Abstract: An industrial roll-up door, having a releasable beam and a tension bracket retention mechanism. The door includes a flexible door panel, which is wound in coiled form on a drum, and an elongated beam is attached to the lower end of the door panel. The ends of the beam are releasably connected to brackets that can be movable in vertical guide tracks mounted along the sides of the doorway. A biasing mechanism attached to each bracket exerts a downward tensioning force on the door panel when in the closed position. A pair of belts each having the same thickness as the door panel are wound on the drum adjacent the side edges of the door panel, and the free end of each belt is connected to the respective bracket.

Abstract: A return-to-dock level mechanism for a power operated dockboard. The dockboard comprises a ramp which is hinged at its rear edge to the frame of the dockboard and a lip is hinged to the forward edge of the ramp. A ramp cylinder connects the frame and the ramp and acts to pivot the ramp upwardly between a downwardly extending below dock level position to an upwardly inclined position, while a lip cylinder interconnects the ramp and the lip and acts to pivot the lip from a downwardly handing pendant position to an extended position. The return-to-dock-level mechanism includes a pair of position actuated switches, such as mercury switches, which are connected in an electrical circuit with a timer and the pump of the hydraulic system. One of the switches is mounted on the ramp, while the other switch is mounted on the lip. When the ramp is below dock level with the lip extended, the ramp switch will be closed and the lip switch will be opened.

Abstract: An automatically sequenced hydraulic cylinder mechanism, including a hydraulic cylinder having a piston rod which is attached to a working member. The hydraulic system includes a pump which supplies hydraulic fluid to opposite sides of the cylinder. Due to the differential in surface area on opposite sides of the piston, the piston is moved in a direction to extend the piston rod. When the piston bottoms out in its stroke of travel, the pressure in the system is increased and the increased pressure will operate a three-position valve to decrease the pressure in one end of the cylinder and automatically retract the piston rod. The cylinder is thus automatically sequenced to extend the piston rod and retract the piston rod without the use of auxiliary switched or sensors.

Abstract: An industrial door includes a door panel that is movable between an open position and a closed position where the door panel encloses a doorway. A flexible beam is attached to the lower edge of the door panel and the beam is composed of superimposed strips of resilient material, such as rubber, with flexible metal strips disposed between adjacent resilient strips. Each end of the beam is provided with a longitudinal open-ended slot and an extension of a guide member is mounted within each slot in a manner such that the extensions will freely slide in the slots in a direction parallel to the plane of the door panel and will be released from the slots if the beam is subjected to a substantial accidental impact.

Abstract: A roll-up door for enclosing the doorway in a building. The door comprises a horizontal rotatable drum mounted above the doorway and a flexible door panel is wound on the drum. A pulley is secured to each end of the drum and the first ends of a pair of belts are secured to each pulley and the belts are wound in overlapping relation on pulley so that adjacent convolutions of each belt are separated by convolutions of the other belt. The free end of one belt is dead-ended on the frame, and a counterbalancing weight is attached to the belt intermediate its ends and exerts a counterbalancing force to wind the door panel on the drum. The free end of the second belt is connected to the lower end of the door panel and a pair of springs are connected to the second belt intermediate its ends and the springs exert a tensioning force to stretch the door panel when the door panel is in the closed position.

Abstract: A dock seal header to be secured over a doorway in a loading dock. The header includes a panel or sheet of flexible material having an upper edge which is secured to the dock above the doorway. The header extends down to partially enclose the upper end of the doorway. A plurality of horizontal slabs or bars of a compressible material, such as foam plastic, are mounted in vertically spaced relation to the panel. A cable and pulley system is attached to the lower edge of the panel. The panel can be pulled up to a generally curved configuration through the cable system and is adapted to drape against the top of a truck parked in front of the loading dock. The side edges of the header panel are connected to the header pad cover by releasable fasteners, such as a hook and loop arrangement. As the panel is pulled upwardly, the fasteners will release and as the panel lowers, the fasteners will automatically re-engage.

Abstract: A drive mechanism for an industrial door. A rotatable drive member is operably connected to the door and rotation of the drive member in one direction through operation of a motor will move the door to the closed position while rotation of the member in the opposite direction will move the door to the open position. A clutch mechanism interconnects the motor and the drive member and is movable between an engaged and disengaged position. The clutch mechanism is biased to the engaged position, and by manually pivoting an actuating member that is connected to the clutch mechanism, the clutch mechanism can be moved to the disengaged position, and is retained in the disengaged position until manually released. A switch is operably connected to the motor, and when the actuating member is pivoted to a position to disengage the clutch, the switch will be actuated to shut off power to the motor.

