Abstract:
A colonial style pressure-vent hurricane shutter having predetermined requisite strength of shutter framework ( 1 ) encompassing slatted-louver apertures ( 4 ) with slat-support guides ( 7 ) for protection against storm-borne objects, wind and rain and venting harmful buildups and bursts of pressure from vacuums created on building from hurricane forces. The shutter framework includes structural beams to which ends of slanted slats ( 5 ) are attached rigidly. Ends of slat-support guides ( 7 ) are affixed intermediate the ends of both the inward edges of the slanted slats ( 6 ) and the outward edges of the slanted slats ( 21 ). The shutter framework ( 1 ) have hold down tabs ( 22 ) to keep the shutter framework ( 1 ) from being blown open during a storm. The shutter framework ( 1 ) has ribbed hinges ( 25 ) to at least one side of a building aperture in accordance with desired shutter style and structure which include top-hinged Bahama Shutters ( 8 ) and sides-hinged Colonial Shutters ( 9 ).

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This is a division of application Ser. No. 10/647,673, filed on Aug. 25, 2003, which is a continuation in part of application Ser. No. 09/966,622 filed Oct. 1, 2001, now abandoned. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     This invention relates to hurricane shutters and more particularly to a hurricane shutter that protects requisitely against storm-borne objects, wind and rain while also venting buildups and bursts of pressure and vacuum that react on buildings from hurricanes and other severe storms.  
         [0003]     Devastation from severe hurricanes has resulted in storm-area legal requirements and personal interest in adequate storm protection that also is attractive, convenient and, if possible, also low cost. Numerous storm-protective shutters have occurred as a result. None, however, vent buildups and bursts of pressure and vacuum that react on buildings from hurricanes in addition to providing requisite protection against storm-borne objects, wind and rain in a manner taught by this invention.  
         [0004]     Examples of most-closely related known but different devices are described in the following patent documents:  
                                               Number   Inventor   File Date   Issue Date   Classification                   U.S. Pat. No. 6,536,174 B   Foster et al.   May 07, 2001   Mar. 25, 2003    52/473       U.S. Pat. No. 3,039,155   lacovoni   Oct. 07, 1959   Jun. 19, 1962    49/67       U.S. Pat. No. 5,737,874   Sipos et al.   Dec. 15, 1994   Apr. 14, 1998    49/67       U.S. Pat. No. 5,907,929   Poma et al.   Nov. 21, 1997   Jun. 01, 1999    49/62x       U.S. Pat. No. 5,617,683   Ney   Mar. 25, 1996   Apr. 08, 1997    52/202       U.S. Pat. No. 4,368,594   Milam et al.   Feb. 12, 1981   Jan. 18, 1983    49/67       U.S. Pat. No. 2,013,824   Ensminger       09/35   160/77       U.S. Pat. No. 1,646,522   Berg       10/27    49/356       U.S. Pat. No. 2,716,785   Schoen   Oct. 21, 1953   Sep. 06, 1955    49/67       U.S. Pat. No. 3,667,161   Sassano   Oct. 16, 1970   Jun. 06, 1972    49/56       U.S. Pat. No. 3,691,687   Economou   Aug. 06, 1971   Sep. 19, 1972    49/74                  
 
         [0005]     The Foster et al., lacovoni, and Sipos et al. shutters do not provide weld guides to keep shutters from turning in during hurricane forces as taught by this invention. The Poma et al. shutter requires a removable rigid support for requisite protection. Shutters described by Ney, Milan et al., Ensminger, Berg and Schoen do not have pressure venting as taught by this invention. The Sassano patent does not disclose shutters, but rather a shutter operating mechanism. The Economou shutter teaches slidable slats not requiring weld guides for support.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     Objects of patentable novelty and utility taught by this invention are to provide a pressure-vent hurricane shutter which: 
        vents damaging buildups and bursts of pressure and vacuum that react on buildings from hurricanes;     provides legally requisite protection against storm-borne objects, wind and rain;     can be made attractive in a variety of structural styles; and     can be cost-effective for the level of protection provided.        
