Window glazing construction

Aug. 24, 1965

R. G. CUDINI

WINDOW GLAZING CONSTRUCTION Filed March 13, 1961

3,201,831

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United States Patent Office „ . . 3,201,831

Patented Aug. 24, 1965

3,201,831

WINDOW GLAZING CONSTRUCTION

Roger G. Cudini, Siriiiicgham, Mich., assignor to Moynahan Bronze Company, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan

Filed Mar. 13, 1961, Ser. No. 95,063

Claims. (Cl. 20—56.4)

This invention relates to glass holding devices and more particularly to a novel window glazing construction for firmly mounting and resiliently retaining a pane of glass within an opening.

Heretofore, many glass holding devices have been developed to retain panes of glass in window openings and the like. Generally, these devices include a sash or frame portion surrounding a window opening and elaborate locking means for resiliently retaining the pane with respect to the frame.

Recently, “curtain-wall” type construction has been selected for the exteriors of many large buildings. Such construction consists of non-load bearing, lightweight sheets of decorative material which are supported on a load-carrying framework. It has been found that present day sashes are not readily adapted to such construction in that they are often too costly, too time consuming to install or do not adequately support or seal a window pane with respect to the wall.

It is, therefore, a primary object of this invention to provide an improved window glazing construction, in which a pane of glass may be easily and readily installed and replaced with great accuracy, and which is especially suited for, but not limited to use in, “curtain-wall” type construction.

A further object of the present invention is to resiliently retain a pane of glass with respect to a window opening by applying a distributed pressure across the peripheral portions of the pane of glass without the aid of screws and other adjusting means.

A further object of the invention is to effect a considerable saving in the cost of material, time and labor in the installation of an improved weather-tight glazing construction having few parts of simple form.

A further object of the invention is to resiliently support a pane of glass in a frame portion of a window glazing construction suitable for “curtain-wall” window openings, and to maintain a weather-tight seal around its periphery.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved sturdy, durable window glazing construction which is quickly installed, economical in cost, and consists of a minimum number of lightweight parts.

Further objects, features and advantages of this invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a window glazing construction constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention; and

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 2—2 of FIGURE 1 looking in the direction of the arrows with a side portion of the window frame in elevation.

The novel window glazing construction in accordance with the principles of the present invention is directed toward an arrangement which is quickly installed and adjusted with respect to a window opening by merely sliding a single locking element with respect to a unique frame assembly to be described.

In the drawing the glazing construction includes an outer longitudinally extending frame portion 10 having a downwardly depending arm 12 and an inwardly extend2 ing flange 14 which is turned upwardly at its inner end to form a groove 16. The outer frame 10 carries a longitudinally extending weather strip 18 of resilient, yieldable rubber-like material such as sponge neoprene which 5 fits over the outer wall of a sill portion 20. The strip 18, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, is compressed between the outer longitudinally extending frame portion 10 and the sill 20 filling a rounded, longitudinally extending groove portion 22 in the strip 10 to 10 prevent the entrance of wind, water and dirt.

An inner longitudinally extending frame portion 24 has an outwardly extending flange portion 26 whose outer end is turned upwardly to form a longitudinally extending groove 28 that locks against a tapered edge portion 30 15 on the bottom of the outer frame portion 10. A tab portion 32 struck out of the flange 26 adjustably spaces the inner frame portion 24 away from the sill 20 and a longitudinally extending weather strip or gasket 34 extending between the inside of the sill 20 and a downwardly depend20 ing arm 35 on the inner frame portion 24 acts as a secondary seal across the glazing construction.

The interlocking, longitudinally extending inner and outer frame portions 24, 10 constitute a part of the bottom section of a window frame which necessarily includes 25 a bottom, top or head and side sections which completely frame a preselected window opening.

The upper face of the flange 14 carries a longitudinally extending channel-shaped cushion 36 of a natural or synthetic resilient material such as neoprene which seals the 30 peripheral edge portion of a pane of glass 38 inserted therein. The outer side of the cushion 36 abuts against the inner side of the outside frame portion 10 and the inner side of the cushion 36 is enclosed by a longitudinally extending loading strip 40 which has a longitudinally extending groove 42. The downwardly depending arm 35 of the inner frame portion 24 has a similar longitudinally extending groove 44. The grooves 42, 44 receive a springbiasing means for compressing the cushion 36 against the outer periphery of the pane 33 in a manner to be described.

The ends of the frame portions 10, 24, the strip 18, the cushion 36 and the loading strip 40 are mitered to form square corners as is the case in conventional window glazing constructions.

Once the pane 33 has been inserted in the cushion 36 and the longitudinally extending loading strip 40 has been placed along the inner side of the cushion 36, the pane 38 is locked into place by snapping a plurality of spaced lugs ₅θ generally designated 46 against a plurality of bowed, longitudinally extending springs which are generally designated 48.

Each spring 48 has an outer bowed portion 50 and a pair of oppositely disposed end portions 52 which fit in the 55 groove 42. Each lug assembly 46 has outwardly projecting upper and lower flanges 54, 56, respectively. Substantially midway between the flanges 54, 56, a leg 58 projects outwardly having a downwardly depending arm 60 which engages the outer frame groove 16. The lower θθ flange 56 of the lug 46 engages the inner frame groove 44 and the upper flange 54 overlies the outer bowed spring portion 50 to hold the spring 48 against the loading strip 40 to compress the cushion 36 tightly against the pane 38 to positively seal against the entrance of water, dirt and _6g the like thereacross. The squeezing action of the cushion 36, furthermore, firmly holds the pane 38 in place.

Each spring 48 has a substantial longitudinal reach which causes the spring force to be evenly distributed over a substantial surface area on the inside of the cushion 36 ₇₀ to prevent stress concentrations in the periphery of the pane 38. This novel construction helps to avoid window breakage due to superimposed strains caused by wind, vi

3,201,831 bration, temperature expansion and the like. Moreover, the springs will flex when an unusual load is imposed thereon. Such flexibility prevents the relatively brittle window pane from cracking.

An outer flashing strip 62 snaps over the top and outer side of the outer frame portion 10. The top and outer face of the outer frame portion 10 has a plurality of spaced grooves 64 which receive .a suitable sealing compound for weather-proofing the joints in the flashing 62. An inner flashing strip 66 snaps over the top of the loading strip 40 and over an inwardly projecting flange 67 on the inner frame portion 24. Suitable fastening means such as screws 68 retain the flashing 66 in place.

The installation of a window glazing construction in accordance with the principles of this invention requires a preselected window opening in a “curtain-wall” or the like. The mounting of a window pane is effected by placing the inner frame portion 24 in position with its downwardly depending arm 35 carrying the gasket 34 which engages the inner side of the sill or wall 20. The weather strip 18 is firmly fastened to the inner side of the arm 12 of the outer frame portion 10 by any suitable means such as cementing material. The tapered edge portion 30 of the frame portion 10 then interlocks in the groove 28 of the inner frame portion 24. The downwardly extending arm portions 12, 35 of the frame portions 10, 24, respectively, clamp around the peripheral portion of the window opening to provide a window frame including bottom, top and side sections which completely surround a preselected window opening. The weather strips 18, 34 compress between the frame portions 10, 24 and the wall 20 to provide a weather-tight seal. It is important to note that the frame is quickly installed by merely pressing the frame portions 10, 24 into place without the use of fastening means such as screws and the like.

The cushion 36 then fits against an inside wall on the outer frame portion 10. The periphery of the pane 38 is pressed into the cushion 36 and a loading strip 40 is mounted on each side and top and bottom section of the window frame. A number of lugs 46 are then spaced at preselected points around the frame and are snapped into engagement with the frame portions 10, 24 by inserting the springs 48 between the loading strips 40 and lugs 46. The preselected spacing provides a plurality of loadbearing points which are uniformly distributed across a substantial portion of the peripheral surface of the pane to avoid the possibility of stress concentrations which could crack the relatively brittle pane. The lugs 46 and springs 48 are quickly installed merely by snapping them into place. The flashing 62, 66 then snaps over the exposed portions of the glazing construction. The screws 68 may be used to secure the inner flashing 66 in place to discourage unauthorized tampering with the locking lugs 46.

In order to further simplify the installation of the novel window glazing construction of the present invention the frame portions, loading strips and lug assemblies are preferably of aluminum and the like. Such lightweight material facilitates the handling of the component parts of the construction.

From the aforesaid description, it can be appreciated that my glazing construction may be quickly placed in a window opening and receive a pane of glass which is resiliently mounted across the window opening and locked into place by evenly distributed pressure surfaces without requiring the adjustment of an excessive plurality of elements such as screws and the like. Moreover, my novel assembly includes a minimum of elements which are of a simple form and therefore, unusually economical to produce.

It will be understood that the specific construction of the improved window glazing construction which is herein disclosed and described is presented for purposes of explanation and illustration and is not intended to indicate limits of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the following claims.