HK1015431B - Apparatus for providing a slidingly-separable connection between a movable barrier and a means for guiding the barrier - Google Patents

Description

Slidable separation connecting device between movable fence and fence guide device

The present invention relates generally to movable barriers such as flexible rollup doors or barrier doors that can be opened by nesting them together at the top, and more particularly to a sliding breakaway connection between a movable barrier and its associated side wall or guide.

More recently, those skilled in the art of producing movable barriers such as flexible roll-up doors have provided a releasable connection between the barrier and the barrier guide within the opening range. The purpose of this releasable connection is to minimise the extent of damage to the barrier in the event of an impact, such as that caused by the running vehicle.

The first and most complete improvement in the art to date is disclosed in U.S. patent No.5,025,845, which was obtained by MUELLER and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. MUELLER discloses a roll-up door with a two-part guide follower. Such a guide-follower is designed for separation purposes to allow the door to disengage with one of the guide-followers from the other guide-follower in response to excessive lateral forces.

This separable connection of the MUELLERs, and subsequently the other separable connections, is based on the principle that the connections are slidably separable. More specifically, a first member connected to a guide mechanism on the side wall of the door extends in the direction of the fence and a portion of the first member is matingly received in a receptacle formed in the fence. Typically, such receptacles are located at a rigid guide edge of the fence which is commonly referred to as a fence sill. If an impact force exceeds a predetermined value, the guide-follower will disengage to allow the barrier to move laterally in the opening direction without damage to the door or the guide-follower. Such systems have been widely used and have been found to significantly reduce damage to lift doors due to unintended impacts, such as those generated by a moving forklift.

However, it has also been found that in some impacts the bottom beam of the movable barrier rotates. The sill beam may also be capable of translational movement under impact forces in a direction which intersects the plane of the fence but is not at 90 degrees to the plane of the fence. In this case, the upper and lower inner surfaces of the insertion hole may be caught or pressed on the upper and lower surfaces of the first member. This will result in a significant increase in the force required to separate the two parts. In some extreme cases, this resistance may exceed the required predetermined separation force to cause damage to the movable barrier and possibly also to the guide and the connecting means.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems and to provide further improvements over the infrastructure known in the art, in accordance with the main principles disclosed by MUELLER.

The present invention provides a device for connecting a movable barrier to a barrier guide for selectively interrupting an opening action during operation. The connecting means are disengaged only when a transverse impact force to the barrier exceeds a predetermined value.

According to one aspect of the invention, the device includes a side connecting member extending in the direction of the barrier, the connecting member having first and second ends opposite one another. The first end is connected to the fence guide and the second end is adapted to be inserted into a receptacle. The receptacle is connected to the movable barrier and is insertable into the second end of the side connecting member. The side connecting members are sized to cooperate with the receptacles so that the side connecting members can be slidably separated from the receptacles within a predetermined range of relative rotation permitted by the predesignment between the receptacles and the connector.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the second end of the side connecting member has upper and lower outer surfaces substantially opposite to each other. The socket has upper and lower inner surfaces that substantially face each other. The side connecting member and the receptacle are sized to cooperate such that a minimum vertical distance between any point on an upper inner surface of the receptacle and any point on a lower inner surface of the receptacle is no less than a height between the upper outer surface and the lower outer surface of the second end of the side connecting member within a predetermined range of relative rotation.

According to another aspect of the invention, the side connecting member is sized to engage the socket such that the maximum distance between any point on the upper outer surface and any point on the lower outer surface of the second end of the side connecting member is no greater than the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface and any point on the lower inner surface of the socket within a predetermined range of relative rotation.

According to another aspect of the present invention, at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the second end of the side connection member includes an arc-shaped or tapered portion connecting the upper or lower outer surface with the wall surface. It is also contemplated that arcuate or tapered surfaces may form a portion of each of the upper and lower outer surfaces. Further, the side connecting members and the receptacles are sized to cooperate to be within a predetermined range of relative rotation. The maximum distance between any point on the upper outer surface of the second end of the side connecting member and any point on the lower outer surface is not greater than the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface of the receptacle and any point on the lower inner surface. It is also possible that the upper and lower inner surfaces of the socket end with an arc-shaped or tapered portion extending from the inside of the socket.

According to a preferred embodiment, the second end of the side connecting member is a vertical rectangular elongated body which constitutes a guide block.