 
         [0011]     This invention accomplishes these and other objectives with a pressure-vent hurricane shutter having preferably at least legally-requisite strength of framework encompassing slatted-louver apertures for protection against storm-borne objects, wind and rain in addition to venting damaging buildups and bursts of pressure and vacuum that react on buildings from hurricanes. The framework includes structural beams to which ends of slanted slats are attached rigidly and to which inward edges of the slanted slats are attached to the back wall of a slat-support guide and the outward edges of the slanted slats are attached to the front wall of the slat-support guide. The framework is hinged with the requisite strength to at least one side of a building aperture in accordance with desired shutter style and structure which include top-hinged Bahama and sides-hinged Colonial styles. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0012]     This invention is described by appended claims in relation to description of a preferred embodiment with reference to the following drawings which are explained briefly as follows:  
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a partially cutaway front elevation view of a Bahama-Shutter embodiment;  
         [0014]      FIG. 2  is a is a section view through section line  1 - 1  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 3  is a is a section view through section line  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0016]      FIG. 4  is an end view of a framework member;  
         [0017]      FIG. 5  is an end view of a slat-support guide;  
         [0018]      FIG. 6  is a partially cutaway side elevation view of a Bahama-Shutter embodiment mounted on a generally wooden frame and being in an open mode;  
         [0019]      FIG. 7  is the  FIG. 6  illustration in a closed mode;  
         [0020]      FIG. 8  is a partially cutaway side elevation view of a Bahama-Shutter embodiment mounted on a generally concrete frame and being in an open mode;  
         [0021]      FIG. 9  is the  FIG. 8  illustration in a closed mode;  
         [0022]      FIG. 10  is a front elevation view of a colonial-shutter embodiment having triple-louver sections for doors and large windows in a closed mode;  
         [0023]      FIG. 11  is a front elevation view of a colonial-shutter embodiment having double-louver sections for average-sized doors and windows in a closed mode;  
         [0024]      FIG. 12  is a fragmentary view of a colonial-shutter hinge shown hinging two portions of the Colonial Shutter together;  
         [0025]      FIG. 13  is a fragmentary end view of a preferred shutter hinge that can be used either horizontally for hang-hinging Bahama Shutters or vertically for swing-hinging Colonial Shutters;  
         [0026]      FIG. 14  is an end view of a structure wing of the preferred shutter hinge that is shown in the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0027]      FIG. 15  is an end view of a frame wing of the preferred shutter hinge that is shown in the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0028]      FIG. 16  is a top view of the structure wing of the preferred shutter hinge that is shown in the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0029]      FIG. 17  is a top view of the frame wing of the preferred shutter hinge that is shown in the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0030]      FIG. 18  is a fragmentary side view of the preferred shutter hinge in which the structure wing is shown attached to a metallic or other rigid form as seen from a left side of the  FIG. 13  illustration and the frame wing is shown from a bottom of the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0031]      FIG. 19  is a fragmentary side view of the preferred shutter hinge in which the structure wing is shown attached to a wooden or other less rigid form as seen from a top side of the  FIG. 13  illustration and the frame wing is shown from the bottom of the  FIG. 13  illustration;  
         [0032]      FIG. 20  is a perspective view of a shutter hinge with ribs;  
         [0033]      FIG. 21  is a side view of a shutter hinge with ribs;  
         [0034]      FIG. 22  is a section view through section line  22 - 22  of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0035]      FIG. 23  is an end view of a slat-support guide;  
         [0036]      FIG. 24  is a side view of a slat-support guide;  
         [0037]      FIG. 25  is a perspective view of a slat-support guide;  
         [0038]      FIG. 26  is a front view of a slat-support guide; and  
         [0039]      FIG. 27  is a section view through section line  27 - 27  of  FIG. 26 .  
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0040]     Listed numerically below with reference to the drawings are terms used to describe features of this invention. These terms and numbers assigned to them designate the same features throughout this description. 
     1 . shutter framework      2 . face walls      3 . edge walls      4 . slatted-louver apertures      5 . slanted slats      6 . inward edges of guides      7 . slat-support mullions      8 . bahama shutters      9 . colonial shutters      10 . top hinge      11 . build out frame      12 . wooden structure      13 . concrete build out frame      14 . shutter hinge      15 . colonial build out frame      16 . frame hinges      17 . structure wings      18 . frame wings      19 . shutter-hinge bolt      20 . hang structure      21 . outward edges of slats      22 . hold down tab      23 . metal plate      24 . window jamb      25 . rib      26 . side wall of slat-support guide      27 . front wall of slat-support guide      28 . back wall of slat-support guide      29 . slot    
 
         [0070]     Referring to  FIGS. 1-5 , a pressure-vent hurricane shutter has at least one shutter framework  1  that includes structural beams that preferably are structural metal tubes having face walls  2  that are about two inches wide and edge walls  3  that are one-and-one half inches wide. A shutter spacer  4  is located proximate to the shutter framework and is oriented horizontally. The face walls  2  and the edge walls  3  are about one-eighth inch thick and made preferably of structural aluminum alloy 6063-T52 or a substantial equivalent.  
