Soft Close Sliding Door Guide and Seal Integration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sliding doors often move with undesirable force when approaching open and closed positions, and existing sealing systems fail to effectively prevent air, sound, and debris transmission when closed.
Innovation Solution
A sliding door system with a housing at the bottom edge featuring a first channel for a bottom seal and a second channel for a guide, along with soft close devices and an activator pin for controlled movement, and a sealing system that includes deformable gaskets and channel members for sealing at the edges and bottom, ensuring controlled movement and sealing when the door is closed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the door is freely movable along the track, then the door can be manually slid easily between open and closed positions, but the door approaches the open and closed positions with an undesirable amount of force
Solution Approach 1:
The door system transitions from static free movement to dynamic controlled movement by incorporating soft close devices that activate at specific positions. The activator pin engages with the soft close device to provide controlled deceleration and damping forces during the final phase of door movement, while maintaining free movement during the majority of the travel range.
2Reliability
If a bottom seal engages the floor when the door is closed, then sealing effectiveness is improved, but the guide system becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The guide system merges multiple functions into a single integrated housing structure. The housing contains both the bottom seal channel and the guide member channel, combining sealing and guiding functions into one component. This integration reduces the number of separate parts while maintaining both sealing effectiveness and controlled door movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing structure serves multiple purposes: it provides structural support, contains the bottom seal for sealing against the floor, accommodates the guide member for controlled movement, and integrates the activator pin mechanism. This multi-functionality reduces overall system complexity despite the advanced features provided.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If deformable gaskets are used at the edges to form seals, then sealing against air and sound is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing system employs deformable gaskets made of flexible material that can conform to the door edges and frame surfaces. These thin film-like sealing elements create effective barriers against air and sound transmission while being simple in construction and easy to install, avoiding complex multi-component sealing assemblies.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system ensures smooth, controlled door movement and effective sealing against air, sound, and debris when closed, reducing the force of door closure and enhancing sealing efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
A bottom seal is positioned in the second channel comprising a sealing member that is moved vertically between a retracted position and an extended position
Implementation Method 2
The seal may comprise a first deformable gasket mounted on the door that extends to the structure to form a seal against the structure adjacent door opening
Implementation Method 3
soft close systems have been developed that control the movement of the door as it reaches the fully open and/or fully closed positions
Data Source
AI summary
A door system includes a door having a housing mounted in the bottom edge of the door that retains a bottom seal and a second channel for receiving a guide. A seal is formed adjacent the periphery of the door between the door and a door opening in a structure when the door is in the closed position. The seal includes deformable gaskets that extend between the structure and the door to form a seal around the door opening. A first soft close device is mounted adjacent the open positon and a second soft close device is mounted adjacent the closed position. A single activator pin is mounted on the door and positioned such that the activator pin engages the first soft close device as the door nears the open positon and engages the second soft close device as the door nears the closed position.