Abstract:
The present invention includes a window jamb assembly mountable in a jamb of a double hung window for cooperative engagement with upper and lower sash assemblies. The window jamb assembly includes a jambliner that has inner and outer sash hardware accepting recesses and first and second weather-strip retaining recesses disposed between the sash hardware accepting recesses. First and second weather-strips are retained by the first and second weather-strip retaining recesses and cover strips are disposed in a remainder of the weather-strip recess that is not retaining a weather-strip. The cover strips have a facade portion that provides a visually pleasing finish.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)  
       [0001]     Applicant claims the priority date of U.S. Provisional Application 60/440,762, filed Jan. 17, 2003. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to jamb assemblies for double hung windows, and in particular, to a jamb assembly that provides a weather-seal for a double hung window and a visually pleasing finish.  
         [0003]     Jambliners are used to mount window sashes in a double hung window configuration so that the window sashes may be moved up and down to be placed either in an open or a closed position. The jambliners have recesses in which hardware is placed to permit the windows to be moved in an up and down fashion.  
         [0004]     In addition to providing a means for moving window sashes up and down, the jambliners also strive to provide a weather-seal between the window sash and the jambliner when the windows are in a closed position. Recesses are also provided to retain the weather-strip. When the windows are in a closed position, it is also desired to provide a finished look to the window. One problem with jambliners is that they are an integrally extruded piece typically extruded of polyvinylchloride (PVC) or other plastic which results in recesses running the length of the jambliner and being open to view when the windows are in a closed position. The portion of the recesses that are open to view are not associated with (hidden by) a window sash and are therefore open to view. The Hendrickson et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,305,126 provides one solution to covering up those portions of the recesses that do not retain weather-stripping. The solution is another recess disposed between the recesses that retain the weather-stripping. This central or middle recess is used to insert a cover strip which then extends on an exterior surface of the jambliner to provide a visually pleasing finish.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     The present invention includes a window jamb assembly mountable in a jamb of a double hung window for cooperative engagement with upper and lower sash assemblies. The window jamb assembly includes a jambliner that has inner and outer sash hardware accepting recesses and first and second weather-strip retaining recesses disposed between the sash hardware accepting recesses. First and second weather-strips are retained by the first and second weather-strip retaining recesses and jambliner cover strips are disposed in a remainder of the weather-strip recesses that do not retain a weather-strip. The jambliner cover strips have a facade portion that provides a visually pleasing finish.  
         [0006]     In addition, the present invention includes a weather-strip that provides a weather seal between two surfaces, one of the surfaces including a channel for retaining the weather-strip. The weather-strip includes a weather sealing portion having a forward edge for engaging the movable surface and a first leg for engaging one edge of the channel and a second leg for engaging another edge of the channel and a spring arm cooperating with at least one of the legs and having a distal free end for engaging a backwall of the channel. The spring arm exhibits a spring force to move the sealing portion to a weather sealing position with the movable surface. Since the weather-strip is not attached to the surface of the channel, it is free floating with respect to that surface. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the jambliner assembly of the present invention.  
         [0008]      FIG. 2  is a perspective sectional view of one embodiment of the jambliner of the present invention.  
         [0009]      FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the embodiment of  FIG. 2 .  
         [0010]      FIG. 4  is a perspective sectional view of another embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is a sectional view of the embodiment of  FIG. 4 .  
         [0012]      FIG. 6  is a sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0013]      FIG. 7  is a sectional view of a free floating weather-strip of the present invention.  
         [0014]      FIG. 8A  is a sectional view of yet another alternative embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0015]      FIG. 8B  is a sectional view of a further alternative embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     The present invention includes a window jamb assembly generally indicated at  10  in  FIG. 1 . The window jamb assembly is mountable in a jamb  12  of a double hung window  14 . The double hung window  14  has an upper portion  13  with an upper sash  16  and a lower portion  15  with a lower sash  18 . The upper and lower sashes  16 ,  18  cooperate with the jamb assembly  10 . The jamb assembly  10  has a length and width selected to correspond to the window jamb  12  with which it is used.  
