JP4410116B2 - Lock mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a lock mechanism used when the door is rotated between an open position and a closed position with respect to a corresponding surface of the main body (for example, an operation surface such as an opening or a switch).

  In a dishwasher, etc., as exemplified in Patent Document 1, the main body forms a relatively large opening for taking in and out of tableware, and it becomes heavier if there is only one door (door). Since it lacks, it is divided into multiple parts such as an upper door and a lower door. The upper door and the lower door are opened / closed by opening / closing one of the gears by connecting the gears provided on the hinges for rotatably supporting the doors and the gears by an interlocking chain. This is a configuration. Each door is held in a closed position with respect to the main body by a lock mechanism. The lock mechanism is configured such that a claw member (lock claw) protruding from the inner surface of each door is engaged with a window portion of a lock plate provided on the main body side and urged in one direction, thereby causing each door to move to the main body. Keep watertight on the side. Further, a handle and a release lever are provided on the lower door. When each door is opened, the lock lever is lowered against the urging force to release the engagement of the claw member by rotating the release lever when grasping the handle.

JP 2001-327453 A

  The above-described conventional structure has the following problems. First, in the closing operation of the door, when the door becomes large or heavy, a pressing force is applied to the door at a stage where the door has not yet been rotated to the closed position or at a stage where the closed position is not held by the lock mechanism. I want to make sure to eliminate such troubles because they can be released. As a countermeasure, for example, when the door is rotated halfway to the closed position, a mechanism that is automatically pulled in and retained is used as a lock mechanism. Further, in the structure in which the door is divided, the conventional gear and the interlocking chain are large and expensive, so it is desirable to open and close the other in conjunction with a simpler structure by opening and closing the other.

  The object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems, and when the door is closed halfway as a lock mechanism, it can also be used as a mechanism that automatically retracts to the closed position, thereby improving the door opening / closing operability. Or to ensure that an incomplete closed state is resolved.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is used when the door is turned to the open position and the closed position with respect to the corresponding surface of the main body, and is operated by a claw member (release lever or the like) provided on the door. In a lock mechanism that keeps the door in a closed position in a releasably engaged state with a claw member), a stopper that is slidably disposed on the main body side and engages / disengages with the claw member, and for rotating the door A movable member that moves in conjunction with each other; an arm that is pivotally supported on the main body side to operatively connect the stopper and the movable member; and a biasing member that biases the stopper, and the stopper opens the door. In the process of rotating from the position to the middle of the closed position, the claw member is slid in the direction protruding from the main body through the movable member and the arm and while increasing the urging force of the urging member. The biasing member after being engaged with The slide has been the door in the opposite direction is characterized by pulling the closed position by.

The above locking mechanism has both the action of the stopper engaging with the claw member to keep the door in the closed position and the action of automatically pulling the door to the closed position after the door is turned halfway in the closing direction. . The latter pull-in action is such that when the door is rotated in the closing direction, the stopper is slid in the direction protruding from the corresponding surface of the main body via the movable member and the arm, so that the door reaches the closed position, that is, the door. After being engaged with the claw member on the door side in the half-open state, it is slid in the reverse direction by the biasing force of the biasing member, and the door is pulled from the half-open state to the closed position by the sliding.
In the present invention described above, the movable member has a boss portion, the arm is operatively connected to the stopper, and the second arm pressed against the boss portion of the movable member. It has an arm (Claim 2), has a base attached to the main body, and the stopper, the arm, and the biasing member are arranged on the base (Claim 3). ), The arm has a damper that meshes with a tooth portion provided on the base and brakes the movement of the door when it is retracted (Claim 4), and the door is divided into a lower door and an upper door. In addition, it is preferable that the lower door and the upper door can be opened and closed simultaneously by being connected by the movable member (Claim 5).

