GB2294316A

GB2294316A - Ventilator for door or window

Info

Publication number: GB2294316A
Application number: GB9421326A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael James Fisher; Peter James Harrison
Original assignee: Hardware and Systems Patents Ltd
Current assignee: Hardware and Systems Patents Ltd
Priority date: 1994-10-22
Filing date: 1994-10-22
Publication date: 1996-04-24
Also published as: IE950798A1; NZ280295A; AU3429695A; GB9421326D0; CA2161079A1

Abstract

A ventilator (1) for a door or window has a pivotal flap 17 for controlling air flow through a housing which is externally mounted on top of an outer fixed frame 6 of the door or window 4. The housing is made up of upper and lower housing members 15, 16 joined together by spacer blocks 18. The housing members and the pivotal flap 17 are aluminium extrusions which can be cut to the desired length. The flap is pivotally mounted by means of bead on the lower housing member and seats against a hood 40 on the upper housing member in the closed position (shown). An extension (45) on the spacer block provides frictional resistance so that the flap can be held fully or partially open. <IMAGE>

Description

VENTILATOR This invention relates to ventilators for windows and doors.

The construction of windows and doors to reduce heat loss is desirable to conserve energy and reduce heating costs. This has led to designs with improved sealing to eliminate draughts with the result that there is a need to provide adequate ventilation in a controlled manner to prevent condensation and ensure safe operation of gas fires.

One type of known ventilator is mounted on the frame of a door or window and controls the flow of air through a passageway formed in the frame. Typically, the passageway is formed by cutting a hole such as an elongate slot through the frame. Cutting a hole through the frame adds to the cost of fitting the ventilator and weakens the frame.

Another type of known ventilator is mounted between the glazing and the frame of a door or window in which the glazing is received. This avoids cutting a hole through the frame but results in more complex constructions, especially where the ventilator is adjustable to accommodate different widths of glazing.

The present invention has been made from a consideration of the problems and disadvantages of these known types of ventilator.

According to the present invention we provide a ventilator adapted for mounting along an outer side edge of a frame of a door or window.

By this invention, the ventilator is provided an add-on to the frame of the door or window. As a result, fitment is very simple and does not involve cutting holes through the frame or adjustment for different glazing thicknesses as required by the known types of ventilators above-discussed.

Advantageously, the ventilator comprises an elongate housing provided with a longitudinal flap mounted for pivotal movement between open and closed positions for controlling the flow of air through the housing Preferably, the housing comprises two members separated by a pair of spacer blocks to form an air passageway through the housing with the flap being mounted for pivotal movement on one of the members and being engageable with the other member in the closed position.

Advantageously, the housing members and flap are of substantially uniform cross-section along the respective lengths. For example, the housing members and flap may be extrusions that can be cut to any desired length for producing different sizes of ventilator. The extrusions may be metal, for example aluminium, or plastics. The use of plastics having a low coefficient of thermal conductivity may prevent condensation by reducing heat transfer when there is a large difference between inside and outside temperatures.

Preferably, the housing members are secured in parallel and spaced apart positions by engagement with the spacer blocks to provide a desired ventilation area for a given length of ventilator. For example, the housing members and spacer blocks may be provided with inter-engageable formations for assembly of the housing. The inter-engageable formations may be arranged to engage with a snap action to interlock the parts to provide a rigid assembly without additional fittings.

Advantageously, the flap is mounted on said one housing member by means of complementary hinge formations extending along the respective lengths. The complementary hinge formations may comprise a part-circular bead received within a part-circular recess to form a continuous hinge having a neat appearance for assembly of the flap to the housing.

Preferably, the flap is adjustable to provide any desired level of ventilation between closed and fully open, and the spacer blocks are conveniently adapted to hold the flap in any selected position. For example, the flap may be engageable with a resiliently deformable portion of each spacer block which acts as a spring element providing frictional resistance to pivotal movement of the flap.

Advantageously, the housing is closed at each end by a respective end cap. By this arrangement, the length of the ventilator can be varied by sizing the lengths of the housing members and flap with the end caps being fitted to give the assembled ventilator a neat appearance.

Preferably, the housing is provided with a filter element to prevent entry of insects or detritus and, where required, sound insulation. For example, the filter element may comprise a foam strip.

Advantageously, the ventilator is chosen to have a length substantially equal to that of the edge of the frame on which the ventilator is mounted. In a preferred arrangement, the ventilator is adapted for horizontal mounting, preferably at the top of the frame, and said other housing member provides an external hood forming a downwardly opening air inlet that prevents rain penetration and reduces draughts.

Preferably, the said other housing member provides an internal hood having a seating face that is engaged by a sealing face of the flap in the closed position. One of the faces may be provided with a seal member, for example a strip of rubber or foam or a pile faced fabric.

