US2788067A - Combined latch means and door fasteners for hinge supported door structures - Google Patents

Description

April 9, 1957 A. E. PAWLAK 2,788,067

COMBINED LATCH MEANS AND DOOR FASTENERS FOR HINGE SUPPORTED DOOR STRUCTURES 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 17, 1953 smug- 20 0.0 0

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COMBINED LATCH MEANS AND DOOR FASTENERS FOR HINGE SUPPORTED DOOR STRUCTURES Filed July 17, 1953 s Sheets-Sheet 2 32 l 37 55 A -.A

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COMBINED LATCH MEANS AND DOOR FASTENERS FOR HINGE SUPPORTED DOOR STRUCTURES Filed July 17, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 1 y /W I If InVeni or: .flnilv y ZZBaWYQ/ZC.

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nited States Patent COMBINED LATCH MEANS AND DOOR FAS- TENERS FOR HINGE SUPPORTED DOOR STRUCTURES Anthony E. Pawlak, Berwyn, 11]., assignor to W. H. Miner, Inc., Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Application July 17, B53, Serial No. 368,715

Claims. (Cl. 160-481) This invention relates to improvements in combined latch means and door fasteners for hinge supported door structures composed of a pair of articulated door members, and more particularly a combined latch means and door fastener wherein the latch means is designed for positively holding one of the pair of door members of the door structure against opening movement while the other of said members is being swung to open position.

The main object of the invention is to provide an improved latch means and fastener of the character indicated for hinged doors, composed of a pair of articulated members, one member of which is hinged to the door post and has the other member hinged to the outer edge thereof for swinging movement to open position independently of the same, wherein the latch means of the same serves to fasten, in closed position, the member which is hinged to the door post to prevent accidental opening of the same, together with the other member of said hinged door.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved combined latch means and door fastener for hinged doors, composed of a door member hinged to the door post, and a second door member swingingly supported on the first named member by means of a hinge having a hinge leaf fixed to the outer edge of said first named member and a leaf fixed to said second named member and provided with an integral keeper engaging door fastener cam member engageable with a fixed keeper for forcing said first named door member open and closed, wherein the latch means of the combined latch means and door fastener comprises a movable latch element and a cooperating fixed catch element carried, respectively, by the leaf of said hinge which is fixed to the first named door member and the fixed keeper of the door fastener.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a combined latch means and door fastener, as set forth in the preceding paragraph, wherein the latch element is automatically engageable with the catch to lock, in closed position, the door member which is hinged to the door post, and is manually disengageable to permit opening of said last named door member when desired.

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the description and claims hereinafter following.

in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,

Figure 1 is an elevational view, partly broken away, of the side wall of a railway refrigerator car, provided with a door opening, closed by a plurality of hinged door members, illustrating my improved combined latch means and door fastener in connection therewith.

Figure 2 is a front elevational View, on an enlarged scale, of the improved means illustrated in Figure 1, showing a portion of the associated door member and adjacent car wall structure, broken away.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the combined latch means and door fastener shown in Figure 2.

enlarged scale, of the improved means illustrated in Figure 2, said view corresponding substantially to the irregular line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view of the catch element shown in Figures 2 and 3, indicating a portion of the latch element in dotted lines, and illustrating the operation of the latch element as the door member on which it is mounted is being moved to closed position.

Figure 6 is a top plan view, on an enlarged scale, of the improved combined latch means and door fastener, showing portions of the door members associated therewith in horizontal section, said section corresponding substantially to the line 6--6 of Figure 1.

Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 6, showing the outer hinged door member partly opened.

Figure 8 is a view similar to Figure 6, showing the outer door member completely open and folded against the inner door member.

In said drawings, 10 designates a portion of the side Wall of a railway refrigerator car, provided with a door opening 11, and closed by a hinged door structure, comprising a hinged door 12, and articulated door members 13 and 14 together forming a second hinged door 15 of greater size than the door 12. The door 12 is swingingly supported at its right hand end on the car wall by the usual hinges 116. The door 12 is equipped with the usual rotary door fastener bar 17 at its left hand end,

. which cooperates with a keeper 18. The door member 13, which forms the inner of the articulated members 13 and 14, is swingingly supported at its left hand end by hinges 19-49, and the door member 14, which forms the outer of the articulated members, is hinged to the outer end of the door member 13. The keeper 18 is provided with a pivoted latch plate 2% at its left hand end, which is engageable over the lower right hand corner of the adjacent door member 14 to lock the latter in closed position.

