Abstract:
A shower door assembly includes a swingable door panel mounted to a stationary side enclosure panel by a pair of hinge assemblies that are transversely adjustable to correct for out-of-plumb conditions. The hinge assemblies include pocketed stationary hinges capping the ends of the side panel and moveable hinges mounted to the door panel in a slidable slot and pin connection. The side panel is mountable to an enclosure wall by an upright wall jamb defining a track in which can slide a jamb pin disposed through the side panel. The wall jamb is shorter than the side panel and mounts accessory attachments at its upper end, such as a robe hook and a razor holder.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/307,555, filed Jul. 24, 2001. 
     STATEMENT OF FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to shower (e.g. shower/tub) enclosure door systems, and in particular to adjustable hinges and accessory mounting systems for use therewith. 
     Shower/tub enclosures typically have a back wall, end walls, and an opening therebetween. To prevent water from splashing onto the bathroom floor when showering, the opening is ordinarily closed by a curtain or door(s). For some of these systems, two or more doors slide transversely relative to each other (by-pass door systems). See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,394. In other systems, one or more doors pivot open via hinges along their side. See e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,272. 
     Premade plastic enclosures leave openings of standard dimensions. However, various other enclosures are created using room walls that are tiled or otherwise protected. Such constructions may leave a non-standard size opening, or opening with sides that are not precisely parallel to each other, or are out-of-plumb. 
     Some shower door systems have been developed that allow the doors to be mounted in shower enclosure openings within a range of dimensions. See e.g. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,286,343; 5,033,132 and 5,822,810. However, the systems described in these patents are most suitable for use with collapsible screens or curtains, rather than rigid door panels (either pivoting or by-pass). 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,957 provides a shower door system with a frame that can be adjusted to support a pivoting door panel. The upper and lower cross-members have telescoping profiles that can be moved relative to each other as needed to vary the overlap between a fixed panel and the pivoting door panel. However, this system requires a relatively heavy frame. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,638 discloses a hinge assembly for pivotable shower door panels, providing out-of-plumb adjustment for the door panel. This assembly is rather complex, and requires the hinge to be fastened directly to the enclosure wall once in the desired position. 
     Another problem with door systems for shower enclosures arises with partially tiled enclosure walls or one-piece tub and shower surround units having walls that do not extend the full height of the enclosure. When the upright wall jambs of conventional shower door systems are mounted flush against such tile or surround unit walls, the upper end will extend beyond the top of the tile or surround unit. This creates an unsightly gap. In such cases, the gap has to be filled in some way, such as by building out the wall or bending the jamb. 
     In conventional bathrooms, robe hooks are typically mounted on the bathroom wall, thus disturbing the wall, and making repainting or changing of wall papering more difficult. Razors that are used in a shower also require a suitable place for their storage. Currently, they are either stored in a drawer or closet between uses (relatively inconvenient locations), or they are hooked on relatively unstable “shower caddies” that are hung from the shower outlet pipe. Thus, an improved shower door system, and an accessory mounting system for used therewith, is needed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In one aspect the invention provides a shower door assembly. There is a pivotable door panel, a side enclosure panel, an upper connector hinge element, a lower connector hinge element, an upper transversely movable hinge element, and a lower transversely movable hinge element. Two of the hinge elements are mounted to the pivotable door panel, and the other two of the hinge elements are mounted to the side enclosure panel. One of the upper hinge elements is on an upper portion of one panel, the other of the upper hinge elements is on an upper portion of the other panel, and the upper hinge elements are pivotably connected to each other. Similarly, one of the lower hinge elements is on a lower portion of one panel, the other of the lower hinge elements is on a lower portion of the other panel, and the lower hinge elements are pivotably connected to each other. The shower door panel is pivotably mounted relative to the side enclosure panel so it can pivot about an essentially vertical axis relative to the side panel. 
     In the most preferred form, the connector hinge elements are both on the side enclosure panel and the transversely movable hinge elements are both on the shower door panel. Adjustment of the transversely movable hinge element can correct for out of plumb conditions, or variances in the size of the enclosure. 