The above-described brief features of the present invention may also be applied to other apparatus characterized in that the second end of the side connecting member is not generally rectangular in shape. For example, the second end of the side connecting member may be a horizontally extending circular or oval cylinder having a square cross-section or with flat upper and lower outer surfaces.

All of the above structures improve the workability of the separable coupling when the fence is impacted and the jack or the side coupling member is rotated.

Other advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the following description of the drawings and detailed description of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flexible roll-up door 10 employing a preferred embodiment of the present invention, with a counterweight and tensioning mechanism 20 shown in phantom;

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the door 10 shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial front elevational view of the door 10 of FIG. 1 illustrating a preferred embodiment of the separable connector apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the sill of the present invention with an attachment socket 24;

FIG. 6 is a partial perspective view of the door 10 shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the guide block 50 in a receptacle 60;

FIG. 7A is a schematic view of the arrangement of FIG. 7 with the socket 60 rotated 20;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the jack of FIG. 7 with an elongated guide block 70;

FIG. 8A is a schematic view of the arrangement of FIG. 8 with the socket 60 rotated 20;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the jack of FIG. 7 with another guide block 80 of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a jack 110 of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating the principles of the present invention, by way of example, with another guide block 120; and

fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 12-12 of fig. 4.

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described in detail preferred embodiments of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated.

Fig. 1 discloses a roll-up door 10 comprising opposite side walls 11, a flexible curtain 12, a drum 14, a rigid guide edge for the curtain 12 in the form of a sill 16, guides 18 on each side of the curtain 12 for guiding the curtain when opening and closing and stabilizing the door in the closed position, and tensioning means 20 on each side wall 11 for providing a constant tensioning force on the guides 18 to enhance control of the flexible curtain 12 and its stiffness. In operation, the flexible door curtain 12 is rolled up or down on the drum 14, while the guide 18 maintains the door curtain 12 in a uniform path at all times. In view of the symmetry of certain aspects of door 10, such as the side walls 11, tensioning mechanism 20, guides 18, side connecting members 22 and receptacles 24, i.e., on both sides of curtain 12, only a single one of these and other symmetrical structures will be described below for simplicity.

As shown in detail in fig. 2, 3, 4 and 6, the bottom rail 16 of the flexible door curtain 12 is connected to the guide assembly 18 by a laterally extending side connecting member 22, the side connecting member 22 being correspondingly received in a receptacle 24 of the bottom rail 16. Tensioning mechanism 20 is as disclosed in U.S. patent No.4,997,022, the disclosure of which will be understood by those skilled in the art.

The guide 18 moves along a vertical opening 26 in the side wall 11, as described in detail in fig. 4. In the opening 26, bushings 28 are provided on both sides of the guide 18. The bushing 28 is made of a low friction material to reduce wear and to facilitate smooth and uniform opening and closing of the flexible door curtain 12. The guide 18 has a rubber foot 30 at the lower portion thereof for limiting the extent to which the door and the threshold are closed. This rubber foot 30 also mitigates impact from the door as it closes quickly. There is also a rubber foot 32 on the upper part of the guide 18 for providing the same function as the rubber foot 30 when the door is rolled up to its uppermost position, absorbing shock and stopping reliably.

Fig. 6 discloses in detail the situation after the side connection member 22 and the receptacle 24 have been separated by a force exceeding a predetermined value. Fig. 3 shows the internal connection of the side connection member 22 with the insertion hole 24.

In this embodiment, fig. 3 and 6 disclose that the socket 24 is comprised of an upper block 34 and a lower block 36. A portion 34a of the upper block 34 is inserted into the sill 16 while a portion 34b of the upper block 34 extends beyond the end of the sill 16. The lower block 36 has a portion 36a inserted into the bottom beam 16 and a portion 36b extending beyond the end of the bottom beam. A portion 34c of the upper block 34 depends from the end of the portion 34b, thereby forming a cavity 34d between the portion 34c and the portion 34a of the upper block 34. The protruding portion 36b of the lower block 36 and the protruding portions 34b and 34c of the upper block 34 constitute the insertion hole 24. The receptacle 24 receives the side connection member 22 in a manner that will be described in more detail below. It is now sufficient to specify that the lateral connecting member 22 has a first end 22a connected to the guide 18 and a second end which projects into the receptacle 24 and forms a vertically elongated rectangular portion or guide 22 b. An extended bottom portion 22c of the side connecting member 22 depends from the first end 22 a. In the preferred embodiment, the portions 22a, 22b and 22c are formed as a single piece of steel. The depending portion 22c is preferably welded to the guide 18. As shown in fig. 4, an opening 19 in the side wall 17 of the guide block 22b cooperates with a spring loaded ball carried on an inner surface of the end of the sill 16 within the receptacle 24. This opening 19 and ball 13 serve to help align and support the guide block 22b within the receptacle 24 when reassembling, as shown in fig. 3. The tensioning mechanism 20 pulls the guide block 22b into the depending portion 34c during normal operation, which stabilizes the interconnection therebetween by the action of lateral and frictional forces.

