AU623111B2

AU623111B2 - Sliding door installation

Info

Publication number: AU623111B2
Application number: AU29325/89A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Walter Hamacher
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-01-26
Filing date: 1989-01-24
Publication date: 1992-05-07
Anticipated expiration: 2009-01-24
Also published as: NO903309L; NO903309D0; AU2932589A

Description

n D T 1) OF InQ /Q0 T 1) 00701 QQ A /A 1 r_.I A.JUOO Mr rL* 1 U LJ.LJ/ ti2 3' 4crl 1 AOJP DATE 28/09/89 PCT NUMBER PCT/DE89/00036 INTERNAP NL -ANN INTERNATIONALE ZUSAMMENARBEIT AUF DEM GEBIET DES PATENTWESENS (PCT) (51) Interniationale Patentklassifikation 4 (11) Internationale Veruiffentlichungsnummer: WO 89/ 07185 E06B 3/92, E05D 15/06 Al (43) Internationales Veriiffentlichungsdatum: 10. August 1989 (10.08.89) (21) Internationales Aktenzeichen: PCT/DE89/00036 JP, KP, KR, LK, LU (europiiisches Patent), MC, MG, ML (OAPI Patent), MR (OAPI Patent), MW, NL (eu- (22) Internationales Anmeldedatum: ropiiisches Patent), NO, RO, SD, SE (europaisches 24. Januar 1989 (24.0 1.89) Patent), SN (OAPI Patent), SU, TD (OAPI Patent), TG (QAPI Patent), US.

(31) Prioritatsaktenzeichen: P 38 02 113.7 Verdffentlicht (32) Prioritatsdatum: 26. Januar 1988 (26.0 1.88) Mit internationalem Recherchenbericht.

(33) Priorititsland: DE (71X72) Anmelder und Erfinder: HAMACHER, Walter [DE/ DE]; Birkengrund 2, D-5100 Aachen (DE).

(74) Anwalt: KONIG, Werner, Habsburgerallee 23-25, 100 Aachen (DE).

(81) Bestimmuugsstaaten: AT (europaisches Patent), AU, BB, BE (europaisches Patent), BG, BJ (QAPI Patent), BR, CF (OAPI Patent), CG (OAPI Patent), CH (europaisches Patent), CM (OAPI Patent), DE (europilisches Patent), DK, FI, FR (europdisches Patent), GA (OAPI Patent), GB (europiiisches Patent), HU, IT (europaisches Patent), (54) Title: SLIDING DOOR INSTALLATION (54) Bezeichnung: SCHIEBETORANLAGE (57) Abstract In a sliding door installation which comprises several sliding wings mounted on support elements and guided on floor and/or ceiling rails (1 the sliding wings are arranged one behind the other and can be interconnected by connection elements A drive element (14;42) connected to a drive engages in at least oi,- sliding wing The drive is in particular a wheel and a disc drive (14) or an enclosed traction mechanism drive (31, 32).

(57) Zusammenfassung Bei einer Schiebettiranlage mit mehreren fiber Tragelemente verschiebbar in einer Boden- und/oder Deckenschie-' ne 30) geffihrten Schiebeflflgeln sind die in Reihe hinte- *.T reinander liegenden Schiebefluigel mittels je eines An- 3s' I schlusselements 45) koppelbar. An mindestens .einem I r Schiebefigel greift emn mit einem Antrieb verbundenes Mitnehmerelement (14; 42) an. Ffir den Antrieb kommt dabei 37.

insbesondere ein Reibradantrieb (14) und emn Antrieb fiber ge- 3V1 3 schlossene Zugmittel (31, 32) in Betracht. 3a 4 (_111 Sliding door installation Description The invention relates to a sliding door installation with several sliding wings arranged in series behind one another and capable of sliding with the aid of supporting elements in a floor and/or ceiling rail.

Sliding door installations of this type are known whereby the individual sliding doors are moved by hand along the supporting rails into different positions, e.g. also into a parking position where the individual sliding wings can be arranged in a row behind one another or parallel to one another in a block.

