Patent Application
20130219665
1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates generally to door checks and stops. More specifically, embodiments of this disclosure relate to systems and methods for limiting opening movement of a hinged door.
2. Description of Background
It is often desired to limit the opening movement of a hinged closure, and more particularly a hinged door. For example, limiting the swinging movement of a hinged door in the opening direction may be desirable to prevent the door from hitting a wall or furniture items located behind the door. While several types of door checks and stops have been employed, such known door checks and stops often require the installation of specialized hinges, thereby increasing cost and installation effort. Furthermore, door checks and stops often include moving parts or visible structures that are not aesthetically pleasing. In certain types of settings, such as homes or hotels, the use of bulky parts or structures visibly protruding from doors may be undesirable.
Aspects and embodiments are directed to providing check straps that do not include bulky parts or protruding structures. The check strap can be easily installed on a standard hinge which is typically used for a swinging door, to limit the opening movement of the door. Aspects of the disclosure are also directed to providing check strap assemblies having the same benefits, and to providing convenient methods of limiting the opening movement of a hinged door.
An aspect of the disclosure is directed to a hinge assembly for a door assembly including a door and a door jamb. The hinge assembly comprises a hinge having a first plate attached to the door and a second plate attached to the door jamb and pivotally connected to the first plate. In a closed position of the door, there is a space between the first plate and the second plate. The hinge assembly further comprises a check strap configured to limit opening movement of the door. The check strap includes a first end portion configured to be attached to the first plate, a second end portion configured to be attached to the second plate, and a strip secured to the first end portion and to the second end portion. In some embodiments, the strip is meshed to permit folding. The strip has a length in a fully extended state. The length may be selected to limit opening movement of the door to a predetermined angle of opening. In one example, the length may be selected to limit opening of the door to an angle of approximately 90 degrees. In some embodiments, the hinge assembly may further include at least two fasteners to secure the first end portion of the check strap and the first plate to the door and the second end portion of the check strap and the second plate to the door jamb. In some embodiments, at least one fastener has a length selected such that the fastener extends at least partially through a framing stud disposed behind the door jamb.
In some embodiments, the strip has a thickness in a folded state, the thickness being less than the space between the first plate and the second plate of the hinge. The thickness may be selected to permit closing the door and to conceal the strip between the first plate and the second plate in the closed position of the door. In some embodiments, the strip may be concealed between the door and the door jamb. In some embodiment, each of the first end portion, the second end portion and the strip is made of a metal. In other embodiments, each of the first end portion, the second end portion and the strip may be made of any suitable material.
In embodiments of the hinge assembly, the first end portion may include a first opening and the second end portion may include a second opening. The first opening may be circular and may have a diameter sized to prevent a translational movement of the first end portion relative to the first plate. Furthermore, the second opening may be circular and have a diameter sized to prevent a translational movement of the second end portion relative to the second plate. The first end portion and the second end portion may be attached to the first plate and the second plate at a same height along a length of the first plate and along a length of the second plate.
Another aspect of the disclosure is directed to a method of limiting opening movement of a door of the type swinging around a hinge. The hinge has a first plate attached to the door and a second plate attached to a door jamb. In some embodiments, the method comprises providing a check strap having a first end portion, a second end portion and a flexible strip disposed between the first end portion and the second end portion, and selecting a length of the strip in a fully extended state so as to limit opening movement of the door. In one example, the length may be selected to limit opening the door to an angle of approximately 90 degrees. The method may further comprise attaching the first end portion to the first plate of the hinge and attaching the second end portion to the second plate of the hinge. In one example, the check strap may be made of metal. In some embodiments, the method may further comprise configuring the strip to be meshed to permit folding the strip and selecting a thickness of the strip in a folded state to be less than a space between the first plate and the second plate in a closed position of the door. The method may include extending the strip to the length to limit opening movement of the door. The method may further include concealing the strip in the folded state between the first plate and the second plate in the closed position of the door.
