U.S. patent application number 10/079456 was filed with the patent office on 2003-08-21 for baseboard heating apparatus.
Invention is credited to Montague, William JR..
Application Number | 20030155099 10/079456 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 27733042 |
Filed Date | 2003-08-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030155099 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Montague, William JR. |
August 21, 2003 |
Baseboard heating apparatus
Abstract
A baseboard heating apparatus includes housing sections that may
be connected together and mounted to a mount, such as a plurality
of brackets. A portion of a housing may be elastically deformed to
engage the housing with a mount. The housing may be pivotally
mounted to a mount at a position near a wall or other surface to
allow the housing to be rotated open and allow access to the
interior of the housing. A bracket may have a lower portion that
both supports a heat exchanger and engages with a housing. A
connector for interconnecting housing sections may have a groove
into which a housing section is inserted.
Inventors: |
Montague, William JR.;
(Millis, MA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DARBY & DARBY P.C.
P. O. BOX 5257
NEW YORK
NY
10150-5257
US
|
Family ID: |
27733042 |
Appl. No.: |
10/079456 |
Filed: |
February 21, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
165/47 ; 165/185;
165/53; 165/55; 165/67; 237/56; 237/79 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F24D 19/04 20130101;
F24H 3/002 20130101; F28F 1/14 20130101; F28D 2021/0035 20130101;
F28D 1/0477 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
165/47 ; 165/53;
165/55; 165/67; 165/185; 237/56; 237/79 |
International
Class: |
F24H 003/00; F24D
005/10; F24H 009/06; F24D 019/02; F24D 019/06; F28F 009/00; F28F
007/00; F24D 003/00 |
Claims
1. A baseboard heating apparatus for heating an area to be occupied
by humans, comprising: a heater mount constructed and arranged to
be attached to a surface and support a heat exchanger, the heater
mount having a top portion positioned near the surface when mounted
to the surface and a bottom portion; and a housing constructed and
arranged to mount to the top and bottom portions of the heater
mount secured to the surface and at least partially enclose a heat
exchanger supported by the heater mount, at least a portion of the
housing being elastically deformed to mount the housing to the top
and bottom portions and retain the housing on the heater mount.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the surface is a portion of a
wall.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets constructed and arranged to be individually
mounted to the surface without a backplane support.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing is formed from a
sheet metal or plastic.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing has at least one
opening to allow heated air to flow from a bottom of the housing
through the at least one opening.
6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets that each include an approximately L-shaped
portion.
7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets, a bottom portion of each of the brackets
engaging with the housing.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing is pivotally
mounted to the top portion so that the housing may be rotated
upward to expose a heat exchanger supported by the plurality of
brackets.
9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the
housing remains elastically deformed while mounted to the heater
mount and causes the housing to be biased into engagement with the
top and bottom portions of the heater mount.
10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a portion of the housing
mounted to the top portion of a bracket is positioned at most 1/2
inch from the surface.
11. A baseboard heating apparatus for heating an area to be
occupied by humans, comprising: a plurality of brackets each
constructed and arranged to be individually mounted to a surface
and support a heat exchanger, each of the plurality of brackets
having a top portion and a bottom portion, the bottom portion for
supporting the heat exchanger; and a housing constructed and
arranged to mount to the top and bottom portions of a plurality of
the brackets secured to the surface and at least partially enclose
a heat exchanger supported by the plurality of brackets, the bottom
portion of each of the plurality of brackets that supports the heat
exchanger also engaging with the housing.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein at least a portion of the
housing is elastically deformed to mount the housing to the top and
bottom portions, the elastically deformed portion of the housing
causing the housing to be biased into engagement with the top and
bottom portions.
13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the surface is a portion of
a wall.
14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of
brackets is constructed and arranged to be individually mounted to
the surface without a backplane support.
15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the housing is formed from a
sheet metal or plastic.
16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the housing has at least one
opening to allow heated air to flow from a bottom of the housing
through the at least one opening.
17. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein each of the brackets has an
approximately L-shaped portion.
18. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein a portion of the housing is
positioned within at most 1/2 inch of the surface when mounted to
the top portion of a bracket.
19. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the housing is pivotally
mounted to the top portion so that the housing may be rotated
upward to expose a heat exchanger supported by the plurality of
brackets.
20. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the heat exchanger is a
hydronic heat exchanger.
21. A heating apparatus for heating an area to be occupied by
humans, comprising: a heater mount constructed and arranged to be
mounted to a surface and support a heat exchanger, the heater mount
having a top positioned near the surface; and a housing constructed
and arranged to engage with the heater mount to at least partially
enclose a heat exchanger supported by the heater mount, the housing
being pivotally mounted at at least one position near the surface
to allow the housing to be pivoted upwardly and expose at least a
portion of the heat exchanger.
22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein at least a portion of the
housing is elastically deformed to mount the housing to the heater
mount and retain the housing on the heater mount.
23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the surface is a portion of
a wall.
24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets, each of the plurality of brackets being
constructed and arranged to be individually mounted to the surface
without a backplane support.
25. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the housing is formed from a
sheet metal or plastic.
26. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the housing has at least one
opening to allow heated air to flow from a bottom of the housing
through the at least one opening.
27. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets, and each of the brackets has an
approximately L-shaped portion.
28. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the heater mount includes a
plurality of brackets, each of the plurality of brackets having a
top portion positioned near the surface when the bracket is mounted
to the surface.
29. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the housing is pivotally
mounted to a top portion of the heater mount so that the housing
may be rotated upward to expose a heat exchanger supported by the
heater mount.
30. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the heat exchanger is a
hydronic heat exchanger.
31. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein a portion of the housing
mounted to the top of the heater mount is positioned at most 1/2
inch from the surface.
32. A baseboard heating apparatus comprising: a baseboard heating
element having an elongated heat source portion adapted to output
heat and having a longitudinal axis, and at least one fin connected
to the elongated heat source and extending both in a direction
parallel to the longitudinal axis and radially from the
longitudinal axis, the at least one fin being thermally conductive
and constructed and arranged to receive heat from the elongated
heat source portion and exchange heat with surrounding air, the at
least one fin being constructed and arranged to support the weight
of the elongated heat source portion and the at least one fin.
33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the at least one fin has at
least one perforated portion that allows air flow through the
perforation.
34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the at least one perforated
portion is formed by a punch process.
35. A baseboard heating apparatus comprising: a baseboard heating
element having an elongated heat source portion adapted to output
heat and having a longitudinal axis, and at least one fin connected
to the elongated heat source and extending both in a direction
parallel to the longitudinal axis and radially from the
longitudinal axis, the at least one fin being thermally conductive
and constructed and arranged to receive heat from the elongated
heat source portion and exchange heat with surrounding air, the at
least one fin having a perforated portion that allows air flow
through at least one perforation.
36. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the at least one fin is
constructed and arranged to support the weight of the elongated
heat source portion and the at least one fin.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to a baseboard or wall mounted
heater.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Baseboard heaters are widely used to heat residential spaces
and typically include an electrically-powered heating element or a
water/steam-based heat exchanger. The heat source is typically
enclosed by a housing and supported by brackets in the housing.
[0003] The inventors have found a variety of disadvantages of some
conventional baseboard heating arrangements. For example, many such
heating arrangements do not allow easy access to the heat exchanger
or other components within the baseboard housing, e.g., to clean
dust and other debris from the heat exchanger. In addition, many of
these baseboard housings have multiple components which complicates
the construction, assembly and/or installation of the heaters. The
heat exchangers used in typical baseboard heaters also tend to have
a fixed heat output capacity per unit length that cannot be
adjusted.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] In one aspect of the invention, a baseboard heating
apparatus is provided for heating an area to be occupied by humans.