This type of operation by hand is often considered cumbersome and also requires a considerable outlay of time and energy. The task of the present invention consists in developing a sliding door installation of the kind described at the beginning in such a way that the individual sliding wings can be moved in a controlled manner with the aid of a motor. At the same time, this should be achieved with simple means which function reliably and require little additional outlay.

This task is solved in accordance with the invention in that sliding wings adjacent to one another can be coupled together by means of one connecting element each and that at least one driving element connected with a Ap i Authorized <f ranslator to fho 3 J 7English longuago j RegionI Appeal Court of Cologno 2 drive engages with at least one sliding wing. A driving element or elements of this type allow the sliding door installation as a whole to be moved from one position to another by means of a drive.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can be designed in such a way that the connecting element has a housing with coupling elements projecting outwards, of which at least one is supported in a spring-like manner on the housing and which each engage with one sliding wing. A connecting element designed in this way provides a shock-absorbing coupling between adjacent sliding wings. It allows the individual sliding wings to be guided in series and in a coupled state along floor and/or ceiling rails, even if the rails form an angle.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that the housing is a door-closing housing. This is a connecting element of this kind.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that the connecting element is a lock pawl spring-loaded in the direction of the closed position, which is mounted on a sliding wing so as to be pivotable and which engages with a coupling pin on the adjacent sliding wing. This connecting element allows the coupling of adjacent sliding wings to be released and/or re-engaged. This can be useful when it is desirable to move an individual sliding wing alone, e.g. into a block-type parking position.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the A. 7 invention can further be designed in such a way tha t''thethord S 'ianitor ,or the lock pawl is provided with a cam surface which in teEnsi"ih agua e S\Reoional Appeal Court S of Cologne 4 release position engages with a fixed stop face. In this way the coupling of adjacent sliding wings is automatically released and/or re-activated at predefined posilions.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that each sliding wing is provided with at least one driving pin and the driving element is designed as a closed drawing means running around at least two guide rollers and with transport levers engaging with the drive pin(s). This drawing means can be driven in reverse and can thus move the sliding wings in either direction.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that the drawing means is designed as a closed chain or as a belt.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that when the floor and/or ceiling rail follows an angle, one drawing means is arranged in the direction of movement before the corner and another is provided after the corner. This makes it possible to guide the individual sliding wings along a sharply angled track e.g. a right angle. In each corner position a drive pin of the relevant drawing means engages with the drive pin which is ideally positioned above and/or below the relevant supporting element and applies a force in the direction of the rail which is at an angle.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that both drawing means are guided around guide rollers, two of which are on a common shaft.

Authorized The sliding door installation in accordance with the ,3,3Uo fr tho011 EngI4h lanqlcl-1q a invention can further be designed in such a way that R,,oni, Appeal C-urt of Cologne 4 only the shaft of one guide roller is coupled with the drive. In this way, when the shaft of only one guide roller is driven, two closed drawing means arranged one behind the other are driven in a coordinated rhythm of movement. This allows a further drive for moving the sliding wing to be dispensed with.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that two friction wheels arranged at a distance from one another are coupled to the drive as driving elements and act together with friction surfaces on the sliding wings.

This provides a very simple method of driving the sliding door installation, in particular where there are no sharp bends in the rails.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that two parking rails parallel to one another extend at an angle from the floor and/or ceiling rail, which are set in the floor and/or the ceiling and correspond in profile to the floor and/or ceiling rail. This makes it possible to move the individual sliding wings into a defined position and subsequently to shift each one individually into a parking position essentially at right angles to the previous direction of movement, in which the individual sliding wings run parallel to one another.

