GB2582259A

GB2582259A - Ventilation fixture

Info

Publication number: GB2582259A
Application number: GB1902817.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ward Bob; Weston Tom
Original assignee: SLEEP SAFE SYSTEMS Ltd
Current assignee: SLEEP SAFE SYSTEMS Ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-01
Filing date: 2019-03-01
Publication date: 2020-09-23
Also published as: GB201902817D0

Abstract

A ventilation fixture has a main housing 2 with a cavity and a cap 30 coupled to the housing and can be moved away from and towards the cavity to open and close a gap between the main housing and an outer edge of the cap. Either the cap or the housing includes a rim around an edge thereof and comprising one or more cut out portions (38, fig 7) to reduce air speed as air flows through the gap and into the cavity. The rim can be located on the outer edge of the cap and can be supported by a plurality of fins (32, fig 7) extending from the rim to the centre of the cap. The cap can be adjustable by means of a bolt and thread arrangement 28. The main housing might include illumination. The cap may be supported by a cage-like structure 24 that can be held in place by magnets.

Description

Ventilation Fixture The present invention relates to a ventilation fixture. In embodiments, the present invention relates to a ventilation device with adjustable airflow.

Particularly where indoor spaces are concerned it is desired to provide effective ventilation using devices which are as small and as streamlined as possible. Such systems are of particular importance in bathrooms where air can become damp and needs to be effectively replaced, or in office spaces which may be required to house a large number of workers throughout the day. To this end ducting is provided within the walls and ceilings of the building to remove air to the exterior. Ducts connect to vents through which air flows from the room. In some cases a hole is required to be provided in the ceiling through which the duct can extend. Although various forms of grating may be provided to improve the appearance of these inlets, such a configuration may be unattractive, and this is clearly undesirable. These also either do not provide sufficient possibility to adjust the airflow from the room, or provide only for the ventilation system to be turned on and off.

The desire for attractive fittings often results in the integration of ventilation systems, but also of lighting systems, into a ceiling or wall in various ways. Spotlights, for example, may be installed so that they lie more or less flush with a ceiling surface. Components required to provide the lighting (circuit boards, bulb connectors, and so on) are therefore hidden behind the ceiling surface providing overall a more attractive appearance.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ventilation fixture comprising: a main housing with a cavity; and a cap configured to be coupled to the housing such that it is movable away from and towards the cavity to open and close a gap between the main housing an outer edge of the cap, wherein the cap or the housing includes a rim around an edge thereof, the rim comprising one or more cut out portions to reduce air speed as air flows through the gap and into the cavity.

In embodiments, the rim is on the outer edge of the cap. This way air flow is diverted through the cut out portions and towards the centre of the cavity.

The present invention provides a fitting which functions to provide adjustable ventilation to an interior space, and which is adaptable to fit with most building ventilation systems independent of the size of the ducting used. Means of flow control are provided and the fitting can be ceiling or wall mounted with its interior parts largely hidden once installed, which means that the appearance is more streamlined. To prevent the airflow through the fitting from producing unwanted noise, and to provide a smooth and laminar I() flow of air therethrough, cut-outs are provided on an adjustable cap. This allows the airflow to diverge to an extent on passing through the fixture which tends to slow the airflow desirably to reduce noise. This is important where the size of the gap for air flow is adjustable since in some configurations a very small gap may be provided (i.e. when the air flow through the fixture is nearly but not quite cut off).

In an embodiment, the ventilation fixture comprises a vent cage configured to sit within the cavity and coupled to the cap such that the position of the cap is adjustable towards and away from the vent cage to open and close the gap. This way the adjustable ventilation function can be provided as a module removable from the rest of the fixture, i.e. from the housing of the device. This provides a greater level of flexibility.

In particular it is possible that the specific ventilation fixture described below could be supplemented or replaced by a fixture that includes additional or alternative functionality as described for example in our co-pending patent applications GB1715056.6 and PCT/EP2018/074231. Examples of other fittings that could be included within the housing, either separately or integrated into the ventilation fixture, would be a Passive Infrared Sensor (PR) or alarm If desired the cap can be completely removed such that the module functions only as a light, or so that vacuum air flow through the fixture is completely uninhibited which may be desirable in certain situations. This could be for example when vacuum cleaning of the fixture is performed, which can also be achieved as part of the hygiene maintenance of the entire ventilation system.