The apparatus includes a heater mount constructed and arranged to
be attached to a surface and support a heat exchanger. The heater
mount has a top portion, positioned near the surface when mounted
to the surface, and a bottom portion. A housing is constructed and
arranged to mount to the top and bottom portions of the heater
mount and at least partially enclose a heat exchanger supported by
the heater mount. At least a portion of the housing may be
elastically deformed to mount the housing to the top and bottom
portions and retain the housing on the heater mount.
[0005] In another aspect of the invention, a baseboard heating
apparatus includes a plurality of brackets each constructed and
arranged to be individually mounted to a surface and support a heat
exchanger. Each of the plurality of brackets may have a top portion
and a bottom portion, the bottom portion for supporting the heat
exchanger. A housing may be constructed and arranged to mount to
the top and bottom portions of a plurality of the brackets secured
to the surface and at least partially enclose a heat exchanger
supported by the plurality of brackets. The bottom portion of each
of the plurality of brackets that supports the heat exchanger may
also engage with the housing.
[0006] In another aspect, a heating apparatus includes a heater
mount constructed and arranged to be mounted to a surface and
support a heat exchanger. The heater mount may have a top
positioned near the surface. A housing may be constructed and
arranged to engage with the heater mount to at least partially
enclose a heat exchanger supported by the heater mount. The housing
may be pivotally mounted at at least one position near the surface
to allow the housing to be pivoted upwardly and expose at least a
portion of the heat exchanger.
[0007] In another aspect, a baseboard heating apparatus includes a
baseboard heating element having an elongated heat source portion
adapted to output heat and having a longitudinal axis. At least one
fin may be connected to the elongated heat source and extend both
in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis and radially from
the longitudinal axis. The at least one fin may be thermally
conductive and constructed and arranged to receive heat from the
elongated heat source portion and exchange heat with surrounding
air. In addition, the at least one fin may be constructed and
arranged to support the weight of the elongated heat source portion
and the at least one fin.
[0008] In another aspect of the invention, a baseboard heating
apparatus includes a baseboard heating element having an elongated
heat source portion adapted to output heat and having a
longitudinal axis. At least one fin may be connected to the
elongated heat source and extend both in a direction parallel to
the longitudinal axis and radially from the longitudinal axis. The
at least one fin may be thermally conductive and constructed and
arranged to receive heat from the elongated heat source portion and
exchange heat with surrounding air. In addition, the at least one
fin may have a perforated portion that allows air flow through at
least one perforation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] Illustrative embodiments in accordance with aspects of the
invention are described below in conjunction with the following
drawings in which like numerals reference like elements, and
wherein:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hydronic heating system in
accordance with the invention;
[0011] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the FIG. 1
system;
[0012] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a bracket for use with a
heating system;
[0013] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a finned heat exchanger in
accordance with the invention;
[0014] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the FIG. 4 heat
exchanger;
[0015] FIG. 6 shows an alternate finned heat exchanger in
accordance with the invention;
[0016] FIG. 7 shows yet another finned heat exchanger in accordance
with the invention;
[0017] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a perforation formed in a
heat exchanger fin;
[0018] FIGS. 9-12 show alternate cross-sectional views of optional
fin arrangements for heat exchangers in accordance with the
invention;
[0019] FIG. 13 is a side view of a housing section connector in
accordance with the invention;
[0020] FIG. 14 shows a cross-sectional view of the housing section
connector along the line A-A shown in FIG. 13;
[0021] FIG. 15 shows an end cap for a heater housing in accordance
with the invention; and
[0022] FIG. 16 shows another housing section connector in
accordance with the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0023] Various aspects of the invention may be used in baseboard
heating applications for residential or commercial spaces. As used
herein, the term "baseboard" implies positioning a heating
apparatus on a wall or similar surface typically, but not
necessarily, at floor level. Thus, a baseboard heating apparatus
according to the invention may be mounted to a wall surface at or
above floor level at any suitable height.
