US3564201A

US3564201A - Compact sauna unit

Info

Publication number: US3564201A
Application number: US816442*A
Authority: US
Inventors: Robert Haldon Jones; Lennard Edward Nylin; Tor H Olssen
Original assignee: VIKING SAUNA Co
Current assignee: VIKING SAUNA Co
Priority date: 1967-06-14
Filing date: 1969-02-04
Publication date: 1971-02-16
Anticipated expiration: 1988-02-16

Abstract

A compact sauna unit, capable of use by one person alone is provided as a self-contained room having its own floor, ceiling, walls, and door, assembled reasonably snugly while enabling a small amount of leakage of air from outside into the room at the joints between parts and around the door. In the room is a seat to hold a person with his feet spaced well above the floor. A heater unit is contained in the door and comprises a housing defining a plurality of generally vertically extending ducts with air inlets at the lower end and air outlets at the upper end. One duct is an inner duct adjacent the inner surface of the door for keeping the inner surface of the housing cool; an outer duct lies adjacent the outer surface of the door for keeping that outer surface cool; and a central duct is sandwiched between the inner and outer ducts and separated from them by thin metal walls. Electrical rod heating means in said central duct supplies heat; in fact, the sole source of heating for the sauna unit, also serving to provide heat to the inner and outer ducts through the thin metal duct walls, for causing upward movement of cooling air therethrough. There is an air exhaust conduit through the door, vertically above the heater unit, for exhausting a controlled amount of air from the room. Typically, the door has a window spaced above the heater unit, and the exhaust conduit is provided along the upper edge of the window, comprising a horizontal conduit between a vertical inlet passage leading down from an inlet above the horizontal conduit and a vertical outlet passage leading up to an outlet above the horizontal conduit. The vertical inlet and outlet passages are located high, above eye level of tall persons when standing inside or outside the room, and are shielded from view by vertical fascias so as to be not readily observable except from above them.

Description

221 Filed United States Patent 72] Inventors Robert Haldon Jones;

Lennard Edward Nylin, San Jose, Calif.; Tor H. Olssen, Stockholm, Sweden 816,442

Feb. 4, l 969 Division of Ser. No. 645,965, June 14, 1967, Pat No. 3,452,369.

[21] Appl. No.

[45] Patented Feb. 16, 1971 [73] Assignee Viking Sauna Company San Jose, Calif.

[54] COMPACT SAUNA UNIT 4 Claims, 12 Drawing Figs. 52 user. 219/36 471st) 9 8l 9 165154,]65/129;2l9/218,2l9/374 s11 lnt.Cl rat r 99; i-105b1/O0 [50] Field of Search 219/342, 365-368, 374-376, 377, 213, 218; 4/160, 54; 165/55,129;98I87, 88, 98, 99.6

Primary ExaminerA. Bartis Attorney-Owen, Wickersham & Ericson ABSTRACT: A compact sauna unit, capable of use by one person alone is provided as a self-contained room having its own floor, ceiling, walls, and door, assembled reasonably snugly while enabling a small amount of leakage of air from outside into the room at the joints between parts and around the door. in the room is a seat to hold a person with his feet spaced well above the floor. A heater unit is contained in the door and comprises a housing defining a plurality of generally vertically extending duets with air inlets at the lower end and air outlets at the upper end. One duct is an inner duct adjacent the inner surface of the door for keeping the inner surface of the housing cool; an outer duct lies adjacent the outer surface of the door for keeping that outer surface cool; and a central duct is sandwiched between the inner and outer ducts and separated from them by thin metal walls. Electrical rod heating means in said central duct supplies heat; in fact, the sole source of heating for the sauna unit, also serving to provide heat to the inner and outer ducts through the thin metal duct' walls, for causing upward movement of cooling air therethrough. There is an air exhaust conduit through the door, vertically above the heater unit, for exhausting a controlled amount of air from the room. Typically, the door has a window spaced above the heater unit, and the exhaust conduit is provided along the upper edge of the window, comprising a horizontal conduit between a vertical inlet passage leading down from an inlet above the horizontal conduit and a vertical outlet passage leading up to an outlet above the horizontalconduit. The vertical inlet and outlet passages are located high, above eye level of tall persons when standing inside or outside the room, and are shielded from view by vertical fascias so as to be not readily observable except from above them.

