AU2002100028A4 - An installation device - Google Patents

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INNOVATION PATENT Applicant: PHILLIP MICHAEL PLUNKETT Invention Title: AN INSTALLATION DEVICE The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: 2 AN INSTALLATION DEVICE The present invention relates to the building, construction, repair and renovation industries in general, and to the installation of multi component assemblies which are used in various applications in these industries in particular. More particularly, the present invention relates to an installation device to assist in the installation of an assembly having two or more components locatable on two different substrates that are moveable with respect to each other where it is required that the components be installed in alignment with each other in such a manner so as to allow cooperative interaction between the components when installed. Even more particularly, the present invention relates to a device for assisting in the installation of security devices such as locks or similar on doors, drawers, gates, windows, lids, covers or the like which are moveable between an open position and a closed position. The present invention finds particular application as a tool or device for use in accurately locating the position for installing the strike or striker plate of a lock on a door jamb or surround so that the bolt and/or latch of the lock will cooperatively engage with the strike or striker plate so as to be received therein to retain the door in a closed, locked or otherwise secure condition.

Although the present invention will be described with particular reference to one form of the installation device in the form of a tool, it is to be noted that the scope of the present invention is not limited to the described embodiment but rather the scope of the present invention is more extensive so as to include other arrangements and forms of the installation device or tool and to their use in other applications.

It is to be noted that the term bolt which is used herein for the sake of ease of description includes within its meaning both the bolt and latch of a lock.

3 Further it is to be noted that the term striker plate includes within its scope both the strike plate and striker plate as well as the strike.

One problem encountered when installing a lock set or passage set in a normally hinged door in a doorway either an internal door or an external door is to accurately locate the striker plate so that the bolt of the lock can be received in the aperture defined in the striker plate in order to retain the door in a locked or closed condition until the bolt is withdrawn from the striker plate or the aperture located in the striker plate. If the striker plate is not located accurately on the door jamb or surround the bolt will not be aligned with the aperture of the striker plate and accordingly will not be received in the aperture of the striker plate thereby preventing the door from being locked or from being retained closed. As the locking mechanism of the lock set which contains the slidable or movable bolt is supplied as a separate component to the striker plate and is required to be installed in or on the door whereas the striker plate is to be installed on the door jamb or similar, it is difficult to accurately align the two so that the bolt is received in the aperture of the plate, particularly, as the plate must be accurately located both vertically and horizontally in order for it to be in register with the bolt.

Existing techniques for installing the lock and striker plate require that the locking mechanism be installed within the door first, such as for example, within the edge portion of an internal door and then the position of the plate be laboriously measured and marked to achieve an accurate fit. However, as the door must be in the fully closed position in order for the exact position of the bolt to be determined it is extremely difficult to mark the exact position of the bolt as there is very little clearance between the edge of the door from which the bolt protrudes and the door jamb or surround. Even if the position of the bolt is accurately marked, that does not 4 ensure that the striker plate will be accurately located since the position of the striker plate has to be determined accurately both vertically and horizontally for the bolt to be received in the striker plate. In many instances it is not possible to accurately mark the position for installing the striker plate, particularly the vertical position, but rather the final positioning of the plate is determined by repeated trial and error by repeatedly slightly adjusting the position of the striker plate. The accurate positioning of the striker plate is further exacerbated by a rebate having to be formed in the door jamb to receive the plate in order to fit the plate flush with the door surround. The repeated repositioning by trial and error is time consuming and adds to the cost of installing the locks as well as weakening the area around the striker plate is located if excess redundant holes are drilled in the door jamb or surround.

Therefore, there is a need to be able to accurately position the striker plate with respect to the locking mechanism of a lock set or passage set, particularly the bolt of the lock set or passage set, which allows quick and easy installation of the striker plate in an accurate location in alignment with or in register with the bolt to allow the bolt to be received in the striker plate when the bolt moves from a fully retracted position to a fully extended position.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a method and device for use in the installation of a lock assembly having two or more components for accurately locating the striker plate of the assembly on a door jamb or surround in a position so as to cooperatively interact with the bolt of the locking mechanism to enable the bolt to be received in the apertures of the striker plate.