[0024] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a baseboard heating
apparatus 1 in accordance with the invention. In this illustrative
embodiment, the apparatus 1 includes housing sections 2 that
enclose a heat exchanger 4. The heat exchanger 4 may include any
suitable type of heat source, such as a hydronic heat source,
electric resistance heating element, or other. The heat exchanger 4
and the housing sections 2 may be supported on a wall surface by
any suitable heater mount, such as a plurality of brackets 5 that
are secured to the wall or other surface. Although the heating
apparatus 1 may include one housing section 2, the apparatus 1 may
include multiple housing sections 2 that are connected together by
connectors 3. For example, a first housing section 2a may be joined
to a second housing section 2b by a connector 3, and the second
housing section 2b may be joined to a third housing section 2c by
another connector 3. As used herein, the term housing section
refers to a variety of housing portions including elongated members
that cover substantially straight portions of the heating
apparatus, end caps that cover an end or termination of a heating
apparatus, as well as inside corners, outside corners or other
junction pieces.
[0025] FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of an assembled section
of the baseboard heating apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1. In this
illustrative embodiment, one or more brackets 5 are attached to a
surface 9, such as a wall portion near a floor in a room. The
bracket 5 has a top portion 51 near the surface 9 at a top end of
the bracket 5 and a bottom portion 52 that extends outwardly from
the surface 9 to form an approximate "L" shape. The bracket 5 may
have an extension or tail 53 that extends below the bottom portion
52, e.g., to allow the bracket 5 to be easily and reliably
positioned and/or supported on a floor. For example, the bracket 5
may be positioned on the wall so that the tail 53 contacts the
floor.
[0026] In this illustrative embodiment, the housing 2 has a top
portion 21 that engages with the top portion 51 of the bracket 5
and a bottom portion 22 that engages with the bottom portion 52 of
the bracket 5 so that the housing 2 is mounted to the bracket 5.
Although the housing 2 may engage the bracket 5 in any suitable
way, in this embodiment, the top portion 21 of the housing 2 has a
rolled end that seats in a curved portion of the top portion 51 of
the bracket 5. With this arrangement, the top portion 21 may be
self-centering or otherwise self-positioning with respect to the
bracket 5 and/or the surface 9. That is, the top portion 21 may
tend to seek a predetermined position relative to the top portion
51 of the bracket 5, thereby positioning the top portion 21
consistently with respect to the surface 9. The lower portion 22 of
the housing 2 may engage the bracket 5 in any suitable way to help
keep the housing 2 in place on one or more brackets 5. That is,
like the top portion 21, the bottom portion 22 may frictionally
engage the bracket 5 at a concave portion 56 as shown, or engage
with a lip, tab, slot, hole, pivot pin or any other feature of the
bracket 5, be fastened to the bracket 5 by screws, glue or other
fastening arrangements, and so on.
[0027] One aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 2 is that
the housing 2 may be pivotally mounted at a top portion near a wall
or other surface 9. This aspect of the invention may allow a user
to lift and rotate the housing 2 about a pivot point near a wall,
e.g., to gain access to a heat exchanger or other objects enclosed
by the housing 2. For example, with the housing 2 shown in FIG. 2,
a user may grasp the bottom portion 22 of the housing 2 and lift
the bottom portion 22 so that the housing 2 rotates about a
connection point between the rolled end of the top portion 21 and
the curved portion of the bracket 5. This is in contrast to many
conventional baseboard heater housings in which a portion of the
housing must be disconnected from its mount to gain access within
the housing. The pivotal mounting of the housing 2 may be arranged
in any suitable way, such as that shown in FIG. 2, by a hinge pin
connection between the bracket 5 and the housing 2 (e.g., where a
top portion 51 of the bracket 5 carries a hinge pin, and one or
more hinge knuckles on the top portion 21 of the housing 2 engage
the hinge pin), or other arrangements as will be appreciated by
those of skill in the art.
