Device capable of opening/closing a door at either side thereof

A device capable of opening and closing a door to selectively close an access opening of a main body at either side thereof comprising:

• at least a pair of hinge pins installed opposed to each other at opposite side end regions of one of the door and the main body with which the door is assembled;
• a fixing member fixed on the other one of said door and said main body, said fixing member having pin guide grooves into and out of which each of said hinge pins comes in a pivoting direction when said door pivots at the opposite hinge pin;
• a pair of pin holders mounted within said fixing member and having a pin holding recess for accommodating radially said hinge pin being introduced into said pin guide groove, each of said pin holders being capable of slidingly moving along said pin guide groove and being formed with a pinion-toothed portion on a circumferential surface;
• a pair of rack-toothed portions provided on said fixing member to engage with said pinion-toothed portions of said pin holders, so that said pin holders rotate on their own axis when they are moving along said pin guide grooves;
• a pair of transverse sliders mounted within said fixing member and moving together with said pin holders in the transverse direction of the fixing member;
• and
• a pair of latch members mounted within and supported by said fixing member to move in a longitudinal direction of said fixing member, said latch members having inner ends facing each other with a predetermined gap and outer ends contacting with side surface of respective corresponding transverse sliders;
• wherein the side surface of said transverse slider and corresponding outer end of said latch member are correspondingly contoured such that the transverse movement of said transverse slider causes the longitudinal movement of said latch member in a manner that, when said pin holder is positioned at an entrance of said pin guide groove, said corresponding latch member is moved toward the opposite latch member to contact therewith thereby to obstruct the longitudinal movement of the opposite latch member and then the transverse movement of the opposite transverse slider, and when said pin holder is introduced into said pin guide groove, said corresponding latch member moves away from the opposite latch member to allow the longitudinal movement of the opposite latch member and the transverse movement of the opposite transverse slider.