EP2455573B1

EP2455573B1 - Sliding pocket door assembly comprising a device for suspension fastening in openings smaller than the door itself

Info

Publication number: EP2455573B1
Application number: EP11167273.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Luigi De Faveri
Original assignee: Eclisse SRL
Current assignee: Eclisse SRL
Priority date: 2010-11-18
Filing date: 2011-05-24
Publication date: 2016-05-04
Anticipated expiration: 2031-05-24
Also published as: SI2455573T1; IT1402682B1; ITTV20100147A1; PL2455573T3; HRP20160831T1; HUE028093T2; EP2455573A1; ES2582162T3

Description

The present invention relates to a sliding pocket door assembly comprising a device for suspension fastening, particularly for sliding doors which are positionable in small door openings.
Currently it is known to provide door and window assemblies that use a case, positioned within a wall, inside which a door or a panel, also known as pocket door, is associated slidingly.
This solution enables to reduce the space occupation of the door in a room thanks to the possibility to make it slide into the case: it is thus possible to use the space adjacent to the door, which would otherwise be occupied by doors of the type that is hinged laterally to a frame.
In the background art, the case embedded in the wall usually comprises vertical posts, which define, together with lateral cross-members, a box for containing the panel or the door; with the application of a mesh which is external to the containment box, plaster is then applied.
A track protrudes above the box, along an axis which is longitudinal to the box and is extended in the opposite direction with respect to the containment box, and is concealed by a jamb.
Carriages are associated slidingly within the track and are coupled to the upper edge of the door to allow their sliding in and out of the case.
An additional post is usually associated with the end of the track that is not associated with the vertical posts and acts as a terminal for the location and abutment of the front edge of the door.
One problem observed in the use of these solutions resides in that the size of the door must necessarily match the size of the door opening to be closed, since it is necessary to install the door after installing the case.
If one has to or wants to use a door having larger dimensions, or if it is necessary to install a door having preset dimensions in a smaller door opening, it is impossible to perform installation.
Italian utility model application no. FO 2001U0009, filed on 21 March 2001 , is also known which claims a pocket door and the corresponding frame, of the type in which the door is suspended from a sliding track which makes it possible to arrange it in the open condition by transferring it into a metallic box designed to replace, with its space occupation, the corresponding wall portion, characterized in that in order to avoid the need to match the jambs, the cross-members and the corresponding joint covering borders to the aesthetic characteristics of each door that is chosen, the jambs and the cross-members of the new frame are shaped and arranged so as to define the door opening of the door in an offset arrangement and be visible only within the thickness of the wall, whose surface finish of the sides, with plaster or of another type, is extended so as to surround and delimit the door opening.
In this solution, when using doors that are wider than the door opening, in order to install or remove the door from the door opening the jamb that lies opposite the box must be defined by a fixed post B and by a removable post C, so that the temporary removal of the latter (Figures 2-6) allows the door to continue with the front edge beyond the normal abutment limit and enough to allow access to the rear edge.
Such solution suffers from the drawback of having to provide for the removal and subsequent installation of the post C on the post B; furthermore, the post C must be kept inside the post B by using two or more adjustable spacers E, which force the post C to press, with its wings C1, against the corresponding wings B1 of the post B.
All this increases the structural complexity of the solution; moreover, since it requires additional work, it increases the times and installation costs of the pocket door.
EP 0 417 000 A1 discloses a sliding pocket door assembly according to the preamble of cliam 1, the sliding pocket door being suspended by bolts screwed into mobile carriages moving in a suspended slide. Slots closed by a metal plate are provided at the top of the door to ensure the fixing of the door to the bolts. A complementary profile positioned after insertion of the door defines a stop piece for the latter and an exterior facing masking the front edge of the door in the closed position.
The aim of the present invention is therefore to solve the cited technical problems, by eliminating the drawbacks of the cited background art and thus providing a device that allows to install a pocket door.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a device that enables to install rapidly and simply a door that has larger dimensions than those of a preset door opening.
Another object is to provide a pocket door that can be installed even by personnel that is not particularly trained.
Another object is to provide a device that is structurally simple, can be provided by means of ordinary systems and machines and has low manufacturing costs.
In accordance with the invention, there is provided a sliding pocket door assembly as defined in the appended claims.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the detailed description of a particular but not exclusive embodiment, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view, taken from below, of the door with the bracket partially inserted therein;
Figure 2 is a second perspective view, taken from below, of the door with the bracket fully inserted therein;
Figure 3 is a perspective view, taken from above, of the base of the vertical posts with a plate from which the pin protrudes;
Figure 4 is a view of the plate from which the pin protrudes;
Figure 5 is a top view of the carriage with which the door, arranged in a region which is external to the case, is associated;
Figure 6 is a view, similar to the preceding one, of the carriage with which the door, arranged in a region which is adjacent to the case, is associated;
Figure 7 is a view, similar to the preceding one, of the carriage with which the door, arranged in a region which is internal to the case, is associated;
Figure 8 is an exploded axonometric view of some components;
Figure 9 is a lateral perspective view of the device associated with the door during its installation on the case.

In the exemplary embodiments that follow, individual characteristics, given in relation to specific examples, may actually be interchanged within the scope of the claims with other different characteristics that exist in other exemplary embodiments.
With reference to the figures, the reference numeral 1 generally designates a device for suspension fastening, particularly for doors 2 of the type that can slide because they are positionable in door openings 3 which have, in particular, smaller dimensions than the door.
The device 1 is complemented by a case 4, which is provided with an adapted mesh for applying plaster or plasterboard, which comprises vertical posts 5a, 5b which define, together with lateral cross-members 6, a box 7 for containing the panel or the door 2.
A track 8 protrudes above the box 7, along an axis which is longitudinal to the box 7 and is extended on the opposite side with respect to the containment box.
Carriages 9 are associated slidingly within the track 8 and are coupled to the upper edge 10 of the door 2 to allow its sliding in and out of the case 4.
An additional pair of posts 5c, 5d is usually associated with the end of the track 8 that is not associated with the vertical posts 5a, 5b; such posts act, together with an abutment band or element 11, which acts as a terminal for the abutment and location of the front edge 12 of the door 2.
The device 1 is also constituted by a bracket 13, which is essentially L-shaped and has a first arm 14, which is slidingly associable in a complementarily shaped first seat 15, which is provided longitudinally and above the door 2.
Preferably, the first seat 15 is constituted by a profile 16 which is C-shaped and is coupled in an upward region to the door, the complementarily shaped first arm 14 being slidingly insertable within it.
The bracket 13 is constituted by a second arm 17, which is plate-shaped and can be arranged adjacent to the edge 18 of the door 2.
The bracket 13 has, at an end which is adjacent to the second arm 17, means for rotary interconnection to said overlying carriage 9, such means being constituted by a first adjustment screw 19, whose shaft 20 can be inserted in an adapted hole provided in the second arm and whose head 21 is accessible to an operator for the fastening to the overlying carriage 9 in order to arrange the upper edge 10 of the door 2 at a chosen distance from the carriage 9.
The bracket 13 is provided, on the second arm 17, with means for locking to the edge 18 of the door, the means being constituted by second screws 22 that pass at adapted holes 23.
Additional means adapted to lock the arrangement of the first adjustment screw 19 are present on the second arm 17 and are constituted by a third locking screw 24, which interacts with the shaft 20 of the first screw 19 so as to prevent it from loosening and is thus intended to keep the door at the right height for its correct sliding.
The door 2 has a second seat 25 which is provided longitudinally and below it, preferably in a central region or even in an axially offset region.
A cylindrical pin 26 is positionable at the second seat 25, and protrudes from a guide 27 that is plate-shaped and is arrangeable transversely and substantially flush with the lower ends of the vertical posts 5a, 5b of the case 4.
The guide 27 has, in plan view, a rectangular shape with a pair of wings 28a, 28b at its ends, such wings being fixed to the vertical posts 5a, 5b by means of fourth screws 29a, 29b.
Operation is as follows: initially, the bracket 13 is inserted partially in the first seat 15 of the door 2 and then the carriage 19 is positioned in a region that is external to the box 7, as shown in Figure 5.
Then the bracket 13 is coupled to the carriage 9 by acting on the first screw 19, keeping the door inclined with respect to the door opening 3, whose dimensions are smaller than the width of the door 2.
Then the edge 22 of the door, always kept inclined, is moved closer to the vertical posts 5a, 5b, making sure that the pin 26 arranges itself at the second seat 25.
One then begins to position the door within the box 7, as shown in Figures 6 and 7, then gradually reducing its inclination with respect to the door opening 3 and pushing the door into the door opening; the partial insertion of the inclined door 2 in the box 7 is thus achieved until the door portion that is inserted in the box 7 allows the straightening of the door 2 at the door opening 3.
It has thus been observed that the invention has achieved the intended aim and objects, a device having been devised which, associated with a pocket door, allows the rapid and simple installation of a pocket, door whose dimensions are greater than those of a preset door opening.
Furthermore, the described solution allows even personnel that is not particularly trained to install the pocket door, since the steps of installation are very simple and quick.
Finally, the device is structurally simple and can be applied simply also to doors and windows that have already been installed.
The invention is of course susceptible of numerous modifications and variations within the scope of the appended claims.
The materials used, as well as the dimensions that constitute the individual components of the invention, may of course be more pertinent according to the specific requirements.
The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. TV 2010A000147 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.
Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

