Abstract:
A closure includes a frame that is selectively pivotable about a vertical axis and a horizontal axis. A drive assembly is disposed in a groove of the frame to selectively determine which axis the frame pivots about as the frame pivots between an open position and a closed position. The drive assembly includes a plurality of actuating members and a plurality of transmission rods that operatively connect adjacent actuating members to each other. Each of the actuating members and each of the transmission rods has a single tenon which is disposed in only one side of the groove.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application claims benefit of Italian patent application number TO2006A000435, filed Jun. 15, 2006, which is herein incorporated by reference. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to door and window frames. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
   The invention was developed for the application to door or window frames constituted by extruded section bars made of aluminium or similar metallic alloys, constituted by a quadrangular frame formed by four section bars defining a pair of uprights and a pair of cross members. The section bars forming the frames are constituted by bars with complex section, produced by extrusion, drawing or profiling. Each of said section bars is provided on an outer side of the frame with a longitudinal groove to be used for mounting the articulation hinges and the drive assembly of the door or window frame. In the remainder of the description and in the claims, “drive assembly” means the set of devices and components that allow to transmit the opening/closing motion from the handle to the various closure elements. 
   Door and window frames are classified as door and window frames with wing opening, with swivel opening and with wing and swivel opening. Wing opening is defined as an opening movement that takes place by rotation around a vertical axis. Swivel opening means an opening movement that takes place by rotation around a horizontal axis. Door and window frames with wing and swivel opening can be opened selectively by means of rotation around a vertical axis or by means of rotation around a horizontal axis. 
   In the case of door window frames within wing opening only or with swivel opening only, the drive assembly enables to select the closed or open position of the door or window frame. In the case of door or window frames with wing and swivel opening, the drive assembly enables selectively to activate closed positions, wing opening positions or swivel opening positions, under the command of a cremone bolt device. 
   The standard conformation of the metal section bars for doors or windows comprises on the outer side of the frame a longitudinal groove with undercut profile formed by a base, two parallel lateral walls and two edges oriented against each other and defining an undercut engagement area at each of the lateral walls of the longitudinal groove. Mounting the components of the drive assembly in the longitudinal slots of the section bars of the frame is an operation that has a considerable impact on the time required to assemble the door or window frames. In the most traditional solutions, the members comprising the drive assembly are provided with two longitudinal tenons that engage the two undercut engagement areas of the respective longitudinal grooves. This solution is not very attractive to the manufacturers of window and door frames because it entails the need to obtain notches at the end of each groove to allow the insertion of the actuating members in the longitudinal direction. 
   To overcome this drawback, the document FR-A-2722527 proposed a solution in which each actuating member is provided with a single tenon that engages only one undercut area of the longitudinal groove. According to the solution described in FR-A-2722527, the actuating members are arranged contiguous in alternated fashion, so that the first actuating member has its tenon engaging a first undercut engagement area of the groove and the actuating member adjacent to it has its own tenon engaging a second undercut engagement area opposite the first one. Arranging the actuating members in alternating fashion aims to solve the problem of the stability of the engagement between the actuating members and the groove of the frame. When two or more adjacent actuating members are fastened to each other, the set constituted by the series of mutually fastened actuating members comprises at least one tenon that engages the first undercut engagement area and at least one tenon that engages the second undercut engagement area of the groove. 
   The drawback of this solution is that the alternated mounting of the actuating members is inconvenient and it may require repeatedly upsetting the frame. 
   European patent application no. 05425179 by the same Applicant (not yet published as of the filing date of the present application) describes a drive assembly for door and window frames provided with actuating members with a single tenon which are inserted in transverse direction into the respective longitudinal slots of the frame. Said document does not describe that the actuating members all engage a same undercut engagement area of the respective groove. 
   The document DE-A-3225049 describes a door or window frame in which the longitudinal groove comprises a single undercut engagement area and with a lateral wall of the groove with a T shape engaged at opposite sides by two opposite tenons of the actuating members. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The object of the present invention is to provide actuating members for door and window frames that can be mounted with greater simplicity relative to prior art solutions. 
   According to the present invention, said object is achieved by a door or window. that includes a movable quadrangular frame formed by four section bars each having a longitudinal groove. Each of the longitudinal grooves comprising a base, two parallel lateral walls and two edges oriented towards each other, wherein the edges and the lateral walls define a first undercut engagement area adjacent to a first face of the frame and a second undercut engagement area adjacent to a second face of the frame. The door or window further includes a drive assembly for opening/closing the movable quadrangular frame. The drive assembly comprising a plurality of actuating members and a plurality of transmission rods that operatively connect adjacent actuating members to each other, wherein each of the actuating members and each of the transmission rods has a single integral tenon, and wherein the tenons of all the actuating members and the tenons of all the transmission rods engage the first undercut engagement area. 
   In the solution according to the present invention, the actuating members have a single tenon and they all engage the undercut engagement area situated on the same side of the respective groove. 
   Thanks to this solution idea, during the assembly of the actuating members in the grooves of the section bars, it is not necessary repeatedly to upset the frame to mount the actuating members in alternated fashion. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The present invention shall now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, provided purely by way of non limiting example, in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a window or door frame according to the present invention, 
       FIG. 2  is a partially sectioned perspective view showing the mounting sequence of an actuating member indicated by the arrow II in  FIG. 1 , 
       FIG. 3  is also a partially sectioned perspective view showing the mounting sequence of an actuating member indicated by the arrow II in  FIG. 1 , 
       FIGS. 4 and 5  are sections respectively according to the lines IV-IV and V-V of  FIGS. 2 and 3 , 
       FIG. 6  is a partially sectioned perspective view showing the mounting sequence of the actuating member indicated by the arrow VI in  FIG. 1 , 
       FIG. 7  is also a partially sectioned perspective view showing the mounting sequence of the actuating member indicated by the arrow VI in  FIG. 1 , 
       FIGS. 8 and 9  are sections respectively according to the lines VIII-VIII and IX-IX of  FIGS. 6 and 7 , 
       FIG. 10  is a partially sectioned perspective view showing the actuating member indicated by the arrow X in  FIG. 1  in the mounted position, and 
       FIG. 11  is a section according to line XI-XI of  FIG. 10 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   With reference to  FIG. 1 , the number  10  designates a door or window frame according to the present invention. The door or window frame  10  comprises a quadrangular frame  12  formed by four section bars  14  preferably constituted of aluminium or alloys thereof. Each of the section bars  14  has an outer side provided with a longitudinal groove  16 . 
   With reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the frame  12  has two front faces designated respectively by the numbers  18  and  20 . The section bars  14  have respective front bearing edges  22  aligned to the first face  18  of the frame  12  and projecting outwards beyond the respective groove  16 . The front bearing edges  22  have respective grooves  24  able to receive a front sealing gasket (not shown) which in the closed position of the window or door frame is pressed against a front surface of the fixed frame of the door or window. 
   With reference for example to  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the longitudinal groove  16  of each section bar  14  comprises a base  26 , two lateral walls  28  and two longitudinal edges  30  oriented towards each other. The two longitudinal ends of the edges  30  facing each other define the outer opening of the longitudinal groove  16 . The longitudinal edges  30  define an undercut engagement area at each lateral wall  28  of the groove  16 . A first undercut engagement area  32  is adjacent to the first face  18  of the frame  12  and a second undercut engagement area  34  is adjacent to the second face  20  of the frame  12 . 
   Each undercut engagement area  32 ,  34  has substantially “C” shape and is defined between the inner surfaces of the edge  30 , of the lateral wall  28  and by the lateral portion of the base  26 . The shape of the longitudinal groove  16  is standardised and it is used by most metallic section bars for door or window frames. 
   With reference to  FIG. 1 , the window or door frame  10  is provided with a drive assembly globally designated by the number  36 . The drive assembly  36  comprises a plurality of actuating members  38 ,  40 ,  42 ,  46   49  and a plurality of transmission rods  48 ,  50  that operatively connect adjacent actuating members to each other. The drive assembly  36  shown in  FIG. 1  is that of a door or window frame with wing and swivel opening and it comprises a vertical fulcrum  38 , an angled transmission  40 , a scissors arm  42  a cremone bolt coupling and a cursor  49 . 
