Smoke, fire and air control damper

Claim 2

A fire damper comprising: (a) a frame; (b) a plurality of blades associated with said frame; (c) rotation means for allowing selective rotational displacement of said blades between closed and open positions with respect to said frame; (d) linkage means for articulating the position of said plurality of blades with respect to each other and with respect to the frame during the rotation thereof; and (e) at least two biasing means for simulataneously forcing said blades from said open toward said closed position, said biasing means being located on opposite sides of said blades in said closed position.

Claim 3

The invention of claim 1 wherein each of said means is connected to separate ones of said plurality of blades to exert generally opposing forces thereon.

Claim 4

The invention of claim 2 wherein said plurality of blades comprises at least three blades, and wherein said biasing means are located to exert forces on the two endmost blades of said plurality of blades.

Claim 5

The invention of claim 3 wherein said biasing means extends over the edge of its associated blade when said blade is in the open position.

Claim 6

The invention of claim 4 wherein each of said biasing means comprises a support attached to its associated blade and a spring attached to said support at a point spaced apart from the plane of said blade, said spring being attached at its end remote from said support to said frame whereby the force applied by said spring to said blade in the closed position is directly applied through said support.

Claim 7

The invention of claim 1 wherein each of said blades comprises: parallel spaced-apart sections joined by at least one transverse connecting portion, each of said sections having a longitudinal edge and a rotational axis for rotational displacement between said closed position and said open position, said axis being parallel to said longitudinal edges; and wherein said damper comprises a plurality of biasing means being mounted on a first outer blade surface of a first of said sections of one of said plurality of blades located to engage a first end of said damper in said closed position, said biasing means acting upon said first end of said damper to urge said blade section theretoward; and a second one of said biasing means being mounted on the opposing inner surface of said second section of a second one of said blades, said second blade being located to engage an opposite end of said damper in said closed position, said second biasing means acting upon said opposite end of said damper to urge said blade section theretoward.

Claim 8

The invention of claim 6 wherein said rotational axis is substantially equidistance from each of said longitudinal edges.

Claim 9

The invention of claim 6 wherein each of said biasing means comprises a bracket support attached to its associated blade section and a spring attached at one end to said bracket support and at the other end to said frame, said spring passing over and engaging said longitudinal edge of said associated blade section when said blade is in the open position.

Claim 10

The invention of claim 1 wherein said damper further comprises operator means for moving said blades between the open and closed position.

Claim 11

The invention of claim 9 wherein said operator means further comprises heat responsive means for selectively disengaging at least a portion of said operator means, whereby said biasing means will cause said damper to move to the closed position.

Claim 12

The invention of claim 10 wherein said operator means is attached to said linkage means.

Claim 13

The invention of claim 10 wherein said operator means comprises a tube, a rod journalled within said tube, and at least one bimetallic element.

Claim 14

The invention of claim 12 wherein said bimetallic element is attached to said rod at a first end thereof and at the second end thereof is adapted to engage at least a portion of said tube to prevent relative movement between said rod and said tube in response to a preselected ambient temperature, and to release said tube thereby facilitating relative movement between said rod and said tube in response to a preselected increase in ambient temperature.

Claim 15

The invention of claim 13 wherein said end of said bimetallic element which is adapted to engage at least a portion of said tube further comprises means for re-engaging said tube when said tube and said rod are moved through at least said predetermined position relative to each other.