AU2004222797B2 - Adjustable louvre arrangement - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: ADJUSTABLE LOUVRE ARRANGEMENT Applicant: TONNA DUCTED HEATING SERVICES PTY LTD and AIRLINX HEATING & COOLING SUPPLY PTY LTD The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: 1 2 ADJUSTABLE LOUVRE ARRANGEMENT FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an air conditioner diffuser and in particular to an 5 adjustable louvre arrangement for such a diffuser. OBJECT OF THE INVENTION Various louvre arrangements having the same use as the present invention exist. The present invention has as its object, to provide a new arrangement 10 having advantages over one or more existing arrangements. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An adjustable louvre arrangement according to the present invention includes: 15 a frame member for removable insertion into an outlet of an air conditioning system, a plurality of elongate vanes having a pair of longitudinally extending, spaced apart, and generally parallel side edges and a pair of opposite end edges 20 extending transversely between the side edges, each vane having a pair of first coaxial spigots extending longitudinally from the respective end edges and a second spigot extending from one of said end edges and spaced apart from the first spigot of that said end edge and extending in the direction that said first spigot extends, 25 a pair of vane retaining members for mounting within the frame member, each vane retaining member having a plurality of spaced apart apertures for rotatable engagement, at each end edge of each vane, of respective first spigots of the vanes such that when the spigots are engaged within the apertures, the 30 respective vanes are arranged so as to be evenly spaced apart, generally parallel to each other and generally perpendicular to the vane retaining members, and 2a a control bar having a plurality of spaced apart apertures for engagement of the respective second spigot of each vane such that when a vane is rotated about the axis of its first spigots relative to the vane retaining members, the control bar is operable to cause rotation of each other vane about the axis of their first 5 spigots, wherein, 3 the first and second spigots of the vanes are engaged with the apertures of the pair of vane retaining members and the control bar respectively, so as to form a vane assembly, and the vane assembly is then mounted within the frame 5 member so as to form the louvre arrangement. In an adjustable louvre arrangement according to the present invention, the frame member typically will be square, although it could be rectangular. In a square frame, the frame member will usually be assembled in an outlet frame, 10 which accommodates usually four frame members in a square array. By this arrangement, an outlet can have four adjustable louvre arrangements, each with the vanes orientated at suitable directions to direct air in the desired manner from the outlet. 15 In the above typical arrangement, each vane retaining member is elongate and of a length to extend along and flush against each of opposite internal sides of the frame, preferably for the full length of the opposite sides, so that the lengthwise ends of each vane retaining member abut against the internal surface of the other frame sides that extend perpendicular to the opposite 20 internal sides. The vane retaining members do not however, have to abut each internal surface of a perpendicular side wall. The members can extend to a position short of those side walls and this may assist ease of assembly of the vane 25 assembly to the frame member. In either case, the vane retaining members preferably are fixed to the frame member by a suitable fixing arrangement and that could include a snap fit arrangement whereby protrusions extending from one of the vane retaining members and the frame member extend into openings formed in the other of those members. In the preferred arrangement, the 30 protrusions extend from a face of each of the vane retaining members that in the assembled form of the louvre arrangement, faces the inside surface of the frame member. W:\Juliewndrew\SpeciAdjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 4 The snap fit arrangement can include protrusions formed with a ramp surface and a catch surface, whereby as the vane assembly is fitted into the frame member, the ramp surface allows the cooperating surface of the frame member to ride thereover until the catch surface enters the opening with which it is 5 associated to resist movement of the vane assembly in the reverse direction. Thus the snap-fit connection is made. Preferably in the assembled condition of the louvre arrangement, an edge of each vane retaining member is engaged by a suitable protrusion that resists 10 further movement of the vane assembly relative to the frame member in the direction of assembly. By this arrangement, the vane retaining members have resistance to movement in each of the assembly direction by the protrusion engagement, and the reverse direction thereto, by the catch surface engaging edge sections of the opening in the frame members as discussed earlier. By 15 this arrangement, the vane retaining members, and thus the total vane assembly can be securely held within the frame member against release therefrom. It will be appreciated however, that plastic materials are normally used in the construction of items of louvre arrangements and that therefore the louvre arrangement can be designed to have some useful flexibility in some 20 parts. In a louvre arrangement of the present invention, flexibility in the walls of the frame member, at least those which face the vane retaining members, facilitates ease of assembly and if necessary, release of the vane assembly from the frame member, such as by release of the catch surface or surfaces from an opening or openings in the frame member. 