Fan grill
First Claim
1. A fan guard for use with a fan associated with an inlet including a wall defining a port, the fan guard comprising:
- a grate configured to inhibit insertion of a finger through the grate while permitting passage of air through the grate;
a first bias member connected to the grate and configured to be biased against a first side of the wall of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet; and
a second bias member connected to the grate and configured to be biased against a second side of the wall of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A fan grill for use with a fan associated with an inlet ring is configured to flush mount in an inlet ring and to serve as a safety guard to help prevent finger insertion into, and to help inhibit debris from entering a fan. The fan grill can impede and disturb gas flow to a fan less than by using a non-flush mounted grill or guard. The fan grill includes radial ribs, concentric circular ribs and radial support ribs to form a grate, and tabs. The tabs and the radial support ribs are configured to bias the fan grill against a wall of an inlet ring to securely connect the fan grill in the inlet ring. The fan grill can be readily installed and securely connected to inlet rings or housings of existing fans.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A fan guard for use with a fan associated with an inlet including a wall defining a port, the fan guard comprising:
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a grate configured to inhibit insertion of a finger through the grate while permitting passage of air through the grate;
a first bias member connected to the grate and configured to be biased against a first side of the wall of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet; and
a second bias member connected to the grate and configured to be biased against a second side of the wall of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A fan guard for use with a fan associated with an inlet in a housing, the inlet having a bottom side defining a port and an inner side for guiding gas to the port, the housing having a surface in which the inlet is disposed, the fan guard comprising:
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a grate configured to inhibit insertion of a finger through the grate while permitting passage of air through the grate;
means for biasing the fan guard upward against the bottom side of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet; and
means for biasing the fan guard downward against the inner side of the inlet while the fan guard is mounted to the inlet. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for mounting a fan guard to a housing, the fan guard including a grate configured to inhibit passage of a finger through the grate while allowing passage of gas through the grate, the housing including an inlet having a bottom surface defining a port and an inner surface configured to direct gas to the port, the fan guard further including multiple tabs coupled to the grate and multiple ribs extending from the grate and having terminal ends adapted to mate with the inner surface, the method comprising:
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inserting the fan guard into the inlet;
aligning the fan guard with the port;
bending the tabs connected to the grate relative to the grate and inserting the tabs through the port to connect the tabs with the bottom surface; and
allowing the tabs to bias the tabs and the terminal ends of the ribs against the bottom and inner surfaces, respectively, with the terminal ends of the ribs with the wall. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification