JP2678239B2 - Door automatic bottom structure - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a seal or filling for a door, and more particularly to a gap between the door bottom and its sill when the door is closed. And a door bottom seal that is automatically actuated so that it automatically retracts when the door is opened.

PRIOR ART Door bottom seals or fills generally consist of a flexible sealing element that is held within the mounting means attached to the bottom of the door. The purpose of this plugging is to block drafts, light, noise, and debris that pass through the gap normally provided between the door bottom and the door sill.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, these sealing means are worn and deteriorated by the sealing element rubbing the door sill and the floor when the door is opened and closed. This is especially true if the sealing element is forced against the sill of the door to provide a more effective seal. Also, if the floor near the door sill is covered with carpet, the sealing element will be excessively worn on the carpet and require unnecessary effort to operate the door. Furthermore, in the actual installation, the floor and the door bottom are not necessarily parallel, so that it is not possible to make a completely effective seal with a fixed sealing element.

Various methods have been tried to overcome the rubbing and wear problems of these sealing elements, including elastically supporting the sealing element in the mounting element and U.S. Pat. Although the doors may be clogged as described in 1), these do not work as effectively as the present invention. The automatic door bottom structure of U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,788 overcomes these problems and the invention described below is an improvement on the device shown in this patent.

(Means for Solving the Problems) Briefly, the present invention is an automatic door bottom structure that seals a gap between a door bottom and a sill adjacent to the door when the door is closed. The door bottom structure comprises an inverted U-shaped channel member that is internally divided into upper and lower sections and is mounted along the bottom of the door. A flexible closure element is mounted on the drop bar assembly within the channel. Means are provided for reciprocating a portion of the sealing element in and out of the channel upon each closing and opening of the door. The means for reciprocating this sealing element comprises a push rod,
The push rod is actuated by abutting the side pillars of the door when the door is closed, and the means for reciprocating the sealing element comprises spring means for retracting the sealing element when the door is opened. ing. In order to allow one end of the flexible sealing element to come into contact before the other end, the automatic bottom structure of the door employs one or two pairs of interacting magnets. This is accomplished by placing one magnet of each pair in the inner area of the top of the channel and placing a second magnet of each pair on the drop bar assembly. The magnets of one pair repel each other and the second pair, if employed, attract each other. This uses a pair of repelling magnets to force the end of the drop bar assembly out of the channel prior to the other end.

Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is to provide an improved automatic door bottom structure for sealing the gap between the door bottom and the sill.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a fill that can be mounted on the surface of the door or within the bottom and sill of the door.

Yet another object of the present invention is that it can be easily manufactured and is easily adjusted during installation to accommodate widely varying door widths and dimensions of the spacing between the door and its sill. It is to provide a door bottom structure capable of

It is another object of the present invention to provide an automatic door bottom construction in which one end seals before the other end to minimize closure problems and maximize sealing capacity.

 Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring initially to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the bottom structure 11 of an automatic door of the present invention is a metal channel member made by extrusion.
A channel 13 is provided, which is preferably made of aluminum or an aluminum alloy. As shown in Figures 5-7, the channel member 13 is inverted U-shaped for mounting along the bottom of the door. (U.S. Patent No. 3,
See also Figures 1-2 and 4-5 of 703,788. The disclosure of this patent is incorporated herein by reference. ) The top surface (horizontal top) 21 of the channel member 13 has a plurality of holes 17 formed therein to allow the channel member 13 to be screwed onto the bottom edge of the door. ing. Channel member 13
Can take any other convenient form, as indicated, for example, by the special mounting structure shown in FIG. 6 of US Pat. No. 3,703,788.

