Abstract:
An improved door pull assembly for glass doors having inner and outer horizontal pull members, as well as a vertical pull member is presented. The door pull members have a cross-sectional shape in the form a “D,” wherein the curved portion of the D faces inwardly towards the door glass. The D-shaped cross-section better fits the human hand and therefore a user is less likely to lose his grip on the pull when opening a glass door.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/648,037, filed on May 16, 2012. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The invention relates to door pulls for glass doors and more to particularly to door pulls having a D-shape on their inside curvature. The invention is suitable for use with fixed door pulls and with “panic handles.” 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Glass doors are used to allow people inside a room to see outside through the doors and likewise to allow people outside the room to see inside. Glass doors are attractive and allow sunlight or other ambient light to enter the room and increase illumination. Glass doors also create a greater sense of open space and have the effect of making a room appear larger. Glass doors are now a common feature found in office buildings throughout the United States. 
         [0004]    As with any door, there is a need for a door pull to open a glass door. In the case of glass doors used in office settings, most commonly, the door hinges are spring loaded and therefore the doors are self closing. Hence, there is typically only a need to open the door and no need to physically close the door. 
         [0005]    Prior art glass door pulls are commonly made of steel or acrylic tubing having a round cross-section. Prior art glass door pulls with round cross-sections, though functional, have a tendency to slip in a user&#39;s hand because the round cross-section of the pull does not conform well to a typical human hand. Attempts have also been made to produce glass door pulls fabricated from glass panels. Pulls of this type generally have a planar gripping surface, which also does not conform well to the human hand. 
         [0006]    Glass door pulls also comprise a category of devices known in the art as “panic handles.” A panic handle is used with a lockable door. A panic handle has the ability to unlock a locked door by simply pressing on the handle. Commonly, panic handles are installed as interior handles in rooms with doors that are lockable from the outside. Thus, if an individual is accidentally locked in a room, he or she may readily exit the room by depressing the panic handle. Most panic handles currently in production are made from round tubing similar to fixed door pulls and consequently suffer from the same hand slippage problems associated with fixed door pulls, i.e. the door pull does not readily conform to the human hand U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,366,974 to Horgan; 4,382,620 to Horgan; and, 4,506,922 to Horgan are representative of panic handle designs. Notably, each reference refers to a handle composed of tubing having a circular cross section. 
         [0007]    As may be seen, there remains a need for a glass door pull that has a cross-sectional shape that better fits the human hand and therefore is more easily grasped by the user and hence is less likely to slip when pulled. Ideally, such a door pull would also include a vertical pull/push bar to accommodate tall individuals for whom reaching for the horizontal pulls may be inconvenient. Horizontal door pulls are typically mounted at the mid-height or lower of the glass door. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    The invention comprises an improved glass door pull having inner and outer horizontal pull members as well as a vertical pull member. In an alternative embodiment, the door pull comprises a vertical pull only. The pull members whether horizontal or vertical have a cross-sectional shape in the form a “D.” The inventor has found that a D-shaped cross-section better fits the human hand and therefore a user is less likely to lose his grip on the pull when in use. The D-shaped cross-section of the present invention is equally suitable for use in fixed door pulls and in “panic handles.” Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the course of the following description. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the D-shaped door pull of the present invention; 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a front plan view of the exemplary door pull of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is a right side view of the exemplary door pull of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a top plan view of the exemplary door pull of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is a front perspective view of the exemplary door pull of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  is a partial perspective view of the lower right corner of the exemplary door pull of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the D-shaped door pull of the present invention, arranged in a vertical configuration, wherein the door pull spans substantially the height of the door; 
           [0016]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the D-shaped door pull of the present invention, arranged in a vertical configuration, wherein the door pull spans a comparatively short portion of the height of the door; 
           [0017]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view showing a method of attachment of door pulls to glass doors, suitable for use with the present invention door pull; and 
           [0018]      FIG. 10  is a cross sectional view showing a prior art method of attaching mutually opposed inner and outer door pulls to glass doors, suitable for use with the door pull of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0019]    Referring to  FIG. 1-4 , with respect to a room, a door glass  10  has an inside surface  14  and an outside surface  12 . In an exemplary embodiment, the door pull  16  of the present invention has outer horizontal pull member  18  on the outside surface  12  of the door glass  10 . Directly opposed to the outer horizontal pull member  18  is an inner horizontal pull member  20  on the inside surface  14  of the door glass  10 . The inner and outer horizontal door pull members,  20  and  18  respectively, are stood-off from the inner and outer surfaces,  14  and  12 , of the door glass  10  by standoffs  22  located at each end of the horizontal pull members  18  and  20 . 
         [0020]    At an end  24  of the outer horizontal door member  18  which is remote from the door hinge (not shown), the outer horizontal pull member  18  connects to a vertical pull member  26 . The vertical pull member  26  runs vertically from the outer horizontal pull member  18  to an upper edge  28  of the door glass  10 . The vertical pull member is supported and stood-off from the door glass  10  by an upper standoff  27  and by a lower standoff  29 . 
