WO2013121093A1

WO2013121093A1 - Grille

Info

Publication number: WO2013121093A1
Application number: PCT/FI2013/050132
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lauri VIKSTRÖM; Mikko VIKSTRÖM
Original assignee: Vikstroem Lauri; Vikstroem Mikko
Priority date: 2012-02-13
Filing date: 2013-02-07
Publication date: 2013-08-22
Also published as: FI20125155A; SE1450953A1; FI124865B

Abstract

The invention relates to a grille for deflecting airflows and/or for partially protecting devices from direct view. The grille is comprised of a one-piece blank (10), in which are made bending lines (11, 12) and partition lines (13) in such a way that the blank (10) can be bent into its mounting form in which it comprises lateral surfaces (2) and a front surface (5), which forms, by means of the partition lines (13) and the bending lines (11, 12), louvres (4) which are in an slanting position with respect to the plane of the front surface, each louvre (4) remaining fixed to the blank (10) at both ends.

Description

Grille

The present invention relates to a grille for the flow-through of air and/or for the partial protection of devices from direct view to be used, for example, as a protective casing of the outdoor unit of an air conditioner or the like and/or as an airflow deflector.

The number of air-source heat pumps and other split-type air conditioning devices has increased markedly in both Finland and many other countries in recent years. The outdoor units of these devices are often found aesthetically disagreeable and may thus, for aesthetic reasons, be located inconveniently for the purposes of operation, installation and maintenance. On the market are various protective casing solutions with wooden and metal structures for solving the aesthetic problem. Known protective casings are relatively heavy and space-consuming, and also demanding from the point of view of installation. One disadvantage of existing casings is that they have a disadvantageous effect on the airflow of the device. A problem with known casings is that their manufacture and colouration to withstand outdoor use are difficult to implement industrially.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a solution which is relatively lightweight, easy to mount and promotes the flow-through of air. The invention also provides aesthetically more versatile solutions and is simpler to manufacture and colour industrially.

To achieve this aim, the grille according to the invention is characterised in that the grille is comprised of a one-piece blank, in which are made bending lines and partition lines in such a way that the blank can be bent into its mounting form, in which it has lateral surfaces and a front surface, which forms, by means of the partition lines and the bending lines, louvres which are in a slanting position with respect to the plane of the front surface, each louvre remaining fixed to the blank at both ends. The advantages of the solution according to the invention include the following. Manufacture is cost-efficient and the products are easy to pack. Especially when using plastics with a honeycomb, lamellar or bubble structure as production materials, further advantages include good storability, low weight and small space requirement in transport. A plastic louvre of the said type is durable and thin, but still maintains its good shape without separate reinforcing bends.

The properties of use of honeycomb plastics resemble those of cardboard, and thus a product according to the invention made of honeycomb- structured plastic can additionally be used as the transport or sales packag of the air conditioner.

The invention is described in greater detail in the following, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: shows a diagrammatic top view of the grille blank according to the invention; Figure 2 shows an enlargement of a louvre bending point shown in Figure

i; shows Figure 2, with the louvre bent into its final position, when the material used is honeycomb-structured plastic preferable for the invention;

Figures 4 to 6 show an exploded view, obliquely from the front, of a grille according to the invention provided with a cover part, and in a state ready for mounting as an oblique front view and a front view, respectively; Figure 7 shows the grille of Figure 8 when mounted inside the rectangular air-conditioning duct;

Figure 8 shows the grille according to the invention when bent into its mounting form.

Figure 1 shows a diagrammatic example of a blank 10 of the body part, in which have been made bending lines 11, 12 not penetrating the blank, and partition lines 13 penetrating the blank. The partition lines 13 may also be weakening lines, which split open only when the blank is bent into its mounting position. When the blank 10 is bent into its mounting position shown in Figures 4 to 6 for forming, for example, the body part 1 of a casing of an outdoor unit of an air conditioner, by turning the lateral surfaces 2, in which it has lateral surfaces 2 and a front surface 5, on the front surface 5 are at the same time formed outwards directed slanting louvres 4 along the partition lines 13. In Figures 7 to 8, the lateral surfaces 2 can be determined to be parallel with the surrounding structures by changing the hinging angles, which makes the mounting of the grille simple and reliable. When used as a casing, the grille may constitute the entire body part or the lateral surfaces 2 may be used as support surfaces to which separate parts of the casing may be connected. The louvres 4 on the front surface may form various groups, between which may be the unbent surface of the blank. In the lateral surfaces 2 can also be made small openings if found necessary to increase airflow. The casing blank material is preferably, for example, 5 mm thick honeycomb- structured plastic made of polypropylene, having a weight of 1300 g/m2, in which the direction of the honeycomb 17 is parallel with the longitudinal direction of the louvre 4 in Figure 3. Figures 2 to 3 show an enlarged view of the bending lines 11, 12 made on opposite sides of the sheet in honeycomb- structured plastic, which extend in an angular position with respect to one another in the direction of the plane of the blank. In this case, the bending lines are preferably made as cuts in such a way that one of the bending lines 11 extends inwards from the outer surface 16 of the blank, in such a way that the inner surface 15 remains intact, and similarly the other bending line

12 extends outwards from the inner surface 15 in such a way that the outer honeycomb surface 16 remains intact.

When implemented in this way, the bending Iines 11, 12 form a hinge structure which, when bending the parts forming the lateral surfaces 2 of the blank shown in Figures 4 to 6 simultaneously with the part of the blank forming the front surface 5, guides the louvres 4 into the correct position in which the louvres are directed outwards, slanting downwards. The louvres can also be arranged to slant upwards. The bending lines can conceivably also be made by creasing, in which case bending is, however, somewhat more demanding. In Figures 4 to 6, a separate cover part 3 has been connected by fixing means 6 to the grille forming the body of the preferred casing structure 1, instead of honeycomb-structured plastic, the material may also be some other sufficiently rigid hinging material, such as a metal sheet, however, the bending of which into its mounting form requires considerably more strength than bending honeycomb-structured plastic, and as in the case of creasing, requires pressure to promote the formation of a hinge. In a metal sheet, the bending iines can be made, for example, by perforating or by forming one or more elongated openings in the sheet, thus weakening it substantially at the desired bending point.

The casing shown in Figure 5 is preferably provided at least on its outer surface with the desired coloured or patterned surface. The pattern may be, for example, one that corresponds to the background structure at the mounting location. In the foregoing, the invention is described mainly as a casing of the outdoor unit of an air conditioner, where only the front surface is provided with louvres, but the side and rear surface may also be provided with corresponding louvres. The invention may be used for various other purposes, for example, as the end cap of a rectangular air-conditioning duct, where each side is an essentially identical slanted grille and the lateral surfaces 2 of which meet in a parallel direction and can thus easily be connected to one another from these lateral surfaces. In Figures 7 and 8 is shown the application of the invention to the end piece of a rectangular air-conditioning duct. Figure 8 shows a grille 1 bent from a one-piece blank according to the invention, the grille comprising lateral sides 2 and louvres 4. Figure 7 shows the grille when placed inside a frame 7, which frame may be a direct part of the end of the air-conditioning duct (not shown), in which case the grille forms an end piece fitting it directly. If necessary, the lateral surfaces of the grille may be spread before mounting to ensure a good fit. The frame 7 in Figure 7 may also be a separate part to which the grille is first fixed, whereby the frame and the grille together form the end piece of an air-conditioning duct or, for example, the casing part of a light fixture in a sauna.

Claims

1. A grille for deflecting airflows and/or for partially protecting devices from direct view, characterised in that the grille is comprised of a one-piece blank (10), in which are made bending lines (11, 12) and partition lines (13) in such a way that the blank (10) can be bent into its mounting form, the bending lines (11, 12) determining lateral surfaces (2) and a front surface (5), on which are formed, by means of the partition lines (13) and the bending lines (11, 12), louvres (4) which are in a slanting position with respect to the plane of the front surface, each louvre (4) remaining fixed to the blank (10) at both ends.

2. A grille as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the material of the blank (10) is honeycomb-structured plastic.

3. A grille as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that the adjacent bending lines (11, 12) at the end of the blank part constituting each louvre are formed in such a way that one (11) of them extends inwards from the outer surface (16) of the blank, and the other (12) outwards from the inner sur- face (15) of the blank, in such a way that they form a hinge-like structure.

4. A grille as claimed in either of the claims 2 to 3, characterised in that the adjacent bending lines (11, 12) at the end of the blank part constituting the louvre are in an angular position with respect to one another.

5. A grille as claimed in any of the claims 1 to 4, characterised in that at least the front surface (5) of the grille is provided with the desired patterned and/or coloured surface.

6. A grille as claimed in any of the claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the grille forms at least a part of the casing (1) of the outdoor unit of the air- conditioner, the front surface (5) of the grille corresponding in dimensions essentially to the front surface of the outdoor unit.

7. A grille as claimed in claim 6, characterised in that the grille forming the casing is in addition provided with a cover part (3).

8. A casing as claimed in claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the casing may be fixed to the outdoor unit alone and/or to a rack supporting it.

9. The use of the grille as claimed in any of the claims 1 to 5 as the end piece of an air-conditioning duct.

10. The use of the grille as claimed in any of the claims 1 to 5 as the shade of a light fixture.