Site News  |   Monitor Keywords  |   Monitor Archive  |   Organizer  |   Account Info  |

Monitoring device for a motor-driven door

Monitoring device for a motor-driven door description/claims

This patent application is based on and claims convention priority under 35 USC Section 119 on German patent application no. DE 10 2007 014 626.6 having a filing date of 23 Mar. 2007, German patent application no. DE 10 2007 014 627.4 having a filing date of 23 Mar. 2007, European patent application no. EP 07/111,823.6 having a filing date of 5 Jul. 2007, and European patent application no. EP 08/102,370.7 having a filing date of Mar. 7, 2008, each of which is incorporated herein in its entirety.

The invention relates to a monitoring device for a motor-driven door.

From the prior art (DE 4313063 C2) there is known a rolling door with a flexible curtain.

The curtain of this prior art rolling door is made of a polycarbonate material, which has considerably lower bending resistance and much greater elastic deformability than steel, for example, so that the curtain yields elastically without buckling upon collisions with vehicles or the like, even at relatively high impact speeds, and the curtain is not knocked out of the guide rails.

In the high-speed door industry, such a collision is known as a crash, and the special kind of door that can absorb such a crash is accordingly known as a crash door.

If a crash is detected, the door is moved according to the prior art (DE 29606569 U1 and DE 29623551 U1) into a predetermined position, for example above a funnel-shaped threading device, so that the door can be automatically returned to the running tracks.

According to the prior art (DE 4313062 C2 and DE 29623551 U1), sensors are disposed in or on the guide elements or the lowest closing strip of the door in order to be able to detect such a crash. These sensors detect when the door has been knocked out of the guide rails, and in the event of a crash they transmit a signal to the door controller, for example via coiled cables.

These prior art devices have the disadvantage that it is a very complex matter to dispose sensors in the region of the guide elements. Several sensors must be provided, and during assembly they must also be appropriately set and adjusted so that a crash can be reliably detected. Furthermore, the sensors, which are usually constructed as maintained-contact or momentary-contact switches with a pre-tensioned spring, undergo a certain amount of wear, since mechanical contact must take place between their actuating elements and the guide elements of the door during each door movement.

The prior art device (DE 29623551 U1) also has the disadvantage that it is not possible to distinguish between a crash or a collision due to an object located under the door, and so each pulse transmission is interpreted as a crash. Furthermore, this device has the disadvantage that it must be adapted in each case to the specific door width.

In another prior art device (DE 29606569 U1) for detecting a crash, the deformation of a contact bar running along the lower end bar of the door is evaluated. This device has the disadvantage that the device must be adapted to the specific door width and that two additional contact bar are necessary in order to be able to detect a crash.

Furthermore, this prior art device has the disadvantage that the signal is transmitted via a coiled cable to the door controller. The coiled cable is disadvantageous, since it is subject to great wear, because it must follow the door leaf during each door movement.

Further prior art (U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,297 A) is a safety-edge unit, which monitors a door for obstruction-free closing. According to this prior art there is provided a vibration sensor, which senses the door movement and activates control electronics equipped with a microprocessor and a signal transmitter as long as it detects the door movement. After being wakened, a transmitter outputs a continuous first “heartbeat” signal. As soon as the safety-edge unit has detected an obstruction, it sends another heartbeat signal, which is different from the first heartbeat signal. If the door controller receives this second heartbeat signal or does not receive either of the two heartbeat signals, either the door movement is stopped or the door movement is reversed, until the door is completely open. The “heartbeat” signal is interrupted, for example, in the event of a defect of the safety-edge unit.

In this prior art method, a vibration sensor is used to detect any door movement, so that the safety-edge unit will send out a signal for the duration of the door movement. No provisions are made to distinguish which kind of door movement is occurring or in which direction the door is moving. To the contrary, the safety-edge unit of the door controller would signal a crash as a normal door movement.

The technical problem underlying the invention is to provide a monitoring device for an automatically driven door, wherein a crash of a moving object with the door can be detected in simple manner and a signal can be relayed reliably to the door controller.

The inventive monitoring device for a motor-driven door with a door controller for detecting a crash of a moving object with the door and for communicating information as to whether a crash has occurred to the door controller is characterized in that the monitoring device is equipped with at least one sensor for monitoring movement, shaking and/or vibration of the door in a Z axis, which sensor is disposed in and/or on a door leaf of the door, and in that there is provided an analyzer unit, which is designed as an analyzer unit that analyzes the signals of the sensor and transmits at least one information stream to the door controller.

The object could be a vehicle.

According to the inventive monitoring device, a sensor is to be integrated in the door leaf of what is preferably a high-speed door, especially an industrial door. The sensor, which is designed as a shaking sensor, vibration sensor, acceleration sensor or the like, and which will be referred to hereinafter merely as an acceleration sensor, is capable, according to the invention, of detecting typical shaking movements or movements of the type that develop during a collision (crash), for example if a vehicle collides with the door leaf.

As an example, the SMB380 (brand name) triaxial acceleration sensor of Bosch (company name) or another acceleration sensor can be used as the acceleration sensor.

In normal operation of a door, its end bar moves up and down in a horizontal plane within the lateral guide rails. This direction of movement will be referred to hereinafter as movement in the Y axis.

Door movements to the left and right within the guide rails take place because of the necessary gap between the door or end bar and the lateral guide rails. This direction of movement will be referred to hereinafter as the X axis.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

• What Is a Patent?
• What Is a Trademark or Servicemark?
• What Is a Copyright?
• Patent Laws