Sealing device for doors

Abstract: A sealing device for doors and windows, a panel (1) of which is movably supported by a frame, the device comprising a supplementary guide plate (10), the plate (10) being pivotally and rotatably fitted to a lintel or jamb of the frame, the plate (10) comprising a central pivotal member (14); and an inner driving member (12) and a sealing member (13) extending on opposite sides of the plate (10); the plate (10) being supported by the pivotal member (14) such that it may be rotated between a first position, to which it is biased, such that the plate (10) is rotated outside the range of movement of the panel (1), and a second position in which the sealing member (13) presses firmly against an outer surface of the panel (1), providing a tight seal; the sealing device further comprising a locking member (16) arranged for movement generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation to contact the driving member (12) to cause the plate (10) to move from the first to the second position.

Description: Background of the Invention This invention relates to sealing devices for doors such as folding doors or windows which consist of a plurality of panels for opening or closing the door or window openings. The sealing divices made in accordance with this invention can positively hermetically and noiseproofly seal up upper and lower parts of the doors or windows against outside rains and winds when they are closed. Folding doors and windows of the type mentioned above generally consist of such plurality of panels including those fitted at their inner parts with glass sheets which are foldably connected each other. They hang by upper rails, both lateral sides of which are provided with vertically extending guide plates. The ends of such guide plates having at inner sides thereof sealing members made from soft and resilient materials such as rubber, sponge, felt and the like are extended so as to reach upper ends of the panels. The sealing members or materials keep the upper ends of the folding door air-tight, and also prevent the door from chattering, being pressedly abutted against said upper ends. Such guide plates can not be, however, extend throughout an entire length or width of the door, and are to be cut out portionally so that they will not hinder the free swiveling movement of panels when they are folded, crossing the guide plates at a side or sides of the door front opening. The portions of the guide plates which have been thus cut out, produce openings between the panels and their guide rails, and spoil the hermetical sealing of the door. Japanese Utility Model Application (Publication No. 4-52191) suggests a device for solving such drawbacks accompanied to conventional guide plates as mentioned above. To an inside of a part of a guide plate where a cut out is made, there is pivotally fitted an additional guide piece provided with sealing materials, while to upper portions of panels there is fitted retainers for detecting the guide piece. When the door is to be folded, the additional guide piece rotates upwardly, being forced by the retainers, and on the other hand, when the door is closed, the additional guide piece hangs down, being released from the retainers, whereby the folding and closing of the door will not be bothered by the additional guide piece. In such prior sealing devices as described above, an outer appearance of the door will be spoiled as the retainers for the additional guide piece are fitted outwardly to the upper portions of the panels. Furthermore, since the retainers are fitted to the panels, the additional guide piece can not be retained stable unless the panels are kept absolutely stable. DE 3,346,735 describes a device in which guide plates are pivotally mounted below the base of the door and are urged into and out of contact with the inside surface of the hollow door by a locking member which is retained in a recess in the floor below the door, the looking member having arcuate recesses to receive drive members extend from the plates. Brief Summary of the Invention The object of this invention is therefore to provide novel and absolutely stable sealing devices for doors and windows, which comprise one or more supplementary guide plates which are normally kept outside of the range of movements of panels so that the panels may be folded and stretched freely being swiveled above the panels solely by their own gravities and without any other assistance such as retainers employed in the aforementioned prior art. Another object of this invention is to provide the above-mentioned novel sealing devices, in which the supplementary guide plates may be operated independently if the door is stretched or not, whereby the panels which have been stretched can be kept always stable for giving excellent air-tightness, water-tightness, and noiseproofing. Further another object of this invention is to provide the sealing devices which can be employed at upper and lower parts of the door and window which can either be of a folding, sliding, or hinged type. Although the sealing devices for folding doors and the like made in accordance with this invention employ, similarly to the prior arts, supplementary guide plates which are pivotally and rotatably fitted to cut-out portions of a guide plate extending downwardly from an upper rail, each supplementary guide plates is uniquely consisted of a driving portion or member which acts as a weight and a sealing portion or member fitted at its inner side with sealing materials, and is characterized in that the plate as a whole is normally kept, by the operation of the weight working upon the driving portion, horizontally at a released position, and that rotation of the supplementary guide plate causes the sealing member to be pressed firmly against an outer surface of the door etc. Thus, according to the present invention there is provided a sealing device for doors and windows, a