JP7493147B2 - Door opening and closing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a door opening and closing device that opens and closes a sliding door panel.

2. Description of the Related Art Door opening and closing devices that transmit rotational drive of a motor to open and close a sliding door are known.
For example, Patent Document 1 listed below discloses a door opening and closing device that includes a drive pulley at one end in the door opening and closing direction, around which a string member is wound, and which transmits the rotational force of a motor to the string member, and a driven pulley at the other end in the door opening and closing direction, around which the string member is wound.

JP 2019-108678 A

However, the door opening and closing device described in Patent Document 1 has a configuration in which the motor that rotates the drive pulley is provided on the outside of the drive pulley in the door width direction. Therefore, since space is required to install the motor on the outside of the drive pulley in the door width direction, there are concerns that it may be necessary to increase the frame width dimension of the door frame or require work to embed it into a wall, etc.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above situation, and aims to provide a door opening and closing device that can achieve compact dimensions along the door width direction.

In order to achieve the above object, the door opening and closing device of the present invention is a door opening and closing device equipped with an upper rail that guides a guided member connected to the upper end of a sliding door panel and suspends and holds the sliding door panel so that it can slide freely in the door width direction, and is characterized by having a first driven rotating wheel and a second driven rotating wheel that are wound around a cord-like transmission body connected to the guided member and are positioned at positions spaced apart in the door width direction, a drive rotating wheel that is positioned between the first and second driven rotating wheels and above the upper rail, transmits drive to the cord-like transmission body, and a motor that rotates the drive rotating wheel.

The door opening and closing device of the present invention has the above-mentioned configuration, which allows for compact dimensions along the door width direction.

1A and 1B are schematic front views, partially cut away, showing an example of a door opening and closing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, with some parts omitted. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional side view, partially broken away, of the door opening and closing device. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view, partially cut away, showing the door opening and closing device; FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view, partially cut away, showing the door opening and closing device; FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view, partially cut away, showing the door opening and closing device; 4A to 4C are schematic perspective views of the door opening and closing device with a portion thereof omitted. 3A and 3B are schematic perspective views, partially cut away, of the door opening and closing device, in which a part of the door opening and closing device is omitted. 2A is a schematic exploded perspective view in which a part of the door opening and closing device is omitted, and FIG. 2B is a schematic partially cutaway front view in which a part of the door opening and closing device is omitted. 1A is a partially cutaway schematic exploded perspective view in which a portion of the door opening and closing device is omitted, and FIGS. 1B to 1D are partially cutaway schematic front views in which a portion of the door opening and closing device is omitted. FIG. 13A and 13B are schematic front views, partially cut away, showing a modified example of the door opening and closing device, with some parts omitted. 11A to 11C are schematic front views, partially cut away, showing other modified examples of the door opening and closing device.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In some drawings, some of the detailed reference numerals used in other drawings are omitted.
In the following embodiment, directions such as up and down directions will be described based on the state in which the door opening and closing device according to this embodiment is installed.

1 to 11 are diagrams that diagrammatically show an example and a modified example of a door opening and closing device according to the present embodiment.
1(a) and 1(b), the door opening and closing device 1 according to this embodiment includes an upper rail 10 that guides a guided member 29 connected to an upper end 9a of a sliding door panel 9 and suspends and holds the sliding door panel 9 so that it can slide in the door width direction. The door opening and closing device 1 also includes a drive mechanism 20 that is connected to the guided member 29 and slides the guided member 29 in the door width direction. With this configuration, when the drive mechanism 20 is driven, the guided member 29 moves in the door width direction, and the sliding door panel 9 can be opened and closed (opened and closed). In other words, the sliding door panel 9 can function as an automatic door.

The door opening and closing device 1 also includes an upper frame 3 as a fixed object to which the upper rail 10 is fixed. This door opening and closing device 1 may be a sliding door device constituted by a door frame 2 including the upper frame 3 and a sliding door panel 9. The door opening and closing device 1 may be installed in a variety of locations, including a regular residence such as a detached house or an apartment building, public facilities such as accommodation facilities, medical facilities, welfare facilities, commercial facilities such as offices, and various stores.
In this embodiment, an example is shown in which one sliding door panel 9 is installed in a single sliding manner. In the example shown in the figure, the sliding door panel 9 is installed in a sleeve wall manner, but it can be installed in any appropriate manner such as in a door pocket or offset.

The door frame 2 is installed in an opening in a wall of a building. This door frame 2 is equipped with an upper frame 3 (upper rail 10) that defines the upper side of the entrance 8 that is opened and closed by the sliding door panel 9, a door end side vertical frame 4 arranged on the door end side of the sliding door panel 9, a door end side vertical frame 5 arranged on the door end side of the sliding door panel 9, and a middle mullion (middle vertical frame) 6. The middle mullion 6 is arranged along the end of the entrance 8 side of the sleeve wall (not shown), and defines both sides of the opening width of the entrance 8 together with the door end side vertical frame 4. The upper frame 3 may be attached or embedded in the ceiling, or may be installed along the lower end of the hanging wall. The lower side of the entrance 8 may also be defined by a floor or an appropriate lower frame.

As shown in Fig. 1(a), the upper frame 3 is elongated in the door width direction. The length dimension of the upper frame 3 is approximately twice the door width (maximum door width, described below) W1 (see Fig. 1(b)) of the sliding door panel 9. As shown in Fig. 2, the upper frame 3 is arranged so that the thickness direction is the up-down direction. Furthermore, the upper frame 3 has a projected dimension (dimension along the door thickness direction) of the sleeve wall side portion arranged on the sleeve wall side smaller than the projected dimension of the entranceway 8 side portion arranged on the entranceway 8 side (see also Fig. 5).
The upper frame 3 is also provided with a receiving groove 3a for receiving an upper portion of the drive mechanism 20, which will be described later. With this configuration, it is possible to easily align the upper rail 10 on which the drive mechanism 20 is provided. The receiving groove 3a is provided so as to open downward and extend over the entire length of the upper frame 3. The upper frame 3 may be fixed to an appropriate upper frame base such as a lintel by fasteners such as screws or nails.

As shown in Fig. 1(a), the leading edge vertical frame 4, trailing edge vertical frame 5, and middle mullion 6 are elongated in the door height direction (vertical direction). The length dimension of the leading edge vertical frame 4, trailing edge vertical frame 5, and middle mullion 6 is approximately the same as the door height dimension of the sliding door panel 9 plus the vertical dimension of the upper rail 10 including the drive mechanism 20 and the upper frame 3. The leading edge vertical frame 4, trailing edge vertical frame 5, and middle mullion 6 are arranged so that their thickness direction is the door width direction. The projected dimension of the trailing edge vertical frame 5 and middle mullion 6 is smaller than the projected dimension of the leading edge vertical frame 4 (see Fig. 2).
The leading edge vertical frame 4 and trailing edge vertical frame 5 may be fixed to an appropriate vertical frame base such as a pillar with fasteners. The leading edge vertical frame 4 and trailing edge vertical frame 5 and the upper frame 3 may be fixed to the vertical frame base and the upper frame base in a state of being assembled in a three-sided frame shape. In the illustrated example, the leading edge vertical frame 4 and trailing edge vertical frame 5 have their facing surfaces at the upper ends thereof butted against the longitudinal end faces of the upper frame 3, and the leading edge vertical frame 4 and trailing edge vertical frame 5 and the upper frame 3 are assembled in a vertically-aligned manner.

In addition, the facing surfaces of the leading edge vertical frame 4 and the trailing edge vertical frame 5 may be provided with door grooves to accommodate each end (leading edge end and trailing edge end) of the sliding door panel 9 on both sides in the door width direction.
The upper end of the middle mullion 6 may be fixed to the upper frame 3, and the lower end may be fixed to the floor. The end of the middle mullion 6 on the sliding door panel 9 side may be provided with a gap shielding member such as mohair that rubs against one side of the sliding door panel 9 in the thickness direction. The door frame 2 is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration, and may have various other configurations.

The sliding door panel 9 is a generally rectangular flat plate that is long in one direction (the up-down direction). The door height (length) of the sliding door panel 9 may be a standard door height, for example, about 1800 mm to 2100 mm, as long as it corresponds to the opening height of the entrance 8 that is opened and closed by the sliding door panel 9. The sliding door panel 9 may also be a high door whose door height is approximately the same as the ceiling height, for example, about 2300 mm to 3000 mm. The door thickness of the sliding door panel 9 may be about 20 mm to 40 mm.
The door width dimension of the sliding door panel 9 is a preset maximum door width W1. This maximum door width W1 may be, for example, about 1200 mm to 1800 mm so as to be compatible with the various installation locations as described above. When the sliding door panel 9 is installed indoors, it may be a relatively lightweight panel such as a so-called flush panel configured by attaching a surface material to a panel core material including a frame-shaped core material formed from a wood-based material, a metal-based material, or the like, which is used as a general indoor sliding door. The sliding door panel 9 is not limited to such a flush panel, and may be configured appropriately depending on the installation location, etc.

