US3305003A - Heat exchange panel system - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 21, 1967 R. D. ROTHSCHILD 3,305,003

HEAT EXCHANGE PANEL SYSTEM Filed April 16, 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 21, 1967 R. D. ROTHSCHILD 0 HEAT EXCHANGE PANEL SYSTEM Filed A ril 16, 1965 3 heets-Sheet B I a o o a n o l l a a o o a an 1 a a o e n a a a q I.

1967 R. D. ROTHSCHILD HEAT EXCHANGE PANEL SYSTEM 5 heets-Sheet 3 Filed April 16, 1965 hN l NMQ

United States Patent l 3,305,003 HEAT EXCHANGE PANEL SYSTEM Richard Dickson Rothschild, Rye, N.Y., assignor to International Environment Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Apr. 16, 1965, Ser. No. 448,761 6 Claims. (Cl. 165-54) The present invention relates to heat exchange panel systems which may be employed to advantage in covering generally planar encompassing marginal surfaces of enclosed building spaces or the faces of walls and/ or ceilings of rooms defined therein. The heat exchange panel system of the present invention is particularly adapted to embodiment therein of unique radiant panels that may also be constructed readily as acoustical elements which will effectively deaden or block transfer of sound.

Prior to the present invention it has been conventional to provide and install such systems that include distribution pipes or tubing of heat conducting material through which flow heat delivering or absorbing fluid, such as a liquid, e.g., water, and to mount thereon in heat transfer relation thereto radiant panels of heat conducting material. Commonly such pipes or tubing are cylindrical or round and of relatively small diameter, e.g., one-half inch /2"), and such panels have heat conducting side flanges extending back generally normal to the panel faces with these flanges having curved concave channels. An opposed pair of these concave channels in the adjacent back flanges of a pair of juxtaposed panels of this type together form an inverted open saddle into which the pipes or tubing loosely nest. These panel back flanges are held in heat conductive contact with the round pipes or tubing either by compressive clips or by snap-in T-runner suspension members which engage additional normal flanges on the backs of the panels so located as to cause the pipes or tubing to nest in the paired concave channels. There is relatively low heat transfer contact in such mountings since the conductive contact areas are small due in part to the fact that the channel lips extend back along the round pipes or tubing a distance about one-half the diame'ter of the latter.

Since heating and cooling performance of such systems varies directly with the extent of the areas of heat conductive contact between the round pipes and the curved portions of the panel back flanges this conventional type of system and the panel mounting meansthereof are characterized by very limited heat transfer efiiciency. Proper anchorage of the panels in the system which employs compressive clips to hold the panel back flanges in conductive contact with the round pipes is dependent in part upon considerable skill of the installers in positioning the clips on the pipes and the velocity and thrust with which they push the flanges of these panels into the clips to achieve proper engagement. Slight rotation of a clip or its location at a point along the pipe where there is no corresponding curved channel section in the back flange of such panel will often cause improper securement of the panel so that adjacent faces and edges of the panels will not be properly aligned, lower heat transfer efliciency will result, and clips will be lost by being driven oif of the pipes in attempts to engage the panels with the pipes. When such panels are being installed With the use of such compressive clips for lining or covering a ceiling, such difficulties may also cause some of the panels to be dropped or to hang in improper misalignment.

When such a system is installed with the use of the snap-in T-runner suspension members for lining or covering ceiling areas considerable skill and care are re- 3,305,003 Patented Feb. 21, 1967 quired both to push the snap-in T-runners in exact parallel and proper spaced relation with respect to the round pipes to attain the best possible heat conductive contact between the latter and the curved faces of the concaved channels in the panel back flanges, and in order to avoid pressing of the panels downward by the pipes that may cause a downward bowing or convexing of the faces of the installed panels. Extreme care must also be taken not to engage the vertical back flanges of the panels in the T-runners where the beads on such panel flanges are in a higher position than are the receiving channels in the T-runners, in order to avoid such downward bowing or convexing deformation of the panel faces.

