This patent application is a U.S. National Phase of International Patent Application No. PCT/AT2014/050212, filed 19 Sep. 2014, which claims priority to Austrian Patent Application No. A 50604/2013, filed 23 Sep. 2013 and Austrian Patent Application No. A 50607/2013, filed 23 Sep. 2013, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Illustrative embodiments relate to a sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module for a rail vehicle, comprising a door leaf, a support which is oriented longitudinally in the sliding direction of the door leaf and is mounted displaceably in the horizontal direction in particular transversely with respect to the longitudinal extent thereof, and a linear guide with a profiled rail and at least one guide carriage or guide slide mounted displaceably thereon. The profiled rail is fastened on the support or is included by the latter in the form of a profiled region. The door leaf is mounted displaceably with the aid of the at least one guide carriage/guide slide.
Sliding door modules/pivoting sliding door modules of the type mentioned are basically known. At least one door leaf or two door leaves is or are mounted displaceably and, for opening, are first of all deployed with the aid of a deployment mechanism and then displaced, in the case of a pivoting sliding door module, or are only displaced, in the case of a sliding door module. For the sliding movement, use is made, according to the prior art, of, for example, spindle drives, cable pulls and rack drives.
Disclosed embodiments specify an improved sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module. In particular, the weight of a sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module with a rack-and-pinion drive is intended to be reduced without the reliability thereof being impaired as a result.
This is achieved with a sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module of the type mentioned at the beginning, which comprises a rack-and-pinion drive for the door leaf, which rack-and-pinion drive has a rack which is directly or indirectly connected only in the first end region thereof to the at least one guide carriage/guide slide or to the door leaf, and the floating end of which is in engagement with a gearwheel mounted rotatably in the support.
Exemplary embodiments will be discussed in greater detail in the following text together with the figures, in which:
The proposed measures prevent distortion of the rack-and-pinion drive, even if the support, along which the guide carriages/guide slides move, is deformed because of the weight of the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module or other loads. By means of the mounting on one side, the rack is namely decoupled from the support and therefore does not have to follow deformation of the latter. The rack-and-pinion drive therefore also remains smooth-running and is reliable even if a comparatively large deformation of the support is structurally permitted in favor of a reduced weight of the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module.
The solution presented can be used both in the case of a linear rolling guide, in which a guide carriage is mounted on a profiled rail with the aid of rolling bodies, and also in the case of a linear slideway, in which a guide slide slides on the profiled rail. The rack-and-pinion drive can generally be spur-toothed or helically toothed.
It is possible if the first end region of the rack is fixed in position in relation to the at least one guide carriage/guide slide. As a result, the rack can be fastened with simple means, for example can be screwed on.
However, it is also possible if the first end region of the rack is mounted rotatably and/or displaceably in relation to the at least one guide carriage/guide slide.
In this manner, the rack can be decoupled even better from the support, and therefore the latter can be deformed to an even greater extent without the rack-and-pinion drive being impaired. For example, the first end region can be mounted with the aid of a rotatable pin. It is also conceivable for a (cylindrical) pin to be mounted in an elongated hole and thus for a rotatable and displaceable mounting to be realized. If only a displaceable mounting is desired, this can be realized, for example, with the aid of a sliding block guided in a groove or, for example, also by a dovetail connection.
It is possible that, if a first slideway or a rolling body for guiding the rack is arranged opposite the gearwheel. The rack is thereby prevented from lifting off from the gearwheel. For example, the first slideway can be formed by a plastics block (for example composed of Teflon) which is arranged opposite the gearwheel. The rack is then guided displaceably between the block and the gearwheel. The rolling body can be designed in particular as a (ball-mounted) roller.
It is also possible that, if the floating end of the rack is mounted in a second slideway. This prevents the floating end from exciting excessively severe vibrations during the operation of the rail vehicle and causing noise or even damage. For example, the second slideway can be formed by an element on the rack (for example sliding bolt, sliding block, etc.), which is guided displaceably in a groove.
It is also possible if the rack is mounted in a second slideway at a plurality of spaced-apart points. For example, these bearing points can be arranged at locations at which otherwise severe vibrations would form (vibration antinodes). Since the vibration behavior of the rack changes with the position relative to the gearwheel, the vibration behavior of the rack can also be analyzed within the scope of a computer simulation, as a result of which the bearing points can be positioned at a suitable location. In particular, the vibration behavior of the rack in the open position and in the closed position of the sliding door can be used for positioning the bearing points. It has proven particularly advantageous if the rack is mounted displaceably at three bearing points, in particular if the bearing points and the fastening point are spaced apart from each other at the same distance in the first end region.
It is possible if the gearwheel has a hardened surface or a harder material than the rack. The rack-and-pinion drive is particularly quiet as a result. Furthermore, rack and gearwheel wear approximately identically since an individual tooth flank of the rack is significantly more rarely in engagement with the gearwheel than vice versa because of the size ratios. That is to say a tooth flank of the gearwheel is subjected to greater stress than a tooth flank of the rack.
It is possible in this connection if the gearwheel is composed of metal and the rack is composed of plastic, in particular of polyamide PA12G. For example, the rack can be formed by an injection molded part. The use of polyamide PA12G results in particular in a long service life of the rack-and-pinion drive with only little operating noise.
However, it is also possible if the gearwheel is composed of metal and the rack has a metallic support, in particular composed of steel or aluminum, with a plastics toothing, in particular composed of polyamide PA12G, mounted thereon. As a result, at the same time as the abovementioned advantages, high stability of the rack is achieved. In addition, distortion of the rack, as occurs during the hardening process of racks made of steel, is also avoided. The use of polyamide PA12G and/or aluminum also makes it possible to improve the vibration behavior of the racks since the two materials are lightweight and have good damping behavior, and therefore vibrations are excited to only a small extent and rapidly fade away again. In addition, both materials are highly flexible, and therefore they cause only small bearing forces at the gearwheel in the event of deformation.
It is possible if the plastics toothing is fastened onto the metallic support with the aid of a latching connection. The rack can thereby be produced particularly rapidly since the toothing merely has to be clipped onto the support. For example, for this purpose, latching lugs on the plastics toothing are inserted into bores in the metallic support. Of course, other fastening techniques, for example adhesively bonding the plastics toothing onto the metallic support, are also conceivable. It is also possible for the plastics toothing to be connected directly during the production thereof to the metallic support, for example by the plastics toothing being sprayed or cast onto the support.
It is possible if the plastics toothing consists of a plurality of segments. The production of a rack of any length is thereby simplified since, for this purpose, any number of relatively short tooth segments are merely arranged in a row with one another. An injection mold for such a tooth segment can likewise be produced comparatively simply.
It is possible if the segments are connected to one another by a tongue and groove connection or by a dovetail connection. As a result, an undesirable displacement of the segments with respect to one another is avoided.
It is possible if the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module is of double-leaf design, and the gearwheel is in engagement with two racks, each of which is provided for moving one door leaf each, wherein the racks are arranged opposite each other with a mutually facing toothing. The two door leaves can thereby be driven by just one gearwheel. A further advantage of this arrangement is that it can be used with only small adaptations (i.e. by omitting one of the racks) for a single-leaf sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module.
It is possible in the above connection if one rack with a downwardly facing toothing are arranged above the gearwheel and the other rack with an upwardly facing toothing are arranged below the gearwheel. A sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module with a comparatively small installation depth can thereby be realized. However, it is, of course, also conceivable for the axis of the gearwheel to be oriented vertically and, accordingly, for one rack to be arranged in front of the gearwheel and one therebehind. In general, the use of a crown gear or bevel gear instead of a cylindrical gear is also conceivable. In this case, the racks can be arranged above and below the gear, when the gear axis is oriented vertically, and in front of and behind the gear, when the gear axis is oriented horizontally.
Finally, it is also possible if the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module comprises a crossmember which is fastened on the at least one guide carriage/guide slide and in which the door leaf is mounted rotatably and on which the rack is fastened. As a result, the door leaf can be adjusted in the inclination thereof and also used for rail vehicles having inclined sidewalls. Furthermore, the door leaf remains in the predetermined positions thereof even if the support on which the door leaves are mounted is distorted.
It may be stated at the outset that identical parts are provided with the same reference signs or same component designations in the variously described embodiments, wherein the disclosures contained throughout the description can be transferred analogously to identical parts with the same reference signs or identical component designations. The position details selected in the description, such as, for example, at the top, at the bottom, laterally, etc. also relate to the immediately described and illustrated Fig. and, in the event of a change in position, can be transferred analogously to the new position. Furthermore, individual features or combinations of features from the various exemplary embodiments shown and described may constitute solutions which are independent, inventive or are according to the disclosed embodiments per se.
In this example, the profiled rails 41, 42 are fastened on the support 3. Alternatively to a separate profiled rail 41, 42, the support 3 could also have a profiled region on which the guide carriage or guide slide 51 . . . 54 is mounted.
Furthermore, the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1 has two rack-and-pinion drives for the door leaves 21, 22. The rack-and-pinion drives have a rack 71, 72 which is directly or indirectly connected only in the first end region thereof to one guide carriage/guide slide 51 . . . 54 each or to one door leaf 21, 22 each. Specifically, in the example shown, a rack 71 and 72 is fastened via one connecting plate 81, 82 each to one crossmember 61, 62 each. In specific terms, in this example, the first end region of each rack 71, 72 is therefore fixed in position in relation to one guide carriage/guide slide each. However, provision could also be made for the first end region of each rack 71, 72 to be mounted rotatably in relation to one guide carriage/guide slide 51 . . . 54 each (also see
Specifically, the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1 illustrated is therefore of double-leaf design in this example, and the gearwheel 9 is in engagement with two racks 71, 72, each of which is provided for moving one door leaf 21, 22 each, and wherein the racks 71, 72 are arranged opposite each other with a mutually facing toothing. The rack 71, here with a downwardly facing toothing, is arranged above the gearwheel 9 and the rack 72 with an upwardly facing toothing is arranged below the gearwheel 9. It is thereby possible to drive the two door leaves 21, 22 with just one gearwheel 9. If the latter rotates in the clockwise direction, the sliding door is opened, and if the gearwheel rotates counterclockwise, the sliding door is closed. Another advantage of this arrangement is that it can be used with only small adaptations for a single-leaf sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module.
In general, the use of a crown gear or bevel gear instead of the cylindrical gear 9 illustrated in
In general, it is advantageous if the gearwheel 9 has a harder surface than the racks 71, 72. The noise emission of the rack-and-pinion drive can thereby be kept low. For example, the gearwheel 9 can be composed of metal and the racks 71, 72 can be composed of plastic. It is of particular advantage in this connection if the rack 70, as illustrated in
Specifically, the plastics toothing 11 is mounted on the metallic support 10 with the aid of latching lugs 12 which are inserted into bores 13 in the support 10. Of course, however, it would also be conceivable to screw or to rivet the plastics toothing 11 onto the support 10. In the latter case, it would be conceivable, for example, to provide cylindrical pins instead of the latching lugs 12, the ends of which pins are deformed, for example, by heating and/or pressure.
In this example, the plastics toothing 11 consists of a plurality of segments, but this does not absolutely have to be the case. Furthermore, the segments are connected to one another by an optional tongue and groove connection in order to avoid displacement of the segments in relation to one another. Alternatively, the segments could also be connected by a dovetail connection or else could simply butt against one another.
In a further embodiment, the plastics toothing 11 is adhesively bonded (butted) onto the support 10. It is also possible for the plastics toothing 11 to be sprayed or cast onto the support 10.
In order further to improve the guidance of the rack 71, the floating end thereof can be mounted in a second slideway which, in this example, comprises a groove 16 and a bolt 17 which is mounted displaceably therein and is connected to the rack 71. The groove 16 is, for example, incorporated in the support 3, but may, for example, also be formed by a rail mounted on the support 3, in particular by a U profile.
For example, the sliding blocks 17 can be arranged at locations at which otherwise strong vibrations would form (vibration antinodes). Since the vibration behavior of the rack 71 changes with the position relative to the gearwheel 9, the vibration behavior of the rack 71 can be analyzed within the scope of a computer simulation, as a result of which the sliding blocks 17 can be positioned at a suitable location. In a simplified manner, it is also possible merely for the vibration behavior of the rack 71 in the open position and in the closed position of the sliding door to be used for positioning the sliding blocks 17. It is advantageous in particular if three sliding blocks 17 (or else other guides, such as, for example, sliding bolts) are each distributed at a distance of approximately ⅓ from the floating end beginning on the rack 71, wherein L indicates the length of the rack 71. Given a suitable positioning of the sliding blocks 17, it is possible, under some circumstances, to omit a first slideway 14 because of the only slight lifting off of the rack 71 from the gearwheel 9, as is illustrated in
It would also be conceivable to design the bearing 18 only as a sliding bearing, that is to say to permit only a displacement movement of the rack 71 in relation to the crossmember 61, but not a rotational movement. This can be realized structurally, for example, by, instead of a bolt, a pin with a rectangular cross section being mounted displaceably (but non-rotatably) in the elongated hole. The use of a different linear guide, for example a dovetail guide, is likewise also conceivable.
In
In the case of the embodiments in the previous paragraph, a sliding bolt/sliding block 17, which is guided in a groove 16, can be provided, for example, at the upper end of the rotary and/or sliding bearing 18. The sliding bolt/sliding block 17 then permits the displacement of the rack 71 in the horizontal direction, and the rotary and/or sliding bearing 18 permits a displacement of same in the vertical direction and optionally also the rotation thereof. However, it would also be conceivable simply to design the groove 16 in
In order to avoid the rack 71 wobbling around freely, damping elements (for example composed of an elastomer) can also be used. For example, a groove 17 (which is too wide per se) can be lined with an elastomer, and therefore, although a vertical movement of the rack 71 is permitted, there is nevertheless a certain resistance thereto. For this purpose, for example, the inside of the elongated hole of the rotary and sliding bearing 18 can also be lined with a damping material.
