Patent Application
20060065374
This invention relates to overhead doors and, more particularly, to overhead sectional door panels, the hinge assemblies for connecting the door panels and the associated method of manufacturing such systems.
There are numerous designs of overhead or retractable door assemblies which are commonly used for garage doors, truck doors, warehouse doors or the like. Typically, an overhead door of this type is convertible between an open, overhead or generally horizontal position and a closed generally vertically oriented position in which the door closes an opening in the building or the like. The overhead door is typically movable along a track assembly mounted proximate the opening and the track assembly commonly includes a generally vertical track section, a generally horizontal track section and a curved transition track section joining the horizontal and vertical sections together.
Retractable overhead doors of this type are conventionally constructed of a number of vertically arranged, horizontally oriented panels which can fold along the horizontal divisions between the panels to enable the door to pass along the curved transition section of the track when being opened or closed. The panels can be pivotally coupled together with hinges on the interior surface or back face of the door panels. Commonly, gaps appear between the adjacent panels while the panels are traveling toward and/or through the curved transition section of the track. Additionally, the hinges articulate during pivotal movement of the panels and gaps or spaces relative to the hinge assembly change, close and/or constrict. Foreign objects could be inserted into these gaps by accident or due to improper handling of the door which could result in damage to the door and/or the obstructing object.
Recently, many different overhead door, panel and hinge designs have been suggested which are aimed at addressing this situation. These types of door designs often include complicated structures which cover the gaps between the articulating panels or complicated panel and hinge designs to minimize or inhibit the insertion of a probe or other foreign object between the adjacent articulating panels. One beneficial design to minimize the gaps between adjacent panels is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,817, assigned to the assignee of this invention and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Nevertheless, while the invention in the above-identified patent offers significant advantages and benefits, overhead door manufacturers commonly offer a variety of panel designs spanning a range of commercial and residential applications and design objectives. The advantages provided by the inventions shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,817 should be made available for other door panel configurations, such as fully insulated door panels having front and back skins and insulation sandwiched there between. Preferably, these objectives should be attained without sacrificing the integrity of the panel and the optimum operation and performance of the overhead door system.
Moreover, the secure and efficient assembly of such door systems and the installation of the hinges on the door panels continues to be an important objective for designers, manufacturers and installers alike.
Therefore, there is a need in the industry for an improved overhead door and associated panels and hinge assemblies which minimizes the opportunity for the insertion of foreign objects and the resulting damage relative to the hinge assemblies and associated components for a wider range of door panel designs while maximizing the efficient and reliable manufacture, assembly and installation of such systems.
The various embodiments of this invention offer these and other advantages over known overhead door, panel and hinge designs. In one embodiment, this invention includes a number of horizontally oriented panels vertically stacked one upon the other in edge-to-edge relationship.
The panels are coupled to a track assembly mounted proximate the garage, warehouse, truck or other opening. The track assembly includes a generally vertical section, a generally horizontal section and a curved transition section joining the horizontal and vertical sections together. Rollers are mounted on the panels and coupled to the track assembly to guide the door between a closed generally vertical position with the upper and lower edges of the adjacent panels mated together and an open generally horizontal position extending generally parallel to the ceiling of the garage or the like.
One aspect of this invention includes a hinge assembly designed to pivotally couple adjacent overhead door panels. Each door panel includes a front metal skin presenting an exterior front face and a back metal skin presenting an interior back face. The panels in one embodiment are filled with a foam or other insulating material. The panels each have mating upper and lower edges that in one embodiment have generally convex and concave profiles to mate with each other during the operation of the door. One example of the profile of the mating upper and lower edges is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,817, assigned to the assignee of this invention and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The door panels are pivotally connected together by a series of hinges along the adjacent edges. The hinge assembly according to one embodiment of this invention includes an upper hinge leaf bolted, screwed or otherwise secured along its base plate to the back skin or back face of an upper panel. The upper hinge leaf includes a pair of spaced generally parallel flanges or hinge arms which project rearwardly and perpendicularly away from the base plate to span the juncture between the upper and lower panels. Each hinge arm projects toward the back face of the lower panel. Each of the hinge arms includes a hinge pin hole near a terminal end thereof.
The hinge assembly also includes a lower hinge leaf that has a generally U-shaped profile with a pair of flanges or hinge legs projecting generally parallel to each other and perpendicular to its mounting base. The lower hinge leaf is bolted, screwed or otherwise mounted to the lower panel. A backer plate is mounted to the interior face of the back skin of the lower panel and screws or bolts project through the mounting base of the lower hinge leaf, the skin and into the backer plate. Each hinge leg on the lower hinge leaf includes a hinge pin hole near a terminal end thereof for alignment With the hinge pin holes in the hinge arms of the upper leaf. The lower hinge leaf has a tongue projecting from an upper edge of the mounting base. The tongue is formed into a hook-shaped arcuate projection. This tongue does not loop around or surround the pin and aids in the alignment, support and positioning of a hinge pin inserted through the aligned hinge pin holes in the flanges of the upper and lower hinge leaves.
A rectangular-shaped depression or recessed pocket is provided in the back skin of the lower panel for each hinge assembly. The pocket provides a recess for the terminal ends of the hinge arms and hinge legs of the upper and lower hinge leaves. In one embodiment of the hinge assembly, while the hinge legs/arms extend into pocket in the lower panel, the hinge pin and associated pivot axis is generally aligned with the plane of the mounting base and base plate of the lower and upper hinge leaves when the door is in the closed generally vertical position. However, the hinge pin and associated pivot axis may be adjusted so that it is at least partially inserted into the pocket in the back face of the panel.
The pocket includes a central elongate channel, a pair of wells or depressions all of which combine to form a generally H-shaped recess for each hinge assembly. One aspect of the pocket in the back skin of the lower panel is that the shape or contour of the wells of the pocket provides a location or alignment benefit to the positioning of the lower hinge leaf. Specifically, the profile or shape of each hinge leg on the lower hinge leaf corresponds generally to the shape and size of the associated well in the pocket so that when the lower hinge leaf is initially positioned on the back skin of the lower panel, the position of the hinge leaf, particularly relative to the juncture between the adjacent panels, is initially established by the contours of the flanges and associated wells of the pocket. In other words, the vertical position of the lower hinge leaf is initially established by the flanges being inserted into the wells.
The lower hinge leaf is then bolted or screwed to the lower panel as previously described.
Another aspect of this invention is the backer plate. Specifically, when the pocket and associated wells and channel are formed in the back skin material, the backer plate is likewise positioned in face-to-face relationship to the back or interior face of the back skin. When the pocket is formed in the back skin and particularly the channel portion of the pocket, the backer plate is likewise formed to include a channel, recess or depression. The simultaneous forming of the depressions or channels in the back skin and the backer plate provides for more efficient manufacturing of the components of this invention.
As a result, the overhead sectional door, hinge and associated methods of manufacturing, assembling and installing the door provides the benefits of efficiency and reliability in a pinch-resistant sandwich door panel construction.
The objectives and features of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
Referring to
The adjacent panels 14 are pivotally connected together by a number of hinge assemblies 20. The hinges 20 proximate the lateral side ends of each panel 14 include a roller assembly 12 (
As shown in
Referring to
Referring particularly to
The hinge assembly 20, according to a presently preferred embodiment of this invention, includes a first hinge leaf 40 which is attached to the back skin 36 proximate the lower edge 18 of an upper panel 14. The hinge leaf 40 includes a pair of spaced and parallel generally L-shaped arms 42 between which a base plate 44 is positioned. The hinge leaf 40 is attached to the superjacent panel 14 by bolts, screws or other mechanical fasteners 32 through holes 46 in the base plate 44.
Each hinge 20 also includes a second hinge leaf 50 secured by mechanical fasteners such as screws or bolts 32 to the lower subjacent panel 14. The second hinge leaf 50 has a generally U-shaped cross-sectional configuration with a central mounting base 52 having a pair of holes 54 through which the fasteners 32 project for insertion into and through the back skin 36 of the panel 14. Preferably, a backer plate 56 is positioned on the interior face of the back skin 36 and aligned with the hinge 20 for insertion of the fasteners 32 through the back 36 skin and to the backer plate 56 to provide secure and stable mounting of the hinge assembly 20 to the panel 14.
The lower hinge leaf 50 includes a pair of flanges or hinge legs 58 projecting generally perpendicularly from each lateral side edge of the mounting base 52. A terminal portion of each hinge leg 58 includes a hole 60 which is adapted to be aligned with a hole 62 in the hinge arm 42 of the upper hinge leaf 40 for a hinge pin 64 to be inserted through the aligned holes and pivotally couple the upper and lower hinge leaves 40, 50. Each hinge leg terminal portion as show most clearly in
A tongue 72 projects from the upper edge 74 of the mounting base 52 of the hinge leaf 50 toward the juncture 76 between the edges 16,18 of the adjacent panels 14. The tongue 72 has a generally arcuate-shaped profile along the terminal portion 78 thereof which is adapted to at least partially wrap around the hinge pin 64 when installed with the upper and lower hinged leaves 40, 50. As shown in
As can be readily seen in
Another aspect to the overhead sectional door hinge and associated method according to this invention is a recessed pocket 80 formed in the back skin 36 of each door panel 14 for each hinge assembly 20. The recessed pocket 80 provides for positioning the hinge pin 48 and pivot axis of the hinge 20 inwardly from the back faces of the panels 14 without interrupting the structural integrity of the back skin 36.
In one embodiment, the recessed pocket 80 is formed integrally from the material of the back skin 36 and includes a pair of spaced wells 82 separated by a depressed channel 84 portion. Each of the wells 82 are generally rectangular-shaped and include upper and lower sloped end walls 86, 88 positioned on the upper and lower edges of a well bottom wall 90 as shown in
The recessed pocket 80 is spaced from the juncture 76 between the adjacent panels 14 such that a header portion 92 of the back skin 36 is located between the juncture 76 and the recessed pocket 80 to provide for proper positioning of the hinge pin 64 and associated pivot axis of the hinge 20 to compliment the shape and configuration of the upper and lower edges 16, 18 of the panels and minimize the exposed spacing between the panel edges 16, 18 during articulation of the overhead door 10 to and between the closed and open configurations.
Preferably, the backer plate 56 juxtaposed to the interior surface of the back skin 36 likewise includes a depressed furrow 94 separating an upper and lower backer plate portions from one another. The lower portion 98 of the backer plate 56 includes a pair of holes 100 sized and aligned with the holes 54 in the mounting base 52 of the lower hinge leaf 50 and holes 112 in the back skin 36 to receive and mount the fasteners 32. Preferably, the furrow 94 of the backer plate 56 is sized and configured to be compatible with the contour of the recessed pocket 80 in the back skin 36. In the embodiment shown in
Another aspect of this invention is the simultaneous forming of the furrow 94 and recessed pocket 80 during the manufacture of the door panel 14 according to this invention. As shown in
It should be readily appreciated that although certain embodiments and configurations of the invention are shown and described herein, the invention is not so limited. From the above disclosure of the general principles of the present invention and the preceding detailed description of at least one preferred embodiment, those skilled in the art will readily comprehend the various modifications to which this invention is susceptible. Therefore, we desire to be limited only by the scope of the following claims and equivalents thereof.
