US 10,539,329 B2Granted

Range hood installation system

AssigneeBroan-NuTone LLC

InventorsBenoit Gauthier, Richard R. Sinur, Brian R. Wellnitz, Jonathan Houde, Rémi Cossette, Yannick Morin, Mark Kurth, Peter Muller, Timothy Payne, David Wylen, Phil Anthony, Aaron Eiger, Scott Rote

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Abstract

A mounting bracket mountable to the underside of the cabinet prior to the range hood and configured to engage and support the range hood as the range hood is secured to the cabinet. The mounting bracket having a support feature engagable to the range hood to hold the range hood proximate the cabinet while fasteners are sunk to secure the range hood to the cabinet. The mounting brackets are pre-positioned on the cabinet such that range hood is aligned with the cabinet when the range hood is supported by the support feature. The smaller mounting brackets can be more easily mounted in the proper position on the cabinet then the larger range hood speeding the installation process and reducing errors.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A range hood mountable to an underside mounting surface of a cabinet, comprising:

a base section defining a thickness and having an upper surface and defining at least one support opening on the upper surface;
and
a mounting plate mountable to the cabinet at the underside mounting surface and including a base portion defining a thickness and having at least one support feature configured to be inserted through the corresponding support opening to engage the upper surface of the base section to hold the base section proximate to the cabinet before being secured thereto by at least one fastener;
wherein the support feature comprises a tongue formed from material of the base portion and displaced from the base portion to define a void in the base portion, the tongue having a proximal end extending from the base portion and a distal end displaced from the base portion a distance greater than the thickness of the base section of the range hood;
wherein the tongue extends away from the base section at the tongue proximal end to a crest, the tongue extending from the crest to a trough and then from the trough to the distal end of the tongue.

2 more elements

A method of mounting a range hood to an underside mounting surface of a cabinet, comprising:

coupling a base portion of a mounting plate to the cabinet at the underside mounting surface, wherein the base portion includes at least one support feature;
engaging the support feature to a support opening in an upper surface of the range hood such that the mounting plate supports the range hood and positions the range hood proximate the underside mounting surface, wherein the support feature comprises a tongue formed from material of the base portion displaced from the base portion to define a void in the base portion, the tongue having a proximal end extending from the base portion and a distal end displaced from the base portion a distance greater than the thickness of the base section of the range hood and the tongue extends away from the base section at the tongue proximal end to a crest, the tongue extending from the crest to a trough and then from the trough to the distal end of the tongue;
and
inserting a fastener through a mounting feature in the upper surface of the range hood and through a hood opening in the base portion to couple the range hood to the mounting plate.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.