Outer Rim Archives
Archives · 2019 · 10337237

Granted patent

Acoustical seal system for doors

Number
10337237
Published
2019-07-02
Filed
2017-02-07
Assignee
DISNEY ENTERPRISES, INC.
Inventors
Malluck; John Andrew
CPC
E06B1/16; E06B7/24; E06B3/26343; E06B5/20
Verdict
Set aside acoustical seal system for doors, facilities engineering not in-scope hardware
Source
Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline

Abstract

An acoustical seal system that utilizes a sound absorbing material-based sound seal for the gap or flanking path between a closed door and the nearby surfaces (e.g., the door jam or frame and the floor). When the door is in a closed position, the acoustical seal system may leave a small gap around the door so that the door does not have to make contact with the surrounding structural components. The small gap is an air passage between the two adjacent rooms. The acoustical seal system includes a housing with one or more cavities. The housing is mounted on the sides of the door core or body or on the surrounding components such that the cavities face the small air gap when the door is in the closed position. The cavities are filled with sound-absorbing material, such as an acoustical foam, that is exposed to the air gap.

Background

BACKGROUND1. Field of the Description(1) The present description relates, in general, to acoustical seals and sound absorption and, more particularly, to a system or assembly for providing an acoustical seal that is at least partially provided in some embodiments as a non-contact sound seal for a door, while other embodiments may have some contacting seals such that the acoustic seal system may be thought of more generally as a sound seal with an absorptive portion or arrangement.2. Relevant Background(2) There are numerous settings where it is desirable to provide a door between two rooms (or spaces) and to also try to limit the amount of sound that travels between the two rooms when the doors are shut. For example, venues that have multiple rooms in which different scenes or parts of a show or story are presented as well as multi-auditorium theaters. The rooms are separated from one another with architectural walls and doors that allow ingress and egress to the room. The walls and doors are important to limit audio transfer between the rooms when the doors are closed.(3) Sound leaking between rooms at doors can be a serious problem that can be difficult to adequately address. The doors themselves may be fabricated to absorb sound and to block its leakage between two rooms, but sound may still leak or propagate around the doors via the gaps or “flanking paths” between the door's sides or edges and the surrounding door frame, structural wall, or floor. Audio leaking from ente

Claims

1. A door assembly adapted for sound absorption, comprising: a door pivotally supported on a wall to be positionable in an opened position and in a closed position; a door frame including an upper member extending along an upper side of the door between the wall and the upper side of the door and further including a side member extending along an outer side of the door between the wall and the outer side of the door; and an acoustical seal system including: a first air passageway between the upper member of the door frame and the upper side of the door; a second air passageway between the side member of the door frame and the outer side of the door; a first housing in at least one of the upper member of the door frame and the upper side of the door, wherein the first housing includes a cavity in fluid communication with the first air passageway; a second housing in at least one of the side member of the door frame and the outer side of the door, wherein the second housing includes a cavity in fluid communication with the second air passageway; a first volume of sound absorbing material positioned in the cavity of the first housing; and a second volume of sound absorbing material positioned in the cavity of the second housing, wherein the cavities in the first and second housings each has a depth that is greater than 2 inches, and wherein the second housing is provided in the door frame and the door assembly further comprises a third housing in the outer side of the door with a cavity containing sound absorbing material in fluid communication with the second air passageway. | 10. A door system with sound absorption in flanking paths, comprising: a door frame provided in an opening in a wall extending upward from a floor; a pair of swinging doors hung in the door frame, wherein an air passageway is provided between each joint between sides of the doors and the door frame, between an adjacent pair of the sides of the doors, and between the sides of the door and the floor; extending along at least half of the length of the each of the air passageways, a cavity facing a corresponding one of the air passageways; and sound absorbing material at a depth of at least 0.5 inches positioned in each of the cavities, wherein a first subset of the cavities is provided in housings on the door frame and a second subset of the cavities is provided in housings attached to one or more of the sides of the doors. | 16. A door assembly adapted for sound absorption, comprising: a door pivotally supported on a wall; a door frame including an upper member extending along an upper side of the door between the wall and the upper side of the door and further including a side member extending along an outer side of the door between the wall and the outer side of the door; and an acoustical seal system including: a first air passageway extending linearly between the upper member of the door frame and the upper side of the door; a second air passageway extending linearly between the side member of the door frame and the outer side of the door; a first housing in at least one of the upper member of the door frame and the upper side of the door, wherein the first housing includes a cavity in fluid communication with the first air passageway; a second housing in at least one of the side member of the door frame and the outer side of the door, wherein the second housing includes a cavity in fluid communication with the second air passageway; a first volume of sound absorbing material positioned in the cavity of the first housing; a second volume of sound absorbing material positioned in the cavity of the second housing; and a third housing mounted to a lower side of the door, wherein the third housing comprises at least one cavity filled with a volume of sound absorbing material and wherein the at least one cavity faces a third air passageway between the door and a floor below the door, wherein the door assembly further comprises a second door pivotally mounted to the wall to be positionable in a closed position whereby an inner side of the second door faces an inner side of the door with a fourth air passageway between the door frame and the second door, and wherein at least one of the inner sides of the door and second door includes a cavity, filled with sound absorbing material, that is in fluid communication with the fourth air passageway. | 21. A door system with sound absorption in flanking paths, comprising: an opening in a wall; a moveable door positionable within the opening, wherein the door when in a closed position defines an air passageway between an edge of the door and an edge of the opening; at least one cavity facing the air passageway; and sound absorbing material positioned in the cavity, wherein the cavity includes at least one divider wall dividing the cavity into two or more spaces for receiving the sound absorbing material, and wherein the at least one divider wall has a solid body.