Stoves and furnaces – Fireplaces or accessories – Fluid fuel
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-07
2001-01-09
Lazarus, Ira S. (Department: 3743)
Stoves and furnaces
Fireplaces or accessories
Fluid fuel
C126S318000, C126S144000, C126S086000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06170481
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to prefabricated fireplaces, and more particularly to a prefabricated fireplace assembly that is peripherally framed with standard building materials for direct installation into a rough opening in a building. More particularly the present continuation invention relates to prefabricated open ended fireplace boxes for installation in new or existing homes.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Whether for providing heat, for purely decorative purposes, or for value enhancement, fireplace assemblies have become commonplace in today's building trades for both residential and commercial applications. Most new home construction designs include at least one, and often several fireplaces. Further, a significant number of remodeling projects are focused about fireplace assemblies.
Such popularity is in great measure due to the development of direct vented fireplace assemblies, of the type generally described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,322. By eliminating the need for a conventional chimney, the direct vented fireplace assembly not only drastically reduces the cost of installing a fireplace, but also significantly increases the architectural design flexibility for such units, since the fireplace assemblies can now be designed in numerous configurations and can be readily positioned virtually anywhere in a room or building. More recent use of light weight reinforced ceramic fiber materials and binders has enabled fireplace fireboxes and combustion chambers to be constructed with the appearance of traditional masonry fireplaces, while exhibiting superior insulating properties that enables such assemblies to be installed with minimal separation spacing from surrounding building materials. The cross-referenced copending patent applications U.S. Pat. Nos. 09/024,285 and 08/538,866 describe such fireplace construction techniques and are herein incorporated by reference to the extent that their disclosures are useful or necessary for understanding and/or supporting this invention.
Heretofore, fireplace assemblies of the type that are inserted into a wall have generally required the contractor to not only frame in an enclosure for receiving the assembly, but to also prefinish that enclosure with sheetrock or other appropriate fire-grade material, prior to installation of the fireplace assembly. Further, the fireplace assemblies inserted into such enclosures typically include a metal protective outer shroud material. Such construction processes and fireplace construction both increase the overall cost of the project.
The present invention addresses the above short comings of prior fireplace assemblies and installation requirements. The present invention provides a novel fireplace assembly construction that eliminates the need for contractor construction of prefinished receptor enclosures, as well as the need for costly outer sheet metal fireplace assembly shrouds and provides other benefits to the installing contractor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention related to a low cost prefabricated fireplace box for use in fireplace assemblies and provides a highly accurate distortion free mounting face and surround trim that reduces the cost of manufacture as well as the cost of installation into fireplace assemblies.
The present invention incorporated the most desirable features and advantages of prior fireplace assembly designs, while reducing the costs of both the fireplace assembly and its preinstallation construction labor and materials. The present invention provides a fireplace assembly that requires only a rough opening in the wall in which the fireplace will be mounted, similar to that for a window or similar fenestration, for mounting the assembly. No labor intensive enclosure construction or prefinishing is required to contain the fireplace assembly. The assembly can simply be inserted into the presized rough opening and affixed thereto by brackets extending from the assembly, all during the framing phase of a building project.
The factory produced fireplace assembly is delivered to the jobsite with a preassembled external framework of building materials. The framework also serves as the shipping carton for the assembly. Once the contractor hangs the assembled unit in the rough opening, he can directly apply sheetrock or other interior wall materials up to the assembly at the same time that the interior walls of the building are being finished, and can directly apply external siding or other wall and/or roof canopy materials to or against the factory provided framework of the fireplace assembly. Contractor installation error is virtually eliminated, since proper safety and reliability concerns are addressed at the factory, not at the jobsite, by the preinstallation of surrounding framing members of known strengths and clearance tolerances to satisfy all structural, governmental and safety requirements for the fireplace assembly.
According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a prefabricated fireplace assembly, comprising: (a) a fireplace box defining a combustion chamber; and (b) a framework of building materials connected to operatively support the fireplace box, wherein the framework forms an integral part of the fireplace assembly that remains connected to the fireplace assembly when it is installed within the building structure. The framework assembly is of a configuration that can be directly mounted within a rough opening of a wall in a building structure by mounting flanges.
According to the principal aspect of the present invention, there is provided a universal fireplace box that may be injection or vacuum molded according to teachings set forth in our U.S. Pat. No. 5,941,237 and further includes a rigid surround trim frame and/or an exhaust outlet collar, both of which include attachment flanges integrally molded into the fireplace box so that open ended box may be removed from its mold in a semi-rigid state before final drying and/or firing.
According to another principal aspect of the present invention a highly accurate rigid C-shaped surround trim open frame is integrally molded into the open ends of an open ended fireplace box which give accuracy and stability to the fireplace box and comprises a reference frame for mounting fireplace components or installing fireplaces in houses. According to a further aspect of the invention, the fireplace box preferably comprises a ceramic combustion chamber of molded construction and having a support flange integrally embedded within the ceramic for securing the fireplace box to the framework. According to yet a further aspect of the invention, the framework is configured to become a part of an external wall of the building structure in which the fireplace assembly is to be installed.
According to yet a further aspect of the invention there is provided a prefabricated fireplace assembly module of a type suitable for zero tolerance installation within a rough opening of a building framework, wherein heat generated by use of the fireplace assembly will not reach predetermined unsafe levels for the building framework, comprising: (a) an external framework of building materials of a type directly compatible and configured for mounting to the rough opening building framework; and (b) an open fireplace box fixedly mounted to and carried by said external framework and bordered by said external framework on at least three sides of said fireplace box.
According to yet a further aspect of the invention there is provided a method of manufacturing a prefabricated fireplace assembly comprising the steps of: (a) forming a fireplace box having a combustion chamber; (b) forming a framework of building materials about said fireplace box; and (c) mounting the fireplace box to the framework, wherein the fireplace box and framework collectively form a prefabricated fireplace assembly module.
While specific venting configurations will be illustrated in describing preferred embodiments of the invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention is not to be limited
Lyons David Charles
Pitman Dominique Raymond
Schroeder Ted Victor
Cocks Josiah C.
Heat-N-Glo Fireplace Products Inc.
Lazarus Ira S.
Sowell-Aty John B.
LandOfFree
Open ended molded fireplace box and method does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Open ended molded fireplace box and method, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Open ended molded fireplace box and method will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2498568