   According to the present invention, each actuating member and each transmission rod is provided with a single integral tenon for engagement with the respective groove  16 , so that all the components of the drive assembly  36  can be mounted frontally in the respective grooves. The tenons of the actuating members and of the transmission rods all engage the undercut engagement area  32  of the respective groove  16  adjacent to the first wall  18  of the frame  12 , i.e. the wall provided with front bearing edge  22 . 
     FIGS. 2 to 11  schematically show some details and the manners of mounting of some actuating members  40 ,  42 ,  49  comprising the drive assembly  36 . 
   With reference to  FIGS. 2 through 5 , the actuating member  49  (cursor) has a single tenon  52  obtained in integral form with the body of the actuating member  49  and engaging the first undercut engagement area  32  of the groove  16 . The actuating member  49  is mounted by positioning the tenon  52  into the first undercut engagement area  32  as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4  and then making the engagement member  49  oscillate towards the interior of the groove  16  obtaining the frontal insertion of the actuating member  49  into the groove  16  as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 5 . On the opposite side of the tenon  52 , the actuating member  49  is provided with a bearing longitudinal edge  54  that bears on the outer side of the edge  30  situated at the second undercut engagement area  34 . 
   The actuating member  49  is fastened to the transmission rod  50  by means of a screw  56 . The manner in which each actuating member  38 ,  40 ,  42 ,  46  and  49  is fastened to the respective transmission rods  48 ,  50  is described in detail in a contemporaneous patent application by the same Applicant. 
     FIGS. 6 through 9  show the way in which the frontal mounting of the angled transmission  40  is carried out. In this case, too, the angled transmission  40  is provided with a single integral tenon  52  that engages the first undercut engagement area  32  of the longitudinal groove  16 . The mounting operation is carried out by frontally inserting the angled transmission  40  into the groove  16  as indicated in  FIGS. 6 and 8  and then making the angled transmission  40  oscillate towards the interior of the groove  16  until it reaches the position shown in  FIGS. 7 and 9 . On the opposite side of the tenon  52  there is a bearing edge  54  that bears on the outer side of the edge  30  situated at the second undercut engagement area  34 . The angled transmission  40  can also be provided with a recessing tooth  58  that engages in snap-in fashion the edge  30  during the frontal insertion into the groove  16 . The recessing tooth  58  is thrust elastically outwards and it has the purpose of holding the angled transmission  40  inside the groove  16  during the assembly. Similar retaining teeth can also be provided on other actuating members of the assembly  36 . 
   With reference to  FIGS. 10 and 11 , the scissors arm  42  is also mounted in the manner described previously.  FIGS. 10 and 11  show the scissors arm  42  at the end of the mounting in the groove  16 . The insertion takes place frontally, positioning the single integral tenon  52  in engagement with the first undercut engagement portion  32  and then making the scissors arm  42  oscillate towards the interior of the groove  16 . 
   The fact that all the actuating members and all the transmission rods are provided with a single tenon for connection to the section bars  14  could cause instability problems due to pressures on the door or window frame. However, said problems are solved thanks to the fact that all the actuating members engage the undercut engagement area  32  of the groove  16  that is oriented towards the face  18  of the frame  12  provided with the front bearing edge  22 . In the case of inward opening door and window frames, the face  18  is the inner face of the door or window frame whilst in the case of outward opening door and window frames, the face  18  is the outer face of the door or window frame. 
   The fact that all the tenons of the drive assembly  36  engage the inner portion of the groove  16  in the case of inward opening door and window frames and the outer portion of the groove  16  in the case of outward opening door and window frames determines a complete stability, even without a tenon with structural function on the opposite side of the groove  16 . It can be demonstrated that the connection between the actuating members and the section bars  14  is perfectly stable in the case of thrusts directed from the outside inwards, in the case of inwardly opening door and window frames, or under the action of thrusts directed from the inside outwards, in the case of outwardly opening door and window frames. 
   The fact that all the tenons of the drive assembly  36  engage the same side of the groove  16  enables to carry out the frontal mounting of the actuating members and of the transmission rods without upsetting the frame  12 , i.e. keeping the frame  12  with the face  18  bearing on a horizontal plane during the entire assembly operation. 
   While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof.