DE69222416T2 - VERTICAL FOLDABLE PARTITION - Google Patents

Abstract

A rigid wall partition system (2) which is vertically upwardly movable into storage position and vertically downwardly movable to form a continuous wall. The system comprises a plurality of panels (8) secured to members which in turn are pivotally secured to spaced trains (20) of single pantographs, contraction of the pantograph causing the panels to fold, in accordion fashion and expansion of the pantographs causing the panels to move to vertical, wallforming position.

Description

Technical area

The present invention relates to a partition system and, in particular, to a rigid partition system which is movable vertically upwards to a storage position and movable vertically downwards to form a wall.

General state of the art on which the invention is based

Movable partition systems have many applications, particularly to divide areas of a building and to create smaller areas from larger ones. Conventional halls and large rooms in hotels, school gyms and work areas in factories are just some types of building interiors in relation to which movable partitions are often used to divide these spaces into smaller rooms.

Such walls may be formed of fabric or other similar material only and may take the form of curtains which may be drawn or retracted. Other, more durable types of movable partitions are made of a solid material, extend from floor to ceiling and have heat and/or sound insulating materials between a rigid wall-forming exterior. Currently known partition systems of the rigid type conventionally move horizontally. These types of movable walls usually require storage space (in plan) to store the wall panels or panels when not in use. The wall panels may be very heavy and as a result the loads imposed on the supporting structure (ceiling of the room, roof of the building, etc.) are not constant when the panels are moved and they increase as the wall panels are guided toward their storage positions.

Such horizontally movable, rigid walls are currently available in three basic types:

(1) individual boards,

(2) paired panels (two hinged together), and

(3) continuously hinged panels (all hinged together).

Individual panels can be moved into place individually, either manually or mechanically. Paired panels must be moved into place manually. Continuously hinged panels can be moved into place either manually or mechanically. Individual panels have no hinges because they are not connected to each other and they must be moved individually, for example on tracks embedded in the ceiling or roof of the room in which the panels operate. Paired panels and continuously hinged panels have exposed hinges that can be unsightly and limit the applications in which these panels can be used.

Other disadvantages associated with movable partitions that move horizontally on guideways or tracks attached to the underside of the ceiling or roof structure of the given space include the following: (a) the finished wall dimensions are limited because the panel components are limited in weight and size, (b) most of the larger walls must be operated manually because friction and weight prevent automation, (c) they require considerable storage space (in plan), thereby adding to the construction cost, (d) the wall panels tend to be suspended between the ceiling and the floor due to a roof bending caused by snow or rain loading, etc., and (e) they cannot be easily modified to meet specific customer requirements (i.e. gaps, openings, etc.).

One type of track supported, horizontally movable partition system of background interest to the present invention is an accordion door system offered by Moderco Partitions Inc. in which a multiple pantograph structure is suspended from rollers on tracks in the ceiling and alternatively vertically oriented panels or sheets of flexible material are attached to spaced portions of the pantograph structure such that when the pantograph is expanded laterally, the partition closes, resulting in a wave-like final appearance.

The pantograph structure proposed in that accordion door design is similar to that found, for example, in "baby gates" in which a series of beams are pivotally connected together in spaced apart fashion to form a series of equal diamonds along the length of the frame. In a single pantograph design (as opposed to the multiple pantograph design) a pair of beams of equal size are pivotally connected at their centers. Their ends at one end are pivotally connected to the ends of a corresponding pair of beams of equal length pivotally connected at their centers in the same manner, and so on. The centers of the beams are aligned to form opposite corners of diamond shapes, the other opposite corners of these being formed by the pivotally attached ends of adjacent pairs of intersecting beams. The pantograph structure expands longitudinally, in a direction parallel to the axis formed by the aligned intersections or crossovers of the beams, and contracts in a similar manner. In engineering applications, the pantograph structure is useful because it can absorb forces applied longitudinally, in the direction of expansion and contraction of the structure, to be transmitted uniformly through all of the beams of the structure. Also, when the structure is contracted, all of the vertices of the diamonds formed by the points of intersection of the beams will arrive at their final, fully contracted position at the same time, which means that the vertices of diamonds at the outer end, which move towards the other end during contraction, will move at a much greater speed than the vertices of diamonds at the inner end.

