EP0408169A1

EP0408169A1 - Latch apparatus of handle for opening and closing door

Info

Publication number: EP0408169A1
Application number: EP90303490A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Koichi Muto; Masfumi Tanaka
Original assignee: Nippon Fruehauf Co Ltd
Current assignee: Nippon Fruehauf Co Ltd
Priority date: 1989-07-11
Filing date: 1990-03-30
Publication date: 1991-01-16
Anticipated expiration: 2010-03-30
Also published as: DE69012685D1; DE69012685T2; EP0408169B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a latch apparatus for fixing a handle (6) in a locked state. For example, the handle is for opening and closing a door such as a double-leafed hinged door (1) attached to the rear or side of a van-type vehicle (V). The latch apparatus of the handle for opening and closing this door includes a base (20), a latch member (30) pivotally supported on the base, and a biasing device (40) for biasing the latch member in a direction in which the handle, which is a body to be locked, is opened and a direction in which the handle is restrained. The latch apparatus can be opened manually with ease. When the door is closed, the handle is locked automatically by inserting it.

Description

This invention relates to a latch apparatus of a handle for opening and closing a door, which apparatus is for fixing the handle, manipulated when the door is opened and closed, in a locked state. More specifically, the invention relates to a latch apparatus used in a double-leafed hinged door attached to the rear or side of, e.g., a van-type vehicle, and adapted in such a manner that a handle to be locked is automatically engaged with a latch member of the latch apparatus at the time of a closing operation, and is capable of being readily disengaged from the latch member by manually operating the handle at the time of an opening operation.
Conventionally, a latch apparatus for a handle which opens and closes a door is used in a double-leafed hinged door of a van-type vehicle or sea-borne container. Prior art disclosed in US Serial No. 19867 filed on March 16, 1970 will now be described with reference to Figs. 23 and 24 as an example of such a latch apparatus.
First, in Fig. 23, numeral 1 denotes a double-leafed hinged door attached to an opening at the rear or side of a van-type vehicle V or sea-borne container. The double-leafed hinged door 1 is mounted by hinges 2 on a side column 3 of the opening. Numeral 4 denotes a locking rod constituting a lock device. The rod 4 has cams 5 at its upper and lower ends and is mounted on the main body of the door 1 so as to be capable of turning. A handle 6 for turning the locking rod 4 about its axis is provided on the rod 4 as a integral part thereof. Numeral 7 denotes a cam keeper provided on upper and lower frame members of the opening. The upper and lower cams 5, 5 of the locking rod 4 turn when the door 1 is opened, whereupon the cams engage with their respective cam keepers 7. Numeral 8 denotes a latch apparatus for retaining the handle 6, which turns in unison with the locking rod 4, in a horizontal attitude, and for locking the handle 6 at the time of a closing operation.
Fig. 24, which is a perspective view of the portion indicated by the arrow XXIV in Fig. 23, shows the details of the latch apparatus and handle 6. In this conventional latch apparatus, the handle 6 is engaged with and supported by a bracket 9 fixedly secured to the double-leafed hinged door. A door lock latch 10 capable of being turned up and down has a simple structure in which the latch 10 is engaged with the handle 6 from above to prevent the handle 6 from separating from the bracket 9. Numeral 11 denotes concentric holes provided in the bracket 9 and latch 10. Locking is achieved by inserting the shank of a padlock 12 through the holes 11.
The conventional latch apparatus 8 thus constructed involves a troublesome opening and closing operation. Specifically, in terms of the operation performed at unlocking,

(1) first the padlock 12 is unlocked by means of a key;
(2) the shank of the padlock 12 is withdrawn from the concentric holes 11 of the bracket 9 and door lock latch 10;
(3) the door lock hatch 10 is turned clockwise about a pivot shaft 13; and
(4) the handle 6 is turned upwardly slightly by hand and pulled forward from the position indicated by the two-dot chain lines to turn the locking rod 4, thereby opening the door.

