CN209942431U - Latch and latch assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

A latch according to the present application, comprising: a housing having a hollow interior and a latch opening; a bolt mounted in the hollow interior of the housing, movable relative to the housing between a locked position of the latch in which the bolt extends out of the bolt opening and an unlocked position in which the bolt is retracted into the bolt opening; and a handle, a part of which is inserted in the hollow interior of the shell and is in contact fit with the bolt, a part of which is pivotally connected to the shell so as to be rotatable relative to the shell between a closed position and an open position of the handle, and another part of which is located outside the shell for operation by a user, so that rotation of the handle between the closed position and the open position thereof can cause the bolt to extend out of or retract into the bolt opening. A latch assembly according to the present application includes a pair of latches according to the present application mounted to respective outer sides of a first object for locking the first object to respective inner sides of a second object.

Description

Latch and latch assembly

Technical Field

The present application relates to a latch, and more particularly to a latch that is easy to install and operate. The present application further relates to a latch assembly.

Background

Latches are a common means of securing or locking that is used to secure or lock one object to another. Latches are widely used in many fields such as machines, electrical appliances, instruments, daily necessities, and the like. The latch typically has a locked state and an unlocked state. In the locked state, the items involved in the latch cannot be disengaged from each other, and in the unlocked state, the items involved in the latch can be freely disengaged.

In certain fields of application of latches, there is a demand for easy operation and compact structure. In light of these requirements, there is a need to propose a new latch which can be easily installed and operated and which can provide a wrench or grip for the user to hold in order to separate several items involved in the latch at least in the unlocked state of the latch.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The present application proposes a latch which is able to solve at least partially the above problems.

A latch according to the present application, comprising: a housing having a hollow interior and having a latch mouth; a strike plate mounted within the hollow interior of the housing and movable relative to the housing between a latched position of the latch in which the strike plate extends out of the strike orifice and an unlatched position in which the strike plate is retracted into the strike orifice; a handle, a portion of which is inserted into the hollow interior of the housing and is in contact engagement with the bolt, the portion of which is pivotally connected to the housing so as to be rotatable relative to the housing between a closed position and an open position of the handle, and another portion of which is located outside the housing for manipulation by a user, such that rotation of the handle between its closed and open positions causes the bolt to extend or retract into the bolt opening.

In one embodiment, the plane of rotation of the handle is approximately coincident with or parallel to the plane of movement of the bolt.

In one embodiment, one end of the latch bolt is pivotally connected to the housing by a latch bolt shaft, the portion of the handle is pivotally connected to the housing by a handle shaft, the latch bolt shaft is parallel to the handle shaft; the other end of the lock tongue is provided with a tongue portion which is approximately triangular in configuration and can extend out or retract to the lock tongue opening due to the pivoting of the lock tongue.

In one embodiment, the other end of the lock tongue is further provided with a clamping part which is positioned at the opposite side of the tongue part, and a concave part is arranged between the tongue part and the clamping part; the portion of the handle has a finger that abuts and is movable within a recess of the deadbolt to rotate the deadbolt out of or back into the housing.

In one embodiment, the latch further comprises an elastic member, wherein the elastic member is sleeved on the bolt shaft and is arranged between the shell and the bolt so as to apply a torsional force to the bolt, so that the bolt can rotate to extend out of the bolt opening; when the handle is in the open position so that the latch is in the unlock position, the catch portion of the lock tongue catches the finger portion of the handle, the handle is caught positioned in the open position by overcoming the torsional force of the elastic member, and the lock tongue is kept retracted into the housing.

In one embodiment, the plane of rotation of the handle is approximately perpendicular to the plane of movement of the deadbolt.

In one embodiment, the portion of the handle is pivotally connected to the housing by a handle shaft, and has a handle body accommodating the handle shaft, and an expanded portion expanded outward from a portion of an outer periphery of the handle body, a cam portion being provided on one axial side of the expanded portion; the lock tongue is inserted into the hollow inner part of the shell, one end of the lock tongue is provided with a cam matching part abutting against the cam part, and the other end of the lock tongue is provided with a tongue part in an approximately triangular configuration; the cam part comprises a specific curved surface along the rotation direction of the handle, and through the contact fit between the cam part and the cam matching part, the rotation of the handle can drive the lock tongue to linearly move, so that the tongue part extends out of or retracts into the lock tongue opening.