According to another aspect of the invention a door or window comprises a frame for mounting in an opening in a surrounding structure and a ventilator mounted on an outer side edge of a horizontal rail member of the frame between the frame and the surrounding structure when the frame is installed in the opening, the ventilator comprising an elongate housing extending lengthwise of the rail member and a flap mounted on the housing for pivotal movement between open and closed positions to control the flow of air through the housing.

The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein: FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a ventilator embodying the invention mounted on a window frame; FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the ventilator shown in Figure 1 with the end cap removed to show the internal arrangement in the closed position of the ventilator; FIGURE 3 is an exploded isometric view of the component parts of the ventilator shown in Figure 2; FIGURE 4 is a detail view showing the internal arrangement in the open position of the ventilator; FIGURE 5 is a detail view showing the internal arrangement in an intermediate position of the ventilator; and FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a multiple ventilator arrangement.

With reference to the drawings, the ventilator 1 is shown mounted on top of the outer frame 2 of a timber window 3 having a casement frame 4 supported in the outer frame 2 for outward opening movement about a horizontal or vertical axis by any suitable hinges (not shown).

The outer frame 2 is fabricated from opposed vertical side members 5 connected at the top and bottom by opposed horizontal rail members 6 (one only shown) to form a rectangular opening 7 with an external rebate 8 in which the casement frame 4 is received when the window 3 is closed. The rebate 8 is provided with a groove 9 in the closing face 10 to receive a seal (not shown) for engagement with the inner face 11 of the casement frame 4 to eliminate draughts and prevent heat loss when the window 3 is closed.

The ventilator 1 extends the full width of the outer frame 2 and is secured to the top rail member 6 by screws 12 so that the assembly of outer frame 2 and ventilator 1 can be fitted in a rectangular opening in the wall of a surrounding building structure.

The ventilator 1 comprises an elongate housing 13 defining an air passageway 14 bounded by upper and lower housing members 15 and 16 respectively, and a flap 17 pivotally mounted on the lower housing member 16 to control the flow of air through the passageway 14. The housing members 15,16 and flap 17 are of uniform cross-section along their length and are cut to the required length from extrusions of aluminium.

A pair of spacer blocks 18 are located between the housing members 15,16 at opposite ends of the housing 13 and the fixing screws 12 extend through aligned holes 19,20,21 in the housing members 15,16 and blocks 18. The spacer blocks 18 are plastics mouldings. For ventilators of long length, one or more additional spacer blocks 18 may be provided intermediate the ends of the housing 13.

Each spacer block 18 is formed with upper and lower pairs of reentrant grooves 22,23 respectively for snap engagement by pairs of undercut ribs 24,25 on the housing members 15,16 respectively. It will be appreciated that any suitable co-operating formations may be provided for locating and securing the mounting blocks 18 between the housing members 15,16.

A filter element 26 of rectangular cross-section is provided between the housing members 15,16 to act as a screen to prevent entry of insects or detritus and to provide sound insulation when required. The filter element 26 is located by channels 27,28 on the housing members 15,16 respectively. The filter element 26 may be a strip of foam selected for the required air flow.

The lower housing member 16 has a base wall 29 that seats on the outer side edge 30 of the top rail member 6 and a flange 31 that extends from one side of the base wall 29 to overlie the inner face 32 of the top rail member 6. The flange 31 terminates in a recess 33 of part-circular section.

The flap 17 has a curved main wall 34 with a lip 35 of part-circular section on the lower edge to provide a finger grip for operating the flap 17.

A flange 36 extends rearwardly from the main wall 34 and terminates in a bead 37 of part-circular section complementary to the recess 33 of the lower housing member 16.

The flap 17 is assembled to the lower housing member 16 by locating the bead 37 in one end of the recess 33 and sliding the flap 17 lengthwise of the housing member 16 so that the parts are connected for pivotal movement of the flap 17.

The upper housing member 15 has a main wall 38 that is spaced above the base wall 29 of the lower housing member 16 with an external hood 39 one side and an internal hood 40 on the other side.

The external hood 39 forms a downwardly facing air inlet 41 on the outside of the window 3 to prevent rain penetration and reduce draughts when the ventilator 1 is open. By this feature of the external hood 39, the top rail member 6 can have the same section as the side members 5 of the frame thereby reducing manufacturing costs.

The internal hood 40 forms a downwardly facing air outlet 42 on the inside of the window 3 and the lower edge of the hood 40 provides an internal seating face 43 that is engaged by a sealing face 44 at the upper edge of the flap 17 to close the air outlet 42.

Each spacer block 18 has an integral hollow leg portion 45 on one side that is resiliently deformable by wiping engagement with the upper edge of the flap 17 and acts as a spring element providing frictional resistance to pivotal movement of the flap 17. In this way, the flap 17 is maintained in the closed position (Figure 2), the fully open position (Figure 4) and any intermediate position (Figure 5) selected for controlling the flow of air through the passageway 14.

The housing 13 is closed at each end by a respective end cap 46 so that the assembly of the ventilator 1 and outer frame 2 has a rectangular external profile. As a result, installation of the assembly in a surrounding structure, for example a wall, is straightforward and finishing by plastering etc in the normal manner to provide a neat appearance is facilitated.