The first guided member 29A constituting the guided member 29 is connected to the upper end 9a on the door front side, which is one side of the door width direction of the sliding door panel 9, and the second guided member 29B constituting the guided member 29 is connected to the upper end 9a on the door rear side, which is the other side of the door width direction. These first guided member 29A and second guided member 29B are generally configured similarly to each other. As shown in FIG. 2, these first guided member 29A and second guided member 29B are provided with attachment parts 29a that are attached to the attachment part of the sliding door panel 9. The attachment parts of the sliding door panel 9 are provided at the upper end 9a on both sides of the door width direction of the sliding door panel 9 so as to open toward the outside and upward in the door width direction, and are recessed cup parts into which the attachment parts 29a are fitted.

The first guided member 29A and the second guided member 29B are provided with a support shaft 29b that protrudes upward from the mounting portion 29a, and a guide body 29c that is fixed to the upper end of the support shaft 29b. The guide body 29c is provided with a rolling element 29d that runs on the guide piece portion 13a of the upper rail 10, which will be described later. In the illustrated example, the rolling elements 29d that rotate around an axis along the door thickness direction are provided on both sides of the guide body 29c in the door thickness direction. The rolling elements 29d on both sides in the door thickness direction may be provided at multiple locations on the guide body 29c with a gap in the door width direction.

Further, the drive mechanism 20 is connected to the first guided member 29A, which is one of the two sides in the door width direction, as will be described in detail later. In other words, the first guided member 29A is slid in the door width direction by the drive mechanism 20, and the second guided member 29B on the other side, which is not connected to the drive mechanism 20, is, so to speak, slid in the door width direction in a driven manner.
It should be noted that the first guided member 29A and the second guided member 29B are not limited to the configuration described above, and may be configured appropriately according to the upper rail 10 described below.
Furthermore, the lower end of the sliding door panel 9 may be provided with a guide groove or the like into which a lower end guide member such as a guide pin provided on the floor side is inserted.

As shown in FIG. 1(b), the upper rail 10 has a maximum length L1 that is approximately twice the maximum door width W1 of the sliding door panel 9. In this embodiment, the upper rail 10 is configured to have the maximum length L1, and the drive mechanism 20 is fixed to the first half 10A on one side of the longitudinal direction. With this configuration, when the sliding door panel 9 has the maximum door width W1, as in this embodiment, the sliding door panel 9 can be opened and closed by sliding the first guided member 29A in the first half 10A of the maximum upper rail 10 and sliding the second guided member 29B on the second half 10B side of the maximum upper rail 10. In addition, when the door width of the sliding door panel 9 is smaller than the maximum door width W1, the length of the upper rail 10 can be adjusted to approximately twice the door width by, for example, cutting the second half 10B side or shortening it in advance, so that a common drive mechanism 20 can be applied.

In other words, even if the dimension of the second half 10B side of the longest upper rail 10 is shortened, it does not affect the first half 10A side to which the drive mechanism 20 is fixed, and there is no need to change the installation position of the drive mechanism 20. This allows the common drive mechanism 20 to be applied to sliding door panels 9 with a maximum door width W1 to sliding door panels 9A with a door width (minimum door width) W2 (see FIG. 10) that is approximately half that width, improving versatility. In other words, the dimension of the drive mechanism 20 along the rail longitudinal direction (door width direction) is set to approximately twice the minimum door width W2 or less so that the sliding door panel 9A with the minimum door width W2 can be opened and closed.
10(a) and 10(b) is configured to open and close a sliding door panel 9A having a door width W2 that is approximately half that of the sliding door panel 9 having the maximum door width W1 described above. The length L2 of the upper rail 10C of this door opening and closing device 1A is approximately twice the door width W2 of the sliding door panel 9A and approximately half the length L1 of the maximum upper rail 10 described above. In other words, the length L2 of this upper rail 10C is approximately the same length as the length of the first half 10A of the maximum upper rail 10 described above.

Other configurations of the door opening and closing device 1A according to the modified example are similar to those of the door opening and closing device 1 shown in FIG. 1 etc., so they are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.
In each example, the length L1, L2 of the upper rail 10, 10C is smaller than twice the door width W1, W2. The length L1, L2 of the upper rail 10, 10C may be appropriately determined depending on the overlap dimension between the end of the sliding door panel 9, 9A on the door tail side and the middle mullion 6 (sleeve wall) in the closed state, the remaining dimension of the sliding door panel 9, 9A in the fully open state, etc. In other words, the length L1, L2 of the upper rail 10, 10C may be approximately the same as the dimension obtained by subtracting twice the overlap dimension from twice the door width W1, W2 of the sliding door panel 9, 9A.

In this embodiment, the second half 10B on the other side of the longest upper rail 10 in the longitudinal direction is cuttable. With this configuration, if the door width W2 of the sliding door panel 9A is smaller than the maximum door width W1, the second half 10B side can be cut to a length L2 that can guide the sliding door panel 9A, so that the upper rail 10C can be made to have a length L2 that can guide the sliding door panel 9A. This makes it possible to cut the second half 10B side with the drive mechanism 20 attached to the first half 10A, for example, and this can be easily done even after shipping from the factory. This upper rail 10 may be made of metal, with at least the second half 10B having a uniform cross-sectional shape over its entire length and cuttable by an appropriate cutting tool.

2, the upper rail 10 is provided with a guide groove 11 that opens downward and receives the guided member 29 (first guided member 29A and second guided member 29B). The guide groove 11 is provided to extend over the entire length of the upper rail 10. A guide body 29c of the guided member 29 is inserted into the guide groove 11 and is guided.
The upper rail 10 includes a groove bottom plate-like portion 12 that defines the bottom of the guide groove 11, side plate-like portions 13, 13 on both sides that define both sides in the groove width direction of the guide groove 11, and guide pieces 13a, 13a extending in directions facing each other from the lower ends of the side plate-like portions 13, 13. The upper rail 10 also includes protruding pieces 14, 14 on both sides that are provided to protrude upward from both side edges in the groove width direction on the upper surface side of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12.

At the tip of the extending direction of the guide pieces 13a, 13a on both sides, a protrusion protruding upward is provided so as to extend over the entire length of the upper rail 10. The protrusions of these guide pieces 13a, 13a engage with annular grooves provided on the outer peripheral surface of the rolling bodies 29d, 29d of the guided member 29, and the rolling bodies 29d, 29d run along the protrusions of these guide pieces 13a, 13a. Note that the upper rail 10 is not limited to one having guide pieces 13a, 13a on which the respective rolling bodies 29d, 29d run, which are provided at intervals on both sides in the door thickness direction. The upper rail 10 may, for example, be one having one guide piece that holds the rolling bodies 29d provided only on one side in the door thickness direction of the guided member 29 so that they can be hooked, or may have various other configurations.

2 to 5, the drive mechanism 20 is fixed onto the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 of the upper rail 10. With this configuration, the upper rail 10 can be fixed to a fixing target such as the upper frame 3 of the door frame 2 to which the sliding door panel 9 is attached, with the drive mechanism 20 integrated into the upper rail 10. Furthermore, compared to a case in which the drive mechanism 20 is fixed to the side plate-like portion 13 of the upper rail 10, for example, the dimensions along the door thickness direction can be made more compact.
As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the drive mechanism 20 includes a first driven rotating wheel 21 constituting a first rotating wheel and a second driven rotating wheel 25 constituting a second rotating wheel, which are provided at positions spaced apart in the door width direction. The drive mechanism 20 also includes a string-like power transmission body 28 wound around each of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 and connected to the first guided member 29A, and a drive unit 30 that transmits drive to the string-like power transmission body 28. With this configuration, when the drive unit 30 is driven, the first guided member 29A connected to the string-like power transmission body 28 is moved in the door width direction, and the sliding door panel 9 can be opened or closed.

The first driven rotating wheel 21 is provided to be located at the first end 10a on one side of the longitudinal direction of the first half 10A of the longest upper rail 10. The second driven rotating wheel 25 is provided to be located at the second end 10b on the other side of the longitudinal direction of the first half 10A of the longest upper rail 10. With this configuration, the first guided member 29A can be slid over almost the entire length of the first half 10A of the longest upper rail 10 by the string-like transmission body 28 wrapped around them. In addition, even when applied to different door widths W1 and W2, it can be applied without changing the installation positions of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 or the length of the string-like transmission body 28.

