Sectional Door Panel End Cap Offset Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sectional door panels face issues with inadequate sealing against drafts and moisture, particularly at the side ends, leading to gaps and cracks that compromise insulation and protection against driving rain and dirt.
Innovation Solution
The sectional door panels feature end caps that partially or completely cover the indentation, with a horizontal offset allowing the end caps to overlap, creating a continuous flat surface and enhancing finger pinch protection while ensuring a tighter seal against drafts and moisture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If end caps are designed to cover the indentation with a horizontal offset, then sealing against drafts and moisture is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The end cap is divided into two distinct wall sections: a first side wall section and a second side wall section offset relative to each other. This segmentation allows each section to perform its specific function - the first section provides structural support while the second section overlaps with adjacent panels to prevent gaps and improve sealing against drafts and moisture.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a horizontal offset between the first and second side wall sections of the end cap, creating a stepped configuration in the horizontal dimension. This dimensional change enables the end cap to overlap with adjacent panels, effectively closing gaps that would otherwise exist at the panel joints, thereby improving sealing without requiring additional sealing components.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If end caps overlap to create a continuous surface, then finger pinch protection is enhanced, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The horizontal offset between the first and second side wall sections is built into the end cap design during manufacturing, creating a predetermined overlap configuration. This preliminary action ensures that when panels are assembled, the end caps naturally overlap to form a continuous surface that prevents finger pinching, reducing the need for high-precision field alignment while maintaining safety.
3Loss of energy
If the front wall and rear wall are connected only via plastic foam, then thermal insulation is improved, but structural stability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The panel construction combines plastic foam insulation material with metal end caps and sheet metal shells to create a composite structure. The plastic foam provides thermal insulation by reducing heat conduction, while the metal end caps and shells provide structural strength and stability, creating a multi-material system that achieves both insulation and structural requirements simultaneously.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a sectional door panel (1) comprising a front wall (11), a rear wall (12), a space (13) between the front wall (11) and the rear wall (12), a toothed projection (7) on an upper surface, a recess (8) on a lower surface, and lateral end caps (9) which, together with a side wall (10), at least partially cover the space (13). According to the invention, the end caps (9) are designed to at least partially cover the recess (8) laterally, and the side walls (10) formed by the end caps (9) are arranged on an upper side wall section (10a), which at least partially covers the toothed projection (7), relative to a side wall section (10b) adjoining it below, with a horizontal offset (14) in the direction of the adjacent front wall (11) and rear wall (12).