Adjustable Sliding Door Seal for Uneven Floor Gaps
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sliding door and window systems face issues with misalignment and gaps due to floor unevenness, particularly when upper and lower panels are supported by different structures, leading to operational inefficiencies and inadequate sealing.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable seal system is implemented between the upper sliding window panel and the lower door panel, featuring an elongated base with parallel seals and a brush, secured by fastener assemblies, allowing for adjustable engagement to accommodate uneven surfaces and ensure proper alignment and sealing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the lower door panel is adjusted to account for floor unevenness, then alignment between panels is improved, but gaps still remain due to misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The seal assembly incorporates adjustable mounting mechanisms that allow the seal to be dynamically positioned at different locations along the panel edges. This dynamic adjustability enables the seal to adapt to misalignments between upper and lower panels caused by floor unevenness, ensuring continuous contact and effective sealing even when panels are not perfectly aligned.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal assembly allows for parameter changes in terms of position and compression. The adjustable mounting enables variation in the seal's longitudinal position to accommodate misalignment, while the compression mechanism can be adjusted to maintain optimal sealing pressure. These parameter adjustments ensure that gaps caused by floor unevenness are effectively closed.
2Device complexity
If a single seal is used between panels, then device complexity is reduced, but sealing effectiveness is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The seal assembly is segmented into multiple independent seal elements mounted at different positions along the panel edges. This segmentation allows each seal to independently compensate for local misalignments and unevenness, improving overall sealing effectiveness without requiring a completely complex integrated system. The modular segmented approach balances sealing performance with manufacturing and installation simplicity.
3Reliability
If the seal is made adjustable to accommodate floor unevenness, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The seal assembly incorporates self-adjusting mechanisms that allow the seal to automatically position itself relative to the panel edges without requiring complex external adjustment systems. The mounting mechanisms include features such as sliding components or elastic elements that enable the seal to self-accommodate to minor misalignments and floor unevenness, reducing the need for sophisticated adjustable mechanisms while maintaining effective gap closure.
Data Source
AI summary
An adjustable seal is provided for a sliding window panel of a door or window system. The adjustable seal includes first and second elongated seals and at least one elongated brush mounted to an elongated base. The elongated base is adjustably engaged to a lower or bottom side of the sliding window panel to close any gaps between the sliding window panel and the support surface along which the window panel slides.