Drain Pan for Packaged Terminal Air Conditioner

This application claims the benefit of provisional application No. 63/573,349, filed Apr. 2, 2024, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

The present invention relates generally to packed terminal air conditioners, and more particularly, relates to a drain pan for a wall sleeve that contains the chassis of a packaged terminal air conditioner, where the drain pan prevents wind-blown leakage of condensate into the structure in which the packaged terminal air conditioner is mounted.

A packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC) is a self-contained heating and air conditioning unit that is mounted through a wall, and is designed such that the entire unit can be removed from the wall for servicing or replacement. As such, PTAC units are distinguished from small window mounted units, as well as permanently mounted through-wall units. PTAC units are common in the United States for commercial applications, particularly in hotels/motels, and similar living spaces. Since the unit in mounted through a wall, one side of the unit is exposed to the outside and part of the unit is on the inside of the living space. As with any air conditioning system, a PTAC includes a compressor coil in which the refrigerant is compressed, increasing its temperature, and a fan blows the ambient outside air over the compressor coil to remove heat from the refrigerant. Typically, there is a louver assembly over the outside of the PTAC to reduce rain and wind intrusion, as well as to protect the compressor coil and other components of the PTAC.

By removing heat from the refrigerant, when it is expanded and decompressed, it becomes chilled, and this chilled refrigeration is passed through another coil, the chiller coil, though which interior air is blown back into the interior of the living space. Since a PTAC is more of a permanent fixture than, for example, a window-mounted air conditioner, the structure provides for a mounting of the PTAC. Specifically, there is an opening through a wall, in which there is a wall sleeve mounted. The wall sleeve holds the chassis of the PTAC, which includes all of the operational parts of the PTAC as unit, including a chassis drain pan that collects condensate so that it can be splashed onto the compressor coil to further cool the refrigerant in the compressor coil. This is especially useful on very hot days when the ambient outside temperature is very high. The wall sleeve can also include a drain pan that sits under the chassis and the chassis drain pan, to collect water (condensate) that overflows the chassis drain pan, and directs the overflow condensate to a drain opening. In some arrangements the drain opening can be configured to drain into an interior drain (e.g., a plumbed line), and in other arrangements the drainage can be directed to the outside side of the PTAC so that the water drains to the outside.

A common problem with PTAC units, however, is that, despite the presence of a louver assembly, wind can blow into the louver, into the PTAC, and blow water in the drain pan over the back or interior side of the drain pan, into the interior of the living space.shows a conventional prior art drain panfor a PTAC wall sleeve. The panhas a front sideand a rear side. The front sideis positioned to be at a louver assembly and can be open to the outside, while the rear sideis positioned inside the portion of the PTAC that is at the inside of the living space. The front sidehas a front wall, and the rear sidehas a rear wall. The front and rear walls,extend upward from the perimeter of the floorwhere the floormeets the front and rear sides,. There are also right and left sides,that form walls. Thus, the flooris bounded on all four sides by walls that act to contain water. The water may be sourced from condensate produced by the PTAC chiller coil as it overflows the chassis drain pan, as well as wind-driven rain that may enter through the louver assembly. The chassis can sit on side supports,at the right and left sides,over the wall sleeve drain pan.

Typically, in an external draining PTAC system, there is a slotcut in the front wallat one side to allow water to drain out of the wall sleeve drain panon the outside of the structure. Typically, however, the slotdoes not extend all the way to the floor, which causes a small volume of water to be retained in the drain pan. Further, the floormay not be perfectly level, which can result in water being retained in the drain pan. As a result, when a strong wind blows into the louver assembly, in the direction of arrow, the wind can push the water in the drain panto the rear of the drain pan, and may cause the water to overflow over the rear wall, as indicated by arrow, which will be on the inside of the structure. This can cause carpeting to become stained, wood to delaminate, and other water damage.

Therefore, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.

In accordance with some embodiments of the inventive disclosure, there is provided a wall sleeve drain pan for a packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC) that is configured to resist wind-blown leakage into the structure in which the PTAC is mounted. The wall sleeve drain pan is configured to resist wind-blown leakage by having a front edge, a rear side opposite the front edge, a right side, and a left side opposite the right side. The right and left sides each extend from the rear side to the front edge. The wall sleeve drain pan further includes a floor defined from the right side to the left side and from the front edge to the rear side, and at least one arcuate channel formed on the floor.