Of technical background interest is German Patent No. 1 784 874 to Tokyo Blind Kogyo Co., Ltd., et al., which describes and illustrates a wall based on a central pantograph or scissor linkage over which another scissor linkage structure is mounted, with a fabric or other such flexible covering then covering the double scissor linkage on both sides. German Patent Application DE 34 38 848 A1 to Kaczikowski describes and illustrates a ceiling-suspended collapsible partition formed from a plurality of rigid panels or plates aligned end-to-end, with opposite ends of adjacent panels or plates being secured to one another by means of a flexible material. Adjacent panels or boards are designed to fold upwards from the floor at the top of each other, one panel or board at a time, when the partition is raised.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a movable rigid partition system which eliminates many of the problems found in previously known horizontal movable rigid partition systems. It is a further object of the present Invention to create a novel design of a vertically movable, rigid partition system.

Disclosure of the invention

The present invention relates to an improvement for a partition wall which is movable vertically upwards to a storage position and vertically downwards to form a wall. The partition wall comprises a support frame of identically shaped, vertically aligned trains of elongated members. The trains are distributed horizontally over a predetermined distance. The members of each train are arranged in a single pantograph construction to form a single row of identically sized, vertically stacked diamonds aligned parallel to a desired wall line of the wall. The trains can be extended to a lower, wall-forming position and raised upwards to an upper, raised storage position. The diamonds of the trains form horizontal rows of diamonds from one train to the next, the diamonds in each horizontal row being of equal size and shape. In each row, equal pairs of elongated links intersect and these equal pairs of elongated links are pivotally connected to one another midway between their ends to form adjacent vertically arranged vertices of adjacent diamonds. Corresponding ends of these pairs of intersecting links are pivotally connected to the ends of other pairs of intersecting links to form laterally arranged vertices of the diamonds at these ends, so that when the rows are all drawn together and the vertical vertices of the diamonds are drawn towards one another, the diamonds are folded over their lateral vertices.

Associated with each of the diamonds is a pair of equally sized, elongated plate support members. The plate support members are pivotally connected at one end to each other and at their other ends to an element on one side of the pantograph opposite vertically arranged vertices this diamond. Like plates are provided, each plate being attached to a plate support member of each train at the corresponding height in a horizontal row, with different plates being attached at different heights so that the plates project laterally horizontally over the predetermined distance. A first horizontally oriented beam member connects the trains at their lower end and a second horizontally oriented beam member connects the trains at their upper end. Mechanical means associated with the first horizontally oriented beam member can be operated to raise the first beam member while maintaining its horizontal orientation, the diamonds being folded at the same rate as the first beam is raised to the upper storage position.

The improvement is characterized in that the plates are of rigid construction and of such length that they are vertically aligned and abut one another when the trains are pulled apart to a predetermined limit position to form a rigid partition having a continuous wall surface. With respect to the pair of equal-sized elongated plate support members associated with each of the diamonds, the trefoils at each of the ends of these members are constructed and arranged to allow unimpeded movement of the members and plates.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, like plate support members and plates are similarly secured to both sides of the pantograph trains to ensure a continuous wall surface on both sides of the pantograph trains when the plate support members are vertically oriented.

Functionally, the vertically movable partition system according to the present invention is essentially formed of parallel, rigid plates which are mechanically connected to one another as a type of pantograph. When the pantograph trains are folded upwards the wall is moved upwards and folds like an accordion. Since the rigid panels are connected to each other, the wall can be fully automated as a whole. Furthermore, due to the construction used, the connections and joints are invisible to the eye from the wall side (or in the case of the double wall design) from the wall sides.