Such conventional systems featuring round distribution pipes provide only single line support and contact for standard horizontal support brackets for recessed and surface mounted lighting fixtures, air diffusers, acoustical speakers, etc. in ceiling installations. Effective removal of heat from overhead lights, which is an important factor in the total cooling capabilities of such systems, is minimized or reduced to an undesirable degree because of the poor heat conductive contact or thermal bridge between the lighting fixture or its support brackets and the round distribution pipe due to the small area of heat transfer contact between them. Unless the lighting fixture support brackets are precisely horizontal they will not seat even in full line contact on the high points of the round pipes and thus in such systems vertical adjustment is frequently required which dictates embodiment of means to permit such vertical adjustment so as to assure level and uniform mounting height of elements of such systems in or on the ceilings.

Such conventional ceiling systems also provide undesirably limited open areas to serve for both provision of access openings and for the installation of recessed lighting fixtures. For example, when a twelve inch (12") wide panel is omitted or removed from such a ceiling panel installation only approximately ten and one-half inches (10%") of opening is available due to the space taken up by the panel clips or T-runners holding up adjacent panels. Accessibility is even further restricted in the snap-T-runner type of installation by the necessity of locating both the T-runners and pipes within the same panel area. At these locations normal sized recessed lighting fixtures cannot be installed.

Further, in such conventional panel systems slight lateral movement of the pipes or panels in original inst-allations thereof, which may be caused by removal and replacement for access or due to temperature changes and building vibration or movement, will cause lower heatv ing and cooling efiiciency and attendant vertical unevenness of adjacent ceiling panels. For example, when the curved channels of the opposed back flanges of a pair of adjacent suc-h panels are engaged to opposite sides of such a round distribution pipe with the adjacent edges of the pair of panels offset laterally from the vertical central plane of the pipe there may be no direct contact between the curved section of the back flange of the one panel which has its back flange located short of this vertical central plane while the pipe is nested solely in the curved channel of the back flange of the adjacent panel since the back flange of the latter is located beyond this vertical central plane. Also, the edge of the panel which has its back flange laterally otfset short of this central vertical plane of the pipe will be permitted to be located at an elevation higher than that of the adjacent edge of the companion panel which carries the back flange having the curved concave channel into which the round pipe is nested.

Additionally, such conventional ceiling installations have poor sound attenuation characteristics or low ability to prevent transfer of sound through the ceiling structure when partitions which extend to the ceiling are used to divide room spaces, thus causing inadequate sound privacy between adjacent rooms. This is in part due to the easy passage of the sound through the engagement joints of the curved panel back flanges and the round distribution pipes and also to the multiplicity of joints between the panels, the pipes and the thermal-acoustical blanket interposed between the panels and the ceiling. In such systems the panels frequently have vertical back flanges at their opposite ends which do not reach up to the underside of the thermal acoustical blanket and thus the panels create unobstructed passages for sound through the ceilings from one room to the next.

These and other problems of prior conventional heat exchange panel systems are eificiently solved or greatly minimized by structural characteristics of panel systems of the present invention.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a heat exchange panel system which employs unique panel flange and tube connecting joints that assure greater and more eflicient heat transfer to provide a much larger heating and cooling capacity while avoiding need for more complicated fluid distribution means and panel structure.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new system of this type in which the panels are easily mounted in a simple manner to the fluid distribution tubes without requiring supplemental fastening means, such as compressive clips, T-runners or the like, while assuring substantially aligned and undistorted panel faces and a desired attendant enhanced appearance.

Still another object is to assure by the improved system of the present invention larger access areas which are readily opened up by unusually easy panel removal due to the simplicity of the means that mount the panels directly to the fluid distribution duets with these mounting means provided as parts of the panel structures themselves, the panels being easily remounted in automatically aligned and proper positions to close the opened access areas.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

