Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a mobile partition wall including sepa-
rate wall elements that are each movably supported from a support
track mounted on the ceiling of a room, wherein each wall element
s has at least one seal member for achieving a seal when the wall
element is in a deployed position. More particularly, each wall
element includes a pneumatic stroke device and a pneumatic cou-
pling member, whereby the pneumatic stroke device is coupled to
a source of compressed air when the wall elements are pushed
again6t one another in the deployed position.
BAC~GROUND INFORMATION
The Canadian patent application Nr.
2 124 305 discloses a mobile partition wall of a type within the
above described field. The mobile partition wall disclosed in
the parent application is very effective for partitioning a room
in any desired configuration while achieving good noise insula-
tion and good stability of the wall elements. Furthermore, when
the partition wall is not needed, the wall elements may be stored
in a very small space by being pushed along the tracks and then
stacked closely together in a storage location. However, a
vertical gap or space remains between the last wall element of
the deployed partition wall and a stationary wall of the room,
because the last wall element must be pushed a certain distance
against the second-to-last wall element to achieve pneumatic
2s coupling thereto. Thus, special measures or efforts have been
required for closing this vertical gap in a satisfactorily 6esled
3164~ClP/WFF:-r ~ 2 ~
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and noise insulating manner. It has been found that the ease of
closing or sealing the gap could be improved.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
In view of the above it is the aim of the invention to achieve
the objects of the parent application U. S. Serial No. 08/246,821
as well as the following additional objects, singly or in combi-
nation:
to construct at least one terminal wall element of a
mobile partition wall in such a manner that a vertical gap be-
tween the last wall element and a stationary wall of the room can
be avoided or can be easily closed;
to provide a sliding termination panel on a wall ele-
ment to close and seal the gap between the last wall element and
the stationary wall in a noise insulating and stable manner;
to arrange pneumatically actuatable drive devices and
actuator valves in a wall element in such a manner that the
sliding termination panel is extended and pressed against the
wall using the same compressed air that is provided for pressing
the top and bottom seal bars against the ceiling and the floor;
to provide a manually operable valve and an extension
limit valve that cooperate in such a manner that the termination
panel is extended only when the manual valve is actuated, and the
floor and ceiling seal members of the terminal wall element are
extended only after the termination panel has been extended to
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seal against the wall of the room whereupon the extension limit
valve has been actuated; and
to achieve such closing and sealing of the vertical gap
between the last or terminal wall element and the stationary wall
s of the room in a structurally simple and compact manner, and to
allow the sliding termination panel to be extended or deployed
in a very simple, substantially automatic manner.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The above objects have been achieved in a partition wall using
a wall element according to the invention. The present partition
wall generally has the same construction as the partition wall
described in the Canadian patent application Nr. 2 124 305
and further comprises a sliding termination panel provided on at
least one of the wall elements in order to seal any gap remaining
5 between that wall element and a stationary wall of the room in
which the partition wall is deployed. The wall element according
to the invention further comprises horizontally effective pneu-
matically actuatable piston cylinder devices and a manually
operable control valve.
20 Compressed air is provided to the wall element through a pneu-
matic coupling member provided in a vertical side edge of the
wall element. The manual control valve directs compressed air
from the pneumatic coupling member to the piston cylinder devices
to push the sliding termination panel laterally toward and
2s against the stationary wall of the room. An extension limit
valve provided on the termination panel is actuated by contacting
31641ClPtWFF:~r ~ 4 ~
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the wall once the termination panel reaches its properly extended
position. Thereby, the limit valve directs the compressed air
flow to the pneumatic stroke devices that press the seal bars
against the ceiling and the floor. More specifically, the top
and bottom seal bars are only extended after the termination
panel has been extended into its properly deployed position.