In an embodiment, the cap is adjustable by way of a bolt and thread such that the cap can be rotated to move the cap towards and away from the vent cage. The size of the air gap is completely adjustable between a fully open and a fully closed configuration. Finger holds or the like may be provided to assist with turning of the cap in some embodiments, although the simple appearance of a smooth cap from the outside of the fixture may be preferable. Here "outside" refers to the side of the fixture visible from the room once the fixture has been installed in a ceiling or wall.

In an embodiment, the inner surface of the cap is provided with fins extending from the rim towards the centre of the cap. Inner surface here refers to the side of the cap facing inwards, or away from the room in which the fixture is installed. This surface will therefore generally not be visible from the room. These fins assist with provision of a laminar flow.

The fins are predominantly structural and allow the part to be moulded or otherwise formed with a thinner wall thickness than would otherwise be required to maintain required rigidity and/or strength whilst minimising cost. In the examples described below and shown in he figures, such as Figures 4A and 5 to 7, the fins are shows as straight members. In other examples, the fins could be curved, such as in the shape of a circular arcs, or they could be curved with varying radius of curvature.

In an embodiment, the rim of the cap comprises more than one cut out portion and one fin is provided between each pair of cut out portions. Again, this configuration is optimal in terms of providing for smooth air flow through the interior of the fixture.

In an embodiment, between 6 and 10 rims are provided on the cap. In an embodiment, 8 rims and 8 cut out portions are provided on the cap.

In an embodiment, the cut out portions are substantially rectangular in shape.

Cut-outs may not extend the entire depth of the rim and may also include rounded corners and/or chamfers which can further prevent eddies from forming as air flows past and/or through them. The cut-out shape can be chosen so as to ensure that the air flow within the fixture is as desired. For example these could be rounded in shape, semi-or part-circular, semi-or part-elliptical, chamfered, trapezoidal or any other configuration to go with the geometry of the fixture. Furthermore, the edges of the cut-outs are preferably rounded or curved so as to avoid presenting a sharp edge to the airflow as it passes through.

In an embodiment, the vent cage includes a central hub for coupling to the cap and a circular rim and comprises legs extending from the rim to the central hub.

In an embodiment, between 2 and 6 legs are provided on the vent cage. In an embodiment, 4 legs are provided on the vent cage.

In an embodiment, illumination means are provided on the main housing. The ventilation fixture can be integrated with a light easily. The illumination means may be provided on a front surface of the main housing. The appearance of the fixture once installed is very compact and covers openings to ventilation ducts and provides an attractive lighting device. Running ventilation through an illumination device can also help with cooling of the device. Such cooling is not required for the normal operation of the illumination device which will operate safely and efficiently without such ventilation. However, the ventilation but does provide additional cooling.

Typically within a building, ventilation ducts will be provided within the ceiling or wall. As will be described below when the ventilation fixture is installed an end of the ventilation duct may be fed through a hole formed in the wall or ceiling ready for a lighting installation all from the visual side of the hole. The entire assembly can then be pushed back in to complete the light assembly without requiring access to the ceiling or wall intemals.

In an embodiment, the ventilation fixture comprises a vent housing coupled to a back surface of the main housing, wherein the vent housing includes coupling means for fixing to a duct such that a closed path is provided from the front of the main housing to the duct through the vent housing. Again, back surface here refers to the side of the housing furthest from a room-facing surface once the fixture is installed. The back-surface will then generally sit behind a ceiling or wall panel and will not be visible.

Including an additional vent housing, which may be provided separately or integrally with the main housing, means that the fixture can be adapted to fit to various sizes and types of ventilation duct. This makes it flexible for use in different environments.

In an embodiment, the vent cage and main housing comprise magnets to removably retain the vent cage within the housing cavity. The vent cage (along with the adjustable cap) can be easily removed and replaced for cleaning without needing to dismantle any other part of the fixture.

