System and method for mounting undercabinet ventilation hood

The present invention relates to the field of cooking, and more particularly to the system and method of assembling a ventilation hood under the cabinets located above the cooking appliance.

Description of the state of the art [0002] In the field of cooking, many types of cooking appliances are known, including both free standing and built-in appliances. In principle, both types are designed to take up space in the free space along the kitchen worktop. For both types of cooking appliances, there is usually at least one place for the oven, usually under the hob. Of course, it is also possible to mount the hob separately on the kitchen counter, not necessarily above the oven. In any case, when the hob is in use, a certain amount of smoke, fat, etc. can be produced. A known way of counteracting these gaseous nature by-products is to mount a ventilation device above the cooking appliance. basically, such a ventilation device contains a fan to extract smoke and other byproducts from the hob. By-products are typically either directed to an external ventilation duct relative to the kitchen area or filtered and the cleaned air is blown back into the kitchen. Such known ventilation devices may take the form of ventilation hoods or be embedded in a microwave oven mounted above the cooking appliance. In many cases, a ventilation unit can have lighting to help illuminate the hob. Such known ventilation devices may take the form of ventilation hoods or be embedded in a microwave oven mounted above the cooking appliance. In many cases, a ventilation unit can have lighting to help illuminate the hob. Such known ventilation devices may take the form of ventilation hoods or be embedded in a microwave oven mounted above the cooking appliance. In many cases, a ventilation unit can have lighting to help illuminate the hob.

[0003] From US 2008/302352 A1 and from US4011803 a system for mounting a ventilation hood and a method for assembling it is known, in accordance with the preamble of claims 1 and 9.

[0004] When mounting a ventilation device built into the microwave to the bottom of the kitchen cabinet, which is positioned above the cooking appliance and extends over its entire width, it is usual to screw the ventilation device to the bottom plate of the cabinet. More specifically, the housing of the microwave oven has correspondingly arranged, front and rear mounting openings and a template is provided that allows the installer to mark the drilling locations on the bottom plate of the cabinet assuming that the drilled holes fall out at the places where the device has formed mounting holes. Assuming that there is proper alignment, the microwave oven can be supported in a suitable position under the upper cabinet and the screws inserted through each of the aligned holes, to fix the microwave in the right place. In the case of a ventilation hood, usually the hood housing is used as a template for determining the appropriate fixing points and then the filler strips are measured, cut and secured under the cabinet to close the lower frame needed for attaching the ventilation hood.

[0005] There are some problems with each of these general attachment methods. Firstly, at least in the case of ventilation hoods integrated with microwave ovens, usually the template is in the form of a folded paper template that must be unfolded, cut to fit the bottom of the cabinet and taped or otherwise maintained in position to determine the drilling locations. Because folds and misfeeds can cause misalignment problems, it is not uncommon for the product manufacturers to drill a much larger hole than that required for the bolt and provide pads suitable for enlarged holes. In this way, an adequate level of tolerance is ensured in order to be able to align each screw to the appropriate opening in the ventilation device. In the case of ventilation hoods, Measuring, trimming The installation of filling strips can be cumbersome and time-consuming, especially when the assembly is not done by a professional installer. With both fastening methods, the second important problem is that when holes are drilled, the time comes for the ventilation device to be mounted, two people are needed, one for supporting the ventilation device in the correct position and the second for inserting and fixing at least two screws. Certainly, given the limited space and the need to keep the device at eye level for some time, this operation is not satisfactory. With both fastening methods, the second important problem is that when holes are drilled, the time comes for the ventilation device to be mounted, two people are needed, one for supporting the ventilation device in the correct position and the second for inserting and fixing at least two screws. Certainly, given the limited space and the need to keep the device at eye level for some time, this operation is not satisfactory. With both fastening methods, the second important problem is that when holes are drilled, the time comes for the ventilation device to be mounted, two people are needed, one for supporting the ventilation device in the correct position and the second for inserting and fixing at least two screws. Certainly, given the limited space and the need to keep the device at eye level for some time, this operation is not satisfactory.

