Patent Publication Number: US-11655646-B2

Title: Pool cover system and method of delivery of the pool cover system

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/966,115 filed Jan. 27, 2020, entitled “One-Piece Pool Cover Housing Assembly With Integrated Drive Mechanism &amp; Accessories,” the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     This disclosure relates to the field of pool covers. More particularly, this disclosure relates to a pool cover system having a unitary housing and a method for delivering the pool cover system to a pool site with the pool cover components substantially pre-installed in the unitary housing. 
     BACKGROUND 
     An automated pool cover system generally includes a set of tracks running on both sides of a pool, a pool cover having a leading end that is mounted on opposite sides to the tracks, and a drive system for expanding and retracting the pool cover. A housing is used to store the drive system and other components of the pool cover system. The housing may be mounted to the deck surface of the pool or it may be installed in the ground around the pool. 
     The housing of current automated pool cover systems is delivered in multiple pieces of plastic such that the housing, drive system, and other components within the housing are required to be assembled on-site by the installer. This is time consuming for the installer. It also increases the chances that the installer makes a mistake when assembling the automated pool cover system. 
     What is needed is a pool cover system that is able to be more efficiently delivered and installed. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to one embodiment of the disclosure, a method of delivering a pool cover system includes forming a unitary housing having a first end and an open second end, the unitary housing including a bottom wall extending from the open first end to the open second end, a first side wall extending substantially perpendicular from the bottom wall, a second side wall opposite the first side wall extending substantially perpendicular from the bottom wall, and an open top such that the unitary housing forms a trough; assembling pool cover system components within the trough of the unitary housing at an assembling facility; and delivering the unitary housing with assembled pool cover system components from the assembling facility to a pool site for installation of the pool cover system. 
     According to some embodiments, the unitary housing is formed of fiberglass. 
     According to some embodiments, the first and second side wall include a reinforcement layer disposed between layers of fiberglass. 
     According to some embodiments, the method further includes securing end caps to the open first end and the open second end. 
     According to some embodiments, the forming step includes forming a plurality of unitary housings each having different lengths and the assembling step includes selecting one of the plurality of unitary housings based on length requirements for the pool site. 
     According to some embodiments, the method further includes securing a riser panel to the unitary housing and a lid panel to the riser panel prior to delivering the unitary housing with assembled pool cover system components to the pool site. According to some embodiments, the unitary housing includes a first flange extending from a top end of the first side wall and a second flange extending from a top end of the second side wall and the riser panel includes at least a first slot extending at least partially around the riser panel. According to this embodiment, the method further includes securing the riser panel to the unitary housing by connecting a first portion of each of a plurality of brackets to the first slot and a second portion of each of the plurality of brackets to one of the first flange and the second flange. 
     According to some embodiments, the positioning of the first slot in the riser panel is selected to correspond to coping dimensions of a pool such that a height in which an installer will pour concrete will be the same for both the pool and the riser panel. 
     According to some embodiments, the unitary housing includes a flange extending outward from a top end of the first side wall, the method further comprising securing a plurality of spaced apart support blocks on a bottom surface of the flange for securing ground stakes to the unitary housing during installation of the pool cover system at the pool site. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Other embodiments of the invention will become apparent by reference to the detailed description in conjunction with the figures, wherein elements are not to scale so as to more clearly show the details, wherein like reference numbers indicate like elements throughout the several views, and wherein: 
         FIG.  1    depicts an overhead perspective view of a pool cover housing according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  2    depicts a first side perspective view of an end plate for the housing of  FIG.  1    according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  3    depicts a second side perspective view of the end plate of  FIG.  2    according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  4    depicts a cross-sectional view of a pool cover housing according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  5    depicts an overhead perspective view of a pool cover housing portion having handling structures according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  6    depicts an overhead perspective view of a pool cover housing portion in which the flange on one side of the housing is used to secure the housing to the ground according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  7    depicts a cross-sectional view of a pool cover housing in which the flange on the other side of the housing as compared to  FIG.  6    is used to position and support the housing with respect to the coping of a pool according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  8    depicts an overhead perspective view of a pool cover system with the components of the system installed in the trough of the housing according to one embodiment of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  9    depicts a perspective view of a pool cover system with a riser panel and lid panel secured to a pool cover housing according to one embodiment of the disclosure; and 
         FIG.  10    depicts a cross-sectional view of a riser panel and lid panel secured to a pool cover housing according to one embodiment of the disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description of preferred embodiments for this disclosure is presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the following teachings. The embodiments are chosen and described in an effort to provide the best illustrations of the principles of the disclosure and its practical application, and to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the disclosure in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the disclosure. 
     The present disclosure is directed to a pool cover system having a unitary pool cover housing that is intended to be used to deliver the pool cover system to a pool site with the drive mechanism, pool cover, and other components already substantially installed within the housing. Thus, in contrast to current systems where the housing is delivered in multiple pieces of plastic with the housing, drive mechanism, and other components required to be assembled on-site by the installer, the pool cover system of the present disclosure allows the pool cover system to be delivered substantially pre-installed to the pool site. 
