PNEUMATIC SEALING WALL

Abstract

A pneumatic active sealing wall can create a seal between a movable wall and another part of a structure, such as a recreational vehicle, mobile home or the like. The pneumatic active sealing wall design allows the wall to expand from two sides, and, by expanding the wall parts into the side walls, gaps will be eliminated. The sealing wall can be used, for example, to create a seamless wall for folding mechanisms. Since such folding mechanisms do not allow lamination connection, the stretchable design of the pneumatic active sealing wall can solve the problems associated with sealing such movable walls.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Embodiments of the invention relate generally to wall sealing apparatus and methods. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to a method and system for creating a seal between movable walls in a structure.

2. Description of Prior Art and Related Information

The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.

Mobile or expandable homes can include walls the move from a storage configuration into an expanded configuration to increase floor space of the structure. It may be difficult to provide a water and air-tight seal between structures that move relative to each other.

In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a wall that can seal to adjacent walls after moving into a desired position.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention aim to solve the aforementioned problems in conventional structures. Aspects of the present invention can create a kind of stretchable wall controlled by a pneumatic system. The stretchable wall has a controllable sealing part that can extend from the side wall. This design is mainly for a moveable wall sealing with its adjacent walls. For moveable wall or some assembled building, there must be some space between the movable wall and the wall along which the movable wall moves. If there is no space, then the movable wall cannot move. Such a gap between the two walls will cause the bad water and airtightness of the entire room, which leads to bad soundproofing and thermal insulation of the building. The pneumatic wall can include a mechanism which enables the wall to expand into its side walls. The wall can include two slider parts. These parts can expand out from the main body. In some embodiments, the slider parts can be inserted into the slots on the side walls. The slots can be located on a seam between the wall panels, where the slider parts can eliminate most area of the seam between the walls.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a pneumatic sealing mechanism for sealing a movable wall to an adjacent structure comprising an interior panel of the movable wall; an exterior panel of the movable wall superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto; a sliding pad disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the sliding pad movable between a retracted state, where the sliding pad is disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the sliding pad extends beyond an edge of the interior panel and exterior panel; and an airbag disposed adjacent the sliding pad, the airbag operable to push the sliding pad to the extended state.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a pneumatic sealing mechanism for sealing a movable wall to adjacent structures comprising an interior panel of the movable wall; an exterior panel of the movable wall superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto; first and second sliding pads disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the first and second sliding pads movable between a retracted state, where the first and second sliding pads are disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the first and second sliding pads extend beyond respective opposite edges of the interior panel and exterior panel; a first airbag disposed adjacent the first sliding pad, the first airbag operable to push the first sliding pad to the extended state; a second airbag disposed adjacent the second sliding pad, the second airbag operable to push the second sliding pad to the extended state; and first and second resilient members resiliently urging respective first and second sliding pads into the retracted state, wherein the first and second airbags respectively counteract a resiliency of the first and second resilient members to extend respective first and second sliding pads into the expanded state.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method for sealing a movable wall to an adjacent structure comprising moving a movable wall from a first position to a second position, the movable wall having an interior panel, an exterior panel superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto, a sliding pad disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the sliding pad movable between a retracted state, where the sliding pad is disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the sliding pad extends beyond an edge of the interior panel and exterior panel, and an airbag disposed adjacent the sliding pad, the airbag operable to push the sliding pad to the extended state; and extending the sliding pad from the edge to seal the movable wall with the adjacent structure.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements.

FIG. 1 illustrate a perspective view of an expandable and/or movable home according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exterior end view of a wall having slider parts operable to extend from sides of the wall to create a seal, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the wall of FIG. 2 having its slider parts fitting into a slot on an adjacent wall, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4A illustrates a detailed, partially cutaway end view of the wall of FIG. 2, with the slider parts in a retracted configuration;

FIG. 4B illustrates a detailed, partially cutaway end view of the wall of FIG. 2, with the slider parts in an extended configuration;

FIG. 5 illustrates a perspective view of a pneumatic sealing system used in the end wall, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 illustrates an end view of the wall of FIG. 2 with arrows indicating air movement to expanding the slider parts, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The illustrations in the figures may not necessarily be drawn to scale.

