This invention relates to an active brake release device, more particularly to an active brake release device driven by a second motor and attached to the exterior of a door controller, which can actively shut off the safety door in unexpected electricity failure condition.
The conventional safety door, such as a fire door and an emergency door, consists of one or the other of these two types of systems based on the type of door controller, that is, the failsafe system and the non-failsafe system. As the safety door is usually used as a door access system for ordinary people, these two door controller systems both have their merits and demerits in usage depend on the user,
(1) Failsafe system: In the case of electricity failure, no matter what the reason is, the braking device of the door controller should immediately release the braking and shut off the safety door. In the event of fire alarm without electricity failure, the brake device will be released by cutting off the power by such device as smoke detector, or temperature sensor, or the other fire alarm detector, or by cutting off the power with a mechanical means after a fusible links is melted in high temperature due to the fire, so that the safety door will close. If the reason of electricity failure is definitely due to the fire, the device can block the pilot fire or the exhaust smoke at the first instant of fire. So, the system is preferred due to its higher safety of fire protection. However, if the electricity failure is not due to fire, the system will cause some inconvenience, and affect normal entry/exit function. This is the major defect. A number of relevant documents has been proposed, for example, the U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,850,865, 5,245,879, 5,893,234, 5,673,514, 11/489,329, 11/012,545 and 11/998,373 etc. belongs to this failsafe system category. In the case of unexpected electricity failure, the brake will actively be released, so the door will close.
(2) Non-failsafe system: In the case of electricity failure, no matter what the reason is, the braking device will come into braked state and not shut off the safety door immediately. After the fire alarm has been confirmed by the device such as smoke detector, temperature sensor or the other fire detecting devices, temporary current is supplied by a back-up power source, such as capacitor or battery, to the brake device so as to temporarily maintain the releasing of the brake, or a fusible links is melted in high temperature under the fire to activate the brake device so as to release the braking by a mechanical means, so the safety door will close on its own. This type of system provides the advantage of not shutting off the safety door immediately after the electricity failure. If electricity failure is not due to fire, the access of the door by user is not affected.
However, the person skilled in the art should understand that if the reason of electricity failure was indeed due to fire, and if the firing location is at a certain distance away from the fire detecting device or the fusible links, the safety door is unable to be shut off at the first instant of fire, in the case a non-failsafe door controller is used. The insufficiency in safety is the main demerit of this type.
The main object of the present invention is to provide an active brake release device driven by a second motor and externally attached to the door controller, for the purpose of enhancing the safety of fire protection for the non-failsafe door controller.
In order to achieve the above and another objects, an active break release device driven by a second motor and externally attached to the door controller (1) of the present invention is provided for the triggering of automatic brake releasing to close the safety door in unexpected electricity failure condition, in which
said door controller (1) have a housing for receiving a first motor (2), the driving torque of which is transferred through a rotary shaft to a reel for winding the door;
a braking device is provided at the outside of said rotary shaft, which includes a braking portion normally located at a brake activating position, and located at a brake releasing position when the first motor is energized, characterized in that the active break release device comprises:
at least a brake releasing rod, one end of which activates the braking portion to release brake by leverage action force, while the other end of which extending to the outside of the door controller;
at least a second motor provided externally at the door controller and moved together with the other end of the brake releasing rod, the second motor being temporarily supplied with electricity through a circuit having a backup power source in the case of unexpected electricity failure condition, and the braking portion being driven by the second motor to release the braking.
In this way, the fire protection of the non-failsafe door controller is turned from passive into active manner such that the safety door will close actively at the first instant of unexpected electricity failure.
The present invention will be further understood by the detailed description of the following embodiments in conjunction with the accompanied drawings, wherein:
a is a view seen from the left side of
b is a partial enlarged schematic view of the encircled portion in
c is a schematic sectional view showing the first embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in braked state.
d is a schematic sectional view showing the first embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in brake-released state.
a is a view seen from the left side of
b is a sectional perspective view showing the second embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof).
c is schematic partial perspective view of the brake-releasing rod of the second embodiment of the present invention in activated state.
e is a schematic sectional view showing the second embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in braked state.
a is a schematic sectional view showing the third embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in braked state.
b is a schematic sectional view showing the first embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in brake-released state.
a is a view seen from the right side of
b is a schematic sectional view showing the fourth embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in braked state.
c is a schematic sectional view showing the fourth embodiment of the present invention (in which irrelevant components are omitted thereof) in which the device is in brake-released state.
d is a schematic view showing the integral structure of the braked disc and the sleeve of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.