     With reference to  FIG.  1   , a one-piece, unitary housing  10  is depicted according to one embodiment of the disclosure. The housing is preferably formed of fiberglass in similar processes as fiberglass pools. As depicted, the housing of this embodiment preferably includes a first end  12 , a second end  14 , a bottom wall  16  extending from the first end  12  to the second end  14 , and a pair of opposing side walls  18 ,  20  extending vertically from opposite sides of the bottom wall  16 . The housing further includes an open top  22  and, thus, forms a generally U-shaped housing  10  with a trough for installing the various components of the pool cover system within the trough. 
     In preferred embodiments, the top of each of the side walls  18 ,  20  includes a flange  24 ,  26  extending out from the housing  10  (i.e., away from the open top  22 ). As explained further below, the flanges  24 ,  26  are intended to be used to help secure and riser panel to the housing  10  and to help position the housing with respect to a pool in which the pool cover system will be used. 
     In preferred embodiments, the width of the trough (i.e., width of the bottom wall  16 ) is between about 12 inches to about 16 inches while the depth of the trough is between about 12 inches to about 16 inches. Most preferably, the width of the trough is about 14 inches wide and the depth is about 14 inches deep. However, it should be understood that the width and depth of the trough is not critical to the embodiments of the present disclosure but is based on the dimensions needed to house the various components of the pool cover system in which the housing  10  is intended to be used. 
     In preferred embodiments, and as depicted in  FIG.  1   , the first end  12  and second end  14  of the unitary housing  10  are open (i.e., the unitary housing is formed without end walls). In this regard, it is preferable for the opposing side walls  18 ,  20  to extend substantially perpendicular from the bottom wall  16  to assist in having the pool cover components mounted to the side walls  18 ,  20  correctly. However, if the housing  10  is molded to include closed ends, it has been found to be difficult to pull the housing  10  from the mold without having the side walls  18 ,  20  extend from the bottom wall  16  at an angle greater than 90°. Including a housing having an open first end  12  and open second end  14  provides the ability of the side walls  18 ,  20  to flex outward slightly in order to help remove the housing  10  from the mold. 
     With reference to  FIGS.  2 - 3   , an exemplary end plate  30  is depicted for closing the open ends  12 ,  14  of the housing of  FIG.  1   . In this embodiment, end plate  30  includes closing wall  32  including outer surface  32   a  (view of  FIG.  3   ) and interior surface  32   b  (view of  FIG.  2   ). A flange  36  is disposed around the closing wall  32  such that it extends from outer surface  32   a . To secure the end plate  30  to an open end of the housing  10 , the end plate is inserted into the open end with the flange  36  positioned towards the outside of the housing such that one side of flange  36  is able to be secured to the bottom wall  16  of housing  10 , a second side of flange  36  is able to be secured to side wall  18  of the housing  10 , a third side of flange  36  is able to be secured to the side wall  20  of the housing  10 , and the fourth side of flange  36  forms the top of the particular end of the housing  10 . 
     In practice, a plurality of unitary housings  10  with open ends  12 ,  14  are fabricated preferably with different lengths. Based on the size requirements of a particular job (i.e., size of the pool to which the pool cover will be used), a housing  10  with an appropriate length is selected. If the precise length is not available, a housing  10  with the closest but longer length is selected and the housing  10  is then trimmed to the appropriate length. For example, suppose a manufacturer decides to fabricate a plurality of housings in 16 ft, 18 ft, 20 ft, and 24 ft length options. If a particular order requires a housing  10  that is 19 ft in length, the 20 ft housing option can be selected and then at least one of its ends trimmed to form a housing  10  with a length of 19 ft. Two end plates  30  may then be used to close the open ends  12 ,  14  of the housing  10 . 
     In an alternate embodiment, the unitary housing  10  is formed with only one open end. According to the embodiment, the housing could be cut to the desired length at its open end and then only one end plate is needed to close the open end. However, this embodiment is less desirable as only one open end makes the housing  10  more difficult to pull from its mold during fabrication. The unitary housing may also be formed with both ends closed. Again, this is considered less desirable due to the difficulties in removing the housing from its mold when the housing includes closed ends. 
     Referring to  FIG.  4   , a cross section of the housing  10  according to one embodiment is depicted. According to this embodiment, side walls  18 ,  20  include added thickness/rigidity along at least a portion of the respective side wall. For example, each side wall  18 ,  20  could be formed by applying a layer of reinforcement material (such as thermoplastic honeycomb material or other lightweight honeycomb structure) to the outer portion of the shell and then applying one or more additional fiberglass layers to the housing over the reinforcement material. The additional thickness provides rigidity/strength to the side walls  18 ,  20  to help securely fasten pool cover system components to the wall interior. The additional thickness/rigidity also helps support the housing  10  with installed components during transport of the pool cover system. 
     With continued reference to  FIG.  4   , the bottom wall  16  of the housing  10  may also include additional thickness via a reinforcement material to strengthen the bottom of the housing. In certain embodiments, the reinforcement material could include enclosed metal rods/rebar  17  as depicted in  FIG.  4   . Similar to the added thickness of the side walls  18 ,  20 , providing additional support to the bottom wall  16  would give the housing  10  additional strength to maximize its ability to be used as a shipping container for the pool cover system. 