The locking mechanism of the present invention can have the following advantages.
-In invention of Claim 1, since the holding | maintenance effect | action and the drawing-in effect | action are combined, the opening / closing operability of a door can be improved. Specifically, for example, when the door is rotated halfway in the closing direction, it is automatically pulled to the closed position thereafter, so that the door is not inadvertently incompletely closed, and the door is energized. Since it is pulled in by the urging force of the member and held in the closed position, the adhesion to the main body and the sealing performance are easily improved.
In the invention of claim 2, for example, the stopper can be simplified as a structure that slides in a protruding direction from the corresponding surface of the main body in conjunction with the rotation of the door from the open position to the closed position.
-In invention of Claim 3, since the main member is integrated in the base and unitized, it becomes the thing excellent in the handleability, the incorporating property to a main body, etc.
In the invention of claim 4, for example, even if the urging force of the urging member is increased, a high-class feeling can be imparted because the door pull-in speed is braked by the damper.
-In invention of Claim 5, it can implement more simply than patent document 1 as a structure which divides | segments a door and opens and closes each door synchronously.

  The best mode of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 to 6 schematically show the operation when the lock mechanism of the invention is applied. 7 to 9 are enlarged views of essential parts shown in the states of FIGS. 2 to 4 in order to clarify the configuration of the locking mechanism. 10-14 is a single-piece | unit structure figure which shows the member which comprises the said locking mechanism. For easy understanding on the drawings, the main body and the door (the lower door and the upper door) are indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIGS. 1 to 6, and the movable member is indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIGS. 7 to 9. In the following description, after describing the structure and assembly, the opening / closing operation will be described in detail.

(Structure) The lock mechanism of the present invention is used when the door 8 is pivotally switched between an open position and a closed position with respect to a corresponding surface of the main body 7 (for example, an operation surface of a housing, an opening of a case, a switch, etc.) The target is to keep the door 8 in the closed position in a releasably engaged state with the claw member 6 provided on the door 8. As a member structure, the base 1 attached to the side wall of the main body 7, the arm 2 pivotally supported on the surface of the base 1, the stopper 3 that is operatively connected to the arm 2 and engages / disengages with the claw member 6, and the rotation of the door 8. A movable member 4 that can move in conjunction with the arm 2 and press the arm 2, a biasing member 5 that acts on the stopper 3, and the like are provided. The stopper 3 protrudes from the main body 7 through the movable member 4 and the arm 2 while increasing the biasing force of the biasing member 5 in the process of rotating the door 8 from the open position to the middle of the closed position. After sliding in the direction and engaging with the claw member 6, the door 8 is pulled to the closed position by sliding in the reverse direction by the biasing force of the biasing member 5.

  Here, the main body 7 is assumed to be a dishwasher, but may be a device (housing or case) such as an electronic device. The main body 7 is formed in a container shape that is partitioned by both side walls, upper and lower walls, and a back wall and has a front opening, and is provided in a state of projecting from a lower frame portion of a substantially rectangular frame that borders the front opening. In addition, a bracket 7a for pivotally supporting a lower door 8A described later is provided.

  The door 8 is a type in which the door 8 is pivotally switched between an open position and a closed position with respect to the corresponding surface of the main body 7, and is divided into a lower door 8A and an upper lid 8B in the embodiment, but one door may be used. The lower door 8A is pivotally supported via a shaft 8c with respect to the bracket 7a, and has connecting pieces 8d projecting on both lower sides of the back surface. The upper lid 8B has a substantially U-shaped connecting piece 8e projecting on both sides of the back surface, and is rotatable via a shaft 8f with respect to a bracket (not shown) attached to the side wall of the main body 7 or the outer surface of the side wall. It is pivotally supported. The lower door 8A and the upper door 8B are connected to each other on the corresponding end side of the movable member 4 so as to be pivotally supported via the shafts 8g and 8h, and open / close the lower door 8A. Thus, the upper door 8B is also opened and closed in conjunction. Further, as schematically shown in FIG. 14, the lower door 8 </ b> A has a claw member 6 and a disengagement lever 30 provided at locations corresponding to the lock mechanism of the present invention. The claw member 6 is pivotally supported with respect to the support portion 31 via a shaft 32, and the hook portion 6a at the tip is passed through the back surface of the lower door 8A and protrudes outward from the hole 8j. It is urged and rotated in the direction of the engagement position by 33. The lever 30 is pushed in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 14 on the base end side with the pivot 34 as a fulcrum. Then, the claw member 6 is pressed counterclockwise by the lever 30 to be disengaged. Note that the claw member 6 and the release lever 30 are not limited to this configuration, and may be, for example, a lock claw and lever configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 or a configuration similar thereto.