The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that snap elements are provided in the floor and/or ceiling rail which position each sliding wing with its supporting elements in front of the parking rails. In this way the position which the individual sliding wings must assume before they can be moved into the parking position at right angles to the previous movement is A.14 exactly defined. Authoized Regional -z Appeal Court o.ol Cologne 41 E-Lsh languae k '\4I The sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can further be designed in such a way that at least one catch is provided on the sliding wing which engages with a transport element connected with a drive and which is movable in a direction parallel to the parking rails. In this way it is possible to move the individual sliding wings by means of a drive into the parking position normal to their surface and parallel to one another. They can then be returned from the parking position back into the floor and/or ceiling rails in a corresponding way.

Finally, the sliding door installation in accordance with the invention can be designed in such a way that two catches arranged at a distance from one another are provided on the sliding wing and that on one end of the transport element a pivoting rocker is provided which engages with one or the other side of the catches on the sliding wing and which is pivotable between these two engaging positions and can be moved between the catches to the other side.

In the following part of the description some practical embodiments of the sliding door installation in accordance with the invention are described with the aid of drawings.

Fig. 1 shows a side elevation of part of a sliding door installation with friction wheel drive, Fig. 2 shows a partial section in accordance with line C-D in Fig. 1, Fig. 3. shows a top view of a sliding door installation with a parking position in which the individual sliding wings can be arranged parallel to on another in a block, 4 Athid r sllo f for the Engrirr itcug Regional Appezi Court ot Cologne 6 Fig. 4 shows a top view of a sliding door installation which follows a right angle, Fig. 5 shows a top view of a coupling element between two sliding wings of the sliding door installation in accordance with Fig. 4, Fig. 6 shows a partial section in accordance with line E-F in Fig. 4 and Fig. 7 shows a partial view in the direction of the arrow Y in Fig. 4.

The sliding door installation in accordance with Fig. 1 is provided with a ceiling rail 1 in which several sliding wings 3 are arranged with the aid of supporting elements 2 in the lengthways direction of the rail so as to be slidable. Each sliding wing 3 has a lower holding rail 4 and an upper holding rail 5. A pane of glass 6 is held between these holding rails 4 and 5. A panel element of another material can also be used in place of the pane of glass.

Two supporting bolts 7 extend from the holding rail 5 of each sliding wing 3, on top of which are the supporting elements 2 which also provide lateral guidance.

The supporting elements 2 are supported in the ceiling rail 1. They allow the course of the ceiling rail 1 to be followed.

Fig. 2 shows particularly clearly how two sliding wings 3 are coupled with one another by a connection element in the form of a lock pawl 8. This lock pawl 8 is pivotable on a bolt 10 in the upper holding rail 5. It acts together with a coupling pin 11 which is located o the upper holding rail 5 of each adjacent sliding wi I Autfinrizpd 3. A spring 9 acts upon the lock pawl 8 in the ansi3,or!e' Regional Apoe Court of Colone 7 direction of the locked position shown in Fig. 2. The lock pawl 8 has a cam surface 12 which acts together with a fixed stop face, thus causing the coupling connection of two adjacent sliding wings 3 to be released when a desired position is reached.

The practical embodiment shown in Fig. 1 is provided with a drive rail 13 on each of the supporting bolts 7 between the upper holding rail 5 and the ceiling rail 1.

Two friction wheels 14 arranged adjacent to one another with a gap inbetween and coupled by way of a common connecting wheel 15 with a drive 16 act on this drive rail 13.

Fig. 3 shows a top view of the sliding door installation in accordance with Fig. 1, whereby in addition a parking position is shown. The lock pawl 8 is shown in unlocked position in which it is held by interaction with a stop face not illustrated. In this position the sliding wing 3 shown on the right-hand side in Fig. 3 is separate from the adjacent sliding wing on the left.

Two parking rails 17 are provided which correspond in cross section to the ceiling rail 1 and which are joined to it. The two parking rails 17 run parallel to one another and in the practical embodiment shown they are at right angles to the ceiling rail i. The distance between the two parking rails 17 corresponds to the distance between the supporting elements 2 of the sliding wing 3.

