Overhead Door Header Reinforcement for Max Clearance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Overhead door assemblies in truck trailers face challenges in maximizing the height of the door opening while maintaining structural integrity and minimizing the vertical height of the header to accommodate counterbalance assemblies, especially when subjected to torsional stresses during transit.
Innovation Solution
A reinforced header with minimized vertical height is designed, incorporating reinforcement members positioned rearward of the counterbalance assembly to provide necessary structural support and maximize the door opening height, utilizing a counterbalance assembly supported by a shaft within the header that includes a top surface, rear surface, bottom surface, and reinforcement members extending parallel to the rear surface for added stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the header vertical height is reduced to maximize door opening height, then the door opening height is improved, but the header may become structurally weaker and unable to withstand torsional stresses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces reinforcement members that extend in a horizontal dimension (rearward from the front surface) to provide structural strength, allowing the vertical dimension (header height) to be minimized. This dimensional shift enables the header to maintain strength without increasing vertical height, directly resolving the contradiction between door opening height and header strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The reinforcement members are strategically positioned at specific locations within the header (extending rearward from the front surface) to provide localized structural support where needed to withstand torsional stresses, rather than uniformly increasing the entire header volume. This allows selective strengthening without compromising door opening height.
2Strength
If reinforcement members are added to maintain header strength, then the header structural strength is improved, but the header vertical height increases reducing door opening height
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of adding reinforcement members that increase vertical height, the patent configures them to extend horizontally rearward from the front surface of the header. This orientation provides the necessary structural reinforcement while maintaining a minimized vertical profile, directly preventing the worsening of door opening height.
3Length of moving object
If the header is minimized in vertical height, then the door opening height is maximized, but the counterbalance assembly installation and access may become difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The header is designed with distinct functional zones: reinforcement members extending rearward for structural support, and a minimized vertical space for counterbalance assembly installation. This segmentation allows the counterbalance assembly to be installed in the available vertical space while the reinforcement members provide the necessary structural framework, maintaining ease of installation despite the minimized overall height.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the invention provide a header for enclosing a counterbalance assembly for use with an overhead door assembly. The header comprises a top surface, a rear surface coupled to a rear end of the top surface, a bottom surface coupled to a bottom end of the rear surface, and at least one reinforcement member disposed rearward of the counterbalance assembly and forward of the rear surface. The at least one reinforcement member provides necessary reinforcement to the header while allowing for a vertical height of the header to be minimized.