[0006] Although two persons may be necessary to mount a microwave oven, it is desirable according to the present invention to provide a method that allows one user to easily mount a ventilation hood over a cooking appliance using a simplified and efficient installation system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0007] The present invention is directed to a system and method of assembling a ventilation hood over a cooking appliance under a cabinet such as a kitchen one. The cabinet has a standard structure comprising a lower support frame having downwardly extending rectangular slats protruding beyond the bottom plate or cabinet floor and ending at its lateral peripheral edges. According to a first aspect, the system comprises a left and right support mounted to a vertical wall on which the cabinet is mounted, in remote side locations aligned with the lateral peripheral edges of the cabinet. Each bracket has a vertical projection or hanger that is received through the socket on the rear wall of the ventilation hood,

According to another aspect of the invention, a number of methods are proposed for separately fixing the front part of the ventilation hood to the cabinet, using the space between the bottom plate of the cabinet and the lower part of the downwardly projecting slats. In a first embodiment, the flexible flaps are trimmed from the upper part of the ventilation hood, partly forming enlarged notches on the upper part of the eaves housing. The flexible flaps are in line with the cabinet slats protruding downwardly and the screws are positioned upward at an angle of approximately 45 ° through enlarged cutouts in the eaves and pre-shaped openings in the flexible flaps to secure the flexible slats to the slats. In a second embodiment, pins are arranged between the bottom plate of the cabinet and the ventilation hood. During the installation, the dowels can be temporarily placed in the ventilation holes of the ventilation hood, and then the hood is placed on the brackets and put in place under the cabinet. The dowels can then be properly tightened or unscrewed in relation to the eaves depending on the height of the cabinet slats, i.e. the dimensions of the space between the bottom plate of the cabinet and the lowest edge of the cabinet carrying frame. The drill is then used to drill holes through the bottom of the cabinet using dowels as locators or drill guides. The ventilation hood is then temporarily removed from the cabinet, and the pins are removed from the hood. Then, one by one, the pins are applied to the bottom plate of the cabinet and the screws are installed through the bottom plate of the cabinet and screwed into pegs. Again, the hood is placed on the brackets and tilted to its proper position under the cabinet, allowing the pins to enter the mounting holes. Either the tool or fitter's fingers can be used to rotate the pins until the hood is tightly attached to the cabinet.

[0009] In another embodiment, specially configured mounting blocks are provided for mounting in the lower cabinet support frame in the corner front parts. The mounting blocks are dimensioned such that when they are fixed in the stuffing space of the lower support frame, the connectors protrude down from the assembly blocks. When the ventilation hood is supported on the rear brackets and tilted upwards, the ventilation hood's mounting holes will be aligned with the connectors. According to a certain solution, the connectors connect snaply to the ventilation hood to ensure a secure connection.

[0010] Various other embodiments are disclosed that use brackets but function based on drilling holes in the bottom panel of the cabinet. In one embodiment, the first and second engaging members project from a common plate pre-configured to position the necessary openings in the bottom of the cabinet. After the holes have been formed by the drilling operation, each of the first and second mechanical fastening elements is transferred through both the bottom panel and the ventilation hood and the plate is positioned relative to the bottom panel. In the case of threaded fastening members, the nuts are screwed in to fix the ventilation hood in place. Instead of connected threaded fastening elements, a plurality of clamping straps can be used to mount the ventilation hood. According to this embodiment, during installation, the elongated portion of each clamping strap is inserted into a corresponding hole formed in the bottom panel and locked by a retainer. Then the ventilation hood is raised in place, while the clamping straps hang down through the corresponding openings in the eaves and the respective washers or pins are applied to the clamping fastening straps. The ventilation hood is raised in place of the contact with the lower part of the cabinet, and the pins are moved until the hood is tightly mounted to the bottom of the cabinet. The remaining parts of the clamping fastening strips are then cut off. In still other embodiments, bolts are provided with openings in the bottom plate of the cabinet, with transverse openings into which the pins are inserted or anchor bolts are used.

