Patent Abstract:
A sliding door arrangement includes a plurality of door units; at least one upright post connecting adjacent door units; a lower beam located at the bottom of and connected with the upright post; and a plurality of cross rod assemblies disposed at one side or both sides of the door units respectively to adjust the tightness of the sliding door arrangement. The sliding door arrangement of the present invention can be packaged and transported in separate parts and then quickly and conveniently assembled on site. In addition, the sliding door arrangement of the present invention is perfectly integral and decorative and provides sufficient strength.

Full Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the priority benefit of Chinese application serial no. 200810066257.1, filed Mar. 28, 2008. The entirety of the above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of specification. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to a sliding door which is opened or closed in an integrally sliding way, particularly relates to a door arrangement for a sliding door, which is convenient to transport and assembly, and which is perfectly integral and decorative. 
         [0004]    2. Discussion of the Related Art 
         [0005]    Doors are important component parts for buildings and public facilities. Doors are also the most frequently used architectural components. Common doors include doors opened pivotally, telescopic doors opened or closed telescopically as yard doors and sliding doors opened in a push-pull way as yard doors. Conventional sliding door consists of a door body and a roller mounted at the bottom of the door body, and requires sliding track to be laid on the ground. With external force, the sliding door can slide on the sliding track through the roller at the bottom thereof. The door bodies for conventional sliding doors are all fixed structures. The connections between the door frames and the vertical bars and the connections between the door frames and the upper beam and the lower beam are made by welding or riveting. Sliding doors are usually large in size, some even to the extent of dozens of meters in length and/or width. Due to the fixed structure of the conventional sliding doors, these doors cannot be transported in separate parts and assembled on site later, thus cause great inconvenience and cost increase in both packaging and transportation. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    An object of the present invention is to provide a sliding door arrangement, which can be packaged and transported in separate parts and then quickly and conveniently assembled on site. 
         [0007]    Another object of the present invention is to provide a sliding door arrangement which is perfectly integral and decorative and provides sufficient strength. 
         [0008]    To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a sliding door arrangement which comprises: a plurality of door units; at least one upright post, connecting two adjacent door units; a lower beam, located at a bottom of the lower beams and connected with the upright post; and a plurality of cross rod assemblies, disposed at one side or both sides of each door unit respectively to adjust a tightness of the sliding door arrangement. 
         [0009]    The door units are grid type, to be specific, the door units are formed by connecting an outer frame and a plurality of vertical rods which are arranged vertically and spaced apart. 
         [0010]    The sliding door arrangement further comprises: an upper beam, located on a top of the sliding door arrangement; and a plurality of connectors, connecting the lower beam, the upper beam and the cross rod assembly with the upright post. 
         [0011]    The upright post is hollow in its center and comprises: a plurality of positioning slots on right side and left side thereof for engaging respective door units; an upper connecting hole near the upper end thereof; a lower connecting hole near the lower end thereof; an upper opening at the upper end thereof for connecting the upright post with the upper beam; a lower opening at the lower end thereof for connecting the upright post with the lower beam. 
         [0012]    The lower beam generally has an inverted U shape cross-section, and comprises: a groove on its top surface along the longitudinal direction, to engage with the door unit; and a plurality of connecting holes disposed corresponding to the position of the upright post, to connect the lower beam with the upright post. 
         [0013]    The connector includes a plurality of connecting sleeves, with a shape conforming to the internal shape of the upright post for inserting therein. The connecting sleeve comprises: an opening, facing to the upper opening or the lower opening of the upright post when assembled; a bottom, having a plurality of vertical connecting holes thereon; at least two sidewalls, having a plurality of horizontal connecting holes thereon for connecting with the rods. 
         [0014]    The connector further includes: a plurality of connecting blocks, disposed in the upper beam and the lower beam corresponding to the positions of the connecting sleeves respectively, and having a plurality of threaded holes thereon corresponding to the plurality of vertical connecting holes of the connecting sleeves; and a plurality of connecting bolts, each with one end disposed in corresponding connecting sleeve and the other end threadedly connected with the connecting block through the lower beam or the upper beam respectively, so that the lower beam and the upper beam are connected with the upright post. 
         [0015]    Each of cross rod assemblies comprises two rods substantially diagonally disposed across the side surface of each door unit. Both ends of each rod have a rod connecting hole. The rod is connected with the upright post by a pin shaft or bolt. The pin shaft or bolt passes through the rod connecting hole, the upper connecting hole and the lower connecting hole of the upright post, and the horizontal connecting hole of the connecting sleeve respectively. Each of the two rods has a shaft hole at an intersection of two rods. Each of cross rod assemblies further comprises a center shaft assembly, for rotatablely connecting the two rods together at the intersection. Furthermore, each of the rods consists of several threadedly connected rod segments, and the revolving direction of the rod segments is configured so that the tightness of the sliding door arrangement could be adjusted by revolving corresponding rod segments. 
