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(11) | EP 0 790 383 A2 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | A gate arrangement |
| (57) The present invention relates to an arrangement that pertains to doors or gates and
that includes an elongated profiled section (10) mounted on the gate leaf (12) in
close proximity of the rotational centre (VC) of the gate leaf when opening/closing the gate. The invention is characterized in
that the profiled section is configured and mounted on the gate leaf such that the
distance (a) between the profiled section (10) and the wall surface (28) adjacent the gateway
will increase as the gate is opened. |
FIELD OF INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to an arrangement pertaining to door or gate structures and comprising an elongated profiled section mounted on the gate leaf in the close proximity of the rotational centre thereof for opening/closing the gate or door.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The provision of so-called squeeze guards at the edges of doors and gates has long been required in Sweden. The most usual form of guard in this respect is one in which the gap between gate and wall is covered with some form of protective apron made of rubber or some like material.
[0003] There is a serious risk of objects or persons being squeezed, pinched or clamped between a gate section and a wall. This region is where a general seal and insulation is needed in order to reduce heat losses and avoid cold draughts.
[0004] A number of arrangements intended for reducing so-called squeezed risks and reducing draughts are known to the art, although these arrangements relate predominantly to doors of conventional size. US-A-3,934,371 describes an example of such an arrangement in which the door and the door flame are both provided with longitudinally extending strip-like members so as to define therebetween a narrow gap which is constant when opening/closing the door. This is achieved in that the strip-like members and the rear edge of the door are configured as segments of a circle whose centre points coincide with the rotational centre of the door. According to the solution described in SE 139 515, the rear edge of the door leaf has a cylindrical configuration and the door frame is configured correspondingly. The centre points of the circular parts of this arrangement also coincide with the rotational centre of the door.
[0005] Both of the aforedescribed arrangements require the rotational points of the doors to be placed in the door leaf itself so to speak, i.e. moved from the rear edge of the door leaf, which requires the provision of special hinges that are mounted on the top and bottom edges of the door leaf respectively. This special construction may conceivably be used for new door installations, although it will not function for the majority of doors and gates that are mounted in a conventional manner. In the case of conventional doors and gates, the rotational centre lies outside the door leaf which makes the provision of a squeeze guard difficult to achieve. In the case of industrial gates, it is normal, when the gate leaf is closed, for the gate leaf to lie forwardly of the wall surfaces at the sides of the gateway, as seen from the front of said gateway, while, when opening the gate, the rear edge will approach said wall surfaces, i.e. the distance between the gate leaf and the wall will decrease with subsequent risk of squeezing, pinching or clamping a person or object. The gap between gate and wall is sealed by an elongated elastic sealing strip with the door leaf closed.
[0006] There is thus still a pronounced requirement for improvements within the field of industrial gates in order to satisfy safety and comfort requirements, while providing, at the same time, a construction which is reliable from all aspects and which does not require the provision of complicated monitoring or safety devices.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a protective arrangement against squeezing or pinching between gate leaves and wall surface/gate frames, said arrangement being a part of the gate leaf and providing said protection by virtue of its design. According to one aspect of the invention, this object is achieved with an arrangement in door or gate constructions that includes an elongated profiled section mounted on the gate leaf in the close vicinity of the rotational centre of the gate leaf when opening/closing the gate, wherein the arrangement is characterized in that the profiled section is configured so that the distance between said section and said wall surface adjacent the gateway will increase as the gate leaf is opened.
[0008] These and other characteristic features and aspects of the invention will be evident from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention and from the following Claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The invention will now be described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof and also with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which
- Fig. 1
- illustrates part of a gate provided with a protective strip-like member in accordance with the invention; and
- Fig. 2
- is a cross-sectional view taken on the line II-II in Fig. 1.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0010] In the case of the illustrated embodiment, the inventive protective strip-like member shown in Figs. 1 and 2 has the form of an elongated profiled section 10. The profiled section 10 is intended to be mounted on or adjacent to the rear edge 11 of a door leaf or gate leaf 12. The illustrated profiled section 10 includes elongated attachments 14 in the form of tongues that project out generally perpendicularly from a first planar surface 16 of the profiled section. The tongues 14 have parts 18 which project laterally outwards from the sides of said tongues and which function to grip around and be held by the edges of an elongated groove 15 whose side walls are configured to match the configuration of the tongues 14, in the rear edge 11 of the gate leaf. The width of the first surface 16 of the profiled section 10 is approximately equal to the width of the gate leaf. The first surface 16 of said profiled section merges at one gate edge with a generally planar second surface 20 which is angled inwards at a given angle a in relation to the side surfaces of the gate leaf. This second surface 20 merges with a third surface 22 which has the shape of a circle segment in cross-section. In the illustrated embodiment, the circle segment includes an angle of slightly more than 180°, and a centre line C. The circle segment 22 merges with a generally planar fourth surface 24, which in turn adjoins the first surface 16 at the second edge of the rear gate edge.
[0011] The gate leaf 12 is mounted on the wall 26 in the gateway with the aid of suitable hinges (not shown), wherewith the rotational centre VC of the gate leaf will lie slightly outside the side surface 28 of the wall and behind the rear edge 11 of the gate leaf, depending on the design of the hinges used. The profiled section 10 is configured so that the cylindrical surface 22 will face towards the wall surface 28 when opening/closing the gate, and so that the centre point C of the cylindrical surface 22 will not coincide with the rotational centre VC of the gate leaf but will lie approximately to one side thereof. The aim with the configuration of the profiled section is that the distance a between the wall surface 28 and the profiled section 10 will increase as the gate is opened, that the surface of the profile facing the wall during opening shall not have any sharp transitions between surfaces, such as for instance conventional door edges, and that the profiled section will cause parts of the human body that may be located in the gap between gate and wall to be moved away by movement of the gate leaf as the gate is closed.
[0012] This is achieved with the inventive profiled section partly because it has a cylindrical surface that faces towards the wall during the entire opening and closing movement, and partly because the centre line of the cylindrical surface lies at a distance from the rotational centre of the gate leaf. When the gate is closed, the centre line C shall lie slightly closer to the gate leaf and/or somewhat closer to the wall surface 28 in comparison with the rotational centre, so that said distance a will increase as the gate is opened. The centre point C is chosen in accordance with how quickly the distance shall increase and the extent of this increase as the gate is opened, and in accordance with the size of the opening angle b from a closed to an open gate.
[0013] When the opening angle b=90°, as in the illustrated embodiment, there may be used beneficially a line 30 which intersects the rotational entre VC and which is parallel with the side surfaces 32 of the gate leaf when the gate is closed. In this case, the distance between the centre line C and the rotational centre VC will be equal to the difference in the distance between the profiled section and the wall when the gate is in a closed and in an open position. The closed gate is designated I in the Fig. 2 example. The distance between the profiled and the wall surface is then aI and the centre line has the position CI. In the open position, position II is the distance between profiled section and wall section aII>aI.
[0014] On the other hand, if the opening angle b is greater than 90°, the distance will again decrease when the gate has been rotated or pivoted through an angle greater than 90 degrees when the centre line has the above-described position. It can be said in general that the position of the centre line C is chosen so that it will never pass above a line 34 which intersects the rotational centre VC and which is perpendicular to the wall surface, as the gate leaf is opened. This avoids a reduction in said distance during the latter stage of the gate opening movement.
[0015] The profiled section will preferably be configured so that the distance a is as small as possible when the gate is closed. However, a certain gap may be necessary when the wall is not completely flat or has a very rough surface. In order to provide a good seal, an elastic sealing strip 36 (Fig. 2) is placed between the wall and the gate leaf, and inwardly of the profiled section. The profiled section will preferably be filled with some form of insulating material. In order to provide fully satisfactory protection, the profiled section extends along the full height of the gate leaf and is provided with appropriate recesses at the hinge positions.
[0016] Doors, gates and gate leaves provided with an inventive strip-like construction obtain an active squeeze guard against injury to persons by being squeezed, pinched, etc., between the gate leaf or door leaf and the adjacent wall surface. The profiled section may conveniently be extruded from aluminium and a simple, readily mounted and robust construction is obtained by virtue of the integration of the profiled section with the gate leaf.
[0017] It will be understood that the invention is not restricted to the described and illustrated exemplifying embodiment thereof and that modifications can be made within the scope of the following Claims. For instance, the profiled section may be configured or designed in many different ways to obtain the desired protective functions and for mounting said section on the gate leaf.
1. An arrangement pertaining to doors or gates comprising an elongated profiled section
(10) mounted on the gate leaf (12) in the close proximity of the rotational centre
(VC) of the gate leaf in opening/closing the door or gate, characterized in that said profiled section is configured and mounted on the gate leaf such that
the distance (a) between the profiled section (10) and the wall surface (28) adjacent the gateway
will increase as the gate is opened.
2. An arrangement according to Claim 1, characterized in that the part (22) of the profiled section which faces towards said wall surface
has an essentially cylindrical configuration.
3. All arrangement according to Claim 2, characterized in that the centre line (C) of the cylindrical surface (22) of said profiled section is disposed at a distance
from the rotational centre (VC) of the gate leaf (12).
4. An arrangement according to Claim 3, characterized in that the centre line (C) of the cylindrical surface (22) of said profiled section is positioned such that
when said gate is closed, said line will lie slightly closer to the gate leaf (12)
and/or slightly closer to said wall surface (28) in comparison with the rotational
centre (VC) of the gate leaf.
5. An arrangement according to Claim 4, characterized in that the centre line (C) is positioned such that it will never pass above a line (34) that intersects the
rotational centre (VC) and that is perpendicular to said wall surface (28), as the gate is opened.
6. An arrangement according to any one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that the profiled section (10) includes attachment means (14, 18) for attachment
of the profiled section (10) to the gate leaf (12).
7. An arrangement according to Claim 6, characterized in that the profiled section (10) is mounted on the rear edge (11) of the gate leaf.
8. An arrangement according to Claim 7, characterized in that the gate leaf (12) has an elongated profiled groove (15) in its rear edge
(11); and in that the profiled section (10) has tongues (14) with parts (18) that
project at least slightly outwards and which function to hold the profiled section
in the groove (15).
9. An arrangement according to any one of the preceding Claims, characterized in that the profiled section is an extruded aluminium section.