My improved combined latch means and door fastener comprises broadly a hinge member A, a latch element B carried by the hinge member A, a keeper engaging cam member C carried by the hinge member A, and a combined keeper and catch member D with which the keeper engaging cam member C and the latch element B coopcrate.

The hinge member A and additional hinge members 21 and 22 are employed to swingingly support the door member 14 on the door member 13, the hinge member 21 being of the usual conventional design and the hinge member 22 being particularly designed to function as a door fastener means, as hereinafter pointed out.

The hinge member A is located at the lower end portions of the door members 13 and 14 and includes a pair of hinge leaves 23 and 24 fixed, respectively, to the door members 13 and 14. The hinge leaf 23 has three outwardly projecting, vertically spaced hinge eye portions 252525, and the hinge leaf 24 has three outwardly projecting, vertically spaced hinge eye members 2626-- 26, which are alternated with the hinge eyes 25*25-25 and are connected to the latter by a hinge pin 27, extending through said eyes.

The keeper engaging cam member C depends from the hinge leaf 24, being formed integral with the lowermost eye member 26. The member C comprises a horizontally extending radial arm 28, having a crank pin 29 at its outer end, which is engageable with the combined keeper and catch member D. The hinge leaf 23 of the hinge member A has a vertically disposed guide sleeve 39 formed integral therewith, the leaf 23 being made wider than the leaf 24 to accommodate this sleeve thereon. The sleeve 30 corresponds in height to the height of the hinge leaf 23. The upper end portion of the sleeve 3b,

which portion is indicated by 31, is of reduced cross sectional size, as shown most clearly in Figures 2 and 4, and the portion of said sleeve below the reduced upper end portion 31 is of square interior cross section to present a vertical guideway 32 of square, transverse cross section for the latch element 13. The reduced upper end portion 31 of the sleeve is provided with a vertically disposed, cylindrical bore 33 communicating with the upper end of the guideway 32. The bore 33 is of smaller size than the guideway 32, thereby providing an abutment shoulder 34 at the upper end of said guideway surrounding the opening of the bore.

The latch element B comprises a head 35 of substantially square, transverse cross section and a central, cylindrical stem 36 of reduced size upstanding from said head portion and formed integral therewith. The square head 35 of the latch element B slidingly fits within the guideway 32 of the sleeve and the stem 36 slidingly fits the bore 33. The head being of larger size than the stem 36, a transverse abutment shoulder 37 is presented at the inner end of said head. A helical spring 38 is disposed Within the square guideway 32 of the sleeve 30 in surrounding relation with respect to the stem 36, with its opposite ends bearing on the shoulder 34 at the top end of the guideway 32 and the shoulder 37 at the inner end of the head 35 of the latch element B. This spring is under sufiicient compression to hold the head 35 normally projected. However, the latch element B, as designed, is made of sufficiently great weight to work by gravity, in case of spring failure. The lower end of the head 35 is beveled oif to present an upwardly inclined underneath surface 39. At the upper end, the latch element is provided with a hook-shaped finger piece 40 for manipulating the same. The hook-shaped finger piece 40 is provided with a vertical opening or seat 41 at its lower end, adapted to receive the upper end of the stem 36 to which it is secured by a pin 42. The bottom end of the finger piece 40 abuts the upper end of the guide sleeve 30 to restrict downward displacement of the latch element B.

The hinge member 22 is located at the top ends of the door members 13 and 14 and comprises hinge leaves 43 and 44, which are secured, respectively, to the door members 13 and 14. The hinge leaf 44 is similar to the hinge leaf 24 of the bottom hinge member A, having a keeper engaging cam member 45 upstanding therefrom, which is identical with the cam member C of the hinge member A and has a radial arm with a crank pin at its outer end, corresponding to the arm 28 and pin 29 of the cam member C, and also indicated by 28 and 29.

