claims, including the full range of equivalency to which each element thereof is entitled.
Claims
- 1. A wall curb for removably securing a wall mounted HVAC unit to the return air and supply air ducts emanating from a building comprising:a top secured approximately perpendicularly to two spaced apart parallel side walls, a back wall secured approximately perpendicularly to the two side walls and to the top, a front edge provided on both said two side walls and said top, a first partition provided between the side walls and extending from the back wall to said front edge, said first partition spaced apart from said top to form a supply air passageway with said top, said back wall, and said two side walls, said back wall provided with a supply air opening such that the supply air opening communicates with the supply air passageway and the supply air opening secures to a return air duct from within a building, the first partition forming a return air passageway with said back wall, and said two side walls, said back wall provided with a return air opening such that the return air opening communicates with the return air passageway and the return air opening secures to a return air duct from within a building, and means to removably secure a HVAC unit to said front edges, and means to secure said back wall to an exterior surface of a wall of a building at a location on the wall so that said back wall encompasses the return air and supply air ducts emanating from the building.
- 2. A wall curb according to claim 1 wherein said means to secure a HVAC unit to said front edges comprises:an upwardly extending lip provided at the front edge of said top for removably engaging a downwardly extending lip provided at the top of the back of a HVAC unit.
- 3. A wall curb according to claim 2 wherein said means to secure a HVAC unit to said front edge further comprises:bolts that engage cage nuts provided in cage nut openings at the bottom of the front edges of the side walls.
- 4. A wall curb according to claim 1 wherein said means to secure said back wall to an exterior surface of a wall of a building comprises:fastening devices that extend through the back wall and engage the wall of a building.
- 5. A wall curb according to claim 1 further comprising:a second partition provided between the walls and extending from the back wall to said front edge of the side walls, said second partition forming said return air passageway with said first partition, said back wall, and said two side walls.
- 6. A wall curb according to claim 1 further comprising:a rotatable damper provided between said side walls for removable engagement with a lower portion of said second partition, said rotatable control damper communicating with said return air passageway and an outside air opening provided at the bottom of the side walls.
US Referenced Citations (10)