The present invention generally relates to sliding doors systems and more particularly to systems for moving sliding doors.
Sliding doors are commonly used in closets and compartments and make an easy and esthetic solution for opening and closing of closet doors. Sliding doors are usually connected to rollers or sliding members that can slide along upper and lower tracks installed at the closet lower and upper frame.
Since each track length is confined to the width of the closet, and since more than one sliding door is required for covering the open side of the closet, each doors usually slides along a different upper track and a different lower track where of the lower tracks and the upper tracks are located at a predefined distance from one another allowing the doors to slide through one another when opening or closing a section of the closet. This means that each door is installed at a different plane where the planes of the doors are parallel.
To allow the sliding doors to be installed at the same plane when the closet is closed, at least one of the doors must be movable outwardly when opening the door to allow sliding of one of the doors along the track. Otherwise, the doors will block one another from sliding along the tracks.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a system of moving a sliding door of a closet. The system may comprise at least two ejection assemblies and at least one connecting mechanism, which connects one assembly to the other, where the ejection assemblies enable moving of the door.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, each ejection assembly may comprise a rail and a slidable member configured to slide along the rail, where the rail is operatively connected to the door. The connecting mechanism may allow applying a simultaneous force upon the door at different locations of the door, allowing synchronizing the mechanical moving of all ejection assemblies by connecting them to one another.
The rail in each assembly engages with the frame of the closet, where the assembly is connected to the door. This configuration allows moving the door outwardly from the closet frame by sliding the slidable member towards the distal end of the door, and retrieving the door inwardly by sliding the slidable member towards a proximal end of the door. Since the rails engage with the closet frame, the entire door is moved upon movement of the slidable members of the assemblies in relation to their rails. Each of the ejection assemblies enables simultaneously moving the door outwardly and inwardly from a plane that is substantially parallel to the door thereby enabling synchronized moving at a plurality of locations of the door.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, the connecting mechanism may include a set of connectors such as rods operatively associated with the door handle thereby enabling simultaneously operating all ejection assemblies by a single rotation of the handle.
Alternatively, the connecting mechanism may include a hydraulic or pneumatic system including a pump and a tube set, where each of the ejection assemblies includes a piston connected to the pump. The piston may be connected to the slidable member thereby enabling moving the piston in and out to allow sliding the slidable member along rail to move the door forwardly or inwardly.
The subject matter regarded as the invention will become more clearly understood in light of the ensuing description of embodiments herein, given by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the present invention only, with reference to the accompanying drawings (Figures, or simply “FIGS.”), wherein:
The present invention, in some embodiments thereof, provides systems of ejecting a sliding door of a closet. Each system may comprise a plurality of ejection assemblies and a connecting mechanism, which connects one assembly to the other, where the ejection assemblies enable ejecting of the door.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, each ejection assembly comprises a rail and a slidable member configured to slide along the rail. The assembly is connected to the door. The connecting mechanism may allow applying simultaneous push or pull forces upon the door at different locations of the door, allowing synchronizing the mechanical movement of all ejection assemblies by connecting them to one another.
The rail in each assembly engages with the frame of the closet, where the assembly is connected to the door. This configuration allows moving the door outwardly from the closet frame by sliding the slidable member towards the distal end of the door, and retrieving the door inwardly by sliding the slidable member towards a proximal end of the door. Since the rails engage with the closet frame, the entire door is moved outwardly upon simultaneous movement of the slidable members of the assemblies in relation to their rails, thereby enabling synchronized pushing or pulling at a plurality of locations of the door.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, the connecting mechanism may include a set of connectors such as rods operatively associated with the door handle thereby enabling simultaneously operating all ejection assemblies by a single rotation of the handle.
Alternatively, the connecting mechanism may include a hydraulic or pneumatic system including a pump and a tube set, where each of the ejection assemblies includes a piston connected to the pump. The piston may be connected to the slidable member thereby enabling moving the piston in and out to allow sliding the slidable member along rail to eject or retrieve the door.
Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is applicable to other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. In other modules, well-known methods, procedures, components and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the teachings of the present disclosure.
Reference is now made to
As illustrated in
The ejection assembly 200 further comprises a connector 220, fastened to the slidable member 214 at one end through fastening means. The connector 220 includes a groove 221, which may be an opening enabling to receive a protrusion 232 of an interlocking member 230. The protrusion 232 is configured to movably interlock into the groove 221. The movable member 231 is connected to the connecting mechanism 150. This configuration, as illustrated in
Alternatively, the ejection assemblies 200 and/or the connecting mechanism 150 may be operatively associated with at least one motor and an electronic control panel (whether remote or installed at the door 500) enabling to eject and retrieve the door 500 by controlling the motor. The motor may be operatively associated with one or more slidable members 214 allowing sliding thereof.
As illustrated in
Once the door 500 is in an ejected position, in which the door is moved outwardly, as illustrated in
According to some embodiments of the present invention, as illustrated in
As illustrated in
The connecting mechanism 150 of each of the ejection assemblies 200 may further connect to the door 500 via at least one bracket 40, which may be a bearing or any other mechanism enabling movement of the rods with minimal friction.
According to some embodiments of the present invention, the door 500 is attached to profiles 30 framing the door at each side. The connecting member 250 of each ejection assembly 200 may be attached to one of the profiles 30 at the corner in which the ejection assembly 200 is installed, as illustrated in
To attach to the profile 30 the connecting member 250 may include protruding members 31 interlocking with corresponding openings at the profile 30.