The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description wherein illustrated embodiments are described. It is to be expressly understood that the illustrated embodiments are set forth as examples and not by way of limitations on the invention as ultimately defined in the claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS AND BEST MODE OF INVENTION

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well as the singular forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques and steps are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques. Accordingly, for the sake of clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible combination of the individual steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and the claims.

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

The present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated by the figures or description below.

As is well known to those skilled in the art, many careful considerations and compromises typically must be made when designing for the optimal configuration of a commercial implementation of any system, and in particular, the embodiments of the present invention. A commercial implementation in accordance with the spirit and teachings of the present invention may be configured according to the needs of the particular application, whereby any aspect(s), feature(s), function(s), result(s), component(s), approach(es), or step(s) of the teachings related to any described embodiment of the present invention may be suitably omitted, included, adapted, mixed and matched, or improved and/or optimized by those skilled in the art, using their average skills and known techniques, to achieve the desired implementation that addresses the needs of the particular application.

Broadly, embodiments of the present invention provide a pneumatic active sealing wall that can create a seal between a movable wall and another part of a structure, such as a recreational vehicle, mobile home or the like. The pneumatic active sealing wall design allows the wall to expand from two sides, and, by expanding the wall parts into the side walls, gaps will be eliminated. The sealing wall can be used, for example, to create a seamless wall for folding mechanisms. Since such folding mechanisms do not allow lamination connection, the stretchable design of the pneumatic active sealing wall can solve the problems associated with sealing such movable walls.

Referring to FIG. 1, a mobile house 10 can include a main portion 12 and an expandable portion 14. The expandable portion 14 may fold into and expand from the main portion 12 as described, for example, in U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 18/046,094 and 18/049,139, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.

For example, the main portion 12 can expand out from two sides, where two side walls 16 can open like gates. After the two side walls 16 are opened, an end wall 18 can slide out, along a rail (not shown) on the inside of side walls 16. The end wall 18 can bring the floor and ceiling out at the same time. Since the expandable portion 14 is made by mechanical walls, space between the side walls 16 and the end wall 18 is important because they will move to expand. Each of the movable walls is connected to the other by some mechanical hinges, slider rails, or some linkage. These mechanisms need some space to work so that friction they will not interfere with each other. This space, such as a seam 20 between the end wall 18 and the side walls 16, however, needs to be closed once the structure is in the fully expanded configuration, as shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 through 6, an example of the end wall 18 having a pneumatic sealing mechanism 70 is shown. As shown in the figures, the end wall 18 can include an interior panel 18B that can form the finished interior side of the end wall 18 and an exterior panel 18A that can form a finished outside side of the end wall 18. A sliding pad 30, 32 may be disposed between the interior panel 18B and the exterior panel 18A. The sliding pad 30, 32 may slidingly extend beyond at least one edge 31 of the interior panel 18B and the exterior panels 18A (which, themselves, may be equally sized and be placed directly over one another). Typically, the sliding pad 30, 32 may extend outward along nearly an entirety of a length of the edge 31. For example, as can best be seen in FIG. 2, the sliding pad 30, 32 extends outward from the edge 31 along over 90 percent, typically over 95 percent of the length of the edge 31, except for a space at the top and bottom of the edge 31, where the interior panel 18B attaches to the exterior panel 18A.

Typically, two sliding pads 30, 32 extend from opposite sides of the end wall 18, as illustrated. Of course, it should be understood that the sliding pads 30, 32 may extend from not only one or both sides of a wall, but may also extend from a top and/or a bottom edge of the wall.

The sliding pads 30, 32 may extend inward into the end wall 18 a distance that is at least 5 percent of the entire width of the wall, typically at least 15 percent of the entire width of the wall. By providing sliding pads 30, 32 having such a width, the sliding pads 30, 32 can be stably sandwiched between the interior and exterior panels 18B, 18A, even when the sliding pads 30, 32 are extended outward. In other words, the sliding pads 30, 32 can remain coplanar with the interior and exterior panels 18B, 18A of the wall 18 during use thereof.