         [0071]     The substantial equivalent can be a ferrous alloy that is preferably stainless and rustproof with either an adequate coating or content of nickel, chrome, aluminum or other stainless constituent.  
         [0072]     The shutter framework  1  encompasses slatted-louver apertures  4  having slanted slats  5  with slat ends affixed to the shutter framework  1 . The slanted slats  5  have inward edges  6  and outward edges  21  that are oriented horizontally and attached to slat-support guides  7 . The slat-support guides  7  are oriented vertically with ends attached to horizontal portions of the shutter framework  1 . Both the inward edges of the slats  6  and the outward edges of the slats  21  are orthogonal to the slat-support guides  7 . The inward edges of the slats  6  are attached to the back wall of the slat-support guide  28 . The outward edges of the slats  21  are attached to the front wall of the slat-support guide  27 . The slats  5  feed through the slots  29  located on the side walls of the slat-support guide  26 .  
         [0073]     The shutter framework  1  also encompasses hold down tabs  22  located on the horizontal portions of the shutter framework  1 . The hold down tabs  22  on Bahama Shutters  8  are located on the bottom horizontal shutter framework  1 . The hold down tabs  23  on Colonial Shutters  9  are located on the top and bottom horizontal shutter framework  1 . A quarter-inch screw is inserted through the hold down tab  22  into a metal plate  23  correspondingly mounted onto the window jamb  26 . The hold down tabs  22  hold the shutter framework  1  to the window jamb  26  to keep the shutter framework  1  from blowing open during a storm. Shutter hinges  14  with ribs  26  are located on the shutter framework  1  to keep the shutter framework  1  from hitting the window jamb  26 .  
         [0074]     The slatted-louver apertures  4  includes an entire slatted enclosure of a plurality of apertures between the slanted slats  5  and the shutter framework  1 . The plurality of apertures individually are slanted with preferably about one-half inch of distance of slant orthogonally between surfaces of the slanted slats  5 . The slanted slats  5  are preferably flat aluminum bar stock about one-quarter inch thick and one inch wide. Between bottoms and tops of adjacent slanted slats  5 , there are horizontal apertures about one-eighth inch high and having a length that is a length of the slanted slats  5 , less a width of the slat-support guides  7 . The slat-support guides  7  have two side walls  26 , a front wall  27 , and a back wall  28 . The slat-support guides  7  are attached to the inward edges of the slats  6  as well as the outward edges of slats  21  to keep the slanted slats  5  from turning in and maintaining proper separation and angle when under pressure from high winds. The slat-support guides  7  have the appearance of mullions so as to give a more aesthetic appearance.  
         [0075]     A pressure-vent object of this hurricane shutter is to allow predeterminedly slight passage of wind and rain horizontally straight through slatted-louver apertures of the shutter framework  1  and slightly more directional-change passage while also providing structural strength to prevent breakage by storm-borne objects, wind and rain of hurricanes. Allowing directional-change passage of hurricane-force wind and rain while stopping large storm-borne objects and directional-change diversion of small objects like sand and small debris eliminates directly damaging aspects of hurricanes more effectively and much more cost effectively than by totally stopping the hurricane-force wind and rain. Completely blocking strong hurricane forces requires much stronger building structure and subjects the building structure to hurricane bursts of pressure and vacuum that react on buildings.  
         [0076]     Included on fronts of slatted-louver apertures  4  of Bahama Shutters  8  shown in  FIGS. 1-9  and Colonial Shutters  9  shown in  FIGS. 10-12  are portions of the slatted-louver apertures  4  that are straight through horizontally between bottoms and tops of vertically adjacent slanted slats  5 . Also shown are portions of slatted-louver apertures  4  that are slanted between the slanted slats  5  that are juxtaposed vertically.  
         [0077]     Referring to  FIGS. 6-9 , the shutter framework  1  is sized, shaped and designed predeterminedly for a Bahama Shutter  8  having a top hinge  10  with which it is hinged to the structural member which includes a build out frame  11  on a building having wooden, structure  12  shown in  FIGS. 6-7  and which includes a concrete build out frame  13  on a building having concrete structure shown in  FIGS. 8-9 . The top hinge  10  is representative of a selection of Bahama Shutter hinges having appropriate strength and operativeness for legal and other predetermined requisites for hinging hurricane shutters to building apertures.  
