US1772604A - Electric door release - Google Patents

Description

Aug. l2, 1930. A. HERZ ELEcTnxc noon RELEASE Filed Fab.. 21, 1925 lll lill/ll l ffii fz 'Famed Aug.' 12, `1930V i( HERZ, OF CHICIAGO, ILLINOIS ELECTRIC Doon RELEASE i Application lcd February 21, 1925. Serial No. 10,981.

Thisinvention in general relates to mechanism for closing doors,y and more particularly to an arrangement' for eectingthe disengagement of a door stop from the floor to Y permit the door check to 'became effective and close the door.V v .4 d

It is customary nowadays to maintain the door Vof private offices and similar places ,open throughthe medium of a Vdoor stop.

lio Executives and otherindividuals who occupy private offices have found it advantageous to keeptheofliceidoor open so as, inaddition to providing properventilatiomjto permit. persons to enter and leave the office Without :1,5 having to open andshut the door, thereby eliminating noiseA and other disturbances Vwhich might distract the attention of; the occupant of the office. Y`

Frequentlyv the occupant ofan office desires privacy. For an example',some individual might come into the office to seehim and, due to theparticular nature of the mat` ter under discussion, secrecy isidesired. 4 Heref tofore,in ordertoclose thedoor, it was nec,-

1 ff essary that the occupant of lthe ofce either do it'himself orsummon someone else, such as his secretary, todo" so.' In order `to summon the secretary, he might pressa button operating an annunciator ,visibletohisl secretary. rWhen the "secretary, comes `into the oiiice,` hef'has to tell her what to do.` This, as is readily apparent, occupies and vrequires the time and attention of both the occupant of the office and the secretary.` `Not onlyv does it distract the attention of the person'in the soffice, but it causesthe occupant' ofthe oflice, as Well 4as thesecretary,considerable inconvenience and unnecessary work. i v Now, I propose to eliminate theene'cessity 40 for either thefoccupant closing the door him4 1self orsummoning someone else to do it, .by providing anarran'gement including an electrical Vcircuit controlled by'a button. on the desk of the person in the oliice for disengaging the doorstop from the 'licorv and thereby making the door-check effective tojclose the door.V i im VI am awarethat the broad'idea of'fem'ploying mechanism to open and close a door or the like, is old, but itis not myv intention to fr 'checkeffective so as to closethe door.

claim this idea (broadly. According tomy invention, avery simple and effective apparatus is used which permits the doorto be opened and held in any desired positionpas well as to be releasedfrom that position. ,Y

i; mechanism built in accordance with the present invention also has the additional ad? vantage of having a greater degree of adaptability to the usual type door than any of the heretofore types of door closing apparatus. The present mechanism can be installed in thejnaverage door with aminimuin-amount. of change and deviation from standardequipment land hence with a minimum amount` of expense.,

The object .of the present invention isito provide anarrangement including lan electrical circuit for disengagin a door stop fromlthe floor, thereby ma ring the door i Infaccordance with the general features of the invention, there is provided a door check of anyusual type, a doorstop, and an arrangement or mechanism including an elec.- trical circuit for4 disengaging the. door -stop 75 fromthe floor thereby bringing` vthe door Vcheck into operation to close the door. 1 e Other objects" and advantages of the` presentfinvention will more fullyappear from the following detailed description, taken in connection withthe accompanying drawings v which illustrate one embodiment thereof, and in whichfA y v Figure l isa diagrammatic view embodied Withthe features ofthe present invention; 85

Fig.V 2 is avertical sectional view ofthe door check-,attached to the lower corner of a doorftaken ateright angles, to the-plane of the'papers; l Y I ,l f Y f Fig.13is a horizontal sectional view taken 90 on the'lineB-#S/of-Fig. 2; and

Fig-ais a horizontal sectional View taken f Referring now -to the drawings in detail,

in which like reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the several views,

l0 denotes a door Which'may be of any-suitable construction or-type. The door 10 illus-y i trated in Figwl, is of the panel type and is j provided with-two panels-ll and4 1Q, which 100* reduce considerably the weight of the door.

The door 10 fits snugly in an opening 13 in `17. The door check 15, as is well known in the art, not only prevents the door 1() from being slammed shut, but also, through a resilient medium inside of the door check,

causes the door to gradually be drawn to thereby minimizing the` noise resulting from closing the door.

Mounted on the lower corner of the door 10, is a usual type door stop, hereinafter referred to generally by reference character 18, slightly modified to embody some of the features of the present invention.

The door check 18 comprises a casing 19 provided with two lugs 20 and a projection 28 1), each being equipped with a small circular opening21. The door check 18 is fastened to the door by three screws 22 threaded through the openings 21 into the door 10. The casing 19 is preferably of a cylindrical form inA its lower portion and at its upper portion is provided with a lateral projection 23 in which is supported and housed a solenoid 25. The portion 23 maybe integral with the main housing 19 or it maybe fastened thereto in any suitable or desirable manner. The housing 19 is provided with acylindrical bore 26. Both the housing 19 and the portion 23, which is shown integralk to 'the said housing, are open at the top. A wall 27 of arcuate contour (Fig. 4) separates the-solenoid or electromagnetic coil 25 from the bore 26. This arcuate portion is integral with both the housing 19 and the portion 23. The upper portion designated by referencenumeral 28 `of' thehousing 19, is preferably thicker than the walls of the housing, in order to form a shoulder 29. A cover 30 is mounted over the bore 26 and the portion 23 and is positioned below the shoulder 29. The cover 30 may be fastened in any suitable manner to the housing 19. Y

The cover 30 is provided with a circular `opening 31 and the lower part of the housing 19 is provided with a circular opening 32, both openings being in alignment. Passing upwardly through the housing 19 through both openings 31 and 32, is a rod 33 which may be termed a plunger rod. The lower end 34 of the rod 33 is enlarged, and secured thereto is a circular rubber member 35 for engaging the floor, hereinafter referred to generally by reference numeral 36. Positioned on top of the cover 3() is a leaf spring 37 and a trigger 38 which vit in a slot 39 formedby the wall of the housing 19 and the shoulder 29. The trigger 38 at one endengages the shoulder `29 of the portion 28. The upper portion of the rod 33 passes through an opening 40 in the leaf spring 37 and through an opening 41 in the trigger 38. r1`he opening 41 in the trigger 38 is preferably a little larger in diameter than the diameter of the rod 33. The leaf spring 37 is adapted to at all times urge the trigger upwardly. The spring 37 and the trigger 38 may, if desired, be pinned to the housing 19 in any suitable manner, although it should` be understood thatthis is not necessary, in View of the fact that the rod 33 will `tend to hold both of them in position immediately under the shoulder 29 of the portion 28 in the slot 39. That is to say, neither the trigger nor the associated leaf spring can be removed without first withdrawing the plunger rod 33 therefrom.

The outer end of the trigger is provided with an iron core vor tip 42, which extends through an opening 43 `in the cover 30. i The solenoid 25 is equipped with a magnetic element 44 which may be of the same diameter as that of the tip 40 and is preferably in alignment with the tip so as to draw the said tip downwardly whenever it is energized by the said solenoid.

The rod-33 is equipped with a shoulder 45, located inside of the bore 26. Surrounding the rod 33 intermediate the shoulder 45 and the lower part'of the housing 19, is a compression spring 46 which, at `all times, tends to urge the rod 33 upwardly. Projecting through the sides of the portion 23 of the housing 19 are a pair of terminals 47 and 48 to' which are connected the leads of the solenoid 25.

The door 10is `connectedto the wall 14 by three suitable hinges 50, 51 and 52. The terminal 47` (Fig. 1) is connected by a lead 53 of a circuit -hereinafterreferred to generally by reference character 49 through an aperture 54 in the door to the hinge 52. The lead 53 passes along the lower edge of the panel 12 under the molding strip 57 to the aperture 54. The hinge 52 is connected by a lead 55 to one side of a transformer 66. The terminal 48 is connected by ajlead 58 to the hinge 51. The lead 58 passes along the lower edge of the panel l12 under the molding strip 57 and at the point where the lead 53 enters the aperture 54 the lead 58 is bent upwardly under the molding strip 59, through apertures 60 and 61, positioned preferably at right angles, to each other to the hinge 51. The hinge 51 is connected by a lead 62 to the contact element 64 of a switch 63. The switch 63 is connected through a flexible element or member 65 to the opposite side of the transformer 66.Y i

Y This construction of `connecting the leads of the circuit 49 to the hinges 51 and 52 enables very little of the leads comprising'the Vcircuit 49 to be exposed on the door `10 and Ato also permit the door to he opened and closed freely without any chance of the leads becoming broken.,v Furthermore, even though the hinges 51 and 52 constitute part of the circuit 49, the voltage of the electric` current passing therethrough being small,

'would not be suiiicientv to injure anyone or cause .serious leakage.,l The transformer 66 may be of any'suitable or desirable type pref-y erably, it is, of thebell .ringingtype, which reduces the voltage for examplefrom 110 volts`-down to 6 volts, While I have yshown a source of alternating `current for operating the solenoid itis to be understood that a source of direct current may be provided instead. It is customary to provide office buildings with a suitable source of low voltage direct or alternating current. The

switch or push button 63, although described as being composed of only two elements, may be of any other suitable, construction.

The operation ofthe mechanism isias follows:

The door 10 may be opened to any desired position and retained therein by the stop 18 which is operated in the usual manner. That is to say the plunger' 33 ispushed down-` wardly by pressing on it with your foot bringing thel rubber cap into frictional engagement with the floor 36 lthe spring i6 being compressed between the shoulder a' and the bottom of the casing 19 by the downward motion ofthe plunger.

