Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
11 LIF"PING CURTAIN IJ00R
The presemt invention relates to doors for industrial
buildings and premises, hangars and warehouses, in which the
door is constituted by a flexible, secn3.-rigid, or rigid,
curtain which is foldable or rollable and wtxich opens a doorway
by being .raised, and whl.ct~ closes it by be~.ng lowexed; w.itai t:he~
curtain being stored at the top of the door when raised, eitPaer
by being rolled up or by being folded.
I3ACfCGROUNf) OF TffE INVENTION
a0 Some doors of this type are exposed to the actioru of the
wind. Various means are known for preventing cna;jor deformation
which could damage 'the door or dam it. The vertical edges of
the curtain may have a portion of greater thickness or skids
fixed thereon for sliding in a channel (li)Ge sails on a boat):
l.5 Vertically spaced-apart horizontal reinforcing bars are also
used with their ends sliding in slideways. The invewtion
relaters, in particular, to a lifting curtain door comprising a
frame constituted by two vertical side uprigyts interconnected
at the top by a cross-member, each of the said side uprights
2.0 comprising or including a slideway with each slideway having a
guide wall on either side of 'the plane of the curtain with the
curtain being gathored together at the top by rolling up or by
folding, the curtain being reinforced by horizowtal bars whose
ends slide in the said slideways.
25 These various systems scoffer from the drawback that during
various kinds of traffic accident, when a vehicle stri)ces the
door before the door is fully opened, the door is damaged.
Indeed the door is often ~arrnned and it is necessary to dismount
the door. Traffic is interrupted and repairs may be expensive,
30 the cuxtain may be torn; a twisted bar may need extracsting; etc.
The Applicant has already proposed a reinforcing bar
device in which the ends sliding in the slideways include a
section of weakness. As a .result, when there is a shock
against tree bar, it breaks at the end and -the door can still be
:35 operated. 'I'taere is merely 'the end of one of 'the bars that is
no longer guide~;d and this is easily repaired by replacing -the
broken part.
CA 02017145 1999-10-14
2
Although the above system is advantageous in many
applications, it is not suitable for all applications,
and a certain amount of time must nevertheless be allowed
for performing repairs.
The object of the present invention is to avoid the
door being damaged when a vehicle strikes against the
curtain beforE: it is fully opened, or when excessive wind
force is applied thereto, so that under the effect of
such a shock, the door, or at least one of the door
components, i:~ subjected to non-permanent deformation,
thereby enabling the door to return to its proper
position merely by being operated and without any other
action being taken.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, in accordance with the present invention
there is provided a lifting curtain door comprising a
frame constituted by two vertical side uprights
interconnected at their top ends by a cross member, said
side uprights each constituting or including a slideway,
each slideway having a guide wall on either side of the
plane of the curtain, which curtain may be gathered
together at th.e top of the door by being rolled up or
folded, the curtain being reinforced by horizontal bars
whose ends slide in the said slideways, wherein at least
one of the bar's has sufficient flexibility at at least
one portion of its Length to enable it to escape from at
least one of the sli.deways in the event of an abnormal
transverse force being applied to the bar, without the
bar being deformed permanently which could impede
subsequent operation of the curtain.
In one embodiment, at least one bar is flexible
overall.
CA 02017145 1999-10-14
2a
' In a varuant, at least one bar is flexible in the
middle.
In another embodiment, at least one bar has
deformable ends.
The above dispositions thus enable the door to
withstand a shock or abnormal thrust without being
damaged. However, iii is still necessary, after a bar has
escaped from its sl:ideways, to put the bar back into
place. The invention also provides means for facilitating
returning a bar into slideways from which it has escaped.
Advantageously, the invention provides for a bar to be
returned into its slideways automatically without
requiring special ar_tion to be taken, either while the
door is being raised, or else while the door is being
lowered again after it has been opened.
'fo this end, in one embodiment of the inventian 'the
outside walls of thre slideways or of walls fixed to the
slideways define vertical plaa~es tkrat sa.ope re lattve to the
plane of the door, with the -two walls of each sl.ideway
extending towards each other -towards 'the center of 'the door.
Advantageously, tk~e slideway is lirnited vertical7.y at a
level situated beneath -the bottonunost bar when the curtain is
raised, and has an upwardly flared opening beneath said bar
when in its raised position such that the bottommost bar and
:LO subsequently all the other bars engage in the slideway while
the cur-tain is being lowered.
In an advantageous form of the invention, tk~e wall of the
slideway or the wall of the upright including 'the slideway
includes at least one moving wall elemewt capable of deforming
elastically so as to form a patki enabling an end of the bar to
pass from the outside of the slideway to the inside, bu-t not in
the opposite direction.