panel of which is movably supported by a frame or a means fitted thereto, comprising a supplementary guide plate, the plate being pivotally and rotatably fitted to a lintel or jamb of the frame or means fitted thereto so as to extend along it to a desired length, the plate comprising a central pivotal member arranged to provide an axis of rotation parallel to the lintel or jamb; an inner driving member extending on the one side of the plate; and a sealing member extending on the opposite side of the plate; the plate being supported by the central pivotal member such that the plate may be rotated about said axis between a first position, to which the plate is biased, such that the plate is rotated outside the range of movement of the panel, and a second position in which the sealing member presses firmly against the panel, thus providing a tight seal; the sealing device further comprising a locking member arranged for movement generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation to contact the driving member so as to cause the plate to move from the first to the second position; characterised in that the supplementary guide plate is biased in its first position by the driving member on the one side of the pivot being heavier than the sealing member on the other side of the supplementary guide plate, the plate being fitted to the lintel or jamb such that, when it is rotated into its second position, the sealing member presses against an outer surface of the panel. Said supplementary guide plate is operable, in this invention, by locking mechanisms provided on foldable panels. The said locking mechanisms which act to hold the panels unfolded when actuated, have a locking member which may be protruded from an upper end of a panel or a joint frame connecting the panels in which the locking mechanisms are vertically accommodated, and when it is projected upwardly from the panels which are closed or stretched, lifts the weighted driving portion of the supplementary guide plate upwardly to rotate it so as to have its sealing portion closely abutted against the upper outer part of the panel. In this invention, besides said locking mechanisms, there may be provided a rod or rods which are exclusively for lifting the supplementary guide plate and which can be operated independently from the locking mechanisms. In this invention, means for operating the locking mechanisms are not specifically limited, and means by which the supplementary guide plate is fitted to the upper rail are immaterial. Accordingly, an entire length of either a side or both sides of the upper and/or lower rails may be provided solely with the supplementary guide plate. Alternatively, it can be provided only to cut-out portions of a guide plate hanging from the rail. Locations of the supplementary guide plate of this invention will accordingly be determined selectively in accordance with folding systems of a door. The sealing devices made in accordance with this invention are employable for various space-closing and opening gears which include not only folding doors and windows but also sliding and hinged doors and windows. They might be fitted not only to upper rails or lintels but also to lower rails or lintels. Brief Description of Drawings Fig. 1 is an explanatory vertical cross-sectional view of a folding door employing the sealing devices made in accordance with this invention; Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, in which a supplementary guide piece or plate constituting the sealing devices is brought to an operative position from its normal nonoperative horizontal position; Figs. 3A to 3C are perspective views showing the swiveling movements of the supplementary guide plate from its normal position to operative position; Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, in which the supplementary guide plate is operated by an independent actuating means; and Fig. 5 is an explanatory cross-sectional plan view of the folding door provided with the independent actuating means shwon in Fig. 4 and consisting of two groups or units each having a pair of panels. Detailed Description of Examples The sealing devices for doors and windows made in accordance with this invention are further explained by examples shown in the drawings. In Fig. 1 which shows a vertical cross-sectional view of a folding door provided with the sealing devices made in accordance with this invention, its left side is outside, while its right side is indoor. Principal structures are same in case of a folding window too, although their dimensions might be different. Numeral 1 indicates panels, outer frames of which are made of metals such as aluminum, and central portions of which are fitted for example with transparent glass sheets 1a. 2 indicates an upper rail fitted to an upper lintel of the door opening, and 3 a lower rail fitted to a lower lintel, respectively made of aluminum and the like. The panels 1 are hung by a runner 4. Although the upper rail 2 can be of any configuration in this invention, the rail employed in the example is consisted of two pieces which are splitable. That is, it is made from a stationary rail 5 and another rail 6 which is insertedly fitted to the former rail. The stationary rail 5 is formed at its inner edge with a path 5a with an upstanding flange 5b, while the rail 6 has no such flange at its path 6a. Instead, the rail 6 is provided with an upper bent 6b which makes a close contact with one of rollers 7 of the runner 4 so that the rollers 4 can move along the rails smoothly without chattering and so that they shall not be derailed. In order to keep the panel 1 air-tight at its upper portion, a guide plate 8 extends downwardly from the stationary rail 5, and is lined all along its inner side by resilient sealing materials 9 which abut against the upper portion of the panel 1. And, at an opposite side which faces the guide plate 8 with the panel 1 therebetween, there is provided