US2493019A - Spring hinge - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 3, 1950 v J. a. owls 2,493,019

' SPRING HINGE Filed March 30 l946 FUUTJ.

/NVENTOR JAMES E. OLVIS ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 3, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SPRING HINGE James E. Olvis, Glendale, Calif.

Application March 30, 1946, Serial No. 658,453

5 Claims. 16-189.)

This invention relates to a manually controllable door closing device.

More specifically speaking the invention pertains to the combination, with a spring-carrying door hinge structure; of a simplified means, which supplants one of the leaves of an, ordinary door hinge, for placing the spring of the hinge into either an operative or an inoperative relation to the door, so that the device may either be adjusted automatically to close the door, or to place it in a condition for being left more or less open, at the option of the user.

It is an object of the invention to provide a simplified means for performing the above noted functions, one that can be manufactured at a lowered cost, and also a superior arrangement of parts that can be manually adjusted with speed and rapidity either to render operative or inoperative the spring carried by the hinge.

Another object is to provide a door closing device which may either be used, by itself, as a spring hinge structure to swingably mount and to automatically close small swingable doors, or which may conveniently be combined with the uppermost hinge of a large swingable door.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention will hereinafter appear.

Referring to the accompanying drawing which illustrates a preferred embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the device mounted in its operative position, a fragment of the door frame and of the door being included in the view.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 differs from Fig. 2 only in that the adjustable shuttle is shown adjusted to the position wherein the spring of the hinge is rendered inoperative.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the door hinge element shown comprises a single hinge leaf 5 which carries at its lower end a flange 6 and at its upper end a flange 1, both of said flanges being directed away from the door frame member 8 to which the hinge leaf is shown attached by screws 9. Said hinge element is provided with a hinge pin I0 which bridges the space between said flanges and the upper end of which projects beyond the uppermost flange While its lower end extends down into a conventional upper door hinge I l taking the place of the conventional pin of the upper hinge of the door. A spiral door closing spring I2 is coiled around the part of said pin occupying the space between said flanges 6 and I, the lower flange being nished at its outer end with a stop lug [3 to hold the lower end of said spring in a fixed position thus preventing theuncoiling of the spring. The upper flange 1 is likewise provided With a, stop lug M which prevents. the spring from uncoiiing to a greater extent than is pos-i sible when the parts hereinafter described which cooperate with the spring are so adjusted t0 render the spring inoperative.

To the part of the hinge pin which projec 1 above the upper flange l is swiveled theshank portion it of a wing I1, said wing being channel-shaped in cross section and having its body portion secured in a flatwise abutting manner to the door i 8 in any suitable manner, as for example, by screws [9.

In a slightly spaced relation to the body portion of the wing i! there are provided a pair of guide pins 20 and 2!, said pins both being slightly spaced away from the body portion of the wing and bridging the space between the flanges thereof. Said guide pins afford a means for keeping in place and for guiding and limiting the reciprocatory movement of a shuttle member 22 which consists of a piece of strap metal bent to the shape of a broad rectangular U provided with the end flanges 23 and 24.

When said shuttle member is adjusted at the limit of its travel toward the hinge pin as shown in Fig. 2 its right hand or outer flange 24 abuts against the pin 2|, the opposite end flange 23 of the shuttle then being in a position to be at all times engaged by the adjacent end portion of the coil spring, which therefore under such circumstances always acts automatically to swing the door to a closed position. When, however, the shuttle member 22 is adjusted to the outer limit of its travel as shown in Fig. 3 its inner end flange 23 clears the adjacent end of the coil spring and renders said spring inoperative so that the door Will remain open at any position to which it may be adjusted by the operator. The outer end flange 24 of said shuttle member affords a convenient handhold for the operator when he adjusts the shuttle member to the desired position.

I claim:

1. A hinge having a single leaf attachable to one of two members fastened together in a swingable relation to each other, said leaf having an apertured flange across each end projecting toward the same face of the leaf, a hinge pin bridging the space between said flanges and projecting beyond one of them, a spiral doorclosing spring coiled around the part of said pin occupying the space between said flanges, means carried by one of said flanges to hold one end of said spring in a fixed position to prevent uncoiling of the spring, a stop carried by the other of said flanges to limit the uncoiling movement of the opposite end of the spring after the spring has uncoiled sufliciently to close the door, a wing swiveled to the aforesaid projecting portion of said hinge pin, said wing being attached to the door, and a shuttle member mounted upon said wing and adjustable to and from a position wherein it is engageable by the last recited end of the aforesaid spring, thus rendering said spring operative or inoperative as a door closing force according to the adjustment of said shuttle member.

2. A hinge including the structure of claim 1 in which the hinge pin is provided with a downwardly extending lower end portion adapted to serve as the pintle member of a conventional hinge.

3. In that type of hinge which comprises a hinge pin having a door-closing spring coiled around it, guide means attached to the door adjacent to the hinge pin, and an elongated shuttle member mounted on said guide means, said shuttle member being manually slidable to and from a position wherein one of its ends is at times in the path of an end portion of said spring, thus to render said spring operative or inoperative as a door closing means.

4. The subject matter of claim 3, and said shuttle member consisting of a piece of strap 4 metal shaped as a broad rectangular U one arm of which afiords a fingerhold for the operator, and the other arm of which is positionable to and from an intercepting relation to an end portion of said spring.

5. In that type of hinge which comprises a hinge pin having a door-closing spring coiled around it, guide means attached to the door adjacent to the hinge pin, and an elongated shuttle member mounted on said guide means, said shuttle member consisting of an elongated broadly U-shaped rigid strap manually slidable to and from a position wherein one of its arms is at times in the path of an end portion of said spring,

thus to render said spring operative or inoperative as a door closing means, said guide means comprising a channel-shaped member having its body portion attached to the door, said shuttle member having a working fit in the channel thereof, and two keeper pins for said shuttle member bridging the space between the side of said channel-shaped member.

JAMES E. OLVIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,332,591 Arthur Mar. 2, 1920 1,553,796 Anderson Sept. 15, 1925 1,612,237 Thornton Dec. 28, 1926

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