In a heat exchange panel system of the present invention designed for selectively heating and cooling an enclosed building space or room defined by generally planar encompassing marginal surfaces fluid conduit means are mounted along and backed by one of the space marginal surfaces in outwardly spaced relation thereto. The fluid conduit means includes distribution supply means from which the fluid is fed to at least a pair of, and preferably a much greater number of, transversely-spaced and generally parallel flow conducting straight tubes of heat conducting material with a major portion of the circumambient extent of the wall of each tube made up of longitudinally-extending and interconnected sections having flat outside faces. One of these tube faces constitutes an outer one which faces toward the building open space away from the backing marginal surface and is arranged generally parallel to the latter. This outer tube face and the similar outer flat face of the tube which is paired with the first-mentioned tube are arranged substantially in a common plane generally parallel to the backing marginal surface. Each of these outer flat tube faces provides flat abutment shoulder means. At least one, and preferably a plurality of, radiant panels of heat conducting material, such as metal having a relatively high heat conductivity, e.g., aluminum, are provided with each having a main flat face section defined between opposite parallaterally inward in opposite directions to define a longitudinal channel in the outer side face of each. The channel in each panel back flange is shaped substantially complementary to no more than one-half the width of the flat abutment shoulder means of each tube, to form a longitudinal bearing face substantially parallel to the flat face section of this panel, and therebeyond substantially complementary to the inner side of this tube that is opposed to the other tube with the terminal edge of each flange terminating therebeyond in an outwardly bowed lip. This panel is anchored removably between the pair of tubes by these shaped side flanges which are sprung into position between the pair of tubes with the opposed sides of the latter seated in the back flange channels, with the longitudinal bearing faces of the back flanges seating against the abutment shoulders of the pair of tubes and with the bowed lips snapped back of or behind the latter.

Each of these distribution tubes may be rectangular in cross-section, such as oblong or square in transverse section and preferably square, in order to provide these substantially flat abutment and side outer faces oriented relative to each other and to the space backing surface as is indicated above. However, the cross-section shape of each tube may be polygonal but other than rectangular in order to satisfy these requirements, as is pointed out hereinafter.

The distribution tubes also improve ceiling panel in stallations in that the tubes in the preferred shapes provide wide fiat top surfaces substantially aligned in a lateral plane upon which may rest or seat in unusually large areas of heat transfer contact parts or supporting brackets of lighting fixtures and other heat producing electrical devices for eflicient removal of excess heat therefrom.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts, which will be exemplified in the costructions hereinafter set forth, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. I is a perspective view, with parts broken away and in section, of a portion of a ceiling installation embodying a form of the improved heat exchange panel system of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear plan view of a radiant panel embodied in the system depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the panel illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view of the panel shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and indicating in broken lines a portion of an insulating blanket mounted thereabove;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view, with parts broken away, of a portion of the system illustrated in FIG. 1, showing portions of a juxtaposed pair of the panel units of FIGS. 2 to 4 incl. and the fluid distribution system to which they are mounted, as well as improved means for anchoring the panel units to an adjacent wall structure;

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of the structure shown in FIG. 5 as viewed in a plane substantially normal to the plane in which the parts shown in FIG. 5 are observed;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially on line 77 of FIG. 6; and FIG. 8 is a detail view, with parts broken away and in section, of structure in the vicinity of line 7-7 of FIG. 6, showing a modified form of the pipe or tubing and the complementary back flange clips engaged thereabout that are provided on the sides of the juxtaposed pair of panel units of which adjacent portions are there illustrated.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar parts are identified by the like numerals, it will be seen from FIG.

1 that the system therein illustrated embodies the following structural elements and relationships thereof. The system of FIG. 1 is designed for a ceiling installation and for this purpose a plurality of laterally-spaced suspension channels, a portion of one of which is shown at 10, are suitably suspended from ceiling structure, such as by a plurality of suspension hangers, one of which is illustrated at 11. In such installation the bottom face of the ceiling (not shown in FIG. 1) constitutes a generally planar marginal surface of the enclosed building space or room in which this ceiling installation is mounted. The section of the installation illustrated in FIG. 1 is located along a marginal wall of the room (also omitted) which supports a wall molding 12.

