Abstract:
A fan bracket assembly for supporting a fan assembly from a slanted surface. The fan bracket assembly includes a main body having a peripheral section, an open area sized to hold wiring of the fan assembly and an extension. The fan bracket is affixed to a slanted surface. The fan bracket assembly includes a detachable mounting ball sized and shaped to fit and be retained within the peripheral section. The mounting ball has a surface area extending beyond a horizontal reference line bisecting the mounting ball and a slot extending beyond the horizontal reference line. The extension is positioned within the slot to rotationally restrain the mounting ball. The bracket assembly also includes a down rod attached to the mounting ball for supporting the fan assembly. When the fan assembly is hung from the down rod, the extension remains within the slot to rotationally restrain the mounting ball.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This utility application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/481,181 filed Apr. 30, 2011 by Jack R. Kerr and Fran Hurley, Jr., which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    This invention relates to support assemblies. Specifically, and not by way of limitation, the present invention relates to a fan bracket assembly affixed to a slanted surface for supporting a fan. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    In many homes, ceiling fans are quite popular. The fans include a fan assembly which is typically mounted to a ceiling in a room. These fan assemblies are normally attached to one or more structural supports, such as joists or studs. However, there are several problems associated with mounting a fan assembly to a slanted surface, such as a slanted wall or canted ceiling. Specifically, existing fan bracket assemblies do not sufficiently support a fan assembly beyond an angle between a down rod of the fan assembly and the bracket of approximately 30 degrees. When the ceiling fan is mounted onto a slanted surface which is angled beyond approximately 30 degrees, a mounting ball which enables the down rod and fan to hang from the bracket assembly extends beyond a restraining device in the bracket. 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a front view illustrating an existing fan bracket assembly  10 . A down rod  12  includes a mounting ball  14  attached to the bracket assembly  10 . The bracket assembly includes an open area  16  for storage of electrical connections of a fan (not shown).  FIG. 2  is a side view illustrating the existing fan bracket assembly  10  at an angle limit θ between the down rod  12  and a line parallel to the bracket assembly. As illustrated, an upper portion  20  of the mounting ball includes a slot  22  which engages an extension  24  affixed to a bottom of the bracket assembly. Normally, the extension  24  is positioned within the slot  22  and guides the mounting ball and attached down rod to prevent swiveling of the fan and down rod. When the bracket assembly is attached to a slanted surface, due to gravity, the down rod rotates toward the ground. When the down rod is angled beyond an angle limit (limited by the length of the slot), the extension is positioned outside of the slot. By positioning the extension outside the slot, the fan and down rod rotates freely. Furthermore, wires located above the mounting ball in the open area  16  are exposed through the exposed area above the ball (where pencil is pointing in  FIG. 2 ). 
         [0007]      FIG. 3  is a top view of the bracket assembly  10  separated from the mounting ball  14 . The fan bracket assembly includes one or more wing segments  28  for attachment to a surface. The mounting ball also includes a top end  30 . This top end  30  is flat without any slant. 
         [0008]    Furthermore, it is becoming far more common to utilize wireless remote control mechanisms to control a fan attached to the bracket assembly. However, existing bracket assemblies do not provide sufficient room for storing both the remote control mechanism and wiring attached fan. In addition, the open areas of the bracket assembly do not have any mechanism to secure the remote control mechanism in the open areas. 
         [0009]    Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a fan bracket assembly which may be mounted to slanted surfaces and retain remote control devices in open areas of the bracket assembly. It is an object of the present invention to provide such an apparatus. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0010]    In one aspect, the present invention is a fan bracket assembly for supporting a fan assembly from a slanted surface. The fan bracket assembly includes a main body having a peripheral section, an open area sized to hold wiring of the fan assembly and an extension. The fan bracket is affixed to a slanted surface. The fan bracket assembly includes a detachable mounting ball sized and shaped to fit and be retained within the peripheral section. The mounting ball has a surface area extending beyond a horizontal reference line bisecting the mounting ball. A slot is positioned on the surface area extending beyond the horizontal reference line. The extension is positioned within the slot to rotationally restrain the mounting ball. The bracket assembly also includes a down rod attached to the mounting ball for supporting the fan assembly. When the fan assembly is hung from the down rod, the extension remains within the slot to rotationally restrain the mounting ball. 
