US3018523A - Sliding panel and assembly mount - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 30, 1962 c. s. wlLsoN SLIDING PANEL AND ASSEMBLY MOUNT 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 1:':1: -..EL

Filed July 25, 1955 I N V EN TOR. 52mm; W/zso/v. BY ms; M

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Jan. 30, 1962 c. s. wlLsoN 3,018,523

SLIDING PANEL AND ASSEMBLY MOUNT Filed July 25, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 3,918,523 SMDHNG PANEL AND ASSEMBLY MQUNT Charles S. Wisan, d'7@ Park Place, Long Beach, N

Filed .laiy 25, 1955, Ser. No. 524,2tla It) Claims. (Cl. Ztl-19) The present invention relates to improved means for mounting parts for sliding movement relative to each other, and in particular to rail and panel assemblies. To advantage, but without limitation, the present invention finds application in the assembly and support of panels or doors in shower or tub enclosures and like devices.

Numerous sliding assemblies employ a rail or the like which supports a panel or door for sliding movement along the rail, the moving contact being made through provision of appropriate rollers or bearings journaled on the panel and resting upon the rail proper. In a typical shower or tub enclosure, the panels or doors are fabricated of a frame carrying an ornate and decorative panel, such as of glass or plastic. At spaced locations along the upper edge of the frame are rollers or wheels, for example, of nylon, which are seated upon the rail of an overhanging support. In this type of sliding support, the doors or panels usually move freely. However, from the manufacturing standpoint, the use of the rollers or bearings represents an increase in material costs and additional assembly operations. Further, it is practically a necessity to employ a frame about the glass or plastic panels which make up the body of the doors to permit the mounting of the rollers on the door proper. Still further, there is the need for a number of rollers at spaced locations along the doors to provide a stable support capable of withstanding the loading effects of the depending door. Even then, there is a tendency for the weight of the door to elect the free turning of the respective rollers, and there is the likelihood that the panel will pivot about the end-adjacent rollers as fulcrums. In operation, since the rolleramounted panels are not confined against lateral displacement, there is a tendency for the panels to shift back and forth from their plane of movement; and there is the ever-possible risk of detachment or fouling of the individual rollers incident to the rather large loading; and there is possibility that the free hanging panels will ride off the supporting track.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a sliding panel assembly obviating one or more of the aforesaid difficulties. Specifically, it is .within the contemplation of the present invention to provide a lowfriction sliding interconnection between a. support and a movable part.

It is a further object ofthe present invention to provide a mount for a panel, door, or other similar part to be displaced relative to a support along a `predetermined path, which may be constructed at substantially reduced costs, both from the standpoint of materials and labor, yet results in a smoothly operating, substantially frictionfree mount for the part.

In accordance with the present invention, it has been found that corrugated sheeting and equivalent structures fabricated of plastics which serve as the main body of a sliding panel or door, exhibit adequate lubric properties to allow for the integral formation of a track-engaging guideway with the sheeting. In a typical assembly, a corrugated sheet which is initially shaped into ridge and furrow sections between its opposite sides, is formed with cutouts in successive ridge sections which are in alignment and dene a guideway from side to side of the sheet. The guideway receives a supporting rail or the like which mounts the sheet for sliding movement upon the supporting rail. Although there is direct contact between the rail and the sheet over substantial areas coilzfii Patented Jan. 30, 1962 extensive with the confining walls of the cutouts, the lubric properties of the sheet provide the required low-friction bearing contact.

Numerous advantages are realized with sliding assemblies constructed according to the principles of the present invention, prominently the elimination of separate rolling or bearing supports and the attendant increases in labor and material. Further, as will appear hereinafter, it is possible to provide a more suitable sliding interconnection with less tendency for displacement of the sliding part relative to its support and with the assurance of substantially trouble-free operation.

