US1496904A - Means for slidingly supporting folding doors - Google Patents

Description

June 10 E. J. G. PHILLIPS MEANS FOR SLIDINGLY SUPPORTING FOLDING DOORS Filed April 23 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 E. J. G. PHILLIPS MEANS FOR SLIDINGLY SUPPORTING FOLDING DOORS Filed April 23 1923 June 10 a a 1% e y 2 a a; m

Patented .Ile llO, l

nrr' res head ELLIS J'. G. PHILLIPS, 0F AURORA, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO RICHARDS-WILCOX MANU- FACTURING COMPANY, O F AURORA, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

MEANS FOR SLIEDINGLY SUPPORTING FOLDING DOORS.

Application filed April 23, 1923. Serial No. 634,021.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELLIs J. G. PHILLIPS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Aurora, in the county of Kane and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Slidingly Supporting Folding Doors, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to that type of.closure for a wide doorway comprising a plurality of sets of doors, the members of each set being hinged together and the outer one of each set being hinged to a supportlat the side of the doorway while the inner member is connected by a suitable hanger with an overhead track that extends from the central portion of the doorway diagonally into the room from which the doorway leads. Such a construction is shown and described in Letters Patent No. 1,160,198, dated November 16, 1915, granted upon my application. My present invention is an improvement upon the construction set forth in that patent, and it has for its leading objects to provide improved means for adjustably holding the overhead track sections at the desired inclination; to provide improved means for clamping such track sections firmly to their supporting devices; to provide improved means for vertically adjusting the track-supporting devices, and

' to improve generally the construction and operation of devices of the general character referred to. These objects I. accomplish by the construction and arrangement of parts shown in the drawings and hereinafter de-.

' scribed. .That which I believe to be new will be set forth in the claims.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a view in elevation, and from I the inside of a building, of two-sets of two Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional detail show ing one of the supporting devices for an outer end portion of a track and its manner of attachment to a wall at oneside of a doorway, and showing also a track-brackbut showing, respectively, intermediate and inner supporting devices for the track; and Fig. 6 is a vertical section at line 6-6 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the several figures of the drawings,-1O and 11 indicate two doors hinged together by hinges 12, and the door 10 being secured by hinges 13 to the framework A surrounding a large doorway, which said two" doors and other similar doors are adapted to close. The other doors referred to are indicated, respectively, by 14; and 15, they being hinged together at'16, and the outer one of such two doors being secured to the framework A by hinges 17 While but four doors are'shown, it is to be understood that a greater number. may be employed,.

but in such case the outer door of each set will be hinged to the framework in the manthere is provided a track section, and to the inner door of each set is secured a hanger bracket 18 with which will be connected the pendant 19 of an ordinary door hanger, the wheels of which are adapted to run on the track provided for it'- The attachment of the hanger to the door will be adjacent to the inner edge of the door, and by that is meant that edge that is at the center of the doorway when the doors are in closing position, as in Fig. 1.

The track section that is provided for use in connection with each set of doors is of ordinary form as here shown, it being formed of a piece of sheet metal bent u on itself to form a top wall and two para lel side walls that have their marginal portions inturned to form tracks for the trolley wheels to run upon. Each track section is here indicated by 20, and it is engaged at intervals by track brackets 21 to which the supportin devices are connected. track brac ets are of the same gleneral shape as the track that they surroun These but are of greater height, as the drawings show, so as to leave a considerable space between the top wall of the track and the top wall of the track bracket.

Each section of track, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, extends from its inner end in a diagonal direction back from the wall in which is formed the doorway that isclosed by the doors. The supporting means connected with the wall and engaging the track brackets are, therefore, necessarily of different lengths. Three of these supporting devices for each track section are shown, and the shorter one which projects out from about the center of the doorway is indicated by 22, and is shown (see Fig. 5) as an L- shaped arm,-the vertical member of which is bolted to the doorway frame and the other member of which projects over the inner end of the track section and is secured to the track bracket 21 that at that point surrounds the track. As shown, the horizontal member of this inner bracket 22 has secured in it a bushing 23 which also passes through the upper wall of the adjacent track bracket21. The lower portion of the bushing is enlarged to form a head 23, and it is upon the shoulder formed by the production of thishead that the track bracket rests. A screw 24 passing down through the bushing projects freely through a hole 25 in the top wall of the track and thus acts to revent any creeping or lateral movement of the track, but not preventing the bracket from being turned on the sup porting bushing.