Though the double-leafed hinged door 1 is opened by the series of operations (1) through (4) mentioned above, these operations are difficult to perform when the user is carrying a load, unless the load is first set on the ground. In particular, operations (2) and (4) cannot be carried with only one hand, and even greater difficulties are encountered in case of rainy weather.
In accordance with the present invention, a latch apparatus for a handle which is manipulated when a door is opened and closed, the apparatus being movable between a first position in which the handle can undergo an opening movement, and a second position in which the handle is held in a locked state, comprises a base secured to the door; a latch pivotally attached to the base and supported so as to be capable of turning; and biasing means for biasing the latch towards its first position in which the handle can be opened and towards its second position in which the handle is restrained.
The present invention provides a latch apparatus of a door opening and closing handle, wherein the handle can be locked and unlocked by a single operation.
The present invention can also provide a latch apparatus of a door opening and closing handle, wherein the handle position is positively fixed when the door is closed, thereby making it possible to prevent accidents such as the latch becoming unfastened by vibration should such vibration act upon the handle.
The latch apparatus can be opened manually with ease. When the door is closed, the handle is locked automatically by inserting the handle.
The latch may include locking means for holding the handle in a locked state. The handle is locked by inserting it, and locking can be performed for the purpose of maintaining this state.
The latch apparatus of a handle for opening and closing a door according to the present invention is such that when the handle is locked, the latch is turned in the locking direction and is held in the locked position merely by seating the handle in a recess of the latch apparatus. Thus, the handle can be placed in the locked state automatically. Alternatively, when the handle is placed in the unlocked state, the latch member is held in the open position and the handle is disengaged from an inwardly directed projection of the latch member merely by pushing the lower end of the latch member toward the inner side by hand. The handle is thus unlocked. As a result, the latch of the handle is locked and unlocked by a single operation and the door can be opened and closed with ease.
It is possible for the base of the latch apparatus of the invention to be provided with a cylinder lock in recessed fashion to prevent the lock from being lost, as occurs in the prior art. Moreover, the biasing device can be made compact so that it can be accommodated between the base and the latch member of the latch apparatus. This makes it possible to make the overall latch apparatus small in size and light in weight.
Further, with the latch apparatus of the present invention, the back surface of the base is formed to be flat so that in order to attach the apparatus to the door proper, no machining with regard to the door is necessary other than that for drilling holes for mounting bolts. As a result, the attaching operation is very easy.
Furthermore, in the latch apparatus of the present invention, the biasing device is adapted to act upon the latch in both the opening direction and restraining direction. As a result, the latch is held at a position for opening the handle when the door is opened. Once the handle position is fixed when the door is closed, the locked state is maintained with assurance and the door absolutely will not open even if the handle is subjected to vibration. Accordingly, the apparatus serves as a highly safe lock apparatus when manipulating the handle for the purpose of opening and closing the door.

