Patent Publication Number: US-9409532-B2

Title: Edge seal with sidewall seal

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority from the prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/242,002, filed Apr. 1, 2014, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Recreational vehicles such as motor homes and travel trailers are commonly equipped with one or more slide out rooms that are retracted within the main living quarters when the unit is transported, but can be extended from the main living quarters to provide auxiliary space when the unit is parked. Commonly, bulb seals extend around the aperture defined in the outside of the sidewall of the main living quarters through which the slide out room extends and retracts. This seal is engaged by a first flange on the exterior side of the slide out room to seal the gap between the slide out room and the main living quarters when the slide out room is retracted. Similarly, a second bulb seal extends around the aperture on the inside of the sidewall and is engaged by a second flange on the interior side of the slide out room when the slide out room is extended for use. Wiper seals are mounted on sidewalls adjacent to the aperture and are flexed against corresponding walls of the slide out room. The bulb seals seal the slide out room in the extended and retracted positions, and the wiper seal wipes against the slide out room as it is extended and retracted to prevent moisture and debris from entering the vehicle. While the seals of the aforementioned patents accomplished their task successfully, there were issues with sealing to an outside wall that is ribbed or patterned. Seals are most inexpensively produced from a single extrusion, making a cross sectional shape relatively easy, but lengthwise features nearly impossible. Affixing a seal to the non-movable part of the room meant additional sealing compound needed to be added to fill in gaps between the seal and the mounting surface. Ideally, a single seal installed without additional steps or materials would simplify installation. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to the invention, a resilient seal for mobile living quarters is provided for sealing around a slide out room of mobile living quarters having an aperture slidably receiving a slide out room. The resilient seal has a pair of attaching members extending along the inside and outside surfaces of the main living area wall at the aperture and further include a connecting member extending between the attaching members and along the edge of the wall defining the aperture. A flipper extends from an attaching member such that the seal maintains contact with different thicknesses of the main living quarter walls. The flipper flattens out with a thicker portion of the wall, and it extends inwardly to meet up with a thinner portion. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the RV; 
         FIG. 2  is a magnified view of area  2  in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the seal base installed on a sidewall; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the seal structure fully installed on a sidewall; 
         FIG. 5  is a section view  5 - 5  of the seal shown in  FIG. 4  with the slide out room refracted; 
         FIG. 6  is a section view  6 - 6  of the seal shown in  FIG. 4  with the slide out room refracted; and 
         FIG. 7  is a section view of the seal without the sidewall. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION 
     Referring now to the drawings, mobile living quarters, such as the recreational vehicle generally indicated at  10 , includes side walls  12  and a ceiling wall  14 . The mobile living quarters shown in all FIGS is a recreational vehicle, but can apply to trailers or other spaces where a movable section is desired. The mobile living quarters  10  is mounted on wheels  16  for transport. An aperture is provided in one of the side walls  12  and slidably receives a slide out room  20 . This is best seen in the magnified view shown in  FIG. 3 . The side walls  12  and ceiling wall  14  cooperate to define a main living area. The slide out room  20  includes side walls  24 , a ceiling wall, and a front wall  28 . As known to those skilled in the art, the slide out room  20  is mounted for movement through the aperture, so that it may be retracted into the main living quarters  22  as is shown in  FIG. 1  when the unit is transported, but can be extended from the main living quarters when the unit is parked, thereby providing auxiliary living space. The slide out room  20  includes an exterior flange  30  extending around the side walls  24  and ceiling wall. The exterior flange  30  has an inside surface  32  designed to mate with a seal assembly  19 . The slide out room  20  includes another flange, being an interior flange (not shown), extending around the side walls  24  and ceiling wall at the ends thereof opposite the ends joined to the front wall  28 . The side walls  24 , ceiling wall, and front wall  28  cooperate to define an auxiliary living area  34   FIG. 2 , which is available for use when the unit is parked and the slide out room  20  is moved to the extended position. 
     The sidewall  12  can either be smooth or corrugated. In the RV shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , the exterior surface of the sidewall is made from corrugated metal  76 . The corrugated metal  75  has a proud surface  72  and a recessed surface  74 . As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the corrugated metal  75  is affixed to the outside of the sidewall  12  and mated to the outer surface  70  of the wall  12 . 
     It is necessary to assure that moisture, dirt, debris, etc. be prevented from entering the living quarters. In  FIG. 3  a seal base  18  is installed around the inside perimeter  42  to the aperture and bulb seals  44  are subsequently added to form a seal assembly  19 . The seal assembly  19  must provide sealing at the extended position, retracted position, and all intermediate positions. The seal assembly  19  includes bulb seals  44  mounted around the aperture on the exterior surface and the interior surface of the side wall  12  adjacent the aperture, and wiper seals  54  engage the side walls  24  and ceiling wall  26  of the slide out room to wipe against the walls as the slide out room  20  extends and retracts. Preferably, the seal base  18  and bulb seals  44  are made continuously through an extrusion process and is consistent along its entire length, so that an appropriate length can be cut off and installed. 
