GB2177441A

GB2177441A - Seal

Info

Publication number: GB2177441A
Application number: GB08607524A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Colin Campbell
Original assignee: BONNINGTON PLASTICS Ltd
Current assignee: BONNINGTON PLASTICS Ltd
Priority date: 1985-07-02
Filing date: 1986-03-26
Publication date: 1987-01-21
Also published as: GB2177441B; GB8607524D0

Abstract

A sealing arrangement for one edge of a door comprises at least two separate mounting elements (14, 15), at least one of which carries a resilient door seal (26, 27). A connector (18) extends between the elements and is adjustably connected to at least one of them in order to suit the thickness of the edge of the door. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Door sealing arrangement This invention relates to a door sealing arrangement and has been developed primarily, though not exclusively, with a view to providing a seal for use with an access door to the storage space on a refrigerated vehicle.

The doors which provide access to a refrigerated storage space of a vehicle are usually thicker than the doors to the storage spaces for other goods, so as to provide a satisfactory level of thermal insulation. However, door thicknesses for refrigerated vehicles vary substantially from one manufacturer to another, so that when seals are provided for the doors (which is generally necessary to minimise heat transfer between the outside atmosphere and the interior of a refrigerated space), it is necessary for seals to be moulded specifically for any particular design of door.

Existing designs of seal for doors of refrigerated vehicles have a U-shaped profile of substantially rigid plastics material, into which is inserted the door edge which is to be sealed. The U-profile is moulded with limbs thereof being gently convergent from the base of the profile which overlies the end face of the door edge, and the profile is slightly resilient so as to allow the limbs to be deformed outwardly by a sufficient extent to allow entry of the door edge into the channel defined by the profile and to make firm gripping contact with the side regions of the door adjacent to the door edge.The free ends of the limbs may also have resilient tips (of a more resilient material) which are co-extruded with the profile, and which seal the profile on the door edge so as to prevent water ingress along the interface between the end face of the door edge and the adjacent base of the Uprofile.

To provide a seal between the door edge and a frame in which it is mounted, when the door is closed, or between the door edge and the edge of an adjoining hinged door, the U-profile has resilient sealing strips which extend from the base of the profile in an opposite direction to said limbs. The sealing strips are known as "flipper seals". Other seals which may be provided for this purpose, alternatively or in addition, include generally circular section seals which are known as "bubble seals".

The existing design of seal is formed of two materials, namely a rigid plastics, such as rigid PVC, to form the U-profile, and resilient material to form the resilient tips and the resilient sealing strips.

However, despite the use of two materials, it is possible for the existing seal to be formed as a composite unitary moulding, in that the elements of resilient material can be co-extruded with the rigid plastics material.

The existing design of seal functions satisfactorily, but suffers from the disadvantage that different mouldings have to be designed for each particular thickness of refrigerator door, which imposes an inevitable cost penalty and also the need for seal manufacturers to carry a wide range of supplies of door seals.

Accordingly, there would be an evident econamic advantage to be obtained if a means could be found to provide a common design of door seal which can be adjusted readily to suit different door thicknesses.

According to the invention there is provided a sealing arrangement which is adapted to be mounted along one edge region of a door-like closure member and which comprises at least two separate mounting elements, at least one of which elements is adapted to carry a resilient door seal, and in which: each mounting element is made of generally rigid, though slightly resilient plastics material and is intended to be mounted adjacent to a corresponding one of a pair of opposed corners of the end face of said edge region of the closure member; and a connector extends between and interconnects the mounting elements, the connector being adjustably connected to at least one of said mounting elements so as to permit adjustment of the overall length of the assembly of the two mounting elements and the connector in order to suit the thickness of the edge region of the closure member.

Preferably, the adjustable connection between said connector and said one mounting element comprises a spigot and socket type connection in which the depth of insertion of the spigot in the socket is adjustable between a number of predetermined substantially self-holding positions.

The connection may comprise a "pine tree type" arrangement, or interengaging single edge serrated, or saw-toothed profiles.

Conveniently, the connector is moulded from a generally rigid, though slightly resilient plastics material, and preferably the same material from which the mounting elements are formed e.g. any suitable rigid thermoplastics material.

In one embodiment, each of said two mounting elements is of angle profile so as to overlie the corresponding one of the opposed corners of the end face of the edge region of the closure member, and the connector forms at least part of a base of a U-shaped member formed by the assemblyofthe mounting elements and the connector.