The pneumatic sealing system 70 can include an air control device 34 that can deliver air, through non-deformable tubing 36, to airbags 38, 40. In some embodiments, the air control device 34 may include an air pump that can deliver pressurized air to the airbags 38, 40. In other embodiments, the air pump may be external to the end wall 18 and the air control device 34 may measure pressure in the airbags 38, 40 to control the air pump. The air control device 34 may also include, for example, a check valve so that the airbags 38, 40 may maintain pressure after being pressurized and the air pump is turned off.

The airbags can include a first set of airbags 38 and a second set of airbags 40, where the first set of airbags 38 can push the sliding pad 30 on one side of the end wall 18, and the second set of airbags 40 can push the sliding pad 32 on the other side of the end wall 18. Typically, two airbags may be deployed as part of the first and second sets of airbags 38, 40, as shown in the figures. However, other numbers of airbags may be used, such as single long airbag, or three or more airbags. Typically, the airbags are arranged to uniformly and linearly push out the sliding pads 30, 32 to the extended configuration.

In some embodiments, each of the first set of airbags 38 and the second set of airbags 40 can be interconnected by the tubing 36 and controlled by a single air control device 34, as shown in the figures. In other embodiments, each sliding pad 30, 32 can be individually controlled by respective air control devices 34 and tubing 36.

A first set of springs 42 and a second set of springs 44 may be used to resiliently urge the sliding pads 30, 32 to the retracted state so that the sliding pads 30, 32 do not extend beyond the edge 31 of the interior panel 18B and the exterior panel 18A of the end wall 18. The airbags 38, 40 may resiliently extend the springs 42, 44 to push out the sliding pads 30, 32. When the air pressure in the airbags 38, 40 is released, the springs 42, 44 can return the sliding pads 30, 32 back into the retracted state.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the sliding pad 30 can, in the retracted state as shown in FIG. 4A, be pulled close to a fixed internal part 54 of the end wall 18 by the springs 42. The resulting space 56 between the fixed internal part 54 and the sliding pad 30 can be relatively small as compared to the space 56 when the sliding pad 30 is pushed out into the expanded state by the airbags 38, as shown in FIG. 4B. The fixed internal part 54 may provide a surface upon which the airbags 38 can press to deliver a force to the sliding pads 30, 32. The fixed internal part 54 can also retain one end of the spring 42, with the other end attached to the sliding pads 30, 32.

FIG. 6 illustrates, with arrows 60, the flow of air as the airbags 38, 40 are pressurized. During pressurization, the sliding pads 30, 32 can be pushed outward, against a force, indicated by arrows 62, of the springs 42, 44. Of course, any resilient member may be used in place of the springs 42, 44, such as bungee cords, hydraulic extension arms, mechanical devices, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 3, in some embodiments, a slot 50 can be provided in the side wall 16 to receive the sliding pad 30, 32 of the end wall 18. The slot 50 may have a depth that is equal to or less than the amount that the sliding pads 30, 32 extend outward from the edge of the wall. The slots 50 may help retain the end wall 18 in a fixed state with the side wall 16 as well as to help ensure air and watertightness of the interconnection between the side wall 16 and the end wall 18.

All the features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying abstract and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

Claim elements and steps herein may have been numbered and/or lettered solely as an aid in readability and understanding. Any such numbering and lettering in itself is not intended to and should not be taken to indicate the ordering of elements and/or steps in the claims.

Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiments have been set forth only for the purposes of examples and that they should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claim are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different ones of the disclosed elements.

The words used in this specification to describe the invention and its various embodiments are to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly defined meanings, but to include by special definition in this specification the generic structure, material or acts of which they represent a single species.

The definitions of the words or elements of the following claims are, therefore, defined in this specification to not only include the combination of elements which are literally set forth. In this sense it is therefore contemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements may be made for any one of the elements in the claims below or that a single element may be substituted for two or more elements in a claim. Although elements may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, it is to be expressly understood that one or more elements from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination and that the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination.

Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements.

The claims are thus to be understood to include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what is conceptually equivalent, what can be obviously substituted and also what incorporates the essential idea of the invention.

Claims

1. A pneumatic sealing mechanism for sealing a movable wall to an adjacent structure, comprising:

an interior panel of the movable wall;

an exterior panel of the movable wall superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto;

a sliding pad disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the sliding pad movable between a retracted state, where the sliding pad is disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the sliding pad extends beyond an edge of the interior panel and exterior panel; and

an airbag disposed adjacent the sliding pad, the airbag operable to push the sliding pad to the extended state.

2. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 1, wherein the airbag includes a first set of airbags, having at least a first airbag and a second airbag, disposed along a pushed side of the sliding pad, the pushed side being opposite a side that extends outward from the edge of the interior panel and the exterior panel.

3. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 2, wherein:

the sliding pad includes a first and second sliding pad operable to extend from opposite sides of the movable wall in the extended state;

the airbag includes a second set of airbags, having at least a third airbag and a fourth airbag, disposed along a pushed side of the second sliding pad, the pushed side being opposite a side that extends outward from the edge of the interior panel and the exterior panel.

4. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 1, further comprising a resilient member resiliently urging the sliding pad into the retracted state, wherein the airbag counteracts a resiliency of the resilient member to extend the sliding pad into the expanded state.

5. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 4, wherein the resilient member includes a spring.

6. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 4, wherein the resilient member is disposed at least adjacent a top side and a bottom side of the sliding pad.

7. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 1, further comprising an air hose delivering pressurized air to the airbag.

8. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 7, further comprising an air control device operable to control an amount of pressurized air delivered to the airbags.

9. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 3, further comprising:

first and second resilient members resiliently urging, respectively, the first and second sliding pads into the retracted state, wherein the first and second sets of airbags respectively counteracts a resiliency of the first and second resilient member to extend the first and second sliding pads into the expanded state.

10. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 9, further comprising an air hose delivering pressurized air uniformly to the first and second sets of airbags, wherein the first and second sliding pads are uniformly extended into the expanded state.

11. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 1, wherein the adjacent structure includes a slot for receiving the sliding pad.

12. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 1, wherein the sliding pad uniformly extends, in the extended state, from the interior and exterior panels, from adjacent a top side of the interior and exterior panels to adjacent a bottom side of the interior and exterior panels.

13. A pneumatic sealing mechanism for sealing a movable wall to adjacent structures, comprising:

an interior panel of the movable wall;

an exterior panel of the movable wall superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto;

first and second sliding pads disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the first and second sliding pads movable between a retracted state, where the first and second sliding pads are disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the first and second sliding pads extend beyond respective opposite edges of the interior panel and exterior panel;

a first airbag disposed adjacent the first sliding pad, the first airbag operable to push the first sliding pad to the extended state;

a second airbag disposed adjacent the second sliding pad, the second airbag operable to push the second sliding pad to the extended state; and

first and second resilient members resiliently urging respective first and second sliding pads into the retracted state, wherein the first and second airbags respectively counteract a resiliency of the first and second resilient members to extend respective first and second sliding pads into the expanded state.

14. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 13, wherein the first and second resilient members each include first and second springs.

15. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 13, wherein the first and second springs of each of the first and second resilient members are disposed at least adjacent a top side and a bottom side of each of the first and second sliding pads.

16. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 13, further comprising an air hose delivering pressurized air uniformly to the first and second airbags, wherein the first and second sliding pads are uniformly extended into the expanded state.

17. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 16, further comprising an air control device operable to control an amount of pressurized air delivered to the airbags.

18. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 13, wherein the adjacent structures include slots for receiving the first and second sliding pads.

19. The pneumatic sealing mechanism of claim 13, wherein each of the first and second sliding pads uniformly extend, in the extended state, from the interior and exterior panels, from adjacent a top side of the interior and exterior panels to adjacent a bottom side of the interior and exterior panels.

20. A method for sealing a movable wall to an adjacent structure, the method comprising:

moving a movable wall from a first position to a second position, the movable wall having: an interior panel; an exterior panel superimposed with the interior panel and attached thereto; a sliding pad disposed between the interior panel and the exterior panel, the sliding pad movable between a retracted state, where the sliding pad is disposed entirely within the interior panel and the exterior panel, and an extended state, where the sliding pad extends beyond an edge of the interior panel and exterior panel; and an airbag disposed adjacent the sliding pad, the airbag operable to push the sliding pad to the extended state; and

extending the sliding pad from the edge to seal the movable wall with the adjacent structure.