Garage door safety device
AssigneeBuena Vista Investments Ltd.
InventorBenjamin C. Giese
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A garage door assembly that includes a torsion spring counterbalance apparatus mounted on a header wall above a garage door, the apparatus including at least one spring wound on a shaft, also includes a safety device. The safety device includes a capture device mounted on the header wall above the garage door, and a catch device attached to the shaft at a location proximate to the capture device on the header wall. The catch device rotates with the torsion spring counterbalance shaft, and the catch device is capable of extending away from the shaft under centrifugal force to engage the capture device and thereby stop the garage door from further free-falling.
Claims14
A garage door assembly comprising a torsion spring counterbalance apparatus mounted on a header wall above a garage door, the apparatus comprising at least one spring wound on a shaft, and a safety device, the safety device comprising:
- a capture device mounted on the header wall above the garage door;
- and
- a catch device attached to the shaft at a location proximate to the capture device on the header wall, wherein the catch device rotates with the torsion spring counterbalance shaft, and wherein the catch device is capable of extending away from the shaft under centrifugal force to engage the capture device and thereby stop the garage door from further free-falling, wherein the catch device comprises a flexible cord attached to the counterbalance shaft at two locations along a length of the counterbalance shaft.
A garage door assembly comprising a torsion spring counterbalance apparatus mounted on a header wall above a garage door, the apparatus comprising at least one spring wound on a counterbalance shaft, and a safety device, the safety device comprising:
- a hook mounted on the header wall above the garage door;
- and
- a chain attached to the counterbalance shaft at two locations along a length of the counterbalance shaft proximate to the hook, wherein a length of the chain between the two attachment locations is greater than the shaft length between the two attachment locations, and
- wherein when the shaft is rotating without resistance from the torsion spring counterbalance apparatus, the chain is configured to extend away from the shaft under centrifugal force and engage the hook to stop the garage door from free-falling.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.