FIELD OF INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a vertical hinge for folding doors and side hung
doors in industrial buildings for instance.
DESCRIPTION OF THE BACKGROUND ART
[0002] In order to obtain and maintain a good indoor climate, it is important to provide
effective sealing of door and window openings, especially in heated industrial buildings.
Cold draughts through cracks are liable to impair the function of an existing ventilation
system. Even slight cold air draughts can disturb the laminar air flow created in
a room by a ventilation system due to the ingress of cold and heavier air, ie the
air is unable to flow in a manner that is favorable from a comfort aspect, and draughts
and a poorer indoor climate are the result.
[0003] It is known to fit draught preventing lip seals to the bottom edges of doors. In
order for these seals to be effective, they must lie against the underlying surface/floor
under pressure. They are thereby subjected to wear as the door is opened and closed
and therefore have a short useful life.
[0004] The use of rising hinges is also known, ie hinges in which a moveable hinge part
is able to move upwards as it swings around the stationary hinge part. Such rising
hinges are not suitable for use with heavy industrial ports, because of the considerable
surface pressures and lateral reaction forces that would be generated as a result
of uneven loading of the hinge.
[0005] DE-B-26 41 684 teaches a rising hinge for lightweight doors, wherewith a successively
increasing abutment pressure is generated between bevelled surfaces on both parts
of the hinge. The smallest surface abutment and therewith the greatest pressure between
the bevelled surfaces occurs in a fully open position, which increases the risk of
permanent deformation of the surfaces.
[0006] DE-B-24 13 117 also teaches a hinge with which the abutment pressure is greatest
in a fully open position. This hinge arrangement is mainly intended to enable height
setting to be adjusted and adapted to door and window frames.
[0007] Because the abutment surfaces of both the hinges taught by the aforesaid documents
are solely at one point which lies to one side of the rotational centre of the hinge
the hinge will be unevenly loaded, which may be acceptable in the case of light doors
and windows but which is totally unacceptable in the case of large industrial ports.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention the object is to provide hinge means
which will raise a door or port during part of a door or port opening movement and
to maintain the door or port at this raised level during the remainder of said opening
movement. This object is achieved with a door or port hinge means that has a stationary
part which includes a sleeve, a moveable part which includes a sleeve, and a rod which
functions to mutually connect said sleeves and which forms the rotational centre of
said moveable part, characterized in that the end surface of each sleeve has disposed
around its periphery
- two planar, essentially horizontal first surfaces;
- two cam surfaces which adjoin the first surfaces at a given angle thereto;
- two planar second surfaces which adjoin the cam surfaces and which are essentially
parallel with said first surfaces ;
and two third surfaces which are located between the first and second surfaces in
adjoinment therewith and which extend generally perpendicular to the first surfaces;
wherein the sleeve surfaces abut corresponding surfaces on the second sleeve in a
closed non-raised position such that during a given part of the opening movement the
respective cam surfaces of said sleeves will slide on one another and therewith lift
the port; and wherein the planar first surfaces of said sleeves slide on one another
during the remainder of said opening movement.
[0009] This aspect and other aspects of the invention will be evident from the following
description of a preferred embodiment and from the following claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which
- Figure 1
- is a perspective view of a right-hung inventive hinge means in non-raised (closed)
state;
- Figure 2
- is a perspective view of the hinge means according to Fig. 1 and shows the hinge means
in a slightly separated state;
- Figure 3
- illustrates the vertical mantle surface of an outwardly extended lower sleeve part;
- Figure 4
- shows an end surface of a sleeve part from above; and
- Figure 5
- illustrates the manner in which the surfaces of the sleeves move in relation to one
another as the hinge rotates.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0011] The inventive hinge means is identified generally in Figs 1 and 2 by the reference
numeral 10. The hinge means includes a lower part 12 that has an adjuster plate or
mounting plate 14 which is intended to be mounted on a wall adjacent the port opening.
The plate 14 has an elongated aperture 16 which allows lateral adjustment of the plate
14. The front side of the plate is provided on its edge 18 that lies proximal to the
port opening with an attachment/spacer element 20 which is angled in relation to the
plate. Mounted on the attachment element 20 is a rod 22 which is threaded along at
least a part of its length and which extends parallel with the front edge 18 of the
plate. An adjuster nut 24 is fitted on the threaded part of the rod 22. Located above
the nut 24 is a sleeve, hereinafter referred to as the lower sleeve 26. The upwardly
facing end surface of the lower sleeve 26 has a special configuration which will be
described in detail further on. The lower sleeve 26 includes locking means 28 in the
form of a through-penetrating hole and a locking screw for securing the position of
the lower sleeve 26 in relation to the rod 22.
