WO2004097149A1

WO2004097149A1 - Lock device

Info

Publication number: WO2004097149A1
Application number: PCT/SE2004/000644
Authority: WO
Inventors: Patric Andersson; Per Arnell
Original assignee: Fix Ab
Priority date: 2003-04-28
Filing date: 2004-04-28
Publication date: 2004-11-11
Also published as: DK1618270T3; SE0301227D0; NO20051256D0; NO20051256L; DE602004022274D1; SE522797C2; EP1618270A1; SE0301227L; EP1618270B1; ATE438009T1; NO336705B1

Abstract

A lock device having a lock housing comprises a forend (10) designed for fastening to a door or window and a handle follower (20) rotatably mounted in the lock housing, which handle follower is mechanically coupled to parts incorporated in the lock housing. An auxiliary follower (40) rotatably mounted in the lock housing is in mechanical teeth engagement with the handle follower and which is spring-loaded in both rotational directions by means of a spring (41) toward an initial position. This results in resilient returning of the handle follower to the initial position, at the same time as the construction is kept compact.

Description

LOCK DEVICE

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates in general terms to a lock device and relates more specifically to a lock device having a spring-back handle follower.

BACKGROUND

Lock devices for doors and windows, etc. have in many cases a handle or knob by which parts incorporated in the lock, such as a latch bolt and other bolts, are actuated by way of a follower disposed in the lock device. In many cases, a spring-back function of the follower is desired, so that the handle or the knob regains an original position following, for example, maneuvering of the lock.

So-called espagnolette locks comprise a lock housing which is coupled by bolt rods to side or end bolts of the wedge bolt or hook bolt type placed at a distance from the lock housing. Espagnolette locks are often used for locking windows or balcony doors in which several locking points are required. In a variant of an espagnolette lock, there is also, in addition to the conventional side or end bolts, a latch bolt present, which is placed centrally in the central lock housing.

As a result of the use of espagnolette locks in, for example, windows and balcony doors, where the largest possible glass surface and hence the narrowest possible frame are desired, a relatively small lock depth, i.e. the distance between the rear edge of the lock housing and an edge rail, is required.

A problem in this regard is to produce a lock housing for use with espagnolette locks or other types of lock, which, with small lock depth, accommodates all the required lock functions. This is a particular problem in lock housings for use with espagnolette locks comprising a latch bolt, since the latch bolt function requires a spring function of the handle follower controlling the working of the lock.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One object of the present invention is therefore to produce a lock device, which has a return function of the handle follower, combined with a compact construction and hence a small lock depth.

The invention is based on the realization that, for a return function of a handle follower, a spring-loaded auxiliary follower mechanically coupled to the handle follower can be provided.

According to the invention, it is therefore possible to produce a lock device of the type mentioned in the introduction, which is characterized by an auxiliary follower rotatably mounted in the lock housing, which auxiliary follower is in mechanical teeth engagement with the handle follower and is spring-loaded in both rotational directions by means of a spring.

Further preferred embodiments are defined by the subclaims .

With the lock device according to the invention, the aforementioned drawbacks in respect of the prior art are eliminated. With an auxiliary follower of the inventive type, it is possible to produce a return function for a handle or knob which is designed to maneuver parts incorporated in the lock, such as a latch bolt or side or end bolts in an espagnolette lock. This is achieved whilst maintaining a very compact construction which allows small lock depth. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described by way of examples in greater detail below, with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

fig. 1 is a perspective view obliquely from the rear over a lock device according to the invention, with removed cover,

fig. 2 is a perspective view obliquely from the front of the lock device shown in fig. 1 and with fitted cover,

fig. 3 shows a plan view of the lock device according to the invention in locked position and with fully projecting latch bolt,

fig. 4 shows a view corresponding to fig. 3 but with partially retracted latch bolt,

fig. 5 shows a view corresponding to figs. 3 and 4 but with the lock in open position and fully retracted latch bolt, and

fig. 6 shows a perspective view of the lock device according to the invention, which shows the coupling between a handle follower and an auxiliary follower incorporated in the lock device .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of a lock device according to the invention will be described below. In this description, references will be made to various directions, such as up, down, left, right, etc. These directions should not be regarded as limiting, but merely refer to what is shown in the figures. By way of introduction, with reference to figs. 1 and 2, a lock device according to the invention is shown in perspective with removed and fitted cover plate respectively. The lock device, denoted in general terms by 1, comprises a forend or face plate 9, to which a lock housing, denoted in general terms by 10, is fitted. The lock housing comprises a case bottom 11 and a cover 12, which between them enclose the parts incorporated in the lock. The lock housing thus comprises a handle follower or knob follower 20, which has a square hole 21 designed to receive a handle pin or knob pin (not shown) . The handle follower is rotatably mounted in a circular opening in the case bottom and a corresponding opening 12a in the cover, see fig. 2.

