Bunka Shutter Co., Ltd.

Kohichi Kondoh

Fumio Yagi

In a panel shutter assembly including a plurality of shutter panels which are movable up and down along a pair of transversely spaced upstanding guide rails, a pair of chains to which the panels are fastened one after another, a set of sprockets engaging the chains for moving the chains in either direction to move the panels to open and close a shutter opening, and a pair of panel supporting rails from which the panels are suspended in a panel storage space when the shutter opening is opened, the sprockets consist of a pair of first sprockets for moving the panels up and down and a pair of sound sprockets spaced horizontally apart from the first sprockets and provided between the first sprockets and the panel storage space for moving the panels horizontally, and the panel supporting rails extend horizontally. The horizontal supporting rails enable a reduction in height of a box defining the panel storage space. A guide plate or plates can be provided in the box for holding each chain to ensure its horizontal movement between one of the first sprockets and one of the second sprockets and thereby the smooth movement of the panels in the box. Each of the second sprockets can be formed between the roots of every two adjoining teeth thereof with a semicircular recess in which the link pins of the corresponding chain are engageable, so that the chain leaving the second sprocket for the panel storage space may form a U-shaped sag to ensure that all the panels to properly retracted into the panel storage space.

Panel shutter assembly

A panel shutter assembly includes a plurality of shutter panels supported one after another between a pair of chains. Each panel is suspended from a pair of pins carried by the two chains, respectively, and each chain, therefore, carries a plurality of pins. Each chain includes a plurality of spaced apart link attachments each having a longitudinally extending pin guide slot through which one of the pins extends slidably along the slot. The chains engage a pair of sprockets, respectively. A pair of arms are supported respectively on the shafts on which the sprockets are rotatably supported. The arms are rotatable with the sprockets and extend radially of the sprockets to project beyond the outer peripheries thereof to engage each pair of pins that have approached the sprockets.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Kohichi Kondoh