EP1837475A1

EP1837475A1 - Swing door

Info

Publication number: EP1837475A1
Application number: EP07104383A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Rosè Biason
Original assignee: AZ Metalli Srl
Current assignee: AZ Metalli Srl
Priority date: 2006-03-21
Filing date: 2007-03-19
Publication date: 2007-09-26
Also published as: ITUD20060071A1

Abstract

A swing door (10) comprises a fixed frame (14), a panel (12) pivoted to the fixed frame (14), an abutment element which extends substantially along the height of the fixed frame (14). The panel (12), in a normal condition of use, from the closed position near the abutment element, can be opened by means of a rotation in a single first direction of movement. The swing door (10) also assumes a second operating condition, or auxiliary condition, able to be selectively activated by means of an external command, wherein the abutment element is removed from its normal position to allow the panel (12) to open in a second direction of rotation too, opposite the first direction, with respect to the fixed frame (14).

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns a swing door, which can be selectively opened in two different directions of rotation.
To be more exact, the present invention concerns a swing door having a first normal condition, opening in a first direction of rotation, and a second condition opening in a second direction of rotation which is able to be selectively activated and is defined by a retractable abutment element.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known to achieve swing doors having a fixed frame, a panel pivoted to the fixed frame and an abutment element, associated with the fixed frame. The panel can be closed against the abutment element and, from the closed position, can be opened only by rotating it in the opposite direction to that in which the panel was closed.
Swing doors of a known type have the disadvantage that, in the event that there is an obstacle that prevents the panel from opening, either deliberately or accidentally, it may not be possible to open the door quickly, and thus access to the premises closed by the door is substantially prevented or at least greatly impeded.
This disadvantage can be particularly serious when the door is used in premises intended for people who are not self-sufficient, for example the ill or the disabled, such as for example in the wards of hospitals.
WO-A-99/402778 discloses a door security arrangement having a metal plate inserted in a fixed part anchored to the wall. The plate can be moved from a protruding position to a retracted position by means of a leverage system. This document discloses a door assembly having a structure which allows the rotation either in one and in the opposite direction, and a security arrangement selectively movable for selectively locking the door in one sense of rotation.
FR-A-2.622.627 discloses an abutment mechanism fixed with a screw, which allows to stop the panel of a door and allows the panel to open towards the external side when it is disassembled by removing the screw.
One purpose of the present invention is to achieve a swing door which in a first normal condition of use can be opened in a single direction of rotation, but which can also assume, selectively and upon an external command, a second auxiliary condition in which the door can be opened also in the opposite direction with respect to the normal one.
The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is set forth and characterized in the main claim, while the dependent claims describe other characteristics of the invention or variants to the main inventive idea.
In accordance with said purpose, a swing door according to the present invention comprises a fixed frame, at least a panel pivoted to said fixed frame and an abutment element, which extends substantially along the height of the fixed frame, and functions as an operating/functional element defining the closed position of the panel.
The panel, in a first normal condition of use, from the closed position near the abutment element can be opened by rotation in a single direction of movement with respect to the fixed frame.
According to a characteristic feature of the present invention, the swing door can assume a second operating condition, or auxiliary condition, able to be selectively activated by means of an external command, in which the abutment element is removed from its normal position in order to allow the panel to open in a second direction of rotation too, opposite the first, with respect to said fixed frame. Advantageously, the second auxiliary condition can also be activated from the closed position of the panel.
According to the invention, the abutment element can be selectively moved between a position of interference with the panel, which defines said first normal condition, and a position of non-interference with the panel, which defines the second auxiliary condition.
According to a characteristic of the present invention, the positions of interference and non-interference are determined by means of releasable attachment means which is also accessible from the closed position of the panel.
According to the invention, therefore, even in the event that, during the normal condition of use, an obstacle impedes the opening of the panel in its normal direction of opening, it can be configured to open in the other direction of rotation, and therefore is not impeded, so as to provide easy and rapid access to the premises closed by the door.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of a preferential form of embodiment, given as a non-restrictive example with reference to the attached drawings wherein:

fig. 1 is a three-dimensional view of a swing door in a first normal condition of use;
fig. 2 is an enlarged detail in section of fig. 1;
fig. 3 is a three-dimensional view of a swing door in an auxiliary condition;
fig. 4 is an enlarged detail in section of fig. 3;
fig. 5a is a longitudinal section view of fig. 1;
fig. 5b is an enlarged detail of fig. 5a;
fig. 6a is a longitudinal section view of fig. 3;
fig. 6b is an enlarged detail of fig. 6a;
fig. 7 shows a constructional variant of the swing door according to the present invention; and
fig. 8 shows another constructional variant of the swing door according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERENTIAL FORM OF EMBODIMENT