Because the rigid wall panels move vertically rather than horizontally, a storage space (in plan) is not required because the wall folds and stores at ceiling level above the wall assembly. In other words, the wall does not shift laterally. As a result, a significant advantage achieved by the present invention over prior art horizontally movable rigid partitions is that the loads imposed on the support structure are constant. The weight of the wall remains the same whether the wall is up or down (open or closed).

Short description of the drawings

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings in which:

Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 are schematic, perspective, partially broken away partial views of a rigid, movable partition system according to the present invention in a semi-lowered position and in a lowered, wall-forming position, respectively;

Fig. 3 is a schematic, perspective partial view of one of the pantograph trains of the system according to Fig. 1 in a folded storage position, without plates for reasons of greater clarity;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged, partial perspective view of the lower portion of one of the pantograph trains of the system in an extended position, without panels, showing in detail a portion of the raising and lowering mechanism;

Fig. 5A and Fig. 5B are partial side views of a portion of the pantograph and plate support members of the system in a raised storage position and in a lowered wall-forming position, respectively;

Fig. 6 is a partial sectional view taken along line VI-VI of Fig. 3, but with the pantograph in the lowered wall-forming position, illustrating the pivotal connection of the connected ends of a pair of plate support members;

Fig. 7 is a view along the line VII-VII of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8A and Fig. 8B are schematic side views of a row of adjacent plate support members in a vertical, wall-forming position to illustrate inaccurate alignment of the relative pivot points of the members and to illustrate accurate alignment of the relative pivot points of the members, respectively.

While the invention is described in connection with an embodiment, it is to be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to such embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Mode(s) for carrying out the invention

In the drawings, the same features have been given the same reference numerals.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, respectively, there is illustrated a vertically movable rigid partition system 2 according to the present invention in a semi-lowered position and in a lowered wall-forming position, respectively. The system comprises a skeletal framework of elongated members 4 in a single pantograph configuration, substantially along the centerline of the wall to be formed, the pantograph being oriented to be able to be extended in a vertical direction. Attached to this, in a manner explained in more detail below, are panel support beams 6, rigid panels 8, a lower pantograph support beam 10, an upper pantograph support beam 12 and a mechanical power drive system 14 for raising and lowering the system 2. The upper pantograph support beam 12 is held in a fixed, horizontal position at the top of the area where the wall is to be formed. The system 2 may, as illustrated, be housed within a storage shaft 16 in the ceiling of the building in which the system is installed and will have overall dimensions such that when in its lowered, wall-forming position it will form a unitary wall over an area to be enclosed.

An understanding of the construction and operation of the system 2 in greater detail can be obtained by referring to Figures 3 to 7. As can be seen from Figures 2 and 3, the elongate members 4 form a series of vertically aligned trains 20, which trains are spaced apart in the horizontal direction by a predetermined distance as illustrated. The members 4 forming each train form a single vertically extendible and contractible pantograph, the members 4 being pivotally connected at their centers to form central, vertically disposed apexes 22 of adjacent diamonds 24, and the ends of the members 4 being pivotally attached to the ends of like pairs of members to form laterally disposed apexes 26 of diamonds 24. The pantographs forming the trains 20 are oriented such that the diamonds 24 lie with their planes along the centre line of the wall to be formed. All of the links 4 (except the two outermost links of the end diamonds of each train 20) are of the same length. Consequently, by ensuring that the upper pantograph support beam 10 as well as the lower pantograph support beam 12 are aligned horizontally, horizontal rows of diamonds 24 are provided from one train 20 to the next. The lower pantograph support beam 10 and the upper pantograph support beam 12 are respectively attached to the corresponding diamonds 24 at their lower apex 28 and at their upper apex 30, of course in such a way that the corresponding beams of those diamonds are free to rotate at the apex 28 and the apex 30 respectively.