Fig. 1 is a front view illustrating a first embodiment of an apparatus according to the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is a plan view of a base 20 in Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing a latch 30;
Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of Fig. 1 showing the latch 30 pivotally secured to the base 20;
Fig. 7 is a sectional view illustrating a biasing device 40 for biasing the latch pivotally secured to the base;
Fig. 8 is a sectional view illustrating a pin seat constituting the biasing device 40;
Fig. 9 is an explanatory view showing the action of the biasing device 40;
Fig. 10 is a sectional view illustrating an embodiment of the invention equipped with a another biasing device;
Fig. 11 is a sectional view illustrating an embodiment of the invention equipped with still another biasing device;
Figs. 12(a) and 12(b) are views for describing the operation of the apparatus of the first embodiment;
Fig. 13 is a front view illustrating a second embodiment of an apparatus according to the present invention;
Fig. 14 is a sectional taken along line XIV-XIV of Fig. 13;
Fig. 15 is a plan view of locking means;
Fig. 16 is a view for describing the action of a pin secured to a branch arm 53b in Fig. 15;
Fig. 17 is a sectional view showing a portion of a spindle 54 of Fig. 15;
Fig. 18 is a sectional view taken along line XVIII-XVIII of Fig. 17;
Fig. 19 is a circuit diagram of a circuit for driving a solenoid in Fig. 15;
Figs. 20(a) and 20(b) are views for describing the operation of the apparatus of the second embodiment;
Fig. 21 is a sectional view illustrating an embodiment of the invention equipped with a another biasing device;
Fig. 22 is a sectional view illustrating an embodiment of the invention equipped with still another biasing device;
Fig. 23 is a front view of a well-known double-leafed hinged door; and
Fig. 24 is a view showing the details of a portion indicated at arrow XXIV in Fig. 23.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
The basic structural elements of the latch apparatus of the present invention illustrated by Figs. 1 and 2 are four members, namely a base 20, a latch member 30 which operates in cooperation with the base 20, a biasing device 40 for biasing the latch member 30 for holding the latch member in an open position and locked position, and locking means 50, which is adapted to be mounted whenever required, for holding the latch member 30 in the locked position.
Fig. 3 is a plan view of the base 20 shown in Fig. 1. Here the base 20 has a planar configuration in the shape of a boat the central portion of which is provided with a opening 21 for attaching the latch member 30. The base 20 is fixedly secured to the door main body by screws 23 inserted from the inner side of the door 1 and passed through screw holes formed in mounting bosses 22 provided in the bottom side of the base at four locations thereof.
Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of Fig. 3. A pair of left and right handle grips 24 are provided on the top side of the base 20. The handle grips 24 project upwardly by a distance t from a main body 25 in such a manner that a handle 6 can be inserted from above. A recess 24a for inserting the handle is formed between the handle grips 24 and the main body 25.
The lower portion of the base 20 is slightly lower than the handle grips 24, and this portion is provided with, e.g., a cylinder lock mounting hole 50a for mounting the locking means 50.
Fig. 5 is a sectional view illustrating the latch member 30, and Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI of Fig. 1 showing the latch 30 pivotally secured to the base 20. The latch member 30 is provided with a pair of holes 26a for attaching pivot shafts 26 attached to the latch member 30 substantially at the central portion thereof. With the pivot shafts serving as centers of turning motion, the latch member is pivotally attached to the base 20 and is supported so as to be capable of turning.
The latch member 30 has a transverse dimension that allows it to fit between the pair of left and right handle grips 24, and is attached to the handle grips 24 by the pivot shafts 26. The latch member 30, at a position slightly lower than the upper end thereof, has an inwardly directed projection 31 protruding upward from the handle grips 24 in order to embrace the handle and forming a C-shaped recess. A pin 41 having a hemispherical head for supporting the upper portion of the biasing device 40, described below, is attached to the latch member 30 at a portion thereof below the position of the pivot shafts 26.
