Improvements in Means for Supporting and Guiding Sliding Doors.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 11th, Feb.,
1897
Improvements in Means for Supporting and Guiding Sliding Doors.
I, MURRAY HINCKLEY SPEAR, of 254, Victoria Park Road, London, N.E., Mechani-
cal Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to certain improvements in means for supporting and
guiding sliding doors.
The class of door as at present constructed is usually hung upon rollers or wheels
travelling on a rail and guided by a track on, or in, the floor or runs upon rollers,
or a track of a similar kind.
To obviate the necessity for employing this track and to effectively support and
guide the door I attach to the rear of the door and at the top and bottom of same
cross bars which are pivoted to each other while their other ends are attached to
some part of the housing or the like in which the door slides.
To permit of the necessary movement of the bars which may work in the manner
of a "lazy-tong," curved slots are provided at one end of each such slots engaging
with a pin carried by the door and by the frame respectively. The door is guided
in its movement by a suitable cover or guides arranged to embrace the top edge of
same but its lower end may be free, the arrangement of the bars being sufficient
to prevent side movement of the door.
To take up wear of the bars or connected parts one of the fixed parts to which the
bars is connected may be provided with an adjustment such as a screw and sliding
block or the like by which the position of the fixed end of the bar may be adjusted.
In another form of my invention I divide the door in parts on a plane parallel
with the outer faces of same and form a recess therein in which at the forward end
when the door is withdrawn is situated a similar arrangement of bars to that
previously described one end of one bar being attached to the floor or to a bracket
or the like secured thereto and the other end of the other bar being attached to a
bracket or the like carried by a cover or guide situated over the top of the door.
As in the previous case an end (which is the upper end) of each bar has a curved
slot which engages a pin headed stud or the like secured to the door and to the
bracket or the frame respectively.
The curvature of the slot in both cases may be arranged so as to give the door a
slight rise when being withdrawn and enable it to clear a carpet or the like and to
keep it close when drawn out.
Dated this 11th day of February 1897
PHILIP M. JUSTICE,
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Chartered Patent Agent for the Applicant.

page_text: Improvements in Means for Supporting and Guiding siding DoorD
I, MURRAY HINCKLEY SPEAR, of 254, Victoria Park Road, London, N.E., Mechani-
cal Engineer and Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to certain improvements in means for supporting and
guiding sliding doors.
This class of door as at present constructed is usually hung upon rollers or wheels
travelling on a rail and guided by a track on, or in, the floor, or runs upon rollers,
or a track of a similar kind.
To obviate the necessity for employing this track and to effectually support and
guide the door I employ what I believe to be a novel arrangement of pivoted cross
bars which I will describe in connection with the accompanying drawings in
which―
Fig. 1 is an elevation of a door in the open position.
Fig. 2 is a similar view showing same closed.
Fig. 3 is a section of Fig. 1, on line a―x.
Fig. 4 is an elevation of a modification showing the door open.
Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the door closed, and
Fig. 6 is a section of Fig. 4 on line y--y.
Referring first to Figs. 1, 2 and 3-
I attach to the rear of the door a and at the bottom of same a cross bar b which
is pivoted to a cross bar c at d, one end of the bar c being attached to the housing or
casing or frame on which the door slides as at e.
To permit of the necessary movement of the bars which may work in the manner
of a "lazy-tong," curved slots may be provided at the other end of each, such slots
engaging with a pin carried by the door and by the frame respectively, or in place
of the slots the ends of the bars may be curved so as to present a curved guiding
surface such as c¹ b₁ to the pins f f which are shown as attached to brackets carried
by the door and housing respectively. In the case of the bar c the rear edge of the
bar is also curved as at 2 to bear on the rear edge of the door. The door is
guided in its movement by a suitable housing one side g only of which is shown,
or it may be guides arranged to embrace the top edge of same but its lower end
may be free, the arrangement of the bars being sufficient to prevent side movement
of the door. Hence a clear footway is left through the opening.
To take up wear of the bars or connected parts one of the fixed parts to which
the bars are connected such as e may be provided with an adjustment such as a
screw hand sliding block or the like by which the position of the fixed end of the
bar may be adjusted.
In the form shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 I divide the door in parts as a a¹ ou a
plane parallel with the outer faces of same and form a recess therein by means of
the two projecting edges a² a² in which at the forward end when the door is
withdrawn as in Fig. 4 is situated a similar arrangement of bars to that previously
described the lower end of the bar 6 being attached to the floor or to a bracket i
or the like secured thereto and the upper end of the bar c being attached to a
bracket or the like carried by a cover or guide & situated over the top of the door.
In this case the upper end of each bar has a curved slot which engages a pin
headed stud f or the like secured to the door and to the bracket (or the frame )
respectively.
The curvature of the slot or the edges as in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 may be arranged s

page_text: as to give the door a slight rise when being moved in either direction and enable it
to clear a carpet or the like and to keep it close when drawn out.
Rubber or other suitable stops m may be arranged for the doors to cushion on.
It will be understood that a variety of housings or casings or other arrangements
of framing may be employed without departing from my invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. For supporting and guiding sliding doors the combination of a frame or guide
for one edge of same and pivoted cross bars attached respectively to the back of
the door and to a fixed point and provided with curved edges or slots which are
adapted to engage with pins carried by the door and a fixed part respectively and to
give the door a slight rise when being moved substantially as described.
2. For supporting and guiding sliding doors the combination of a frame or guide
for one edge of same, and pivoted cross bars contained within the door attached
respectively to the door and a fixed point and provided with means for permitting
the movement of the other ends of same substantially as and for the purpose
described.
3. The improved arrangement of parts for supporting and guiding sliding doors
substantially as described and illustrated in the Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings.
4. The improved arrangement of parts for supporting and guiding sliding doors
substantially as described and illustrated in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings.
Dated the 10th day of November 1897
PHILIP M. JUSTICE,
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Chartered Patent Agent for the Applicant.