US3207273A

US3207273A - Closure release device

Info

Publication number: US3207273A
Application number: US211295A
Authority: US
Inventors: Robert J Jurin
Original assignee: Garcy Corp
Current assignee: Garcy Corp
Priority date: 1962-07-20
Filing date: 1962-07-20
Publication date: 1965-09-21
Anticipated expiration: 1982-09-21

Description

p 21, 1965 R. J. JURlN 3,207,273

CLOSURE RELEASE DEVI CE Filed July 20, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

Sept. 21, 1965 JURIN 3,207,273

CLOSURE RELEASE DEVICE Filed July 20, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I INVENTOR.

BY M/ M {M Q77w7zeya United States Patent 3,207,273 CLOSURE RELEASE DEVICE Robert J. Jurin, Chicago, Ill., assiguor to Garey Corporation, a corporation of Illinois Filed July 20, 1962, Ser. No. 211,295 6 Claims. (Cl. 189-49) This invention relates to a closure release device and, particularly, to a device which will receive and retain a door or other closure in either the open or closed position until a given condition exists, at which time the device will move out of engagement with the closure to allow it to be moved into its other position.

There is an ever present need for a system that will retain a series of closures, such as doors, or windows in the open or closed position over an extended period of time and which will aways be operable to release the closures so they are free to move to their other position. Furthermore, in view of the quick response available when using electrical energy, it would be particularly desirable to have a device, or series of devices, that would operate in response to an electrical power failure, or some other signal, so that the release device would be positively and instantaneously moved out of retaining engagement with the closures to permit them to simultaneously close or open, as the case may be. Such a device should be relatively simple in construction and not require the use of components that may not stand the test of time so that effective operation thereof is assured.

An installation where devices of this type would be particularly desirable if not absolutely necessary is in buildings where they could be used to control the movement of doors and Windows in case of fire. For example, such devices could be made to operate in conjunction with an automatic sprinkler system, or other fire alarm systems, so that in the case of fire or smoke certain areas will be closed off to prevent a fire from spreading and/ or windows will be opened to permit smoke to escape.

Other situations in which a device of this type could be used would be where all doors should be instantaneously closed for security reasons; to control the movement of dampers for boilers; or any occasion that it is desirable that closures be allowed to move between the open and closed position. Such a device, in order to be successful, must be capable of repeated use without fear of affecting its operability. Also, it must at all times, regardless of the length of time between successive uses, operate to quickly and positively move out of engagement with the closure to permit it to be moved into the position that the device had heretofore acted to prevent it from so moving.

Closures release devices currently on the market are generally deficient in that they do not retain their effectiveness over an extended period of time. This is often due to the fact that they include components that rust, or become inoperative for some other reason so that they do not function when called upon to operate in response to a signal of some sort, such as one emanating from a fire detection system. Furthermore, there are no presently available systems consisting of a large number of selfcontained individual units of relatively simple construction that can be simultaneously operated from a single station. The devices currently on the market are multiple unit affairs that include something mounted on the closure itself.

In addition, presently available devices often have a limited life since they contain mating parts that get out of line and require replacement. Also, when the devices are used to control the movement of doors or windows in the case of fire, they are not fail-safe in the event of failure of electricity. By that it is meant that if the power fails, the device will not automatically operate to allow the closure to move into the emergency position.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a simple yet highly efiicient electrically operated closure release device which is capable of retaining a closure in either the open or closed position and will at all times be operable to release the closure to permit it to be moved away from the position in which it was theretofore retained. The device contains a minimum of parts that will operate effectively regardless of the number of times it is used or the length of time between succeeding uses. Another important feature is that the device is selfcontained, thus eliminating the need for mounting anything on the closure itself.

As illustrated, which is by way of example only, the release device, which is respresentative of one of a number that may be part of a given system, initially retains a door in the open position after it reaches this position and thereafter acts in response to a given signal to move the device out of engagement with the closure to permit it to close. In the instant case, the device operates when the power supply to the device is cut off by failure of the electrical system or operating a switch either manually or in response to some condition.

This device, While usable for many purposes, is particularly useful as a safety device which will allow doors to close and windows to open in the event of fire. For example, this device could be tied into a fire or smoke detection system to instantaneously allow all doors in a building to close when smoke or fire is present. Also, in the case of a hospital or other establishment where a fire is observed, the devices may be simultaneously operated from a nurses station, or any other suitable loca tion. In addition, if the system was to be used to maintain security by preventing anyone from leaving the building, the devices could be operated from a security oflice, at which time the doors would be simultaneously and automatically released to permit them to be moved to a locked position. In each instance, the device normally functions to retain the closure against the action of a force tending to move the closure out of engagement with the release device. Thus, the closure will be positively moved when the release device is disengaged from the closure.

