초록 ▼

A one-piece seal is used between the rear doors of a semi-trailer truck and the rear frame of the truck, the seal having a good compression set resistance. The seal is made from multiple extrusion members that are fused, welded, or otherwise integrally, monolithically connected at corner joints to f

A one-piece seal is used between the rear doors of a semi-trailer truck and the rear frame of the truck, the seal having a good compression set resistance. The seal is made from multiple extrusion members that are fused, welded, or otherwise integrally, monolithically connected at corner joints to form a central opening. The extrusion members have a sealing profile, or cross-section, that allows for the compression and deflection of a pair of sealing lobes to create inner and outer seals, respectively, between the trailer frame and the door structure at the rear of a semi-trailer truck, as well as between the doors themselves.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A door seal assembly for use in sealing a periphery of each of a pair of doors, said seal assembly comprising: a first monolithic seal made of a resilient, elastically deformable material, said first seal including: a first plurality of seal portions;a first plurality of seal corners, each of sai

1. A door seal assembly for use in sealing a periphery of each of a pair of doors, said seal assembly comprising: a first monolithic seal made of a resilient, elastically deformable material, said first seal including: a first plurality of seal portions;a first plurality of seal corners, each of said first plurality of seal corners integrally joining two of said first plurality of seal portions; andsaid first plurality of seal portions joined by said first plurality of seal corners to form a closed profile sized to fit a first truck door, said first plurality of seal portions cooperating to define a first sealing lobe extending continuously around a periphery of said first seal; anda second monolithic seal made of a resilient, elastically deformable material, said second seal including: a second plurality of seal portions;a second plurality of seal corners, each of said second plurality of seal corners integrally joining two of said second plurality of seal portions; andsaid second plurality of seal portions joined by said second plurality of seal corners to form a closed profile sized to fit a second truck door, said second plurality of seal portions cooperating to define at least one second sealing lobe extending continuously around a periphery of said second seal and sized to sealingly engage said first sealing lobe of said first monolithic seal along respective adjacent edges of said first and second doors,said first and second sealing lobes mutually elastically deformable against one another when said first truck door and said second truck door are in a closed position, such that the interaction between said first and second sealing lobes creates a tortuous, arcuate contact profile wherein each of the first and second sealing lobes define a convex-to-concave inflection, whereby a robust liquid-tight inner seal between said first truck door and said second truck door is created which is resistant to outside forces such as vibration, shock and wind. 2. The seal assembly of claim 1, wherein each of said first and second pluralities of seal portions includes a pair of opposing mitered ends, respective adjacent pairs of said mitered ends fused to one another to respectively form said first and second pluralities of seal corners. 3. The seal assembly of claim 2, wherein said first and second sealing lobes each define a cavity, said cavity extending uninterrupted around said peripheries of said first and second seals, respectively. 4. The seal assembly of claim 1, wherein said first monolithic seal includes, in cross section: a mounting portion including inner and outer walls, said walls spaced from one another and defining therebetween a space sized to receive an edge of the door; anda deformable outer sealing lobe extending from said periphery of said seal, said outer sealing lobe substantially aligned with at least one of said walls and extending farther from said mounting portion than said first sealing lobe. 5. The seal assembly of claim 4, wherein said first sealing lobe has a rounded profile and said outer sealing lobe has an elongate, arcuate profile. 6. The seal assembly of claim 4, wherein said first sealing lobe is asymmetrically oriented with respect to an axis bisecting said mounting portion. 7. The seal assembly of claim 1, wherein: said first and second pluralities of seal portions each comprise four seal portions arranged in a rectangular profile, andeach of said first and second pluralities of seal corners forms a generally right angle. 8. A method of producing the door seal assembly of claim 1, the method comprising: procuring a first seal portion holder, the first seal portion holder comprising: a first recess defining a longitudinal axis, anda first inner face defining an angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the first recess;procuring a second seal portion holder, the second seal portion holder comprising: a second recess defining a longitudinal axis, anda second inner face defining a second angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the second recess;placing a first seal portion of said first or second plurality of seal portions into the first seal portion holder, the first seal portion having a miter-cut end, said step of placing the first seal portion including placing the miter-cut end substantially flush with the first inner face;placing a second seal portion of said first or second plurality of seal portions into the second seal portion holder, the second seal portion having a miter-cut end, said step of placing the second seal portion including placing the miter-cut end substantially flush with the second inner face; andfusing the first seal portion to the second seal portion. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein said step of fusing comprises: placing a ribbon between the miter-cut ends of the first and second seal portions; andheating the miter-cut ends and the ribbon. 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the additional step of: repeating said fusing step on additional seal portions of said first or second plurality of seal portions to create said first or second monolithic seal with the respective closed profile. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the additional seal portions comprise two additional seal portions, and the closed profile defines a rectangular profile. 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising the additional step of: installing the seal onto the first or second truck door, the first or second truck door having a profile corresponding to the closed profile. 13. The method of claim 12, wherein said step of installing further comprises: stretching the seal over edges and corners of the door. 14. The method of claim 8, further comprising, prior to said fusing step, the additional step of: moving said first seal portion holder inward toward said second seal portion holder. 15. The sealing assembly of claim 1, wherein said first and second sealing lobes each form a cavity in cross-section such that said first and second sealing lobes are hollow. 16. A sealing assembly for sealing a gap between first door and a second door, said assembly comprising: a first seal connected to a first inside edge of said first door and having a first sealing lobe that defines a first cavity, said first sealing lobe disposed substantially entirely inwardly of a first centerline bisecting said first seal; anda second seal connected to a second inside edge of said second door and having a second sealing lobe that defines a second cavity, said second sealing lobe disposed substantially entirely inwardly of a second centerline bisecting said second seal, said second seal having an elongate outer seal disposed near an outer surface of said second door;said first door and said second door being movable between a closed position in which said first and second inside edges face one another to define said gap therebetween, said elongate outer seal extending across said gap when said first door and said second door are in said closed position, said second sealing lobe sealingly abutting said first sealing lobe along said gap when said first door and said second door are in said closed position, said first and second sealing lobes mutually elastically deformable against one another when said first door and said second door are in said closed position, such that the interaction between said first and second sealing lobes creates a tortuous, arcuate contact profile having an inflection as viewed in cross-section,said first sealing lobe deflects inwardly when said first and second doors are in said closed position such that a portion of said first sealing lobe is moved inwardly east an interior surface of said first door,said second sealing lobe folds into a pocket when said first and second doors are in said closed position, said pocket defined between said first and second mounting portions and inwardly of said elongate outer seal, andsaid second sealing lobe out of abutment with said first sealing lobe when said first door and said second door are in said open position. 17. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein: said first seal comprises a monolithic seal and is connected to the entire periphery of said first door; andsaid second seal comprises a monolithic seal and is connected to the entire periphery of said second door. 18. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein each of said first sealing lobe and said second sealing lobe has a rounded profile. 19. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein said first seal and second seal include first and second mounting portions, respectively, said first and second mounting portions each including a pair of walls spaced from one another to define a space therebetween, such that each said pair of walls are substantially parallel to one another when said first seal and said second seal are mounted to said first and second doors respectively. 20. The sealing assembly of claim 19, wherein said first and second mounting portions are formed monolithically with said first and second sealing lobes respectively. 21. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein said first and second sealing lobes each form a cavity in cross-section such that said first and second sealing lobes are hollow. 22. The sealing assembly of claim 21, wherein said first and second sealing lobes mutually elastically deform against one another when said first door and said second door are in said closed position, such that the interaction between said first and second sealing lobes creates a tortuous, arcuate contact profile therebetween. 23. The sealing assembly of claim 22, wherein said tortuous, arcuate contact profile between said first and second sealing lobes comprises a concave-to-convex inflection. 24. The sealing assembly of claim 21, wherein said cavity of each of said first and second sealing lobes comprises a generally triangular hollow. 25. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein the gap defined between the first inside edge of said first door and the second inside edge of said second door defines a range of gap widths, said second sealing lobe sealingly abutting said first sealing lobe at said gap when said first door and said second door are in said closed position for each respective gap width in the range of gap widths. 26. The sealing assembly of claim 16, wherein said inflection comprises a concave-to-convex inflection. 27. A method of sealing an opening with the sealing assembly of claim 16, the method comprising: procuring the first seal, the first seal comprising: a first plurality of seal portions;a first plurality of seal corners, each of the seal corners integrally joining two of the first plurality of seal portions; andthe first plurality of seal portions joined by the seal corners to form a closed profile, the first plurality of seal portions cooperating to define at least one sealing lobe extending continuously around a periphery of the first seal;attaching a first one of the first plurality of seal corners to a corresponding first corner of the first door;stretching one of the first plurality of seal portions to align a second one of the first plurality of seal corners with a corresponding second corner of the first door;attaching the second one of the first plurality of seal corners to the corresponding second corner of the first door; andrepeating said attaching and stretching steps for the remainder of the first plurality of seal corners such that the first seal fully encapsulates a periphery of the first door. 28. The method of claim 27, further comprising the additional step of: attaching each of the first plurality of seal portions to a corresponding edge of the first door, such that the corresponding edge occupies a space defined by the respective seal portion. 29. The method of claim 27, wherein said stretching step comprising stretching the respective seal portion by as little as 3% and as much as 30%. 30. The method of claim 27, further comprising the additional steps of: procuring the second seal, the second seal comprising: a second plurality of seal portions;a second plurality of seal corners, each of the seal corners integrally joining two of the second plurality of seal portions; andthe second plurality of seal portions joined by the seal corners to form a closed profile, the second plurality of seal portions cooperating to define at least one sealing lobe extending continuously around a periphery of the second seal;attaching a first one of the second plurality of seal corners to a corresponding first corner of the second door;stretching one of the second plurality of seal portions to align a second one of the second plurality of seal corners with a corresponding second corner of the second door;attaching the second one of the second plurality of seal corners to the corresponding second corner of the second door; andrepeating said attaching and stretching steps for the remainder of the second plurality of seal corners such that the second seal fully encapsulates a periphery of the second door.