Abstract:
A bracket assembly for supporting a gutter and hood includes a gutter support bracket and a mating hood support bracket. The gutter support bracket provides a cantilever support for a K-type gutter by connecting the front and rear lips of the gutter. The hood support bracket fastens to the gutter support bracket such that fastener-receiving apertures defined in both brackets align. The hood is supported by an upper arm of the hood support bracket in a position to define a longitudinal gap between the hood forward lip and the gutter front lip. A fastening tool and fastener are inserted through the gap to secure the hooded gutter assembly to a structure.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/283,129, filed Apr. 12, 2001. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention generally relates to the support of gutters that collect runoff from the roof of a structure and more particularly to a bracket for supporting a protective hood over a gutter. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Gutters are essentially an elongated open trough attached at the edge of a roof to collect and divert runoff from the roof. A problem with open gutters is that they tend to collect leaves and other debris that blocks the flow of runoff and may lead to water damage to the structure. Frequent cleaning of the gutter to remove debris is required unless the gutter is covered to prevent such debris accumulation. It is known in the art to apply a hood or shield over the gutter to prevent debris accumulation. Some hoods are in the form of a screen or grate that allows water to pass through while preventing debris from entering the gutter trough. 
     A preferred alternative gutter hood comprises a curved sheet of metal or plastic arranged over the gutter trough. Water follows the curvature of the hood into the trough while leaves and debris cannot. Many alternative configurations for such a hooded gutter have been proposed. Some hooded gutters, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,757,649 and 5,845,435 (hereinafter the &#39;649 and &#39;435 patents, respectively), utilize a one-piece longitudinal extrusion that forms both the hood and trough portions of the gutter. The &#39;435 patent further discloses support brackets with an outer end configured to engage both the trough and the outward projecting portion of the hood. A major drawback to the approach proposed in the &#39;435 and &#39;649 patents is that they are not compatible with most existing extruded gutters. These systems require the replacement of all existing gutters with their alternative proprietary gutter format, which may or may not be compatible with the existing fascia and/or drip edge configuration of the structure. 
     In a structure where the roof, fascia and existing gutters are in good repair, the homeowner may wish to install a gutter hood. Preferably the hood can be installed without disturbing the integrity of the roof, replacing the gutter or reconfiguring the fascia. Many of the prior art hooded gutter systems cannot be used for such an application. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,377 illustrates a gutter hood compatible with a conventional gutter but requiring that a leaf screen be inserted beneath the shingles, thus disturbing the integrity of an installed roof and providing a path for ice and/or moisture to accumulate under the shingles. 
     The extruded “K-ty pe” gutter is the industry standard and are installed on the vast majority of structures, particularly residential structures. Most prior art hooded gutter systems are incompatible with standard K-type extruded gutters, cannot be retrofitted to existing K-type extruded gutters and may require the purchase of expensive proprietary equipment and mounting hardware. Further, the form and configuration of the gutter hood is frequently dictated by the configuration of the proprietary hardware, necessitating the purchase not only of the hardware but also of equipment to manufacture a hood in a compatible configuration. 
     There is a need in the art for a hooded gutter system compatible with existing conventional K-type gutters. There is also a need in the art for a hooded gutter system that does not require the purchase of proprietary gutter and/or hood fabricating equipment. There is a further need for a bracket, K-type gutter and hood assembly that may be installed without disturbing the integrity of and existing roof system. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Briefly stated, the invention comprises a hood support bracket configured to mate with a gutter support bracket to provide a mounting location for a hood above a conventional K-type gutter. The bracket is configured such that the hood may be inexpensively manufactured in a variety of formats using readily available materials and standard non-proprietary tools. The hood support bracket and gutter support bracket can be used to retrofit a hood to existing K-type gutters. Further, the hood support bracket and its mating gutter support bracket permit fabrication of a hooded gutter assembly on the ground. Once assembled, the hooded gutter assembly requires only a single trip to the roofline for installation. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved gutter hood support bracket and mating gutter support bracket that are compatible with conventional K-type gutters. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a hooded gutter system that can be assembled on the ground and installed to a building in a single step. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved hooded gutter system that does not require reconfiguring the fascia or disturbing the integrity of an existing roof. 
     A yet further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved gutter hood support bracket that permits the hood to be inexpensively manufactured in a variety of formats using readily available materials and standard non-proprietary tools. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a oblique perspective view of a hood support bracket mated to a gutter support bracket in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 1A is an exploded perspective view of the hood support bracket and gutter support bracket of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective diagram illustrating the components of a hooded gutter system in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a side sectional view through a hooded gutter system in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 4 is a rear plan view of an assembled hooded gutter system in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a front plan view of the hooded gutter system of FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 6 is an overhead perspective view of the hooded gutter system of FIGS. 4 and 5; and 
     FIGS. 7A-7C are perspective, side and front views, respectively, of a hood support bracket in accordance with the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIGS. 1-7C illustrate a hooded gutter system  60  incorporating a hood support bracket  10  in accordance with the present invention. FIGS. 1 and 1A illustrate one preferred embodiment of the primary bracket components of the hooded gutter system  60 . A gutter support bracket  20  is configured to be compatible with standard extruded K-type gutters. A rear clip  22  is configured to engage over the rear lip of the K-type gutter. A front coupler  26  of the gutter support bracket  20  is configured to engage and support the front lip of a standard K-type extruded gutter. The rear clip  22  and front coupler  26  are connected by a bar  24 . 