In one embodiment, the other portion of the handle is provided with a projection for user operation and a grip portion, which project outward in a bifurcated manner from a circumferential position of the handle body, respectively.

In one embodiment, when the handle is in the closed position such that the latch is in the latched position, the grip portion is inserted into the hollow interior of the housing and is capable of cooperating with corresponding structure within the housing to capture the handle in position, the projection being exposed outside of the housing;

the grip and the protrusion are both exposed outside of the housing when the handle is in the open position such that the latch is in the unlocked position.

In one embodiment, an elastic element is further arranged in the latch, so that the bolt can automatically extend out of the shell under the action of the elastic element; and when the handle is in the opening position, the latch is in the unlocking position, the lock tongue is matched with the clamping notch of the handle, and therefore the handle is clamped at the opening position.

A latch assembly according to the present application includes a pair of latches according to the present application mounted to respective outer sides of a first object for locking the first object to respective inner sides of a second object.

In one embodiment, the latches mounted to both outer sides of the first article are identical.

Drawings

Embodiments of the present application will be described in further detail below with reference to the attached drawings, wherein:

1A-1F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application;

3A-3F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a housing of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application;

4A-4F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a strike plate of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application;

5A-5F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a handle of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application;

6A-6B are front and side views, respectively, of an applied state of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application, with the latch in a locked state, and FIG. 6C is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 6B;

FIGS. 7A-7B are front and side views, respectively, of an applied state of the latch according to the first embodiment of the present application with the latch in an unlatched state and FIG. 7C is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 7B;

8A-8G are front, top, bottom, left, right, perspective views from one perspective, perspective from another perspective, respectively, of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application;

9A-9F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a housing of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application;

10A-10F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a handle of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application;

11A-11F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a strike plate of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12A is a view of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application in a locked condition, FIG. 12B is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 12A, FIGS. 12C-12F are a top view, a side view, an angled perspective view, and another angled perspective view, respectively, of the latch of FIG. 12A, with the housing removed to show the mating relationship of the handle and the deadbolt in FIGS. 12D and 12F; FIG. 12G is a view from the opposite side of FIG. 12A, and FIGS. 12H and 12I are cross-sectional views of the latch of FIGS. 12A and 12G, respectively, with the housing removed;

FIG. 13A is a view of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application in an intermediate state between a locked state and an unlocked state, FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 13A, FIGS. 13C-13E are top, side, and perspective views, respectively, of the latch of FIG. 13A, with the housing removed to show the mating relationship of the handle and the deadbolt;

fig. 14A is a view of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application in an unlocked state, fig. 14B is a cross-sectional view taken along line E-E of fig. 14A, fig. 14C-14F are a top view, a side view, a perspective view at one angle, and a perspective view at another angle, respectively, of the latch of fig. 14A, with the housing removed to show the mating relationship of the handle and the deadbolt in fig. 14D and 14F; FIG. 14G is a view from the opposite side of FIG. 14A, and FIGS. 14H and 14I are cross-sectional views of the latch of FIGS. 14A and 14G, respectively, with the housing removed;

FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application, further showing a first article to which the latch is applied;

fig. 16A and 16B are views of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application mounted to a first article, with the latch in locked and unlocked states, respectively.

List of reference numerals:

100. 200 latch

110. 210 casing

111. 211 casing body

112. 212 locking tongue mouth

113. 213 handle shaft mounting hole

114 bolt shaft mounting hole

115 joint part

116 open mouth

120. 220 bolt

121. 221 bolt body

122. 222 tongue portion

123 locking part

124. 224 bolt shaft hole

125 recess

223 cam engagement portion

130. 230 handle

131. 231 handle body

132. 232 gripping part

133 finger-like part

134. 234 shaft hole of handle

233 cam part

235 protrusion

236 expansion part

237 locking notch

140 resilient member

160. 260 latch shaft

170. 270 handle shaft

180 joint

300 first object

400 second object

Detailed Description

Although the invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be made in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

The directions of "front", "back", "upper", "lower", etc. referred to herein are only for convenience of understanding, and the present invention is not limited to these directions, but may be modified according to the actual situation.