A permanent magnet 38 is magnetically coupled to a reed-shaped magnetic sensor 40 to detect whether the guide block 22b is disengaged from the receptacle 24, thereby preventing an electric motor (not shown) from continuing to open or close the impacted flexible curtain 12.

As best shown in fig. 6 and 12, portion 36b of lower block 36 has an upwardly facing surface 42. Portion 34b of upper block 34 has a downwardly facing surface 44. The guide block 22b has an upwardly facing upper surface 46 and an opposed downwardly facing lower outer surface 48. The surfaces 42, 44, 46 and 48 are important factors that cause the sill 16 to rotate in a manner, such as in the direction of arrow a in fig. 5, when impacted.

To better disclose the principles of the present invention, reference will now be made to a schematic illustration of the jack and the guide block type second end of the side connection member. Figures 7-11 schematically disclose various aspects and configurations for sliding separation between the socket and the guide block, such as guide block 22b, when impacted and rotated.

Fig. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of a guide block 50 having an upper outer surface 52 and a lower outer surface 54. And schematically illustrates a socket 60, the socket 60 having an upper inner surface 62 and a lower inner surface 64. The height between the upper and lower outer surfaces 52, 54 of the guide block 50 in fig. 7 is H1. Fig. 7A shows the configuration of fig. 7 after the socket 60 has been rotated through an angle a of about 20 degrees relative to horizontal. As can be seen in fig. 7A, if the socket is still translated in the direction of arrow V1 after rotation, the guide block 50 will have some clearance from the upper and lower socket surfaces 62, 64. To accomplish this, the height H1 of the second end 50 is constrained such that H1 is less than the minimum vertical distance D between the upper inner surface 62 and the lower inner surface 64.

This is possible in some instances if it is desired to have the guide block height greater than H1 to match the size of the socket 60, such as to allow the socket to rotate past the vertical socket position, i.e., to provide a translational movement in the direction of arrow V2, despite a shock to rotate the socket 60 (as disclosed in fig. 8A0, 8 and 8A). Fig. 8 discloses a side connecting member second end or guide block 70 having a height H2 greater than the height H1 of the guide block 50. The receptacle 60 retains the shape of the original figure 7. As can be seen in fig. 8, when the socket 60 is rotated through the same angle as shown in fig. 7 and translated in the direction of arrow V2, the outermost angled portions of the upper and lower surfaces 72 and 74 of the guide block 70 are spaced from the upper and lower inner surfaces 62 and 64. This embodiment may be desirable where the occurrence of translational movement in a certain direction (e.g., the direction of arrow V2) has been predetermined. It is in this case that the maximum distance between any point on the upper outer surface 72 and any point on the lower outer surface 74 is not greater than the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface 62 and any point on the lower inner surface 64. Taking a particular rectangular shape for example, this means that the length of the diagonal of the guide block 70 cannot exceed the distance between the surfaces 62, 64. It is noted that if the translational movement of socket 62 were to occur in the direction of arrow V1 in fig. 8A, severe biting would occur.

It is believed that most impacts will cause the translational motion to proceed more in the direction indicated by arrow V1 in fig. 8A. In these cases, fig. 9 shows an alternative embodiment for these cases, if the height of the guide block is greater than allowed by the example of fig. 7 and 7A. Fig. 9 discloses a socket 60 with a guide block 80. When the height of the guide block 80 is H2, the receptacle can be translated in the V1 or V2 direction without jamming.