a supplemental guide piece or plate 10 which is pivotally and rotatably fitted to a shaft 11 projecting horizontally inwardly from a lower edge of the rail 6. In Figs. 3A to 3C, structures and operation of said supplementary guide plate 10 are shown. This guide plate is consisted of an inner driving portion or member 12 and an outer sealing portion or member 13 which are integral each other, and has a journal portion or member 14 formed at its middle part. The said journal 14 is supported insertedly and unremovably by the shaft 11 so that the guide plate 10 as a whole can swivel about the shaft 11 to a determined angle such as about 90°. The driving portion 12 acts as a weight which is far heavier than the sealing portion 13. As the two portions are unbalanced in weight, the supplementary guide plate 10 as a whole is normally urged to be kept horizontal, as shown in Fig. 3A. It will be noted that the driving portion 12 can not be swiveled downwardly than its horizontal position, because its front edge 12a is kept under an abutment with an upper front edge 11a of the shaft 11, and an outer lateral surface of the sealing portion 13 makes abutment with a lower surface of the rail 6 so as to prevent the sealing portion from swiveling upwardly. Therefore, the driving portion shall not hang downward. As there is left a small opening between the horizontally kept supplementary guide plate 10 and the upper end of the panel 1, as best shown in Fig. 1, said upper end will not strike against the supplementary guide plate 10 even when the panel 1 is folded outwardly from the upper rail 2. While the principal guide plate 8 provided at the side of the stationary rail 5 may extend to a full horizontal length of the rail 2, the supplementary guide piece or plate 10 at the side of the removal rail 6 shall not necessarily be extended to said full length. But, the plate 10 can be located only at a site where the panel 1 is intended to be folded. Usually, it is provided only adjacently to one of sides of a front door opening. That is, the guide plate 8 is provided along the inner and outer sides of the rail 2 except at portions thereof where the supplementary guide 10 is located. In other words, the supplementary guide may be provided only at locations facing to cut-out portions of the guide plate 8. When the supplementary guide piece 10 which is provided at a cut-out portion of the guide plate 8 (not shown) located at the side of the removal rail 6, is kept horizontal, it can not seal up the door, since there is left an opening between it and the upper end of the panel 1 positioned at the above-mentioned cut-out portion. However, when the panels 1 are stretched out, and when the driving portion 12 of the supplementary guide plate is lifted up, as shown in Fig. 3B, by projecting an upper locking member 16 made from a short rod upwardly from an upper end of the panel or a joint member which connect a pair of the panels 1, the supplementary guide plate 10 rotates counter-clockwise and stands up at a right angle as shown in Fig. 3C, whereby the resilient sealing materials 15 fitted to an inner side of the sealing portion 13 closely abut against the upper outer part of the panel 1 and the door is thus sealed up air-tightly even at the cut-out portion of the principal guide plate 8. In Fig. 2, there is shown the upper locking member 16 which has been protruded outwardly from the top end of the joint member which connects an adjoining pair of the panels. The supplementary guide piece 10 has accordingly been rotated and brought to stand up substantially at a right angle The upper locking member thus projected is insertedly received between a downwardly extending flange 5C of the stationary rail 5 and the supplementary guide plate 10 which has been rotated up, whereby the panels become unfoldable, while the locking member 16 is slidable along the rail 2. When the locking member 16 is retracted so as to make the panels foldable, the sealing materials 15 which have been abutted to the panel 1 pressedly against its resiliency, are released repulsively from restriction so as to trigger a small rotation of the supplementary guide plate, whereby the driving portion 12 starts to return by its own gravity the plate 10 to its normal horizontal position. Although structures for protruding and retracting the upper locking member 16 are not important in this invention, an example thereof is shown in the drawing. The protrusion and retraction of the member 16 are made by the manipulation of a handle 17 fitted to an outside wall of the joint member of the panels 1. This handle may be utilized not only for protruding and retracting the upper locking short rod 16 but also for protruding and extracting, in association with the movement of the rod 16, a lower locking member 18 made from a short rod which is fitted to a lower end of the panel joint member. When the upper and lower locking members are insertedly received respectively by the upper and lower rails 2, 3, the panels 1 may more positively be sustained at upper and lower ends thereof so that they will not chatter. In most common folding doors, the supplementary guide plate 10 will be provided only at one ends of the upper rail 2 so that the panels are foldable only at said single side. However, in a folding door consisting of several door units, each of which is made of a plurality of panels, it might be advantageous to make the door foldable at several points or sides of the door opening. In this instance, there would be provided the supplementary guide plates 10 of a number corresponding to the member of said units and of a width corresponding to a length of each said units. The supplementary guide plate 10 made in accordance with this invention can be provided also to a sliding door. Although the sliding door shall not be folded transversely to its lintel rail, the supplementary guide plate may be actuated in response to the protrusion of the locking member 