In general, a rack 71, 72 composed of polyamide PA12G, or a composite rack 71, 72 (see
Further possible combinations of materials can be gathered from the tables below:
Key: C45 (steel with a 0.45% portion of carbon), yellow chromating (application of a yellow chromium coating), Duralloy (thin chromium coating), CDC (cathodic dip coating), carbonitriding (special hardening process), hard-anodizing (application of particularly resistant oxide layers), POM (polyoxymethylene), PE (polyethylene), PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), PAx (polyimide), MoS2 (molybdenumdisulfide), PPA (polyphthalamide). The plastics mentioned may be alternated with filling material, in particular with fibers. Specifically, carbon fibers (CF), aramid fibers (AF) and glass fibers (GF) are suitable for this purpose. The composite materials PA66+CF and PA66+AF have proven particularly advantageous in this connection.
In the case of the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1 illustrated in
The exemplary embodiments show possible variant embodiments of a sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1 according to the disclosed embodiments, wherein it may be mentioned at this juncture that the disclosed embodiments is not restricted to the specifically illustrated variant embodiments thereof; rather, various combinations of the individual variant embodiments are also possible, and this variation option, on account of the teaching relating to the technical practice provided by the present disclosed embodiments, falls within the area of expertise of a person skilled in this technical art. The scope of protection therefore covers all conceivable variant embodiments which are made possible by combining individual details of the variant embodiment which has been illustrated and described.
In particular, it is stated that a sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1 may in reality also comprise more or fewer constituent parts than illustrated.
As a matter of form, it may be pointed out in conclusion that, to give a better understanding of the construction of the sliding door module/pivoting sliding door module 1, the latter, or the constituent parts thereof, in some cases have not been illustrated to scale and/or have been illustrated on an enlarged and/or reduced scale.
The object on which the independent solutions of the disclosed embodiments are based can be gathered from the description.
EP 2 287 428 A2 discloses, for example, a pivoting sliding door module with a rack-and-pinion drive, in which the rack is fastened rigidly on a support. The relatively exacting tolerances of a rack-and-pinion drive necessitate a comparatively stiff substructure. That is to say in particular the support on which the racks are mounted may be deformed as little as possible, in order to avoid jamming of the gearing. The constructions used according to the prior art are therefore designed to be comparatively rigid and are accordingly heavy, which also has a negative effect on the overall weight of the rail vehicle. In particular in urban traffic, in which the rail vehicles are accelerated and braked again at short intervals, such a supporting construction reduces the energy efficiency of the rail vehicle.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
A 50604/2013 | Sep 2013 | AT | national |
A 50607/2013 | Sep 2013 | AT | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/AT2014/050212 | 9/19/2014 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2015/039159 | 3/26/2015 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3854418 | Bertin | Dec 1974 | A |
5351441 | Hormann | Oct 1994 | A |
5483769 | Zweili | Jan 1996 | A |
6119402 | Wisner | Sep 2000 | A |
7971391 | Harie | Jul 2011 | B2 |
8978301 | Ueda | Mar 2015 | B2 |
20040244295 | Derham | Dec 2004 | A1 |
20100188177 | Inage | Jul 2010 | A1 |
20140366449 | Masuda | Dec 2014 | A1 |
20160215554 | Uno | Jul 2016 | A1 |
20160229424 | Takayama | Aug 2016 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
101535584 | Sep 2009 | CN |
101787827 | Jul 2010 | CN |
2309949 | Sep 1973 | DE |
3123554 | Dec 1982 | DE |
G 9110995.7 | Feb 1993 | DE |
202009010695 | Jan 2011 | DE |
0558973 | Sep 1993 | EP |
1516984 | Mar 2005 | EP |
2287428 | Feb 2011 | EP |
2133309 | Nov 1972 | FR |
H0227509 | Jun 1990 | JP |
H0941839 | Feb 1997 | JP |
2006316524 | Nov 2006 | JP |
2010111259 | May 2010 | JP |
9012184 | Oct 1990 | WO |
2008056620 | May 2008 | WO |
WO 2008056620 | May 2008 | WO |
Entry |
---|
Austrian examination report dated Mar. 18, 2015. |
Search report for International Patent Application No. PCT/AT2014/050212; dated Feb. 18, 2016. |
Japanese Office Action corresponding to 2016-516584, dated May 15, 2017. |
Chinese Office Action corresponding to 201480058769.7, dated May 16, 2017. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20160237731 A1 | Aug 2016 | US |