Abstract:
A thermal shingle sealing apparatus for use in cool weather installations of thermally-activated shingles, the apparatus comprising a heat source having a fuel source, a burner, an ignition means adapted to light fuel from the fuel source to produce heat, and a controller adapted to regulate the heat produced; a heat disperser including an enclosure defining a cavity therein adapted to disperse heat from the heat source onto shingles; a chassis having a frame, and at least one wheel, whereby, the apparatus is placed on a roof atop the asphalt shingles and heat is applied to the shingles to activate the sealant, thereby bonding the shingles to one another in the cool temperatures providing nearly instant wind protection to the building owner in lieu of waiting for heat activation from the sun. sufficiently to activate sealant.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    None. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The invention relates to a thermal shingle sealing apparatus for applying heat to the thermally activate factory applied sealant on the shingles after their installation in cool weather to facilitate bonding of the layers of shingles. More particularly, the invention relates to an apparatus that may comprise a commercially available heater, a heat directing enclosure and a wheeled chassis, allowing an operator to bond the shingles in cool weather providing more wind protection immediately rather than waiting for sun&#39;s heat to activate the sealant. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The invention relates to a device for heating the factory installed sealant on the shingles, thereby bonding the shingles together in cool weather upon installation, and providing immediate wind protection. More particularly, the invention relates to a device having a heater and a disperser and a wheeled chassis where the heater is positioned adjacent to the disperser and supported by a wheeled chassis, directing heat downward, allowing the operator to push the device along each course of asphalt shingles heating the sealant underneath thereby bonding the shingles together on the roof. 
         [0004]    Asphalt roof shingles are the most popular type of roofing material used on residential roofs and have been used successfully in United States in cold climates for over ninety years. Current industry practice requires that the activation temperature of the factory applied sealant be balanced with avoiding premature activation during packaging and storage and activation during and after installation. The consequence of this balance is the activation temperature is a compromise which requires interface temperatures to reach 140-160° F. before bonding of the shingles occurs in an installation. However, the activation temperature requirements for installation present an issue in cool weather and cold climates because there may be insufficient solar heating to bond the shingles properly. 
         [0005]    Asphalt shingles are installed in courses, with each upper course overlapping the course below it. To affix the shingles to the roof, the shingles are nailed to the roof and additionally, most asphalt shingles are manufactured with a thermally activated sealant which bonds the shingles together once installed on the roof and exposed to a few weeks of sufficient solar heating to activate the sealant. This sealant works in conjunction with the nails to hold the shingles in place. However, during the winter months, the sun is low on the horizon and the air temperature is too cool for the sun to produce any significant heat to activate the sealant on the shingles, thus preventing the sealant from working properly, and preventing the adhesion of the adjacent shingle courses. As a result, the shingles can easily be lifted up and ripped off the roof when the winds are sufficiently strong. 
         [0006]    During cool weather, one method to ensure wind protection until sufficient solar heating occurs is the hard sealing of the asphalt shingles by adding warm roofing tar or cement to the bottom half, back side, of each shingle prior to nailing it in place. This method increases the labor and material costs and imposes new difficulties to the installation. These difficulties include keeping the tar or cement warm during installation, and applying it to every shingle during installation. Additionally, this method for securing the shingles is inefficient because more manpower is required to accomplish the same job in the same allotted time or using the current manpower will require more time to finish the same job both of which are unacceptable in the industry. 
         [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,267 to Freshwater, teaches a factory applied stick-down system for roofing membranes or shingles employing a sealant compound that exhibits high tackiness at ambient temperatures, which permits sealing to occur at significantly reduced temperatures, while still avoiding premature activation during packaging and storage. The activation temperature was reduced to between 90-130° F. using the new compound. However, this invention did not address significantly cooler temperatures while installing the shingles. 
         [0008]    The present invention overcomes these shortcomings in the prior art by providing a simple apparatus for heating and activating the sealant on site during cool weather immediately after shingle installation. The present invention fulfills the industry&#39;s need for facilitating cool weather installation by providing a device that can be used to bond the shingles in cool weather giving the home owner immediate wind protection after installation 
         [0009]    There have thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. 
         [0010]    In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in this application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. Additional benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention relates from the subsequent description of the preferred embodiment and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
         [0011]    Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the apparatus with a forced air propane heater as a heat source attached to the disperser enclosure and the chassis. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the left side of the apparatus with an exploded view of the wheel. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  is a rear view of the apparatus. 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  is a top view of the apparatus illustrating the controls. 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is an underside view of the apparatus illustrating the cavity defined by the enclosure. 