[0028] Another aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 2 is
that at least a portion of the housing may be elastically deformed
to engage with a mount. For example, in the illustrative embodiment
shown in FIG. 2, at least a portion of the housing 2 is elastically
deformed to engage the top portion 21 of the housing 2, which is
positioned near the surface 9, with a top portion 51 of the bracket
5, and engage the bottom portion 22 of the housing 2 with a bottom
portion 52 of the bracket 5. The top portion 21 of the housing 2
may be positioned within 1 inch or less from the surface 9,
preferably within 1/2 inch or less, or more preferably within 1/4
inch or less of the surface 9. Any suitable portion of the housing
2 may be elastically deformed when engaging the housing 2 with one
or more brackets 5 or other mount, and optionally may remain
elastically deformed while engaged with the brackets 5. For
example, a curved portion at the bottom portion 22 may be
elastically deformed to engage the brackets 5 and keep the housing
2 in place. Of course, it will be understood that other portions of
the housing 2, such as a middle section and/or top portion 21 of
the housing 2 may be elastically deformed to at least some extent
when engaging the housing 2 with one or more brackets 5. In this
way, the housing 2 may tend to stay mounted to the brackets 5, even
in the case of minor bumps or other impacts experienced by the
housing 2. That is, the housing 2 may tend to stay in place on the
brackets 5 in the absence of a user intentionally removing the
housing 2 from the brackets 5. Further, no fasteners or other
devices may be needed to keep the housing 2 in place. This may
allow for easier installation and/or removal of the housing 2,
e.g., before or after cleaning a space enclosed by the housing 2.
Further, removal of the housing 2 may allow for easier cleaning or
painting of the housing 2 itself, or replacement of the housing 2.
For example, the housing 2 may be removed and replaced with another
housing 2 that has a different color, shape, size or other
features. This is in contrast to many conventional baseboard heater
housings in which replacement of an entire housing can be difficult
or impossible.
[0029] It should be understood that the housing 2 may be made of
any suitable material or combination of materials, such as plastic,
metal, and so on. The housing 2 may be any suitable color or have
any suitable surface texture, e.g., may be painted, or may have a
coloring incorporated into the housing 2, as in the case of a
colored plastic material. The housing may have any suitable shape,
and may have any suitable arrangement of openings, louvers, doors,
panels, or other features to allow and/or control air flow through
the housing. For example, the housing 2 may have closable openings
or other features near the top portion 21 so that air may flow
under the bottom portion 22 into the interior of the housing 2 and
upward through the openings.
[0030] Another aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 2 is
that a bottom portion of a bracket may both support a heat
exchanger or other heat source and engage with a portion of a
housing to support the housing on the bracket. For example, in FIG.
2, the bottom portion 52 of the bracket 5 supports a heat exchanger
4 and engages with the bottom portion 22 of the housing 2. In this
illustrative embodiment, the heat exchanger 4 is a hydronic-type
heat exchanger having a central tube 41 that carries heated water
and radiates heat via longitudinally extending fins 42, but the
bottom portion 52 of the bracket 5 may support any type of heat
source, such as an electrical resistance heating element, and so
on. By both supporting a heat exchanger 4 and engaging with a
bottom portion 22 of a housing 2, the bottom portion 52 of the
bracket 5 may be made more simply and have fewer parts than other
arrangements in which one portion of the bracket 5 supports a heat
exchanger and another portion engages with a bottom portion 22 of
the housing 2. For example, some conventional brackets for
baseboard heating systems include a first portion that supports a
heat exchanger and a second portion below the first portion that
engages with a housing 2. This arrangement complicates the design
of the bracket 5 and may result in increased cost in manufacturing
the bracket.