16, 18 only when the door is closed so as to make the guide plate rotate and stand up for making the sealing portion 13 closely abut against an outer surface of the door in the manner same to the aforementioned folding door. The supplementary guide plate 10 having the same structures as above-mentioned can be provided to the lower rail 3 too. In this case, the lower locking member 18 operated by the handle 17 in order to protrude the member works to rotate said guide plate (not shown) provided to the lower rail 3. As in this instance too, the plate operates in the same manner as mentioned above, its operation is not explained here again. However, it shall be noted that in this instance, a weight is to be put on to the side of the sealing portion 13 having the sealing materials 15. In this invention, as explained above, the supplementary guide plates 10 are pivotally and rotatably fitted at such locations where the guide plates for the upper and/or lower rails 2,3 are cut-out, and operated by the locking members 16, 18 which are protrusible from the upper and/or lower ends of the folding door. Such arrangements do not present any inconvenience when all of the panels are stretched or folded simultaneously. However, when only some of the panels are stretched or folded, certain inconvenience is expected. To wit, when the panals are stretched and closed, and the supplementary guide plate 10 is closed also by protruding the locking member, none of them can be opened even if some of them are to be opened. Such inconvenience as mentioned above could be avoided if a plurality of the supplementary guide plates 10 are provided at locations where the panels are intended to be folded independently of each other. That is when the groups or units of panels are folded and are to be installed to a side of a door opening, the first group of panels located most adjacently to said side could be folded at said side, and the succeeding groups could be folded also where they are if their locking members 16 are retracted, and then moved to said side. However, when the succeeding groups are slided towards said side as they are stretched and as their locking members are kept protruded, they can not be folded at said side because the protruded locking members strike against the supplementary guide plate 10 at said side which has been returned to a horizontal position. It will be difficult also to slide the panel smoothly as its surface abuts against the sealing materials 15 which have been brought operative by the protruded locking member 16. In order to eliminate the above-mentioned inconvenience, another example of means which manipulate the supplementary guide plate, is shown in Figs. 4 and 5. In this example, independently to the locking member 16 which is provided to the joint member or frame 22 connecting the panels and is to lock said member together with the panels connected thereto, there is provided a rod designed exclusively for lifting the supplementary guide plate 10 which is normally kept horizontal. In Fig. 4, said rod is indicated by the numeral 19, which is located more adjacently to the supplementary guide plate 10 than the locking member 16. The lifting rod 19 maybe protruded into a groove 20 which is separate from a groove 30 to which the locking member 16 is protrusible. The upper and lower locking members 16, 18 are inserted into the upper and lower rails 2, 3 by the rotary manipulation of the handle 17 provided to the joint member 22 connecting the panels 1. The lifting rod 18 may be protruded into the upper rail 2 by the upward movement of a slider 21 provided to the joint member 22 at a location higher than the location where the handle 17 is provided, while the rod is made protrusible also into the lower rail 3 when the supplementary guide plate 10 is provided also to the lower rail. The handle 17 is pivotally fitted to the joint member 22, and to the journal of the handle there is fitted a pinion 23 which is geared with a pair of racks 24 which face against each other with the pinion therebetween. Thus, when the racks 24 slide upwardly or downwardly with the rotation of the pinion 23, the locking members 16, 18 which are connected to said racks by connecting rods 25 are protruded or retracted simultaneously with the manipulation of the handle 17. On the other hand, the slider 21 is fitted to the joint member or frame 22 so as to be slidable upwardly or downwardly, works to lift the lifting rod 19 upwardly for projecting it outwardly from the upper end of the frame 22 when the slider is slided upwardly. In Fig. 5, there is shown the folding door which is made in accordance with this invention and which consists of two groups or units of panels 1. As best shown in this drawing, the upper and lower locking members 16, 18, the lifting rod 19, and their driving and driven mechanisms are all accommodated within square chambers of the panel connecting frames 22. As clearly shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the locking members 16, 18 and the lifting rod 19 are located independently each other, and they are operable independently. As the upper and lower locking members 16, 18 are however interrelatedly operated, when the handle 17 is manipulated, the upper locking member is insertedly received by the guide groove 30, and the lower locking member comes into the locking engagement with the groove 3a of the lower rail 3, all coincidently, whereby the panels constituting the folding door become unfoldable being retained by the upper and lower rails 2, 3. When the lifting rod 19 is manipulated by the slider 21, it engages with the additional groove 20 of the upper rail 2 while it is lifting and rotating the supplementary guide piece plate 10 which is normally kept horizontal, and it finally has the said guide plate rotated up at a right angle as shown in Fig. 4, whereby the sealing portion 13 of the guide plate 10 is pressedly engaged against the upper outer surface of the panel 1 of the door. In the second example shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the supplementary guide plate 10 may be extended to a full length between the left and right jambs which make a front door or window opening. The supplementary guide plate having such extension could be one piece or be split in correspondence to a number of groups or units of panels. When the door consists of 2 groups each of two panels as shown in Fig. 5, the left and right units can be opened or shut independently of each other. Each unit can be folded to each side, independently. Irrespectively of the supplementary guide plate so far as it is kept horizontal, each panel can freely be folded or stretched as desired. The panels may be locked by protruding the upper and lower locking members while they are kept stretched. And, even when they are thus locked, each units of panels can be slided along the upper and lower rails. And, when the right and left units are both stretched and the lifting rods 19 are projected upwardly, the horizontally kept supplementary guides 10 are rotated counter-clockwise to have the sealing materials 15 of the sealing portion 13 abutted pressedly against the outer surface of the door so as to seal up the door from rains and winds. It is a matter of course that the folding door may take any configuration and constructions such as made from two groups of panels as shown in Fig. 5 or made from a single unit of panels. Since in the sealing devices made in accordance with this invention, its supplementary guide piece is pivoted rotatably to a side, usually the outside of the upper rail or also to the lower rail if desired and is provided with a weight so that it is normally kept horizontal, the folding door and the like can smoothly opened and shut without being hindered at all by the sealing devices. More particularly, in the first embodiment, when the locking member is operatively projected as the folding door is kept closed, the supplementary guide plate rotates automatically to have its sealing materials abutted against the panel surface, whereby the door is sealed up most air-tightly, water-tightly, and with good noiseproofing. The protrusion of the locking member works concurrently to have it insertedly fitted to the upper and lower rails, resulting panels locked so as to be unfoldable and unopenable, and consequently not to be chattered. And, in the second embodiment in which the operation of the supplementary guide plate is made by the specific lifting rod independently from the actuation of the above-mentioned locking member, a selective unit or units or the panels of the folding door which consists of a plurality of units or groups of panels, can be folded or stretched freely and independently from other units of panels which are kept closed. In addition to such advantages afforded to the sealing devices made in accordance with the second example, it shall be noted that even when the panels have been stretched and locked so as not to be foldable, they can slide along the rails smoothly without being hindered by the supplementary guide plate, since said plate does not make any abutment with the panels unless the lifting rod is operated. It is advantageous also that the plural units of panels constituting the folding door can be folded all together to one side of the door opening or splittedly to two sides thereof. The provision of the lifting rod in addition to the locking member may bring about double-locking effects too.

Claims: A sealing device for doors and windows, a panel (1) of which is movably supported by a frame or a means fitted thereto, comprising a supplementary guide plate (10), the plate (10) being pivotally and rotatably fitted to a lintel or jamb of the frame or means fitted thereto so as to extend along it to a desired length, the plate (10) comprising a central pivotal member (14) arranged to provide an axis of rotation parallel to the lintel or jamb; an inner driving member (12) extending on the one side of the plate (10); and a sealing member (13) extending on the opposite side of the plate (10); the plate (10) being supported by the central pivotal member (14) such that the plate (10) may be rotated about said axis between a first position, to which the plate (10) is biased, such that the plate (10) is rotated outside the range of movement of the panel (1), and a second position in which the sealing member (13) presses firmly against the panel (1), thus providing a tight seal; the sealing device further comprising a locking member (16) arranged for movement generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation to contact the driving member (12) so as to cause the plate (10) to move from the first to the second position; characterised in that the supplementary guide plate (10) is biased in its first position by the driving member (12) on the one side of the pivot being heavier than the sealing member (13) on the other side of the supplementary guide plate (10), the plate (10) being fitted to the lintel or jamb such that, when it is rotated into its second position, the sealing member (13) presses against an outer surface of the panel (1). A sealing device according to Claim 1, in which the the first position of the supplementary guide plate (10) is substantially horizontal, upward movement of the locking member (16) against the driving member (12) rotating the plate (10) to a substantially vertical second position. A sealing device according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, in which the locking member (16) is located within the panel (1). A sealing device according to any of Claims 1 to 3, in which the locking member (16) is located within a joint member between adjoining panels.

Inventors: KUBOTA KENICHI, KUBOTA, KENICHI
Applicants: NICHIMEN CO LTD, TOKO SHUTTER CO LTD, NICHIMEN CORPORATION, TOKO SHUTTER CO., LTD.
Application year: 1992
Main classification: E06B7
IPC codes: E06B7