           [0017]      FIG. 6  is an underside view of the apparatus with radiant heaters replacing the forced air propane heater as a heat source. 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is a side view of the left side of a second embodiment the apparatus. 
           [0019]      FIG. 8  is a underside view of the second embodiment of the apparatus. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0020]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the invention, a thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  highlighting three components: a forced air propane heater  102 , a heat disperser  104 , and a frame  106 . In this embodiment a forced air propane heater  102  sits atop the heat disperser  104  and connects to the top panel  116  by a heater connector  114 . The forced air propane heater  102  may have an inside a blower  502 , a burner, an ignition system to ignite the propane and finally, a controller  108  to regulate the heat and prevent excessive heat during normal operations reducing the possibility of damaging the roof shingles. 
         [0021]    There are at least two methods encompassed within the claims for providing heat. First, the forced air heating method, where a burner heats the air using some type of fossil fuel or an electrical element heats the air and then the air is blown onto the desired shingle area to activate the sealant and bond the shingles. Second, the radiant heating method is another technique where the heating element using fossil fuel or electricity is positioned directly above the desired shingle area and in close proximity to the shingles to heat and bond the shingles. 
         [0022]    Propane may be replaced with other types of fossil fuels such as kerosene, natural gas, and diesel, depending the availability to the operator in their local area. Additionally, a radiant heater can replace the current forced air propane heater  102  used in the present invention to provide the heat source. Finally, the fossil fuel heat source may be replaced by removing the burner and ignition system and replacing them with heating elements where electricity provides the source of heat for the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 . 
         [0023]      FIG. 1  further depicts the controller  108  mounted to the side of the forced air propane heater  102  with a temperature control knob  200  depicted later in  FIG. 2 , and two connections, a power input  110  and a fuel input  112 . The first connection, the power input  110  preferably provides common household 120 volt electrical power to the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  by an electric power cord  136 . This power is supplied to the blower  502 , which provides the forced air and to the controller  108 . The second connection on the controller  108  is a connection for a fuel input  112  where the fuel is supplied to the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  through a fuel hose  134 . 
         [0024]    As primarily described, propane is the fuel source utilized and is supplied by a propane tank  132 . Once the propane tank  132  is connected to the fuel input  112  and the power cord  136  is connected to common household power, the apparatus is ready to be utilized. To improve operability and safety, the power supplied to the power input  110  may be replaced by a battery and a power inverter with sufficient power to operate the blower  502  during normal sealing operation. Additionally, solar panels may be used to replenish energy to the battery during normal operations. 
         [0025]    The heat disperser  104  is also shown in  FIG. 1 . The forced air propane heater  102  is attached to the top panel  116  of the heat disperser  104  by a heater connector  114 . The heat disperser  104  consists of a top panel  116 , a front angle panel  118 , a front lower panel  120 , left and right side panels  122 , rear angle panel  306 , and a rear lower panel  308 . The rear angle panel  306  and rear lower panel  308  are depicted later in  FIG. 3  in more detail. The front angle panel  118  and the rear angle panel  306  assist in deflecting the heat downward toward shingles. The panels of the current invention are fabricated from aluminum but one skilled in the art may use other materials to create the panels. These panels are preferably welded together at the seams to provide structural rigidity and support for the forced air propane heater  102  and to prevent heat loss. Welding is but one method to connect the panels together. One skilled in the art may choose other methods that are just as effective in providing structural rigidity to the disperser and prevent heat loss. These panels come together to create an enclosure by which air from the forced air propane heater  102  is directed down on to the shingles and the heat from the forced air propane heater  102  is contained within the heat disperser  104  thereby raising the temperature in the local area over the shingles covered by the heat disperser  104  in order to activate the sealant to bond the shingles together and provide wind protection for a newly installed roof in cool temperatures. 
         [0026]    The chassis, as depicted in  FIG. 1 , preferably consists of a frame  106 , four wheels  126 , and a handle  130 . The chassis is positioned to support the heat disperser  104  and the forced air propane heater  102 . The frame  106  preferably fits the perimeter of the heat disperser  104 , and it must be sufficiently strong to support the weight of the heat disperser  104  and the forced air propane heater  102 . Additionally, the chassis may be designed with sufficient strength to support mounting a propane tank  132  on the chassis. 
