GB2331549A

GB2331549A - A handle assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2331549A
Application number: GB9724707A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Neil Martin Baker; Stephen John Hall
Original assignee: Securistyle Ltd
Current assignee: Securistyle Ltd
Priority date: 1997-11-21
Filing date: 1997-11-21
Publication date: 1999-05-26
Anticipated expiration: 2017-11-21
Also published as: GB9724707D0; GB2331549B

Abstract

A handle assembly 1 comprising a handle 5 pivotally mounted on a base plate 3, a latch 17 in the base plate 3 biased for engagement with the handle 5 to prevent rotation of the handle 5 relative to the base plate 3 and a button 29 in the handle 5 which, when depressed, disengages the latch 17 from the handle 5 to release the handle 5, wherein the button 29 is received and retained in the handle 5 by means of a snap fit. The snap fit is achieved by means of a resilient leg 41 carrying a barb 43 which engages a projecting wall 45 within a cavity 19 within the housing 5. As a result, a push button 29 can be the last component to be applied to the handle assembly 1 during assembly of the handle assembly 1, thereby allowing a variety of different dead-locking facilities to be included in the handle assembly 1 at the last possible moment.

Description

1 A HANDLE ASSEMBLY 2331549 This invention relates to handle assemblies,

and in particular to a handle assembly which is particularly simple to assemble and allows for a variety of locking mechanisms to be readily inserted into the handle assembly for locking purposes.

Handle assemblies are well known which incorporate a base plate and a handle pivotally mounted on the base plate.

Some handle assemblies incorporate a latch in the handle which, when activated, engages the base plate to prevent relative rotation of the handle about the base plate. If the handle cannot be rotated relative to the base plate, opening of a vent controlled by the handle assembly cannot be achieved. Hence, when the latch is activated, the handle assembly is locked. Various forms of mechanism are used to control the latch, and hence the locking of the handle assembly.

An alternative form of handle assembly incorporates a latch in the base plate which engages the handle for locking purposes. Various forms of mechanism are known for retracting the latch from the handle, thereby releasing the handle assembly to enable a vent to be opened. Such mechanisms, in general, use a push button mounted in the handle for driving the latch out of the handle. Hence, this type of handle assembly is generally known as a "push to unlock" handle assembly. The present invention is directed towards this type of push to unlock handle assembly.

When manufacturing and assembling a push to unlock handle assembly wherein the latch is mounted in the base plate, it has been necessary to insert the push button into the handle of the assembly prior to mounting the handle on the base plate to retain the latch in position. More particularly, the push button has been inserted into the handle through an aperture in the face of the handle which abuts the base plate during use, so that the button can be activated from the top of the handle spaced from the base plate. A support plate is then applied, perhaps by spot 2 welding or rivetting, to the base of the handle to cover part of the aperture, thereby retaining the push button in the handle. Hence, a decision must be taken during the manufacture of the handle assembly as to the nature of the push button to be used in the handle assembly. Furthermore, the assembly process is somewhat complicated and time consuming, and hence expensive.

In view of the foregoing, if a manufacturer or supplier wishes to sell a range of handle assemblies which incorporate push buttons having different locking facilities, it is necessary for the manufacturer/ supplier to store complete products from the various different ranges of handle assemblies. The present invention has been made to overcome this problem by providing a handle assembly which can accommodate a variety of push buttons at a late stage in the assembly process, and wherein the assembly process is extremely simple, and hence cheap.

According to the present invention, there is provided a handle assembly comprising a handle pivotally mounted on a base plate, a latch in the base plate biased for engagement with the handle to prevent rotation of the handle relative to the base plate and a button in the handle which, when depressed, disengages the latch from the handle to release the handle, wherein the button is received and retained in the handle by means of a snap fit.

The term "snap fit" is used herein to mean a fitting arrangement wherein the button is automatically retained in the handle by means of a non-return device which activates upon entry of the button into the handle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a handle assembly comprising a handle pivotally mounted on a base plate and a latch in the base plate biased_for engagement with the handle to prevent rotation of the handle relative to the base plate, the handle including an opening for receiving a button to release the latch, in use, wherein the latch is retained in the handle assembly at all times irrespective of whether a button is in position in the handle.

3 By providing an assembly in which all the components are securely held in position, even though a button of the assembly has not been included, allows a standard assembly to be produced which can accommodate a variety of different types 'of lockable button. Furthermore, such a handle assembly can be assembled particularly easily and hence cheaply.

Although many forms of button may be included in a handle assembly according to the present invention, such as a simple push button, a basic lock push button or a barrel lock push button incorporating a plurality of tumblers, the button preferably includes some form of locking device for preventing depression of the button. This locking device can be released by means of a key, thereby allowing the is handle assembly to be opened.

