The present invention relates to an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars.

Emergency exits, i.e., exits that must allow easy evacuation in case of danger (fire, earthquakes and other extraordinary events), must include closure devices that have a suitable protection against break-ins but which, if necessary, allow to exit by applying simple pressure (in the evacuation direction) to them.

Currently applicable statutory provisions, which are substantially standardized at the international level, prescribe that these safety locks must comprise actuation assemblies of the type of push handles, bars, pressure bars and the like, which can be actuated even just by the collision of a person against them in the direction of escape (evacuation from enclosed spaces controlled with these locks).

Merely by way of example, it is specified that the standard currently applicable in the European Union is EN 1 125, a standard which specifies the requirements for the manufacture, performance and testing of panic exit devices actuated mechanically by means of a horizontal bar and designed specifically for use in a panic situation on escape routes.

On a national level, too, there are specific standards: for example, in Italy some specific prescriptions related to panic locks are defined by the UNI 1 1473/3 standard, entitled "Porte e finestre apribili resistenti al fuoco e/o per il controllo della dispersione di fumo - Parte 3: Requisiti di conoscenza, abilita e competenza dell'installatore e del manutentore" [Openable fire-resistant and/or smoke dispersion control doors and windows - Part 3 : Knowledge, skill and competence requirements of the installation technician and of the maintenance technician].

Usually, applicable standards also require these safety locks to be maintained periodically to check their perfect compliance with the expected standards: a nonconformity might in fact prevent them from ensuring a sufficient safety level (which entails easy actuation for opening), increasing the risk to which people would be exposed in the installation spaces.

Moreover, it is fundamental to point out that safety locks of the described type are constituted by components that interact and cooperate with each other exclusively mechanically: the adoption of components that are actuated electrically or are of the hydraulic or pneumatic type would deactivate the lock in case of blackout (making it inherently unsafe).

The mechanical components use mutually sliding elements and springs: this entails wear and yielding phenomena following prolonged use.

The standards provide for replacement of the lock (or optionally a complete refurbishment thereof, with replacement of the parts subject to deterioration) after a preset number of opening/closing cycles.

In any case, maintenance interventions and replacements are dependent exclusively on the skill of the assigned maintenance technician (who must keep a log of the periodic maintenance interventions, in which the next deadlines for intervention on the locks must be scheduled) and on a calculation that is estimated on the basis of a statistical approach (in relation to the date when the maximum threshold of closing and opening cycles will be reached).

There are panic locks that also comprise a motor for remote control of their ordinary opening/closing: interruption of the operation of the motor (upon reaching the stroke limit condition) is usually identified by means of a peak in electric power absorption (the contrast torque becomes extremely high, blocking the rotor and causing the instantaneous absorption of high electric currents). This construction choice entails subjecting the motor to high thermal and electromagnetic stresses (a high current entails overheating by Joule effect and due to eddy currents), which can lead it to premature failure.

The aim of the present invention is to solve the problems described above, by proposing an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars that allows to identify precisely when to perform ordinary and extraordinary maintenance interventions.

Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars that allows to control an ordinary actuation motor, protecting it against thermal and electromagnetic stresses.

Another object of the invention is to provide an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars that facilitates the activities of the maintenance technician and of the installation technician.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars that has modest costs and is relatively simple to provide in practice and safe in application.

This aim and these and other objects are achieved by an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars, said handles and bars being of the type comprising a frame, which is integral with the installation leaf, for supporting an actuation device that controls a closure element, characterized in that it comprises at least one sensor for detecting the configuration of said actuation elements, said sensor being controlled by a control and management unit provided with at least one memory element for storing the number of events that correspond to a configuration change, said control and management unit being connected to an indicator, which can be activated upon reaching a preset number of configuration transitions, said actuation elements having an active configuration, which corresponds to the retraction of the closure element, and a passive configuration, which corresponds to the closure element extracted for closure.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a schematic front view of a leaf in which an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars according to the invention is installed;

Figure 2 is a schematic side view of an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars according to the invention;

Figure 3 is a schematic front view of the assembly of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a partially exploded schematic perspective view of another indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars according to the invention;

Figure 5 is a schematic sectional side view of the assembly of Figure

4;

Figure 6 is a partially exploded schematic perspective view of the assembly of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a top view of the assembly of Figure 2.

With particular reference to said figures, the numeral 1 generally designates an indicator assembly for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars 2.

The panic bar 2, constituted by a tilting crossmember and/or by a bar that translates parallel to itself, is usually installed on a leaf 3 installed in an opening of a wall 4.

The panic bar 2 comprises a closure element 5, which can move from an extracted configuration, in which it interferes with the wall 4, preventing the opening of the leaf 3, to a retracted configuration, in which it leaves the opening of said leaf 3 free, without interfering in any way with the wall 4. The closure element 5 can be constituted preferably by a spring latch; in any case, the use of a roller, a catch, a bolt and the like is not ruled out.

