GB2362178A

GB2362178A - Hinged seal for the base of a dual pivot door

Info

Publication number: GB2362178A
Application number: GB0106223A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Neil Greenhalgh; Robert John Humphries; Keith Taylor
Original assignee: PERCY LANE PRODUCTS Ltd
Current assignee: PERCY LANE PRODUCTS Ltd
Priority date: 2000-03-17
Filing date: 2001-03-14
Publication date: 2001-11-14
Also published as: GB0006341D0; GB0106223D0

Abstract

A sealing member 21 is hinged to a door 10 suitable for use on a passenger transport vehicle, such as a bus. The hinge may be flexible and may be formed from rubber. The sealing member may be for contact with the floor 3 and may be mounted to the base of the door. It may pivot outwardly, preferably for 70-90{ about a horizontal axis, upward rotation being triggered by opening of the door. This releases the sealing member from contact with the floor, allowing the door to move freely. The sealing member may return to its vertical, operational position when the door closes. The door may incorporate an actuator means to cause movement of the seal. In the preferred embodiment of a dual pivot door, the sealing member is operated by contact with a glider arm 14 that drives the door by rotating about vertical pivot pole 16.

Description

2362178 Vehicle Door with Sealing Arrangement The present invention

relates in general to a door for use in a passenger transport vehicle, and more particularly to a sealing arrangement for sealing the door against a floor surface of the vehicle.

Typically, a passenger transport vehicle such as a bus or a coach is provided with one or more passenger entry and exit doors along the kerb side of the vehicle, the or each door being mounted in a doorway aperture. It is desired that the floor surface of the vehicle slopes downwardly toward the doorway aperture to provide convenient access for passengers. However, it is also desired to hinge the doors to open into the vehicle, and hence the doors are sized such that a bottom edge of the door clears the floor surface when open. A problem arises in that the door then leaves a significant gap above the floor surface when closed. A sealing arrangement is provided to seal the gap against draughts, dirt and water.

One known sealing arrangement comprises a brush member mounted internally of the door and depending therefrom. However, this brush seal arrangement has a number of disadvantages. Particularly, the bristles of the brush seal are bent as the door is opened over the sloping floor surface, leading to significant wear of the brush and the floor and adding strain to a driving mechanism for opening the door. over time the bristles become permanently misshapen and no longer provide an effective seal when the door is closed. Further, the brush seal arrangement protrudes significantly into the doorway aperture when the 2 door is opened and is considered to be visually unappealing.

An aim of the present invention is to provide a door for use in a passenger transport vehicle having a sealing arrangement addressing the problems of the prior art described above or otherwise. A preferred aim of the present invention is to provide a sealing arrangement which avoids wear against the floor surface of the vehicle.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a door for use in a passenger transport vehicle, comprising a door member; and a sealing arrangement for operatively sealing the door member against an adjacent floor surface of the vehicle; wherein the sealing arrangement comprises a seal member hingeably coupled to the door member.

Preferably, the sealing member is arranged to hinge outwardly of an exterior facing surface of the door.

Preferably, the sealing member comprises a film hinge.

Preferably, the film hinge comprises a strip of rubber material. Preferably, the sealing arrangement comprises a plate member. Preferably, the sealing arrangement comprises actuator means for moving the seal member in response to opening and closing movement of the door member. Preferably, a glider arm is provided for carrying the door member and the seal member is arranged to move in response to movement of the door member with respect to the glider arm. Preferably, the glider arm comprises a movement surface arranged for movement against the sealing member.

3 Preferably, the sealing member is arranged to move between a closed position depending generally vertically from the door member, to an open position rotated outwardly of the door member through about 700 to 900 to the vertical.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a sealing arrangement for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, the seal arrangement comprising a seal member hingeably coupleable to a door member.

Preferably, the sealing member is arranged to rotate around a generally horizontal axis in use through an angle of about 700- 900.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, comprising the steps of (a) providing a seal member depending from a door member when in a closed position; and (b) rotating the seal member outwardly of the door member, using a hinge coupling means, when the door member is an open position.

Preferably, the step (b) comprises rotating the seal member about a generally horizontal axis defined by the hinge coupling means.

Preferably, the step (b) comprises guiding the seal member across a movement surface of a glider armfor carrying the door member.

4 For a better understanding of the invention, and to show how embodiments of the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational front view showing a door of a passenger transport vehicle in a closed position; Figure 2 is an elevational side view showing the door in an open position; Figure 3 is a partial plan view showing the door in a closed position; Figure 4 is a partial plan view showing the door in an open position; Figure 5 is a detailed elevational front view showing the door and a sealing arrangement in a closed position; and Figure 6 is a partial elevational side view of the door in a closed position and illustrating an open position of the sealing arrangement.