In an embodiment, the cap can be moved towards the main housing to completely close the gap between the main housing and the cap to shut off air flow. The fixture can therefore be configured as a vent and light combination, or simply as a light if desired or if no ventilation is required.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 illustrates a fixture including vent housing; Figure 2 illustrates a fixture installed in a ceiling panel and coupled to a ventilation duct; Figure 3A illustrates the main housing and vent housing prior to assembly; Figure 3B illustrates the main housing and vent housing once assembled; Figure 3C illustrates the main housing and vent housing assembled and coupled to a ventilation duct; Figure 4A illustrates a cap, vent cage and main housing prior to assembly; Figure 4B illustrates a vent cage installed within the main housing prior to installation of the cap; Figure 4C shows the fixture once the cap has been coupled to the vent cage; Figure 5 shows a cross sectional view of the fixture and illustrates air flow through the mechanism; Figure 6 again shows a cross section through the fixture with arrows to indicate the direction of air flow; Figure 7 shows the vent cage and cap coupled together; Figure 8A illustrates the fixture with the cap in the open configuration; Figure 8B illustrates the fixture with the cap in an intermediate configuration; Figure 8C illustrates the fixture with the cap closed to prevent the flow of air through the main housing.

The present invention can, in embodiments, integrate both lighting and ventilation in a single device which can be simply and easily mounted in a ceiling or a wall panel.

Air flow through the device can be adjusted, and is tuned so that air flow does not cause unwanted noise as will be described in further detail below. The lighting can be both room lighting and emergency light within the same device. As will be appreciated from the description below the ventilation is provided by allowing airflow through a ventilation fixture that is arranged within a main housing 2. It is possible that the specific ventilation fixture described below could be supplemented by a fixture that includes additional functionality as described for example in our co-pending patent applications GB1715056.6 and PCT/EP2018/074231. Examples of other fittings that could be included within the housing, either separately or integrated into the ventilation fixture, would be a Passive Infrared Sensor (PIR) or alarm.

A modular ventilation fixture 1 is shown in figure 1 and includes a main housing 2 which in the embodiment shown also supports an illumination portion 4. Lighting, such as one or more LED bulbs, are fixed to the illumination portion may be formed as a rim on the main housing. The main housing has a cylindrical shaped cavity 6 in the centre "7 and located behind the front surface (more clearly seen in figures 3A and 4A). Illumination means may be located on a rim surrounding the cavity. Illumination means or devices such as LED chips or bulbs and the like may be situated in a light pipe with a frosted cover so that they are less visible. If this is the case a muted light may appear in a ring shaped area on the front surface or rim of the main housing. The housing 2 is designed to extend into a ceiling or wall panel, for example through a hole formed therein. Only the front surface of the housing will therefore be visible once the fixture is installed. The fitting is designed to fit into a standard ceiling hole such as may be used to install a ventilation duct or a spotlight.

As shown in figure 2, when the fixture is assembled and arranged fitted within a wall or ceiling, the main housing extends from behind the ceiling or wall panel through a hole formed for installation. The hole may, for example, be between 80mm and 100mm in diameter or may be between 90mm and 95mm in diameter (or around 92mm diameter in size). This way standard 80mm ducting 8 can be easily coupled to the fixture by way of a jubilee clip or by other means. The main housing may have a diameter slightly smaller than the hole so long as the diameter of the rim is larger than the hole to cover it as shown. The distance from the front surface 10 of the main housing 2 to the jubilee clip 12 used to attach the duct may be between 60mm and 100mm, preferably between 70mm and 90mm, more preferably between 80mm and 82mm. The main housing 2 may extend into the wall to a distance of between 20mm and 50mm, preferably between 30mm and 40mm, and more preferably around 36mm.

Coupled to the main housing is a vent housing 3, and it is this vent housing, which in the embodiment shown in the figures forms a cup shaped portion for coupling to the main housing at one end, and to the ventilation dud at the other end. In use, when the ventilation fixture is installed an end of the ventilation duct 8 may be fed through the hole formed in the wall or ceiling ready for installation from the visual side of the hole. The vent housing 3 is coupled to ventilation dud 8 and the entire assembly can then be pushed back in to complete the assembly without requiring access to the ceiling or wall internal space.

