Method and apparatus of opening and closing a bi-fold door

• US 6,866,080 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2001
• Issued: 03/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sorrel Quarters, LLC
• Original Assignee: Schweiss Distributing Incorporated
• Inventors: Schweiss, Michael L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, Blair M.
• Application Number:
  US09/783,960
• Publication Number:
  US 20010007276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,484 Days
• Field of Search: 160/188, 160/191, 160/192, 160/190, 160/207, 160/218, 160/193, 242/584.1, 242/587.1, 242/598.6, 254/294
• US Class Current: 160/193
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/605 for folding wings
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/108 for hangars

Abstract

A bi-fold door is equipped with door lifting devices operated with a reversible electric motor drive to selectively open and close the door. The door lifting devices have winches operable to wind and unwind elongated webs connected at one end to rotatable members of the winches and anchored at the opposite end of the door. Anchors mounted on the door have adjustable sleeves operable to take up slack of the webs. The door moves at an increasing rate of speed from its closed to open positions and a decreasing rate of speed from its open to closed positions.

Claims

1. A method of opening and closing an opening in a structure with a bi-fold door having first and second panels, each panel having a top portion and a bottom portion, means movably mounting the first panel on the structure, hinges connecting the first panel to the second panel to allow the first and second panels to be moved from generally vertically aligned positions closing the opening to side-by-side folded positions opening the opening, and door lift devices having rotatable members having a common axis of rotation operable to selectively open and close the bi-fold door, and means mounting the door lift devices on the bottom portion of the second panel comprising:

connecting elongated flexible webs to the rotatable members, training each web over a roller connected to a top portion of the first panel, anchoring each web to the bottom portion of the first panel, aligning each web normal to the axis of rotation of a rotatable member, maintaining the alignment of the web with the rotatable member to ensure an overlapping relationship of the web around the rotatable member, simultaneously rotating the rotatable members in one direction with a power unit at a constant rate of speed to wind the webs in overlapping relation around the rotatable members, maintaining the alignment of the webs with the rotatable members during rotation of the rotatable members in the one direction to wind the webs around the rotatable members to ensure overlapping relationship of the webs around the rotatable members to move the first and second panels at an increasing rate of speed from a closed position to an open position, rotating the rotatable members in a direction opposite the one direction at a constant rate of speed to unwind the webs from overlapping relationship around the rotatable members, and maintaining the alignment of the webs with the rotatable members during rotation of the rotatable members in the direction opposite the one direction to unwind the webs from the rotatable members to maintain the overlapping relationship of the webs on the rotatable members during unwinding of the webs from the rotatable members to move the first and second panels at a deceasing rate of speed from an open position to a closed position.

2. The method of claim 1 including:

operating a reversible electric motor at a constant rate of speed to rotate the rotatable members at a constant rate of speed.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the first and second panels are moved at an increasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the first and second panels from the closed to the open positions thereof.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the first and second panels are moved at a decreasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the first and second panels from the open to the closed positions thereof.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the first and second panels are moved at an increasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the first and second panels from the closed to the open positions thereof, and the first and second panels are moved at a decreasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the first and second panels from the open to the closed positions thereof.

6. A bi-fold door for an opening in a structure and for moving the bi-fold door between open and closed positions relative to the door having a first panel having a top portion and a bottom portion, means for movably mounting the first panel on the structure, a second panel, means pivotally connecting the first panel to the second panel to allow the first and second panels to be moved from aligned positions closing the opening to side-by-side folded positions opening the opening, said door lift devices being operable to selectively open and close the bi-fold door, characterized by:

means mounting the door lift devices on the second panel, a reversible electric motor connected to the door lift devices operable at a constant rate of speed for operating the door lift devices, each of said door lift devices having an elongated flat and flexible web having a first end and a second end, rotatable means attached to the first end of the web, said rotatable means including a shaft connected to the electric motor and a cylindrical means mounted on the shaft, said cylindrical means including a cylindrical member having opposite ends and annular plates located adjacent the opposite ends of the cylindrical member, said web having opposite side edges located in a contiguous relation relative to the annular plates, a cylindrical shield located around the cylindrical member and annular plates, said shield having a closed end slot aligned with the cylindrical member, said web extended through said slot whereby the annular plates and shield maintain the alignment of the web with the cylindrical member, roller means connected to the top portion of the first panel for supporting the web, said web being trained over the roller means, and means connecting the first end of the web to the cylindrical means whereby upon constant speed operation of the electric motor the shaft is rotated in one direction and the web continuously winds in overlapping relation around the cylindrical member between the annular plates thereby moving the door at an increasing rate of speed from a closed position to an open position and upon reverse operation of the electric motor the shaft is rotated in a direction opposite the one direction and the web continuously unwinds from the cylindrical member between the annular plates whereby the door moves at a decreasing rate of speed from the open position to the closed position, means mounting the rotatable means on one of the panels, and anchor means mounted on the lower portion of the first panel connected to the second end of the web.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein:

