Apparatus for removable mounting of a hose into an air-conditioning duct
OwnerPatrick Sean Brian Cuthbertinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for removable mounting of a corrugated hose into an air-conditioning duct, a building structure including the same, and a method of terminating an air-conditioning duct. The apparatus comprises a unitary body defining a tube that is sealingly engageable with the duct and a flange at an end of the hose for abutting a wall around the duct, a plug sealingly engageable in the tube, and a cap. The tube is configured to selectively threadably receive the plug or the hose. The cap is pivotably attached to the flange to allow the cap to be rotated towards the flange to cover the tube.
Claims17
An apparatus for removable mounting of a hose into an air-conditioning duct extending through a wall between an indoor space and an outdoor space to allow fluid communication therebetween via the hose, the hose being corrugated along its length to allow threadable engagement, the apparatus comprising:
- a unitary body, including
- a tube that is threadably engageable with the hose and adapted for insertion into the duct so as to cause sealing engagement of the tube with the duct,
- a planar flange disposed at an end of and substantially flush with the tube for abutting the wall around the duct upon the tube being fully inserted into the duct;
- an insulated plug adapted to threadably engage with the tube in place of threadable engagement of the hose with the tube so as to allow sealing of the insulated plug against the body to sealingly close the tube when the hose is displaced out of the tube;
- and
- a cap pivotably attached to the planar flange to allow the cap to be rotated towards the planar flange to cover the tube.
A method of terminating an air-conditioning duct extending through a wall between an indoor space and an outdoor space to allow fluid communication therebetween via a hose that is suitable for removably mounting into the air-conditioning duct, the hose being corrugated along its length to allow threadable engagement, the method comprising:
- receiving a tube in the duct to sealingly engage the tube with the duct, the tube adapted to threadably engage with the hose to receive the hose in the tube;
- threadably engaging a plug with the tube to sealingly receive the plug in the tube in place of the hose to block the duct;
- and
- receiving a cap onto a flange surrounding the tube to cover the tube and the plug by pivoting of the cap towards the flange, the cap defining
- a plurality of tabs extending from a face of the cap and being positioned relative to each other to frictionally engage with opposite sides of the plug to allow clamping of the plug onto the cap when the plug is displaced out of the tube.
A building structure extending between an outdoor space and an indoor space, the building structure including a wall facing the indoor space, comprising:
- an air-conditioning duct that is formed in the wall, the air-conditioning duct extending between the indoor space and the outdoor space to allow fluid communication therebetween via a hose that is corrugated along its length to allow threadable engagement;
- a unitary body, including
- a tube disposed inside the duct and sealingly engaged with the duct, the tube being adapted to threadably engage with the hose,
- a flange disposed at an end of the tube so as to abut the wall around the duct;
- a plug threadably engaged with the tube in place of threadable engagement of the hose with the tube so as to cause sealing of the plug against the body to sealingly close the tube;
- and
- a cap pivotably attached to the flange to allow the cap to be rotated towards the flange to cover the tube, the cap defining
- a plurality of tabs extending from a face of the cap and being positioned relative to each other to frictionally engage with opposite sides of the plug to allow clamping of the plug onto the cap when the plug is displaced out of the tube.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.