54. Types of mechanism

Hinged doors Most doors are hinged along one side to allow the door to pivot away from the doorway in one direction but not in the other. The axis of rotation is usually vertical. In some cases, such as hinged garage doors often horizontal, above the door opening.Doors can be hinged so that the axis of rotation is not in the plane of the door to reduce the space required on the side to which the door opens.

This requires a mechanism so that the axis of rotation is on the side other than that in which the door opens. This is sometimes the case in trains, such as for the door to the toilet, which opens inward.'A swing door' has special hinges that allow it to open either outwards or inwards, and is usually sprung to keep it closed.'A Mead door' is a double action pivot door capable of swinging both ways. First introduced by Scott Mead, established in Leicester, England. The Mead door is susceptible to forced entry.

Sliding doors It is often useful to have doors which slide along tracks, often for space or aesthetic considerations.A bypass door is a door unit that has two or more sections. The doors can slide in either direction along one axis on parallel overhead tracks, sliding past each other. They are most commonly used in closets, in order to access one side of the closet at a time. The doors in a bypass unit will overlap slightly when viewed from the front, in order not to have a visible gap between them.

Doors which slide between two wall panels are called pocket doors.Sliding glass doors are common in many houses, particularly as an entrance to the backyard. Such doors are also popular for use for the entrances to commercial structures.A tambour door is made of narrow horizontal slats and "rolls" up and down by sliding along vertical tracks and is typically found in entertainment centres and cabinets.