US3464162A

US3464162A - Hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors

Info

Publication number: US3464162A
Application number: US697981A
Authority: US
Inventors: Gary G Ingham
Original assignee: Roto Swing Door Co Inc
Current assignee: Roto Swing Inc; Roto Swing Door Co Inc
Priority date: 1968-01-15
Filing date: 1968-01-15
Publication date: 1969-09-02
Anticipated expiration: 1986-09-02

Description

Sept. 2, 1969 G. c;. INGHAM 3,464,162

I HINGE SHAFT ASSEMBLY FOR BALANCED DOORS Filed Jan. 15, 1968 36 J5 3&5 lllu "I L40 INVENTOR Gary G. [Hy/2am ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,464,162 HINGE SHAFT ASSEMBLY FGR BALANCED DOORS Gary G. Ingham, Oklahoma City, Okla, assignor to Roto- Swing Door Co., Inc., Oklahoma City, Okla, a corporation of Oklahoma Filed Jan. 15, 1968, Ser. No. 697,981 Int. Cl. EllSd 7/08, /28; E061) 7/23 US. Cl. 49-383 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors wherein the hinge shaft for the door is disposed in such a relationship with respect to the vertical door frame as to permit clearance for the pivot arms of the door without the necessity of providing slots in the upper and lower portions of the door frame. The inner edge of the vertical door frame is open for receiving the hinge shaft assembly therein, and the hinge shaft is vertically disposed in the open edge of the door frame in such a manner that at least half the shaft extends beyond the confines of the door frame thus eliminating or precluding interference between the pivot arms and vertical door frame during opening or closing of the door. A yieldable finger guard member is disposed over the exposed portion of the shaft which extends beyond the door frame for protection of the shaft and protection of the users during use of the door. The entire hinge shaft assembly may be quickly and easily installed in the open edge of the door frame.

This invention relates to improvements in balanced door structures and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a hinge shaft assembly for securing balanced door leaves in a door frame.

Balanced doors of the type wherein the opening and closing thereof is a combined swinging and sliding action with one portion of the door leaf moving inwardly of the door frame and the other portion thereof moving outwardly of the door frame are in widespread use today because of the comparative ease of opening and closing thereof. Most of these doors are provided with pivot arms at the upper and lower ends thereof which extend between the vertical hinge shaft and the door for pivotally supporting the door in the door frame. The hinge shaft for the door is normally vertically disposed within the door frame adjacent the door opening and is concealed therein. As a result, it is necessary to provide a slot or opening at the upper and lower ends of the door frame for clearance of the pivot arms during opening and closing of the door. Thus, not only is installation and maintenance of the hinge shaft diflicult, but additional expense and difficulty is encountered in cutting away a portion of the door frame for accommodating the pivot arms.

The present invention contemplates a novel hinge shaft assembly for a 'balanced door which is particularly designed and constructed for facilitating installation thereof in connection with a door frame and to eliminate any need for cutting away any portion of the door frame to accommodate the working portions of the door, such as the pivot arms. The hinge shaft is vertically disposed in the proximity of the door frame in such a manner that at least half of the shaft extends beyond the confines of the door frame, thus facilitating the installation and maintenance thereof. The pivot arms extend between the hinge shaft and the door for supporting the door in the door opening, and since the hinge shaft is disposed beyond the confines of the door frame, there is no interference between the pivot arms and door frame during the opening or closing of the door. In addition, a yield- "ice able guard member is disposed on the door frame for encasing the hinge shaft and substantially precluding accidental harm or damage to users of the door. The novel hinge shaft assembly is simple and efficient in operation and economical and durable in construction.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a novel hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors particularly designed and constructed for elimination of interference between the door frame and pivot arms during operation of the door.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel hinge shaft assembly wherein installation and maintenance of the assembly is greatly facilitiated.

Other and further objects and advantageous features of the present invention will hereinafter more fully appear in connection with a detailed description of the drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a balanced door provided with a hinge shaft assembly embodying the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken on line 22 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of a typical single leaf balanced door in an open position, with the path of travel of one end thereof depicted in dotted lines.

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 depicting a two way balanced door.

FIGURE 5 is a view similar to FIGURES 3 and 4 depicting a double leaf one way balanced door.

