Flexible or portable closure – partition – or panel – Plural strip – slat – or panel type – With mounting or supporting means
Patent
1996-07-26
2000-04-25
Johnson, Blair
Flexible or portable closure, partition, or panel
Plural strip, slat, or panel type
With mounting or supporting means
160201, E05D 1516
Patent
active
060532378
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a bump-resistant door, more specifically a door comprising a plurality of successive panels, which at their opposite terminal edges are connected to guide rails via a plurality of guide means.
Doors of this type, such as overhead sliding doors, are frequently subjected to the risk of being bumped into or subjected to a similar impact, especially at the lower part of the door, when the door is almost open or partly closed. Such bumps or impacts can cause serious damage to the door and to the colliding object, such as a fork truck. In consequence, expensive repair work will be necessary and the door will be useless for some time, which can be especially problematic if the door is used as an exterior door.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,293 discloses, as a solution to the above-mentioned problem, an overhead sliding door in which the joint between the terminal edges of the bottom panel and the respective guide means is releasable in case of an impact, such that the bottom panel, when bumped into, can pivot laterally in one or the other direction, depending on the direction of impact. The guide means, which constitute joints between the terminal edges of the panels and the guide rails, consist of rollers which run in the guide rails and which are each connected, via a shaft, to hinges joining the panels. Each of the two bottom rollers in the respective guide rail is via a shaft connected to a respective bottom mounting element, which is fixedly mounted on the corresponding side of the bottom panel immediately above the lower edge of the bottom panel. To release the releasable joint, the bottom panel must, when bumped into, deflect laterally, such that the two side edges of the bottom panel are moved away from the respective guide rail. The increased distance which thus arises between the panel edge and the guide rail implies, provided that the deflection is sufficiently great, that the two terminal edges of the bottom panel are separated from the respective bottom roller by the corresponding shafts being axially moved outwards away from the associated bottom mounting element and being disengaged therefrom. Thus, the bottom panel must be sufficiently flexible to allow the requisite deflection when subjected to an impact.
To prevent, for reasons of security, the bottom panel from being laterally swung out when the door is completely closed, it is suggested that the horizontal lower edge of the bottom panel be provided with a rubber strip, which, on complete closing of the door, is firmly pressed against the base, thereby preventing rotation of the bottom panel.
Even if the solution according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,293 may confer certain advantages in impact resistance, compared with other constructions without a pivotable bottom panel, some deficiencies remain, which the present invention has for its object to eliminate.
One drawback of the door according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,293 is that it is not possible, which in many cases is preferred, to attach ropes or chains to the lowermost part of the bottom panel, for balancing/driving the door, since this lowermost part is swung out when bumped into. Moreover, the door cannot be used in combination with the type of safety devices as disclosed in, for instance, EP-B1-0 325 602, said safety device comprising signalling means extending below the lower edge of the bottom panel and adapted to emit a light beam or the like under and at a distance from the lower edge of the door, and said safety device being adapted to stop or reverse the door if said light beam is blocked by an object during the closing motion. If such a safety device should be mounted on the bottom panel of the door according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,293, the entire safety function would be eliminated as soon as the bottom panel swings aside. Moreover, electric wiring to such a safety device would be difficult to accomplish in a simple manner.
A further drawback of the door according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,293 is that, after the occurrence of an impact and the shaft of the respective
REFERENCES:
patent: 4676293 (1987-06-01), Hanssen
patent: 4953608 (1990-09-01), Larsson
patent: 5163494 (1992-11-01), MacNeil et al.
patent: 5271448 (1993-12-01), Delgado
patent: 5584333 (1996-12-01), Torchetti et al.
Bertilsson Hans-Inge
Larsson Nils H.ang.kan Ivar
Johnson Blair
Nomafa AB
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