The above -brief description, as well as further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will br, best appreciated by references to the following detailed description of presently preferred illustrative forms of the present invention, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, with parts broken away and sectioned, showing a tub enclosure embodying features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view partially broken away, taken substantially along the line 2 2 of FIG. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation View of the left side of the tub enclosure of FIG. 1 with parts broken away;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary plan view partially sectioned along the line 4 4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary elevational view of the upper end of the sliding door of the illustrative tub enclosure;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view on an enlarged scale of the upper edge portion of the panel shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line '7--7 of FIG. 6, with a supporting rail shown in dotted lines as normally assembled with the panel;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale taken substantially along the line 8-8 of FIG. 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows, showing the details of a typical handle attachment;

FIG, 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of adapter members or filler bars employed in assemblies according to the present invention;

FI G. 10 is a fragmentary elevational view showing the details along the upper edge of a modified panel or door in accordance to the present invention;

FIG. 1l is a fragmentary elevational view showing the details along the upper edge of a further modified panel or door according to the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 12-12 of FIG. 11, looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the assembly of the panel on a rail, illustrated by the dotted lines;

FIG. 13 is a vertical section similar to FIG. 2 but showing a modied rail and panel assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a vertical section similar to FIG. 2, but showing a still further modified rail and panel assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary elevational view showing the details along the upper edge of a still further modified panel in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 16 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 16-16 of FIG. 15 looking in the direction of the arrows, with the panel illustrated as supported on oppositely directed rails shown by the broken lines. Y

Preliminary to the detailed description of the several illustrative forms of the present invention, it is to be stressed that the constructions to be described find broader application than in the fabrication of shower and tub enclosures. The sliding assemblies in accordance with the present invention for all intents and purposes, achieve the function of roller or similar bearing supports, yet make possible substantial cost economy.

Referring now specifically to FIGS. 1 to 3 inclusive, there is shown a tub enclosure, generally designated by the numeral 10, which is mounted on the upper ledge or rim of the tub 12. The enclosure `may include one or more side sections 14 and a front section 16, the number of sections of course depending upon the type of tub installation. rThe front section 16 includes two sliding doors or panels 18, 20 mounted within a framework and movable into various positions of adjustment by manipu lation of handles on one or both of the panels 18, 22. In the illustrative form of the invention, a single handle 22 is provided on the panel 20, and both panels 18, 20 are slidable. However, it is to be understood that in some installations, only one of the panels will be slidable to permit entry into the tub, while the other panel will be rigid and serves as a fixed enclosure part.

The framework which slidably mounts the doors or panels 18, 20 includes a base member 24, one or more side members 26, and a canopy member 28. The respective framing parts may be fabricated of any suitable material, such as extruded or rolled aluminum.

As seen best in FIG. 2, the base member 24 includes a bottom wall 30, resting upon the upper edge or ledge of the tub 12 and appropriately secured thereto by a suitable cement, integral front and rear walls 32, 34 and a dividing partition 36. The front wall 32 and the partition 36 define the lower end of a front compartment which receives the front panel 20.while the rear wall 34 and the partition 36 provide a rear compartment for the rear panel 18.

Each of the side members 26 includes front and rear walls 38, 40 interconnected by an end Wall 42. As seen best in FIG. 2, the front and rear Walls 38, 40 of the side members 26 are spaced to be disposed outwardly of and to extend over the front and rear walls 32, 34 of the base member 24 and to rest against integral footings 30a, 3b provided as extensions of the bottom wall 30. Thus, the respective side members 36 enclose opposite open ends of the base member 24 and fit snugly thereabout, as illustrated at the lower left hand corner of FIG. 3 to provide a neat corner joint.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the canopy or top member 28 includes a top wall 44, front and rear walls 46, 48, and an intermediate partition 50. The front wall 46, and the partition 50 define the upper end of the forward compartment for the front panel 20; the rear wall 48 and the partition 50 define the upper end of the rear compartment which receives the upper end of panel 18. Extending in opposite directions from the partition 58 in a common horizontal plane are the rails 52, 54 which respectively support the panels 18, 2i). Disposed in substantial alignment with the rails 52, 54 are abutment members 56, 58 which cooperate with the rails in a manner to be hereinafter described for the lateral confinement of the respective panels.

The spacing of the front and rear walls, 46, 48 of the canopy member 28 is such that the front and rear walls 38, 40 of the respective side members 26 may be accommodated inwardly of the canopy walls to provide the corner construction shown at the upper left in FIG. 3 in which the front wall 46 of the canopy member 28 serves as a decorative skirt. As seen in FIG. 2, integral ledge portions 46a, 48a project inwardly from the front and rear walls 46, 48 and rest upon the upper edges of the side members 26, thus making the assembly of the side members and the canopy a simple drop fit of operation. Although the described framework structure is preferred, it should be appreciated that other frameworks will be equally suitable with the sliding mounts to be now detailed.

Referring now specifically to FIGS. 5 to 7 inclusive, there is shown the upper edge portion of the rear panel 18. In that both panels are virtually the same in structure, only one need by described in detail. Both of the panels 18, 249 are fabricated of a corrugated sheet of polyester resin reinforced with a ber glass mat which sheet is formed under heat and pressure. The illustrated corrugated sheeting includes alternate parallel curved ridge and furrow sections designated on the rear panel 18 as 18a, 18b. Other sheets are equally useful, including those of ridged and stepped configuration, which may also be characterized as having ridge and furrow sections. Spaced below and parallel to the upper side edge 18C of the panel 18, alternate sections 18a are formed with transversely-extending substantially rectangular cutouts 6i). Each of the cutouts 69 extends for a substantial depth into its ridge section 60a and provides a guideway section open at one side and terminating in a base substantially in the plane of the opposite side edges 60a, 6tb of the cutout. When viewed in end elevation, the aligned cutouts 6l) (for example, see FIG. 2), have the appearance of a continuous guideway of rectangular section in which the upper edges 68C of the respective slots 61B provide the upper wall of the guideway, the low edges 60d of the respective slots 60 provide the lower edges of the guideway, and the opposite side edges 60a, 68!) define a base or floor for the guideway, Of course, it will be appreciated that the ridge sections at one side or face of the corrugated panels correspond to furrow sections at the opposite side 0r face of the panels.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the guideways formed in the panels 18, 20 receive the rails S2, 54, the depth of the rail penetration being limited by the depth of the respective slots making up the guideways, Although the rails 52, 54 are in direct contact with the panels 18, 20, the lubric properties of the reinforced synthetic material of the panels provides a low-friction contact, found to be completely acceptable for the slidable mounting of the panels.

The size relationship illustrated in FIGS. l to 3 inclusive, for the framing parts is for commercially available corrugated sheeting of substantially twice the depth or corrugation thickness as the illustrated panels 18, 20. Such deeper or thicker panels, slotted as detailed in FIGS. 5 to 7 inclusive, may be mounted on the rails 52, 54 by endwise insertion, and when so mounted, the respective faces remote from the rails are adjacent to and almost in contact with the abutments 56, 58 which extend substantially in the common plane of the rails 52, 54. Thus, the supporting rails 52, 54 which have their respective leading edges bearing against the base sections of the guideways, confine the panels 18, 20 against further movement toward each other, while the abutments 56, 58 for the Wider width sheets serve to confine the corrugated sheets against lateral movement away `from each other. The abutments 56, 58 may comprise inward extensions of the front and rear walls 46, 48 acting to hold the panels inwardly, or may further include the filler member 64 as described below. Similarly, at the lowermost ends of the panels, the spacing between the front wall 32, 36 is appropriate to confine the lower end of the panel 20, and the spacing between the rear walls 34, 36 is appropriate to confine the panel 18. However, in the illustrative form of the invention, the panels are illustrated as of the thinner commercially available stock. Accordingly, in accordance with a further aspect of the invention, filler members or adapter bars 62, 64 shown in FIGS. l, 2 and 9 are employed to effectively increase the extent of the respective abutments 56, 58 at the upper ends of the panels and the abutments or walls 32, 34, 36 at the lower ends of the panels. As seen in FIG. 2, the abutments 56, 58, when not serving in their primary function to confine the wider width panels, serve as mounting arms which slidably receive the filler bars 62. The bars 62, 64 are somewhat hollowed out to decrease their weight and material cost. Various mountings for the bars are contemplated. For example, the inner faces of the walls 32, 34 and the op-v posite faces of the partition 36 may be formed with dovetail channels as illustrated to receive the dovetailing 64a on the iiller bar 64. It will be appreciated that by proper dimensioning of the several filler members and the framework, it is possible to obtain a rattle-proof quiet operating assembly capable of accommodating various width commercially available corrugated sheeting.

The iiller members 62, 64 as well as the uppermost edges of the bottom walls 32, 34, 36 are constructed with a slight pitch to define an inclined drainage plane preventing water accumulation. If desired, the base member may be formed with drainage slots 66 (see FIGS. 1 and 2).

The illustrative handle 22 is mounted along one side edge of the panel 20 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 8 through the provision of a reinforcing strip .68 and one or more bolts 70 which extend throughthe panel proper and are engaged in the handle.

From the foregoing description of a typical tub installation, it should be appreciated that the present invention provides a simple and direct construction for slidably mounting panels; further, in the illustrative form, the construction facilitates the `prefabrication of a tub: enclosure, shipment in knockdown form, and easy assembly at the point of installation.

A typical installation will-now be described in detail to provide a more thorough understanding of the illustrative form of the invention:

Initially, the base member 24 is secured to the upper edge of the tub 12 and the panels are assembled on the respective rails 52, 54 by endwise insertion between the rails and the abutments. The abutments will either be the abutments 56, 53 for the wider width panels, or the innermost faces of the adaptedor filler members 62, 64 for the narrow width panels (as illustrated). The assembly is completed with the upright side members 26 which engage over the base `member and within the canopy member 28.

The integral bearing or slideway concept demonstrated in the embodiment shown in FIGS. l to 9 inclusive, may take many other useful forms. For example, there is illustrated in FIG. 10 a panel Sil of reinforced synthetic having alternate ridge and furrow sections 80a, 80h. Spaced below the upper side edge Stic are a rst row of cutouts or slots 32, formed in alternate ridge sections 802, which slots or cutouts` 82 deline a continuous guideway along a line spaced below and parallel to the upper edge Stic. This guideway opens into the front face of the panel and is adapted to receive a rail disposed at a first level (i.e. the rail shown at the right in FIG. 16). The furrow or depressed section 30h of the panel is lformed with a further group of slots or cutouts 84, which are disposed intermediate the upper edge iiic and the iirst group 82. Gf course, it will be appreciated that the cutouts 84, which appear to be in furrow sections Stlb in the front face of the panel 80 are in the raised sections of the corrugated sheet when viewed from the rear or back. The slots or cutouts 84 likewise define a continuous guideway which is adapted to receive a rail extending toward the first rail and appropriately spaced above the rst rail (i.e. the rail at the left of FIG. 16) but spaced above the rail at the right. rlhe slidable assembly described in conjunction with the panel of FIG. l() requires endwise insertion betweenthe two rails; and may provide additional structural support and sliding contact required in certain types of installations.

In FIGS. l1 and 12 there is illustrated a further form of the invention which is particularly designed to permit the panels to be assembled and removed broadside as contrasted to the endwise assembly previously described. Specifically, the modified panel member 90, having the ridge sections 90a and the furrow sections 90b, is formed with a number of side-by-side transversely extending undercut slots 92, each of which denes a depending overhang 94 integral with the corrugated sheet or panel 90, and a guideway 96 accessible through an entry slot or opening 98 (see FIG. 12). As before, the undercut slots 92 cooperate to deiine a continuous guideway from side to side of the panel 90. However, this form of panel is particularly designed to be employed with a rail 100, shown by the broken lines of FIG. 12, which includes an upturned leading edge 162. The assembly operation involves the insertion of the panel over the rail 100 by extending the leading upturned end 102 through the aligned entry slots 9S followed by the lowering of the rail to a position wherein the upturned edge 102 is received within the guideway 96 behind the integral overhangs 94, as illustrated in FIG. 12. The assembly operations for the panel illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12 will be best appreciated in conjunction with the detailed description of the modification of FIG. 14.

In FIG. 13, there is illustrated a still modied frame and panel assembly according to the invention. In this form, a base member and a canopy member 112 are dimensioned to receive panels 114, 116 by endwise insertion. The base member 110 includes front and rear walls 118, 120 and a separating partition 122 defining lateral-confining ways which receive the lowermost ends of the panels 114, 116. The canopy member 112 includes front and rear walls 124, 126 and an intermediate partition 128. Extending inwardly from the front and rear walls 124, 126 in substantial coplanar relation are rails 131i, 132 which terminate short of the intermediate partition 128. The rails receive the panels 114, 116 upon endwise insertion, the panels being slotted as illustrated in FIG. 5. This form of the invention illustrates the support of the panels from tails formed on the front and rear walls of the canopy member 112, and the relative proportioning of the framing parts and the panels when the adapted or filler members are not required.

In the form illustrated in FIG. 14, there is provided a base member and a canopy member 142. Supported from the canopy member 142 are front and rear panels 144, 146 which are constructed as detailed in FIGS. 11 and 12. Suiiicient clearance is provided between the front and rear walls 148, 156 of the canopy 142 to facilitate placing of the respective panels approximately in the position illustrated by the dot-dash line preliminary to insertion over the rails 152, 154. By conjoint reference to FIGS. ll, l2 and 14, the manner of assembly of the panels illustrated in FIG. l1 should become apparent.