When the sliding wing 3 which has been moved furthest to the right in the ceiling rail 1 as shown in Fig. 3 has reached the position shown, it can be moved at right angles to its former sliding direction by means of the4 -1\ supporting elements 2 sliding along the two parking rails 17. Engrish Appeli Cour 2; 01 Colone 24 8 The individual sliding wings 3 of a sliding door installation can be brought into this position one after the other and thus moved into a parking position where they are held by the parking rails 17 in a block parallel to one another.

The practical embodiment shown in Fig. 3 is provided with a transport element 18 for guiding the individual sliding wings 3 out of the ceiling rail 1 and into the parking rails 17 and thus into the parking position, as well as for the corresponding movement in the reverse direction. The transport element 18 possesses a spindle driven reversibly by a motor 19 and provided at its front end with a rocker 21 mounted in a tiltable manner.

In the position shown in Fig. 3 the rocker 21 engages on one side with two catches or pins 22 on the upper holding rail 5 of the sliding wing 3. In the position shown, the rocker 21 can be moved by the spindle towards the motor 19, simultaneously bringing the relevant sliding wing 3 into the parking position.

The rocker 21 is loaded via a spring 23 in the direction of the tilt position shown in Fig. 3 by the dotted lines. In this tilted position the rocker 21 can be passed in between the pins 22 in order to finally reach the lower position shown in Fig. 3 by dot-and-dash lines. In this position the sliding wings 3 arranged in a block parallel to one another in the parking position can be guided one after another into the ceiling rail 1 in which they are then moved to the left as shown in Fig. 3, whereby coupling of the sliding wings following one another in the sliding direction is provided by the lock pawls 8.

A further practical embodiment of the sliding door installation in accordance with the invention is described with the aid of Figs. 4 7. Here, ceilingi ,sized 0 I~ -,tot cr t~ he rails 30 are provided which follow a right angle. T6 E6' 's t C profile of these ceiling rails 30 corresponds to tha of of ic urt N/la ot CooaJne

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-i_ I1

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2;B 9 7 i the rails described above. The individual sliding wings 3 are also designed in the above-described way and connected with the ceiling rails Fig. 4 shows two closed drawing means 31,32 in the form of straps, belts or chains for moving the sliding wings 3. The drawing means 31 runs around the guide rollers 33,34. The drawing means 32 runs around a guide roller and a further guide roller 36. The guide roller 36 as well as the guide roller 34 are mounted resistant to torsion on a common shaft 37.

The two drawing means 31,32 are driven by a motor 38 and toothed wheels 39,40 on the shaft 41 of the guide roller (Fig. 6).

The drive 38 is reversible in order to be able to move the sliding wings 3 in either direction.

Transport levers 42 project from each drawing means 31,32 which engage with the drive pins 43 which simultaneously represent the supporting bolts 7 of the sliding wings 3.

The shaft 37 of the guide rollers 34,36 is positioned in such a way that in the relevant re-routing position the transport levers 42 engage with the drive pins 43 located in the corner area and depending on the direction of rotation draw them in one or the other direction.

A connecting element 45 (Fig. 5) is provided to couple adjacent sliding wings 3 together. It possesses a housing 44 designed like a door-closing device. Two coupling elements 46,47 extend from this housing 44 in opposite directions which are hook-shaped at their free<,,7. ends 48,49 and which each encircle a drive pin 43 whiC AuthoriZey Englsh r,n Wssa S APta Court I I Cologne is at the same time a supporting bolt 7. The coupling element 47 is firmly connected with the housing 44 of the connecting element 45. In contrast, the coupling element 46 is supported by a spring 50 in the housing 44. The spring movement is attenuated by an adjustable air outlet aperture 51.

A i. iUj A!thori?,d Irinci the O Env,,n FericnaI AUP')'A Court Of Cologne

Claims

1. Sliding door installation with several sliding wings which are movable with the aid of supporting elements, guided in a ceiling and/or floor rail and arranged in series behind one another, whereby at least one driving element connected with a drive engages in at least one sliding wing c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n t h a t adjacent sliding wings can be coupled together to form a mobile unit by means of one connecting element each in the form of a lock pawl (t) spring-loaded in the direction of the closed position, whereby the lock pawl is pivot-mounted on a sliding wing engages with a coupling pin (11) on the adjacent sliding wing and has a cam face (12) which engages with a fixed stop surface in the unlocked position.