     In another preferred form at least one of the transversely moveable hinge elements is in the form of a sub-assembly of a T-nut, a backing plate, and a hinge body having a pivot pin receiver and a T-cross section slot closed at one end and open at an opposite end. There can also be a cover for concealing the backing plate, and a pair of pivot pins, one of the pivot pins cooperating with the upper hinge elements, and the other of the pivot pins cooperating with the lower hinge elements. Each of the hinge elements has recesses for receiving a pivot pin. 
     Both of the connector hinge elements can have a vertically extending pocket for receiving an edge of the side enclosure panel. Also, preferably, the side enclosure panel and door panel at least partially overlap. 
     The assembly can also have an upright wall jamb mountable to a wall of a shower enclosure. The wall jamb extends to a height less than the side enclosure panel, and preferably has at least one accessory mounted adjacent an upper end of the wall jamb on the wall jamb. The accessory has an end matable with an inner profile of the wall jamb. In an especially preferred form the accessory has a robe hook extending in a first direction relative to the wall jamb, and a razor holder extending in an essentially opposed direction relative to the wall jamb. 
     In yet another form, the wall jamb has an upright track and the side enclosure panel has an opening in which is disposed a jamb pin slidably engaging the track. 
     The invention can also be viewed as providing a wall jamb for a shower door assembly. The jamb has a vertically extending main body region having an upper end, a hook mounted to the jamb adjacent its upper end so as to extend in a first direction, and a holder mounted to the jamb adjacent its upper end so as to extend in a second direction essentially opposite the first direction. The hook and holder are thus mounted in a compact back-to-back relationship to each other on the wall jamb, without the need to mount anything relating to the accessory to the shower outlet or bathroom walls outside the enclosure area. 
     The present invention thus provides a shower door assembly that can be mounted in enclosure openings of various widths (by modifying the amount of panel overlap). In this regard, the hinge assemblies allow for adjustment of the door panel with respect to the side panel throughout the adjustment range defined by the length of the slots in the hinge bodies and backing plates. 
     Another advantage of the invention is that it provides a shower door assembly that can be adjusted to correct for out-of-plumb installations. The hinge assemblies are independently adjustable. 
     Another advantage of the invention is to provide a shower door assembly that can be installed in enclosures with partially tiled walls or one-piece shower/tub surround modules which are shorter than the full height of the enclosure opening. The wall jamb is shorter than the panels and conventional surround units, and thus can be fastened directly to the tile or shorter surround units without creating a gap, or requiring bending of the jamb. 
     Still another advantage of the present invention is to provide a unique location for mounting accessories, particularly multiple accessories. 
     The assembly is also easy to install quickly. The door assembly can be mounted by fastening the upright wall jamb to an enclosure wall and sliding the jamb pin into the track. No tools are necessary to mount the side panel. 
     These and other advantages of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description and drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shower door assembly of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective of the assembly; 
     FIG. 3 is a partial exploded view of an upper hinge assembly; 
     FIG. 4 is similar to FIG. 3, albeit it is a view taken primarily from the rear; 
     FIG. 5 is a partial exploded view focusing on the wall jamb and related accessories; 
     FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line  6 — 6  of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line  7 — 7  of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line  8 — 8  of FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, the invention provides a shower door assembly  10  for controlling access to a shower (e.g. a shower or shower/tub enclosure). The door assembly  10  includes as primary components a side enclosure panel  12 , a door panel  14 , upper  16  and lower  18  hinge assemblies and an upright wall jamb  20 . The door assembly  10  also includes the usual striker  22 , threshold  24  and handle  26 . In accordance with the present invention, there are also accessory attachments such as a robe hook  28  and a razor holder  30 . 
     The door  14  pivots about a pivot axis  32  to open and close the enclosure opening. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the door panel  14  rotates towards the reader to open the door. 
     Referring next to FIGS. 2-4, the upper  16  and lower  18  hinge assemblies each includes respective stationary hinge elements  34  and  35  having elongated pockets  36  and  37  sized to receive respective ends of the side panel  12 . Both of the stationary (connector) hinge elements  34  and  35  are preferably fixed in place on the side panel by a set screw (not shown) threaded into a bore (see e.g.  90  in FIG. 4) in a back side (facing the inside of the enclosure) of the stationary hinges  34  and  35  and tightened against the side panel  12 . 