First, a first embodiment according to the present application is described. 1A-1F are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a latch 100 according to a first embodiment of the present application; fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application. As shown, the latch 100 includes a housing 110, a deadbolt 120, a handle 130, an elastic member 140, a deadbolt shaft 160, a handle shaft 170, and an engagement member 180. In general, the housing 110 at least partially houses the other components of the latch 100 to form a modular latch, and the interface 180 mounts the housing 110 to the first article 300. The latch bolt 120 and the handle 130 are respectively and pivotally mounted at two ends of the housing 110 through a latch bolt shaft 160 and a handle shaft 170, and a matching relationship is formed between the latch bolt 120 and the handle 130 so that the pivoting of the handle 130 can drive the pivoting of the latch bolt 120. The elastic member 140 is installed at the latch shaft 160 to bias the latch 120 toward a direction protruding from the housing 110.

Reference is now made to fig. 3A-3F, which respectively illustrate front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views of the housing 110 of the latch according to the first embodiment of the present application. As shown, the housing 110 includes a housing body 111, a latch notch 112, a handle shaft mounting hole 113, a latch shaft mounting hole 114, an engagement portion 115, and an opening 116. The housing body 111 is elongated and has two opposite sidewalls. The housing body 111 is opened at one end to mount and accommodate the handle 130, and the side wall of the housing body 111 is opened near the end with a pair of handle shaft mounting holes 113. A pair of latch shaft mounting holes 114 are formed near the other end of the housing body 111. The bottom surface of the case body 111 is opened to install the latch bolt 120, and the top surface of the case body 111 is opened with a latch bolt hole 112 and an opening 116 to partially protrude from the case 110 when the latch bolt 120 is installed in the case 110. Both ends of the case body 111 have engaging portions 115, respectively, to be mounted to the first article 300. Although the case body 111 is shown in the present embodiment to have the engaging portions 115 at both ends, it is easily understood that the positions of the engaging portions 115 may be changed as needed for actual installation.

Reference is now made to fig. 4A-4F, which respectively illustrate front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views of a deadbolt 120 of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application. As shown, the locking tongue 120 has a locking tongue body 121, a tongue 122, a locking portion 123, and a locking tongue shaft hole 124. The latch bolt body 121 is elongated to be received in the housing 110. The latch body 121 is provided at one end with a latch shaft hole 124 so as to be pivotably received in the housing 110 by the latch shaft hole 124 being mounted to the housing 110 by a latch shaft 160.

The other end of the latch bolt body 121 is provided with a tongue 122 that extends or retracts to a latch bolt shaft 160 of the housing 110 as the latch bolt 120 pivots. The tongue portion 122 protrudes in a lateral direction of the bolt body 121 to form a triangle, and when the latch 100 is mounted to the first object 300, the triangular tongue portion 122 has an inclined surface in a direction toward the first object 300 to be inserted into the second object 400, so that the bolt 120 is automatically retracted into the inside of the housing 110 when contacting the second object 400; the triangular tongue 122 has a straight face in a direction away from the first article 300 being inserted into the second article 400 to snap onto the second article 400 such that the first article 300 and the second article 400 cannot be separated automatically. The other end of the bolt body 121 also forms a detent 123 opposite the tongue 122, and a recess 125 (shown more clearly in fig. 6C and 7C) is formed between the tongue 122 and the detent 123 to engage the handle 130 of the latch 100. When the locking bolt 120 is assembled to the housing 110, a portion of the locking bolt body 121 and the tongue portion 122 of the locking bolt 120 protrude from the opening 116 and the locking bolt opening 112 of the housing 110, so as to reduce a space between the locking bolt 120 and the top surface of the housing 110 while allowing the locking bolt 120 to pivot with respect to the housing 110, thereby facilitating a compact structure of the latch 100.

Reference is now made to fig. 5A-5F, and respectively illustrate front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views of the handle 130 of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application. The handle 130 includes a handle body 131, a grip 132, a finger 133, and a handle shaft hole 134. The handle body 131 has an approximately L-shape, and is provided at one end with a finger 133 and a handle shaft hole 134, and at the other end with a grip 132. The handle 130 is pivotably assembled to the housing 110 through a handle shaft hole 134 so as to be rotatable relative to the housing 110 between a closed position and an open position of the handle 130. The finger 133 abuts in the recess 125 of the latch tongue 120 to bring about the pivoting of the latch tongue 120. The grip portion 132 of the handle 130 is a portion for user manipulation, which is exposed to the outside of the housing 110 to facilitate the user's turning or pulling of the handle.

The operation of the latch 100 according to the present application in the mounted condition to the first article 300 will now be described with reference to fig. 6A-7C. 6A-6B are front and side views, respectively, of an applied state of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application, with the latch in a locked state, and FIG. 6C is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 6B; fig. 7A-7B are front and side views, respectively, of an applied state of a latch according to a first embodiment of the present application, with the latch in an unlatched state, and fig. 7C is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of fig. 7B. As shown, the first article 300 is a plate-like or box-like article, which may be, for example, a circuit board, a box, a drawer, or the like. The first article 300 may be inserted into and withdrawn from the second article 400, and the latch 100 is used to lock the first article 300 to the second article 400, or to assist a user in withdrawing the first article 300 from the second article 400. Specifically, the latch 100 is mounted to the inside of the first article 300 such that the tongue portion 122 of the locking tongue 120 protrudes from the side of the first article 300 transverse to the insertion/extraction direction, and the handle body 131 and the grip portion 132 of the handle 130 protrude from the end of the first article 300 in the insertion/extraction direction. The second piece 400 also has corresponding openings in its sides for the tongues 122 to protrude through to form a lock.

In the locked state shown in fig. 6A-6C, the locking bolt 120 protrudes from the housing 110 and thus also from the first and second objects 300, 400, thereby locking the relative positions of the two. The handle 130 is in its closed position with the generally L-shaped handle body 131 abutting the end surface of the first article 300 to reduce the length of the handle 130 extending in the direction of withdrawal of the first article 300, so that the latch 100 as a whole takes up less space.

When the user desires to unlock the first article 300, he grasps the grip portion 132 of the handle 130 and rotates the handle 130 in a counterclockwise direction in fig. 7C. Because finger 133 of handle 130 abuts detent 123 of locking bolt 120, counterclockwise rotation of handle 130 will cause locking bolt 120 to rotate in the clockwise direction in fig. 7C.

In one embodiment, the plane of rotation of the handle 130 is approximately coincident with or parallel to the plane of rotation of the deadbolt 120, which may be advantageous to reduce the space occupied by the latch 100 as a whole.

In one embodiment, the elastic member 140 is sleeved on the latch shaft 160 and installed between the housing 110 and the latch bolt 120 so as to apply a torsion force to the latch bolt 120 to rotate the latch bolt 120 to extend out of the latch bolt opening 112. Also in the state shown in fig. 7A to 7C, when the handle 130 is in its open position so that the latch 100 is in the unlocked position, the catching portion 123 of the lock tongue 120 and the finger 133 of the handle 130 form a catching relationship therebetween, so that the handle 130 is positioned in the open position against the torsional force of the elastic member 140 and the lock tongue 120 is held in the state of being retracted into the housing 110. In other words, the latch tongue 120 and the handle 130 will be latched to each other and remain in the state shown in fig. 7A-7C until the user does not manually rotate the handle 130 back to the closed position shown in fig. 6A-6C.

Meanwhile, when the handle 130 is in the open position shown in fig. 7A-7C, its length extending in the withdrawal direction in the first article 300 is increased to facilitate the user gripping the grip portion 132 thereof to withdraw the first article 300.

Due to the triangular structure of the tongue portion 122 of the locking tongue 120, when the first object 300 is inserted into the second object 400, the locking tongue 120 may be automatically retracted into the housing 110 by the pressure of the side wall of the second object 400. And when the first object 300 is fully inserted, the locking tongue 120 may automatically protrude from the housing 110 under the action of the elastic member 140, thereby locking the relative positions of the first object 300 and the second object 400.

In addition, although only one latch 100 is shown to be attached to the first article 300, it will be readily appreciated that multiple latches 100 may be attached to the first article 300, for example two latches 100 may be attached to either side of the first article 300. Furthermore, the components of the latch 100 are axisymmetric so that identical latches 100 can be mounted on both sides of the first article 300, reducing spare part costs.

In one embodiment, to mount the latch 100 on the first article 300, a 38 x 12 mm mounting hole is formed in a side surface of the first article 300 and an 8 x 9 mm mounting hole is formed in an end surface thereof. A stroke of 6 millimeters may be provided between the extended position and the retracted position of the strike 220 of the latch 100.

A second embodiment according to the present application will now be described. Reference is made to fig. 8A-8G, which are front, top, bottom, left, right, perspective from one perspective, and perspective from another perspective, respectively, of a latch 200 according to a second embodiment of the present application. Similar to the latch 100, the latch 200 of the second embodiment also includes a housing 210, a deadbolt 220, a handle 230, a deadbolt shaft 260, and a handle shaft 270. In general, the housing 210 at least partially houses the other components of the latch 200 to form a modular latch, the housing 210 being mounted to the first article 300. The latch bolt 220 and the handle 230 are respectively installed in the housing 110 through a latch bolt shaft 260 and a handle shaft 270, wherein the latch bolt 220 can move along the latch bolt shaft 260, the handle 230 can pivot around the handle shaft 270, and the rotation plane of the handle 230 is approximately perpendicular to the movement plane of the latch bolt 220. A mating relationship is formed between the latch bolt 220 and the handle 230 such that pivoting of the handle 230 causes linear movement of the latch bolt 220.

Reference is now made to fig. 9A-9F, which are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a housing 210 of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application. The housing 210 includes a housing body 211, a latch notch 212, and a handle shaft mounting hole 213. The housing body 211 is rectangular and has two opposite sidewalls. The housing body 211 is opened at adjacent both sides to mount the latch bolt 220 and the handle 230, and the sidewall of the housing body 211 is opened with a pair of handle shaft mounting holes 213 at one end near the housing 210. The latch shaft 260 is disposed near the other end of the housing body 211, is attached to the inside of one side wall of the housing body 211 inside the housing 210, and is opened with a latch hole 212 at a corresponding position of the other side wall of the housing body 211 so as to partially protrude from the housing 210 when the latch 220 is mounted in the housing 210.

Reference is now made to fig. 10A-10F, which are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a handle 230 of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application. As shown, the handle 230 includes a handle body 231, a grip portion 232, a cam portion 233, a handle shaft hole 234, a protrusion 235, an expanded portion 236, and a detent notch 237. The handle body 231 has a circular shape, and has a handle shaft hole 234 at the center thereof to receive the handle shaft 270. The handle 230 is pivotally connected to the housing 210 through a handle shaft hole 234. An expanding portion 236 is expanded outward from a part of the outer periphery of the handle body 231, and a cam portion 233 is formed on one axial side of the expanding portion 236. The cam portion 233 includes a specific curved surface along the rotation direction of the handle 230 so that the latch bolt 220 is engaged, and a latching notch 237 (fig. 12F) is provided near one end of the cam portion 233 so as to latch the latch bolt 220 in the retracted position, which will be described in detail later. The protrusion 235 and the grip 232 of the handle 230 each extend from one position of the outer circumference of the handle body 231 and divergently extend in different directions within the rotation plane of the handle 230 for user's manipulation. When the handle 230 is in different rotational positions, the protrusion 235 and the grip 232 are exposed outside the housing 210, respectively, for a user to operate the handle 230, as will be described in detail later.

