GB2200162A

GB2200162A - Hinged lock for a container lid

Info

Publication number: GB2200162A
Application number: GB08726932A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Wolfgang Gonsior
Original assignee: Xomox International GmbH and Co OHG
Current assignee: Xomox International GmbH and Co OHG
Priority date: 1986-11-27
Filing date: 1987-11-18
Publication date: 1988-07-27
Anticipated expiration: 2007-11-18
Also published as: NO874952D0; GB8726932D0; BE1002424A4; FR2607569A1; FR2607569B1; NL8702664A; FI875197A; GB2200162B; FI875197A0; ES2005465A6; DE3640440A1; IT8702952A0; IT1218497B; JPS63149478A; CH678092A5; NO874952L; DE3640440C2

Description

1 M 1; HINGED LOCK FOR A CONTAINER LID 21-.00 162 i- The invention relates

to a hinged lock for a lid. More particularly, the invention relates to a hinged lock of the type which is pivotally mounted. on a part of a container.or on a part intended to be secured to a container, first control means being disposed at or adjacent a free pivotable extremity of the lid, which in the closed position of the lid engages second being control means, the second control means/asso iated with a locking. rotatable part of a/lever pivotally installed on the con- tainer or part-securable -;L-hereto, which has locking boltengageable means which, in the closed position, is engaged by a locking bolt situated on the lid, the locking bolt being disengageable from the locking bolt engageable means of the lever by an axial displacement.

- Lids provided with hinged locks of this type are used as closures for unpressurised and pressurised con tainers. It is a feature of this known hinged lock that the lid may be opened and closed without recourse to tools.

However, it is a disadvantage of the known type of hinged lock that, if a residual positive pressure exists inside the container when the lid is unlocked, the lid may be blown or flung ope n,- for example upwards, by the prevailing residual pressure, which may cause injury to the operative.

It is an object of the invention to provide a hinged lock for a lid of the aforementioned type, which may be. utilised with pressurized containers whilst avoiding the latter disadvantage.

To overcome the disadvantage, according to the invention, there is provided a hinged lock wherein:

a) a catch is pivotally arranged on the pivotable part of the locking lever, b) the catch comprises a lever, b.l.) one extremity of the catch has a thumb rest or the like, b.2.) the other extremity of the catch has a cranked catch projection, b.2.1) the catch projection bears on a contact or bearing surface carried by or integral with the container or part securable thereto in the closed position, b.2.2) the catch projection impinges on a stop tooth delimiting the contact surface in the open position, and b.2.3) the catch projection is spring biased against the contact or bearing surface.

The essence if the present invention consequently consists in that the safety system prevents the lid from being opened completely. The safety system initially allows the lid to be opened by a small amount to provide a crack or small gap, so that any residual pressure which may still be present in the container may escape through this crack, whereafterthe lid may be opened completely after releasing,retaining means. The present invention thus combines the advantages of known hinged locks, namely the possibility of opening and closing a lid without a tool, with the features of a safety system which basically comprises a spring-loaded catch which is situated in the pivotal range of the locking lever, and which prevents the locking lever from being pivoted 1 C, e Z; 1 completely into its open or released position.

The catch described may be constructed either an an one-armed or twoarmed lever, and the catch projection of the catch is arranged to strike against an associated stop surface fixed to or integral with the container upon opening of the locking lever, so that the 1 tter lever may be opened only along a particular pivotal trajectory, the lid thereby equally being pre vented from being opened beyond a particular amount to provide a gap which is just large enough to allow any residual positive pressure possibly still present in the container to escape to the outside through this gap.

The stop surface fixed to the container and intended to be struck by the lever after describing a particular opening trajectory, may be situated in the region of an encircling flange of the lid, for this purpose. The lid itself may have a variety of configurations, for example it may be in the form of a cylindrical plate hingedly connected to a bearing flange or a welded-on connector. Alternatively, the lid may be constructed in the form of a domed cover welded into ap encircling lid annulus, securing or hinge-forming lugs, and a control tooth or teeth.,being welded directly to the lid annulus.

