Apparatus for securing and sealing a packaged terminal air conditioner to a plastic wall sleeve

A plastic sleeve assembly and an air conditioning unit are disclosed for mounting the air conditioning unit in a through-the-wall application. The sleeve assembly includes flange members with screw holes therethrough and standoffs about the screw holes, such that the air conditioning unit, having an L-shaped sealing flange thereon, when inserted into the sleeve and fastened thereto, causes the standoff on the flange to be in compression and not tension as the standoff makes contact with the L-shaped sealing flange when a fastener secures the air conditioner in the sleeve.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates generally to a through-the-wall sleeve for a 
packaged terminal air conditioning unit. More specifically, the present 
invention relates to a non-metallic wall sleeve including means for 
securing an air conditioning unit, having an L-shaped weather strip angle 
along the sides thereof, to a flange of the non-metallic sleeve. 
Air conditioning units which are commonly used for light commercial 
applications such as hotels, dormitories, and office buildings often are 
of the type known as a packaged terminal air conditioner. These packaged 
terminal air conditioners extend through the wall of the enclosure and 
normally have a condensing section located in communication with the 
ambient air for discharging heat energy. An evaporator section is provided 
in communication with the enclosure air for conditioning said air as it is 
drawn through the unit. Packaged terminal air conditioning units may be 
designed such that a portion of the unit is encased within the wall in a 
sleeve. The remaining portion of the unit is typically located within the 
enclosure to be conditioned and has readily accessible controls thereon 
and is encased within a decorative cover. 
Normally, through-the-wall installation can be made in masonry or wood 
frame walls by installing the sleeve through the wall during the 
construction of the building and installing the air conditioning unit in 
the sleeve upon completion of the building. 
Previous wall sleeves for packaged terminal air conditioners (although air 
conditioner units are described herein, packaged units may also be heat 
pumps or the like) have been constructed from sheet metal. This type of 
wall sleeve comprises a box formed by a top, a bottom, and two sides, but 
having the front and back open. Generally, a grille is fastened to the 
rear or outside opening, while the air conditioner unit is introduced into 
the sleeve through the front opening. The front opening of the sleeve is 
bound by a molding formed by bending the front edges of the top, the two 
sides and the bottom at right angles to form four flanges lying in the 
same plane with the long leg of an L-shaped weather sealing flange 
attached vertically along the sides of the air conditioning unit chassis. 
Accordingly, when the unit chassis is introduced into the sleeve the short 
leg of the L-shaped weather sealing flange mates perpendicularly with the 
side flanges on the sleeve while a gap is left between the flange of the 
sleeve and the long leg of the weather sealing flange of the air 
conditioning unit. Gasket material or weather tight caulking is generally 
applied in the gap between the sleeve and the air conditioning unit to 
insure a weather tight installation. However, when screws installed 
through the weather sealing flange of the air conditioning unit and the 
flange of the wall sleeve are tightened to secure the air conditioner 
chassis to the sleeve, the metal flange of the sleeve is distorted as the 
weather tight caulking is compressed between the wall sleeve and the air 
conditioning unit. This distortion of the flanges was not detrimental to 
the sleeve, however, since the material around the fastener holes in the 
sleeve was not broken, but was only bent since it was only ductile sheet 
metal, and the air conditioning unit could be removed and replaced and the 
mounting screws could still be secured through the weather sealing flange 
to the distorted wall sleeve flange. 
However, with the introduction of non-metallic or plastic sleeves, the 
flanges on the sleeves did not distort when the mounting screws for 
securing the air conditioning unit chassis to the flanges of the sleeve 
were tightened, but the sleeve flanges fractured and broke. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a unitary 
non-metallic wall sleeve for a packaged terminal air conditioner. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a non-metallic 
wall sleeve for a packaged terminal air conditioner such that the flanges 
around the wall sleeve will not break when the air conditioning unit is 
installed into and secured to the sleeve with a plurality of screw 
fasteners. 
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a plastic wall 
sleeve for a packaged terminal air conditioner such that the material 
around the screw holes of the flanges around the wall sleeve will be in 
compression and not in tension. 
These and other objects are achieved according to a preferred embodiment of 
the present invention by providing a plastic wall sleeve with an 
embossment around the screw holes in the flanges of the sleeve used for 
receiving the fasteners for securing the air conditioner chassis to the 
sleeve. The embossment has a height equal to the length of the short leg 
of an L-shaped weather sealing flange attached to the air conditioning 
unit such that when the fastening screws are fully torqued the sleeve 
flange is under compression. Accordingly, there is no tension forces on 
the sleeve flange to break it and the air conditioning unit can be secured 
and sealed without damage to the plastic sleeve. 
The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are 
pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part 
of this specification. For a better understanding of the invention, its 
operating advantages, and specific objects attained by its use, reference 
should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which 
there is illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the invention 
.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The preferred embodiment described herein will refer to a non-metallic 
through-the-wall sleeve and air conditioning unit chassis for use as a 
packaged terminal air conditioning unit. It is to be understood that this 
invention has like applicability to other types of packaged terminal units 
including heat pumps, electric resistance heaters, unitary hydronic units, 
and other similar applications. 