       FIG. 4  shows the seal assembly  19  in perspective as it is assembled onto a sidewall  12 . The seal base  18  has a pair of mounting portion attachment members  36 ,  38 , which are connected by a longitudinal connecting member  40 , which extends over the transverse edge  42   FIG. 3  of the sidewall  12 . The exterior mounting portion  36  has a mounting surface  31  and the interior mounting portion  38  has a mounting surface  33 . The mounting portions  36 ,  38  include oppositely extending, rail-like outwardly facing tabs  51  which form a tongue. A clip part of the bulb seal  44  includes tabs  45  which form an inwardly facing groove defined by the tabs  45 . When the mounting portions  36 ,  38  and clip part are connected together, the tongues fit into grooves as is shown in  FIG. 7 . The tabs  45  all extend lengthwise along the bulb seal  44  such that, once fitted together, the bulb seal  44  may be slid along the length of the mounting portion, and are flexible enough to allow them to snap past each other for assembly. It contemplates that the orientation of the tongue and groove can be reversed so that the tongue is on the bulb seal  44  and the groove is on corresponding mounting portions  36 ,  38 . Alternatively, the clip part of the bulb seal portion may be slid into a mounting portion from an end of the seal. Preferably, the bulb seal is constructed such that tabs  45  are more rigid than the wall  47 . The bulb seals  44  have a wall  47  that is arcuately shaped. The wall  47  has a consistent thickness as is shown in  FIG. 7 . The bulb seal  44  has an internal web  37  that connects opposing sides of the wall  47  and is adjacent to the tongue  45 . The web  37  prevents the opposing sides of the bulb seal  44  from separating, especially when the bulb seal  44  is compressed against a surface such as inside surface  32  as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . 
     The seal base  18  contains a flipper  60  that extends from the exterior mounting portion  36 , as shown on  FIG. 7 . The flipper  60  has a tip  56 , an exterior surface  58  and an interior surface  62 . The interior surface  62  is adjacent to and intersects the mounting surface  31 . The flipper  60  is attached to the exterior mounting portion  36  opposite the connecting member  40  and extending at an obtuse angle therefrom in its relaxed position. The flipper is flexible and is designed to conform to an irregular surface. As is shown in  FIG. 4 , the flipper flattens out to become substantially parallel to mounting surface  31  when it abuts the proud surface  72 . This is particularly true when mounting surface  31  is pressed against a locally planar surface such as the proud surface  72  of the corrugated metal  76 . It extends inwardly toward the recessed surface  74 . The flipper  60  has sufficient length and resilience for the tip  56  to maintain contact to the proud surface  72 , the recessed surface,  74  and any transitional surface between. The flipper prevents gaps between the seal  19  and the sidewall  12  from being created by the varying distance between the proud surface  72 , and the recessed surface,  74  and the seal assembly  19 . At all locations where the flipper  60  contacts the exterior surface  58 , it is in biased contact with the exterior surface  58  due to its resilient nature. 
     When the slide out room  20  is fully retracted as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the bulb seal  44  that is attached to the exterior mounting portion member  36  is compressed against the inside surface  32  of the exterior flange  30 . The bulb seal  44  deforms as pressure is formed between the wall  47  and the inside surface  32 , as is shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . 
     To facilitate installation of the seal  19  on the unit  10 , the seal base  18  is first wrapped around the sidewall  12  such that transverse edge  42  abuts longitudinal connecting member  40 , mounting surface  33  abuts the inner surface  52 , mounting surface  31  abuts the proud surface  72  and recessed surface  74 . Screws  55  are then driven through exterior mounting portion  36 , and interior mounting portion  38  between tongues into  12 , preferably on the proud surface  72 . Optionally, a strip of double sided adhesive tape is affixed to any desired surface. The opposite side of the adhesive tape is covered by a protective removable coating that prevents it from sticking to anything. Optionally, the seal base  18  includes a strip of double sided adhesive tape attached to it and protected with a protective removable coating on the side that faces the side wall  12 . Once the seal base  18  is secured to the sidewall  12 , the bulb seals  44  can be installed on each mounting portion  36 ,  38 . 
     The seal assembly may be easily adapted to fit to different slide-out room configurations by cutting any necessary length. A variety of different corner configurations in the opening may be easily adapted by cutting the bulb seal  44  to a different length than the seal base  18 , and the wiper  54  may be cut to a third length if necessary. A variety of different gaps between the mobile living quarter&#39;s sidewall and the slide-out room sidewalls may be easily adapted to by adjusting the lateral position of the seal base  18  relative the sidewall or trimming back the flipper  60 . By mounting the seal base  18  and the bulb seal  44  to the wall  12 , subsequent repair and replacement of worn bulb seals  44  may be easily performed without having to remove the slide out room  20  from the opening in wall  12 . 
     After adhesive tape is optionally attached to the outer surface and inner surface  52  of the side wall  12 , the seal assembly  19  may be more securely attached to the corresponding inside and outside surfaces  52  and  50  by appropriate mechanical fasteners. Screws  55  or nails may be driven through the mounting portions  36 ,  38  into the side wall  12 . Wiper seals  54  extend from the connecting portion  40  and are adapted to flex against the side walls  24  and ceiling wall of the slide out room  20  during extension and retraction of the latter. The exterior mounting member  36 , and the interior mounting member  38 , corresponding tongues, and bulb seal  44  form a pocket  46  that hides mechanical fasteners such as screws  55  driven through the mounting portions  36 ,  38 .  FIG. 5  illustrates this. 
     It is understood that while certain aspects of the disclosed subject matter have been shown and described, the disclosed subject matter is not limited thereto and encompasses various other embodiments and aspects. No specific limitation with respect to the specific embodiments disclosed herein is intended or should be inferred. Modifications may be made to the disclosed subject matter as set forth in the following claims.