The configuration, nature and dimensioning of the lid are not material to the present invention. All that is necessary is the hinged lock embodying the invention may be operated without a tool, and that the hinged lock includes a safety system which only allows the lid to be opened by a particular angle, and initially prevents,the lid from being completely opened.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a section through a lid and hinged lock arrangement embodying the invention, on the line I-I in Figure 2, and illustrating two different flange configurations; Figure 2 is a plan view of the lid and lock arrangement, in the direction of the arrow II in Figure 1 Figure 3 is a side view of the arrangement shown in Figure 1, with the lid closed; Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view of the arrangement with thelid closed, corresponding to Figure 3; Tigure 5 is a side view of the arrangement with the lid partially opened (i.e. in its safety position); - Figure 6 is a fragmentary plan view of the arrange... ent with the lid partially open, corresponding to Figure 5. 20 Figure 7 is a side view of the arrangement with the safety system freed, and with the lid being free to open; Figure 8 is a side view of the arrangement with the lid opened; 25 Figure 9 is a section through an alternative embodiment, on the line IX-IX in Figure 10, in which the lid is formed as a domed cover situated on an encircling sealing ring; and Figure 10 is a plan view of the arrangement shown in Figure 9.

p t Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the lid and hinged lock arrangement includes a lid 3 mounted on a flange 1, which is, in turn, fastened to a container (not shown), the container having an appropriate opening which is covered by the lid 3 and the encircling flange 1. The flange may be fastened to the container in various ways, and two alternatives are illustrated in the upper halves and lower halves respectively of Figures 1 and 2. In a first alternative (upper halves of the Figures) the flange 1 is attached to the container by screws (not shown) located in bores 23 (Figure 2) in the flange. In a second alternative (lower halves of the Figures) a connector 2, which is welded into the container, is welded to the underside of the flange 1 (Figure 1).

The lid and hinged lock arrangement is shown on its side in Figure 1 i.e. with the flange 1 in a vertical plane, although it will be appreciated that, in uperation, the arrangement will normally be disposed with the flange generally horizontally and opening downwardly. Positional terms referred to herein, such as "upwardly","downwardly", "vertical", horizontal", etc are intended to relate to the latter normal operative position of the arrangement.

Two mutually spaced bearing plates 7 are welded 25- on to the encircling flange I by seam welds 24, the bearing plates 7 facing each other and being of identical configuration.

Formed in the two bearing plates 7 are mutually opposed and aligned bores traversed by a bolt or pin 10 which is secured against axial displacement, at each end, 1 by a washer 16 and split pin 17 or the iike.

The lid 3 itself is rigidly attached to a carrier 4 which is welded on to the upper side of the lid and forms a beating element for the lid. A bolt or pin 10 passes through one end of this bearing element and through a further pair of bearing plates 8, welded to the flange 1, and is secured against axial displacement, at each end, by a split pin and washer or the like. The pin 10 thus forms a pivot bearing for the lid 3.

A groove is turned in the lid 3, in which an 0-ring seal 13 is installed. The seal 13 may be formed from various different materials, such as "Viton" or "FPM/Perbunan", depending on the use to which the container is to be put. The seal 13 is attached to the lid 3, and forms a sealing seat, either with the inner wall of the flange 1 in the alternative shown in the upper half of Figure 1, or with the inner wall of the welded-on connector 2 in the alternative shown in the lower half of Figure 1.

The locking mechanism of the lid 3 is construc ted as follows:

A lever 5 is pivotally journalled between the mutually opposed bearing-plates 7 via -Lhe pin 10.

The lever is provided, concentric with the pin 10, with a control cam 25 which comprises a concentric or curved portion 25a, as well as a concave incised or notched portion 25b which has its inward part lying closer to the pin 10 than the adjacent regions of the curved portion 25a.

The lever 5 and/or one or both bearing plates d 1 p moreover, has a bore 27 traversed by a locking bolt 9, the locking bolt 9 being situated above the carrier 4. The locking bolt 9 is cranked or angled and has an-arm 9a which projects upwards in the condition of the locking mechanism in Figures 1 and 2. As will be apparent from Figures 1 and 2, the thrust force on the lid 3 is transferred to the lower pin 10 and the locking bolt 9 via the carrier 4.

The locking bolt 9 furthermore carries a cylin- drical pin 15, also projecting upwards in the condition of the locking mechanism in Figure 2, and traversing and slidable in a control slot 28 which is formed in a guide tube 12. This guide tube 12 has one end welded to the lefthand bearing plate 7 as viewed in Figure 2, aligned with the bore 27.

A recess 29 or the like is formed in the lever 5, in which a catch 6 is pivotally arranged. The catch 6 is formed as a two- armed lever, a thumb rest 30 or the like being situated on the free end of the rear pivotable part or arm.

The catch 6 is mounted on and pivotable about a fitted recessed-head pin or bolt 14 which is fastened to the lever 5.

The catch 6 is spring-biased in a clockwise direction, i.e. in the direction of the arrow 26 in Figure 1, by means of a spring 18, such as a cantelever or hair-pin type of spring, to urge the lower front edge of acranked catch projection 31 against a stop surface 32 of one of the bearing plates 7. The stop surface 32 includes-a chamfered surface region 46 merging into a generally horizontal surface region 47, a stop shoulder 1 f -B- or tooth 36 being located at the end of, i.e. delimiting, the horizontal surface region 47 remote from the chamfered surface region 46.