     According to another aspect of the disclosure, housing  10  may include one or more handling structures attached to the housing to assist in lifting and moving the housing  10  both from the manufacturing facility to the pool site as well as at the pool site during installation. According to certain embodiments, and with reference to  FIG.  5   , the handling structures may include PVC tubes  40  attached to the outside bottom wall  16  of the housing  10 . As shown, the tubes  40  would preferably be attached perpendicularly to the length of the housing  10 , such as between every 3-5 feet, and would extend at least somewhat out from the footprint of the housing  10 . In certain embodiments, caster wheels could be attached to the tubes to allow the housing to be rolled around as needed. The tubes  40  could be used as a pickup point such as with a forklift, crane, etc. With continued reference to  FIG.  5   , handles  42  may also be secured or molded to the sides of the housing  10  to assist in picking up the assembly, such as with crane straps for lifting of the housing with a crane. 
     With reference to  FIG.  6   , a portion of housing  10  is shown that includes flange  24  extending from side wall  18 . In this embodiment, side wall  18  is intended to be positioned opposite the pool during installation. Flange  24  is then used to help secure the housing  10  in its final position with respect to the ground by drilling the bottom end  64  of stakes  60  into the ground while securing the top end  62  of stakes  60  to the flange  24 . For example, according to the embodiment in  FIG.  6   , a plurality of support blocks  66  (e.g., strips of structural PVC board) are secured to the underside of flange  24  (such as by drilling or adhesive). The support blocks  66  are preferably spaced-apart by the manufacturer to ensure consistent staking along the length of the side wall  18 . The bottom end  64  of each stake  60  is then drilled into the ground while the top end  62  is nailed or screwed into the support blocks  66 . In an alternate embodiment, flange  24  could include spaced-apart apertures disposed through the flange  24 . Stakes could then be driven through the apertures and into the ground for supporting the housing in position. 
     With reference to  FIG.  7   , flange  26  of side wall  20  is used to properly position the housing  10  with respect to the pool  90  during installation. According to certain embodiments, flange  26  of side wall  20  also includes a spacer material (e.g., same PVC support blocks  66  described above with respect to  FIG.  6   ) secured to the underside of the flange  26  that is used to rest the housing  10  on top of the pool  90  (e.g., rest flange  26  of housing  10  on the coping of a fiberglass pool). Further, as depicted in  FIG.  6   , the housing  10  is preferably sized and dimensioned such that the top surface of flange  26  is substantially level with the top surface of the pool  90  upon installation at the pool site. 
     With reference to  FIG.  8   , an exemplary pool cover system  100  is depicted with unitary housing  10 , end caps  30  installed at the ends  12 ,  14  of the housing  10 , and the components of the pool cover system  100  installed in the trough of the housing  10 . For purposes of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the particular components of the pool cover system installed in the housing  10  are not important as housing  10  of the present disclosure is intended to be able to be implemented with any number of automated pool cover systems and associated components. 
     With reference to  FIGS.  9 - 10   , and according to another aspect of the disclosure, the pool cover system  100  includes a riser panel  110  (such as formed from aluminum extrusion) disposed above the housing  10  and a lid panel  130  (such as formed also from aluminum extrusion) on top of the riser panel  110 . During installation at a pool site, concrete is poured around the riser panel  110  until the concrete is generally flush with the top of the riser panel  110 . The lid panel  130  is then used to provide access to the pool cover components within the housing  10  when needed (e.g., for repair). The riser panel  110  and lid panel  130  also provide an enclosure for the housing  10  such that the housing  10  with pre-installed pool cover components are able to be shipped as a substantially installed unit while also protecting the pool cover components within the housing  10  during shipment. 
     To connect the riser panel  110  to housing  10 , and with more specific reference to the cross-sectional view of  FIG.  10   , riser panel  110  of this embodiment includes a first slot  112  positioned around the exterior of the riser panel  110 . A plurality of connecting brackets  114  may then be used to connect the riser panel  110  to the housing  10  by securing a first portion of bracket  114  to the first slot  112  and a second portion of bracket  114  to the flanges  24 ,  26  of housing  10 . In preferred embodiments, the first slot  112  is positioned at a predetermined height that corresponds to the coping of the pool in which the pool cover system is intended to be used. More specifically, the predetermined height is determined such the height in which an installer will pour concrete around the pool coping will be the same height needed for the concrete to be flush with the top of the riser panel  110 . Riser panel  110  may further include a second slot  118  in which to insert screws (not shown) that end up buried in the concrete poured around riser panel  110 . 
     According to yet another aspect of the disclosure, brace bars may be secured to the inside of the housing to prevent the housing from being crushed/deformed during shipment/transport. For example, horizontal brace bars that are perpendicular to the length of the housing may be inserted every 3-5 feet or so to prevent the housing from being crushed/deformed inward during shipment/transport. The brace bars would also provide further rigidity to the housing when the installers backfill gravel and concrete around the housing/pool at the job sites.