Patent Publication Number: US-8528169-B1

Title: Patch fitting with auto-return function

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to a patch fitting and more particularly, to a patch fitting with auto-return function which can easily compensate the offset of a glass door. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Conventionally, when a glass door is installed, the door panel and door frame are drilled respectively to form a number of hinge holes and a hinge is then fastened to the hinge holes for enabling the glass door to pivotally opened or closed. Because a tolerance may be occurred during the drilling process, the door panel may not be aligned with the door frame while closing the glass door if the hinge is forced to be fastened to the hinge holes under such condition. In order to solve the tolerance of drilling, installers would commonly grind the hinge holes to be of a larger diameter prior to the installation of the hinge. However, the grinding of the hinge holes may cause the glass door to crack or may reduce the distance between two adjacent hinge holes, thus causing fractures in the glass therebetween. 
     In view of the above, the installation of glass door utilizing traditional hinges is troublesome and the glass door is unable to close positively since the tolerance occurred after the installation; therefore, traditional hinges are not suitable for glass doors. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been accomplished in view of the above-noted circumstances. It is an objective of the present invention to provide a patch fitting with auto-return function for a glass door, which can be easily installed on a glass door and can compensate the offset of the glass door promptly. 
     To attain the above-mentioned objective, the patch fitting with auto-return function for a glass door provided by the present invention comprises a clamping seat, a damper and a misalignment adjuster. The clamping seat has a seat body and a shaft. The seat body is adapted for clamping and being mounted on the top edge of the glass door and has an oil chamber for the storage of hydraulic oil and a shaft hole in fluid communication with and perpendicular to the oil chamber. The shaft is pivotally inserted into the shaft hole of the seat body and has a shaft body with an end protruding out of the shaft hole, and an eccentric cam provided on the shaft body. The damper is installed in the oil chamber and contacted with the eccentric cam for being pushed by the eccentric cam to press hydraulic oil contained in the oil chamber to provide a damping resistance in response to a sweeping movement of the glass door. The misalignment adjuster comprises a mounting plate, a plurality of adjustment members and an adjustment plate. A center of the mounting plate has a concave space and a periphery of the mounting plate is provided with a plurality of adjustment holes communicated with the concave space. Each of the adjustment members is disposed in one of the adjustment holes. The adjustment plate, which is smaller in dimension than the concave space, is arranged in the concave space of the mounting plate, connected with the end of the shaft body of the shaft and stopped by at least one of the adjustment members, such that the adjustment plate can be actuated by at least one of the adjustment members to move in the concave space. In this way, the front/rear offset, the left/right offset and the rotational offset of the glass door can be compensated by adjusting the position of the clamping seat. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mounting plate has a rectangle shape and each lateral side of the mounting plate is provided with at least one of the adjustment holes. It is preferred that each of the adjustment members is screwingly inserted in one of the adjustment holes. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the adjustment plate has an insertion hole into which the end of the shaft body of the shaft is inserted, such that the adjustment plate and the shaft body of the shaft can be connected to each other. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic perspective view showing a patch fitting in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is coupled with a glass door; 
         FIG. 2  is a partially exploded view of the patch fitting in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the clamping seat of the patch fitting in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the clamping seat of the patch fitting in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5A  to  FIG. 5D  are cross-sectional views of the clamping seat showing the processes of how the damper presses the hydraulic oil; and 
         FIG. 6A  to  FIG. 6D  are bottom views of the misalignment adjuster of the patch fitting of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, showing the ways of how to compensate the offset of the glass door. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , the patch fitting  10  with auto-return function for a glass door  12  provided according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a clamping seat  20 , a damper  30 , and a misalignment adjuster  40 . 
     The clamping seat  20  includes a seat body  50  and a shaft  60  as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . 
     A bottom edge of the seat body  50  has a clamping groove  51  for insertion of a top edge of the glass door  12 . Two opposite clamping pieces  52  are arranged in the clamping groove  51  for preventing the damage of the glass door  12  caused by the direct contact between the seat body  50  and the glass door  12 . Two decorative plates  55  may be respectively mounted on the two side walls of the seat body  50  to decorate the appearance of the seat body  50  according to the user&#39;s need. The two side walls of the seat body  50  are provided with a plurality of through holes  53  communicated with the clamping groove  51 . A plurality of fasteners  54  screwingly inserted in the through holes  53  are urged against the clamping pieces  52  such that the clamping pieces  52  can be pushed by these fasteners  54  to firmly clamp the top edge of the glass door  12  therebetween so as to fix the seat body  50  to the glass door  12 . As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the seat body  50  is provided at its inside with an oil chamber  56  for the storage of hydraulic oil. Two end caps  57  are disposed at the two ends of the seat body  50  to seal the oil chamber  56 . Further, as shown in  FIG. 5A , the oil chamber  56  can be divided into a compartment  562  and an oil channel  564 . Additionally, the top surface of the seat body  50  is provided with a shaft hole  59  perpendicular to and in fluid communication with the oil chamber  56 , and the bottom surface of the seat body  50  is provided with two valve holes  566  spaced from each other and in fluid communication with the oil chamber  56 . Two regulation valves  58   a  and  58   b  are respectively mounted in the valve holes  566  as shown in  FIG. 5A . 
     The shaft  60  is pivotally inserted into the shaft hole  59  of the seat body  50  by two bearings  62  and has a shaft body  64  with an insertion end  642  protruding out of the shaft hole  59 , and an eccentric cam  66  provided on the shaft body  64 . 
