AU745364B2 - Linear diffuser mounting frame - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Applicant(s): HOLYOAKE INDUSTRIES LIMITED Invention Title: LINEAR DIFFUSER MOUNTING FRAME The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: LINEAR DIFFUSER MOUNTING FRAME TECHINICAL FIELD This invention relates to linear diffuser mounting frames. More particularly, it relates to mounting frame bodies and a method of installing same, permitting linear diffusers to be installed in a ceiling leaving a high level finish ceiling. However, it will be appreciated this particular advantage is given by way of example only and is not intended to be limiting.

"BACKGROUND ART Si" Linear slot diffusers (or ceiling slot diffusers) are known. Typically, such diffusers are •used in air conditioning systems for high-grade commercial buildings where there is significant foot traffic and an efficient air conditioning unit is required. Building specifications for such buildings place greater emphasis on appearance and efficiency of air conditioning units, rather than cost. Due to the high cost of installing linear diffuser air conditioning systems in such buildings, the systems are traditionally installed in public buildings such as convention centres, opera houses, airports and similar, and other buildings such as luxury hotels.

Linear diffuser air conditioning systems are traditionally installed by commercial contractors. Because of the labour intensive installation techniques presently required the cost of installing a linear diffuser air conditioning system has to date been somewhat prohibitive. Such a system would accordingly never be realistically considered an option in most residential homes or lower cost commercial buildings.

Traditionally ceiling slot diffusers (CSD) are mounted in the ceiling grid (ie within the trusses and/or batten grid) before the ceiling sheet material, such as plaster board, is installed, although the CSD may also be fitted after installation of the plasterboard. In either case, the same problems arise.

The CSD is installed in short lengths into slots between aligned battens, a steel strap fixed to span the slot between the battens, and self locating screws screwing the CSD at intervals through the steel strap and into the truss above. This leaves the installed CSD hanging a certain distance below the ceiling battens.

Being factory roll formed or extruded, the flanges of the CSD are absolutely straight.

However, the ceiling battens may or may not be installed accurately, because they are installed by builders manually, and in virtually all cases there will be inaccuracies over a building ceiling in batten installation. Accordingly, when the ceiling sheet material, ie plaster board is subsequently fitted between the ceiling battens and the CSD flange, 999 inevitably there will be inaccuracies in the ceiling grid which become highlighted where the sheet fits against the linear air diffuser flange. For example, the plasterboard may be forced into the gap between the diffuser flange and the ceiling batten, 0 damaging the CSD flange.

The diffuser flanges are invariably factory finished to a high specification and any damage is correspondingly hard to fix. Painters may however attempt touch ups to the flanges. Furthermore, if there is too large a gap between the ceiling batten and the diffuser flange, when the plaster board is slotted in to the gap between the flange and the ceiling batten, the plasterer when plastering the ceiling will endeavour to trowel out these unsightly gaps which are visually apparent as dark shadows between the diffuser flange and the plasterboard ceiling. When attempting plaster touch ups, typically the finished flange of the diffuser will be masking taped over so as not to become marked with plaster. However, when removing the masking tape, the factory finish may be damaged, and a further touch up by the painter may be required.

It is apparent that the present method of CSD installation is time consuming, resulting in significant labour costs. More importantly, the present method does not easily provide a high level finish to ceilings because of the inherent impossibilities of accurately installing a ceiling batten grid system. Furthermore, the present requirement of screwing CSIs through the steel strap into trusses is time consuming.

It is estimated it takes approximately one to three hours per metre to install CSIs in this manner.

Another most undesirable method presently used in installing CSIs is to screw the flanges of the CSD to the ceiling. Screws are inserted through the factory finished flanges, resulting in a visually unappealing installed CSD. Clearly damaging the CSD by installation in this manner, which arises through a desire to simply and rapidly install CSDs, is a practice that should desirably be avoided.

Another disadvantage of present methods of CSD installation is that it is difficult to install air-conditioning ducts/boot onto the finished CSD. Contractors have soiled hands, and when fitting the duct/boot to the finished CSD, marks to the CSD finish, or even physical damage, may result. It would be desirable to provide a method of CSD installation that enables duct/boot installation prior to installation of the high level finish CSD.