         [0017]     The jamb assembly  10  includes a jambliner  20 , weather-strips  22 U and  22 L and jambliner covers  24 U and  24 L. The jambliner  20  is extruded typically of a plastic such as polyvinylchloride (PVC) and includes sash assembly recesses  26  and  28  and two weather-strip recesses  32  and  34  disposed between the sash assembly recesses  26  and  28  for retaining the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L and the jambliner covers  24 U and  24 L. The sash assembly recesses  26  and  28  and the weather-strip recesses  32  and  34  run the length of the jambliner.  
         [0018]     The jambliner covers  24 U and  24 L engage the weather-strip recesses  32  and  34  in portions that are not occupied by the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L to provide aesthetically pleasing coverings over such portions of the recesses and adjacent areas of the jambliner. The cover strip  24 U and the weather-strip  22 U are associated with the upper portion  13  of the window while the cover  24 L and the weather-strip  22 L are associated with the lower portion  15  of the window  14 . Utilizing the construction of the present invention, the cover  24 U covers that portion of the weather-strip recess  34  that is in the upper portion of the window  14  and which is not occupied by the weather-strip  22 L which occupies the recess  34  that is in the lower portion  15  of the window  14 . Similarly the cover portion  24 L covers that portion of the weather-strip recess  32  in the lower portion  15  of the window  14  that is not occupied by the weather-strip  22 U which lies in the upper portion  13  of the window  14 .  
         [0019]     It will be appreciated that the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L are of a length that is at least substantially equal to the length of the sash assembly with which such weather-strip is associated. Similarly, the covers  24 U and  24 L are of a length that is sufficient to cover the remaining portions of the weather-strip recesses that are not occupied by the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L. Alternatively, the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L may extend the entire length of the weather-strip recess.  
         [0020]     As specifically illustrated in  FIG. 1 , the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L are slightly longer than the respective sash assemblies with which such weather-strips are providing a weather seal. In the area that the weather-strips project beyond the respective sash assemblies, a weather seal  23  is affixed to the jambliner  20  to provide a weather seal between a lower portion of the upper sash assembly and an upper portion of the lower sash assembly when the double hung window is in a closed configuration. Alternatively, the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L may be less than the length of the sash with the weather seal extending between sash assembly recesses  26  and  28  and each weather-strip abutting against the weather seal. Such weather seals and the materials used are well known in the art.  
         [0021]     The weather-strips  22 U and  22 L are typically the same in construction but could be different. For placement in either the upper portion  13  of the window  14  or the lower portion  15  of the window  14 , the weather-strips are turned 180°. Similarly the covers  24 U and  24 L are of the same construction and may be turned 180° to fit either in the upper portion  13  of the window  14  or the lower portion  15  of the window  14 . The weather-strip recesses interchangeably retain both the weather-strips  22 U and  22 L and the covers  24 U and  24 L to provide a flexible arrangement for sealing windows and jambliner covers over the unused portions of the weather-strip recesses. Such is accomplished using only the two weather-strip recesses disposed between the sash assembly recesses.  
         [0022]     In reference to the embodiments described below, since the weather-strips and the jambliner covers are constructed the same, no distinction will be made as to whether weather-strips are upper or lower weather-strips or whether jambliner covers are upper or lower covers for purposes of ease of reference and only one reference character will be used for each of the weather-strips and each of the covers when referring to  FIGS. 2 through 5 .  
         [0023]     A first embodiment of the jamb assembly  10  is illustrated in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . The sash assembly recesses of the jambliner  20  accept sash assembly interfacing hardware  30  (only one of which is shown). The sash assembly interfacing hardware  30  facilitates retention and translation of the upper and lower sash assemblies  16  and  18  relative to the window jamb  12 . The particular type of hardware used is unimportant to the present invention and is well known in the art.  
         [0024]     The jambliner  20  further includes a chamber  36  disposed between the weather-strip recesses  32  and  34  that has an opening facing the window jamb  12  and a front wall  37  that hides from view the existence of the chamber  36 . The existence of the chamber  36  or its non-existence depends on the width of the jamb which the jambliner covers. It will be appreciated, for larger width jambs, the jambliner has to be wider, and the width of the chamber  36  is therefore increased.  
         [0025]     The weather-strip  22  includes a sealing portion  40  and a pair of resilient legs  42  and  44  that extend into the weather-strip recess  32 . A foam block  46  is of a size and shape that fits between the resilient legs  42  and  44  and extends from a backwall  48  of the recess  32  to engage a backside  50  of the sealing portion  40  thereby providing a spring force in the direction indicated by arrow  51 . The spring force pushes the weather-strip  22  up against the window sash  16  to provide a weather seal. To retain the weather-strip within the recess  32 , the resilient legs  42  and  44  have shoulders  52  and  54 , that respectively engage shoulders  56  which are at a forward most position of the recess  32 . It will be appreciated that the shoulders  52  and  54  engage the shoulders  56  thereby retaining the weather-strip  22  in place when the sealing portion  40  is not in engagement with the sash  16 .  
         [0026]     The resiliency of the legs  42  and  44  permits insertion of the legs into the recess  32 . The foam block  46  may be made of any suitable polymeric material such as polyurethane that is formed by processes well known to produce a resilient non-rigid foam. The sealing portion  40  is constructed of an exterior layer of polymeric material such as polyvinylchloride. The portion  40  has an interior  60  that may be filled with a resilient foam, or may be left empty. The weather-strip is typically extruded as one integral piece.  
         [0027]     The jambliner cover  24  has a cover portion  62  that extends from the weather-strip  22  to an adjacent sash assembly recess as best illustrated in  FIG. 3 . The cover portion  62  not only covers a portion of the weather-strip recess from view but also an area of the jambliner from the sash assembly recess up to an adjacent weather-strip. Essentially, the cover portion  62  is used to cover that portion of the recess  34  that is not engaging a weather-strip and those adjacent areas between the weather-strip and the sash assembly recess. A recess engaging plug  64  extends rearwardly from the cover portion  62  and preferably runs the length of the cover  24 . The plug  64  is insertable within the weather-strip recess  34  to retain the cover  24  in place. The jambliner cover  24  when positioned on an exterior side of the window  4  is intended to match the exterior trim of the window  14 . When the jambliner cover  24  is positioned on an interior side of the window  14 , the cover  24  may be made to match the interior trim of the window. The cover portion  62  may be made of actual wood, steel, aluminum, vinyl or any other material typically used for window trim. When the cover is not made of actual wood, the jambliner cover  24  is typically extruded as a single integral piece.  
         [0028]     The above description with respect to the weather-strip in the recess  32  and the cover portion in the recess  34  is to be understood that each recess  32  or  34  is constructed exactly the same and that the shoulders  56  of the recess  32  are made to engage also the shoulders  66  of the plug portion  64  to provide interchangeability. Similarly, the shoulders  56  of the recess  34  are made to engage the shoulders  52  and  54  of the resilient legs  42  and  44  of the weather-strip  22 .  
         [0029]     Another embodiment of the present invention is generally indicated at  100  in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . A jambliner  102  includes similarly constructed sash assembly recesses  104  and  106  and similarly constructed weather-strip recesses  108  and  110 . The jambliner  102  does not include the chamber  36  as illustrated and described with respect to  FIGS. 2 and 3 . Instead, the weather-strip recesses  108  and  110  share a common wall  112 . Each recess  108  and  110  includes shoulders  114  and slightly downwardly extending tabs  116 . A cover  24  having a cover portion  62  and plug  64  is of the same construction as described with reference to the cover of  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  
         [0030]     A weather-strip  122  having a sealing portion  124  is made of a polymer such as polyvinylchloride that when extruded in a layer having sufficient thickness has enough integrity to retain a rounded surface that engages the sash assembly while still being sufficiently resilient to form a weather seal with the sash assembly when pressed against it. The weather-strip  122  also has a first leg  126  having an end portion  128  with a hook-like configuration to engage one of the downwardly extending tabs  116 . The weather-strip&#39;s other leg  130  has a end portion  132  projecting toward the common wall  112  and which engages the shoulder  114  of the jambliner  102 .  