Reference is now made to
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Reference is now made to
The ejection system 100′ may include four ejection assemblies 200′ and a connecting mechanism 150′. Each ejection assembly 200′ including the same configuration of a connecting member 250′, a sliding member 214′ and a rail 210′. Each ejection assembly 200′ may be installed at a different corner of the door 500 similarly to the installation described in
In these embodiments, the connecting mechanism 150′ includes a strip, which may be made from elastic or non-elastic material such as rubber, fabric, etc. Each ejection assembly 200′ includes a shaft 240, a fastening member 241, and a pulley 245.
The shaft 240 may be spirally furrowed serving as a male screw portion, where the fastening member 241 is a nut enabling to move along the shaft 240 by spirally screwing through it. Since the fastening member 241 is connected to the slidable member 214′, it allows sliding the slidable member 214′ once moved along the shaft 240.
As illustrated in
According to some embodiments of the present invention, as illustrated in
The connecting member 250′ may be fastened to the profile 30 of the door 500 through protruding members 31′ in a similar manner to that described in relation to
As illustrated in
Once the door 500 is in an ejected position, in which the door is moved outwardly, as illustrated in
Reference is now made to
The ejection system 100″ may include four ejection assemblies 200″ and a connecting mechanism 150″. Each ejection assembly 200″ including the same configuration of a connecting member 250″, a sliding member 214″ and a rail 210″. Each ejection assembly 200″ may be installed at a different corner of the door 500 similarly to the installation described in
In these embodiments, the connecting mechanism 150″ includes a tube set operatively connected to a hydraulic/pneumatic pump 50″ enabling to pump liquid/air through the tube set 150″ to allow moving the slidable members 214″ for ejecting and retrieving of the door 500.
As illustrated in
The piston member 272 may be moved in and out of the cylindrical member 271 along an axis “z” parallel to the sliding direction of slidable member 214″ and perpendicular to the sliding direction “x” of the roller 20″ along the track.
The pump 50″ may be electronically operated using a control panel including operation input controllers such as operation buttons. The control panel may be installed at the door 500 or a remote panel.
The connecting member 250″ may be fastened to the profile 30 of the door 500 through protruding members 31″ in a similar manner to that described in relation to
In the above description, an embodiment is an example or implementation of the inventions. The various appearances of “one embodiment,” “an embodiment” or “some embodiments” do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiments.
Although various features of the invention may be described in the context of a single embodiment, the features may also be provided separately or in any suitable combination. Conversely, although the invention may be described herein in the context of separate embodiments for clarity, the invention may also be implemented in a single embodiment.
Reference in the specification to “some embodiments”, “an embodiment”, “one embodiment” or “other embodiments” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments is included in at least some embodiments, but not necessarily all embodiments, of the inventions.
It is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is not to be construed as limiting and are for descriptive purpose only.
The principles and uses of the teachings of the present invention may be better understood with reference to the accompanying description, figures and examples.
It is to be understood that the details set forth herein do not construe a limitation to an application of the invention.
Furthermore, it is to be understood that the invention can be carried out or practiced in various ways and that the invention can be implemented in embodiments other than the ones outlined in the description above.
It is to be understood that the terms “including”, “comprising”, “consisting” and grammatical variants thereof do not preclude the addition of one or more components, features, steps, or integers or groups thereof and that the terms are to be construed as specifying components, features, steps or integers.
If the specification or claims refer to “an additional” element, that does not preclude there being more than one of the additional element.
It is to be understood that where the claims or specification refer to “a” or “an” element, such reference is not be construed that there is only one of that element.
It is to be understood that where the specification states that a component, feature, structure, or characteristic “may”, “might”, “can” or “could” be included, that particular component, feature, structure, or characteristic is not required to be included.
Where applicable, although state diagrams, flow diagrams or both may be used to describe embodiments, the invention is not limited to those diagrams or to the corresponding descriptions. For example, flow need not move through each illustrated box or state, or in exactly the same order as illustrated and described.
Methods of the present invention may be implemented by performing or completing manually, automatically, or a combination thereof, selected steps or tasks.
The term “method” may refer to manners, means, techniques and procedures for accomplishing a given task including, but not limited to, those manners, means, techniques and procedures either known to, or readily developed from known manners, means, techniques and procedures by practitioners of the art to which the invention belongs.
The descriptions, examples, methods and materials presented in the claims and the specification are not to be construed as limiting but rather as illustrative only.
Meanings of technical and scientific terms used herein are to be commonly understood as by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention belongs, unless otherwise defined.
The present invention may be implemented in the testing or practice with methods and materials equivalent or similar to those described herein.
Any publications, including patents, patent applications and articles, referenced or mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated in their entirety into the specification, to the same extent as if each individual publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein. In addition, citation or identification of any reference in the description of some embodiments of the invention shall not be construed as an admission that such reference is available as prior art to the present invention.
While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, but rather as exemplifications of some of the preferred embodiments. Other possible variations, modifications, and applications are also within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited by what has thus far been described, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.
This application is a national phase of PCT/IL11/00572 filed on Jul. 19, 2011, which claimed priority to Provisional patent application No. 61/365,431 filed on Jul. 19, 2010, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCT/IL11/00572 | 7/19/2011 | WO | 00 | 1/18/2013 |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
61365431 | Jul 2010 | US |