WO2002035040A1

WO2002035040A1 - Sliding window latch

Info

Publication number: WO2002035040A1
Application number: PCT/US2000/041246
Authority: WO
Inventors: Eric D. Hyp
Original assignee: Southco, Inc.
Priority date: 2000-10-18
Filing date: 2000-10-18
Publication date: 2002-05-02
Also published as: AU2001221138A1

Abstract

A slam latch for securing a panel such as a slidable window or door to a corresponding second panel or frame is disclosed. The slam latch includes a cover (16), a base (14), a torsion spring and a keeper (12). The keeper is mounted to one panel (102) and the cover, base and torsion spring are mounted to another panel (100). The panels are relatively movable between closed and open positions. The cover is pivotally supported by the base and is movable between closed and open positions. The torsion spring biases the cover toward the closed position. As one panel is moved relative to the other and into the closed position, a cam surface (42) on the keeper causes the cover to move such that an opening in the wall of the cover is presented for receiving the keeper. Once the panels are in the closed position, the cover is returned to the closed position by the action of the torsion spring, thus the cover captures the keeper and secures the panels in the closed position.

Description

SLIDING WINDOW LATCH

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates generally to a self-latching latch that automatically engages a keeper as a panel to which the latch is attached is moved to a closed position. 2. Brief Description of the Related Art

Latches for panels such as windows, doors and the like are well known and are generally comprised of a catch fixed to the panel and moveable to engage a second panel or frame in a latched position. In a typical operation, the catch is engagable with a keeper on the second panel or frame in a closed position. The keeper can comprise either a separate piece or be integral with the second panel or frame.

One such prior art latch is shown in U.S. Patent No. 5,603,535 ('535 Patent) to Jeffrey L. Antonucci, Richard E. Schlack and Paul Krape titled "SLAM LATCH", which is assigned to Southco, Inc., the assignee of the present application, and is incorporated by reference herein. The '535 Patent discloses a latch comprising a housing and a catch. The catch is secured to the housing and the housing is mounted in operation to a panel, such as a window or window frame. The catch when mounted to the housing is biased by spring force to a closed position so that the catch will automatically engage a keeper when the panel is slidably closed. For opening of the latch, the catch is manually pivoted in a direction perpendicular to the window against the bias of the spring force and away from the keeper so that the panel can be slidably opened.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a self-latching latch that automatically engages a keeper as a panel to which the latch is attached is moved to a closed position. This type of latch is also referred to herein, as a slam latch. In an illustrative embodiment, the slam latch of the present invention includes a cover, a base, a torsion spring and a keeper. The keeper is mounted to one panel and the cover, base, and torsion spring are mounted to another panel. The panels are relatively movable between closed and open positions. The cover is pivotally supported by the base and is movable between closed and open positions. The torsion spring biases the cover toward the closed position. As one panel is moved relative to the other and into the closed position, a cam surface on the keeper causes the cover to move such that an opening in the wall of the cover is presented for receiving the keeper. Once the panels are in the closed position, the cover is returned to the closed position by the action of the torsion spring, thus the cover captures the keeper and secures the panels in the closed position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a slam latch in accordance with the present invention, the slam latch shown in a latched position engaging a keeper.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the slam latch of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the slam latch of Fig. 1 shown in a transitional position as the slam latch engages the keeper and the cover is moved into the unlatched position by the keeper.

Fig. 4 is an isolated perspective view of a base of the slam latch of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is an isolated perspective view of a cover of the slam latch of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view of the cover of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is an isolated perspective view of a biasing means of the slam latch of Fig. 1 in the form of a torsion spring.