Other advantages will be apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the closure release device;

FIGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown retaining a door in an open position;

FIGURE 3 illustrates the position of the various components of the device when it is in the released position; and

FIGURE 4 is a view taken along lines 44 of FIG- URE 2.

The drawings have been directed toward a closure release device for retaining a door in the open position and thus the description of the invention will be oriented in this direction. However, it will be apparent that with suitable modification, the device is equally adjustable to hold a window in a closed or open position and other closures in preselected positions.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, there is illustrated a selfcontained closure release device 1 shown positioned to retain a door 2 in the open position. The major portion of the device is disposed within a casing 3 that is secured directly to a wall or bracket adjacent the top of the door. The door is retained in the open position by a spring loaded arm that extends out from the bottom of the casing. The door is normally biased in the closing di rection against the biasing force of the arm by a door closure mechanism (not shown), the details of which are not important to an understanding of the present invention.

The main elements of the door release device include a retaining means to hold the door in the open position, control means for positioning the retaining means relative to the door, condition responsive means for regulating the position of said control means, and switch means for effecting movement of the control means when the door is in the open position to move the retaining means into the engaging position.

Turning now to FIGURES 2, 3, and 4, there are illustrated, in detail, the various components of the device.

The structure for retaining the door 2 in the open position consists of a two-fingered lever 6 that is pivotally mounted on a horizontally extending pivot pin 7. The pivot pin 7 is rotatably supported in bearings secured to a bottom plate 9 of the main frame structure of the device. The lever 6 is supported relative to the other end of the pin 7 by a brace 11 that is connected to the finger portion 6a of lever 6. Pivotally secured to the outer end of finger 6a, by a pivot pin 13, for engaging and retaining the door 2 in the open position is the door catch arm assembly 12. The door catch arm assembly includes a door catch roller 16 that comes into actual contact with the door. The roller 16 results in substantially frictionless engagement between the arm and door which facilitates movement therebetween. The door catch arm assembly 12 is resiliently held in the illustrated position relative to lever 6 by a compression spring 17.

The spring 17 extends between a cup 18 secured to an outwardly extending flange portion 60 of the finger 6b of the lever 6 and a spring cup 19 which abuts against a nut 20 secured to a stud 21. The stud 21 is connected to the door catch arm 12 through a fusible plug 23 that is fitted around the stud 21 and into an opening formed in the door catch arm. Thus, spring 17, which is under compression, biases the door catch arm 12 in a clockwise direction about the pivot pin 13 and retains the arm in this position until a force greater than that set by the spring is exerted against the door catch roller. The setting of the spring is adjusted to be in excess of the biasing force normally tending to move the door in a closing direction. It can be appreciated that with such an arrangement the door can be pulled out of engagement with the release mechanism by exerting a force in excess of the spring setting. If this occurs, the door catch arm 12 will be pivoted counter-clockwise about the pivot pin 13 to where it is out of engagement with the door. Furthermore, in the event the fusible plug 23 is melted by being subjected to a high temperature, the catch arm will be free of the stud 21 and the spring force will become ineffective to hold the catch arm against the door and the door will be free to move to the closed position.

The control means for moving the lever 6 between the positions shown in FIGURES 2 and 3 consists of a link and toggle arrangement that is positioned by the armature 26 of a solenoid 27, the operation of which will be described in detail hereinafter.

The control structure includes a link 28 that is connected at its upper end to the lower end of the armature 26, and at its other end to a toggle linkage. The toggle linkage consists of a first toggle lever 30 that is pivotally connected to the back plate of the casing 3 and link 28, and a second toggle lever 31 that is connected at one end to the link 28 and at its other end to a pivot pin 33 mounted in the main support lever 6. The toggle linkage multiplies the force imposed on the link 28 thus requiring very little force to rotate lever 6.

The control structure is movable between the position shown in FIGURE 2, wherein the link 28 and toggle linkage are in their uppermost position to retain the door in its open position, and the position shown in FIGURE 3, wherein the link 28 and toggle linkage are in their lowermost position to move the retaining means out of engagement with the door. When the control structure is moved between the two positions shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, respectively, the support lever 6 is moved in a counterclockwise direction about pivot pin 7 to move the door catch arm 12 out of engagement with the door 2, and when the link and toggle are moved in the other direction, the lever 6 is rotated clockwise to move arm 12 into position to prevent the door from closing.

