Patent Grant
7980570
The present invention concerns a trolley for a slidable cantilever gate and a process for its manufacture according to the preamble of the respective independent claims.
The invention falls within the sector of the production of accessories for gates, that is gates intended to control the carriageable or pedestrian access passage to a property, construction site, company, building or garden.
The trolley of the invention is advantageously intended to be installed on slidable cantilever gates, even those of considerable size, especially for access to industrial buildings, or of smaller size for residential applications.
The slidable cantilever gates, of known type, traditionally comprise a support framework having a lower crossbar with a longitudinal rail fixed on its lower part, such rail substantially extending for the entire length of the gate.
Below the rail, two trolleys are provided, whose load-bearing structure is rigidly anchored to the ground in spaced positions, aligned in the sliding direction of the gate.
On the load-bearing structure of each trolley, a plurality of idle wheels are mounted which rotate inside the rail placed below the gate, in order to guide the latter during its opening and closing movement.
Traditionally, the movement is of automatic type, obtained by means of a motor housed in a column placed alongside the gate, and connected by means of transmission to a vertical-axis pinion which is engaged in a rack fixed on one flank of the gate framework.
More in detail, each trolley is provided with two support wheel pairs, with substantially horizontal rotation axis, on which the weight of the gate rests, and at least one guide wheel with substantially vertical rotation axis, which is interposed between the two support wheel pairs.
The guide wheels of the two trolleys cooperate with each other in order to avoid transverse swerves of the gate during its movement.
At least one pair of support wheels of each gate can be regulated and its vertical position can be adjusted in order to vary the height of the gate once the latter is placed entirely projecting in a cantilever manner. For such purpose, adjustment means are provided which move the rotation pin of the aforesaid pair of adjustable support wheels. Currently, as is known, the support structures of the trolleys are made with a high number of components and in particular with several plates which must be integrally fixed together by means of laborious welding operations.
This negatively affects the production process, which results lengthy and costly. In addition, the support structure obtained with this process by means of assembly of many components is not particularly mechanically strong.
The industrial processes of known type for the production of trolleys often resort also to finishing steps for making threads in which fixing and/or adjusting screws are engaged. These operations are also rather difficult to achieve and negatively affect the speed of the production cycle.
The quality of the gate functioning is strongly influenced by the manufacturing precision of the trolleys, since even minimal deviation from the foundations or defects in the load-bearing body can lead to a malfunctioning of the gate or give rise to annoying noise.
The complex production modes currently employed in gate manufacture do not lead to a final precise and easy installation of the gates.
In this situation, the problem underlying the present invention is therefore that of eliminating the drawbacks of the prior art up to today, providing a trolley for a slidable cantilever gate which is obtained with a limited number of components.
A further object of the present finding is that of providing a trolley for a slidable cantilever gate that is structurally simple, economical to make and entirely reliable.
Another object of the present finding is that of providing a trolley for a slidable cantilever gate which is particularly safe.
Another object of the present finding is that of providing a process for making a trolley for a slidable cantilever gate is quick, simple and economical to make.
The technical characteristics of the finding, according to the aforesaid objects, are clearly seen in the contents of the below-reported claims; the advantages of the same are more evident from the following descriptions, given with reference to the attached drawings which represent a merely exemplifying and non-limiting embodiment thereof, wherein:
With reference to the drawing set, a slidable cantilever gate embodiment is indicated with 1 supporting two trolleys 3,4, object of the present invention, on its lower part.
With the term gate it will be intended, without departing from the protective scope of the present invention, any one obstruction, such as a main outside door or gate, susceptible for sliding between two opening and closing positions so as to carry out the traditional function of controlling a carriageable or pedestrian access passage to a property, construction site, company, building or garden.
In accordance with the attached figures, the gate 1 is provided with a support framework 2, generally made of steel, having a predominant extension along the advancing direction X of the gate 1. Such support framework 2 is formed by a metal frame, that is by a plurality of uprights and crossbars, and is usually closed by darkening cover panels or by gratings.
The gate 1 is slidably supported between the two closed and open positions along an advancing direction X by the two trolleys 3 and 4, which are spaced from each other and substantially aligned along the aforesaid advancing direction X.
Both trolleys 3, 4 are placed outside the dimensions of the access passage, and are placed at a distance such to permit supporting the gate 1 in a cantilever manner, by operating in a per se traditional manner: one trolley in traction and the other in abutment depending on whether the gate 1 is in open or closed position.