[0031] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of an illustrative
embodiment of a bracket in accordance with the invention. As can be
seen in FIG. 3, the bracket has one or more holes 55 that may be
used to secure the bracket 5 to the surface 9, e.g., by screws or
other fasteners. The bottom portion 52 may have a lip 54 or other
feature to help keep the heat exchanger 4 or other heat source in
place on the bottom portion 52. An optional tail 53 may be included
to help appropriately position the bracket 5 a desired distance
from the floor in a room. In the illustrated embodiment, the tail
53 is formed by cutting a slot 57 in the bottom portion 52 and
bending the bottom portion 52 upward away from the tail 53, but the
tail 53 may be formed in other ways. In addition, the bottom
portion 52 includes a concave portion 56, that may be formed by
bending the bottom portion 52 appropriately, to engage with the
housing 2. Of course, as discussed above, it should be understood
that the bracket 5 may have any suitable shape or other
configuration to engage with the housing, to support the heat
source, or perform other functions. Further, in some embodiments,
the brackets may be used with, or replaced by, other types of
heater mounts, such as one including a backplane (e.g., an
elongated metal sheet) that is secured to the surface 9 and helps
support the housing 2. The backplane or other heater mount may have
brackets, bracket-like features or other arrangements to engage
with and support the housing 2.
[0032] In another aspect of the invention, a heat exchanger may
have at least one fin that extends along a longitudinal axis of the
heat source and extends radially from the longitudinal axis such
that the at least one fin is arranged to support the weight of the
heat exchanger. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, a heat exchanger 4
has four fins 42 that extend along the length of the heat exchanger
4 and extend radially. At least the fins 42 positioned at a lower
side of the heat exchanger 4 are arranged to support the weight of
the heat exchanger 4 on the bottom portion 52 of the bracket 5.
With this arrangement, no other hangers or other supports for the
heat exchanger other than the brackets 5 need be provided. In
addition, a central tube portion 41 or other supporting structure
need not necessarily be made robust enough to support the weight of
the heat exchanger 4, e.g., as in conditions where the heat
exchanger 4 is supported only at opposite ends by supports engaging
with the tube 41. This feature may allow the tube 41 to be made
thinner, thereby potentially lowering the cost of manufacturing the
tube and/or enhancing the heat transfer capability of the heat
exchanger 4.
[0033] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the heat exchanger 4
shown in FIG. 2. The heat exchanger 4 includes an elongated heat
source portion, in this embodiment the tube 41, that extends along
a longitudinal axis. One or more fins 42 also extend along the
longitudinal axis as well as extend radially from the tube 41. The
fins 42 may be formed as part of the heat exchanger 4 in any
suitable way. For example, the tube 41 and fins 42 may be extruded
as a single piece. Alternately, the fins 42 may be formed from flat
bars or strips of material that are secured to the tube 41, e.g.,
by one or more beads of solder 43 as shown in FIG. 5, welding,
adhesive, and so on. Alternately, the fins 42 may be made as one or
more pieces that are press fit onto a central tube 41 or other heat
source. This arrangement may allow the fins to be made of a
relatively inexpensive, light and/or highly thermally conductive
material, such as aluminum, and be thermally coupled to a central
tube 41 or other heat source made of a material that allows easier
fabrication in the field, such as a copper tube. For example, a fin
arrangement such as that shown in FIG. 4 may be extruded as a
single aluminum piece that has a copper center tube (not shown)
press fit or otherwise engaged within an opening between the fins
42.
[0034] FIG. 6 shows an alternate arrangement for the fins 42 in
which intermittent portions 44 are coupled to the tube 41 and
openings 45 are arranged between the intermittent portions 44. The
openings 45 may allow for airflow through the fins 42, thereby
improving heat transfer of the heat exchanger 4. The size, shape
and/or method of attachment at the intermittent portions 44 may be
arranged to maximize heat transfer to the fins 42, maximize air
flow through the fins 42, and/or allow the fins 42 to support the
weight of the heat exchanger 4.
[0035] The fins 42 may be arranged in other ways to allow airflow
through the fins. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, openings 45 may
be formed in the fins 42 by punch pressing portions of the fins.