To provide for ease of stocking and to reduce unit manufacturing costs, preferably the mounting elements are of identical construction, in which case the connector may have a self-holding detachable connection with both of the mounting elements, and this may also be an adjustable connection.

Upon assembly of the seal along an edge region of a door or like closure member, the base of the Ushaped member overlies the major part of the end face of the door, and the mounting elements overlie the remainder of the end face and also lie alongside the regions of the side faces of the door which adjoin the end face. To improve the sealing of the limbs of the mounting elements which lie alongside these side face regions, the tips of the limbs may be formed by sealing lips of flexible material.

Conveniently, these lips are made of flexible thermoplastic material which may be co-extruded with the respective mounting element and/or the connector.

In a further embodiment, at least one of the mounting elements defines a mounting recess to receive a respective resilient seal, and the mounting recess serves to mount the element on the end face of the closure member by means of one or more screws, or other fasteners, introduced into the mounting recess and taken through the material of the mounting element to engage the end face. Said one mounting element may have a socket which adjustably receives, in self-locking manner, a shaped end of the connector. Alternatively, said one mounting element may have a projecting spigot which is engageable in self-locking manner with a socket provided in the, or another of said mounting elements.Further, if desired, the mounting element may have a pair of oppositely extending spigots each engageable in self-locking manner with a socket provided in corresponding other ones of said mounting elements.

The outwardly facing sealing surface of the sealing arrangement i.e. the surface opposite to the surface which overlies the end face of the closure member, may be provided with any desired forms of sealing strip, such as "flipper seals" or "bubble seals". These resilient sealing strips are formed separately from the remainder of the sealing arrangement, and preferably can be replaceably mounted on one or both of the mounting elements, and/or on the connector.

By providing a connector which is adjustably connected to at least one mounting element, a sealing arrangement is provided which can be readily adjusted to suit a range of door thicknesses.

If it is desired to further extend the range of door thicknesses for which the sealing arrangement may be provided, a range of adjustable connectors may be provided, of different lengths.

A sealing arrangement according to the invention is particularly suitable for use in sealing one or more edge regions of access doors to refrigerated spaces on vehicles, though it should be understood that the sealing arrangements may be used on doors or fixed installations, such as "cold stores". Also, the advantages of a sealing arrangement according to the invention will be applicable in other sealing uses, in which it is desirable to be able to provide a common design of sealing arrangement along an edge of a closure member, in which the sealing arrangement can be adjusted to suit any particular thickness of closure member.

Embodiments of sealing arrangement according to the invention will now be described in detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an exploded view of the component parts of a sealing arrangement according to the invention, for use in sealing along one edge of a door of a refrigerated space of a vehicle; Figure 1 a is a detailed view of part of one of the components; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic perspective illustration of a door edge along which the sealing arrangement may be provided; and Figures 3a to 3e show alternative profiles of mounting elements which may be used in the sealing arrangement.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, a seal is designated generally by reference 10 and is adapted to be mounted along one edge region 11 of a door-like closure member 12. The seal 10 has a Ushaped member 13 which is arranged to receive and resiliently to hold the edge region 11 therein, as shown diagrammatically in Figure 2.

The detailed construction of the component parts of the seal 10 will now be described with reference to Figures 1 and 1 a. The seal 10 comprises a pair of mounting elements 14 and 15, which are preferably of identical construction, and which are made of generally rigid, though slightly resilient plastics material. Each of the mounting elements is intended to overlie a corresponding one of a pair of opposed corners 16 of the end face 17 of the edge region 11 of the closure member 12.

A connector 18 forms a major part of the base of the U-shaped member 13 and interconnects the mounting elements 14 and 15. The connector 18 is adjustably connected to at least one of the mounting elements 14 and 15, so as to permit adjustment of the length of the base to suit the thickness of the edge region 11 of the closure member 12.

In the illustrated arrangement, the connector 18 has an adjustable connection with both of the mounting elements 14 and 15, and this is a spigot and socket type connection, in which the depth of insertion of the spigot in the socket is adjustable between a number of predetermined self-holding positions. Two types of adjustable self-holding arrangements are shown in Figure 1, namely a "pine tree" type arrangement between the connector 18 and the mounting element 14, and a single edge serrated or saw toothed profile arrangement between the connector 18 and the mounting element 15. The pine tree type arrangement is designated by reference 19 and has a push-fit engagement with a complementarily shaped socket 20 in the mounting element 14.The serrated or saw toothed profile is designated by reference 21, and this has a push-fit engagement with a complementary socket 22 in the mounting element 15.

