US3328105A

US3328105A - Self-closing, sliding door assembly

Info

Publication number: US3328105A
Application number: US500872A
Authority: US
Inventors: Frank R Trulaske
Original assignee: True Manufacturing Co Inc
Current assignee: True Manufacturing Co Inc
Priority date: 1965-10-22
Filing date: 1965-10-22
Publication date: 1967-06-27
Anticipated expiration: 1984-06-27

Description

June 27., 1967 F TRULASKE 3,328,105

SELF-CLOSING, SLIDING DOOR ASSEMBLY Filed Oct. 22, 1965 FIG. 4

| :L 20 INVENTOR I M FRANK R. TRULASKE MMFmMiQ w QUQ Z ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,328,105 SELF-CLOSIN G, SLIDING DOOR ASSEMBLY Frank R. Trulaske, Grafton, IlL, assignor to True Manufacturing Company, Inc., St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed Oct. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 500,872 12 Claims. (Cl. 312319) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A self-closing, sliding door assembly in which a tube has a first end portion located above a counterweight and determining the point of suspension of the counterweight, and has a second end portion located in the plane of the door, the counterweight being otfset inwardly of the plane of the door. A sash-line extends through thhe tube and interconnects the door and counterweight, the tube and sashline translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

This invention relates generally to improvements in a self-closing, sliding door assembly, and more particularly to the use of such an assembly in display cabinets, coolers and the like.

It has been heretofore conventional to hang the counterweight in line with the direction of movement and in the plane of the door, the counterweight being operatively connected to the door by a sash-line passed over one or more fixed pulleys. Because this operating mechanism was required to be hidden within the cabinet at the end of the door, this arrangement resulted in a cabinet having relatively thick side walls and resulted in a cabinet having a greater width than is desired. The present invention allows the counterweight to be placed to one side of the door rather than at the end of the door, thereby providing a thin wall construction that is not only aesthetically pleasing, but reduces the over-all width of the cabinet having a predetermined storage capacity.

An important object is to eliminate pulleys from the counterweight system of a self-closing, sliding door assembly. A sash-line has a distinct tendency to slip off of individual pulleys, thereby rendering the door temporarily inoperative.

Another important objective is achieved by the provision of a structural arrangement in which the available cabinet storage area is more efiectively utilized by having the counterweight hung along the side of the door rather than at the end of and in line with the door track. This arrangement has the advantage of allowing goods and material, stored in close proximity to the side walls of the cabinet, to be pulled directly from the cabinet instead of first having to be pulled clear of the corner of the cabinet.

Yet another important object is attained by having the counterweight hung along the side of the door rather than at the end of the door track so that the stored goods are rendered more clearly visible.

An important object is to provide a door-closing mechanism utilizing a minimum number of moving parts, thereby eliminating maintenance problems. Another important advantage is realized in that the counterweight mechanism is easily accessible when the sash-line requires replacement.

Another important objective is alforded by the provision of means slidably mounting the door for movement in a plane between open and closed limits, and by means interconnecting the door with the counterweight located to one side of the door so that the gravitational pull of the 3,328,165 Patented June 27, 1967 counterweight is translated into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

Still another important objective is provided by a tube including a first end portion extending generally in the direction of counterweight movement and determining the point of suspension of the counterweight, and a second end portion extending along the top of and in the door plane. The sash-line extends through the tube and interconnects the door and counterweight.

An important object is achieved by the provision of a guide channel extending from a side wall of the cabinet, the channel slidably receiving the top of the door, and by the location of the tube adjacent the side wall so that the tube extends through the guide channel to dispose the second end portion in the channel above the top of the door.

Another important object is attained by the provision of an elongate enclosure on the side wall of the cabinet in which the counterweight is slidably moved and guided, and by the location of the first end portion of the tube in the counterweight enclosure, the tube having a transverse portion extending between and interconnecting the first and second end portions and bridging the counterweight enclosure and guide channel.

It is an important object to provide a guide for a counterweight sash-line, as an article of manufacture, which includes a double-bend tube having laterally spaced end portions interconnected by a transverse portion. An advantage is provided by constructing the elongate spaced end portions with flared extremities and by mounting the tube to a bracket.

An important object is to provide a self-closing door assembly that is simple and durable in construction, economical to manufacture and assemble, highly efi'icient in operation, and which is fully automatic.

The foregoing and numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will more clearly appear from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment, particularly when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a display cabinet, and particularly a beverage cooler;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary cross-section taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2, illustrating a front interior corner, and

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the door and counterweight assembly, as seen from the inside of the cabinet.

Referring now by characters of reference to the drawing, and first to FIG. 1, it will be understood that the particular type of self-closing, sliding door assembly is suitable for display cabinets, coolers and storage cabinets. The cabinet generally indicated by 10 in FIG. 1 has an opening defined by ceiling 11, floor 12 (FIG. 2), and by a pair of laterally opposed side walls 13 one of which is shown in FIG. 3. A pair of slidably mounted

doors

14 and 15 are slidably mounted to provide a closure for the cabinet opening.

Mounted on the cabinet floor 12 and extending between the side walls 13 is an elongate double-channel guide track 16. Each channel 17 and 20' contains a plurality of rollers 21. A compatible and coacting double-channel track 22 is mounted to the ceiling 11 and extends between the opposed cabinet side walls 13. The

channels

23 and 24 of the ceiling track 22 are aligned vertically above the cooperating

channels

17 and 20 respectively of floor track 16.

A door 14 is slidably mounted in the vertically aligned

guide channels

17 and 23, the channel 17 embracing the door bottom and the channel 23 embracing the door top. The bottom of door 14 seats on rollers 21. Similarly, channel 20 embraces the bottom of door while channel 24 embraces the top of such door 15. The bottom of door 15 seats on rollers 21.

The cooperating pair of

doors

14 and 15 are located vertically in side-by-side parallel planes. Each

door

14 or 15 is adapted to close substantially one-half of the cabinet opening. When both

doors

14 and 15 are closed, the entire cabinet opening is enclosed as shown in FIG. 1. Each of the

doors

14 or 15 is independently movable horizontally in a vertical plane along its own guide channels 17-23 and 20-24 respectively to either an open or a closed limit.

A counterweight assembly is associated with each of the

doors

14 and 15. Because the counterweight assemblies are substantially identical in construction, a detailed description of one will suflice for the other and corresponding reference numbers will be utilized wherever possible for clarity.

An elongate enclosure is fixed to the side wall 13, the enclosure 25 extending substantially vertical from the floor 12 substantially to the ceiling 11, and is disposed just inside of the double-channel floor and

ceiling tracks

16 and 22 and closedly adjacent the side of the associated door 14. The elongate enclosure 25 is open at its top as is best shown in FIG. 2. Reciprocatively and slidably mounted in the elongate enclosure 25 is an elongate counterwieght 26 having an eye fastener 27 at its top.

Means is provided to interconnect the door 14 and counterweight 26 to translate the gravitational pull of the counterweight '26 into a force applied to the door 14 tending to move the door 14 to the closed limit. This means includes a bracket 30 fixed to the side wall 13 and located within the open top of elongate enclosure 25. A double-bend tube generally indicated by 31 is fixed to the bracket 30 as by welding or the like. The tube 31 includes an elongate end portion 32 extending vertically above the counterweight 26- in the elongate enclosure 25, the end portion 32 determining the point of suspension of the counterweight 26. The tube 31 includes another elongate end portion 33 located in the channel 23 above the top of door 14, and extending generally in the door plane in the direction of door movement. An integral, continuous transverse tube portion 34 extends between and interconnects the

end portions

32 and 33 by gradual bends. Specifically, the transverse tube portion 34 extends between and bridges the counterweight enclosure 25 and the channel 23. The transverse tube portion 34 extends through a small slot 35 formed in the innermost flange 36 of channel 23, and is supported by such flange 36.

A sash-line 37 extends through the tube 31, one end of sash-line 37 extending over the top of door 14 and fixed to the rear side of the door 14 by ascrew 40. The other end of sash-line 37 extends downwardly into the enclosure 25 for attachment to the counterweight eye fastener 27.

When the door 14 is in its closed limit, as is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the counterweight 26 is located in its lowermost position within the enclosure 25. When the door 14 is moved from the closed limit toward the open limit, the sash-line 37 is pulled through the tube 31 to raise the counterweight 26. When the door 14 is released, the gravitational pull of the counterweight 26, acting through the sash-line 37, will pull the door 14 back to the closed limit.

The

extremities

32 and 33 of tube 31 are flared to avoid abrading of the sash-line 37.

The configuration of tube 31 is such that the sash-line 37 extends vertically upward from counterweight 26 parallel to the door 14, is turned through 90 degrees to become perpendicular to the door 14, and then turned through a further 90 degrees to become substantially in line with the top of door 14 and in the door plane. The tube portion 32 points downwardly into the counterweight enclosure 25 substantially away from the ceiling 11, while the end portion 33 points inwardly of the cabinet away from side wall 13.

It will be observed that the counterweight assembly associated with door 15 is the same as that associated with door 14 except that the intermediate transverse portion 41 (FIG. 4) of tube generally indicated by 42 is longer than that of the corresponding transverse portion 34 of tube 31 by an amount equal to the distance between center to center of

doors

14 and 15 in order that the counterweights 26 of the respective counterweight systems may be symmetrically arranged within the interior of the cabinet.

It will be understood that the intermediate transverse tube portion 41 of tube 42 is supported in a manner similar to that of the transverse tube portion 34 of tube 31. This support is achieved by slotting both the innermost and the

center flanges

36 and 43 of the double-channel ceiling track 22 at the adjacent end of track 22 so that the transverse tube portion 41 can be inserted through the innermost channel 23 and into the outermost channel 24 for location of the end portion 44 in the channel 24 above the top of door 15 and in the door plane. The transverse tube portion 41 is supported by the

channel flanges

36 and 43.

The operative connection of door 15 to its associated counterweight 26 by sash-line 37 extending through the double-bend tube 42, the operation, and the functional results achieved are identical with the counterweight assembly associated with door 14 described previously in detail.

It is thought that the functional advantages of this self-closing, sliding door assembly have become fully apparent from the foregoing detailed description of parts, but for completeness of disclosure, the installation and operation will be briefly described.

The self-closing, sliding door assembly is comprised essentially of a door riding in a track for movement between open and closed limits, the door being opened against the action of a counterweight attached to the door by a sash-line, and the sash-line being guided and supported by a means that enables the counterweight to be suspended and located along the side of the door rather than at its end.

As is generally indicated in FIG. 4, the downward pull exerted by each of the counterweights 26 is translated by an associated sash-line 37 through the double-

bend tubes

31 or 42 into a substantially horizontal pull applied at the upper innermost corner of associated

door

14 or 15 respectively where the sash-line 37 is connected by screw 40.

Referring to door 14 and its counterweight assembly, the gravitational pull exerted by the counterweight 26 causes a constant force to be exerted on the door 14 tending to move the door toward the closed limit in which the end of the door 14 engages the cabinet side wall 13, as is shown in FIG. 3. To open the door 14, a manual push is exerted against the door 14 to overcome the gravitational force exerted by the counterweight 26. The door 14 glides on rollers 21 along its associated

track channels

17 and 23 to its open limit. When the manual force applied to the door 14 is released, the constant force exerted by the gravitational pull of counterweight 26 returns the door 14 to its closed limit. While the door 14 moves between the open and closed limits, it will be understood that the sash-line 37 is passing back and forth in the double-bend tube 31 as the counterweight 26 is alternately raised or lowered within the elongate enclosure 25.

The tube 31 is, of course, stationary because it is rigidly attached to wall bracket 30, and wall bracket 30 is, in turn, securely connected by screws or other suitable means to side wall 13. Furthermore, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the intermediate transverse tube portion 34 is prevented from bending under the pull applied to it by the action of the sash-line 37 by the support of track flange 36.

Interference of the counterweight 26 with goods stored 12115 the cabinet is prevented by the elongate enclosure The procedure and mode of operation described above applies also to door when, as indicated in the present embodiment, double doors are provided.

Although the invention has been described by making detailed reference to a single preferred embodiment, such detail is to be understood in an instructive, rather than in any restrictive sense many variations being possible within the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a door,

(b) means slidably mounting the door for movement in a plane between open and closed limits,

(c) a counterweight offset laterally to the plane of the door,

(d) a tube including a first end portion extending generally in the direction of counterweight movement, and

(e) a second end portion extending generally in the plane of the door, and

(f) a sash-line extending through the tube and inter connecting the door and counterweight, the tube and sash-line translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

2. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a door, V

(c) a counterweight offset laterally to the plane of the door,

(d) a continuous, double-bend tube including a first end portion extending generally in the direction of counterweight movement,

(e) a second end portion extending generally in the door plane, and

(f) a transverse portion extending between the first and second end portions, and

(g) a sash-line extending through the tube and inter connecting the door and counterweight, the tube and sash-line translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

3. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a cabinet,

(b) a door for the cabinet,

(c) means slidably mounting the door for substantially horizontal movement in a plane between open and closed limits,

(d) a counterweight ofiset laterally to the plane of the door,

(e) a tube mounted in the cabinet inside the door,

(f) the tube including a first end portion extending substantially vertical in alignment with the counter weight,

(g) a second end portion extending generally in the door plane, and

(h) a transverse portion extending between the first and second end portions, and

(i) a sash-line extending through the tube and interconnecting the door and counterweight, the tube and sash-line translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

4. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a door,

(0) a counterweight offset laterally to the plane of the door,

(d) a tube including a first end portion extending above claim 4, in which:

(g) the first and second end portions, each includes a flared end on which the sash-line bears.

6. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a cabinet including a side wall,

(b) a door for the cabinet,

(c) means slidably mounting the door for movement in a plane between open and closed limits,

(d) a counterweight offset inwardly of the door,

(e) a tube fixed in the cabinet,

(f) the tube including a first end portion above the counterweight and determining the point of suspension of the counterweight, and

(g) a second end portion located adjacent the top and in the plane of the door, and

(h) a sash-line extending through the tube and interconnecting the door and counterweight, the tube and sash-line translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

7. A self-closing, sliding door assembly as defined in claim 6, in which:

(i) a guide channel extends from the side wall and slidably receives the top of the door,

(j) the tube extends into the channel, and

(k) the second end portion of the tube is located in the channel along the top of the door.

8. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a cabinet including a side wall,

(b) a door for the cabinet,

(0) a guide channel extending from the side wall and slidably receiving the top of the door, the guide channel mounting the door for movement in a plane between open and closed limits,

(d) a counterweight in the cabinet located laterally inside the door for vertical movement,

(e) a continuous double-bend tube in the cabinet,

(f) the tube including a vertical first end portion above the counterweight and determining the point of suspension of the counterweight,

(g) a substantially horizontal second end portion disposed in the channel along the top of the door, and

(h) a continuous transverse tube portion extending between the first and second end portions, and extending into the channel, and

9. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a cabinet including a side wall,

(b) a door for the cabinet,

(d) an elongate enclosure on the side wall inside of the door,

(e) a counterweight movably located in the enclosure,

(f) a tube including a first end portion in the counterweight enclosure and determining the point of suspension of the counterweight, and

(g) a second end portion extending along the top and in the plane of the door, and

10. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly as defined in claim 9, in which:

(i) the means slidably mounting the door includes a guide channel extending from the side wall and slidably receiving the top of the door,

(j) the counterweight enclosure is inside the cabinet laterally adjacent the guide channel, and

(k) the second end portion is disposed in the guide channel above the top and in the plane of the door.

11. A self-closing, sliding door assembly as defined in claim 10, in which:

(1) a bracket is secured to the side wall and is located in the counterweight enclosure,

(m) the tube is fixed to the bracket, and

(n) the tube includes a transverse tube portion extending between and interconnecting the first and second end portions, the transverse tube portion bridging the counterweight enclosure and the guide channel.

12. In a self-closing, sliding door assembly:

(a) a cabinet having an opening,

(b) an internal side wall partially defining the opening,

() a guide channel extending from the side wall transversely of the opening,

(d) a door for the Opening, the door having its top slidably mounted in the guide channel for horizontal movement in a plane between open and closed limits,

(e) an elongate, substantially vertical enclosure on the side wall inside of the door,

(f) a counterweight movably mounted in the elongate enclosure,

(g) a bracket fixed to the side wall in the counterweight enclosure,

(h) a tube fixed to the bracket including a substantially vertical first end portion in the counterweight enclosure determining the point of suspension of the counterweight,

(i) a substantially horizontal second end portion in the guide channel above the top and in the plane of the door, and

(j) a transverse portion extending between and interconnecting the first and second end portions, the transverse tube portion bridging the counterweight enclosure and the guide channel, and

(k) a sash-line extending through the tube and interconnecting the door and counterweight, the tube and sash-line translating the gravitational pull of the counterweight into a force applied to the door tending to move the door to the closed limit.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 180,706 8/1876 Dillaby 49-123 847,122 3/1907 Sheldon 312-138 1,163,760 12/1915 Klos 492r73 X 2,334,908 11/1943 Crane 254190 2,580,889 1/1952 Carlson 254135 ROY D. FRAZIER, Primary Examiner.

F. DOMOTOR, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. IN A SELF-CLOSING, SLIDING DOOR ASSEMBLY: (A) A DOOR, (B) MEANS SLIDABLY MOUNTING THE DOOR FOR MOVEMENT IN A PLANE BETWEEN OPEN AND CLOSED LIMITS, (C) A COUNTERWEIGHT OFFSET LATERALLY TO THE PLANE OF THE DOOR, (D) A TUBE INCLUDING A FIRST END PORTION EXTENDING GENERALLY IN THE DIRECTION OF COUNTERWEIGHT MOVEMENT, AND