Coupled to the handle follower is a lever arm 22, the motion of which is guided by a guide pin 23. A lug 20b on the handle follower interacts with a certain play with a recess 22a arranged in an opening in the lever arm. When the handle follower rotates, its lug engages with the recess in the lever arm, so that this rotates with the handle follower. Upon rotation, the lever arm brings with it a latch bolt 30, comprising a latch bolt arm 31 having, on both sides, a guide pin 32. The guide pins 32 are guided in therefore provided grooves lib, 12b in the case bottom and cover respectively, so that the latch bolt is movable between a fully extended position, shown in figs. 2 and 3, and a fully retracted position, see fig. 5. As can be seen from fig. 1, it is the guide pin 32 which effects the coupling between the lever arm 22 and the latch bolt arm 31. A latch bolt spring 33 is arranged to load the latch bolt 30 toward its projecting position.

In addition, an operating arm 24 is coupled to the handle follower 20 in similar fashion to the lever arm 22, i.e. a recess in the operating arm interacts with a certain play with the lug 20b of the handle follower. The operating arm is designed to effect coupling between the handle follower and a vertically movable control rod 15. The latter, which extends through the whole of the lock housing and is mounted in a lower bearing housing 16 and an upper bearing housing 17, has recesses 15a for coupling to upper and lower bolt rods (not shown) , which, in turn, are coupled to side or end bolts (not shown) . Upon vertical motion of the control rod and hence of the bolt rods, a motion between retracted and extended position, i.e. let-in and let- out position, is imparted to the side or end bolts.

The illustrated lock housing is a so-called lockable lock housing. For this a cylinder follower 18 is provided, which is designed to block the motion of the control rod 15 so as thereby to block the motion of the side or end bolts from extended to retracted position. The cylinder follower is rotatable under the action of a lock cylinder (not shown) fitted to the lock device.

Since the lock housing comprises a latch bolt, the handle follower must be spring-loaded such that it strives toward an initial position, such as the position shown in figs. 1-3. In order to achieve this and, at the same time, maintain a small lock depth, an auxiliary follower 40 is mounted rotatably about an auxiliary follower shaft 42, which runs between in an opening in the case bottom and a corresponding opening 12c in the cover 12. The auxiliary follower 40 has a teeth arrangement 40a, which interacts with a corresponding teeth arrangement 20a on the handle follower 20 so that, when the handle follower rotates clockwise, the auxiliary follower rotates counterclockwise, and vice versa.

For rotation loading of the auxiliary follower 40, an auxiliary follower spring 41 is provided. This spring, which is a torsion spring, has two legs 41a, 41b, which extend on either side of a protrusion 40b on the auxiliary follower 40 and thereafter on either side of a pin 13 running between the case bottom and the cover. The auxiliary follower is thereby spring-loaded in both rotational directions. This spring-loading is transmitted via the teeth arrangement 20a, 40a to the handle follower 20, so that this too becomes spring- loaded in both rotational directions.

The working of the lock device shown in figs. 1 and 2 will now be described in detail with reference to figs.

3-6. Fig. 3 shows a plan view with removed cover in a locked position for the espagnolette lock. The handle follower 20 is in an initial position, the control rod

15 being located in a lower end position and the latch bolt 30 in a fully extended position. The cylinder follower 18 is in such a rotation position that a cylinder follower pin 18a rotating with the cylinder follower blocks the upward motion of the control rod

15. The side or end bolts of the espagnolette lock cannot thus be displaced into their retracted position and the door or window in which the espagnolette lock is fitted cannot be opened.

Fig. 4 illustrates how the cylinder follower 18 has been rotated into an unlocked position in which the cylinder follower pin 18a has been displaced into a non-blocking position, whereby the control rod 15 is open to upward displacement. The handle follower 20 has been rotated approximately 20 degrees clockwise from an initial position by means of a knob or handle (not shown) . The lever arm 22 has hereupon rotated together with the handle follower and has forced the latch bolt pin 32, and hence the entire latch bolt 30, to the right in the figure into a partially retracted position for the latch bolt. At the same time, a clockwise rotation has been imparted to the operating arm 24, so that it transports the control rod 15 in an upwardly directed motion. During its clockwise rotation, the handle follower, through its teeth engagement with the auxiliary follower 20, has imparted to the latter a corresponding counterclockwise rotation.