FIG. 8 shows a close-up view of one opening 45 formed in a fin 42
by a punch press process. In this illustrative embodiment, the
opening 45 is formed by punching a portion of the fin 42 so that a
3-sided cut is formed in the fin 42. The tab 46 freed by the cut in
the fin 42 is bent downwardly to form the opening 45. As will be
appreciated by those of skill in the art, forming an opening 45 in
the manner shown in FIG. 8 actually increases the surface area for
heat transfer of the fin 42 while forming an opening 45 to allow
air to pass through the fin 42. That is, unlike a process in which
an opening 45 is formed in the fin 42 so that the tab portion 46 is
removed from the fin 42, in this illustrative embodiment, the tab
46 is retained on the fin 42, thereby maintaining or increasing the
available surface area of the fin. It will also be appreciated that
openings 45 may be formed in any other suitable way, e.g.,
drilling, die cutting, etc. to allow air to pass through the fin
42.
[0036] The fins 42 formed on a heat exchanger 4 are not limited to
the "X" shape shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5. Instead, the fins 42 may
be arranged in any suitable way, such as that shown in FIGS. 9-12.
The fin arrangements may be varied to accommodate different
applications, e.g., to provide heat exchangers with different heat
transfer capacities. For example, a heat exchanger with one fin 42,
as shown in FIG. 9, may have a smaller heat transfer capacity than
a heat exchanger having two or more fins, such as that shown in
FIG. 10. The heat exchangers may be manufactured to have a desired
number or other arrangement of fins, or the heat exchangers may be
made so that the fins 42 or selected portions of the fins 42 may be
removed from the heat exchanger in the field. For example, heat
exchangers may be manufactured in a configuration such as that
shown in FIG. 4. One or more of the fins 42 may have perforations,
score lines or other features that allow a technician to break away
one or more fins, or portions of the fins, from the heat exchanger
in the field to form arrangements such as that shown in FIGS. 9, 10
and 12. This may allow a baseboard heating system installer to more
easily balance heat output in particular rooms and/or portions of
rooms in a manner other than merely shortening the length of a heat
exchanger. For example, it may be desirable to provide a long, but
relatively low, heat output/unit length capacity system in a long,
but narrow hallway so that heat is more evenly distributed in the
hallway. By selectively adjusting the number of fins in the heat
exchanger, an adjustment in the heat output per unit length of the
heat exchanger may be made. Other benefits of the illustrated
embodiments may include a lower heat exchanger profile, e.g., a
thinner or lower profile heat exchanger, a lower weight or cost
heat exchanger, easier cleaning or other processing of the heat
exchanger, and so on. For example, the fin arrangements shown in
the illustrative embodiments of FIGS. 9-12 may be more resistant to
inadvertent bending or other damage as compared to other
conventional fin tubes for baseboard heating systems.
[0037] In another aspect of the invention, a housing sections may
be secured together with a connector arranged in accordance with
the invention. In one illustrative embodiment, a housing section
connector includes at least one groove that receives an end of a
housing section to connect the housing section to another housing
section. The groove may be formed between opposite sidewalls and
have a depth so that an end of the housing section may be received
into the groove in a direction substantially along the depth of the
groove. For example, FIG. 13 shows a side view of a housing
connector 3 used to interconnect housing sections in the FIG. 1
embodiment. In this illustrative embodiment, the connector 3
includes a groove 31 that is shaped to match an outer contour of a
housing section 2. The groove 31 receives an end of the housing
section 2, i.e., the end of housing section 2 may be inserted into
the groove 31, and one or more portions in the groove 31 may engage
with the received end of the housing section to hold the connector
3 in place on the housing section 2. For example, the connector 3
may be made of, or otherwise include, a resilient material that
elastically deforms when the housing section is received into the
groove 31. The elastic deformation may allow the connector 3 to
frictionally engage the end of the housing section to keep the
connector 3 in place. For example, FIG. 14 shows a cross-sectional
view of the connector 3 along the line A-A shown in FIG. 13. In
this illustrative embodiment, the connector 3 has an approximately
H-shaped cross section with grooves 31 on opposite sides of the
connector 3 so that housing section end portions may be received in
each of the grooves 31 and connected together. In this embodiment,
each of the grooves 31 is formed by opposing wall sections 32 and
has an approximately U-shaped cross section, although the grooves
31 may be formed in other ways. The width and depth of the groove
31, e.g., the spacing between the wall sections 32 and the height
of the wall sections 32, respectively, may be arranged in any
suitable way. For example, the groove 31 may be sized so that at
least one of the wall sections 32 elastically deforms when a
housing section is inserted into the groove 31, e.g., the width of
the groove 31 may be made to be at most equal to the thickness of
the end of the housing section. This deformation may cause the wall
section 32 to better frictionally engage the housing section. Other
features may be provided to enhance the engagement between the
connector 3 and the housing section, such as bumps or tabs 33. The
tabs 33 may include a resilient material so that the tabs 33 deform
when the housing is inserted into the groove 31, or may be rigid.
