Externally tensioned pliable air ducts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11543149-B2
Application number	US-202017134988-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 28, 2020
Priority date	May 29, 2014
Publication date	Jan 3, 2023
Grant date	Jan 3, 2023

Abstract

Example air duct assemblies include a pliable air duct supported such that the duct is maintained in a generally expanded shape even when the duct is deflated. In some examples, a series of hangers suspend the duct from one or more cables, tracks or other type of overhead support. The hangers are spaced apart and distributed over the length of the duct, and each one contributes in pulling the duct taut in the duct's longitudinal direction.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An air duct assembly comprising:
an air duct including a pliable sidewall, the sidewall defining an interior of the air duct and an external area outside the air duct;
a hoop to be disposed within the air duct, the hoop to provide radial support to the air duct;
a first hanger to be coupled to the hoop and to a first overhead support, the first overhead support spaced apart from the air duct in the external area; and
a second hanger to be coupled to the hoop and to a second overhead support, the second overhead support spaced apart from the air duct in the external area, the air duct to be between the first overhead support and the second overhead support, the first and second hangers to be held in tension to generate forces acting on the hoop in a longitudinal direction extending along a longitudinal axis of the air duct, the hoop to be coupled to the air duct such that the forces acting on the hoop place the pliable sidewall in tension along the longitudinal direction.

2. The air duct assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first hanger is to be coupled to the hoop via a first opening in the pliable sidewall and the second hanger is to be coupled to the hoop via a second opening in the pliable sidewall.

3. The air duct assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first overhead support is an elongate cable, the first hanger including a clamp to grip the cable.

4. The air duct assembly of claim 3 , wherein the first hanger includes an elongate member to couple the hoop to the clamp.

5. The air duct assembly of claim 4 , wherein the elongate member is moveable relative to the clamp.

6. The air duct assembly of claim 4 , wherein the elongate member includes a plurality of independent segments.

7. The air duct assembly of claim 6 , wherein different ones of the segments are moveable relative to one another.

8. The air duct assembly of claim 6 , wherein adjacent ones of the segments loop around each other.

9. An air duct assembly comprising:
an air duct including a pliable sidewall, the air duct being elongate in a longitudinal direction;
a hoop to be disposed within the air duct, the hoop to provide radial support to the air duct;
a first hanger to be coupled in tension between the hoop and a first overhead support to generate a first pulling force on the air duct in the longitudinal direction; and
a second hanger to be coupled in tension between the hoop and a second overhead support to generate a second pulling force on the air duct in the longitudinal direction, the first and second overhead supports to extend alongside the air duct in the longitudinal direction at a location lower than a top side of the air duct, the top side of the air duct to extend along the air duct in the longitudinal direction.

10. The air duct assembly of claim 9 , wherein the first hanger is to be coupled to the hoop via a first opening in a first side of the pliable sidewall and the second hanger is to be coupled to the hoop via a second opening in a second side of the pliable sidewall, the first side opposite the second side.

11. The air duct assembly of claim 9 , wherein the first hanger includes a clamp to selectively grip the first overhead support at different locations along a length of the first overhead support.

12. The air duct assembly of claim 11 , wherein the first hanger includes a loop to extend between the hoop and the clamp.

13. The air duct assembly of claim 12 , wherein the loop is moveable relative to the hoop and moveable relative to the clamp.

14. The air duct assembly of claim 13 , wherein the loop is a first loop, the first hanger including a second loop to extend between the first loop and the clamp.

15. The air duct assembly of claim 14 , wherein the second loop is moveable relative to the first loop and moveable relative to the clamp.

16. The air duct assembly of claim 14 , wherein the first and second loops are to loop around one another.

17. An air duct assembly comprising:
an air duct including a pliable sidewall;
a hoop to be disposed within the air duct, the hoop to provide radial support to the air duct;
a first hanger having a first end and a second end, the first end to be coupled to the hoop, the second end including a first clamp to selectively grip a first overhead support, the first overhead support extending along a first side of the air duct, the first hanger to be in tension in a first direction extending between the first end and the second end when the first clamp grips the first overhead support; and
a second hanger having a third end and a fourth end, the third end to be coupled to the hoop, the fourth end including a second clamp to selectively grip a second overhead support, the second overhead support extending along a second side of the air duct, the first side opposite the second side, the second hanger to be in tension in a second direction extending between the third end and the fourth end when the second clamp grips the second overhead support.

18. The air duct assembly of claim 17 , wherein the first hanger includes a plurality of interconnecting portions arranged in series between the first end and the second end, the interconnecting portions to enable flexible movement along a length of the first hanger.

19. The air duct assembly of claim 18 , wherein at least two of the interconnecting portions include interconnecting loops.

20. The air duct assembly of claim 17 , wherein the air duct is to be elongate in a longitudinal direction, and the first and second directions are neither parallel nor perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

Assignees

• Rite Hite Holding Corp

Inventors

• Pinkalla Cary
• Logic Jeff
• Gebke Kevin J
• Kaufmann Nicholas L

Classifications

• F24F13/0218 Primary

  Flexible soft ducts, e.g. ducts made of permeable textiles · CPC title

• F24F13/0254

  characterised by their mounting means, e.g. supports · CPC title

• F16L3/14

  Hangers in the form of bands or chains · CPC title