GB2368879A

GB2368879A - Adjustable keeps

Info

Publication number: GB2368879A
Application number: GB0025380A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Philip Partridge; Kevin Leslie Burrows
Original assignee: Yale Security Products UK Ltd
Current assignee: Security Products UK Ltd
Priority date: 2000-10-17
Filing date: 2000-10-17
Publication date: 2002-05-15
Anticipated expiration: 2020-10-17
Also published as: GB2368879B; GB0025380D0; AU7947101A

Abstract

An adjustable keep (10) for receiving, in use, an end of a shoot bolt comprises a body (11), a shoot bolt receiving element (22) rotatably received in a circular opening (14) in the body, and a headed locking screw (20) received in a further, smaller circular opening (16) in the body. The element (22), which has an offset, i.e. eccentric, shoot bolt receiving opening (26) therein, has a series of angularly spaced cut-outs (25) around part of its exterior surface. The circular opening (14) and the further opening (16) overlap, and the cut-outs (25) are shaped and arranged so that when there is alignment between a cut-out (25) and the further opening (16), the cut-out completes the circular shape of the further opening, and a base surface (25b) of the cut-out continues a shoulder surface (17) of the further opening. In this way the screw (20) can be tightened so that its head (21) is received against the aligned surfaces (17 and 25b) to prevent upward axial movement and also rotation of the element (22). When adjustment of the element (22) is required, to compensate for shoot bolt position variation, the screw is undone, the element (22) rotated as required, bringing another cut-out into alignment with the further opening. The screw is then retightened onto the newly aligned surfaces (17 and 25b).

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO KEEPS This invention relates to a keep, particularly a keep to receive, in use, a vertical shoot bolt of a multi-point lock or a panic exit device.

It is known that a weather seal associated with a door will, over a period of time, weaken, with a consequential reduction in its sealing efficiency.

Typically the seal may change from a circular section to an oval one. To compensate for this sealing deficiency it may, in some instances, be possible to adjust the door in its frame. For a door having a multi-point lock assembly incorporated therein no adjustment of the lock assembly in the door is possible, and moreover adjustment of the door is not an option since this would misalign the upper and lower shoot bolts (rods or bars) with their respective associated set keeps or sockets at the floor and the top of the door frame.

An object of the invention is to overcome the above-mentioned problem.

According to the invention there is provided a keep for receiving, in use, an end of a shoot bolt, the keep comprising a body adapted to be fixed in position relative to the shoot bolt, an element rotatable in a circular opening in the body, and locking means for retaining the element in said opening in a selected angular position, the element having an opening therein, for receiving said end of the shoot bolt, which opening is offset from the axis of rotation of said element.

With this arrangement the element can be angularly adjusted to bring the offset opening for the shoot bolt end into alignment with the altered vertical position of the shoot bolt following door position adjustment to compensate for wear of the weather seal.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a keep of the invention, and Figure 2 is a view like Figure 1, but shows an adjustable element of the keep having been unlocked and lifted out of a body of the keep to permit its adjustment.

A keep of the invention is intended, in use, to receive the end of a vertical shoot bolt of the type normally associated with multi-point locks, or panic exit devices. In the former case the upper and lower shoot bolts are normally received within the door, whilst in the latter case these shoot bolts are normally on the outside of the door at one side thereof. The shoot bolts are typically of a circular-section tube, but they alternatively can be in the form of rods or bars, for example of rectangular cross-section. With a conventional arrangement, the keep for the lower shoot bolt is located in the floor at the bottom of the door, whilst the keep for the upper shoot bolt is secured in a recess or the like in the crosspiece forming the upper part of the door frame.

As described in the introduction, a problem arises with a door fitted with such shoot bolts if its is desired to adjust said door to compensate for a weakening of a weather seal between the door and its frame, since any adjustment of the door relative to the frame will also be relative to the fixed upper and lower keeps, with the result that once the door is adjusted, there will be misalignment between the shoot bolts when extended and their respective upper and lower keeps, so that the ends of the shoot bolts will not enter said keeps. The present invention seeks to overcome this problem by providing an adjustable keep 10 shown in Figures 1 and 2. For convenience the keep 10 will be described hereinafter as floor mounted, but it will be appreciated that an identical adjustable keep would also be provided at the top of the door frame, as described, for the upper shoot bolt.

The keep 10 comprises a body 11 of generally rectangular block-like form, which is intended to be received, in use, in a correspondingly shaped recess in the floor at the door or other wing with which the shoot bolts are associated. To this end, the body is provided with two countersunk screw or bolt holes 12 therethrough, for associated respective screws or bolts to secure the body to the floor, the holes 12 extending downwardly through the body from a flat upper surface 13 thereof.