In some embodiments, the method may include selecting a first maximum thickness of the first end portion above the first plate to be less than the space between the first plate and the second plate in the closed position of the door, and selecting a second maximum thickness of the second end portion above the second plate to be less than the space between the first plate and the second plate in the closed position of the door, to allow concealing each of the first end portion and the second end portion between the first plate and the second plate in the closed position of the door.
In some embodiments, the method may include attaching the first end portion of the check strap to the door using a first screw, and attaching the second end portion of the check strap to the door jamb using a second screw. Attaching the second end portion of the check strap using the second screw may further include selecting a length of the second screw such that the second screw extends at least partially through a framing stud disposed behind the door jamb. The first end portion and the second end portion of the check strap may be attached to the first plate and the second plate of the hinge respectively at a same height.
Still other aspects, embodiments, and advantages of these exemplary aspects and embodiments are discussed in detail below. Embodiments disclosed herein may be combined with other embodiments in any manner consistent with at least one of the principles disclosed herein, and references to “an embodiment,” “some embodiments,” “an alternate embodiment,” “various embodiments,” “one embodiment” or the like are not necessarily mutually exclusive and are intended to indicate that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described may be included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of such terms herein are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.
Various aspects of at least one embodiment are discussed below with reference to the accompanying figures, which are not intended to be drawn to scale. The figures are included to provide illustration and a further understanding of the various aspects and embodiments, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, but are not intended as a definition of the limits of the disclosure. In the figures, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures is represented by a like numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component may be labeled in every figure. In the figures:
It is to be appreciated that embodiments of the methods and apparatuses discussed herein are not limited in application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The methods and apparatuses are capable of implementation in other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Examples of specific implementations are provided herein for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be limiting. In particular, acts, elements and features discussed in connection with any one or more embodiments are not intended to be excluded from a similar role in any other embodiment.
Also, the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. Any references to embodiments or elements or acts of the systems and methods herein referred to in the singular may also embrace embodiments including a plurality of these elements, and any references in plural to any embodiment or element or act herein may also embrace embodiments including only a single element. The use herein of “including,” “comprising,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. References to “or” may be construed as inclusive so that any terms described using “or” may indicate any of a single, more than one, and all of the described terms. Any references to front and back, left and right, top and bottom, upper and lower, and vertical and horizontal are intended for convenience of description, not to limit the present systems and methods or their components to any one positional or spatial orientation.
Turning now to the drawings, and more particularly to
The door assembly 37 includes a hinge generally indicated at 50. The hinge 50 includes a first plate 52 attached to the door 38 and a second plate 54 attached to the door jamb 40. The hinge 50 may be a standard hinge, and the plates 52 and 54 may be attached to the door 38 and the door jamb 40, respectively, by standard screws, such as wood screws 34 and 36 shown in
In
In a fully extended state as shown in
Aspects of the disclosure are also directed to methods of limiting opening movement of the door 38. In one example, the method includes providing a check strap 10 having a first end portion 12, a second end portion 14 and a strip 16 disposed between the first end portion and the second end portion as described herein; configuring the strip 16 to be fabricated from a meshed material to permit folding the strip while providing structural reinforcement; selecting a length of the strip 16 in a fully extended state so as to limit opening movement of the door 38; and selecting a thickness of a folded state of the strip 16 to be less than a distance between the first plate 52 and the second plate 54 in a closed position of the door 38. The method further includes attaching the first end portion 12 to the first plate 52 of the hinge 50 and attaching the second end portion 14 to the second plate 54 of the hinge; extending the strip 16 to the length to limit opening movement of the door 38, and concealing the strip between the first plate 52 and the second plate 54 in the closed position of the door. The method may include concealing the strip between the door 38 and the door jamb 40 in the closed position of the door.
In one embodiment, the method may include removing screws 34, 36 (for example, the offset middle screws associated with hinge 50), and securing the check strap 10 with the screws. In a particular embodiment, screw 34 may be longer than screw 36 so that the screw 34 reaches and bites into stud 46.
Having described above several aspects of at least one embodiment, it is to be appreciated various alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be part of this disclosure and are intended to be within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by way of example only, and the scope of the disclosure should be determined from proper construction of the appended claims, and their equivalents.
