The present invention relates to a device for operating a roller door according to the preamble of claim 1 . The invention also relates to a method for operating a roller door, and to a storage space , such as a loading box , a building and the like , and to a truck comprising such a roller door .

Such a device is known in the art . These devices all have the drawback that they take up a lot of space in the direction in which the roller door moves , so that a large part of the loading capacity of the space where the roller door is placed is taken away .

Another drawback of the known devices is that they have a large built-in height , as a result of which the passage of the roller door is significantly less than the height of the opening in which the roller door is placed .

These drawbacks preclude the widespread use of roller doors , in particular in those areas where the greatest possible loading capacity and the largest possible access opening are of great importance .

No device is available in the art that can solve any of these problems .

The obj ect of the invention is now to provide an alternative device of the type mentioned in the preamble .

It is also an obj ect of the invention to provide an improved device of the type mentioned in the preamble .

The obj ect of the invention is to provide a device which has a shorter installation length than an existing device .

In order to achieve at least one of the aforementioned obj ects , according to a first embodiment , the invention provides a device comprising the features of claim 1 . This device has the advantage that the built-in length of the housing with which the roller door can be moved between the first and second position is significantly smaller than that of a known device . This even makes it possible to place a roller door in a side wall of a loading box of a truck, whereby a maximum height of the roller door can be obtained .

It has also been found that by means of the device according to the invention the loading box retains its loading capacity over the full width, i . e . the direction in which the roller door is moved within the loading box , so that the loading capacity of the loading box is not reduced . Such a synergistic effect is completely unexpected .

The invention therefore relates to a device for operating a roller door, comprising a drive unit operatively connected to a drive shaft , which drive shaft has two ends and wherein a transmission member , for example a gear wheel , is provided at each end for cooperation with a guiding device , wherein the drive shaft is coupled to a base which is connected to the roller door . The guide device is attached to a part of the construction in which the roller door serves as a closure . This can be , for example , a loading box, a building, a container or the like .

It is preferred that the transmission member can be operatively disengaged from the guiding device . As a result , the coupling connection between the device and the guiding device is omitted, so that the roller door , together with the device , can be moved manually by a user between a closed and an open position . It is also preferred here that the device for such decoupling comprises a provision with at least one locking position which ensures that the decoupling is maintained until the locking is actively released by a user .

Within the invention, the term roller door is also understood to mean a single panel or a plurality of panels from which a roller door can be constructed .

The drive shaft extends in the longitudinal direction of the roller door panels . When a roller door is accommodated in the rear of a loading platform of a truck, the drive shaft therefore extends in the width direction of the truck . This results in a very small installation depth of the device according to the invention, because the device can be attached almost directly to an upper panel of a roller door . In the prior art , a drive device extends j ust in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of a panel of a roller door , so that a very large installation depth is required .

According to a preferred embodiment the drive shaft is accommodated in a housing , which housing is connected to the roller door . The housing therefore forms the base , or part of the base . As a result , the entire housing in which the drive is accommodated moves along with the roller door when it is moved . As a result , the housing is always close to the roller door, which means that the built-in dimensions are and can remain very limited . For example , a choice can be made between a variant in which the housing is placed at the underside of an element of the roller door ( seen from the position when the roller door is in a (partially) opened position ) , or at one end of an element of the roller door , i . e . at a position in the horizontal extension, seen from the position when the roller door is in a (partially) opened position .

A simple and reliable movement of the roller door and the housing is obtained when the guiding device comprises a gear rack . The guiding device , for instance the gear rack, can for instance be mounted on the wall or on the ceiling or roof , wherein the housing can move along and in the direction of the guiding device .

It is preferred that the drive unit comprises at least one electric motor attached to the housing . When the drive unit is activated, the drive shaft will rotate causing the housing, i . e . the base , to move along with the rolling door along and in the direction of the guiding devices .

If the device is built into a truck, it is particularly preferred that the guiding device , in particular the gear rack, is attached to a wall or a roof of a loading body of a truck for guiding the roller door within the loading body .

In order to minimize the forces acting on the device , it is preferable that the shaft is connected to a spring, preferably a torsion spring , for increasing the spring tension of the spring during movement of the roller door from an open position to a closed position . The force exerted by the torsion spring in a fully or partially opened or closed position of the roller door in the pretensioned position is preferably substantially equal to the force exerted by the fully or partially opened or closed roller door in the relevant position by means of gravity . A person skilled in the art is able to calculate the appropriate torsion spring for a particular roller door and which depends , among other things , on the weight of the roller door .

A minimum built-in dimension can be obtained when the spring is received within the housing . In particular, it is preferred for this purpose that the torsion spring is arranged around the shaft .

In particular , it is preferred that the shaft is received concentrically within the torsion spring and is directly or indirectly connected to the torsion spring . This results in a small installation volume , as well as the possibility of a simple coupling of said both parts .

A simplification and flexibility of operation is obtained when the device comprises a remote control for operating the drive unit , preferably a wireless remote control , for instance based on bluetooth, zigbee , wifi or the like . In particular , it is preferred that a user can operate the roller door by means of an app on a smartphone . Such a remote control can be combined with a manual control on the truck itself .

The drive unit can be electrically powered by means of an electrical connection with a fixed connection, such as a mains supply when the device is placed in a building or an on-board supply of a transport vehicle . Alternatively, in all possible cases and therefore not only when the device is used in a transport vehicle , a rechargeable device can be used, wherein it comprises a battery for powering at least one of the drive unit and the remote control .

The invention further relates to a method of operating a roller door, in particular in a storage space , comprising using the device according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , wherein the device is connected to an upper element of the roller door and wherein transmission members of the device are operatively coupled to guide devices connected to the storage space , for moving the device and the roller door between a first and a second position .

This method produces the effect as mentioned in the introduction .

Preferably the method comprises operating the drive unit by means of an app on a portable electronic device , for example a smartphone or tablet . This provides a user great freedom to operate the roller door from multiple positions . The roller door can even be operated from the storage area itself , which offers a high degree of safety .

The invention also relates to a storage space with an opening closable by a roller door, the roller door comprising an opening and closing device according to the invention and as mentioned above and in the claims .

Furthermore , the invention relates to a truck with a loading box which can be closed by a roller door , the roller door comprising an opening and closing device according to the invention and as mentioned above and in the claims .

The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing . The drawing hereby shows in : fig . 1 a schematic perspective bottom view of a device according to the invention, fig . 2 a schematic perspective top view of the device with a cooperating rack, fig . 3 a schematic rear view of the device , and fig . 4 and 5 a schematic perspective view of the device with a roller door coupled thereto .

In the figures , the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals . However, not all parts necessary for a practical implementation of the invention are shown, because of the simplicity of the representation .

Fig . 1 shows a schematic view of a device 1 according to the invention . In the representation according to Fig . 1 , the device 1 comprises a housing 2 , which serves as a base , and which is shown in partially transparent view . The housing 2 comprises a rotatable shaft 3 ( shown in more detail in Fig . 2 ) , which is driven by a drive device 4 , here in the form of two electric motors 4 . The electric motor 4 is coupled in a manner conventional in the art with the shaft 3 . The electric motor 4 can be accommodated in its own motor housing 5 , which is connected to the housing 2 , but can also be accommodated as such in the housing 2 . Optionally, two electric motors 4 can be provided, wherein a first motor provides a drive in a first, opening direction and the other motor provides a drive in the other, closing direction. According to an alternative variant, the two motors can each rotate in the same direction each time or optionally, the motors 4 complementing each other and whereby the total power and torque delivered are increased compared to the use of a single motor 4 with the same properties .

By rotating the electric motor 4, the shaft 3 will also rotate, in a direction which depends on the direction of rotation of the electric motor 4.

The shaft 3 and the motor 4 are carried by the housing 2. The housing 2 is connected to a roller door 6, as shown in Fig. 4 and 5, whereby a displacement of the device 1 also induces a displacement of the roller door 6.

Gears 9, 10 are provided on both ends 7, 8 of the shaft 3, which are rigidly attached to the shaft 3. This means that when the shaft 3 rotates, the gears 9, 10 rotate in the same direction. The gears 9, 10 are each operatively coupled to a gear rack 11, 12, as shown in Fig. 2, such that a rotation of the gear wheels 9, 10 causes a displacement thereof over the gear racks 11, 12. Therefore, a rotation of the electric motor 4 causes a displacement of the device 1, and therefore of the roller door 6, over the gear racks 11, 12.

In Fig. 3, it is shown in more detail that the device 1 with ends 9, 10 runs through a longitudinal guide or guiding device 14, wherein a gear rack 11 is provided in the top of the guiding device 14 and a tread 13 is provided in the underside of the guiding device. Wheels 15 connected to the housing 2, only a single wheel 15 is visible in Fig. 3, run over the tread 13, whereby the housing 2 bears on the tread 13 and the gear wheel 9 makes cooperating contact with the gear rack at all times. This guarantees a longterm uninterrupted operation.

Fig. 4 and Fig. 5 show a perspective view in which the device 1 is attached to a panel 16 of a roller door 6. By activating the electric motor 4, the gear 9 on the shaft 3 will start to rotate and thereby move along the gear rack 11. The roller door 6 is connected to the device 1 and will therefore move along with the de- vice 1 , so that the roller door 6 will be opened or closed, depending on the direction of rotation of the said motor 4 or said both motors 4 . It can clearly be seen that the installation depth of the device 1 is very limited and is approximately equal to the size of a panel 16 of the roller door 6 . This offers the possibility that the device 1 can be situated as a roller door panel placed at an extreme position, so that a very limited installation depth is obtained and a roller door 6 , while retaining a maximum loading capacity, can also be placed in a side wall of a container of a truck .

The invention also extends to any combination of features described above independently of each other .

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the figures . The invention is limited only by the appended claims .