According to the present invention there is provided a device for use in the installation of an assembly comprising at least two separate cooperating components moveable with respect to each other, requiring 5 accurate location in alignment with each other in or on at least two different substrates in order that the at least two components can cooperatively interact with each other in use, said device including a member adapted for location in a selected position in or on the first substrate, said member being provided with a guiding portion to assist in accurately locating the member in a first position in or on one of the substrates of the position of the component associated with the second substrate wherein when the member is located in or at the first position in or on the first substrate movement of the member in accordance with the guiding portion the marking means provides an indication in or on the second substrate of the position for locating the second component of the assembly to enable the first and second components to be installed in alignment with each other on or in the two different substrates to permit cooperative interaction with each other.

Typically the device of the present invention is adapted for use in the installation of a lock set or passage set. More typically the assembly comprises at least two separate cooperating components which one is the locking mechanism containing the bolt and the other is a striker plate. The lock or passage set is to be installed on the door whereas the striker plate is to be installed on the door jamb or surround.

Typically the member adapted for location in a selected position in or on the door is a substantially cylindrical body. More typically, the body is provided with chamfered edges. Even more typically, the body is made from metal, plastics, wood or other suitable material, including combinations thereof.

Typically the first substrate is a door and the component containing the bolt of the lock is installed in or on the door. More typically the second substrate is the door surround or jamb and the striker plate is installed on the door jamb or surround.

6 Typically the guiding means of the member is the outside surface of the device or is a bore located within the body of the device. More typically the bore extends longitudinally along the lengthwise extending axis of the cylinder. More typically the bore is located axially along the central axis of the member.

Typically the marking means is a pointed element, tip, pointer or plunger. More typically, the marking means is fixed to the body of the device or is movable with respect to the body of the device. More typically the marking means is provided with a sharpened or pointed end.

More typically the plunger is provided with a undercut or rebated section intermediate the ends forming an elongate groove or slot in the lengthwise extending body of the plunger. Typically the member is provided with a pin or similar for cooperatively engaging with the rebate of the plunger for limiting axial movement of the plunger when received in the longitudinal bore within the cylindrical body of the member.

Typically the sharpened end of the marking means contacts the door jamb or surround at a position corresponding to the central position of the striker plate when installed on the door jamb or surround.

Typically, the indication provided by the marking means, including the movement of the plunger is a visual or tactile indication.

The present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is an exploded view of the components of one form of the device of the present invention being a cylindrical body and a pointed or tapered plunger.

Figure 2 is a side perspective view of one form of the device of the present invention in an assembled form in which the pointed plunger is received in the longitudinal bore of the body member ready for use.

In one form the device of the present invention 7 as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, generally denoted as 2 comprises a substantially cylindrical metal or plastics body member 4 having two end surfaces 6 The edges of the device are preferably chamfered to allow easy insertion and withdrawal of the device 2 into a cavity or bore formed in the door (not shown). The body 2 is provided with a longitudinal bore 10 extending axially along the central axis of the body. A second bore 12 of smaller diameter, referred to as a transverse bore, is arranged perpendicularly to the longitudinal central bore Transverse bore 12 is for receiving a pin or similar fastener (not shown) for retaining pointed plunger in bore Pointed plunger 20 which is received in longitudinal bore 10 is provided with a rebate 22 at or towards one end, preferably at or towards the pointed end 24 of the plunger. When plunger 20 is received in longitudinal bore 10 and the pin or other fastener inserted in the transverse bore 12 the inboard end of the pin is received in rebate 22 for contacting the edges 26, 28 of the rebate 22 to limit axially slideable movement of the plunger in the bore. The tail 30 of the pointed plunger extends outwardly from the rear end of the body at all times. It is to be noted that the slidable plunger 20 is able to be retracted within the body 4 of the device 2 to such an extent that no part of the plunger, including point 24, extends beyond the end surface 6 of the body.

It is to be noted that the plunger can take any suitable, desirable, or convenient form, such as being smooth sided or having surface irregularities and the like.

In use of the device of the present invention a hole, aperture, cavity or similar preferably a cylindrical bore or hole of circular cross-section is formed in the door by drilling at a selected location for insertion of the locking portion of a lock set or passage set.

Typically, a first bore is formed through the thickness of the door and a mortise or similar secondary bore, aperture 8 or cavity is formed extending from the edge of the door to the first bore perpendicularly to the first bore. The secondary bore is provided to receive the bolt of the lock set or passage set. The secondary bore intersects with the main bore and allows access from the main bore to the outside of the edge of the door. It is to be noted that the diameter of the secondary bore is such so as to allow the body of the device 2 to fit snugly within this bore without play between the two, thereby allowing accurate location of device 2 in the door. Thus, the outer surface of the body acts as a guiding means to accurately locate the device 2 within the secondary bore.

