GB505672A - Improvements in or relating to doors for passenger cars and like vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

505,672. Doors for passenger vehicles. ATCHERLEY, W. C. Nov. 26, 1937, Nos. 32621 and 33934. [Class 103 (ii)] A longitudinally-slidable door on a road vehicle is guided at the top and bottom by spring-loaded rollers or the like travelling in or on tracks on the vehicle body, the upper track being arranged on a laterally-extending cornice secured to or forming part of the quarter panelling and faired off at its rear end into the contour of the quarter. As shown in Fig. 2, a saloon car is titted on each side with front and rear sliding doors a, b which when closed are in alignment with each other and with the side of the body and are separated by a pillar c. Tracks for each door, formed as shown in Fig. 3, and arranged respectively on the running-board d and on the bottom of the cornice c, are engaged by two spaced runners on each door, each runner comprising a spring-pressed ball g, Fig. 5, mounted in a housing h. When the doors are closed the runners lie respectively in the inner ends of the parts l, n and the parts p, m of the tracks, and to open the front door its rear edge is first moved outwardly, Fig. 3, until the rear runners engage the parts k of the tracks and the door is then slid rearwardly, the front runners first travelling outwardly along the parts I and then along the parts k. The rear door is opened similarly, the front edge first being moved outwardly along the parts p. When closed both doors are latched to the pillar c, the latch bolts preferably being operated by handles q sunk in recesses in the door panels. The edge of each door carrying the latch may be fitted with wedge abutments r, Fig. 5, or the like to prevent rattle, while the other edge may be fitted with tapered pegs or like locating means adapted to enter sockets on the pillar when the door is closed. The runners for the upper and lower edges of saloon car doors may be formed by peripherally-grooved, spring- loaded rubber rollers mounted e.g. by means of a ball or roller-bearing on a horizontal spindle carried in a housing having a vertical stem rotatably mounted in a recess on the door so that each roller is free to swivel to follow a curved track.