Ventilation fan housing and mounting system
AssigneeAscent Products, LLC
InventorTony J. Branham
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A fan housing and mounting system, including vent duct connector, that facilitates installation of a fan in a rough opening in a wall or ceiling, the housing having a first tab extending from the distal end of the wall and a second tab extending from the distal end of the wall, the first tab sized and shaped to engage a first side of the wall or ceiling, and the second tab sized and shaped to engage a second side of the structural member adjacent the rough opening to attach the housing to the wall or ceiling. A vent duct connector utilizes a novel notched flange to engage the housing in restricted installation spaces.
Claims18
A removable mounting housing that facilitates installation of an object in a rough opening in a structural member having a first surface and an opposing second surface, the housing comprising:
- at least one wall that circumscribes an interior space, the interior space sized and shaped to accommodate retention of the object in the interior space, the at least one wall having a distal end and sized and shaped to extend into the rough opening;
- a first tab extending from the distal end, the first tab sized and shaped to be bent to bear against the first surface of the structural member to prevent the housing from extending further into the rough opening;
- and
- a second tab bounded on only three of four sides by the at least one wall, the second tab sized and shaped to be bent to bear against the second surface of the structural member adjacent the rough opening and to support the housing on top of the structural member and to sandwich the structural member between the first tab and the second tab,
- wherein the first and second tabs are integrally formed with the at least one wall, and are co-planar with the at least one wall, the first and second tabs each having a first leg and a second leg that support the first and second tabs on the at least one wall, the first leg and second leg each being sized and shaped to yield to a force asserted on the respective first and second tabs to bend up to and beyond a 90 degree angle.
A system that mounts in a rough opening formed in a structural member, the structural member having a first surface and an opposing second surface, the system comprising:
- an object to be attached to the structural member;
- a housing with at least one wall having a distal end that defines an interior space, the interior space sized and shaped to receive the object, the at least one wall sized and shaped to ne received within and extend into the rough opening the housing including:
- a first tab extending from the distal end of the at least one wall, the first tab capable of being bent to bear against the first surface of the structural member and prevent the housing from extending further into the rough opening, the first tab including a first leg that supports the first tab on the distal end of the at least one wall;
- and
- a second tab bounded on only three of four sides by the at least one wall, the second tab capable of being bent to bear against the second surface of the structural member and cooperate with the first tab to sandwich the structural member between the first and second tabs and attach the housing to the structural member in the rough opening, the second tab including a first leg that supports the second tab in the at least one wall,
- wherein the first and second tabs are integrally formed with the at least one wall, are co-planar with the at least one wall, and the first legs of the first and second tabs are each configured to yield to a force asserted on the respective first and second tabs to bend up to and beyond a 90 degree angle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.