Improvements in or relating to Devices for Hinging and Automatically Closing Doors.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 25th Nov., 1890-Accepted, 27th Dec., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Devices for Hinging and
Automatically Closing Doors.
A communication from abroad by HERMANN FAULHABER, of Hall, Swabia, in the
Kingdom of Würtemberg, Clergyman.
I, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON F.C.S., M.L.M.E., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors 6, Lord Street, Liverpool and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both
in the County of Lancaster and 323 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex,
Civil Engineer, 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 devices for hinging and automatically closing doors.
It is especially suitable for swing doors, and partly consists in the peculiar employ-
ment of a ball, upon which the weight of the door, when opened, acts, and which is
arranged on an inclined plane in such a way that the opened door tends always to
force the ball into its lowest position.
On the accompanying drawing —
Figure 1 shows the device in vertical section, fitted on the doorway framing.
Figure 1 shows a slight modification of the hanging device shown in Figure 1.
The lower part of the door is provided with the arrangement shown in Figure 2.
These devices may be substituted for the usual hinges of the door.
Figure 3 shows the apparatus when the door is opened, in elevation, and,
Figure 4, in plan.
Figures 5 and 6 represent, in vertical section and plan, the device when mounted
on the door framing.
In Figure 1, the angle piece A is let into the upper corner of the door and firmly
retained therein by means of the screws a.
The angle piece B is inserted into this angle piece A. This is shown in
Figures 1, 3 and 4, in such a way that the horizontal part, with its dovetailed
edges, is inserted in the angle piece A, and the vertical part is secured by means
of the screws in the vertical part of the angle piece A. This latter, together
with the edges of the door, is preferably rounded off, so that as tight a closing of
the door as possible is thus brought about.
The upright pivot C is firmly attached to the angle piece B.
In the doorway frame, an angle piece D is inserted, and, by means of the wood
screws d, is held fast therein. The cylindrical guide piece E is pivotally inserted
in the horizontal arm of the said angle piece. It serves as a guide for the pivot
and is provided with a tongue e, by means of which it can be firmly fixed by the
screw in a given position on the angle piece D; in order to obtain a certain
amount of play for this, the horizontal part of the angle piece 1) is provided with
a segmental slot e, which is shown in Figure 4 by dotted lines.
The upper face of the cylindrical piece E is inclined, and serves as a track for
the ball K, which, when at rest, lies in a little hollow of the same. Above the
ball K is a conically recessed piece g, arranged in a block G.
This block has a
diagonal face underneath, so as to correspond with the cylinder E, and is rigidly
connected with the pivot and has a cylindrical hole for receiving the above
named piece g. The upper surface of y is rounded off and presses with this rounded
part against the washer c, which is fixed on the block G by the nut ('.
A protecting cover H may be placed over the whole mechanism, so that the
movable parts are completely protected from external influences.
The mode of action of the above described apparatus is as follows:-
-

page_text: On the door being opened, it rests with all its weight on the ball K which rolls out
of its recess and travels up the inclined plane of the cylinder E to one side or the
other.
In this process, friction is almost entirely avoided, as the ball can easily rol
backwards and forwards in any position, and, further, the weight of the door does not
act directly on the ball K, but by means of the conically bored piece g.
The weight of the open door (Figures 3 and 4) will, as may be easily understood.
act in such a way on the ball that it will always tend to return to its position of
repose, so that the automatic closing of the door with the greatest case and security
will result from the mechanism described.
In its position of repose, the door is easily held firm, as, in this position, the
ball Klies exactly in the recess k; this position of repose of the door can, within
certain limits, be easily regulated by means of the aforesaid tongue e, screw e¹ and
slot e.
Single parts of the above described apparatus can naturally be altered without
thereby affecting the nature of the invention.
For instance, as regards the piece y which takes the weight of the door from the
pivot C, the end can, instead of being bored out, as before described, conically, be
cut out or formed as represented in Figure 1". In this case, the piece gis
preferably fastened by means of a pin g in the block G which is connected with the
pivot.
Further, the apparatus can also be arranged in such a way that the block G,
piece and ball K are all fixed in the door itself.
9
Such an arrangement, which is represented in Figures 5 and 6, possesses the
important advantage that the insertion, as well as the oiling of the apparatus is
considerably facilitated.
The angle piece. A¹ is let into the doorway frame and is firmly fixed therein by
means of the screws a; the pivot is provided with a foot plate B which is
dovetailed into the horizontal arm of the angle piece A', and is held firmly therein
by means of its bevelled edges, as well as by the screws a'.
The angle piece D' is let into the door itself and retained therein by means of
the screws In the horizontal arm of the same, the cylindrical guide piece E
is pivotally inserted, and serves as a support for the spindle C. The latter is
secured to the frame D' by means of the disc i, and can be held firm by means
of the screw e³ which is adjustable in the slot e' of the angle piece D¹.
The block G is attached to the pivot C, by means, that is, of the pin or key a
inserted in a groove, or in any other suitable manner.
In contradistinction to the arrangement shown in Figure 1, the ball K, in this
case, as well as the piece g, are not placed in the block G but in the guide piece E,
whilst the said block G serves as track for the ball K.
This mechanism works, therefore, when the door is open or closed, in a perfectly
similar manner to that described above for the other pattern of apparatus.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. In a device for hinging and automatically closing doors, a pivot C, one part
of which passes through a cylinder or guide piece E having an inclined or sloping
surface or ball track, a block G having a surface of equal inclination to that of
the guide piece aforesaid, and a ball K arranged in a suitable groove or recess in the
said block and adapted to roll on the inclined surface of the guide piece for the
purpose of causing the weight of the door, when opened or closed, to act upon the
ball in such a way that the latter is always forced back into its position of repose,
substantially as described.
2. An apparatus for hinging and automatically closing doors in which a pivot C,
inserted in a guide piece E with an inclined or sloping surface, carries at its free end...
a block G with an equally sloping surface, having a suitable groove or recess formed

page_text: to receive a ball K adapted to roll on the inclined surface of the block G, substantially
as described.
3. In apparatus of the kind described, the arrangement of a piece g bored out
conically or otherwise at one end and rounded at the other, which is placed in a cavity
of the block G, or of the guide piece E, and transmits the weight of the door to tho
ball K, for the purpose of avoiding as far as possible friction of the movable parts,
substantially as described.
4. In apparatus of the kind described, the arrangement of a piece g¹ with a
recess at one end, and secured in a hole in the block G or the guide piece E,
which recess grips or grasps the ball K and on the opening of the door causes it
to roll up the inclined plane, substantially as described in reference to Figure 1ª.
Dated this 24th day of November 1890
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.
Agents for the Applicant.