The drive unit 30 is provided between the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 and above the upper rail 10, and includes a drive rotating wheel 31 that transmits drive to the string-like transmission body 28, and a motor 35 that rotates the drive rotating wheel 31. With this configuration, when the drive rotating wheel 31 is rotated by the motor 35, the first guided member 29A connected to the string-like transmission body 28 is moved in the door width direction, and the sliding door panel 9 can be opened and closed. In addition, compared to a case in which the drive rotating wheel 31 and the motor 35 are provided at one end of the door width direction, the dimensions along the door width direction can be made more compact. In addition, compared to a case in which the drive rotating wheel 31 is provided on one side of the upper rail 10 in the door thickness direction, the dimensions along the door thickness direction can be made more compact. As a result, it is possible to install it on a door frame 2 that is the same size as the door frame of a sliding door device installed in a general building such as a residence. In addition, for example, it can be installed on an existing door frame 2, and can be applied not only to new construction but also to reconstruction and remodeling. This makes it suitable for use as a door opening and closing device 1 for opening and closing a sliding door panel 9 installed indoors in general housing such as existing detached houses and apartment buildings, public facilities such as accommodation facilities, medical facilities, and welfare facilities, commercial facilities such as offices, and various stores. In addition, because the door opening and closing device 1 is compact, it is possible to make the sliding door panel 9 function as an automatic door, but even if it is installed as an indoor sliding door, the strange appearance (noise) can be reduced, making it suitable for use indoors.

The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 have their respective shafts, the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26, parallel to each other. In addition, the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 are arranged to intersect with the axial direction of the drive axle 32 of the drive rotating wheel 31, which is arranged so that its axial direction is in the door height direction. With this configuration, the dimensions along the door thickness direction can be made more compact than when the axial direction of the drive rotating wheel 31 is in the door thickness direction and the motor 35 is provided adjacent to the door thickness direction. In addition, the part of the cord-like transmission body 28 connected to the first guided member 29A and the part to which the drive is transmitted to the drive rotating wheel 31 can be arranged above and below. This makes it possible to more effectively make the dimensions along the door thickness direction more compact than when the axial direction of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 is in the door height direction.

As shown in FIG. 7, the motor 35 is arranged on one side of the drive wheel 31 in the door width direction so that the axial direction of the output shaft 36 is in the door width direction, and is configured to rotate the drive wheel 31 via gears 33, 37. With this configuration, it is possible to make the dimensions along the door height direction more compact than when the motor 35 is provided so that the axial direction of the output shaft 36 is in the door height direction. The specific configuration of the drive unit 30, including the drive wheel 31 and motor 35, will be described later.

A string-like power transmission body 28 is wound around the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 in a parallel manner (see FIG. 4). The lower displacement portion 28b of the string-like power transmission body 28 is connected to the first guided member 29A and displaced in the door width direction, and the upper displacement portion 28a is displaced in the opposite direction to the lower displacement portion 28b in the door width direction (see FIG. 2). The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 have the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 inclined so that the lower displacement portion 28b and the upper displacement portion 28a of the string-like power transmission body 28 are at different positions in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10. With this configuration, the lower displacement part 28b and the upper displacement part 28a of the cord-like transmission body 28 are positioned at positions offset in the door thickness direction, and various devices and components can be placed using the space to the side of one of the lower displacement part 28b and the upper displacement part 28a in the door thickness direction.

The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are provided with the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 inclined so that the lower displacement portion 28b is located approximately in the center in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10, and the upper displacement portion 28a is located in a position offset to one side in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10. With this configuration, the lower displacement portion 28b located approximately in the center in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10 can be connected to the first guided member 29A. This allows the first guided member 29A to be moved in the door width direction more stably than when the lower displacement portion 28b is connected to the first guided member 29A or the upper end portion 9a of the sliding door panel 9 on one side in the door thickness direction by a connecting member. In addition, various devices and components can be arranged by utilizing the space on the side in the door thickness direction of the upper displacement portion 28a, which is displaced at a position offset to one side in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10.

In addition, the drive wheel 31 and the motor 35 described below are arranged to be located on one side of the upper displacement portion 28a in the door thickness direction. With this configuration, the drive wheel 31 and the motor 35 constituting the drive unit 30 can be arranged by utilizing the space on one side of the upper displacement portion 28a in the door thickness direction.
Moreover, the lower displacement portion 28b is disposed within the guide groove 11, and the upper displacement portion 28a is disposed above the groove bottom plate-like portion 12. With this configuration, the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 is interposed between the lower displacement portion 28b and the upper displacement portion 28a, which are displaced in opposite directions in the door width direction, and interference between them can be suppressed. Furthermore, if the upper displacement portion 28a is disposed at a position offset to one side in the door thickness direction of the upper rail 10 as in this embodiment, the space above the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 can be effectively utilized.

The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are of the same size and shape. The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are thin disk-shaped with relatively small dimensions along the axial direction of the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26. The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are pulleys with annular grooves 21a, 25a (see FIG. 6) on their outer circumferential surfaces, into which the rope-like transmission body 28, which is a rope-like member, engages. The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are arranged so that they are aligned with each other when viewed in the door width direction. The first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are arranged so that their lower end portions are located in the approximate center of the groove width direction in the guide groove 11, and their upper end portions are located above the groove bottom plate-like portion 12, biased to one side in the groove width direction (see FIG. 2). The first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are arranged so as to be perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the upper rail 10, and are arranged so as to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane (upper surface of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12). The inclination angle of the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 with respect to the horizontal plane (upper surface of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12) may be about 10 degrees to 60 degrees, and an example is shown in the figure where it is about 30 degrees.

In addition, at least one of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 is held on the upper rail 10 so that its position can be adjusted in the door width direction. With this configuration, the tension of the string-like power transmission body 28 can be adjusted. In this embodiment, the position of the first driven rotating wheel 21 is adjustable in the door width direction.
As shown in Figures 6 (a) and (b), the first driven rotating wheel 21 is held so as to be freely rotatable around the first driven wheel axle 22 relative to a holding member 23 which is held so as to be adjustable in position in the door width direction relative to a fixing member 24 fixed to the groove bottom plate portion 12.
The fixing member 24 includes a fixing piece 24a that is fixed so as to fit along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12, and a holding piece 24b that is provided so as to rise from one edge of the fixing piece 24a in the rail width direction (door thickness direction). The holding member 23 includes a held piece 23a that is arranged so as to fit along the surface of one side in the door thickness direction of the holding piece 24b.

The holding piece portion 24b of the fixing member 24 is provided with a screw insertion hole 24c penetrating in the door thickness direction, through which the shaft of the fastener 7 is inserted and screwed into a female threaded hole provided in the held piece portion 23a of the holding member 23 so as to penetrate in the door thickness direction. This screw insertion hole 24c is an elongated hole with a long diameter in the door width direction so that the position of the holding member 23 in the door width direction relative to the fixing member 24 can be adjusted. In addition, the holding piece portion 23a of the holding member 23 is provided with multiple female threaded holes (two in the example shown) spaced apart in the door width direction, and the holding piece portion 24b of the fixing member 24 is provided with multiple screw insertion holes 24c, 24c through which the shaft of the fastener 7 screwed into these female threaded holes is inserted.

The fixing member 24 is also provided with a screw insertion hole that penetrates the door width direction, through which the shaft of the fastener 7 is inserted and that is screwed into a female screw hole that is provided to penetrate the holding member 23 in the door width direction. With this configuration, the holding member 23 can be moved in the door width direction relative to the fixing member 24 by rotating the fastener 7 around its axis. The illustrated example shows an example in which a shaft receiving piece 23c that protrudes in the door thickness direction and has a female screw hole is provided at one end of the held piece 23a of the holding member 23 in the door width direction. Also, an example is shown in which a head receiving piece 24d that protrudes in the door thickness direction and has a screw insertion hole is provided at one end of the holding piece 24b of the fixing member 24 in the door width direction. The figure also shows an example in which a protruding piece that protrudes in the door thickness direction is provided on the upper edge of the holding piece portion 24b of the fixing member 24, and a protruding piece that can be fitted along the underside of the protruding piece portion of the holding piece portion 24b is provided on the upper edge of the held piece portion 23a of the holding member 23.

