Closing attachment kit for sliding door and anti-friction support

• US 4,126,912 A
• Filed: 06/22/1977
• Issued: 11/28/1978
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/1976
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Johnson W. Grant
• Original Assignee: Johnson W. Grant
• Inventors: Johnson, W. Grant
• Primary Examiner(s): Faw, Jr., Price C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Berman, Conrad L.
• Application Number:
  US05/808,793
• Time in Patent Office: 524 Days
• Field of Search: 16/81, 16/97, 16/99, 16/100, 16/101, 16/105, 49/387, 49/404, 49/420, 49/421, 49/425, 49/427
• US Class Current: 16/81
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 15/0665 on wheels with fixed axis
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 1/025 with rectilinearly-moving counterweights
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/132 Doors
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 292/46 Sliding door fasteners
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 292/11 Magnetic

Abstract

A unitary self-contained kit of components is readily attachable to a sliding door without modification of the door to effect gravity actuated closing. The kit includes a guide channel and pulley that are simply adhesively secured to an outwardly facing surface portion of the door at the rear of the door. A weight is slidably confined within the guide and hangs from a line entrained over the pulley and connected to a hook on the doorway lintel. Included in the kit is a universal wheel and bracket assembly that can be readily mounted on many different types of doors.

Claims

1. A gravity actuated door closer assembly for use with a sliding door assembly having a doorway frame including a pair of jambs and a lintel, and a door mounted to slide in the plane of said doorway and having front and rear stiles, said door closer assembly comprising,

a vertically extending elongated guide including a contact portion conforming to an outwardly facing surface portion of said raer stile,

means for securing said guide to said rear stile with said contact portion of said guide contiguous to said outwardly facing surface portion of said rear stile,

a pulley,

means for rotatably mounting said pulley to and with said guide,

a hook,

means for connectinf said hook to said lintel at a point just forward of the closed position of said rear stile,

a weight slidable in said guide, and

a line entrained over said pulley and connected to and between said hook and weight.

2. The door closer assembly of claim 1 wherein said guide, pulley, hook, weight and line comprise a self-contained unitary package of components adapted to be mounted to an existing sliding door assembly without structural modification of said door or doorway frame.

3. The door closer assembly of claim 2 wherein said means for rotatably mounting said pulley comprises a bracket adapted to be secured to said door, a pin having a head adapted to be captured between said bracket and door and extending through said guide, said pulley being journalled on said pin, whereby said pulley is supported in part by said guide and in part by said door.

4. The door closer assembly of claim 2 wherein said guide contact portion includes substantially planar contact surfaces spaced along said guide, wherein said outwardly facing surface portion of said rear stile includes planar contact surfaces, and wherein said means for securing said guide to said door comprises means adhesively connected to an interposed between said guide contact surfaces and said rear stile contact surface.

5. The door closer assembly of claim 4 wherein said means for rotatably mounting said pulley comprises a pin fixedly mounted to said guide, said pulley being journalled on said pin.

6. The door closer assembly of claim 4 wherein said means for rotatably mounting said pulley comprises a pulley mounting plate adhesively secured to said rear stile contact surface, a pin extending through said plate and through said guide and having a head captured between said plate and said door, said pulley being journalled on said pin.

7. The door closer assembly of claim 6 wherein said guide comprises a member of C shaped cross-section having a pair of mutually facing and mutually spaced coplanar flanges defining said planar contact surfaces of said guide, said pulley mounting plate being interposed between said flanges and being coplanar therewith.

8. The door closer assembly of claim 4 including a magnet, means for mounting the magnet on a jamb of said doorway, and magnetic means on said guide cooperating with said magnet to magnetically latch said door in open position.

9. The door closer assembly of claim 8 wherein said guide comprises first and second non-ferrous guide sections in end to end relation and wherein said magnetic means comprises a strip of ferrous material secured to said guide and bridging adjacent ends of said guide sections.

10. A gravity actuated sliding door closer assembly, comprising,

a doorway frame including a pair of jambs and a lintel,

a door mounted to slide in the plane of said doorway frame, and

a unitary self-contained door closing kit adapted to be mounted to said door and frame without structural modification thereof, said kit comprising,

an elongated guide member adapted to extend vertically along a rear portion of said door, said guide including contact surface means conforming to an outwardly facing surface portion of the rear of said door,

adhesive means for securing said guide to said door with said contact portions of said guide contiguous to said outwardly facing surface portions of said door,

a substantially U shaped pulley bracket adapted to be adhesively secured to said door within said guide,

a pin extending through said pulley adapted to be interposed between said pulley and said door and having an enlarged head,

said pin extending through said guide and having one end supported thereby,

a hook adapted to be secured to said door frame lintel at a point just forward of said portion of said door in closed position,

an elongated weight within said guide,

a line entrained over said pulley and adapted to be secured at opposite ends thereof to said hook and to said weight.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said elongated guide comprises a member having a "C" shaped cross-section with first and second mutually spaced and coplanar inner flanges, said inner flanges defining said guide contact portions and conforming to outwardly facing surface portions of said door.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said kit includes an anti-friction assembly constructed and arranged to be mounted to said door without use of tools, said anti-friction assembly comprising a bracket having mutually spaced sides extending in side-by-side relation, means for resiliently connecting said sides to each other, an outwardly projecting flange on bottom portions of each of said sides, and an anti-friction member positioned in said sides.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein said means for interconnecting said sides includes means for urging bottom portions of said sides outwardly away from one another whereby said bracket may be received in a downwardly opening channel of said door with portions of said sides spaced inwardly of said channel, with said bottom portions pressed against said channel, and with said flanges projecting outwardly of lower edges of said channel.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said bracket is formed of a resilient material, is of a substantially U-shaped cross-section having a bight interconnecting said sides, and is outwardly flared.

15. The method of mounting a gravity actuated door closer assembly upon a previously installed and operating sliding door assembly without structural modification of said assembly, said door assembly comprising a doorway having at least a lintel and a jamb, and a door having forward and rear stiles slidably mounted for motion in the plane of said doorway, said method comprising the steps of,

mounting a pulley upon a journal pin,

securing the pulley and journal pin to the upper portion of an outwardly facing surface of said rear stile,

securing a hook on said doorway lintel just forward of the closed position of said rear stile,

entraining a line over said pulley and securing said line to said hook,

attaching a weight to said line and adjusting the length of said line to cause said weight to clear the bottom of said door when said door is in closed position, and

securing an elongated guide channel to said outwardly facing surface of said rear stile so as to extend along the length of said rear stile with said line and weight hanging freely within said channel and with said journal pin supported by an upper portion of said channel.

16. The method of claim 15 including the steps of testing the operation of said door and adjusting the length of said line, securing to said outwardly facing door surface a second guide member in end to end relation with said first named guide member with said weight hanging within said second guide member when said door is in closed position, attaching a ferrous strip to said guide members at the adjacent ends thereof and attaching a magnet to a jamb of said doorway.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein at least some of said attaching steps comprise adhesively securing to said door an adhesive strip having adhesive on both sides thereof.

18. The method of mounting a gravity actuated door closer assembly upon a previously installed and operating sliding door assembly, said door assembly comprising a doorway having at least a lintel and a jamb, and a door having forward and rear stiles slidably mounted for motion in the plane of said doorway, said method comprising the steps of,

mounting a pulley upon a journal pin,

fixing said pin to the upper end of an elongated guide channel,

securing said guide channel to an outwardly facing surface of said rear stile so as to extend along the length of said rear stile,

securing a hook on said doorway lintel at a point just forward of the closed position of said rear stile,

entraining a line over said pulley and securing said line to said hook,

inserting said line through said guide channel, attaching a weight to the line, and

adjusting the length of the line to cause the weight to clear the bottom of the door when the door is in closed position.