[0012] The upper part 30 of the hinge means includes a mounting plate 32 which is meant
to be mounted on the rear edge of a door or port. This mounting plate 32 is also provided
with an attachment/spacer element, here referenced 34, which is angled in relation
to the plane of the plate at an angle of about 45° The attachment element carries
a sleeve 36, hereinafter referred to as the upper sleeve, wherein the bore 38 of said
sleeve extends parallel the side edges 40 of the mounting plate. The diameter of the
bore 38 is essentially the same as the diameter of the rod 22. The downwardly facing
end surface of the upper sleeve 36, as seen in Fig. 1, also has a special profile
configuration, which will be described in more detail below and which corresponds
to the profile of the upwardly facing end surface of the lower sleeve 26.
[0013] The profiles of the upper and lower sleeves have the following configuration. It
will be seen from Fig. 3, which shows the outwardly extended mantle surface of the
lower sleeve, and from Fig. 4, which shows the sleeve from above, that the end surfaces
include an essentially planar first surface 50 which extends through a given length
of arc and then merges with a flank or cam surface 52 at a given angle in relation
to the planar first surface. The cam surface 52 merges with an essentially planar
second surface 54 which is longer than the first surface 50 and which has a length
of arc that in the illustrated embodiment corresponds essentially to the length of
arc of the upper surface 50. The second surface 54 merges with an essentially vertical
surface 56 which adjoins a second upper surface such that the end surfaces of the
sleeves have two times the described surfaces. The sleeve of the upper part has a
corresponding profile.
[0014] When fitting the hinge means, the mounting/adjuster plate 14 on the lower hinge part
is mounted on the aforesaid wall and positioned so that the rod 22 extends generally
parallel with the door opening. The upper hinge part 30 is fitted to the door. The
door is hung so that the rod 22 on the lower hinge part will pass into the bore of
the upper sleeve 36. The lower sleeve 26 is not locked in this position, but is rotated
so that the upper planar surfaces 50 of one sleeve will lie in abutment with the lower
planar surfaces 54 of the other sleeve, and vice versa, Fig 5a. The door is then closed
and its height adjusted with the aid of adjuster nuts 24. When the door is closed,
the lower sleeve 26 is locked to the rod 22 with the aid of the locking means 28 and
the sleeves are in the aforedescribed positions.
[0015] Subsequent to adjusting the position of the door, the door will be raised by the
relative rotation of the sleeves 26, 36 as the door is opened, with the cam surfaces
sliding on one another, Fig. 5b. Because the sleeves have two cam surfaces disposed
diametrically on both sides of the rotational centre, the hinge will not be loaded
unevenly as the door is opened. Furthermore, the abutment pressure will be smaller
than in the case of conventional rising hinges because abutment occurs at two points
instead of one. After having rotated through a given angle of rotation, the sleeves
will slide against one another through the medium of the upper planar surfaces 50,
Fig. 5c. Uneven loading is also avoided in this case, because each sleeve has two
diametrically disposed surfaces similar to the cam surfaces 52.
[0016] As a result of this construction of the surfaces of the rising sleeves a relatively
fast rising effect is obtained with a relatively small rotational opening movement,
which means that the sealing strip will be subjected to the minimum of wear against
the floor surface. The planar upper surfaces 50 function so as to render it unnecessary
to hold an open port in place as in the case of hinges that have sloping surfaces
for the whole of the opening movement, and also to distribute the abutment pressure
over a wider area when the port is open, wherewith wear on the surfaces will be less
than in the case of conventional rising hinges. The vertical surfaces 56 function
to produce a pronounced stop and prevent further relative movement between the hinge
parts when a predetermined closing position has been reached. The extension of the
cam surfaces 56, ie their pitch and peripheral extension, is dependent partly on the
sleeve material and partly on the desired raising speed. A peripheral extension of
between 35 and 45° is preferred, while the pitch of each cam surface will preferably
be between 37 and 41 degrees in comparison to the planar surfaces 50 and 54.