The retained piece 23a of the retaining member 23 is provided with a wheel bearing piece 23b extending downward from the lower edge of one end in the door width direction. The first driven axle 22 is provided on the wheel bearing piece 23b. In the illustrated example, the wheel bearing piece 23b is inclined with respect to the retained piece 23a so that the thickness direction is the axial direction of the first driven axle 22. The first driven rotating wheel 21 may be rotatable with respect to the first driven axle 22 fixedly provided with respect to the wheel bearing piece 23b, or may be fixedly provided with respect to the first driven axle 22 held rotatably with respect to the wheel bearing piece 23b.
The first driven rotating wheel unit, which includes the fixing member 24, the holding member 23 and the first driven rotating wheel 21, is attached to the upper rail 10 by fixing the fixing member 24 to the groove bottom plate portion 12 of the first end portion 10a of the first half 10A using fasteners such as screws (see also Figures 3 and 4).

In addition, when adjusting the position of the first driven rotating wheel 21 in the door width direction, the fasteners 7, 7 inserted into the screw insertion holes 24c, 24c of the holding piece portion 24b of the fixing member 24 may be loosened, and the fasteners 7 inserted into the screw insertion holes of the head receiving piece portion 24d of the fixing member 24 may be screwed. In this case, since the string-like transmission body 28 can be wound around it, the workability can be improved. In addition, once the position of the first driven rotating wheel 21 in the door width direction is adjusted, the fasteners 7, 7 inserted into the screw insertion holes 24c, 24c of the holding piece portion 24b of the fixing member 24 may be tightened. Note that the manner in which the position of the first driven rotating wheel 21 can be adjusted in the door width direction is not limited to the above-mentioned manner, and various other manners may be used. Furthermore, the fixing member 24 that fixes the first driven rotating wheel 21 to the upper rail 10 is not limited to the configuration described above, and may have various other configurations.

As shown in FIG. 6C , the second driven rotating wheel 25 is held rotatably about a second driven wheel shaft 26 by a fixed member 27 fixed to the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 .
The fixing member 27 includes a fixing piece portion 27a fixed along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate portion 12, and a holding piece portion 27b provided so as to rise from one side edge portion in the door thickness direction of the fixing piece portion 27a. The holding piece portion 27b is provided with a wheel bearing piece portion 27c extending downward from the lower end edge portion on one end side in the door width direction. The second driven axle 26 is provided on the wheel bearing piece portion 27c. In the illustrated example, as in the above, the wheel bearing piece portion 27c is provided inclinedly with respect to the holding piece portion 27b so that the thickness direction is the axial direction of the second driven axle 26. The second driven rotating wheel 25 may be rotatable with respect to the second driven axle 26 fixedly provided with respect to the wheel bearing piece portion 27c, or may be fixedly provided with respect to the second driven axle 26 held rotatably with respect to the wheel bearing piece portion 27c. In addition, the illustrated example shows an example in which a protruding piece portion that protrudes in the door thickness direction is provided on the upper edge of the holding piece portion 27b.

The second driven rotating wheel unit, which includes the fixed member 27 and the second driven rotating wheel 25, is attached to the upper rail 10 by fixing the fixed member 27 onto the groove bottom plate-shaped portion 12 of the second end portion 10b of the first half 10A using a fastener such as a screw (see also Figures 3 and 4).
The fixing member 27 for fixing the second driven rotating wheel 25 to the upper rail 10 is not limited to the configuration described above, and may have various other configurations.

The groove bottom plate portion 12 of the upper rail 10 is provided with a notched recess or through hole for receiving the lower portion of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 (see FIG. 4). In addition, the guide bodies 29c, 29c of the first guided member 29A and the second guided member 29B are provided with recesses that open to the upper side and both sides in the door width direction so as to receive the lower end portions of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 as viewed in the door width direction, as shown in FIG. 2. With this configuration, it is possible to compact the dimensions along the vertical direction while suppressing interference with the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25. In addition, the guide body 29c of the first guided member 29A is provided with a connecting portion 29e to which the lower displacement portion 28b of the string-like transmission body 28 is connected. This connecting portion 29e is provided so as to be located within the recess of the guide body 29c.

As shown in FIG. 2, the upper displacement portion 28a of the string-like transmission body 28, which is displaced on the upper surface side of the groove bottom peripheral surface of the annular grooves 21a, 25a of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25, is arranged at a position offset to one side in the door thickness direction on the upper side of the groove bottom plate-shaped portion 12. Also, the string-like transmission body 28 is arranged so that the lower displacement portion 28b, which is displaced on the lower surface side of the groove bottom peripheral surface of the annular grooves 21a, 25a of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25, is located at the center of the groove width direction in the guide groove 11. This string-like transmission body 28 may be one in which the connecting portion 29e of the first guided member 29A is fixed to a part formed in a ring shape, or may be one in which both longitudinal side ends are connected to both sides of the connecting portion 29e in the door width direction to form an approximately ring shape. Furthermore, the cord-like transmission body 28 may be of any construction that is difficult to stretch, such as a metal wire, a twisted cord made by twisting together suitable fibers, or a braided cord made by combining fibers.

The cord-like power transmission body 28, which is thus made into a rope-like member, is wound around the drive rotary wheel 31 one or more times, as shown in Figure 7. With this configuration, compared to a case in which the cord-like power transmission body 28 is a belt, chain, or the like, the drive rotary wheel 31 can be made more compact in the axial direction, and while noise generation and the like can be suppressed, slippage of the cord-like power transmission body 28 relative to the drive rotary wheel 31 can be suppressed.
The driving rotary wheel 31 is a thin disk-shaped wheel with a relatively small dimension along the axial direction of the driving axle 32. The driving rotary wheel 31 is a pulley with an annular groove 31a on its outer circumferential surface, with which the cord-like power transmission body 28 engages. The driving rotary wheel 31 is installed so that one surface in the thickness direction faces the upper surface of the groove bottom plate-shaped part 12. The driving rotary wheel 31 is provided so that one side of the groove bottom peripheral surface of the annular groove 31a in the door thickness direction is located in a position corresponding to the position of the upper displacement part 28a of the cord-like power transmission body 28 arranged on one side in the door thickness direction. The upper displacement part 28a of the cord-like power transmission body 28 is wound around the driving rotary wheel 31 approximately once. The intersection of the upper displacement part 28a wound around the driving rotary wheel 31 in this way is provided so that it is located approximately in line with the upper surface parts of the first driven rotary wheel 21 and the second driven rotary wheel 25 when viewed in the door width direction. In addition, the outer peripheral surfaces (groove bottom peripheral surfaces of the annular grooves 21a, 25a, 31a) around which the string-like transmission body 28 of this driving rotary wheel 31, the first driven rotary wheel 21, and the second driven rotary wheel 25 are wound may be made of a soft material with anti-slip properties by two-color molding or the like.

The driving rotary wheel 31 is provided with a gear (rotating wheel side gear) 33 that transmits rotation to a gear (motor side gear) 37 provided on a motor 35 that rotates the driving rotary wheel 31. In this embodiment, the rotating wheel side gear 33 and the motor side gear 37 are bevel gears that mesh with each other (straight bevel gears in the illustrated example) in correspondence with the driving axle 32 of the driving rotary wheel 31 and the output shaft 36 of the motor 35 that are provided so as to intersect with each other. The rotating wheel side gear 33 is non-rotatably attached to one end (the upper end in the illustrated example) of the driving axle 32 of the driving rotary wheel 31. The motor side gear 37 is non-rotatably attached to the output shaft 36 of the motor 35. The rotating wheel side gear 33 and the motor side gear 37 may be appropriately configured according to the arrangement of the driving rotary wheel 31 and the motor 35. In addition, the rotating wheel side gear 33 and the motor side gear 37 are not limited to those that are directly meshed with each other, and may be configured to transmit rotation via an appropriate intermediate gear or the like.

The drive mechanism 20 is provided with a first fixing member 34 that fixes the driving rotary wheel 31 to the upper rail 10, and a second fixing member 38 that is separate from the first fixing member 34 and that detachably fixes the motor 35 to the upper rail 10 to which the driving rotary wheel 31 is fixed. With this configuration, when the motor 35 is to be detached, the gears 33 and 37 are released from their rotation transmission state (in this embodiment, meshed) while the driving rotary wheel 31 is fixed to the upper rail 10. Then, the motor 35 can be detached from the upper rail 10 by removing the second fixing member 38 from the upper rail 10. Furthermore, when fixing the motor 35, the motor 35 can be fixed to the upper rail 10 via the second fixing member 38 with the gears 33 and 37 in a rotation transmission state (in this embodiment, meshed) while the driving rotary wheel 31 is fixed to the upper rail 10. This makes it possible to improve maintainability by eliminating the need to remove or wrap the cord-like transmission body 28 or adjust the tension when attaching or detaching the motor 35 to or from the upper rail 10. In other words, while the driving rotary wheel 31 is capable of transmitting driving force to the cord-like transmission body 28, only the motor 35 can be attached or detached from the upper rail 10. The driving rotary wheel 31 and the motor 35 are fixed onto the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 via the first fixing member 34 and the second fixing member 38.

