JP7618904B2 - Folding door device with lower door roller - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a folding door installation that is configured so that it can be supported by a lower door roller.

Folding doors, which are made up of multiple connected doors, are often used as devices for opening and closing entrances. Incidentally, within the door joint of a folding door, a hoist is attached to the upper end of the main joint, which does not protrude from the rail during folding operations, and is suspended from the rail of the upper frame, and a slider protrudes from the lower end and can move along a guide groove provided in the lower frame. When extended and closed, a locking bar protrudes downward and fits into the guide groove, locking the folding door so that it cannot be opened.

Incidentally, the folding door is suspended from the rail (upper rail) of the upper frame via a hoist, and the hoist runs on the upper rail, causing the folding door to expand and contract, thereby opening and closing the entrance.
In this way, in most cases the folding door is suspended from the upper rail by a hoist wheel attached to the upper end of the joint, but there is also a known folding door device with a lower door roller, which is provided at the lower end and is configured to support the door by running along a lower rail.

The lower door roller is attached to the lower end of the main joint of the folding door, and the folding door must be lifted when replacing the door roller. This makes the door roller replacement work troublesome and time-consuming. In addition, a slider that protrudes upward is provided at the top end of the folding door, and although this slider is loosely fitted into the guide groove of the upper rail, there is a limit to how far the folding door can be lifted.
That is, the folding door may hit the upper rail, limiting the height to which it can be raised, and therefore the folding door may have to be removed from the frame in order to be replaced.

In many cases, a roller is attached to the bottom end of a sliding door so that the door can slide open and closed. For example, the "offset sliding door device" in JP 2020-172819 has a roller mounting base that protrudes into the opening at the top of the door end side of the sliding door, and a roller device equipped with a roller body that can run along a running rail arranged above the opening is provided at the top of the roller mounting base. This is a lower roller device equipped with a roller roller that engages with a lower rail arranged along the door width direction at the bottom end of the sliding door, on the floor surface below the sliding door overlapping part.

The "door roller" according to JP 2017-115297 A is a door roller that includes: a case-shaped inner main body with an open bottom, which is housed within an outer main body that is attached to the bottom end of a sliding door; a wheel that is supported within the inner main body so as to be freely rotatable vertically and whose outer peripheral edge portion protrudes downward from the bottom ends of the outer main body and the inner main body; and a vertical adjustment mechanism that moves the wheel up and down to adjust the height of the wheel, wherein the vertical adjustment mechanism includes a vertical adjustment screw, a slider that is non-rotatably but axially movable and has cam grooves formed on both opposing side surfaces that are inclined in the vertical direction, and a pair of support arms that are supported on the inner surfaces of both opposing side walls of the inner main body so as to be movable up and down, whose upper ends are slidably fitted into the cam grooves of the slider and whose lower ends support the wheels so as to be freely rotatable vertically.
"Outset sliding door device" according to JP 2020-172819 A "Door Roller" according to JP 2017-115297 A

As such, in the case of a folding door device with a roller at the bottom end, replacing the roller is a hassle. The problem that this invention aims to solve is this problem, and provides a folding door device that allows the roller to be replaced easily and in a short time.

The folding door device according to the present invention is equipped with a roller at the lower end of the main joint, and the roller is attached to the side of the main joint, not directly below it. There are no limitations on the specific method of attaching the roller, but it is possible to extend an axis from the main joint to the side and support the roller rotatably on the axis. A slightly recessed groove is provided along the lower rail, and the roller can fit into this groove and roll.

A slider protrudes upward from the upper end of the main joint of the folding door, and the slider fits loosely into a guide groove provided in the upper rail, with the upper end of the folding door being guided by the upper rail.
In addition, a cover is attached to the roller attached to the front (or back) surface of the main joint portion to prevent people from touching the roller as it rotates.
Furthermore, because the rollers are attached to the front side of the folding door, they are not restricted by the space formed between the lower rail and are provided with large rollers that can adequately withstand the weight of the folding door.