It would be desirable to provide a device that would enable CSIs to be installed integrally with a ceiling when constructing a building such that inaccuracies in ceiling installation can be compensated for. It would further be desirable to provide a device enabling concomitant installation in a ceiling structure with ceiling panel installation such that a high quality ceiling surface is unfailingly and efficiently provided.

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DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a frame for mounting a linear diffuser in a ceiling, said frame including: a body for receiving the linear diffuser; resilient locating means for variable location of the body with respect to ceiling battens/trusses; and fixed locating means connected to the body for fixed location of ceiling panels with respect to the body whereby said fixed location of the ceiling panels is independent of the variable location of the body with respect to the ceiling battens/trusses.

.The linear diffuser may be of any type generically available and shall hereinafter be referred to as a CSD (Ceiling Slot ego• 20 Diffuser) eeoc The frame body may be substantially rigid and preferably heavy gauge extruded aluminium or roll formed steel. However, the body may be of any other shape and construction that permits receipt 25 of a CSD in accordance with the present invention.

oo•• S"In a preferred embodiment the resilient locating means may ooooo S• comprise at least one arm extending outwardly from said body, .o and able to flex in relation to the body. The resilient locating 30 means may preferably extend between the ceiling battens or trusses and the ceiling panels when installed, compensating for inaccuracies in ceiling grid construction.

The resilient locating means may preferably comprise a flexible flange extending from the body, and shall hereinafter be referred to as same.

4 i The flexible flange may preferably be of a shape and construction such that a part thereof can abut a batten end and another part be positioned substantially underneath the batten, but above the upper (invisible) surface of the ceiling panel.

It will be appreciated that ceiling panels may be any form of sheet material known or used in the trade to form a ceiling surface. However, for the purposes of the present invention ceiling panels shall hereinafter be referred to as plaster boards.

Preferably the fixed locating means for locating plaster board with respect to the frame and/or the ceiling battens/or trusses may comprise a recess formed towards one end of the body, the recess formed within the body of the frame being able to receive an edge of the plaster board. Preferably the recess of the fixed locating means is provided with an angled face adapted to abut the edge of the plasterboard once inserted in the recess.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a frame substantially as described above for installing a CSD in a ceiling comprising a body, and resilient locating means and fixed locating means wherein in the erected ceiling the resilient locating means are adapted to extend between the battens and the ceiling panel inserted into the fixed locating means whereby the resilient locating means is able to compensate for inaccuracies in batten orientation and permit the resilient and fixed locating means to locate the plaster board in a co-planar alignment, permitting installation of the CSD into the mounting frame and providing a high level finish without further finishing to the plaster board surface or diffuser being necessitated.

Preferably the frame is made of opposed single extrusions or roll formed section having bridges there between.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of installing a CSD in a ceiling comprising the steps of erecting the truss and or batten frame work of a ceiling allowing for slots in desired positions to receive the mounting frame of the present invention; installing the frame in the slot such that the resilient locating means abut the batten ends and/or the underside of the batten; inserting a ceiling panel into the fixed locating means, and slotting the linear diffuser into the mounting frame characterised in that the CSD is installed integrally with ceiling construction.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method substantially as described above wherein the air conditioning boot and duct are located over the installed frame prior to insertion of the ceiling panel and CSDs.

It can be seen that the frame and method of the present invention enable a ceiling to be erected having the CSD mounting frame installed integrally therein, enabling, after finishing of the plaster board ceiling surface, the factory finished CSD to be installed by simply slotting into the frame.

Because the plaster board is retained by the recess in the fixed locating means parallel with the straight wall of the recess, no gap requiring plastering or painting results between the edge of the recess and the plaster board surface, and correspondingly between the flange of the CSD and the plaster board surface. Once installed, the mounting frame and methods of the present invention prevent rapid, simple and cheap installation of a linear diffuser air conditioning system with an immediate high level quality finish.

6 S~ BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS Further aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description which is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a sectional view of a known CSD installation; Figure 2 is a sectional view of a CSD installation according to one embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 3 is a sectional view of an installed mounting frame according to one embodiment of the present invention, showing the CSD in position to be slotted into said mounting frame.

