Patent Publication Number: US-6669156-B2

Title: Reversible garage door track bracket

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to garage doors and garage door track brackets. More particularly, the present invention relates to a reversible garage door track bracket that can be used to mount a garage door track a wide range of distances from a door jamb. 
     2. Description of Prior Art 
     There are many brackets and methods for securing a garage door track to a door jamb. This is because garage doors are available in a variety of thicknesses due to a number of design issues including insulation, stiffness, and aesthetic appeal. 
     The thickness of a garage door must be considered when mounting the door. The door must be mounted with a specific mounting distance from the jamb whereby the distance is defined by the thickness. A front surface of the door moves in close proximity to the jamb, while a rear surface has a roller mounted thereto. The front surface must rest substantially flush with the jamb, since the door is expected to substantially seal an opening defined by the jamb when the door is in a closed position. The door must also move freely between the closed position and an open position. The roller, mounted to the rear surface, rides within the track. Therefore, the distance the track is mounted from the jamb is critical. If the track is mounted too far from the jamb, there will be a gap between the door and the jamb when the door is closed. If the track is mounted too close to the jamb, the door will not close or move properly. 
     Garage door track brackets typically have a jamb flange and a perpendicularly extending track flange. The jamb flange is typically secured to the jamb with a large jamb bolt. The track flange is typically secured to the track with a small track bolt. Typically, both the jamb flange and the track flange include a hole or a slot for receiving the jamb bolt or track bolt therein, respectively. 
     Currently, there are three types of brackets available to accommodate the variety of garage door thicknesses. A first type is a simple bracket designed to fit one specific size of door with a predefined mounting distance. A number of these brackets, each constructed with a different predefined mounting distance, are needed to accommodate the variety of garage door thicknesses. An installer is therefore required to stock many of these brackets so as to accomodate all possible door thicknesses. Additionally, the installer must insure that a variety of the brackets are delivered to each job site and must collect the excess brackets once the door is installed. Managing a large inventory of the brackets is both labor and capital intensive. 
     A second type is a multiple distance bracket. This bracket includes multiple holes or slots in the track flange to accommodate many standard door thicknesses. Unfortunately, there are limits to the number of different thicknesses that can be accommodated. Therefore, the multiple distance bracket is not suitable for a nonstandard door thickness or a special mounting requirement. 
     A third type is a limited slot bracket. This bracket includes a slot on the track flange to allow for a limited degree of accommodation for different door thicknesses. In order to accommodate different door thicknesses, the track flange is substantially longer than even the largest distance it is designed to accommodate. In the case where the distance between the jamb and the track is relatively small, the track flange extends well beyond the track. Such a protrusion is very undesirable, because a person or an object may inadvertently strike it, causing possible bodily injury or damage to clothing and other objects. 
     Accordingly, there is a need for an improved garage door track bracket that overcomes the limitations of the prior art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The reversible garage door track bracket of the present invention overcomes the above-identified problems and provides a distinct advance in the art of garage door track brackets. More particularly the present invention provides a reversible garage door track bracket that can be used to mount a track a wide range of distances from a door jamb without necessitating use of a variety of differently sized brackets and without resulting in undesirable protrusions of the bracket after it has been mounted. 
     The preferred reversible garage door track bracket broadly comprises a short flange and a long flange oriented perpendicular to one another. The short flange includes a short slot and the long flange similarly includes a long slot. Each slot comprises two distinct slot widths each accommodating two differently sized bolts. Each flange also includes a plurality of holes through which a plurality of rivets can be secured. 
     For relatively thick garage doors, the short flange is secured to the jamb, with a jamb bolt driven through a wide portion of the short slot, and the long flange is secured to the track, with a track bolt driven through a slim portion of the long slot. Alternatively, the track can be supported by rivets riveted through any of the holes in the long flange. The elongation of the slots and the dispersion of the holes allow for a great degree of flexibility in mounting the bracket to the jamb and mounting the track to the bracket. 
