EP1717391A2

EP1717391A2 - Lock unit for an escape door

Info

Publication number: EP1717391A2
Application number: EP20060008763
Authority: EP
Inventors: Paolo Cavestri
Original assignee: ANTIPANIC Srl
Current assignee: ANTIPANIC Srl
Priority date: 2005-04-28
Filing date: 2006-04-27
Publication date: 2006-11-02
Also published as: ITTO20050284A1

Abstract

A lock unit for an emergency door comprises a body (12), a spring latch (14) which is slidable between an extracted position and a retracted position with respect to the body (12) and is urged by elastic push means (20) which can be controlled by means of a first mechanism (4a, 62, 72, 82) which can be activated by the rotation of a first handle (4) associated to a first side (2a) of the body (12), and a pivotable bolt (26), movable between a resting position inside the body (12) and an active position in which it projects from the body (12). The bolt (26) can be moved by means of a slide element (24) as a result of the movement of a projection (32) of a cylinder which can be activated by a key (6), or by means of a second mechanism (50, 56, 92) which can be activated by rotating a second handle (8b; 8c). The second mechanism comprises a pivoting control member (92) which is coaxial to the lever element (62) and can be controlled by the rotation of the second handle (8b; 8c) independently from the rotation of the first handle (4).

Description

The present invention refers to escape doors, that is to doors provided with a lock adapted to allow fast opening of the door when an emergency occurs. In particular, such a lock allows the door to which it is applied to be normally opened when it is operated from a first side thereof, tipically its outer side, the door being lockable at this side through at least a latch which can be controlled by means of a key, while the fast opening of the door is made possible if it is operated from a second side thereof, typically its inner side, independently of the fact that the latch of the lock has been activated by the key.
More specifically, the invention relates to a lock unit of the type defined in the preamble of annexed claim 1.
A lock of this type is known from EP-A-652 343 . The lock of this document has a relatively complex structure requiring the presence of a pair of slidable plates arranged respectively at the two opposite sides of the body of the lock. These two slidable plates increase the thickness of the lock, so that its installation requires that a seat, usually wider than that required for the common locks, has to be formed beforehand in the thickness of the door. Moreover, this known lock, in order to allow its operation when an emergency occurs, requires the use of a special handle, having a finger member which slides vertically in a vertical slit formed beforehand in the side of the door to which the special handle has to be fixed, and which engages a slot of one of the two sliding plates, such a slit of the door requiring the execution of an additional operation that it would be appreciated to eliminate.
In order to overcome the drawbacks of the known prior art, the subject of the invention is a lock unit having the features mentioned in claim 1.
By virtue of this idea of solution, the lock unit of the invention has relatively reduced dimensions which are, in particular, the same of the common locks not of emergency and which does not require the formation of additional slits in the door on which it has to be installed. Moreover, the lock unit of the invention is fully reversible so that it can be installed indifferently on a right-swing door or on a left-swing door, and its operation, once it has been installed, is only determined by the fact that the correct handles are assembled on the two sides of the door.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will turn out to be more clear from reading the following detailed description, which has been provided as a non-limitative example and has been made with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective schematic view of a door provided with the lock unit according to the invention and having respective handles at the opposite sides of the door,
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the lock unit, whose body is opened at one side,
Figure 3 is a perspective exploded view of the lock unit,
Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the lock unit from arrow IV of figure 2,
Figure 5 is a perspective enlarged view of a detail of the lock unit indicated by arrow V of figure 2,
Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a detail indicated by arrow VI of figure 5,
Figures 7 to 9 are side elevational views similar to each other, showing in succession the steps of a first operational condition of the lock unit, as a result of the operation thereof from a first side of the door by means of a first handle,
Figures 10 to 12 are views similar to figures 7 to 9, showing in succession the steps of the movement of a bolt of the lock unit in its operational condition, as a result of the operation of a key cylinder associated to the unit,
Figures 13 to 15 are views similar to figures 7 to 9, showing in succession a second operational condition of the lock unit, as a result of the operation thereof from a second side of the door by means of a second handle, and
Figures 15 to 18 are perspective views of the lock unit, corresponding to figures 13 to 15.