Fig. 7 is a sectional view showing the biasing device 40 for biasing the latch pivotally attached to the base. The biasing device 40 is attached to an upstanding portion 27 on the bottom side of the base 20 by a pin 42 having a hemispherical head 42 for supporting the lower portion of the biasing device. Numeral 43 denotes a pin seat (Fig. 8) having a bowl-shaped recess 44 provided in one end thereof in the axial direction. This end of each pin seat is formed to have a spring seating flange 45 surrounding the recess 44. The pin seats 43 are installed end to end between the hemispherical heads of the pins 41, 42 with their recessed portions facing away from each other, and the heads of the pins 41, 42 are fitted into the recesses 44 of the pin seats 43, 43. Numeral 46 denotes a spring loaded between the spring seating flanges 45, 45 of the upper and lower pin seats 43, 43.
Fig. 9 is an explanatory view showing the action of the biasing device 40. When the center of the upper pin 41 is at a position O₁ to the left of a straight line X-X′ connecting the center of the pin 42 and the center O of the pivot shaft 26 serving as the rotational center of the latch member, the latch member is biased in the closing direction, namely in a direction which restrains the handle. When the center of the pin 41 is at a position O₂ to the right of the straight line X-X′, the latch member is biased in a direction which opens the handle. The biasing device is characterized in that it operates in an effective manner in a case where a distance E between the center O₃ of the pin 42 and the rotational center O of the latch member 30 is very small.
The locking means 50 comprises a cylinder lock 51 and a Z-shaped key piece 52 turned by the cylinder lock 51. The key piece 52 can be of the type in which a tongue is recessed from the lock main body. The key piece 52 has an upper end passed through a slot 29 provided in an intermediate reinforcing rib 28 of the base 20. Ordinarily, the key piece 52 is in abutting contact with the inner side face of the latch member 30 at the lower end thereof. At the time of an unlocking operation, the key piece 52 is turned and assumes a state in which the lower portion of the latch member 30 can be pressed inward by a finger.
Thus, the locking means 50 is attached for the purpose of locking the latch member 30. However, an arrangement can be adopted in which the locking means is not attached and the latch apparatus is used solely as a handle seat. In such case, a suitable cover (not shown) would be attached to the cylinder lock mounting hole 50a provided in the base 20, thereby covering the hole, or the base 20 would not be provided with the hole 50a from the start. If such an arrangement is adopted, the latch apparatus can be used as a handle seat of a door for a van-type vehicle.
Figs. 10 and 11 illustrate other examples of the biasing device provided in the latch apparatus. In Fig. 10, a coil spring 46′ is connected between a pin 41′, which is provided at a position offset from the pivot shaft 26 on the side of the latch member 30, and a pin 42′ provided on the side of the base 20. With the latch member 30 in the open state indicated by the two-dot chain lines, the center line of the coil spring 46′ is on the left side of a line connecting the pivot shaft 26 and the pin 42′. Next, when the handle 6 is abutted against the latch member 30 from upper part of the diagram, the center line of the coil spring 46′ moves to the right side of the line connecting the pivot shaft 26 and the pin 42′, and the latch member 30 is subjected to a biasing force for the purpose of holding it in the locked position, which is indicated by the solid lines in Fig. 10.
In Fig. 11, the spring for the biasing device is a leaf spring 46˝ having an upper end attached to a pin 41˝ on the side of the latch member 30, and a lower end attached to a pin 42˝ on the side of the base 20. With the leaf spring 46˝ at the position shown in Fig. 11, the latch member 30 is urged in the opening direction (the position indicated by the solid lines). When the latch member 30 is pushed in the direction of the arrow, the pin 41˝ supporting the upper end of the leaf spring 46˝ is moved to the right side of a line connecting the pivot shaft 26 and the pin 42˝. As a result, the latch member 30 is biased so as to be maintained in the open position indicated by the two-dot chain lines.

(Method of Operation)

In order to open the double-leafed hinged door 1 shown locked in Fig. 12(a), the following procedure is followed:

1) A key 53 is inserted into the cylinder lock 51 and the key piece 52 is turned to effect unlocking, whereby the key piece 52 is disengaged from the latch member 30.
2) The lower portion of the latch member 30 is pushed at the position of the arrow in Fig. 12(a) below the pivot shaft 26 serving as the center of rotation, or the upper end of the latch member 30 is pulled. When this is done, the biasing device 40 is caused to act in the opening direction so that the latch member is held in the open position.
3) The latch member 30 is opened as shown in Fig. 12(b).
4) The handle 6 is grasped by hand, raised and then pulled forward, whereupon the cams 5, 5 at the upper and lower ends of the locking rod 4 separate from the cam keepers 7, 7.
5) The right side of the door 1 is opened, then the left side.

To close the double-leafed hinged door 1, the procedure is as follows:

1) The left side of the door 1 is closed.
2) The right side of the door 1 is closed and the cams 5, 5 at both ends of the locking rod 4 are engaged with the cam keepers 7, 7.
3) The handle 6 is grasped, raised slightly from the horizontal attitude and then pressed into the recess 24a of the latch member 30.
4) The lower end face of the handle 6 is made to strike the bottom face 30b [Fig. 12(b)] of the C-shaped recess 30a of latch member 30, whereby the latch member 30 is turned clockwise about the pivot shaft 26 serving as the center of turning motion. At this time the biasing device is moved to the left side, as shown in Fig. 12(a) to hold the handle in the locked state.
5) The key is inserted into the cylinder lock 51 and turned, thereby engaging the key piece 52 and the lower end face of the latch member 30 are engaged to effect locking.
6) When locking by the cylinder lock 51 is unnecessary, the key piece 52 and the latch member 30 are left disengaged.

