SHOWER DOOR ASSEMBLY HAVING FRAME REINFORCING AND NOISE REDUCING FUNCTIONS

Abstract

 The present invention discloses a shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction, and the assembly comprises: a first frame including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the first frame together defining a first chamber having an opening; and a second frame fitted over the first frame and including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the second frame together defining a second chamber having an opening, the opening of the second chamber facing the opening of the first chamber. The shower door assembly further comprises at least one connecting element which is elastic and has a dimension in at least one direction larger than a distance between the two side walls of the first frame. The elastic connecting element can expand and push the two side walls of the first frame outwards with an elastic force until they abut on the two side walls of the second frame, thereby enabling fixing and generating less noise.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a shower door and, more particularly, to an expansion-based shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction.

Background Art

[0002] A shower door generally stands about two meters in height, a frame of which is a bar shaped component of around two meters in length. When installed, these frames are often fitted over one another, and are fixed on both ends (generally leaving out the middle section) by tools such as a screw. However, it is often difficult for existing manufacturing processes to ensure a tight fit between such socketed frames, leaving an over-wide clearance in between, which can give way to excessive free play between individual frames. Consequently, opening or closing a door with poor frame fit is likely to be accompanied with undesirable collision between the frames, making extra noise that could be unpleasant to a user.

[0003] One of the existing solutions involves drilling with a drill at the middle section of two frames a hole through which a screw may be inserted to provide extra retention. Yet this will incur added cost of preparing a frame with sufficient surface for such drilling, as well as added manpower (at least two persons will be required) and labor time for the drilling. Moreover, drilling tends to damage the surface of the frame (often made of aluminum or aluminum alloy), which can spoil the look of, or even completely destroy, the final product, burdening the user with even more cost.

[0004] Another solution involves adding rubber strips into the clearance between the frames. The associated problem is related to the difficulty of trimming such a strip to an optimum dimension and installing the strip properly, because the strip is very thin and flexible. Besides, a part of the strip may be exposed, spoiling the general artistic design.

Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention solves the above problems by disclosing a shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction, comprising: a first frame including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the first frame together defining a first chamber having an opening; and a second frame fitted over the first frame and including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the second frame together defining a second chamber having an opening, the opening of the second chamber facing the opening of the first chamber. The shower door assembly further comprises at least one connecting element, which is elastic and has a dimension in at least one direction larger than a distance between the two side walls of the first frame.

[0006] The elastic connecting element can expand and push the two side walls of the first frame outwards with an elastic force until they abut on the two side walls of the second frame, thereby enabling fixing and generating less noise.

[0007] In one embodiment, the connecting element is configured with a guiding part on a side facing the base wall of the first frame.

[0008] In one embodiment, the connecting element is in the shape of a cuboid, a cube, a cylinder, or a sphere, and preferably a cuboid.

[0009] In one embodiment, the connecting element has a dimension in the at least one direction larger than the distance between the two side walls of the first frame by 1-5 mm, and preferably by 2 mm.

[0010] In one embodiment, the base wall of the second frame is configured with a groove extending in the length direction of the base wall and concaved into the second chamber. The groove may be used to accommodate glass, a rubber strip, a track or other elements.

[0011] In one embodiment, one of the side walls of the second frame is configured with a groove extending in the length direction of the side wall. The groove may be used to accommodate glass, a rubber strip or other elements, thereby forming a connection at an angle of 90 degrees, for example.

[0012] In one embodiment, the connecting element may be made of an elastic material so that the element may deform when subject to an external force, and may restore to its original shape when the external force is removed. The material may be anything elastic, such as rubber or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

[0013] In one embodiment, the shower door assembly may include two connecting elements, preferably spaced out evenly at the middle section of the two frames.

[0014] In one embodiment, the first frame is installed close to a wall, and the second frame is connected with glass, a rubber strip, or a track.

[0015] According to the shower door assembly disclosed in the present invention, both door frames may be inter-socketed without the need of any drill or screw, and can provide very tight engagement that leaves no undesirable clearance, thereby significantly strengthening the installation and reducing possible noise. Moreover, the connecting element employed in the present invention will not be exposed to an external viewer, thereby preserving the general artistic design.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] 

FIG. 1 is an exploded schematic view of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is another schematic view of the first frame shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a second frame in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a second frame in another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of an elastic connecting element of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an alternative elastic connecting element of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the pre-installation state of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the during-installation state of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the post-installation state of one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] Other parts not essential to the present invention are excluded from the above figures.

Detailed Descriptions

[0018] Now the present invention will be fully described accompanied by the figures and embodiments.

[0019] FIG. 1 shows the main parts of an exemplary shower door assembly of the present invention, which includes a first frame 10, a second frame 20 and a connecting element 30. While the shower door assembly depicted in this embodiment includes two connecting elements 30, the actual number of connecting elements to be included will be based on the length of the frame, and preferably each 1 m section of a frame includes one connecting element 30.

[0020] In this embodiment, the first frame 10 is mounted abutting on a wall. The second frame 20 is adjustable, and may be connected with a glass sheet, a track or other shower door components.