25 The vane retaining members can have length dimensions as discussed earlier and, as they will generally be formed elongate rectangular, the retaining members can have a height less than the height of the frame member walls and preferably about half that height. In respect of the protrusions discussed above, 30 preferably each vane retaining member has two protrusions which are spaced towards each end of the member. Preferably the apertures of each vane retaining member are formed towards one long edge thereof and preferably each aperture is spaced equidistantly from each other. W:\Juliewndrew\Speci\Adjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 5 Preferably each vane has the first spigots extending from a position on each end edge generally centrally between the side edges, although the position of the first spigots can be shifted depending on the extent to which the vanes are required to project below the frame member in an outlet installation. By shifting 5 the first spigots closer towards one of the side edges, the projection of the vanes can be altered. Preferably the second spigot is formed to project from adjacent the side edge of each vane that, when installed is the upper edge, or upstream edge of each 10 vane. By this arrangement, the control bar can be located upstream of the outlet, so obscuring it from view, which could otherwise detract from the appearance of the louvre arrangement. In a preferred arrangement, the upstream side edge of the vane is recessed 15 inwardly from the end edge and the second spigot is formed in that recess. In this arrangement, the control bar can be engaged on the second spigot, slightly inwardly of the vane retaining member to which it is proximate, so that the control bar can shift to rotate the vanes without interference with the vane retaining member. 20 In the preferred arrangement, each vane includes a pair of second spigots which, like the pair of first spigots, extend longitudinally from the respective end edges of the vane and are coaxial. In this arrangement, a control bar is fitted to each end of the vane and this provides for better vane control during vane 25 rotation. The pair of second spigots can be formed at each end of the vane in the same manner as discussed above for the single second spigot. The arrangement of the invention advantageously facilitates more simple assembly, by first forming a vane assembly prior to insertion into the frame 30 member. This distinguishes the invention from other louvre arrangements, in which the vanes are engaged for rotation directly with opposite side walls of the frame members. In such arrangements, there can be difficulty in assembling the vanes which form the end vanes of the vane array, because those vanes are close to the junction between the side walls of the frame member and the W:UulieAndrew\SpeciAdjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 6 end walls perpendicular thereto. Adjacent that junction there is less flexibility in the side walls to flex outwardly for spigot receipt in openings formed in the side walls. Also, the end vanes of the vane array have to be fitted first, otherwise the vanes intermediate the end vanes can be dislodged or released when the side 5 walls are flexed to fit the end vanes. The above problem has been addressed in the prior art by providing openings in each of the end edges of the vanes, aligning those openings with openings in the side walls and securing the vanes in place by passing securing pins through 10 the side wall openings and into the end edge openings. This arrangement eliminates the need for flexing the side walls of the frame member, but introduces an assembly step which is awkward and time consuming. In contrast, in the present invention, connection of the vanes to the vane 15 retaining members is completed outside the frame member and is therefore less awkward, and thereafter, mounting of the vane assembly to the frame member, such as by snap-fit is very simple. The assembly process of the invention is therefore simplified compared to the prior art. Moreover, the vane retaining members advantageously increase the overall stiffness of the louvre assembly. 20 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The attached drawings show an example embodiment of the invention of the foregoing kind. The particularity of those drawings and the associated description does not supersede the generality of the preceding broad 25 description of the invention. Figure 1 is a perspective exploded view of a vane assembly and frame member according to the invention. 30 Figure 2 illustrates a vane of the kind illustrated in Figure 1.