In accordance with some embodiments of the inventive disclosure, there is further provided a PTAC unit, including a wall sleeve, a chassis including a chassis drain pan positioned in the wall sleeve, and a wall sleeve drain pan that is configured to resist wind-blown leakage into the structure in which the PTAC unit is mounted. The wall sleeve drain pan is configured to resist wind-blown leakage by having a front edge, a rear side opposite the front edge, a right side, and a left side opposite the right side. The right and left sides each extend from the rear side to the front edge. The wall sleeve drain pan further includes a floor defined from the right side to the left side and from the front edge to the rear side, and at least one arcuate channel formed on the floor.

In accordance with a further feature, the at least one arcuate channel is symmetric about a center between the right side and the left side, from the front edge to the rear side, wherein the at least one arcuate channel has a first end at the front edge on one side of the center and a second end at the front edge on an opposite side of the center, and a peak that is away from the front edge and on the center.

In accordance with a further feature, the at least one arcuate channel is a plurality of nested arcuate channels.

In accordance with a further feature, the plurality of nested arcuate channels are separated by raised sections of the floor, wherein the raised sections follow an arcuate path along the plurality of arcuate channels, and wherein the raised sections increase in height in a direction from the front edge to the rear side.

In accordance with a further feature, the raised sections are broken along the arcuate path along the plurality of arcuate channels.

In accordance with a further feature, there is further included at least one intersecting channel formed by breaks in the raised section, wherein the at least one intersecting channel extends from the front edge to the rear side and intersects the at least one arcuate channel.

In accordance with a further feature, the at least one intersecting channel is formed along a straight line perpendicular to the front edge to the rear side.

In accordance with a further feature, the at least one intersecting channel follows an alternating path from the front edge to the rear side.

In accordance with a further feature, there is further included at least two chassis support portions formed in the raised sections.

In accordance with a further feature, the floor is sloped upwards from the front edge to the rear side.

In accordance with a further feature, the front edge includes a drip edge.

Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a wall sleeve drain pan for a PTAC unit, it is, nevertheless, not intended to be limited to the details shown because various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims. Additionally, well-known elements of exemplary embodiments of the invention will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the invention.

Other features that are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims. As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one of ordinary skill in the art to variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Further, the terms and phrases used herein are not intended to be limiting; but rather, to provide an understandable description of the invention. While the specification concludes with claims defining the features of the invention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from a consideration of the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals are carried forward. The figures of the drawings are not drawn to scale.

Before the present invention is disclosed and described, it is to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. The terms “a” or “an,” as used herein, are defined as one or more than one. The term “plurality,” as used herein, is defined as two or more than two. The term “another,” as used herein, is defined as at least a second or more. The terms “including” and/or “having,” as used herein, are defined as comprising (i.e., open language). The term “coupled,” as used herein, is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly, and not necessarily mechanically. The term “providing” is defined herein in its broadest sense, e.g., bringing/coming into physical existence, making available, and/or supplying to someone or something, in whole or in multiple parts at once or over a period of time.

“In the description of the embodiments of the present invention, unless otherwise specified, azimuth or positional relationships indicated by terms such as “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”, “inside”, “outside”, “front”, “back”, “head”, “tail” and so on, are azimuth or positional relationships based on the drawings, which are only to facilitate description of the embodiments of the present invention and simplify the description, but not to indicate or imply that the devices or components must have a specific azimuth, or be constructed or operated in the specific azimuth, which thus cannot be understood as a limitation to the embodiments of the present invention. Furthermore, terms such as “first”, “second”, “third” and so on are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

In the description of the embodiments of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly defined and limited, terms such as “installed”, “coupled”, “connected” should be broadly interpreted, for example, it may be fixedly connected, or may be detachably connected, or integrally connected; it may be mechanically connected, or may be electrically connected; it may be directly connected, or may be indirectly connected via an intermediate medium. As used herein, the terms “about” or “approximately” apply to all numeric values, whether or not explicitly indicated. These terms generally refer to a range of numbers that one of skill in the art would consider equivalent to the recited values (i.e., having the same function or result). In many instances these terms may include numbers that are rounded to the nearest significant figure. In this document, the term “longitudinal” should be understood to mean in a direction corresponding to an elongated direction of the article being described. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meanings of the above-mentioned terms in the embodiments of the present invention according to the specific circumstances.

Conjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, and Z,” unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context as used in general to convey that an item, term, etc. may be either X, Y, or Z. Thus, such conjunctive language is not generally intended to imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, and at least one of Z to each be present.