PATENIEUFEE1$191I" 3564.201 SHEET 10F 4 I. r l I 'QA I 1 m vsiv r003 TOR H OLSSEN R085!" n. JONES LEA/HARD e. NYUN PATENTEU FEB? 6 I97! I saw 2 BF 4 COMPACT SAUNA UNIT This application is a division of application Ser. No. 645,965, filed .Iune I4, 1967, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,452,369.

This invention relates to a sauna unit. Moreparticularly, it relates to a sauna room which is a self-constituted unit enabling a single person to take a sauna bath within a very small area. It also relates to a novel heater for a sauna room and to a novel air circulation systemtherefor.

A sauna is a well-known Finnish high temperature bath tending to produce a feeling of well-being and aiding a bather to relax. The humidity is kept low,-so that there is little sensation of heat in spite of the high temperatures used, and there is none of the discomfort one experiences with steam baths. The bather perspires copiously, thereby cleansing his body through the skin pores. The sauna bath is usually taken in conjunction with one or more shower baths and may involve two or three exposures in the sauna room. A traditional Finnish sauna was a small detached building heated by a-wood-stoked fumace piled high with stones to retain and radiate heat. The bath was usually a family matter, with several people taking the bath at once. Such units are unsuited to modern American apartments and homes where space is at a premium and where only a single person uses the sauna at one time. Many things are needed to be changed to adapt the sauna to urban American civilization; for example,a wood-stoked furnace is impractical and is better replaced by an electrical unit.

A basic problem to which this invention is directed is that'of providing a sauna installation which may be sold as a unit to provide the complete sauna effect within a very small space and volume. It is difficult to adapt a sauna to confined spaces, because it is important for the temperature within the room to be accurately controllable and to be held evenly .within the room. It is also difficult to provide proper heating and circulation without a rather large space separating the heaters from the bather.

The present invention overcomes these problems and provides a one-person sauna bath of high efficiency, good quality, and excellent results.

An important feature of the invention is the organization of the room toprovide maximum efficiency both in use and in manufacture.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sauna bath unit having an effective, yet compact heating, venting and air circulating system capable of installation within the door of a small closetlike room. Also, quick and adequate heating and adequate venting and air circulating are mandatory but conflicting objectives, and the inventors achieve both these objectives within strict space and cost limitations.

Another object of the invention is to provide an air circulation system for a very small sauna bath unit, enabling the conservation of space without impairing the sauna results.

Another object of the invention is to provide for such a sauna bath unit a compact, efficient and safe electrical control system, also built into the sauna room door.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a view in perspective of a sauna bath unit embodying the principles of the invention, the door being shown in its open position.

FIG. 2 is a view in elevation and partly in section of the door of the unit of FIG. 1, some portions being removed to show the structure of others.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary and partially exploded view of the upper portion of the sauna room with the door fully closed.

FIG. 4 is a view in elevation and section of the sauna bath room, the section being taken from front to rear with the door closed.

FIG. 5 is a view in section taken along the line 5-5 in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a diagram of the electrical circuit of the unit of FIGS. 1-5.

FIG, 7 is an enlarged view in elevation, partly broken open and partly broken in two, of the heating unit for the sauna room as installed in the door.

FIG. 8 is a view in section taken along the line 8-8 in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a portion of the door, showing the window and area around the window, some portions being broken away.

FIG. 10 is a view in section taken along the line 10-10 in FIG. 9, the portions broken away in FIG. 9 being restored.

FIG. 11 is a view in perspective of one-half of the window frame.

FIG. 12 is a view in perspective of the venting conduit or tube installed at the top of the window for air circulation.

