Patent Application
20170306692
The present utility model relates to the field of door accessories, particularly to a self-lifting sealing apparatus mounted at the bottom of the door.
Exterior doors often include seals to provide a substantially air tight and weatherproof barrier when the door is closed. There are generally two types of sealing apparatus, fixed and lifting, mounted at the bottom of a door. The fixed sealing strip maintains contact with the ground when opening/closing the door, and thus increases the resistance for the door, and affects how well the door closer operates. This fixed sealing strip is easily damaged. The lifting sealing apparatus is more complex. When the door opens, a sealing strip lifts off the threshold; when the door is closed to a predetermined position, the sealing strip descends to the threshold for sealing engagement, with a lifting seal, the resistance for opening/closing the door is decreased, thus facilitating the operation of the door closer.
The lifting type sealing apparatus is usually equipped with a press mechanism which is mounted adjacent to the door hinge. When the door is closed, the door frame actuates the press mechanism, whereby a transmission mechanism is driven to descend the sealing strip. This lifting type sealing apparatus lifts and descends easily. However, there still has a drawback that the sealing strip may contact the ground even if the door has not yet been closed completely, thus causing the sealing strip to drag on the ground along a distance, and preventing the door from closing completely, so that the latch bolt of the door lock cannot be inserted in the door frame buckle entirely.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a self-lifting sealing apparatus to solve the above-described problems, so that the sealing strip descends when the door is closed, and which eliminates or minimizes the possibility of the sealing strip dragging on the ground.
Accordingly, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved self-lifting sealing apparatus for the bottom edge of a door.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a self-lifting door weather stripping seal which overcomes the problems of the prior art.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a door seal which automatically lowers when the door is closed and automatically lifts when the door is opened.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a method of sealing a gap between the lower edge of a door and a door frame threshold wherein the seal moves between a raised position when the door is opened and a lowered position when the door is closed.
Yet another objective of the present invention is the provision of an automatic door seal having an actuation mechanism opposite the door hinge.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a self-lifting sealing apparatus for a door which is magnetically actuated.
A further objective of the present invention is a self-lifting door seal which is economical to manufacture, automatic in operation, and durable in use.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.
The self-lifting sealing apparatus of the present invention comprises in inverted U-shaped holder fixed in a channel in the bottom edge of the door. The holder has a downwardly facing opening, with a transmission assembly mounted within the holder to transform horizontal movement into vertical movement. The transmission assembly includes a rod and a batten bar slidably mounted in the holder for horizontal movement. A sealing strip is mounted to the batten bar by a plurality of link arms which allow vertical movement of the sealing strip relative to the holder.
The self-lifting sealing apparatus further comprises a first magnet mounted on the end of the batten bar and a second magnet mounted in the door frame opposite the first magnet when the door is closed. A first compression spring on the batten bar exerts a reset force in the direction opposite the attractive magnetic forces of the first and second magnets, which have opposite magnetic polarity.
The magnetic force between the first and second magnets when the door is closed causes the batten bar to slide toward the door frame. When the door is opened, the first spring slides the batten bar in the opposite direction towards the door hinge.
In an alternative embodiment, the first and second magnets may have the same magnetic polarity, to cause the rod bar to slide horizontally towards the door hinge, with the first spring urging the rod bar in the opposite direction towards the door frame when the door is the opened.
A second linear spring extends between the transmission rod and the batten bar to exert a force on the batten bar to lift the batten bar as the door begins to open and the magnets are not aligned.
In the preferred embodiment, the magnets are mounted on the door and door frame opposite the door hinges. In an alternative embodiment, the magnets are mounted on the hinge side of the door and door frame.
In operation, movement of the transmission rod and batten bar with the sealing strip is controlled by the magnetic force of the magnets. The magnetic force actuates horizontal movement of the transmission rod and vertical movement of the batten bar and seal strip only when the door is closed. When the door is opened, the magnetic force ceases, such that the forces of the first and second springs retract the transmission rod and raise the batten bar and seal strip.
The self-lifting sealing apparatus of the present invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 10 in drawings. The sealing apparatus 10 is intended for use on the bottom edge of a door 12 mounted by hinges in a door frame 14 for opening and closing movement. The door entryway has a threshold 15 which the sealing apparatus engages when the door 12 is closed to provide a substantially airtight and watertight weather strip seal.
The self-sealing apparatus 10 includes an inverted U-shaped holder or frame 16 mounted in a channel in the bottom edge of the door 12. The frame 16 includes spaced apart legs 18 each having an outwardly turned flange 20 which allows the frame 16 to be screwed or otherwise secured to the bottom edge of the door 12. The legs 18 are spaced apart so as to define a gap or opening 22 therebetween.
A transmission assembly is mounted in the holder or frame 16 and transmits horizontal movement to vertical movement. More particularly, the transmission assembly includes a rod 24 slidably mounted between the legs 18 of the holder 16 for sliding horizontal movement. While the rod 24 can be mounted to the holder 16 in any convenient manner, in the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings, the plurality of blocks 26, 28, 30, each being U-shaped, are welded or fixed to the legs 18 of the holder 16, so as to slidably support the rod 24.
The transmission assembly also includes a batten bar 32 pivotally mounted to the transmission rod 24 by two or move swing arms 34. Each swing arm 34 has an upper end pivotly coupled to the transmission rod 24 by a pin 36, and a lower end pivotally coupled to the batten bar 32 by a pin 38. A seal strip 40 is mounted on and extends downwardly from the batten bar 32. The seal strip 40 may take various forms, and may be mounted to the batten bar 32 in any convenient manner.
A first magnet 42 is fixed in a holder 44. The neck of the holder 44 is hollow and has internal threads for threaded coupling onto the threaded end 46 of the transmission rod 24, as seen in
A second magnet 48 is mounted in the door frame 14 in alignment with the first magnet 42, shown in
A first reset spring 50 is mounted on the transmission rod 24. One end of the spring 50 engages the block 26, while the opposite end of the spring 50 engages a projection 52 of the rod 24, as shown in
A second reset spring 54 has one end connected to the block 28 and the opposite end attached to the batten bar 32 by a pin 56, as seen in
When the door 12 moves from the closed position to the open position, the attractive magnetic force between the magnets 42, 48 ceases such that the spring 50 retracts the transmission rod 24 and the spring 54 lifts the batten bar 32, and seal strip 40 moves from the position shown in
In the preferred embodiment, the magnets 42, 48 are mounted opposite the door hinges. Alternatively, the magnets 42, 48 can be mounted on the hinge side of the door 12 and door frame 14.
In the preferred embodiment, the magnets 42, 48 have opposite polarity, such that the transmission rod 24 is pulled toward the door frame 14 as the door 12 closes. Alternatively, the magnets 42, 48 can have the same polarity, such that the transmission rod 24 is pushed horizontally away from the door frame 14 when the door 12 is closed, so as lower the batten bar 32 and the seal strip 40. In both instances, the magnetic force between the magnets 42, 48 is greater that the force of the reset springs 50, 54.
As a further alternative, the spring 54 can be eliminated, in which case stoppers are provided to preclude horizontal movement of the batten bar 32.