Referring to the drawings in detail, reference character 10 generally indicates a balanced door adapted to be disposed in the usual door frame or doorway 12 having

vertical door jams

14 and 16 and an upper door frame or lintel 18. The balanced door 10 may be of any suitable or well known type and whereas the particular door installation depicted in FIGURES 1 through 3 comprises a single door leaf 20 mounted in the doorway 12, there is not intention of limiting the use of the invention to this particular balanced door installation. The door leaf 20 as depicted herein is provided with a peripheral frame 22 supporting a central portion 24 made of glass, or the like. It is to be understood, however, that the door leaf 20 may be of a slab structure or any other suitable door construction, and is not in any manner limited to the decorative design depicted herein. In addition, the door leaf 20 shown in FIGURES 1 through 3 substantially fills the width of the doorway 12 in the closed position thereof.

The leaf 20 is suspended from the upper frame 18 in a manner as will be hereinafter set forth whereby the leaf simultaneously rotates and slides along the frame 18 during opening and closing of the door. For example, the leaf 2t? pivots in a clockwise direction upon opening thereof, as viewed in the drawings, and simultaneously slides along the door frame 18 in a direction toward the jamb 14. Upon closing of the door 10, the leaf 20 pivots in an opposite direction, or counterclockwise direction, and simultaneously slides along the frame 18 in a direction toward the jamb 16. Thus, during the opening and closing operation, the outer end 26 of the door leaf 20 moves through the elliptical path indicated by the dotted line in FIGURE 3.

It will be apparent that the combined pivoting and sliding action of the door leaf 20 results in a disposition thereof adjacent the door jam-b 14 in the open position thereof in such a manner that substantially half of the door leaf extends on each side of the door jamb. In addition, the path of travel of the outer end 26 of the door leaf 20 is reduced to a minimum distance from the doorway 12, thus decreasing the distance through which the door must travel during the opening thereof. In this manner, the door 10 may be fully opened and moved to an out-of-the-way position in a manner greatly reducing any interference with a person moving through the doorway 12. Furthermore, the door leaf 20 opens to a full ninety degree position against the door jamb to provide a maximum opening for the doorway for facilitating passage of traffic through the open door.

The door jamb 14 as particularly shown in FIGURE 2 is substantially rectangular in cross section, and the inwardly directed edge 28 thereof is open for a purpose as will be hereinafter set forth. A pair of oppositely disposed inwardly directed ribs or

flanges

30 and 32 are provided on the inner periphery of the jamb 14 spaced slightly inwardly from the open edge 28. The

ribs

30 and 32 extend vertically substantially throughout the length of the jamb 14. A vertical hinge pin or shaft 34 is disposed in the open edge 28 substantially centrally spaced between the opposite sides thereof and with at least one-half of the shaft 34 extending beyond the confines of the jamb 14. The lowermost end (not shown) of the shaft 34 is suitably journaled in the floor plate (not shown) of the doorway 12 and the uppermost end (not shown) of the shaft 34 is similarly journaled in the upper door lintel 18 whereby the shaft 34 may rotate freely about the vertical or longitudinal axis thereof, as is well known.

An upper hinge arm or offset pivot arm 36 is secured to the upper end of the hinge shaft 34 and extends radially outwardly therefrom into a recess 38 provided in the upper end 40 of the door leaf 20. A pivot pin (not shown) is secured to the outer extremity of the hinge arm 36 and extends downwardly therefrom into a suitable bearing support member 42 disposed in the recess 38. A lower hinge arm 44 is secured to the lower end of the hinge shaft 34 and extends radially therefrom into a groove or recess 46 provided in the lower end 48 of the door leaf 20. A pivot pin (not shown) is suitably secured in the recess 46 in substantially axial alignment with the upper pivot pin and extends downwardly into a suitable ball bearing member 50 carried in the lower hinge arm 44. The lower pivot pin cooperates with the upper pivot pin for conmeeting the

hinge arms

36 and 44 between the hinge shaft 34 and the door leaf 20 for supporting the door leaf and providing an offset pivot axis for the

hinge arms

36 and 44.

Of course, the door leaf 20 is pivotally and slidably connected with the upper door lintel 18 in any suitable manner (not shown) as is well known in balanced door structures whereby the operation of the door will be as hereinafter set forth.

A vertically extending guard member 52 of substantially U-shaped cross sectional configuration is disposed around the exposed portion of the shaft 34 and extends substantially throughout the length thereof for protection of the shaft and for protection of the persons using door 10. The guard 52 is preferably constructed from a yieldable material, such as rubber, or the like, and is provided with a pair of oppositely disposed longitudinally extending

bead portions

54 and 56 conterminous with the open sides of the U-shaped configuration of the guard member for facilitating securing of the guard in the jamb opening 28. A pair of substantially identical but oppositely disposed

retainer strips

58 and 60 are disposed adjacent the

ribs

30 and 32, respectively, for retaining the guard 52 in position.

Each

strip

58 and 60 is provided with a perpendicularly disposed longitudinally extending strengthening

rib

62 and 64, respectively, disposed within the jamb 14 upon securing of the strips thereto. In addition, each

strip

58 and 60 is provided with a longitudinally extending

holding member

66 and 68, respectively, of arcuate configuration adjacent the inwardly directed edges thereof, with the arcuate configuration of the

holding members

66 and 68 being complementary to the configuration of the

bead members

54 and 56, respectively. The

head members

54 and 56 are disposed in the

respective holding members

66 and 68 in order to retain the guard 52 securely in position around the hinge shaft 34, and within the jamb opening 28. Of

course, the

strips

58 and 60 may be secured against the

ribs

30 and 32 in any well known manner, such as by a pair of spaced upper and

lower retaining blocks

70 and 72. The

blocks

70 and 72 may be disposed at the opposite ends of the guard 52, as particularly shown in FIGURE 1, and are secured to the

ribs

30 and 32 by a plurality of spaced threaded stud members 74 which extend through the

respective retaining strips

58 and 60 for removably securing the strips within the jamb opening 28.

The finger guard 52 extends longitudinally substantially throughout the length of the vertical hinge shaft 34. However, as shown in FIGURE 1, it is to be noted that the guard 52 terminates slightly below the upper pivot arm 36 and slightly above the lower pivot arm 44. Similarly, the upper retaining block 70 is disposed below the upper pivot arm 36, and the lower retaining block 72 is disposed slightly above the lower pivot arm 44, :thus precluding interference with the pivotal movement of the pivot anms during opening or closing of the door, Thus, the inner ends 76 (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 2) of the pivot arms extend into the interior of the door jamb 14. In addition, it is preferable that the inner end 76 be of arcuate configuration for facilitating pivoting of the

arms

36 and 44, and a radially extending shoulder 78 may be provided on the arcuate portion for engaging the retaining strip 60 to provide a stop to limit the pivoting movement of the pivot arms in the closing direction.

The hinge shaft 34 and pivot

arms

36 and 44 may be quickly and easily installed in the jamb opening 28, and the guard 52 may be disposed therearound and easily secured to the jamb 14. The door 10 may then be operated in the usual manner. In the event it becomes necessary to replace or repair any portion of the hinge shaft assembly, the retainer strips 58 and 60 may be easily removed for facilitating access to the hinge shaft, and other operating parts thereof.

Referring now to FIGURES 4 and 5, modified forms of balanced doors are depicted with which the novel hinge shaft assembly may be utilized. For example, a two way balanced door 10a is shown in FIGURE 4 of the type shown in the I. C. Catlett Patent No. 3,247,617, issued Apr. 26, 1966, and entitled Two Way Automatic Door. The door 10a comprises a pair of substantially identical door leaves 80 and 82 mounted in a single doorway opening 84. The door leaves 80 and 82 are each of a width substantially equal to half the width of the doorway 84 and in the closed position thereof fill the doorway.

The leaf 80 is secured to one door jamb 14a by means of a hinge shaft assembly as hereinbefore set forth, including a pair of pivot arms 36a (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 4) and a finger guard 52a. The opening and closing of the door leaf 20 is substantially as hereinbefore set forth. The door leaf 82 is secured to a second door jamb 16a by means of a hinge shaft assembly as hereinbefore set forth, including a pair of pivot arms 36b (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 4), and a finger guard 52b. The opening and closing of the door leaf 82 is substantially identical with that of the door leaf 20, but opposite thereto, as particularly set forth in the aforementioned Catlett patent.

The particular installation depicted in FIGURE 5 illustrates a balanced door 10b wherein a pair of door leaves 86 and 88 are mounted in a single dorway 90, but the door leaves 88 open in a manner providing for one-way fiow of pedestrain trafiic through the doorway 84. The door leaf 86 is secured to one door jamb 14b by a hinge shaft assembly as hereinbefore set forth, including a pair of pivot arms 33c (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 5) and a finger guard 520. The door leaf 88 is secured to a second door jamb 1612 by means of a hinge shaft assembly as hereinbefore set forth, including a pair of pivot arms 36d (only one of which is shown in FIGURE 5) and a finger guard 52d. The path of travel of the outer ends 86a and 88a of the door leaves 86 and 88, respectively, is shown in dotted lines.

Balanced doors are provided or installed in conditions wherein the door is opened manually, and also in conditions wherein the door is actuated by a door operator which may be of a remote control type, as is well known. However, the hinge assembly of the present invention may be utilized with equal eificiency on any type of balanced door installation.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a novel hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors which may be quickly and easily installed in a door jamb. The novel hinge assembly is particularly designed and constructed for precluding interference between the door jamb and the offset pivot arms during opening and closing of the door. Access to the hinge shaft is greatly facilitated in the event it is necessary to repair or replace the hinge pivot shaft, or other elements related thereto. The novel hinge shaft assembly is simple and efficient in operation and economical and durable in construction.

Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts as heretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being understood that any modification in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made within the scope of the following claims, Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors comprising a door jamb having one edge thereof open, a vertical hinge shaft journalled in the open edge of the door jamb, said hinge shaft being disposed in said open edge whereby at least half of the shaft extends entirely beyond the confines of the door jamb, a finger guard disposed around the exposed portion of the hinge shaft, pivot arm means connecting the hinge with the door, and

retainer means removably secured to the open edge of thedoor jamb for retaining the finger guard in position.

'2. A hinge shaft assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein the finger guard is constructed from resilient material, and said finger guard is substantially U-shaped in cross sectional configuration.

3. A hinge shaft assembly as set forth in claim 2 wherein the finger guard is provided with longitudinally extending bead means conterminous with the open portion of the U-shaped configuration thereof for cooperation with the retainer means for retaining the finger guard in position.

4. A hinge shaft assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein the pivot arm means includes an upper pivot arm secured in the proximity of the upper end of the hinge shaft, a lower pivot arm secured in the proximity of the lower end of the hinge shaft, and said finger guard extends between the upper and lower pivot arms for precluding interference therebetween during opening and closing of the door.

5. A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors as set forth in claim 4 wherein stop means is provided on at least one pivot arm for cooperation with the retainer means for limiting the movement of the pivot arms in the door closing direction.

6. A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors comprising a door jamb having one edge thereof open, a vertical hinge shaft journalled in the open edge of the door jamb, a finger guard disposed around the exposed portion of the hinge shaft, pivot arm means connecting the hinge shaft with the door, and retainer means removably secured to the open edge of the door jamb for retaining the finger guard in position, said retainer means including a pair of spaced longitudinally extending strip members removably secured to the open edge of the door jamb, and longitudinally extending arcuate rib means provided on each strip for receiving a portion of the finger guard therein for securing the finger guard in position around the hinge shaft.

7. A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors comprising a door jamb having one edge thereof open, a vertical hinge shaft journalled in the open edge of the door jamb, said hinge shaft being disposed in said open edge whereby at least half of the shaft extends beyond the confines of the door jamb, yieldable finger guard means disposed around the exposed portion of the hinge shaft, said finger guard being of substantially U-shaped cross sectional configuration, longitudinally extending bead means provided on the finger guard conterminous with the open edges of the U-shaped configuration thereof, pivot arm means connecting the hinge shaft with the door, said pivot arm means comprising spaced upper and lower pivot arms carried by the hinge shaft and extending radially outward therefrom, said finger guard being interposed between the pivot arms for precluding interference during opening and closing of the door, and retainer means removably secured to the open edge of the door jamb for retaining the finger guard in position.

8. A hinge shaft assembly for balanced doors as set forth in claim 8 wherein the retainer means; includes a pair of spaced longitudinally extending strip members removably secured to the open edge of the door jamb on opposite sides of the finger guard, and longitudinally extending rib means provided on each strip member for engaging the bead means of the finger guard for securing the finger guard in position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,866,236 12/1958 West 49384 3,247,617 4/1966 Catlett 49252 XR 3,354,586 11/1967 DenBesten 49-504 KENNETH DOWN-EY, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R.