     With reference to FIGS. 1,  1 A and  7 A- 7 C, the illustrated hood support bracket  10  is a generally C-shaped bent metal bracket comprising a top arm  16 , a bottom arm  12  and a connector portion  14  integral to and extending between the top and bottom arms. The junction  15  of the connector portion  14  and bottom arm  12  is illustrated in the form of a right angle, although other configurations are possible. The connector portion  14  adjacent the bottom arm  12  defines a fastener-receiving aperture  18  best seen in FIGS. 1-3. The bottom arm  12  of the hood support bracket  10  comprises means, in the form of a clip  17 , for fixing the bottom arm  12  to the bar  24  of the gutter support bracket  20 . The hood support bracket clip  17  is configured to be received in a key slot  23  in the bar  24  of the gutter support bracket  20 . When attached together as illustrated in FIG. 1, a pair of aligned fastener-receiving apertures  28  in the rear clip of the gutter support bracket align with the fastener-receiving aperture  18  defined by the hood support bracket  10  as best seen in FIG.  3 . 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded diagram illustrating the components of one preferred hooded gutter system in accordance with the present invention. An extruded K-type gutter  40  is shown at the bottom of the Figure. K-type gutters are presently installed on many homes and are the type produced by a substantial majority of gutter extruding equipment. A hooded gutter system incorporating the K-type gutter and a gutter support bracket compatible with the K-type gutter has the advantage of being compatible with most existing extruded gutters and gutter extruding equipment. 
     A gutter hood or shield  30  is illustrated at the top of FIG.  2 . The hood  30  extends transversely to its length from a back splash  34  to a forward lip  36 . The illustrated configuration is one example of a hood  30 . It will be apparent to one of skill in the art that the configuration of the hood  30  is not dictated by the configuration of the hood support bracket  10 . This leaves the installer free to fabricate a hood configuration that is compatible with the available materials and equipment. For example, the illustrated forward lip  36  is shown in the form of a curve. Fabrication of a curved forward lip may not be compatible with the installer&#39;s equipment. In such a case, the forward lip may be configured as a plurality of consecutive bends separated by straight portions to form a convex surface. The function of the forward lip is to guide runoff from the roof around its convex surface and into the gutter trough  45 . The configuration must be one that allows the water to adhere and follow the surface due to surface tension. 
     With reference to FIG. 3, it should be noted that the K-type gutter  40  has a substantially planar rear wall  42  extending from the rear lip  44  to the bottom surface  46  of the gutter. The bar  24  of the gutter support bracket  20  effectively connects the front lip  47  to the rear lip  44  of the gutter to form a cantilever support for the gutter. Downward force applied at the front lip  47  is transmitted to the structure to which the gutter is mounted through the planar back wall  42  because the distance between the front and rear lips is fixed by the gutter support bracket. FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of the hooded gutter assembly  60  where the back splash  34  of the hood  30  extends downwardly to overlap the rear lip  44  of the gutter. 
     The upper arm  16  of the hood support bracket  10  may be straight as shown or may have a convex curve or angled configuration. The back splash  34  extends both upwardly and downwardly from the cover portion  32  of the hood  30 . The back splash  34  is configured to extend upwardly behind a drip edge (if present, not shown here) or to abut the underside of any overhanging roof material. The roof material is not disturbed and the upward extension of the back splash prevents runoff from passing behind the gutter. The downward projecting portion of the back splash  34  may be extended to overlap the rear lip  44  of the gutter  40  as illustrated in FIG.  3 . 
     FIGS. 4,  5  and  6  are rear, front and perspective views, respectively, of the assembled hooded gutter system  60  illustrated in FIG.  3 . With the hood support bracket  10  fixed relative to the gutter support bracket  20  and the fastener receptacles  18 ,  28  aligned, a single fastener (not shown) passing through the aligned fastener receptacles and rear wall of the gutter is all that is necessary to attach the hooded gutter system to a structure. When the downward projecting portion of the back splash  34  overlaps the rear lip  44  of the gutter, the fastener will also pass through the back splash  34 , further improving the structural integrity of the assembly. A longitudinal gap  50  is defined between the forward lip  36  of the hood and the front lip  47  of the gutter  40  to permit insertion of a fastener-bearing driving tool (not illustrated) without disturbing the assembled hooded gutter  60 . 
     Unlike many prior art systems, the illustrated hooded gutter system  60  may be fabricated and assembled at ground level, then raised and installed using a single row of fasteners in a single step. The inventive hooded gutter system thus increases efficiency and reduces worker exposure to the hazards of work at roof level on a ladder or scaffolding. 
     Many means for fixing the hood support bracket  10  to the gutter support bracket  20  will occur to those of skill in the art. In the illustrated preferred embodiment, the gutter support bracket  20  defines a longitudinally extending keyhole-shaped slot  23 . The hood support bracket  10  is provided with a clip  17  punched out of the lower arm material. The clip  17  has laterally projecting tabs which are inserted through the gutter support bracket slot  23  with the hood support bracket  10  parallel to the bar  24  of the gutter support bracket  20 . The hood support bracket  10  is then rearwardly engaged to bring the junction  15  of the connector  14  and lower arm  12  to bear against the rear clip  22  of the gutter support bracket  20 . The hood support bracket  10  and gutter support bracket  20  may preferably be configured so that, when they are in the positions illustrated in FIG. 1, there is a press fit or some tension between the brackets. Such a press fit will help retain the brackets  10 ,  20  in position during assembly and installation of the hooded gutter system  60 . 
     While a preferred embodiment of the foregoing invention has been set forth for purposes of illustration, the foregoing description should not be deemed a limitation of the invention herein. Accordingly, various modifications, adaptations and alternatives may occur to one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.