Within the upper surface 13 of the body is a circular opening or recess 14 which is closed by a flat base surface 15. There is also provided in the base surface 15 a further circular opening 16, which is of relatively small diameter, and which has its centre positioned relative to the centre of the opening 14 such that there is a degree of overlap between the two openings, as shown in Figures I and 2. Typically the degree of overlap at the opening 16 is quite a high percentage of the periphery of the opening 16, for example up to 25%, whilst due to the much greater diameter of the recess 14, the overlap is correspondingly a much smaller percentage of the periphery of the opening 14.

As seen in Figure 2, the opening 14 is stepped down so that its full diameter portion 16a has an axial extent for only approximately one third of the axial extent of the opening 14, this portion 16a terminating inwardly at an annular shoulder 17 which also communicates with the opening 14. In the centre of the shoulder is a circular bore 18 to receive the thread 19 of a self-tapping screw 20 having a domed head 21, as will be described.

Intended to be closely received in the opening 14 is an adjustable shoot bolt receiving element 22. The element 22 has a generally cylindrical exterior surface, but whilst its part 23 which is lowermost in the opening 14, in use, is wholly externally cylindrical, its upper part 24 is slightly outwardly stepped to form a collar, around the external periphery of which are a series of equi-angularly spaced cut-outs 25, the cut-outs 25 extending around half, i. e. 1800 ouf the upper part 24 only. As can be seen from Figure 2, the upper part extends for approximately one third of the axial extent of the element 22 and thus substantially corresponds in axial depth to the axial depth of the portion 16a as will be explained in relation to Figure 1. The body 11 and/or element 22 can be made of any suitable material, for example aluminium, steel, or plastics material, and can be made by any suitable manufacturing process, for example die-casting As can be seen from Figure 1, the element 22, when received in the opening 14, has its upper part 23 as a close fit therein. It can also be seen from Figure I that it is possible to position the element 22 so that a cut-out 25 is disposed at the position where the opening 16 communicates with the opening 14. In this regard it can be seen that each cut-out 25 does in fact form a continuation of the portion 16a and shoulder 17 of the opening 16, the continuation of the portion 16a being formed by a curved inner surface 25a of the cut-out 25, and the shoulder 17 being continued by a base surface 25b of the cut-out 25, this surface 25b lying at the same level as that of the annular shoulder 17 to form a continuous shoulder surface, just as the surfaces 16a and 25a effectively together form a continuous inner cylindrical surface. As shown in Figure 1, the top of the part 23 of the element 22 lies substantially flush with the upper surface 13 of the body 11.

By rotating the element 22, it will be appreciated that it is possible to bring a selected one of the cut-outs 25 to the position of the opening 16 so as to effectively complete the inner cylindrical surface and annular shoulder of this opening. In each of these selected positions of rotation of the element 22, where a cut-out is aligned with the opening 16, the element can be locked in position, against both rotation and also upwards axial movement out of its opening 14, by means of the screw 20 mentioned above. Accordingly when the element 22 is in such a selected adjusted position, the screw is inserted into the opening 16 so that its threaded shank 19 is received into the bore 18, with the screw being tightened so as to cut its own thread. The domed head 21 of the screw has a flat undersurface which engages the composite shoulder formed by the shoulder 17 of opening 16 and the aligned base surface 25b of the cut-out 25. When the screw is fully tightened, it is in the position as shown in Figure 1, with its domed head received slightly below the level of the upper surface 13 and, as mentioned, with its undersurface tight against the shoulder 17 and base surface 25b, the recess provided by the curving of the inner surface 25a allowing the domed head 21 to be screwed down to the position shown. It will be appreciated that in this state, engagement of the head on the base surface 25b not only prevents upwards axial movement of the element 22, but also prevents its rotation, so that it is fixed in this adjusted position.

The element 22 has therein an opening 26 which can extend through all or only part of the element as required. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, this opening is octagonal, each of its eight flat sides 27 lying parallel to the central of the opening, which axis is parallel to, but offset from the central axis of the opening 14. In other words, the octagonal opening 26 is eccentric relative to said opening 14.

As mentioned, the keep is intended for receiving the end of a vertical lower shoot bolt when this is extended in the normal manner under operation of a handle, key or the like, and with the embodiment shown in Figures I and 2, it is intended that the shoot bolt is of circular tube, with its end being receiving in the opening 26 when the shoot bolt is extended, this end being a close fit within the octagonal opening. It will be appreciated that the shape of the opening can be of any suitable form to receive the end of the shoot bolt, which, also as described, need not be in the form of a circular tube. From the above it will be understood that on initial assembly the screw 20 will be fitted as in Figure 1 to lock the element 22 in a selected position such that with the keep secured in position in the floor, the lower shoot bolt will be received cleanly into the opening 26 when it is extended. Thereafter should adjustment of the door be required, as mentioned above, the screw 20 can be undone and removed as shown in Figure 2, thereby allowing the element 22 to be adjusted so that another, selected one of the cut-outs 25 is brought into alignment with the opening 16, such that the position of the offset opening 26 is also adjusted to become aligned with the new adjusted position of the lower shoot bolt, so that when this shoot-bolt is extended, it is again received into the opening 26. Once the element 22 has been correctly adjusted, which may involve some trial and error, the screw 20 is replaced and screwed up so that it again engages the thread in the bore 18 and clamps tightly down onto the composite shoulder formed by the annular shoulder 17 and base surface 25b of the cut-out 25 which is now aligned with the opening 16. It will be appreciated that it may be possible, by use of a suitable tool, angularly to adjust the element 22 whilst it remains in its opening 14, although alternatively it may be more convenient to lift the element out of its opening 14, as shown in Figure 2, adjust it angularly, and then replace it. It will also be appreciated that a corresponding adjustment will be required with the shoot bolt receiving element of a corresponding keep at the top of the door, since the adjustment movement of the upper shoot bolt will be the same for the lower shoot bolt also given that the two shoot bolts are coaxial.

It will be understood that the cut-outs are provided around 180"only of the upper part 24, since after such a half turn, the adjustment repeats. However the cut-outs could be provided around the whole of the periphery of the upper part 24 if required. It is of course possible to provide more cut-outs, and thus arrange them closer together, and in a further alternative arrangement it may be possible to dispense wholly with the cut-outs, the upper part 24 merely providing a continuous flat base surface onto which the underside of the domed head 21 can be tightly screwed in order to prevent both rotation and upwards axial movement of the element 22.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A keep for receiving, in use, an end of a shoot bolt, the keep comprising a body adapted to be fixed in position relative to the shoot bolt, an element rotatable in a circular opening in the body, and locking means for retaining the element in said opening in a selected angular position, the element having an opening therein, for receiving said end of the shoot bolt, which opening is offset from the axis of rotation of said element.
2. A keep as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the locking means comprise a screw having a threaded shank and a head.
3. A keep as claimed in Claim 2, wherein said headed screw is received in a further opening in the body, there being a degree of overlap between said circular opening and said further opening.
4. A keep as claimed in Claim 3, wherein said further opening is stepped down to define a lower part for engagement with said threaded shank of the screw, and a larger diameter upper part, with a shoulder surface therebetween, the screw head being received in said upper part.
5. A keep as claimed in Claim 4, wherein said element has a cylindrical or generally cylindrical exterior surface around which are a plurality of angularly spaced cut-outs, each of which is shaped to form a continuation of said upper part of the further opening where it overlaps with said circular opening, so that when a cut-out is aligned with said further opening, part of said head of the screw is received therein.
6. A keep as claimed in Claim 5, wherein each cut-out is formed with a base surface lying at the same level as that of said shoulder surface of said further opening, so that when the element is selectively adjusted to align said offset opening therein with said end of a shoot bolt, in use, and to align a cutout with said further opening, the screw can be tightened so that its head is received against both said shoulder surface of the further opening and said base surface of the cut-out.
7. A keep as claimed in Claim 5 or Claim 6, wherein said cut-outs are formed in the exterior surface of a collar at the upper end of said element.
8. A keep as claimed in Claim 7, wherein said collar is a close fit in said circular opening in the body.
9. A keep as claimed in any one of Claims 3 to 8, wherein said further opening is circular.
10. A keep as claimed in Claim 4, wherein an exterior surface of said element defines a continuous flat base surface at the level of said shoulder surface of said further opening, so that when the element is adjusted to align said offset opening therein with said end of a shoot bolt, in use, part of said base surface remains aligned with said further opening, and the screw can be tightened so that its head is received against both said shoulder surface of the further opening and said aligned part of the base surface.
11. A keep as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein said offset opening is octagonal, with its sides each lying parallel to the central axis of said offset opening.
12. A keep as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 10, wherein said offset opening is circular, with its central axis parallel to but offset from the central axis of said circular opening.
13. A keep for receiving, in use, an end of a bolt, the keep comprising a body adapted to be fixed in position relative to the bolt, an element rotatable in a circular opening in the body, and locking means for retaining the element in said opening in a selected angular position, the element having an opening therein, for receiving said end of the bolt, which opening is offset from the axis of rotation of said element.
14. A keep for receiving, in use, an end of a shoot bolt substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to, and as shown in the accompanying drawings.