A sliding pocket door assembly comprising a sliding door (2), a fixed case (4) and track (8) protruding from said case (4) and defining a door opening (3) of the sliding door (2), the door (2) being positionable in the door opening (3) which is smaller than the width of the door itself, said door (2) being suspension fastened to said track (8) by a device (1) which is constituted by a bracket (13) said bracket (13) having, at one end, means (19) for rotary interconnection to an overlying carriage (9) which slides in said track (8) of said fixed case (4), and said bracket (13) further having means for locking said bracket (13) to an edge (18) of said door (2) characterised in that the bracket (13) is slidingly installed in a first groove (15) that is provided longitudinally along the upper part of said door (2) and in that the means for locking said bracket (13) are provided at said same one end of said bracket (13) where the means (19) for rotary interconnection are located, said means for locking said bracket (13) to a vertical edge of the of the door.
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that said door (2) has a second seat (25), which is provided longitudinally and in a lower region and is adapted to accommodate a pin (26) which is arranged at the base of, and substantially flush with, vertical posts (5a, 5b) of said case (4).
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 2, wherein said case (4) comprises said vertical posts (5a, 5b) which define, together with lateral cross-members (6), a containment box (7) for said door or for a panel (2), said track (8) protruding above said box (7), along an axis which is longitudinal to said box (7), said carriages (9) being associated slidingly therein and being coupled to the upper edge (10) of said door (2) in order to allow its sliding into and out of said case (4), characterized in that said bracket (13), which is essentially L-shaped, has a first arm (14) which is slidingly installed in said complementarily shaped first groove (15) provided longitudinally and above said door (2).
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that said first groove (15) is constituted by a C-shaped profile (16) which is coupled to said door in an upper region, said complementarily shaped first arm (14) being inserted slidingly within said profile.
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that said bracket (13) has a second arm (17) which is plate-shaped and is arranged adjacent to the vertical edge (18) of said door (2).
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that said bracket (13) has, at said end, which is adjacent to said second arm (17), said means for rotary interconnection to said overlying carriage (9), said means being constituted by a first adjustment screw (19), whose shaft (20) is inserted in an adapted hole provided on said second arm and whose head (21) is accessible to an operator for the fastening to said overlying carriage (9) in order to arrange the upper edge (10) of said door (2) at a chosen distance from said carriage (9).
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that said bracket (13) has, on said second arm (17), means for locking to said vertical edge (18) of said door (2), said means being constituted by second screws (22) that pass at adapted holes (23).
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that additional means are present on said second arm (17) and are adapted to lock the arrangement of said first adjustment screw (19), said means being constituted by a third locking screw (24), which interacts with the shaft (20) of said first screw (19) so as to prevent it from loosening.
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that said door (2) has said second seat (25) which is provided longitudinally and below it, in a central region or even in an axially offset region.
The sliding pocket door assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that said cylindrical pin (26) is positionable at said second seat (25) and protrudes from a guide (27) that is plate-shaped and is arranged transversely and substantially flush with the lower ends of said vertical posts (5a, 5b) of said case (4), said guide (27) having, in plan view, a rectangular shape with a pair of wings (28a, 28b) at its ends, said wings being fixed to said vertical posts (5a, 5b) by means of fourth screws (29a, 29b).