It will be understood that by raising the lower pantograph support beam 10 from the position illustrated in Figure 3, all of the vertically disposed vertices 22 will reach the upper, fully retracted wall position at the same time. This movement will cause the diamonds 24 to collapse at substantially the same rate as the lower, vertically disposed vertex 22 of each diamond is moved toward its upper vertex 22.

As can be seen from Fig. 3 and 4, on each side of the courses formed by the members 4 20 plate support beams 6 are pivotally attached. In particular, for a particular diamond 24 formed by the elements 4, an upper plate support beam 32 and a lower plate support beam 34 are provided on one side thereof. The beams 32 and 34 are pivotally attached to one another by means of a hinge 36 (a view of this hinge 36 will be obstructed if these beams are clad with plates 8). The other ends of the beams 32 and 34 are pivotally attached to members 4 adjacent to respective vertices 22 by means of hinges 38 as shown. To facilitate the following description, the hinges 38 are as "A" joints and joints 36 as "B" joints. The "A" joints are substantially anchored to the pantograph structure formed by links 4 in a particular train, and the "B" joints move inwardly or outwardly or "float" with respect to the plane of the diamonds 24 of the trains 20 during extension or contraction of those trains. For a two-sided wall panel system, in the system which has been illustrated, each of the diamonds 24 on each side of each of the trains 20 is provided with a cooperating pair of panel support beams 32 and 34 which are similarly hinged by means of joints 36 and 38.

The panel support beams 32 and 34 are of equal length, that length being such as to ensure that the beams 32 and 34 are in a vertical orientation when the pulls 20 have been fully extended to their wall forming position (e.g., Fig. 2). As a result, a panel 8 secured to the panel support beam 32 and another panel 8 secured to the panel support beam 34, these panels being of a width in the vertical direction equal to the length of their respective panel support beam, will provide a wall having a solid, level, unbroken appearance when the beams 32 and 34 are in this vertical orientation. The panels 8 are preferably of rectangular construction, elongated in the horizontal direction, with a single panel or set of panels 8 being secured to all of the panel support beams 32 (or 34, as the case may be) of trains which are horizontally at the same level. It is preferred that a small keyway 40 of flexible material be secured to the opposite sides 42 of the panels 8 in the horizontal as well as the vertical direction to provide acoustic isolation between adjacent panels.

To ensure that the "B" joints connecting a cooperating pair of plate support beams 32 and 34 are not visible are when the plates 8 are vertically oriented in the wall forming position, a standard design of a fishing line or fish tape was found to be unsuitable. Instead, as can be seen from Figs. 6 and 7, a pair of connecting rods 44 have been pivotally attached to each of the plate support beams 32 and 34 at spaced pivot points 46, which pivot points are positioned inwardly from the outer sides 48 of these plate support beams (Fig. 6) so that they are not visible to the outside. In this arrangement, to ensure that cooperating plate support beams 32 and 34 maintain their relative positioning and as their opposite ends 50 move outwardly or inwardly during contraction or extension of trains, cooperating curved spur gears 52 are provided. The spur gears 52 are formed and positioned at ends 50 of the beams 32 and 34 so that the engagement of the teeth of these gears maintains the beams 32 and 34 in a proper position at all times and one of these beams merely pivots outwardly or inwardly at the same speed as the other during retraction or extension of the cables 20.

The "A" joints for the plate support beams 32 and 34 may be of any suitable design to achieve the desired movement of the beams. Each of the "A" joints must, of course, be attached to a portion of the train 20 adjacent a vertically disposed apex 22 in a manner that does not interfere with the pivotal operation of the links 4.