The connector 18 is extruded from the same material from which the mounting elements 14 and 15 are formed, which is a suitable rigid thermoplastics material.

To provide for ease of stocking and to reduce unit manufacturing costs, the mounting elements 14 and 15 are of identical construction and, as indicated above, the connector 18 has self-holding detachable connection with both of the mounting elements, and this is an adjustable connection in both cases.

However, this is not essential, though there must be adjustable connection between connector 18 and at least one of the mounting elements. The connector may then be formed as a one piece moulding with the other mounting element.

Upon assembly of the seal 10 along the edge region 11 of the door 12, the base of the U-shaped member overlies the major part of the end face 17, and the mounting elements 14 and 15 overlie the remainder of the end face 17, and also lie alongside the regions of the side faces 23 which adjoin the corners 16 of the end face 17. To improve the sealing of the limbs 24 of the mounting elements 14 and 15 which lies alongside the side face regions 23 (in order to prevent water ingress along the interface between the end face 17 and the base of the U-shaped member), the tips of the limbs 24 are formed by flexible sealing lips 25 of flexible material. Conveniently, the lips 25 are made of flexible thermoplastics material which is coextruded with the respective mounting element.

The outwardly facing sealing surface of the seal i.e. the surface opposite to the surface of the base (formed by connector 18 and the inwardly extending limbs 14a and 15a of the mounting elements), is provided with any desired form of resilient sealing strip, such as "flipper seal" 26 which is replaceably mounted in mounting element 14, or "bubble seal" 27 which is replaceably mounted in the mounting element 15. These resilient sealing strips (26, 27) are formed separately from the remainder of the seal, and are replaceably mounted on the seal 10 on one or both of the mounting elements where desired.

The construction of connector as shown in the drawing enables the three main components of the seal i.e. mounting elements 14 and 15 and connector 18 to be assembled so as to form a seal which can be used with closure members having an edge to be sealed (11) which come in a range of thicknesses. If desired, to further increase the range of door thicknesses to which the seal of the invention can be adjusted to suit, one or more additional connectors 18 may be provided, of different lengths, and having adjustable connection with at least one of the mounting elements 14,15so as to vary the length of the "base" of the U-shaped member formed by the seal, and which embraces the edge region of the closure member.

Figure 1 a is a detailed view of a negative leg angle provided on the sealing lips 25, to assist the sealing action along the side region 23 of the door panel.

The seal according to the invention can be readily assembled onto a door edge, and can also be removed readily, when replacement of a damaged part is required, or for cleaning purposes. The saw tooth adjustable connection 21,22 between the connector 18 and the mounting element 15 is particularly suitable in providing for easy cleaning of the seal, while still providing a satisfactory selfholding, but adjustable connection.

The construction of seal, as illustrated, will be capable of providing a satisfactory seal along an edge of a closure member which comes in a range ofthickness between 38 mm upto 125 mm.

The preferred rigid thermoplastics material from which the components 14,15 and 18 are made is rigid PVC. The resilient elements i.e. the sealing lips 25 and the sealing strips 26 and 27 may be formed of any convenient resilientthermoplastics material, including thermoplastic rubbers.

The length of the base of the U-shaped member 13 may also be adjusted, to suit requirements, by providing a connector 18 of sufficient initial length to suit the largest envisaged thickness of door, and which can be reduced in length for any particular door thickness in simple manner. This may be achieved by scribing along the connector with a knife to reduce its length, or by providing longitudinally spaced transverse weaknesses which can provide portion(s) which can be snapped-off.

Referring now to Figures 3a to 3e of the drawings, there are shown alternative profiles of mounting elements which may be used in a sealing arrangement according to the invention. In Figure 3a, there is shown a mounting element 30 which is generally similar to the mounting elements 14 and 15 shown in Figure 1. However, this has an alternative socket formation 31 in which is adjustably receivable, in self-locking manner, an appropriately shaped end of a connector (not shown). The mounting element 30 has a limb 32 which is generally similar to the limb 24 shown in Figure 1.

Referring now to Figure 3b, this shows a mounting element 33, which is generally similar to the mounting element 30, except that it is not provided with limb 32. In addition, the mounting recess 34 defined therein, which serves to receive replaceably a door seal, also provides the means whereby an attachment screw or other fastener can be introduced, and taken through the material of the mounting element in order to attach the element 33 to an end face (17) of a closure member, adjacent to a corner (16) thereof. One or more holes, or partly formed holes 35 may be provided through which the fasteners can be taken.

Referring to Figure 3c, this shows a connector 18a, which forms a flat link section in order to join together two mounting elements.

The mounting element 30 shown in Figure 3a comprises an angled seal carrier, whereas the mounting element of Figure 3b is a flat seal carrier.

In Figure 3d, there is shown a mounting element 36 which is generally similar to the mounting element 33, but it forms an end link carrier in that it has a laterally projecting spigot 37 having a saw tooth profile 38 along one edge. The spigot 37 will be able to have adjustable connection with a suitably shaped socket of any desired form of mounting element as described above. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 3e, a mounting element 39 may have a pair of oppositely extending spigot connectors 14, each provided with a sawtooth profile 41 and each engageable adjustably with a corresponding mounting element. The mounting element arrangement 39 shown in Figure 3e forms a centre link type carrier.

Claims

1. A sealing arrangement which is adapted to be mounted along one edge region of a door-like closure member and which comprises at least two separate mounting elements, at least one of which elements is adapted to carry a resilient door seal, and in which: each mounting element is made of generally rigid, though slightly resilient plastics material and is intended to be mounted adjacent to a corresponding one of a pair of opposed corners of the end face of said edge regions of the closure member; and a connector extends between and interconnects the mounting elements, the connector being adjustably connected to at least one of said mounting elements so as to permit adjustment of the overall length of the assembly of the two mounting elements and the connector in order to suit the thickness of the edge region of the closure member.

2. A sealing arrangement according to claim 1, in which the adjustable connection between said connector and said one mounting element comprises a spigot and socket type connection in which the depth of insertion of the spigot in the socket is adjustable between a number of predetermined substantially self-holding positions.

3. A sealing arrangement according to claim 2, in which the connection comprises a "pine-tree type" arrangement.

4. A sealing arrangement according to claim 2, in which the connection comprises interengaging single edge serrated, or saw-toothed profiles.

5. A sealing arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the connector is made of a generally rigid, though slightly resilient plastics material.

6. A sealing arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, in which each of said two mounting elements is of angle profile so as to overlie the corresponding one of the opposed corners of the end face of the edge region of the closure member, and said connector forms at least part of the base of a U-shaped member formed by the assembly of the mounting elements and the connector.

7. A sealing arrangement according to claim 6, in which the two mounting elements are of identical construction, and the connector has a respective adjustable connection with each of the mounting elements.

8. A sealing arrangement according to claim 6 or 7, in which the angle profile of each mounting element comprises one limb which is intended to lie alongside a portion of the end face of the closure member adjacent to the respective corner, and a further limb which is intended to lie alongside a respective region of a side face of the closure member adjoining the end face, in which the tips of the further limbs are formed by sealing lips of flexible material.

9. A sealing arrangement according to claim 8, in which said lips are made of flexible thermoplastics material and are co-extruded with the respective mounting element and/or on the connector.

10. A sealing arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, in which at least one of the mounting elements defines a mounting recess in which a resilient seal is removably mounted.

11. A sealing arrangement according to claim 1, in which at least one of the mounting elements defines a mounting recess to receive a respective resilient seal, and said mounting recess serves to mount the element on said end face by a screw(s) or other fastener(s) introduced into the mounting recess and taken through the mounting element to engage the end face.

12. A sealing arrangement according to claim 11, in which said one mounting element has a socket which adjustably receives, in self-locking manner, a shaped end of said connector.

13. A sealing arrangement according to claim 11, in which said one mounting element has a projecting spigot which is engageable in self-locking manner with a socket provided in the, or another of said mounting elements.

14. A sealing arrangement according to claim 11, in which said one mounting element has a pair of oppositely extending spigots each engageable in self-locking manner with a socket provided in a corresponding other one of said mounting elements.

15. A sealing arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, including at least one resilient seal mounted thereon.

16. A sealing arrangement according to claim 15, in which the resilient seal comprises a flipper seal or a bubble seal.

17. A sealing arrangement according to claim 1 and substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as shown in any one of the embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings.