US2750788A

US2750788A - Lock mechanism

Info

Publication number: US2750788A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward N Jacobi
Original assignee: Briggs and Stratton Corp
Current assignee: Briggs and Stratton Corp
Priority date: 1949-06-20
Filing date: 1953-01-12
Publication date: 1956-06-19
Anticipated expiration: 1973-06-19

Description

' E. N. JACOB] LOCK MECHANISM June 19, 1956 'Original Filed June 20, 1949 'SMW Edwz d N 1.5555171 United States Patent C) LOCK MECHANISM Edward N. Jacobi, Milwaukee, Wis., assigned" to Briggs & Stratton Corporation, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Delaware Original application June 20, 1949, Serial No. 100,258, now Patent No. 2,650,492, dated September 1, 1 953. Divided and this application January 12, 1953, Serial No.330,712

Claims. (Cl. 70-379) This invention relates to locks and refers more particularly to locks of the type commonly known as pillar locks which are especially adapted for .use with automobile door handles and the like. This application is a division of my copending application, Serial No. 100,258, .filed June 20, 1949, now Patent No. 2,650,492, issued September 1., 1953.

In locks of this type the lock assembly is located in the door handle and comprises a rotary cylinder mounted in a sleeve-like casing and having an operating shaft projecting from its rear to transmit rotation of the cylinder to latch mechanism on the door to be actuated. The door handle has an elongated tubular stem on itsinner end to receive the operating shaft and the bore of the stem opens to the front of the handle through a counterbore in which the lock cylinder and easing are received.

In pillar locks of the type to which this invention pertains it is customary to provide a detachable driving connection between the lock cylinder and the operating shaft which prevents endwise separation of the shaft from the cylinder except upon tilting of the shaft to a predetermined position at an angle with respect to the axis of the cylinder. Such a detachable connection is shown in Patent No. 2,004,435 issued June 11, 1935, to Edward N. Jacobi. In this patent, however, the driving connection between the operating shaft and the lock cylinder must be established before insertion of the lock cylinder into its casing, the casing holding the operating shaft against detachment when in position encircling the cylinder.

The present invention likewise provides a readily detachable driving connection, of the type described, be: tween the operating shaft and the inner end of the lock cylinder, and it is a further object of the invention to so arrange the lock parts about the shaft joint that the shaft may be attached to or detached from the cylinder while the same is in its casing, upon rotation of the cylinder to a predetermined position relative to the casing.

Another object of this invention resides in the provision of a lock mechanism of the character described embodying a novel connection between the operating shaft and the inner end of the lock cylinder by which the shaft cooperates with the lock casing in a manner to normally hold the cylinder against disassembly therefrom, thereby making it possible to subassemble these parts without danger of them accidentally becoming detached during handling and shipping.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, this invention resides in the noval construction, combination and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafter described, and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it being understood that suchchanges in the precise embodiment of the herein disclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of the claims. v

The accompanying drawing illustrates one complete example of the physical embodiment of the invention constructed in accordance with the best mode so far treme rear of the pilot.

"ice

devised for the practical application of the principles thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in longitudinal section and showing the lock mechanism of this invention in place in a door handle and in its locked position;

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view taken through Figure 1 along the plane of the line 2-2, with the lock mechanism removed from the door handle;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 but showing the lock cylinder rotated to the position at which detachment of the operating shaft is possible, and with the shaft removed;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary detail view partly in longitudinal section and partly in side elevation taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 3 and illustrating the manner in which attachment and detachament of the operating shaft is effected; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the lock casing per se, looking at the rear thereof.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawing in which like numerals designate like parts throughout the several views, the numeral 5 represents the sleeve-like casing for the lock mechanism, and the numeral 6 designates the lock cylinder which is rotatably received within the front portion 7 of thecasing. The front portion 7 of the casing has a relatively thin wall, and has a rearward extension 8 of slightly less diameter joined thereto and projecting rearwardly beyond the inner end of the lock cylinder.

At its forward end the lock cylinder has an enlarged head 9 of approximately the same diameter as the exterior of the front portion 7 of the casing, and a series of arcuate shoulders 10 extending about the circumference of the cylinder immediately behind the enlarged head 9 thereof are adapted to be engaged by the front edge 11 of the casing to define the forward position of the casing on the cylinder.

A locking member of the side bar type, not shown, normally projects into a longitudinal slot 12 in the side of the front portion 7 of the casing 5 to lock the cylinder against rotation relative to the casing, and this locking member is retractable in a conventional manner by the insertion of a suitable key 13 into the lock cylinder from the front thereof to free the cylinder for rotation inside the casing.

The inner end of the cylinder has a reduced portion 1 thereon and a pilot 16 at its extremity smaller in diameter than the reduced portion 15. These parts have an axial hole 17 therein into which the forward end of the operating shaft 18 is received to be drivingly connected with the cylinder in a manner similar to that illustrated and described in the afore-mentioned Patent No. 2,004,435.

The driving connection between the forward end of the operating shaft and the lock cylinder comprises a hook-line portion 20 on the shaft which is engaged behind a shoulder 21 projecting inwardly into the hole 17 from the side wall of the extension 15 and pilot 16. The driving connection here illustrated, however, differs from that of the afore-mentioned patent in that the shaft has a splined connection with the lock cylinder established by the engagement of a longitudinally projecting fin 22 on the forward extremity of the shaft in a longitudinal slot 23 in the wall of the pilot and opening to the ex- The slot 23 is substantially diametrically opposite the shoulder 21 behind which the hook-like forward extremity 20 of the operating shaft engages. The driving connection between the shaft and the lock cylinder, of course, may be readily established or disconnected upon tilting the shaft to a predetermined 3 angular position with respect to the axis of the cylinder, as shown in Figure 4.

As will be apparent from a consideration of Figure 1, it will be seen that the connection between the operating shaft and the lock cylinder affords a degree of relative endwise motion between these parts without impairing the effectiveness of the driving connection between them. Some degree of end play in the cylinder-to-shaft connection is desirable, however, as it assures ease of assembly and detachment of the operating shaft.

The portion 25 of the operating shaft which lies immediately to the rear of the lock cylinder and is encircled by the sleeve extension 8 is reduced in diameter to provide a shoulder 26 facing the rear end of the sleeve extension to prevent rearward sliding of the lock casing off of the cylinder. For this purpose, when the parts are held substantially in coaxial relationship as shown, the shoulder 26 on the operating shaft is adapted to be engaged by diametrically opposite abutments 2'7 and 28 at the rear of the sleeve extension 8. These abutments extend radially inwardly from the wall of the sleeve extension and while the abutment 27 is solid, as seen in Figures 2, 3 and 5, the abutment 28 has the central portion thereof removed.

The arrangement of the

abutments

27 and 28 is such that they will present surfaces at the inner end of the sleeve extension which will engage with the shoulder 26 on the operating shaft even though the shaft may be tilted at a slight angle to the axis of the lock cylinder prior to assembly of the lock mechanism in the door handle 30. Hence, the shaft maintains the cylinder and the casing sub-assembled with the shaft drivingly connected to the cylinder, the casing being substantially confined endwise between the shoulders 10 at the front of the cylinder and the shoulder 26 on the operating shaft. This manner of sub-assembling the shaft, the cylinder and its casing has the advantage of facilitating handling of the lock mechanism prior to its installation in the door handle. While the shoulders 10 and 26 may be spaced apart a distance substantially corresponding to the length of the casing, they have been shown spaced apart a slightly greater distance to permit limited longitudinal sliding motion of the casing relative to the cylinder for a purpose brought out and claimed in the afore-mentioned copending application of Edward N. Jacobi, Serial No. 100,258, filed June 20, l949, now Patent No. 2,650,492, issued September 1, l953.

With this manner of holding the casing on the lock cylinder, it is necessary that the shaft be connected with the cylinder after insertion of the cylinder into the casing 5. This can be effected in only one position of rotation of the cylinder relative to the casing, which position is shown in Figures 3 and 4. As here illustrated the lock cylinder is in a position of rotation approximately halfway between its locked and unlocked positions and at an intermediate station at which the operating shaft may be tilted upwardly between the

opposite abutments

27 and 28 on the sleeve extension and into a notch 31 cut into the rear extremity of the extension. This notch enables the shaft to be tilted far enough to disengage its hooked end Ztl from behind the shoulder 21 on the inner end of the lock cylinder for removal from the cylinder.

It will be apparent, therefore, that insertion of the operating shaft through the open rear of the casing and into the axial hole 17 in the inner end of the cylinder with the parts in their positions shown in Figure 4 automatically locks the parts in' their assembled relationship.

The manner of mounting the lock mechanism in the accommodates the front of the lock mechanism, and has a slightly reduced diameter near the stem 34 to rotatably and slidably receive the reduced casing extension 8.

The entire lock mechanism is readily secured in the handle by means of a tangent pin 35 in the stem 34 received in an annular groove 36 in the operating shaft, as seen best in Figure 1. The pin 35, in holding the shaft against longitudinal displacement, thus also maintains the cylinder against forward displacement from the bore in the handle through the driving connection between the shaft and cylinder. Also, as described previously, the casing is held against longitudinal displacement by being substantially confined endwise between the shoulders 10 at the front of the lock cylinder and the shoulder 26 on the operating shaft adjacent to the rear of the casing.

