Snap-on door sweep

• US 6,374,545 B1
• Filed: 05/03/2000
• Issued: 04/23/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Masonite International Corporation (Masonite Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Stanley Works Limited (Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.)
• Inventors: Baczuk, Eric A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Strimbu, Gregory J.
• Application Number:
  US09/562,957
• Time in Patent Office: 720 Days
• Field of Search: 494/70, 494/67, 494/921, 494/951, 494/981, 494/751, 494/901
• US Class Current: 49/470
• CPC Class Codes: E06B 7/23 Plastic, sponge rubber, or like strips or tubes
• CPC Class Codes: E06B 7/2312 with two or more sealing-lines or -planes between the wing and part co-operating with the wing
• CPC Class Codes: E06B 7/2316 used as a seal between the floor and the wing
• CPC Class Codes: E06B 7/26 Rain or draught deflectors, e.g. under sliding wings also protection against light for doors

Abstract

A door assembly includes a door and a snap-on door sweep. The door sweep is attached to the door in an operative position with a gripping engagement to provide a seal between a bottom door surface and a door opening. The door sweep includes a pair of groove engaging portions fixed to longitudinally opposing sides of a bottom wall portion of the door sweep and extending inwardly in spaced relation thereto. One of the pair of groove engaging portions constitutes a resilient snap-on portion having a cam portion thereon. The pair of groove engaging portions are operatively engaged in horizontally extending grooves in the door when the door sweep is in the operative position thereof. The cam portion includes a cam surface extending outwardly as it extends upwardly relative to the door and engages the door at a position below one of the horizontally extending grooves so that the cam portion deflects outwardly as it is forced upwardly and rides along the door in the position below one of the horizontally extending grooves until the door sweep reaches the operative position thereof with a snap action in which the snap-on portion moves inwardly by virtue of the resiliency thereof and the cam portion fixed thereon is disposed within one of the horizontally extending grooves.

Claims

1. A door assembly comprising:

a door including two horizontally extending grooves each formed in a respective one of a pair of opposing exterior sides of the door in an upwardly spaced relation with respect to a bottom door surface;

a snap-on door sweep constructed and arranged to be attached to said door in an operative position with a gripping engagement to provide a seal between the bottom door surface and a door opening threshold when said door is disposed in a closed position within a door opening;

said snap-on door sweep including;

(1) a rigid attaching structure constructed and arranged to be attached to said door in cooperating relation to said horizontally extending grooves and said bottom door surface when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position with respect thereto, and

(2) a flexible threshold engaging seal assembly carried by said rigid attaching structure in a position so as to extend downwardly therefrom when said snap-on door sweep is in said operative position;

said rigid attaching structure including;

an elongated bottom wall portion constructed and arranged to be operatively disposed below said bottom door surface when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position, and

a pair of groove engaging portions fixed to a pair of opposing sides of said bottom wall portion and extending inwardly in spaced relation thereto;

one of said pair of groove engaging portions constituting a resilient snap-on portion having a cam portion thereon;

said pair of groove engaging portions being constructed and arranged to be operatively engaged in said horizontally extending grooves when said snap-on door sweep is in said operative position to grippingly retain said snap-on door sweep on said door;

said snap-on door sweep being constructed and arranged to be oriented such that said cam portion is engaged with said door at a position below one of said horizontally extending grooves;

said cam portion including a cam surface extending outwardly as it extends upwardly relative to the door when said snap-on door sweep is in said operative position, said cam surface constructed and arranged to engage said door at said position below one of said horizontally extending grooves so that said cam portion deflects outwardly as it is forced upwardly with respect to said door and rides along said door in said position below one of said horizontally extending grooves until said snap-on door sweep reaches the operative position.

2. A door assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said seal assembly comprises:

a first and second elongated sealing structures disposed on said bottom wall portion, said first and second sealing structures being constructed and arranged to be swept across the door threshold in a sealing relation between said bottom door surface and said door threshold;

said seal assembly also including a water deflecting element disposed outwardly of said first sealing structure and extending downwardly in diverging relation with respect to said first sealing structure for an extent not greater than a downward extent of said first sealing structure when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position.

3. A door assembly as defined in claim 2 wherein another of said pair of groove engaging portions constitutes an insertion portion which is configured to be inserted within the other one of said horizontally extending grooves.

4. A door assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein said cam portion is entirely disposed within said one of said horizontally extending grooves when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position.

5. A door assembly as defined in claim 4 wherein said seal assembly further includes a sealing layer conforming to an outer surface of said insertion portion and providing a water-sealing fit within said other one of said horizontally extending grooves when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position.

6. A door assembly as defined in claim 5 wherein each of said first and second sealing structures have a generally U-shaped cross-sectional configuration, each of said U-shaped first and second sealing structures having legs fixed to said bottom wall portion and a bight portion extending between said legs, said bight portions configured and positioned to engage the door opening threshold when said door is disposed in the closed position;

said seal assembly further including a vertically extending wiper wall element having one end fixed to a central portion of said bottom wall portion and an other end for engaging the door opening threshold when said door is disposed in the closed position.

7. A door assembly as defined in claim 6 wherein said bottom wall portion angles slightly downwardly from each of said opposing sides thereof to the central portion thereof.

8. A door assembly as defined in claim 7 wherein said rigid attaching structure is made from rigid PVC and said flexible threshold engaging seal assembly is made from flexible PVC.

9. A door assembly as defined in claim 8 wherein said snap-on door sweep is constructed as a coextrusion that adheres said rigid attaching structure and said flexible threshold engaging seal assembly together.

10. A door assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said rigid attaching structure is made from rigid PVC and said flexible threshold engaging seal assembly is made from flexible PVC.

11. A door assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said snap-on door sweep is constructed as a coextrusion that adheres said rigid attaching structure and said flexible threshold engaging seal assembly together.

12. A door assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said bottom wall portion angles slightly downwardly from each of said opposing sides thereof to a central portion thereof.

13. A door assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein said cam portion is entirely disposed within said one of said horizontally extending grooves when said snap-on door sweep is in the operative position.