In order to support the mechanical stresses transmitted by the gate 1, each trolley 3, 4 is rigidly constrained to the ground by means of their own foundation.
Moving means are also traditionally provided (not illustrated) for moving the gate 1 along the advancing direction X, which usually comprise a rack fixed to the framework 2 of the gate 1 and a fixed motor placed in a pillar on the side of the gate, which engages with a pinion in the rack for transmitting the movement to the gate 1.
On the lower part of the gate 1, a rail 5 is fixed by means of welding or mechanical coupling and/or fixing screws. Such rail 5 is substantially extended for the entire length of the gate 1 and defines a lengthened hollow profile within which a plurality of idle wheels are slidably engaged, as will be discussed below. Such idle wheels are adapted to guide the gate 1 along the advancing direction X, that is between the open and closed positions.
More in detail, each trolley 3,4 comprises a support structure 6 formed by a support base 7, intended to be fixed to the foundations made in the ground, and by a load-bearing body 8, fixed to the support base 7, on which the weight of the gate 1 is unloaded.
The aforesaid load-bearing body of structure 6 of the trolley 3,4 has two pairs of support wheels 9, 10 rotatably mounted, (the support wheel pairs are preferably two in number but could also be one or three), which are free to rotate with substantially horizontal rotation axis within the rail 5, and a guide wheel 11, which is free to rotate with substantially vertical rotation axis within the rail 5.
Functionally, the two pairs of support wheels 9, 10, receive the weight of the gate 1 and have the task of rotating in the rail in order to make the gate 1 move, while the guide wheel 11 cooperates with the other trolley in order to oppose deviations of the same gate 1 transverse to its advancing direction X.
For such purpose, as can be appreciated in
According to the idea underlying the present invention, the support structure 6 of each trolley 3,4 comprises two shaped plates 16, 16′, each provided with a load-bearing wall 17, 17′ and a base wall 18, 18′ which is extended without interruption from the load-bearing wall 17, 17′ by means of a substantially orthogonal fold 19, 19′.
The load-bearing walls 17, 17′ of the two shaped plates 16, 16′ are rigidly connected with each other by means of fixing means 20 and together form the load-bearing body 8 of each trolley 3, 4, while the two walls of base 18, 18′ are oriented in opposite directions so to form the aforesaid support base 7 on the ground.
The aforesaid fixing means 20 advantageously consist of rivets, screws or bosses, it being possible to preferably prevent joining the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′ by means of welding, in order to reduce the production process times.
More in detail, each load-bearing wall 17, 17′ is provided with two first through openings 21, 22 aligned with respective corresponding first openings 21′, 22′ of the other load-bearing wall 17′, 17 so as to jointly define two first seats 23, 230 adapted to house first rotatable support means 24 for supporting the two pairs of support wheels 9, 10.
Each load-bearing wall 17, 17′ is also provided with a second through opening 25, 25′ aligned with that corresponding to the other load-bearing wall 17′, 17 in order to jointly define a second seat 26 for receiving the guide wheel 11, in turn rotatably supported by second rotatable support means 27.
Furthermore, the load-bearing walls 17, 17′ of the two shaped plates 16, 16′ are each provided with a first shape 28, 28′ with concavity facing that of the other load-bearing wall 17′, 17 in order to jointly define a first housing 29, which communicates with the second seat 26 and at least in part receives the second rotatable means 27 of the guide wheel 11. More in detail, the first housing 29 is composed of two vertically-aligned sections, which are interrupted by the second seat 26, from which they extend. One section extends upward until it reaches the upper profile of the load-bearing body 8, and the other downward until it terminates in a third seat 30 obtained with third through openings 31, 31′ made aligned on the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′.
Each section of the first housing 29 is obtained with facing pairs of first shapes 28 preferably composed of semicylindrical convexity obtained by moulding.
As is visible in
Preferably, the width of the third seat 30 will be such to retain normal commercial-size nuts embedded, without being able to rotate.
The first means of rotatable support 24 which support the two pairs of support wheels 9, 10 comprise a central pin 37, 237 which is inserted within the seats 23, 230 and rotatably supports at the ends, by means of bearings 50, the two pairs of support wheels 9, 10.
Second and third spacers 51, 52 are interposed between the load-bearing walls 17, 17′ and the bearings 50.
