Plenum for air conditioning and controlled mechanical ventilation systems

Abstract

Plenum for air conditioning systems, comprising a box-shaped body or box (1), said box comprising at least two side walls (3) and a bottom wall (4) and two closure caps (5) for said box, each cap having a pre-moulded wall (6) with retaining means (7) for said side and bottom walls, characterised in that said pre-moulded wall (6) has a strip (8) of variable thickness extending internally within said box and parallel to an edge (9) of said wall, said strip having a plurality of seats (10) in each of which a respective fin (12) for diffusing conditioned air or CMV air is engaged.

Description

[0001] PLENUM FOR AIR CONDITIONING AND CONTROLLED MECHANICAL VENTILATION SYSTEMS

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The present invention relates to a plenum for air conditioning systems and controlled mechanical ventilation.

[0005] As is well known, a ducted air conditioning system has an external condensing unit, an internal machine and an evaporator. Conversely, a controlled mechanical ventilation system, generally referred to as a CMV system, has a machine designed to exchange air.

[0006] The air is transported evenly throughout the rooms through special ducts. In each room, the air is then diffused through special supply and return air grilles.

[0007] Each grille is mounted on a box (or box body) to which a conditioned air conveying duct is connected. The box is then fixed in a special window made by the installer in the plasterboard or is specially walled flush with the wall.

[0008] The grille is usually manufactured in the workshop using special machinery, so this operation must take place before the installer installs it in the box prepared on the wall.

[0009] In fact, the grille has a frame made of four profiles cut at 45° to each other, rigidly joined by brackets, to which the slats or fins for directing the air flow are attached.

[0010] The fins can rotate around their hinge axis in any direction but cannot be removed from the grille for replacement or be fitted by the installer during assembly.

[0011] Furthermore, a normal grille must be manufactured using specialised machinery for cutting the four profiles, rigidly connecting them with the brackets, and assembling the fins with the profiles in order to form a single non-flat body.

[0012] From the above, it is clear that the manufacture of a grille for an air conditioning or CMV system presents numerous drawbacks, essentially due to the fact that, depending on the different sizes of the boxes to be installed, it is necessary to prepare the relevant grilles in advance in the workshop using specialised machinery and skilled personnel.

[0013] This also entails considerable storage and transport costs due to the large volume occupied by the grilles assembled in the workshop.

[0014] The same drawbacks as for the grilles also applied to the grille boxes due to the continuous variations in size according to requirements and the resulting high transport and storage costs due to their size, as they were manufactured in the workshop.

[0015] Publication IT 2019 0000 4341 U1 concerns a grille support box for an air conditioning system.

[0016] Publication IT 2021 0001 0385 A1 describes a vent for a ducted air conditioning system.

[0017] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0018] These drawbacks have been successfully overcome by the inventor himself, by placing preformed caps on the sides of the boxes, allowing them to be assembled directly during installation and saving on labour, storage and transport costs.

[0019] The use of caps also allows the box to be squared and stiffened even in the absence of the grille.

[0020] The aim of the present invention is to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.

[0021] Within this aim, an important object of the invention is to design a plenum for air conditioning systems whose box and grille can both be easily and quickly assembled by the installer at the installation site.

[0022] Another object is to design a plenum for air conditioning systems whose support box and grille can be stored and transported with extremely low space requirements, as they are flat and not box-shaped.

[0023] Yet another object is to create a plenum for air conditioning systems that can be assembled in a very short time, at least 70% less than in the prior art and, consequently, at half the cost, essentially due to the fact that its components have been drastically reduced.

[0024] Last but not least, an object is to design a plenum for air conditioning systems that can be quickly fixed to a housing window both at the front and rear thereof without any positioning errors.

