| JP2000054704 | DOOR EQUIPMENT |
| JP06123186 | LATCH STRUCTURE |
| JP2010007236 | ENGAGEMENT/DISENGAGEMENT DEVICE |
DARCHINI, Luciano (Via Ravegnana, 190, Faenza, I-48018, IT)
FUSTINI, Fausto (Via degli Sminatori 68, Imola, I-40026, IT)
DARCHINI, Luciano (Via Ravegnana, 190, Faenza, I-48018, IT)
| CLAIMS 1. A variable use lock of the type that comprises a box-like containment body (2) that is provided with front openings (3) for the passage of a protruding body (4) that can be at least partially retracted and which is associated with a movable element (5), inside said box-like body (2) which is contrasted by respective elastic means (6), characterised in that it comprises removable means (7) for fixing said protruding body (4) to said movable element (5) and an abutment (8) for said elastic means (6) which act on said movable element (5) from a first locked configuration of said elastic means (6) against said movable element (5) to a second unlocked configuration in which said elastic means (6) do not act on said movable element (5), said protruding body (4) being removable, following a decoupling from said removable fixing means (7), and replaceable with another one following the removal and substitution of the respective elastic means (6) as well, when said abutment (8) is arranged in said second unlocked configuration. 2. The lock according to claim 1, characterised in that said abutment (8) is a shaped lamina that is provided with respective peripheral end pivots (9) adapted to rototranslationally engage in the profiled grooves (10) of the lateral surfaces (11) of said box-like body (2), said lamina, in the first configuration, blocking an opening (12) of the rear face (13) of said box-like body (2), said opening (12) being substantially aligned with said movable element (5). 3. The lock according to claim 2, characterised in that said lamina comprises, proximate to the edge opposite to the edge provided with said pivots (9), at least one protruding tooth (14) that is adapted to removably engage in a respective receptacle (15) of a lateral surface (11) in order to couple said abutment (8) in said first locked configuration. 4. The lock according to claim 3, characterised in that at least one of said pivots (9) and said tooth (14) is polygonal in section, and is substantially conjugate with that of the corresponding groove (10) and receptacle (15), for an effective maintenance of the arrangement provided for the first locked configuration. 5. The lock according to claim 1, characterised in that said elastic means (6) comprise a spring with axial action and a respective pivot (16) for the coaxial alignment with said spring. 6. The lock according to claim 1 , characterised in that said protruding body (4) is a prismatic latch (4a) provided with at least one inclined face with the function of acting as an inclined plane in the closing phase of the door on which the lock is installed. 7. The lock according to claim 1, characterised in that said protruding body (4) is a block (4b) that comprises at least one terminal tab that is rotatably pivoted with respect to said block. 8. The lock according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that each of said pivots (16, 16a, 16b) comprises a concave head and said lamina, which constitutes said abutment (8), comprises a convex projection (17) of shape and dimensions that are conjugate with the concavity of the head of said pivot (16, 16a, 16b), in said first locked configuration said projection (17) being inserted in said concavity of said pivot (16, 16a, 16b) to maintain it in conditions of correct alignment. 9. The lock according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterised in that the spring (6a), corresponding to the prismatic latch (4a), has an elastic constant that is less than that of the spring (6b), corresponding to the block (4b) that comprises at least one rotatably pivoted terminal tab, with which said block is replaceable. 10. A method of configuration for a lock according to the invention that comprises, when the lock (1) is in the first locked configuration, the steps of: - pressing and translationally moving said abutment (8), the shaped lamina, until said tooth (14) is extracted from said receptacle (15); - rotating said abutment (8) with respect to said pivots (9) until said opening (12) of 'the rear face (13) of the box- like body (2) is completely accessible; - extracting said elastic means (6), which are preferably constituted by a pivot (16a) and a spring (6a) with axial action, from the rear opening (12); - removing said protruding body (4a) after having decoupled it from said removable fixing means (7); - coupling another different protruding body (4b) to said movable element (5) by way of said removable fixing means (7); - inserting said elastic means (6) corresponding to the new protruding body (4b), which are preferably constituted by a pivot (16b) and a spring (6b) with axial action, into the rear opening (12); - rotating said abutment (8) with respect to said pivots (9) until said opening (12) of the rear face (13) of the box-like body (2) is completely closed; - moving said abutment (8) until said tooth (14) engages in said receptacle (15), so returning the lock (1) to said first locked configuration. |
Technical field
The present invention relates to a variable use lock.
Background art
It is common knowledge that in all locks, two closing elements are used in order to guarantee optimal operation.
In fact a latch is adopted which is constituted by a body that is generally prismatic in shape and which is maintained in protrusion outside the profile of the lock (with respect to the front face, visible on the edge of the door on which the lock is installed), and which is adapted to removably engage in a corresponding seat of the jamb on which the lock is installed.
The latch is generally actuated by a handle that can thus command its retraction: the opening of the door is determined by the rotation of the handle which imposes the retraction of the latch, so releasing the door from the jamb.