Figure 3A shows the fixture 1 prior to assembly of the vent housing 3 with the main housing 2. The fixture includes a sprung clip 20 coupled to the main housing which can be used to secure it in place within a hole in a ceiling or wall panel. A vent module or vent housing is secured to the main housing by way of screws (although any other means of coupling, such as clips, adhesive, or even forming of the vent housing integrally with the main housing, can be used). The assembled module is shown in figure 3B, and in figure 3C with a dud attached via a jubilee clip to the vent housing 3. A seal, such as a sealing ring 14 formed of rubber or a similar material, may be situated between the main and vent housings during installation to prevent leakage of air or fluid as it passes through the system from the interior of the room to a ventilation duct and then out of the building. The main housing and the vent housing are shown coupled together by way of screws 22, however as mentioned any means of coupling may be used including the formation of the vent housing and main housing as a single piece.

The vent housing 3 includes an indented rim 16 which can be used to attach a jubilee clip to form an effective seal between the vent housing and duct pipe 8. In the embodiment shown, the duct has an 80mm diameter, however other sizes of duct can be accommodated by replacement of the vent housing with a housing having a larger jubilee clip guide or rim. As an alternative, or in addition, a length of smaller ducting pipe can be attached, and a step down duct 18 used as shown in figure 2 with jubilee clip guides at each end for moving between the smaller dud and a larger duct (such as between an 80mm dud and a 100mm duct) if necessary. In this way the system is flexible and can be adapted to fit to different ventilation systems within different buildings.

The pathway for air through the fitting is carefully designed to provide good ventilation to the building and to be easily and fully adjustable in terms of the airflow without producing unwanted noise. Figures 4A-4C show the fitting in various stages of assembly. The main housing 2 includes a cavity 6 in the centre as mentioned above. A vent cage 24 fits within this cavity and can be held in place magnetically, which makes removal and/or replacement simple to achieve. The vent cage 24 in the embodiment shown includes an intemal thread 26 which is configured to receive a threaded bolt or screw 28 coupled to a disk shaped cap 30. Clearly the bolt may be coupled to the vent cage and the thread to the cap if desired. The cap covers internal mechanisms once the fixture is installed and provides a more attractive appearance but advantageously in this case also serves as a means to control airflow through the device.

In embodiments, the adjustment between the cap 30 and vent cage 24 may be by other means than a coupled screw and thread. For example, the two portions may push, rather than screw, together. If this is the case, it could be possible for the cap to have another configuration such as a square, rectangular, or hexagonal shape. The shape of the cavity and potentially also the vent cage could then be made to match the shape of the cap in order to provide the required adjustable air gap between the main housing and the cap. The air gap will usually extend all of the way around the cap for any shape of cap, however this may not be the case.

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate air flow through the device with the cap 30 and vent cage 24 installed. Arrows in these figures illustrate the direction of the air flow. The air flows from the room through the space between the main housing and the cap (or potentially in the opposite direction from a duct into the room in some situations).

Although this would be possible even without the cut-outs, air flows past the cut-outs which allows the air flow to diverge as shown helping to slow flow and reducing the appearance of eddies. The particular shaping of the cap and vent cage help to achieve this smoother airflow. In the embodiment shown in the figures, the front surface of the housing and the cavity appear circular when viewed from the front, such as when viewed from the inside of a room with the fixture installed. In this case the cavity is substantially cylindrical and extends backwards into the ceiling or wall once installed between 20mm and 50mm from the front surface, preferably between 30mm and 40mm, or a maximum of 36mm.

The shape of both the cap and vent cage are shown in figure 7. As can be seen, the cap includes a series of fins 32 spaced around its inner surface, which in this case is disk shaped. The inner surface refers to the surface which faces inward towards the rest of the fixture once installed (and which will therefore also face away from the room in which the fixture is installed). These fins extend radially across the surface of the disk from a protruding rim 34 which extends around the outer edge of the disk on the inner surface to a hole or hub 36 in the centre which couples the cap to the bolt. This coupling may be via a clipping portion as shown in figure 6. The coupling may allow the screw to be removed for replacement and may work by means of a removable clip. The screw may alternatively be formed integrally with the cap, or another means of fixing between the screw and cap may be provided, which may or may not allow the screw to be decoupled from the cap. The embodiment shown includes a total of eight fins 32 spaced equidistantly around the cap, which has been shown to be optimal in terms of the air flow. Other numbers of fins may be provided, however, and these may be equidistantly spaced around the inner surface or not depending on the desired airflow.

The number of fins may be defined by the number and arrangement of the cut-outs. As the fins in the cap provide structural support the number is defined to avoid them clashing with the air path which is itself defined by the cut-outs in the cap. The fins in the cap are preferably configured so as to improve the airflow performance. Their location & height is preferably selected to keep out of the way of airflow, i.e. avoid obstruction of airflow, entering through the cut-outs in side wall of the cap.

The outer rim 34 of the cap also includes a series of cut-outs 38 located on the rim between each fin. The provision of these cut-out portions ensures that when the cap is assembled, and particularly when it is screwed further in towards the vent cage in order to reduce airflow through the fixture, the speed of the air flowing between the cap and the housing is reduced so that air flowing through the gap between the main housing and the cap is less subject to eddies due to interruptions in the airflow. Including cut-outs within a rim rather than doing away with the rim altogether again optimises airflow but also provides the required level of structural rigidity to the cap. This is particularly important where the cap is adjustable away from and towards the main housing to control airflow. In addition, when the cap is closest to the main housing, airflow through the tightest section of the path will move particularly fast through a thin gap, and this may lead to whistle or shear noise as the air passes through this section.

Including the cut-outs reduces or eliminates this noise.

Air passes through the substantially circular gap between the main housing and the cap, moves up through or past cut-out portions on the inner surface of the cap into the cavity around the vent cage. Air is then diverted up through the vent cage, then the vent housing, and finally into the attached ducting as shown in figure 5 and figure 6.

The cut-out portions on the rim of the cap may be substantially rectangular, such that the edge of the rim furthest from the rest of the cap appears crenelated. As mentioned above, the cut-outs may have slanted edges and/or rounded corners and preferably, may extend into the rim to the same depth such that all of the cut-outs are of the same size. For example these could be rounded in shape, semi-or part-circular, semi-or part-elliptical, chamfered, trapezoidal or any other configuration to go with the geometry of the fixture. The cut-outs may be located between each two fins as shown, so that where 8 fins are present and these are spaced equidistantly, 8 cut-outs will also be provided, and these will also be spaced equidistantly around the rim.

Similarly, the vent cage itself includes a number of legs 40 (four in the to embodiment shown) which extend upwards from a circular rim 42 on which the magnets sit to a threaded central hub 44 through which the screw coupled to the cap can extend once the fitting is installed. These legs 40 may be curved at the end nearest to the rim as shown, which again optimises the geometry in terms of airflow through the system. The number and configuration of the legs provides the required structural rigidity to the vent cage whilst minimising interruption to the air flow through the cavity in the main housing.

It has been recognised that in this application, sharp edges of components in the airflow path are likely to cause shear & eddies as air passes through and past the edges.

Preferably, the configuration of the components including the legs 40 is such that the geometry is soften or smoothed out within the airflow path as much as possible without impacting structural rigidity. This practice is to allow air to flow over it as cleanly as possible. This reduces risk of shear noise from airflow.

Once the cap and vent cage are coupled by way of the bolt and thread the cap can be turned to move it further up the bolt and towards the vent cage to close the gap 46 between the vent cage and the cap (or the main housing and the cap) in order to adjust airflow. The leg profiles of the vent cap as well as the hub position and the shape of the hub also help to minimise acoustic shear and avoid interrupting the flow of air as far as possible. Although other configurations for the cap, rim, cut-outs, and vent cage can be used, the shapes described above in relation to the figures has been shown to be the optimum in terms of reducing eddies and noise due to air flow.

As can be seen from figure 4 in particular, in order to install the fixture the cap and vent cage are coupled together using the complementary screw and thread mechanism, and the vent cage and cap are placed within the main housing of the fixture and held there by way of the magnets located on the outer rim of the vent cage and within a flange at the back of the cavity. The vent housing is coupled to the main housing and this is itself fixed to a ventilation duct by way of a jubilee clip (not shown in the figure) so that air from the room can be sucked out through the duct through the fixture (or possibly vice versa in some situations).

Figure 8 illustrates adjustment of the airflow once the removable cap and vent cage are installed. In figure 8A the fixture is shown in the fully open configuration. The cap has been partly unscrewed so that it sits further from the vent cage leaving a larger gap between the main housing and the cap for the passage of air. There may be a stop provided (which may be removable when the vent cage is taken out of the cavity) to prevent the cap from decoupling completely from the vent cage which the fixture is installed.

In figure 8B the cap has been screwed further in towards the vent cage so that the gap between the main housing and cap is smaller or is minimised. In this configuration, which may be the normal configuration for the fixture, air has to flow through a fairly small gap and will flow fast which could potentially lead to whistle as explained above. This prevented, again as explained above, by the shaping of the cap and vent cage. Figure 8C shows the cap in its fully closed position. No air flows through the fitting, and so no ventilation is provided. Clearly, the flexibility of being able to adjust air flow in this way without undesirable noises from airflow with the cap in any position is beneficial. The look of the fixture from inside a room in which it is installed is also simple and attractive.

A continuous set of possible positions for the cap exist between the fully open and fully closed configuration. It may be possible to limit the positions to a discrete set or at least encourage a user to adjust air flow between a discrete set of positions using some type of indicator. In its simplest form this indicator may take the form of markings on the cap and front surface of the housing which are aligned in certain positions to allow a user to more easily determine whether the airflow is on, off, or at one of a set number of positions in between. Some type of tactile indication may be provided additionally or instead via a clicking mechanism with protrusions and indentations provided on the cap and housing respectively.

Embodiments of the present invention have been described with particular reference to the examples illustrated. However, it will be appreciated that variations and modifications may be made to the examples described within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

Claims 1. A ventilation fixture comprising: a main housing with a cavity; and a cap configured to be coupled to the housing such that it is movable away from and towards the cavity to open and close a gap between the main housing an outer edge of the cap, wherein the cap or the housing includes a rim around an edge thereof, the rim comprising one or more cut out portions to reduce air speed as air flows to through the gap and into the cavity.
2. A ventilation fixture according to claim 1, wherein the rim is on the outer edge of the cap.
3. A ventilation fixture according to claim 1 or claim 2, comprising a vent cage configured to sit within the cavity and coupled to the cap such that the position of the cap is adjustable towards and away from the vent cage to open and close the gap.
4. A ventilation fixture according to claim 3, wherein the cap is adjustable by way of a bolt and thread such that the cap can be rotated to move the cap towards and away from the vent cage.
5. A ventilation fixture according to claim 4, wherein the inner surface of the cap is provided with fins extending from the rim towards the centre of the cap.
6. A ventilation fixture according to claim 5, wherein the rim of the cap comprises more than one cut out portion and one fin is provided between each pair of cut out portions.
7. A ventilation fixture according to claim 6, wherein between 6 and 10 rims are provided on the cap.
8. A ventilation fixture according to claim 7, wherein 8 rims and 8 cut out portions are provided on the cap.
9. A ventilation fixture according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the cut out portions are substantially rectangular in shape.
10. A ventilation fixture according to claim 3, wherein the vent cage includes a central hub for coupling to the cap and a circular rim and comprises legs extending from the rim to the central hub.
11. A ventilation fixture according to claim 10, wherein between 2 and 6 legs are to provided on the vent cage.
12. A ventilation fixture according to claim 11, wherein 4 legs are provided on the vent cage.
13. A ventilation fixture according to any of claims 1 to 12, wherein illumination means are provided on the main housing.
14. A ventilation fixture according to any of claims 1 to 13, comprising a vent housing coupled to a back surface of the main housing, wherein the vent housing includes coupling means for fixing to a duct such that a closed path is provided from the front of the main housing to the duct through the vent housing.
15. A ventilation fixture according to claim 3, wherein the vent cage and main housing comprise magnets to removably retain the vent cage within the housing cavity.
16. A ventilation fixture according to any of claims 1 to 15, wherein the cap can be moved towards the main housing to completely close the gap between the main housing and the cap to shut off air flow.