ESCAPE MECHANISM FOR HURRICANE SHUTTERS
First Claim
1. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for unlatching a hurricane shutter from a dwelling comprising:
- a hurricane shutter anchor connectable to a dwelling structure to secure a hurricane shutter;
a stud removably connected to said anchor and connectable to said hurricane shutter to hold said hurricane shutter in place;
a release member for manual release mounted on the inside of said hurricane shutter, accessible to a person in the dwelling adjacent to a dwelling opening covered by a hurricane shutter, said release member having a first position for connecting said removable stud to said anchor securing said hurricane shutter in place and a second position releasing said removable stud from said anchor allowing the hurricane shutter to be released and unfastened while inside the dwelling; and
a fastener secured to the outside end of said removable stud for holding said hurricane shutter in place.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for allowing fast and easy removal of conventional hurricane shutters from a window or door of a structure in the event of an emergency. The device comprises a release member, an anchor, a removable stud for engaging and securing the hurricane shutters, and a spring-actuated panel fastener that includes a leaf spring to engage and hold the removable stud in position. The release member includes a slot having a small aperture to hold the stud in position and a large aperture to release the stud from the anchor. From inside the building, the release member is pushed down to release the hurricane shutters so that the occupants of a structure can escape during an emergency, such as a fire. From outside the building, a rescuer can depress the leaf spring to remove the spring-actuated panel fastener, and thereby, also remove the hurricane shutter panel.
19 Citations
22 Claims
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1. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for unlatching a hurricane shutter from a dwelling comprising:
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a hurricane shutter anchor connectable to a dwelling structure to secure a hurricane shutter;
a stud removably connected to said anchor and connectable to said hurricane shutter to hold said hurricane shutter in place;
a release member for manual release mounted on the inside of said hurricane shutter, accessible to a person in the dwelling adjacent to a dwelling opening covered by a hurricane shutter, said release member having a first position for connecting said removable stud to said anchor securing said hurricane shutter in place and a second position releasing said removable stud from said anchor allowing the hurricane shutter to be released and unfastened while inside the dwelling; and
a fastener secured to the outside end of said removable stud for holding said hurricane shutter in place. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for unlatching a hurricane shutter comprising:
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a hurricane shutter anchor connectable to a dwelling structure to secure a hurricane shutter;
a stud connected to said anchor and connected through said hurricane shutter to hold said hurricane shutter in place; and
a fastener connected to an end of said stud opposing said anchor for holding said hurricane shutter in place, said fastener including a spring release for manually removing said fastener from said stud.
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20. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for unlatching a hurricane shutter from a dwelling comprising:
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a hurricane shutter anchor connectable to a dwelling structure to secure a hurricane shutter;
a stud removably connected to said anchor and connectable to said hurricane shutter to hold said hurricane shutter in place;
a spring-actuated fastener secured to the outside end of said removable stud for holding said hurricane shutter in place, said fastener including;
a panel fastener body that includes;
a planar first face;
a planar second face;
a cylindrical outer wall; and
a central aperture for receiving the removable stud that extends entirely through the said panel fastener body with openings on both the first face and the second face of the panel fastener body; and
the manually-releasable spring, which comprises a leaf spring, connected to said panel fastener body, said leaf spring including a locking aperture through an angled end of said leaf spring having a diameter great enough to precisely fit and receive the removable stud that is inserted therethrough, said locking aperture being aligned with the central aperture of the panel fastener body and including an inner wall;
wherein the leaf spring engages said removable stud in a locking position configuration when not depressed due to the angle at which the inner wall of the locking aperture of said spring contacts the cylindrical wall of said removable stud, and wherein said leaf spring releases said removable stud when the angled end of said spring is depressed due to a relaxation of tension contact by the removable stud with the inner aperture wall of said spring; and
wherein the angled end of said leaf spring is sized of a sufficient length to extend through an appropriately sized and shaped aperture through the hurricane shutter panel, so that the leaf spring can be depressed by an occupant inside the building to release the fastener from the removable stud, thereby allowing the shutter to be removed from the window or other protected opening of the structure so as to permit escape.
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21. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for unlatching a hurricane shutter from a dwelling comprising:
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a hurricane shutter anchor connectable to a dwelling structure to secure a hurricane shutter;
a stud to hold said hurricane shutter in place;
a release member for manual release mounted on the inside of said hurricane shutter, accessible to a person in the dwelling adjacent to a dwelling opening covered by a hurricane shutter, said release member having a first position for connecting said removable stud to said anchor securing said hurricane shutter in place and a second position releasing said removable stud from said anchor allowing the hurricane shutter to be released and unfastened while inside the dwelling; and
a shutter-mounted, angled leaf spring connected directly to the hurricane shutter adjacent to an aperture through said shutter through which said removable stud is inserted so that a locking aperture of said shutter-mounted leaf spring and the aperture through the shutter are aligned;
wherein tension exerted by the shutter-mounted leaf spring on the side of the removable stud is used to hold and release said removable stud; and
wherein said shutter-mounted leaf spring is used by rescuers to release the removable stub, thereby allowing shutters to be removed from outside of the building.
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22. A hurricane shutter escape mechanism for quickly releasing and removing a temporarily-installed hurricane shutter panel from the window or door over which said shutter is installed, comprising:
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means for engaging a hurricane shutter to securely fasten said shutter to an exterior wall of a structure so that said shutter protectively covers an opening of a structure during a significant wind event, such as a tropical storm or hurricane;
means for holding and locking said hurricane shutter in place;
one or more means for quickly unlocking and releasing said hurricane shutter from its installed position so as to allow immediate escape from a structure in the event of an emergency, such as a building fire, said means for unlocking and releasing the shutter being accessible to both the occupants of the structure and to rescuers outside of the building.
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Specification