WO-2026093337-A1 - DOOR LEAF AND DOOR SYSTEM

Abstract

A door leaf, comprising: a first straight edge for attachment to a door frame, a second straight edge opposite the first edge, a third edge extending between the first and second edges at a first end of the door leaf, and a fourth straight edge extending between the first and second edges at a second end of the door leaf, wherein the third edge is convexly curved along its length; and wherein the second edge is parallel with the first edge; wherein each of the third edge and the fourth edge forms an acute angle relative to the first edge; and wherein the third edge forms a smaller acute angle with respect to the first edge than the fourth edge forms with respect to the first edge.

Inventors

• NEWMAN, JAMES
• KOETJE, Willem

Assignees

• KINGSWAY ENTERPRISES (UK) LIMITED

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20251028

Priority Date

20241028

Claims (15)

1. 1. A door leaf, comprising: a first straight edge for attachment to a door frame, a second straight edge opposite the first edge, a third edge extending between the first and second edges at a first end of the door leaf, and a fourth straight edge extending between the first and second edges at a second end of the door leaf, wherein the third edge is convexly curved along its length; wherein the second edge is parallel with the first edge; wherein each of the third edge and the fourth edge forms an acute angle relative to the first edge; and wherein the third edge forms a smaller acute angle with respect to the first edge than the fourth edge forms with respect to the first edge.
2. 2. The door leaf according to claim 1 , wherein the third edge has a uniform curvature along its length.
3. 3. The door leaf according to claim 2, wherein a centre of the radius of curvature of the third edge is located on a distal side of the first edge from the second edge, and wherein a spacing between the first edge and the centre of the radius of curvature in a direction perpendicular to the first edge is greater than a spacing between the first edge and the second edge in the direction perpendicular to the first edge.
4. 4. The door leaf of any preceding claim, wherein the first edge is longer than the second edge.
5. 5. The door leaf of any preceding claim, wherein the fourth edge is longer than the second edge.
6. 6. The door leaf of any preceding claim, wherein the third edge is longer than the fourth edge.
7. 7. The door leaf of any preceding claim, wherein the door leaf is formed of a substantially rigid polymer.
8. 8. The door leaf of claim 7, wherein the substantially rigid polymer comprises PMMA or polycarbonate.
9. 9. The door leaf of any preceding claim, further comprising a clamping portion extending along the first edge, wherein the clamping portion is defined between a fifth straight edge at a first end of the first edge which is adjacent the third edge, and a sixth straight edge at a second end of the first edge which is adjacent the fourth edge, wherein each of the fifth edge and the sixth edge extends perpendicularly from the first edge.
10. 10. The door leaf of claim 9, wherein a concave profile is provided between the third edge and the fifth edge.
11. 11 . The door leaf of any preceding claim, further comprising a first convexly curved corner extending between the second edge and the third edge.
12. 12. The door leaf of any preceding claim, further comprising a second convexly curved corner extending between the second edge and the fourth edge.
13. 13. The door leaf of claims 11 and 12, wherein a radius of curvature of the third edge is greater than that of each of the first and second convexly curved comers.
14. 14. A door system comprising a door leaf according to any preceding clause, and a door hinge, wherein the first edge of the door leaf is pivotally attached to the door hinge.
15. 15. The door system of claim 14, wherein the first edge of the door leaf is clamped within a pivoting component of the door hinge.

Description

DOOR LEAF AND DOOR SYSTEM Field The present disclosure relates to a door leaf, and to a door system comprising the door leaf. Background In psychiatric hospitals and prisons, a problem exists that patients and inmates may wish to cause themselves harm using a ligature created by securing a rope or cable around an available anchor point in a room. One solution to this problem is to design room fixtures and fittings such that they do not provide such anchor points. Many bespoke fixtures and fittings exist for psychiatric hospitals and prisons, with this aim in mind. However, suicides in psychiatric hospitals and prisons remain a problem. Patients and inmates continue to find anchor points from which to secure a ligature and cause themselves harm. One particular problem area is door systems. Door leaves, while necessary to offer privacy to individuals, offer potential anchor points around which ligatures can be secured. Summary An aspect of the present disclosure is set out in claim 1 . Other features of the present disclosure are set out in the dependent claims and in the description below. Brief description of the drawings The present disclosure will now be described, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows a first comparative example of the present disclosure; Fig. 2 shows a second comparative example of the present disclosure; Fig. 3 shows an exemplary door leaf according to the present disclosure; Fig. 4 shows a geometric representation of the door leaf of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 shows a door system incorporating the door leaf of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 shows a further exemplary door leaf according to the present disclosure; Fig. 7 shows a geometric representation of the door leaf of Fig. 6; Fig. 8 shows a door system incorporating the door leaf of Fig. 6; Fig. 9 shows a further exemplary door leaf according to the present disclosure; and Figs. 10a and 10b show geometric representations of the door leaf of Fig. 9. Like reference numerals are used for like components throughout the drawings. Detailed description Generally speaking, there is a conflict between the desire for door leaves to offer privacy, and the desire for door leaves to be designed so as to eliminate anchor points for ligatures. Even in the case of washroom (e.g. shower) doors, which may be provided as swing doors to provide privacy, and which do not include locking or latching mechanisms, ligature risks are present. In particular, by looping a ligature around such a washroom door leaf, it may still be possible to obtain a secure enough anchoring of the ligature to commit self-harm. Introducing a steep slope at the top and bottom edges of a door leaf helps to remove ligature points, because a steeper slope will cause a ligature to slide off more readily. However, increasing the slope of the top and bottom edges of a door leaf reduces the privacy offered by the door. A comparative example of a door leaf 100 which is designed to reduce ligature points, but in which the door leaf provides inadequate privacy, is shown in Fig. 1 . A further comparative example, this time of a door leaf 200 which provides adequate privacy, but in which the door leaf does not satisfactorily prevent ligature attempts, is shown in Fig. 2. In each of Figs. 1 and 2, the door leaves are shown mounted in a door frame F. The inventors have found that there is a delicate balance to be struck on the geometry of a door leaf, in order to ensure that ligature attempts are prevented while at the same time providing adequate privacy. In particular, the top and bottom edges of the door leaf must be sloped sufficiently to prevent the anchoring of ligatures around the door leaf, while at the same time providing adequate privacy. Disclosed herein are door leaves which are designed to strike the above balance. The door leaves according to the present disclosure therefore provide adequate privacy while effectively preventing ligature attempts. The door leaves according to the present disclosure will be described as having a first edge, a second edge, a third edge, and a fourth edge. In use, the first edge will the edge which attaches to a hinge, and is therefore in use generally oriented vertically. The second edge will be the closing edge, which opposes the first edge, and in many examples will be parallel with the first edge. The third edge may in use be arranged as the top edge. The fourth edge may in use be arranged as the bottom edge. However, as the reader will understand, the door leaf may be provided as a standalone part for attachment to a hinge or door frame, and so the door leaf may not always be oriented in this way. The first, second, third, and/or fourth edges may be straight. A first feature of a door leaf according to the present disclosure, is that the bottom edge thereof is sloped (in addition to the top edge being sloped), so as to form an acute angle with respect to the first edge of the door leaf. This ensures that ligatures secured around the bott