The present invention relates to a window or door as defined in the preamble of claim 1, such as a door, a window or French window, preferably of the sliding type.
Windows or doors comprising drive means are known from documents
In the art of building construction, doors and windows are known to be applied to the structure of a building, and the need is further known of powered opening and closing thereof.
In prior art, power drive of door and windows is not a problem because drive means are widely used which comprise motor means and linkages for guiding the window or door opening and closing movements.
Greater problems arise in connection with power drive of the lock or any other locking system that can provide removable engagement between the door or door element of the window or door and the window or door support frame, to prevent window or door opening. Particularly problems arise in connection with the power drive of doors or windows having engagement means, such as a latch bolt or a holding pawl, at one of their edges, for engagement of a corresponding complementary portion at the counter-edge of the jamb.
In the solution as used in the art in almost every window or door, the above engagement devices are reversibly controlled between an engagement position and a disengagement position by means of drive devices that can be manually rotatably driven by a handle. Particularly, these engagement devices include a rotary support whose rotatable actuation causes the engagement devices to be driven from the engagement position to the disengagement position and vice versa. The rotary support of the engagement devices generally supports the rotating shaft of the handle, known in the art as "spindle", and forms a prismatic connection therewith.
In view of the above, it is apparent that, while on the one hand the need is felt for power driven opening and closing of a window or door, on the other hand problems arise in connection with the power drive of the door and window lock devices, unless specially designed non-standard doors or windows are provided. Nevertheless, the use of doors or windows with non-standard lock devices is not desirable and not always feasible in the housing field.
This invention is based on the technical problem of designing and providing a window or door that has such structural and functional features as to fulfill the above power drive requirements in a simple and cost-effective manner, while obviating the above prior art drawbacks and allowing power drive of standard doors or windows.
According to the invention, this technical problem is achieved by means a window or door as defined in claim 1.
The features of the window or door of the present invention, and further advantages derived therefrom will be apparent from the following description of a few preferred embodiments thereof, which is given by way of illustration and without limitation with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
Referring to the accompanying figures, numeral 1 generally designates a detail of a window or door of the present invention.
In the example herein described, the window or door is embodied as a one-door sliding French window. Particularly, the window or door of the invention comprises a support frame designed to be attached to the wall structure of a building and adapted to support the sliding door element so that it can be guided along guide rails during its movement from the closed position to an open position.
It shall be noted that the fixed frame has been omitted in the figures and that a portion of the sliding door element has been only shown, such components being known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
The sliding door element has a front edge 9 that abuts, with the door element in the closed position, against a corresponding section of the frame post that defines the counter-edge. As is known in the art, the sliding door element has first engagement means at its front edge, generally at the center thereof, that are movable between a disengagement position and an engagement position in which they engage corresponding second engagement means (not shown) supported by the counter-edge of the window or door frame.
The engagement between the first engagement means and the second engagement means prevents any opening of the openable door element from the closed position.
Concerning the above first and second engagement means, no further details thereof will be explained herein, these components being standard components, known per se.
With reference to the detail of the sliding door element as shown in the figures, the first engagement means include a coupling rod 8 (a central portion whereof is only shown), which can run a preset length of a couple of centimeters, along said front edge 9 of the door to reversibly shift from the engagement configuration to the disengagement position relative to the second abutment means, e.g. beaks, supported by the counter-edge of the frame.
According to a different embodiment, not shown, the first engagement means may be embodied as a holding pawl, which is adapted to pivot for engaging a corresponding portion of the counter-edge.
In accordance with a further embodiment, the first engagement means are embodied as a hook adapted to engage a retainer means supported by the counter-edge.
In the case of a door with pivotal opening, the first engagement means may be embodied as a latch bolt adapted to engage a corresponding recess in the counter-edge.
The first drive means may also be embodied as a lock.
The first engagement means are adapted to be driven from the engagement position to the disengagement position and vice versa using drive devices 2 connected thereto and operably associated therewith. The drive devices 2, which are known per se, include a rotary support 3 which is adapted to be rotated to control the movement of the first engagement means from the engagement position to the disengagement position and vice versa.
It shall be noted that the drive devices comprise pluralities of linkages, gears and/or rack systems, as well as other useful elements allowing the rotary movement of said rotating support 3 to be turned into the movement required for driving the first engagement means 8. In the example of the figures, the rotary drive of the rotary support 3 causes the rod 8 to be moved along the front edge of the sliding door element.
For simplicity, the figures only show the box-like member that receives the linkages of the drive devices 2. The figures further show the above rotary support 3, which is conformed in such a manner as to define a through receptacle adapted for engagement with the rotating shaft, known in the art as spindle, a handle and the like, thereby providing a form fit therewith.
The box-like member of the drive devices 2 is received within the thickness of the sliding door element, at such front edge.
Advantageously, the window or door of the invention has motor means 4 mounted to the openable sliding door element and operably associated with the drive devices 2 to control actuation of the first engagement means 8 between said engagement and disengagement positions.
As shown in the figures, the motor means 4 are mounted to the openable door element level with the drive devices 2 and are operably connected thereto.
More in detail, the motor means 4 include a motor whose drive shaft is directly connected to a rotating shaft 5 via a gear-motor. When the motor means 4 are fixed to the openable door element, the rotating shaft 5 is received in the through receptacle of the rotating support 3 while creating a form fit therewith with mating sections. For this purpose, the portion of the rotating shaft 6 that projects out of the motor means 4 defines a tang having a square section complementary to that of the through receptacle of the rotary support 3.
Preferably, the window or door of the invention includes a covering case 7 for covering the motor means 4, which is conveniently designed to form a pushing extension for a user to manually push the sliding door element.
The motor of the motor means 4 may be operated by batteries or electric cells, which are received in the window or door or, according to a preferred embodiment, is connected to the mains. Advantageously, the motor of the motor means has a mains power supply system with a backup battery.
Thus, the window or door of the invention comprises wiring means extending across the openable door element and the frame, for ensuring electric connection of said motor to the mains.
The electrical connection means include sliding contacts, such as the two contacts 6 as shown in the figures.
The window or door 1 is also equipped with electric transducers, for allowing adjustment and control of said motor means and actuation of said drive means according to the position of the first engagement means, in this case the coupling rod 8.
Advantageously, the covering case 7 supports electric switches for connection/disconnection of said power source to/from said motor, i.e. switches whose operation can start the process of opening/closing the openable door element.
The window or door of the invention further comprises drive means for driving the movable openable door element from and to the closed position. These drive means are known per se and comprise an additional motor (generally integral with the frame), for actuating articulation means operably associated with the openable door element to control opening and closing thereof. In the example of the openable door element, the articulation means may include a rack-and-pinion device.
Advantageously, the window or door of the invention includes a controller for managing the operation of all the motor and drive means, thereby coordinating the engagement/disengagement movement of the first engagement means with the opening/closing movement of the openable door element.
Preferably, the motor means of the window or door of the invention are remotely controlled, e.g. by a radio control, another infrared system or the like, which interacts with the controller to transmit an actuating signal thereto.
As shown by the above disclosure, the window or door of the invention allows simple and reliable power drive not only of the opening/closing movement of the openable door element but also of the engagement/disengagement movement of the first engagement means, without requiring the window or door to differ from standard window or door designs.
Those skilled in the art will obviously appreciate that a number of changes and variants may be made to the window or door as described hereinbefore, without departure from the scope of the invention, as defined in the following claims.
Thus, for example, in a window or door having multiple door elements, the second engagement means may be supported by a door element instead of the window or door frame.
This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only. It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.