         [0011]    In another embodiment, the main body includes a plurality of retainer arms for retaining a remote control mechanism in the open area. In still another embodiment, the down rod includes a collar. The collar is capable of affixing the down rod having a first diameter to a mounting ball sized to fit a second diameter larger than the first diameter. 
         [0012]    In still another embodiment, the present invention is an adapter plate for moving an axial orientation of a fan bracket assembly affixed to a surface. The adapter plate includes a planar surface with a plurality of slots, a retention mechanism for retaining the fan bracket assembly to the adapter plate, and a retention mechanism for retaining the adapter plate to a surface. The planar surface may be rotated to change the axial orientation of the fan bracket assembly in relationship to surface to which the fan bracket assembly is affixed 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]      FIG. 1  (prior art) is a front view illustrating an existing fan bracket assembly; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  (prior art) is a side view illustrating the existing fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 1  at an angle limit θ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  (prior art) is a top view of the bracket assembly of  FIG. 1  separated from the mounting ball  14 ; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a top view of a fan bracket assembly separated from a mounting ball and down rod in one embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the mounting ball and down rod; 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 4  hanging from a surface; 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is a front view illustrating the fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 4 ; 
           [0020]      FIG. 8  is an enlarged front view illustrating the slot and the extension positioned in the slot; 
           [0021]      FIG. 9  is a side by side view of the mounting ball of the present invention and the existing mounting ball; 
           [0022]      FIG. 10  is a side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 4 ; 
           [0023]      FIG. 11  is a side view illustrating a remote control mechanism located within the open area; 
           [0024]      FIG. 12  is a top view illustrating the down rod fitted with a collar; 
           [0025]      FIG. 13  (prior art) is a bottom view illustrating an existing standard electrical box; 
           [0026]      FIG. 14  is side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 4  affixed to the box; 
           [0027]      FIG. 15  is a side view illustrating the mounting ball and down rod within the fan bracket assembly affixed to the standard box; 
           [0028]      FIG. 16  is a bottom view illustrating an adapter plate mounted to the standard box of  FIG. 13  in another embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0029]      FIG. 17  is a side view illustrating the mounting ball and down rod positioned in the fan bracket assembly of  FIG. 4  attached to the adapter plate and standard box; 
           [0030]      FIG. 18  is a bottom view illustrating an adapter plate in an alternate embodiment of the adapter plate  450  of  FIG. 16 ; 
           [0031]      FIG. 19  is a bottom view illustrating the adapter plate of  FIG. 18  holding a remote control mechanism; and 
           [0032]      FIG. 20  is a side view of the mounting ball. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0033]    The present invention is a fan bracket assembly for use on a slanted surface.  FIG. 4  is a top view of a fan bracket assembly  100  separated from a mounting ball  102  and down rod  104  in one embodiment of the present invention. The fan bracket assembly  100  includes wing segments  106 , an open area  108 , and retaining bars  110 . The mounting ball includes a slanted top end  130  and a slot  132 . 
         [0034]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the mounting ball  102  and down rod  104 . Unlike the flat top end  30  of the mounting ball  14 , the present invention includes the slanted top end  130 . By slanting the top end  130 , the mounting ball has a larger surface area allowing the slot  132  to extend upward beyond a flat top end  30  of the existing mounting ball (see  FIG. 20 ). Thus, the slot  132  may retain the extension  140  (see  FIG. 4 ) of the fan bracket assembly  100  to a greater angle. 