While the specification concludes with claims defining the features of the invention that are regarded as novel, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from a consideration of the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures, in which like reference numerals are carried forward. It is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which can be embodied in various forms.

In order to solve the problem of wind-driven rain and/or condensate collected in the wall sleeve drain pan overflowing the wall sleeve drain pan, a wall sleeve drain pan is disclosed herein which has one or more arcuate channels formed in the floor of the drain pan, and the drain pan is front-draining, meaning that water drains from the front of the drain pan. Each arcuate channel can be symmetric about a center of the drain pan in a direction from left to right (e.g. the short sides), and have a first end and a second end at the front (exterior facing) side of the drain pan. Each channel follows an arc between the two ends where a peak of the arc is farthest away from the front of the drain pan, and closest to the rear of the drain pan. Water that collects in the drain pan is prevented from being blown to the back of the drain pan by wind due to the presence of wall portions that define the arcuate channel(s). In addition, wind blowing into the PTAC unit through the louver assembly at an angle will tend to force water out of one end of the arcuate channel(s). Thus, the arcuate channel(s) can help remove water from the drain pan under particular wind conditions. In the following description and in the claims, it is to be understood that all relational and relative language, such as “sloped” and “raised” refer to the drain pan in its intended position, with the floor generally being defined along a plane that is parallel to horizontal with respect to the direction of gravity, unless otherwise stated.

shows a top plan view of a drain panfor a packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC) wall sleeve, where the drain panhas arcuate channels formed therein, in accordance with some embodiments. The drain panis configured to sit in a wall sleeve for a PTAC unit, under the chassis of the PTAC unit, and under the chassis drain pan, to collect overflow from the chassis drain pan and any wind-driven rain that may be blown into the PTAC unit through the louver assembly. The drain panhas a front edgethat is configured to extend through a louver assembly to the exterior of the structure in which the PTAC system is installed to allow water to drain out from the drain panalong the front edge. Opposite from the front edgeis a rear side. There is also a right sideand a left sidewhich each extend from the rear sideto the front edge. At the front edgethere can be cutoutsto accommodate the vertical rib members of a louver assembly and allow the front edgeto extend to the outside side of the louver assembly.

On the floor of the drain panthere are a plurality of raised sectionsthat define arcuate channels such as arcuate channelalong arc line C-C′. The arcuate channelhas first endadjacent the front edgeand a second endthat is also adjacent the front edge. The floor along channelis generally co-level with the front edgeso that water will run along the channelto the front edgeand drain to the outside of the structure in which the PTAC is installed. Thus, the channelis defined by raised portions such as raised portionthat extend upward from the level of the front edgeand the arc channels. Where there are numerous nested arcuate channels, as shown here, the raised portions are likewise arcuate and follow a similar arc pattern. In the specific embodiment of the drain pan, there are a plurality of nested arcuate channels that are symmetric about line A-A′, each arcuate channel having two ends at the front edgeon opposite sides of center line A-A′, and having an apex on center line A-A′ that is between the front edgeand the rear side. Thus, for example, the channelalong line arc line C-C′ is nested within another arcuate channel along arc line D-D′. There is an intermediate arcuate channel between arc lines C-C′ and D-D′ as well, and further arcuate channels in which these channels are likewise nested.

In some embodiments, in addition to the arcuate channel(s), there can be intersecting channels that run directly from front to rear, such as channel. These channels intersect with the arcuate channels to further facilitate drainage out of the drain pan. The intersecting channelsare co-level with the arcuate channels and the front edgeto assure that water will flow towards the front edgeand drain over the front edgeand the drip edgeas water accumulates in the drain pan. The term “co-level” means that when the drain panis properly mounted, the top surface of these features are at the same level. However, as will be described hereinbelow, it is also contemplated that these features are arranged on a general downward slope, from the rear sidesloping downward to the front edgein some embodiments. The channels, both arcuate channels and the intersecting channels, are at the lowest level of all features on the top surface of the drain pan. The drip edgeextends across most of the front edge, except for the notches, and is a turned-down portion over which water will drop off the drain pan. The intersecting channelscan be formed by simply breaking the raised portionsalong a line from front to rear of the drain pan. Further, in some embodiments, the raised portionscan increase in height from front to back. This can be seen in, which shows a top perspective view of a drain pan.