In FIGS. 1S and 16 there is shown a still further modified form of panel 16th which is once again formed of reinforced plastic and includes alternate ridge and furrow sections 16de, 166k. In this form, a first set of slots 162 is provided along a line spaced below and parallel to the upper side edge 16de, the iirst set of slots of cutouts 162 being formed transversely of the raised sections 16de. A further set of slots or cutouts 164 is formed in the furrow section (that is the raised section of the rear of the panel) in the spaces intermediate the respective slots 162 of the iirst set. A pair of rails 166, 168 (shown by the broken lines of FIG. 16) are received within the respective guideways formed by the slot section 162, 164 upon endwise insertion of the panel over the rails.

In each of the forms of the invention, it will be appreciated that the slidable mounting of the panels is achieved by a simple slotting or undercutting operation, and the assembly involves but a minimum of labor and cost. When once assembled, by appropriate dimensioning of the respective parts, it is possible to confine the one or more panels against displacement and an easily manipulated slidable mount is provided for the panels.

Numerous modifications are intended in the foregoing disclosure, and accordingly the appended claims should be construed broadly and as is consistent with the scope of the invention; in certain instances some features of the invention will be used without a corresponding use of other features.

What I claim is:

l. In assembly, a mounting fixture including an abutment, and a supporting rail extending towards said abutment and terminating in a leading edge spaced from said abutment, and a corrugated sheet of a synthetic material having lubric properties, said sheet having side by side ridge and furrow sections, said ridge sections being formed with aligned cutouts defining an openended guideway across said corrugated sheet having an open side and a base, said supporting rail being received within said guideway with its leading edge bearing against said base and confining said corrugated sheet against lateral displacement in one direction, said abutment being adjacent the face of said corrugated sheet remote from said guideway and limiting said corrugated sheet against lateral displacement in the opposite direction, said supporting rail and guideway cooperating to mount said corrugated sheet for sliding movement.

2. In assembly, a mounting fixture including a supporting rail terminating in a leading edge, and a corrugated sheet of a synthetic material having lubric properties, said sheet having side by side ridge and furrow sections, said ridge sections being formed with aligned cutouts defining a continuous guideway of rectangular cross section across said corrugated sheet having an open side and a base, said supporting rail extending through said open side of said guideway and having its leading edge bearing against said base, said supporting rail and guideway mounting said corrugated sheet for sliding movement, said mounting fixture having an abutment parallel to and spaced from said leading edge of said supporting rail and positioned on the other side of said `corrugated sheet from said supporting rail, said spacing being less than the thickness of said corrugated sheet, said abutment preventing substantial movement of said corrugated sheet transverse to said sliding movement.

3. For assembly with a first supporting rail extending in one direction and a second supporting rail spaced above said first supporting rail and extending in the opposite direction, a corrugated sheet of glass-reinforced resinous material shaped into parallel ridge and furrow sections between its opposite sides, successive ridge sections of said sheet being formed with a first set of transverse cutouts, successive furrow sections of said sheet being formed with a second set of cutouts spaced above said first set, said first set defining a guideway from side to side of said corrugated sheet for said first supporting rail, said second set of cutouts defining a guideway from side to side of said corrugated sheet for said second supporting rail, said guideways being adapted to receive the respective supporting rails to mount said sheet for sliding movement.

4. For assembly with a first supporting rail extending in one direction and a second supporting rail extending in the opposite direction, a corrugated sheet of glass reinforced resinous material shaped into parallel ridge and furrow sections between its opposite sides, successive ridge sections of said sheet being formed with a first set of transverse cutouts, successive furrow sections of said sheet being formed with a second set of cutouts, said first set of cutouts being in alignment and defining a guideway from side to side of said corrugated sheet for said first supporting rail, said second set of cutouts being in alignment and defining a guideway from side to side of said corrugated sheet for said second supporting rail, said guideway being adapted to receive the respective supporting rails to mount said sheet for sliding movement.

5. In a shower enclosure, a mounting fixture including a pair of supporting rails each terminating in a leading edge, and a pair of sliding doors each including corrugated sheets of a synthetic material reinforced by a fiber glass mat and having lubric properties, said sheets each having side by side ridge and furrow sections, the ridge sections of each sheet being formed with aligned rectangular cutouts defining a continuous guideway of rectangular section across each corrugated sheet having an open side and a base, each of said supporting rails and its guideway mounting one of said doors for sliding movement, said mounting fixture having abutments parallel to and spaced from said supporting rails, said spacing being less than the thickness of said corrugated sheets, said abutments preventing substantial movement of said doors transverse to said sliding movement.

