Sliding door closure

Oct. 27, 1959

2,909,802

G. J. GANG ET AL

SLIDING DOOR CLOSURE

Filed Jan. 4, 1957

Sheets-Sheet 1

<img file="US2909802A_D0001.tif" />

Oct 27, 1959

2,909,802

Filed Jan. 4, 1957

G. J. GANG ET AL

SLIDING DOOR CLOSURE

Sheets-Sheet 2

<img file="US2909802A_D0002.tif" />

2,909,802

Patented Oct. 27, 1959

United States Patent Office

2,909,802

SLIDING DOOR CLOSURE

George J. Gang, Forest Hills, and Joseph Minissale, Little Neck, N.Y.

Application January 4, 1957, Serial No. 632,474

Claims. (Cl. 16—87)

This invention relates generally to sliding door closures, for example, shower enclosures having sliding doors, and more particularly is directed to improvements in the mountings for such doors.

In existing shower enclosures having sliding doors, the doors are either mounted on, or suspended from, rollers which travel in suitable tracks forming the lower or the upper horizontal members, respectively, of the enclosure frame. In the case where the rollers are provided at the bottom of the sliding doors and travel in tracks formed in the lower horizontal member of the enclosure frame, water, soap and the like enter the tracks during operation of the shower and after a while interfere with the smooth and frictionless movement of the doors. In the existing arrangements having the sliding doors suspended from rollers which travel along tracks in the upper horizontal member of the enclosure frame, the interior of the tracks and, hence, the rollers therein, are effectively shielded from exposure to water, soap and the like during operation of the shower, but considerable difficulty is experienced in assembling and installing such enclosures. More particularly, in such existing arrangements for suspending the sliding doors from above, the exclusion of water, soap and the like from the overhead tracks is ensured by providing the latter with longitudinal, downwardly opening slots which are only wide enough to accommodate the hangers by which the doors are suspended from the rollers within the tracks so that the rollers can be inserted in the tracks only in the longitudinal direction at the opposite ends of the upper horizontal frame member, while the hangers are securely attached to the doors as permanent parts of the door assemblies. Since the opposite ends of the upper horizontal frame member are closed, for example, by abutting wall surfaces, when the upper horizontal frame member is in its installed position, it is apparent that, in the existing arrangements, it is necessary to install the upper horizonal frame member with the cumbersome and heavy sliding doors attached thereto.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an overhead mounting for sliding doors, particularly, in sliding door shower enclosures and the like, with an improved separable connection between the hangers suspended from rollers in the overhead tracks and the sliding doors, so that the upper horizontal frame member defining the overhead tracks can be installed independent of the cumbersome and heavy doors, but with the rollers and hangers in place within the tracks, and, thereafter, the doors can be easily connected to the hangers.

Another object is to provide an overhead mounting for sliding doors having the above characteristics, wherein the doors can be connected to the related hangers without requiring the use of any tools or the manipulation of fasteners and the like, and the separable connections between the hangers and doors are effective to safely support the weight Of the doors during all conditions of operation.

Another object is to provide an overhead mounting for sliding doors having the foregoing characteristics, and wherein all of the parts thereof are constructed and arranged to afford a balanced suspension of the doors and uniform distribution of the loads to the rollers and, from the latter, to the tracks.

A further object is to provide an overhead mounting for sliding doors wherein the latter can be easily removed, for example, when it is necessary to replace the glazing or to effect other repairs, without requiring the removal of the rollers and related hangers from the tracks defined by the upper horizontal frame members.

A further object is to provide an improved construction of the upper horizontal frame member of an overhead mounting for sliding doors, as in sliding door shower enclosures, that substantially decreases the production costs of such frame member and also contributes to the uniform transfer of the door loads from the rollers to the tracks defined within the frame member.

A still further object of the invention is to provide separable connections between the doors and hangers, in an overhead mounting for sliding doors, that permit vertical adjustment of the sliding doors relative to the frame around the door opening.

In accordance with an aspect of this invention, each sliding door is provided with a connecting member extending along at least a portion of the upper edge thereof and having a top margin of wedge-shaped cross-sectional configuration with at least one pair of generally downwardly facing shoulders at the opposite sides of the connecting member, and each hanger for suspending the door from rollers traveling on tracks within the upper horizontal frame member includes resilient parts that are laterally separable, at least in the lower portions thereof, and are formed with inturned lower edges so that, when the wedge-shaped top margin of the connecting member on a door is urged upwardly between such resilient parts of the hanger, the resilient parts are thereby spread laterally apart until the inturned lower edges of the latter engage under the downwardly facing shoulders at opposite sides of the connecting member, whereupon, the engaged inturned edges of the hanger and the shoulders of the connecting member serve to transmit the door load to the hanger and, hence, to the rollers on the overhead tracks.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the inturned edges of the hanger, in the above described overhead mounting for sliding doors, are preferably toothed or serrated in order to provide a firm grip on the connecting member of the door and, thereby, to prevent longitudinal relative movement between the door and its hangers during opening and closing of the door.

The above, and other objects, features and advantages of the invention, will be apparent in the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof and wherein;

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a sliding door closure, for example, a sliding door shower enclosure, that embodies the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line 2—2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 3—3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged, detail sectional view taken along the line 4—4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5—5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to that of Fig. 5, but taken along the line 6—6 of Fig. 4 and showing the condition of the hanger when separated from the door to be supported thereby;

2,909,802

Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view illustrating the separation of a door from its supporting hanger; and

Fig. 8 is a detail sectional view of another embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail, and initially to Figs. 1 and 2 thereof, it will be seen that the present invention is there shown applied to a sliding door arrangement for closing the one open side of a shower space, either in a stall shower or in a bathtub shower, which is otherwise defined by fixed walls at the ends and at the back. In such an arrangement, a frame is provided around the opening to the shower and includes a lower horizontal frame component 10 which seats upon the outside rim of the bathtub or the sill of the stall shower, side frame components 11 which extend vertically upward from the opposite ends of the frame component 10 and are adapted to be secured to the fixed walls at the adjacent ends of the shower space, and an upper horizontal frame component 12 which is supported, at its opposite ends on the upper ends of the side frame components 11.

Since the fixed walls defining the ends of the shower space may not be exactly straight and may not be parallel to each other or exactly at right angles to the rim or sill upon which the frame component 10 is intended to seat, the lower frame component 10 and the side frame components 11 are preferably constructed in a manner to permit compensation for any irregularities in the adjacent fixed structures. Thus, as seen in Fig. 2, the lower horizontal frame component 10 includes an outer, generally U-shaped channel member 13 which preferably has an inclined bottom wall and is adapted to seat upon, and be cementiously secured to, the bathtub rim or stall shower sill, an inner channel member 14 which fits into the channel member 13 and is adapted to be moved vertically into and out of the later, and a plurality of adjustable mounting means 15 arranged at spaced apart locations along the frame component 10 and adapted to adjustably determine the vertical disposition of the channel member 14 relative to the channel member 13. The particular adjustable mounting means 15 employed for the above purpose forms no part of the present invention and, therefore, is not disclosed in detail herein, but it is to be noted that a device of the kind disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,767,423, issued October 23, 1956 to George J. Gang and Joseph Minissale, may be advantageously employed therefor.

Similarly, each of the side frame components 11 includes an outer channel member 16 (Fig. 3) adapted to be secured to the adjacent fixed wall, an inner channel member 17 fitting into the channel member 16, and adjustable mounting means 18 which adjustably determine the position of the channel member 17 relative to the channel member 16 and which may also be constructed in the manner disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,767,423, identified more fully above. Thus, even though the walls at the ends of the shower space to which the outer channel members 16 are secured are uneven or canted with respect to the rim or sill to which the outer channel 13 is secured, the adjustable mounting means 15 and 18 make it possible to arrange the channel members 17 of the side frame components exactly vertical and at right angles to the channel member 14 of the lower frame component, thereby to define, with the upper horizontal frame component 12, an accurately rectangular opening for reception of outer and inner sliding doors 19 and 20.