The second fixed member 38 is provided with fixed portions 38d, 38e that are fixed to the fixed portions 34d, 34e provided on the first fixed member 34. With this configuration, the motor 35 can be relatively reliably aligned with the driving rotary wheel 31 by fixing the fixed portions 38d, 38e of the second fixed member 38 to the fixed portions 34d, 34e of the first fixed member 34. This allows the rotary wheel side gear 33 of the driving rotary wheel 31 and the motor side gear 37 of the motor 35 to be in a rotation transmission state (meshed together in this embodiment) relatively reliably.
Moreover, one of the first fixing member 34 and the second fixing member 38 is provided with a positioning protrusion 34c that fits into a positioning recess 38c provided on the other of the first fixing member 34 and the second fixing member 38. With this configuration, alignment can be easily performed when fixing the second fixing member 38 to the first fixing member 34.

The first fixing member 34 is fixed along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 and includes a fixed piece portion 34a that rotatably holds one end (the lower end in the illustrated example) of the driving axle 32 of the driving rotating wheel 31, and a wheel bearing piece portion 34b that rotatably holds the upper end side of the driving axle 32. The fixed piece portion 34a may be fixed to the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 by an appropriate fastener such as a screw. The wheel bearing piece portion 34b is disposed above the fixed piece portion 34a so as to face each other across the space in which the driving rotating wheel 31 is disposed. The rotating wheel side gear 33 is provided so as to be exposed on the upper surface side of the wheel bearing piece portion 34b.

The fixed portions 34d, 34e of the first fixing member 34 include a first fixed portion 34d on one side in the door thickness direction and a second fixed portion 34e on the other side in the door thickness direction. The first fixed portion 34d and the second fixed portion 34e are substantially flat with the thickness direction being the door thickness direction, and are spaced apart from each other in the door thickness direction. In the illustrated example, the first fixed portion 34d is provided so as to hang down from the edge of the wheel bearing piece 34b on one side in the door thickness direction. The second fixed portion 34e is provided so as to rise from the edge of the wheel bearing piece 34b on the other side in the door thickness direction.
Further, a positioning projection 34c is provided so as to project from one end portion in the door width direction of the wheel bearing piece portion 34b of the first fixing member 34.

The second fixing member 38 has a fixing piece 38a fixed along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate-like portion 12. In the illustrated example, the fixing piece 38a is provided at the lower end of a plate-like portion fixed to an end of the motor 35 on the side opposite the output shaft 36 in the axial direction. The fixing piece 38a may be fixed to the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 by a suitable fastener such as a screw.
The second fixing member 38 also includes a plate-shaped holding piece 38b fixed to an end of the motor 35 on the output shaft 36 side in the axial direction. The holding piece 38b is provided with a through hole through which the output shaft 36 is inserted. The holding piece 38b is fixed to the motor 35 (motor case) with an appropriate fastener such as a screw. The holding piece 38b also includes a positioning recess 38c into which the positioning protrusion 34c is fitted.

The fixing portions 38d, 38e of the second fixing member 38 correspond to the fixed portions 34d, 34e of the first fixing member 34, and include a first fixing portion 38d on one side in the door thickness direction and a second fixing portion 38e on the other side in the door thickness direction. The first fixing portion 38d and the second fixing portion 38e are substantially flat with the thickness direction being the door thickness direction, and are provided at intervals from each other in the door thickness direction. In the illustrated example, the first fixing portion 38d is provided so as to protrude in the door width direction from the edge of one side in the door thickness direction of the holding piece portion 38b. The second fixing portion 38e is provided so as to extend in the door width direction from the edge of the other side in the door thickness direction of the holding piece portion 38b. The first fixing portion 38d and the second fixing portion 38e are fixed along one side in the door thickness direction of the first fixing portion 34d and the second fixing portion 34e of the first fixing member 34 by appropriate fasteners such as screws. In addition, the first fixing portion 38d and the second fixing portion 38e are provided with an insertion hole through which the shaft of the fastener is inserted so as to communicate with the female threaded holes provided in the first fixed portion 34d and the second fixed portion 34e of the first fixing member 34, respectively.

Further, the lower end of the second fixing portion 38e is provided with an abutment portion 38f whose lower end surface abuts in a surface-contact manner against the upper surface of the wheel bearing piece portion 34b of the first fixing member 34. With this configuration, the positioning projection 34c and the positioning recess 38c are fitted together and the abutment portion 38f is abutted against the upper surface of the wheel bearing piece portion 34b, making it easy to align the second fixing member 38 with the first fixing member 34.
The motor unit including the second fixing member 38 and the motor 35 configured as described above is detachable from the upper rail 10 in a state where the rotating wheel unit including the first fixing member 34 and the driving rotating wheel 31 is attached to the upper rail 10. In other words, the motor unit can be easily removed from the upper rail 10 by removing the fixing piece portion 38a from the groove bottom plate-shaped portion 12 and removing the first fixing portion 38d and the second fixing portion 38e from the first fixed portion 34d and the second fixed portion 34e of the first fixing member 34. Note that the first fixing member 34 that fixes the driving rotating wheel 31 to the upper rail 10 and the second fixing member 38 that fixes the motor 35 to the upper rail 10 are not limited to those configured as described above, and may be configured in various other ways.

The motor 35 may be a servo motor or the like that can rotate in both directions and whose rotation speed can be controlled.
In the above example, the drive axle 32 of the drive rotating wheel 31 is provided in the door height direction, but it may be provided in the door thickness direction. Even with this configuration, the rotation of the motor 35 arranged on one side of the door width direction can be transmitted to the drive rotating wheel 31 via the gears 33 and 37, and the dimensions along the door height direction can be made more compact than when the motor 35 is provided so that its axial direction is in the door height direction. In this case, the first fixing member 34 and the second fixing member 38 can be appropriately modified.

In this embodiment, as shown in Figs. 3 to 5, a control block 39 that controls the rotation of the motor 35 is provided on one side of the motor 35 in the door width direction. The control block 39 includes a power supply unit that supplies drive power to the motor 35, a control circuit connected to the motor 35 via an appropriate signal line, etc. The control block 39 controls the motor 35 to rotate forward or backward, and the sliding door panel 9 moves to the fully open or closed position. In the illustrated example, the control block 39 is in the shape of a rectangular prism that is elongated in the door width direction. The upper displacement portion 28a of the cord-like transmission body 28 is arranged along the lower end portion on one side of the control block 39 in the door thickness direction (see Fig. 4). A notched recess that receives the upper displacement portion 28a may be provided at the lower end portion on one side of the control block 39 in the door thickness direction so as to extend over the entire length.

3, 4 and 8, the present embodiment is provided with a position detector 40 that includes a variable resistor 44 that is rotated with the displacement of the cord-like power transmission body 28 and detects the position of the sliding door panel 9. With this configuration, the position (absolute position) of the sliding door panel 9 can be detected by the resistance value (voltage) of the variable resistor 44.
8, the position detector 40 includes a detection rotating wheel 41 that is rotated by the cord-like power transmission body 28 to rotate the variable resistor 44, and a biasing member 48 that biases the detection rotating wheel 41 against the cord-like power transmission body 28. With this configuration, loosening of the cord-like power transmission body 28 can be suppressed, and the position detector 40 can also function as a tensioning mechanism that increases the tension of the cord-like power transmission body 28.

The position detection unit 40 is provided on one side of the control block 39 in the door width direction. The control block 39 is provided so as to be located between the position detection unit 40 and the drive unit 30. The drive unit 30, the control block 39, and the position detection unit 40 are also provided so as to be located between the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25.
8(a) and 8(b), the position detection unit 40 includes a pair of holding members 46, 46 that hold the detection rotating wheel 41 from both sides in the door thickness direction along the axial direction. The position detection unit 40 also includes a detection fixing member 49 that holds the holding members 46, 46 rotatably around an axis (held axis) 47 along the door thickness direction and is fixed to the upper rail 10.

The detector rotating wheel 41 is a thin disk having a relatively small axial dimension, and is a pulley having an annular groove on its outer circumferential surface with which the cord-like transmission body 28 engages. The detector rotating wheel 41 has an axle rotatably held by holding members 46, 46 on both sides. In this embodiment, a first gear 42 and a second gear 43 are provided as gears that transmit the rotation of a gear portion 41a fixedly provided coaxially on the detector rotating wheel 41 to rotate a variable resistor 44.
The gear portion 41a of the detection rotating wheel 41 is relatively small in diameter and is provided on one axial side of the detection rotating wheel 41. The first gear 42 is larger in diameter than the gear portion 41a and is provided to mesh with the gear portion 41a. The axle of the first gear 42 is held by one of the holding members 46. The second gear 43 is larger in diameter than the gear portion 41a and smaller in diameter than the first gear 42 and is provided to mesh with the first gear 42. One end of the axle of the second gear 43 is held by one of the holding members 46, and the other end of the axle of the second gear 43 is connected to the rotor 44a of the variable resistor 44 so as to rotate the rotor 44a.