In another particularly advantageous embodiment, in which
neither the uprigk~ts nor tha slideways include any moving
?.0 parts, at least one of the ot.rtside walls of 'the uprights
including the slideways is provided with a guide pro~ecttrrg
from said wall and directed generally upwards 'towards the
opening of the slideway, said guide extending over at least a
portion of the wj.dth of the said wall to the edge of the
slideway opening so as to return any bar end 'that pray have
escaped to the slideway as f.t is pulled upwards, with -the bar
being deformed so as -to be shortened by bending or by
contraction (e. g, by telescopic shortening).
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF TIIE DRAWINGS
i0 Embodiments of 'the invention are described by way of
exarnple witky reference to the accompanying drawings, in whick~:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a door of the iaivention;
Figure 2 is a section view an a horizontal plane 'through
one of the uprights of the door ~;hown in Figure 1;
Figure 3 shows a variawl: of the emhc~da.mewt of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a section view on a vertical plane through a
portion of the door sk~own in Figure 1;
(.~ n~ . ~ r~ .~1.
4
Figures 5 and 6 axe a perspective view and a secai.orr
t lu:ough one enrbod:iment of a slideway for a door of the
inveratiom;
F:tgores 7 rrnd F3 are ana7.ogous to F'~.gures ~ arrd 6 arrr3
:i relate to a variant door; and
Figure.g is a section through tire end of a reinforcing bar
for a flexible curtain and specially designed to facilitate
reinsertion of 'the curta:t.n into its slideways after i t loos been
removed therefrom by an abnormal force.
:~.c~ r~Ef~zL~n nssc~Ip~rION
Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a door
frame for a curtain type door of the invention. The frame
comprises two vertical side uprights 1 and 2 :intercomrrected at
-their top ends by a cross bar 3 constituting a lintel.
.15 The cross section of each upright is in the form of a
pentagon whicYr is open at one of :t-ts vertices, having a base _a,
two sides b extending perpendicularly to the base, and 'two
sides c extending -towards eac2r other and leaving a gap d
between their ad,~acen-t ends, thereby forming -the opening to a
20 slideway 2.1 in each o.f the uprights and suitabae for receiving
a corresponding edge of the curtain 4,togettrer with the ends of
curtain :reinforcing bars 5. Corresponding sides may be equal
in sizes or otherwise. In order to make the drawings easier to
understand, the curta3.n is assumed to be made of transparent
2.5 material (which is possible in practice and is indeed lane in
same cases).
Figure 2 is a horizontal section view through an upright
and through one end of a curtain reinforcing bar, showing how
the bar is disposed in the slideway.
7lccord~.ng to the invention, the reinforcing bars are made
sufficiently flexible that when subjected to thrust they are
capable of leaving the guide groove prior to being subjected to
permanewt deformation or to sub;jectirrg the guide groove itself
to pexmanerrt deformation. This may be obtained by tire .bar.
:35 ass~:mbly being f:lescible. Flexibility may be provided by means
of a glass fiber reinforced plastic 'tube capable of absorbing
considerable non-permanent defo.nnation so that one or both of
~~- ~'' ~'k. ~~' .~1.'~.~ 'J
its ealds may leave the groove withowt permanent deforanation ar.
breakage. Flexibility may be limited to a portion of the bar,
e.g. its middle, or to its ends. The middle of the bar may be
cons tittzted by a snore flex.i.ble portion, e.g, a resi.l.ierrt sleeve
5 or a coil spring, thereby enabling the bar to fold. The bar 5
array also be provided with endpieces 6 made of flexible
material, e.g. rubber, which are engaged in 'the two ends of the
bar which tray then be a 'tube made of metal or any othex
material. The endpiece may be semirigid so as to withstand
LU normal ~ttnrusts ( wind ) or thrus is sligxntly higher than normal,
and may inolude a zone 6a of narrowing enabling it to bend in
the evet~t of a sudden thrust or a thntst which is very strong.