It will be understood from the foregoing description that the invented ventilator is designed for mounting between the outer frame of a window or door and the surrounding structure in which the frame is fixed, for example the wall of a building. As a result, the formation of an air passageway through the frame is avoided and different thicknesses of glazing can be accommodated without adjusting the ventilator. The ventilator can be fitted to the frame by the window manufacturer or supplied separately for fitment on site prior to installation of the window.

Doors and windows are typically manufactured in standard sizes requiring a specific ventilation area, for example 2000, 4000, 6000 or 8000 sq.mm. The invented ventilator may be produced in a range of standard lengths to match the standard frame sizes and required ventilation areas for selection and fitment of the appropriate ventilator. For non-standard frame sizes, the ventilator which is longer than the frame size may be selected and cut to the required length.

For certain applications, it may be desirable to provide the required ventilation area by the selection and fitment of two or more ventilators with a suitable connector piece 47 between adjacent ends as shown in Figure 6.

For example, a ventilation area of 12000 sq.mm. may be obtained by fitting three ventilators each having a ventilation area of 4000 sq.mm. In this way, large ventilation areas for wide frames, such as may be required above patio doors, may be obtained in a simple manner by selection and fitment of an appropriate combination of ventilator sizes. As will be appreciated, when more than one ventilator is fitted, the number and extent to which each ventilator is opened can be varied to control further the desired level of ventilation.

The invented ventilator has application to both new and replacement doors and windows constructed from any suitable materials including timber, plastics, metal or any composite of these. For new doors and windows, the assembled outer frame and ventilator can be installed in the surrounding structure during construction or a sub-frame may be installed during construction to receive the assembly when construction is completed. As a result, the ventilator can be provided as an add-on to the outer frame of doors and windows of standard size or any other size as desired. For replacement doors and windows, the outer frame is constructed to allow for fitment of the ventilator so that the assembled outer frame and ventilator matches the size of the existing opening.

Claims

Claims:

1. A ventilator for a door or window comprises a housing adapted for mounting along an outer side edge of a frame of the door or window and a flap mounted for pivotal movement between open and closed positions for controlling the flow of air through the housing.

2. A ventilator according to Claim 1 wherein the housing has a length substantially equal to that of the side of the frame on which the ventilator is mounted.

3. A ventilator according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the housing comprises two members separated by a pair of spacer blocks to form an air passageway through the housing with the flap being mounted for pivotal movement on one of the members and being engageable with the other member rn the closed position.

4. A ventilator according to Claim 3 wherein the housing members and flap are of substantially uniform cross-section along the respective lengths.

5. A ventilator according to Claim 4 wherein the housing members and flap are extrusions of metal or plastics.

6. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 5 wherein the housing members are secured in parallel and spaced apart positions by engagement with the spacer blocks to provide a desired ventilation area for a given length of ventilator.

7. A ventilator according to Claim 6 wherein the housing members and spacer blocks are provided with inter-engageable formations for assembly of the housing.

8. A ventilator according to Claim 7 wherein the inter-engageable formations are arranged to engage with a snap action.

9. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 8 wherein the flap is mounted on said one housing member by means of complementary hinge formations extending along the respective lengths.

10. A ventilator according to Claim 9 wherein the complementary hinge formations comprise a part-circular bead received within a part-circular recess to form a continuous hinge for assembly of the flap to the housing.

11. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 10 wherein the flap is adjustable between closed and fully open positions.

12. A ventilator according to Claim 11 wherein the spacer blocks are adapted to hold the flap in any selected position.

13. A ventilator according to Claim 12 wherein the flap is engageable with a resiliently deformable portion of each spacer block which acts as a spring element providing frictional resistance to pivotal movement of the flap.

14. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 13 wherein the air passageway is closed at each end of the housing by a respective end cap.

15. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 14 wherein a filter is arranged within the air passageway for excluding insects or detritus andlor for providing sound insulation.

16. A ventilator according to Claim 15 wherein the filter comprises a foam strip.

17. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 16 wherein the ventilator is adapted for horizontal mounting and said other housing member provides an external hood forming a downwardly opening air inlet on the exterior weatherside of the frame.

18. A ventilator according to any one of Claims 3 to 17 wherein the said other housing member provides an internal hood having a seating face that is engaged by a sealing face of the flap in the closed position.

19. A ventilator according to Claim 18 wherein one of the faces is provided with a seal member.

20. A ventilator substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

21. A door or window provided with a ventilator according to any one of the preceding Claims.

22. A door or window comprising a frame for mounting in an opening in a surrounding structure and a ventilator mounted on an outer side edge of a horizontal rail member of the frame between the frame and the surrounding structure when the frame is installed in the opening, the ventilator comprising a housing extending lengthwise of the rail member and a flap mounted on the housing for pivotal movement between open and closed positions to control the flow of air through the housing.