         [0021]    With reference to  FIG. 9 , the upper standoff  27  is single component comprised of a horizontal standoff portion  30  and a plate portion  31 . The plate portion  31  includes a through-hole  37 . Mounted on the opposite side of the glass door from the standoff  27  is a retainer plate  32 . The retainer plate  32  includes a threaded insert  33  fixed to the retainer plate  32 . Between the standoff  27  and the retainer plate  32  is a through-hole  35  in the door glass  10 . Upon assembly of the door pull to the door glass, a bushing  34  is disposed within the through-hole  35  of the door glass. A cap screw  36  extends through the holes  35  and  37  in the upper standoff  27  and door glass  10 , respectively, to engage the threaded insert  33  of the retainer plate  32 . The door pull  16  of the present invention is firmly attached to the door glass upon the cap screw  36  being tightened. The lower standoff  29  likewise attaches the door pull  16  to the door glass in the same manner as described for the upper standoff  27 . 
         [0022]    The exemplary embodiment of the present invention door pull  16  is described as having the vertical pull member  26  placed on the outer surface  12  of the door glass  10 . Those skilled in the art however, will readily understand that the vertical pull member  26  could also be located on the inside surface  14  of the door glass  10  by simply creating a mirror image of the design shown in  FIGS. 1-6 . 
         [0023]    As best shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the cross-sectional shape of the inner and outer horizontal pull members  20  and  18 , the vertical pull member  26 , and the standoffs  22  is a D-shape cross-section  38 . It is desirable that the curved section  40  of the D-shaped portion of the cross-section  38  of the horizontal pulls,  18  and  20 , and vertical pull  26  be directed inwardly towards the door glass  10 . This allows the fingers of a user&#39;s hand to conveniently slip around and grasp the door pull  16 . The inventor has found that the D-shaped cross-section  38  better fits the human hand and therefore a user is less likely to lose his grip on the pull when in use. A door pull with the D-shaped cross-section  38  results in a safer door pull and thus is an improvement over the prior art due a user&#39;s ability to maintain a better grip on the door pull. 
         [0024]    In the exemplary embodiment, the door pull assembly  16  is manufactured of extruded mild steel tubing, the tubing having the D-shaped cross-section  38 . The tubes which form the inner  20  and outer  18  horizontal pull members are cut at 45 degree angles and welded to the standoffs  22  which are likewise cut at 45 degree angles. At the corner point  24  of the outer horizontal  18  and vertical  26  pull members, the horizontal pull member  18  and the vertical pull member  26  are also cut at 45 degree angles and welded together. In this instance, standoff  22  is cut flat to facilitate welding to the corner point  24 , which comprises the intersection of the outer horizontal  18  and vertical  26  pull members. The lower standoff  27  and the upper standoff  29  are also welded to vertical pull member  26 , as is known in the art. When the welding operations are completed, the welds are ground smooth and subsequently the door pull assembly  16  of the present invention may be buffed and chrome plated. 
         [0025]    The door pull assembly  16  may also be fabricated from stainless steel and finished in either a polished or brushed finish. The door pull assembly  16  may also be fabricated from aluminum and given an anodized or polished finish. The door pull assembly  16  may also be made of acrylic and many other types of plastic, as is known in the art. For aesthetic reasons, clear plastics are generally to be preferred. 
         [0026]    The inner and outer horizontal pull members  18  and  20  may be attached to the door glass via mechanical means as is known in the art. One such method is described here. With reference to  FIG. 10 , the door glass  10  has two through holes  42 , one at each end of the horizontal door pulls. The through holes  42  are aligned with openings in the horizontal pull members  18  and  20 . Prior to installation of the horizontal door pulls  18  and  20 , an adjusting screw  44  is passed through a clearance hole  46  in a stop block  48 . The screw  44  continues to pass through outer and inner washers  50  and  52  and into a threaded hole  54  of a threaded block  56 . Screw  44  is then sufficiently tightened to achieve a snug fit of stop block  48 , washers  50  and  52 , and threaded block  56  to the door glass  10 . 
         [0027]    An opening  58  in the inner door pull  20  is fitted over the threaded block  56  and is attached to the threaded block via a press fit, structural adhesive or via mechanical fasteners such as screws, or via other means as known in the art. An opening  60  in the outside horizontal pull member  18  is fit over the stop block  48 . The stop block  48  includes threaded holes  62  which align with holes  64  in the outer door pull  18 . Screws  66  attach the outer door pull  18  to the stop block  48  via the threaded holes  62 . 
         [0028]    Referring to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , in alternative embodiments, the D-shaped door pull  16  of the present invention may be oriented solely as a vertical pull. The pull may be of varying lengths. In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 7 , the door pull extends along a substantial portion of the length of the door. Lengths of up to about 72″ are suitable for long door pulls.  FIG. 8 , by contrast, shows a vertical door pull which is comparatively short in relation to the height of the door. Short door pulls are often in the range of about 6″ to 18″ in length. 
         [0029]    The foregoing detailed description and appended drawings are intended as a description of the presently preferred embodiments of the invention and are not intended to represent the only forms in which the present invention may be constructed and/or utilized. Those skilled in the art will understand that modifications and alternative embodiments of the present invention which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the foregoing specification and drawings, and of the claims appended below are possible and practical. It is intended that the claims cover all such modifications and alternative embodiments.