         [0016]    The contribution of the present invention is in that it overcomes various defects in conventional sliding doors. Since the connections of the various members of the sliding door according to the present invention, including the connections between each door unit and the upright posts and the connections between the upright posts and the upper beam and the lower beam, are formed by insertion, these members are not only easy to be processed, but also convenient to be packaged and transported in separate parts and assembled quickly on site. Thus, the cost for packaging and transportation is saved considerably and the work efficiency is improved significantly. In addition, the cross rods disposed at both sides of the sliding door arrangement which are used to adjust the tightness thereof ensure the strength of the sliding door arrangement, and also enhance the decorativeness and the aesthetic appearance of the sliding door arrangement. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary sliding door arrangement according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2A  is an exploded view of the sliding door arrangement of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 2B  is an enlarged view of portion A in  FIG. 2A . 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional side view of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0020]      FIG. 4A  is a schematic diagram illustrating a rod assembly used in the sliding door arrangement of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 4B  is an exploded view illustrating the parts of the rod assembly. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0021]    The following embodiments are intended to further explain and illustrate the present invention, but not intended to limit the present invention in any way. 
         [0022]    Referring to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the sliding door arrangement according to the present invention includes a plurality of door units  10 , a plurality of upright posts  20 , a lower beam  30 , cross rod assemblies  40  and connectors  60 . The sliding door arrangement may selectively include an upper beam  50 . The door unit  10  is grid type, to be specific, the door unit  10  is a grid type part formed by connecting an outer frame  11  of aluminum profile and a plurality of vertical rods  12  of hollow aluminum tube which are arranged vertically and spaced apart from each other, and the door unit  10  can be packaged and transported separately. The sliding door arrangement  100  of the present invention is generally configured by connecting the door units by the plurality of the upright posts. Though only two door units are shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the number of the door units is not limited to this; obviously, the number of the door units depends on the actual length and design requirements of the sliding door arrangement. 
         [0023]    As shown in  FIG. 2B , the upright post  20  is a hollow tubular body of aluminum profile with a substantially rectangular cross section, the height of which is about the same as that of the sliding door arrangement. The upright post has positioning slots  21  on the right side and the left side, so that the right side and the left side of the door unit  10  can be positioned in these slots. The upright post  20  has an upper opening  22  and a lower opening  23  at the upper end and the lower end respectively to connect with the upper beam  50  and the lower beam  30 . The upright post  20  has an upper connecting hole  24  near the upper end thereof for connecting the cross rod assembly to the upright post. The upright post  20  further has a lower connecting hole  25  near the lower end thereof for connecting the cross rod assembly to the upright post. 
         [0024]    In an embodiment of the present invention, an upper beam  50 , which is a hollow tubular body of aluminum profile with U shape cross section, is mounted on the top of the sliding door arrangement  100 . The upper beam  50  has connecting holes (not shown) on the lower sidewall at positions corresponding to the upright posts  20  in order to connect with the upright posts  20  through connectors  60 . 
         [0025]    As show in  FIG. 2A , the lower beam  30 , which is made of aluminum profile, with an approximately rectangular cross-section (also could be regarded as an inverted U shape cross-section), is mounted at the bottom of the sliding door arrangement  100 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , a spacer plate  33 , which has an inverted T shape, is disposed in the lower beam near the upper portion thereof in order to increase the strength of the lower beam. The lower beam has two grooves on the top surface along the longitudinal direction, which are corresponding to a wall thickness of the outer frame  11  of the door units, so that the outer frame  11  of the plurality of door units  10  can be embedded and engaged in these grooves. The lower beam  30  has a plurality of connecting holes  32  on its top surface at positions corresponding to the upright posts  20  and connects with the upright posts  20  though connectors  60 . 
         [0026]    As shown in  FIG. 2A ,  FIG. 2B  and  FIG. 3 , the connector  60  includes a connecting sleeve  61 , at least a connecting block  62  and several connecting bolts  63 . As shown in  FIG. 2A , the connecting sleeve  61  is in a rectangular shape conforming to the internal shape of the upright post  20  for inserting therein. For example, the connecting sleeve  61  is made of plastic material. The connecting sleeve  61  includes an opening, a bottom and at least two sidewalls (not labeled). The opening faces to the upper opening  22  or the lower opening  23  of the upright post  20  when assembled. The bottom has a plurality of vertical connecting holes  611  thereon. The sidewalls have a plurality of horizontal connecting holes  612  thereon for connecting with the rods  41 , 42 (below mentioned). The connecting sleeve for connecting the lower beam  30  is opened upward, while the connecting sleeve for connecting the upper beam  50  is opened downward. 