         [0035]      FIG. 6  is a side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly  100  hanging from a surface. The down rod  104  rotates toward the ground due to gravity. The extension  140  is retained in the slot, thereby preventing swiveling of the fan or down rod. Furthermore, due to the shape of the mounting ball, the mounting ball does not have any areas where wires within the bracket assembly may be exposed.  FIG. 7  is a front view illustrating the fan bracket assembly  100 . The open area  108  may optionally be enlarged to accommodate a remote control mechanism and wiring for a fan. 
         [0036]      FIG. 8  is an enlarged front view illustrating the slot  132  and the extension  140  positioned in the slot. Upon a slanted surface, the angle α (see  FIG. 6 ) between the down rod and parallel to a peripheral section  150  of the bracket assembly  100  may go beyond the angle limit θ of the bracket assembly  10  of  FIG. 2  and still allow the extension  140  to remain in the slot  132 . The mounting ball is sized and shaped to fit within the peripheral section  150  and allow movement while securely holding a load hanging from the down rod  104 . 
         [0037]      FIG. 9  is a side by side view of the mounting ball  102  of the present invention and the existing mounting ball  14 . The mounting ball  102  includes the slanted top end  130 . The mounting ball  14  includes the top end  130  which is flat (i.e., no slant). The slanted top end  130  provides a larger surface area, thereby allowing the slot to extend upward beyond a horizontal reference line bisecting the mounting ball and enables the mounting ball to be moved to a positioned past the angular limits of the mounting ball  14  of the existing bracket assembly  10 . 
         [0038]      FIG. 20  is a side view of the mounting ball  102 . The mounting ball includes a surface area  109  extending beyond a horizontal reference line  111  notionally running horizontal though the mounting ball. The slot  132  may likewise extend upward beyond the horizontal reference line, thereby allowing the mounting ball and connected down rod beyond the angular limits of the mounting ball  14  (which does not have its slot extending beyond the horizontal reference line). It should be understood that the extended surface area may extend any length beyond the horizontal line and still remain in the scope of the present invention. For example, the mounting ball may be any shape which extends the surface area of the mounting ball beyond the horizontal reference line, such as a complete sphere, a half sphere (shown in  FIG. 20 ), a three quarters sphere, etc. 
         [0039]      FIG. 10  is a side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly  100 . The fan bracket assembly includes the open area  108  which may be sized to fit a remote control mechanism and wiring for a fan loaded on the bracket assembly  100 . The bracket includes retaining bars  110  to hold a remote control mechanism within the open area  108 . 
         [0040]      FIG. 11  is a side view illustrating a remote control mechanism  200  located within the open area  108 . The remote control mechanism may be retained in the open area  108  by the plurality of retaining bars  110 . The enlarged open area enables the remote control mechanism to be held in place in the open area  108  while providing sufficient space for retaining any wiring from a fan unit. Although retaining bars  110  are shown, any retaining mechanisms may be used and still remain in the scope of the present invention. 
         [0041]      FIG. 12  is a top view illustrating the down rod  104  fitted with a collar  300 . Many down rods have ½ inch or ¾ inch diameters. For down rods having a diameter of ½ inch, the down rods are normally unable to be used with brackets used for ¾ inch down rods. The present invention includes a collar  300  which enables the smaller diameter down rods to be used in bracket assemblies sized for larger diameter down rods. The collar includes a bore  302  for accommodating the down rod, such as a ½ inch diameter. The collar  300  includes an outer surface  304  increasing the diameter to ¾ of an inch. The collar may include one or more holes aligned with one or more holes  306  located on the down rod. A screw, bolt or other mechanism may be used to retain the collar against the down rod. By using the collar  300 , the ½ inch down rod may be used in bracket assemblies accommodating ¾ inch down rods. Although ½ inch and ¾ inch down rods are discussed, the collar  300  may be sized to accommodate any diameter of a down rod while increasing the down rod diameter to a greater diameter. 