         [0078]     Referring to  FIGS. 10-11 , the shutter framework  1  is sized, shaped and designed predeterminedly for a Colonial Shutter  9  having a shutter hinge which includes shutter hinges  14  with which it is hinged to the structural member. The structural member includes a Colonial build out frame  15  on the building. The Colonial Shutter  9  includes frame hinges  16  with which pluralities of the shutter frameworks  1  are hinged together for side-folding.  
         [0079]     The Colonial build out frame  15  is shown in two size and structural options that include two inside horizontal portions of the shutter framework  1  shown in  FIG. 10  and one inside horizontal portion of the shutter framework  1  shown in  FIG. 11 . These options are for different sizes and shapes of building apertures in buildings. The building apertures in the buildings are not shown separately from structural members which include the build out frame  15  in  FIGS. 10-11 , the wooden structure  12  in  FIGS. 6-7  and the concrete build out frame  13  in  FIGS. 8-9 .  
         [0080]     Referring to  FIG. 12 , the frame hinges  16  can include a selection of aluminum hinges and other frame-fold hinges which can be positioned in accordance with folding characteristics of Colonial Shutters. The frame hinges  16  in this illustration are shown on back sides of the shutter framework  1  with the slanted slats  5  and the slat-support guides  7  being seen in front of the slanted slats  5 .  
         [0081]     Referring to  FIGS. 13-19 , the shutter hinge  14  is a preferred hinge that can be used either horizontally for hang-hinging Bahama Shutters  8  or vertically for swing-hinging Colonial Shutters  9 . The shutter hinges  14  have ribs  25  to keep the shutter framework  1  from hitting the window jamb  24 , thus preventing paint from rubbing off of shutter framework  1 . For the Colonial Shutters  9 , the shutter hinge  14  can be swing-hinged and include a fold-back mode with structure wings  17  attached to the Colonial build out frame  15  and with frame wings  18  attached to the shutter framework  1  and joined by a shutter-hinge bolt  19  as depicted in  FIG. 19 .  
         [0082]     As shown in  FIGS. 6-9  and  18  for the Bahama Shutters  8 , the shutter hinge  14  with ribs  25  can be hang-hinged and include a hanging mode with structure wings  17  attached to a hang structure  20  which can include the build out frame  11 , the wooden structure  12  and the concrete build out frame  13  selectively. The frame wings  18  are attached to the shutter framework  1  and joined by a shutter-hinge bolt  19  as depicted in  FIG. 18 . The hold down tabs  22  are located on the horizontal portion of the shutter framework  1 . A one-quarter inch screw is can be inserted through the hold down tab  22  into a metal plate  23  correspondingly mounted onto the window jamb  26 . The hold down tabs  22  hold the shutter framework  1  to the window jamb  24 , helping to keep the shutter framework  1  from blowing open during a storm.  
         [0083]     Referring to  FIGS. 20 and 21 , the shutter hinge  14  is shown with ribs  26 .  
         [0084]     Referring to  FIG. 22 , a cross-section of slanted slat  5  is shown affixed to slat-support guides  7 . The slat-support guides  7 , in turn, are affixed to the shutter framework  1 .  
         [0085]     Referring to  FIG. 23 , the end view of a slat-support guide  7  is shown. The slat-support guide consists of two side walls  26 , a front wall  27 , and a back wall  28  affixed together at joining ends.  
         [0086]     Referring to  FIG. 24 , a side view of a slat support guide  7  is shown without the slanted slats  5 . The side walls  26  have slots  29  where the slanted slats  5  feed through.  
         [0087]     Referring to  FIG. 25 , a perspective view of a slat-support guide  7  is shown by itself.  
         [0088]     Referring to  FIG. 26 , a front view of a slat-support guide  7  is shown.  
         [0089]     Referring to  FIG. 27 , a cross-section of a slat-support guide is shown.  
         [0090]     The structure wings  17  and the frame wings  18  of the shutter hinges  14  are made preferably of structural aluminum alloy 6063-T5, 6061-T6 or a substantial equivalent. As for other metallic components, the substantial equivalent can be a ferrous alloy that is preferably stainless and rustproof with either an adequate coating or having suitably alloyed content of nickel, chrome, aluminum and/or other stainless constituent.  
         [0091]     A new and useful pressure-vent hurricane shutter having been described, all such foreseeable modifications, adaptations, substitutions of equivalents, mathematical possibilities of combinations of parts, pluralities of parts, applications and forms thereof as described by the following claims and not precluded by prior art are included in this invention.