With initial reference to figures 1 to 6, a lock unit according to the invention is indicated as a whole by reference numeral 10. In the condition of the unit 10 coupled with a door 2 (fig. 1), a first handle is associated with it at a first side 2a, for example the outer side of the door 2, and a second handle is associated with it at a second side 2b, for example its inner side.
The first handle, indicated 4, is a conventional handle from which a rotatable shaft 4a extends, usually having a square section. A lock cylinder is associated with the unit 10, in which a control key 6 can be inserted from the same side 2a.
The second handle of the door 2 can be a horizontal bar handle 8b, a socalled "antipanic handle", or a conventional type handle 8c, at any rate provided with a shaft 8a, which can rotate as a result of the operation of the the handle, and having, at its free end, an insert 9 whose cross-section is different from that of the shaft 4a of the first handle 4, for example is provided with a pair of parallel and diametrically opposite flattenings, for the purpose that will be made more clear in the following of the description.
The lock unit 10 comprises a body 12 essentially consisting of a pair of sidewalls 12a and 12b which are kept spaced to each other by a series of support columns, and of a front wall 13 in which two adjacent openings 14a and 26a are formed.
At the opening 14a of the wall 13, a spring latch 14 is mounted so as to be able to slide between an extracted position and a retracted position with respect to the body 12, to which a rod 16 is fixed, which may slide in a through hole 16a of a support block 18 anchored to the wall 12a. The rod 16 is surrounded by a coil spring 20 interposed between the spring latch 14 and the block 18, which urges resiliently the spring latch 14 towards its extracted position. A counter element 22 is connected to the rod 16, at its side opposite to the spring latch 14, by means of a screw 23. A tooth 22a projects from the element 22 towards the spring latch 14, which engages a corresponding seat 18a of the block 18 in the extracted position of the spring latch 14. The screw 23, which is screwed in the rod 16, allows, in a per se known manner, to disengage the spring latch 14 from the body 12 to rotate it with respect to the rod 16, in order to allow the lock unit 10 to be adapted to a right-swing door or to a left-swing door.
A slide 24, consisting of a shaped plate slidably resting on the wall 12a of the body 12, is associated with a bolt 26 which can be pivoted between a resting position (shown in solid line in figure 4) in which it is received within the body 12, and an active position (shown in dashed lines in figure 4) in which it projects from the body 12 through the opening 26a of its front wall 13. In order to allow the rotation of the bolt 26 between its resting and active positions, it has a through the hole 28a in which a pivoting pin 28 is engaged, which extends from the wall 12a.
The slide 24 has a shaped slit 27 in a substantially central zone thereof, provided with an intermediate arched portion in which the pin 28 is slidably inserted in order to guide the movement of the slide 24 with respect to the wall 12a. An auxiliary pin 25 which extends from the slide 24 towards the bolt 26, is inserted in a recess formed in the bolt 26 on its side opposite to the one that can be seen in figure 2, in order to limit the pivoting of the bolt 26 about the pin 28 between its active and resting positions.
A first end of the slide 24 facing the opposite side of the spring latch 14, comprises a raised appendage 30 having a recess 30a intended to be engaged by a rotatable projection 32 (see figure 2) of a lock cylinder 34 inserted in the body 12 in a pair of corresponding seats 36 of the walls 12a, 12b.
A pair of projections, for example consisting of enlarged heads of a pair of pins 38 inserted in respective spaced holes 38a of the bolt 26, diametrically opposite with respect to the hole 28a, project from the surface of the bolt 26 opposite to the slide 24. Such projections engage slits 40a, 40a of respective rods 40, 42 for operating a pair of auxiliary latches (not illustrated) of the lock unit 10.
The second end of the slide 24, at the side opposite to the appendage 30, has a hollow seat 29 engaged by one arm 60 of a rocker arm 58 articulated to a pin fixed to the wall 12a, beside the slide 24. The other arm 56 of the rocker arm 58 is intended to be engaged in abutment by a counter-appendage 54 of a push rod 50 which is movable along a direction substantially parallel to the direction of movement of the slide 24. The push rod 50 comprises at an end a driving stem 48 inserted in a through hole 46a of a holding block 46 fixed to the wall 12a. A coil spring 52 surrounds the stem 48 and is interposed between the appendage 54 and the block 46 in order to urge the rod 50 and, together with it, the appendage 54, away from the arm 56 of the rocker arm 58.
