Integrated door safety mechanism (hinge guard) to avoid trapping fingers.

Kurzfassung

A medium-sized Austrian company has developed an integrated door safety mechanism for modern glass doors based on a deflecting glass strip to avoid trapping fingers. The aesthetic and highly effective solution compared to current alternative products can also be retrofitted. The company is looking for industrial partners interested in production under licence, exploitation of this technology and commercialisation.

Details

The present market solutions to integrate safety mechanisms (hinge guards) into doors are not in fact effective or fully functional in addition to being unattractive. A conventional solution for glass doors is to reduce the gap between the edge of the glass door and bordering component from normally 50mm to 18mm. This solution is not able to protect children from trapping hands and/or fingers in a closing door.

Another solution for this problem is to bond semicircle aluminium-peelings on the door-leaf and although these peelings are able to decrease the risk of injury it is still possible for a door to jam and trap fingers between the semicircle profiles and the bordering components. Another disadvantage is that this aluminium-peelings conflict with the sense of transparency of today's architecture.

The Austrian company has developed an integrated safety mechanism (hinge guard) which turns on an axis and is able to ensure a 100% protection against jamming and trapping fingers.

The development is based on a deflecting glass strip which acts as a barrier for straying fingers in the hinge area but equally allows for a normal free movement of the door. This deflecting strip is engineered with an additional pivot which allows for a counter motion when a resistance from a body part becomes apparent. The deflecting glass strip resets itself in the same level as the door leaf after someone has come into contact with the rear hinged door area. The glass strip is approx. 50 mm wide and has the same thickness as the door leaf itself. The glass leaf and the deflecting glass strip are constructed in a specially developed binder. The dimensions of these two parts guarantee not only safety but also fit with modern optical designs. The deflecting strip is an integral part of the glass door-leaf but separated by small gap (approx. 2mm).

One of the main advantages of this system is that the fitting can be retro fitted to already existing glass doors and maintains equivalent legal requirements for such safety mechanisms.

This integrated door safety mechanism was nominated for the Austrian state price award for industrial development in 2008.

Innovative Aspects:
INNOVATION:
- An integral door safety mechanism to avoid trapping hands, fingers and / or other objects.
- A 100% effective safety mechanism for modern glass doors based on a deflecting glass strip.

ADVANTAGES:
- The product maintains equivalent legal requirements for such safety mechanisms.
- The product enhances the user's quality of life.
- Protects children and adults against injury.
- The glass strip is an integral part of the glass door-leaf but separated by small gap and engineered with an additional pivot.
- The product can be retrofitted.