Dryer vent
OwnerEdward G. Nielseninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vent apparatus for controlling the flow of heated exhaust air from a clothes dryer has a housing connected to the heated exhaust conduit and a filter within the housing for filtering the exhaust gases. Controls regulate the relative amounts of exhaust gases directed outside the dryer room and through the housing into the dryer room. In one embodiment, the heated dryer air is ducted through the housing and the control is a valve which directs the gas either into the housing or through the exhaust outlet of the housing. The invention channels moist, heated air into a house in desired proportions to conserve heat energy and to humidify the home in the winter.
Claims5
A vent assembly for use in combination with a clothes dryer in a room wherein the dryer has an outlet pipe extending therefrom for venting heated air from the dryer, the vent assembly comprising:
- a housing having an open rectangular front, closed back and side walls and a generally open interior;
- a conduit extending through said housing at one side thereof from an inlet opening in said housing to an outlet opening in said housing;
- means on said housing for coupling said dryer outlet pipe to said conduit at said inlet opening thereof;
- means on said housing for coupling an exhaust pipe to said conduit at said outlet opening thereof for exhausting heated air from the room containing the vent assembly;
- valve means in said conduit for adjustably controlling the relative proportion of heated gas passing from said inlet opening to either the interior of said housing or to said outlet, said valve means adapted to substantially completely cut off the flow of heated air to the housing open interior or, alternatively, to the outlet opening, said valve means further adapted to direct heated air into said housing parallel to the open rectangular front of the housing when flow of heated air to the outlet opening is at least partially cut off;
- rectangular filter means at and covering only the open front of the housing, said filter means including a rectangular supporting rim supporting a central filter medium;
- and
- means for releasably retaining the filter means at the open front of the housing;
- whereby heated air from the dryer can be vented in whole or part to the outside of the room or to the inside of the room through the vent assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.