US2656708A - Lock with roller bearing support of bolt - Google Patents

Description

ATTORNEY Oct. 27, 1953 E. R. FREEBERG LOCK WITH ROLLER BEARING SUPPORT OF BOLT Filed April 17, 1950 2 l f J S 4 J 4 R 1: T.\\\\\ I W m5 7 -A w.% 4 NW. T '1 T. RC Marl-50234 h 7 2W MYW E B \\\\v M0 L K a) w v y a, i 2% E a J m m Patented Oct. 27, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LOCK WITH ROLLER BEARING SUPPORT OF BOLT Ernest R. Freeberg, Moline, 111.

Application April 17, 1950, Serial No. 156,372

Claims.

The invention relates to looks. More especially, the invention is designed to reduce the friction encountered by the sliding bolt when the lock is operated.

The usual lock has a bolt that projects from the lock and enters into a slot on a metal plate mounted in the frame of the door. The part of the bolt projecting out of the lock has an inclined surface and a spring in the lock tends to project the end of the bolt outward.

When the door on which the lock is mounted is swung shut, the inclined surface of the bolt hits the edge of the plate on the doorway and this creates an axial component that forces the bolt to move back into the lock against the spring. When the door is closed and the tip of the bolt is over the slot in the plate, the spring must project the bolt forward to hold the door in locked position. If the spring fails to move the bolt outward the door is not locked. Or, if the friction of the bolt is too great, when the door is swung shut the impact will not move the bolt and the door will not slam shut.

The pressure of the plate on the doorway against the inclined end of the bolt not only produces the axial force that is desired but also a force at right angles to the bolt and this force tends to bind the bolt.

Where a, door is opened infrequently or where the lock is rarely used, the surfaces of the bolt, even if originally lubricated, become dry and tend to corrode. This greatly increases the friction and the bolt may not function properly.

It has been proposed to support the bolt on rollers carried in bearings alongside of the bolt but such bearings, due to disuse, tend to stick. The invention interposes a pair of rollers between the bolt and the front and back of the lock respectively. It also provides a novel spacer to keep these rollers in alignment.

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, partly broken away, of a lock embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section along lines 2--2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section along lines 3-3 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section through the housing along lines 4-4 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 shows one of the spacers for the rollers in perspective.

The main body of the lock has a back 2, sides 3 and corner posts 4.

The front plate 5 is attached to the main body by screws 6, which enter drilled and tapped holes as shown at I.

The back 2 and the front plate are provided with key holes 8.

The bolt It extends through an opening 40 in the lock housing wall and the other end of the bolt is supported on a ledge 4| shown in Fig. 4.

One side of the projecting end of the bolt is inclined as shown at 9.

The underside of the bolt is notched at II. If the proper key is inserted in key way 8 the notches in the key will pass by the projections on plate 42 and the key can be turned so that the flat part of the key will engage the notch H and slide the bolt from left to right in Fig. l.

The bolt is also notched at l2 in the other plane and a spring l3 bears against one side, M, of this notch. The spring [3 may be a coil spring mounted on stud ['5 and having one end bearing against the bolt and the other end ll against a shoulder l8 on the housing.

The bolt does not bear directly against the front plate and the back of the housing as is customary. The bolt is recessed at each side as shown at 30 and rollers 20, 2| are interposed between the bolt Ii) and the back of the housing and the front plate.

To keep the rollers in alignment and to keep them properly spaced a spacer plate 22 is placed between the back of the housing and the sliding bolt and another spacer plate 23 between the bolt and the front plate. Each of these plates is pierced and the edges of the pierced hole turned up to form flanges 24 which guide the rollers 20, 2|.

The recesses 30 are of such length that as the bolt moves through its complete stroke it may roll on the rollers 28 but as the bolt approaches the end of its stroke the flange 3! on the bolt will engage the rear flanges 24 on the spacers and thus reposition the rollers should they have become displaced.

The ends of rollers 20 and 2| bear against the rim 32 on the edges of the recesses 30 and also against the ends 33 of the slot between the flanges 24 in the spacers.

The edge 34 of each spacer bears against the edges 35 of the posts 4.

In this manner the spacer spaces the rollers and keeps them parallel and the ends of the rollers keep the spacers lined up.

I claim:

1. In a lock, in combination, a housing having parallel inside wall faces, an axially movable bolt projecting through one end of the housing, parallel flat areas each recessed on one of two opposite faces of the bolt, rollers contacting the recessed areas and the inside of the housing in a manner to leave a space between the housing and the non-recessed surface of the bolt, two metal spacer plates each having two parallel slots placed between said bolt and housing so that the rollers are within the slots and kept parallel and normal to the axis of the bolt, downturned edges of said slots in said spacer plates extendin into said recesses to maintain. the spacer in alignment with the bolt and to reposition the spacers and rollers at the end of the travel of the bolt.

2. In a lock, in combination, a bolt having depressed areas on opposite sides whose bottom surfaces are parallel to each other, a ridge extending longitudinally of the bolt along the sideof each of said areas, a roller whose end is guided by a ridge in each depression, a housing having parallel inside surfaces along which said'rollers roll, spacer plates free to move longitudinally between said bolt and housing having slots, each slot surrounding one roller and serving to space and align the rollers between the bolt and one surface of the housing.

3. In a lock, in combination, a hollow housing having a rectangular slot, an axially movable bolt projecting through said slot and guided by one end wall of the housing, a raised portion in said housing guiding the opposite side of the rear end of said bolt, a notch in said bolt for pushing the. bolt rearward, a cover for said housing, a recessed area in each of the faces of the bolt parallel to the bottom of the housing, rollers that roll against the housing and the cover, spacers movable between the bolt and the cover and housing respectively, rectangular slots slightly larger than the rollers in said spacers encompassing said rollers, flanges around one of said recessed areas limiting the distance the bolt can roll on the rollers, an axially extending rim to one side of each of said recessed areas, downturned edges bounding the slots in the spacers engaging said flanges to limit the travel of the spacers relative to the bolt.

4. A look with a roller bearing bolt having, in combination, a housing having parallel internal surfaces and a rectangular hole and a keyhole, a generally rectangular bolt passing through said hole and longitudinally movable within the housing, and having a recess on one side permitting a key entered through the keyhole to engage the bolt near its axis to draw it back into the housing, a spring within the housing tending to project the bolt, two rectangular depressed areas on opposite sides of the bolt between the recess and the hole in the housing, two similar depressed rectangular areas on opposite sides of the bolt to the other side of said recess, generally rectangul ar spacer plates located between the bolt and each face of the housing having cut-away portions near the center of one of their edges to clear a key in the housing, .parallel slots in each spacer plate located between the cut-away portion and the respective ends of the spacer plates, a roller in each slot in said spacer plates Whose path of movement relative to the bolt is determined jointly by' the edges of the depressed area and the spacer plate.

5. In a lock, in combination, a bolt having two depressed areas on one side and two similar depressedareas on the opposite side, ridges extending longitudinally of the bolt forming one edge of each depressed area, a roller in each area whose end bears against said ridge as it rolls, two spacer plates each of which has two parallel slots each adapted to encompass one of said rollers and to space and align said rollers to roll longitudinally of the bolt while the rollers bearing against said ridge align the spacer plate laterally, a, housing having parallel inside surfaces along which said rollers roll.

ERNEST R. FREEBERG.

References Cited in the file of. this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number

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