Inflatable Insulation Bag

Abstract

The window well insulation system comprises an inflatable insulation bag disposed in a window well to separate the window in the window well. The window well insulation system may further comprise a mounting bracket, a window well cover, and a weather seal. A closable valve may be disposed in the inflatable insulation bag to inflate or deflate.

Claims

1-18. (canceled)

19. A window well insulation system for use in a window well attached to a house, the window well comprising a shell, the shell having an upper lip, and a cavity adjacent the window, the window well insulation system comprising: an inflatable insulation bag, the insulation bag comprising a top cover, a valve and a bag bottom; a mounting bracket, the mounting bracket on the top cover, the mounting bracket on the house; and a weather seal, the weather seal on the window well, the weather seal on the inflatable insulation bag.

20. The window well insulation system of claim 19, wherein the window well cover is made of a rigid translucent material.

21. The window well insulation system of claim 20, wherein in the rigid translucent material is selected from the group consisting of silicone, poly-carbonate, acrylic, and plexi-glass.

22. The window well insulation system of claim 19, wherein the insulation bag is made of a flexible material.

23. The window well insulation system of claim 22, wherein the flexible materials selected from a group consisting of silicone, polyvinyl chloride, thermoplastic polymer, nylon, and polyethylene.

24. The window insulation system of claim 19, wherein the insulation material is air.

25. The window well insulation system of claim 19, wherein the weather seal further comprises a window well upper lip channel and an inner wall.

26. The window well insulation system of claim 25, wherein the upper lip of the shell is disposed in the weather seal upper lip channel, whereby the weather seal is attached to the window well shell.

27. The window well insulation system of claim 26, further comprising the inflatable insulation bag on the weather seal.

28. The window well insulation system of claim 27, further comprising the top cover on the weather seal, the weather seal between the top cover and the upper lip.

29. The window well insulation system of claim 19, wherein the mounting bracket is removably attached to top cover.

30. A window well insulation system for mounting on a house adjacent to a window well surrounding a window on the house, the window well comprising a shell surrounding a cavity, the shell having an upper lip, the window well insulation system comprising: a mounting bracket, the mounting bracket on the house; a top cover on the mounting bracket; an inflatable insulation bag on the top cover, the inflatable insulation bag comprising an interior, a valve, and a bottom, the inflatable insulation bag in the cavity; and e. a weather seal, the weather seal on the upper edge, the inflatable insulation bag on the weather seal.

31. The window well insulation system of claim 30, wherein the bottom of the inflatable insulation bag is made up from a rigid material.

32. The window well insulation system of claim 31, wherein the inflatable insulation bag is disposed below the top cover and adjacent the window.

33. The window well insulation system of claim 9, wherein the inflatable insulation bag is inflatable through the valve.

34. The window well insulation system of claim 33, wherein the inflatable insulation bag is made of a flexible material.

35. The window well insulation system of claim 30, wherein the flexible material selected from the group consisting of silicone, polyvinyl chloride, thermoplastic polyurethane, nylon, and polyethylene.

36. The window well insulation system of claim 33, wherein the inflatable insulation bag is filled with air.

37. The window well insulation system of claim 30, wherein the weather seal is made of rubber.

38. The window well insulation system of claim 30, wherein the weather seal further comprises an upper lip channel, the upper edge in the upper lip channel.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] The accompanying drawings which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate an embodiment of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. They are meant to be exemplary illustrations provided to enable persons skilled in the art to practice the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.

[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the window well insulation system completely inserted in a window well;

[0009] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the window well insulation system is partially inserted in a window well;

[0010] FIG. 3 is a front view of the window well insulation system;

[0011] FIG. 4 is a rear view of the window well insulation system;

[0012] FIG. 5 is a side view of the window well insulation system;

[0013] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the window well insulation system;

[0014] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the weather strip of the window well insulation system; and

[0015] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the weather strip of the window well insulation system of FIG. 7 taking along the line 30-30 of FIG. 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INTENTION

[0016] In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application. The drawings show, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. (It is to be understood that the specific devices and processes illustrated in the attached drawings, and described in the following specification are simply exemplary embodiments of the inventive concepts defined in the appended claims. Hence, specific dimensions and other physical characteristics relating to the embodiments disclosed herein are not to be considered as limiting.) It should be appreciated that the invention can be used for any suitable device attachable to a magnetic surface,

[0017] Referring now to the drawings with reference to FIGS. 1-4, the window well insulation system 5 may comprise a system top 10, and an inflatable insulating bag 12 disposed in a window well 16. The window well 16 comprises a shell 7 having a upper lip 17 at or above ground level 24 and a bottom 9, generally below the window 8. The shell 7 may be formed of metal or plastic disposed adjacent to a window 8 in an exterior wall 18 of a house 19. The window well shell 7 surrounds a cavity 13 in the earth having a bottom 9, generally below the window 8, and adjacent to the window 8 to provide egress through the window and exposure to fresh air and sunlight. The window well insulation system 5 may further comprise a top 10 having a perimeter region 21 disposed on the top of the shell 7. The system top 10 may comprise a sheet of plastic, wood or metal. The system top 10 may include a mounting bracket 20 adapted to attach the system top 10 to the exterior wall 18 of a house. The system top 10 may be formed from a rigid translucent plastic material selected from silicone, poly carbonate, acrylic, and plexiglass.

[0018] The inflatable bag 16 may comprise a valve 14 and a bottom 22. The bottom 22 may be disposed on the window well bottom 9. The window well insulation system 5 may be tilted up and out of the window well 16 for access to valve 14. The valve 16 may be a closeable valve to keep the inflatable bag 12 sealed.

[0019] In another embodiment shown in FIG. 2, mounting bracket 20 may be removably affixed to the exterior wall 18 of a house such that the window well insulation system 5 can be lifted up and out of the window well 16 for access to valve 14. The valve 14 may be adapted to introduce or evacuate a variety of insulating materials to or from inside the inflatable insulation bag 12. The inflatable insulation bag 12 may be made of a flexible material that when inflated or filled conforms to the shape of the window well cavity 13 bearing against the shell 7 and the window 8. In one embodiment the inflatable, insulation bag 12 may be made of a flexible material selected from the group consisting of silicone, polyvinyl chloride, thermoplastic polyurethane, nylon and polyethylene.

[0020] Referring to FIGS. 3,4, and 6, the bottom 22 of the inflatable insulation bag 12 may be formed of a rigid or flexible material to protect the bag 12. The bottom 22 of the inflatable insulation bag 12 may be made of wood, metal or plastic material.

[0021] In the preferred embodiment the inflatable insulation bag 12 may be filled with air as the insulation material 15. The window well insulation system 5 sits within the window well cavity 13 and when inflated, the inflatable insulation bag 12 is adapted to conform to the shape of the window well cavity 13. The inflatable insulation bag may be made of a translucent material so as to allow light to pass through the cover 10, the bag 16 and through the window 5.

[0022] FIG. 5 shows the window well cover op 10 may be sloped and extend beyond the window well upper lip 23 which is raised above the ground level 24.

[0023] FIG. 6 shows the valve 14 may be adjacent to the cover top 10 for ease of access to the valve 14.

[0024] A weather seal 28 is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 which is formed of a rubber, foam or other flexible material which can be removably affixed to the window well upper lip 17. The weather seal 28 may comprise a window well upper lip channel 32 adapted to engage the window well shell 7 along the upper lip 17. The inflatable insulation bag 12 may be affixed to an inner wall 34 of the weather seal 28 via adhesive. The window well cover top 10, may be attached to the weather seal 28 to minimize or eliminate cold air drafts from entering the window well 16 having the weather seal 28 between the top cover 10 and the shell 7. The window well insulation system 5 may be removed for repair or storage.

[0025] Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the embodiments of this invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given. Further, the present invention has been shown and described with reference to the foregoing exemplary embodiments. It is to be understood, however, that other forms, details, and embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is defined in the following claims.