6. In a shower enclosure, a mounting canopy including front and rear walls, an intermediate partition, and a pair of supporting rails projecting in opposite direc- `tions from said partition and each terminating in a leading edge, and a pair of sliding doors each including corrugated sheets having side by side ridge and furrow sections, the ridge sections of each sheet being formed with aligned transversely-extending rectangular cutouts defining a guideway across each corrugated sheet having an open side and a base, each of said supporting rails extending through said Open side of said guideway and having its leading edge bearing against said base, each of said supporting rails and its guideway mounting its door for sliding movement and limiting the displacement of its door toward said partition, and means on the front and rear Walls of said canopy engageable with the adjacent one of said doors for limiting the displacement of said doors toward said front and rear walls respectively.

7. In a shower enclosure, a mounting canopy including front and rear walls, an intermediate partition, and a pair of supporting rails projecting in opposite directions from said partition and each terminating in a leading edge, and a pair of sliding doors each including corrugated sheets of a synthetic material reinforced by a fiber glass mat and having lubric properties, said sheets each having side by side ridge and furrow sections, the ridge sections of each sheet being formed with aligned cutouts defining a guideway across each corrugated sheet having an open side and a base, each of said supporting rails extending through said open side of said guideway and having its leading edge bearing against said base, each of said supporting rails and its guideway mounting its door for sliding movement and limiting the displacement of its door toward said partition, and means on the front and rear walls of said canopy engageable with the adjacent one of said doors for limiting the displacement of said doors toward said front and rear walls respectively.

8. In assembly, a mounting canopy including an abutment and a supporting rail extending toward said abutment and terminating in a leading edge spaced from said abutment, and a corrugated sheet of a synthetic material having self-lubricating properties and including side by side ridge and furrow sections, said ridge sections having upper end portions formed with aligned rectangular slots defining an open-ended guideway extending transversely of said corrugated sheet and having an open side and a base, said supporting rail being received within said guideway with its leading edge bearing against said base and confining said corrugated sheet against displacement in one direction from a plane of movement, said abutment being adjacent the face of said corrugated sheet remote from said guideway and limiting said corrugated sheet against displacement in the opposite direction from said plane, said supporting rail and guideway cooperating to provide a low-friction bearing contact mounting said corrugated sheet for movement in said plane.

9. In assembly, a mounting canopy including an abutment and a supporting rail extending toward said abutment and terminating in a leading edge spaced from said abutment, a corrugated sheet of a synthetic material having self-lubricating properties and including side by side ridge and furrow sections, said ridge sections having upper end portions formed with aligned rectangular slots defining an open-ended guideway extending transversely of said corrugated sheet and having an open side and a base, said supporting rail being received within said guideway with its leading edge bearing against said base and confining said corrugated sheet against displacement in one direction from a plane of movement, said abutment bein-g adjacent the face of said corrugated sheet remote from said guideway and limiting said corrugated Sheet against displacement in the opposite direction from said plane, said supporting rail and guideway cooperating to provide a low-friction bearing con-tact mounting said corrugated sheet for movement in said plane, and means engageable with lower end portions of said corrugated sheet for confining said corrugated sheet against displacement from said plane, said means including ller members having upper faces with a slight pitch pro viding an inclined drainage plane to prevent water acoumulations.

10. A unitary track and panel closure unit comprising at least one corrugated panel, frame me-ans in which the panel is slidable, said frame means comprising a track member of uniform cross-section, said panel being mounted on said track member with the corrugations generally perpendicular thereto, the cross-section of the track member being generally of channel shape having legs, a lateral projection attached to one of said legs and extending toward the other leg, a groove in the panel parallel to the edge thereof, said groove being disposed near the extremity of the panel which is adjacent the ltrack member and parallel thereto, said panel being mounted between the legs with the lateral projection thereof extending into said groove, means forming a part of ,the other of said legs and spaced from said projection a distance less than the depth of the corrugations of said panel and engaging said panel to retain said groove in cooperative relationship with said projection in such manner that any movement of said panel away from said lateral projection is insuicient to disengage the groove and the lateral projection.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,748,908 Jacobson et a1. June 5, 1956

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