The folding door device according to the present invention has a door roller attached to the lower end of the main joint that connects multiple doors, and the door roller is attached on the front side of the main joint, not directly below it.
Therefore, when replacing the rollers, there is no need to lift the folding door to perform the work, and the rollers provided on the surface of the lower end of the main joint can be removed and new rollers can be easily installed. In other words, the roller replacement work can be completed easily in a short time.
On the other hand, since the rollers are attached to the front side of the folding door, a space without rollers is formed below the folding door, and a flap can be attached to close this space between the lower rail.

The door roller fits into a groove formed in the lower rail so that it can roll, and a slider extends upward from the upper end of the main joint and fits loosely into the guide groove of the upper rail. The main joint is guided by the upper and lower rails, so that even if an external force acts on the surface of the folding door, the folding door will not swing and will be stable.
In addition, covers are attached to the rollers so that no one can come into contact with them and get injured when folding the door.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the folding door device according to the present invention. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a folding door device according to the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a vertical cross-sectional view of the folding door device. When the roller attached to the lower end surface side of the main joint fits into the concave groove of the lower rail. An expanded view of a door roller attached to the lower end surface side of the main joint. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the auxiliary joint, in which (a) shows the upper and lower rods lowered, and (b) shows the upper and lower rods protruding. A flap is attached to the bottom end of the door. (a) shows the flap raised to leave a gap between the flap and the lower rail, and (b) shows the flap lowered to close the gap between the flap and the lower rail. When the folding door is folded up.

Figure 1 shows a front view of a roller-equipped folding door device according to the present invention, while Figure 2(a) shows a cross-sectional view and (b) shows a vertical cross-sectional view. As shown in the figure, the folding door 1 is attached to a rectangular frame 2, and the folding door 1 has multiple doors 3a, 3b... connected by main joints 4a, 4b... and sub-joints 5a, 5b.... Figure 1 shows the folding door 1 in an extended state, and the folding door 1 can be folded by pushing the handle frame 6 at the left end, and conversely, it can be extended as shown in the figure by pulling the handle frame 6.

In this case, the main joints 4a, 4b... connecting the doors 3a, 3b... move along the upper frame 7 and the lower frame 8 without coming off and protruding from the upper frame 7 and the lower frame 8 constituting the frame body 2. In contrast, the sub joints 5a, 5b... come off and protrude from the upper frame 7 and the lower frame 8 when the folding door 1 shrinks, and are folded.
2 shows a horizontal cross-sectional view and a vertical cross-sectional view of the folding door 1, but the folding door 1 of the present invention is not structured to be suspended from the upper frame 7, but is provided with door rollers 9, 9... at the main joints 4a, 4b... and is supported by the door rollers 9, 9... that run on the lower rail 10 of the lower frame 8. A cover 11 is attached so that the door rollers 9 are not exposed.

3 shows the case where rollers 9, 9 are attached to the lower end surface of the main joint 4. Two rollers 9, 9 are attached to a base plate 12 attached to the lower end of the main joint 4, and the rollers 9, 9 are located on the surface side of the main joint 4.
The lower rail 10 is provided with a groove 13 having a constant width and a constant depth, and the rollers 9, 9 can run in this groove 13.

In addition, a slot 14 is provided in the lower rail 10 of the lower frame 8, and a rod is lowered and fitted into this slot 14, thereby locking the folding door 1 so that it cannot be opened.
4 shows an exploded view of the door roller 9 attached to the lower end of the main joint 4, with two bearings 15, 15 provided in a pair at a fixed distance on the base plate 12, and the door rollers 9, 9 are supported by these bearings 15, 15 via shafts 16, 16. Screw holes 17, 17 are provided in the centers of the ends of the shafts 16, 16, and the cover 11 is attached by set screws 18, 18 using these screw holes 17, 17.
Therefore, the rollers 9, 9 attached to the lower end of the surface of the main joint are covered by the cover 11 without being exposed, and it is safe because the rollers 9, 9 moving when the folding door 1 extends or retracts are not touched.

The folding door 1 of the present invention is equipped with a flap 19 at its lower end, which can close the gap 21 between the door 1 and the lower rail 10. The flap 19 can swing around a shaft 20 provided at the lower end of the door 3, and operates to open and close the gap 21 formed between the lower end of the door and the lower rail 10.
FIG. 5 shows the operation of the upper rod 22 and the lower rod 23 provided in the auxiliary joint portion 5, where (a) shows the case where the upper and lower rods 22, 23 are retracted, and (b) shows the case where the upper and lower rods 22, 23 are protruding.