The sliding termination panel is laterally extended from the
terminal wall element in a telescoping manner, using only the
compressed air that is already provided to the wall element for
extending the floor and ceiling seal bars. In other words, the
invention provides a very simple manner of closing and sealing
the vertical gap and does not require any additional compressed
air supply connections or conduits, or any non-pneumatic drive
elements.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In order that the invention may be clearly understood, it will
now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accom-
panying drawings, wherein:
Fig. 1 is a schematic front view of a partition wall
including a plurality of wall elements, and espe-
cially a terminal wall element, according to the
lnvention;
Fig. 2 is a vertical section through a terminal wall
element according to the invention;
3164/ClP/Wl:F:rr ~ 5 ~
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Fig. 3 is a schematic front view of a terminal wall
element including a sliding termination panel in
a retracted position, wherein the cover panel of
the wall element has been omitted for clarity;
Fig. 4 is a view of a first pneumatic coupling member
shown partially in section;
Fig. 5 is a view of a second pneumatic coupling member
for engaging the first coupling member of Fig. 4,
also shown partially in section;
Fig. 6 is a schematic representation of a pneumatic
circuit diagram; and
Fig. 7 is a schematic switching diagram for the pneu-
matic valves, showing an actuated state.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS AND OF THE
15 BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION
A complete partition wall as represented in Fig. 1 i8 made up of
several independent panel-shaped wall elements 1 that may be
substantially similar to those of the parent application hereof,
for example, and at least one terminal wall element 1', which is
20 shown in vertical section in Fig. 2. Each wall element 1 and 1'
hangs from a support or guide track 2 that is secured to the
ceiling of the room in which the partition wall is to be de-
ployed. The guide track 2 is preferably a hollow sectional
member, for example, having a C-shaped cross-section as shown in
Z5 Fig. 2. Each wall element 1 and 1' comprises preferably two
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,
support carriages 3 having rolling balls or rolling wheels that
ride along the support track 2. Each support carriage 3 is
connected to the wall element 1 or 1~ by a respective suspension
member 4 connected to a horizontal support member 5 of the wall
5 element 1 or 1'.
Each wall element 1 and 1' further includes a frame structure 22
(see especially Fig. 3) made of wood or metal and especially
steel and/or aluminum, as well as two panels 6 held a certain
interspacing 7 apart from one another, and carried on the frame
structure 22 for example. The panels 6 can be made of various
materials including steel, aluminum, glass, plaster, wood or
synthetic materials, for example. The panels 6 may also comprise
a sandwich or composite construction. Another possibility is to
construct the wall element 1 or 1' as a steel frame structure
15 with glazing panels attached thereto.
In order to seal the floor and ceiling clearance gaps and to
tightly prop or clamp the wall element into its deployed position
and thereby provide stability and noise insulation, a substan-
tially rigid lower seal member or seal bar 9 is arranged at the
20 bottom of the wall element 1 in the interspace 7 between the two
panels 6, and a substantially rigid upper seal member or seal bar
8 is arranged at the top of the wall element 1 in the interspace
7 between the two panels 6. Both of the seal bars 8 and 9 are
arranged to be vertically movable as described below. Flexible
25 seal strips 11 are arranged on the top of the rigid upper seal
bar 8, so as to be pressed against the support track 2 by the
seal bar 8. Corresponding flexible seal strips 12 are arranged
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,
on the rigid lower seal bar 9 so that they can be pressed against
the floor 14 by the seal bar 9.
The two seal bars 8 and 9 are connected to a linkage and actuator
mechanism, including at least one stroke device 20 which is
5 preferably a pneumatic device, and two rods 16 and 16' extending
from the device 20 to the respective seal bars 9 and 8. Note
particularly that the wall elements 1 each have a single stroke
device 20 (Fig. 1) and the wall element 1~ has a pair of stroke
devices 20A and 20A' as described in detail below. The stroke
10 device 20 may be a bellows device or a piston cylinder device.
Compression springs 18 are arranged on the rods 16 and 16' to
bear against the two horizontal support members 5 on the one hand
and to bear against a respective stop 19 and 19~ provided on the
rods 16 and 16' on the other hand. Each stop 19 and 19' is
15 preferably in the form of a washer or a crosswise pin or a combi-
nation thereof. In a resting state, the two compression springs
18 and 18~ are slightly precompressed and urge the two seal bars
8 and 9 toward a retracted or non-sealing state. The particular
details of the construction of the linkage and actuator mechanism
20 are described more fully in the parent application U. S. Serial
No. 08/246,821.
As shown generally in Fig. 1, and in detail in Figs. 4 and 5, two
pneumatic coupling members or coupling valves 30 and 32 are
arranged on the opposite side edges of the wall elements 1, and
25 are arranged and configurated to cooperate or mate with one
another. A single coupling member 30 is provided at one side
edge of the terminal wall element 1'. The first coupling member
30 includes a non-return or poppet type valve which is generally
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known as such, and includes a valve element or a valve body 50
that is slightly or weakly spring loaded. The first coupling
valve 30 i8 secured to a carrier rail 40, to which are attached
two inclined or angled coupling guide and seal strips 44 made of
5 an elastic or resilient material. Each seal strip 44 has a
sub6tantially planar shape extending vertically and inclining
inwardly toward the axis of the valve body 50.
