Patent Abstract:
A register assembly with adjustable faceplate connectors can be used to cover air duct openings that supply a flow of heated or cooled air to a room of a structure, and can also be used to cover air duct openings that receive return air from the room. The register assembly includes a faceplate that has removably attachable connectors that adapt the faceplate to be removably attached to a plurality of damper assemblies of different sizes. The plurality of connectors are adjustably connected to the faceplate to adapt the faceplate to each different size of damper assembly.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     (1) Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention pertains to a register assembly that can be used to cover duct openings that supply a flow of heated or cooled air to a room of a structure, and can also be used to cover duct openings that receive return air from the room. In particular, the register assembly is comprised of a framed faceplate, a plurality of damper assemblies of different sizes, and a plurality of connectors that are adjustably connected to the faceplate to adapt the faceplate to each different size of damper assembly.  
         [0003]     (2) Description of the Related Art  
         [0004]     Very often in the heating and cooling systems of structures, and in particular residential structures, the network of air ducts that supply heated or cooled air to the different structures are constructed in various different sizes. This at times will result in the duct openings that supply air through openings cut in the floors and walls of the structure to be of different sizes. This does not often occur in individual home constructions, but it can be found that homes constructed in different years or by different construction contractors will have air duct openings that are of different sizes. For example, air duct openings of 2.25″×10″, 2.25″×12″, 3″×10″, 4″×10″, 4″×12″, and 4″×14″ are common.  
         [0005]     The existence of air duct openings of different sizes makes choosing a register assembly for an existing home, or supplying register assemblies for a home under construction difficult. Not only must a desirable design for the register faceplate be chosen, but care must be taken to ensure that the register assembly is properly sized to fit the particular duct opening of the home. This requires that the air duct openings be carefully measured, and the properly dimensioned register assembly be obtained to fit each air duct opening.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     The register assembly with the adjustable faceplate connectors of the present invention overcomes the disadvantages associated with the different sized air duct openings of homes and other structures. The register assembly of the invention is comprised of a framed faceplate, a plurality of damper assemblies that are each dimensioned to fit the duct opening dimensions commonly used in building construction, and a plurality of connectors that are adjustably fit to the faceplate to enable the removable attachment of the faceplate to each of the different sized damper assemblies.  
         [0007]     The one faceplate is dimensioned to cover the various different sizes of duct openings. The outer peripheral border of the faceplate is dimensioned sufficiently large to extend beyond the perimeter dimensions of each of the commonly used duct openings. One or more holes are provided through the faceplate to provide the free flow of air through the faceplate. A variety of different faceplates could be provided with the holes of the faceplate cut in a variety of different patterns.  
         [0008]     A plurality of different damper assemblies are provided, each being dimensioned to match the damper assembly with a particular size of duct opening. Each damper assembly is constructed with a base having four side walls that surround a center opening through the base. Examples of damper assemblies are disclosed in the U.S. Patents of Berger U.S. Pat. No. 6,309,297 B1 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,113 B2, the disclosures of each patent being incorporated herein by reference. Each damper assembly base contains one or more louvers that are movable relative to the base to control the flow of air through the damper assembly.  
         [0009]     The plurality of connectors are each adapted to attach the faceplate to each of the different sizes of damper assemblies. Each of the connectors are identical in construction, reducing their cost to manufacture. Each of the connectors are removably attachable to the faceplate and are removably attachable to each of the different sized damper assemblies without the use of separate fasteners. Thus, the entire register assembly can be assembled without separate threaded fasteners. The connectors are removably attachable to the faceplate in a variety of adjusted positions. In each of the adjusted positions of the connectors relative to the faceplate, the connectors adapt the faceplate for removable attachment to one of the various different sizes of damper assemblies.  
         [0010]     Thus, for any particular duct opening, an appropriately dimensioned damper assembly is chosen. A faceplate is chosen that has a desirable pattern of openings. The damper assembly is assembled over the air duct opening. The plurality of connectors are then removably attached to the faceplate in a particular pattern of the connectors relative to the faceplate to enable the removable attachment of the faceplate to the chosen damper assembly. The damper assembly is then removably attached to the plurality of connectors, thereby removably attaching the damper assembly to the faceplate.  