Referring to Figure 1, a vehicle 1 has a doorway aperture 2 above a f loor surface 3. The vehicle is suitably a passenger service vehicle such as a bus or a coach, but preferred embodiments of the present invention will also be useful in other vehicle variants. For example, the invention is applicable to other forms of passenger transport vehicles such as a tram or a light rail vehicle. Conveniently, the floor surface 3 in the region of the doorway aperture 2 is at a height corresponding to a roadside kerb or platform, allowing easy passenger access. The floor surface 3 slopes downwardly toward the doorway aperture 2, partly to help drain any water that may enter the vehicle such as on the shoes and umbrellas of passengers, and partly to raise the main interior floor level of the vehicle over a chassis and running gear. The doorway aperture 2 is closed by one or more doors 10, and two glazed doors are illustrated in this example embodiment. A sealing arrangement is provided including top and side sealing strips 12 to seal the doors 10 against the doorway aperture 2, and a bottom seal arrangement 20 to seal the doors 10 against the floor surface 3. Each of the doors 10 pivots about a generally vertical axis to rotate inwardly of the vehicle from a closed position as illustrated in Figure 1 to an open position as illustrated in Figure 2.

Referring to Figure 2, in the open position the door 10 is arranged to clear the floor surface 3 which typically slopes downwardly at about 20 to 50 to the horizontal. An innermost edge 11 of the door 10 lies close adjacent the floor surface 3, whilst the outermost edge 13 lies a significant distance above the floor surface. Hence, prior art sealing arrangements such as a brush seal depending from the door 10 tend to wear against the floor surface 3, particularly in the region of the innermost edge 11.

Referring now to Figure 3, in one preferred embodiment of the present invention the glazed door 10 is carried on a glider arm 14 pivotably coupled at one end to the door and arranged to rotate with a vertical pivot pole 16.

6 Typically a glider arm is provided at the top and at the bottom of the door, respectively. The outermost edge of the door 10 is guided in a guide slot (not shown) conveniently running across the width of the doorway 5 aperture supported on an equipment shelf (not shown). This arrangement is well known in the art. Rotation of the glider arms 14 about the vertical axis of the pivot pole 16, usually through about 900, causes the door 10 to follow an actuate path moving from the closed position shown in Figure 3 to an open position illustrated in Figure 4. Notably, the interior surface 15 of the door 10 faces into the doorway aperture when the door is open.

Referring to Figure 5, a sealing arrangement 20 for sealing the door 10 against the floor surface 3 will now be described. Figure 5 is a detail of the bottom left hand corner of the door 10 viewed from outside of the vehicle with the door closed, corresponding to the position in the plan view of Figure 3.

As shown in Figure 5, the door 10 abuts the side seal 12. The door 10 carries a bottom seal arrangement 20 comprising a seal member 21 hingeably coupled to the door 10. Suitably, the seal member 21 is carried on an exterior facing surface of a bottom rail 17 of the door 10. Any suitable hinge may be employed, including a mechanical hinge such as a piano hinge. Preferably, the hinge comprises a flexible film material hinge such as a fabric material or preferably rubber.

The seal member 21 suitably extends across substantially the entire width of the door 10 in one continuous element. In other embodiments, the seal member 7 comprises two or more discrete elements. In yet another embodiment the seal member is a brush seal. However, in the preferred embodiment the seal member comprises a single strip of flexible material such as rubber, integrally forming both the film hinge 23 and the seal member 21. Although rubber is preferred, any suitable durable material may be employed.

In the closed position the seal member 21 lies depending f rom the door 10 to seal the gap between the door 10 and the floor surface 3 against air (particularly draughts whilst the vehicle is in motion) and moisture (particularly water spray).

is Referring to Figure 6, the seal member 21 is moveable between the closed position 20a and an open position 20b along a path illustrated by the dot-dash line. Suitably, the seal member is rotatable outwardly of the external surface of the door 10, preferably through about 750-900from the vertical, and ideally by about 850.

The plate member 21 may return f rom the open to the closed position by gravity, or a biasing means such as a return spring may be provided to return the seal member 21 to the closed position. Conveniently, the biasing means also helps to inhibit movement of the seal member 21 whilst in the closed position. Referring to Figure 5, the seal member 21 preferably protrudes slightly and is retained between the door 10 and the side sealing strip 12 when in the closed position.

In one preferred embodiment, the seal member 21 comprises a relatively stiff plate member 22 and a 8 relatively flexible film hinge member 23. The film hinge member 23 is coupled to the door rail 17 such as by a clamping strip 24 which may hold the film hinge member 23 in a friction fit and/or with mechanical fixings 25 as shown. The clamping strip 24 may be integrally formed with the bottom rail 17, or may be formed separately as illustrated.