Fig. 8 is an isolated perspective view of a keeper of the slam latch of Fig. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein like reference numerals indicate like elements throughout the several views, there is shown in Fig. 1 an embodiment of a slam latch 10 in accordance with the present invention. The slam latch 10 in Fig. 1 includes a slam latch subassembly 11 and a keeper 12. In Fig. 1 , the slam latch subassembly 1 1 is shown secured to a first panel 100 and in a latched position engaging a keeper 12 secured to a second panel 102. In this embodiment, the panel 100 comprises a sliding window and the panel 102 comprises an adjacent stationary window or other fixed structure such as a window frame. As will be described in detail herein, the slam latch subassembly 1 1 of the present embodiment is adapted to be mounted to the frame of the window and the keeper 12 is adapted to be mounted to the frame of the adjacent structure. However, it is also possible to reverse the positions of the subassembly 1 1 and the keeper 12, with the keeper 12 mounted to the moving window and the subassembly 12 mounted to the stationary window frame, or both the keeper 12 and the subassembly 11 may be mounted to adjacent moving windows or panels. In addition to windows, the keeper 12 and the subassembly 11 can be mounted to many kinds of doors, panels, doorframes and the like. As shown in the perspective view of Fig. 1 and bottom plan view of Fig. 2, the slam latch 10 comprises, as portions thereof, a base 14, a cover 16, a biasing means comprising a torsion spring 18 in the illustrated embodiment (shown in dotted lines), and a keeper 12. The structure, assembly and operation of the slam latch 10 will be described in more detail below.

The base 14 is illustrated in detail in the isolated perspective view of Fig. 4. The base 14 in this embodiment is generally multilateral in shaped and in the illustrated embodiment has four sides. As illustrated, the base 14 comprises at least one and preferably three mounting holes 20 extending therethrough and means for coupling with the cover 16 comprising a boss 22 having a hole or receptacle 24 therein. The base 14 in the present embodiment also includes means for securing one end of the torsion spring 18 comprising a notch or hole 26. The end 15 of the torsion spring 18 engages the hole 26 to keep the end 15 of the torsion spring 18 stationary relative to the base 14. The cover 16 acts as the latching member in the embodiment of the slam latch illustrated herein. The cover 16 of the present embodiment is shown in detail in Figs. 5 and 6. The cover 16 includes a cover plate 31 having a perimeter and a surrounding wall 29 projecting to one side of the cover plate 31 from the perimeter of the cover plate so as to define a cavity 28. The cover plate 31 need not be flat and may be bowl shaped. The cover further includes a stud 38 projecting to the same side of the cover plate 31 as the surrounding wall 29. The stud 38 is received in the hole 24 thereby allow for pivotal support of the cover 16 by the base 14. The surrounding wall 29 has three sides or walls 36A, 36B, and 36C. The cover is trilateral in plan view with each adjacent pair of sides thereof meeting at a rounded corner (see Figs. 2, 3, and 6). In the illustrated embodiment, the sides of the trilateral shape of the cover 16 are curved. The cover 16 in this embodiment also includes an opening 30 for receiving the keeper 12. The opening 30 extends through the side 36A of the surrounding wall 29. In addition to the stud 38, the cover 16 also includes an annular substantially cylindrical extension 40 which surrounds the stud 38 and together with the stud 38 forms the means 32 for coupling the cover 16 to the base 14. Finally, the cover 16 includes means for holding one end of the torsion spring 18 stationary relative to the cover 16. In the illustrated embodiment, a hole or notch 39, within the wall 36A, is used to hold the end 13 of the torsion spring 18 stationary relative to the cover 16.

The keeper 12 of the present embodiment is shown in detail in the isolated perspective view of Fig. 8 and the side view of Fig. 9. The keeper 12 has a cam surface 42 that contacts the cover 16 as the sliding window 100 is moved to the closed position. Contact between the cam surface 42 and the cover 16 exerts a torque on the cover 16, which tends to move the cover 16 to the open position as the window 100 is moved to the closed position. The keeper 12 is roughly triangular or trilateral in plan view with rounded corners and a side 104 of the keeper substantially entirely occupies the opening 30 for receiving the keeper when the window 100 is shut. The side 104 of the keeper is substantially flush with the side 36A of the surrounding wall 29 and substantially all of the keeper, other than the side 104, is covered by the cover 16 when the window 100 is secured in the closed position by the slam latch 10. The keeper 12 in this embodiment has at least one and preferably two mounting holes 41 therethrough. The cam surface 42 is best illustrated in Fig. 3.

