AU2006201863A1 - Improvements in Locks - Google Patents

Description

IND \O 00 Title: Improvements in Locks Summary of the Invention: According to the invention there is a lock for a wing comprising a hollow frame defined in part by by a side having a side wall thickness, the lock comprising a lock body comprising a casing supporting a displaceable cam, a side plate and a cylinder, the side plate being supported at a predetermined from the lockbody with the cylinder supported therebetween, the side plate being attached to an external face of the hollow frame whereby to accommodate frames having different side wall thicknesses.

According to the invention there is a lock substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Definitions and Conventions Employed within the Specification Specification shall be taken to include: a Body [comprising a Title, a Description of Preferred Embodiment/s, an Abstract and a Summary of the Invention] and Claims.

This specification describes multiple inventions that include improvements for locks for displaceable wings and any combination of the inventions.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "locks" or variations such as "lock" will be understood to include complete locks for Idisplaceable wings and improvements for locks for displaceable wings that are transportable into other locks and locking devices without being limited to the complete locks described herein.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the 00 positional prepositions such as rear, forward are used to assist in description of the preferred embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings and have in general no absolute significance and "overlap" and derivations such as "overlaps" means at least in part occupying a same plane as.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the headings are included for convenience only and not to affect interpretation.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "preferably" or variations such as "prefer" does not mean nor infer that the form of an integer is restricted to that referred to as preferred as preferred unless the context requires otherwise, has the meaning of acceptable and able to perform the function required by the inventions in which it is included.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the words 'Wing" embraces both doors and windows and an "aperture" comprises a hole that extends between opposed surfaces while a "recess" extends from one surface only and a handle includes a knob or lever either of which may be operable; "furniture" comprises "door furniture" that includes a handle assembly that includes a base and handle that in one form comprises an operable handle supported by a back plate that may comprise an unlatching lever supported by a back-plate; a "base" includes a "rose" (that may comprise a member having a recess on the underside and be bounded by an outer surface and bounded in usage by the surface of the wing) and a "back-plate" (also called a "back-plate" that may comprise a box-like member that in one form comprises a vertically elongated hollow member having a recess on the underside bounded by an outer surface and bounded in usage by the surface of the wing).

Unless the context requires otherwise, an "engaging member" in isolated use, is displaceable between a fully displaced disposition and a fully retracted disposition.

When employed with an "engagaeble means", the engaging member is displaceable between an operative disposition, a disposition in which the engaging member finds itself when engaged with the engageable means and an inoperative disposition Nremoved from the said engagement. In many locks, the operative disposition corresponds with the fully displaced disposition but in some cases the engage able means acts to limit the displacement of the engaging member, and the inoperative disposition may correspond with the retracted disposition.

Within this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, fully displaced will embrace substantially fully displaced as the operative disposition may in some cases be and retracted disposition will embrace substantially fully retracted as the inoperative disposition may well be. For example, in the case of a common lock for 0 hinged doors, in the inoperative configuration the bolt is withdrawn from the strike plate aperture and in the operative configuration the bolt is within the aperture of a strike plate the operative disposition generally corresponding to a fully displaced (fully extended) bolt while the inoperative disposition generally corresponds to a fully retracted bolt.

"Unlatching", unless the context requires otherwise means, withdrawal of the engaging member from engagement with the engagable means, and for hinged door it includes withdrawal of the bolt from the aperture of the strike plate. An "unlatching lever" is a lever or knob that is hand operable to cause the engaging member to become unlatched.

"Locking", unless the context requires otherwise, means the act of configuring the lock to restrain it from being unlatched and in some forms of locks employing deadlocking slides, it means restraining the deadlocking slide to restrain the bolt from being inwardly displaced by the unlatching lever.

"Deadlocking", unless the context requires otherwise, means to configure the lock to restrain the engaging member from being displaced from the fully displaced configuration by external forces (in the case of a common lock for a hinged door, it includes restraining the bolt in a fully extended position).

The deadlocking means is some forms includes a "deadlocking slide" that is displaceable to cooperate with the engaging member to restrain it against displacement and/or to restrain an unlatching lever from being operable to unlatch the bolt.