Respective coaxial holes 15 are formed in the sidewalls 12a and 12b of the body 12 to allow the insertion of the shafts 4a and 8a of the handles 4 and 8b or 8c. Each of the holes 15 has an arched radial notching 15a whose purpose will be made more clear in the following. A rotatable lever element 62 and a control unit indicated 70 in the whole, are mounted along the axis defined by the two holes 15, which constitute together a control mechanisms for controlling the movement of the spring latch 14 and of the bolt 26 by the handles 4 and 8b or 8c.
The lever element 62 has a central hole 64 coaxial with the hole 15 and adjacent to the wall 12a, inside of which a pair of diametrically opposite teeth 65 radially project, and comprises a radial outer arm 66 and an outer appendage 68 bent at 90° with respect to the general plan of the element 62, which is transverse to the arm 66.
The unit 70 includes a pair of half- shells 72 and 82 between which a control member 92 is interposed, such elements being considered in a greater detail in the following.
The first half-shell 72 comprises a hub 76 facing the wall 12a and engaging the respective hole 15, in which a pair of circumferential notchings (not illustrated in the figures) are formed, in which notchings the teeth 65 of the lever element 62 engage, so that the element 62 is rotatably connected with the half-shell 72. A radial tooth (that cannot be seen in the figures) extends also from the hub 76 and engages with angular clearance the notching 15a of the hole 15 of the wall 12a, in order to limit the rotation of the half-shell 72 with respect to such a hole 15.
The half-shell 72 is axially crossed by a hole 74 whose cross-section, which preferably is a square cross-section, corresponds to that of the shaft 4a of the handle 4. The hole 74, at the opposite side of the wall 12a, ends with a circular seat 73 wider than the hole 74 (see figure 6), at which an annular flange 77 extends, such a flange having a raised edge 78 extending along a portion of its circumference, which is directed opposite to the wall 12a.
The second half-shell 82 is arranged above the half-shell 72, with reference to the figures, and its shape is substantially symmetrical with respect to that of the half-shell 72. The half-shell 82 has a hub 86 at the side opposite to the half-shell 72, and is crossed axially by a hole 84 having the same cross-section of the hole 74. A tooth 90 projects radially from the hub 86, which, in the assembled condition of the half-shell 82, engages the notching 15a of the hole 15 of the wall 12b with angular clearance, in order to limit the rotation of the half-shell 82 with respect to such a hole. The hole 84, at the side opposite to the wall 12b, ends with a wider circular seat 83, at which an annular flange 87 extends, such a flange having a raised edge 88 extending along a portion of its circumference, which is directed towards the edge 78 of the half-shell 72.
An end portion of the edge 88 has an extension formed by a cantilever appendage 88a, a portion of which extends also beside the flange 77 of the half-shell 72. The cantilever appendage 88a is intended to be engaged by the bent appendage 68 of the lever element 62, to transmit the movement of rotation of the element 62 to the half-shell 82, and viceversa.
The control member 92, which is interposed between the flanges 77 and 87 of the half- shells 72 and 82, is mounted so as to be freely rotatable with respect to such half-shells. It has, on its axially opposite faces, respective collars 93 (only one of which can be seen in figure 6) intended to engage the circular seats 73 and 83 of the half- shells 72 and 82. The member 92 is crossed axially by a through hole 94, the cross-section of which corresponds to the insert 9 of the shaft 8a and is preferably defined by a hole having a diameter smaller than that of the holes 74 and 84, such a hole having two diametrically opposite flanks which are flattened and parallel to each other.
A pair of appendages 96 and 98 extend radially from the member 92, which are arranged substantially at 90° to each other. The appendage 96 has an end V-shaped formation 97 intended to engage a corresponding V-shaped groove 51 formed on the push rod 50, at the side opposite to the stem 48. The appendage 98 is intended to penetrate, as a result of the rotation of the member 92, into the seat 18a of the block 18, so as to abut on the tooth 22a of the counter element 22 in order to move it with the aim of taking the spring latch 14 in its retracted position.
In the operation of the unit 10, and with particular reference to figures 7 to 9, a rotation of the handle 4, either if it is arranged at the side of the wall 12a or at the side of the wall 12b, causes the corresponding rotation of the shaft 4a which engages the hole 74 of the first half-shell 72 or the hole 84 of the second half-shell 82, respectively. If the handle 4 is arranged at the side of the wall 12a, that is at the side 2a of the door, the rotation of the half-shell 72 causes the rotation of the lever element 62 owing to the engagement of its teeth 65 with the hub 76. The element 62 drives in rotation the bent appendage 68 which, as a result of the abutment thereof on the cantilever appendage 88a of the half-shell 82, causes a corresponding rotation of such a half-shell. If, instead, the shaft 4a of the handle 4 is inserted in the hole 84 of the half-shell 82, that is at the side of the wall 12a and therefore at the side 2b of the door, the rotation of the half-shell 82 is transmitted to the lever element 62 through the cantilever appendage 88a and the bent appendage 68, and therefore from the lever element 62 to the half-shell 72.
In both cases considered above, the rotation of the shaft 4a drives in rotation both the half- shells 72, 82 and the lever element 62, while the control member 92, whose rotation is independent from that of the half- shells 72, 82, remains stationary. Because of the rotation of the lever element 62, the arm 66 moves, which, owing to the interference with the counter element 22, causes the moving backward of the stem 16, against the elastic action of the spring 20, and therefore the movement of the spring latch 14 in the direction of arrow A of figures 8 and 9, until it reaches its retracted position. In this case, the lever element 62 and the half- shells 72 and 82 constitute a first mechanism of the unit 10 that determines the operation of the spring latch 14. In this situation, the slide 24 remains stationary, so that the bolt 26 does not undergo any movement.
With particular reference to figures 10 to 12, the operation of the lock cylinder 34 by means of the key 6 (figure 1), causes a rotation of the projection 32 in the direction indicated by arrow B of figures 10 and 11. The projection 32, which engages the recess 30a of the raised appendage 30 of the slide 24, causes the slide 24 to slide with respect to the body 12. As a result of the sliding of the slide 24, its hollow seat 29 moves towards the cylinder 34, the pin of rotation 28 slides along the shaped slit 27, and the pin 25 moves together with the slide 24. On the one hand, owing to the movement of the seat 29 in which the arm 60 of the rocker arm 58 is engaged, the rocker arm 58 rotates in such a manner that its arm 56 moves towards the counter-appendage 54 of the push rod 50, such appendage 54 remaining stationary. On the other hand, owing to the movement of the slide 24 and the respective pin 25, the bolt 26 rotates about the pin 28 in the direction indicated by arrow C of figures 11 and 12, so that it reaches its active position in which it projects outside the body 12.
As a result of the rotation of the bolt 26, the projections 38 associated to it (which cannot be seen in figures 10 to 12) rotate about the pin 28, causing the movement of the rods 40 and 42 in the direction indicated by arrows D and E of figures 11 and 12, so that the rods reach the positions indicated by dashed lines in these figures, in which the auxiliary latches of the lock unit 10 are activated.
With reference to figures 13 to 15 and 16 to 18, and starting from the condition reached in which the bolt 26 is in its active position, the shaft 8a connected to the handle 8b or 8c, engaged in the hole 94 of the intermediate control member 92, is rotated in the direction of arrow F of figures 14 and 15. It should be understood that the shaft 8a can be inserted into the hole 94 either through the hole 15 of the wall 12a or through the hole 15 of the wall 12b and, at any rate, from the side opposite to the handle 4 to which the shaft 4a is fixed. This rotation of the shaft 8a causes the corresponding rotation of the control member 92 and the angular movement of its radial appendages 96 and 98, while the half- shells 72, 82 and the lever element 62 remain stationary.
The rotation of the appendage 96 causes the movement of the push rod 50 in the direction indicated by arrow H of figures 14, 15 and 18, against the elastic action of the spring 52, until the counter-appendage 54 abuts on the arm 56 of the rocker arm 58, causing its rotation. This rotation causes the movement of the slide 24 towards the spring latch 14, by means of the arm 60 which engages the hollow seat 29. As a result of the movement of the slide 24, and therefore of the pin 25, the bolt 26 rotates about the pin 28, until it reaches its resting position within the body 12. In this case, the appendage 96 of the control member 92 and the push rod 50, together with the rocker arm 58, constitute a second mechanism of unit 10 which is able to cause the operation of the bolt 26. Also the projections 38 rotate together with the bolt 26, to move the rods 40 and 42 in order to deactivate the respective auxiliary latches.
The rotation of the control member 92 causes the rotation of the appendage 98 until it interferes with the tooth of the counter element 22, causing the spring latch 14 to move backwards to its retracted position, with a slight delay with respect to the attainment of the resting position by the bolt 26.