In the present embodiment, the keeper 12, base 14 and cover 16 are each made from plastic and the torsion spring 18 is made from metal. As should be understood, any suitable material or manufacturing process can be used for the construction of the components of the slam latch 10 of the present invention.

Assembly of the slam latch 10 will now be described. The base 14 and cover 16 in this embodiment are snap fit together by the engagement of stud 38 of cover 16 and the receptacle 24 of base 14, although as should be understood, other arrangements can also be used for this same purpose. The torsion spring 18 is mounted between the base 14 and cover 16 by having its opposite ends secured in the holes or notches 26 and 39 of the base 14 and cover 16, respectively. Once the stud 38 is engaged to the hole 24, the cover 16 moves pivotally relative to the base 14 by rotating about an axis which is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the window or panel 100. In other words, the plane of rotation of the cover 16 is parallel to the surface of the member 100. The cover 16 and the base 14 are preferably designed to be snap fit together. As an example, the tip of the stud 38 can be provided with resilient legs each having a radially projecting lip which catches a shoulder provided in the hole 24.

Mounting of the slam latch subassembly 11 and keeper 12 to panels 100 and 102 will now be described. As discussed above, the slam latch subassembly 11 and keeper 12 in this embodiment are adapted to be secured to the respective panels 100 and 102 by being mounted to the frame portions, which are typically made from metal, however, the frames can also be of other materials as well, such as wood as an example. In the present embodiment, the slam latch subassembly 11 is secured by fastening members received within holes 20 and secured to the frame of panel 100. The keeper 12 is similarly secured to the panel 102 by fastening members received in holes 41 and secured to the frame. The fastening members can be of a variety of types, such as screws, rivets and bolts. Although not shown, in other embodiments, the slam latch subassembly 1 1 and/or the keeper 12 can be mounted by an adhesive without the requirement of any fastening member, for example, a commercially available urethane adhesive can be used for this purpose. This has an advantage that the slam latch and/or keeper can be mounted directly to the glass. In one such embodiment, the base 14 and/ or keeper 12 would not need to have any mounting holes and a cavity can also be provided where desired in the bottom surface of the base and/or the keeper to receive the adhesive and facilitate attachment to the glass. The operation of the slam latch 10 of the present embodiment will now be described. The cover 16 is rotatable relative to base 14 in operation. The torsion spring 18 biases the cover 16 counterclockwise toward a closed position in the direction of arrow 70 shown in Fig. 1 , which provides a slam-to-close action when latching with keeper 12. In an example of a latching condition, the panel 100 is moved in a direction of the panel 102 and the cover 16 comes into engagement with the keeper 12. Continued movement of the panel 100 results with the keeper 12 forcing the cover 16 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction against the bias of torsion spring 18 as shown in Fig. 3. The ramped or cam surface 42 of the keeper 12 facilitates this operation, as illustrated in Fig. 3. As the panel 100 is then moved into a closed position relative to panel 102, the cover 16 is moved past the keeper 12, which allows the cover 16 to again rotate by the bias of spring 18 in a clockwise direction and into a latched position engaging the keeper 12, as shown in Fig. 2. In this embodiment, the keeper 12 is shaped to fit cleanly inside the cover 16 and also to conform to the outside shape of the wall 36A when in the latched position. To unlatch, an operator grasps the cover 16 in order to rotate the cover 16 in a counterclockwise direction (with reference to Fig. 3) away from engagement with the keeper 12. After the cover 16 is moved a sufficient amount to clear the keeper 12, the panel 100 can be moved away form the panel 102 to an open position. In view of that set forth above, it should be understood that there are several advantages of the slam latch of the present invention. One advantage is that the slam latch 10 can be unlatched and the panels moved to their open positions by a single action of the operator. This is possible since the rotational motion of the cover 16 is in the same plane as the sliding of the window. In addition, another advantage is that the slam latch can be utilized in applications where a low profile latch, which does not protrude out far from the surface of the panel, is desired.

It is to be understood that the above description of the present invention is susceptible to various modifications, changes and adaptations by those skilled in the art, and that such modifications, changes and adaptations are to be considered within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A slam latch for releasably securing a first member in a closed position relative to a second member, the slam latch comprising: a base adapted to be mounted to a surface of the first member; a cover pivotally supported by said base, said cover defining a cavity that is open at least to one side, at least a portion of said base being received within said cavity such that said portion of said base is concealed by said cover, said cover being movable between a closed cover position and an open cover position; means for biasing said cover toward said closed cover position; and a keeper adapted to be mounted to a surface of the second member, said cover having an opening for allowing at least a portion of said keeper to be received within said cavity when said base is mounted to said first member, said keeper is mounted to said second member, said first member is in the closed position, and said cover is in said closed cover position.

2. The slam latch of claim 1 , wherein said cover has a cover plate having a perimeter, and said cover has a surrounding wall projecting to one side of said cover plate from said perimeter of said cover plate so as to define said cavity, said cover further includes a stud projecting to the same side of said cover plate as said surrounding wall, and said base has a hole for receiving said stud to thereby pivotally support said cover.

3. The slam latch of claim 2, wherein said cover substantially entirely conceals said base.

4. The slam latch of claim 3, wherein said cover moves pivotally by rotating about an axis which is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the first member.

5. The slam latch of claim 4, wherein said cover is trilateral in plan view with each adjacent pair of sides thereof meeting at a rounded corner.

6. The slam latch of claim 5, wherein said trilateral has curved sides.

7. The slam latch of claim 6, wherein said hole for receiving said stud is formed in a raised boss formed in said base.

8. The slam latch of claim 7, wherein said opening for receiving said keeper is formed by a cutout in said surrounding wall.

9. The slam latch of claim 8, wherein said keeper has a cam surface which contacts said cover as at least one of said first and second members is moved to the closed position, contact between said cam surface and said cover exerting a torque on said cover which tends to move said cover to said open cover position as at least one of said first and second members is moved to the closed position.

10. The slam latch of claim 9, wherein said keeper is trilateral in plan view with rounded corners and a side of said keeper substantially entirely occupies said opening for receiving said keeper, with said side of said keeper being substantially flush with a side of said surrounding wall and substantially all of said keeper, other than said side of said keeper occupying said opening for receiving said keeper, being covered by said cover when said first and second members are secured in the closed position by the slam latch.

11. A slam latch subassembly for releasably securing a first member in a closed position relative to a second member, the slam latch subassembly comprising: a base adapted to be mounted to a surface of the first member; a latching member pivotally supported by said base, said cover moving pivotally by rotating about an axis which is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the first member when the slam latch subassembly is mounted to the first member, said latching member being movable between a closed latching member position and an open latching member position, said latching member being adapted to engage a keeper mounted to a surface of the second member, said latching member securing the first and second members in the closed position when said base is mounted to the first member and said latching member is engaged to said keeper with said latching member being in said closed latching member position; and means for biasing said latching member toward said closed latching member position.

12. The slam latch of claim 11 , wherein said latching member is in the form of a cover, said cover defining a cavity that is open at least to one side, said cover has a cover plate having a perimeter, and said cover has a surrounding wall projecting to one side of said cover plate from said perimeter of said cover plate so as to define said cavity, said cover further includes a stud projecting to the same side of said cover plate as said surrounding wall, and said base has a hole for receiving said stud to thereby pivotally support said cover.

13. The slam latch of claim 12, wherein said cover substantially entirely conceals said base.

14. The slam latch of claim 13, wherein said cover is trilateral in plan view with each adjacent pair of sides thereof meeting at a rounded corner.

15. The slam latch of claim 14, wherein said trilateral has curved sides.

16. The slam latch of claim 15, wherein said hole for receiving said stud is formed in a raised boss formed in said base.

17. The slam latch of claim 16, wherein said cover has an opening for allowing at least a portion of the keeper to be received within said cavity defined by said cover and said opening for receiving said keeper is formed by a cutout in said surrounding wall.