It is specified that constructive solutions are provided in which the panic bar 2 is also associated with at least one redirection element 6, which is connected to the bar 6 by means of specific transmission means 7; each redirection element 6 comprises, in this case, a respective secondary element 8, which is synchronized mechanically with the main element 5.

The indicator assembly 1 according to the invention is installed at least partially within the panic bar 2 (or panic handle or panic push-bar): the bar 2 in fact comprises a frame 9, which is integral with the installation leaf 3, for supporting an actuation device 10 that controls the closure element 5.

The assembly 1 comprises at least one sensor 12 for detecting the configuration of the actuation elements 10.

In turn, the sensor 12 is controlled by a control and management unit (not shown in the accompanying figures), which is provided with at least one memory element for storing the number of events that correspond to a configuration change of the actuation elements 10.

According to the invention, the control and management unit is connected furthermore to an indicator 1 1 that can be activated (by way of a specific signal emitted by the unit itself) upon reaching a predefined number of configuration transitions of the actuation elements 10 (in practice, it is possible to record how many closing/opening cycles have occurred starting from when the bar 2 entered service and to provide for a signal upon reaching a predefined number of these cycles).

The indicator 1 1 , according to a constructive solution of particular interest in practice and in application, can comprise a signal transceiver: this apparatus allows to send and transmit coded information within a predefined distance, allowing the maintenance technician to receive data strings related to the state of the panic bar 2 and furthermore allowing him to reset the counters associated with the control and management unit upon his ordinary and/or extraordinary maintenance interventions (in accordance with the prescriptions of the standards).

The transceiver further has the advantage of detecting (and optionally storing, by means of the control and management unit) the credentials of the maintenance technician and the type of intervention performed: in this manner, the internal memory of the assembly 1 constitutes a complete log of the life of the bar 2 since its first installation.

It is specified that the actuation elements 10 can have an active configuration, which corresponds to the retraction of the element 5 (which causes the free opening of the leaf 3), and a passive configuration, which corresponds to the element 5 extracted for closure (which locks the leaf 3 on the wall 4).

It is specified that, according to a particular constructive solution of unquestionable interest in practice and in application, the sensor 12 can be installed preferably on a slider 13 that can slide on the frame 9 by way of the action of the actuation device 10.

It is specified that there is at least one reference element 14 that is integral with the fixed frame 9 and faces the sensor 12.

Said reference element 14 can be detected by the sensor 12 at a configuration of mutual alignment (i.e., upon a substantial alignment of the sensor 12, which can slide integrally with the slider 13, with the reference element 14): if there are two reference elements 14, this alignment can define an arrangement selected between the extracted arrangement and the retracted arrangement of the element 5 (depending on the position in which the slider 1 3 is located).

With particular reference to an embodiment that allows to monitor in the best possible manner the operation of the bar 2, the reference elements 14, which are integral with the fixed frame 9 and face the sensor 12, are preferably two in number.

Each reference element 14, in this case, can be detected by the sensor 12 at the respective mutual alignment configuration that corresponds, in a first case, to the extracted arrangement of the element 5 and, in a second case, to the retracted arrangement of said element 5.

In order to allow the bar 2 (or panic handle or panic push-bar) to be actuated remotely (therefore be actuatable by means of a button or a control device that is installed remotely), an actuator 15 is interposed between the frame 9 and the slider 13 and is preset for the translation of the slider 13 independently of the actuation device 10 for the automatic retraction/extraction of the element 5.

It is specified that in this case the sensor 12 detects the arrangement of the slider 13 in at least one boundary configuration, which corresponds to the extracted/retracted element 5.

The control and management unit, upon this detection of a boundary configuration performed by the sensor 1 2, interrupts the power supply of the actuator 1 5.

Since the actuator 15 is constituted usually by an electric motor, this interruption of the corresponding electric power supply is particularly advantageous: the interruption avoids the increase in current absorbed by the motor following the locking of the slider 13 on a specific stroke limiting abutment (the increase in contrast torque entails a higher absorption of power by the electric motor). With respect to known solutions, which provide for interruption of the electric power supply of the electric motor that constitutes the actuator 15 only upon an absorbed current that exceeds a certain threshold, the assembly 1 according to the invention allows to minimize the electromagnetic and thermal stress to which said motor (and also the associated power supply cables) is subjected.

The increase in current at each opening cycle imposed by the actuator 15 in fact no longer occurs and therefore the electrical insulation is not stressed periodically as occurs in constructive solutions of the known type.

Furthermore, the flow of high-intensity current, which is typical of constructive solutions of the known type, entails a heating of the cables due to the Joule effect and the induction of eddy currents in the ferromagnetic materials that are close to the electrical windings of the rotor and stator of the electric motor itself (these eddy currents, too, cause heating).

In addition to the amount of energy dissipated as heat, which entails a low energy efficiency of actuators of the known type, the main problem that can be observed in actuators of the known type installed in bars 2 is the need to provide electrical insulations the size of which takes into account the electromagnetic and thermal stress to which they will be subjected.

The assembly 1 according to the invention allows to minimize this stress, since it provides no significant increase in the current absorbed by the actuator 15.

This advantage leads to a longer lifespan (understood as time elapsed before an insulation fault occurs) for the electric motor of the actuator 15 of the assembly 1 according to the invention with respect to those of the known type.

In any case, the possibility to use electrical components the electrical insulation level of which is lower than that used in standard bars is not excluded, since the currents involved in the actuator 15 of the assembly 1 can be easily kept below a predefined threshold: this might allow the use of cheaper electrical components than the ones used in bars of the known type.

According to a particular embodiment, the indicator 1 1 can be constituted by a luminous indicator accommodated within a respective seat of an external housing 16 of the panic bar 2 (or panic handle or panic push- bar) installed.

In this case, no particular utility preparation is necessary in the installation wall 4 and it is sufficient to provide a suitable electric power supply for said bar 2 (by connection to the electrical mains and/or by using a battery set within the bar 2).

According to a constructive solution of unquestionable interest in application, the indicator 1 1 can be constituted by a luminous indicator accommodated within a box-like body 17 that is installed proximate to the installation leaf 3 of the panic bar 2 (or panic handle or panic push-bar).

Moreover, the indicator 1 1 can comprise an auxiliary device such as a loudspeaker, a buzzer, a signal transmitter, and the like.

This auxiliary device is very useful, since it can indicate even more evidently that a condition has been reached at which the bar 2 must be subjected to ordinary and/or extraordinary maintenance.

If this auxiliary device is a loudspeaker, a beeper, a buzzer and the like, it is possible to mute it by means of a specific button installed on the bar 2 or in the box-like body 1 7 (depending on the selected embodiment).

A further auxiliary device can be constituted by a signal transmitter: this can be a telephone module, a radio frequency or infrared transceiver, a Wi-Fi module or a Bluetooth module, and has the purpose of interconnecting the indicator 1 1 located proximate to the leaf 3 with other remote indicators (for example an electrical/electronic control panel, a computer, a tablet, a smartphone and the like).

According to a specific embodiment, which allows to comply with all the applicable standards on the subject of ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic bars 2 (or panic handles or panic push-bars), the control and management unit comprises a timer for the activation of the indicator 1 1 at the end of a predefined time interval. This time interval is the one prescribed by the applicable standards between successive ordinary mai ntenance i nter venti on s .

In practice, thanks to the assembly 1 according to the invention, execution of ordinary maintenance in compliance with predefined time periods is no longer entrusted solely to the skill of the maintenance technician but is reported directly by the bar 2 (or handle or push-bar) by means of the luminous and/or acoustic signal and/or by sending reminders to remote computers. It is therefore possible to make the intervention of the maintenance technician match up perfectly with the deadlines set by the standards: the fact that users can be aware of the operation of the indicator 1 1 certainly puts emotional pressure on the maintenance technician, who will have every interest in intervening as soon as possible to give assurances to users regarding the safety of the bar 2 (or handle or push-bar).

It is specified that the assembly 1 according to the invention comprises further a terminal for connection to a line, preferably selected between LAN and WLAN, for the transmission of data strings, related to the number of cycles performed, to the operating time interval and to the retraction/extraction state of the element 5, from the control and management unit to at least one processing device such as a computer, a PLC, a tablet, a smartphone and the like. Thanks to this connection it is always possible to have an up-to-date indication of the state of the bar 2 (or handle or push-bar), i.e., whether the element 5 is extracted or retracted, of the number of cycles performed starting from its first installation, and of the time before the next maintenance intervention. This information can allow to collect data, also for statistical purposes, intended to monitor correctly and completely the panic bars 2 (or panic handles or panic push-bars).

Conveniently, the present invention solves the problems described earlier, providing an indicator assembly 1 for ordinary and extraordinary maintenance of panic handles and bars 2 that allows to identify precisely when to perform ordinary and extraordinary maintenance interventions.

The assembly 1 is in fact capable of counting the opening and closing cycles that occur one after the other, indicating the reaching of a boundary number of cycles (applicable standards prescribe that a bar must be replaced or completely disassembled and refurbished once it has performed a predefined number of opening/closing cycles) and of measuring the passing of the time intervals between one ordinary maintenance intervention and the next, indicating the expiry of such time interval. Advantageously, the indication assembly 1 allows to control an actuation motor (the actuator 1 5), preserving it against thermal and electromagnetic stresses, in relation to the ability to avoid the circulation of high-intensity currents in the electrical windings thereof.

Positively, the indication assembly 1 facilitates the activities of the maintenance technician and of the installation technician, ensuring that the deadlines of the ordinary and extraordinary maintenance operations are reported in an evident manner; for the installation technician, moreover, there will be no specific and complex requirements, since the installation operations will not differ from those of a traditional bar, for which he is an expert.

Effectively, the indicator assembly 1 according to the invention can be provided at modest costs, since it is relatively simple to provide in practice and is therefore safe in application.

The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; all the details may further be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.

In the examples of embodiment shown, individual characteristics, given in relation to specific examples, may actually be interchanged with other different characteristics that exist in other examples of embodiment.

In practice, the materials used, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.