  Details of the locking mechanism are as follows. As shown in FIG. 10, the base 1 is a plate material that is provided as a unit by disposing a stopper 3, an arm 2, and an urging member 5 constituting a lock mechanism, and is attached to the outer surface of the main body 7. It is covered with a cover material (not shown) attached to this so as not to be visible. In terms of shape, a frame 10 that is provided on the front side and penetrates the front and rear of the base to form a vertically long hole 10a, an attachment 11 to the main body provided on the front end surface, and the frame 10 A shaft portion 12 projecting on the rear side, a pair of guide rails 13 positioned below the shaft portion 12 and extending in the front-rear direction, a window 14 provided on the upper side of the shaft portion 12, and the window 14 Teeth 15 provided along the edge of the arc-shaped hole, arc-shaped guide groove 16 provided on the rear side with the shaft portion 12 as a fulcrum, and a hook provided at a location extending to the lower rear side. It has a locking part 17 for holding, a projecting wall part 18 for holding provided in the vicinity of the rear side of the window 14, and a plurality of support columns 19 that project from the outer surface of the base and attach the cover material described above. .

  As shown in FIG. 11, the arm 2 includes a first arm portion 21 that is operatively connected to the stopper 3 around a shaft hole 20 fitted in the shaft portion 12, and a boss portion 44 of the movable member 4 described later. The second arm portion 22 that is pressed by 3 and the third arm portion 23 for attaching the damper extend in three directions. A long hole 24 is formed through the first arm portion 21. The second arm portion 22 is connected to the first arm portion 21 and the third arm portion 23 with a step downward, and is projected from the lower surface of the tip to be fitted into the guide groove 16. have. The third arm portion extends to the opposite side at the same height as the first arm portion 21, and the damper 26 can be mounted with one touch. The damper 26 is composed of a rotary oil damper or the like, and has an output shaft receiving resistance of a working fluid such as oil filled in the main body 27 and a rotary gear 28 mounted on the output shaft.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the stopper 3 is an elongated member that is disposed between the guide rails 13 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. The stopper 3 is a hook that is provided at the tip and engages with the hook portion 6 a of the claw member 6. A portion 3a, a locking portion 3b for a spring provided at the rear end, a shaft portion 3c which is provided on the outer surface and protrudes in the middle of the front and rear and fits into the long hole 24 of the arm 2, and is provided at both side edges. And a stepped fitting portion 3d.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 13, the movable member 4 is composed of an elongated straight plate for a link that operatively connects the connecting piece 8 d of the lower door 8 </ b> A and the connecting piece 8 e of the upper lid 8 </ b> B, and the second of the arm 2. A boss portion 44 that presses the arm portion 22 is provided. The boss portion 44 is provided on a plate piece 40 attached to the movable member 4 via a screw 43. That is, the plate piece 40 forms a positioning groove 41 provided on the upper surface on one side and a recess 42 provided on the lower surface on the other side. A shaft-like boss portion 44 is disposed in the recess 42 so as to be swingable up and down via a spring member 45. That is, the boss portion 44 is urged in a direction protruding from the recess 42 by the urging force of the spring member 45.

(Assembly) Next, an operation example for assembling the arm 2, the stopper 3, and the urging member 4 to the base 1 will be described. In this operation, first, the stopper 3 is fitted to the base 1 slidably back and forth between the guide rail 13 and the guide rail 13 from the rear side through the hole 10a of the frame portion 10. Thereafter, the biasing member 5 has one end 5 a locked to the locking portion 17 and the other end 5 b locked to the locking portion 3 b of the stopper 3. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the stopper 3 is slid rearward by the urging force of the urging member 5 until the stepped fitting portion 3 d in FIG. 12 abuts against the front end surface of the guide rail 13 and is regulated. Thus, the lock position of the lid 8 (lower lid 8A) can be held. Next, the arm 2 inserts the shaft portion 3 c of the stopper 3 into the elongated hole 24 of the first arm portion 21, inserts the protrusion 25 of the second arm portion 22 into the base side guide groove 16, and rotates the damper 26. By fitting the shaft portion 12 into the shaft hole 20 so as to mesh the gear 28 with the tooth portion 15, the gear 28 is assembled so as to be rotatable by a predetermined angle with respect to the base 1.

  In this way, the lock mechanism of the present invention is assembled to the main body 7 as a unit product in which each member is assembled to the base 1. In this assembling, after the base 1 is attached to the side surface of the main body 7 with screws or the like, the connecting piece 8d of the lower door 8A and the connecting piece 8e of the upper lid 8B are connected via the movable member 4, thereby the locking mechanism. Functions as follows. The main body 7 is provided with the above-described cover after the above locking mechanism and the movable member 4 are disposed.

(Operation) The operation of the lock mechanism described above will be described with reference to FIGS.
1) FIG. 1 shows the open position of the door in which both the lower door 8A and the upper door 8B are fully opened. In this open position, the stopper 3 receives the urging force of the urging member 5 and is slid toward the back side of the main body to be in the locked position or the retracted position, and the arm 2 is in the elongated hole 24 of the first arm portion 21 with respect to the stopper 3. The boss portion 44 of the movable member 4 is in non-contact, that is, not connected to the arm 2 (second arm portion 22).
2) FIG. 2 and FIG. 7 show a process in which the lower door 8A is rotated by being pushed from the open position to the close direction with the shaft 8c as a fulcrum. In this structure, when the lower door 8A is rotated in the closing direction, the upper door 8B is rotated in the closing direction with the shaft 8f as a fulcrum via the movable member 4. Further, when the movable member 4 is moved obliquely downward in synchronization with the rotation of the lower door 8 </ b> A, the boss portion 44 presses the tip side corresponding portion of the second arm portion 22. Then, the arm 2 is rotated clockwise with the shaft portion 12 as a fulcrum. In this rotation, the protrusion 22 slides along the guide groove 16, and the stopper 3 is pushed and slid by the first arm portion 21 with the shaft 3 c fitted into the elongated hole 24.

3) In FIGS. 3 and 8, the stopper 3 increases the urging force of the urging member 5 through the first arm portion 21 of the arm 2 and the like by further rotating the lower door 8A in the closing direction. And the state immediately before being engaged with the claw member 6 on the lower door side. Further, in this structure, as can be seen from FIGS. 7 to 9, in the process in which the lower door 8 </ b> A is rotated in the closing direction in synchronization with the upper door 8 </ b> B, the rotating gear 28 of the damper 26 is the base side tooth portion 15. And the rotation about the shaft portion 12 of the arm 2 as a fulcrum is braked through the meshing, and the sliding of the stopper 3 is moderated by the braking. As a result, the lower door 8A and the upper door 8B are also braked. At this time, the rotation is switched to the closed position.

4) FIG. 4 and FIG. 9 show a state in which the boss portion 44 exceeds the distal end surface of the second arm portion 22 of the arm 2 due to the downward movement of the movable member 4 thereafter. In this structure, when the boss portion 44 is detached from the second arm portion 22 and the movable member 4 is disconnected from the arm 2, the stopper 3 is not subjected to the restricting action of the arm 2 and the biasing member 5 is attached. It is slid backward by the force. Thus, the lower door 8A is switched to the closed position shown in FIG. 5 while being automatically slid rearward by the urging force of the urging member 5 with the stopper 3 engaged with the claw member 6. It is done. Of course, the upper door 8B is also turned through the movable member 4 in the closing direction with the shaft 8f as a fulcrum and switched to the closed position. Further, the lower door 8A and the upper door 8B are held with a force corresponding to the pulling force because the stopper 3 is pulled rearward by the biasing member 4 in the closed position. In such an operation, since the door 8 (the lower door 8A and the upper door 8B) is simply pushed in the closing direction from the open position and is always drawn and held to the closed position, The possibility of starting the cleaning of the tableware in an incompletely closed state can be eliminated, and the door side sealability and adhesion to the main body 7 can be easily maintained reliably.

6) In FIG. 6, in order to open the door again from the closed position in FIG. 5, the lever 30 shown in FIG. 14 is pushed to operate the claw member 6 (the hook portion 6a) against the stopper 3 (the hook portion 3a). The process of releasing the engagement and rotating the lower door 8A downward is shown. In this opening operation, the movable member 4 is moved obliquely upward, and the boss portion 44 gets over the tip of the second arm portion 22 of the arm 2 and moves away from the second arm portion 22 as shown in FIG. The door 8 (lower door 8A and upper door 8B) is finally switched from the state shown in FIG. 2 to the open position shown in FIG. In this structure, the boss portion 44 is arranged so as to be able to swing up and down via the spring member 45 with respect to the concave portion 42 so that the boss portion 44 can easily get over the tip of the second arm portion 22. Is formed in an inclined state (the lower end of the tip is thinner than the upper side of the tip).

  As described above, the lock mechanism of the present invention can be used in a relatively simple manner as a mechanism for automatically retracting the door to the closed position after closing the door halfway by eliminating the problems mentioned in the problem. Of course, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the details of each member can be variously changed. As an example, the damper 26 can be omitted, or the boss portion 44 can be formed integrally with the movable member 4.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the door opening and closing (open position) by the locking mechanism of invention form. It is a schematic diagram which shows the process in which the said door is rotated to the closing direction. It is a schematic diagram when the said door is further rotated and a nail | claw member is engaged with the stopper. It is a schematic diagram when the said door begins to be drawn automatically in the closing direction. It is a schematic diagram which shows the state by which the said door was rotated and hold | maintained to the closed position. It is a schematic diagram which shows the process in which the said door is rotated to the opening direction. It is a principal part enlarged view which shows the said locking mechanism in the state of FIG. It is a principal part enlarged view which shows the said locking mechanism in the state of FIG. It is a principal part enlarged view which shows the said locking mechanism in the state of FIG. (A)-(c) is the front and side which show the base of the said locking mechanism, and an AA sectional view. (A), (b) is the plane and side view which show the arm of the said locking mechanism. It is a top view which shows the stopper of the said locking mechanism. (A), (b) is the plane which shows the movable member of the said locking mechanism, and a BB sectional drawing. It is a block diagram which shows typically the nail | claw member by the side of a door.

Explanation of symbols

1 ... Base (12 is a shaft, 13 guide rail, 15 teeth, 16 is a guide groove)
2 ... arm (20 is a shaft hole, 21 is a first arm, 22 is a second arm, and 23 is a third arm)
3. Stopper (3a is hook part, 3b is locking part)
4 ... movable member (44 is a boss)
5 ... Biasing member 6 ... Claw member (6a is a hook part)
7 ... Main body 8 ... Door (8A is the lower door, 8B is the upper door)
26 ... Damper (27 is the main body, 28 is the rotating gear)
30 ... Release lever

Claims (5)

In a lock mechanism that is used when the door is pivotally switched between the open position and the closed position with respect to the corresponding surface of the main body, and that keeps the door in the closed position in a releasably engaged state with a claw member provided on the door ,
A stopper that is slidably disposed on the main body side and engages / disengages with the claw member, a movable member that moves in conjunction with rotation of the door, and a stopper that is pivotally supported on the main body side and the movable member. An operatively connecting arm, and a biasing member that biases the stopper;
In a process in which the stopper pivots the door from the open position to the middle of the closed position, the stopper protrudes from the main body through the movable member and the arm and while increasing the biasing force of the biasing member. After being slid and engaged with the claw member, the lock mechanism is slid in the reverse direction by the urging force of the urging member to pull the door into the closed position.   The movable member has a boss portion, and the arm has a first arm portion operatively connected to the stopper and a second arm portion pressed by the boss portion of the movable member. Item 2. The locking mechanism according to Item 1.   The lock mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a base attached to the main body, wherein the stopper, the arm, and the urging member are disposed on the base.   The lock mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the arm includes a damper that meshes with a tooth portion provided on the base and brakes the movement of the door when the door is retracted. 5. The door according to claim 1, wherein the door is divided into a lower door and an upper door, and the lower door and the upper door can be opened and closed simultaneously by being connected by the movable member. The locking mechanism described in 1.

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