     For relatively thin garage doors, an even greater degree of flexibility is achieved by reversing the bracket such that the long flange is secured to the jamb and the short flange is secured to the track. The versatility of the bracket simplifies the installation of a garage door, by replacing many prior art brackets of varied sizes. Additionally, undesirable protrusions can be avoided. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of several reversible garage door track brackets constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention and shown attached to a conventional garage door track and jamb; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the reversible garage door track bracket shown unattached to a garage door track; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the reversible garage door track bracket showing its short flange secured to a track and its long flange secured to a jamb; and 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the reversible garage door track bracket showing its short flange secured to the jamb and its long flange secured to the track. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to FIG.  1  and FIG. 2, a reversible garage door track bracket  10  is shown constructed in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Several of the preferred brackets  10  are used to secure a garage door track  12  to a garage door frame or jamb  14  for mounting a conventional garage door over a garage door opening. Each bracket  10  broadly comprises a short flange  16 , a long flange  18  oriented perpendicular to the short flange  16 , and a bent portion  20  therebetween. 
     The bracket  10  is preferably constructed from a single piece of steel approximately one millimeter thick and approximately sixty millimeters wide. The short flange  16  is approximately sixty-six millimeters long. The short flange  16  includes a proximal edge  28  and a distal edge  30 . The proximal edge  28  and the distal edge  30  are connected by a first side edge  32  and a second side edge  34 . The corners  36 , 38  of the distal edge  30  are preferably rounded. 
     The short flange  16  also includes a short slot  40 . The short slot  40  is approximately fifty millimeters long and substantially centered in the short flange  16  along its longitudinal axis. The short slot  40  includes a wide portion  42  for receiving the jamb bolt  24 , a narrow portion  44  for receiving the track bolt  26 , and a transition portion  46  therebetween. The wide portion  42  is approximately six millimeters wide and approximately twenty-four millimeters long. The wide portion  42  includes a curved end  48  which is approximately eight millimeters from the proximal edge  28 . The narrow portion  44  is approximately four millimeters wide and approximately twenty-four millimeters long. The narrow portion  44  includes a curved end  50  which is approximately eight millimeters from the distal edge  30 . The transition portion  46  transitions from the wide portion&#39;s  42  approximately six millimeter width to the narrow portion&#39;s  44  approximately four millimeter width along the transition portion&#39;s  46  approximately two millimeter length. 
     The short flange  16  further includes a plurality of holes  52  each for receiving one of the plurality of rivets  22  therethrough. Each hole  52  is circular and has a diameter of approximately three millimeters. The holes  52  are linearly aligned parallel to the short slot  40 . Alternatively, the holes  52  can be staggered to provide maximum installation flexibility. 
     The long flange  18  is similar to the short flange  16 , with the most significant difference being length. The long flange  18  is approximately eighty-five millimeters long. The long flange  18  includes a proximal edge  54  and a distal edge  56 . The proximal edge  54  and the distal edge  56  are connected by a first side edge  58  and a second side edge  60 . The corners  62 , 64  of the distal edge  56  are preferably rounded. 
     The long flange  18  also includes a long slot  66 . The long slot  66  is similar to the short slot  40 , with the most significant difference being length. The long slot  66  is approximately sixty millimeters long and substantially centered in the long flange  18  along its longitudinal axis. The long slot  66  includes a wide portion  68  for receiving the jamb bolt  24 , a narrow portion  70  for receiving the track bolt  26 , and a transition portion  72  therebetween. The wide portion  68  is approximately six millimeters wide and approximately twenty-nine millimeters long. The wide portion  68  includes curved end  74  which is approximately eight millimeters from the proximal edge  54 . The narrow portion  70  is approximately four millimeters wide and approximately twenty-nine millimeters long. The narrow portion  70  includes a curved end  76  which is approximately seven millimeters from the distal edge  56 . The transition portion  72  transitions from the wide portion&#39;s  68  approximately six millimeter width to the narrow portion&#39;s  70  approximately four millimeter width along the transition portion&#39;s  72  approximately two millimeter length. 
     The long flange  18  further includes a plurality of holes  78  each for receiving one of the plurality of rivets  22  therethrough. Each hole  78  is circular and has a diameter of approximately three millimeters. The holes  78  are staggered to provide maximum installation flexibility. Alternatively, the holes  78  can be linearly aligned parallel to the long slot  66 . 
     The bent portion  20  connects the short flange  16  and the long flange  18  to form an approximately ninety degree angle therebetween. The bent portion  20  includes two ribs  88  which increase the structural integrity of the bracket  10 . 
     Although the preferred embodiment has been described with the preferred dimensions, it is within the scope of the present invention for the short flange  16  to be between fifty and eighty millimeters long. Similarly, it is within the scope of the present invention for the long flange  18  to be between twenty and fifty millimeters longer than the short flange  16 . 
     While the bracket  10  must be wide enough to provide sufficient structural stability, the bracket&#39;s  10  width is determined by convenience. It is anticipated that a convenient width is between thirty and one hundred millimeters. 
     The length of each slot  40 , 66  changes according to the length of the respective flange  16 , 18  such that each slot  40 , 66  is between ten and twenty millimeters shorter than its associated flange  16 , 18  in order to maintain structural stability of the bracket  10 . It is anticipated that the wide portion  42  and the narrow portion  44  will have substantially the same length on a relatively short flange. On a relatively long flange, the narrow portion  70  will be substantially longer than the wide portion  68 . This is because the jamb bolt  24  is typically secured close to the bent portion  20  in order to provide maximum structural stability. The jamb bolt  24  also does not usually require as much variation as does the track bolt  26 . 
     As shown above each slot  40 , 66  serves to receive two differently sized bolts  24 , 26 . It is important that each slot  40 , 66  is not significantly wider than a selected bolt in order to prevent the bracket  10  from sliding relative to the selected bolt. This is why each slot has both a wide portion  42 , 68  and a narrow portion  44 , 70  so as to accommodate bolts of various diameters. The jamb bolt is typically between five and ten millimeters in diameter. The track bolt  26  is typically between three and six millimeters in diameter. Therefore, the wide portions  42 , 68  have a width of between five and ten millimeters, while the narrow portions  44 , 70  have a width of between three and six millimeters. 
     Each hole  52 , 78  is designed to receive one of the plurality of rivets  22  therethrough. The diameter of a typical rivet used to secure the bracket  10  to the track  12  is between two and five millimeters. Therefore, each hole  52 , 78  has a preferred diameter of between two and five millimeters. 
     In use, as shown in FIG.  3  and FIG. 4, an installer has a choice to secure either the short flange  16  or the long flange  18  to the track  12 . The installer chooses the flange  16 , 18 , by examining the thickness of a garage door to be installed. 
     As shown in FIG. 3, if the installer is installing a relatively thin door, then the installer chooses to secure the short flange  16  to the track  12 . The installer drives the track bolt  26  into the track  12  through the narrow portion  44  near the curved end  50 . Alternatively, the installer can secure rivets  22  to the track  12  through the holes  52 . In this manner, the installer secures as many brackets  10  to the track  12  as desired. Once all the brackets  10  are secured to the track  12 , the installer positions the track  12  such that the long flange  18  of each bracket  10  is adjacent the jamb  14 . The installer then drives the jamb bolt  24  into the jamb  14  through the wide portion  68 . In this manner, the installer secures each bracket  10  to the jamb  14 . The wide portion  68  allows the installer to vary the jamb bolt&#39;s  24  position in order to accommodate any variation in the jamb  14 . 
     As shown in FIG. 4, if the installer is installing a relatively thick door, then the installer chooses to secure the long flange  18  to the track  12 . The installer drives the track bolt  26  into the track  12  through the narrow portion  70  near the curved end  76 . Alternatively, the installer can secure rivets  22  to the track  12  through the holes  78 . In this manner, the installer secures as many brackets  10  to the track  12  as desired. Once all the brackets  10  are secured to the track  12 , the installer positions the track  12  such that the short flange  16  of each bracket  10  is adjacent the jamb  14 . The installer then drives the jamb bolt  24  into the jamb  14  through the wide portion  42 . In this manner, the installer secures each bracket  10  to the jamb  14 . The wide portion  42  allows the installer to vary the jamb bolt&#39;s  24  position in order to accommodate any variation in the jamb  14 . 
     Once each jamb bolt  24  is secured as described, the installer can loosen each track bolt  26  and make adjustments in the track&#39;s  12  position. Each track bolt  26  is able to move within the narrow portions  44 , 70 , accommodating such adjustments. Once the track&#39;s  12  position is finalized, the installer tightens each track bolt  26 . 
     Further, if it is discovered that the installer desires a larger or smaller mounting distance  90 , the installer can simply remove the two bolts  24 , 26 , reverse the bracket  10 , and reinstall the two bolts  24 , 26 . This ability is extremely advantageous and allows a bracket  10  of one set of dimensions to accommodate a very large range of mounting distances  90 . 
     Additionally, if the long flange  18  protrudes unnecessarily, the installer can reverse the bracket  10  as described above. This will avoid possible injury or damage caused by an undesirable protrusion.