The technical features of the present invention will be better understood by the further description of preferred embodiments of the present invention, which should not be considered as limitations to the scope of the present invention, in conjunction with the accompanied drawings.
A brake device 4 is provided at the outside of the rotary shafts 3,3′, which includes:
a braked disc 31, the central of which is inserted and fixed on the shafts 3,3′ to rotate together thereof, which has a radial surface for mounting a brake lining 311;
a bushing 42, having a first end 42a and a second end 42b, which is loosely fitted at the outside of the rotary shaft 3′ for sliding in the axial direction thereof, a retainer 422 is provided at the outside of the second end 42b of the bushing 42;
an electromagnet 41, which is fixed on the side wall 1a of the housing 1′ of the door controller 1 and encircling around the outside of the bushing 42;
a braking portion 40, the center of which is inserted and fixed on the first end 42a of the bushing 42 by a retainer 421, and the braking portion 40 is located between the braked disc 31 and the electromagnet 41;
A spring element 43, which is received between the bushing 42 and the electromagnet 41 for producing a bias force for the braking portion 40 to abut against the brake lining 311 of the braked disc 31 so as to become normally braking state.
A pair of brake releasing rods 44, 44′, which are formed at the respective inner end, with a convex portion 441 located respectively at opposite side in radial direction at the outside of the second end 42b of the bushing 42 and positioned between the side wall 1a of the housing 1′ and the retainer 422, and the outer end of each of the brake releasing rod is extending to the outside of the housing 1′, a pull force applied at the outer end of the rod will cause a leverage action, with the convex portion 441 as the fuilcrum, which will cause the bushing 42 slide in the axial direction to release braking.
A pair of second motors 50, 50′, such as DC small motor, which are provided at the outside of the door controller 1, preferably in a power distributing cabinet 6 of the door controller 1. An eccentric wheel 52 is fixed on each shaft 51 of the motors, and a winding portion 53 is provided on each eccentric wheel 52. A pair of cables 54 are provided with one end connected to the winding portion 53, and the other end connected to the outer end of the brake releasing rod 44, 44′ through a plurality of deflecting wheels 5, as shown in
According to the present invention, the braking portion 40 is a manually chain-operated disc which is rotated by pulling a chain (not shown) in the case of unexpected electricity failure. In the normal mode of electrically operated condition, the chain is held by a holding section 7 provided at the outside of the housing 1′ so that the manually chain-operated disc is kept inoperable. The braking portion 40 normally keeps the braked disc 31 in braked state in the case that the first motor 2 is not energized. When the first motor 2 is energized, the electromagnet 41 is energized and excited thereby. Thus, the braking portion 40 separates apart from the braked disc 31 and is attracted to the side of the electromagnet 41 such that a brake releasing state is formed.