         [0027]    At each corner of the chassis  106  is mounted a wheel  126  to allow the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  to be moved by a handle  130  during normal operations. The wheels  126  are affixed to the frame  106  by axle chassis connectors  124  where an axle  202  protrudes from the axle chassis connectors  124  through the wheels  126  to provide mobility and maneuverability. The wheel  126  assembly is further described in  FIG. 2 . A handle  130  is connected to the frame  106  by a handle collar  128 . The handle collar  128  preferably allows for easy removal of the handle  130  for placement onto the roof before beginning operations. The handle  130  mounting is further described in  FIG. 3 . It may be desirable to provide a handle that can be adjusted to a height comfortable for the particular operator. 
         [0028]      FIG. 2  illustrates the left side of the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  with an exploded view of the wheel  126 . In this view, several features are illustrated, a temperature control knob  200 , skirts  208 , and wheels  126 . As illustrated above, the controller  108  affixed to the forced air propane heater  102  includes a temperature control knob  200  attached to the side of the controller  108 . The temperature control knob  200  allows the operator to choose a desired setting, which determines the amount of heat generated by the forced air propane heater  102 . This temperature control knob  200  comes standard with a commercially available forced air propane heater. An alternative to controlling the forced air propane heater  102  by the controller  108  is affixing a system control and display unit  220  on the handle  130  where the operator can control the temperature of the forced air propane heater  102  during operations. The details of the system control and display unit  220  are further described in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0029]    In order to provide consistent heating over the total area underneath the heat disperser  104 , heat directors  218  inside the cavity  500  are used to divert a portion of the air flow away from the central point directly underneath the forced air propane heater  102 . There are preferably multiple heat directors  218  affixed to the two side panels  122  that distribute the heat more evenly throughout the heat disperser  104  thereby providing more uniform heating under the heat disperser  104  in order to more efficiently activate the sealant and bond the shingles together. 
         [0030]      FIG. 2  depicts the present invention with two wheels  126  on the left side of the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 . On the right side further illustrated later in  FIG. 4 , is a set of companion wheels  126 . Each wheel  126  is attached to the frame  106  by an axle chassis connector  124 . This axle chassis connector  124  is connected to the front and rear of the frame  106  where an axle  202  protrudes through the wheel  126  allowing it to be positioned on the axle  202 . 
         [0031]    The exploded view of  FIG. 2  depicts the positioning of the wheel  126  onto the axle  202 , a wheel retaining washer  204  installed on the axle  202  and a wheel retaining pin  206  inserted in a hole through the axle  202  thus preventing the wheel  126  from departing during operations. The wheel retaining washer  204  is positioned between the wheel  126  and the wheel retaining pin  206  to prevent the wheel retaining pin  206  from interfering with the wheels  126  during normal operations. The wheel retaining pin  206  is known in the industry as a “cotter pin” which prevents the wheel  126  from departing the axle  202 . Other methods to prevent wheel  126  departure are well known to one skilled in the art and may be used to secure the wheel  126 . 
         [0032]    The axle chassis connector  124  is rigidly affixed to the frame  106  by welding the axle chassis connector  124  to the frame  106  but one skilled in the art can choose other known methods for affixing the axle chassis connector  124  to the frame  106 . Additionally, the operator may want to lower or raise the frame  106  with respect to the shingle surface allowing the operator to position the heat closer to the surface of the shingles based on the outdoor weather conditions. This may be accomplished using other methods for affixing the wheel  126   s  to the frame  106  instead of welding the axle chassis connector  124  directly to the frame  106 , such as installing standard push lawn mower height type adjustments. The height adjustment is accomplished by adjusting the front height adjustments  214  on both the front left and right side and the rear height adjustments  216  on the rear left and right side. The ability to raise and lower the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  allows the operator to control the loss of heat based on the wind and temperature conditions. This is one method to reduce the amount of heat loss. In addition to height adjustments, another method to reduce heat loss is to add skirts  208 . 
         [0033]      FIG. 2  illustrates the preferred availability of a skirt  208  adjustably attached to the frame  106 . The skirt  208  has multiple adjustment slots  210  allowing the skirt  208  to be adjusted vertically enabling an operator to control the air flow under the frame  106  thereby retaining and maintaining the heat within the cavity  500  to provide uniform heating atop the shingles. Connectors protruding from the frame  106  extend through the skirt  208  at the adjustment slots  210  where wing nuts  212  are used to secure the skirts  208  in the desired position of the operator. Other methods may be used to attach the skirts  208  to the frame  106  in order to make readily adjustable. These skirts  208  prevent excessive air flow blowing under the frame  106  and removing heat from desired area with the result of the apparatus taking either longer to heat and bond the shingles or requiring more heat from the forced air propane heater  102  for bonding to occur. 