         [0027]    In  FIG. 2B , the connecting block  62  which is a plate like body has a plurality of threaded holes  621  corresponding to the plurality of vertical connecting holes  611  on the connecting sleeve  61 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , the connecting block  62  is disposed in the lower beam  30  or the upper beam  50  at the position corresponding to the upright post  20  respectively, where the connecting block in the lower beam  30  is mounted in the top portion inside of the lower beam, while the connecting block in the upper beam  50  is mounted at the bottom of the upper beam, and the connecting block is mounted into the upper beam or lower beam by a special fixture. When the lower beam  30  and the upper beam  50  are connected with the upright post  20 , one end of the connecting bolt  63  with a screw cap is disposed in the connecting sleeve  61 , while the other end passes through the lower beam  30  or the lower beam  50  to threadedly connect with the connecting block  62 , so that the lower beam  30  and the upper beam  50  could connect with the upright post. 
         [0028]    As shown in  FIG. 2A ,  FIG. 2B  and  FIG. 3 , each door unit  10  is equipped with a pair of cross rod assemblies  40  on the front side and the rear side respectively to adjust the degree of tightness. The rod assembly, as shown in  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 4A  and  FIG. 4B , includes two rods  41 ,  42  and a center shaft assembly  43 . Refer to  FIG. 4B , the rods  41 ,  42  are formed by threadedly connecting several rod segments made of hollow tube. In this example, each of the rods  41 ,  42  is formed by threadedly connecting three rod segments  411 ,  412 ,  413  and  421 ,  422 ,  423  respectively. The two ends of each of the rod segments  411 ,  413  and  421 ,  423  located at the edges have threaded portions with a smaller external diameter than an internal diameter of the rod segments  412  and  422  located at center. The revolving directions of the external threads at the two ends of each of the rod segments  411 ,  413  and  421 ,  422  are opposite, that is, if one end revolves to the left, then the other end revolves to the right. Correspondingly, both ends of each of the rod segments  412 ,  412  located at the center have internal threads that revolve in the same direction as the external threads of the rod segments  411 ,  413  and  421 ,  423  and threadedly connect with them respectively. Rod segments  412 ,  422  have shaft holes  4121 ,  4221  respectively at the intersection of two rods  41 ,  42 . In this example, both ends of each of rods  41 ,  42  are provided with adapters  414 , 424  respectively. The adapters  414  and  424  have rod connecting holes  4141  and  4241  respectively to connect with the upright post  20 . The adapters  414  and  424  have internal threads that revolve in the same direction as the external threads of the rod segments  411 ,  413  and  421 ,  423  and threadedly connect with them respectively. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the rods  41 ,  42  are diagonally connected on the side surface of each door unit, the upper end and the lower end of each of the rods  41 ,  42  connecting with the upright posts  20  by a shaft pin  44  passing through the rod connecting holes  4141 ,  4241  and the upper connecting hole  24  and lower connecting hole  25  of the upright post. The center shaft assembly  43  is rotatablely connected at the intersection of two rods. The center shaft assembly  43 , as shown in  FIG. 4A  and  FIG. 4B , includes a center shaft  431 , a front shaft seat  432  and a rear shaft seat  433 , wherein, the front shaft seat  432  and the rear shaft seat  433  are in cover shape with shaft holes, and function to support and decorate the center shaft. A shaft sleeve  4331  is disposed in the rear shaft seat  433  and passes through the shaft holes  4121 ,  4221 . The center shaft  431  passes through the front shaft seat  432  and the shaft sleeve  4331  of the rear shaft seat  433  and is fixed by at least a bolt, so that the rods  41 ,  42  can rotate around the center shaft  431 . The degree of tightness of the rods  41 ,  42  is adjustable. When adjusting, clamp any of the rod segments  411 ,  413  and  421 ,  423  of the rods  41  or  42  with a specific tool and rotate to simultaneously tighten or release the rods  41  or  42  to a suitable degree of tightness. 
         [0029]    Referring to  FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 2B , when assembling the sliding door arrangement of the present invention, firstly, engage each door unit  10  with the upright posts  20  on both sides; next, connect the upper end and the lower end of each upright post  20  with the upper beam  50  and the lower beam  30  through the connectors  60  respectively; then connect both ends of each of the rods  41 ,  42  with the upright posts  20  respectively by the shaft pin  44  through connectors  60 . 
         [0030]    The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although a few exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. Therefore, it is to be understood that the foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and that modifications to the disclosed embodiments, as well as other embodiments, are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

Technology Classification (CPC): 4