Referring first to FIG. 1 there may be seen a packaged terminal air 
conditioning unit 10 having front cover 12 and chassis 14. The packaged 
terminal air conditioning unit is installed in a sleeve 20. The sleeve may 
be of either a thermoplastic material or a thermoset material, e.g. glass 
reinforced molded polyester manufactured by Premix Inc. The sleeve 20 is 
typically mounted within the wall 30 of the enclosure such that the front 
cover 12 is visible to an occupant of the enclosure while the remainder of 
the unit is supported in a aperture 32 in the wall 30 of the enclosure. 
The sleeve 20 is box-like in shape having a top 27, two sides 28, and a 
bottom 29 wherein the front and back are open. The sleeve may be molded as 
one piece, or a plurality of pieces glued together from sheet molding 
compound. The front opening of the sleeve 20 has a flange or molding, 
generally perpendicular to the top, bottom and side surfaces of the 
sleeve, forming top flange 21, bottom flange 23, and side flanges 22. 
As seen in FIG. 1, the chassis 14 has an L-shaped mounting flange 16 
attached to the sides thereof. This mounting flange may be a piece of 
angle stock secured to the chassis by welding or the like. The mounting 
flange is adapted to coact with side flanges 22 of the sleeve 20 to secure 
the unit 10 to the sleeve 20. 
Referring now to FIG. 2 there may be seen a sectioned plan view of part of 
the unit 10 enclosed in the sleeve 20. The chassis 14 has the L-shaped 
mounting flange 16 attached thereto. The chassis 14 of the unit 10 is 
secured to the sleeve 20 by fasteners 18. 
For securing the chassis 14 to the sleeve 20 with the fasteners 18, side 
flanges 22 are molded perpendicularly inward and have aperture 24 
therethrough while the L-shaped mounting flange 16 has a corresponding 
aperture 34 through the long side of the L-shaped mounting flange. For 
securing the chassis 14 in place in the sleeve 20 with fastener 18, nut 
19, such as a J-speed nut, is provided at each aperture 24. 
A weather tight seal is maintained between the chassis 14 and the sleeve 20 
by gasket material 36. Further, an embossment or standoff 26 is provided 
between the side flange 22 and the L-shaped mounting flange 16. The 
embossment is generally concentric with the aperture 24 in the side flange 
22 and the aperture 24 may continue through the embossment. Moreover, the 
height or thickness of the embossment 26 is generally equivalent to the 
length of the short leg 17 of the L-shaped mounting flange 16. Thus, when 
the L-shaped mounting flange 16 of the chassis 14 is secured to the side 
flanges 22 of the sleeve 20 by fastener 18, the gasket material 36 is 
compressed to a depth no less than the height of the embossment or 
standoff 26. When the fastener 18 is fully torqued the side flange 22 is 
under compression and there is no tension force on the sleeve 20 to 
fracture it. Accordingly, the chassis is now secured and sealed to the 
sleeve without damage to the apertures or the side flanges of the sleeve. 
Referring now to FIG. 3 there can be seen an elevation view of the sleeve 
20 showing the J-nut 19 attached to the side flange 22 and the embossment 
26 circumscribed about the aperture 24. The embossment 26 is generally 
molded in circular form into the sleeve 20, but can be of various shapes 
such as rectangular, crescent, oval or the like, as long as its height is 
generally equivalent to the length of the short leg 17 of the L-shaped 
mounting flange 16. 
FIG. 4 shows a packaged terminal air conditioner secured to a plastic wall 
sleeve of the prior art. The L-shaped mounting flange 16 of the chassis 14 
is secured to the side flange 22 of the sleeve 20 by fastener 18 coacting 
with J-nut 19. This arrangement includes gasket material 36 between the 
L-shaped mounting flange 16 and the side flange 22 of the sleeve 20. 
However, when the screw is over torqued, which occurs frequently because 
the installer cannot see the side flange of the sleeve, the gasket 
material 36 is continually compressed until the side flange 22 approaches 
the long leg 15 of the L-shaped mounting flange, thus overstressing the 
side flange 22 causing the flange to break. 
It is contemplated that each side flange 22 of the sleeve 20 might have two 
apertures 24 therethrough. Each aperture 24 has a J-nut 19 or the like 
therearound to receive a fastener 18 insertable in a corresponding 
aperture 34 of the L-shaped mounting flange of the chassis. Once the 
chassis 14 is inserted in the sleeve 20 the fasteners 18 are used to 
secure the chassis in position. However, the embossment 26 maintains the 
side flange 22 in compression even if the fastener is over torqued. 
Hence, as has been described herein a packaged terminal air conditioner may 
be secured to a plastic wall sleeve without breaking the flange of the 
sleeve. 
The invention has been described with reference to a particular embodiment, 
however, it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that 
variations and modifications can be made within the spirit and scope of 
the invention.