According to the present invention, fig. 1 shows a swing door 10 which comprises a fixed frame 14, in this case consisting of a box 23 and a portion of wall 24, which delimits an aperture of passage, a panel 12 pivoted to the fixed frame 14 and an abutment element 15, which extends substantially along the height of the fixed frame 14, and defines functionally a closed position of the panel 12.
The panel 12, in a first normal condition of use, is able to be selectively disposed in an open position, in which it allows transit through the aperture of passage.
In said normal condition of use, the passage of the panel 12 from the closed position to the open position is achieved by means of a rotation in a first single direction of opening with respect to the fixed frame 14 towards the inside of the premises to be closed, in this case in an anti-clockwise direction (figs. 1 and 3). It is clear that the swing door 10 can also be made to open in a clockwise direction (figs. 2 and 4).
To be more exact, the panel 12 is provided with an abutting portion 13, made along at least a peripheral edge of the panel 12, which is able to cooperate with the abutment element 15, more precisely with an abutment surface 19 thereof (figs. 2 and 4).
Furthermore, the swing door 10 is able to assume a second auxiliary condition (figs. 3 and 4), able to be selectively activated, in which said abutment element 15 is located in a retracted position, or of non-interference, in order to allow the selective opening of the panel 12 in a second direction too, with respect to said fixed frame 14, opposite said first direction.
The second auxiliary condition can advantageously also be activated from the closed position of the panel 12.
In the second auxiliary condition, the abutment element 15 completely frees the gap of the panel 12, allowing it to open in two directions (figs. 4, 6a and 6b), and thus also towards the outside of the premises to be closed.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the abutment element comprises a section bar 15, advantageously made by extrusion or drawing, for example made of metal such as aluminum, or by molding polymeric materials, such as PVC, or made of wood, metal, composite materials, such as aluminum-wood, by removing material. The section bar 15, in this case, substantially has the shape of an elongated rectangular plate, which extends for the whole height of the fixed frame 14 (figs. 5a, 5b, 6a and 6b).
According to a preferential form of embodiment of the present invention, the abutment element 15 is connected to one side of the fixed frame 14, in this case one of the two vertical sides (figs. 5a and 6a); it comes within the framework of the invention to provide that the abutment element 15 can be associated with the horizontal side or lintel of the fixed frame 14.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, not shown in the drawings, the swing door 10 comprises two panels, pivoted to the fixed frame 14, of which one functions as a main panel and the other as a secondary panel and the abutment element 15 is associated with the secondary panel.
To be more exact, according to one embodiment of the present invention (figs. 2, 4, 5b and 6b), the section bar 15 cooperates with a groove 18, of a shape mating with that of said section bar 15, which is able to selectively accommodate said section bar 15 inside it in a retracted manner in said second auxiliary condition.
The section bar 15, in this case, can be selectively retracted inside the groove 18, so that the abutment surface 19 does not interfere with the abutting portion 13 and does not protrude from the fixed frame 14 (figs. 4 and 6b). In this case, the groove 18 can be made in the fixed frame 14, substantially along the whole height of the latter (figs. 5b, 6b), or can be made in the secondary panel.
The positions of interference and non-interference of the abutment element 15 are determined by means of releasable attachment means 17, 117.
The releasable attachment means 17, 117 are advantageously also able to make the abutment element 15 selectively solid with the frame 14 or the secondary panel.
According to another characteristic feature of the present invention, the releasable attachment means 17, 117 are directly accessible and maneuverable for a user, even when the panel 12 is in the closed position. Therefore, the user can intervene no matter what position the panel 12 is in, in order to free the gap and make it able to open in two directions.
According to a preferential embodiment of the present invention, the releasable attachment means comprise screws 117, nut-type attachment means, lock nuts and suchlike, driven by means of suitable tools, screwdrivers, spanners or other (fig. 7). In this case, the screws 117 cooperate with attachment holes of the abutment element 15 which, if necessary, can be completely removed from the door 10, freeing the two-directional movement of the panel 12 (fig. 7).
According to another form of embodiment of the present invention, the releasable attachment means comprise attachment pins 17, able to be driven manually and/or having a transverse groove 21 which can cooperate with a coin to be rotated (fig. 2).
According to one form of embodiment of the present invention, the attachment pins 17 cooperate with sliding means 16, in order to displace the abutment element 15 and to attach the abutment element 15 to the fixed frame 14 or to the secondary panel (figs. 2 and 4). In this case, the sliding means comprises at least an eyelet 16, whose longitudinal size determines the maximum relative displacement of the abutment element 15, to allow the passage between said position of interference and said position of non-interference, and vice versa. The eyelet 16 slides with respect to the attachment pins 17 when the abutment element 15 is displaced. Advantageously, the swing door 10 comprises a plurality of attachment pins 17, cooperating with a corresponding plurality of eyelets 16.
According to another form of embodiment of the present invention, the abutment element 15 comprises a pin 22, by means of which it is connected rotatably to the frame 14 (fig. 8), or alternatively to the secondary panel. The abutment element 15 is thus pivoted so as to be able to be rotated between the position of interference and the position of non-interference (fig. 8). In this case too, the position of interference is determined by the releasable attachment means 17.
The swing door 10 according to the present invention comprises drive means 20, also able to be driven directly in the closed position, which are able to activate said auxiliary condition. In this case, the drive means comprises a gripping tongue 20, able to be maneuvered, for example manually, so as to displace (figs. 4, 6b and 7) or rotate (fig. 8) the section bar 15. The tongue 20 extends perpendicularly from the section bar 15 and is integrated in one piece with the section bar 15, defining a substantially L-shaped cross section of the section bar 15 (figs. 2 and 4).
Advantageously the drive means 20 is able to be activated by means of mechanical type systems, provided with levers and bolts, electromechanical, electric or electronic.
It is clear that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the swing door 10 as described heretofore, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims

Swing door comprising a fixed frame (14), at least a panel (12) pivoted to said fixed frame (14), an abutment element (15) which extends substantially along the height of said fixed frame (14) and defines the normal closed position of the door, said panel (12) being provided with an abutting portion (13) interfering with said abutment element (15) in the closed position of the door, wherein said at least one panel (12), in a normal condition of use, from the closed position in contact with the abutment element (15), can be opened by means of a rotation in a single first direction of movement with respect to said fixed frame (14), characterized in that said swing door is able to assume a second operating condition, or auxiliary condition, able to be selectively activated by means of an external command, wherein said abutment element (15) is able to either slide or rotate in a position in which it does not interfere with said abutting portion (13) to allow said panel (12) to open in a second direction of rotation too, opposite said first direction with respect to said fixed frame (14).
Swing door as in claim 1, characterized in that said second auxiliary condition can be activated also from the closed position of said panel (12).
Swing door as in claim 1, characterized in that the positions of interference and non-interference of said abutment element (15) are determined by means of releasable attachment means (17, 117) which cooperate with said abutment element (15).
Swing door as in claim 3, characterized in that said releasable attachment means (17, 117) are accessible also from the closed position of said panel (12).
Swing door as in claim 3 or 4, characterized in that said releasable attachment means comprise attachment pins (17).
Swing door as in claim 5, characterized in that it comprises sliding means (16) which cooperates with said attachment pins (17) in order to allow passage between said position of interference and said position of non-interference and vice versa.
Swing door as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that it comprises drive means (20), able to activate said second auxiliary condition, which is able to be driven directly also from the closed position of said panel (12).
Swing door as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that said abutment element comprises a flat section bar (15), of an elongated rectangular shape, which extends substantially for the whole height of said fixed frame (14).
Swing door as in claims 7 and 8, characterized in that said drive means comprises a tongue (20), able to be driven manually in order to displace said section bar (15), which extends perpendicularly from said section bar (15) and which defines a substantially L-shaped cross section of said section bar (15).
Swing door as in any claim from 7 to 9, characterized in that said drive means (20) can be activated by means of systems of a mechanical, electromechanical, electric or electronic type.
Swing door as in claim 9 or 10, characterized in that it comprises a groove (18), of a shape mating with that of said section bar (15), able to selectively accommodate said section bar (15) inside it in retracted manner when said section bar (15) is made to slide in said second auxiliary condition.
Swing door as in claim 11, characterized in that said groove (18) is made in said fixed frame (14).
Swing door as in any claim from 1 to 10, characterized in that it comprises a pin (22) by means of which said abutment element (15) is pivoted and made rotatable between said position of interference and said position of non-interference.
Swing door as in claim 13, characterized in that said pin (22) is connected to said fixed frame (14).
Swing door as in any claim from 1 to 10 which comprises a plurality of panels, of which at least two panels pivoted to said fixed frame (14), wherein at least one panel functions as a main panel (12) and at least another panel functions as a secondary panel, characterized in that said abutment element (15) is associated with said secondary panel.
Swing door as in claims 11 and 15, characterized in that said groove (18) is made in said secondary panel.
Swing door as in claims 13 and 15, characterized in that said pin (22) is connected to said secondary panel.