Manufactures, methods and structures to reduce energy transfer in building curtain walls
View Patent ↗A manufacture and method for reducing thermal transfer through window systems has a composite window cap retainer. The retainer has a metal extrusion at least partially covered by a thermal spacer having reduced relative thermal conductivity. The thermal spacer is mechanically supported by the metal extrusion and mechanically intermediates and thermally insulates between the cap and the metal window structures to which the cap is secured, reducing thermal transfer between the inside and outside environments of a building.
1. A window system for a building, comprising
a chassis secured to the building, the chassis having a horizontally oriented structural element, the chassis supporting a glazing unit, the horizontally oriented structural element having a niche therein along at least a portion of a length thereof;
the glazing unit secured to the horizontally oriented structural element adjacent the niche;
a cap covering an edge of the glazing unit;
a cap retainer inserted into and retained in the niche at a first end thereof and attaching to the cap at a second end, the cap retainer having a support plate made from a material having a first thermal conductivity and a thermal spacer made from a material having a thermal conductivity less than the thermal conductivity of the first material and coupled to the support plate, the support plate extending from a position within the niche to a position under the glazing unit, the thermal spacer interposed between the cap and the niche.
2. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the cap retainer supports the glazing unit under the influence of gravity.
3. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the support plate is a metal extrusion, the thermal spacer being non-metallic and at least partially covering the first portion.
4. The window system of claim 3 , wherein the second material is a polymer material.
5. The window system of claim 4 , wherein the first material is an aluminum alloy.
6. The window system of claim 2 , wherein the niche has an upper interior surface and a lower interior surface and wherein a portion of the thermal spacer is positioned below the support plate and rests on a portion of the lower interior surface of the niche at a contact area, the cap retainer pivoting on the contact area and pressing the first end of the cap retainer up into engagement with the upper interior surface in response to a down-force applied on a portion of the cap retainer extending beyond the contact area in a direction distal to the niche.
7. The window system of claim 6 , wherein the cap retainer has a hook at the first end thereof that is received in the niche and the niche has a hook recess in the upper interior surface thereof that matingly receives the hook when the cap retainer is inserted in the niche.
8. The window system of claim 7 , wherein the niche has two hook recesses, a first for accommodating the hook when the cap retainer is inserted to a first extent into the niche and a second for accommodating the hook when the cap retainer is inserted into the niche to a second extent.
9. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the thermal spacer has a first end grip and a second end grip, the first and second end grips wrapping around a first end of the support plate distal to the niche and a second end of the support plate proximal to the niche, respectively.
10. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the support plate is made from a material having a greater mechanical strength than the thermal insulator and stiffens the thermal insulator when conjoined therewith, the thermal insulator covering at least a bottom surface of the support plate from a first end thereof distal to the niche to a second end thereof proximal to the niche.
11. The window system of claim 4 , wherein the second material is polyamide.
12. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the cap has a hollow gripper with at least one flexible wall and the cap retainer has a tapered insertion tip that is slideably insertable into the hollow gripper to a gripping position where the hollow gripper and insertion tip snap fit and interlock to retain the cap on the window system.
13. The window system of claim 12 , wherein the hollow gripper has a disengagement tab on the at least one flexible wall that permits disengagement of the hollow gripper from the insertion tip.
14. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the support plate is telescoped into the thermal spacer.
15. The window system of claim 8 , further comprising an adapter inserted into the niche, the adapter having a Y-portion from which a niche hook, a niche engagement leg and a retainer support leg extends, the niche hook of the adapter received in the first hook recess in the niche, the niche engagement leg received in a recess in the niche and the support leg providing a support surface upon which the cap retainer rests and pivots when inserted into the niche after the adapter, the support leg intermediating between the cap retainer and the contact area on the lower interior surface of the niche, the cap retainer niche hook received in the second hook recess in the niche.
16. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the chassis has a vertical structural element having a niche therein along at least a portion of a length thereof:
a vertical cap covering a vertical edge of the glazing unit;
a vertical cap retainer formed at least partially from a material having a thermal conductivity less than metal, the vertical cap retainer being secured to the vertical structural element by a fastener.
17. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the cap is connected to the thermal insulator.
18. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the cap is horizontally oriented.
19. The window system of claim 1 , wherein the cap covers edges and a gap between a pair of adjacent glazing panels.
20. The window system of claim 16 , wherein the vertical cap is formed from extruded aluminum, the chassis is extruded aluminum and the vertical cap retainer includes a first portion made from a polymer extrusion and a second portion made from an aluminum alloy extrusion, the first portion at least partially covering the surface of the second portion and mechanically coupling to the second portion, the first portion being interposed between the aluminum chassis and the vertical cap, the vertical cap attaching to an end of the first portion.
21. The window system of claim 16 , wherein
the vertical cap retainer is composed of a monolithic polymer having a thermal conductivity less than the thermal conductivity of the vertical structural element, the vertical cap retainer interposed between the vertical cap and the niche of the vertical structural member.
22. The window system of claim 21 , wherein the vertical structural element and the vertical cap are aluminum alloy, the vertical cap has a gripper with a hollow and at least one flexible wall and the vertical cap retainer has a tapered insertion head that inserts into the hollow of the gripper.
23. The window system of claim 22 , wherein the gripper of the vertical cap has a release lever extending from the flexible wall that selectively opens the gripper when pressed to allow withdrawal of the insertion head.
24. The window system of claim 21 , wherein the separation distance between the cap and the horizontal structural element and between the vertical cap and the vertical structural element is greater than ¼ inch.
25. The window system of claim 21 , wherein the separation distance between the cap and the horizontal structural element and between the vertical cap and the vertical structural element is greater than 1 inch.