The hinge member 22 differs from the hinge member A in that the latch element B and the guide therefore are absent, the leaf 43 of the hinge member 22, which leaf is secured to the door member 13, being a plain conventional hinge leaf.

The combined keeper and catch member D is in the form of an elongated metal block, and may be a casting. The block member D has securing flanges 46 and 47 at opposite ends by which it is fixed to the side wall 10 of the car below the door opening 11, being held in place by bolts 58-58 or similar fastening devices, extending through said flanges. At the left, as seen in Figures 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, and 8, the combined keeper and catch member D presents a laterally opening keeper pocket 48 within which the cam member C is engageable to force the door member 13, respectively, open and closed when the door member 14 is swung outwardly and inwardly, the pocket being provided with a curved inner wall presenting a rearwardly facing front cam face 49 with which the crank pin 29 of the cam member C is engaged when the door member 14 is swung inwardly toward closed position, as shown in Figure 6, to cam the door member 13 closed and lock the same in that position. At the rear side of the pocket, the curved inner wall merges with the front sur' face of the back wall of the member D, which back wall is indicated by 50, and presents a fiat surface and, to-

gether with the curved inner wall portion at the rear of said pocket, provides a continuous outwardly facing cam surface 51, with which the crank pin 29 is engaged when the door member 14 is swung outwardly away from the car wall from the position shown in Figure 6 toward that shown in Figure 7, to cam the door member 13 outwardly. The front wall of the pocket 48, which wall presents the cam face 49, is relatively short and beyond said wall, that is, to the right thereof, the member D is entirely open and the entrance to said pocket is unobstructed, so that the door members 13 and 14, when in folded condition, may be swung inwardly to the position shown in Figure 8 without interference, which would be had if the member D presented any obstruction whatever in the path of movement of the crank pin 29 during the time that the door members 13 and 14 are thus being swung inwardly. To the left of the pocket 48, as seen in Figures 2, 3, 6, 7, and 8, the member D is provided with an upwardly directed socket or seat 52, open at its bottom, which is in vertical alignment with the latch element B when the door member 13 is closed, and within which the latch element is engageable to hold the door member 13 against opening. The interior of the seat 52 is of substantially rectangular outline, being of greater width than length, that is, of greater dimension from the front to back than from one end to the other of the length of the car. The front wall of the pocket, which wall is indicated by 53, is thickened at its upper end, that is, bulged outwardly, and presents an inwardly and upwardly inclined cam face 54 at its top side on which the lower end of the latch element B is adapted to ride, as indicated in Figure 6, when the door member 13 is swung inwardly toward closed position. The thickened upper end portion of the wall 53 presents an obstruction to outward movement of the latch element B, as is evident from Figure 4, the same thus forming a catch for the latch element. As seen in Figure 4, sufficient clearance is provided between the wall 53 and the forward side of the latch element B to permit the door member 13 to be cammed outwardly by the door member 14 as the latter is swung from the position shown in Figure 6, through the position shown in Figure 7, to that shown in Figure 8, without the latch element encountering the wall 53. As will be evident, the latch element thus prevents accidental opening of the door member 13 with the door member 14 and must be manually lifted to clear the catch formed by the wall 53 before the door member 13 can be opened.

A keeper member 55 is provided above the door members 13 and 14 for the upper cam member 45, and this keeper is similar to the member D, with the exception that it does not have a catch member thereon. In other words, the keeper member 55 presents only a cam pocket 56, which is of the same design as the cam pocket 48 of the member D and operates in the same manner.

Assuming that the door 12 and the door members 13 and 14 are closed and locked, as shown in Figures 1, 2, 4, and 6, in the event that a small door opening is desired, the door 12 only is opened, the usual procedure being followed of forcing this door open by operation of the locking bar 17 and then manually swinging the door 12 to fully open position. When a medium size opening is desirable, the door member 14 is also swung to open position, the same being first unlatched by moving the latch plate 20 to the left and downwardly to a position to clear the lower edge of the door member 14. In swinging the door member 14 open, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the keeper engaging cam member C engages the cam surface 51 of the keeper pocket of the combined keeper and catch member D, and

opening of the door member 13 is obstructed by the catch presented by the wall 53.