A second embodiment of the present invention will now be described based on Figs. 13 through 19.
The apparatus according to the second embodiment has the same basic construction as the apparatus according to the first embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 1 and 2. That is, the base 20, the latch member 30 which operates in cooperation with the base 20, and the biasing device 40 for biasing the latch member 30 for holding the latch member in an open position and locked position are the same as described earlier and these elements are designated by like reference characters. Only locking means 50′ for holding the latch member 30 in the locked position differs from the locking means of the first embodiment, as clearly shown in Fig. 14.
Fig. 14 is a sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV of Fig. 13. The locking means 50′ comprises the cylinder lock 51, a T-shaped lever device 53 turned via a cam 52 by inserting a key (not shown) into the lock, and an urging spindle 54 operatively connected to the lever device for urging the latch member 30 in a restraining direction.
Fig. 15 is a plan view of the locking means 50′, which is so adapted that the cam 52 turned by the cylinder lock 51 prevents retraction of the urging spindle 54 via the T-shaped lever device 53 and holds it in the projecting position. The T-shaped lever device 53 comprises a main arm 53a and a branch arm 53b integrated with the arm 53a. One end of the main arm 53a is pivotally supported, by a pivot shaft 56, on a back plate 55 secured to the base 20. The branch arm 53b has an end portion on which a pin 57 is fixedly provided. When the cam engages with the pin 57, the latter is turned along an arcuate slot 58 provided in the back plate 55.
Fig. 16 is a view for describing the action of the pin secured to the branch arm 53b of Fig. 15. Numeral denotes a detecting member for detecting whether the T-shaped lever device 53 is at the position for maintaining the urging spindle 54 in the projecting position. The detecting member 60 constitutes a contact mechanism for lighting display means, such as a lamp, which presents a display upon receiving the results of detection based on the detecting operation. The detecting member 60 makes and breaks contact with another pin 59 implanted in the middle portion of the branch arm 53b, thereby detecting turning motion of the T-shaped lever device 53.
A rod 62 of a solenoid 61 is connected to the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device 53.
Fig. 17 is a sectional view of a portion of the spindle 54 of Fig. 15, and Fig.18 is a sectional view taken along line XVIII-XVIII of Fig. 17. The urging spindle 54 is slidably received within a retaining sleeve 63 fixedly secured to the back plate 55, and a spring 64 is accommodated in the sleeve 63 at the rear end thereof to bias the spindle 54 in the projecting direction at all times. The side face of the retaining sleeve 63 is provided with a slit 65, as illustrated in Fig. 18. By engaging the main arm 53a with the slit 65, retraction of the urging spindle 54 is prevented and the latter is held in the projected position.
More specifically, when the solenoid 61 is not energized, a portion of the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device 53 is engaged with the slit 65 in retaining sleeve 63, thereby preventing the spindle 54 from receding into the retaining sleeve 63. Under these conditions, the latch member 30 is in the locked state, and the biasing device 40 also acts in the locking direction.
Fig. 19 is a circuit diagram of a circuit for driving the solenoid 61 of Fig. 15. A circuit for operating the solenoid 61 constitutes an electronic control circuit for turning the T-shaped lever device 53 independently of the cylinder lock 51.
When a switch 66 provided at a remote location is pressed, the solenoid 61 is energized. In response, the rod 62 is pulled into the solenoid 61, thereby pulling the main arm 53a so that the main arm 53a and the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63 are disengaged. As a result, the spindle 54 is freed so that the latch member may move in the opening direction. In other words, the spindle 54 attains a state in which it is capable of being retracted.
The pin 59 implanted in the central portion of the branch arm 53 of the T-shaped lever device is engaged with the detecting member 60. When the solenoid 61 is energized so that the T-shaped lever device 53 turns about the pivot shaft 56 and separates from the retaining sleeve 63, namely when the latch member 30 assumes a state in which it can be opened, an opening-enable signal is sent to the remote location, e.g., to the passenger compartment of a van-type vehicle.
Accordingly, when the handle 6 is manipulated to open the door, the solenoid 61 is energized by a remote switch 66. In response, a portion of the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device 53 is withdrawn from the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63 so that the spindle 54 is capable of being retracted against the force of the spring 64. Under these conditions, the latch member 30 is capable of being unlocked.
An arrangement can be adopted in which the solenoid 61 is combined with a timer (not shown) for setting solenoid energization time, thus allowing the solenoid to be deenergized automatically after it has been energized for a fixed length of time (e.g., 20 seconds). If such an arrangement is used, a portion of the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device 53 will be fitted into the slit of the retaining sleeve 63 again 20 seconds after the solenoid 61 is energized. Accordingly, even if the user forgets to operate the handle 6 and leaves the vehicle after having turned on the remove switch 66, the latch member 30 will be locked automatically and there will be no danger of the door being unlocked by another individual.
The cylinder lock 51 is convenient in a case where the door is opened and closed very frequently. Accordingly, for the sake of servicing or when there is no power or a malfunction in the electric circuitry, the cylinder lock 51 is disposed in such a manner that the cam 52 of the cylinder lock 51 and the pin 57 of the T-shaped lever device 53 will not contact at such time.
Figs. 20(a) and 20(b) are views for describing the operation of the apparatus according to the second embodiment. In order to effect locking as shown in Fig. 20(b) after the double-leafed hinged door 1 is closed, the following procedure is followed:
First, the handle 6 is dropped into the recess of the base 20, whereupon the handle 6 urges the bottom face 30b of the C-shaped recess 30a of latch member 30 downwardly. When this is done, the latch member 30 turns clockwise about the pivot shaft 26, at which time the biasing device 40 also reverses and the spindle 54 inside the retaining sleeve 63 is simultaneously thrust out by the biasing force of the spring 64. As a result, the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device slides on the side face of the spindle 54 and the latch member 30 attains a position at which the handle 6 is restrained, whereupon the main arm 53a is inserted into the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63. Thus, the latch member 30 is locked in a state where the handle 6 is held in the C-shaped recess 30a.
The key is inserted into the cylinder lock 51 and turned, whereby the pin 57 at the tip of the branch arm 53 and the cam 52 are engaged, with the latter being turned to enable the latch member 30 to be opened.
Ordinarily, when it is desired to unlock and lock the door, as when the door is frequently opened and closed, without engaging the cam 52 with the pin 57 of the branch arm 53b of the T-shaped lever device 53, especially without performing an electrical operation, the key is inserted, the cam 52 is engaged with the pin 57 and the branch arm 53b is turned counter-clockwise about its pivot shaft. When this is done, the main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever inserted into the slit 65 of retaining sleeve 63 also turns so that the spindle 54 inside the retaining sleeve 63 is freed.
Figs. 21 and 22 illustrate other embodiments of the biasing device provided in the latch apparatus. These correspond to the apparatus of Figs. 10 and 11.
Next, the procedure for operating the latch member 30 when the locking means 50′ is used as an electrical lock will be described emphasizing the differences with the apparatus of the first embodiment.
First, in order to open the double-leafed hinged door 1 starting from the closed state, the following procedure is followed:

1) The switch 66 provided at a predetermined position is pressed.
2) The main arm 53a of the T-shaped lever device 53 is separated from the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63.
3) The lower part of the latch member 30 is pressed, whereupon the latch member 30 turns counter-clockwise about the pivot shaft 26. The biasing device at this time holds the latch member 30 in the urged position.
4) The handle 6 is grasped, lifted and pulled forward, whereupon the upper and lower cams 5, 5 of the locking rod 4 turn and the cam keepers 7 are unlocked.
5) The door is opened.

To close and lock the door, the procedure is as follows:

1) The door is closed.
2) The handle 6 is brought near the door plate while the cams 5 attached to the upper and lower ends of the locking rod 4 are made to engage the cam keepers 7.
3) The handle 6 is lowered from above the latch device 30 and is seated in the recess 24a of the latch apparatus.
4) When this is done, the latch member 30 turns clockwise about the pivot shaft 26 and the handle 6 is held so as to be embraced. At this time the biasing device 40 moves so that the biasing direction changes from the opening direction to the closing direction.
5) Since a portion of the main arm of the T-shaped lever device 53 is inserted into the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63, the spindle inside the retaining sleeve 63 cannot move backwardly. In other words, the latch member 30 is fixed in the locked position.

When the door must be opened and closed frequently, the key is inserted into the cylindrical lock 51 and turned clockwise, whereupon the cam 52 of the cylinder and the pin 57 are engaged to turn the branch arm 53b of the T-shaped lever device counter-clockwise and separate the portion of the main arm 53a from the slit 65 of the retaining sleeve 63. Since this position is maintained, the spindle 54 can move freely inside the retaining sleeve 63.
When the handle 6 is opened, it will suffice to press the lower end of the latch member 30 by hand. When the handle 6 is to be locked, the handle is dropped into place dropped from above to achieve locking.
Thus, the second embodiment of the apparatus having a structure capable of being locked electrically from a remote location and locked by a manual operation is such that locking can be performed by selecting either a key or a electrical switch. The apparatus therefore is well suited for use in a vehicle for making deliveries.
In the foregoing there is described a latch apparatus of a locking rod handle for a double-leafed hinged door of a van-type vehicle. However, the invention is not limited to such an arrangement but can be applied to a lock apparatus for the doors of a gate, for large and small vessels, etc.

Claims

1. A latch apparatus for a handle (6) which is manipulated when a door is opened and closed, the apparatus being movable between a first position in which the handle can undergo an opening movement, and a second position in which the handle is held in a locked state, the apparatus comprising a base (20) secured to the door; a latch pivotally attached to the base (20) and supported so as to be capable of turning; and biasing means (40) for biasing the latch towards its first position in which the handle can be opened and towards its second position in which the handle is restrained.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the latch (30) has locking means (50) for locking the handle (6).

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the base (20) comprises a base body; a mounting boss for mounting the base body on a main body of the door; a pair of handle grips (24) provided on a surface of the base body, the handle grips being formed to include a recess (24a) for inserting the handle; a lock attaching hole (50a) provided in a lower portion of the base body for mounting the locking means (50) of the latch (30); and a pin (27) provided in a central portion of the base at a position below a position of a pivot shaft (26) turnably supporting the latch on the handle grips (24), the pin supporting one end of the biasing means (40).

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the latch (30) comprises a latch member having a transverse dimension that allows it to fit between the handle grips (24) of the base (20), the latch member being supported by a pivot shaft (26) so as to be turnable up and down; an inwardly directed projection at a position slightly lower than an upper end of the latch member and formed to have a C-shaped recess for embracing the handle (6); and a pin (41) provided on a central portion of the latch member at a portion thereof below the position of the pivot shaft.

5. Apparatus according to any of claims 2 to 4, wherein the locking means comprises a cylinder lock (51) provided on the base (20); and a key piece (52) turned by the cylinder lock to come into abutting contact with an inner side face of the latch (30) at a lower end thereof, thereby holding the latch in its second, locked position.

6. Apparatus according to any of claims 2 to 4, wherein the locking means comprises an urging spindle (54) for urging the latch (30) in a direction to restrain the latch; a cylinder lock (51) provided on the base (20); an arm (53) turned by the cylinder lock (51) for preventing retraction of the urging spindle (54) and holding the urging spindle in a projected position; and an electronic control circuit including an arm-actuating solenoid (61) for turning the arm independently of the cylinder lock.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the locking means further comprises detecting means (60) for detecting whether the arm is in a position at which it holds the urging spindle (54) in the projected position; and display means for receiving and displaying results of detection from the detecting means.

8. Apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the biasing means (40) comprises an upper spring seat having a recess which mates with a pin attached to the latch, and a spring seating flange; a lower spring seat having a recess which mates with a pin on the side of the base, and a spring seating flange; and a spring fitted between the spring seating flanges of the upper and lower spring seats, the latch being held at its second, locked position and at its first position by moving a straight line connecting centres of the pair of pins to mutually opposing positions with respect to a line connecting a centre of turning motion of the latch and a centre of the pin on the side of the base.