Figure 3 is a section through another etnbodimerrt of the
end of a bar. The tiorizowtal reinforcing bar lU is constituted
by a tube 1Z with a mandrel 13 received in the end ti~ereof, aIld
with a spring 1~ engaged on tire mandrel. The d~.mens3.ons of the
mandrel arid of the spring are selected so thtat these paris era
capable of holding 'together withotat additional means merely by
being pushed 'together as shown. It is preferable, although
?,U clearly net essential, to avoid any need for .riveting, welding,
eta. ... operations. In a variant, the spring could be engaged
inside the tube 12. Similarly, an endpiece 15 is fisted 'to 'the
other end of the spring. Because of. material wear and because
of the need to reduce noise ixi operation, it is preferable to
ensure that tYte spring does not rub directly against the slide-
way 21. It will :readily be understood that if strffi.a.ierttly
large force is applied to the bar, then its end, i.e, the
endpiece 15, may leave the slideway because the end of tt'te bar
deforms, i.e. because 'the spring 14 folds without being
damaged. Conversely, after it has escaped from the slideway,
the end of the bar l.s easily returned into the slideway, e.g.
by applying adequate thrust or by manually folding over 'the
er~dpiece 15 to cause it to penetrate back into 'the slideway.
Under such conditions, in the event of e~ccessive f.-orce
~5 being applied to a door, t'he bars escape .from 'the slideways
because of'~tt~e fa.erci'bility of the bard 5, :t0.
w~c. I~ ;:~
1.t j.s advantageous to rrvo:id gray rneed for manual
intervention to put tt~e system back into place. The d:Lrections
in wtaich the faces c of the upri.gtnts constituting the slideways
extend facilitate reinserting ttae bars in the slideways while
the curtain is being raised under ttie effect of upwards
traction exerted on -ttie bans by the otartain. Tt is a3.so
advantageous to provide complementary di,sposittons for. forcing
the ends of the bars to go basic into the slideways. To this
end, in an embodiment of the invention shown in Figure ~ ( cahich
l.U is a section view on a vertical plane perpendicular to the
curtain ~ and ta)cen irz the middle thereof ), -the slideways 21
may come to an end a little below the volurrle in which the
curtain is stored, e.g. by being rolled up as shown in section
in the figure. The slideway ends may have upwardly flared ends
21a so that when the curtain is lowered again, the acids of -the
bar naturally engage in the slideways 21.
In order to facilitate returning ttre bar ends to ttre:ir
proper planes while the curtain is being raised, reinsertion
ramps or recentering surfaces as are provided above the flare
2U of -the slideway and beneatta tire curtain storage zone sucta that;
when the curtain is raised, the ends of the bars a.re returroecl
to the axis of the curtain-storage zone.
'fhe spice between the flard 21a and tt~e reinsertion ramp 7
forms a reinsertion window. ,~ plurality of them may be
5 provided up the tieigtrt of the curtain.
The apparatus desoribed above with reference to Figure ~1
tras a gap in the slideway at each reinsertion ramp. While the
curtain is being lowered and going past a gap, the wind flay
move it off axis so that it continues to go down outside the
UU slideways. Such apparatus is therefore not sui~tab7.e for. being
placed in locations that m~,y be exposed to the wind or to large
drafts. Figures 5 'to f3 show variant enrbodimerrts of the
invention that avoid this limitation.
'These variants all inc:luc7e a slideway 21 as described above.
U ~ The slideway 21 ~.s essewt~.ally defined by two parallel plane
walls 22 and 23 cm either side of the curtain plane, and delim-
9.-ting an interst.ic:ial space in which 'the ends of the horizontal.
i'.~''~''' .i~, ~~ w~. ~ :~~
7
re:lzzforcing bars of t:he curtain door nave, saj.d ends being
guided by the walls 22 and 23. The bottam of the slideway
groove may be closed by a wall 24, 'thereby improving stiffness
and protPCting the :lrzsi.dc~ of t:he sli.deway :fram dust: arid othwr
foreign bodies. According to a characteristic of 'the irmention,
the slideways are coated o« tt~e outsides o:~ their, sloping faces
25 and 26 ( protective walls ) , thereby facil3.~ta ting reinsertion
of escaped bar ends back into 'the slideways. A slideway
generally includes ac7ditiazaal side walls 27 and 2f3 arid a bottom
:L0 wall 29 so as to constitwte a rigid assembly.
Tn -the eanbodimezot shown in part and in diagranunati.c
perspective in Figu:ce 5, -the slideway 21 does nit include any
gaps. However a reinsertion ramp 35 is provided, preferably
near the top of 'the char. When a bar has escaped from ~t;He
t.'S slideway 21, ttyen tl~e end of ttie bar will rub against the
surface 25 or 27 of the section member surrounding the
slideway. On reaching the ramp 35, the end of the bar is
engaged thereon by ~tractian due to the curtain beirxg ra:Lsed,
and also by the effect of the inclined guide 33. ~i~he end of
2.() the bar moves up the ramp 35 which causes the bar ~to shor. tem.
This may be achieved by the bar' bending, or if it is made as
shown in Figure 3 or 9, by a spring deforming or contracting.
The end of the bar is guided to the end 35A of the ramp, after
which it expands sa as to return inta the slideway 21 > since
25 the slideway has no gaps, vthe bars are prevented from escaping
from the slideway wtxile the curtain is being lowered even if
the curtain is sub;Jected to strong wind.
In order to facilitate shortening 'the bar, so as to'allow
it to slide easily along 'the guide 33A, and so as 'to facilitate
:30 reinsertion 3.nto ttie slideway, the ends of 'the bars may be
telescopic, as shown in Figure 9 for the ba.r 20.
A sleeve ~7 i s rnaunted o~~ 'the end o,f the tube 12, ei.ttzer
by being force-fi-tt;ed thereon or_ else by means of a pin 18
which simultaneous:l.y serves to hold the inside end o:P t;t~e
;3 5 spring 19 whictmrges a pistozn !i1. outwards, flue piston hav:l.ng is
function edu:Lva:lent to that of the endp~l.ece 15 of the bar shown
in Figure 3. t1111itie the previ.ou s example, 'the enci of floe bar
~n~ ~ ,,,~ ; t .n 9 <.
fed ~ ~~
need Trot be flexa.ble. :Ln order to enable taw bar to escape
from its slideways under the e:Efect of an abnormal force, tare
bar. must be fheactbl.e overall. or.~ else l.t must include a zone,
e.g. a cant:ral zone, wtrarh it parti.aul.ar.ty f:lex:i.ble. ttcrwc:ver,
OIICe SUCK a bar has escaped from the slideway, it can clearly
be seen -that it can be returned thereto by pushing the piston
2!1 into the sleeve 17, e.g. by hand or else whale the curtain
is being raised by virtue of. a suitable guide ramp onto which
the piston is directed during curtain raising. while tare bar
1() is being raised, the piston X31 is thrust by 'the rapp into the
tube 12 and is guided to the edge of 'the slideway. alt ttris
moment, the spring 19 is free 'to expand and the piston is re-
engaged in tire slideway. It is 'then no longer capable of
escaping therefrom merely by being lowered agair>> >
In Figure 5, the guide ramp is shown as being a small hollow
relative to the sloping surface 25. This is not essential..
7.'he ramp may be constituted solely by the pro~eoting rim 33A of
'the reinsertion guide. In ttris case, the guide rnay be fixed or
displaceable or removable. Irr this case, 'the surface 2,5 may
~ also be parallel -to the bottam 29 of the slideway.
In a variant embodimerut, in order to facilitate
reinsertion of bars that are simpler in struatuz-e, tire ramp 35
may be displaceable so as to 'temporarily open a window in the
wall 23 of 'the slideway. For example, the ramp may be hinged
about tare bottom edge 36, and a section 38 of the wall 23 may
be displaceable in the direction of arrow 37. Figure 6 is a
section on line VI-VI of Figure 5, and shows 'the ramp in its
nornval position at reference 35, and irx its pushed down
position at reference 35' . The extent 'to which ~t:he sl:ideway
W can be pustred down may be defined as a function o.f tare nature
of the bars and of the ease with which ttrey bend or of tareir
ability to shorten. In practice, this local mobility may be
obtained by forming a cut--out ~.n the wall of the upright.
In another ~~nY~odiment of floe inverrtian, irr order to
3 5 prevent bars from escaping from the slideway while the curtain
is being lowered, the reinsertion window 32 (riglrthand portion
of Figure 7 ) may be closed by a defoxmable or Cringed shr.rtter 40
s r 1 r~ -~ 1 r.,
~ ~ ~.,. n
9
( lef thand side of Figure '7 ) which is urged when 3.n its rest
positton to remain in a plane parallel ~to the curtain but which
is capable of occupying a position 40' by deforming into the
sl.ic9eway under thrust front the end o~ a bar ag pu:ll.ed by tine
curtain being raised. Once tli~ curtain has been gatlaared
togetkter at the top of the door, the stxwt-ter ~0 returns to i is
position lying flush with 'the wall 22 of the sl.ideway and the
curtain may be lowered again without running any ris)c of it
escaping from the sll.deway.
1C> Tkte shutter 40 may be a flexible metal blada fixed at one
end by means of r.i.ve is . 111 t;er. ua tavely it may be formed mere l.y
by forming a cut-out in the wall of the slideway, depending on
the resilient nature of the material from which 'the sli.deway is
made .
x.11 of the bars may be made in 'the same way. However it
is also possible to provide only one bar in accordar~ae with 'the
invention, e.g. tits bar which is in greatest danger, or the
bottom bar.
2U
30
r~