The tabs 33 may engage with slots, recessed portions or other
features in the housing section. Alternately, the connector 3 may
be engaged with a housing section by an adhesive, mechanical
fasteners, or other suitable arrangements.
[0038] The connector 3 is not limited to interconnecting housing
sections that are substantially aligned along a same line. That is,
the connector 3 may form, or otherwise be a part of, an inside or
outside corner section like the housing sections 2b and 2c shown in
FIG. 1, or may form an end cap like that shown in FIG. 15. The
connector 3 is also not limited to being formed from a single
material, such as a resilient plastic material, but instead may be
formed from a combination of different materials, such as a
resilient plastic material used to form the groove 31 and a sheet
metal to form other portions of the connector 3. In addition, the
groove 31 need not extend continuously and receive an entire end of
the housing section like the embodiment shown in FIG. 13. Instead,
the groove 31 may be discontinuously formed, e.g., such that the
groove 31 includes multiple portions that engage with separate
portions of the housing section end, and/or may only receive a
portion of the housing section end. For example, one grooved
portion may engage with a top section 21 of a housing, another
grooved portion may engage with a middle portion of the housing,
and a third grooved portion may engage with a bottom portion 22 of
the housing.
[0039] In another illustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 16, the
connector 3 may be made as a flexible sleeve or cuff into which a
housing section end may be inserted. The cuff may be made of a
flexible material that approximates the shape of the housing when
it is inserted into the groove 31, i.e., inserted into one end of
the cuff. Of course, the cuff may be formed of a more stiff
material that is pre-formed in the shape of a housing section like
the embodiment shown in FIG. 13.
[0040] Another illustrative embodiment of a connector 3 is shown in
FIG. 17. This embodiment may be formed in much the same way as that
shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, but in this embodiment, one of the wall
sections 32 is removed from the FIG. 14 arrangement so that the
connector 3 has only one groove 31 and has a "Y"-shaped cross
section. That is, the groove 31 on the right side of the connector
3 as shown in FIG. 17 receives and engages with a housing section
2, such as the housing section 2a of FIG. 1. The left side of the
connector 3 has only one wall section 32 that overlaps another
housing section 2, such as the section 2b in FIG. 1. As a result,
the connector 3 may cover the end of the section 2b, but not
necessarily engage with the section 2b. This arrangement can allow
independent movement of the housing sections 2a and 2b relative to
each other without disconnecting the connector 3 from one of the
housing sections 2. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1,
the housing section 2a may be pivotally mounted so that a person
can lift the housing 2a and expose the heat exchanger 4. With the
arrangement shown in FIG. 17, the housing section 2a may be lifted
up without interference from the housing section 2b because the
connector 3 overlaps the housing section 2b, but does not
necessarily engage with the housing section 2b. When the housing
section 2a is again pivoted downward and engaged with the heater
mount (e.g., the brackets 5), the connector wall section 32 nearest
the housing section 2b can again cover the end of the housing
section 2b. Although the FIG. 17 embodiment may be used in any
arrangement, the FIG. 17 embodiment, may be most useful in
configurations such as that shown in FIG. 1 when connecting to
inside or outside corner sections or connecting to endcaps.
[0041] While the invention has been described on conjunction with
specific embodiments, many alternatives, modifications and
variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
Accordingly, embodiments set forth herein are intended to be
illustrative of the various aspects of the invention, not limiting.
Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and
scope of the invention.
* * * * *