The channel member 13 is shown in FIGS. 5-7 as having an elongated square inverted U-shaped portion and has a flat horizontal upper portion 21 and two vertical legs 23 and 25. On the inner surfaces of the legs 23 and 25, there are integrally formed longitudinally extending rib members 27, which project toward the opposite leg, and
29 are provided. These rib members 27 and 29 are
Approximately one-third of the distance from the upper portion 21 and dividing the interior of the channel member 13 into upper and lower inner sections 31 and 33, which inner sections 31 and 33 are the rib members. It is connected by an opening between 27 and 29. The upper inner area 31 is a U-shaped channel member near the flat horizontal upper portion 21.
Located along the closure of 13, the lower inner zone 33 is located along the open of the channel 13. The rib member
27 and 29 are formed during extrusion of channel 13 as shown, but may be made of separate components and secured to legs 23 and 25 by any suitable method. Good.

A push rod and spring assembly 35, shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4, is slidably insertable into the upper inner section 31 of the channel 13.

The push rod and spring assembly 35 comprises a fixed block 37 and a sliding block 39, which are designed to be arranged within the upper inner section 31 of the channel member 13. There is. In the preferred embodiment, they are square blocks, of which the first block 37 has holes drilled and tapped into itself so that the first block 37 has, for example, screws 73.
Thus, the groove-shaped member 13 can be detachably fixed at a predetermined position (see FIG. 4). The second block 39 is freely mounted within the upper inner section 31 and is slidable with respect to the first block 37.

The two blocks 37 and 39 are connected by a curved leaf spring 41, which is preferably a steel spring, which is fixed to said two blocks 37 and 39 by any suitable method. The leaf spring 41 is concave or dish-shaped, with its central portion 43 projecting into the lower section 33 of the channel member 13. The leaf spring 41 has a recess or depression 45 formed on the concave surface side, and this depression or depression 45 is formed.
Are located approximately in the center of the blocks 37 and 39 for the positioning of the pivot pin 63.

The push rod 47 is connected to the slidable second block 39 and is moved away from the leaf spring member 41, and the groove member
It protrudes to the outside of the end of 13. Push rod 47
Has a thread formed on its outer end, to which an adjustable end cap 49 can be screwed. The end cap 49 has a cross-section with multiple side faces, and is preferably hexagonal, and a narrow groove 51 is formed on the outer end portion of the end cap 49, so that the end cap 49 is made of a metal such as a screwdriver. It is adjustable on the push rod 47. The end cap 49 allows the push rod 47 to be adjusted longitudinally and also allows the push rod 47 to be restrained against adjustment changes when the door bottom structure 11 is assembled in the actuated state. To do. The end cap 49 that does this is
It is dimensioned so that it projects into the channel 13 and is trapped in the wall of the channel 13 and prevented from rotating.
In the preferred embodiment, one flat side of the end cap 49 rests against the top of the channel 13 (see also FIG. 6 of US Pat. No. 3,703,788).

To change the adjustment of the length of the push rod 47, the block 37 is released from its connection with the channel member 13,
The push rod and spring assembly 35 is then slid out of the channel member 13 until the end cap 49 can be rotated out of the channel member 13 to renew the length of the push rod 47. It The assembly 35 is then reinserted and the first block 37 is again locked in place. Next,
The end cap 49 is prevented from rotating and adjusting changes.

A drop bar assembly 57 is freely mounted within the lower inner region 33 of the channel member 13 and has a flexible seal.
It comprises an extruded H-shaped member 59 carrying an element 61. The drop bar 57 is connected to the push rod and spring assembly 35 by a pivot pin 63 or the like in the upper private chamber formed in the drop bar 57. The drop bar 57
There are narrow grooves 65 formed in each of the outer edge portions, these small grooves 65 holding a T-shaped sealing strip 67. (See Figures 3C and 3D of U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,788). The bottom compartment of the drop bar 57 is provided with a pair of horizontally projecting flanges 69, each of which includes a respective groove formed in the dimensionally reduced upper portion 71 of the flexible sealing element 61. Together, the closure element 61 is retained in the drop bar 57 (fifth to fifth).
7). Said sealing element 61 is for example made of neoprene and can have a hollow or sponge filled lower part.

To assemble the door bottom structure 11, the recessed (center) portion of the leaf spring 41 is placed in the upper compartment of the drop bar 57 and is secured in the upper compartment by the pivot pin 63 or any equivalent fastener. Retained, thereby forming a single or unitary unit. Next, the blocks 37 and 39 of the push rod and spring assembly 35 are U-shaped channel members.
The drop bar assemblies 57 that are slid into the upper inner areas 31 of the 13 and are attached to them are at the same time the lower inner areas 33.
Is slid in. The tapped holes in block 37 are grooved members
13 is aligned with the hole formed in one leg and a retaining screw 73 is inserted to retain the block 39, which allows
A single unit consisting of push rod 47, spring 41 and drop bar assembly 57 is held in place. In the assembled condition of FIGS. 3-7, the drop bar assembly 57 rests completely within the lower interior region of the U-shaped channel 13.

The assembled door bottom structure 11 can be secured to the door so that the bottom of the channel member 13 is flush with the bottom of the door as shown in FIG. The push rod and spring assembly 35 is adjustable so that the channel member 13
And drop bar assembly 57 has a 6 inch (15.24c) hook to fit a wide range of door widths.
m) can be as short as the length. Further, it can be easily inserted from both sides of the push rod and spring assembly 35 and the channel member 13, and can be attached by the left hand or the right hand. This is one standard size door bottom structure 11,
It allows easy cutting on site to accommodate different bottom gaps and openings from different directions. It also allows the door bottom structure 11 to be mass-produced primarily from extruded pieces of material, all channel members, and sealing elements, with the only exception of this being push rods and springs. Assembly 35, which is extremely simple to manufacture for doors of varying sizes and thus saves a great deal on manufacturing costs.

When the wind and rain / outside air intrusion prevention clogging is attached to the door of FIG. 1, the seat (not shown) is located at the side of the door so that the end cap 49 may contact the seat when the door is closed. It is attached to a pillar (see FIG. 2 showing the operation of the end cap 49 when contacting the side pillar of the door). This allows
The end cap 49 is moved into the channel 13 to move the sliding block 39 in the first inner section 31 to the right, as shown in FIG. When the second sliding block 39 moves, the leaf spring 41 causes the holding screw 73 holding the block 37 to move.
It is further flexed or dished. Leaf spring 41
The plate spring 41 is further flexed into the second inner area 33 and acts on the drop bar 57, so that the entire drop bar assembly 57 causes the friction force of the sealing strip 67 to be reduced. Is forced downwards against and part of it goes out of the lower area of the channel 13 until it contacts the door sill. The amount of movement or reciprocation of the drop bar assembly 57, and thus the pressure of the sealing member 61 against the door sill, depends, of course, on the space between the bottom of the door and the amount of movement of the sealing element 61. This movement can be adjusted up to approximately 1 inch (2.54 cm) by adjusting the end cap 49 on the push rod 47.

As shown in FIG. 1, when the door bottom of the present invention is attached to the door, the sealing element 61 is deflexed by removing pressure on the end cap 49 as the door is released. Due to the action of the leaf spring 41, it is automatically retracted and completely enters the channel member 13. Therefore,
The door can be opened more easily without inadvertent wear of the sealing element 61. Furthermore, after closing the door, only after the door is completely closed, the sealing element 61
Is touched by the door sill. Thus, the door bottom structure can be adjusted to ensure maximum movement of the sealing element 61, which more effectively fills the space between the door and the door sill. Also, if the door or door sill is misaligned or misshaped, the ability to adjust the fill moves the flexible sealing element to adjust to match the closed space. To do.

In order to ensure that the automatic door bottom structure of the door of the present invention provides a more uniform seal, and to avoid premature contact with the adjacent floor or sill when the door is closed, a pair or Two pairs of magnets are used which cause one end of the flexible closure element 61 to fall before the other end to contact the sill of the door. The first pair of magnets 75 and 77 are located near the second sliding block 39 and end cap 49. The first magnets 75 of this pair are attached to the top wall 21 of the channel 13 by an affinity adhesive or any other suitable method. The second magnet 77 of this pair is similarly attached to the drop bar assembly 57. The first pair of magnets 75 and 77 are oriented to repel each other. The second pair of magnets 79 and
81 is arranged near the first sliding block 37. The third magnet 79 is similar to the first magnet 75 in that the upper wall 21 of the channel member 13 is
Attached to. The fourth magnet 81, like the second magnet 77, is attached to the drop bar assembly 57. The second pair of magnets are oriented to attract each other. As the magnets of the first pair repel each other, the end of the sealing element 61 closest to the end cap 49 is first pushed out of the channel 13. Similarly, due to the attractive forces of the second pair of magnets,
One end of the sealing element 61 is held in the channel member 13 at a position near the first sliding block 37, and in this holding state, the rest of the sealing element 61 is pushed out of the channel member 13. Maintained up to. In this way, as the door is closed, the part of the sealing element 61 of the door frame closest to the hinge measurement is
First it falls on the threshold. The part farthest from the inside of the door and not yet moved onto the sill remains retracted to avoid rubbing the adjacent floor or carpet. When that part of the sealing element 61 has been moved onto the sill, this part falls as the door approaches its fully closed position. Conversely, when the door is opened, this outer end of the sealing element 61 retracts first.

Approximately the same effect can be achieved by using only a pair of repelling magnets 75,77 or by removing one of the attracting magnets 79,81 and using a steel plate instead. .

The present invention has another unique and important feature. That is, the door bottom structure takes a horizontal position by itself because of its unique spring structure and because it is connected to the drop lever assembly. The pivot pin simply interconnects the drop bar to the spring, and when the push rod forces the spring to flex, the spring abuts a sealing element in the drop bar. Flattened, the sealing element conforms to the floor.

Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing a preferred embodiment of the present invention mounted on an open door. 2 is a partial top cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, showing a protruding push rod of the present invention in two positions before and after contacting a door frame. is there. FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the present invention taken along line 5-5 of FIG. FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view of the present invention taken along line 6-6 of FIG. FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view of the present invention taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 11 …… Bottom structure of automatic door, 13 …… Channel member 27,29 …… Rib member, 31 …… Upper inner area 33 …… Lower inner area 35 …… Push rod and spring assembly 37 …… Fixing block , 39 ...... Sliding block 41 ...... Leaf spring, 47 ...... Push rod 49 ...... End cap, 57 ...... Drop bar assembly 61 ...... Sealing element 77, 75 ...... 1st pair magnet 79 , 81 …… The second pair of magnets