The gear portion 41a, the first gear 42, and the second gear 43 constitute a speed reduction mechanism that reduces the rotation of the detection rotating wheel 41 and transmits the reduced rotation to the variable resistor 44. The gear portion 41a, the first gear 42, and the second gear 43 may be configured so that the rotor 44a of the variable resistor 44 rotates within a detectable range (within one rotation) when the sliding door panel 9 (sliding door panel 9 having the maximum door width W1) is moved from the closed position to the fully open position.
The variable resistor 44 may be a so-called rotary position sensor that outputs a voltage (resistance value) proportional to the rotation angle of the rotor 44a.
The position detector 40 is provided with a detection board 45 to which the variable resistor 44 is fixed and which transmits the output voltage of the variable resistor 44 to the control block 39. The detection board 45 is fixed to the other holding member 46 by an appropriate fastener.

In the position detection unit 40 configured as described above, the detection rotating wheel 41 rotates with the displacement of the upper displacement portion 28a of the cord-like power transmission body 28 in the door width direction, and the rotation is transmitted by the first gear 42 and the second gear 43 to rotate the rotor 44a of the variable resistor 44. The motor 35 is controlled according to the position information and moving direction (closing side or opening side) information of the sliding door panel 9 calculated based on the voltage (resistance value) output according to the rotation angle of the rotor 44a, and the sliding door panel 9 is opened or closed.
In addition, a variable resistor 44 capable of detecting the position of the sliding door panel 9 of the maximum door width W1 is provided, and when a sliding door panel 9A of a different door width W2 is installed, the detection range of the rotation angle of the rotor 44a, etc. may be changed appropriately according to the movement range of the sliding door panel 9A.

The pair of holding members 46, 46 are generally flat plates arranged so that their thickness direction is the door thickness direction, and are elongated in the door width direction. One holding member 46 is provided with an insertion hole through which the shaft of the fastener 7, which is screwed into the female threaded hole of the boss-shaped protrusion provided on the other holding member 46, is inserted.
The detection rotating wheel 41 is rotatably held on one longitudinal side of these holding members 46, 46, and a boss-shaped protrusion portion provided on the lower end side of the other longitudinal side end constitutes a held shaft 47 which is rotatably held by the detection fixing member 49.

The detection and fixing member 49 is provided with a fixed piece portion fixed along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate-shaped portion 12, and support pieces on both sides provided to rise from both side edges of the fixed piece portion in the door thickness direction, and is shaped to open on the upper side and both sides in the door width direction. Between the support pieces on both sides of the detection and fixing member 49, the holding members 46, 46 holding the detection rotating wheel 41, etc. are inserted, and the held shaft 47 is held. The held shaft 47 of the holding members 46, 46 may be held via a fastener 7 whose shaft is inserted into a shaft insertion hole provided in one support piece of the detection and fixing member 49. In addition, a shaft portion coaxial with the held shaft 47 that is rotatably inserted into a through hole provided in the other support piece of the detection and fixing member 49 may be provided on the outer surface in the door thickness direction of the other holding member 46. Note that the manner in which the holding members 46, 46 that hold the detection rotating wheel 41 and other components are held rotatably around the held shaft 47 is not limited to this manner, and various other modifications are possible.

The biasing member 48 is a torsion spring with the held shaft 47 inserted through the coil portion. One arm end 48a of the biasing member 48 is abutted against the upper end side of the other longitudinal end of the holding member 46 that holds the detection rotating wheel 41, and the other arm end 48b of the biasing member 48 is abutted against the upper surface of the fixed piece portion of the detection fixing member 49. With this configuration, the biasing member 48 is configured to bias the detection rotating wheel 41 so as to press it toward the upper displacement portion 28a of the string-like transmission body 28 on the lower side. Note that the biasing member 48 is not limited to a torsion coil spring, and may be other spring members such as a leaf spring, a compression coil spring, or a tension coil spring, and may also be a rubber material or the like, without being limited to a spring member.
The position detection unit 40 is not limited to a mechanism that functions as a tensioning mechanism that increases the tension of the string-like transmission body 28. For example, the position detection unit 40 may be configured to include a variable resistor 44 that rotates in conjunction with any one of the first driven rotating wheel 21, the second driven rotating wheel 25, and the driving rotating wheel 31. Instead of the configuration in which the variable resistor 44 is provided, a configuration in which appropriate position sensors are provided at multiple locations so that the position of the sliding door panel 9 can be detected, or a configuration in which a limit switch that is operated at each of the closed position and the fully open position is provided may be used.

As shown in Figures 5 and 9, one of the upper rail 10 and the upper frame 3 has a plurality of hooks 17 that are held so as to be displaceable in the horizontal direction and spaced apart in the door width direction. The other of the upper rail 10 and the upper frame 3 has a plurality of horizontally opening receiving recesses 16 that receive each of these hooks 17 and spaced apart in the door width direction. With this configuration, the upper rail 10 can be fixed (temporarily fixed) to the upper frame 3 by inserting the hooks 17 provided on one side into the receiving recesses 16 provided on the other side. In addition, since multiple locations in the longitudinal direction of the upper rail 10 can be fixed to multiple locations in the longitudinal direction of the upper frame 3, it is difficult for the upper rail 10 to be fixed at an angle to the upper frame 3, and workability can be improved. In addition, the hooks 17 that are displaced in the horizontal direction can be inserted and fixed into the receiving recesses 16 that open in the horizontal direction. Therefore, for example, it can be fixed relatively firmly compared to a through hole provided in the upper rail 10 in the vertical direction, in which an elastic claw portion is provided on the upper frame 3 side, which is inserted with elastic deformation. Also, even if there is a slight misalignment in the horizontal direction, the misalignment can be absorbed, that is, the hook portion 17 can be inserted into the receiving recess 16.

The hook portion 17 is held so as to be freely displaceable in the door width direction relative to one side, and the receiving recess 16 is open in the door width direction. With this configuration, the hook portion 17 displaced in the door width direction can be inserted and fixed into the receiving recess 16 that opens in the door width direction. This makes it possible to effectively increase the hooking allowance of the hook portion 17 compared to a configuration in which the hook portion 17 is displaced along the rail width (door thickness) direction of the upper rail 10, which is relatively narrow.
The hook portion 17 is biased in the protruding direction by a biasing member 19 against a holding portion 18 provided on one side. In addition, an inclined guide surface 17a is provided on both or one of the protruding tip of the hook portion 17 and the recess defining portion 15 that defines the receiving recess 16 against which the tip abuts, to move the hook portion 17 back by a guide action caused by their mutual abutment. With this configuration, when the upper rail 10 is moved upward relative to the upper frame 3 fixed to the frame base or the like, the hook portion 17 is biased by the inclined guide surface 17a provided on both or one of the tip of the hook portion 17 and the recess defining portion 15 to move the hook portion 17 back against the bias of the biasing member 19. When the upper rail 10 is further moved upward and the hook portion 17 is positioned within the opening of the receiving recess 16, the hook portion 17 is biased by the biasing member 19 to protrude and is inserted into the receiving recess 16. This makes it possible to improve ease of installation compared to a case in which the hook portion 17 needs to be slid by a finger or the like.

The receiving recess 16 is provided in the upper rail 10, which is the other of the two, and is configured such that a through hole 15d for the fastener 7 to be attached to the upper frame 3 is provided in a recess defining portion 15 that defines the receiving recess 16. With this configuration, the hook portion 17 can be inserted into the receiving recess 16 and temporarily fixed, and then the fastener 7 can be fixed to the upper frame 3 via the through hole 15d in the recess defining portion 15, thereby making it possible to fully fasten the fastener 7. Furthermore, the recess defining portion 15 can function as an insertion location for the fastener 7, and the structure can be simplified compared to a structure in which an insertion hole for the fastener 7 is provided in another portion.
That is, the recessed portion 15 that defines the receiving recess 16 functions as a fixing device that is fixed to the upper frame 3, which is the fixing target of the upper rail 10, by the fastener 7. The recessed portion 15 is larger in size along the vertical direction than the drive mechanism 20, and is attached to the groove bottom plate-like portion 12 of the upper rail 10 at a plurality of locations spaced apart along the longitudinal direction. With this configuration, the upper rail 10 can be fixed to the upper frame 3 by fastening the fastener 7 to the upper frame 3 via the plurality of recessed portion 15. Also, even if the size of the upper rail 10 is adjusted according to the door widths W1 and W2, it can be accommodated by changing the mounting positions of these recessed portion 15. Also, since the size along the vertical direction of these recessed portion 15 is larger than that of the drive mechanism 20, the upper rail 10 can be fixed to the upper frame 3 without interfering with the drive mechanism 20. In other words, the upper rail 10 can be fixed to the upper frame 3 without providing a recess or the like for receiving the drive mechanism 20 on the upper frame 3 side.

