Window frame assembly

A window frame assembly for use in a window opening which extends from one side of a body such as a door, a wall or the like to the other side thereof comprising a preassembled first frame which includes a header member, side rail members and a sill member arranged and proportioned to fit within said window opening, each of said members comprising a transverse wall adapted to extend between the sides of said body, said transverse wall having first and second longitudinally extending sides, a first flange projecting outwardly from said transverse wall at said first side thereof for engagement with said one side of said body to prevent direct removal of said first frame from said opening through said other side, means located inwardly of said transverse wall for mounting at least one window unit within said first frame, and first locking means extending longitudinally of said frame member, said first locking means being engageable from said other side of said body in use, and a locking rail for each of said members comprising a longitudinally extending second flange having second locking means carried thereby, said second locking means being adapted to engage said first locking means of said first frame.

This invention relates to window frame assemblies. In particular, this 
invention relates to a window frame assembly which includes a preassembled 
first frame. 
PRIOR ART 
In a window frame of the type which is commonly mounted in an opening 
formed in a door, the header member, side rail members and sill member may 
each be in the form of a generally H-shaped extrusion which can be snapped 
into position over an edge of the door at the window opening. The extruded 
material is cut to the required sill, header and side rail lengths and 
these lengths are mounted in the opening one at a time. It is customary to 
first mount the sill member and header members and thereafter to mount the 
side rail members. In order to position the side rail members in an 
end-to-end abutting relationship with the sill and header members, it is 
necessary to bow the side rail members lengthwise. Before installing the 
members, a sealing compound is located at each corner so that the 
interface will be sealed a each corner when the members are installed. 
Considerable difficulty is experienced in obtaining a satisfactory seal by 
means of this conventional calking system. Because of these difficulties, 
it is also common practice to weld the abutting ends together at the 
interface by means of a solvent adhesive or the like. Thus, it will be 
apparent that this method of assembly and installation is time consuming 
and it requires considerable skill and care on the part of the mechanic 
responsible for the installation in order to obtain a satisfactory 
weathertight installation. A further difficulty expertienced in using the 
"snap-in type" frame elements is that the window opening in which they are 
mounted must be cut very accurately to ensure that the window will 
function properly. 
The H-shaped frame forming members have one channel for receiving the edge 
of the body in which the window opening is formed and the other channel 
receiving a window unit. The tolerances which are permitted in the 
thickness of doors and wall units in which window frames are to be mounted 
are quite substantial. This creates problems when the H-shaped section is 
mounted in a window opening in which the door or wall is of the maximum 
allowable thickness. Under these conditions, the walls of the channel in 
which the oversize body is mounted are deflected outwardly and this 
outward deflection is translated into an inward deflection of the walls of 
the inner channel. When a sliding window unit or a removable window unit 
is mounted within the frame, difficulty can be experienced in operating 
the window unit effectively because of the inward deflection of the side 
arms of the channel member. 
In another prior frame construction, two substantially identical half-frame 
members are manufactured and these half-frames are mounted in a sandwich 
type arrangement. Each half-frame member has integrally connected side 
rail header and sill members proportioned to fit a preselected window 
opening. The two half-frame members are arranged one on either side of the 
window opening and are inserted therein from opposite sides and secured to 
one another by fastening means extending transversely therebetween. 
Considerable difficulty is experienced in attempting to install these 
window units because it is necessary to use a plurality of fastening 
elements such as screws which are either screwed into the underlying 
support or extend transversely between the oppositely disposed frame 
members. Furthermore, these units are generally formed in an injection 
moulding process so that they are not sufficiently flexible to be mounted 
without the aid of calking to prevent moisture penetration. Thus, it is 
necessary to provide a calking compound along the entire periphery of the 
outer framing member in order to obtain a watertight installation. The 
manufacture of these members by an injection moulding process is expensive 
by reason of the expense involved in the preparation of dies suitable for 
use in the injection moulding process. Furthermore, when the window frame 
is required to support an operating window, it is not possible to 
injection mould a profile suitable for providing adequate support for a 
movable window or the tracks required for mounting a movable window or the 
like. Thus, it will be apparent that a sandwich-type window assembly, 
while simple to locate in a window opening, has many undesirable features. 
I have designed a window frame member which is simple to manufacture and to 
install in a window opening. It includes two components which are 
interlockable to secure the frame member in an operable position. The 
first component includes a transverse wall member and a flange which 
projects outwardly from the transverse wall member to form one side of a 
one edge of the transverse wall. The second component is a locking rail 
which has a second flange and a locking tongue adapted to be inserted into 
said locking disposed opposite the first flange. 