As shown in the upper half of Figure 2, a handle 11 is installed on the carrier 4 so that the lid 3 may be manually pivoted upwards.

The following operations are necessary to open the lid, And will be described with reference to Figures 3 to 8.

The person operating the hinged locking mechanism stands over the bearing plates 7.

With reference to Figures 2 to 4, the arm 9a of the locking bolt 9 will initially be in, or approach., a horizontal position with the cylindrical pin 15 engaged in the generally vertical branch of the control slot 28 as shown in Figure 4. The operative grasps the arm 9a in his hand and pulls the arm 9a in the direction of the arrow 34 (Figure 3), into a vertical position,turning the locking bolt 9 so that the cylin- drical pin 15 is disengaged from the generally vertical branch of the control slot 28.

The cylindrical pin 15 is then situated in the position shown in Figure 2, i.e. in the horizontal part of the control slot 28. The arm 9a of the locking bolt 9 is then moved outwards in the direction of the arrow 33 (Figure 4), so that the end of the locking bolt 9 which is opposite the arm 9a is disengaged from the lever 5 (Figure 6).

The operative then grasps the lever 5 with the right hand, and pivots the same upwards in the direction d r 14 1 C:

of the arrow 26 fFigure 5). The permitted angle of Pivotal displacement of the lever 5 may amount to 450 for this purpose.

- During the pivotal displacement of the lever 5 in the direction of the arrow 26, the lower edge of the catch projection 31 of the spring-loaded catch 6 contacts or comes into contact with the oppositely situated bearing or stop surface 32 of the associated bearing -plate 7,and slides (upwards as viewed in Figure 1) in the direction of the arrow 35, until the catch projection 31 strikes the stop tooth or shoulder 36 of the bearing plate 7 (Figure 5). The catch projection 31 may initially contact the chamfered surface region 46 of the bearing surface 32 in the closed condition of the lever 5, and slide up this surface and onto and across the horizontal surface region 47 during pivotal movement of the lever 5.

A control projection or tooth 37 is fixed to the carrier 4. In another embodiment as shown in Figure 9, this control tooth 37 may be welded to an encircling or grilr annular flangec/ 0 the lid, or may be formed in one piece with the carrier.

In the closed position shown. in Figures 1 and - 3, the control tooth 37 engages in the notch or concave portion 25b of the control cam 25 on the lever 5.

During the aforementioned initial pivotal displacement in the direction of the arrow 26, the concentric portion 2 5a cooperates with the control tooth 37 and thereby lifts the carrier 4 with the lid 3 in the direction of the-arrow 38 (Figure 1), thereby creating a small gap between the 0-ring seal 13 and the associated recess in the flange 1 or connector 2 as shown in Figure 5. At the same time, the bore 27 (Figure 1), or a semicircular recess 41 (Figure 8), in the pivotable part of the lever 5, is disengaged from the locking bolt 9.

Any residual pressure which may still exist in the container is then vented through this small annular gap whilst the lid 3 is secured against being flung upwards due to such pressure, because the catch projection 31 of the catch 6 is necessarily held in contact with the stop shoulder 36 by the bias spring 18.

After the operative has grasped the handle 11 with his ieft hand, he may depress the thumb rest 30 of the catch 6 with the same hand, so that the catch 6 is pivoted in the direction of the arrow 39 (Figure 7) against the force of the bias spring 18, so that the catch projection 31 is disengaged from the stop shoulder 36.

The lever 5 may then be pivoted further in the direction of arrow 26, e.g. to the 900 position, dis- engaging the tooth 37 from the control slot 25, and allowing the lid to be pivoted into its fully open position by lifting the handle 11 (Figure 8).

Provision may also be made, as shown in Figure 2, for a stopper 21 provided with a seal 22 to be installed in the surface of the lid 3. After removal of this stopper, it is possible to gain access to an underlying adjacent coupling (not shown), making it possible to screw in a pressure gauge, a venting valve.or analogous elements. If required, the lid of the embodiment shown in Figures 9 and 10 may be provided with a similar stopper 1 1 p 1 1 lt, i and seal.

Figures'9 and 10 show an embodiment in whi ch the lid 3 is shown as a domed cover 48. The upper halves of Figures 1 and 2 show the lid 3 encircled by a bearing flange 1, whereas the lower halves of these Figures show the flange with the welded-on connector 2 and these alternatives may be applied to the embodiment of Figures 9 and 10. According to-Figures 9 and 10, the domed lid or cover 48 is welded into an encircling carrier, -10 lid flange or annulus 49, the latter annulus 49 having -securing or hinge lugs 50 and the control tooth 37 welded directly to it. The handle 11 for opening the domedcover 48 may be welded to the lid annulus 49.