A suitable arrangement of a hinge 38 is illustrated in successive configurations on one side of the links 4 in Figs. 5A and 5B. Each of the ends of the cooperating beams 32 and 34 at this "A" hinge is individually hinged by means of a four-point pivot 54 to one of the links 4 near the corresponding apex 22 where the links are pivotally attached to each other as illustrated so that when the links 4 are out of the folded (Fig. 5A) to the fully extended, wall-forming position and back to the folded position, the opposite ends of cooperating beams 32 and 34 and the plates attached thereto are prevented from interfering with one another. The hinge 54 is pivotally attached to the cooperating beams 32 and 34 and the plates attached thereto at pivot points 56. A rod 57 has one end which is pivotally attached to a pivot point 58 on the base 59 of the hinge 54, which base is attached to the corresponding member 4. Welded to the other end of the rod 57 is a sleeve 60 within which is pivotally attached a projection 61 which is attached to the main body of the hinge 54, as illustrated. In this way the four pivot points are provided which give the desired movement of the beams 32 and 34.

As can be seen from Fig. 8B, when it is desired to raise the trains 20 from their fully extended, wall-forming position, in order to ensure that cooperating plate support beams 32 and 34 along the lengths of the trains 20 do not seize in a vertical position, it is important that the "B" joints be positioned outwardly with respect to the "A" joints in a vertical sense. In this manner, when upward forces are applied by means of the lower pantograph support beam 10 acting on the lower apex 28, the floating "B" joints 36 are properly positioned to begin rotating outwardly about their corresponding "A" joints at the other ends of the corresponding plate support beams 32 and 34. Thus, the configuration of the "A" and "B" joints on the support beams 32 and 34 illustrated schematically in Fig. 8B is the accurate configuration. In the inaccurate design illustrated in Fig. 8A, an upward force on the plate support beams 32 and 34 would cause the "B" joint to tend to rotate inward against the tension 22, or seize in that locked position. As a result, the relative Positioning the "A" and "B" joints as illustrated in Fig. 8A may result in an ineffective design.

For movement of the cables 20 upwardly into the storage position or downwardly into the wall forming position, a mechanical power drive system 14 is provided, which is schematically illustrated in Figures 1 and 2. The power drive system 14 includes a transmission shaft 64 driven by a motor 66. The transmission shaft 64 is preferably positioned in the ceiling above the cables 20 and extends parallel along the length of the panels 8 as illustrated. A plurality of cables 68, one for each cable 20, are provided, with one end of the cable wound around a corresponding cable reel 70. In the illustrated embodiment, the cable 68 is guided downward to a pair of pulleys 72 secured to the lower pantograph support beam 10 on either side of the lower apex 28 and then upward to a suitable adjustment device 74 (Fig. 3) whereby the length of the cable 68 extending from the drum 70 can be adjusted. This adjustment is important to ensure that the cables 68 are all taut for operation of the system 2 and that the lower pantograph support beam 10 is in a horizontal orientation.

In operation, when the system 2 is in the wall forming position as illustrated in Figure 3, with the panels 8 vertically oriented and in abutting relationship, and it is desired to raise the panels 8 to the storage position, the motor 66 is activated to rotate the transmission shaft 64 so that the hoist cables 68 will simultaneously and uniformly wind onto their respective drums 70. This will cause the lower pantograph support beam 10 to be raised while maintaining its horizontal orientation, folding the pantograph cables 20. This action will cause the "B" joints of the panel support beams 6 to extend outwardly away from the plane of the diamonds 24 of the pulls 20, and will thereby cause the panels 8 to fold upwards in an accordion manner as the pulls 20 are retracted to the storage position in the storage shaft 16. Rotation of the transmission shaft 64 in the opposite direction will cause the cables 68 to be unwound from their respective cable drums 70 to lower the pantograph support beam 10 and cause the panels 8 to progressively return to the vertical, wall-forming orientation.