The condition responsive means for effecting movement of the control means in the instant case consists of a solenoid 27 which when energized draws up and holds the armature 26 in its upper position to move the retaining means into engagement with the door. When the solenoid is de-energized, the armature and associated linkages 28, 3t), 31 fall by gravity to move the door retaining means out of engagement with the door. If desired, the lever 6 could be weighted at its end opposite the door catch arm to add to the gravitational force tending to rotate the support lever 6 in a counterclockwise direction. This particular arrangement avoids the use of springs or other biasing means which may become inoperative after an extended period of use or non-use. This design is particularly advantageous in installations where it is essential that the doors or other closures be permitted to move to a given position in the event of tire. An additional advantage to this arrangement is that, in the event of power failure, the closure device will automatically move out of engagement with the door.

Included in the circuit containing the solenoid 27 is a switch 40 which is opened and closed by a switch lever 41 that is pivotally mounted about pivot pin 7. The switch lever has a roller 42 on one end thereof that is engaged by the door when in the open position to rotate it in the clockwise direction. When it is so rotated, the other end engages a roller 43 attached to a switch plate 44 to close the circuit and energize the solenoid 27. When the closure device is released to allow the door to move to the closed position, the switch lever moves counterclockwise about pin 7 due to a weight 45 secured to the end of the switch lever adjacent switch 40 to open the switch. When the door is opened manually the opened switch 40 cuts off the flow of electricity to the solenoid 27. When the closure device has been released electrically, the open switch 40 insures that the solenoid 27 will not be re-energized inadvertently before the door is returned to the open position. It remains to note that the switch lever includes a stop 47 which comes into engagement with plate 9 to limit the counterclockwise movement of the switch lever and thus retain it in position to be engaged by the door when it is moved to the open position.

The operation of the closure release device embodying the present invention is as follows:

When a door 2 is moved into the open position, it engages roller 42 to rotate switch lever 41 in a clockwise direction about pivot pin 7 to move the lever into engagement with switch plate 43 to close switch 40. When limit switch 40 is closed, power is supplied to the solenoid 27 to draw armature 26 upwardly into the core of the solenoid. Upward movement of armature 26 raises link 28 and positions toggle

levers

30, 31 to rotate support lever 6 in a clockwise direction about pivot pin 7. This movement of lever 6 brings spring hooded door catch arm 12 into engagement with the door 2 to retain the door in the open position.

When the power to the solenoid is cut off, either by failure of the power in the building, actuation of a switch or in response to a signal, the armature falls by the force of gravity to move link 28 downwardly and position toggle levers 30, 31 to rotate support lever 6 in a counterclockwise direction about pivot pin 7. This movement of lever 6 moves door catch arm 12 out of engagement with the door 2 and thus permits the door closure mechanism to move the door to the closed position. It remains to note that in the event the plug 23 is melted due to it being exposed to a high temperature, spring 17 will no longer be effective to retain the catch arm 12 against the door 2 and thus the door will be free to move to the closed position even though the power is still on.

When the door moves out of engagement with the switch lever 41, the weighted switch lever moves counterclockwise to where it is out of contact with the limit switch 40. When switch 40 is opened, the power to the solenoid is shut off to retain the release device in the disengaged position until the door is again moved into engagement with the switch lever.

While the device has been described as operating upon failure of electricity, the solenoid could be controlled by a centrally located manually operated switch or incorporated in with fire detection apparatus or any other arrangement where it is desired to operate simultaneously the devices to release the closures when a given condition exists. Also, if it is desired, a spring, or other biasing force, could be used to move the retaining means out of engagement with the door when the solenoid is de-energized. Furthermore, other types of linkage systems could be used and the closure support arm could be designed to extend into a channel on the top of the door or be adapted to engage anything projecting from the door such as a door handle.

The device is not necessarily limited to the particular structural configurations shown, and it is intended to include by the appended claims all such equivalents that fall within the scope of the present invention.