Fig. 5 illustrates how the handle follower 20 has been rotated a further 20 degrees or so, whereupon the lever arm 22 has pulled the latch bolt along into a fully retracted position. At the same time, the operating arm 24 has transported the control rod 15 further upward, so that it has assumed its upper end position in which the side or end bolts, which are coupled to the control rod by bolt rods (not shown) , have been guided into a fully retracted position, whereupon the door or window in which the espagnolette lock is fitted is able to be opened.

The coupling between the handle follower 20 and the auxiliary follower 40 can clearly be seen from fig. 6.

Owing to the rotational play present between the handle follower 20 and the operating arm 24, the handle follower can revert from its position shown in fig. 5 to its position shown in fig. 3 without any influence upon the operating arm and hence upon the control rod 15. With these parts in the position shown in fig. 5, the latch bolt function of the lock device can therefore be used without its locking function being activated by the control rod 15.

In order to return the side or end bolts to their extended position, the control rod 15 must be returned to the position shown in fig. 3. This is achieved by the handle follower 20 being rotated,^' by means of a knob, 40 degrees counterclockwise from its initial position shown in fig. 3. The operating arm 24 will thereby force down the control rod 15 until it has reached its lower end position, causing the extension of the side or end bolts. Owing to the spring-back function of the auxiliary follower 40, the handle follower will revert to the position shown in fig. 3 after the letting-out operation.

A description has been given of preferred embodiments of a lock device and incorporated forend units according to the invention. The person skilled in the art will appreciate that these can be varied within the scope of the appended patent claims. An espagnolette lock has thus been illustrated and described. It will be appreciated that the inventive concept is also applicable to other types of lock, such as locks which have no coupling to side or end bolts. It will further be appreciated that even though an espagnolette lock with latch bolt has been used as an illustrative example, the spring-back function according to the invention can be used in letting in and letting out the side or end bolts without the presence of a latch bolt in the lock device .

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS

1. A lock device comprising:

- a lock housing (10) designed for fastening to a door or window, which lock housing has a case bottom (11) and a cover (12) ,

a handle follower (20) rotatably mounted in the lock housing, which handle follower is mechanically coupled to parts incorporated in the lock housing,

characterized by

an auxiliary follower (40) rotatably mounted in the lock housing, which auxiliary follower is in mechanical teeth engagement with the handle follower and is spring-loaded in both rotational directions by means of an auxiliary follower spring (41) toward an initial position.

2. The lock device as claimed in patent claim 1, wherein the lock housing (10) is an espagnolette lock housing.

3. The lock device as claimed in patent claim 1 or 2, wherein the auxiliary follower spring (41) has two legs

(41a, 41b) , which run on either side of a protrusion (40b) on the auxiliary follower and of a pin (13) fixedly arranged in the lock housing.

4. The lock device as claimed in patent claim 3, wherein the legs (41a, 41b) , in the initial position of the auxiliary follower, run essentially parallel with each other.

5. The lock device as claimed in any of patent claims 1-4, wherein the auxiliary follower spring (41) is a torsion spring.

6. The lock device as claimed in any of patent claims 1-5, comprising

a latch bolt (30) , which is movable through an opening in the lock housing between an extended end position and a retracted end position, and

a first arm (22) mechanically coupled to the handle follower and the latch bolt, the first arm being designed to displace the latch bolt between the extended and retracted end positions.

7. The lock device as claimed in patent claim 6, wherein the first arm (22) is mechanically coupled to the handle follower with a rotational play.

8. The lock device as claimed in patent claim 5 or 6, wherein the mechanical coupling between the handle follower (20) and the first arm (22) is effected by means of a lug (20b) on the handle follower and a recess (22a) made in the first arm.

9. The lock device as claimed in any of patent claims 2-8, comprising a second arm (24) mechanically coupled to the handle follower with a rotational play, wherein the first arm is designed to displace a control rod (15) designed for coupling to end bolts in an espagnolette lock.

10. The lock device as claimed in any of patent claims 1-9, wherein the auxiliary follower (40) is mounted rotatably about a shaft (42) running between an opening in the case bottom (11) and an opening (12c) in the cove .