A "French Door", unless the context requires otherwise, means a door comprising a frame with a glass in-fill and sometimes configured in pairs, a second door that is normally closed and is often secured by vertical bolts and a first door that supports the lock body and operable unlatching levers, often they have a strip of compressible sealing material located on the edge against which the first door closes to prevent energy loss, many French Doors comprise a hollow frame where the hollow within the frame is comparatively small in depth.

A "security Door", unless the context requires otherwise, means a door comprising a hollow framed door with an in-fill of mesh or woven stainless steel where the hollow within the frame is comparatively small in depth and in width. In general wings are supported adjacent an opening; the wing having a closing edge that in the closed position, is adjacent an element that helps define the extent of the opening; the lock being mounted relative to this closing edge and this may comprise mounting a lock body within the door.

A "lock body", unless the context requires otherwise, includes an engaging O means and a casing; the lock body together with a strike plate, a pair of "handle assemblies" and a cylinder comprising a typical mortise lock, and where the lock body may be fitted within the frame of the wing; "depth" of lock body is the extent of the lock body in a direction parallel to the face of the door; "width" of lock body is the extent of the lock body in a direction at right-angles to the face of the door A "single cylinder" comprises a substantially conventional lock cylinder comprising a separate subassembly that includes a key operable barrel within a cylinder housing.

Locks within a "set of locks" or a "lock series" are to a large extent, constructed from a set of common components types.

Description of the Figures Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a side view of a central lock with the drive slide placed to the side of the casing, Fig 2 is the lock of Fig 1 with the drive slide in the fully displaced configuration, Fig 3 is the lock of Fig 1 wit the drive slide undisplaced, Fig 4 is the lock of Fig 1 connected to an external lock, Fig 5 is an isometric, exploded view of an another embodiment, Fig 6 is the lock of Fig 5 in isometric view with the cylinder removed, Fig 7 is the lock of Fig 5 with the drive slide in the fully displaced configuration, Fig 8 is the lock of Fig 5 wit the drive slide indisplaced.

The invention provides multiple improved locks and improvements in locks that are transportable into other locks and locking devices without being limited to the applications described herein. The inventions provide remote locking at either or both ends of a wing (by remote engaging member) and where the wing comprises a hinged door, at the top and bottom of the door; the lock including a central lock 1 mounted within the hollow frame 2 of the wing operably connected to each remote engaging member 3 by a buckling-resistant member 4 that preferably comprises a Ihollow tube 4. Each remote engaging member may comprise a simple plunger attached at one end directly to the tube and supported by the wing for reciprocal movement between an extended configuration where an opposite, leading end 6 of the plunger protrudes from the wing to engage in a mating aperture in a catch plate attached relative to the door opening, and a retracted configuration where the leading end is withdrawn from the aperture and substantially within the wing or the remote engaging member may comprise any other engaging means actuateable by rectilinear displacement of a buckling-resistant member 4 to and from an operative 0 configuration in which the engaging member acts to restrain a wing relative to an C 10 opening.

NIn one form, the lock is operated via a spindle 7 having passage though an aperture 32 in the side of the hollow frame 2 to mate with an aperture 8 in an actuating cam 9 supported of the central lock 1 the spindle being externally connected to a hand operable angularly displaceable knob or other lock mechanism that is able to angularly displace the spindle. The central mechanism, as shown in, Fig 1 to 4 comprises a casing 10 comprising a hollow box-like member with a lid 11, each having a circular side aperture 12 by which to support opposed boss portions 13 of the actuating cam and circular side apertures 15 by which to support opposed boss portions 14 of a slave rocker 16.

In some embodiments, it is necessary to configure the central lock so that the actuating cam is not entirely within the casing and where the apertures 12 each have a parallel sided, tangential extension 17 that extend to the side 18 of the casing to enable the actuating cam to become fully retracted into the casing as shown in Fig 1 and later to be moved to its operating position shown in Fig 2 in which is restrained longitudinally (against sideways displacement) by the spindle 7 it will be appreciated that in this case the spindle needs to be horizontally restrained as it is in the lock of Fig 4 where both ends of the spindle are retained within apertures of the external lock 33 one end in an aperture exposed through aperture 34 and one in the back of the part 35. In this latter embodiment the actuating cam can be retracted so the central lock 1 can be assembled (by sliding it longitudinally within the frame) later to be moved sideways to the operating position as shown in Fig 2 where its axis of rotation coincides with a side aperture 36 (that intersects the rear wall of the casing 37) to create a space sufficient to accommodate the boss 9 that protrudes from the back of the casing.