15 BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Referring to Figure 1, a known CSD installation is illustrated. The CSD 1 may be installed before or after installation of the ceiling panels herein shown as plasterboard 3 over the battens 5 of the ceiling 20 construction. Typically, a ceiling erector will be asked to leave a space herein shown by line A-A between battens The ceiling erector will then position the CSD 1 between battens 5 and use screws 7 through steel straps 9 and into the truss (not shown) to locate the CSD 1 in position. Once the CSD 1 is in position in relation to the battens 5 of the ceiling grid, plaster board 3 is then inserted into the space between the flange 11 of the CSD 1 and the under surface of the battens 5. It will be appreciated the flanges 11, being factory manufactured have straight edges.

In contrast, battens 5, being manually installed, may often be positioned inaccurately. For this reason plaster board 3 may not fit neatly in the manner illustrated in Figure i.

Instead, there may frequently be gaps between plasterboard 3 and flange 11 such that infill by a plasterer is required, requiring further painting of the ceiling surface. The flanges 11 of the CSD 1 have been paint finished in the factory but frequently the flange 11 surface will become damaged or otherwise marked and may require repainting. The installation process is shown in Figure 1 is accordingly time consuming, and a high level ceiling finish is in most cases only obtained after repeated touch ups. The main problem with this method of installation is that there is no ability, when installing the CSD, to compensate for inaccuracies in batten 5 installation.

Referring to Figure 2, there is illustrated a CSD installed using a mounting frame of one embodiment of the present invention. In this Figure, there is shown a frame 13 for mounting a linear diffuser (CSD) 1 in a ceiling generally indicated by arrow 15 comprising a body 17 for receiving the o CSD 1.

S 15 Resilient locating means herein shown by flexible, flange 19 extend from the body 17 to locate the frame 13 with respect to the ceiling 15 and fixed locating means 21 are used for locating the plaster board 3 with respect to the frame 13 and/or the ceiling The body 17 of the frame 13 is preferably rigid The rigidity of the body 17 is necessary to its function in retaining the CSD 1. In addition, the body 17 receives some load from the plasterboard 3, further rendering the rigidity desirable.

It can be seen the mounting frame 13 is composed of two opposed bodies 17 connected by bridges 23 along their length when installed.

Referring to Figure 3, the toll of the flexible flange 19 can be more fully appreciated. Namely, one part thereof is adapted to abut the end of a batten 5, and another part folds back such that it can be positioned parallel to the batten 5 under surface and the plasterboard 3 upper surface.

That is, the flexible flange 19 allows for discrepancies in the ceiling grid system and becomes part thereof The resilience of the flexible flange in taking up discrepancies in the grid system means no matter what the discrepancies are, the plaster board 3 can always be received by the mounting frame 13 in perfect alignment.

Figure 3 further illustrates a method of installing a CSD 1 in a ceiling comprising the steps of erecting the ceiling allowing for slots A-A in the ceiling, shown here as being between the battens 5. The slot A-A receives the mounting frame 13 according to this embodiment of the present invention. The frame 13 is positioned such that the resilient plaster board locating members herein shown as flexible flange 19 abut the ends of battens 5 and inserting plaster board 3 into the fixed plaster board locating members 21. At this stage the painters may paint the plasterboard ceiling and do any :miscellaneous plastering that may be required. It does not matter if the visible part of the fixed locating member 21 is painted or plastered on, as the CSD 1 is simply slotted into position as shown by the arrows, covering the visible part of the fixed plaster board locating member 21. Because the factory finished flange 11 of the CSD 1 fits into the correct position over the painted and plastered plaster board with no unsightly gaps between same, simply by slotting in the CSD 1 into position in the mounting frame 13, the CSD installation is complete without further finishing being required.

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Also shown in Figure 3 are locating members 25 which aid retention of the CSD -••within the installed frame 13. It will be appreciated the shape and configuration of the fixed locating member 21 illustrated, is such that the angled wall of the recess of the fixed locating member 21 guides the plaster board into a tight position and retains same in that position.