[0011] Additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention together with drawings in which the respective reference numerals refer to the respective parts in a plurality of views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0012]

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a ventilation hood mounted in accordance with the invention to hanging cabinets in a kitchen enclosure.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary exploded view of the first step of assembling the ventilation hood of Figure 1 in accordance with the invention.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the first assembly example.

Figure 4A is an exploded view illustrating the initial step associated with the second embodiment of the assembly.

Figure 4B shows the next step of the embodiment of the assembly of Figure 4A.

Figure 4C illustrates another step of the second assembly example.

Figura 4D obrazuje jeszcze dalszy etap tego przykładu wykonania.

Figure 4E illustrates the last step of this embodiment.

Figure 5 shows an exploded view of the third embodiment.

Figure 6 shows a partial exploded view of a fourth assembly embodiment.

Figure 7A shows a partial exploded view of a fifth assembly example.

Figure 7B is an enlarged view of the position of the connector for the embodiment of Figure 7A.

Figure 8 is a partial exploded view of a sixth assembly example.

Figure 9 is a partial exploded view of a seventh assembly example.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0013] In a preliminary reference to Figure 1, there is shown a cooking appliance 2 located in a recess or free space 5 of a worktop 8 and between adjacent lower cupboards 12 and 13. The worktop 8 has an upper surface 17 extending to the rear vertical wall 20. Over the kitchen counter 8 are shown the wall cabinets 22 and 23 mounted on each side of the cooking appliance 2, as well as the cabinet 25 located centrally over the cooking appliance part 2 and extending respectively between the vertical rear and side walls 21 and 22.

Within the scope of the invention, the cooking appliance 2 can take various forms, including cooking appliances for all types of fuel and built-in kitchen boards. In the embodiment shown, however, the cooking appliance 2 is shown as having a cabinet or housing 30 for oven 33 behind the door 35 with the handle 38 and the window 40. In a manner known in the art, the door 35 may be tilted to give access to the oven 33. as shown, the cooking device 2 has a lower drawer 44 for storing pans and the like. In addition, the cooking device 2 has an upper control panel 51 having a centrally located oven control section 54. Furthermore, as shown, the control panel 51 is provided with a number of knobs, one of which is designated as 57,

[0015] Especially because of its heating elements or burners 61, the operation of the cooking device 2 can result in the production of smoke, fat vapors or other gaseous by-products. To counteract the potential adverse effects of these by-products of cooking, it is desirable to mount the ventilation hood 70 above the cooking appliance 2, in particular under the central cabinet 25 and between the side walls of the cabinets 22 and 23 to extract and / or drain or filter and redirect the associated flow air. Of course, ventilation hoods of this application are known in the field but the present invention is particularly directed to the system and method of mounting the ventilation hood 70, and in particular to various installation arrangements,

[0016] In general, the operation of the ventilation hood 70 is also known in the art. Therefore, notwithstanding certain details set out below, it should be appreciated that the actual designs of the ventilation hood 70 may differ from that shown here. Therefore, although the ventilation hood 70 shown has a housing 72, control knobs 74 and 75 for a fan and lighting (not shown), respectively, the invention can also be advantageously applied to a wide range of other configurations. In connection with the assembly of the ventilation hood 70, it should also be noted that the central cabinet 25 also has a known structure. This means that although specific materials and designs may vary, the central cabinet 25, as shown in Figure 2,

According to one aspect of the invention, the brackets are initially mounted at spaced locations below the cabinet 25. More specifically, for the left side of the cabinet 25, as shown in Figure 2, a bracket 94 is shown comprising a Shaped base 95 having a top portion 96 , the bottom part 97 and the connecting part 98. In the embodiment shown, the bracket 94 is made of a metal sheet which has been embossed to form a thin projection or hanger 100. The shown base 95 has an upper opening 102 and a lower opening 104. In connection with this invention, it is known that the outer width of the lower support frame 82 is standard and based on the distance between the cabinets 22 and 23. That is, the thickness of the slats 85 and 86 may vary, but the outer dimension of the lower support frame 82 can easily be determined on the basis of a known spacing,wherein the ventilation hood 70 is to be mounted.