Claims (8)

1. A partition (2) movable vertically upwards to a storage position and vertically downwards to form a wall, comprising a support frame of identically formed, vertically aligned trains (20) of elongate members (4), the trains being horizontally spaced over a predetermined distance, the members of each train being arranged in a single pantograph construction to form a single row of identically sized, vertically stacked diamonds (24) aligned parallel to a desired wall line of the wall, the trains being extendable to a lower, wall-forming position and being able to be raised upwards to an upper, raised storage position, the diamonds of the trains forming horizontal rows of diamonds from one train to the next, the diamonds in each horizontal row being of equal size and shape, equal pairs of elongate members intersecting in each train and being pivotally attached to one another midway between their ends to form adjacent, vertically arranged vertices (22) of adjacent diamonds, and respective ends of said pairs of intersecting members being pivotally connected to the ends of other pairs of intersecting members to form laterally disposed vertices (26) of the diamonds at those ends, so that when the rows are all drawn together and the vertical vertices of the diamonds are drawn towards each other, the diamonds are folded over their lateral vertices; with a pair of equally sized elongated plate support members (6) associated with each of the diamonds, the plate support members being pivotally connected at one end to each other and at their other end to one side of the pantograph opposite vertically disposed vertices of these diamond; wherein like plates (8) are attached to a plate support member of each train at the corresponding height in a horizontal row, wherein different plates are attached at different heights so that the plates project laterally horizontally over the predetermined distance; with a first horizontally aligned beam member (1Q) connecting the trains at their lower end and a second horizontally aligned beam member (12) connecting the trains at their upper end; and mechanical means (14) associated with the first horizontally oriented beam member and operable to raise the first beam member while maintaining its horizontal orientation and to push the diamonds together as the first beam is raised to the upper storage position, characterized in that the plates (8) are of rigid construction and of a size such that they are vertically oriented and abut one another when the pulls are extended to a predetermined limit position to then form a rigid partition having a continuous wall surface, and in that, with respect to the pair of equally sized elongated plate support members associated with each of the diamonds, the pivots (36, 38) at each of the ends of these members are arranged to permit unimpeded up and down movement of the members and plates. 2. A partition wall according to claim 1, wherein like plate support members (6) and plates (8) are similarly secured to both sides of the pantograph rails (20) to ensure a continuous wall surface on both sides of the pantograph rails when the plate support members are vertically aligned. 3. Partition wall according to claim 2, in which opposing edges (42) of adjacent panels (8) are joined together with flexible keyways (40) to ensure acoustic insulation. 4. A partition according to claim 1, wherein the mechanical means (14) comprises a cable means (68) extending from a motor-driven, rotatable transmission shaft (64) to the first horizontally oriented beam member (10), so that rotation of the transmission shaft in a direction winding up the cable means causes the cables to simultaneously contract into the storage position and rotation of the transmission shaft in the other direction unwinds the cable and simultaneously extends the cables into the wall-forming position. 5. A partition wall according to claim 4, wherein the transmission shaft (64) is located above the pulls in the middle of the wall and the cable means comprises a plurality of cables (68) associated with cable drums (70) attached to the transmission shaft, a drum being located above each pull and the cable associated with it extending to the first beam member (10) at the lower end of the corresponding pull. 6. A partition according to claim 5, wherein the free end of each cable (68) is adjustably secured above the respective cable (20) by retaining means (74) and the cable extends from its respective cable drum down to cable reels (72) secured to the first beam member (10) at the lower end of the respective cable, around them and back up to the securing means. 7. A partition according to claim 1, wherein the plate support members (6) are pivotally secured together at their connected ends by a connecting means (44) having a pair of spaced pivot axes, one for each member, cooperating toothed drive means (52) being provided at the respective ends (50) of said members to ensure that during extension and lifting of the pulls (20) a corresponding degree of rotation of each member with respect to its axis of rotation by the connecting links. 8. A partition according to claim 1, wherein, with respect to the pair of elongate panel support members (6) of equal size associated with each of the diamonds (24), the pivots (36) of the pivotally attached panel support members are arranged outwardly towards the respective panels with respect to the pivots (38) at the other ends of those members when the members are in the vertical orientation, so as to ensure suitable rotation of the panel support members from the vertical orientation when the rails (20) are raised upwardly from the wall-forming position.