If a barrel lock is incorporated in the push button, the barrel itself is preferably manufactured from metal. The housing for the barrel is preferably manufactured from plastics material, thereby allowing the housing to include a resilient portion which forms part of the snap fit means for retaining the button in the handle.

The button preferably includes a resilient catch for retaining the button in the handle. More particularly, the resilient catch may engage behind a wall formed within the handle, the catch perhaps being a barb mounted on a leg extending from the button.

Preferably the latch abuts against a shoulder in the handle when the handle assembly is closed. As a result, even if a button is not included in the handle assembly, the latch will not become separated from the handle assembly because it is retained in the handle assembly by means of the shoulder.

Preferably the latch is held within the base plate when the handle assembly is opened. With this in mind, a portion of the handle can remain in contact with the latch whenever the assembly is open, thereby preventing the latch from coming adrift from the base plate.

Although any appropriate biasing means could be used for 4 biasing the latch into contact with the handle, a simple spring may be used. Further, an helical spring may urge the push button away from the latch so that, whenever the handle assembly is closed, the latch automatically engages the handleto lock the handle assembly.

The present invention further provides a method of assembling a handle assembly, comprising inserting a latch into a base plate, the latch being biased out of the base plate, pivotally mounting a handle on the base plate such that the latch can engage the handle to prevent relative rotation of the handle and the base plate and inserting a release button into the handle to release the latch, wherein the release button is retained in the handle by means of a snap catch.

is As will be appreciated, the release button is inserted through an opening formed in an exposed surface of the handle and snaps into position for subsequent depression towards the latch. Following unlocking of the handle assembly, the release button is biased away from the latch but is still retained within the handle.

A specific embodiment of the present invention is now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:F.igures 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D are respectively a plan view, an end view, a side view and the other side view of a handle assembly according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a cross section on the line X-X shown in Figure 1A of a handle assembly according to the present invention which includes a barrel lock; and Figure 3 is a cross-section on the line X-X shown in Figure 1A of a handle assembly according to the present invention which includes a plastic "economy" lock.

With reference to Figures IA, 1B, 1C and ID of the drawings, a handle assembly 1 comprises a base plate 3 and a handle 5. The base plate 3 includes two mounting apertures 7 (as seen in Figures 2 and 3) which receive screws or other fixing devices (not shown) for securing the handle assembly 1 to a vent, such as a window. The handle 5 is pivotally mounted on the base plate 3 via a nose 9 which is received in the base plate 3. If the handle assembly 1 is to be used for driving an espagnolette system, a square drive may be accommodated in the nose 9 such that the square drive is rotated upon movement of the handle 5 relative to the base plate 3. Alternatively, the handle assembly 1 could be of the cockspur type and, if this is the case, the handle 5 would include a nib (not shown) extending from the handle 5 for engaging a keep on an adjacent part of a vent.

The handle 5 includes a body portion 11 and a grip portion 13, the body portion 11 including a stop 15 which abuts the base plate 3 when the handle 5 is in its closed position (shown in Figure 1) overlying the base plate 3. The stop 15 helps to define this closed position by preventing over-closure of the handle 5.

When the handle 5 is in its closed position, a latch 17 projects from the base plate 3 into a cavity 19 in the body portion 11 of the handle 5. The latch 17 is biased into this position by means of a compressed spring 21 housed within the base plate 3. When the latch 17 is active, it prevents rotation of the handle 5 about its nose 9 relative to the base plate 3. The handle assembly 1 is thereby locked.

As can be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the latch 17, when extending into the cavity 19, abuts against a shoulder 23 def ined in a wall of the cavity 19. This shoulder 23 ensures that the latch 17 cannot become separated from the base plate 3 when the handle assembly 1 is closed. Further, a second shoulder 25, formed on the body portion 11 of the handle 5 adjacent the nose 9 of the handle 5, abuts against the upper surface 27 of the latch 17 when the handle assembly 1 is open, thereby retaining the latch 17 within the base plate 3 for all positions of the handle 5 when the handle assembly 1 is open.

A push button 29, forming a portion of a barrel lock, 6 is received by the handle 5 and extends into the cavity 19. A barrel 31 of the barrel lock is accommodated within the push button 29 and can be activated by means of a key 33 to activate or release the barrel lock.

- The push button 29 includes an exposed end which projects from the body portion 11 of the handle 5 for activation by a user. The opposite end of the push button 29 includes a drive head 35 which engages the upper surface 27 of the latch 17 when the push button 29 is depressed. As the push button 29 is depressed, the drive head 35 forces the latch 17 back into the base plate 3, thereby releasing the handle assembly 1. The handle 5 can then be rotated relative to the base plate 3 to open an associated vent.

As can be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the push button 29 is biased by means of a spring 37 away from the latch 17 into an exposed position. The degree of projection of the push button 29 is, however, dictated by a catch 39 which keeps the push button 29 attached to the handle 5. The catch 39 comprises a resilient leg 41 carrying a barb 43 which engages a projecting wall 45 formed in the handle 5. By engaging behind the projecting wall 45, the barb 43 prevents the push button 29 from being released from the handle 5. Furthermore, due to the resiliency of the leg 41, the push button 29 can be introduced into the handle 5 with a snap fit. Hence, since the push button 29 is inserted into the handle 5 through an aperture in the handle 5 spaced from the base plate 3, the push button 29 can be the last component to be added to the handle assembly 1 during assembly of the handle assembly 1. This allows a choice, regarding the type of push button 29 and hence deadlocking device to be included in the handle assembly 1, to be made at the last possible moment.

Turning now to the dead-locking options available for a handle assembly 1 according to the present invention, these are numerous. Furthermore, if desired, the push button 29 could simply not include any dead-locking facility whatsoever. If this is the case, the push button 29 would simply have a blanking plug instead of the barrel 31 and the 7 button 29 can simply be depressed at any time to disengage the latch 17 from the handle 5. Alternatively, some form of dead-locking may be included and two such examples as shown in Figures 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings.

With reference to Figure 2, the barrel 31 is a two tumbler barrel which is housed in the push button 29. When an appropriate key 33 is inserted into the barrel 31, the tumblers are withdrawn to allow the barrel 31 to turn within the push button 29 such that a detent disengages or engages from a recess in the body portion 11 of the handle 5, thereby allowing the push button 29 to be depressed or to be dead-locked. Such a barrel lock is well known and does not need to be described herein in any more detail.

Turning to Figure 3, the barrel 31 included in this embodiment is a simple plastics component which does not include any tumblers. As a result, a multitude of different types of key could be inserted into the barrel 31 and turned to activate or deactivate the detent which locks the push button 29. Some form of key would, however, still be needed, and this would provide a degree of security against unauthorised depression of the push button 29.

As can be seen from Figures 2 and 3, the push button 29 in each case is essentially identical. Furthermore, the push button 29 is manufactured from plastics material and can be molded to receive either form of barrel 31 (as shown in the Figures) or, indeed, many other types of barrel to produce an appropriate barrel lock. Hence, a significant range of handle assemblies 1 according to the present invention can be produced simply by inserting a different type of barrel 31 into a push button 29 prior to applying the resulting push button barrel lock into the handle 5 of the handle assembly 1. As mentioned above, this insertion can be achieved extremely simply by means of a snap fit due to the inclusion of the resilient leg 41 and barb 43 acting as a catch.

Finally, maximum depression of the push button 29 is dictated by a stop surface 47 formed adjacent the resilient leg 41, which surface 47 abuts the projecting wall 45. As a a result, the drive head 35 can be prevented from entering the base plate 3 since, if this were to occur, jamming of the handle assembly 1 could result.

It will of course be understood that the present invention has been described above purely by way of example, and that modifications of detail can be made within the scope of the invention.

9

Claims

1. A handle assembly comprising a handle pivotally mounted on a base plate, a latch in the base plate biased f or engagement with the handle to prevent rotation of the handle relative to the base plate and a button in the handle which, when depressed, disengages the latch f rom the handle to release the handle, wherein the button is received and retained in the handle by means of a snap fit.

2. An assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the button includes a locking device for preventing depression of the button.

3. An assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the locking device is a barrel lock.

4. An assembly as claimed in claim 3, wherein the barrel lock includes a plurality of tumblers.

5. An assembly as claimed in claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the barrel of the barrel -lock is manufactured from metal.

6. An assembly as claimed in claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the barrel of the barrel lock is manufactured primarily from plastics material.

7. An assembly as claimed in any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein the barrel lock includes a housing, made from plastics material.

8. An assembly as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the button includes a resilient catch for retaining the button within the handle.

9. An assembly as claimed in claim 8, wherein the resilient catch engages behind a wall within the handle.

10. An assembly as claimed in claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the resilient catch comprises a barb on a resilient leg.

11. A handle assembly comprising a handle pivotally mounted on a base plate and a latch in the base plate biased for engagement with the handle to prevent rotation of the handle relative to the base plate, the handle including an opening for receiving a button to release the latch, in use, wherein the latch is retained in the handle assembly at all times irrespective of whether a button is in position in the handle.

12. An assembly as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the latch abuts against a shoulder in the handle when the handle assembly is closed.

13. An assembly as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the latch is retained in the base plate when the handle assembly is open.

14. An assembly as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the latch is biased by means of a spring.

15. A handle assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

16. A method of assembling a handle assembly comprising inserting a latch into a base plate, the latch being biased out of the base plate, pivotally mounting a handle on the base plate such that the latch can engage the handle to prevent relative rotation of the handle and the base plate, and inserting a release button into the handle to release the latch, wherein the release button is retained in the handle by means of a snap catch.