US2394878A

US2394878A - Door closing device

Info

Publication number: US2394878A
Authority: US
Inventors: George W Slopa
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1945-01-08
Filing date: 1945-01-08
Publication date: 1946-02-12
Anticipated expiration: 1963-02-12

Description

12,1946 a. w. SLQPA 394,878

- DOOR CLOSING DEVICE Filed Jan. 8, 1945 45 INVENTOR- Aka/v55 W, @1724.

Patented Feb. 12, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE noon CLOSING DEVICE" I George S lopa, Chicago; Ill. v Application a s 8, 1945, Serial n 571,797 I V 'Y flo claiihs. (01 292 --79;)f} f} The invention relates to improvements in door closing devices and more particularly to such a device as is particularly useful to'maintain a tight seal between a refrigeratordoorand the. door frame or jamb;

Refrigerators and other compartments req-uiring a tight closing of a door frequently are pro vided with means intended to hold the door in tight sealing engagement Withthe door jamb. Such known devices as are available for this purpose frequently lack efficient means lto'retain the door tightly closed under allconditions of use, and more particularly as when the sealing strips on the door become worn; also such known devices often become useless for the purpose. in-

tended, due to their springsbecoming broken or otherwise losing their-tension. Itis, the'refore, an object of the present invention to provide a door closing device which is effective tov maintain a tight seal between a door and its jamb regardless of the condition of the sealing strips thereon,- and one in which a worn out or broken spring may be easily and quickly replaced and the tension of the springs adjusted to insure proper operation of the door closer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a door closing device of the character described with novel means to facilitate adjustment of the closing device, having few operating parts, which is easy to manufacture and assemble, positive in operation, and highly efiicient.

Other and further objects of the present in-- vention will be apparent from the followingdescription and claims and are illustrated in the ac-' Fig. 2 is an end elevational yiew of the door closing device, showing it in effective position. Fig. 3 a side elevational 'view of the device, showing the door closing element in an inoperative position. a

'll'ig.v 4 is a vertical sectional on line 4-''4 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the disclosure in the accompanying drawing, the door closing device embodying the features of the present invention is shown mounted upon the door frame or jamb ll of a door opening and in door looking or sealing position with respectto a'door l2 fitted into said door opening. The door l2 may be of any usual construction commonly incorporated in refrigerator doors and may include a sealing strip i3, arranged on it inside face I4v to have a tight sealing abutment with the face of the door jamb or frame II when closed. The door is provided on its freeedge with a projection or bumper plate detail view taken l5, which extends outwardly'from the free edge 5; ct I8 is firmly secured in any required position The,

companying drawing which, by way "of illustration, shows a preferred embodiment and the principle thereof and which is considered to be the:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view ofthe door.

closing device, showing it mounted in place. x

of the door and includes an inclined outer face tiw hich preferably merges into the plane of the outside'surface of the door I2. The projection or bumper plate I5 is intended to engage the door closing 'device when the door is swung into either an opened or a closed-position so as to actuate said device for moving it into an ineffective or an effective position. v t

The door closing device, generally indicated at IT, includes a mounting bracket I8, which preferably is substantially rectangular in shapeand has slotted apertures I9 at each end to receive mounting screws 2| by means of which the brackupon the outside face of the door frame I l. bracket I8 includes a pair of spaced apart bearing standards 22 having aligned bearing openings therein each to receive one of a pair of trunnions 23 extending outwardly longitudinally from the end walls 24 of a rocker arm 25 which is arranged between said standards. The rocker arm 25 preferably is cast in one piece, although it will be understood as the description proceeds that it may belfabricated in any other suitable fashion,

suchas from sheet material or from separate parts joined together.

The rocker arm 25 is substantially hollow-and it includes the side wall 24, a back wall 26, and

; inner and

outer end walls

21 and 28 respectively.

' arm, as best shown in Fig. 4. The webs 29 define a plurality of chambers 3| and 32 within the hollow cast arm and said webs further provide mounting means for a pair of

rollers

33 and 34 arranged within and one at each end of the chamber 3| upon bearing pins 35.

The door closing device I! is positioned, with respect to the projection l5 on the edge of the door l2, so that one or the other of the

rollers

33 and 34 is disposed in the path of said projection when the door is being moved into opened or closed position. When the door closing device is in the inefiective position illustrated in Fig. 4, the roller 34 is so located as to be engaged by the projection I5 while the door I2 is being closed whereupon the rocker arm 25 is rotated about its pivot 23 a suflicient distance to enable the projection l5 to pass clear of the roller 34.

Means is provided within the rocker arm 25 to cause said rocker arm to be moved forcibly into the efiective position best illustrated in Fig. 2 whereby the other roller 33 is brought into tight pressing engagement with the outside. face of the door [2 to thereby insure a tight sealing of the door opening thereby. Such means is best illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 and it preferably consists of a pair of tension springs 38, one mounted in each of the two chambers 32, Each of these springs is connected at one of their ends to an eyelet fitting 31 suitably mounted in the outer end wall 28 of the rocker arm and the other ends of said springs are each connected to one of a pair of threaded stems 38. The stems 38 are threadingly engaged in an internally threaded sleeve 39 carried in the bracket l8. As illustrated in detail in Fig. 4, each internally threaded sleeve 39 extends freely through the bracket l8 and is provided on its lower end with an enlarged flange 4| suitably seated in a similarly shaped recess 42 in the bottom face of said bracket. The body portion of said sleeve 39 is threaded externally and its upwardly extending free end 43 is suitably cut away to provide a, hex-head which may be engaged by a wrench or other tool so as to be rotated in its mounting. Obviously, rotation of the sleeve 39 is effective to move the threaded stem 38 associated therewith upwardly or downwardly and said sleeve is locked in place by a lock nut 44 threaded thereon.

It should be observed that the connected ends of the springs 36 are in oif-center relation to the trunnions 23 about which the rocker arm 25 rotates. Consequently, initial movement of the rocker arm from the ineffective position shown in Fig. 4 towards the effective position illustrated in Fig. 2, upon closing movement of the door, will carry the spring mountings past dead center with relation to the trunnions 23, whereupon the tension of the springs acts to pull the rocker arm into its lowermost or effective position, as illustrated in Fig. 2, and thus retain the door closed tightly.

When the door is moved from its closed position (Fig. 2) into an opened position, the inclined face 16 of the projection l5 engages the roller 33 to carry the rocker arm towards its ineifective position until such time as the springs 35 again move past the dead center positionjpreviously noted, whereupon said springs throw the rocker arm into its fully ineffective position as illustrated in Fig. 4.

Due to the fact that the springs 36 may lose some of their tension, because of crystallization or other causes after a prolonged period of use or because said springs may become broken andconsequently require replacement, means is p esent in the form of the stems 38 and sleeves 39 or adjusting the tension of the springs to thereby retain them balance and under such tension as may be required to insure effective operation of the device. Both the lock nut 44 and the hexheads 43 on the sleeves 39 are accessible for manipulation and adjustment from the outside of,

the bracket l8 and consequently it is not necessary to dismantle the door closing device or to remove it from its mounting should such adjustment or replacement of a spring or springs become necessary.

Movement of the rocker arm 25 beyond a predetermined effective position, while the door is open, is prevented by providing suitable flanges 45 on each of the standards 22, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 3. These flanges are formed integral with the standards and they extend inwardly towards each other a sufficient distance to underlie the end walls 24 of the rocker arm 25.

Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described herein and disclosed in detail in the accompanying drawing, it should be understood that the invention is capable of embodying a variety of modifications in detail construction without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted on said bracket, said arm having a roller chamber and a spring chamber on each side of said roller chamber, rollers mounted one at each end of the roller chamber for selective engagement by a door when the latter is moved into opened and closed positions, and a spring in each spring chamber each anchored at one end to the rockerarm and at the other end to said bracket for impartin a snap-action movement of the rockerarm toward and from operative positions.

2. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted on said bracket, said arm having a roller chamber and a spring chamber on each side of said roller chamber, rollers mounted one at each. end of the roller chamber for selective engagement by a door when the latter is moved into opened and closed positions, a spring in each spring chamber each anchored at one end to the rocker-arm and at the other end to said bracket for imparting a snap-action movement of the rocker-arm toward and from operative positions, and means on the bracket to adjust the force of said springs.

3. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted on said bracket, said arm having a roller chamber and a spring chamber on each side of said roller chamber, .rollers mounted one at each end of the roller chamber for selective engagement by a door when the latter is moved into opened and closed positions, a spring in each spring chamber each anchored at one end to the rockerarm, adjustable elements attached to the other ends of said springs, and means in said bracket engageable with said adjustable elements to adjust the force of said springs.

4. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket,'a hollow rocker-arm pivoted on said bracket, a pair of rollers one mounted at each end of said rocker-arm, chambers in said arm one on each side of said pair of rollers, springs one in each chamber each secured at one end to said arm and at its other end to said bracket, and means on said bracket to adjust the force of said springs.

5. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted between its ends on said bracket, a pair of rollers one mounted at each end of said rocker-arm, chambers in said arm one on each side of said pair of rollers, springs one in each chamber each secured at one end to said arm and at its other end to said bracket, and means on said bracket to adjust the force of said springs.

6. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket having spaced bearing standards, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted between said standards; a pair of spaced rollers supported on the rocker-arm in a common plane midway between the side walls of said arm, a pair of chambers in said arm one between said pair of rollers and each side wall of said arm, a spring confined within each chamber each having one end secured to the rocker-arm, and means on the bracket to which the other ends of the springs are secured adjustable to vary the force of the springs.

7. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket having spaced bearing standards, a hollow rocker-arm pivoted between said standards; a pair of spaced rolers supported on the rocker-arm in a common plane midway between the side walls of said arm, a pair of chambers in said arm one between said pair of rollers and each side wall of said arm, a spring confined within each chamber each having one end secured to the rocker-arm, and its other end attached to said bracket.

8. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket having spaced bearing standards, a hollowrocker-arm pivoted between said standards; a pair of spaced rollers supported on the rocker-arm in a common plane midway between the side walls of said arm, a pair of chambers in said arm one between said pair of rollers and each side wall of said arm, a spring confined within each chamber each having one end secured to the rocker-arm, a pair of adjusting screws one connected to the other end of each spring, and means in said bracket engaged by said adjusting screws adjustable to adjust the force of said springs.

9. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket having spaced standards, a hollow rocker-arm arranged between and pivotally mounted on said standards, spaced webs in said rocker-arm, rollers arranged between and journalled in said webs one at each end of the rocker-arm, tension spring within the rockerarm one outwardly of each web effective to impart snap-action movement to said rocker-arm, means connecting one end of each of said springs to said rocker arm, threaded stems one connected to the other end of each spring, and internally threaded sleeves in the bracket one to threadingly receive each stem, said sleeves each being rotatable to alter the position of the stems so as to adjust the fOrce of the springs.

10. A door closing device comprising, in combination, a bracket having spaced standards, a hollow rocker-arm arranged between and pivotally mounted on said standards, spaced webs in said rocker-arm, rollers arranged between and journalled in said webs one at each end of the rocker-arm, tension springs within the rockerarm one outwardly of each web effective to impart snap-action movement to said rocker-arm, means connecting one end of each of said springs to said rocker-arm, threaded stems one connected to the other end of each spring, internally threaded sleeves in the bracket one to threadingly receive each stem, said sleeves each bein .rotat able to alter the position of the stems so as to adjust the force of the springs, and means to secure said sleeves against rotation.

GEORGE W. SLOPA.