The receiving recess 16 provided in the upper rail 10 is provided in a space where the components of the drive mechanism 20 described above are not installed (see Figures 3 and 4). With this configuration, the receiving recess 16 can be provided by utilizing the empty space other than where the components of the drive mechanism 20 are installed, and the dimensions along the vertical direction of the upper rail 10 can be made compact. In the illustrated example, an example is shown in which a recess partitioning portion 15 that partitions the receiving recess 16 is provided between the first driven rotating wheel unit and the position detection portion 40 and between the driving portion 30 and the second driven rotating wheel unit. In addition, a configuration in which an appropriate number of recess partitioning portions 15 are provided at intervals in the door width direction according to the length of the upper rail 10 may be used. Figure 1 shows an example in which two recess partitioning portions 15, 15 are provided in each of the first half 10A and the second half 10B of the longest upper rail 10 described above. That is, an example is shown in which four recessed areas 15, 15, 15, 15 are provided at intervals in the longitudinal direction on the upper rail 10. In FIG. 10, an example is shown in which two recessed areas 15, 15 are provided at intervals in the longitudinal direction on the upper rail 10C, which is roughly the same length as the first half 10A of the longest upper rail 10.

The recessed portion 15 includes a fixed piece 15a that is fixed along the upper surface of the groove bottom plate portion 12, and a recessed portion 15b that is provided rising from the fixed piece 15a and has a receiving recess 16. In this embodiment, the recessed portion 15b is provided in a pair with a gap in the door width direction, and the fixed piece 15a is provided at the lower end of each. Each of the recessed portion 15b is provided with a receiving recess 16 that penetrates the door width direction. In the illustrated example, the receiving recess 16 is an approximately rectangular hole when viewed in the door width direction.
The recess defining portion 15 is provided so as to bridge between the upper ends of the recess defining pieces 15b, 15b, and is provided with a fixed piece 15c with an insertion hole 15d extending therethrough in the vertical direction. The fixing pieces 15a, 15a on both sides of the recess defining portion 15 may be fixed to the groove bottom plate portion 12 by suitable fasteners such as screws. The recess defining portion 15 is not limited to a generally U-shaped portion provided with the fixing pieces 15a, 15a, the recess defining pieces 15b, 15b, and the fixed piece 15c, and may have various other configurations.

As shown in Fig. 5, the hook portion 17 is held by a retaining portion 18 fixed to one of the upper frames 3. In this embodiment, an example is shown in which the retaining portion 18 is fixed to the bottom of the receiving groove 3a provided in the upper frame 3. These hook units including the hook portion 17 and the retaining portion 18 are provided at multiple locations spaced apart in the longitudinal direction of the upper frame 3 so that the hook portion 17 can be inserted into the receiving recess 16 provided in the recess partitioning portion 15. The illustrated example shows an example in which adjacent hook units in the longitudinal direction of the upper frame 3 are provided so that the protruding directions of the hook portions 17, 17 relative to the retaining portions 18, 18 are opposite to each other in the door width direction.
9, the hook portion 17 is generally rectangular and elongated in the door width direction. In this embodiment, an inclined guide surface 17a is provided at the tip end in the protruding direction, which is one end of the hook portion 17 in the door width direction. The inclined guide surface 17a is formed to face diagonally downward in the door width direction, and is provided over substantially the entire surface of the tip end surface in the protruding direction of the hook portion 17.

The hook portion 17 is provided with a retaining projection 17b that is inserted into a guide groove 18b provided in the holding portion 18. Although not shown in the figure, the retaining projections 17b are provided on both side surfaces of the hook portion 17 in the door thickness direction.
A receiving recess 17c for receiving one end of a biasing member 19 is provided at the base end, which is the other end in the door width direction, of the hook portion 17 so as to open outward in the door width direction.
The holding portion 18 is formed so as to open in the door width direction and define a receiving recess for receiving the hook portion 17. In the illustrated example, the holding portion 18 is provided with a bottom piece that is aligned along the bottom side of the hook portion 17, both side pieces that are aligned along both side surfaces of the hook portion 17 in the door thickness direction, and a base end piece that faces the base end of the hook portion 17. The other end of the biasing member 19 abuts against the base end piece of the holding portion 18.

Also shown is an example in which fixing pieces 18a are provided on both side pieces and the base end piece of the holding portion 18, respectively, so as to be fixed along the groove bottom of the receiving groove 3a of the upper frame 3. These fixing pieces 18a are provided with insertion holes through which the shanks of fasteners such as screws that are fastened to the upper frame 3 are inserted.
Also shown is an example in which guide grooves 18b, 18b are provided on both side pieces of the holding portion 18 to receive the anti-removal protrusions 17b of the hook portion 17 so as to be displaceable in the door width direction. These guide grooves 18b, 18b are provided to extend in the door width direction. Also shown is an example in which upper surface pieces 18c, 18c are provided on both side pieces of the holding portion 18 to be fitted along the upper surface side of the hook portion 17.
The biasing member 19 is configured to bias the hook portion 17 so as to push it toward the holding portion 18. The biasing member 19 may be, for example, a compression coil spring.

When the upper rail 10 with the recessed section 15 fixed thereto is temporarily fixed to the upper frame 3 with the hook unit fixed thereto, the upper rail 10 is moved upward relative to the upper frame 3 as shown in FIG. 9(b). When the upper rail 10 is moved upward, as shown in FIG. 9(c), the corner between one recessed section piece 15b and the fixed piece 15c of the recessed section 15 comes into contact with the inclined guide surface 17a of the hook portion 17, and the hook portion 17 is displaced so as to be pushed into the holding portion 18 by the guide action. Then, when the upper rail 10 is moved further upward, as shown in FIG. 9(d), the hook portion 17 is inserted into the receiving recess 16 of the recessed section 15, and the upper rail 10 is temporarily fixed (temporarily held) to the upper frame 3. With the upper rail 10 temporarily fixed to the upper frame 3 in this manner, the fastener 7 may be attached to the upper frame 3 via the insertion hole 15d of the recessed portion 15, and the upper rail 10 may be permanently fixed to the upper frame 3. Although not shown, the groove bottom plate portion 12 of the upper rail 10 has an insertion hole with a larger diameter than the head of the fastener 7.

The hook portion 17, the holding portion 18 that holds it, and the biasing member 19 that biases the hook portion 17 in the protruding direction relative to the holding portion 18 are not limited to the configurations described above, and may be configured in various other ways. In the above example, an inclined guide surface 17a is provided at the tip of the hook portion 17, but instead of or in addition to this configuration, an inclined guide surface may be provided at the portion of the recessed portion 15 where the tip of the hook portion 17 abuts. In the above example, an example is shown in which the hook portion 17 is provided on the upper frame 3 and the receiving recess 16 is provided on the upper rail 10, but these may be provided on the opposite sides. In other words, a configuration in which the receiving recess 16 is provided on the upper frame 3 and the hook portion 17 is provided on the upper rail 10 may be used.

As shown in FIG. 2, the door opening and closing device 1 may also be provided with covers 50, 50 arranged on both sides of the upper rail 10 in the door thickness direction so as to cover the area between the upper frame 3 and the upper rail 10. These covers 50, 50 may be fixed to the upper rail 10 with an appropriate adhesive or fastener, or may be configured with a locking portion that locks onto a locking portion provided on the upper rail 10. In addition, when the door is fitted into the sleeve wall as described above, the cover 50 on the sleeve wall side may be provided to cover the area from the door end vertical frame 4 to the middle mullion 6.

Next, a modified example of the door opening and closing device will be described with reference to FIG.
The following mainly describes the differences from the above-mentioned example, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and their explanations are omitted or briefly described. Also, the explanations of the effects and advantages similar to those of the above-mentioned example are omitted or briefly described.