         [0034]      FIG. 3  illustrates the handle  130  and its connection to the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 . The handle  130  is in a T-bar configuration whereupon the upper part of the T provides the operator controls for directing the movement of the apparatus over the shingles to help bond them. Also located at the intersection of the horizontal part of the T-bar intersection is a system control and displaying unit  220  for quick and easy access during normal operations. 
         [0035]    The handle  130  is connected to the frame  106  by a handle collar  128 . The outer diameter of the handle  130  is less than the handle collar&#39;s  128  inner diameter and the handle  130  slips inside the handle collar  128  where it is secured in place by the friction of the handle retaining bolt  300 . This handle retaining bolt  300  prevents the handle  130  from coming out of the handle collar  128  and also prevents the handle  130  from rotating inside the handle collar  128 . Other methods of affixing a handle including, but not limited to, other methods of securing the handle  130  inside the handle collar  128  will be apparent to one skilled in the art. 
         [0036]    A handle mount  302  then mounts the handle collar  128  to the frame  106 . The handle  130  and the handle collar  128  pivot around a handle collar mounting bolt  304  which extends horizontally through the handle mount  302  and through the handle collar  128  protruding through the other side of the handle collar  128  and the handle mount  302  and is secured in place by a standard fastener. This handle collar mounting bolt  304  allows the handle collar  128  to pivot up and down freely about the handle collar mounting bolt  304  enabling different operators of varying heights to control the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 . 
         [0037]      FIG. 4  depicts all four wheels  126  attached to the frame  106  as viewed from above as was previously mentioned.  FIG. 4  also shows the rear angle panel  306  that was previously mentioned but not depicted. The rear angle panel  306  is a companion panel to the front angle panel  118 . These panels work in concert to help project down and deflect the heated air from the forced air propane heater  102 . 
         [0038]      FIG. 4  further describes the system control and display unit  220 , which has three central parts. First, it has a heat setting  400  where the heat settings are predetermined settings where a number corresponds to a specific heat output from the forced air propane heater  102 . Next, it has an over-temperature alarm  404  where the operator can set the alarm to notify operator when the shingle&#39;s temperature exceeds a maximum temperature to prevent damage to the shingles when the system is in use. The settings for the over-temperature alarm  404  could be set at the factory or by the operator on site providing more flexibility in the field. Finally, it has a temperature display  402 , which measures the temperature of the shingles on the trailing edge using a temperature sensor  504  mounted to a sensor mount  408  at the rear of the frame  106  next to the handle collar  128 . The system control and display unit  220  receives its information from heat sensor  504  via a sensor cable  406 . Alternately, the sensor cable  406  could be replaced with a transmitter/receiver system with the temperature sensor  504  sending signals to the system control and display unit  220 . 
         [0039]      FIG. 5  is a bottom view of the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 , which illustrates the cavity  500  that is created by the heat disperser  104  as defined earlier in  FIG. 1 . Additionally, this figure shows the blower  502  of the forced air propane heater  102 , where the blower  502  has a protective grill and a fan for producing the proper air flow to push the heat down onto the surface of the shingles. Also shown in this figure is a heat temperature sensor  504 , which is connected to the sensor mount  408  and the sensor cable  406 . This temperature sensor  504  is typically an infrared sensor, which measures the heat radiating from the shingles after the heat from the apparatus has been applied. The information obtained from the temperature sensor  504  determines when the alarm should be activated thereby alerting the operator to reduce the amount of heat being applied. 
         [0040]      FIG. 6  is a bottom view of the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100  with radiant heaters  600 . The radiant heaters  600  are suspended from the radiant heater supports  602 , which attach to both side panels  122 . Alternately, the radiant heaters  600  may be supported longitudinally by the radiant heater supports  602 , which would be connected to the front and back of the thermal shingle sealing apparatus  100 . The attachment points should allow the radiant heater supports  602  to be moved, enabling the radiant heaters  600  to be placed closer to the shingles to facilitate bonding or further away from the shingles to prevent damage. 
