US1063466A - Latch mechanism. - Google Patents

Description

J. H. ONEILL & M. T. COLEMAN.

LATCH MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 8, 1912. I 1,063,466, Patented June 3, 1913.

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COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH 60., WASHINGTON, D. L

tl hllTED STATES PATENT omnon.

JAMES H. ONEILL AND MORRIES T. COLEMAN, OF MACEDON, NEW YORK.

LATCH MECHANISM.

1 ,QNESAGQ.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 3, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, JAMES H. ONEILL and Moiuurs T. COLEMAN, citizens of the United States, and residents of Macedon, in the county of Wayne and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Latch Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to latch-mechanism for use in connection with drop-bottom buckets or similar devices, such as are employed for conveying concrete and various materials.

The general object of the invention is to produce a mechanism which shall be simple and durable in construction and convenient in operation.

A more particular object of the invention is to produce a latch-mechanism which will always act positively and certainly to engage, and hold closed, the bottom of the bucket. To this end we employ a latch of such form and construction that it is adapted to swing upwardly against the bottom of the bucket, so as to force the bottom toward closed position, and with this latch we employ positively-acting manually-operable means for so swinging it.

Other objects of the invention, and the features of construction by which they are attained, will be set forth in connection with the following description of the prefer-red embodiment of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing: Figure 1 is a front-elevation of a bucket provided with latch-mechanism embodying the pres ent invent-ion, the bottom of the bucket being released and partly open; Fig. 2 is a front-elevation showing the bottom held in closed position by the latch-mechanism; and Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partly in section, with the mechanism in the same position as in Fig. 2.

The invention is illustrated as applied to a drop-bottom bucket of which the general form is familiar, this bucket comprising a sheet-metal body 5, rectangular in horizontal section, and a fiat bottom 6 which normally closes the lower end of the body. The

bottom 6 is carried by arms 7 pivoted, at 8, to one side of the body, so that the bottom is hinged to the body and may swing downwardly to open the bucket and discharge its contents.

The bottom is normally held in closed position by means of a latch having two fingers 9 which press upwardly against the margin 10 of the bottom, as shown in F igs. 2 and 8. This latch is an integral member comprising, in addition to the fingers 9, trunnions 11 at its ends which have hearings in eyes formed upon straps 12 riveted to the side of the body, and a central crank-portion 18 connecting the trunnions.

The latch is actuated by manually-open able mechanism in the form of a toggle. This mechanism comprises a link 15 pivoted, at its lower end, to the crank 13 by means of a strap 14 inclosing the crank. The strap is sufiiciently loose upon the crank to permit a slight lateral angular movement of the link in addition to its pivotal movement. The upper end of the link is piv-,

oted, by means of a bolt 17, to a hand-lever 16 which, in turn, is pivoted upon a stud 18 supported by a lug 19 on the side of the bucket. The short portion of the hand-lever, between the pivots 17 and 18, is of such length that it acts with the link 15 as a toggle-lever. \Vhen the bottom of the bucket is completely closed, and the fingers 9 of the latch are swung upwardly against the bottom, the toggle occupies the position shown in Fig. 2, in which the pivots are sufficiently beyond the straight-line position to lock the latch in closed position. When the bucket is to be opened it is necessary merely to swing the hand-lever upwardly, raising the crank 13 and lowering the fingers 9 out of engagement with the bottom, whereupon the bottom may swing open by the action of gravity. In closing the bucket again the hand-lever is held in raised position, thus holding the fingers out of the path of the bottom 6 during the closing movement of the latter, and, after the bottom has been swung upwardly to, or approximately to, closed position the hand-lever is again depressed. By this last action the fingers 9 are forced inwardly and upwardly and into engagement with the margin 10 of the bottom. It should be noted that this engagement occurs regardless of the fact that the bottom may not have been already returned completely to closed position against the lower edge of the body of the bucket, and that by the continued downward movement of the hand-lever and upward movement of the fingers the bottom, after such engagement, may be forced positively upward. Acco-rdingly, if any slight obstruction to the full closing of the bottom exists, the positive action of the latch may still force the bottom to closed position. In case such complete closing is prevented by an unyielding obstruction, such as a small stone, the latch may still operate to hold the bottom in its raised position owing to the fact that the toggle has a powerful effect upon the latch even before it reaches straight-line position, and thus the weight of the handlever, acting upon the toggle, will hold the bottom with suflicient security for practical pur poses even when it is prevented from absolutely closing.

. By pivoting the hand-lever to swing in a plane close to, and substantially parallel with, the side of the bucket it is rendered unnecessary for the hand-lever to be swung outwardly and away from the side of the bucket, so that the hand-lever need not project to any great distance from the bucket in any operative position. This is a feature of great value where the bucket is employed for the conveyance of concrete, since it en ables the bucket to be properly discharged and operated in a mold affording little space beyond that necessary for the reception of the bucket.

e claim 1. In a drop-bottom bucket with a hinged bottom, latch-mechanism for holding the bottom closed, said mechanism comprising a latch movably mounted on the body of the bucket and adapted to engage the bottom with an upward movement, a hand-lever pivoted upon the body and arranged to swing in a plane substantially parallel with and close to a side of the body, and a link connecting the latch and the hand-lever and constituting, with the latter, a toggle where by the latch may be forced positively into engagement with the bottom.

2. In a drop-bottom bucket with a hinged bottom, latchmechanism for holding the bottom closed, said mechanism comprising a latch pivoted on the body of the bucket outside of the bottom and adapted to swing upwardly against the bottom so as to force the latter toward closed position, and manuallyoperable mechanism acting positively to swing the latch upwardly.

3. In a drop-bottom bucket with a hinged bottom, latch-mechanism for holding the bottom closed, said mechanism comprising a latch pivoted on the body of the bucket outside of the bottom and adapted to swing upwardly against the bottom so as to force the latter toward closed position, and togglemechanism for actuating the latch positively in said direction, said mechanism including a manually-operable lever pivoted upon the body to swing in a plane substantially parallel with a side of the body.

4. In a drop-bottom bucket with a hinged bottom, latch-mechanism for holding the bottom closed, said mechanism comprising a latch carried by the body and movable out of and into engagement with the bottom in a direction to force the bottom toward closed position, and manually-operable mechanism for actuating the latch positively in said direction.

5. In a drop-bottom bucket with a hinged bottom, latch-mechanism for holding the bottom closed, said mechanism comprising a latch pivoted on the body of the bucket near the lower edge thereof and having a part adapted to swing upwardly into engagement with the bottom and to force the bottom toward closed position, and toggle-mechanism and a hand-lever for actuating the latch, the hand-lever normally acting, through its weight, to force the latch toward its upper position.

JAMES H. ONEILL. MORRIES T. COLEMAN. lVitnesses HLLIAM G. HARP, JOHN L. LANE.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents: each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

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