19. An anti-friction assembly for use with a sliding closure comprising

a bracket having

mutually spaced resilient sides extending in side-by-side relation and diverging downwardly and outwardly from upper portions thereof,

means for resiliently connecting said sides to each other, said means including means for urging bottom portions of said sides outwardly away from one another for the full length of said sides whereby said bracket may be received in a downwardly opening channel of a closure member with portions of said sides spaced inwardly of said channel, with said bottom portions pressed outwardly against said channel for the full length of the sides, and with said flanges projecting outwardly of lower edges of said channel, said flanges comprising the entire closure support portions of said bracket, whereby all of the support pressure of said closure upon said bracket is exerted upon said flanges.

20. The assembly of claim 19 wherein said anti-friction member includes a wheel having an axle, and within each side of said bracket is formed with a plurality of holes mutually displaced both vertically and horizontally, said axle being selectively journalled in corresponding holes or respective sides of the bracket for selective vertical positioning of said wheel.

21. The assembly of claim 19 wherein said sides are resiliently flared outwardly at both top and bottom.

22. A sliding door assembly comprising

a sliding door frame including a bottom frame member having first and second mutually spaced sidewall elements with downwardly facing sidewall edges, said elements being interconnected by a web,

a bracket mounted in said frame member between said sidewall elements, said bracket comprising first and second bracket sides extending in side-by-side and mutually spaced relationship and respectively in contact with said sidewall elements,

said bracket sides diverging downwardly and outwardly for the full length of said bracket, and being resiliently pressed against said sidewall elements, each said bracket side including frame support means engaging said sidewall edges of said frame member for supporting the full weight of said frame upon said bracket, said support means comprising an outwardly extending flange on the lower end of each bracket side, said flanges being resiliently pressed outwardly with said bracket sidewalls to insure engagement of the flanges with said downwardly facing sidewall edges of said door frame,

a bight interconnecting upper ends of said bracket sides and spaced from said web, an anti-friction member, and

means for mounting said anti-friction member in said bracket between said bracket sides.

23. The assembly of claim 22 wherein said anti-friction member comprises a wheel, said means for mounting comprising a wheel axle on said wheel and a plurality of holes in said bracket sides, the holes in one bracket side being mutually spaced vertically and horizontally from each other, the holes in the other bracket side being similarly spaced from each other, said axle having opposite ends thereof respectively received in a hole in one of said bracket sides and a corresponding hole in the other of said bracket sides.

24. A wheel and bracket assembly for sliding doors comprising

a bracket of substantially U-shaped cross-section formed of resilient material, said bracket having first and second mutually spaced sides extending in side-by-side relation and diverging outwardly from top to bottom of said bracket for the full length thereof, and a bight resiliently interconnecting said sides, each side being formed with an outwardly projecting door support flange at the bracket bottom, said flanges being urged outwardly by said bracket sides,

a wheel, and

means for supporting said wheel upon and between said bracket sides.

25. The assembly of claim 24 wherein said bracket sides include portions that are flared outwardly to further resiliently press against the walls of the door member in which the assembly is inserted to thereby retain the assembly within said door member.

26. The assembly of claim 24 wherein said means for supporting said wheel comprises means for mounting said wheel in any one of a plurality of different positions of adjustment relative to said bracket.

27. The assembly of claim 24 wherein said bracket includes a plurality of resilient outwardly projecting fingers.

28. The assembly of claim 27 wherein said outwardly projecting fingers are defined by mutually spaced transverse slots formed in said bracket and extending through said bight and downwardly into said first and second bracket sides respectively, and at least one longitudinal slot extending through said bight from respective ones of said transverse slots.

29. The assembly of claim 24 wherein portions of each of said sides incline downwardly and outwardly from said bight.

30. The assembly of claim 24 wherein said sides diverge outwardly and include a plurality of resilient outwardly projecting fingers.

31. The assembly of claim 30 wherein said bight interconnects upper portions of said sides.

32. The assembly of claim 30 wherein said bight interconnects lateral end portions of said sides.

33. The assembly of claim 30 including means connected to one of said sides and extending toward the other to limit motion of said sides toward each other.