6a DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows an exploded perspective view of a louvre arrangement 10 according to the invention. A plurality of such louvre arrangements are intended to be arranged side-by-side within an outlet frame of an air conditioning system 5 such that the air flow passing through the outlet may be diffused in a plurality of directions. The louvre arrangement 10 as shown includes a frame member 11, a pair of vane retaining members 12, a pair of control bars 13 and a plurality of vanes 14.

7 As shown in Figure 1, the frame member 11 is generally square in plan view having two pairs of frame walls 15 and 16, each pair of walls being perpendicular to the other. Along one free edge of each wall is a lip 17 extending generally perpendicular to the respective walls and outward from the 5 frame member. In use, the lip 17 co-operates with an outlet frame of an air conditioning system when the louvre arrangement 10 is inserted into the outlet frame. As shown in Figure 1, the vane retaining members 12 are elongate and 10 generally rectangular in shape. Each retaining member 12 includes a plurality of generally circular apertures 18, which extend fully through the retaining members 12. The apertures 18 are located close to a lower edge 19 of the retaining member 12 and are equidistantly spaced-apart lengthwise thereof. 15 Also shown in Figure 1 are the control bars 13. Each control bar 13 includes an elongate, generally rectangular portion 20, and extending downwardly from a lower edge thereof, in the plane of the rectangular portion 20, is a plurality of fingers 21. Each finger 21 includes an aperture 22 formed therein that extends fully through the finger 21 and the end of each finger 21, distal from the 20 rectangular portion 20, is rounded. The apertures 22 are formed toward the end of the fingers 21 distal from the rectangular portion 20. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, each vane 14 is generally rectangular in shape in plan view and is curved between generally parallel side edges 23. Each vane 25 14 terminates at a pair of longitudinally opposite end edges 24 which extend transversely between the side edges 23. Each vane 14 further includes a pair of first coaxial spigots 25 which extend lengthwise from each end edge 24 in opposite directions. 30 Each first spigot 25 has a generally circular cross section in its longitudinal direction. As shown in Figure 2, the cross-sectional diameter of each first spigot 25, is greater than the thickness of the vanes 14 measure in the same cross sectional direction so that the first spigots 25 form a lip 26 relative to the concavely curved vane surface 27. The spigots 25 are shaped for rotatable W:\Julie\Andrew\Speci\Adjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 8 engagement in a corresponding aperture 18. Each spigot 25 has a groove 28 extending across its diameter and longitudinally from its distal end to allow the opposite sides of the spigot 25 which are separated by the groove 28 to flex. In forming the spigots, opposite sides thereof separated by the groove 28 can be 5 formed to diverge outwardly for frictional engagement of the walls of the apertures 18 of the vane retaining members 12. As shown, each vane 14 also includes at one end of each end edge 24, a recess 29 defined by a side surface 30 and an end surface 31. Extending 10 outward from the concave vane surface 27, is a spigot mount 32. From the spigot mount 32 extends a second spigot 33. Each second spigot 33 has a shape generally corresponding to that of the first spigots 25, having a generally circular cross section and a groove 34. The second spigots 33 are shaped for rotatable and frictional engagement in corresponding apertures 22 of the control 15 bar 13. The louvre arrangement according to the invention is assembled by firstly engaging the first and second spigots 25 and 33 of the plurality of vanes 14 within the corresponding apertures 18 and 22, of the vane retaining members 20 12 and the control bars 13 respectively, so as to form a vane assembly 35. Each of the apertures 18 and 22 has a diameter so that the outer surfaces of the spigots 25 and 33 frictionally engage the inside surfaces of the apertures and cause the spigots 25 and 33 to flex inwardly about the respective grooves 28 and 34. By this arrangement, a frictional braking is ensured against 25 unwanted vane movement. Also, the relationship of the respective first and second spigots 25 and 33 and the first and second apertures 18 and 22 is such that, by their engagement, the elements of the vane assembly 35, are releasable retained in an arrangement wherein, the respective vanes 14 are evenly spaced apart, generally parallel to each other and generally 30 perpendicular to the vane retaining members 12 and the control bars 13. Due to the second spigots 33 extending from spigot recesses 27, the control bars 13, once engaged with vanes 14 are disposed slightly inward of vane retaining members 12. W:Uulie\Andrew\Spec\Adjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 9 The assembly process for forming the vane assembly 35 is a simple snap-fit process and the frictional engagement between the spigots 25 and 33 and the respective apertures 18 and 22 is such as to provide reliable engagement. Once formed, the vane assembly 35 is then mounted within the frame member 5 11 by engagement of suitable mounting projections in mounting recesses (not shown). Once assembled, the relationship between the vane retaining members 12, the control bars 13 and the vanes 14 is such that when a vane 14 is rotated about 10 the axis of its first spigot 25 relative to the vane retaining members 12, the resulting transverse displacement of the second spigot 33 of that vane 14 is transferred via the control bars 13 to the second spigots 33 of each other vane 14 and by the corresponding transverse displacement of those second spigots 33, rotation of each other vane 14 occurs about the axis of their respective first 15 spigots 25, relative to the vane retaining members 12. The relationship between the first spigots 25 and the apertures 18 is such that while the vanes 14 may be rotated about the axis of the first spigots 25, such rotation is frictionally resisted. Hence when the louvre arrangement 10 is engaged within an outlet of an air conditioning system, the vanes 14 will not be caused to rotate 20 about the axis of the respective first spigots 25 by the flow of air from the outlet, but will instead, by the frictional resistance maintain their disposition. The invention described herein is susceptible to variations, modifications and/or additions other than those specifically described and it is to be understood that 25 the invention includes all such variations, modifications and/or additions which fall within the spirit and scope of the above description. W:Julie\Andrew\Speci\Adjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc

Claims (17)

1. An adjustable louvre arrangement including: 5 a frame member for removable insertion into an outlet of an air conditioning system, a plurality of elongate vanes having a pair of longitudinally extending, spaced apart, and generally parallel side edges and a pair of opposite end edges 10 extending transversely between the side edges, each said vane having a pair of first coaxial spigots extending longitudinally from the respective said end edges and a second spigot extending from one of said end edges and spaced apart from said first spigot of that said end edge and extending in the direction that said first spigot extends, 15 a pair of vane retaining members for mounting within said frame member, each said vane retaining member having a plurality of spaced apart apertures for rotatable engagement, at each said end edge of each said vane, of respective said first spigots of said vanes such that when said first spigots are engaged 20 within said apertures, said respective vanes are arranged so as to be evenly spaced apart, generally parallel to each other and generally perpendicular to said vane retaining members, and a control bar having a plurality of spaced apart apertures for engagement of the 25 respective said second spigot of each said vane such that when a said vane is rotated about the axis of its said first spigots relative to said vane retaining members, said control bar is operable to cause rotation of each other said vane about the axis of their first spigots, wherein, 30 said first and second spigots of said vanes are engaged with said apertures of said pair of vane retaining members and said control bar respectively, so as to form a vane assembly, and said vane assembly is then mounted within said frame member so as to form said louvre arrangement. 11

2. A louvre arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said frame member is square.

3. A louvre arrangement according to claim 2, said vane retaining members 5 being elongate and extending along each of opposite internal sides of said frame member.

4. A louvre arrangement according to claim 3, said vane retaining members having a lengthwise extent such that opposite ends thereof abut against internal 10 surfaces of sides of said frame member which are disposed perpendicular to the sides along which said vane retaining members extend.

5. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 4, said vane retaining members being fixed to said frame member. 15

6. A louvre arrangement according to claim 5, said vane retaining members being fixed to said frame member by a snap-fit arrangement including at least one protrusion extending from one of said vane retaining members and said frame member and an opening provided in the other of said vane retaining 20 members and said frame member for snap-fit receipt of said at least one protrusion.

7. A louvre arrangement according to claim 6, each of said vane retaining members includes at least one protrusion for receipt within a respective opening 25 formed in said frame member.

8. A louvre arrangement according to claim 7, wherein each of said vane retaining members includes two protrusions, spaced towards each end thereof for receipt within complementarily positioned openings in said frame member. 30

9. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein said at least one protrusion includes a ramp surface and a catch surface, said ramp surface permitting said protrusion to slide over a cooperating surface until said 12 catch surface enters said opening and secures said vane retaining member fixed relative to said frame member.

10. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 6 to 8, said frame 5 member including at least one protrusion which cooperates with an edge of each of said vane retaining members, said edge being a leading edge relative to the direction of insertion of said vane assembly into said frame member.

11. A louvre arrangement according to claim 10, said frame member 10 including a pair of spaced-apart protrusions on each of opposite internal sides of said frame member.

12. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 11, said first spigots of said vanes extend from a position on each end edge generally 15 centrally between said side edges.

13. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 12, said second spigots of said vanes extending from a position on said end edge which is adjacent an upstream side edge of said vane in an installed condition of said 20 louvre arrangement.

14. A louvre arrangement according to claim 13, wherein the portion of said end edge from which said second spigot extends is recessed inwardly. 25

15. A louvre arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein each vane includes a pair of second spigots which extend coaxially from said end edges and a said control bar is arranged in engagement with said second spigots at each opposite end of said vanes. 30

16. A louvre assembly including four adjustable louvre arrangements according to any one of claims 1 to 15, said louvre arrangements being assembled in an outlet frame to form a square array, said outlet frame being connectable to air conditioner ducting. W:\JulieAndrew\Speci\Adjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc 13

17. An adjustable louvre arrangement substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 5 DATED: 21 October, 2004 PHILLIPS ORMONDE & FITZPATRICK Attorneys for: TONNA DUCTED HEATING SERVICES PTY LTD and AIRLINX HEATING & COOLING SUPPLY PTY LTD t W:\Julie\Andrew\SpeciwAdjustable Louvre Arrangement.doc