The second coupling valve 32 includes a protruding guide and seal
member or a tapered rail 56 that has an opening at the area of
o the coupling valve 30. The tapered rail 56 includes two substan-
tially planar guide and seal flanks, extending vertically and
inclining outwardly toward the axis of the valve 32 to mate with
the inclined seal strips 44 of the adjacent coupling valve 30.
The conical rail 56 is carried by a metal sectional frame member
15 10 I for example. A valve bolt 58 is arranged within or behind
the conical rail 56 at the area of the opening facing the cou-
pling valve 30. A spring 62 is held by a support 64 and biases
the bolt 58 via a washer or disk 68 so that the bolt 58 is urged
laterally outward from the side edge of the wall element 1. A
20 central bored hole 66 passes through the bolt 58 and opens into
a hose or conduit 36.
When the two coupling valves 30 and 32 are engaged with one
another, the bolt 58 of the second coupling member 32 pushes the
valve body 50 of the first coupling member 30 into the open
25 po6ition 60 as to open the valve and allow a through-flow of
compressed air. When the two coupling valves 30 and 32 are
disengaged from one another, the valve body 50 again moves into
the closed position so a6 to 6top the through-flow of compressed
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air. Thus, when two adjacent wall elements 1 are pushed against
each other, the adjacent coupling members 30 and 32 cooperate to
allow compressed air to flow through from one wall element to the
next. A pneumatic hose or conduit for the compressed air runs
s crosswise through each wall element 1, i.e. extends from each
coupling valve 30 to each respective coupling valve 32 arranged
on the opposite edge of the wall element. Furthermore, when the
adjacent coupling valves 30 and 32 are coupled together, com-
pressed air flows through the bored hole 66 of the bolt 58 and
through the hose or conduit 36 to the stroke device 20. When the
two mating couplihg valves are decoupled, the poppet valve or the
non-return valve in the first coupling valve 30 closes and
thereby interrupts the throughflow of compressed air.
As shown in Fig. 1, a manually operable decompression valve 34
iS provided on at least one of the wall elements 1, preferably
at a narrow side edge thereof. The valve 34 can be manually
actuated to allow the compressed air to escape out of the pneu-
matic elements of the corresponding wall element 1. Due to this
decompression, the two compression springs 18 pull back the rods
16 and 16' and thereby retract the seal bars 9, 8 away from the
floor 14 and the 6upporting track 2, re6pectively. Then the wall
elements may easily be slid along the track 2.
As explained in greater detail in the Canadian patent application
Nr. 2 l24 305 , a vertical wall of the room in which the
partition wall is to be deployed includes a wall connection jamb
having a pneumatic tap valve to provide compressed air to the
wall elements of the partition wall. A compressed air source
such as a compressor provides compressed air to the pneumatic tap
3164/ClP/WFF:~r - 1 0
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-
valve. The manner of deploying the wall elements to form a
partition wall is also described in the parent application. When
adjacent wall elements are pushed together, the tapered rail 56
of each wall element mates with the correspondingly inclined seal
5 strips 44 of the adjacent wall element and thereby provides a
guiding function to smoothly guide the engagement and proper
vertical alignment of successive adjacent wall elements, so that
it is not necessary to provide a guide track along the floor.
As shown in Fig. 1, the terminal wall element 1' has a different
10 construction than the other wall elements 1, while many struc-
tural features are common as described above. The wall element
1~ is, for example, the last or terminal wall element of a parti-
tion wall, closest adjacent the permanent wall 85 of a room that
is to be partitioned. The wall element 1' includes a telescopi-
15 cally extendable, pneumatically actuatable sliding terminationpanel 70. In Fig. 3, the cover panel 6 of the wall element 1'
has been omitted for clarity, but it should be understood that
the cover panel 6 can extend over the area of the termination
panel 70 in its retracted position as shown in Fig. 3. Alterna-
20 tively, an outer cover panel of the termination panel can tele-
scope outside of the cover panel of the wall element body. Thus,
the termination panel 70 retracts telescopically within the wall
element 1' to achieve a neat appearance and avoid the formation
of a gap between the wall element body and the termination panel
25 even when the termination panel is fully extended.
In order to slidingly extend the termination panel, preferably
two horizontally effective cylinders 71 with cooperating piston
rods 72 arranged therein are provided near the top and the bottom
3164/ClPtWFF:~r -- 1 1 --
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of the side edge of the wall element 1'. The piston rod8 72 are
rigidly connected to the sliding termination panel 70. Alterna-
tively, the piston rods 72 may be connected by journal pins 72'
to the termination panel 70, so that the termination panel 70 can
s adapt itself to slightly mis-aligned or out-of-plumb walls 85.
Pretensioned springs 74 guided along spring guides 75 are pro-
vided to retract the sliding termination panel 70 once the exten-
sion cylinders 71 are decompressed.
As further shown in Fig. 3, in the central area of wall
10 element 1', a hor'izontal guide rod 77 is rigidly secured to the
termination panel 70. Alternatively, the guide rod 77 can be
attached to the panel 70 by a journal pin 77', to enable the
angular adjustability of the panel 70 as described above. The
horizontal guide rod 77 slides or glides in a guide sleeve 78
15 rigidly attached to the wall element 1'. Furthermore, the guide
rod 77 cooperates with a braking linkage comprising two tiltably
arranged brake levers 79 arranged facing one another on opposite
sides of said rod 77. Respective brake shoes 80 are arranged on
the two brake levers 79 to selectively engage the guide rods 77
20 to achieve a braking effect thereon. A compression spring 81 is
arranged at the free ends of the braking levers 79, so as to bias
or urge the braking levers 79 away from one another.
Instead of a stroke device 20 as described above for the wall
elements 1, the wall element 1' includes a two-part stroke de-
25 vice, namely a pair of pneumatically actuatable stroke devices
20A and 20A', which each cooperate with or actuate one of thebrake levers 79 as described below. Similarly to the stroke
device 20 described above, the two stroke devices 20A and 20A'
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are actuated by compressed air to extend the linkage rods 16 and
16' so as to respectively extend the seal bars 9 and 8 against
the floor and the ceiling guide track. The rods 16 and 16' are
loosely guided within the horizontal frame or support members 5
5 of the wall element 1'. The stroke devices 20A and 20A' are
merely supported or held on the respective rods 16 and 16' in a
free-floating manner, i.e. the stroke devices 20A and 20A' are
not rigidly connected to or supported in the wall element 1'.
The stroke devices may further be laterally guided by support
10 members as shown in Fig. 2. Alternatively, an outer cylinder or
sleeve of the réspective stroke devices 20A and 20A' can be
rigidly supported relative to the wall element 1', while two
pistons extend freely from the two opposite ends of each of the
stroke devices 2OA and 2OA'.
1S The above described free-floating arrangement achieves the fol-
lowing. When the stroke devices 20A and 20A~ are actuated with
compressed air, they first extend the linkage rods 16 and 16' as
described above. Then, once the seal bars 9 and 8 have been
fully extended, the devices 20A and 20A' further press a respec-
20 tive pressing head 83 and 83' against a respective one of thebrake levers 79. To ensure this sequence of operation, it is
simply necessary that spring 81 is stronger than springs 18.
Thus, once the seal bars 9 and 8 have been fully extended into
their sealing positions, the brake shoes 8 are tightly clamped
Z5 against the horizontal guide rods 77 so that the slidable termi-
nation panel 70 is held in its extended position. This ensures
that the termination panel 70 will be held in its extended posi-
tion even if the extension cylinders 71 have a slight leakage
decompression over long periods of time.
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As shown in Fig. 3, a manually operable control knob or button
84 i5 provided on the wall element 1' to actuate control valves
that control the extension of the sliding termination panel 70
and the seal bars 9 and 8 as will be described in the following.
5 Fig. 6 schematically shows a pneumatic circuit diagram. Fig. 7
shows the valve switching pattern and the connection points of
each of three valves 50A, 50B and 50C, or any greater number of
valves up to 50C, Each of the valves has the same construction.
As shown especially in Fig. 6, depressing the actuator button 84
in turn depresses the actuator pins 92A and 92B of two valves 50A
and 50B. The valve 50C is arranged on the laterally extending
edge of the termination panel 70 to form an extension limit valve
50C, whereby contacting the wall 85 will actuate or depress the
actuator pin 92C. Fig. 7 shows the state of the valves when the
15 actuator pins 92 are depressed, namely valve port A is connected
to valve port B of valve 50A, valve port D is connected to valve
port E of valve 50B, and valve port K is connected to valve port
I of valve 50C.