The device 2 of the present invention comprising body 4 and plunger 20 in assembled form is inserted into the secondary bore with the pointed end 24 of the plunger retracted within body 4 and facing towards the door jamb or surround. The door is moved into a closed position and the tail 30 of the plunger operated such as for example by a suitable implement, the finger or similar to move axially within bore 10 so that the pointed end 24 of plunger 20 is moved to extend outwardly from the body 4 and the secondary bore to contact the door jamb and leave an indication, such as for example an indentation, mark or similar in the door jamb so as to provide a visual or tactile indication of the position where the point of the plunger contacted the door jamb which position corresponds to the centre of the striker plate when installed on the jamb. The plunger is then retracted in to the body and the door opened leaving a clear visual or tactile indication of the centre of the aperture in the striker plate. The position corresponding to where the indication is located is the position in which a further bore is drilled or otherwise formed in the door jamb to accurately locate the striker plate. After drilling the bore and forming a rebate in the jamb the striker plate can be screwed into position. As the location of the secondary bore in the door determines the position of the striker plate both are in exact alignment 9 which allows the bolt to cooperatively interact with the striker plate to maintain the door in a closed position when the lock set or passage set is installed and the bolt is received in the aperture of the striker plate.

In another embodiment, (not shown) the device is in the form of a metallic cylinder of a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the secondary bore for receiving the bolt of the lock set. One end surface of the body is provided with a spike, pointed stud, point, tip or other suitable marking means fixedly connected to the end of the body. The tip may be integral with the body of the device or may be connected to the body. Operation of this form of the device is essentially the same as operation of the form of the device described earlier in this specification.

It is to be noted that the striker plate can be positioned both vertically and horizontally simultaneously when using the device of the present invention rather than having to separately mark the position to achieve vertical adjustment and horizontal adjustment.

Thus, the use of the device of the present invention allows a easy and effective method of installing two components of the lock set or passage set in alignment with each other allowing cooperative engagement without the need for extensive measuring or repeated trial and error to position the striker plate in the correct location.

The described arrangement has been advanced by explanation and many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which includes every novel feature and novel combination of features hereindisclosed.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention described herein is susceptible to variations and modifications other than those specifically described. It is understood that the invention includes all such variations and modifications which fall within the spirit and scope.

Claims (4)

1. A device for use in the installation of an assembly including at least two separate cooperating components movable with respect to each other requiring accurate location in alignment with each other in or on at least two different substrates, in order that the at least two components can cooperatively interact with each other in use, said substrates being movable with respect to each other, said device including a member adapted for location in a selected position in or on the first substrate, said member being provided with a guiding portion to assist in accurately locating the member in a first position in or on one of the substrates and a marking means for providing an indication on or in the second substrate of the position of the component associated with the second substrate, wherein when the member is located in or at the first position in or on the first substrate in accordance with a position determined by the guiding portion the marking means provides an indication in or on the second substrate of the position for locating the second component of the assembly in or on the second substrate to enable the first and second components to be installed in alignment with each other on or in the two different substrates thereby permitting cooperative interaction between each other.

2. A device for use in the installation of an assembly comprising at least two separate cooperating components movable with respect to each other requiring accurate location and in alignment with each other in or on at least two different substrates in order that the at least two components can cooperatively interact with each other in use, said substrates being movable with respect to each other, said device including a member adapted for location in a selected position in or on the first substrate, said member being provided with a guiding means for guiding movement of a movable element associated with the member, wherein when the member is located in or at the 11 first position in or on the first substrate movement of the movable element along a pathway determined by the guiding means provides an indication in or on the second substrate of the position for locating the second component of the assembly to enable the first and second components to be installed in alignment with each other on or in the two different substrates to permit cooperative interaction with each other.

3. A device according to any preceding claim in which one of the components is the bolt of a lock set and the other of the components is the striker plate of the lock set.

4. A device according to any preceding claim in which the marking means is fixed with respect to the body of the device or the marking means is the tip of the movable element. A device for assisting in the installation of a lock set in the door and/or door surround substantially as hereinbefore described and/or illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings. Dated this 14th day of January 2002 PHILLIP MICHAEL PLUNKETT By their Patent Attorneys GRIFFITH HACK Fellows Institute of Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys of Australia