In the illustrated sliding door closure, the doors 19 and 20 are supported, from above, by carrier assemblies 21 which are movable along tracks defined within the upper horizontal frame component 12. Referring in detail to Fig. 2, it will be seen that the frame component 12 includes an outside wall 22, an inside wall 23, a central wall or partition 24, flanges 25 and 26 extending from the walls 22 and 23, respectively, toward the central par4 tition, and flanges 27 and 28 extending from the opposite sides of central partition 24 toward the flanges 25 and 26 respectively, with the flanges 25 and 27 defining a double track for the carriers 21 supporting outer door 19 and flanges 26 and 28 defining a double track for the carriers 21 supporting inner door 20. Further, it will be seen that the edges of flanges 25 and 27 and the edges of flanges 26 and 28 are laterally spaced apart to define longitudinally extending slots 29 and 30, respectively, through which parts of the carriers 21, which are hereinafter described in detail, can extend downwardly from within frame component 12 for connection to the related doors 19 and 20.

The frame component 12 is most conveniently formed of extruded metal, such as, for example, aluminum or the like, but, by reason of the central partition 24 which supports track forming flanges 27 and 28, the component 12, in cross-section, has two mutually isolated internal cavities 31 and 32 which create difficulties in the extrusion process and would normally result in a substantially high production cost for the component 12. In order to avoid such high production costs, the component 12 is preferably formed from two separately extruded parts 33 and 34 which are each easily and cheaply extruded and then assembled together. The inner extruded part 33 includes the partition 24 with the track forming flanges 27 and 28 along the lower edge thereof, and a projection 35 extending along the upper edge of part 33 and having a cross-section which is generally of dove-tailed configuration. The outer extruded part 34 of frame component 12 includes the walls 22 and 23 with the track forming flanges 25 and 26 projecting inwardly therefrom, an arched connecting portion 36 extending between the walls 22 and 23 and having a longitudinal channel defining part 37 at the center corresponding in cross-section to the dove-tailed projection 35 to receive the latter, and ornamental extensions 38 and 39 extending downwardly and upwardly from the walls 22 and 23 to shield the connections between the doors 19 and 20 and the carriers 21 and to provide a finished appearance at the top of frame component 12. Further, the outer extended part 34 preferably has longitudinally extending projections 40 directed inwardly from the inner surface of arched portion 36 at locations above the carriers 21 to prevent disengagement of the latter from the tracks defined by flanges 25, 25, 27 and 28, as will hereinafter appear in detail.

It will be apparent that, following the separate extrusion of the parts 33 and 34, such parts are assembled together by inserting the dove-tailed projection 35 longitudinally in the channel of part 37. Further, the channel denning part 37 preferably has a reduced thickness at its central axis, as at 41, to increase the resilience of the outer extruded part 34 about that central axis. Since the frame component 12 is made-up of separately extruded parts 33 and 34, rather than from a single extruded shape, it is relatively easy to maintain close tolerances in the dimensions of parts 33 and 34 so that the track defining flanges 25, 26, 27 and 28 can be produced to lie more accurately in the same horizontal plane. Further, by reason of the increased resilience of outer part 34 about its central axis resulting from the reduced thickness at 41, any imbalance between the loads applied by carriers 21 to flanges 25 and 27 or to flanges 26 and 28 can cause displacement of the inner part 33 until the loads are substantially uniformly distributed between the track denning flanges supporting each carrier.

As seen in Figs. 2 and 4, each carrier 21, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, includes an axle 42 on which a pair of wheels or rollers 43 are rotatably mounted. The rollers 43 may be formed of nylon or the like to decrease the frictional resistance to rotation thereof on the non-rotatable axle 42 and to provide relatively quiet operation as the rollers 43 travel on the track defining flanges 25 and 27 or and 28. The rollers 43 are held on the axle 42 by split retaining rings 44 engage

2,909,808 able in circumferential grooves at the opposite ends of axle 42. Further, the axle 42 has slots 45 formed therein extending at right angles to the axis thereof at opposite sides of the axle. The slots 45 are provided with parallel bottoms (Fig. 4) and are located midway between the opposite ends of the axle (Fig. 2) so that, at the center of the axle 42, a flat-sided cross-section is formed (Fig. 4).

Each carrier 21 also includes a hanger 46 which depends from axle 42 between the rollers 43 for connection to the related door 19 or 20 and which, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, consists of two plates 47 and 48 of resilient sheet metal. As seen in Fig. 4, each of the plates 47 and 48 has an opening therein that includes a circular portion 49 having a diameter slightly larger than that of the axle 42 and a flat-sided portion 50 that closely conforms to the dimensions of the flatsided cross-section at the center of axle 42. Thus, in assembling the carrier 21, the axle 42 can be inserted through the circular portions 49 of the openings in hanger plates 47 and 48 until the later are aligned with the center of the axle, whereupon a downward displacement of plates 47 and 48 relative to axle 42 will dispose the flat-sided central part of the latter within the flat-sided portions 50 of the plate openings so that the axle 42 will then be held against rotation relative to the hanger 46. The non-rotatable connection between each hanger 46 and the related axle 42 is of importance since the bearing area of the thin hanger plates 47 and 48 upon the axle 42 is relatively small and any turning of the axle in the places would tend to cause relatively rapid wearing away of the axle or of the hanger plates.

As seen in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, the plates 47 and 48 of each hanger 46 may be held laterally together, in the upper portions thereof, by interengaging tabs and openings that include a tab 51. struck from plate 47 and extending upwardly to extend through an opening 52 in plate 48, and a tab 53 struck from plate 48 and extending downwardly to extend through an opening 54 in plate 47. The tab 51 and opening 54 may be arranged at the same level in plate 47, while the opening 52 and tab 53 are arranged at the same level in plate 48 which is spaced further from the top edge of plate 48 than the distance between the level of tab 51 and opening 54 from the top edge of plate 47 so that, in assembling the plates 47 and 48, the plate 48 is raised relative to plate 47 to permit the tabs 51 and 53 to register with, and extend through the openings 52 and 54, respectively. Then, the plate 48 is displaced downwardly relative to plate 47 so that the tabs 51 and 53 come to rest against the lower edges of openings 52 and 54 and overlie the outer surfaces of the plates 48 and 47, respectively. So long as both plates 47 and 48 are downwardly loaded, the relative vertical movement of plates 47 and 48 that is necessary for separation thereof cannot occur and, thus, the tabs 51 and 53 normally hold the plates against lateral separation in their upper portions.

The lower edges of plates 47 and 48 are bent inwardly toward each other and upwardly and are serrated or toothed, as at 55, and such lower edges are resiliently urged toward each other by the resilient character of the material making up the plates 47 and 48.

Each of the doors 19 and 20 includes a metal frame 56 having glazing 57 therein, and each frame 56 is made-up of vertical side frame members 58, a top frame member 59 and a bottom frame member 60, all of which may be formed by extrusion of aluminum or the like.

In order to provide a separable connection between each door and the related carriers 21, the top frame member 59 of each door is formed with a connecting member 61 extending along all, or at least a part, of the upper edge of frame member 59 and having a top margin 62 of wedge-shaped cross-sectional configuration and at least one pair of generally downwardly facing shoulders 63 at the opposite sides of the connecting member (Figs. 2, 5 and 7).

When the top margin 62 of connecting member 61 is pushed upwardly between the lower edges 55 of plates 5 47 and 48, the latter are spread laterally apart by the wedge-shaped configuration of margin 62 until the inwardly bent toothed lower edges 55 engage under the shoulders 63 to support the downwardly directed load of the related door 19 or 20. Further, the serrated form 10 of the inwardly and upwardly bent lower edges 55 causes the latter to bite into the relatively soft metal of the extruded connecting member 61, thereby to resist longitudinal displacement of the door 19 or 20 relative to its carriers 21.

Thus, the carriers 21, separate from the doors 19 and 20, can be inserted in the cavities 31 and 32 of upper frame component 12 at an open end of the latter before the frame component 12 is installed in position. Since the doors 19 and 20 are not hung from component 12, ²⁰ the latter can be easily installed. When the shower enclosure frame has been completed, the doors 19 and 20 are then merely placed within the enclosure frame, in the planes of their intended movement, and pushed upwardly until the bent toothed edges 55 of the related hangers 25 46, which project downwardly through the slots 29 and 30 (Fig. 2) engage the shoulders 63 of the connecting members 61 on the doors to support the loads of the latter.

When it is necessary to remove the doors 19 and 20 ³⁰ for any reason, for example, for ease in replacing the glazing 57 thereof, the door may be moved upward so that the wedge-shaped margin 62 of its connecting member 61 further spreads apart the lower portions of plates 47 and 48 (Fig. 7), whereupon, any handy tools, for ³® example, screw drivers, can be inserted under the edges 55 to keep the latter spread laterally apart as the door lowered for removal of the connecting member 61 from between the plates 47 and 48.