Claims

Lock unit for an escape door, comprising:
- a body (12) of the lock (10),

- a spring latch (14) which is slidable between an extracted position and a retracted position with respect to the body (12), and is urged by elastic push means (20) towards the extracted position, the sliding of the spring latch being controllable by a first mechanism (4a, 62, 72, 82) which can be activated by the rotation of a first handle (4) associated to a first side (2a) of the body (12) and including a rotatable lever element (62) adapted to interact with the spring latch (14) in order to move it to its extracted position against the action of the elastic push means (20),

- a pivotable bolt (26), which can be moved between a resting position in which it is received inside the body (12) and an active position in which it projects from the body (12), whose pivoting can be controlled by means of a slide element (24) which can be moved as a result of the operation of control means (32, 34) associated with the body (12) and which can be activated by a key (6), or by means of a second mechanism (50, 56, 92) which can be operated by the rotation of a second handle (8b; 8c) associated to a second side (2b) of the body (12),
characterized in that the second mechanism comprises a pivotable control member (92) mounted coaxially with the lever element (62) of the first mechanism and which can be directly controlled by the rotation of the second handle (8b; 8c) independently from the rotation of the first handle (4), which control member (92), as a result of a rotation, is adapted to interact with the spring latch (14) in order to move it to the extracted position against the action of the elastic push means (20), and to simultaneously determine the sliding of the slide element (24) in order to take the bolt (26) to the resting position.
Lock unit according to claim 1, characterized in that the first mechanism includes a pair of coaxial rotatable half-shells (72, 82), which are arranged at sides axially opposite with respect to the pivotable control member (92), each of said half-shells having a shaped central hole (74, 84) adapted to be engaged by a shaft of corresponding shape (4a) fast in rotation with the first handle (4), the lever element (62) being connected in rotation with both said half-shells (72, 82).
Lock unit according to claim 2, characterized in that the shaped central hole (74, 84) of the half-shells (72, 82) has a square cross-section.
Lock unit according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that it comprises limitation means (15a, 90) in order to limit the rotation of the half-shells (72, 82) with respect to the body (12) of the lock (10).
Lock unit according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the control member (92) has a central hole (94) the shape of which is different from that of the central shaped hole (74, 84) of the half-shells (72, 82), such a central hole (94) being shaped in such a manner to be able to be engaged by a corresponding insert (9) associated with the shaft (8a) of said second handle (8b; 8c).
Lock unit according to claim 5, characterized in that the central hole (94) of the control member (92) is shaped as a slot and has a cross-section narrower than that of the central shaped hole (74, 84) of the half-shells (72, 82).
Lock unit according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the control member (92) has a first radial appendage (96) in engagement with an end (51) of a push rod (50) slidably mounted with respect to the body (12) of the lock (10) and urged by elastic recall means (52), which push rod (50) is provided with a counter-formation (54) intended to engage a first arm (56) of a rocker arm (58) rotatably mounted with respect to the body (12), the second arm (60) of the rocker arm (58) engaging a seat (29) of the slide element (24), whereby a rotation of the control member (92) is adapted to determine a pivoting of the rocker arm (58) and a sliding of the slide element (24) such as to carry the bolt (26) in its resting position.
Lock unit according to claim 7, characterized in that the control member (92) has a second radial appendage (98) angularly spaced from the first radial appendage (96), which is adapted to interfere, as a result of a rotation of the control member (92), with an element (22, 22a) connected to the spring latch (14), in order to take the spring latch (14) to its retracted position.
Lock unit according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the bolt (26) is rotatably mounted about a pin of rotation (28) fixed to the body (12) of the lock (10) and engaging a shaped slit (27) of the slide element (24), and in that a service pin (25), eccentric with respect to the pin of rotation (28) of the bolt (26), extends from the slide element (24) towards the bolt (26), which service pin (25) engages a recess of the bolt (26).
Lock unit according any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the bolt (26), on its face opposite to the slide element (24), is provided with a pair of eccentric projections (38) arranged at sides diametrically opposite with respect to the pin of rotation (28), each projection (38) being engaged by a rod (40, 42) for operating a respective auxiliary latch.