Stove door assembly for shielding viewing window from firebox interior

In a stove having a firebox for burning solid fuels such as wood or coal, an opening communicating with said firebox, a window housing surrounding said opening and protruding laterally from said stove, and a transparent window pane mounted in said housing in alignment with said opening and through which the interior of the firebox may be viewed, a door assembly arranged in said window housing between said window pane and said opening, said door assembly comprising:

• a door having first and second panels, with hinge means connecting the lower edge of said first panel to the upper edge of said second panel for pivotal movement about a first horizontal axis;
• means for connecting said first panel to said window housing for pivotal movement about a second horizontal axis arranged above said first horizontal axis;
• inclined track members extending downwardly along the interior sides of said window housing and inwardly away from said window pane, said track members being arranged to be at least partially overlapped by the sides of said door panels;
• and
• handle means accessible through a vent opening in the top of said window housing for pivotally adjusting said door between a raised open position at which the lower edge of said second door panel is in contact with upper sections of said track members and said door panels are in a generally confronting relationship extending rearwardly away from said track members towards said opening, thus exposing said window pane to said opening, and a lowered closed position at which said door panels are arranged in a generally coplanar relationship substantially parallel to and at rest against said track members, thereby shielding said window pane from said opening.