DOOR OPERATOR
First Claim
1. A door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator comprising:
- a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction adapted to open the door and in a second direction adapted to close the door; and
an operator arm assembly including;
an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft;
a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; and
a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and conditionally operatively engageable with the operator arm, wherein when a force is manually applied to move the operator arm towards the fully open position the output shaft and operator arm are not operatively engaged, and when no manual force is applied the output shaft and the operator arm are operatively engaged.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A door operator for selectively opening and closing a side hinge door. The door operator may include a motor with a drive shaft, an operator arm assembly, a door position sensor, and a controller. The operator arm assembly may include an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft, an operator arm, and a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft. The door position sensor, which may be electro-magnetic, signals the controller when the door is not closed. If the door has been manually pushed open, the controller signals the motor to rotate the drive shaft in the closing direction. In automatic mode, the output shaft and the operator arm are operatively engaged, but manual force to open the door overcomes static friction between the operator arm and friction discs in the clutch assembly, operatively disengaging the operator arm and output shaft until the manual force is removed.
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Citations
47 Claims
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1. A door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator comprising:
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a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction adapted to open the door and in a second direction adapted to close the door; and an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; and a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and conditionally operatively engageable with the operator arm, wherein when a force is manually applied to move the operator arm towards the fully open position the output shaft and operator arm are not operatively engaged, and when no manual force is applied the output shaft and the operator arm are operatively engaged. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator comprising:
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a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction adapted to open the door and in a second direction adapted to close the door; an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; and means for conditionally operatively engaging the output shaft with the operator arm, wherein when a force is manually applied to move the operator arm towards the fully open position the output shaft and operator arm are not operatively engaged, and when no manual force is applied the output shaft and the operator arm are operatively engaged; means for sensing the position of the operator arm; and a controller in communication with the motor and the sensing means. - View Dependent Claims (17)
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18. A door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator comprising:
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a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction adapted to open the door and in a second direction adapted to close the door; an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; and a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; an electro-magnetic door position sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm; a first magnet that rotates about the axis of the output shaft as the output shaft turns wherein the first magnet demarcates the closed position of the operator arm; and a controller in communication with the motor and the door position sensor. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator comprising:
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a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction adapted to open the door and in a second direction adapted to close the door; an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; and a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; a support member for directly or indirectly supporting the motor and that is adapted to be mounted to a door frame or structure proximate to the door frame; and a level mounted to the support member. - View Dependent Claims (24)
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25. A door assembly, comprising:
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a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position; and a door operator comprising; a motor including a drive shaft rotatable in a first direction to open the door and in a second direction to close the door; an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes, the operator arm operatively connected to the door; and a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and conditionally operatively engageable with the operator arm, the clutch assembly including at least one friction disc on each side of the operator arm and parts adjacent to the friction discs, wherein the operator arm may be an adjacent part to at least one friction disc, and a spring for biasing the friction discs and the operator arm towards each other for transfer of rotation of the output shaft to the operator arm through static friction, through all of which the output shaft passes; a door position sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm; and a controller in communication with the motor and the sensor, wherein when the door is manually pushed open from the closed position, parts adjacent to the friction discs slide against the friction discs, the door position sensor indicates to the controller that the door is not closed, the controller signals to the motor to rotate the drive shaft in the direction that closes the door, and the motor rotates the drive shaft in such direction. - View Dependent Claims (26)
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27. A method of using a door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator including a motor including a drive shaft, an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft, a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and including at least one friction disc on each side of the operator arm and parts adjacent to the friction discs, wherein the operator arm may be an adjacent part to at least one friction disc, a sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm, and a controller in communication with the motor and the sensor, the method comprising:
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manually pushing the door from a closed position towards the fully open position; and overcoming the force of static friction between parts adjacent to the friction discs and the friction discs to initiate movement of the door, operatively disengaging the operator arm from the output shaft. - View Dependent Claims (28)
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29. A method of making a door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and an open position, comprising:
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providing a motor including a drive shaft; providing an operator arm assembly including; an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft; a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, wherein the operator arm is adapted to have a closed position coincident with the closed position of the door and a fully open position coincident with the fully open position of the door; and a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and conditionally operatively engageable with the operator arm, wherein when a force is manually applied to move the operator arm towards the fully open position the output shaft and operator arm are not operatively engaged, and when no manual force is applied the output shaft and the operator arm are operatively engaged; providing a door position sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm; providing a controller in communication with the motor and the sensor; and assembling the motor, operator arm assembly, and the controller. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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35. A method of installing a door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and an open position, the door operator including a support member, a motor mounted directly or indirectly to the support member and including a drive shaft, an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft, a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, a clutch assembly mounted to the output shaft and including at least one friction disc on each side of the operator arm and parts adjacent to the friction discs, through all of which the output shaft passes, wherein the operator arm may be an adjacent part to at least one friction disc, a spring to bias the friction discs and the operator arm together, and a retaining nut to apply adjustable force to the spring, a sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm and door, and a controller mounted to the support member and in communication with the motor and the sensor, the method comprising:
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mounting the support member to a door frame or building structure proximate to the door frame; operatively connecting the operator arm to the door; and tightening the retaining nut to a torque that applies pressure to the friction discs and operator arm sufficient to maintain operative engagement of the friction discs and adjacent parts when the door is powered by the motor, the applied torque allowing static friction between the friction discs and at least two adjacent parts to be overcome when the operator arm is moved towards the open position manually, operatively disengaging the friction discs and at least two adjacent parts. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method of installing a door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and an open position, the door operator including a support member, a motor mounted directly or indirectly to the support member and including a drive shaft, an output shaft operatively coupled to the drive shaft, a rotatable operator arm defining an opening through which the output shaft passes and adapted to be operatively connected to the door, an electro-magnetic door position sensor for sensing the position of the operator arm, and a controller mounted to the support member and in communication with the motor and the sensor, the method comprising:
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mounting the support member to a door frame or building structure proximate to the door frame; operatively connecting the operator arm to the door; and disposing a first magnet on a member that rotates around the axis of the output shaft, wherein when the door is in the closed position the first magnet actuates the sensor. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44)
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45. A method of installing a door operator for selectively operating a door positioned within a door frame and hinged along one edge to the door frame for movement between a closed position and a fully open position, the door operator including a motor and a support member for directly or indirectly supporting a motor, the support member having an integral level mounted thereto, the method comprising:
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placing the support member of the door operator in contact with a door frame or building structure proximate to the door frame for mounting to the door frame or building structure proximate to the door frame; adjusting the alignment of the support member such that the integral level indicates that the integral level is level; and mounting the support member to the door frame or building structure proximate to the door frame. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47)
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Specification