     The stationary hinges  34  and  35  have respective portions  38  and  39  at inner ends with pin recesses (see e.g.  41  in FIG. 2) positionable concentric with the pivot axis  32 , in which respective pivot pins  42  and  43  are disposed. The recess of pivot  38  opens downwardly and the recess  41  of pivot  39  opens upwardly. The stationary hinge elements  34  and  35  may also kept in place by gravity as well as screws (not shown) threaded through the bottom (or top) of the pivot recesses into the threshold  24  or the ceiling of the enclosure. 
     The stationary hinge elements  34  and  35  pivotably couple to bodies  44  and  45  of transversely (towards and away from the jamb) moveable hinge sub-assemblies  46  and  47 . The hinge bodies  44  include corresponding parts  48  and  49  with oppositely opening pivot recesses (see e.g.  50  in FIG.  3 ), preferably near their lateral centers. They are positioned concentric with the pivot axis  32  to receive the opposite ends of the pivot pins  42  and  43 , and to form a pivotal connection with the stationary hinge elements  34  and  35 , respectively. The back sides of the hinge bodies  44  and  45  include elongated lateral T-slots  52  and  53  (see FIGS. 4 and 8) that open at their laterally outer ends and are closed at the opposite ends. 
     Referring next to FIGS. 3,  4  and  8 , the transversely moveable hinge sub-assemblies  46  and  47  further include respective backing plates  54  and  55  and covers  56  and  57 . The backing plates  54  and  55  have respective elongated lateral slots  58  and  59  sized and positioned to correspond to the T-slots  52  and  53 , respectively. The backing plates  54  and  55  are mounted to the back side of the door panel  14  and the hinge bodies  44  and  45  are mounted to the front side of the door panel  14  with two pairs of fastening assemblies  60  disposed through two pairs of openings  62  in the upper and lower ends of the door panel  14 . 
     Each fastening assembly  62  includes a T-nut  64 , a bushing  66  and a bolt  68 . The bushings  66  fit around the bolts  68  and ride within the slots  58  and  59  through the backing plates  54  and  55 . The bolts  68  thread into the T-nuts  64 , which are inserted into the openings  62  of the door panel  14  from the front. The T-nuts  64  have enlarged heads and narrow bodies. The narrow bodies fit inside the openings  62  and the enlarged heads slide into and within the T-slots  52  and  53  in the hinge bodies  44  and  45 . Thus, the fastening assemblies  60  remain fixed in location with respect to the door panel  12 . The respective hinge bodies  44  and  45  and backing plates  54  and  55  are also connected together via tongue and groove connections above and below the edges of the door panel  14 . 
     The hinge bodies  44  and  45  and backing plates  54  and  55  can be slid as one transversely on the fastening assemblies  60  to adjust the lateral position of the door panel  14  with respect to the side panel  14 . The lateral dimension of the door assembly  10  can thereby be varied to accommodate a range of enclosure opening dimensions. In particular, each hinge assembly  16  and  18  can be adjusted independent of the other so that the door panel  14  can be skewed from top to bottom as needed to align the door panel  14  with out-of-plumb enclosure walls. When the door panel  14  is in the proper position, the hinge assemblies  16  and  18  are secured in place by tightening the bolts  68 . The covers  56  and  57  are slid onto the respective backing plates  54  and  55  and snapped in place by the fit of catch tabs (see  88  in FIG. 3) into a groove (see  90  in FIG. 3) around the periphery of the backing plates. 
     The hinge assemblies  16  and  18  provide for adjustments throughout the adjustment range defined by the length of the slots  52 - 55 . Moreover, the overlap of the side  12  and door  14  panels allows the position of the door panel  14  to be adjusted without creating a lateral gap between the panels through which water could splash during showering. 