It will be apparent the mounting frame and methods of the present invention permit a solid base frame which can be installed integrally with a ceiling grid system to facilitate the fitting of generically available slot diffusers into buildings. Being able to slot in the diffusers as a final step in the installation process obviates of the present requirements to conduct plaster and paint repairs to obtain a neat finish between the ceiling and slot diffuser. It will also ease the installation of prefabricated slot diffusers of particular configurations by enabling the ceiling erector to mount the mounting frame of the present invention during ceiling construction. In this way, the slot diffusers can be inserted into the erected frames without incurring damage to itself, or to installed plasterboard. Builders need also not suffer the time consuming consequences of erecting a ceiling grid inaccurately as the frame and methods of the present invention can compensate for same.

Aspects of the present invention have been described by way of example only and it should be appreciated that modifications and additions may be made thereto without S: departing from the scope thereof.

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Claims (17)

1. A frame for mounting a linear diffuser in a ceiling, said frame including: a body for receiving the linear diffuser, and resilient locating means for variable location of the body with respect to ceiling battens/trusses, and fixed locating means connected to the body for fixed location of ceiling panels with respect to the body whereby said fixed location of the ceiling panels is independent of the variable location of the body with respect to the ceiling battens/trusses.

2. A frame as claimed in claim 1 wherein the resilient oooo 20 locating means adjusts to compensate for inaccuracies in the batten orientation. a

3. A frame as claimed in either of claims 1 or 2 wherein the resilient locating means is adapted to extend between the 25 battens/trusses and a ceiling panel inserted into a fixed locating means to compensate for .a a a S"inaccuracies in the battens/truss orientation. ooooo

4. A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein S: 30 the resilient locating means includes at least one arm extending out from the body which is able to flex in relation to the body.

A frame as claimed in claim 4 wherein the extending arm of the resilient locating means is adapted to flex about a joint to the body 11

6 A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the resilient locating means includes a flexible flange extending from the body and connected to same, wherein the flexible flange is shaped so that a part thereof can abut a batten end and another part thereof may be positioned substantially underneath a batten but above the upper surface of a ceiling panel when installed.

7 A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein the fixed locating means includes a recess formed towards one end of the body able to receive the edge of a ceiling panel.

8 A frame as claimed in claim 7 wherein the fixed locating means includes an angled face adapted to abut the edge of a ceiling panel inserted into the recess in the fixed locating means.

9 A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein the resilient locating means and fixed locating means when in use allow a ceiling panel, ceiling slot diffuser and the frame to be located in a co-planar arrangement.

A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the body is substantially rigid and constructed from heavy gauge extruded aluminium.

11 A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the body is substantially rigid and constructed from roll formed steel.

12 A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11 wherein the frame includes two opposed bodies connected together by bridges when installed.

13. A frame as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12 wherein the ceiling panels located by the fixed locating means are plasterboards.

14. A method of installing a linear diffuser in a ceiling including the steps of: erecting the truss and/or batten framework of a ceiling allowing for slots in desired positions to receive a mounting frame as claimed in any previous claim, and installing the frame in a slot such that the resilient locating means abut the batten ends and/or the underside of a batten, and inserting a ceiling panel into the fixed locating means, and *O01 20 slotting the linear diffuser into the frame, OOO 0* the method characterised in that the linear diffuser is oo0 installed integrally with the ceiling construction. ooo S

15. A method of installing a linear diffuser as claimed in claim 14 further characterised by the following steps: *SSSSS S erecting the truss and/or batten framework of a :ceiling allowing for slots in desired positions to o• 30 receive a mounting frame as claimed in any previous claim, and installing the frame in a slot such that the resilient locating means abut the batten ends and/or the underside of a batten, and installing an air-conditioning boot and duct over the frame, and 13 I~ r; ni ll._.__rli 1 j- inserting a ceiling panel into the fixed locating means, and slotting the linear diffuser into the frame.

16. A frame for mounting a linear diffuser substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings and/or examples with the exception of Figure

17 A method of installing a linear diffuser using a frame substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings and/or examples with the exception of Figure Dated this 22nd day of July 1998 a.. 20 HOLYOAKE INDUSTRIES LIMITED By their Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK