Pivotable Muntin Bar Clip

Muntin bars, in a variety of arrangements, may be included in insulated glass windows. The muntin bars are attached to spacers that separate the two sheets of glass that form the window. It is critical that the bars do not come in contact with the glass, to avoid damaging the window.

Each muntin bar is typically held in place by one or more clips. The clip includes a body that is inserted into the bar, and a head that is fixedly attached to the body. The head contacts the spacer, to hold the bar in place.

Muntin bars may be arranged as grids in rectangular windows, with the clips holding vertical and horizontal bars at 90.degree. with respect to the spacers. Alternatively, the clips may hold certain bars at 45.degree. angles with respect to the spacers, to form a "diamond grid." Clips that hold the muntin bars at the 90.degree. and 45.degree. angles, respectively, are well known.

Muntin bars may also be installed in non-rectangular windows, for example, in semi-circular windows. In the non-rectangular windows, the bars must be held at various angles with respect to the spacers, ranging from near 0.degree. to near 180.degree.. The clips designed for use in the rectangular windows do not work well in the non-rectangular windows. For one reason, the clips do not hold the muntin bars at the required angles, in particular at angles between 45.degree. and 90.degree. or angles greater than 90.degree..

Elaborate systems have been developed to hold the bars at the angles required for the semi-circular windows and windows with various geometric shapes. Such systems include, for example, a bracket that holds one end of each of the multiple muntin bars at the desired angles. These systems are complex and are not readily adaptable to either different shapes of windows or different arrangements of the bars. Further, the systems are generally not aesthetically pleasing, and do not necessarily blend well with the systems used with nearby rectangular windows.

The invention is a muntin bar clip that includes a head that is rotatably attached to a body that fits inside the muntin bar. The head rotates to hold the muntin bar at any angle between essentially 0.degree. and 180.degree. relative to the spacer, and the body is constructed to center the bar between the two sheets of glass that form the window. The clip may be used with essentially any shape of insulated glass window and any arrangement of muntin bars.

The body of the muntin bar clip is as wide as the interior of the muntin bar and thus comes in contact with the side walls of the bar. The end of the body to which the head is attached is narrowed, to accommodate rotation of the head. The head can thus rotate essentially without drawing the body out of the muntin bar. The body supports is projections that extend upwardly and downwardly and contact the top and bottom walls of the bar. The projections center the body within the bar, and prevent the bar from pivoting relative to the body. Accordingly, positioning the head at a desired angle precisely positions the body, and thus the muntin bar, at the same angle with respect to the spacer.

The end of the head that contacts the spacer is L-shaped. A bottom wall supports at one side an upwardly extending wall that fits between the spacer and one of the sheets of the glass. The bottom wall supports at an opposite side an extension that extends downwardly and is rotatably attached to the body. The extension is separated from the upwardly extending wall, and thus, the glass that the wall contacts, by the width of the bottom wall. With the bottom wall approximately one-half as wide as the spacer, the head holds the body centered between the two sheets of glass. The body, in turn, centers the muntin bar between the two sheets of glass. The muntin bar therefore does not come into contact with the glass, regardless of the angle between the head and the body of the clip.

The invention description below refers to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 depicts a semi-circular window that includes muntin bars held in place by clips that are constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are, respectively, top and bottom isometric views of the clip; and

FIG. 3 is an end view of the clip and muntin bar.

Referring now to FIG. 1 a semi-circular insulated glass window 10 includes two sheets of glass 12a and 12b that are separated by spacers 14 that extend around the periphery of the window. Muntin bars 16 extend between the spacer that runs along a horizontal component 18 of the window 10 and the spacer that runs along a rounded component 19 of the window 10. The muntin bars 16 are hollow and clips 20, which are depicted in dotted lines and are discussed in more detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 below, fit into and hold the muntin bars 16 at their respective angles relative to the spacers 14.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the clip 20 includes a contoured body 22 and a rotatably attached head 24. The body 22 of the clip is sized to fit inside an end of the muntin bar 16. A first end 26 of the body 22 is sufficiently wide that edges 28 of the body contact the interior surfaces of the side walls 162 of the muntin bar 16. The body 22 is narrowed at its second end 30, to allow the head 24 to rotate about a pivot 32 without drawing the body out of the bar. The head can rotate over a range of approximately 0.degree. to 180.degree., where 0.degree. is perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the body 22, although the body is drawn slightly from the clip at either end of the range. A plurality of projections 36-38 extend, respectively, from top and bottom surfaces of the body. The projections 36-38 are sufficiently long to contact the interior surfaces of the top and bottom walls 160 of the muntin bar. Accordingly, the sides 28 and projections 36-38 touch all four walls of the muntin bar, to hold the body at a predetermined position within the bar. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 3, the body is centered within the bar.

A pivotable tab 34 that is cut out of the body 22 on three sides also rests against the bottom wall 160 of the muntin bar. The pivotable tab acts essentially as a spring, to hold the clip within the bar. The projections 36 and 38 are formed by cutting perpendicular slots into the body at the opening left by the tab, and bending the cut edges of the body upwardly or downwardly, as appropriate. Similarly, the end 26 of the body is cut and bent to form the projection 37.

The head 24 includes an L-shaped end 124 and an extension 125. The L-shaped end 124 contacts the spacer 14 (FIG. 1), while the extension 125 rotatably connects to the body 22 at the pivot 32.

The L-shaped end 124 of the head 24 includes a bottom wall 126 that connects at one side to the extension 125 and at an opposite side to an upwardly extending wall 128 that is perpendicular to the bottom wall. The upwardly extending wall 128 fits between the spacer 14 and one of the sheets of glass 12a or 12b. The bottom 126 wall is approximately one-half the width of the spacer 14. Accordingly, the extension 125, the body 22, and thus, the muntin bar 16 are centered between the two sheets of glass 12a and 12b (FIG. 1). The head 24 rotates about pivot 32 without pivoting or rotating the body 22. Further, the sides 28 and projections 36-38 of the body prevent the muntin bar from rotating or pivoting about the body. The clip thus holds the muntin bar centered between the glass, regardless of the 0.degree. to 180.degree. angle of the head relative to the body.

In the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 2a and 2b, the body 22, and the head 24 are formed, respectively, from single pieces of aluminum that are appropriately bent to form the walls and projections.

The muntin bar clips depicted in the drawings are easily and relatively inexpensively manufactured. The body 22 is one-piece, with the projections 36-38 and the tab 34 formed by appropriate cutting and bending. The head 24 is also one-piece, with the L-shaped end 124 formed by appropriate bending. The clips may be used with any shaped windows and with any arrangement of the muntin bars. Accordingly, a window manufacturer need stock only these clips, rather than elaborate systems designed for use with particular shapes of non-rectangular windows and particular arrangements of the muntin bars. The clips are aesthetically pleasing when in place, and are essentially hidden from view. The shaped windows thus match nearby rectangular windows that use the conventional clips, which are also hidden from view.

The foregoing description has been limited to a specific embodiment of this invention. It will be apparent, however, that variations and modifications may be made to the invention, such as including more or fewer projections on the body, constructing the body and/or head out of multiple pieces, or various materials, restricting the head to a range of rotation that is somewhat smaller that 0.degree. to 180.degree. and so forth, with the attainment of some or all of its advantages. Therefore, it is the object of the appended claims to cover all such variations and modifications as come within the true spirit and scope of the invention.