With this information, the first step in assembling the ventilation hood 70 is to fasten the brackets 94 to predetermined locations depending only on the design of the lower support frame 82. More specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, the first attachment member 107 is positioned at the upper opening 102 to fix the bracket 94 to the rear wall 20 after aligning the side edge 110 of the bracket 94 with the outermost edge portion 89 of the side slat 86 and the upper edge 111 of the bracket 94 directly with the rear batten 85. Again, a similar assembly is carried out on the opposite side of the lower part of the cabinet 25 .

[0019] As shown in this figure, the ventilation hood 70 has a rear portion 120 defined by a rear panel 122 that is formed with a seat 124 and an opening 125. In fact, although the aperture 125 is shown offset and aligned with the receptacle 124 this slot 124 may be extended (as shown by the dashed line) for a similar purpose, which will become fully obvious below. As shown, the rear panel 122 is attached to the side panel 127 of the hood 72 of the ventilation hood 70. It is particularly noteworthy that the rear panel 122 has a corresponding structure at the opposite end (not shown in the figure) of the rear panel 122 and the lateral gap between the seats 124 is determined taking into account the known mounting locations of the brackets 94. More specifically, each seat 124 is positioned like that the rear portion 120 can be immediately supported by the brackets 94 at each protrusion 100 through the respective seat 124. Therefore, at this early stage of assembly, when the two spaced apart brackets 94 have already been secured, the ventilation hood 70 can be substantially suspended from brackets 94 and easily supported by one assembler. The next step relates to the manner in which the front part of the ventilation hood 70 is assembled. However, before various embodiments dealing with this aspect of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the other figures, it should be realized that Figure 2 shows the attachment of a second mechanical fastener 130 to each bracket 94. Generally,

[0020] Figure 3 shows a first embodiment in which a representative ventilation hood 70 comprises a top panel 153 leading to a sloping portion 155 and a front panel 157 into which control knobs 74 and 75 are mounted. In this exemplary arrangement, a top panel 153, a pitched part 155 and front panel 157 are made by bending and shaping a piece of metal sheet. In any case, flexible flaps 162 and 163 are formed on the upper panel 153. More specifically, the upper panel 153 is formed with enlarged notches 166 and 167 that are partially formed when cutting the flaps 162 and 163 that have been bent so that they extend vertically relative to each other. of the upper panel 153. Each flap 162, 163 is provided with a through hole 170, which is adapted to receive a mechanical fastener 173. In particular, the second mechanical fastening element 130 (Figure 2) can be mounted through aligning holes 125 and 104 (see Figure 2). As an alternative, additional rear flexible flaps, such as designated as 175, can be used.

threaded rod 187 and head 191 pass through hole 196 (in particular see Figures 4C-4E). In this configuration, the pins 189 may initially be screwed into the upper panel 153 in large cutouts 179. Then, after mounting the rear portion of the ventilation hood 70 on the brackets 94 and tilting the front portion so that the ventilation hood 70 contacts the bottom of the cabinet 25, the drill 201 (see Figure 4C) with the drill bit 204 may be used to shape the openings 208 and 209 in the bottom plate 79 of the cabinet 25. That is, when the hood is on70 is already in the desired mounting position, the drill 204 may be directed through a hole 196 acting as a guide for the drilling operation to drill the holes 208 and 209.

[0023] At this point, further assembly may follow two paths. According to one, the ventilation hood 70 can be removed from the brackets 94 to allow the fitter to fasten each pin 189 to the lower cabinet board 79 using a mechanical fastener 215. As is probably best illustrated in Figure 4D, the mechanical fastener 215 has a head 217, a washer 218 and shank 219, are positioned in hole 208 and screwed into pin 189. This operation is performed for each pin 189. In either case, both the head 217 of the mechanical fastener 215 and the head 191 of the pin 189 are shaped to receive tools such as a key, that the pins 189 can be tightened to the bottom of the bottom plate 79, and at the same time the fastening element 215 and the corresponding pin 189 can freely rotate in relation to the cabinet 25. Then, In each of these scenarios, it should be appreciated that the openings 196 not only form a convenient and accurate guide for drilling holes 208 and 209, but also allow easy screwing in of the mechanical fastening elements 215. Most preferably, the pins 189 are made of molded plastic. In addition, the pins 189 preferably occupy the space between the bottom plate 79 and the upper panel 153 to form a very strong assembly system that can easily be made by a single installer without the use of any paper templates and without measuring or trimming the filler slats. At this point, it should be noted that the tool 222 may take different forms with the shape of the opening 196. For example, typical hex keys may be used.