         [0011]     In the manner discussed above, the register assembly of the invention is inexpensively and easily assembled over air duct openings of various different sizes. Thus, the register assembly of the invention simplifies the assembly of the air heating and cooling system and reduces the number of different parts needed to assemble the system, thereby reducing the cost of the systems assembly.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]     Further features of the invention are set forth in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention and in the drawing figures wherein:  
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a top plan view of a framed faceplate of the register assembly of the invention;  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  is a side elevation view of the faceplate of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 3  is an end elevation view of the faceplate of  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0016]      FIG. 4  is a cross section of the faceplate taken along the line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0017]      FIG. 5  is a cross section of the faceplate along the line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0018]      FIG. 6  is a top plan view of one of the plurality of connectors of the invention;  
         [0019]      FIG. 7  is a side elevation view of the connector;  
         [0020]      FIG. 8  is an end elevation view of the connector;  
         [0021]      FIG. 9  is a cross-section of the connector along the line  9 - 9  of  FIG. 6 ;  
         [0022]      FIG. 10  is a partial view of the one of the connectors mounted in one of its adjusted positions relative to the faceplate;  
         [0023]      FIG. 11  is a partial side view of the connector and faceplate shown on  FIG. 10 ;  
         [0024]      FIG. 12  is a partial view of the faceplate and one of the connectors in a second adjusted position of the connector; and  
         [0025]      FIG. 13  is a partial side view of the faceplate and connector of  FIG. 12 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0026]     The register assembly of the invention is designed to be used with a damper assembly of the type disclosed in the U.S. Patents of Berger U.S. Pat. No. 6,309,297 B1 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,113 B2, the disclosures of both being incorporated herein by reference. As stated earlier, damper assemblies of this type are provided in a variety of different sizes to fit different size air duct openings. A common feature of each of the different damper assemblies is that they include a plurality of pawl projections that each project inwardly from an interior surface of the damper base. Each of the projections is positioned to receive a tab of a faceplate that is being removably attached to the damper assembly. Because the constructions of these damper assemblies are known in the art as shown in the above-referenced patents, they are not described in further detail here or shown in the drawing figures.  
         [0027]     The register assembly of the invention is basically comprised of a framed faceplate  12  and a plurality of connectors  14  that are removably attachable to the faceplate and to an associated damper assembly. Each of the faceplate  12  and connectors  14  may be constructed from a variety of different materials such as metals, wood, or plastic. It is only desirable that the particular materials used to construct the faceplate  12  and connectors  14  have a certain degree of resilience to enable component parts of the connectors  14  to resiliently flex relative to each other, as will be explained.  
         [0028]     As seen in  FIG. 1 , the faceplate  12  has a rectangular configuration that is dimensioned to cover over the floor or wall opening associated with an air duct opening with which the register assembly of the invention is to be used. The faceplate  12  is designed with a framed border area  16  that extends around the top surface of the faceplate and defines the peripheral edge  18  of the faceplate. The outer dimensions of the faceplate peripheral edge  18  are also dimensioned sufficiently large so that the faceplate  12  will cover over each of the different sizes of damper assemblies available. A plurality of openings  20  are formed in the faceplate inside the border area  16 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , the openings  20  are typically designed to have an aesthetically pleasing appearance. A variety of different patterns of openings  20  could be provided in a plurality of different faceplates.  
         [0029]     As shown in  FIGS. 2-5 , the framed border  16  of the faceplate  12  is positioned on an upper portion of the faceplate. The faceplate also has a lower portion defined by sidewalls  22 ,  24 ,  26 ,  28  that are positioned inwardly from the faceplate peripheral edge  18  and below the framed border  16  of the faceplate. The positions and dimensions of the faceplate sidewalls  22 ,  24 ,  26 ,  28  are determined to enable the sidewalls to be inserted into an opening cut in a floor or wall for an air duct opening. With sidewalls  22 ,  24 ,  26 ,  28  inserted into the floor or wall opening, the framed border  16  of the faceplate conceals the opening.  
         [0030]     A plurality of notches  34  are recessed into the elongated faceplate sidewalls  22 ,  24 . Notches could also be provided in the shorter sidewalls  26 ,  28 . Each of the notches  32  has a back wall  34  and a pair of opposed walls  36  that define the interior of the notch. Opposed, projecting tongues or ribs  38  project outwardly from the opposed walls  36  of each notch. The tongues  38  extend along the length of the opposed walls  36  to the notch back wall  34 . In the particular embodiment of the faceplate  12  shown in the drawing figures, there are four notches  32 .  
         [0031]      FIGS. 6-9  show the construction of each of the connectors  14  used with the faceplate  12  of the invention. With the faceplate  12  having four notches  32 , the register assembly of the invention will make use of four connectors  14 . For different numbers of notches, different numbers of connectors are used. All of the connectors  14  used with each faceplate  12  are the same in construction.  
         [0032]     Each connector  14  is basically constructed with a first portion  42  and a second portion  44  that are oriented at an angle relative to each other. In the preferred embodiment the two portions  42 ,  44  define a right angle.  
         [0033]     As shown in  FIG. 6 , the first portion  42  of the connector  12  has a rectangular configuration defined by a pair of opposite sidewalls  48  and a front wall  50  and opposite back wall  52 . The first portion  42  also has a top surface  54  and an opposite bottom surface  56 . An opening  58  extends through the connector first portion  42  from the top surface  54  to the bottom surface  56 . The rectangular configuration of the connector first portion  42  is dimensioned to fit into each notch  32  of the faceplate  12  with the connector first portion sidewalls  48  opposing the notch opposed walls  36 .  
         [0034]     As seen in  FIG. 7 , each of the connector sidewalls  48  is provided with a groove  62  that extends through the sidewall. The grooves  62  are dimensioned to receive the notch tongues  38  that project from the opposed walls  36  of the faceplate notches  32 . Engagement of the faceplate tongues  38  in the connector grooves  62  holds the connector in the faceplate notch  32 .  
         [0035]     The connector first portion  42  is dimensioned to be received in each faceplate notch  32  in two positions of the connector relative to the notch. In the first position of the connector  14  relative to the faceplate notch  32 , the back wall  52  of the connector first portion is positioned against the notch back wall  34  with the notch tongues  38  positioned in the connector groove  62 . In the second position of the connector  14  relative to the faceplate notches  32 , the front wall  50  of the connector first portion is positioned against the notch back wall  34  with the notch tongues  38  positioned in the connector grooves  62 . In each of the first and second positions of the connector  14  relative to the faceplate  12 , the connectors  14  are removably attached to the faceplate  12  without the use of separate fasteners, for example screw-threaded screw and nut fasteners.  
         [0036]     Each second portion  44  of each connector  14  projects outwardly from the first portion bottom surface  56  adjacent the first portion front wall  50 . As seen in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , each second portion  44  has a general rectangular configuration with a pair of opposite sidewalls  64  and a front wall  66  and opposite back wall  68 . Both the front wall  66  and back wall  68  have respective tapered portions  72 ,  74  at the lower ends of the walls, as best seen in  FIGS. 8 and 9 . An opening  76  also passes through the connector second portion  44  from the front wall  66  to the back wall  68 . The opening  76  gives the connector second portion  44  a certain resilience that enables the second portion  44  to be resiliently flexed relative to the first portion  42 . The openings  76  are dimensioned to receive the projections or pawls of the damper assemblies described in the earlier referenced patents. As stated earlier, each connector  14  can be removably attached to the framed faceplate  12  in a first and second position of the connector relative to the faceplate. This adapts the faceplate  12  for removable attachment to damper assemblies of different sizes.  FIG. 11  shows a partial, side sectioned view of a connector  14  inserted in a notch  32  of the faceplate  12  in the first position of the connector relative to the faceplate. It can be seen that in the first position of the connector  14 , the connector second portion  44  is positioned outwardly to its greatest extent relative to the faceplate peripheral edge  18 . With all of the four connectors  14  removably attached to the faceplate  12  in their first relative positions as shown in  FIG. 11 , the faceplate  12  is adapted for removable attachment to the larger damper assembly construction.  
         [0037]      FIG. 13  shows a partial, side sectioned view of a connector  14  removably attached in a notch  32  of the faceplate  12  in the second relative position of the connector  14  to the faceplate. In the second position of the connector  14  relative to the faceplate  12 , the connector second portion is positioned radially inwardly from the faceplate peripheral edge  18  to its greatest extent, as shown in  FIG. 13 . This adapts the faceplate  12  for removable attachment to a damper assembly of the smaller size. Each of the second portions  44  of the connectors attached to the faceplate  12  in the relative positions shown in  FIG. 13  are positioned to be inserted inside the side walls of the damper assembly base in attaching the faceplate to the damper assembly.  
         [0038]     In removably attaching the framed faceplate  12  with the removably attached connectors  14  to a damper assembly, the faceplate is first positioned over the damper assembly of the appropriate size, i.e., a larger or smaller damper assembly, with the connector second portions  44  positioned just above the projections on the interior surfaces of the damper assembly side walls. The faceplate  12  and attached connectors  14  are then moved downwardly toward the damper assembly inserting the four connector second portions  44  inside the damper assembly side walls. The tapered portions  72  of the front walls  66  of the connector second portions slide over the projections or pawls of the damper assembly causing the connector second portions  44  to resiliently flex inwardly relative to the first portions  42  and the faceplate  12 . When the tapered portions  72  pass over the damper assembly projections, the connector second portions  44  snap back into their original positions relative to the first portions  42  as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , with the damper assembly projection being received in the connector second portion opening  76 . In this way, the connector second portion opening  76  acts as a recess that receives the damper assembly projection to removably attach each connector  14  to the damper assembly projection, and removably attach the faceplate  12  to the damper assembly.  
         [0039]     Although the present invention has been described above by reference to specific embodiments, it should be understood that modifications and variations of the invention may be constructed without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the following claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 5