US 5,429,170 A · Operator for a sliding overhead door

Abstract

An apparatus is provided for operating a segmented sliding overhead door. The door is of the type for sliding in a pair of side tracks mounted at either side of the door between a dosed vertical position and an open horizontal position. A driver is mounted at the side-to-side center of the door and extends away from an interior side of the door. The driver includes a screw drive shaft adapted to be mounted horizontally above the door. A motor is engaged with the drive shaft and provides reversible rotational drive force to the drive shaft. A drive shaft coupling unit engages the drive shaft for moving along the drive shaft in response to rotation of the drive shaft. A track assembly engages and supports the rotating drive shaft and guides the coupling unit in linear travel along the drive shaft. A door connecting rod assembly serves to rigidly jam the door against the floor when the door is in the fully closed position, and connects the carrier unit to the door for moving the door along the side tracks. Preferably, a safety release is included for releasing the connecting rod assembly from the door so that the door may be manually operated. The apparatus is particularly shock resistant.

Claims26

Dependent claims

An operating apparatus for a segmented sliding overhead door of the type for sliding in a pair of tracks mounted at either side of the door between a closed vertical position and an open horizontal position, the apparatus comprising:

a drive means mounted at the approximate side-to-side center of the door and extending away from an interior side of the door, including a screw drive shaft adapted to be mounted above the door, in an approximately horizontal orientation, and a prime mover engaged with the drive shaft and providing reversible rotational drive force to the drive shaft, and a drive shaft coupling unit engaged on the drive shaft for moving along the drive shaft in response to drive shaft rotation;
a track assembly adapted for engagement with the drive shaft, and the coupling unit for supporting the same and for guiding the coupling unit in linear travel along the drive shaft;
a door connecting rod assembly including a first, second and third straight and rigid connecting rods, the first and second of the connecting rods being pivotally engaged end-to-end, while the third of the connecting rods is pivotally joined at its ends to the first and to the second of the connecting rods respectively and thereby joining same, the three rods forming the sides of a triangle, the third of the rods further being slidably engaged to at least one of the first and second of the rods such that the first and second rods may mutually pivot from a first position forming a right angle therebetween, to a second position forming an obtuse angle therebetween, the third of the rods controlling the extent of the maximum obtuse angle achieved in the second position, an urging means interconnecting the third of the rods and one of the first and second of the rods such that the third of the rods is urged to move to open the obtuse angle, further, the rod assembly being pivotally interconnected between the coupling unit and the door such that with the door in the closed position, the coupling unit is at a fully rearward position, the rod assembly forming a right angle with the first of the rods in a generally vertical position and the second of the rods in a generally horizontal position, the door thereby being jammed between the rod assembly and a floor, and with the door in the open position, the coupling unit being forward of the fully rearward position, the rod assembly following the coupling unit with the first and second of the rods forming the obtuse angle.

An operating apparatus for a segmented sliding overhead door moveable along a pair of tracks positioned on either side of a door between a vertical closed position and a horizontal open position, the tracks including a vertical portion and a horizontal portion joined by a curved portion, said apparatus comprising:

drive means mounted between said horizontal portion of said tracks and operable for moving a coupling unit towards and away from said vertical portion;
door connecting means having an upper end connected to said coupling unit and an opposite end connected to said door below said horizontal portion of said tracks, said door connecting means being pivotable between an L-shaped configuration in said closed position of the door and an elongated generally I-shaped configuration in said open position of said door;
and
release means operable for disconnecting said connecting means from said door to permit manual elevation of said door from said closed position to said open position;
characterized in that after disconnection from said door said connecting means are urged upwardly by said door to an out-of-the-way position above said door in response to said manual elevation of said door and said connecting means are urged by said door to said I-shaped configuration in response to said manual elevation of said door from said closed position to said open position so as to reduce the space required by said connecting means above said door in said out-of-the-way position.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Operator for a sliding overhead door

Life of this patent

Operator for a sliding overhead door

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims26