Patent ID: 6907964
Filing Date: 2005-06-21
Classification: E05D,E05Y,E06B,F16D,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A ratchet assembly for winding a counterbalancing mechanism of a door, the ratchet assembly comprising: at least one plate operatively mounted onto a fixed structure, the at least one plate including an orifice through which extends a shaft of the counterbalancing mechanism of the door and about which said shaft is rotatable along opposite first and second directions of rotation; at least one ridge provided about a peripheral edge of the orifice; an actuator operatively connected to the at least one plate, the actuator being operable between a locked configuration and an unlocked configuration; and at least one pawling element mounted onto the actuator, and being positioned within the at least one ridge, adjacent to the shaft; wherein the at least one ridge and the at least one pawling element are shaped and sized so that when the actuator is operated in the locked configuration, the at least one pawling element is operatively pressed against the shaft and the at least one ridge for preventing the shaft from rotating along the first direction of rotation, and when the actuator is operated in the unlocked configuration, the at least one pawling element is operatively urged away from the shaft and the at least one ridge for allowing said shaft to rotate along both the first and second directions of rotation.