Reference is now made to fig. 11A-11F, which are front, top, bottom, left, right, and perspective views, respectively, of a strike 220 of a latch according to a second embodiment of the present application. The latch bolt 220 is inserted in the hollow interior of the housing 210, and includes a bolt body 221, a tongue 222, a cam engagement portion 223, and a bolt shaft hole 224. The latch bolt body 221 is substantially cylindrical, has an axis substantially parallel to the linear movement direction of the latch bolt 220, and is hollow inside to form a latch bolt shaft hole 224. The latch shaft hole is disposed on the latch shaft 260 so that the latch 220 moves along the latch shaft 260. A tongue 222 is disposed at one end of the latch body 221. Similar to the tongue 122 of the previous embodiment, the tongue 222 of the second embodiment is also triangular. The latch body 221 is provided at the other end thereof with a cam engagement portion 223, and the cam engagement portion 223 extends in a direction perpendicular to the linear movement direction of the latch 220 so as to be engaged to the cam portion 233 of the handle 230. Through the contact engagement between the cam portion 233 and the cam engagement portion 223, the rotation of the handle 230 can drive the latch bolt 220 to perform a linear movement, so that the tongue portion 222 extends or retracts to the latch bolt opening 212.

The operation of the latch 200 will now be described with reference to fig. 12A-14F. As shown in fig. 12A-12I, with the latch 200 in the locked state, the locking bolt 220 protrudes from the housing 210, and the cam engagement portion 223 of the locking bolt 220 abuts against one end of the cam portion 233 of the handle 230. The handle 230 is in its closed position and the handle's protrusion 235 extends from the housing 210. When the user wants to unlock the latch 200, he grasps the protrusion 235 of the handle 230 and rotates the handle 230 in a counterclockwise direction in 12A. In this manner, the latch 200 will transition to the state shown in fig. 13A-13E.

As shown in fig. 13A-13E, as the handle 230 rotates, the cam portion 233 drives the latch bolt 220 to gradually retract into the housing 210. At this time, the grip 232 of the handle 230 gradually protrudes from the housing 210.

As shown in fig. 14A-14I, with the pushing of the cam portion 233 of the handle 230 at its most extreme, the bolt 220 reaches its retracted position, leaving the latch 200 in the unlocked state. The handle 230 reaches its open position and the grip 232 extends along the direction of extraction of the first article 300, so that the user can extract the first article 300 by means of the handle 230.

Reference is now made to fig. 15, which is an exploded perspective view of a latch 200 according to a second embodiment of the present application, wherein a first article 300 to which the latch 200 is applied is also shown. As shown, the first article 300 is provided with mounting holes in the end and side surfaces, respectively, for mounting the latch 200. The latch bolt 220 protrudes from a mounting hole of a side of the first object 300 so as to lock the first object 300 to the second object 400 or unlock from the second object 400. At this time, the latch tongue 220 engages with the latching notch 237 of the handle 230, thereby latching the handle 230 in the open position. Handle 230 extends from a mounting hole in the storefront of the first item for manipulation by a user.

Reference is now made to fig. 16A and 16B, which are views of a latch 200 according to a second embodiment of the present application being mounted to a first article 300, with the latch 200 in a locked and unlocked state, respectively. In addition, although only one latch 200 is shown to be attached to the first article 300, it will be readily appreciated that a plurality of latches 200 may be attached to the first article 300, for example two latches 200 may be attached to either side of the first article 300.

In addition, due to the triangular structure of the tongue portion 222 of the locking tongue 220, when the first object 300 is inserted into the second object 400, the locking tongue 220 may be automatically retracted into the housing 210 by the pressure of the second object 400. An elastic member may be further provided in the latch 200, so that the latch bolt 220 may automatically protrude from the housing 210 under the action of the elastic member, thereby automatically locking the relative positions of the first object 300 and the second object 400.

In one embodiment, the housing 210 of the latch 200 has a rectangular length of 38 millimeters, providing a 6 millimeter stroke between the extended position and the retracted position of the locking bolt 220.

In summary, the present application proposes a new latch for locking or unlocking a first object to or from a second object. The various components of the latch are modularly integrated within the housing so that they can be easily and quickly mounted to a first item. The latch has a compact structure, providing a stroke of locking and unlocking of the tongue with a small space occupation. The bolt of the latch has a push-lock design, which can achieve automatic locking when the first object is inserted into the second object. The latch has a symmetrical structure so that the same latch can be mounted to both left and right sides of the first object, reducing spare part costs. The handle and the bolt of the latch can be mutually clamped and kept in an open state, so that the latch is convenient for a user to operate.