         [0031]     On an opposite side of the leg portion  132  is attached a co-extruded plastic spring member  134 . The plastic spring member  134  is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,265,308 and 5,772,190, both being hereby incorporated by reference. The plastic spring member  134  is comprised of a semi-circular tubularly configured hinge  136  to which is attached a leg portion  138  that engages a backwall  140  of the recess  108  to provide a spring force, as indicated by arrow  139 , in the direction of the sash assembly. The hinge  136  may be formed from any of a wide variety of resilient thermoplastic materials such as polyurethane or a polyester elastomer which resist creep while the leg portion is made of a relatively rigid plastic material such as PVC. The leg portions, the weather seal portions, the hinge and the weather-strip are typically co-extruded as one integral piece. Although a tubular hinge is shown, the hinge portion does not necessarily have to be tubular. The hinge may be co-extruded as a solid bead or other form attaching the leg portion  138  to the leg portion  132 .  
         [0032]     The hinge may also be made of spring steel as indicated by reference character  160  in  FIG. 6 . The spring steel member  160  is attached to end portion  162  of the leg  126  of the weather-strip  122 . Preferably, the spring steel member extends across recess  108  to leg portion  132 . An opposite end  164  of the spring steel member  160  engages the backwall  140  of the recess  108  thereby providing a spring force in the general direction of arrow  139 . Although a specific configuration of a spring is illustrated in  FIG. 6 , other spring configurations which provide the spring force  139  are included within the present invention.  
         [0033]     The weather-strip  122  is a free floating weather-strip. By free floating is meant that the weather-strip is detachable from the jambliner and when the sash assembly applies a force against the weather-strip, the shoulders of the channel and the legs of the weather strip become separated.  
         [0034]     Alternatively, the weather-strip may also be used outside of a jamb assembly environment. As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , a weather-strip  200  of the present invention acts as a weather seal that is movable laterally in a direction indicated by arrow  204  as contrasted with the vertical movement of a double-hung window as described previously. The weather-strip  200  has leg portions  206  and  208  positioned within a recess  210  formed by window frame member  212  and molding  214 . The molding  214  also acts as a stop for the sash  202 . The leg portions  206  and  208  are positioned within the recess  210 . The recess  210  is formed by recess  214  of the frame member  212  and recess  216  of the molding  214 . The molding  214  is then attached to the frame member and with corresponding recess  216  forms the recess  210  that captures the legs  206  and  208  therein.  
         [0035]     A tubularly configured hinge  218 , as described with respect to  FIG. 5 , is attached to the leg portion  206 . An arm portion  220  produced from a stiffer material is attached to the hinge at one end and engages a backwall  222  of the recess  210  thereby providing a spring force in a direction of arrow  224 . The spring force places the weather-strip  200  against a surface of the sash  202  to create a weather-seal.  
         [0036]     As is apparent from the above description, the free floating weather-strip  122  may be used in a variety of different environments. For example, it may be used as a weather seal for casement windows, that is windows that pivot about a hinge from an open to a closed position. The weather-strip  122  may also be used as a weather-strip for a door, either a pivoting type door or a sliding door. Other examples of the free floating weather-strip of the present invention are indicated at  200  in  FIG. 8a and 202  in  FIG. 8b . Both embodiments of  FIGS. 8a and 8b  may be used in a variety of environments as discussed previously above to form a weather seal between two surfaces, one of which is moved to an open position.  
         [0037]     Referring to  FIG. 8   a , the weather-strip  200  has leg portions  204  and  206  positioned within recess  208 . The recess opening  210  is defined by shoulders  212  and  214  which retain the weather-strip within the recess by engaging the leg portions  204  and  206 . Providing a spring force in the direction of arrow  216  is hinge  218  which is attached to one of the leg portions  206  and has arm section  220  attached at one end that extends rearwardly to engage the backwall  222  of the recess  208 .  
         [0038]     Similarly, the weather-strip  202  illustrated in  FIG. 8   b  is the same as discussed with reference to  FIG. 5 , and like reference characters will be used to refer to like elements. The weather-strip  202  can also be used within a recess  230  that has no shoulders. A rail  232  having a slot  234  is inserted into the recess  230 . The rail  232  has edge portions  236  and  237  that define a slot  234  and acts as stops to retain the weather-strip  122  within the recess  230 . The weather-strip  122  is held within the recess by leg portions  128  and  132  engaging edge portions  236  and  237 .  
         [0039]     The rail  232  may be made of any type of material and is typically made of extruded polyvinylchloride. The rail may be glued or fixed into the recess by fasteners.  
         [0040]     Although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, workers skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.