[0025] As noted above, the disclosed assembly system exploits the fact that the transverse distance between the outermost edge portions 89 of the lower support frame 82 is standard for a cabinet 25 of a given width such that, together with a corresponding ventilation hood 70, the seats 124 can be formed beforehand. in the rear panel 122 for aligning with the lugs 100. Similarly, Figure 5 shows an embodiment in which the front panel of ventilation hood 70 is also supported based on assembly blocks 230 and 231 at predetermined front corner locations without the need for measurements and without templates. More specifically, in the embodiment shown, each mounting block 230,

[0026] As shown, each mounting block 230, 231 has an upper plate 234, a back plate 237 and side plates 240 and 241. In one embodiment, the mounting blocks 230, 231 are formed of metal, but they can also be formed of other materials, including plastic. In the back plate 237, openings 244 and 245 are formed. In addition, from the upper plate 234 protrudes downward, secured to it by a threaded connection, a welded joint or the like, a connector 247 having a shaft 249 and a conical end 250. Each mounting block 230, 231 is configured to be mounted along a respective side strip 86 using mechanical fasteners, one of which is shown as 255 and at the same time adjacent to the front slat 233. The configuration of the mounting blocks 230, 231 determined as

Related to the embodiment of Figures 4A-4E, Figures 6 - 9 show other methods by which the ventilation hood 70 can be attached directly to the bottom plate 79 of the cabinet 25. For each of these embodiments, it should be noted that the upper panel 153 of ventilation hood 70 is pre-made with openings 260 and 261 at spaced apart locations at the front of the panel, in a manner corresponding to that described above in connection with the embodiment of the Figure

5. In each case, in connection with each of these additional embodiments, the holes 265 and 266 must be made in the bottom plate 79 of the cabinet 25 and aligned with the through holes 260 and 261, and then some elements of the fixing structure must pass through the aligning holes in the to complete the assembly. [0028] In the embodiment shown in Figure 6 there are first and second mechanical fastening elements 270 and 271 having the form of threaded bolts connected by a plate 274. At this point, it should be realized that assuming the openings 260 and 261 have ventilation hood 70 may be initially based on the brackets 94 and raised to contact the bottom of the cabinet 25 to allow the openings 260 and 261 to act as guides when making (e.g. by drilling) the openings 265 and 266 in the bottom plate 79.

The modified embodiment, which is not shown in the drawings, is basically based on the embodiments of Figures 4A-4E and 6, and uses mechanical fasteners that pass through openings 265 and 266 and are then screwed into openings analogous to the openings 179 provided on the upper panel 153 of the ventilation hood 70. That is, instead of free passing through the openings 260 and 261 as in the embodiment in Figure 6, the mechanical fastening elements are screwed into the ventilation hood 70, very much like in Figures 4A-4E . In addition, as in the embodiment of Figure 6, nuts can be used to provide a strong and durable connection.

