US3007332A

US3007332A - Door locking mechanism

Info

Publication number: US3007332A
Application number: US746887A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward A Barsditis
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1958-07-07
Filing date: 1958-07-07
Publication date: 1961-11-07
Anticipated expiration: 1978-11-07

Description

Nov. 7, 1961 s. v. BARSDlTlS DOOR LOCKING MECHANISM Filed July 7, 1958 FIG. 3

INVENTOR. STANLE Y \LBARSDITIS I8 FIG. 2

FIG. 6

FIG. 5

atent 3,307,332 Patented New. 7, 1961 3,097,332 DOSR LOCKTNG MECHANISM Stanley V. Barsditis, 918 Brushton Ave, Pittsburgh 21, Pa; Edward A. Barsditis, adtrator of said Stanley V. Barsditis, deceased Filed July 7, 1958, Ser. No. 746,887 3 Claims. (Cl. 70-92) This invention pertains in general to locks for doors of public buildings and, more specifically, to a simplified locking mechanism which automatically locks the door when moving into closed position but may be adjusted for non-operation during successive opening and closing movements.

The locking mechanism is primarily designed for concealed mounting within the stile of a metal door, but where acceptable may be mounted in exposed position upon a wooden or metal door. As in all doors for public buildings the doors are provided with an operating mechanism upon the inner face of the door which unlocks and opens the door by merely pushing against the operating mechanism. The locking mechanism may be manually locked and unlocked from the outer face of the door without interfering with the functioning of the operating mechanism on the inner face of the door.

An object of the invention is to provide a door locking mechanism for mounting in a door stile which normally automatically locks the door upon movement into closed position and may be manually unlocked from either the inner or outer face of the door.

Another object of the invention is to provide a door locking mechanism, as described, in which the door mechanism may be preset to permit free opening and closing of the door without operation of the locking mechanism.

These and other objects will be apparent from the following disclosure of the invention and the drawings forming a part thereof,'wherein:

FIG. 1 shows in front elevation a portion of a door frame and a pair of swinging doors embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 shows an enlarged view taken on lines II -II of FIG. 1 showing details of construction of the door locking mechanism;

FIG. 3 shows in side elevation the upper portion of the door locking mechanism;

FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the top of the door locking mechanism;

FIG. 5 shows a view similar to FIG. 3 with the keeper of the mechanism engaged with the door jamb locking the door in closed position;

FIG. 6 shows a section taken on lines VI-Vl of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 shows means for locking the mechanism out of operating position.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the door frame 1 of any suitable design, pivotally supports a pair of doors 2, each of which is equipped with the door locking mechanism mounted in the door stiles 3. Within each stile 3 is mounted the rod 4 for vertical reciprocal movement. Inwardly from the upper end of rod 4 is a stop member 5 held in fixed relation to the stile 3 by any suitable means. Member 5 positions rod 4 laterally within the stile 3. Integral with rod 4 is an enlargement 6 moving freely through suitable openings in member 5.

Beneath member 5 is an adjustable member 7 engaging member 5 to limit upward movement of rod 4. Connected to the top of rod 4 is a keeper plate 55 disposed within stile 3 and having a portion 9 thereon extending outwardly of the stile through slotted opening 10 on the inner face of the stile for engagement with the keeper latch plate member 11. A slotted opening :12 in portion 9 receives the member 11 of the keeper latch member. Keeper plate extension 9 through engagement with the base 13 of slot 10 serves to restrict vertical downward movement of rod 4. Adjacent the top of stile 3 is a spring loaded release member 14 having a portion thereof extending outwardly of the stile and an offset portion 15. The inner end of member 14 is recessed to receive a spring 14a. One side of keeper plate 8 has a recessed portion 16 for receiving the portion 15 and a portion 17 for overlapping portion 15. Member 14 is guided in its movement transversely of stile 3 by the guide plate 18 having a flange 19 received in a longitudinally extending slot 20 of member 14. Said guide plate being retained in position by bracket 21 secured to said stile 3. A wearplate 22 is mounted upon member 14 to overlie the top thereof and an adjacent side of portion 15. The lower end of rod 4 is guided in its Vertical reciprocal movement by a member 23 secured within the stile 3 and having suitable openings therein for reception of rod 4.

Vertical reciprocation of rod '4 is obtained by operation of the lock member 24 or handle members 25 and 25a connected by rod 25b forming a crash bar. The lock member 24 comprises a closed faced member carrying a lock 26 and pivotally mounted in a housing 27. Attached to member 24 are fingers 28 which lie on opposite sides of rod 4 for engagement with the member 29 secured thereto to lift rod 4 as the lock member 24 is pulled downwardly to unlock the door 2 from the outer face thereof. A suitable handle member 30 is mounted on the outer face of the door stile 3, for opening the door. On the inner face 3a of the door stile 3 is a suitable housing member 31 having a base 32 secured to the door stile. A casing 33 within housing base 32 registers with a slotted opening in the adjacent stile face 3a. Within the casing 33 is a pivot pin 34 upon which is mounted door handle member 25. A similar member 25a is pivotally mounted on the opposite stile of the door and connected to member 25' by the bar 25b forming the crash bar. The head of member 25 is enclosed by a yoke 35 which is connected therewith and mounted on said pin 34. The yoke arms extend inwardly of the adjacent stile for engagement with a stop member 36 secured to rod 4. Yoke 35 is of substantially inverted U-shape and receives between the spacedarms thereof the coils 37 of a U-shaped torsion spring 37. Extending outwardly from member 25 is a portion 38 to raise the yoke 35 upon downward rotation of member 25. The member 25 has one leg 39 of spring 37 embedded therein and the opposite spring leg 40 slidably engages beneath the cover 41 of casing 33 retaining the spring in operating position. A pin 42 extends transversely of casing 33 and has mounted thereon a latch member 43 which is held in raised position by a U- shaped spring 44 whose arms embrace the member 43. A stop 45 is provided for the latch 43 when rotated downward upon 42. Such stop may be in the form of a pin 45 disposed transversely of casing 33. The pin 42 may be hollow and rotatably mounted in casing 33', with the inner diameter of the pin 42 hexagonal in shape. A suitable aperture 42a in the housing 31 permits insertion of a hexagonally shafted key for rotation of member 43 as hereinafter described. Secured to the top member of door jamb 1, in position to be engaged by the stile 3 of each door 2. when moved into closed position, is a keeper latch member of substantially hollow rectangular shape. The keeper latch member has a side wall 46 for engagement with the door stile 3. Suitable slotted openings in side wall 46 receive the keeper plate extension 9. The keeper latch member is completed by an opposite side wall 47 and connecting end walls 48. A bottom wall 49 completes the keeper latch member and serves to receive fasteners 50 for attachment to the door jamb. Secured to bottom wall '49 and extending upwardly therefrom is the keeper latch member 11.

Referring now to the operation of the door lock, the mechanism when positioned as shown in FIG. 2 is unlocked ready for opening of the door, with the rod 4 disposed wholly within the door stile 3. The lock operating member 24 is positioned to place the lock mechanism in this position so that an outward pull on handle 30 opens the door.

If the door is to be locked again, upon closing, pushing on handle 30 causes door stile 3 to engage the keeper latch wall 46 and move the locking member 14 inward of the stile as the door moves into closed position. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, inward movement of member 14 displaces portion 15 thereof from beneath portion 17 of keeper 8 permitting rod 4- to drop by ,ravity. Such movement of the rod carries keeper 8 downward until the extension 9 thereof engages slot 12 therein with tongue 11 (FIG. 5 and permits the bottom of rod 4 to enter a suitable registering opening in the threshold plate beneath the door stile 3. The dor is now in locked position.

If the door is to be opened from the outside, a key 24a is inserted in member 24 and upon suitable manipulation of the key the member 24 is released for open ing outwardly and downwardly. Such movement of member 24 causes arm 28 thereon to engage stop 29 and raises rod 4 to the position shown in FIG. 2. Such movement of rod 4 raises keeper 8 and portion 9 upwardly out of engagement with tongue 11 permitting the door to be opened. Since keeper 8 is now disposed above member 14, opening of door 2 carries member 14 away from wall 46 of the keeper latch member and the spring 14a under compression slides member 14 outwardly until portion 15 engages beneath the keeper portion 17 and retains it in elevated position. The door mechanism will, however, return to locking position when the door is again closed causing member 14 to move inwardly of the door stile 3 to drop keeper 8 and rod 4 by gravity.

When the door is in locked position and it is to be opened from the inside, merely pushing downwardly and outwardly on crash bar member 25b opens the door. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 7, downward movement of handle 25 causes rotation thereof on pin 34, lifting extension 38 to raise yoke arm 35 into engagement with stop 36 on rod 4 and to raise rod 4 and keeper 8 out of engagement with keeper plate tongue 11. When the door is again returned to closed position, the mechanism returns to locking position as previously described.

It is customaly in public buildings, stores and schools to unlock the doors during certain hours and to retain the door locking mechanism in unlocked position during such hours. The usual practice is for the custodian of the building to lock the doors in closed position after a certain time to prevent access to the interior of the building except by use of a key. The mechanism of the invention can be adapted to this procedure at any time, as hereinafter described.

To set the door locking mechanism in fixed unlocked position, the crash bar 25b and member -25 are pressed downwardly to unlocking position as shown by dotted lines in FIGS. 2 and 7 of the drawings. Upon reference to FIG. 7 it will be noted that bar and member 25 when fully depressed raises yoke 35 into a position such that latch 43 when rotated downwardly engages the web of the inverted U-shaped yoke 35 and retains the yoke in elevated position against the tension in spring 37. Latch 43 is normally held in elevated position by engagement with spring 44 and handle 25 when released is normally returned to elevated position by torsion spring arm 39. When, however, latch 43 is engaged with yoke 35, the spring is prevented from returning members 25 and 25a to upright position and the spring pressure serves to retain the yoke and latch in engagement until the crash bar is again held in fully depressed position and latch 43 is rotated free of the yoke 35 by means of the key inserted through the aperture 42a in housing 31.