the web is a flexible and flat plastic member.

8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein:

the means connecting the first end of the web to the cylindrical means comprises a rigid member extended between and mounted on said plates, said first end of the web having means located between said plates accommodating the rigid member whereby when said shaft is rotated by the electric motor the web winds on itself around the cylindrical member to open the bi-fold door.

9. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein:

the anchor means includes means to adjust the working length of the web to allow the door to move to the full open and closed positions.

10. A method of opening and closing an opening in a structure with a bi-fold door having hinged first and second panels, means movably mounting the door on the structure for movement between a down closed position to an up open position, and a door lift device mounted on the second panel, said door lift device having a rotatable member driven with a reversible electric motor to selectively move the door between the closed and open positions thereof comprising:

connecting an elongated flexible web to the rotatable member, training the web ever a roller connected to the first panel, connecting the web to the first panel remote from the roller, guiding the web with laterally spaced annular plates located adjacent the opposite ends of the rotatable member and a web accommodating slot in a shield located around the rotatable member to maintain an overlapping relationship of the web around the rotatable member, rotating the rotatable member in one direction at a constant rate of speed to wind the web in overlapping relation around the rotatable member, guiding the web with laterally spaced annular plates secured to the rotatable member and a web accommodating slot in a shield around the plates during rotation of the rotatable member in one direction to ensure overlapping relationship of the web around the rotatable member to move the door at an increasing rate of speed from the closed position to the open position, rotating the rotatable member in a direction opposite the one direction at a constant rate of speed to unwind the web from overlapping relationship around the rotatable member, and guiding the web with the laterally spaced annular plates and the web accommodating slot in the shield around the plates during rotation of the rotatable member in the direction opposite the one direction to maintain overlapping relationship of the web on the rotatable member during unwinding of the web from the rotatable member to move the door at a decreasing rate of speed from the open position to the closed position.

11. The method of claim 10 including:

operating the reversible electric motor at a constant rate of speed to rotate the rotatable member at a constant rate of speed.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein:

the door is moved at an increasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the door from the closed to the open positions thereof, and the door is moved at a decreasing rate of speed during the entire movement of the door from the open to the closed positions thereof.

13. A bi-fold door for an opening in a structure and door lift devices for moving the bi-fold door between open and closed positions relative to the opening, said door having a first panel with a top portion and a bottom portion, means for movably mounting the first panel on the structure, a second panel having a top portion and a bottom portion, means pivotally connecting the first panel to the second panel to allow the first and second panels to be moved from aligned positions closing the opening to side-by-side folded positions opening the opening, said door lift devices being operable to selectively open and close the bi-fold door, characterized by:

means mounting the door lift devices on the lower portion of the second panel, a reversible electric motor connected to the door lift devices operable at a constant rate of speed for operating the door lift devices, each of said door lift devices having an elongated flat and flexible web having a first end and second end, a rotatable member having an axis of rotation drivably connected to the motor, means connecting the first end of the web to the member, means for aligning and maintaining each web normal to the axis of rotation of the member, roller means connected to the top portion of the first panel for supporting the web, said web being trained over the roller means, and anchor means mounted on the lower portion of the first panel connected to the second end of the web, whereby upon operation of the motor the member is rotated in one direction and the web continuously winds in overlapping relation around the member thereby moving the first and second panels at an increasing rate of speed from a closed position to an open position and upon reverse operation of the motor the member is rotated in a direction opposite the one direction and the web continuously unwinds from the member thereby moving the first and second panels at a decreasing rate of speed from the open position to the closed position.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein:

the anchor means includes means to adjust the working length of the web to allow the door to move to the full open and closed positions.