DEVICE FOR SUSPENDING, OPENING AND CLOSING A BALANCED DOOR

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a device as set forth in the preamble of claim 1 for suspending, opening and closing a balanced door.

[0002] This type of balanced doors are used in department stores and the like business premises. As the door translates and pivots simultaneously, its opening and closing movement requires less space on the side of a room.

[0003] The following description deals with prior known solutions and drawbacks associated therewith.

• The weight of a door rests upon levers and turning occurs from the lever's pivot point. In this solution, the door weight (80-100 kg) burdens the levers which must be made from a truly robust material, and bearings are subjected to a tough test, resulting in extensive wear. Turning the door at a hinge point results in major forces and the door machines themselves are of special construction.
• Suspension of a door as above, but the door is turned by a surface model automatic hinged door. Adverse in its design and wearing is high as a result of the suspension.
• The door weight is born from above, but turning is effected by means of a complicated gear system, and movement of the door requires that the bottom side of a doorway be provided with a guide groove, which is highly detrimental because all dirt, mud, ice and like impurities trickle into the slot and impede operation of the door.
• All of the above applications employ machines which are electrohydraulic, resulting in a considerable sound as the door opens.

[0004] Patent publication US-4,237,655 further discloses a mechanism, wherein the door is suspended from above by means of pivot bearing, which is not located in the central area of the door but in the vicinity of one edge of the door. This produces a turning moment, which has been taken up by a wire connected to a slide that is linked by a pivoted axle to the bottom edge of the door. This in turn requires a bottom guideway (guide groove) with the above drawbacks.

[0005] Document DE 199 33 082 A discloses a device according to preamble of claim 1. Each door of a double door is supported on a lower support and swing arm. Above the doors there are also non-centrally located cradles which have no suspension function but the function of opening and closing the doors.

[0006] It is an object of the invention to provide a light-structured and functionally reliable device, which enables elimination of the above drawbacks.

[0007] This object is accomplished by a device of the invention, having its characterizing features defined in the appended claim 1. The dependent claims disclose preferred implementations regarding details of the invention.

[0008] A benefit provided by the inventive solution is the possibility of using the mechanism of a standard door machine, and special work required involves only a lightweight bearing-mounted lever to control turning of the door, as well as a centre hinge-bearing assembly, which are inexpensive to manufacture and stress loads are quite small. Operation of the door is totally soundless.

[0009] One exemplary embodiment of the invention will now be described more closely with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

Fig. 1

shows a device of the invention in cross-section,

Fig. 2

shows a door in closed and open positions and a part of the inventive devices in conjunction with the door, and

Fig. 3

shows from the front a double door, in which a device of the invention can be applied.

[0010] Centrally in the top edge of a door 1 is mounted a pivot bearing 2, having a centre axle 2a for turning the door 1 about. A bar present at the top edge of the door 1 is fastened e.g. with a screw 2b to the end of the axle 2a. The pivot bearing 2 is in turn fastened to a suspension cradle 3, which is capable of moving along a horizontal track 4 upon runners 8. The use of two runners 8, one bearing on the track's 4 top profile and the other on its bottom profile, provides a solid, stable suspension. The runners 8 have grooves engaged by the track's 4 protrusions. The suspension cradle 3 is adapted to be run back and forth along the horizontal track 4 by means of a drive mechanism 5. The drive mechanism 5 comprises preferably an endless belt or chain. When the device is operated in connection with the doors of a double door, the doors 1 have one of the suspension cradles 3 thereof connected to the belt's 5 upper run by means of a fastener 5b and the other to the lower run by means of a fastener 5a. A motor 9 is provided with a reduction gear 10 to drive a pulley around which the belt 5 is guided.

[0011] Fig. 3 illustrates how the door frames are constituted by uprights 6. Fig. 2 illustrates how between the door 1 and the upright 6 is a toggle 7 pivotally bearing-mounted to both of them, which forces the door to turn to open and closed positions as the pivot bearing 2 is moved back and forth along the horizontal track 4 which is parallel to the planes of the doors 1 when the doors 1 are in a closed position. The lever 7 is designed as a toggle in order to provide a starting force for swinging motion in the process of opening the door. The toggle 7 is bearing-mounted to the door 1 with a pivot bearing 7b whose position relative to the door 1 remains immobile. The bearing-mounting position for the other end of the toggle 7, i.e. a pivoting axle 7a in the upright 6, remains also immobile. Thus, leverages of the toggle 7 can be used to assist in the action that, as the pivot bearing 2 moves to the adjacency of the upright 6, the door simultaneously turns through 90°. The toggle's 7 lever arms have preferably a leverage of about 4,5. The number or toggles 7 is preferably two for each door and these are located in the vicinity of the upright's 6 top and bottom end and at the door's 1 top and bottom edge, respectively.

[0012] The toggles 7 in the vicinity of the upright's 6 top and bottom ends are interconnected by way of a vertical shaft 7a, which functions as a pivoting axle for the levers 7 and retains the levers 7 at the same deflection angle relative to each other. This keeps the door 1 well braced in vertical plane in all turning positions of the door, even though the door does not have its bottom edge supported on a bottom track.

Claims

1. A device for suspending, opening and closing a balanced door, said device comprising a lever (7) between a door (1) and an upright (6), pivotally bearing-mounted to both of them, which forces the door to turn to open and closed positions while the door moves in the direction of its plane, a pivot bearing (2) mounted on the door's (1) top edge, which has a vertical axle (2a) around which the door turns, a cradle (3), to which the pivot bearing (2) is fastened and which is capable of moving along a horizontal track (4), and a drive mechanism (5) by means of which the cradle (3) is adapted to be moved back and forth along the horizontal track (4), said lever (7) comprising a toggle, which has a relative leverage of its lever arms selected in such a way that the toggle forces the door to swing to open and closed positions in response to said reciprocating movement, and one and the same edge of the door being provided with at least two toggles (7) which are vertically spaced from each other, characterized in that the cradle (3) is a suspension cradle for suspending the door, and the pivot bearing (2) is mounted centrally relative to the top edge of the door.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1, characterized in that the toggles 7 are connected by means of a vertical shaft (7a), which is located on a pivoting axle for the toggles (7) and which forces the toggles (7) to remain at a fixed deflection angle.

3. A device as set forth in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the suspension cradle (3) is carried with a runner (8) on the horizontal track (4), and that the drive mechanism (5) comprises an endless belt or chain.

4. A device as set forth in claim 3 for suspending, opening and closing both doors of a double door, characterized in that the doors (1) of a double door has one of the suspension cradles (3) thereof fastened to the belt's (5) top run and the other to its bottom run.

Ansprüche

1. Vorrichtung zum Aufhängen, Öffnen und Schließen einer Gegenkrafttür, wobei die Vorrichtung Folgendes umfasst: einen Hebel (7) zwischen einer Tür (1) und einem Pfosten (6), der an beiden schwenkbar gelagert ist und die Tür veranlasst, sich in eine offene und eine geschlossene Position zu drehen, während sich die Tür in der Richtung ihre Ebene bewegt; ein Schwenklager (2), das an der Oberkante der Tür (1) montiert ist und eine vertikale Achse (2a) aufweist, um die sich die Tür dreht; einen Schlitten (3), an dem das Schwenklager (2) befestigt ist und der sich entlang einer horizontalen Schiene (4) bewegen kann; und einen Antriebsmechanismus (5), durch den der Schlitten (3) entlang der horizontalen Schiene (4) vor und zurück bewegt werden kann, wobei der Hebel (7) einen Kniehebel umfasst, bei dem eine relative Kraftverstärkung der Hebelarme so gewählt ist, dass der Kniehebel die Tür veranlasst, in Reaktion auf die hin und her gehende Bewegung in eine offene und eine geschlossene Position zu schwenken, und wobei ein und dieselbe Kante der Tür mit mindestens zwei Kniehebeln (7) versehen ist, die vertikal voneinander beabstandet sind, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass der Schlitten (3) ein Hängeschlitten zum Aufhängen der Tür ist und das Schwenklager (2) mittig relativ zur Oberkante der Tür montiert ist.

2. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die Kniehebel 7 mittels einer vertikalen Welle (7a) verbunden sind, die an einer Schwenkachse für die Kniehebel (7) angeordnet ist und welche die Kniehebel (7) veranlasst, in einem festen Auslenkungswinkel zu verbleiben.

3. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 1 oder 2, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass der Aufhängungsschlitten (3) mit einer Laufrolle (8) an der horizontalen Schiene getragen wird (4) und dass der Antriebsmechanismus (5) einen Endlosriemen oder eine Endloskette umfasst.

4. Vorrichtung nach Anspruch 3 zum Aufhängen, Öffnen und Schließen beider Türen einer Doppeltür, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass bei den Türen (1) einer Doppeltür einer ihrer Aufhängungsschlitten (3) an dem oberen Laufabschnitt des Riemens (5) und der andere an dem unteren Laufabschnitt befestigt ist.

Revendications

1. Dispositif destiné à suspendre, ouvrir et fermer une porte équilibrée, ledit dispositif comprenant un levier (7) entre une porte (1) et un montant (6), monté sur palier de façon pivotante, forçant la porte à pivoter vers une position ouverte et une position fermée tandis que la porte est mobile dans la direction de son plan, un palier à rotule (2) monté sur le bord supérieur de la porte (1), possédant un axe vertical (2a) autour duquel pivote la porte, un berceau (3) auquel est fixé le palier à rotule (2) et qui est apte à être mobile le long d'une voie horizontale (4), et un mécanisme d'entraînement (5) au moyen duquel le berceau (3) est adapté pour être déplacé en avant et en arrière le long de la voie horizontale (4), ledit levier (7) comprenant une articulation présentant une force de levier relative au niveau de ses bras de levier, laquelle est sélectionnée de telle façon que l'articulation force la porte à pivoter dans une position ouverte et une position fermée, en réponse audit mouvement réciproque, une seul et même bord de la porte étant pourvu d'au moins deux articulations (7) verticalement espacées l'une de l'autre, caractérisé en ce que le berceau (3) est un berceau de suspension pour suspendre la porte, et le palier à rotule (2) est monté de façon centrale par rapport au bord supérieur de la porte.

2. Dispositif selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce que les articulations (7) sont reliées au moyen d'une tige verticale (7a) située sur un axe de pivotement pour les articulations (7) et forçant les articulations (7) à garder un angle de déflexion fixe.

3. Dispositif selon l'une des revendications 1 ou 2, caractérisé en ce que le berceau de suspension (3) est porté à l'aide d'une roue (8) sur la voie horizontale (4), et en ce que le mécanisme d'entraînement (5) comprend une courroie ou chaîne sans fin.

4. Dispositif selon la revendication 3, pour suspendre, ouvrir et fermer les deux battants d'une porte à deux battants, caractérisé en ce que dans les battants (1) d'une porte à deux battants, l'un des berceaux de suspension (3) est fixé à la partie supérieure de la courroie (5) et l'autre à sa partie inférieure.

Drawing