shows a side slice cut-away view through a series of arcuate channels of the drain pantaken along line A-A′ of. The slice cut-away view only shows a slice of the drain pan, and is not a cut-away view where the right half of the drain panwould otherwise be in view, but rather a thin slice of the drain panto show as clearly as possible the structure of the drain panalong the indicated slice line. As can be seen, the arcuate channelsare co-level with the front edge, and the raised portionsseparate the arcuate channels. The raised portionscan increase in height from front to rear. At the rear sidethere is a rear wallthat spans the rear sideto prevent water leaking out of the drain panat the rear side.show a side slice cut-away view along an intersecting channelof the drain pan, taken along line B-B′ of. The intersecting channelruns from the front edgeto the rear wall, and is co-level with the front edgealong the entirety of the intersecting channel.

shows a top plan view of the drain pan, having arcuate channels, for a PTAC wall sleeve and how wind that is incident on the exterior of the PTAC will move water in the drain pan, in accordance with some embodiments. Wind blowing in the direction of arrowalong the exterior side of the PTAC assembly, through the louver assembly, can enter at an angle, and tend to drive water to the rear of the drain pan. However, the raised portions of the drain pan can partially redirect the wind along the arcuate paths, such as path. Although there is room for wind to blow over the raised portions of the drain pan, and the wind will be incident at the same angle across the entire front of the drain pan, for the most part, it has been found that some water will move along the arcuate channels in response to the wind being at an angle. This can be further directed by the louver vanes that are provides in front of the PTAC unit, on the outside of the PTAC unit. Wind that is blowing in the direction perpendicular to the front edge, in the direction of arrow, will not cause this effect, but will tend to push water along the intersecting channels, and to the sides,along the rear wall. In particular, water will flow outward to the outer intersecting channels,and towards the front edge.

shows a side cut-away exploded view of a PTAC unit installation, with the PTAC unit including a drain pan having arcuate channels, andshows a side cut-away view of the installed PTAC unit. An exterior wallof a structure includes an opening through which a wall sleeveis mounted. In many such mountings the PTAC unit is mounted below a window. The wall sleeve drain panis mounted in the bottom of the wall sleevesuch that the drip edgeextends outside, through a louver assembly. A chassisincludes the electrical and mechanical components of the heating and cooling systems, including a chassis drain pan. The chassis drain pancollects condensate from the chiller coil and routes the water to the compressor side so that it can be splashed onto the compressor coil to help cool the compressor coil and remove heat from the refrigerant in the compressor coil. The chassisis inserted into the wall sleeve, on top of, or over the wall sleeve drain pan. Then a coveris placed over the interior side of the chassis. The cover can include ducting to direct air blown from the chassis that has been heated or cooled, and there can be a port or ports to allow access to controls that control the operation of the PTAC. The louver assemblyfits over the exterior sides of the wall sleeve and includes a plurality of elongated slats (vanes). There can be slats that are horizontally oriented, as well as vertically oriented slats to direct exhaust air to the side to prevent heated air from being pulled back in at the intake side of the chassis. In general, for cooling operation, the PTAC unit pulls in ambient air on one side of the louver assembly, blows it over the compressor coil, and out through an exhaust side of the louver assembly. In, where the PTAC is assembled, it can be seen that the drip edgeat the front of the wall sleeve drain pan extends through the louver assemblyso that water will drain to the outside/exterior of the structure.

shows a top plan view of a drain pan, having arcuate channels, for a PTAC wall sleeve, where interconnecting or intersecting channels have an alternating path due to interleaved channel wall portions, in accordance with some embodiments. In wall sleeve drain pans similar to that of, where the intersecting channelsare directly linear from front to back, it has been found that when the floor thickness is reduced to reduce the amount of material used in production, the linear intersecting channels create a bend line, meaning that the drain panwill bend along the lines of the intersecting channels. As a result, it is possible that without the floor portion being sufficiently thick, the drain pancould sag under the weight of water collected in the drain pan, in a way that would interfere with the intended drainage. In addition, they could be mishandled when being installed, resulting in cracks and rendering a drain pan unusable.