It will be apparent that, during the upward movement ⁴⁰ of the connecting member 61 relative to the hangers 46 of the associated carriers, for effecting either installation or removal of the doors 19 and 20 as above described, the projections 40 of the upper frame component 12, which closely overlie the top edges of the 45 hangers, prevent upward movement of the latter. Further, it will be seen in Fig. 2 that the track forming flanges 25, 26, 27 and 28 have laterally arcuate top surfaces on which the correspondingly rounded peripheries of the rollers 43 are intended to ride so that 50 the carriers 21 are thereby laterally positioned with respect to frame component 12 to ensure that the hangers 46 extend with clearance at both sides through the slots 29 and 30.

Although the connecting member 61 of the embodi55 ment of the invention illustrated by Figs. 2 and 4 to 7, inclusive, has only one pair of downwardly facing shoulders 63, the connecting member may have several vertically spaced apart shoulders to permit adjustment of the vertical position of the door with respect to its car60 tiers. For example, as shown in Fig. 8, the connecting member 61α has a wedge-shaped top margin 62α and three pairs of downwardly facing shoulders 63α, 63b and 63c arranged successively one below the other so that the inwardly and upwardly bent lower edges 55α 65 of the resilient plates 47α and 48α, making up a hanger 46α, may be engaged with any selected pair of the shoulders to adjustably determine the position of the related door relative to the upper frame component.

Since the hangers 46, by which the door 19 or 20 is 70 suspended from the axles 42 of the carriers 21, are formed of resilient plates 47 and 48, it is apparent that the hangers 46 can flex to permit the doors to hang vertically and to uniformly apply the load from the rollers 43 to the related tracks at the opposite sides of 75 the vertical plane of the related door, even when such

2,909,802 tracks are not exactly in the same horizontal plane. Such balanced distribution of the load tends to decrease the rate of wear on the tracks and rollers and also to increase the ease with which the doors may be operated.

It will be sen that, in the illustrated embodiments of the invention, the generally downwardly facing shoulders 63 (Fig. 7) or 63«, 63Z> and 63c (Fig. 8) incline upwardly toward the central plane of the connecting member so that, when the door load is transmitted from the connecting member to the hanger, the engagement of such inclined shoulders with the inwardly and upwardly directed lower edges 55 or 55α of the hanger will tend to urge such lower edges laterally in the direction toward each other, thereby to prevent disengagement of the hanger from the connecting member while under load.

Although only one carrier 21 appears in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, it should be understood that at least two of such carriers are to be provided for supporting each of the doors 19 and 20.

In order to laterally position the lower edges of the doors 19 and 20, the bottom frame member 60 of each door may have the same configuration as the top frame member 59 thereof, but with the connecting member 61 thereof extending along the lower edge and projecting downwardly into related, upwardly opening longitudinal compartments 64 and 65 defined in the channel 14 of lower frame component 10 between the side walls of channel 14 and a central raised portion 66 in the latter (Fig. 2). Since the member 61 of the bottom frame member 60 used as a guide is slidably engageable v/ith the edges of channel 14 at the opposite sides of the slotlike openings into compartments 64 and 65, strips 67 or the like of abrasion resisting material, for example, of nylon and the like, may be secured to the opposite sides of each lower member 61 in order to further quiet the operation of the doors and to prevent excessive wear of the frictionally engaging parts. It is to be understood that the possible vertical movement of the connecting member 61 of the top frame member 59 upwardly between the resilient plates 47 and 48 from the normal supported position of the door must be large enough to permit the connecting member 61 of the bottom frame member 60 to be withdrawn from the related compartment 64 or 65 of the channel 14 of frame component 10 during the installation or removal of the door.

It will be apparent from the above description of illustrative embodiments of the invention that, in accordance with the latter, an arrangement is provided that permits the installation or assembly of the components 10, 11 and 12 of the enclosure frame independent of the doors 19 and 20 and, thereafter, facilitates the installation and removal of the doors. Further, it will be apparent that the illustrative embodiments contain particular features tending to reduce the costs of production and to facilitate and improve the operation of the doors, as previously pointed out in detail.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those particular embodiments which have been presented merely by way of example, and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention, except as defined in the appended claims.