While preferred embodiments have been shown and described herein, it should be understood that these embodiments are presented by way of example only. Numerous modifications, changes, and substitutions will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications as fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (12)

1. A latch, comprising:

a housing having a hollow interior and having a latch mouth;

a strike plate mounted within the hollow interior of the housing and movable relative to the housing between a latched position of the latch in which the strike plate extends out of the strike orifice and an unlatched position in which the strike plate is retracted into the strike orifice;

a handle, a portion of which is inserted into the hollow interior of the housing and is in contact engagement with the bolt, the portion of which is pivotally connected to the housing so as to be rotatable relative to the housing between a closed position and an open position of the handle, and another portion of which is located outside the housing for manipulation by a user, such that rotation of the handle between its closed and open positions causes the bolt to extend or retract into the bolt opening.

2. The latch according to claim 1, wherein:

the rotation plane of the handle is approximately coincident with or parallel to the movement plane of the bolt.

3. The latch according to claim 2, wherein:

one end of the latch bolt is pivotally connected to the housing by a latch bolt shaft, the portion of the handle is pivotally connected to the housing by a handle shaft, the latch bolt shaft is parallel to the handle shaft;

the other end of the lock tongue is provided with a tongue portion which is approximately triangular in configuration and can extend out or retract to the lock tongue opening due to the pivoting of the lock tongue.

4. The latch according to claim 3, wherein:

the other end of the lock tongue is also provided with a clamping part which is positioned at the opposite side of the tongue part, and a sunken part is arranged between the tongue part and the clamping part;

the portion of the handle has a finger that abuts and is movable within a recess of the deadbolt to rotate the deadbolt out of or back into the housing.

5. The latch according to claim 4, wherein:

the latch also comprises an elastic piece which is sleeved on the bolt shaft and is arranged between the shell and the bolt so as to apply a torsional force to the bolt to enable the bolt to rotate and extend out of the bolt opening;

when the handle is in the open position so that the latch is in the unlock position, the catch portion of the lock tongue catches the finger portion of the handle, the handle is caught positioned in the open position by overcoming the torsional force of the elastic member, and the lock tongue is kept retracted into the housing.

6. The latch according to claim 1, wherein:

the plane of rotation of the handle is approximately perpendicular to the plane of movement of the bolt.

7. The latch according to claim 6, wherein:

the part of the handle is pivotally connected to the housing by a handle shaft, and has a handle body accommodating the handle shaft, and an expanded portion expanded outward from a part of an outer periphery of the handle body, a cam portion being provided on one axial side of the expanded portion;

the lock tongue is inserted into the hollow inner part of the shell, one end of the lock tongue is provided with a cam matching part abutting against the cam part, and the other end of the lock tongue is provided with a tongue part in an approximately triangular configuration;

the cam part comprises a specific curved surface along the rotation direction of the handle, and through the contact fit between the cam part and the cam matching part, the rotation of the handle can drive the lock tongue to linearly move, so that the tongue part extends out of or retracts into the lock tongue opening.

8. The latch according to claim 7, wherein:

the other part of the handle is provided with a protrusion for a user to operate and a grasping portion, and the protrusion and the grasping portion extend outwards in a bifurcated manner from a circumferential position of the handle body respectively.

9. The latch according to claim 8, wherein:

when the handle is in the closed position such that the latch is in the latched position, the grip portion is inserted into the hollow interior of the housing and is capable of engaging a corresponding structure within the housing to latch the handle in place, the projection being exposed outside of the housing;

the grip and the protrusion are both exposed outside of the housing when the handle is in the open position such that the latch is in the unlocked position.

10. The latch according to claim 9, wherein:

an elastic piece is arranged in the latch, so that the bolt can automatically extend out of the shell under the action of the elastic piece;

and when the handle is in the opening position, the latch is in the unlocking position, the lock tongue is matched with the clamping notch of the handle, and therefore the handle is clamped at the opening position.

11. A latch assembly, comprising a pair of latches according to any one of claims 1 to 10 mounted to respective outer sides of a first object for locking the first object to respective inner sides of a second object.

12. The latch assembly of claim 11 wherein said latches mounted to both outer sides of said first article are identical.

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