DOOR DRAUGHT AND WEATHER EXCLUDER

Abstract: A draught and weather excluder comprising a gap sealing section which enables simple, fast and effective closure of gaps below doors. The gap sealing section is particularly suited to sealing gaps below hinged and sliding doors. The sealing section is securable to the underside of a door without removal of the door and with the use of less strong but convenient fixing materials such as bonding tapes. The sealing section has two main webs (2, 3) which are connected together along the length of the section where also a hinged or weakened section (4) is provided so that the two webs (2, 3) are able to rotate so that the section being generally of a wedge shape may open and close so that a range of gaps may be sealed. The sealing section consists of a mounting web (1) enabling attachment of the sealing section to the underside surface of a door edge and a sealing web (2) to make contact with the floor surface (9).

Description: DOOR DRAUGHT AND WEATHER EXCLUDER This invention relates to improvements in devices for restricting- the passage of air and moisture through the gap between the door and the floor at the bottom of doors along the full width of the door. Existing methods of restricting draught and weather at the gap at the bottom of doors take several forms. One common method involves the manual placement of a device such as a soft flexible tubular container filled with sand, cloth or other filling such that the device may be manually pushed against the gap so that the device takes up the shape of the gap and restricts draught through the gap. Such devices are unsatisfactory because they are extremely cumbersome since they must be placed by hand each time the gap is required to be sealed. Another common method is similar to the above method except that there is provided a mounting mechanism which must be fitted to the face of the door so that the tubular section moves with the door so that the tubular section need not be manually placed each time the gap is required to be closed. Such devices extend from the face of the door and into the room. This method is unsatisfactory because such devices are bulky, unsightly and require fixing by screws or similar fasteners to the face of the door so that the face of the door is visually and physically detrimentally effected and removal of these devices reveals damage to the face of the door. This method is also unsuitable for cavity sliding doors since the door can no longer pass unrestricted into its housing cavity. Another common method involves the use of a mounting strip containing a brush type material. The mounting strip must be fixed to the face of the door so that the brush moves with the door so that the brush resiliently fills varying gaps at the base of the door. This method is unsatisfactory since the mounting strip visually and physically detracts from the door. In addition this method relies on the brush to seal the gap when in fact the brush allows draught to pass through its bristles Also this method is limited to internal door applications since moisture is not restricted. Also this method is unsuitable for cavity sliding doors since the mounting strip can foul with the cavity opening in use. Another common method is to provide a mounting strip which contains a hinging mechanism which houses a resilient gasket. The hinge mechanism strikes a biasing stop when the door is closed so that the gasket is forced toward the floor surface and thus closes the gap when the door is closed. This method is visually and physically unsatisf ctory since the mounting strip must be fitted to the face of the door and the gasket protrudes outwardly from the face of the door and the door jamb must house the biasing stop which protrudes into the door opening. Also this method is generally limited to external door applications. Also this method is not suitable for sliding door applications. Another common method is to provide a two part sealing mechanism composed of two strips extending across the width of the door at the base of the door. One strip is mounted to the underside of the door and the other strip is mounted to the surface of the floor or to a raised section of floor such as a door sill. When the door is closed the two strips mate by the use of complimenting fingers, the fingers of at least one of the strips being resiliently movable. This method is visually unsatisfactory since at least one of the strips must be mounted to the floor surface or door sill thus detracting from the original appearance of the door sill. This method is also laborious since at least one strip must be screwed or nailed to the underside of the door requiring that the door be removed during installation. This method is also functionally unsatisfactory since the mating fingers cause at least one of the strips to wear and be less functional over time. This method is also functionally unsatisfactory since the fingers having mated to create the seal cause large amounts of friction at the door base meaning that the door is difficult to open and close in the position where the complimenting fingers are being engaged and disengaged. Also this method is generally restricted to external door applications. Also this method is not suitable for sliding door applications. Another common method is to provide a raised section in the form of a strip fixed to the door sill and a butting gasket strip fixed to the door. The raised section flashes the sill and the butting gasket butts against the raised section when the door is closed to close the gap. This method is visually and functionally unsatis ctory since the raised section fitted to the door sill detracts from the original appearance of the sill and also poses an obstacle to foot traffic. In addition this method is generally limited to external door applications. The present invention provides a device for simply and effectively excluding draught and weather from penetrating the gap at the base of a door. The present invention also provides a device which is concealed beneath the underside of the door. The present invention also provides a device which does not extend from the door face and into the room. The present invention also provides a device which does not protrude past either face of the door. The present invention also provides a device which does not require fixing to the door or any other structure by the use of screws or nails. The present invention also provides a device which can be simply and effectively fixed to the door without removing the door. The present invention also provides a universal device for broad use. The present invention provides a device which does not require fixing to the face of the door. The present invention also provides a single device which simply and effectively seals a wide range of gaps and a wide range of variation in a single gap. The present invention also provides a device which does not reduce the ease with which a door can be opened or closed. The present invention also provides a device which actively clamps vertically down onto the floor surface without the need for complimentary devices such as biasing stops fitted to the door jamb. The present invention also provides a device which does not require adjustment when used to seal a gap whose sides are not parallel along its length. The present invention also provides a device which in use does not mar floor coverings. The present invention also provides a device which in use has no components which are subject to significant wear or deterioration. The present invention also provides a single device which is capable of simply and effectively sealing gaps at the base of internal hinged and sliding doors as well as external doors. The present invention also provides a device which greatly reduces the operating forces on the fixing material when in use so that simple fixing materials such as double sided bonding tape may be successfully used as a substitute for more difficult fixing methods such as screws or nails. The present invention provides a draught and weather excluding device comprising a mounting web and a sealing web these webs being connected together in such a way so as to allow the sealing web to have a hinge action with the mounting web so that the sealing web is simply and effectively able to close the gap between the underside of the bottom of a door and the top surface of a floor or floor covering. Due to the hinge action between the two main webs described above the device has the ability to seal a substantial range of gaps between doors and floors without the necessity of adjusting the location or configuration of the device. The device need not be fitted differently to accommodate different gaps at different doors. Due to the hinge action between the two main webs the device has the ability to automatically alter its vertically extended reach so that in situations where the gap width alters as the door is rotated, the device retracts or extends vertically so as not to cause any significant friction between the door and the floor which would noticeably reduce the ability of the door to rotate freely . The sealing web may be of resilient material so that in situations where the gap width is different along its length, particularly in the closed door position the sealing web is able to extend and retract vertically along its length so that an uneven gap may be effectively sealed. The hinge position of the device may be located parallel to and at the furthermost edge of the underside of the door when viewed from within a room so that as the door is rotated toward the closed position the sealing web is caused to be extended vertically downward -so as to ensure that the gap is effectively sealed when the door reaches its closed position. That is to say that the line of contact and resulting small frictional force between the sealing web and the floor is located at a distance from the axis of the hinge so that the sealing web experiences a rotational moment couple downwardly toward the floor. Larger gaps will produce a grater such moment action so that large gaps are effectively sealed when the door is in the closed position and the sealing web has not needed to rely soley on gravity forces or material resilience or hinge biasing or any spring action in order to remain in contact with the floor surface to establish an effective seal. When the door is rotated in the opening direction the moment couple is naturally reversed thus allowing the door to rotate totally freely in the opening direction where no seal is required. The sealing web may be of suitable cross sectional shape such as a curved shape so that the floor surface makes contact with the sealing web at a tangent to the sealing web so that the sealing web is able to glide freely over the floor or floor covering surface when the door is being opened and closed. In one possible form of the invention a biasing web may be included between the mounting web and the sealing web so that such a biasing web will act resiliently or by a similar spring action in order to ensure that web separation takes place so that the natural gravity force causing the sealing web to separate downwardly away from the mounting web and toward the floor surface need not be relied upon. The present invention may be constructed from plastic, metal or similar materials which can be effectively formed into the required cross sectional shape in lengths of approximately but not restricted to one metre. To assist with understanding the invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which show one example of the invention. In the drawings: FIG 1 shows one example of the draught and weather excluder according to this invention; FIG 2 shows the application of such a draught and weather excluder to an internal hinged door; FIG 3 shows the application of the same draught and weather excluder to a smaller gap width than in Fig 2. FIG 4 shows the simple mounting method of applying pressure in the direction of arrow A to the door edge. Referring to FIG 1 it can be seen that the draught and weather excluding device according to this invention comprises a mounting web 1, a sealing web 2, a biasing web 3, a hinge or weakened section 4 and a nose 5. The sealing web 2 is connected via a hinge or weakened section 4 to the mounting web 1. The biasing web 3 extends from the nose 5 of the sealing web 2 towards the junction of the mounting web 1 and the sealing web 2 so that the biasing web 3 contacts the mounting web 1 so as to resiliently separate the mounting web 1 from the sealing web 2. The free end 12 of the biasing web is free to slide against the underside of mounting web 1. The mounting web 1 provides a flat portion 8 so as to accommodate double sided bonding tape or similar simple fixing material 6. The mounting web 1 contains an upstand 7 to ensure flush mounting of the mounting web 1 to the underside of a door edge. The sealing web 2 is of curved shape so as to be able to glide smoothly over a floor surface and includes a nose 5, so as to prevent any fouling between the sealing web and the floor surface when in use with a large door to floor gap. The biasing web 3 acts resiliently so as to separate the mounting web 1 and the sealing web 2 by producing a separating moment couple about the hinge 4. The nose 5 has a suitable shape such as a curve shape so as to ensure that the sealing web 2 will glide smoothly over the floor snrface for large gaps where the nose may come in contact with the floor surface. By referring to FIG 2 it can be seen that the mounting web 1 is flush mountable to the door underside 10 and that the sealing web 2 remains in contact with the surface of the floor 9 assisted in this action by the biasing web 3. It can be seen that the sealing web 2 will, by gravity forces and the assistance of the biasing web 3, remain in contact with the floor surface 9 for a wide range of gaps from approximately 5 mm to approximately 25 mm. It can be seen that as the door is being closed arrow B, the sealing web will be biased in use toward sealing the gap due to the small frictional moment caused by the floor surface 9 in contact with the sealing web 2 in conjunction with the vertical distance of this contact point from the plane of the mounting web 1. It can also be seen that as the door is being opened the above moment is reversed thus allowing unrestricted rotation of the door. The fixing material 6 comprises a strip of double sided bonding tape or similar material. Due to the action of the device in use as described above, the fixing material experiences forces which are restricted to relatively small forces which are restricted to shear only so that simple fixing materials such as bonding tape are efficiently usable with the device and do not render the device less serviceable in use compared with more traditional materials for fixing such as nails or screws. The hinge or weakened section is provided such that the sealing web may rotate freely at its connection point to the mounting web so that the biasing web is not restricted in its intended function. The hinge or weakened section is positioned on the mounting web so that when the door is being closed there are no resultant rotational forces on the fixing material. That is to say that the rotational couple produced by the small friction force between the sealing web and the floor is resisted by the underside of the door at the point of contact of the hinge with the door so that the fixing material experiences a shear force only. The hinge or weakened section provides an efficient hinge action so that when the door is being opened the fixing material experiences a small shear force only which is limited to the magnitude of the small frictional force between the floor surface and the sealing web. By referring to FIG 3 it can be seen that the free edge 12 of the biasing web 3 is free to slide along the underside of the mounting web 1 so that the point of action of the biasing web moves toward the hinge section 4 when the mounting and sealing webs are pushed together by a resisting structure such as the surface of the floor. It can also be seen that as the mounting and sealing webs are pushed closer together by a floor surface, that the point of contact between the floor surface and the sealing web also moves toward the hinge. That is to say that the magnitude of the separation couple produced by the movable biasing web is greater for large gaps and lesser for small gaps and that the magnitude of the closing couple produced by the floor is also greater for large gaps and lesser for small gaps. That is to say that in use, since the separating couple produced by the biasing web will always remain the same as the closing couple produced by the action of the floor surface, and since both couple arms alter in unison, the device exerts an approximately constant downward force to the floor surface. The above action of the device ensures that the predetermined efficiency of the sealing action of the device remains unaltered over a large range of gap widths. By the use of draught and weather excluders of this type, draughts and moisture penetration through the gap which generally exists at the base of a door may be simply and effectively sealed without damage to the door and without removal of the door and without the draught and weather excluder being generally visible. By the use of draught and weather excluders of this type, a large range of gap widths below a large range of door action types may be simply and effectively sealed without modifying or adding to any visible part of the existing door structure or associated structures. Excluders of this type do not impinge upon the original intended operating ease of the door and do not impinge upon or foul with any part of the door or its associated structures. By the use of draught and weather excluders of this type, door gaps which are not constant in width along their length and/or are not of constant width vertically to the plane of the floor may be simply and effectively sealed. Draught and weather excluders of this type may be simply and effectively installed to the underside of a door edge by unskilled and/or frail persons and without the use of workmans tools and without the need for any modifications or adjustments to the device before or after installa ion. The claims defining the invention are as follows : 1. A gap sealing section for sealing gaps, the gap sealing section being securable to a door or similar structure to thereby close gaps between the door or similar structure and surrounding structures such as a floor, The sealing section having a mounting web on one side of the section to allow fixing of the section to - the door and a sealing web at the opposite side of the section for making contact with the floor, the door gap being sealed by the separation of the mounting and sealing webs, the sealing web bearing against the floor along a line which is generally directly opposite to the line where the mounting web bears against the door. 2. A gap sealing section as claimed in claim 1 wherein the mounting and sealing webs are connected by a hinge or weakened section along the length of the sealing section, to allow the opposing webs to come together or to separate by their rotation about the hinge. 3. A gap sealing section as claimed in claim 1 or 2 wherein the sealing and mounting webs are joined in a generally wedge shaped configuration so that an opening exists between the two webs at a distance from the hinge or connection point of the two webs, so that the opening may fill the gap between the door and the floor. 4. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing and mounting webs may have variable opening distances by virtue of their rotation so that a range of gap sizes may be filled. 5. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing web is of generally curved, or non-linear cross sectional shape so that the sealing web may glide freely over the floor surface when the door is being rotated in either direction. 6. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing web may have a nose portion along its edge Opposite to the hinge so that a generally flat sealing web may glide freely over the floor surface when the door is being rotated in either direction. 7. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the mounting web and opposed webs are proportioned such thai the sealing section may be mounted to the underside of the door edge so that the sealing section does not protrude in use past either face of the door. 8. A mounting section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the mounting section may have an upstand in a direction toward the underside of the door edge surface so that no gaps may occur between the mounting section and the underside of the door edge surface. 9. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing and opposing webs are resiliently connected at the hinge section so that a biasing force is created providing a tendency for the webs to separate so that the mounting web is actively pushed up toward the underside surface of the door edge so that the fixing materials between the underside of the door edge and the mounting section are placed in compression when the sealing section is fitted to the underside surface of the door edge so that in use the fixing materials are not subject to forces tending to downwardly separate the moun.tjing section from the surface of the underside of the door edge . 10. A mounting section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing section is mountable to the surface of the underside of the door edge using simple fixing materials such as bonding tape adhesives since the fixing materials are subjected small forces only, which are limited to shear forces when the door is rotated so that less strong but more convenient fixing materials such bonding tapes may be efficiently and effectively employed so that removal of the door or fixing to the face of the door is not required to mount the sealing section and the required operation and serviceability of the sealing section is not compromised. 11. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing web cross section is constructed in a generally curved or non-linear shape at the line of contact with the floor surface so that the sealing web may actively mount obstacles encountered at the floor surface during rotation of the door in either direction, by rotation of the sealing web toward the mounting web when the sealing web contacts an obstacle. 12. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims being mountable to the underside surface of the door edge wherein the sealing web extends downwardly and generally directly below the mounting web so that rotation of the door in one direction causes the sealing web to actively rotate downwardly toward the floor surface due to the moment caused by the small friction between the floor surface and the sealing web thus causing the gap to be actively closed as the door is rotated in one direction and actively released when the door is rotated in the opposite direction. 13. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein a biasing web may be included extending from one of the opposed webs to the other web so that the two webs may be actively separated by the resilient connection between one of the opposed webs and the biasing web, the biasing web being in sliding contact with the other web so as to apply a separating force between the opposed webs in order to seal the gap.

Claims: AMENDED CLAIMS [received by the International Bureau on 13 October 1992 (13.10.92); new claims 14 and 15 added; other claims -unchanged (2 pages)] mounting web when the sealing web contacts an obstacle. 12. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims being mountable to the underside surface of the door edge wherein the sealing web extends downwardly and generally directly below the mounting web so that rotation of the door in one direction causes the sealing web to actively rotate downwardly toward the floor surface due to the moment caused by the small friction between the floor surface and the sealing web thus causing the gap to be actively closed as the door is rotated in one direction and actively released when the door is rotated in the opposite direction. 13. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein a biasing web may be included extending from one of the opposed webs to the other web so that the two webs may be actively separated by the - resilient connection between one of the opposed webs and the biasing web, the biasing web being in sliding contact with the other web so as to apply a separating force between the opposed webs in order to seal the gap. 14. A sealing section as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the sealing web is conected to the mounting web via a hinged or weakened section. The sealing web being free to rotate about a horrizontal mounting web. The sealing web further being of a cross sectional shape wich is in the form of a circular or arc section throughout the depth of the section so that at any angle of rotation of the sealing web, relative to the fixed horizontal mounting web, from a horizontal orientation to a completely vertical orientation the sealing web -makes contact with a floor surface at a tangent to the curve of the sealing web so that at all such relative angles of rotation of the sealing web, the sealing web makes contact with a floor surface at a line which is always displaced from the vertical plane of the hinge connecting the sealing and mounting webs, in a direction horizontally from the hinge toward the unhinged extremity of the sealing web section so that as the door is rotated particularly in a direction toward the opening of the sealing section, the sealing web experiences a force in the direction of door rotation so that the sealing web at its line of contact with the floor is able to overcome frictional forces between the sealing web and the floor at the line of contact between the sealing web and the floor so that the sealing web actively moves with the door and slides freely over the floor surface even when the sealing web has rotated ninety degrees away from the horizontal mounting web, this action not being possible with a relatively straight section sealing web. 15. A sealing section substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Inventors: HOWE IAN THOMAS, HOWE, IAN, THOMAS
Applicants: HOWE IAN THOMAS, HOWE, IAN, THOMAS
Application year: 1992
Main classification: E06B7
IPC codes: E06B7