A sauna bath unit 20 is shown as a preferred embodiment of the invention. The unit 20 comprises two

sidewalls

21 and 22, a rear wall 23 and a front wall 24 in which is hinged a door 25. There is also a ceiling 26 and a floor 27. The four walls and the door and ceiling are preferably made from especially constructed panels, lined with redwood so as to provide good insulation qualities. The

walls

21, 22, 23, 24 and roof 26 may be hollow and filled with insulating material. The door 25 and front panel 24 may be made from a panel that is initially similar to the other walls, the door 25 being cut out from the panel and then hinged back together. The walls are abutted and screwed together as shown in FIG. 3; the inner walls 28 stop short of the height of the outer walls 29 of the room so that the ceiling panel 26 can be dropped into place, fitting snugly and resting on the upper end of the inner walls 28 essentially flush with the top of the outer walls 29. The walls are then secured together to provide a relatively rigid structure. The floor 27 is similarly held in place by the four

walls

2i, 22, 23, and 24.

There are two benches 30 and 3]; an upper bench 30 on which the bather sits and a lower bench 31 on which he rests his feet. These benches 30 and- 31 are fitted into recesses 32 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) in the

sidewalls

21 and 22 and held by those walls. I

All of the heating and other electrical facilities are carried by the door 25, and this is an important feature of the invention, because thereby a single panel carries all the needed components of the heating system, air circulation and venting system, electrical control and timing systems and the concealed heat limiting (safety) system. A power supply line 35 is adapted to fit into a standard l20-volt IS-amp. house line and to it are connected all the electrical circuit elements, as shown in FIG. 6, including a lamp 36 and thermostat 37, a control panel 38, and a heater 40. Mounted in the door 25, particularlyrecessed therein, the heating unit 40 comprises (see FIGS. 2 and 6-8) a rectangular sheet metal housing 41 in which is a Calrod type of element 42 disposed in a serpentine fashion having long vertical portions connected by curved portions at upper and lower extremities. If there were nothing more, the unit 40 would not be satisfactory for two reasons. In the first place, the element 42 would tend to overheat and would not be safe, becoming atire hazard. In the second place, without some way of causing adequate circulation, the

unit 40 would emit heat but therewould be no efficient dis tribution of the heat within the small room 20. The heating unit 40 and this door 25 cooperate in this invention with the remainder of the unit 20 to provide a circulation pattern.

As shown ,particularly in FIG. 8', the door 25 has a deep recess on its inner side to provide a receptacle 43 for the unit 40. Within this receptacle 43 fits the metal outer housing 4|, somewhat spaced from the recess walls so that dead-air insulation is obtained between them. Within this housing 4l and spaced from it is another sheet metal'receptacle 44 which supports the heating element 42 by insulators 45. A baffle 46 is placed opposite the heating element 42, and a cover panel 47, having lower and

upper grills

48 and 49, is spaced from the baffle 46. Between the innermost housing 41 and the receptacle 44 is an air passage 50, air entering through lower baffle openings 51 and a horizontal clearance 52 and going up the entire height of the wall by the passage 50 to a small upper chamber 53 and then issuing out by a passage 54 to the front of the unit. This provides a current of cooling air which keeps the door 25 from being overheated. The air brought in is cool and is never heated very much.

This structure is important, for without it, it would be difficult to put a sufficiently strong heating unit in the door 25.

Another current of air enters through the lower grill 48 and is separated into two streams by' the baffle 46, one stream going into the space 55 behind the baffle 46 and past the heating element 40. This air is heated quite hot and is relied upon for the main heat of the unit. It is circulated partly by its own operation and partly by the other currents of air by which it is surrounded. it goes out through the upper grille 49 from a small plenum chamber'56.

The second stream of air, entering the grille 48 ascends the space57 between the baffle 46 and the outer panel 47, keepingthe outer panel 47 cool, and is exhausted through the grille 49 after entering the small plenum chamber 56. This pattern keeps the userfrom being burned if he should touchthe panel 47 and makes the unit safe.

In addition to the circulation pattern of the heater itself, an

important factor in the overall circulation pattern is provided at the window assembly 60. it is'important to renew the air continually, and in order to do thissome of the old air must be passed outside'This passage enables freshair to enter around "the perimeter of the door in the absence of special perimeter stripping and sealing, which is deliberately not done. It is not flange 64 therearound. A frame portion 65 has a horizontal recess 66, and a frame portion 67 has a generally vertical recess 68.,A metal spacer 70 fits in the recess 66 to provide an air conduit. From the'front or back, particularly since the window 60is high, very few people can see the ventilation system, and this is a safety feature because is prevents people from circumventing it. Even if seen from above it is hardly discernible and does not encourage tampering; As shown in FIG. 10, most of the hot air goes-up past the ,inner'flange 64, and only a portion of it passes back down through the recess 68 then across through the conduit 70 to the other recess 68 and up and out therethrough. This pattern has been'found to enable proper sampling to give exactly the right amount of air circulation from inside to outside to maintain the device at its top eff ciency thermostatically.

To those skilled in the art to which this invention relates, many changes in construction and widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves without departing from the spirit and scope of the invcntion. The disclosures and the description herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be in any sense limiting.

We claim: v

l. A heater unit forluse in a flat rectangular recess lying on one side of an imperforate door of a sauna room, comprising:

a flat rectangular sheet metal housing for substantially filling said recess, said housing having: an imperforate rear plate lying in a single plane for flush contactwith the door at the full depth of said recess;'

a front plate lying in a single plane parallel'to that of said.

rearplate and having upper and lower perforate portions and a central imperforate portion; top, bottom, and sidewalls. all imperforate and all perpendicular to and joining said front and rear plates and shallow in comparison to them; forward-and rear interior sheet metal partitions in between said front plate and said rear plate defining a plurality of generally vertically extending duct means, said forward partition lying in asingle plane parallel to said front plate. said rear partition having a lower horizontal portion parallel to saidbottom wall..a main portion parallel to said rear plate. and an upper inclined portion; said lower perforate portion of said front plate providing air inlet means at the lower end of said housing;

said upper perforate portion of said front plate providing air outlet means at the upper end of said housing;

both said air inlet means andsaid air outlet means lying on the same face of said housing so that both can open into the interior of said room; I

said duct means providing a flat inner duct adapted to lie adjacent the inner surface of the door for keeping said rear plate cool, an outer duct adaptedto lie adjacent the outer surface of the door for keeping said front plate cool. and a central duct sandwiched between said inner and outer ducts and separated therefrom by the thin metal walls of said partitions; 7

said heater unit having electrical rod heating means in said central duct lying in a single plane parallel to said front and rear plates and extending substantially the full height of the vertical portions of said partitions; and

the heat thereof serving to supply the sole source of heating for the sauna room and also serving to provide heat to said inner and outer ducts through said thin metal walls for causing upward movement of cooling air therethrough. I

2. A door for a sauna unit including in combination:

a door member having an inner surface and an outer surface and having a flat rectangular recess in said inner surface. there being no opening through said .door at said recess;

a heater unit contained substantially in said recess and comprising:

a flat rectangular sheet metal housing substantially filling said recess and having an imperforate planarrear plate in flush contact with the door at the back of said recess. a front planar plate parallel to said rear plate and having upper and lower perforate portions and a central imperforate portion. and shallow imperforate top. bottom. and sidewalls perpendicular to and joining said front and rear plates;

forward and rear interior sheet metal partitions in between said front and rear plates. said forward partition being planar and parallel to said front plate and said rear partition having a major planar portion parallel to said rear plate, said housing and said partitions defining a plurality of generally vertically extending duct means;

said lower perforate portion of said front plate providing air inlet means at the lower end of said housing and said upper perforate portion providing'an outlet means at the upper end thereof, said duct means providing a Hat inner duct adjacentsaid rear plate for keeping said rear plate cool, a flat outer duct adjacent said front plate for keeping said front plate cool, and a central duct sandwiched between said inner and outer ducts and separated therefrom by the thin metal walls of said partitions;

electrical rod heating means lying in a flat plane in said central duct parallel to said partitions, the heat therefrom serving to supply the sole source of heating for the sauna unit and also serving to provide heat to said inner and outer ducts through said thin metal .walls of saidpartitions for causing upward, movement of cooling air therethrough; and

exhaust means through said door vertically above said "recess and said heater ,unit for exhausting a controlled amount of air from said mom. said door heingothcrwisc imperforate.

3. The sauna unit of claim 2 wherein said door has a window spaced above said heater unit, said exhaust means being provided along the upper edge of said window and comprising a horizontal conduit between a vertical inlet passage leading from an inlet above said horizontal conduit and a vertical outlet passage leading to an outlet above said horizontal conduit.

4. The saunaunit of claim 3 wherein said vertical inlet and outlet passages are located high, above eye level of tall persons when standing inside or outside said room. and are

Claims

1. A heater unit for use in a flat rectangular recess lying on one side of an imperforate door of a sauna room, comprising: a flat rectangular sheet metal housing for substantially filling said recess, said housing having: an imperforate rear plate lying in a single plane for flush contact with the door at the full depth of said recess; a front plate lying in a single plane parallel to that of said rear plate and having upper and lower perforate portions and a central imperforate portion; top, bottom, and sidewalls, all imperforate and all perpendicular to and joining said front and rear plates and shallow in comparison to them; forward and rear interior sheet metal partitions in between said front plate and said rear plate defining a plurality of generally vertically extending duct means, said forward partition lying in a single plane parallel to said front plate, said rear partition having a lower horizontal portion parallel to said bottom wall, a main portion parallel to said rear plate, and an upper inclined portion; said lower perforate portion of said front plate providing air inlet means at the lower end of said housing; said upper perforate portion of said front plate providing air outlet means at the upper end of said housing; both said air inlet means and said air outlet means lying on the same face of said housing so that both can open into the interior of said room; said duct means providing a flat inner duct adapted to lie adjacent the inner surface of the door for keeping said rear plate cool, an outer duct adapted to lie adjacent the outer surface of the door for keeping said front plate cool, and a central duct sandwiched between said inner and outer ducts and separated therefrom by the thin metal walls of said partitions; said heater unit having electrical rod heating means in said central duct lying in a single plane parallel to said front and rear plates and extending substantially the full height of the vertical portions of said partitions; and the heat thereof serving to supply the sole source of heating for the sauna room and also serving to provide heat to said inner and outer ducts through said thin metal walls for causing upward movement of cooling air therethrough.

2. A door for a sauna unit including in combination: a door member having an inner surface and an outer surface and having a flat rectangular recess in said inner surface, there being no opening through said door at said recess; a heater unit contained substantially in said recess and comprising: a flat rectangular sheet metal housing substantially filling said recess and having an imperforate planar rear plate in flush contact with the door at the back of said recess, a front planar plate parallel to said rear plate and having upper and lower perforate portions and a central imperforate portion, and shallow imperforate top, bottom, and sidewalls perpendicular to and joining said front and rear plates; forward and rear interior sheet metal partitions in between said front and rear plates, said forward partition being planar and parallel to said front plate and said rear partition having a major planar portion parallel to said rear plate, said housing and said partitions defining a plurality of generally vertically extending duct means; said lower perforate portion of said front plate providing air inlet means at the lower end of said housing and said upper perforate portion providing an outlet means at the upper end thereof, said duct means providing a flat inner duct adjacent said rear plate for keeping said rear plate cool, a flat outer duct adjacent said front plate for keeping said front plate cool, and a central duct sandwiched between said inner and outer ducts and separated therefrom by the thin metal walls of said partitions; electrical rod heating means lying in a flat plane in said central duct parallel to said partitions, the heat therefrom serving to supply the sole source of heating for the sauna unit and also serving to provide heat to said inner and outer ducts through said thin metal walls of said partitions for causing upward movement of cooling air therethrough; and exhaust means through said door vertically above said recess and said heater unit for exhausting a controlled amount of air from said room, said door being otherwise imperforate.

4. The sauna unit of claim 3 wherein said vertical inlet and outlet passages are located high, above eye level of tall persons when standing inside or outside said room, and are covered by vertical fascias so as to be not readily observable except from above them.