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. An automatic bottom structure for a door, comprising: a) an inverted U-shaped channel member, the channel member being formed in the interior thereof and extending in a plurality of longitudinal directions facing each other. Existing rib members that divide the channel member into upper and lower interior regions, the upper inner region being located along the closure of the U-shaped channel member. And the inner portion of the lower portion is located along the opening of the channel, and the automatic bottom structure of the door comprises: b) a drop bar assembly having first and second ends, The drop bar assembly is located within the lower inner region, and the drop bar assembly includes a flexible sealing element, the self-bottoming structure of the door comprises: c) one of the channel members. Mounted in said upper inner area and releasable therein by a retaining block Comprises an adjustable push rod assembly lengths held in,
The push rod assembly includes a push rod having first and second ends, the second end of the push rod protruding outside one end of the upper section of the channel member, and A second end of the push rod is slidable relative to the upper section and the push rod is disposed within the channel member above the second end of the drop bar assembly. The automatic bottom structure of the door comprises d) spring means which is engaged with the first end of the push rod and interconnected with the drop bar assembly, thereby Forming an assembly, the unitary assembly being retained in the channel by the retaining block, the drop bar assembly and the flexible sealing element for actuating the spring means. Moving the second end of the into the channel. As such, when a force is applied to the second end of the push rod, it is biased to partially exit out of the lower inner area of the channel, and The bottom structure comprises: e) comprising first and second interacting magnet means,
The first magnet means is fixedly mounted near the push rod in a fixed position in the upper inner section, and the second magnet means is below the first magnet means, the drop bar. The first and second interacting magnet means connected to the assembly have similar polarities to repel each other, so that the second of the push rods actuates the spring means. When a force is applied to the end, the second end of the drop bar assembly is based on the repulsion of the fixed magnet means and prior to the first end of the drop bar assembly, the door sill. An automatic bottom structure for the door, characterized in that it is forcibly moved out of the channel so as to come into contact with. 2. A first end of the push rod engages one end of a flexible leaf spring, the center of the leaf spring extending from the first inner section of the channel member to the second inner portion. Projecting into the area and interconnected to the drop bar assembly, so that the leaf spring is flexed as the second end of the push rod slides into the channel, resulting in The door automatic bottom structure of claim 1, wherein the flexible closure element is partially forced out of the channel to contact a door sill. 3. The end cap means for adjusting the length of the push rod further comprises means for resisting changes in adjustment when the bottom structure of the door is assembled in an operative condition. 3. It is suppressed by
Automatic bottom structure of the door described. 4. The end cap means projecting into the upper inner region of the channel when the bottom structure of the door is assembled in an operative condition, the end cap means comprising:
Restrained from rotating by the sides of the channel,
4. The automatic door bottom structure according to claim 3, wherein the end cap means comprises a multi-sided end cap screw that is held in a threaded state by the second end portion of the push rod. 5. The holding block is fixed to the spring means, and is further fixed in the groove-shaped member by a screw screwed to penetrate the groove-shaped member. The automatic door bottom structure described in 1. 6. Above the first end of the drop bar assembly,
Further comprising third magnet means disposed in the upper inner region and fourth magnet means connected to the drop bar assembly near the first end of the drop bar assembly. 3. The automatic door bottom structure according to claim 1, wherein the third and fourth magnet means interact with each other. 7. The drop bar comprises: the third and fourth interacting magnet means attracting each other such that the second end of the drop bar assembly contacts the sill of the door. 7. The automatic door bottom structure of claim 6, wherein the first end of the assembly delays movement of the door in contact with the sill. 8. An automatic door bottom structure for sealing a gap between a door bottom and its adjacent sill, comprising: a) an inverted U-shaped groove for mounting along the door bottom. A member, the U-shaped portion of which has two rib members formed on the inner surface of the channel member, the rib members dividing the channel member into upper and lower inner sections. And the automatic bottom structure of the door is: b) first and second located in the inner area of the upper part
A push rod and spring assembly comprising a sliding block, the first block being removably secured in position within the channel member and the second block being in the inner region of the upper portion. Mounted in a free state and slidable relative to the first block, the first and second blocks being interconnected by a curved leaf spring,
A central portion of the leaf spring projects into the inner region of the lower portion of the channel member, and a push rod connected to the slidable second block moves away from the leaf spring, and The automatic bottom structure of the door projecting out of one end of the channel member comprises: c) an end cap projecting from the channel member on the push rod, and d) first and second ends. A drop bar having a drop closure bar slidably disposed within an interior region of the lower portion of the channel member, the drop bar having a flexible closure element attached thereto. The flexible closure element has first and second ends, the drop bar having means for connecting the drop bar to the leaf spring, the leaf spring exerting a force on the end cap. When deformed, it is deformed so that The cap is moved into the channel to further project the leaf spring into the lower inner region, thereby allowing a flexible sealing element attached to the drop bar to move to the channel. Partially forcibly moving out of the inner area of the lower part of
Moving into the sill of the door, the automatic bottom structure of the door is: e) first and second interacting magnet means located near the second end of the drop bar and the second block. The first magnet means is disposed in the inner region of the upper portion, the second magnet means is connected to the drop bar, and the first and second interacting magnet means repel each other. , Thereby allowing the first of the drop bar to
An automatic bottom structure for a door, characterized in that the second end of the drop bar with the flexible sealing element attached is brought into contact with the sill of the door prior to the end.