There is also a bolt, which is constituted by a plate that slides in parallel with the lock (inside it) and which protrudes from it in order to engage in a corresponding cavity of the jamb. The extraction and retraction movements of the bolt are commanded by a key (or of another, equivalent organ).
When the bolt is engaged in the cavity, the simple retraction of the latch does not enable the door to be opened: such opening, in fact, is subordinate to a preventive retraction of the bolt itself.
There are also some locks, particularly for doors that do not have handles and which are subject to a frequent cycle of opening and closing, in which in place of the latch there is a component provided with a cylindrical terminal which is rotatably pivoted at its tip: in the technical jargon of the industry, this component is called roller or, more generically, roller latch.
The roller latch confers a particular practicality in the closing phase and it enables the door to be opened by means of a simple push (it is not necessary to act on any handle or other command device).
Each maker and each seller therefore needs to keep, in their stores, both locks provided with a latch and locks provided with a roller, in order to satisfy the requirements of their customers.
Similarly, an installer who has to replace a lock provided with a latch with a lock provided with a roller must necessarily remove the entire existing lock and install the new lock with the roller.
Some types of lock are known which allow the replacement of the latch with a roller and vice versa, but these locks are particularly complex and they require a high level of expertise on the part of the installer who is tasked with replacing the components.
Generally the components removed from this type of lock, i.e. locks that allow such replacement, are partly damaged (by the removal step) and so they can no longer be used in the future.
Disclosure of the invention
The aim of the present invention is to solve the above mentioned drawbacks, by devising a variable use lock that can be easily modified to use a latch and to use a roller.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a variable use lock in which modification/substitution of the components for use with a latch and for use with a roller is simple and does not require the use of special tools, except for a screwdriver which is needed to remove the latch and to mount the roller (and vice versa).
Another object of the invention is to provide a variable use lock in which the components that are removed for a change of configuration can be subsequently reused an indeterminate number of times without being damaged in the installation and uninstallation phases.
A further object of the present invention is to devise a variable use lock that has a low cost, is easily and practically implemented and safely applied. This aim, as well as these and other objects which will become better apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a variable use lock of the type that comprises a box-like containment body that is provided with front openings for the passage of a protruding body that can be at least partially retracted and which is associated with a movable element, inside said boxlike body, which is contrasted by respective elastic means, characterised in that it comprises removable means for fixing said protruding body to said movable element and an abutment for said elastic means which act on said movable element from a first locked configuration of said elastic means against said movable element to a second unlocked configuration in which said elastic means do not act on said movable element, said protruding body being removable, following a decoupling from said removable fixing means, and replaceable with another one following the removal and substitution of the respective elastic means as well, when said abutment is arranged in said second unlocked configuration.
Brief description of the drawings
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the detailed description that follows of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of the variable use lock according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a partially sectional exploded side view of a variable use lock according to the invention with a prismatic latch;
Figure 2 is a partially sectional exploded side view of a variable use lock according to the invention with a block that comprises at least one rotatably pivoted terminal tab (roller latch);
Figure 3 shows an enlarged detail of a lock according to the invention;
Figure 4 shows an enlarged detail of Figure 2;
Figure 5 is a top view of an abutment of a variable use lock according to the invention; Figure 6 is a side view of the abutment of Figure 5;
Figure 7 is ' a front view of the abutment of Figure 5.
Ways of carrying out the invention
With reference to the figures, the reference numeral 1 generally designates a variable use lock.
The lock 1 comprises a box-like containment body 2 that is provided with suitable front openings 3 for the passage of a protruding body 4 that can be at least partially retracted and which is associated with a movable element 5, inside the box-like body 2 and contrasted by respective elastic means 6. The movable element 5 is substantially constituted by a partially hollow stem.
The lock 1 comprises removable means for fixing the protruding body 4 to the movable element 5.
According to a possible embodiment shown in the accompanying figures, each protruding body 4 is coupled to the movable element 5 by means of a specific threaded stem: in the specific case shown in the accompanying figures, it is the end portion of the movable element 5 (which has on its end a seat for actuation by means of a screwdriver).
The lock 1 also comprises an abutment 8 for the elastic means 6 that act on the movable element 5.
In particular, the abutment 8 is movable between a first locked configuration of the elastic means 6 against the movable element 5 to a second unlocked configuration in which the elastic means 6 do not act on the movable element 5.
The protruding body 4 can be removed, following decoupling from the removable fixing means 7, and can be substituted with another one.
This will happen if the respective elastic means 6 are also removed and substituted when the abutment 8 is arranged in the second unlocked configuration.
The abutment 8 is a shaped lamina that is provided with respective peripheral end pivots 9 adapted to rototranslationally engage in profiled grooves 10 of the lateral surfaces 11 of the box-like body 2.
The lamina that constitutes the abutment 8, in the first configuration, blocks an opening 12 of the rear face 13 of the box-like body 2, the opening 12 being substantially aligned with the movable element 5.