A rotatable handle 24 is attached to the auxiliary joint 5, and when the handle 24 is turned, the upper rod 22 protrudes upward and fits into a guide groove 25 provided in the upper frame 7, and the lower rod 23 protrudes downward and fits into a slot 14 provided in the lower rail 10. In this way, the upper rod 22 and the lower rod 23 fit into the guide groove 25 and the slot 14 and are locked, so that the auxiliary joint 5 is fixed and the folding door 1 is fixed without folding.
As the lower rod 23 descends, the flap 19 attached to the lower end of the door can be closed.

Figure 6 shows the operation of the flap 19 attached to the bottom end of the door, with (a) when the flap 19 is open and (b) when the flap 19 is closed. A bearing 26 is provided at the bottom end of the door 3, and the flap 19 swings around an axis 20 fitted into this bearing 26, allowing the gap 21 between the door 3 and the lower rail 10 to be opened and closed. An elastically deformable seal 27 is provided below the tip of the flap 19, and when the flap 19 is closed as in (b), the seal 27 abuts against the lower rail 10 and deforms, closing the gap 21.

Incidentally, a torsion spring 28 is attached to the flap 19, and a spring force is applied to constantly lift the flap 19. The flap 19 is lifted so as not to interfere with the folding operation of the folding door 1, i.e., so as not to close the gap 21.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, when the handle 24 is turned to lower the lower rod 23, the flap 19 is pushed down as the lower rod 23 descends, and the gap 21 is closed.

The lower rod 23 is provided with a locking piece extending laterally, and the flap 19 is locked to this locking piece and pushed down, and when the lower rod 23 rises, the flap 19 is lifted by the action of the spring force of the torsion spring 28.
In the folding door device of the present invention, the rollers 9 are attached to the front side of the folding door 1 rather than directly below it, so that a flap 19 can be provided to close the gap 21 formed between the lower rail 10.

Figure 7 shows the folding door 1 in a folded state, with each door 3, 3... being folded via the main joint portion 4 and the sub-joint portion 5, with rollers 9, 9... attached to the lower end surface of the main joint portion 4, and a slider 29 protruding from the upper end of the main joint portion 4 which fits loosely into the guide groove 25 of the upper frame 7.
Each of the doors 3, 3... is folded so as to protrude in a direction away from the rollers 9, 9..., and cushion rubber is provided so that the folded doors 3, 3... do not come into contact with each other.

Reference Signs List 1 Folding door 2 Frame 3 Door 4 Main joint 5 Sub-joint 6 Handle frame 7 Upper frame 8 Lower frame 9 Door roller
10 Lower rail
11 Cover
12 Base plate
13 Groove
14 Slot
15 Bearings
16 Shaft
17 Screw holes
18 Set screw
19 Flap
20 Axis
21 Gap
22 Upper Rod
23 Lower Rod
24 Handle
25 Guide groove
26 Bearings
27 Seal
28 Torsion Spring
29 Slider

Claims (3)

A folding door device in which a plurality of doors are connected so that they can be folded via a main joint and a sub-joint and supported by a roller that runs along a lower rail, the roller is rotatably supported on the surface side of the lower end of the main joint and the roller is attached by a set screw exposed on the surface so that it can be replaced , a groove of a certain depth is provided in the lower rail so that the roller can run, the groove is provided in the sub-joint and is provided at a position so that it does not pass through a slot hole into which a descending lower rod fits, and a slider that fits loosely into a guide groove provided in the upper frame protrudes upward from the upper end of the main joint. 2. The roller-equipped folding door device according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary joint portion is provided with a handle, and an upper rod protruding upward and fitting into the guide groove by operating the handle , and a lower rod protruding downward and fitting into a slot in the lower rail are provided. A folding door device with rollers according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a flap is attached to the lower end of the door, the flap being capable of swinging around a bearing provided at the lower end of the door, the flap being constantly lifted by a spring force applied thereto to create a gap between the flap and the lower rail, and the flap being engaged with a lower rod which is lowered by operating a handle to push down the flap, thereby closing the gap.

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