Abstract: A manually operated roll door. The door comprises a flexible door panel that is coiled on a drum located above the header of a doorway in a building, and the door panel is manually movable between an open position where the door panel is coiled on the drum, to a closed position where it encloses the doorway. A latch mechanism is associated with the door panel and automatically latches the door panel in the closed position. A handle is attached to the lower end of the door panel and the handle is connected to the latch mechanism in a manner such that an upward pull on the handle to open the door panel will simultaneously release the latch mechanism. A counterbalancing weight is operably connected to the door panel and partially counterbalances the weight of the door panel to aid in manually moving the door panel to the open position.

Abstract: A roll-up door for enclosing a doorway in a building. The door comprises a horizontal rotatable drum mounted above the doorway and a flexible door panel is wound on the drum. A pair of first pulleys are secured to opposite ends of the drum and one end of a flat belt is secured to each first pulley, while the opposite end of each belt is dead-ended on a fixed object. A counterbalancing weight is attached to the belt intermediate its ends and exerts a counterbalancing force to wind door panel on the drum. A pair of second pulleys are secured to opposite ends of the drum and located adjacent the first pulleys. One end of a second flat belt is secured to each second pulley, while the opposite end of each second belt is connected to the lower end of the door panel.

Abstract: A vehicle restraint for preventing a vehicle, such as a truck, from accidentally pulling away from a loading dock during a loading operation. The vehicle restraint comprises a mounting frame mounted on the front vertical surface of the loading dock and a slide is mounted for movement on the mounting plate and is biased to an upper position. An inclined cam member is pivoted to the upper portion of the outer end of the slide and extends downwardly and outwardly from the slide and the lower end of the cam member is pivotally connected to the mounting frame via a link of fixed length. When a truck backs toward the loading dock, an abutment, such as an ICC bar, at the rear end of the truck, will engage the inclined cam member, wedging the slide downwardly against the force of the biasing member, and the ICC bar will engage a notch located in the upper edge of the slide to block outward movement of the truck from the loading dock.

Abstract: An assembly for a truck at a loading bay includes a guide track and a chock member for the truck which is reciprocated along the guide track to engage the rear wheels of the truck and lock it securely in position; the guide track may be formed in a platform forming part of the assembly and on which the truck is supported; suitably the platform is hinged at its outer end whereby the platform is pivotable about the outer end such that the rear of the truck may be elevated or lowered for alignment with the loading bay.

Abstract: A hydraulically operated dockboard including a ramp which is hinged at its rear edge to the frame of the dockboard, and a lip is hinged to the forward edge of the ramp and can be pivoted between a downwardly hanging pendant position and an extended position. A main hydraulic cylinder unit interconnects the frame and the ramp and by operating the cylinder unit the ramp can be pivoted upwardly from a horizontal cross traffic position to an upwardly inclined position. A lip cylinder unit interconnects the ramp and the lip, and operation of the lip cylinder unit will pivot the lip from the pendant to an extended position. The hydraulic system is constructed so that fluid is initially supplied to the main cylinder unit by a pump to raise the ramp, and when the main cylinder unit is fully extended, the increased pressure will shift a valve to supply fluid to the lip cylinder unit.

Abstract: A vehicle restraint for preventing a vehicle, such as a truck, from accidentally pulling away from a loading dock during a loading operation. The vehicle restraint comprises a mounting plate mounted on the front vehicle face of the loading dock and a slide is mounted for movement on the mounting plate and is biased to an upper position. The slide has an inner end pivotally connected to the mounting plate and has an upper surface formed with a notch or recess. The outer surface of the slide slopes downwardly and outwardly at an angle to the horizontal. When a truck backs toward the loading dock, an abutment, such as an ICC bar at the rear end of the truck, will engage the inclined outer surface and wedge the slide downwardly against the force of the biasing member, and the ICC bar will then engage the notch located in the upper surface of the slide.