The guide block 80 has the same height as the guide block 70, however, if the socket 60 continues to translate in the direction of arrow V1 after rotation of the socket 60, its upper surface 62 will encounter or contact an arcuate portion 84 of the upper surface 82 of the guide block 80. Because the surface 84 is arcuate, minimal interference occurs. In addition, the tension applied by the tensioning mechanism 20 on the guide 18 allows some vertical movement of the guide block 80. More specifically, the tension is applied to one end of the guide 18 by a belt 21, as shown in fig. 6. The guide 18 corresponds to a long lever arm and will generate a rotational force which causes the guide block 22B to be pushed upwardly in the direction of arrow B in fig. 2 and 6 and to move slightly (as shown in phantom) inwardly towards the depending portion 34c of the block 34. An impact sufficient to slidingly separate a guide block from a socket involves a number of complex movements and forces. Although these movements and forces are not fully understood, it is believed that as shown in phantom in FIG. 9, as the socket moves in the direction of arrow V1, surface 84 collides with socket upper surface 62, possibly causing guide block 80 to be pushed downward against the direction of the upward thrust. Furthermore, if the impact force is large enough, the flexible door curtain 12 may be lifted slightly with the sill 16 as the inner surface 62 of the receptacle 60 moves along the arcuate surface 84 of the guide block 80. The sliding separation of the socket 60 from the guide block 80 can be successfully achieved by either a downward movement of the guide block 80 or an upward movement of the socket 60 or both.

It should again be noted that if socket 60 is translated in the direction of arrow V2, as shown in fig. 9, there will be less contact between upper surface 82 and upper inner surface 62. Advantageously, therefore, the embodiment of FIG. 9 provides satisfactory results when an impact force may cause socket 60 to translate at any angle between V1 and V2. It will be appreciated that if a smaller angle is desired, then the size, e.g., H2, may be increased and still achieve satisfactory results. It should also be noted that the use of the arcuate surfaces 84 reduces the maximum or farthest distance between the upper and lower surfaces of the guide block 80 because the diagonal is much reduced. This allows the height to be increased beyond H2 if desired. However, the restriction still exists in that the maximum distance between any point on the upper surface 82 and any point on the lower surface 90 cannot exceed the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface 62 and any point on the lower inner surface 64 of the receptacle 60.

It will therefore be appreciated that in order to achieve successful separation, it is only necessary to determine the angle of rotation that the manufacturer wishes to adopt, i.e. what the maximum angle of rotation of the sill 16 is designed to be in a given application, and then to adjust the relative shapes and sizes of the guide blocks and receptacles accordingly.

In accordance with the principles discussed above, fig. 10 illustrates a guide block 100 in a state of being separated from a receptacle 110. The receptacle 110 and guide block 100 have the same width dimensions as the embodiment of fig. 7-9, and this embodiment also achieves satisfactory results because the upper inner surface 112 of the receptacle 110 terminates in arcuate portions 114 and 116. The principles discussed above are also applicable to a guide block having any cross-sectional shape, but having upper and lower outer surfaces and being used with a socket having upper and lower inner surfaces. For example, FIG. 11 shows a guide block 120 having a substantially cylindrical cross-section with rounded or flat upper outer surface 122 and flat lower outer surface 124.

Referring now to fig. 12 and previously to fig. 3 and 6, it can be seen that the structure of the insertion hole 24 and the guide block 22b of the side connection member 22 is the same as the schematic structure of fig. 9. The guide block 22b and the receptacle 24 are adapted for use with the principles discussed with reference to the structure of fig. 9.

More specifically, the guide block 22b has a selected height and a selected diagonal length that is appropriate for the range of rotation of the receptacle 24, in order to achieve this configuration. The guide block has opposite sides 47 and 45 having a preselected width relative to the receptacle 24. The upper outer surface includes portions 46a and 46b, which are connected to sidewalls 45 and 47, respectively. Lower outer surface 48 includes arcuate portions 48a and 48b that are connected to sidewalls 45 and 47, respectively. Although not tested, it is believed that guide block 22b will separate from socket 24 without significant jamming when socket 24 is rotated within an angle of 10-15. Although not necessary to practice the invention, a plastic friction seat 43 is provided between the lower inner surface 42 and the lower outer surface 48 to reduce noise, wear and friction during separation. Such low coefficient of friction pads may also be used on the sidewalls in the receptacle to reduce noise, wear and friction during normal operation and separation after impact, as shown in fig. 3.

While particular embodiments have been shown and described by way of illustration, various modifications may be devised without departing significantly from the spirit of the invention and without departing significantly from the scope of protection which is limited only by the scope of the appended claims. For example, if interconnecting member 22 is coupled to sill 16 and receptacle 24 is coupled to guide 18, it is believed that the benefits previously disclosed may also be achieved. Instead of using an arcuate portion on the upper or lower surface, a bevel or cone may be suitable.

