Rack and pinion door drive system
AssigneeHowick Engineering Limited
InventorsBruce Arthur Coubray, Allan Keith Coubray
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A drive for a tracked door which utilises a drive pinion which engages a tracked rack that in turn moves the door as it is moved track-wise under the action of the pinion. A flexible rack able to travel on a curved locus is preferred.
Claims26
A door assembly having a door guided on either side of said door by a plurality of rollers guided within a first channel of a fixed track to allow reproducible opening and closing of said door, the assembly comprising:
- a rack entirely guided within a second channel of said track along the entire length of said track during opening and closing, along a fixed locus substantially parallel to said fixed track and connected to the door such that movement of such rack along said fixed locus will cause the opening or closing of the door, the rack being engaged by a meshing door opening and/or closing pinion of a door opener whereby the door is thus capable of being opened upon the door opener controlled rotation of said pinion in one direction and of being closed upon the door opener controlled rotation of such pinion in the other direction.
A door assembly having a door guided by rollers on either side of said door in a first channel of a fixed track to allow reproducible opening and closing of said doors,
- wherein a rack is guided in a second channel of said track during opening and closing of said door along a fixed locus defined by a flange of, and being substantially parallel to said fixed track, said rack being connected to the door such that movement of said rack along said fixed locus will cause the opening or closing of the door, the rack being engaged by a meshing door opening and/or closing pinion of a door opener whereby the door is thus capable of being opened upon the door opener controlled rotation of said pinion in one direction, and of being closed upon the door opener controlled rotation of said pinion in the other direction,
- and wherein in transverse section said rack has a bifurcated region, said bifurcated region slidably engaged onto said flange,
- and wherein the pinion engages the rack over regions thereof on one side of the wall.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.