Sheet Door System With Transition Wheels For Compact Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional rollup doors occupy excessive space in low headroom applications and collapsible enclosures, as they require a cylindrical drum for storage and operation, which is impractical for compact storage and shipping.
Innovation Solution
A flexible sheet door system using parallel undulations or corrugations that engage with rotatable transition guide wheels, allowing the door to move between linear vertically and horizontally extending guide tracks without a storage drum, and incorporating a counterbalance shaft and cable drum mechanism for efficient operation and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If a conventional rollup door with a cylindrical drum is used, then the door can be rolled onto and off the drum for operation, but the door occupies excessive space in low headroom applications and collapsible enclosures
Solution Approach 1:
The guide track is segmented into multiple sections: a first guide track section for vertical movement, a second guide track section for horizontal movement, and a third guide track section for final positioning. This segmentation allows the door to transition from vertical to horizontal storage without requiring a large cylindrical drum, reducing space occupancy while maintaining operational capability
Solution Approach 2:
The door movement path is changed from a simple vertical rollup to a multi-dimensional path involving vertical, horizontal, and angled sections. The door transitions from vertical orientation to horizontal orientation through intermediate angled sections, enabling compact storage in low headroom applications without sacrificing ease of operation
2Volume of moving object
If a cylindrical drum is used for door storage, then the door can be rolled up, but the system occupies too much space for compact storage and shipping
Solution Approach 1:
The guide track system is divided into multiple linear sections (first, second, and third sections) with different orientations, replacing the need for a single large cylindrical drum. This segmentation enables compact linear storage while maintaining relatively simple system architecture
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of rolling the door onto a cylindrical drum that projects outward, the system inverts the approach by using linear guide tracks that allow the door to fold back horizontally along the enclosure frame, inverting the storage direction to achieve compact integration
3Productivity
If the enclosure is made collapsible for efficient shipping, then shipping efficiency improves, but the door system becomes more difficult to integrate without a drum
Solution Approach 1:
The guide track system serves multiple functions: it guides the door during operation, provides compact storage positioning, and integrates with the collapsible enclosure frame structure. The same frame members that provide structural support also serve as mounting locations for the guide tracks, eliminating the need for separate drum mechanisms and simplifying integration into collapsible enclosures
Solution Approach 2:
The guide track is segmented into multiple sections that can be independently mounted on different frame members, allowing flexible integration into collapsible enclosure designs. Each track section can be attached to appropriate frame members regardless of the enclosure's collapsed or expanded state
Data Source
AI summary
A door system includes a flexible corrugated closure member guided between door open and closed positions in spaced apart opposed vertical and horizontal sets of guide tracks and further guided by transition guide wheels mounted on an enclosure frame for guiding the closure member between the sets of guide tracks. The transition guide wheels are supported for movement between working and non-working positions to facilitate storage or shipping the door system or an enclosure unit including the door system, as a substantially planar stack of wall, ceiling and floor members forming the enclosure.