Air curtain apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING AN AIR CURTAIN ACROSS A DOORWAY IN A BUILDING STRUCTURE WALL TO FORM THERMAL AND DECONTAMINATION BARRIERS THEREAT, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING A HOUSING STRUCTURE MOUNTED ABOVE THE DOORWAY AND INCLUDING A PLENUM CHAMBER HAVING A DOWNWARDLY FACING ELONGATE DISCHARGE ORIFICE POSITIONED ADJACENT THE TOP OF THE DOORWAY AND EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY THEREOF AT LEAST A DISTANCE CORRESPONDING SUBSTANTIALLY TO THE WIDTH OF THE DOORWAY, MECHANISM ASSOCIATED WITH SAID HOUSING STRUCTURE FOR PRODUCING A STREAM OF AIR AND DIRECTING THE SAME DOWNWARDLY INTO SAID PLENUM CHAMBER, A PAIR OF SPACED-APART DEPENDING ELONGATE PARTITIONS HINGEDLY MOUNTED AT THEIR RESPECTIVE UPPER EDGES ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID ORIFICE AND BEING SWINGABLE ABOUT SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL AXES, SAID PARTITIONS EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF THE DOORWAY A DISTANCE CORRESPONDING SUBSTANTIALLY TO THE LENGTH OF SAID ORIFICE, SAID PARTITIONS PRESENTING OPPOSED INNER FACES WHICH COOPERATE WITH EACH OTHER TO CAUSE AIR FLOWING THEREBETWEEN TO FORM AN AIR CURTAIN ACROSS THE DOORWAY, ADJUSTABLE LINKAGE MEANS INTERCONNECTING SAID PARTITIONS IN PREDETERMINED SPACED RELATION TO THEREBY CAUSE SAID PARTITIONS TO SWING IN UNISON WHILE MAINTAINING A PREDETERMINED SPACING THEREBETWEEN, SAID ADJUSTABLE LINKAGE MEANS BEING ADJUSTABLE FOR VARIOUSLY ADJUSTING THE PREDETERMINED SPACING BETWEEN SAID PARTITIONS TO THEREBY PERMIT THE THICKNESS AND CROSS-SECTIONAL CONFIGURATION OF THE AIR CURTAIN TO BE ADJUSTED, A VOLUME CONTROL MEMBER SHIFTABLY MOUNTED IN TRANSVERSELY EXTENDING RELATION WITH RESPECT TO SAID DISCHARGE ORIFICE AND BEING VARIOUSLY ADJUSTABLE BETWEEN ORIFICE OPENED AND CLOSED POSITIONS FOR CONTROLLING THE VOLUME OF AIR FLOWING THROUGH THE ORIFICE, AND CONTROL MECHANISM OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH SAID PARTITIONS FOR SWINGING SAID PARTITIONS IN UNISON ABOUT THEIR HINGE AXES WHEREBY THE MEDIAN PLANE OF THE AIR CURTAIN MAY BE DEFLECTED ON BOTH SIDES OF THE VERTICAL TO FORM ACUTE ANGLES THEREWITH.