Advantageously, at least one (10) of the two pairs of support wheels 9,10 is height-adjustable in order to permit controlling elevation of the gate 1 when the latter is in ‘all-out’closed position.
For such purpose, the corresponding first seat 230, intended to house the first rotatable support means 24 of the pair of adjustable support wheels 10, with rectangular openings defines a vertical guide for a slide 36 counter-shaped with respect to the guide and in form coupling therewith.
The slide 36 is preferably of parallelepiped form and supports the rotation pin 237 of the pair of adjustable support wheels 10, which is therefore not directly housed in the first seat 230 like the pin 37 of the other pair of support wheels 9.
Adjustment means 38 operate on such slide 36 so to move the corresponding pair of adjustable support wheels 10.
The load-bearing walls 17, 17′ of the shaped plates 16, 16′ are each provided with a second shape 39,39′ with concavity facing that of the other load-bearing wall 17′, 17 in order to jointly define a second housing 40, which communicates with the vertical guide 230 and houses the aforesaid adjusting means 38.
The latter means preferably comprises an adjusting screw 41, which is provided with a shank 42 inserted in the second housing 40 until it projects within the first seat 230 in order to abut against the slide 36. The load-bearing body 8 has a step recess 42 turned towards the support base 7, from which the second housing 40 is extended with one access edge 43, from which the head 44 projects of the adjusting screw 41, easily accessibly so as to be brought into rotation by a tool, such as a wrench.
The threaded shank 42 of the adjustment screw 41 is engaged in an intermediate position with a nut 45 embedded in a fourth seat 46 obtained with four through holes 47, 47′ made aligned on the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′.
Operatively, the height position of the aforesaid pair of adjustable support wheels 10 is adjusted by operating with the wrench on the head 44 of the adjustment screw 41, so as to make it axially move, screwing it or unscrewing it with respect to the nut 45 embedded in the fourth seat 46. Thus, the slide 36 is moved which supports the pair of support wheels 10 adjustable in the guide 230 until the desired position is reached. The latter, once found, is maintained by fixing a lock nut 48 which operates on access edge 43 of the second housing 40.
The load-bearing body 8 is usually affected by greater mechanical forces than the base 7. Nevertheless, sizing the thickness of the entire shaped plate as a function of the mechanical strength required by the load-bearing body 8 could be too difficult. Therefore, in this case, it is preferable to interpose between the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′ a reinforcing wall (not illustrated), substantially provided with an outer profile equivalent to that of the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′ and internally provided with openings placed at the openings and shapes of the two load-bearing walls 17, 17′, preferably in a manner so as to not modify their functionality.
Also forming the object of the present invention is a process for making a trolley 3,4 for a slidable cantilever gate 1, in particular of the type described above, so that the same reference numbers are used for the sake of simplicity.
According to the invention, the process comprises a cutting step of the profile of a metal, preferably steel plate, for example by means of shearing or laser cutting, for obtaining at least two shaped flat plates with the first openings 21,21′,22,22′ and the second openings 25, 25′ considered above made thereon.
A folding step is then provided of the shaped flat plates, aimed to define, by means of a substantially orthogonal fold 19, 19′, two L-shaped plates 16,16′ with the longer section adapted to form the load-bearing walls 17, 17′ and the shorter section the base wall 18, 18′.
Once folded, the shaped plates 16, 16′ are fixed to each other by means of a corresponding fixing step aimed to rigidly join the load-bearing walls 17, 17′ with the two base walls 18, 18′ oriented in opposite directions for forming the support base 7 to the ground.
At this point, it is possible to continue mounting the two pairs of support wheels 9, 10 and the guide wheel 11, respectively, by means of the respective first and second rotatable support means 24, 27 housed in the first seats 23, 230 and in the second seat 26.
In order to make the trolley 3,4 in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, that is with the first and the second rotatable support means 24, 27 obtained as described above, the process also comprises a moulding step, in which by means of a press, the concavities defining the first housing 29 along with the concavities defining the second housing 40 are made on the flat plates.
The finding thus conceived therefore achieves the predetermined objects.
Of course, in its practical achievement, it could also assume shapes and configurations different from that illustrated above, without departing from the present protective scope.
In addition, all details could be substituted with technically equivalent elements, and the sizes, shapes and materials employed could be of any type as needed.
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| 08425418 | Jun 2008 | EP | regional |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
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| 20090309324 A1 | Dec 2009 | US |