     The damper  30  is installed in the compartment  562  of the oil chamber  56  of the clamping seat  20 , and comprises a piston  32 , a contact member  34  and two springs  36  and  38 . The piston  32  has an elongated through hole  322  through which the shaft body  64  of the shaft  60  passes, and two oil passages  324  at two ends thereof for conducting hydraulic oil as shown in  FIG. 3 . The contact member  34  is mounted to the piston  32  by a pivot pin  342  and in contact with the eccentric cam  66  of the shaft  60 , such that the contact member  34  will be pushed by the eccentric cam  66  to move the piston  32  to press the hydraulic oil to provide a damping resistance in response to the sweeping movement of the glass door. The spring  36  has two ends respectively stopped at the end surface of the piston  32  and the end cap  57  of the clamping seat  20  for providing a rebound force. The spring  38  is inserted into inside of the spring  36  and has two ends respectively stopped at the end surface of the piston  32  and the end cap  57  of the clamping seat  20  for providing a rebound force and a resilient compensation effect. One of the springs  36  and  38  can be eliminated according to actual need. 
     The misalignment adjuster  40  comprises a mounting plate  41 , two first adjustment members  42 , two second adjustment members  43 , two third adjustment members  44 , and an adjustment plate  45  as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6A . The mounting plate  41  is rectangle shaped and each corner of the mounting plate  41  is provided with a mounting hole  412 . Four bolts  46  are respectively passes through the mounting holes  412  to fixedly install the mounting plate  41  on a door frame. The mounting plate  41  is provided with a rectangle concave space  414  at its center, four threaded adjustment holes  416   a  respectively located at the two opposite long sides thereof, two threaded adjustment holes  416   b  respectively located at the two opposite short sides thereof, and two notches  418  respectively communicated with the threaded adjustment holes  416   b  for insertion of a tool. All of the threaded adjustment holes  416   a  and  416   b  are communicated with the concave space  414 . The first and second adjustment members  42  and  43  are respectively screwingly inserted in the threaded adjustment holes  416   a  of the mounting plate  41 , and the third adjustment members  44  are respectively screwingly inserted in the threaded adjustment holes  416   b  of the mounting plate  41 . The adjustment plate  45  is arranged in the concave space  414  of the mounting plate  41  and provided with an insertion hole  452  for securing the insertion end  642  of the shaft body  64  of the shaft  60 . In addition, the adjustment plate  45  is smaller in dimension than the concave space  414 , such that the adjustment plate  45  can be stopped and pushed by at least one of the adjustment members  42 ,  43  and  44  to move or to rotate inside the rectangle concave space  414 , thereby actuating the clamping seat  20  through the conjunction between the adjustment plate  45  and shaft  60  during the process of movement or rotation of the adjustment plate  45 . 
     The structure of the patch fitting  10  has been detailedly described as above and the feature and operation of the patch fitting  10  will be further recited hereinafter. 
     When the glass door  12  is pushed to open, the clamping seat  20  will turn along with the sweeping movement of the glass door  12  about the shaft  60 , which is served as a pivot center. At this moment, the piston  32  is pushed by the eccentric cam  66  of the shaft  60  to move in the oil chamber  56 , resulting in that the hydraulic oil that is pressed by the piston  32  will flow from a right side of the piston  32  through the oil passages  324  to a left side of piston  32  as shown in  FIGS. 5A and 5B . 
     When the glass door  12  is closed, in an initial stage the piston  32  will be pushed by the spring  36  to move in a reverse direction to force the hydraulic oil to flow through the oil channel  564  and the regulation valve  58   a  into the compartment  562  and then flow toward the right side of the piston  32  through one of the oil passages  324 , as shown in  FIG. 5C . When the glass door  12  is continuously closed to an extent that the entrance of the oil channel  564  is blocked by the piston  32 , the hydraulic oil will be forced to flow through the regulation valve  58   b  and the oil channel  564  into the compartment  562  and then flow toward the right side of the piston  32  through one of the oil passages  324 , as shown in  FIG. 5D , until the glass door  12  is completely closed. The sweeping speed of the glass door  12  at different door closing stages can be adjusted by adjustment of the flow rate of the hydraulic oil through the regulation valve  58   a  and/or the regulation valve  58   b.    
     On the other hand, if a left/right offset of the glass door  12  happens when the glass door  12  is stayed in the closed position as shown in  FIG. 6B , a tool that is used to insert into the notch  418  can rotate one of the third adjustment members  44  to cause the end of the third adjustment members  44  to push the adjustment plate  45 . In this way, since the adjustment plate  45  is assembled with the clamping seat  20  through insertion of the insertion end  642  into the insertion hole  452 , the clamping seat  20  and the glass door  12  are together moved along with the adjustment plate  45  until the left/right offset of the glass door  12  is compensated. Further, if a front/rear offset of the glass door  12  happens when the glass door  12  is stayed in the closed position as shown in  FIG. 6C , the front/rear offset can be compensated through the clamping seat  20  by rotating two first adjustment members  42  or two second adjustment members  43  to force the ends of the first adjustment members  42  or the second adjustment members  43  to push the adjustment plate  45 . Additionally, if a rotational offset of the glass door  12  happens when the glass door  12  is stayed in the closed position as shown in  FIG. 6D , the rotational offset can be compensated by rotating one of the first adjustment members  42  and one of the second adjustment members  43  to force the adjustment plate  45  to rotate. 
     As indicated above, the patch fitting  10  can be fixedly installed on the door frame by four bolts  46 , thereby simplifying the work of installation. In addition, the patch fitting  10  can provide a hydraulic oil damping resistance generated between the damper  30  and the hydraulic oil to buffer the force for opening or closing the glass door  12 . Further, after the patch fitting  10  is installed, the position of the glass door  12  can be lightly adjusted to improve the misalignment of the glass door  12  so as to make sure that the glass door  12  can be closed positively.