However, the entire lock mechanism is yieldingly urged forwardly to take up any clearance in the pin connection to the operating shaft and the slack in the driving connection between the shaft and lock cylinder, by means of a compression spring 38 seated in the bottom of the reduced portion of the counterbore and bearing against the rear end of the casing extension 8. This spring forces the casing forwardly, and through engagement between the casing and the lock cylinder, also serves to push the cylinder forwardly. This draws the operating shaft forwardly along with the cylinder so as to engage the rearmost side wall of the annular groove 36 with the tangent pin 35, thus holding all of the parts of the lock mechanism against rattling.

The casing may be non-rotatably held in the lock handle by any suitable splined connection therebetween, but in the present instance the connection is effected between the

lugs

27 and 28 at the rear of the casing extension and the front end of a hub 42 on the lock handle. The hub 42 projects axially forwardly from the bottom of the reduced portion of the counterbore in the handle 30 to be encircled by the compression spring 38, and the front extremity of the hub is notched at diametrically opposite portions thereof, not shown, to provide lugs 43 which project forwardly into the rear of the casing extension 8 between the

abutments

27 and 28 thereon. Hence the lugs cooperate with the abutments to hold the casing against rotation in the handle 30.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that this invention pro vides an improved lock mechanism for door handles featuring a novel manner of holding the parts of the mechanism assembled prior to installation in the handle; and at the same time materially simplifying the installation of the lock mechanism in its mounting member or handle, the whole mechanism being retained in the handle by a single pin passing through the handle stem and into a groove in the operating shaft.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a lock of the character described: a sleeve-like casing; a lock cylinder rotatable in the casing and accessible for key actuation at the front thereof, said cylinder door handle and of retaining the mechanism therein is having an axial hole in the rear thereof; a shaft having one end projecting in said axial hole in the cylinder and operatively coupled thereto; cooperating shoulders on the cylinder and said end of the shaft engageable inside the hole in cylinder to preclude endwise separation of the cylinder and shaft except upon tilting of the shaft to a predetermined angular position with respect to the cylinder axis; a part on the rear of the casing engageable with the shaft to hold the same against movement to said predetermined tilted position except upon rotation of .the shaft to a predetermined position with respect to the casing; and cooperating stops on the shaft and the rear of the casing for holding the cylinder against sliding forwardly out of the casing.

2. In a lock of the character described: a substantially tubular casing; a lock cylinder rotatable in the casing and accessible for key actuation at the front end of the casing said cylinder having an axial hole in the rear thereof; an operating shaft having one end projecting into said axial hole in the cylinder and operatively coupled therewith; cooperating parts on the cylinder and the shaft interengaging with one another inside said hole to hold the cylinder and shaft against axial separation but permitting detachment of the shaft upon tilting thereof to a predeterminated angular position with respect to the cylinder axis; and a rearward extension on the casing encircling the shaft rearwardly of the cylinder to normally hold the shaft against tilting to said predetermined angular position, said extension having a notch in its side wall opening to the rear extremity of the extension to permit tilting of the shaft to said predetermined angular position in one position of rotation of the cylinder with respect to the casing.

3. The lock set forth in claim 2 further characterized by the fact that the shaft and the casing extension have shoulders thereon engageable with one another to preclude forward displacement of the lock cylinder from the casing.

4. In a lock of the character described: a sleeve-like casing; a lock cylinder rotatable in the casing and accessible for key actuation at the front thereof, said cylinder having an axial hole opening to its rear; an operating shaft having one end projecting into said hole in the cylinder and operatively coupled therewith; cooperating shoulders on the cylinder and the shaft engageable inside said hole for precluding endwise separation of the shaft from the cylinder, except upon tilting of the shaft to a predetermined angular position with respect to the cyl inder axis; means on the rear of the casing normally engageable by the shaft for blocking movement thereof to said predetermined tilted position except upon movement of the cylinder relative to the casing to a predetermined position at which the shaft clears said blocking means on the rear of the casing; and an abutment on the shaft en gageable with the casing to hold the cylinder against sliding forwardly out of the casing.

5. The lock set forth in claim 4 further characterized by the provision of cooperating stops on the casing and cylinder for precluding rearward motion of the cylinder with respect to the casing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,333,189 Shaw Mar. 9, 1920 1,888,954 Keil Nov. 22, 1932 2,000,279 FitzGerald May 7, 1935 2,004,435 Jacobi June 11, 1935 2,650,492 Jacobi Sept. 1, 1953