         [0041]      FIG. 7  illustrates another embodiment of the present invention. While this embodiment could be used on any pitch of roof, it is specifically adapted for use on high-pitched roofs where the embodiment previously discussed herein was designed for lower pitched roofs because use of the previous embodiment would present safety concerns and would not produce the results of heating the sealant and bonding the shingles that is desired. The embodiment shown in  FIG. 7 , like the previously-described embodiment, has three components upon which the discussion herein will focus: a forced air electric heater  700 , a disperser  702  and a chassis  704 . 
         [0042]    The forced air electric heater  700  utilizes a blower  706  to force air through an upper blower tube  728  and a lower blower tube  732  into the forced air input  724  wherein the air is heated by heating elements  800  inside the disperser  702 . The air is moved across the heating elements  800  raising the temperature of the air in the disperser cavity  802  and the outgoing air to the desired temperature in order activate the sealant and bond the shingles. The blower  706  is powered by common household electricity through the use of a power cord  708 . The electricity supplied is used to control the airspeed from the blower  706  through an airflow control trigger  718 , which allows a operator to determine the amount of air being forced across the heating elements  800  and onto the shingles by the airflow control trigger  718  positions. 
         [0043]    Additionally, the heat from the heating elements  800  is controlled by a controller  710  attached to the chassis  704 . The controller  710  has two operator controls and a display. The first operator control is the power switch  712 , the second operator control is the heat setting knob  714 , which may be set at various levels depending on the outdoor conditions under which the shingles are being installed and lastly is the temperature display  716  that displays a temperature from the temperature sensor  720 . The temperature sensor  720  is positioned on the trailing edge of the disperser  702  in order to determine whether the heat being applied to the shingles is at an acceptable level to activate the sealant and bond the shingles, too low to activate the sealant or in excess which could damage the shingles. This temperature sensor  720  is typically an infrared sensor, which measures the heat radiating from the shingles after the heat from the apparatus has been applied. A signal is sent from the temperature sensor  720  through a control cable  722  to the temperature display  716  on the controller  710 . 
         [0044]      FIG. 7  further depicts the heat disperser  702  having a forced air input  724  and two wheels  734  that adjust to maintain the height of the disperser  702  above the shingles by wheel height adjustments  736 . 
         [0045]    The chassis  704  in this embodiment comprises the body surrounding the blower  706  described as the chassis  704 , which includes a handle  726 , an upper blower tube  728 , a length adjustment sleeve  730 , and the lower blower tube  732 . These elements comprise a chassis  704  by which wheels  734  attach to the chassis  704  and the disperser  702  enabling the apparatus to be transported by a operator utilizing the handle  726 , positioned on the roof and moved up and down the roof sealing the shingles. This embodiment specifically addresses issues with high-pitched roofs that would not allow the first embodiment to be used due to safety concerns. A operator standing on a ladder as the shingles are being installed can move the apparatus to cover and activate the sealant of the newly installed shingles. Additionally, the wheels  734  attached to the disperser  702  may be adjusted to place the disperser  702  closer to or further from the shingles thereby preventing damage while bonding the shingles together. 
         [0046]      FIG. 8  depicts the underside of the heat disperser  702 , an enclosure that creates a disperser cavity  802  where heat is produced by heating elements  800  affixed inside the heat disperser  702  and is spread over a focused area by the forced air from the blower  706  through the upper blower tube  728  and lower blower tube  732  to the forced air input  724 . The number of heating elements  800 , required is based on the amount of heat that is needed to be able to activate the sealant on the shingles. 
         [0047]      FIG. 8  further depicts the wheel  734  and its component parts, an axle  804 , a wheel retaining washer  806 , and a wheel retaining pin  808 . The axle  804  protrudes through the wheel  734  and the wheel retaining washer  806  and the wheel retaining pin  808  is placed in a hole in the axle  804  securing the wheel  734 . 
         [0048]    These two embodiments enable an operator to heat the sealant and allow the shingles to be bonded on a wide range of roofs varying in pitch as demonstrated by the first embodiment with the four-wheeled chassis apparatus for low-pitched roofs and the second embodiment with the handheld wheeled apparatus for high-pitched roofs, both of which are described above. 
         [0049]    The purpose of the abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application which is measured by the claims, nor is it intended to be limiting as to the scope of the invention in any way. 
         [0050]    While the invention has been shown, illustrated, described, and disclosed in terms of specific embodiments or modifications, the scope of the invention should not be deemed to be limited by the precise embodiments or modifications therein shown, illustrated, described, or disclosed. Such other embodiments or modifications are intended to be reserved especially as they fall within the scope of the claims herein appended.