         [0042]    The present invention enables a fan assembly to be mounted to a slanted surface and still enable the mounting ball&#39;s slot to be restrained by the extension  140 . In addition, the fan bracket assembly provides sufficient space to accommodate a remote control mechanism as well as wiring for a fan. In addition, the present invention may include a collar for use on a down rod to allow a smaller diameter down rod to be used for a bracket assembly sized for a larger diameter mounting ball. In addition, in one embodiment, the fan bracket with an open space for retaining a remote control mechanism may be utilized with any fan fixture assemblies and mounting ball and is not limited to the slanted mounted ball configuration. 
         [0043]      FIG. 13  is a bottom view illustrating an existing standard electrical box  400  which is typically affixed to a support member such as a joist (not shown). The standard box  400  typically houses wires running from a light or fan fixture to electrical wiring in the building or home.  FIG. 13  illustrates mounting screws  402  for which a fan bracket assembly is typically attached. 
         [0044]      FIG. 14  is side view illustrating the fan bracket assembly  100  affixed to the box  400 .  FIG. 15  is a side view illustrating the mounting ball  102  and down rod  104  within the fan bracket assembly  100  affixed to the standard box  400 . Even with the modifications to the mounting ball  102  having the slanted top end  130 , the down rod  104  is unable to extend directly perpendicular to the ground. Specifically, because of the orientation of the mounting screws  402  where the fan bracket assembly  100  is affixed, the fan bracket assembly is mounted at an orientation that the down rod cannot extend straight down. 
         [0045]      FIG. 16  is a bottom view illustrating an adapter plate  450  mounted to the standard box  400  in another embodiment of the present invention. The adapter plate may include one or more curved slots  452 . The curved slots preferably have a curvature equivalent to the curvature of the perimeter of the adapter plate. The mounting screws  402  are positioned within these slots. The slots enable the adapter plate to be rotated as desired to a desired orientation. Thus, the adapter plate is rotated to the desired orientation and the mounting screws  402  are tightened to hold the fan bracket assembly securely against the adapter plate and the box  400 . The fan bracket assembly is attached to the adapter plates with bracket screws  454  inserted into receiving holes  456 . 
         [0046]      FIG. 17  is a side view illustrating the mounting ball  102  and down rod  104  positioned in the fan bracket assembly  100  attached to the adapter plate  450  and standard box  400 . The adapter plate is rotated as necessary to move the position of the bracket screws and associated receiving holes  456  at such a position that the fan bracket assembly is aligned to allow the down rod to extend straight down. 
         [0047]      FIG. 18  is a bottom view illustrating an adapter plate  500  in an alternate embodiment of the adapter plate  450  of  FIG. 16 . The adapter plate  500  includes retaining bars  502  and an open area  504  sized and shaped to retain a remote control mechanism  200 . The adapter plate  500  is substantially the same as the adapter plate  450 , however the adapter plate  500  includes the retaining bars to retain a remote control mechanism. In this embodiment, the fan bracket assembly may include retaining bars and an open area for a remote control mechanism. 
         [0048]      FIG. 19  is a bottom view illustrating the adapter plate  500  of  FIG. 18  holding a remote control mechanism  200 . The remote control mechanism may be retained by the retaining bars  502  in the open area  504 . 
         [0049]    In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the adapter plate  500  may be an integral component of the fan bracket assembly where the fan bracket assembly and adapter plate  500  is one piece. Thus, the entire fan bracket assembly may be rotated to a desired axial orientation, thereby allowing the down rod to hang straight down. 
         [0050]    While the present invention is described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments within the scope thereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility. 
         [0051]    Thus, the present invention has been described herein with reference to a particular embodiment for a particular application. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the present teachings will recognize additional modifications, applications and embodiments within the scope thereof. 
         [0052]    It is therefore intended by the appended claims to cover any and all such applications, modifications and embodiments within the scope of the present invention.