Drain panis configured to fit into a wall sleeve for a PTAC unit, and can be interchangeable with wall sleeve drain panin terms of fit. The drain panincludes a front edgeand a rear sidealong the elongated direction of the drain pan. There is also a right sideand a left sidewhich extend from the front to the rear of the drain pan, making it a substantially rectangular shape from the top view. The drain panincludes a plurality of nested arcuate channels such as arcuate channelalong arc line. In general, the arcuate channels are defined by raised portions such as raised portion. The raised portions can increase in height in a direction from front to rear, such that the portions of the raised portion at the front edgeare co-level with, or just slightly raised over the front edge, and the portion of the raised portions adjacent the rear wallat the rear sidecan be co-level with the rear wall. The side walls,can also be the same height as the rear wall. There are several intersection channels such as that defined along line. As can be seen, rather than being a straight line from front to rear, the raised portions interleave with each other such that the intersecting channel alternates to the sides, having a zig-zag pattern. In embodiments without intersecting channels, the raised portions will be continuous along arc lines from the front edgeat one side of the drain panto a vertex that is away from the front edgeat the center (between the right and left sides,) and then back to the front edgeat the other side, relative to the center, of the drain pan. In embodiments that include intersecting channels, the raised portions are not continuous arcs, but are broken into arcuate segments by the intersecting channels. For example, in, drain panincludes raised portion, which has a left end, bounded by an intersecting channel along line. Raised portionhas right endon the other side of the intersecting channel, along arc line. The raised portions to the rear and to the front of raised portions,have ends along the same line of the intersecting channel and are thus not interleaved.

To resist bending along the intersecting channels, the raised portions in drain panare interleaved along the intersecting channels. For example, the breakbetween raised portionsand, which are on the same arc line, is offset to the left compared to similar breaks between raised portions on adjacent arc lines forward and rearward of raised portions,, which are more rightward. That breaks between raised portions on common arc lines alternate to the sides rather than being a straight line from front to rear. Interleaving the raised portions in this manner provides for an intersecting channel that can allow water to flow from rear to front in the drain pan, but also avoid a tendency to bend along the intersecting channel compared to a linear intersecting channel.

shows a top plan view of a drain pan, having arcuate channels and raised chassis support portions, for a PTAC wall sleeve, in accordance with some embodiments. The drain panhas a front edge, a rear side, a right side, and a left sidein a generally rectangular shape, from a top view. The shape does not particularly matter, but virtually all PTAC units are configured in a way that a rectangular shape maximizes the area under the PTAC chassis. As with the previously discussed wall sleeve drain pans,, wall sleeve drain panincludes one or more arcuate channels, such as arcuate channel, which formed along the dashed arc line from a right endto a left end, and which is defined by raised portions that provide arcuate boundaries to the arcuate channel. Raised portion, for example, provides a rear boundary at the right side of the arcuate channel. The drain panis similar to drain pan, but includes raised chassis support portion such as those in boxes.shows a perspective view of the drain panwhere the raised chassis support portionscan be seen to all rise to the same level and generally have flat tops on which the chassis of the PTAC unit can rest. Each of the raised chassis support portionsextend upward from one of the raised portionsto a generally flat to surface.show side-cutaway slice view with the slices taken along lines E-E′, F-F′, and G-G′, respectively, of. As can be seen in, the raised portionsincrease in height from front to back. A given raised portion, since they are all on arc lines, can also increase in height from its forward end to its rearward end or vertex if it is on the centerline between the right and left sides,. The top surfaces of the raised portionscan likewise be at an angle along a line from the topof the rear wall to the front edge. The arcuate channelsrun between, and are defined or bounded by, the arcuate raised portion segments. In, the raised chassis support portionscan be seen to all have the same height, from he front to the rear of the drain pan. Each one of the raise chassis support portions rises upward from the surface of one of the raised portions. As shown in, drain panis an embodiment in which there are five regions, such as in the region encircled by box, where there are raised chassis support portions. These sections of the drain panare intended to provide support for the PTAC chassis. That is, the PTAC chassis sits on portions.shows a slice along an intersecting channel, in which there are no raised portions, and the intersecting channel is co-level with the arcuate channels.

show side-cutaway slice view with the slices taken along lines E-E′, F-F′, and G-G′, respectively, of, with the addition of a slanted floor, generally, along the entirety of the drain pan. This means that the lowest portions (the channels) increase in height from front to rear (left to right on the drawings) of the drain pan. As can be seen in, the raised portionsincrease in height from front to back. Any given raised portion, since they are all on arc lines, can also increase in height from its forward end to its rearward end or vertex if it is on the centerline between the right and left sides,. The top surfaces of the raised portionscan likewise be at an angle along a line from the topof the rear wall to the front edge. The arcuate channelsrun between, and are defined or bounded by, the arcuate raised portion segments. In, the raised chassis support portionscan be seen to all have the same height, from the front to the rear of the drain pan. Each one of the raised chassis support portions rises upward from the surface of one of the raised portions. In, along an intersecting channelthe floor of the drain pan simply slopes continuously from back to front.

The claims appended hereto are meant to cover all modifications and changes within the scope and spirit of the present invention.