Movable or removable closures – Mounted for multidirectional or oblique movement – In plane of closure; e.g. – oblique
Reexamination Certificate
2002-03-27
2004-12-07
Redman, Jerry (Department: 3634)
Movable or removable closures
Mounted for multidirectional or oblique movement
In plane of closure; e.g., oblique
C049S410000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06826868
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a slim-frame door, which is designed to be displaceable and/or tiltable.
2. Description of the Related Art
Slim-frame glass doors are characterized in particular by the fact that, at least on their two vertical sides, they have a very slim frame section which, in particular, serves as a glass protector. As a result, slim-frame glass doors give a user in particular the impression of a door leaf formed completely of glass.
Sliding doors are known in an extremely wide range of configurations. Here, sliding doors can be guided on guide rails, such as a ceiling rail or a floor rail or both on a ceiling rail and on a floor rail. In this case, a sliding piece is usually guided in the respective rail, so that the sliding door can be displaced in the direction of the ceiling/floor rail. The form of the sliding piece is matched to the profile of the guide rail, so that the sliding piece can be guided securely in the guide rail. The guide rail engages to some extent around the sliding piece, so that it cannot be removed upward from the guide rail, at right angles to the displacement direction.
When sliding doors are being used, the problem can occur that the bottom and/or the ceiling slope slightly. A slope of the floor is, for example, often the case in old buildings. Because of such slopes of the ceiling or of the floor, the displacement of the sliding door is made more difficult or, in the extreme case, made impossible, since the sliding piece of the sliding door can jam in the sloping ceiling rail/floor rail. This can lead to the sliding door no longer being able to be opened or closed completely. In addition, as a result of such slopes the friction between the sliding piece and the rail is increased, which leads to an increased expenditure of force during displacement of the sliding door.
In the case of sliding doors in which the guide rail is arranged in the floor, there is, furthermore, in particular in winter, the problem that small stones or grit will get into the floor rail. In this case, these small stones can be positioned between the sliding piece and the guide rail in such a way that the sliding piece jams in the guide rail. This leads to the sliding door being blocked, so that it can no longer be displaced. The stones jammed in then have to be removed by hand with a deal of effort in order to restore the function of the sliding door.
Moreover, sliding doors are known which have complicated mechanical cleaning devices in the floor area in front of this sliding door, comprising a plurality of brushes which move in opposition to one another in order to clean the shoes of stones or other small objects, so that these cannot get into the floor rail of the sliding door and jam the sliding piece of the sliding door. However, cleaning of this type is frequently only incomplete.
The present invention further relates to a pivoting fitting for a slim-frame glass door. The pivoting fitting comprises a carrying arm and a shaft, the carrying arm being arranged in a carrier section and the shaft in a section of a door leaf, which is pivotably mounted on the carrier section.
A pivoting fitting of this type is disclosed for example by DE 198 56 040 A1. The pivoting fitting shown there is used to mount a glass door leaf, which has a frame formed from identically constructed sections. Here, the door leaf is mounted on the carrier section in such a way that a shaft is on one side mounted in the carrier section and on the other side arranged in the door leaf section. Here, the shaft is arranged only in the vertical section of the door leaf section and is inserted into the hollow vertical section of the door leaf. After the shaft has been inserted into the vertical hollow section in the door leaf, the shaft is fixed in the section by means of screws. The shaft is therefore fixed in the section such that it cannot rotate. However, since the shaft is fixed in the horizontal section of the door leaf, the pivoting fitting disclosed in this document cannot be used for slim-frame glass doors.
Furthermore, U.S. Pat. No. 3,897,651 discloses a revolving door which has a separate device to pivot the revolving leaves individually, in order to bring the leaves of the doors into a parallel arrangement. As a result, for example, a rapid possible escape can be provided. In this case, a glass door is also provided, but has a conventional section as the frame. The ability of the individual leaves to pivot is in this case implemented via a shaft which, on one side, is arranged in the frame of the door and on the other side is arranged in a carrier section. The rotation of the door leaves is carried out here via a common central axis. When a certain torque is exerted on a single door leaf, a mechanical resistance arranged in the carrier section can be overcome, so that the individual door leaf can rotate about the shaft and an escape route can be opened.
Furthermore, a suspension for rotating door leaves is disclosed by AT-23722, in which two ball bearings are provided on door leaves arranged to swing on vertical journals. An upper ball bearing is used to suspend the rotary journal, a lower ball bearing is used to support the revolving door leaf.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a slim-frame door which, with a simple construction and the ability to be produced simply and cost-effectively, is to be designed to be displaceable and/or pivotable. In this case, slopes of a guide rail arranged in the ceiling or the floor are to be compensated for, and jamming of the sliding piece with the guide rail is to be prevented. Furthermore, a pivoting fitting is to be provided which, with little expenditure on material and production, can be mounted simply and permits use in slim-frame glass doors.
Slim-frame door leaves are to be understood as those door leaves which, at least on their vertical sides, have only a very slim glass termination, that is to say edge protection with a low thickness. This fine edge protection primarily serves to protect the glass of the door leaf.
The door according to the invention, in one embodiment as a sliding door, comprises a compensating device in order to compensate for slopes of a guide rail, such as a ceiling rail and/or a floor rail. It should be noted that, under the term ceiling rail, a guide rail arranged in an upper door frame is also to be understood. Here, the sliding door is guided in the guide rail by means of one or more sliding pieces. The slope of the guide rail is in this case present relative to a horizontal edge of the sliding door. The compensating device comprises a hollow section and a compensating element which is arranged in the hollow section. The compensating element is connected to the sliding piece and can be moved in the vertical direction in the hollow section (that is to say at right angles to the horizontal edge of the sliding door), in order to compensate for any slopes which may be present during displacement of the sliding door. The compensating device according to the invention in this case compensates for slopes present in the floor or the ceiling by means of a vertical relative movement between the hollow section and the compensating element arranged therein. This prevents stresses caused by the slope of the guide rail being transmitted to the sliding door. By means of the compensating device according to the invention, safe operation of the sliding door can thus be ensured, even if a slope of the ceiling or of the floor should occur following the installation of the sliding door or should exist from the start. The compensating device according to the invention ensures that the sliding piece can always move freely in the respective guide rail.
The hollow section of the compensating device is preferably simultaneously formed as a frame section for the sliding door. In other words, the hollow section is integrated in the frame section of the sliding door. As a result, the frame section of the sliding door can be used for
DORMA GmbH + Co. KG
Redman Jerry
LandOfFree
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