[0021] FIG. 2 gives a detailed view of the first frame 10, which is substantially in a U shape in the cross-section, and is configured with a chamber 104 defined by a left wall 101, right wall 102 and a base wall 103, wherein the chamber 104 is W1 in width and L1 in depth.

[0022] The base wall 103 is punched with a hole 107 through which a screw may be inserted in order to mount the frame onto a wall. In other embodiments, the first frame 10 may be connected with other elements as well.

[0023] In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 3, a second frame 20 is shown to be substantially in a U shape in the cross-section, and is configured with a chamber 204 defined by a left wall 201, right wall 203 and a base wall 202, wherein the chamber 204 is W2 in width and L2 in depth. In this embodiment, the W2 is substantially identical to the sum of the W1 and the wall thickness of the left wall 101 and right wall 102, while the depth L2 is about the same as L1, so that the second frame 20 may be fitted over the first frame 10.

[0024] In this embodiment, the base wall 202 is configured with a groove 207 to accommodate glass, a rubber strip or the like, while in other embodiments, the second frame 20 may be connected with a track or the like.

[0025] FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the second frame 20, wherein the left wall 201 or the right wall 203 is configured with a groove 208 to accommodate glass or a rubber strip or the like in order to form a connection at an angle of 90 degrees or other angles, for example.

[0026] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, a connecting element 30 is substantially in the shape of a cuboid, and includes a side face 305, a side face 306, a base surface 307, and is W3 in width, L3 in length and H3 in height. The connecting element 30 is made of an elastic material, preferably rubber or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA).

[0027] However, it must be understood that, the shape of the connecting element 30 is by no means limited by this embodiment, and any shape can be acceptable as long as it can expand and push from inside the chamber between both side walls of the first frame outward until they are engaged tightly with the two side walls of the second frame. Therefore, the connecting element may be in other shapes, such as a cylinder (A) or a sphere (B) as in another embodiment shown in FIG. 6.

[0028] According to an embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and 5, the side faces 305 and 306 of the connecting element 30 may face the walls 101 and 102 of the first frame 10 respectively, where the distance W3 between the side faces 305 and 306 is slightly larger (e.g. by 2mm) than W1. The base surface 307 faces the base wall 103, with the length L3 slightly smaller (e.g. by 5mm) than L1 minus the depth of the groove 207 (if any).

[0029] In this embodiment, the height H3 is chosen to ensure the reliability and elasticity required for installing the connecting element 30, and usually may be 30-60 mm (40 mm in this embodiment).

[0030] In this embodiment, the connecting element 30 is configured on its base surface 307 with a guiding part 301, which facilitates the fitting of the first frame 10 into the chamber 104.

[0031] According to an embodiment shown in FIGS. 7-9, when the connecting element 30 is inserted into the first frame 10, W1 is slightly expanded when subject to stress because W3 is slightly larger than W1. While the first frame 10 is to be socketed into the chamber 204 of the second frame 20, a force F is applied (e.g. by hand) to the external face of both side walls of the first frame 10 so that the connecting element 30 is compressed until the W1 of the first frame 10 is small enough to fit into the chamber 204 of the second frame 20. When the first frame 10 fits completely into the chamber 204 of the second frame 20, the force will be removed, allowing the side walls 101 and 102 of the first frame 10 to expand under the elastic effect of the connecting element 30, thereby pushing the side walls 101 and 102 tightly against the side walls 201 and 203 of the second frame 20, respectively, enabling tight engagement between frame 10 and 20, so as to avoid undesirable shake and noise when opening or closing the door.

[0032] It must be understood that, the above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of, rather than a limitation of the present invention, and any non-substantial modification made on top of the inventive concept of the present invention shall fall into the protection scope claimed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction, comprising:

a first frame including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the first frame together defining a first chamber having an opening; and

a second frame fitted over the first frame and including a base wall and two parallel side walls extending from the base wall, the base wall and the two parallel side walls of the second frame together defining a second chamber having an opening, the opening of the second chamber facing the opening of the first chamber;

characterized in that,
wherein the assembly further comprises at least one connecting element which is elastic and has a dimension in at least one direction larger than a distance between the two side walls of the first frame.

2. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the connecting element is configured with a guiding part on a side facing the base wall of the first frame.

3. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the connecting element is in the shape of a cuboid, a cube, a cylinder, or a sphere.

4. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the connecting element has a dimension in the at least one direction larger than the distance between the two side walls of the first frame by 1-5 mm.

5. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 4, wherein: the connecting element has a dimension in the at least one direction larger than the distance between the two side walls of the first frame by 2 mm.

6. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the base wall of the second frame is configured with a groove extending in a length direction of the base wall and concaved into the second chamber.

7. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: one of the side walls of the second frame is configured with a groove extending in a length direction of the side wall.

8. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the connecting element is made of rubber or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

9. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the assembly includes two connecting elements.

10. The shower door assembly with frame reinforcement and noise reduction according to claim 1, wherein: the first frame is installed close to a wall, and the second frame is connected with glass, a rubber strip, or a track.

Drawing