Sliding door assembly

Claim 1

In a sliding door assembly wherein a door is slidably mounted in an overhead track, the improvement comprising a pair of horizontally spaced apart pivotal hanger means mounted on said door to extend upwardly therefrom for suspending said door from said overhead track, each of said hanger means being cooperable with said overhead track to slide therealong and being pivotal about a substantially vertical axis to follow the course of said track around curves and corners therein; said overhead track defining an upwardly opening guide channel; each of said hanger means including rotatably mounted wheel which rides in said guide channel; and each of said hanger means including structure secured to said door and a member pivotally mounted on said structure for rotational movement about the vertical axis, said member defining on its upper end a substantially horizontally extending axis upon which said wheel is rotatably mounted and having a central crank portion which bends around the guide channel formed in said overhead track, said central crank portion being dimensioned and shaped to strike said overhead track whenever the wheel of said hanger means reaches a corner in said overhead track whereby the force of said overhead track against said central crank portion causes said hanger means to rotate thereby to aid the movement of the wheel of said hanger means around a corner in said overhead track.