The lamina that constitutes the abutment 8 comprises, proximate to the edge opposite to the edge provided with the pivots 9, at least one protruding tooth 14 that is adapted to removably engage in a respective receptacle 15 of a lateral surface 11 in order to couple the abutment 8 to the box-like body 2 in the first locked configuration.
At least one of the pivots 9 and the tooth 14 is polygonal in section (with particular reference to the embodiments shown in the accompanying figures, the section can be rectangular so as to slide snugly inside the corresponding profiled grooves 10 and the receptacle 15), and is substantially conjugate with that of the corresponding groove 10 and receptacle 15, for an effective maintenance of the arrangement provided for the first locked configuration.
It is evident that the pivot 9 will not be able to rotate in the groove 10 until it has reached its end groove of greatest width: this gives better assurance of the correct maintenance of the position by the abutment 8.
According to a specific embodiment of undoubted practical and applicative interest, the elastic means 6 comprise a spring 6a or 6b (according to the type of protruding body 4 that is adopted) with axial action and a respective alignment pivot 16 (according to the case, 16a or 16b) that is coaxial with the spring 6a or 6b.
However, the adoption of a single pivot 16 (with no differentiation according to the type of assembly) for both springs, 6a and 6b, is not excluded.
With regard to the replaceability of the protruding body 4, it should be specified that such protruding body can be a prismatic latch 4a that is provided with at least one inclined face having the function of inclined plane, so as to facilitate, in the closing phase of the door on which the lock is installed, its forced retraction of the respective spring 6a.
As an alternative, the protruding body 4 can be a block 4b that comprises at least one terminal tab that is rotatably pivoted with respect to it. In this case the respective spring 6b will have a greater elastic action (therefore a greater elastic constant and a greater force necessaiy for its compression) than the spring 6a, since the block 4b, which has an idle roller at its tip, could easily exit from the seat of the jamb in which it is installed, when the door is closed, as a result of weak pushing actions on the door itself (perhaps due merely to the wind): the greater elastic action of the spring 6b guarantees that the block 4b is forced into the seat, thus guarding against an accidental exit.
According to an embodiment that is particularly efficient and functional, each pivot 16 (16a, 16b) comprises a concave head and the lamina that constitutes the abutment 8 in turn comprises a convex projection 17, having shape and dimensions that are conjugate with the concavity of the head of the pivot 16 (16a, 16b).
The tip of the pivot 16 (16a or 16b) will be partially accommodated in a respective dead axial cavity of the movable element 5.
When the lock 1 is in the first locked configuration, the projection 17 is inserted in the concavity of the pivot 16 (16a, 16b) for its maintainment in conditions of correct alignment.
In order to reconfigure a lock 1 according to the invention, of the type described up to now, it is necessary to carry out a series of consecutive steps.
Assuming that the lock 1 is arranged in the first locked configuration, first it is necessary to press and translationally move the abutment 8, the shaped lamina, until the tooth 14 is extracted from the respective receptacle 15.
Then it is necessary to rotate the abutment 8, as if it were a hatch, with respect to the pivots 9 until the opening 12 of the rear face 13 of the box- like body 2 is completely accessible.
It is now possible to extract the elastic means 6 (6a or 6b according to the installation present) and the respective pivot 16 (16a or 16b according to the installation present) from the rear opening 12.
Then the protruding body 4 (4a or 4b according to the installation present) is removed after having decoupled it from the removable fixing means 7.
In the lock 1, now partially "dismantled", it is possible to couple another different protruding body 4 (4b or 4a) to the respective movable element 5 by way of the removable fixing means 7 (which are jointly connected with the element 5 in the examples shown in the figure).
Then, in the rear opening 12, the elastic means 6 (6b or 6a) are inserted which correspond to the new protruding body 4 (4b or 4a), preferably constituted by the pivot 16 (16b or 16a) and by the spring with axial action 6b or 6a.
Then it will be necessary to rotate the abutment 8 (as if one were closing a hatch) with respect to the pivots 9 until the opening 12 of the rear face 13 of the boxlike body 2 is completely closed.
To conclude the reconfiguration, it is then sufficient to move the abutment 8 until the tooth 14 engages in the receptacle 15, so returning the lock 1 to the first locked configuration.
Advantageously, the present invention solves the typical problems of locks of the known type, and in particular it provides a variable use lock 1 that can be easily modified to use the latch 4a and to use the block with roller 4b.
Usefully, the lock 1 according to the invention guarantees that the modification/substitution of the components for use with the latch 4a and for use with the block with roller 4b is simple and does not require the use of special tools, except for the screwdriver necessary for the removal of the protruding body 4.
Positively, ' the lock 1 according to the invention guarantees that the components that are removed for a change of configuration can be subsequently reused an indeterminate number of times without being damaged in the installation and uninstallation phases.
The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variation, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; in addition, all the details may be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.
In the embodiments illustrated, individual characteristics shown in relation to specific examples may in reality be interchanged with other, different characteristics, existing in other embodiments.
In addition, it should be noted that anything found to be already known during the patenting process is understood not to be claimed and to be the subject of a disclaimer.
In practice the materials employed, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.
Where the technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.