[0030] Figury 7A i 7B przedstawiają przykład wykonania, w którym zamiast mechanicznych elementów mocujących 270 i 271 w postaci nagwintowanych śrub, zastosowane są zaciskowe paski mocujące 280 dla zamocowania przedniej części okapu wentylacyjnego 70 do szafki 25. Jak pokazano na tych figurach, każdy zaciskowy pasek mocujący 280 ma łeb 283 i wydłużoną część korpusową 286. Ten pokazany ogólny układ zawiera także opcjonalny element ustalający 291 zaopatrzony w otwór 292 i człon mocujacy 294. Zgodnie z tym przykładem wykonania, każdy zaciskowy pasek mocujący 280 jest zastosowany tak, że jego wydłużona część korpusowa 286 jest najpierw przełożona przez odpowiedni otwór 265, 266, a następnie wygodnie przez otwór 292 elementu ustalającego 291. Ciągnąc za część korpusową 286, aby zablokować łeb 283 przy dolnej płycie 79, opcjonalny element ustalający 291 może być popchnięty w górę do zetknięcia się z dolną płytą 79 pod szafką 25. W ten sposób, każdy zaciskowy pasek mocujący 280 zostaje zablokowany w pożądanym położeniu z częścią korpusową 286 każdego zaciskowego paska mocującego 280 zwisającą pod szafką 25. W tym punkcie powinno zostać odnotowane, że opcjonalny element ustalający 291 może przybierać różne formy, takie jak elementu z tworzywa sztucznego przesuwającego się wzdłuż wydłużonej części korpusowej 286, pianki lub innego materiału mogącego uformować blok, którego grubość wypełni przestrzeń stworzoną przez dolną ramę nośną 82, klamry, spinki lub innego podobnego typu elementu ustalającego. W każdym przypadku, gdy zaciskowe paski mocujące 280 są już zamontowane, okap wentylacyjny 70 może być oparty na wspornikach 94 i odchylony, by umożliwić wydłużonym częściom korpusowym 286 przejście przez otwory 260 i 261. Następnie na wydłużonych częściach korpusowych 286 umieszczane są człony mocujące 294 i podczas gdy wydłużone części korpusowe 286 są napinane przez ich ciągnięcie, przetyczki są przesuwane w górę dopóki nie oprą się o górny panel 153, a górny panel 153 nie zetknie się z szafką 25. Na koniec, aby zakończyć montaż, nadmiar każdej części korpusowej 286 może być odcięty lub usunięty w inny sposób, jak oznaczono przez 297 na Figurze 7B.

Again, as indicated above, when aligning openings 260 and 265 as well as aligning openings 261 and 266 are established, many different types of fastening assemblies can be used to secure the front part of ventilation hood 70. These two additional possible arrangements are shown in the embodiments of Figures 8 and 9. According to the embodiment of Figure 8, pins 306 are used having a head 307 and shafts 308 with a plurality of holes 310 arranged along the axis of the shaft and transverse thereto. Each pin 306 passes through a respective set of holes 265 and 260 or 266 and 261 in the bottom plate 79 and upper panel 153, and then the pin 314 is translated through the selected transverse opening 310 to fasten the ventilation hood 70 to the cabinet 25. In the alternative arrangement of Figure 9

[0032] Although the invention has been described by preferred embodiments, it should be obvious that various changes and / or modifications can be made to it. For example, although the embodiments discussed refer to separate first and second brackets, as well as to separate first and second fastening assemblies, it will be appreciated that the invention may be implemented with the first and second bracket connected in one integral piece, as well one or more fastening assemblies can be used. In addition, based on the above, it should be clear that the invention may use a variety of different attachment assemblies in conjunction with the general system and method for mounting a ventilation hood to the bottom of the cabinet having a bottom plate and a lower support frame and placed above the cooking appliance. Each embodiment uses in the initial phase mounting brackets, either separate or as an integrated element, to the wall, under the cabinet, aligned with the outermost edge portions of the lower support frame, where each bracket has a projection for supporting the rear part of the ventilation hood. In connection with this aspect of the invention, it should be realized that each bracket could be provided with an additional strip allowing its attachment directly to the supporting frame of the cabinet, while the bracket would still be in contact behind the wall. Such a mounting arrangement could be particularly advantageous if the alternative would be to mount the bracket only to the dry plaster between the mounting pins to the wall. Furthermore, each embodiment uses one or more fastening assemblies to attach the front part of the ventilation hood to the cabinet. Each of the embodiments is designed to ensure that the ventilation hood can easily and efficiently be mounted by one person, without the need to measure, trim and install filler strips as is common in the field.