Referring again to Figure 3, during movement between 10 the closed and open position, the door 10 passes across the glider arm 14, particularly the innermost edge 11 thereof. The brush member sealing arrangement of the prior art provided on the interior surface 15 of the door 10 therefore had to be mounted interiorly of the glider arm 14 and protruded significantly into the doorway aperture when open, by at least 60-70mm. When the door moves from the closed position as shown in Figure 3 to the open position as shown in Figure 4, the seal member 21 is rotated to lie above the glider arm 14. In the open position, the seal member 21 and the glider arm 14 may lie in a recess provided behind the door 10 and to one side of the doorway aperture 2. Advantageously, the sealing arrangement 20 does not protrude into the doorway aperture 2, allowing the overall dimensions of the doorway aperture 2 to be smaller whilst keeping the same passenger access width. Further, the sealing arrangement 20 is out of view when the door is in the open position, giving a more aesthetically pleasing effect. Further still, the sealing arrangement 20 also provides an aesthetically pleasing aspect when in the closed position when viewed from both internally and externally of the vehicle.

9 Referring to Figure 6, an actuator may be provided to move the sealing member 21 between the closed position 20a and the open position 20b, preferably in response to movement of the door 10. In the preferred embodiment the seal member 21 acts against a movement surface 18 provided on the lower glider arm 14. Here, the plate member 22 acts as a wear plate and is suitably metal, preferably steel. The wear plate 22 may have a friction reducing surface, such as PTFE. Alternatively, a length of the plate member 22 may be plastics material such as nylon having good wear resistance and low friction. Preferably, the lower glider arm 14 carries a shaped movement surface 18, and suitably the surface is rounded to reflect movement of the seal member 21. The movement surface 18 may be coated with a friction reducing material such PTFE. Additionally or alternatively the glider arm 14 may carry a readily replaceable movement surface 18, preferably a block of hard wearing and low friction material such as nylon.

Suitably, the sealing arrangement 20 is provided on the door during manufacture and ready for a door assembly to be installed in the doorway aperture of a vehicle. Alternatively, the sealing arrangement 20 may be retro- fitted to existing vehicles in the field to replace existing arrangements such as an internal brush seal, or in addition thereto.

A door has been described suitable for use in a passenger transport vehicle having a sealing arrangement for sealing the door against the floor surface of the vehicle that provides an effective seal when the door is closed, but which avoids wear against the floor surface as the door is opened. Advantageously, the preferred sealing arrangement is compact, mechanically simple and cost effective to manufacture and install, and is aesthetically pleasing.

Claims

Claims

1. A door f or use in a passenger transport vehicle, comprising:

door member; and sealing arrangement for operatively sealing the door member against an adjacent floor surface of the vehicle; wherein the sealing arrangement comprises a seal member hingeably coupled to the door member.

2. A door as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sealing is member is arranged to hinge outwardly of an exterior facing surface of the door.

3. A door as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the sealing member comprises a film hinge.

4. A door as claimed in claim 3, wherein the f ilm hinge comprises a strip of rubber material.

5. A door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, comprising a plate member.

6. A door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, comprising actuator means for moving the seal member in response to opening and closing movement of the door member.

7. A door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 6, comprising a glider arm for carrying the door member, and 12 wherein the seal member is arranged to move in response to movement of the door member with respect to the glider arm.

S 8. A door as claimed in claim 7, wherein the glider arm comprises a movement surface arranged for movement against the sealing member.

9. A door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sealing member is arranged to move between a closed position depending generally vertically from the door member, to an open position rotated outwardly of the door member through about 700 to 900 to the vertical.

is 10. A sealing arrangement for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, the seal arrangement comprising:

a seal member hingeably coupleable to a door member.

11. A sealing arrangement as claimed in claim 10, wherein the seal member is arranged to rotate about a generally horizontal axis in use through about 700-900.

12. A method for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a seal member depending from a door member when in a closed position; and (b) rotating the seal member outwardly of the door member, using a hinge coupling means, when the door member is an open position.

13 13. A method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the step (b) comprises rotating the seal member about a generally horizontal axis defined by the hinge coupling means.

14. A method as claimed in claims 12 or 13, wherein the step (b) comprises guiding the seal member across a movement surface of a glider arm for carrying the door member. 10 is. A door for use in a passenger transport vehicle, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

is 16. A sealing arrangement for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the accompanying drawings.

17. A method for sealing a door of a passenger transport vehicle, substantially as hereinbefore described.