Theplunger 33 is prevented from being forced upwardly',v under the action of the compressed spring 46 by the trigger' 38 which is urged upwardly by thelea rspring 37 bringing that portion of the wall of the trigger 38, around the opening 41 and the plunger therein, into irictionalI engagement with the surface of the rod 33; ADue to incline oit the trigger when inf'its uppermost position the pressure exerted by the compressed spring- 16 tends to force the roc 33 into tighter frictional contactftherewith. `Thus the rod `33 is prevented'from being snapped back to its normal position once your footis removed from it. p ,I

Obviously, the further kthe door 10 is opened the furtherrthe leverage mechanism 17 will be extended from the wall 14.

33 upwardly into its nuppermost position, and

out of engagement withl the floor 36.

Now the check 15 is free to function in its usual way causing the door 10 to be gradually drawn into its closed position. It' desired,

lockingmechanism 7 5 may be provided for causing. the door to be locked automatically upon being drawn into its closed position:

Upon the button or the switch 63be1ng operated to break kthe circuit 4:9, the lealspringv 37 will force the triggerff38 into its uppermost position again.A After the doorV has been opened the plunger 33 may be forced down in the same manner as already described to cause the door to be maintained in any open position desired. f Y

It is to be'understood that they invention is not to be limited by the above detailed de-V scription, butfonly by the scope and spirito the appended claims. l

I claim `1. The combination, with a door and a door casing, comprising vertically aligned hinges on said casing onto which the door is secured and arranged to swing into any oit' a plurality of positions, closing means carried by the door and operatively attached to the casing, a stop carried by the door arranged to hold the door in any desired angular posi- Vtion, a releasing electro-magnet for said,y

stop, terminalsV for said magnet, conductors nol secured to said terminals and passing through recesses inthe door to 'said hinges, conductors on the other side of said hinges secured there-j to and leading toa remote control means comprising a source of energyk and -a switch for closing an electric .circuit .through said conductors for actuating said electroinagnet andreleasing said stop. Y

`2 .iThe combination, with a door and door casing, comprising vertically aligned hinges on sadcasing onto which the door is secured and arranged to swing into any of a plural* ityof angular positions, closing means car'- ried bythe door and operatively 'secured to the casing,a stop carried by the door arrangedto hold the door in any desired angu-A lar` position, said stop comprising a plunger arranged to be pushed into engagementwith the iioor,- triggerr means for holding the.V

plunger' in engagement with the floor, a 'releasing'electrosmagnet for said trigger, `for rendering said trigger ineffective, causing the' plunger to disengage from the floor, termi nals for said magnet, conductors secured to said terminals and passing through recesses in` thedoor to'said hinges, conductors on ther other side of said hinges secured thereto and leading to a remote control means compris! ing a source of energy anda switch for closing a circuit through said conductor and saidA source `for actuating said electro-magnet and releasing said stop from the i'loor.

3.- The combination, with a door and door casing, comprising vertically aligned Vhinges on said casing onto which the door is secured Y andl arranged to swing into any of a plurality.`

of angular positions, closing means carried bythe rdoorand operatively attached 'to the casing, a stop mechanism carried by the door arranged to hold the door in any desired angular position, said stop comprising a plunger arranged to be pushed into engagement With the floor, trigger means for holding the plunger in engagement with the floor, a releasing electro-magnet for said trigger, for rendering said trigger ineffective and causing the plunger to disengage from the floor,

said electro-magnet comprising a solenoid and a core, a portion of said core being secured to the outer end of said trigger, terminals for said magnet, conductors secured to saidterminals and passing through recesses inthe door to said hinges, conductors on the y other side of said hinges secured thereto and ried by the door for locking said door in any Ii O of said positions, said stop comprising a plunger arranged to engage the floor, a spring-held trigger arranged to hold said plunger in engagement with the floor, a coil spring surrounding said plunger for removing said plunger from the floor when released, an electro-magnet for operating said tri ger, said magnet comprising a solenoid an a core, a portion o the core being secured to said trigger, terminals on said soley noid, electric conductors secured by said terminals and passing through recesses in the door to said hinges, conductors secured to the other side of said hinges and leading to a remote control means comprising a source of energy and a switch for completing a circuit through said solenoid and said source, for releasing said door stop When said switch is closed. t

5. The combination, With a door casing and a door arranged to fit therein and swing on a vertical axis through an angle to any desired adjusted position, a stop mechanism for said door secured thereto and carried by the door for locking said door in any of said positions, said stop comprising a plunger arranged to engage `the iioor, a spring-held trigger arranged to hold said plunger in engagement with the floor, a coil spring surrounding said plunger for removing said plunger from the floor when released, an electro-magnet for operating said trigger, said magnet comprising a solenoid and a core, a portion of the core being secured to said trigger, terminals on said solenoid, a remote controlled circuit for said solenoid comprising electric'conductors secured by said terminals and passing through recesses in the door,

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