[0025] This aim, as well as these and other objects, are achieved by a plenum for air conditioning systems, comprising a box-shaped body or box (1 ), said box comprising at least two side walls (3) and a bottom wall (4) and two closure caps (5) for said box, each cap having a pre-moulded wall (6) having retaining means (7) for said side and bottom walls, characterised in that said pre-moulded wall (6) has a strip (8) of variable thickness extending internally within said box and parallel to an edge (9) of said wall, said strip having a plurality of seats (10), a fin (12) for diffusing conditioned air engaging each seat of said plurality of seats.

[0026] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] These characteristics and advantages of the invention will be more apparent from the following non-limitative description of preferred but not exclusive embodiments of a plenum for an air conditioning system illustrated in the following figures, in which:

[0028] Fig. 1 is a plan view of a plenum for an air conditioning or CMV system according to the invention;

[0029] Fig. 2 is a side elevation view of a plenum for an air conditioning or CMV system according to the invention;

[0030] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a plenum for an air conditioning or CMV system according to the invention;

[0031] Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a plenum for an air conditioning or CMV system according to the invention.

[0032] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0033] With particular reference to the figures described above, the plenum for air conditioning or CMV systems is generically indicated with reference number 1.

[0034] In particular, plenum 1 comprises a box-shaped body or box defined by at least two side walls 3 and a bottom wall 4 and two closure caps, generally indicated with 5, preferably made of plastic material by moulding.

[0035] Each cap has a pre-moulded wall 6 which has both the retaining pieces (7) for the side walls 3 and bottom wall 4 in a fixed and squared position, and a strip, generally indicated with 8, having a surface of variable thickness and extending internally within the box and parallel to the edge 9 of the wall 6. The edge 9 is raised so that it can be aligned, as will be seen, with the profiles 21 .

[0036] In particular, the strip has a plurality of seats 10, each of which is engaged, with the possibility of rotation, by the circular section rod 11 of each fin 12 which, together with the other fins, serves to direct the diffusion of conditioned air in a room.

[0037] In a first solution, the strip 8 is in a single block defined by an increased thickness of the wall 6 in which the seats 10 of the fins are also present. In a preferred solution, the strip 8 is divided into a plurality of blocks 13 of equal thickness and size.

[0038] The blocks are aligned and equidistant from each other. Each block has at least one of the seats 10. This latter solution saves plastic material without affecting either the resistance of wall 6 to stress or the operation of the fins and their perfect parallelism. Advantageously, the seats 8 are semicircular in shape to form an inlet opening 14 for each fin.

[0039] The inlet opening width is smaller than the diameter of the rod 11 to allow the installer to assemble and fix by rotating interlocking each fin directly at the plenum installation site.

[0040] The retaining means 7 for the side and bottom walls 3 and 4 are defined by a channel 15 that runs along three sides of each wall, whereas the fourth side, as mentioned, is preferably occupied by the strip 8. In particular, said channel 15 has internal notches 16 for locking the side walls 3 and the bottom wall 4.

[0041] In this way, channel 15 determines the perfect and lasting position of the walls, keeping them perfectly squared over time.

[0042] The plenum advantageously includes means 17 for fixing the box-shaped body internally to a support wall of the plenum, usually made of plasterboard, not shown.

[0043] The fixing means comprise a block 18 having two pins 19 engaging two holes 20 in the wall 6.

[0044] It should also be noted that the plenum includes two profiles, collectively indicated with 21 , substantially shaped like an 'h', which are associated with the side walls 3.

[0045] The profiles 21 have an edge 22 with a height equal to the height of the pre-moulded wall and, in particular, of the edge 9 thereof.

[0046] The edge 9 of the wall and the edge 22 of the profiles define a frame that encloses the fins around the perimeter, conveying the air flow only between them and not to the sides.

[0047] This feature not only optimises the direction of the air flow but also provides lateral protection from the fins, which have rough, unfinished walls on their sides due to their cut, which is thus simplified and economical.

[0048] Advantageously, the wall 6 has two tabs 23 on the side of edge 9 that are perpendicular to it.

[0049] The tabs 23 engage between the profiles 21 and the side walls 3, remaining firmly held in position.

[0050] The presence of the tabs 23 involves important advantages.

