US1367447A - Automatic door-opener - Google Patents

Description

Patented Feb. 1, 1921,

ill/MENTOR WITNESSES WN PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES FRANCIS YOUNG, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

AUTOMATIC DOOR-OPENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Feb. 1, 1921.

Application filed August 9, 1919. Serial No. 316.287.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES FRANCIS YOUNG, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in, the county of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved Automatic Door-Opener, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to automatic door openers particularly applicable to garages. An object of the invention is to provide a simple, eflicient and inexpensive contrivance which can be easily applied to existing doors I of the swinging type.

Another object of the invention is to provide an electrically-controlled contrivance for automatically opening doors in which means are provided so that the door cannot stall during its movement.

With the above and other objects in view, the nature of which will more fully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as herein fully described, illustrated and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of the application, similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary elevation of a swinging door equipped with an opener embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the opening apparatus, certain parts of which are broken away to show the details of construction;

Fig. 3 is an electric wiring diagram; and

Fig. +1 is an end elevation of the limit switch.

Referring to the drawings, 5 is a hinged door which. is provided with a bracket 6 near the free edge of the door, and preferably near the upperedge. To this bracket a rod 7 is connected pivotally to extend in the direction in which the door swings. The rod 7 projects through a slot 8 provided at one end of an arm 9, the other end of which arm is anchored to a shaft 10 which is constrained to revolve with a worm wheel 11 housed in a casing 12.

The casing is supported by a platform 13 which may be anchored to the wall above the door. The platform 13 is also connected to the casing 12 by braces 14 which increase the rigidity of the structure formed by the platform with the casing. The worm wheel 11 is in mesh with a worm 15 revolubly mounted within the casing 12 and with which a gear 16 is constrained to revolve. The gear 16 meshes with a pinion 17 driven from a suitable electric motor 18.

The rod 7 carries a pair of washers 19 disposed to each side of the arm 9 and which are maintained against the rod by springs 20. The tension of the springs may be varied by a member 21 threaded on the rod 7. The rod 7 with the washer and springs thereon constitute a drag link, the springs taking up the initial or final strain caused by the opening or closing of the door respectively. The shaft 10 also carries acrank 22 to which one end of a rod 23 is connected. The other end of said rod passes through a knuckle 24 pivotally mounted onthe top of an insulatingplate 25 which unites the ends of arms 26, the other ends of which arms are pivotally mounted on an insulating base 27.

To each of the arms 26 contact carriers 28 are pivotally connected at their lower ends to extend to the opposite sides of each arm. The contact carriers on the same arm are connected by a common pivot 29 to the corresponding arm 26. They are prevented from swinging downwardly on their pivot by springs 30 which maintain said contact carriers in predetermined relation and prevent their free ends not only from separating but from moving toward one another. Each cooperating pair of contact carriers form, therefore, a V on the corresponding arm 26 in which the branches are movable but resisted by the yielding members 32 which have a loop concentric with the corresponding pivot 29. Each of the contact carriers is provided with a rolling contact 31 at the free end. For each of said contacts there is a corresponding stationary contact 32 secured to the base 27.

The rollers 31 are thrown into engagement with the stationary contacts by means of springs 33 which extend from the plate 25 to the base 27, which is necessarily below the pivots of the arms 26. In consequence, the arms 26 will swing to the right or left as soon as said arms pass the alinement of the pivots thereof with the points of connection of the springs 33 between the plate and the base. I

The movement of the arm being controlled by the movement of the rod 23, the

same will be dragged as the rod moves, and when it is moved into central position, or the position which brings the pivots of the arm into alinement with the connection of the springs, the springs 30 will bring the rollers 31 on both sides in contact with the corresponding stationary contacts 32. But when the arm is in central position the door will be more than half open or more than half closed, consequently. when the door is in such position there is contact on both sides of the controlling switch 34 (see diagram). Therefore, the door cannot be stalled in the intermediate position.

To insure this movement of the arms, stop collars 35 are provided on the rod 23 which will move the arms past the alining position as the door reaches the end of its movement in opening or closing the door. Assuming that the door is closed and that the supply switch 36 is closed, a current will be turned on (see diagram); then the contact 31 will be in engagement with the contact 32 to the left of said contact 31 and, therefore, the control switch 34 can be thrown to the right and have its contacts a, b and c in engagement with the contacts 32. This will cause the current to flow to the motor 18, thereby revolving the shaft 10 and therewith the .arm 9 and the crank 22. The arm 9 will he, therefore, first thrown against the spring 20, and the outside of the arm forces the door to swing on its hinges.

The current will continue to flow through the motor until the contacts 31 to the left are in engagement with the stationary contacts 32 to the left. The contacts 31 and 32 to the left will remain in engagement until the stop collar 35 engages the yoke 24 and drags the arms 26 past the alinement so that the springs 33 can snap the contact carriers 28 to the right, thereby breaking the contacts to the left; but at the time the arms are dragged past the alinement by means of the corresponding stop collar 35, the door is substantially open. By leaving the switch 34 closed in that position, the current will not flow through the m0- tor, as the same has been automatically out off from the switch formed by the contacts 31 and 32. To close the door, the switch 34 must be moved so that the contacts a, b andc are in communication with the contacts 32 which are connected to the contacts 32 to the right of contacts 31. The operation will then take place in the manner as described.