From the foregoing it will be readily apparent that the door locking mechanism as described meets all the requirements for use on doors for public buildings and particularly schools and other buildings where large groups of people assemble. The doors can always be opened from the inside by pushing on handle 25, and can always be opened from the outside, by authorized persons, through use of the key 24a. Furthermore, the locking mechanism may be selectively secured into a position permitting free operation of opening and closing the doors from either side without operation of the looking mechanism. When the mechanism is fixed in unlocked position, it cannot be accidentally or intentionally released from such position without use of thespecial key in the hands of authorized persons.

It is to be understood that the specific form of the invention, as disclosed, is for purposes of illustration and not limitation. Many obvious changes and substitutions of mechanical equivalents will be apparent to persons skilled in the art and I do not intend to be bound by the specific details of disclosure, except as made necessary by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a door locking mechanism, in combination, a rod for mounting within a door for vertical reciprocation relative thereto, a keeper mounted on one end of the rod and extending laterally therefrom for vertical gravitational movement into engagement with a latch plate member releasably engaging an adjacent face of the door, said rod when engaging the keeper at one end thereon with the latch plate member having its opposite end portion engaging with a fixed support disposed below the'horizontal plane of the bottom of the door, a rod operating member pivotally mounted on the outer face of the door and having a key operated lock retaining the member in parallel relation to the door, an arm on said member extending inwardly of the door for movement longitudinally of the rod when the member is moved out of parallel relation to the door, a first stop fixed on the said rod for engagement by said operating member arm for imparting vertical upward movement to said rod, a member pivotally mounted on the opposite inner face of the door for movement toward and away from the door, a yoke on said latter member extending inwardly of the door for movement longitudinally of the rod upon pivotal movement of the member toward the door, a spring on said door resisting pivotal movement of the member toward said door, a second stop fixed on said rod for engagement by said moving yoke to impart vertical upward movement to said rod, a horizontally disposed spring loaded member slidably mounted on said door for reciprocal movement transversely of the door and projecting outwardly from the door in one direction of movement thereof for engagement with the said latch plate, said spring loaded member when moving in one direction to project outwardly of the door having an intermediate portion slidably en gaging beneath said keeper to retain the keeper against gravitational movement into engagement with said latch plate member and when moved in the opposite direction releasing said keeper for vertical gravitational movement into engagement with the latch plate member.

2. The door locking mechanism as defined in claim 1, wherein said pivotally mounted member on the inner face of the door has its pivotal support within a housing fixed relative to the inner face of said door, and a latch member pivotally mounted within said housing is selectively moveable into engagement with the yoke of said pivotal member when said rod is raised by the yoke to retain the yoke in engagement with said adjacent stop on the rod to secure the rod in raised door unlocking position.

3. In a metal door having at least one hollow door stile extending from top to bottom of the door, a latch plate member mounted adjacent said door for engagement by said door stile when the door is in closed position, a rod disposed within said hollow stile and extending longitudinally thereof, a keeper mounted on the upper end of said rod and projecting outwardly from one face of the stile for longitudinal vertical movement relative thereto, means on said keeper and latch plate member for engagement as the rod is moved in one direction longitudinal of the stile, a spring loaded member disposed transversely of said stile for slidable movement into and out of the path of movement of said keeper, said spring loaded member normally projecting outwardly through one side of the stile for engagement with the latch plate member and moved inwardly of the stile against said spring through said engagement, said springloaded member having a portion underlying the keeper when the member extends outwardly through the stile, said spring-loaded member portion moving inwardly free of said keeper when the member is moved inwardly of the stile, a stop member fixed to said rod intermediate its length, a housing mounted on said stile below said projecting portion of said spring loaded member, a door handle pivotally mounted in said housing and having a yoke portion thereof above said pivot projecting through the adjacent stile wall and below said stop member, said projecting yoke portion engaging said rod stop member upon rotation of the handle towards the door stile to raise the said keeper above the plane of the spring loaded member for retention of the keeper in elevated position when the spring loaded member is projecting outwardly of the door stile upon opening of the door, said door handle being engaged by a spring depending below said housing for constantly urging the lower portion of the handle away from the door stile and said handle yoke portion away from said rod stop member, latch means pivotally mounted Within said housing means normally holding the latch means against rotation and means detachably connected with said latch means for moving same into and out of engagement with said handle yoke, said latch means being selectively rotatable into engagement with said yoke only after the handle is fully depressed to raise said keeper out of engagement with said latch plate independently of opening and closing of said door.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,130,266 Gold Mar. 2, 1915 1,140,343 Arens May 18, 1915 1,518,187 Dyer Dec. 9, 1924 2,201,963 Wartian May 21, 1940 2,202,075 Yoe May 28, 1940 2,781,218 Jewett Feb. 12, 1957 2,824,440 Jewett et al. Feb. 25, 1958 2,887,336 Meyer May 19, 1959 2,910,857 Muessel Nov. 3, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 519,937 Great Britain Apr. 10, 1940 580,503 Great Britain Sept. 10, 1946