I have discovered that the mounting of the window mounting chamber. A first 
locking chamber is provided at one edge of the transverse wall. The second 
component is a locking rail which has a second flange and a locking tongue 
adapted to be inserted into said locking chamber to secure the second 
flange in a position disposed opposite the first flange. Frame can be 
greatly simplified and the problems resulting from the distortion of the 
extruded frame units can be overcome by providing a locking rail which can 
be mounted after the frame members are positioned in a window opening. The 
use of the locking rail permits the header sash and side rails to be 
preassembled to a frame configuration which can be inserted into a window 
opening from one side. Because the frame can be preassembled, the abutting 
end faces of each of the members can be welded or bonded to one another in 
a manner which will provide a water-tight seal, thus avoiding the 
necessity of calking the frame after it is installed. Furthermore, the 
locking rail is preferably constructed as the inner flange member and is 
designed and mounted on the preassembled frame member in a manner so as to 
permit it to flex to accomodate variations in the thickness of the body on 
which the window frame is mounted without causing inward deflection of the 
legs which form the window mounting channel. 
The fact that it is possible to preassemble the header, rail and sill 
members and to seal the abutting end faces in a manufacturing operation 
has numerous additional advantages over those described above. It provides 
for ease of installation and it provides an exterior appearance which is 
free from any visible securing screws. Furthermore, it improves the heat 
insulating characteristics of the window unit as a whole because the 
efficiency of the connection between the members can be carefully 
controlled in a manufacturing process. By mounting the window so that the 
outwardly directed flange of the preassemble frame unit is located at the 
outer face of the window opening, a completely sealed outer face is 
presented to the environment from which it is desired to insulate the 
interior space of a room or the like. 
SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a 
window frame assembly for use in a window opening which extends from one 
side of a body such as a door, a wall or the like to the other side 
thereof comprising a preassembled first frame which includes a header 
member, side rail members and a sill member arranged and proportioned to 
fit within said window opening, each of said members comprising, a 
transverse wall adapted to extend between the sides of said body, said 
transverse wall having first and second longitudinally extending sides, a 
first flange projecting outwardly from said transverse wall at said first 
side thereof for engagement with said one side of said body to prevent 
direct removal of said first frame from said opening through said other 
side, means located inwardly of said transverse wall for mounting at least 
one window unit within said first frame and first locking means extending 
longitudinally of said frame member, said first locking means being 
engageable from said other side of said body in use, and a locking rail 
for each of said members comprising a longitudinally extending second 
flange having second locking means carried thereby, said second locking 
means being adapted to engage said first locking means of said first frame 
when said first frame is located in a window opening as aforesaid, to 
secure said locking rail means with respect to said first frame member 
with said second flange disposed opposite said first flange for engagement 
with said other side of said body to clamp said body between said first 
and second flanges and securely mount said window frame assembly in said 
window opening in use.

With reference to the drawings, the reference numeral 10 refers generally 
to a preassembled first frame and the reference numeral 12 refers 
generally to a locking rail suitable for use in securing the preassembled 
first frame 10 in a window opening 14 in a body 16 of a door, a wall or 
the like. 
The preassembled first frame consists of a header member 18, a pair of 
oppositely disposed side rail members 20 and a sill member 22. In the 
embodiment illustrated in the drawings, the header, side rail and sill 
members 22 are of identical construction and each have a transverse wall 
24 and a first flange 26 projecting outwardly therefrom. The preassembled 
first frame 10 is proportioned so that the transverse walls 24 will fit 
freely within the opening 14 with the first flanges projecting outwardly 
therefrom in an overlying relationship with respect to an outer face of 
the body 16. Thus it will be seen that the preassembled first frame member 
can be inserted from one side of the window opening and is prevented from 
removal to the other side by the first flanges 26. The abutting end faces 
of the members 18, 20 and 22 may be sealed by suitable adhesive which may 
be in the form of a solvent which will effectively permit welding of the 
abutting faces together so that the first frame may be prefabricated to a 
substantially unitary body. By welding or sealing along the abutting faces 
at the joint between each frame member, the passage of moisture through 
the frame at the joints is prevented. By preassembling the first frame 
member, it extremely simple to install the first frame member as it merely 
slides into the opening 14. 
In the preferred embodiment, the sill members, header member and side rail 
members are of the same cross-sectional configuration and have a locking 
channel 28 extending longitudinally thereof which opens outwardly at the 
second edge of the transverse wall 24 at longitudinally extending passage 
30. The locking channel 28 is bounded by a marginal edge portion 32 of the 
transverse wall 24, an end wall 34 and a side wall 36. A locking shoulder 
38 is formed on the side wall 36 and has an inclined face directed 
inwardly of the channel 28. A further locking shoulder 40 is located on 
the marginal edge portion 32 on the opposite side of the channel and 
spaced laterally inwardly from the shoulder 38. 