The supporting member for the outer end of each track section isin the form of a comparatively long arm 26 preferably formed of a heavy piece of sheet metal. It has its marginal portions turned to form flanges 27 (see Fig. 6) so that said arm is of channel shape. The arm is of sufficient width so as to receive between its flanges 27 one of the track brackets 21, as best shown in Fig. 6', and in that-position the edge of the flanges 27 will, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, rest upon the upper wall of the track section 20. In the upper wall of the arm 26 are a number of holes 28 through any one of which is adapted to be passed a bolt29, which also passes through a hole in the adjacent track bracketthe head of such bolt bearing against the under surface of the upper wall of such track bracket. Upon the projecting end of this bolt is screwed a nut'30, and it is evident that by tightening up such nut the flanges 27 of the arm will beforced very tightly against the track aswell as causing the turned marginal portions of the bracket that underlie the rail members of the track to be pulled tightly against such rail members. Such setting of the parts by proper adjustment of the nut will, therefore, hold the track at this point very rigidly in place. As will menace be understood, the bolt will be passed through that one of the holes 28 in the arm which willsecure the desired angle at which the track section is desired to be set. This arm is designed to be pivotally attached to the wall of the building at one side of the doorway so that it may be swung laterally as desired to accommodate itself to 'the inclination at which the track section that it supports is adjusted, and to that end I provide it with a head at its inner end through which a pivot pin passes that also passes through suitable securing devices fastened to such wall. Owing to the comparatively long distance from the wall that this outer arm is to project, and owing also to the very considerable weight that is imposed upon it when the doors are opened, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, prefer to make this head, here indicated by 31, in the form of aheavy casting that has wide forwardly-projecting wings 32 that extend alongside of the arm 26 and are riveted as shown at 33 to the downturned sides or flanges 27 of such arm. The pivot by which this head is attached in place is indicated by 34, and as shown it passes freely through lugs 35, 35 and 35 that project rearwardly from it, the said pivot bolt also passing through bracket members 36 and 37 of a wall bracket and being secured in place by a nut 38. Interposed between two of the lugs referred to- 35 and 35 in the construction shownis a nut 39 that is screwed u on the pivot bolt, and it is evident that a ter the nut 38 has been loosened sufficiently the pivot bolt can be turned, and as the nut 39 thereon will, when the bolt is turned, be also slightly turned and thus be brought into contact with the face of the wall bracket, the edect of such turning of the bolt will be to cause a vertical adjustment of the supporting arm 26, and thereby enable the end of the track that it supports to be moved as required to properly position the track section connected with it.

In addition to the supports at each end of each track section ll preferably provide an intermediate support. Such intermediate support is shown as an arm- 46 that is in most respects like the longer arm 26, but maslltl) much as this intermediate arm is necessarily shorter and not subjected to the same heavy strain of such longer arm ll do not deem it necessary to make it of two pieces riveted together asin such other arm. This intermediate" arm may well be made of a single malleable casting, but it, like the longer arm, will be provided with downturned flanges that will bear against the upper wall of the track, such flanges being indicated by M, and, as in the case of'the other arm, bein of a width suficient to hold the central web of the arm at a little distance above the we required angle.

of the bracket that such arm connects with. This arm 40 will also be provided with a plurality of holes, indicated by 42, and which will be preferably in the form of slots so as to permit an adjustment of the track to any This intermediate arm is provided with a head portion 43 from which extend lugs 44, 44*, and 44*, between which last two lugs is an adjusting nut 45 on a pivot bolt 46 that also passes through fixed bracket members 47, 48 and is secured in place'by a nut 49 on its end. The bolt that attaches the forward end of this arm 40 to one of the brackets is indicated by 50 and the nut thereon by 51.

From the description given it will be evident that each of the track sections 20 can be similarly adjusted to stand at any required angle from the plane of the doorway, and that in any one of their adjusted positions they will be very firmly held, and if at any time a slight vertical adjustment is required that can be effected by a turning of the nuts 39 and 45 on the outer and intermediate arms respectively.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of an overhead track, means for supporting the track in place, said means comprising a bracket partially embracing the track, an arm extending over said bracket and having a downwardly-extending flange that rests upon the track, and means for connecting said arm and bracket together and forcing said arm and track into close engagement.

2. The combination of an overhead track, means for supporting the track in place, said means comprising a bracket partially embracing the track, a channel-shaped arm extending over said bracket and with its side walls projecting-down at opposite ends of the bracket and resting upon the track, and means for connecting said arm and bracket together and forcing said arm and track into close engagement.

3. The combination of an overhead track, means for pivo-tally attaching one end portion of such track to a fixed support to permit the track to be turned at an angle to the plane of a doorway, a bracket partially embracing the other end portion of said track, a track-supporting arm extending over said bracket and resting upon said track, and means for connecting said arm and bracket together and forcing said arm and track into close engagement.

4. The combination of an overhead track, brackets partially embracing said track, an arm projecting over one end portion of the track, a bushing secured in said arm and extending through the upper wall of one of said brackets and provided with a shoulder for engaging and pivotally supporting such bracket, a device passing through said bushing and engaging with said track, and means for engaging the other end portion of the track for holding it in different laterally adjusted positions.

5. The combination of an overhead track, means for supporting it in place, said means comprising an arm to the outer end of which the track is adapted to be connected, spaced lugs at the inner end of said arm, bracket members between which said lugs extend, a bolt passing through said bracket members and lugs, and a nut mounted on said bolt between two of said lugs for causing a vertical adjustment of said arm when said bolt is turned.

ELLIS J. G. PHILLIPS.

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