     Referring now to FIGS. 5-7, the side panel  12  (and thus the door panel  14 ) is mounted to a vertical wall of the enclosure via the wall jamb  20 . In particular, the wall jamb  20  is mounted to the wall via three conventional anchors (not shown). The wall jamb  20  is generally C-shaped with a lengthwise opening  70  at its inner edge. The inner profile of the wall jamb  20  defines a track  72  adjacent the opening  70  and running the length of the wall jamb  20 . The track  72  receives a jamb pin  74  that is disposed through an opening  76  near the pivot edge of the panel  12 . The wall jamb  20  extends to a lesser height than the side panel  12  (and thus the enclosure opening) so that the jamb pin  74  and the side panel  12  can be slid into the track  74  from the open upper end of the wall jamb  20 , the opening  76  being located at the proper height to accommodate this without the top of the side panel  12  hitting the ceiling. 
     The weight of the side panel  12  will pull the jamb pin  74  against the outwardly extending legs  78  of the track  72  (see FIG. 6) and through friction help secure the side panel  12  in place with the bottom of the side panel in the stationary hinge  35  resting on the threshold  24 . The side panel  12  can thus be installed in the wall jamb  20  without clamping, screwing or applying an adhesive. 
     The shortened wall jamb  20  also provides additional benefits. First, it can be installed in one-piece wall surround units that are shorter than the full height of the enclosure opening, as well as in application where the walls are partially tiled less than the full height of the enclosure opening. The short wall jamb can be fastened directly to the tile or wall of the surround unit without extending above the top of the unit, thereby eliminating the need to bend the jamb to avoid having an unsightly gap between the enclosure wall and the jamb. Moreover, unlike conventional shower doors in which the top hinge is mounted to the enclosure wall at or near the top of the side panel, the invention allows a hinged door to be used with a surround unit without building out the wall or otherwise adding material to support the top hinge. 
     The shortened wall jamb  20  also provides for an accessory mounting at an appropriate height for a person standing in the enclosure. Referring to FIGS. 5 and 7, the inner profile of the wall jamb  20  defines channels  80  that, in addition to the track  72 , receive mating ends  82  of the robe hook  28  and razor holder  30  in a friction fit. The robe hook  28  preferably has an upwardly sloped surface  84  for hanging garments and the razor hook  30  preferably has a generally horizontal rectangular ring  86  sized so to support the head of a razor with its handle disposed through the ring  86 . These accessory attachments also have upper surfaces with edges that nearly abut the front and back sides of the side panel  12  to effectively cap the upper end of the wall jamb  20 , including the track  72 . The accessories can be fit into either channel  80 , however, preferably the robe hook  28  is in the front channel so that garments hung thereon do not get wet when showering. 
     Although not shown, if no accessory attachments were desired, the upper end of the wall jamb  20  could be capped by one or more plugs with ends that mate with one or both of the channels  80  and the track  72 . Additionally, it should be mentioned that other accessory attachments could be substituted for the robe hook  28  and razor holder  30 , for example, a soap dish or a bottle tray. 
     The side  12  and door  14  panels are preferably glass, and the jamb  20  and striker  22  are preferably extruded aluminum, as is the threshold  24 . The hinge backing plates  54  and  55  are preferably brass and the back covers  56  and  57  are preferably an ABS plastic. The stationary hinge elements  34  and  35 , hinge bodies/elements  44  and  45  and pivot pins  42  and  43  are preferably either brass or ABS allowing various price options for the consumer. The jamb pin  74  and accessory attachments  28  and  30  are preferably ABS. The T-nuts  64  are preferably stainless steel. 
     The invention, constructed as in the above-described embodiment, thus provides a shower door assembly that can be mounted in an opening in a shower enclosure having varied opening dimensions. The hinge assemblies allow for adjustment of the door panel with respect to the side panel throughout the length of the slots in the hinge bodies and backing plates. Thus, a single set of side and door panels can be used for a range of enclosure openings. The shower door assembly can also be adjusted quickly and easily to correct for out-of-plumb installations. Moreover, the side panel can be quickly mounted to the wall jamb by simply sliding the jamb pin into the track without requiring tools. 
     A preferred embodiment of the invention has been described in considerable detail above. However, modifications and variations to the preferred embodiment will be apparent to those skilled in the art, which will be within the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to the described embodiment. To ascertain the full scope of the invention, the following claims should be referenced. 
     Industrial Applicability 
     The invention provides an improved shower door system.