A circuit is formed in the device of the present invention. The circuit includes a capacitor or a battery for storing backup power which is used to temporarily supply electricity to the second motor 50,50′ in the case of electricity failure condition to wind the cable 54. Thus, the bushing 42 slides in the axial direction so as to release the brake by the leverage action of the brake releasing rods 44, 44′(as shown in
1). The pair of the brake releasing rods 44, 44′ are swingable at the respective middle point which is pivoted at the side wall 1a of the housing 1′ by a pin 443. The inner end of each brake releasing rod has a cam portion 442 which has a concave part in the direction opposite to the side wall 1a, and the outer end extends to the outside of the housing 1′
2). A follower ring 45 is inserted at the outside of the second end 42b of the bushing 42 and is slidable between the cam portion 442 and the retainer 422. The follower ring 45 has a pair of follower projecting portions 451 which engage with the concave part of the cam portion 442, and a pair of limiting portions 452 which prevent the follower ring 45 from rotating (as shown in
According to the present invention, a pair of second motors 50, 50′ are provided in the power distributing cabinet 6, each of which has an eccentric shaft 51. Each eccentric shaft 51 has a winding portion 53 which is connected with one end of the cable 54. The other end of the cable 54 is connected with the outer end of the brake releasing rod 44, 44′. In the case of electricity failure, backup electricity is supplied from a capacitor or a battery in a circuit to activate the second motor 50, 50′. A drag force produced by the rotation of the second motor 50, 50′ is applied respectively to the outer end of the brake releasing rod 44, 44′ such that the cam portion 442 at the inner end is caused to swing. The swing motion of the cam portion 442 results in the engagement between the follower projecting portions 451 and the concave part of the cam portion 442, which in turn transformed into the following motion of the follower ring 45. In this manner, the bushing 42 is dragged by the follower ring 45 to slide in the axial direction so as to release braking (as shown in
3). The inner end 44a of the brake releasing rod 44 has a convex portions 441 between the side wall 1a of the housing 1′ and the retainer 422 at the second end 42b of the bushing 42, while the outer end 44b extends to the outside of the housing 1′. A push force in the axial direction applied at the outer end 44b of the brake releasing rod 44 will cause a leverage action, with the convex portion 441 as the fulcrum, which will cause the bushing slide in axial direction to release braking.
According to the present invention, a second motor 50 is fixed on a base plate 11 at the outside of the door controller 1 and located at the side of the outer end 44b of the brake releasing rod 44. The rotary shaft 51 of the second motor 50 is connected with a male threaded rod 55a, which is in mating engagement with a female threaded member 55b provided at outside. A guiding portion 57 is fixed on the base plate 11, which has a center bore loosely fitted on the outside of the female threaded member 55b. A limiting screw 571 is provided in the guiding portion 57, which is used to prevent the female threaded member 55b from rotating, while allowing the female threaded member 55b slide in the axial direction to abut the outer end 44b of the brake releasing rod 44 (as shown in
According to this embodiment of the present invention, the brake device 4 comprises:
A braked disc 31, integrally formed with a bushing 42 (as shown in
A support frame 46 has a receiving portion 461 facing the braked disc 31, one end of the support frame 46 is fixed on the side wall 1a of the housing 1′ of the door controller 1, and the other end has a plurality of guiding pins 462 fixed on it and protruded toward the braked disc 31. An electromagnet 41 is received in the receiving portion 461 and encircling the periphery of the shaft 3. A braking portion 40 having a first braking disc 40a and a second braking disc 40b encircles the periphery of the shaft 3 and is located at both sides of the braked disc 31. the first braking disc 40a is positioned between the electromagnet 41 and the braked disc 31 and is slidable at one side of the guiding pin 462. The second braking disc 40b is fixed at the other side of the guiding pin 462. Several spring elements 43 are mounted between the electromagnet 41 and the first braking disc 40a for producing bias force which forces the first braking disc 40a to abut against the brake lining 311 on one side surface of the braked disc 31, and forces the brake lining 311 on the other side surface of the braked disc 31 to abut against the second braking disc 40b. In this manner, a braking state is formed (as shown in
A brake releasing rods 44 is formed with a U-shape portion 444 at its inner end. The U-shape portion 444 encircles the outside of the braked disc 31. Both ends 444′ of the U-shape portion 444 is pivoted at both sides of the second braking disc 40b to swing, the bottom end of the U extends to the outside of the housing 1′ of the door controller. A projecting portion 445 is formed beneath each end 444′ of the U-shape portion 444, which abuts against the first braking disc 40a.
A second motors 50 provided within a power distributing cabinet 6 has an eccentric shaft 51 and a winding portion 53. A cable 54 is provided with one end connected to the winding portion 53, and the other end connected to the outer end of the brake releasing rod 44 through a plurality of deflecting wheels 5.
The device of the present invention includes a circuit. The circuit includes a capacitor or a battery for storing backup power which is used to temporarily supply electricity to the second motor 50 in case of electricity failure condition to wind the cable 54. A drag force produced by the winding action is thus applied to the outer end of the brake releasing rods 44. The leverage action caused by U-shape portion 444 pushes the first braking disc 40a separating apart from the second braking disc 40b so as to release braking (as shown in