The door 5 in both phases of its movements. that is, in either opening or closing is controlled by the switch 27 which limits the travel of the door by cutting off the flow of current to the motor when sufiicient motion has been imparted to the door to enable it to complete one phase of its movement. The switch 27 in addition to functioning as a limit switch functions as a reversing switch so that it not only cuts off the current to the motor but reverses the arrangement whereby when the switch 34 is thrown to the opposite position the current through the armature will be reversed, and consequently the door will be operated through the opposite phase of its movement. The switch 34 functions only to start or initiate the operation of the device in the particular phase, the completion of the operation and rearrangement of the parts preparatory to the opposite operation being entirely taken care of by the switch 27.

Referring to Fig. 3, it will be seen that when the limit switch 27 is in left-hand position, that is with the contacts 31 engaged with the left-hand contacts 32 and the switch 34 is in right-hand position, that is with the contacts a, b, c in engagement with the contacts 32, the current flows from the positive pole of the supply switch 36 to L on the starting box, from on the starting box to A on the motor, thence through the right-hand brush wire to the lower contact 31 and lower right-hand con tact 32 of the switch 27, thence to intermediate contact 32 and contact I) of the switch 24 to the left brush, through the armature out through the right brush, thence to contact c and lower contact 32 on switch 34, to intermediate left-hand contact 32 and intermediate contact 31 on switch 27, through ,,tl1e left-hand brush wire and L on motor and back to the negative pole of the supply switch 36. The current continues to flow in this path until the rod 23 trips the switch 27 and breaks the engagement of contacts 31 and left-hand contacts 32. The contacts 31 then engage the right-hand contacts 32 but as the switch 34 is in right-hand position the circuit remains broken. \Vhen it is desired to reverse the operation, the switch 34 is thrown from right-hand to lefthand position to engage the contacts a, b, 0 with the contacts 32", it being remembered that at this time the contacts 31 are engaged with the right-hand contacts 32. The current then flows from the positive pole of the supply switch 36, to A on the starting box, to A on the motor, through the right-hand brush wire to the lower contact 31 and lower right-hand contact 32' of switch 27 to the lower contact 32 and contact '0 of switch 34 to the right brush, through the armature out through the left brush back to contact I) and intermediate contact 32, thence to intermediate right-hand contact 32 and intermediate contact 31 on switch 27 through the left-hand brush wire and L on the motor back to the negative pole of the supply switch 36. This condition obtains until the door has completed this phase of its operative movement when the switch 27 is again operated automatically to cut off the current and rearrange the parts for the repetition of the action herein above described.

I claim: I

l. A door opener comprising an arm, means connecting the door to the arm, a motor, motion-transmission means from the motor to the arm for swinging the same, means controlling the direction of rotation of the motor, a crank revoluble from the motor, a connecting rod from the crank to the means for controlling the direction of rotation of the motor, circuits connecting said motor to the means for controlling the direction of the motor, and a switch for controlling the circuits.

2. In a door operator, an arm connected to the door, a motor, motion transmission means from the motor, to the arm for swinging the door, circuits for the motor, a switch for reversing the direction of rotation of the motor in said circuit, spring means adapted to move the switch past neutral position to either side of said neutral position, and means actuated by the motor tomove said switch past the neutral position.

3. A door opener comprising an arm, means connecting the door to the arm, a motor, motion-transmission means from the motor to the arm for swinging the arm, means for reversing the motor, a crank operable by the motiontransmission means, "a rod connecting the reversing means and the crank, means on said rod to leave to said rod an initial displacement before operating said reversing means, circuits connecting the motor to the reversing means, and manuallyoperable means for controlling the circuits.

4. In a door operator, a stationary platform, a motor mounted upon said platform, a bearing mounted upon said platform, a shaft journaled in said bearing and having its ends projecting beyond said bearing, an

arm having one end connected to one of the extendedends of said shaft and having its other end connected to the door, a Worm drive for communicating motion to said shaft from said motor, a crank carried by the other projecting end of said shaft, a rod carried by said crank, and means for reversing the direction of rotation of the motor actuated by said rod, all as and for the purposes set forth.

5. In a door opener, a motor, a circuit for said motor, an arm, motion-transmission means from the arm to the motor for swinging the arm, a switch in said circuit and having movable arms, a rod connecting said arms to the motion-transmission means, means on said rod to leave to said rod an initial displacement before operating the arms, contact carriers pivotally mounted on said arms of the switch, a spring normally maintaining said contact carriers in predetermined position, contacts on said carriers, stationary contacts adapted to be engaged by the contacts on the carriers, and yielding means associated with the arms of the switch to prevent the arms of the switch from remaining in neutral position.

6. A door opener comprising an arm, yielding meansconnecting the door to the arm, a motor, a worm drive interposed between the motorand the arm for swinging said arm, a crank revoluble by the worm drive, circuits for the motor, a switch for reversing the direction of rotation of the motor in the said circuit, yielding means adapted to move the switch past the normal position to either side of said normal position, a rod connecting said switch to the crank to move said switch past the neutral position, and means on said rod leaving to said rod an initial displacement relative to the switch.

CHARLES FRANCIS YOUNG.

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