The installation illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a plurality of panel units 13 and 130 of the present invention as well as a conventional panel unit 14 and a conventional snap-in T-runner 15 provided at the location of the transition between a panel unit 13 of the present invention and the conventional panel unit 14. The fluid distribution system of the FIG. 1 installation includes a fluid supply header manifold 16 and a plurality of fluid distribution tubes 17 connected to the manifold. A portion of an acoustical and insulating blanket 18 is depicted in its surmounted position above the panel units 13, 130 and 14.

The header manifold 16 is, as shown in FIG. 1, preferably square in cross-section and in one side face thereof are formed at longitudinally-spaced points rectangular openings 19. An end of each of the fluid distribution tubes 17, which are also preferably square in cross-section as shown, is inserted in one of the holes 19 in the side of the manifold 16 to a limited degree and anchored therein in intercommunicating and fluid-tight relation, such as in the manner proposed in FIG. 7, as is more fully described hereinafter. The lateral tubes 17 are suitably anchored to the suspension channels that are located thereabove, such as by clips 20, and other clips 21 fasten any T-runners to such suspension channels.

It should be apparent that such square distribution tubes 17, while occupying no greater overhead space than round distribution tubes of the same transverse dimension or no greater portion of the space intervening the panel units and the ceiling, will provide a greater cross-sectional area of flow therethrough. Also, such a square distribution tube will provide appreciably more area of outside surface than will a round tube of the same transverse dimension, to be utilized to advantage for efiicient heat transfer. For example, while a one half inch /2) di amet-er round tube will provide in a one inch (1") wide circumferential zone an outside surface area of 1.5708 square inches, a one-half inch square tube /z" x /2) will provide in a one inch (1) wide circumambient zone an outside surface area of two (2) square inches, which provides more than 25% greater surface area.

The radiant panel unit 13 illustrated by way of example in FIG. 1 is shown in greater detail in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4. Each panel unit 13 is made from suitable heat conducting sheet material, e.g., aluminum, and is shaped to provide a main generally flat face section 25 which is rectangular, as is best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, having opposite parallel side-s 26 and opposite parallel ends 27 arranged substantially transversely of or normal to these sides.

The sheet material of panel unit 13 is turned up or back along the opposite sides 26 generally normal to the plane of the flat face section 25 to provide a pair of substantially parallel resilient side flanges 28. As will be best seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 these side flanges 28 are shaped laterally inward in opposite directions to define in the outer side face of each a longitudinal channel 29 with a longitudinal zone of this channel in each side flange being shaped substantially complementary to no more than onehalf the width of the flat abutment shoulder means provided by the front face 22 of one of the square distribution tubes 17 to form a longitudinal bearing face 30 extending substantially parallel to the panel face section 25.

Outwardly or back beyond the longitudinal bearing face 30 of each resilient side flange 28 the latter is shaped substantially complementary to the inner side 24 of one of the flow distribution tubes 17 which is opposed to the next succeeding flow distribution tube with the terminal edge of each flange terminating therebeyond in an outwardly bowed lip 31.

In order to assemble each radiant panel unit 13 or with or anchor it to a pair of the successive and laterally-spaced flow ducts or distribution tubes 17, the installer will push or lift the panel unit into the space between this pair of tubes with the curved inner sides of the bowed lips 31 riding successively against the opposed inside corners of the front faces 22 of the tubes and then along the opposed tube side faces 24 until these bowed lips snap beyond the opposed inside corners of the tube back faces 23, such as is illustrated in FIG. 6. This operation is repeated with the next panel with respect to one of this pair of distribution tubes 17 and the next successive one of the latter to provide the assembly shown in FIG. 6. As a result, the shaped side flanges 28 of the juxtaposed pair of radiant panel units 13 snugly engage about a major portion of the outside surface of the distribution tube 17 common to the panel-tube joint wherein sides of adjacent panels are juxtaposed, as is illustrated in FIG. 6. The pair of longitudinally-extending flat abutment shoulders provided by both halves of the front face 22 of the common distribution tube 17 are snugly abutted by or engaged with the pair of longitudinal bearing faces 30 of the juxtaposed flanges 28 of the adjacent panel units 13. The side faces 24 of this distribution tube 17 are snugly engaged by the inner faces of the longitudinal channels 29 of the panel side flanges 28, and the opposed pair of bowed lips 31 are snapped in behind the back face 23 of the tube. Consequently, good heat transfer contact is provided between the opposed pair of panel side flanges 28 and each distribution tube 17 in each panel-tube joint, and the anchorage of the panels to the tubes requires no supplemental parts, such as compressive clips or T-runners.

It will be understood from FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 that in order to provide for such mounts of panel units 13 in positions bridging across the header manifold 16, notches 32 will be cut into the shaped side flanges 28, so that the header manifold will be received in these notches. Also, when it is desired to mount a light fixture or other heatproducing unit above the panels 13 and 130 addition-a1 notches 33 may in like manner he cut into the panel side flanges 28, so that parts of such a heat source units or brackets thereof may seat directly on the back or top faces 23 of the distribution tubes 17 in good heat transfer relation thereto.

When in a ceiling installation an insulating blanket, such as that indicated by the portion 18 in FIG. 1, is to be installed between the assembled panel units 13 and 130 and the fluid distribution system, strips of such insulating blanket will be supported initially upon the lateral distribution tubes 17 between the laterally spaced suspension channels 10. Then when the radiant panel units 13 and 130 are pushed into their mounted positions between successive pairs of the distribution tubes 17 the terminal edges of the bowed lips 31.0f the shaped panel flanges 28 will be abutted to or engaged against the opposed face of the insulation blanket. When such radiant panel units 13 and 130 are of the acoustical sound reducing type, such as by having their main face sections 25 provided substantially over the entire extent thereof with closely arranged perforations, as is indicated at 34 in FIGS. 1 and 2, such panel units may be desirably provided with end flanges 35 also extending substantially normal to the face sections 25 thereof backwardly to the plane in which are disposed the tip edges of the curved lips 31, as is best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. As a consequence, the faces of the insulating blanket strips 18 which will back or cover the acoustical and radiant panel units, such as 13 and 130, will efliciently close off to a substantial degree the spaces within .the panels intervening their side flanges 28 and their end flanges 35, so as effectively to reduce sound transmission. When such end flanges 35 are provided, each should have both of its transverse ends notched, such as at 36, to permit free passage of the distribution tubes 17, as will be understood from FIGS. 1 and 6.

The system of the present invention may embody to advantage a practical and unique form of flow communicating connection of each distribution tube 17 to the header manifold 16, such as that illustrated in FIG. 7. As is therein indicated, a sidewall 37 of the header manifold 16 may be provided with a series of the longitudinallyspaced square holes 19 adjacent the bottom wall 38. This manifold bottom wall is provided with a dimple or indentation to form an interior stop boss or nib 39 back of and aligned with each hole 19. An end of each distribution tube 17 is inserted in one of the holes 19 until it abuts against the stop nib 39 which thereby limits the extent of the insertion so as to avoid undue blockage of flow through the header manifold 16. The inserted end of each distribution tube 17 may then be anchored to the header manifold 16 and sealed off to the edge of the hole 19 in which it is inserted by means of fillet welding or soldering, such as that indicated at 40.