I claim:

1. A device for controlling movement of a closure be tween an open and closed position comprising means for retaining the closure in one of said positions, means for controlling the movement of said retaining means, condition responsive means for regulating the position of said control means and responsive to a first signal to move the retaining means into engagement with the closure to hold it in one of said positions and upon failure of said first signal to effect movement of said retaining means out of engagement with said closure to permit the closure to move into the other of said positions, and means positioned by said closure when in said one position to actuate said condition responsive means to move said retaining means into engagement with the closure, said last mentioned means being responsive to movement of said closure from said one position for causing failure of said first signal.

2. A device for controlling the movement of a closure between an open and closed position comprising means for retaining the closure in one of said positions, control means constructed and arranged to move said retaining means out of engagement with said closure, electrical means when energized adapted to position said control means to move the retaining means into engagement with said closure and when de-energized to move the retaining means of of engagement with said closure, and switch means actuated by said closure when the closure is moved into said one position to energize said electrical means to move said retaining means into engagement with the closure, said switch means being responsive to movement of said closure from said one position for deenergizing said electrical means.

3. A device for retaining a door in the open position comprising retaining means for receiving and holding the door in the open position and including a pivotally mounted lever, a door support arm pivotally connected to one end of said lever, biasing means interconnected between said support arm and said lever to bias said support arm into engagement with said door, control means for controlling the movement of said retaining means including a toggle linkage, an electrical solenoid including an armature member connected to said control means for regulating the position of said control means and which when energized will move said armature and control means to position the retaining means into engagement with said door and when deenergized will allow said armature to move the retaining means out of engagement with the door, and switch means actuated by said door when in the open position to energize said solenoid to position said control means to move the retaining means into engagement with the door.

4. A door holding and release device comprising means for retaining a door in the open position including a pivotally mounted lever, a door support arm connected to one end of said lever for engaging said door, and biasing means for holding said arm against the closing action of said door; control means including a toggle linkage to move said retaining means into and out of engagement with said door, a solenoid having an armature connected to said control means for positioning said control means, a switch lever engaged by said door when the door is moved to the open position, a switch controlled by the position of said switch lever which switch when closed actuates said electrical means to move said retaining means into engagement with the closure, whereby when the door is opened the device will operate to hold the door in this position and when the supply of current to the solenoid is cut off the device will move out of engagement with the door to allow it to close.

5. A device for controlling movement of a door between the open and closed positions comprising retaining means for retaining the door in the open position including a pivotally mounted lever and a support arm connected to one end of said lever and adapted to engage said door, biasing means disposed between said lever and arm for biasing the arm into engagement with the door to prevent it from closing including a stud extending through said support arm, linkage means for controlling the movement of said retaining means, means responsive to electrical current to regulate the position of said linkage means, and switch means actuated by said door when in the open position to energize said electrical means to move the retaining means into engagement with the closure.

6. A closure release device as described in claim 5 including a fusible plug disposed between said stud and said lever whereby in response to high temperature the support arm will be released from said biasing means to allow the door to be moved to the closed position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,171,065 8/39 Johnson 189-49 2,752,189 6/56 Bachi 292-201 X 2,798,751 7/57 Walden 292-l44 2,842,075 7/58 Rataiczak 292-201 X 3,051,281 8/62 Hulf 18947 3,094,200 6/63 Schlage 18949 FOREIGN PATENTS 524,460 12/53 Belgium. 412,659 7/ 34 Great Britain.

HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

NORTON ANSHER, Examiner.

Claims

2. A DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING THE MOVEMENT OF A CLOSURE BETWEEN AN OPEN AND CLOSED POSITION COMPRISING MEANS FOR RETAINING THE CLOSURE IN ONE OF SAID POSITINS, CONTROL MEANS CONSTRUCTED AND ARRANGED TO MOVE SAID RETAINING MEANS OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID CLOSURE, ELECTRICAL MEANS WHEN ENERGIZED ADAPTED TO POSITION SAID CONTROL MEANS TO MOVE THE RETAINING MEANS INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID CLOSURE AND WHEN DE-ENERGIZED TO MOVE THE RETAINING MEANS OF OF ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID CLOSURE, AND SWITCH MEANS ACTUATED BY SAID CLOSURE WHEN THE CLOSURE IS MOVED INTO SAID ONE POSITION TO ENERGIZE SAID ELECTRICAL MEANS TO MOVE SAID RETAINING MEANS INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CLOSURE, SAID SWITCH MEANS BEING RESPONSIVE TO MOVEMENT OF SAID CLOSURE FROM SAID ONE POSITION FOR DEENERGIZING SAID ELECTRICAL MEANS.