[0017] It will be understood that the invention is not restricted to the described and illustrated
embodiment and that modifications can be made within the scope of the following claims.
For instance, the door and frame/wall mountings may have many different forms. The
hinge means can also be reversed so that rod and the adjuster nut are seated on the
moveable part.
1. Door or port hinge means (10) having a stationary part (12) which includes a sleeve
(26), a moveable part (30) which includes a sleeve (36), and a rod (22) which functions
to mutually connect said sleeves (26, 36) and which forms the rotational centre of
said moveable part, characterized in that the end surface of each sleeve has disposed
around its periphery
- two planar, essentially horizontal first surfaces (50);
- two cam surfaces (52) which adjoin the first surfaces (50) at a given angle thereto;
- two planar second surfaces (54) which adjoin the cam surfaces (52) and which are
essentially parallel with said first surfaces (50);
and two third surfaces (56) which are located between the first and second surfaces
in adjoinment therewith and which extend perpendicular to the first surfaces (50);
wherein the sleeve surfaces abut corresponding surfaces on the second sleeve in a
closed non-raised position such that during a given part of the opening movement the
respective cam surfaces of said sleeves will slide on one another and therewith lift
the port; and wherein the planar first surfaces (50) of said sleeves slide on one
another during the remainder of said opening movement.
2. Hinge means according to Claim 1, characterized in that the surface of respective
pairs are disposed diametrically on both sides of the rotational centre of said rod.
3. Hinge means according to Claim 1, characterized in that the position of one of the
sleeves (26) along the rod (22) can be changed with the aid of setting means (24)
for setting the starting position between the relative rotatable hinge parts.
4. Hinge means according to Claim 3, characterized in that the setting means includes
a screw thread along at least part of the rod and an adjustable nut coacting therewith.
5. Hinge means according to Claim 3, characterized in that the sleeve (26) includes locking
means (28) which allows the sleeve (26) to be rotated around the rod (22) for adjustment
of the mutually rotatable hinge parts to a starting position and which functions to
lock said parts to the rod when the desired position has been attained
6. Hinge means according to Claim 1, characterized in that each cam surface (52) on each
sleeve extends circumferentially through an angle of between 35 and 40°.
7. Hinge means according to Claim 6, characterized in that the cam surface (52) on each
sleeve has a pitch of between 37 and 41°.
8. Hinge means according to Claim 1, characterized in that the first and second planar
surfaces (50, 54) on each sleeve include circumferentially an arc of between 65 and
75°.
9. Hinge means according to Claim 1; characterized by a stationary part (12) that includes
a mounting plate (14) which has a horizontally extending aperture (16) and which is
intended to be mounted adjacent a port opening; an attachment element (20) affixed
to the mounting plate and carrying an at least partially threaded rod (22); a lower
sleeve (26) fitted on the rod (22); a moveable part (30) which includes a mounting
plate (32) intended to be mounted on a door; an attachment element (34) affixed to
the attachment (34) and carrying an upper sleeve (36) which is intended to be placed
on said rod (22), said rod forming the rotational centre of said moveable part,
wherein the end surface of each sleeve has disposed peripherally therearound
- two planar, essentially horizontal first surfaces (50);
- two cam surfaces (52) which adjoin the first surfaces (50) at a given angle thereto;
- two planar second surfaces (54) which adjoin the cam surfaces (52) and which are
essentially parallel with said first surfaces (50);
and two third surfaces (56) which are located between the first and second surfaces
in adjoinment therewith and which extend perpendicular to the first surfaces (50);
wherein the sleeve surfaces abut corresponding surfaces on the second sleeve in a
closed non-raised position such that during a given part of the opening movement the
respective cam surfaces of said sleeves will slide on one another and therewith lift
the port; and wherein the planar first surfaces (50) of said sleeves slide on one
another during the remainder of said opening movement.
10. Hinge means according to Claim 9, characterized in that a nut (24) is placed on the
threaded part of the rod (22) for changing the position of the lower sleeve (26),
and thus also the position of the door, in relation to the mounting plate (14) of
the stationary part and thus the opening.
11. Hinge means according to Claim 9, characterized in that the lower sleeve (26) is rotatable
relative to the rod (22) and is provided with locking means (28) which allows the
sleeve (26) to be rotated around the rod (22) for adjustment of the mutually rotatable
hinge parts to a starting position and which functions to lock said parts to the rod
when the desired position has been attained.