[0051] Firstly, the tabs 23 allow the wall 6, where the strip 8 is present, to remain perfectly flat without any deformation due to the snap-in introduction of the fins into the seats 10.

[0052] Thanks to this solution, it is possible to maintain the wall 6 with a constant thickness without thickening it, thus saving material for its construction while ensuring its resistance to bending.

[0053] Furthermore, thanks to the resistance to bending of wall 6, it is possible to apply fixing means 17 to it, which include a block 18 with two pins 19 engaged in two holes 20 in the wall 6.

[0054] The block 18 allows the box body to be aligned with the plasterboard wall it is to be fixed to, and to be locked onto it simply by inserting a self-tapping screw into the plasterboard wall, which engages into the block 18 causing the box body to be fixed to the plasterboard wall.

[0055] In the block 18, the pegs 19 are off-centre so that the distance between the block and edge 9 can be varied, allowing a distance of 12 mm or 24 mm to be obtained depending on the direction of installation, to allow installation in both single-sheet and double-sheet plasterboard walls.

[0056] Advantageously, the box-shaped body or box is defined by a processing scrap of a rigid polyurethane foam sheet coated on both sides with embossed aluminium sheets.

[0057] Usually, the density of the foams used for the production of panels, with flexible or rigid coatings, ranges between 30 and 48 kg / m3

[0058] The standard polyurethane and aluminium sheet has a standard width of 120 cm and a standard length of 400 cm, whereas the scrap has a width of between 30 and 40 cm and a length equal to that of the sheet, i.e. 400 cm.

[0059] The scrap has two 45° cuts 25 that are spaced apart by a distance equal to the height of the bottom wall.

[0060] According to the invention, the plenum is particularly advantageous due to its reduced dimensions, which allow it to be installed in all types of walls, whether masonry or single- or double-sheet plasterboard.

[0061] The invention as conceived is subject to modifications and variations, all of which fall within the inventive concept indicated by technical equivalence.

[0062] Similarly, the materials and dimensions, which may be any type depending on requirements, also fall within the inventive concept disclosed.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A plenum for air conditioning systems, comprising a box-shaped body or box (1 ), said box comprising at least two side walls (3) and a bottom wall (4) and two closure caps (5) for said box, each cap having a pre-moulded wall (6) with retaining means (7) for said side and bottom walls, characterised in that said pre-moulded wall (6) has a strip (8) of variable thickness extending internally within said box and parallel to an edge (9) of said wall, said strip having a plurality of seats (10), wherein a fin (12) for diffusing the conditioned air engages each seat of said plurality of seats.

2. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said strip is divided into a plurality of blocks (13) of equal thickness and size, each block having at least one of said seats (10).

3. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said seats (10) are semicircular in shape to each form an inlet opening (14) for said fin, said inlet opening having a width smaller than the diameter of a rod (11 ) supporting for said fin (12).

4. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said retaining means comprise a channel (15) inside which are located notches (16) for locking said side and bottom walls.

5. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said caps have means (17) for fixing said box-shaped body internally to a support wall of the plenum.

6. The plenum according to claim 5, characterised in that said fastening means comprise a block (18) having two pins (19) engaging two holes (20) in said wall.

7. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that it comprises two profiles (21 ) associated with said side walls, said profiles having an edge (22) with equal height to that of said edge (9) of said pre-moulded wall, said edge (9) of said pre-moulded wall and said edge (22) of said profiles defining a closed frame which encloses said fins around their perimeter.

8. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said wall (6)has two tabs (23) on the sides of said edge (9) that engage between said profiles and said side walls.

9. The plenum according to claim 1 , characterised in that said boxshaped body is defined by a processing scrap having a width between 30 and 40 cm, said scrap deriving from the processing of a sheet of polyurethane foam coated with two sheets of embossed aluminium having a standard width of 120 cm and a standard length of 400 cm.

10. The plenum according to claim 9, characterised in that said bottom wall (4) has a height equal to the distance between two 45° cuts (25) on said scrap.

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