The ends and the sides of the marginal panel units 13 or 130 may, as the case may be, anchored in an eflicient manner to adjacent wall structure, as is indicated in FIGS. and 6. For this purpose one may employ to advantage a wall molding channel 12 having a top flange 41, a bottom flange 42 provided with an interiorly returned, biasing spring lip 43, and an intervening web 44 suitably fas tened to the inside face of vertical wall structure, such as that indicated in section at 45 in FIG. 5. As is illustrated in FIG. 5, the outside end of the marginal panel unit 13 and its end flange 35 may be securely anchored in the Wall molding channel 12 with the employment of a holddown channel section 46 inserted within the end of the panel unit inward of this end flange. The hold-down channel section 46 includes a top flange 47, a bottom flange 48 and an intervening web 49, the latter being of such width as to cause the top flange 47 snugly to seat against the inner face of the top flange 41 of the wall molding channel 12 and the bottom flange thereof to bear against the inside face of the flat face section 25 of the panel unit with some distortion or flattening of the spring lip 43 on the bottom flange 42 of the wall molding channel. The same means may be employed to advantage in anchoring a side of a marginal panel unit 13 to another vertical wall structure 145 which, as is illustrated in FIG. 6, may require some trimming of a side of this panel unit. Such trimming of a side of a marginal panel unit 13 may remove one of its side flanges 28 to fit the remaining narrower portion of the panel unit between the nearest flow distribution tube 17 and the inner face of the wall structure 145. It will be seen from FIG. 6 that in such case the same secure clamping is obtained to provide the same type of efiicient anchorage to the adjacent vertical wall structure. In the event that no trimming of a side of the marginal panel unit is required for this purpose the hold-down channel section 46 may be inserted within the panel unit adjacent the shaped side flange 28 to obtain an anchorage of the type illustrated in FIG. 5. It is also to be understood that prior to insertion of either an end or a side portion of a panel unit of the present invention within the wall molding channel 12 the spring lip 43 of the bottom flange 42 of the latter may be arranged at an acute angle, such as about 30, to the bottom flange 42 that carries it, so that it will be distorted substantially to the shape illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 with the insertion of the portion of the marginal panel unit 13 into the wall molding channel 12 and the holddown channel section 46 carried within this panel unit with secure clamping of the parts together.

It is illustrated in FIG. 8 that practice of the present invention is not limited to the employment of rectangular flow distribution tubes which are either oblong or square in cross-section. It is indicated in the panel-tube joint illustrated in FIG. 8 that each distribution tube 170 may be polygonal in cross-section, but other than rectangular to provide the desirable abutment shoulder means of each tube and the complementary longitudinal bearing faces of the shaped side flanges of the juxtaposed panel units 113 of the present invention. In FIG. 8 the polygonal flow distribution tube 170 is shown to he hexagonal in cross-section and made up of longitudinally-extending and interconnected sections having flat outside faces with the outer or front one 122 thereof defining flat abutment shoulder means and with the inner or back one 123 thereof serving as means beyond which the bowed lips 31 of the opposed shaped side flanges 128 may be snap-engaged. In the form illustrated in FIG. 8 the channel 129 of each shaped side flange 128 intervening the longitudinal bearing face 130 thereof and its outwardly bowed lip 31 will be troughshaped in transverse section so as to be complementary to the sidewall faces of the flow distribution tube which intervene its front and back faces 122 and 123.

It will thus be understood that in installations embodying features of the present invention excellent heat conductivity between the panel units and the flow distribution tubes is assured since the panel side flanges can make surface contact with a major portion of the entire outside surface of the tubes while still assuring easy removability and while avoiding occupancy of no more space between the panels and the back marginal surface of the building space or room than is occupied by round tubes. Greater heat transfer efliciency .is assured between light fixtures or other heat source devices and flow distribution tubes since portions of such devices or brackets thereof may 'be seated against the wide back faces of the present tubes as distinguished from mere line contact with round tubes. Since the need for employing compressive clips or T-runners is eliminated by the present invention the panel units can be installed by relatively unskilled personnel without loss of heating or cooling efficiency and while avoiding uneven or improperly secured panels. Embodiments of the panel units of the present invention are of such design as automatically to center the panel units when they are pushed inward or upward into their anchored positions and positive stops are provided by engagements of the flat abutment shoulder means of the tubes with the longitudinal bearing faces of the panel side flanges so as to prevent the panel units from being installed in improper orientations with their main face sections misaligned. Greater accessibility is assured since an installation of the present invention is characterized by easier insertion and removal of the panel units and larger intervening space for access is provided for accommodating wider recessed lighting fixtures, i.e., a space of about eleven and one-quarter inches (11%") wide is available as contrasted with the approximately ten and one-quarter inches (10%) wide space available in round tube systems. Sound attenuation from room to room through a ceiling installation embodying the system of the present invention is substantially improved by the sound-trap design of the pi-peato-panel joint which is characterized by three rectangularly opposed surfaces in the sound path through the joint that embodies distribution tubes which are rectangular in cross-section. Such sound attenuation is also improved by the elimination of one joint in the pipe-panehblanket assembly and by the elimination of the space between the end flanges of the panel units and the opposed face of the blanket (as in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4), so as locally to isolate the space within each panel unit behind its face section.

