Short answer
Photocell-equipped automatic glass door is a motorized pedestrian door that opens by itself when it senses someone approaching. In choosing one, what matters is the door type (sliding, swing, telescopic), the leaf weight and daily number of passages, the detection and safety sensors, how it behaves in a power outage, and emergency exit requirements. Outside working hours the door can be locked together with a card access or alarm system.
Where is an automatic door useful?
An automatic glass door makes the biggest difference where customers have their hands full or the entrance is busy: supermarkets, pharmacies, clinics, bank branches, hotel lobbies and office building entrances. Because the door opens by itself, older people, wheelchair users and parents with strollers get in without difficulty.
Another benefit is energy saving. A manually opened door is often left open or does not close fully. An automatic door closes right after someone passes through; cool air-conditioned air stays inside in summer and warm air in winter. In Şanlıurfa in the summer months, this difference shows up on the electricity bill.
In health facilities, passing through without touching the door is preferred for hygiene. For interior doors such as operating rooms and laboratories, the door can also be installed to open with an elbow-pressed button or a touchless hand sensor.
Sliding, swing and telescopic doors
The most common type is the sliding door. One or two glass leaves slide sideways by a motor unit above the door. It suits wide entrances and heavy traffic. On both sides of the door, you need enough blank wall or fixed glass area for the leaves to slide into.
If there is no room at the side, a telescopic door is used. The leaves slide over each other and stack into a narrower space, giving a wider passage opening in the same wall width.
A swing automatic door is made by fitting an arm motor on top of an existing hinged door. The door opens inward or outward. It suits corridor doors, accessible toilets and interior partition doors. Because people may be in the area swept by the opening leaf, the safety sensor is even more important on this type.
Revolving doors are the type that most reduces wind and heat loss, but they need a large space and a high budget; they are mostly seen at the entrances of large hotels and shopping malls.
Wind also affects the choice of type. At an entrance that takes wind directly, wide sliding leaves can be strained by the airflow and dust gets in. At such entrances, a two-door entrance vestibule, called a windbreak, separates the outer and inner door and reduces both dust and heat loss.
Sensors: the ones that open and the ones that protect
An automatic door has two kinds of sensors. The first is the motion sensor that opens the door; it is mounted above the door and detects a person approaching. The width and direction of the detection area can be adjusted. So that not every pedestrian walking past on the sidewalk opens the door, the area is set narrow and to detect someone approaching toward the door.
The second is the safety sensor. It stops the leaf from closing when someone is standing in the middle of the door, on the passage line. Infrared curtain sensors or photocells at the threshold do this job. The name photocell door comes from here.
So that children and slow-moving older people do not get caught by the leaf, the safety sensor needs to see the whole closing area. In Europe, the EN 16005 standard is the basis for the safe use of power-operated pedestrian doors; ask the door supplier whether the product and installation are done according to these rules.
Expert note: After installation, test the safety sensor yourself: as the door is closing, stand slowly in the middle of the threshold. If the leaf does not stop immediately and reopen, the sensor setting is incomplete.
Power outage and emergency exit
What an automatic door does when the power goes out depends on where the door is. A door on an emergency exit route must open on battery during an outage and stay open, or its leaves must be able to be pushed open by hand. At store entrances, you may want the door to stay locked during an outage; in this case there must be another emergency exit route.
On some sliding doors, the leaves are built so they can swing outward like a hinge in an emergency. This feature matters in buildings where the door is used as an escape route. Which requirement applies is determined by the building’s fire project and the Regulation on Fire Protection of Buildings, and is checked during design.
Connecting the door to the fire alarm system is also considered. When an alarm comes in, the door on the escape route switches to the open position.
Operating modes and after hours
Most automatic doors have a mode switch. This switch selects how the door behaves:
- Automatic: detects anyone approaching from either direction and opens
- One-way: opens only for people leaving from inside, used at closing time
- Held open: at busy hours or while moving goods
- Locked: leaves are closed and locked with an electric lock
- Partial opening: in winter and on windy days the leaves do not open fully
Together with card access and alarm
In office buildings, the automatic door can be set to open for everyone during working hours and, after hours, to open only when a card is scanned. A card reader or keypad placed next to the door connects to the door control unit.
In shops and stores, a burglar alarm can also be installed when the door is put in locked mode. A magnetic contact fitted on the door reports forced opening of the leaves to the alarm panel. A glass-break detector can also be added for glass leaves.
If the door camera is placed just inside the automatic door, at an angle facing the person entering, every entry is recorded with a clear image of the face. Because strong sunlight coming through the glass door can darken the face, a camera with a wide dynamic range is preferred.
Dust, maintenance and installation
In Şanlıurfa, the most common problem with sliding doors is dust. Dust that builds up in the floor track and in the guide under the leaf makes the leaf jam and strains the motor. Cleaning the track regularly and having the door serviced at set intervals extends motor life. The sensor lenses also need to be cleaned of dust; a dirty sensor may open the door unnecessarily or not at all.
Before installation, the size of the door opening, the weight of the leaves, the number of daily passages and whether the door is exposed to wind are determined. A motor not suited to heavy leaves and heavy traffic will fail quickly. Desa Bilişim plans automatic doors for shop, clinic and office entrances together with card access, alarm and cameras.
Frequently asked
Can I convert my existing glass door into an automatic door?
A swing door motor can be added to a hinged door. For a sliding automatic door, a new leaf and rail system are usually needed. Since the thickness and weight of the existing glass affect the motor choice, measurements are taken on site first.
Does an automatic door stay locked when the power goes out?
This depends on the door’s setting and battery backup. Models with batteries can open the door during an outage or make a certain number of movements. For doors on an emergency exit route, a requirement to stay open or to be openable by hand during an outage is sought.
Why does the door open and close by itself?
The most common cause is the motion sensor’s detection area being set too wide; people passing on the sidewalk or a sign swaying in the wind open the door. A dirty sensor lens and vibration can also cause this. Narrowing the detection area often solves the problem.
Let’s choose the right automatic door for your entrance
Let us see your door opening and your traffic on site, and we will prepare a written quote for the automatic door and card access.