Within the central lock, is a driver slide 19 located adjacent the actuating cam 9 having a drive recess 20 disposed towards the actuating cam defined by a driven shoulder 21 joined to an radial exit shoulder 23 that extends alongside a entry recess I24 that extends to the side of the drive slide. The driver slide is vertically elongated and includes a horizontal recess 26 and opposed to this is a slave slide 27 having a horizontal recess 28 and between them and meshing with both is the slave rocker 16 Cwhich couples the slides so they move rectilinearly equally in opposite directions-the slave rocker having opposed arms that overlap the slides and protruding drive pins 31 that project one into each of the horizontal recesses 26 and 28. The slave rocker has an axis of rotation parallel with that of the actuating cam that shares the same pivotal axis as the spindle 7. The actuating cam has a protruding radially disposed 00 arm 29 that overlaps the drive recess and which has a sideways protruding extension comprising a pin 30 that engages in the drive recess 20 to connect the actuating cam and driver slide in cam-follower relationship.

When the actuating cam is orientated to a position corresponding to the undisplaced first-spindle disposition, the central lock is in the locked configuration and the pin 30 is removed from the drive shoulder 21 and within the entry recess abutting the exit shoulder 23 that then has a surface defined by a vector which intersects the axis of the actuating cam. This configuration corresponds to the driver slide and slave slide being fully displaced to be at their respective most extended positions from the casing to consequently configure the buckling-resistant members be fully displaced and each remote engaging member being in the operative configuration.

When the actuating cam is displaced towards the shoulder 22 it does so without displacing the drive side until the shoulder 22 is contacted at which point, further rotation causes the drive slide to displace downwardly till it reaches its undisplaced position during which the slave slide is simultaneously displaced to its undisplaced position, the undisplaced positions being most retracted positions relative to the casing.

In another embodiment subject of the claims following, the actuating cam is configured to have a substantially cylindrical side recess 40 having a deeper substantially semi-circular recess to accept a drive pin 56 protruding from a cylindrical end of the barrel that mates in the recess 40. The barrel comprises part of a cylinder 43 supported between the actuating cam and a side plate 44 and by the sides 45 of a cylinder aperture 46 in the side of the casing the casing having side bosses 49 to accept screws 65 that attach the side plate to the casing and to fix the distance between them. In this lock, the side plate is attached to the exterior side 47 of the hollow frame by screws 66 and later for aesthetic reasons, a cover 48 is attached to the outer side of the side plate this configuration not requiring the frame wall to have an exact thickness.

IIn this embodiment, the drive recess 20 is configured to have an active recess defined by an upper and lower substantially horizontal shoulder 51 and 52 respectively each connected to an exist shoulder 53 and 54 respectively that are engaged by the end 55 of the actuating cam arm 29, when the drive slide is in the fully displaced and undisplaced configuration respectively and when an exit shoulder is engaged its a surface at the point of contact is defined by a vector which intersects the axis of the actuating cam.

The end 55 being able to engage the shoulder 51 to displace the drive slide 0 upwardly (outwardly) and to engage the shoulder 52 to displace the drive slide C 10 downwardly.

NThe barrel, pin 56 and recess 41 are configured so that the barrel may be rotated to drive the slides to the fully displaced positions and then the barrel rotated back to the key removal position while leaving the actuating cam and slides fully displaced this being accommodated by the free space 57 within the recess 41.

In preferred embodiments, a leave 60 spring having a raised portion 61 is situated adjacent to the actuating cam and the portion 61 locates within recess 62 and 63 of the cam when it is in the fully displaced and undisplaced (retracted) respectively.

Preferably the slave slide is supported apertures 71 at the lower ends of the casing, inside edge 73 of a casing wall and by the actuating cam; preferably the drive slide is supported apertures 72 at the upper end of the casing, inside edge 73 of a casing wall and the inside edge of the other wall.

assist in description of the preferred embodiments and have in general no absolute significance.