Abstract: An improved dockboard mechanism for a mechanical dockboard. The dockboard includes a frame that is mounted on a loading dock and a ramp is hinged at its rear end to the frame and is movable between a generally horizontal cross traffic position and an upwardly inclined position. The ramp is biased to the upwardly inclined position by a counterbalancing spring. The holddown mechanism includes a cylinder connected to the ramp and a piston is slidable within the cylinder and carries a piston rod which is connected to the frame. The piston is provided with a longitudinal passage which is closed off by a valve member, and an actuating rod is connected to the valve member and extends outwardly of the cylinder. Movement of the rod will open the valve member to permit extension of the piston rod with respect to the cylinder to enable the ramp to pivot upwardly by the counterbalancing spring.

Abstract: A vehicle restraint for preventing a vehicle or truck from accidentally pulling away from a loading dock. The truck restraint comprises a frame to be mounted on the vertical front face of the loading dock and a restraining member is mounted for pivotal movement in a generally vertical plane parallel to the dock face between a first lower storage position and a second operative position where the restraining member will prevent outward movement of the truck away from the dock. A curved plate or abutment is mounted in spaced relation to the frame and extends throughout the length of the path of pivotal movement of the restraining means. The restraining member is normally disposed out of contact with the abutment as the restraining member pivots between the storage and operative positions.

Abstract: An improved vehicle restraint for preventing movement of a vehicle such as a truck away from a loading dock during a loading operation. The vehicle restraint includes a guide frame mounted on the front face of a loading dock and a vehicle restraining device is movable on said guide frame from a lower storage position to an upper operative position where it engages the ICC bar on a truck. A biasing mechanism serves to bias the restraining device upwardly to the operative position while a power operated drive mechanism acts to drive the restraining means downwardly to the storage position. The restraining device includes a slide or carriage that moves on the guide frame and a hook that is pivoted to the slide. A linkage connects the frame and the hook in a manner such that the force of the biasing device will not only move the slide upwardly on the guide frame but will also pivot the hook upwardly relative to the slide.

Abstract: A vehicle restraint to be mounted on a loading dock for preventing accidental movement of a vehicle, such as a truck, from the dock during a loading operation. A hydraulic cylinder unit is connected through a flexible member, such as a chain, to a hook-like restraining member. By extending and retracting the hydraulic cylinder unit, the restraining member can be moved between the lower storage position and an upper operative position where it engages the ICC bar of the truck. In addition, a resilient member, such as a gas spring, is operably connected to the chain at a location between the attachment of the hydraulic cylinder to the chain and the attachment of the chain to the restraining member. The resilient nature of the gas spring will permit limited movement of the chain to accommodate vertical float of the ICC bar and truck bed during a loading operation.

Abstract: An improved vehicle restraint for preventing movement of a vehicle, such as a truck away from a loading dock during a loading operation. The vehicle restraint includes a guide frame mounted on the front face of the loading dock and a hook is disposed to move vertically on the guide frame between a lower inoperative position and an upper operative position where the hook engages an abutment on the vehicle. The hook is moved between the inoperative and operative positions by a fluid cylinder assembly, including a cylinder which is disposed in a recess in the driveway adjacent the loading dock, and the piston rod of the fluid cylinder assembly is connected to the hook. By introducing fluid into the lower end of the cylinder, the piston rod will be extended to move the hook to the operative position. The compressible nature of the fluid in the cylinder enables the hook to follow rising and falling of the truck bed during the loading operation.

Abstract: A vertically stored dockboard. The dockboard includes a frame or supporting structure which is mounted on a loading dock and a rap or deck plate is hinged at its rear edge to the frame and is movable between a generally vertical storage position and a horizontal operating position where the ramp bridges the gap between the loading dock and a truck parked in front of the dock. The ramp is moved upwardly to the vertical storage position by a hydraulic cylinder mechanism and is locked in the storage position by a toggle assembly. As the ramp is moved upwardly to the vertical storage position, the toggle assembly will be automatically moved to an over-center position to lock the ramp in the storage position. The toggle assembly can be released by a manually operated toggle release arm to enable the ramp to fall by gravity to the horizontal storage position.

Abstract: An industrial door comprising a pair of side panels and a pair of central panels with each central panel having approximately twice the horizontal width of a side panel. The upper end of one side edge of each side panel is pivoted to the jamb of a doorway, while the upper end of the opposite side edge of each said panel is pivoted to the adjacent side edge of a center panel. A track is located above the doorway and a pair of trolleys are mounted for movement on the track. Each trolley includes a vertical pivot shaft which is connected to a center panel at a location midway of the width of the panel. A drive mechanism is mounted in the header and includes an endless cable which is connected through a torque arm to the shaft of each trolley.