Each frame member is adapted to permit mounting of a window unit inwardly 
thereof and to this end it is formed with a second transverse wall 44 
which has side walls 46 projecting inwardly therefrom to cooperate 
therewith to provide a generally U-shaped channel for receiving a window 
unit 48. The side walls 46 have resilient flanges 50 projecting 
transversely inwardly therefrom for engagement with the sides of the 
window unit. Facing walls 52 and 54 are located at the inner and outer 
sides of the frame members and extend longitudinally thereof. A web 56 
extends angularly between transverse walls 24 and 44. It will be noted 
that the transverse wall 44 is inclined toward the transverse wall 24 in a 
direction toward the outer edge thereof. The angular inclination of the 
wall 44 serves to drain any accumulated moisture toward the outside of the 
frame member wherein it is permitted to drain through drain passages 58 
and 60. 
The locking rail members 12 each have a locking tongue 60 and a second 
flange member 62 arranged in a generally L-shaped configuration, the 
locking tongue 60 has locking shoulders 64 and 66 extending longitudinally 
thereof for engagement with the locking shoulders 38 and 40 of the locking 
channel 28 respectively. It will be understood that locking rails of 
different proportions may be made available to accomodate bodies of 
different thickness. It will be apparent that the distance from the 
locking shoulder 64 to the second flange member 62 may differ in different 
sets of locking rails thereby providing different channel widths to 
accomodate door or walls of different thickness. 
In use, the preassembled first frame is mounted in the window opening as 
previously described and thereafter the locking rails are inserted into 
the locking channel 28 in each frame member. The locking tongue of each 
locking rail is inserted into its locking channel 28 by way of passage 30. 
The preassembled first frame member and associated locking rails are 
proportioned such that if the frame assembly was assembled in a relaxed 
configuration with the locking shoulders interlocked, the distance between 
the first and second side walls 26 and 62 when in the relaxed 
configuration is less than the minimum thickness of the body 16 in which 
the assembly is to be mounted so that the side walls 26 and 62 will always 
be urged to move away from one another by the body on which they are 
mounted in use. The clamping force applied by the second flange 62 to the 
body serve to urge the shoulders 38 and 64 and shoulders 40 to 66 into 
locking engagement. 
From the foregoing it will be apparent that the first frame unit can be 
efficiently assembled in a manufacturing operation with the various frame 
members correctly aligned and sealed at their abutting end faces to form a 
substantially unitary body. The preassembled first frame unit can be very 
easily inserted into a window frame and the locking rails can be very 
easily mounted within the locking channels to secure the window frame 
assembly as a whole in the window opening. 
Various modifications of the present invention will be apparent to those 
skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. For 
example, the means located inwardly of the transverse wall for mounting 
the window unit may be extending longitudinally thereof for engagement 
with the locking shoulders 38 and 40 of the locking channel 28 
respectively. 
In use, the preassembled first frame is mounted in the window opening as 
previously described and thereafter the locking rails are inserted into 
the locking channels 28 in each frame member. The locking tongue of each 
locking rail is inserted into its locking channel 28 by way of passage 30. 
The preassembled first frame member and associated locking rails are 
proportioned such that if the frame assembly was assembled in a relaxed 
configuration with the locking shoulders interlocked, the distance between 
the first and second side walls 26 and 62 when in the relaxed 
configuration is less than the minimum thickness of the body 16 in which 
the assembly is to be mounted so that the side walls 26 and 62 will always 
be urged to move away from one another by the body on which they are 
mounted in use. The clamping force applied by the second flange 62 to the 
body serve to urge the shoulders 38 and 64 and shoulders 40 and 66 into 
locking engagement. 
From the foregoing it will be apparent that the first frame unit can be 
efficiently assembled in a manufacturing operation with the various frame 
members correctly aligned and sealed at their abutting end faces to form a 
substantially unitary body. The preassembled first frame unit can be very 
easily inserted into a window frame and the locking rails can be very 
easily mounted within the locking channels to secure the window frame 
assembly as a whole in the window opening. 
Various modifications of the present invention will be apparent to those 
skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. For 
example, the means located inwardly of the transverse wall for mounting 
the window unit may be designed to permit one or more window units to be 
located therein. It may be designed to permit two sliding window units to 
be located therein and it may include additional components for use in 
securing the window units therein as required in use.