The Figures show, by way of example a VD-1700 15 lid with a rated pressure of up to PN 16.

The lid may be produced from austenitic steels (V2A, V4A, etc.) 1 1

Claims

1. A hinged lock for a lid which is pivotally mounted on a part of a container or on a part intended to be secured to a container, first control means being disposed at or adjacent a free pivotable extremity of the lid, which in the closed position of the lid engages b inoc second control means, the second control meansas iated locking with a rotatable part of a/lever pivotally installed on the container or part securable thereto, which has locking bolt-engageable means which, in the closed position,is engaged by a locking bolt situated on the lid, the locking bolt being disengageable from the locking bolt-engageable means of the lever by axial displacement,wherein a safety system having the following features is provided which is operable to pre vent the lid from being flung open under the influence of any residual pressure existing in the container:

a) a catch is pivotally arranged on the pivotable part of the locking lever, b) the catch comprises a lever, b.1) a manually engageable portion is provided at or adjacent one end of the catch, b.2) a catch projection is provided at or adjacent the other end of the catch, b.

2.1.) the catch projection cooperates with a bearing surface carried by the container or part secur able thereto, in the closed position, b.2.2.) the catch projection cooperates with a stop delimiting the bearing surface, in the open position,and b.2.3.) the catch projection is spring biased against the bearing surface.

Z1 t V 11 1 2. A hinged lock according to claim 1, wherein the first control me.ans comprises a tooth secured to the lid, and the second control means comprises a recess or concave surface of a control cam forming part of the locking lever,. and wherein the locking bolt-engageable means comprises a recess or excision in the underside of the locking lever.

3. A hinged lock according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the bearing surface has a chamfered surface region on which the catch projection rests in the closed position of the lever, dnd wherein the chamfered surface region merges into a generally horizontal surface region, the extremity of which, remote from the chamfered region, has the stop situated thereon.

4. A hinged lock according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein-the spring-biassed catch is formed as a one or two-armed lever, whereof the freely pivotable part of the latter lever has a marucally engageable portion conprising a thurrb rest arranged on it, opposite a cranked catch projection.

5. A-hinged lock according to any preceding claim, wherein the catch is situated in a recess or the like in the locking lever.

6. A hinged lock according to any preceding claimp wherein the bearing surface provided with the stop is formed on the upper side of one of a pair of mutually spaced, opposed bearing plates, the bearing plates supporting a pin or bolt which forms a pivot bearing for tne locking lever.

7. A hinged lock according to claim 5, wherein the bearing plates serve to achieve lid closure safety, and have the following features: c) the bearing plates are provided with mutually aligned bores, 5 d) a guide tube having an internal passage forming an axial extension of the bores is fastened at one end to the outer side of one bearing plate, e) the locking bolt is axially displaceable in and passes through the guide tube and the bores, 10 e.1) the locking bolt carries a generally radial cylindrical pin on its outer circumference, e. 2 the cylindrical pin engages in a cam slot or the like in the wall of the guide tube and is slidably guided by said slot, e.3) the cam slot includes a portion extending generally in the axial direction of the locking bolt, and a portion extending generally perpendicularly thereto, e.4) the locking bolt has an angled portion formed as a handle, 20 f) the cylindrical pin is engageable with and disengageable from the perpendicular portion of the cam slot by rotation of the locking bolt, and g) the locking bolt is engageable with and disengageable from one or both of the mutually aligned bores in the bearing plates by axial displacement of the locking bolt.

8. - A hinged lock according to any preceding claim, including a bearing flange which is connected or connectable to the container by means of screw connections arranged peripherally around the.flange.

1 11 p I.

1;

9. A hinged lock according to any of claims 1 to 7, including-a connqctor which is connected or connectable to the container, the connector extending radially into the container, or being intended to extend radially into the container, and being secured or securable thereto by welding.

10. A hinged lock according to any preceding claim, wherein the lid includes a domed cover provided with, for example welded into, an encircling lid annulus.

11. A hinged lock according to claim 10, wherein lugs for Pivotally mounting the lid as well as the first control means ate secured to, for example welded directly to the encircling lid annulus.

12. A hinged lock and.lid arrangement, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 8 of the accompanying drawings.

13. A hinged lock and lid arrangement, substantially -as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 9 and 10 of the accompanying drawings.

14. A container provided with a hinged lock or hinged lock and_lid arrangement according to any pre ceding claim.