2. Sliding door installation with several sliding wings which are movable with the aid of supporting elements, guided in a ceiling and/or floor rail and arranged in series behind one another, whereby at least one driving element connected with a drive engages in at least one sliding wing c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n t h a t adjacent sliding elements can be coupled to form a mobile whole by means of a connecting element each in the form of a housing (44) with coupling elements (46,47) extending from it in opposite directions of which at least one (46) is supported by a spring on the housing (44) and both coupling elements (46, 47) each engage with one sliding wing claim 2, characterized in that the c itrng element is formed from a housing a coupling element .'Piy Sproceeding f and supported in the housing in lAthocrized V\ g an at rnsia 1tr for the g nd attenuatedmanner like a En sh langus a SAppa:,i Court Sof Cologne 41 lla

3. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the connecting element is formed from a housing and a coupling element proceeding from it and supported in the housing by a spring, wherein the spring movement is attenuated like a door-closer. *i S* 1 ft i es 4 I '1 4 i i I i

4. Sliding door installation in accordanceione of the preceding claims, characterized in that each sliding wing is provided with at least one drive pin (43) and that the driving element is designed as a closed drawing means (31,32) running around at least two guide rollers (33-36) which has transport levers (42) engaging with the drive pin/pins (43). Sliding door installation in accordance with claim characterized in that the drawing means (31,32) is designed as a closed chain or as a belt.

6. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 4 or 5, characterized in that where the course of the floor and/or ceiling rails follows an angle, one drawing means (31,32) is arranged before the angle in the direction of movement and another (32,31) is provided after the angle.

7. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 6, characterized in that both drawing means (31,32) are guided around guide rollers (33-36) of which two (34,36) are fitted to a common shaft (37).

8. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 7, characterized in that only the shaft (41) of one guide roller (35) ir coupled with the drive.

9. Sliding door installation in accordance with «-nY one of the claims 1 3, characterized in that two friction wheels (14) arranged at a distance from one another are coupled with the drive as driving elements and act on friction surfaces (13) on the sliding wings Sliding door installation in accordance with k ione o f the preceding claims, characterized in that t9 Author ed' transt or for the A parking rails (17) extend from the floor and/or cei Z1'nnsn anguge Regional A APput' Court of Cologne 13 rails (30) at an angle to them and parallel to one another, fitted into the floor and/or ceiling and corresponding in profile to the floor and/or ceiling rails.

11. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 10, characterized in that snap elements are provided in the floor and/or ceiling rails (30) which position each sliding wing with its supporting elements in front of the parking rails (17).

12. Sliding door installation in accordance with claims 10 or 11, characterized in that at least one catch (22) is provided on the sliding wing which engages with a transport element (18) connected to a drive (19) and movable in a direction parallel to the parking rails (17).

13. Sliding door installation in accordance with claim 12, characterized in that two catches (22) are provided at a distance from one another on the sliding wing and that the transport element (18) has a tiltable rocker (21) at its end which engages on one or the other side of the catches (22) of the sliding wing and which can be tilted between these two engaging positions and moved between the catches (22) to the other side. ~9 ~Irensil~orfor the C 0 Authorized 'IV~C E n g l n la ng u a g e tra~ egins o h ~2kr7~~P~of Co!ogrro 14 Summary In a sliding door installation with several sliding wings arranged in series behind one another and capable of sliding with the aid of supporting elements (22) in a floor and/or ceiling rail 30), the sliding wings located in series behind one another can each be coupled with the aid of a connecting element At least one drive element (14,31,32) connected with a drive engages with at least one sliding wing The drives may consist in particular of a friction wheel drive (14) and a drive using closed drawing means (31,32). (Fig. 4)