As shown in FIGS. 11(a) to 11(c), a door opening and closing device 1B according to this modified example is different from the above-described example mainly in the configurations of a hook portion 17A and a receiving recess 16A.
In this modified example, a fixing screw 19A is provided on one of the recess defining portion 15A and the hook portion 17A that define the receiving recess 16A, and the fixing screw 19A is screwed to fix the hook portion 17A in the receiving recess 16A. With this configuration, the hook portion 17A can be fixed in the receiving recess 16A by screwing the fixing screw 19A with the hook portion 17A inserted into the receiving recess 16A.
In this modified example, the recessed portion 15A is provided on the upper frame 3 side, and the hook unit including the hook portion 17A is provided on the upper rail 10D side. In the illustrated example, one set of the recessed portion 15A and the hook unit is illustrated, but similarly to the above, the recessed portion 15A and the hook unit are provided at multiple locations spaced apart in the longitudinal direction of the upper rail 10D.

The hook portion 17A is held by a holder 18A provided on the upper rail 10D so as to be movable in the door width direction. The hook portion 17A may be a generally flat plate-like member extending in the door width direction and arranged so that its thickness direction is the vertical direction.
A female screw hole into which a fixing screw 19A is screwed is provided so as to pass vertically through the tip of one end of the hook 17A in the door width direction, which is inserted into the receiving recess 16A. A handle 17Ab is provided at the base end of the other end of the hook 17A in the door width direction when the hook 17A is displaced in the door width direction. In the illustrated example, the handle 17Ab is a piece provided so as to hang downward from the base end of the hook 17A.

The retaining portion 18A is fixed to the groove bottom plate portion 12 (see Figure 2, etc.) of the upper rail 10D and is arranged to protrude upward, with its upper end provided with a retaining hole that penetrates in the door width direction and holds the hook portion 17A freely displaceable in the door width direction.
The fixing screw 19A is arranged with its shaft (male thread) facing upward and has a head at its lower end, which serves as an operating part. The head of the fixing screw 19A may be configured to be operable by fingers or may be operated by an appropriate tool.
The recessed area 15A is configured such that the receiving recess 16A is open toward the door width direction so as to receive the tip of the hook portion 17A. In the illustrated example, the receiving recess 16A is open on one side in the door width direction and on both sides in the door thickness direction.

The recessed portion 15A includes a fixed piece 15Aa fixed to the bottom of the receiving groove 3a of the upper frame 3, and a hanging piece 15Ab hanging from the edge of the other end of the fixed piece 15Aa in the door width direction. The recessed portion 15A also includes a retaining piece 15Ac extending from the lower end of the hanging piece 15Ab toward one side in the door width direction. The receiving recess 16A is defined by the fixed piece 15Aa, the hanging piece 15Ab, and the retaining piece 15Ac. The retaining piece 15Ac also has a notched recess that receives the shaft of the fixing screw 19A and opens toward one side in the door width direction and penetrates in the vertical direction. The illustrated example shows an example in which a movement suppression portion is provided at the tip of the retaining piece 15Ac, which is bent downward and suppresses the movement of the head of the fixing screw 19A toward one side in the door width direction. In addition, the recessed area 15A may have a fixed piece portion 15Aa fixed to the upper frame 3 by an appropriate fastener.

In this modified example, when fixing the upper rail 10D to the upper frame 3, as shown in FIG. 11(a), the upper rail 10D is positioned at a position where the hook portion 17A can be inserted into the receiving recess 16A of the recessed section 15A fixed to the upper frame 3. At this time, the fixing screw 19A may be loosened so that the holding piece portion 15Ac can be received between the head of the fixing screw 19A and the tip of the hook portion 17A. Then, as shown in FIG. 11(b), the hook portion 17A is displaced in the door width direction and its tip is inserted into the receiving recess 16A. Next, as shown in FIG. 11(c), the fixing screw 19A may be tightened to hold the holding piece portion 15Ac between its head and the tip of the hook portion 17A so that the upper rail 10D is fixed to the upper frame 3. After fixing in this way, the upper rail 10D may be further fixed at a suitable position to the upper frame 3 by using an appropriate fastener or fastener such as a screw.

Also in this modified example, the above-mentioned biasing member or inclined guide surface for biasing the hook portion 17A in the protruding direction may be provided.
In addition, in the above-mentioned examples, the hook portion 17, 17A is movable in the door width direction and the receiving recess 16, 16A is open in the door width direction, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, the hook portion 17, 17A may be movable in the door thickness direction or in a diagonal horizontal direction with respect to the door thickness direction, and the receiving recess 16, 16A may be open in a direction that allows the hook portion 17, 17A to be received.
In addition, the door opening and closing devices 1, 1A, 1B according to the above-mentioned examples may be configured without the hook unit including the hook portion 17, 17A or the receiving recess 16, 16A. In this case, the upper rail 10, 10C, 10D may be fixed at an appropriate position to the upper frame 3 by a suitable fastener such as a fixing device or a screw.
In addition, in the above example, the first fixing member 34 that fixes the driving rotary wheel 31 and the second fixing member 38 that fixes the motor 35 are separate members, but this is not limited to this embodiment.
In the above example, the drive mechanism 20 is provided so as to be within the length of the first half 10A of the longest upper rail 10, but the present invention is not limited to this.

In addition, in the above example, the first driven axle 22 and the second driven axle 26 of the first driven rotating wheel 21 and the second driven rotating wheel 25 are arranged at an incline, but these may also be arranged in the door thickness direction or the door height direction.
In the above example, the guide groove 11 is provided on the upper rail 10, 10C, 10D so as to open downward, but the guide groove 11 may be provided so as to open toward one side in the door thickness direction or toward the upper side. In this case, the guided member 29 and the drive mechanism 20 may be appropriately modified.
In the above example, the driving rotary wheel 31, the first driven rotary wheel 21, and the second driven rotary wheel 25 are pulleys, but they may be gears (sprockets), etc. Furthermore, the string-like transmission body 28 is not limited to a rope-like member that matches the driving rotary wheel 31, the first driven rotary wheel 21, and the second driven rotary wheel 25, and may be a belt, a ball chain, a chain, etc. The configurations of the above-mentioned devices, members, and parts of the door opening and closing devices 1, 1A, and 1B according to this embodiment are merely examples, and various other modifications are possible.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1, 1A, 1B Door opening and closing device 10, 10C, 10D Upper rail 11 Guide groove 12 Groove bottom plate-shaped portion 21 First driven rotating wheel 22 First driven wheel axle (shaft)
25 Second driven rotating wheel 26 Second driven axle (shaft)
28 Cord-like power transmission body 29 Guided member 29A First guided member (guided member)
29B Second guided member (guided member)
31 Drive wheel 32 Drive axle (shaft)
33 Rotating wheel side gear (gear)
35 Motor 36 Output shaft 37 Motor side gear (gear)
40 Position detection unit 41 Detection rotating wheel 44 Variable resistor 48 Pressing member 9 Sliding door panel 9a Upper end

Claims (7)

A door opening and closing device having an upper rail that guides a guided member connected to an upper end of a sliding door panel and suspends and holds the sliding door panel so that the sliding door panel can slide in the door width direction,
A door opening and closing device characterized in that it comprises a first driven rotating wheel and a second driven rotating wheel each wrapped around a cord-like transmission body connected to the guided member and positioned at positions spaced apart in the door width direction, a drive rotating wheel positioned between the first driven rotating wheel and the second driven rotating wheel and above the upper rail, transmitting drive to the cord-like transmission body, and a motor rotating the drive rotating wheel. In claim 1,
A door opening and closing device characterized in that the driving rotating wheel is arranged so that its axial direction is in the door height direction, and the first driven rotating wheel and the second driven rotating wheel are arranged so that their axial directions, which are parallel to each other, intersect with the axial direction of the driving rotating wheel. In claim 2,
A door opening and closing device characterized in that the motor is arranged on one side of the drive rotating wheel in the door width direction so that the axial direction of the output shaft is in the door width direction, and is configured to rotate the drive rotating wheel via gears. In any one of claims 1 to 3,
A door opening and closing device, characterized in that the string-like power transmission body, which is a rope-like member, is wound around the drive rotary wheel one or more times. In any one of claims 1 to 4,
A door opening and closing device comprising a variable resistor which is rotated with the displacement of the cord-like transmission body, and a position detection unit which detects the position of the sliding door panel. In claim 5,
A door opening and closing device characterized in that the position detection unit includes a detection rotating wheel that is rotated by the cord-like transmission body to rotate the variable resistor, and a biasing member that biases the detection rotating wheel against the cord-like transmission body. In any one of claims 1 to 6,
The upper rail is provided with a guide groove that opens downward and receives the guided member,
A door opening and closing device, characterized in that the first driven rotating wheel, the second driven rotating wheel, the driving rotating wheel and the motor are fixed on a groove bottom plate-shaped portion that defines the groove bottom of the guide groove.

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