Claims (18)

1. A device for operatively connecting a movable barrier (12) to a means for barrier guidance for selectively interrupting an opening action, the connecting means disengaging when the component of the vector of an impact force directed in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the barrier exceeds a predetermined value, the device comprising:

a laterally extending side connecting member (22) having opposite first and second ends (22a, 22b), the first end (22a) being located on one of said barrier guide or said movable barrier (12) and the second end (22b) being adapted to be inserted into an insertion opening (24);

said insertion hole (24) being located on the other of said fence guide or said movable fence (12) for insertion of the second end (22b) of said side connection member (22); and the combination of (a) and (b),

the side connecting member (22) and the receptacle (24) are dimensioned such that, over a predetermined range of permitted relative rotation between the receptacle (24) and the side connecting member (22), rotation occurs in a plane other than the plane of the rail (12), the connector (22) being disengaged from the receptacle (24) when the component of the impact force vector in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the rail exceeds a predetermined value.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) having substantially opposing upper (46) and lower (48) outer surfaces;

said receptacle (24) having substantially facing upper and lower inner surfaces (44, 42); and the combination of (a) and (b),

the side connecting member (22) is sized to cooperate with the receptacle (24) such that, over a predetermined range of [ relative ] rotation between the receptacle (24) and the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22), a minimum vertical distance between any point on the upper inner surface (44) and any point on the lower inner surface (42) of the receptacle (24) after rotation is no less than a height between the upper outer surface (46) and the lower outer surface (48) of the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22).

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) having substantially opposing upper (46) and lower (48) outer surfaces;

said receptacle (24) having substantially facing upper and lower inner surfaces (44, 42); and the combination of (a) and (b),

the side connecting member (22) is sized to cooperate with the receptacle (24) such that the maximum distance between any point on the upper outer surface (46) and any point on the lower outer surface (48) of the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) is no greater than the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface (44) and any point on the lower inner surface (42) of the receptacle (24) over a predetermined range of relative rotation between the receptacle (24) and the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22).

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) having substantially opposed upper (46) and lower (48) outer surfaces separated by a side wall (45, 47), the upper (46) and lower (48) outer surfaces including arcuate portions (46a, 46b, 48a, 48b) connected to the side wall (45, 47);

said receptacle (24) having substantially facing upper and lower inner surfaces (44, 42); and the combination of (a) and (b),

the side connecting member (22) is sized to cooperate with the receptacle (24) such that the maximum distance between any point on the upper outer surface (46) and any point on the lower outer surface (48) of the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) is no greater than the minimum distance between any point on the upper inner surface (44) and any point on the lower inner surface (42) of the receptacle (24) over a predetermined range of relative rotation between the receptacle (24) and the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22).

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein: the upper (44, 112) and lower (42) inner surfaces of the receptacles (24, 110) terminate in upwardly directed arcuate portions (114, 116).

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) is an elongated vertical rectangular body.

7. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) is a vertical square.

8. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) is a substantially horizontally extending circular cylinder.

9. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the upper (44, 112) and lower (42) inner surfaces of the receptacles (24, 110) terminate in upwardly directed arcuate portions (114, 116).

10. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a spring-loaded ball (13); and

a recess (19);

the method is characterized in that: the spring-loaded ball (13) and the recess (19) are cooperatively dimensioned to align and releasably retain the side connecting member (22) within the receptacle (24).

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the receptacle (24) further comprises:

a first block (34) having first, second and third portions (34a, 34b, 34c), the second portion (34b) being adjacent the first portion (34a), and the third portion (34c) extending from the second portion (34 b); and the combination of (a) and (b),

a second block (36) having first and second portions (36a, 36b), the second portion (36b) of the second block (36) being adjacent the first portion (36a) of the second block (36).

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein: the first block (34) is an upper block, the second block (36) is a lower block disposed below the upper block, and a third portion (34c) of the first block (34) depends from the second portion (34b) of the first block (34) toward the lower block.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the second end (22b) of the side connecting member (22) defines a guide block abutting the first end (22a) of the side connecting member (22), and the receptacle (24) is adapted to receive the guide block.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein: the guide block is an elongated body and has a vertical orientation.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein: the guide block extends above the first end (22a) of the side connecting member (22).

16. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the side connecting member (22) includes a floor portion extending from a first end (22a) of the side connecting member (22) and located on one of the fence guides or on the moveable fence (12).

17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the predetermined range of relative rotation permitted between the receptacle (24) and the side connection member (22) is from 0 ° up to about 90 °.

18. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the predetermined range of relative rotation permitted between the receptacle (24) and the side connection member (22) is from 0 ° up to about 20 °.