When the last wall element 1' having the termination panel 70 is
20 pushed against the next adjacent wall element 1, the coupling
valve 30 is opened to allow compressed air to flow into the
pneumatic system of the wall element 1' as has already been
described above. However, the valves 50A and 50B control or
prevent the flow of compressed air. Only once the control button
2s 84 is depressed, the compressed air is directed to the extension
cylinders 71 to extend the sliding termination panel 70. More
specifically, the compressed air enters port A and then exits
port B of valve 50A and then passes through a rapid decompression
or venting valve 52, and from there to the extension cylinders
31 64/ClP/wFF:Ar ~ 14
2167474
71. For the time being, the vent opening of the valve 52 remains
clo6ed. Compressed air from the coupling member 30 al60 passes
through a branch conduit through a one-way or non-return valve
51 to port K of the limit valve 50C.
s At this stage, the compressed air pressurizes the extension
cylinders 71 so that the piston rods 72 drive the termination
panel 70 outward away from the wall element 1' and up against the
stationary wall 85 of the room to be partitioned. Thereby, the
termination panel 70 closes the vertical gap 86 between the wall
o element 1' and the stationary wall 85 of the room. The vertical
gap 90 between the adjacent wall elements 1' and 1 as shown in
Fig. 1 has previously already been clo6ed by manually sliding the
wall element 1' laterally against the wall element 1 so as to
engage the coupling valves 30 and 32 as described above.
15 Once the actuator pin 92C of the limit valve 50C contacts the
wall 85, which forms a mechanical stop or end limit, the valve
50C switches over to connect ports K and I as shown in Fig. 7,
so that compressed air flows through conduit 53 to the two stroke
devices 20A and 20A~. Thereby, the stroke devices 20A~ and 20A
20 press the two seal bars 8 and 9 respectively against the guide
track 2 and the floor 14 as described above. Once that has
occurred, the pressing heads 83 and 83' of the stroke devices 20A
and 20A' respectively press the two levers 79 toward one another
while overcoming the force of spring 81, so as to press the brake
2s shoes 80 against the horizontal guide rod 77 and thereby lock or
arrest the extended position of the sliding termination panel 70.
Thus, the pneumatic actuation necessarily occurs in the following
sequence: once the actuator button 84 iS depressed, first the
3164/ClP/W1~ r ~ 15
216747~
termination panel 70 is extended fully until it firmly seals
against the wall 85, next the stroke devices 20A and 20A~ extend
the seal bars into the sealing positions, and finally the ex-
tended position of the panel 70 is fixed by braking action.
5 In order to depressurize the pneumatic circuit and thereby re-
tract the termination panel 70 and the seal bars 8 and 9, first
the compressed air supply from the compressor is interrupted and
then the control or actuator button 84 is depressed. Thereby,
the pressure in the supply line 60 decreases, and since the ports
10 A and B of valve g2A are now connected to one another, the decom-
pression valve 52 is opened so that air can escape and the exten-
sion cylinders 71 are retracted, along with the termination panel
70 under the spring force of the retraction springs 74. Simulta-
neously, the compressed air is released out of the stroke devices
20A and 20A~, whereupon the seal bars 9 and 8 are retracted so
that the wall element 1' may easily be slid or rolled along the
guide track 2.
As a further optional feature, seal elements can be provided
20 along the top and bottom edges of the sliding termination panel
70 to ensure that the noise insulating seal of the partition wall
is not disrupted at the area of the termination panel. For
example, as shown in Fig. 1, a flexible skirt 70A, which may be
a rubber skirt or a brush bristle skirt, can be arranged along
25 the top and bottom edges of the termination panel 70. Fig. 3
shows another optional alternative, wherein an auxiliary seal bar
8A with an auxiliary seal strip llA is arranged at the top of the
termination panel 70. The seal bar 8A and seal strip llA func-
tion substantially similarly to the seal bar 8 and seal strip 11.
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The auxiliary seal bars 9A and 8A extend telescopic laterally
into the seal bars 9 and 8 respectively. In other words, in
the view of Fig. 3, the auxiliary seal bars 9 and 8 are
forming an extension of the hollow seal bars 9 and 8
respectively. The auxiliary seal bars 9A and 8A are connected
to the frame structure 22' and are therefore moved together
with the termination panel 70. The auxiliary seal bars 9A and
8A are movably connected in vertical direction relativ to the
frame structure 22', by example by a screw head engaging a
vertical slot in the frame structure 22'. In this manner, a
continuous tight seal is formed along the floor and the
ceiling with substantially no gaps therein, regardless of the
final deployed position of the sliding termination panel 70.
Although the invention has been described with reference to
specific example embodiments, it will be appreciated that it
is intended to cover all modifications and equivalents within
the scope of the appended claims.