It will thu be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efliciently attained and, since certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A heat exchange panel system for selectively heating and cooling an enclosed building space defined by generally planar encompassing marginal surfaces comprising, in combination;

(A) fluid conduit means mounted along and backed by one of the space marginal surfaces in outwardly spaced relation thereto including a pair of transversely spaced and generally parallel flow conducting straight tubes of heat conducting material with a major portion of the circumambient extent of the wall of each tube made up of longitudinally extending and interconnected sections having flat outside faces, and with the outer one of the latter facing toward the space away from said backing marginal surface and the similar outer flat face of said tube paired with this tube being arranged substantially in a common plane generally parallel to said backing marginal surface, each of said outer flat tube faces providing flat abutment shoulder means; and

(B) a radiant panel of heat conducting material provided with (a) a main generally flat face section having opposite parallel sides spaced laterally apart a distance greater than the space between said tubes, and

(b) a pair of resilient side flanges connected respectively to said sides and extending back away from and generally normal to the plane of said face section with these side flanges shaped laterally inward in opposite directions to define in the outer side face of each a longitudinal channel, the channel in each side flange being shaped substantially complementary to no more than one-half the width of said flat abutment shoulder means of each tube to form a longitudinal bearing face substantially parallel to said face section of said panel and therebeyond substantially complementary to the inner side of said tube opposed to the other tube with the terminal edge of each flange terminating therebeyond in an outwardly bowed lip, said panel being removably anchored between said tubes by said shaped side flanges sprung into position between said tubes with the opposed sides of the latter seated in said channels, said longitudinal bearing faces seating against said abutment shoulder means of said tubes and said bowed lips snapped back of the latter.

2. The heat exchange panel system as defined in claim 1 in which said tubes are rectangular in cross-section.

3. The heat exchange panel system as defined in claim 1 in which said panel main flat face section is provided with acoustical perforations.

4. The heat exchange panel system as defined in claim 3 in which said radiant acoustical panel is rectangular and a plurality thereof are mounted end-to-end in like manner between said pair of tubes with each panel having a pair of end flanges extending back away from the plane of said flat face section thereof and terminating in edges located generally in the same plane in which the terminal edges of said side flange lips are located simultaneously to contact the face of an insulating backing blanket and block off the interior space of each panel for minimizing sound transfer.

5. A heat exchange panel system for selectively heating and cooling an enclosed building space defined by generally planer encompassing marginal surfaces comprising, in combination;

(A) fluid conduit means mounted along and backed by one of the space marginal surfaces in outwardly spaced relation thereto including a plurality of uniformly spaced and generally parallel flow conducting straight tubes of heat conducting material arranged in a plurality of transversely spaced successive pairs thereof located in front of the marginal surface, each of said tubes being substantially rectangular in cross-section to provide an outer longitudinally extending face facing toward the space away from said backing marginal surface to provide flat abutment shoulders, and with these outer abutment shoulder faces of said tubes being arranged substantially in a common plane generally parallel to said backing marginal surface and with the opposed side faces of each pair of said tubes being arranged substantially parallel to each other and generally normal to said common plane; and

(B) a plurality of substantially parallel panels of heat conducting material each provided with (a) a main rectangular and generally flat face section having opposite parallel sides laterally spaced apart a distance greater than the space between said tubes of each pair thereof, and

(b) a pair of resilient side flanges integrally con nected respectively to said sides and extending back away from and generally normal to the plane of said face section with these side flanges shaped laterally inward in opposite directions to define in the outer side face of each a longitudinal channel defined on the far side by an outwardly bowed terminal lip, each channel being shaped on its near side substantially complementary to about one-half the width of said abutment shoulder face of each tube to form a bearing face extending longitudinally substantially parallel to said panel face section and therebeyond inwardly of said bowed lip substantially complementary to the adjacent side face of this tube and normal to said bearing face, each of said panels being removably anchored between one of said pair of square tubes by its shaped side flanges sprung into position between the tubes of this pair with the opposed sides of the latter seated in said channels, said bearing faces seating against said tube abutment shoulders and said bowed lips snapped behind the back sides of said tubes.

6. The heat exchange panel system as defined in claim 5 in which said tubes are substantially square in crosssection.

References Cited hy the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,718,383 9/1965 Frenger 54 ROBERT A. OLEARY, Primary Examiner.

C. SUKALO, Assistant Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. A HEAT EXCHANGE PANEL SYSTEM FOR SELECTIVELY HEATING AND COOLING AN ENCLOSED BUILDING SPACE DEFINED BY GENERALLY PLANAR ENCOMPASSING MARGINAL SURFACES COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION; (A) FLUID CONDUIT MEANS MOUNTED ALONG AND BACKED BY ONE OF THE SPACE MARGINAL SURFACES IN OUTWARDLY SPACED RELATION THERETO INCLUDING A PAIR OF TRANSVERSELY SPACED AND GENERALLY PARALLEL FLOW CONDUCTING STRAIGHT TUBES OF HEAT CONDUCTING MATERIAL WITH A MAJOR PORTION OF THE CIRCUMAMBIENT EXTENT OF THE WALL OF EACH TUBE MADE UP OF LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING AND INTERCONNECTED SECTIONS HAVING FLAT OUTSIDE FACES, AND WITH THE OUTER ONE ONE OF THE LATTER FACING TOWARD THE SPACE AWAY FROM SAID BACKING MARGINAL SURFACE AND THE SIMILAR OUTER FLAT FACE OF SAID TUBE PAIRED WITH THIS TUBE BEING ARRANGED SUBSTANTIALLY IN A COMMON PLANE GENERALLY PARALLEL TO SAID BACKING MARGINAL SURFACE, EACH OF SAID OUTER FLAT TUBE FACES PROVIDING FLAT ABUTMENT SHOULDER MEANS; AND (B) A RADIANT PANEL OF HEAT CONDUCTING MATERIAL PROVIDED WITH (A) A MAIN GENERALLY FLAT FACE SECTION HAVING OPPOSITE PARALLEL SIDES SPACED LATERALLY APART A DISTANCE GREATER THAN THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID TUBES, AND (B) A PAIR OF RESILIENT SIDE FLANGES CONNECTED RESPECTIVELY TO SAID SIDES AND EXTENDING BACK AWAY FROM AND GENERALLY NORMAL TO THE PLANE OF SAID FACE SECTION WITH THESE SIDE FLANGES SHAPED LATERALLY INWARD IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS TO DEFINE IN THE OUTER SIDE FACE OF EACH A LONGITUDINAL CHANNEL, THE CHANNEL IN EACH SIDE FLANGE BEING SHAPED SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLEMENTARY TO NO MORE THAN ONE-HALF THE WIDTH OF SAID FLAT ABUTMENT SHOULDER MEANS OF EACH TUBE TO FORM A LONGITUDINAL BEARING FACE SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAID FACE SECTION OF SAID PANEL AND THEREBEYOND SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLEMENTARY TO THE INNER SIDE OF SAID TUBE OPPOSED TO THE OTHER TUBE WITH THE TERMINAL EDGE OF EACH FLANGE TERMINATING THEREBEYOND IN AN OUTWARDLY BOWED LIP, SAID PANEL BEING REMOVABLY ANCHORED BETWEEN SAID TUBES BY SAID SHAPED SIDE FLANGES SPRUNG INTO POSITION BETWEEN SAID TUBES WITH THE OPPOSED SIDES OF THE LATTER SEATED IN SAID CHANNELS, SAID LONGITUDINAL BEARING FACES SEATING AGAINST SAID ABUTMENT SHOULDER MEANS OF SAID TUBES AND SAID BOWED LIPS SNAPPED BACK OF THE LATTER.

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