To provide the maximum size door opening, both the door members 13 and 14 are opened, in addition to the door 12 being opened. To accomplish this, the door member 14 is swung outwardly from the position shown in Figure 6 to that shown in Figure 7, thereby forcing the door member 13 partly out or" the door opening. The latch element B is then manually lifted to clear the catch wall 53 of the member D and the door member 13, together with the door member 14, swung outwardly to fully open positions.

To close the door 15, composed of the door members 13 and 14, the door member 14 may be in folded position against the door member 13, as shown in Figure 8, or disposed in position at an angle to the door member 13, as indicated in Figure 7. With these 'door members in either of these positions, they are moved inwardly to bring the door member 13 to either the position shown in Figure 8 or to that shown in Figure 7. With the door member 13 thus far closed, the door member 14 is swung inwardly through the position shown in Figure 7 to that shown in Figure 6, the cam member C thereby being engaged with the cam surface 51 of the member D and the upper cam member 45 with the corresponding wall of the keeper member 55, camming the door member 13 tightly closed and holding it locked. After the door member 14 has thus been swung to its fully closed position, the latch plate 20 is engaged over its lower right hand corner to hold the same in closed position, as shown in Figure 1.

I claim:

1. In a door structure for closing the door opening of a container, the combination with a pair of door members connected for relative swinging movement by a hinge member, including pivotally connected hinge leaves fixed, respectively, to said door members; of an eccentric keeper engaging projection integral with one of said hinge leaves; a keeper member having a laterally opening pocket within which said keeper engaging projection is engageable to force the door member to which the other hinge leaf is secured open and closed; a sliding latch element mounted on said last named hinge leaf; and a cooperating catch element for said latch element, on said keeper member.

2. In a door structure for closing the door opening of a container, the combination with a pair of door members connected for relative swinging movement by a hinge member, including pivotally connected hinge leaves fixed, respectively, to said door members; of an eccentric keeper engaging projection integral with one of said hinge leaves; a keeper member having a laterally opening pocket within which said keeper engaging projection is engageable to force the door member to which the other hinge leaf is secured open and closed; a guide sleeve on said last named hinge leaf integral therewith, said sleeve having a vertical guideway therein; a vertically slidable latch element guided in said guide sleeve; and an upwardly opening pocket in said keeper member within which said latch element is engageable for holding said last named door member closed.

3. In a door structure for closing the door opening of a container, the combination with a pair of 'door members connected for relative swinging movement by a hinge member, including pivotally connected hinge leaves fixed, respectively, to said door members; of an eccentric keeper engaging projection integral with one of said hinge leaves; a keeper member having a laterally opening pocket within which said keeper engaging projection is engageable to force the door member to which the other hinge leaf is secured open and closed; a vertically slidable spring pressed latch element mounted on said last named hinge leaf; and an upwardly projecting abutment on said keeper member in back of which said latch element is engageable to hold said last named door member closed.

4. In a door structure for closing the door opening of a container, the combination with a pair of door members connected for relative swinging movement by a hinge member, including pivotally connected hinge leaves fixed, respectively, to said door members; of an eccentric keeper engaging projection integral with one of said hinge leaves; a keeper member having a pocket within which said keeper engaging projection is engageable to force the door member to which the other hinge leaf is secured open and closed; a vertically slidable, downwardly spring pressed latch element mounted on said last named hinge leaf; an operating finger grip on said element for lifting the same to released position; and an upwardly projecting catch on said keeper member in back of which said element is engageable to hold said last named door member closed.

5. A hinge for rotatably securing together two sections of an articulated door comprising: a pair of leaves; a pivot connecting together said leaves for relative rotation; a keeper engaging lug carried by one of said leaves for movement through an are centered upon the axis of said pivot; a spring pressed latch carried by the other one of said leaves for translatory movement in a path that is parallel to said axis and spaced therefrom, and a keeper engaged by said lug and latch.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 697,225 Washburne Apr. 8, 1902 2,451,537 Dath Oct. 19, 1948 2,565,728 Hopkins Aug. 28, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 411,714 Germany Apr. 3, 1925

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