Overhead door with spring-loaded roller hinges

A spring-loaded roller hinge for an overhead door assembly, the overhead door assembly including a multi-panel door movingly held by opposed tracks and wheel assemblies, each wheel assembly including a wheel rotatably joined by an axle, the wheel being rollingly received and guidably held by the track, each track having a substantially vertical track portion fixed to one opposed substantially vertical framing located along the sides of the opening, the tracks and wheel assemblies guiding and allowing selective movement of the door between open and closed positions, the door including a series of adjacent panels, each panel spanning the width of the opening and overlapping the framing, and each vertical track portion having an inner end against which the wheels can push, said spring-loaded roller hinge comprising:

• a first bracket having a first base plate and first and second side flanges, said first and second flanges extending substantially perpendicular to said base plate in a common direction;
• a second bracket aligned in mating relationship with said first bracket, said second bracket having a second base plate and third and fourth side flanges, said base plates being in substantially planar alignment, and said third and fourth flanges extending from said second base plate substantially perpendicular to said base plate in a common direction, said first, second, third and fourth flanges being in flush overlapping alignment proximal a midpoint of said spring-loaded roller hinge;
• a fixed hinge hub passing through holes in said first, second, third and forth flanges to pivotally join said first and second brackets, said fixed hinge hub having flared ends to secure said fixed hinge hub to said brackets and between said third and fourth flanges, said fixed hinge hub being substantially parallel to and spaced a desired distance from said base plates;
• a pivoting wheel hub passing through a hole in said third flange and an elongated slot in said fourth flange, said hole having a diameter sized to substantially flushly receive said pivoting wheel hub, and said elongated slot having a uniform width sized to substantially flushly accommodate said pivoting wheel hub, said slot having innermost and outermost ends and a length extending away from said base plate of said second bracket, said pivoting wheel hub having flared ends to secure said pivoting wheel hub to said second bracket and between said third and forth flanges at a location spaced from said fixed hinge hub, said wheel hub being pivotably joined to said third flange by pivoting about said hole in said third flange and being movingly guided by said fourth flange via said slot, and the axle of the wheel is received and held by said pivoting wheel hub;
• a biasing mechanism joined to said spring-loaded roller hinge and engaging said pivoting wheel hub, said biasing mechanism biasing said moving end of said pivoting wheel hub toward engagement with said outermost end of said slot;
• and,
• wherein said spring-loaded roller hinge and biasing mechanism biasingly push the wheel against the inner end of the track to push the door toward the framing to seal the door opening when the door is in its closed position.

A set of spring-loaded roller hinges for an overhead door assembly that selectively opens and closes an opening in a building, the overhead door assembly including a multi-panel door held by opposed tracks with substantially vertical track portions fixed to opposed substantially vertical framing located along the sides of the opening, the tracks guiding and allowing selective movement of the door between open and closed positions, the door including a series of adjacent panels, each panel spanning the width of the opening and overlapping the framing, and each vertical track portion having an inner end, said spring-loaded roller hinge comprising:

• a plurality of spring-loaded roller hinge sets, each said hinge set including two spring-loaded roller hinges, and each spring-loaded roller hinge including first and second brackets joined to pivot about a pivot centerline, each bracket being adapted for securement to one of the adjacent panels to allow hinged movement between the adjacent panels;
• said first spring-loaded roller hinge being positioned proximal a first side of the door, and said second spring-loaded roller hinge being positioned proximal a second side of the door, said first bracket having first and second spaced flanges for supporting an elongated wheel hub, said first flange having a hole sized to receive and pivotally hold a pivotable end of said wheel hub about a pivot point, said second flange having a substantially horizontal elongated slot sized to receive and guide a laterally moving end of said wheel hub, said slot having outermost and innermost ends,
• said spring-loaded roller hinge including a mechanism to bias said moving end of said wheel hub away from its said hinge base and toward said outermost end of its said slot, each of said wheel hubs holding a roller wheel assembly formed by a wheel joined to an axle, said axle being received by said elongated wheel hub and said wheel located proximal said moving end of said wheel hub, said wheel being held and movingly guided by said track;
• and,
• wherein said biasing mechanism biasingly pushes said wheel against the inner end of the track to biasingly push the door toward the framing to seal the door opening when the door is in its closed position.