Technical Field of the Invention

The invention concerns a safety device for a door, the handle of which is fitted with an element for a motion detection on one side and an element signaling the detected motion on the other side.

State-of-the-art

There are many door designs that comprise elements reducing a probability of a collision with a person passing by the door. However, mostly this probability is not reduced sufficiently.

The most frequent solution makes the door partly transparent. This approach cannot be applied for toilet doors and some fireproof doors in factory buildings. At the same time, the angle from which a passing-by person gets near the door is difficult to be monitored by the door opening person even in a case of the entire door glassed-in.

Other solutions use information boards noticing about a risk of a collision for the door opening person or a person passing by a door can be noticed by marking the area where the door can be opened. These permanently visible solutions disturb the aesthetical appearance and attract the attention all the time.

The aim of this invention is to reduce a probability of a collision of an opening door with a person passing by the door with simple demands for the installation and operation.

Subject Matter of the Invention

The subject matter of the safety device for a door the handle of which is fitted with an element for a motion detection on one side and an element signaling the detected motion on the other side lies in a fact that the motion detection element is arranged in an electricity isolated area of the inner side lever of the handle and the signaling element is a light emitting diode in the outer side lever of the handle. The motion detection element is arranged on a printed circuit board including a proximity sensor and an integrated processor. On the printed circuit board, there is also a transistor with a low-power outlet for switching a high-power LED arranged. In a hollow of the handle, there are an electric power source and a signaling element arranged, whereas the interconnecting cabling leads through a connecting element in the handle hollow.

A plastic part with an outer annulus is arranged in the hollow of the inner side lever and outer side lever of the handle.

An advantage of this safety device is a possibility to pre-set various forms of signalization, above all frequency and a sequence according to a customer's demand or according to a specification of a particular place of the use. The device can be easily applied for an existing door and features low costs for purchasing and installation.

Survey of Figures in Drawings

In the attached figures there are schematic depictions of the door safety device according to the invention, where

Fig. 1 shows a top view of a variant of the door safety device, Fig. 2 shows a connecting element for cabling,

Fig. 3 shows an arrangement of individual members of the safety device and the printed circuit board itself

Example of an Embodiment of the Invention

As shown in Fig. 1, door I is suspended on hinge 2, so that it can be only open to the outside area 3, where a person may pass by the door. The door frame 4 design does not allow opening the door into the inside area 5.

The door handle assembly comprises inner side lever 7, outer side lever 8 for gripping the handle by a hand and connecting element K) consisting of a steel prism connecting both levers and through which cabling U leads (Fig. 2). On inner side lever 7, there is electricity isolated area 6 arranged, acting as a detector of a hand presence, and inside outer side lever 8, there is LED 9 arranged.

Fig. 3 shows that inner side lever 7 and outer side lever 8 are cut apart and joined together using pipe plastic parts 17 and 1_8 fitted with annulae 19 and 20, separating the cut apart parts of levers 7 and 8. The end cut part of inner side lever 7 creates isolated area 6 and annulus 19 of plastic part 17 . On the outer side lever 8 plastic part Jj5 is transparent for the light signal from the LED 9 to pass through annulus 20.

For inner side lever 7, plastic part J7 acts as a connecting element and an electric isolant of the handle part for the motion detection from the rest of the door handle assembly. For outer side lever 8, plastic part 18 acts as a connecting element and due to its transparency also as a light guide for LED 9 built-in inside the handle. After assembling the door handle, both the plastic parts are visible from outside as two outer annulae 19 and 20 on the handle _^ surface.

Fig. 3 also shows basic components ensuring the device function, namely electric power source 12. light emitting diode 9; on printed circuit board 13 _^ there are integrated processor 15, which controls LED 9, and proximity sensor 14, which is connected to electricity isolated area 6 f inner side lever 7. Electricity isolated area 6 of inner side lever 7 has a function of a detector of a hand presence.

An intention of a person to open the door in inside area 5 is detected by electricity isolated area 6. LED 9 inside outer side lever 8 in outside area 3 immediately passes over the information of the intention to open the door by the person in inside area 5 to a possible passing-by person in outside area

3.

In order to ensure switching LED 9 by integrated processor _, 15. printed circuit board 13. is equipped with transistor 16, which has an amplifying ratio chosen so that the low-power outlet of integrated processor 15 _, in the order of magnitude of μΑ can switch high-power LED 9, for the operation of which the current in the order of magnitude of mA is needed. This all is interconnected by cabling. For the implementation the door handle assembly design is used. All the solution components are arranged or selected, so that they can be inserted into the hollows, the parts of both the handles 7_and 8, However, it is evident that the above mentioned elements can be installed also to other parts of the door as well as its surroundings.

Inner side lever 7 and outer side lever 8 are fitted with pins (not depicted in Figures) for locking the joint of their parts cut apart and plastic parts Γ7 and 1_8. As an electrical energy source (a battery) is needed for operation of the device, the device needs to be fitted with a service hole for an exchange of this energy source in a place where the electrical energy source is placed. This service hole should not be accessible for persons without proper tools. As the hole made on the opposite lever of the door handle assembly does not need a common service intervention, adhesive bonding or pressing can be chosen as a joining method.

A moment, which is identified by the device as an intention to open the door, is chosen at the time when a hand is at an appropriate distance from the safety device. By this choice the device functionality maximization can be achieved. For example, a hand presence in a 100 cm distance does not need to mean an intention to open the door, but e.g. hand-washing. On the contrary, a hand 8 cm from the handle indicates the intention to open the door with a high probability. Then it is more advantageous to identify this moment rather than the very moment of the hand touching the handle. Such a well-timed appropriate detection can reduce the probability of a collision. For this identification, a capacity proximity sensor 14 with a low electrical energy consumption in an idle mode has shown to be advisable. The functioning principle of this sensor ensures detection of a hand presence to a distance of 0-10cm, a potential washbasin position is outside its reach then.

Other specific features of this sensor, which seems to be applicable for our safety warning device, include the identification of a hand presence even through usual clothes, namely by virtue of the principle on which the sensor operates. This feature has a high added value when used just in rest rooms, where a high percentage of people use an elbow to open the door when leaving a toilet, as well as in factories or hospitals, where a high percentage of people move around in protective gloves.

To minimize disturbance of hygiene of the surrounding area and to keep the safety device function at the same time, the activation of the warning sequence is not repeated for all the time when the hand presence is detected, but only once, in the beginning. By this, the warning sequence is not extremely prolonged uselessly. The above mentioned is achieved by a possibility of the programmable integrated processor IS, which controls LED 9. The programme is built-up in a way to meet the above mentioned logics and allows almost any arbitrary modifications. Other benefits of shortening the blinking time include also significant electrical energy savings, which results in a longer battery power time.

The integration of processor 15 and_sensor 14 on printed circuit board 13 allows programming the sequence not only for the usable value maximization, but it can also be customer-tailored or modified for specifics of the given area, where the safety warning device is to be placed. For example, due to a reduced movability of persons present in hospitals, it is applicable to prolong the blinking sequence to a time when the handle detects a hand presence, so that a risk of collisions for passing-by persons can be reduced to minimum. These and further possibilities of tailor-made solutions make this safety warning device preferable in comparison with different solutions.

Red colour LED 9 is chosen as a light source. This choice for the use in the safety warning device is advantageous for the operation time maximization, as it demands the lowest supply voltage of all other colours of the visible spectrum. The type of blinking is appropriately chosen, so that the human organism can process the information by the reptilian brain. For this application, blinking similar to the stroboscopic effect of short quick switch-ons and switch-offs of LED 9 was selected. If the particular selection of this frequency is suitable, the information on a danger is processed subconsciously, without an effort of a person passing by and, at the same time, much faster compared to a classic LED light or a mere motion of a handle, which is a risk identificator today. The reptilian brain reaction to the stroboscopic phenomenon is mostly a torpor, which is highly desirable for the use in the safety warning device.