AU2009100296A4 - Accessible Childproof Latch - Google Patents

Description

2009100296 EDITORIAL NOTE THERE ARE 5 PAGES OF

DESCRIPTION

A LATCH UNIT Background Locks are commonly used to prevent or allow access through a door or gate and are very important in keeping children from accessing dangerous products or environments. With a growing awareness of the safety of children, there has been a significant increase in the use of fences about sporting venues, schools, home pools, child-care centres and the like. Increasingly these fences include locking mechanisms which generally have a locking assembly mounted on the door, a striker assembly mounted on the door jamb and a lock cylinder within the locking assembly being operated by a key. As it is generally inconvenient to carry a large number of keys or to provide keys to public facilities, a need arose for a lock that could be opened by adults and not young children without the need for a key. A number of magnetic style safety locks or latches have been developed to prevent children from accessing dangerous areas. These latches generally include a self-closing hinge on the door/gate and a vertical or "top pull" magnetic gate latch. The self-closing hinge urges the door/gate into the shut position. As the door/gate shuts, a locking pin falls vertically by gravity and then a powerful "permanent" magnet draws the locking pin from the lock housing over a ridge and into a slot in the striker assembly securing the door/gate. These types of locks generally have no mechanical resistance to closure, and suffer none of the sticking, jamming and sagging problems associated with "mechanical" gate latches. The door/gate is released by pulling vertically upwardly a knob attached to the top of the locking pin located at the top of the lock housing. The locking pin disengages with the magnet, clears the ridge and releases the striker and thereby the door/gate. The child proofness comes from the fact that the knob connected to the locking pin is located well out of reach of a child. This type of magnetic lock is an effective child-safety lock due to its height from the ground. However, that exact same height from the ground creates significant problems for adults who are short or disabled. Accordingly, there is a need for a new lock assembly or the ability to retrofit existing magnetic type latches, to retain its child-proof ability by its height from the ground whilst also being accessible at a lower level if an adult who is shorter or disabled requires entry through the door/gate. Object of the Invention It is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate at least one of the above disadvantages or to provide a useful alternative.

Summary of the Invention There is firstly disclosed herein a latch assembly to be engaged by a door/gate lock having a locking pin, said assembly including: a body to be fixed to the door/gate; a striker member mounted in the body for movement between a first "locked" position to engage said locking pin and a second "unlocked" position to release said locking pin; a lock cylinder fixed to the body and operable by a user; and wherein said lock cylinder and striker member are operatively associated so that said striker member is movable between the first and second positions thereof by operation of said lock cylinder. Preferably, said assembly includes an arm member connecting said lock cylinder and striker member. Preferably, said striker member includes a recess for receipt of said locking pin. Preferably, said recess includes a magnetic portion operatively associated with said locking pin to draw said pin into said recess. Preferably, said striker assembly is adapted to engage a vertical or top pull magnetic door/gate lock. Preferably, said lock cylinder of said striker assembly can be accessed by a person seated in a wheelchair. Brief Description of the Drawings A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a cutaway side view of a striker assembly of an embodiment of the invention shown in the locked position; and Figure 2 is a cutaway side view of a striker assembly of an embodiment of the invention shown in the unlocked position. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments In the preferred embodiments, there is depicted a striker assembly 1 to be engaged by a door/gate lock having a locking pin 5. The door/gate lock could be of any common type, however in the preferred form would be a vertical or "top pull" magnetic gate latch. The assembly can move between a first "locked" position (see Figure 1) to engage the locking pin 5 and a second "unlocked" position (see Figure 2) to release the locking pin 5 and thereby the door/gate. A lock cylinder 20 is fixed to the body 1 and is operable by a user, preferably by a key. In the preferred form, the lock cylinder 20 should be at a height from the ground accessible by a short adult or a person in a wheelchair. The lock cylinder 20 and striker member 15 are operatively associated so that the striker member 15 is moveable between the first and second positions thereof (that is, between Figures 1 and 2) by operation of the lock cylinder 20. Rotation of the lock cylinder 20 by a key, for example turned about the cylinder's longitudinal central axis, rotates the striker member 15 about the central longitudinal axis of the lock cylinder 20. The striker assembly 1 is preferably biased to the locked position by use of a spring or the like. The lock cylinder 20 is also "gated" to prevent the key being removed except in the "locked" position. In use, and in reference to a common vertical or "top pull" magnetic gate latch, as the door/gate shuts the locking pin 5 falls vertically by gravity and the force of the closing door/gate raises the locking pin 5 slightly to roll over the edge of the mechanism 15 so the pin 5 is drawn down by the magnet 35. Though the door/gate could be opened by a user pulling vertically upwardly the locking pin 5 to disengage the locking pin 5 from the magnet 35, an adult who is shorter or disabled can only open the lock by inserting a key into the lock cylinder 20. That rotation of the lock cylinder 20 rotates the striker member 15 thereby lowering the striker member 15 away from the downwardly extending locking pin 5, disengaging the magnet 35 from the locking pin 5 and allowing space for the locking pin 5 to clear the ridge of the mechanism 15. It should be noted that the striker assembly 1 of the present invention can be utilised in most types of locking assemblies and is not limited to use with only magnetic lock assembly. Advantageously, such an assembly at least in the preferred embodiment, will allow an adult who is shorter or disabled to access sporting venues, schools, home pools, child-care centres and the like when vertical or "top pull" latches have been placed on door/gates to prevent children from accessing those areas. If the locking cylinder 20 was keyed to a common "LAK" key (that is, a disabled access key) then this would allow easy access to public facilities for a person in a wheelchair.

Claims (2)

1. The base unit for a chilproof latch to be set so that the magnet can be twisted to release the gate.

2. This pivoting section can be linked to a lock unit so that the assembly is childproof but allows key access.