Patents by Inventor Ansley Houston

Ansley Houston has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 12007146
    Abstract: A water heater system includes a water heater rack system with a plurality of vertically stacked tankless water heaters and a water heater storage tank and provides the ability to install a water heater in environments where horizontally oriented heater rack systems would not fit. The tankless water heaters comprise a bifurcated vent arrangement with separate intake and exhaust vents. Accordingly, vent pipes of diameters of two (2) inches or less may be used in comparison to coaxial vent arrangements which may have diameters of three inches or more. The smaller vent pipe diameter allows a plurality of water heaters to be stacked, one above the other, such that the water heater rack system has a maximum height of 76 inches or less. This vertical orientation may allow tankless water heaters to be installed in an environment where a horizontally configured plurality of tankless water heaters would not fit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2024
    Assignee: Rinnai America Corporation
    Inventors: Ansley Houston, Parth Patel, Rohan Scafe
  • Patent number: 11499751
    Abstract: To facilitate a wall-mounted installation of multi-unit water heaters in a location with limited clear wall space, spacer brackets may be installed on the wall to extend a mounting surface away from a plane of the wall. A mounting bracket may be attached to the mounting surface of the spacer brackets. To reduce installation time and costs, a plurality of water heaters may be affixed to a frame prior to installation. A hot water, cold water, and fuel supply manifolds may be coupled to each hot water outlet, cold water inlet, and fuel supply inlet, respectively, of the plurality of water heaters. The mounting bracket comprises a mounting shelf configured to receive the frame, thereby securing the multi-unit water heater system to the wall. The multi-unit water heating system, the spacer brackets, and the mounting bracket may be provided as a kit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: Rinnai America Corporation
    Inventors: Ansley Houston, Matthew Ryan Dettmering, Taylor Lamb
  • Patent number: 11391490
    Abstract: An offset mounting bracket that comprises a primary member and a stabilization member can be used to mount multiple heat engines to a water storage tank. An offset mounting bracket can include a primary member, having a top surface, a bottom surface, an inner surface, and an outer surface. The offset mounting bracket can also have a stabilization member, having a top surface and a bottom surface, a supporting surface that is opposed and connected to the primary member outer surface. The offset mounting bracket can also have a connecting member. The connecting member can be configured to fasten to the top of a water storage tank. There, the offset mounting bracket, can provide a surface to mount a heat engine that otherwise would not fit onto the water storage tank structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: RINNAI AMERICA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Michael Knoblett, Ansley Houston
  • Publication number: 20220120473
    Abstract: A water heater system includes a water heater rack system with a plurality of vertically stacked tankless water heaters and a water heater storage tank and provides the ability to install a water heater in environments where horizontally oriented heater rack systems would not fit. The tankless water heaters comprise a bifurcated vent arrangement with separate intake and exhaust vents. Accordingly, vent pipes of diameters of two (2) inches or less may be used in comparison to coaxial vent arrangements which may have diameters of three inches or more. The smaller vent pipe diameter allows a plurality of water heaters to be stacked, one above the other, such that the water heater rack system has a maximum height of 76 inches or less. This vertical orientation may allow tankless water heaters to be installed in an environment where a horizontally configured plurality of tankless water heaters would not fit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 10, 2020
    Publication date: April 21, 2022
    Inventors: Ansley Houston, Parth Patel, Rohan Scafe
  • Publication number: 20210239361
    Abstract: To facilitate a wall-mounted installation of multi-unit water heaters in a location with limited clear wall space, spacer brackets may be installed on the wall to extend a mounting surface away from a plane of the wall. A mounting bracket may be attached to the mounting surface of the spacer brackets. To reduce installation time and costs, a plurality of water heaters may be affixed to a frame prior to installation. A hot water, cold water, and fuel supply manifolds may be coupled to each hot water outlet, cold water inlet, and fuel supply inlet, respectively, of the plurality of water heaters. The mounting bracket comprises a mounting shelf configured to receive the frame, thereby securing the multi-unit water heater system to the wall. The multi-unit water heating system, the spacer brackets, and the mounting bracket may be provided as a kit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Publication date: August 5, 2021
    Inventors: Ansley Houston, Matthew Ryan Dettmering, Taylor Lamb
  • Publication number: 20200318858
    Abstract: An offset mounting bracket that comprises a primary member and a stabilization member can be used to mount multiple heat engines to a water storage tank. An offset mounting bracket can include a primary member, having a top surface, a bottom surface, an inner surface, and an outer surface. The offset mounting bracket can also have a stabilization member, having a top surface and a bottom surface, a supporting surface that is opposed and connected to the primary member outer surface. The offset mounting bracket can also have a connecting member. The connecting member can be configured to fasten to the top of a water storage tank. There, the offset mounting bracket, can provide a surface to mount a heat engine that otherwise would not fit onto the water storage tank structure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2020
    Publication date: October 8, 2020
    Inventors: Michael Knoblett, Ansley Houston
  • Publication number: 20200277760
    Abstract: A recirculation pump system provides the ability to recirculate water from a water heater outlet, back into a water heater inlet through a cold-water supply line. The recirculation pump system pumps heated water, which may have cooled to a sub-optimal temperature, into a water heater. The recirculation pump system provides the ability to use a plumbing network that does not contain a dedicated recirculation line. The recirculation pump system uses a water pump to circulate water, a temperature sensor to control system activation based on water temperature, and a check valve to control the direction of fluid flow. This recirculation pump system provides a minimally invasive way to install a recirculation system into a plumbing network that otherwise would not be able to accommodate recirculation functions, and service modern plumbing fixtures efficiently.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 28, 2019
    Publication date: September 3, 2020
    Inventors: Rohan Scafe, Ansley Houston
  • Patent number: D959959
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: Rinnai America Corporation
    Inventors: Ansley Houston, Matthew Ryan Dettmering, Taylor Lamb