WO2008023397A1

WO2008023397A1 - Automatic locking device for drawers in closed position

Info

Publication number: WO2008023397A1
Application number: PCT/IT2007/000548
Authority: WO
Inventors: Graziano Eutizi
Original assignee: R.G.G. S.R.L.; L'ebanista S.R.L.
Priority date: 2006-08-21
Filing date: 2007-07-31
Publication date: 2008-02-28
Also published as: ITMC20060101A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to an automatic locking device for drawers in closed position, which consists in a bracket (1,10) that supports an attachment lever (4) and is designed to be applied under the bottom (F) of the drawer (C); the said device also comprises a plate (6) to engage the said locking lever (4), designed to be positioned immediately under the lower border (B) of the front panel (P) of the drawer (C).

Description

Automatic locking device for drawers in closed position.

The present patent application relates to an automatic locking device for drawers in closed position designed to be mounted under the bottom of the drawer and provided with a unlocking lever positioned immediately below the lower border of the front panel of the drawer. The device of the invention has been devised to meet a requirement that is typically found in the construction of boat furniture, where the stability of furnishings and objects is not ensured in case of high navigation speed or rough sea conditions.

Although provided with different structural configurations and operating modes, the locking devices for drawers that are currently available on the market are all applied on the back of the front panel of the drawer or recessed into the upper border of the said panel.

Traditional locking devices are locks provided with a catch that is engaged inside a suitable housing in the structure that houses and guides the drawer.

In some types of locks, the said catch is opened or closed by means of a knob or rotating key.

Other models used to guarantee the automatic stable locking of the drawer in closed position are provided with a spring designed to exert a continuous expulsion force on the catch, which is in a permanent expulsion condition.

The major drawback of the said locking devices consists in the fact that they require a machining operation on the front panel of the drawer to provide the housing for the key or knob. Additionally, the said key or knob are visible on the front panel of the drawer, thus impairing the aesthetics of the furniture.

As a solution to the latter drawback, automatic locking devices provided with a pair of magnets, respectively applied on the structure that houses the drawer have been devised.

The locking function is entrusted to the pair of magnets that automatically interact when the drawer is closed.

The clean aesthetics and line of the drawer are not affected by the said automatic locking means.

The drawer is opened by simply exerting a force higher than the attraction force of the pair of magnets.

The only drawback of this type of locking system consists in the fact that the locking provided by the pair of magnets can be impaired in case of strong opening stresses, such as in case of very rough sea conditions or high navigation speed.

The said inconvenience is worsened if the drawers contain heavy objects that reduce the attraction force of the magnets, which is no longer sufficient to oppose the opening stress of the drawers. The purpose of the present invention is to devise a locking device for drawers characterised by the advantages of the aforementioned devices without relevant drawbacks; more precisely, the locking device of the invention does not alter the aesthetics of the front panel of the drawer and provides a mechanical lock, capable of withstanding the severe stresses caused by the boat's vibrations during navigation.

These and other purposes have been achieved by the invention, whose main characteristics are illustrated in the first claim.

The device of the invention is fixed under the bottom of the drawer and in the proximity of the lower border of the front panel, in such a way that it is reached with the fingers when the user grabs the lower border of the front panel to open the drawer.

The device of the invention is composed of a bracket designed to be fixed under the drawer and pivoted to a tilting lever that ends with a catch that engages into a suitable housing situated on the plate, on the side towards the inside of the support structure of the drawer.

The plate is fixed to the support structure of the drawer in such a position that the catch is automatically attached inside the said housing when the drawer is closed.

To open the drawer, the user must release the catch from the housing by pushing the other end of the tilting level, that is to say the free end towards the front panel of the drawer. In order to make operation easier, the lever has an enlarged head situated immediately behind the lower border of the front panel of the drawer. For major clarity, the description of the device of the invention continues with reference to the enclosed drawings, which are intended for purposes of illustration only and not in a limiting sense, whereby: - fig. 1 is a diagrammatic axonometric top view of the device of the invention;

- fig. 2 is a diagrammatic exploded axonometric top view of the device of the invention;

- fig. 3 is a diagrammatic axonometric bottom view of the device of the invention;

- fig. 4 is a diagrammatic exploded axonometric bottom, view of the device of the invention;

- figure 5 is a side view of the device of the invention mounted under a drawer, which partially shows the bottom and the front panel of the drawer, both sectioned with a vertical plane perpendicular to the pivoting pin of the tilting lever;

- figure 6 is basically the same as figure 2, except for the fact that it shows the device of the invention according to a second embodiment.

With reference to figure 1 , the locking device of the invention is composed of a bracket (1 ) shaped as an overturned L, with horizontal wing (1a) ending with a flange (1 b) provided with slots (2) with horizontal axis, while the vertical wing (1c) ends with a fork (1d).

In the fork (1d), the vertical wing (1c) has a through hole (1e) in which a pivoting pin (3) is inserted for a flat lever (4) that is provided with a central hub (4a) designed to be positioned inside the fork (1d) to house the pivoting pin (3).

The end of the lever (4) designed to be positioned on the front panel of the drawer ends with an enlarged head (4b), while on the opposite side, that is to say the side towards the inside of the furniture cabinet that supports the drawer (C), the lever (4) ends with a catch (4c).

With reference to figure 4, a precompressed return spring (5) is positioned between the bracket (1) and the lever (4), whose upper end is inserted into a corresponding housing (1f) under the horizontal wing (1a), while the lower end of the return spring (5) is inserted into a suitable housing (4d) in the upper part of the lever (4) between the enlarged head (4b) and the hub (4a). Moreover, the device comprises a plate (6) provided with a housing

(6a) designed to cooperate with the catch (4c) and a series of slots (6b) with vertical axis to insert the screws used to fix it to the structure that houses the drawer, which in this case is provided, immediately inside the opening of the drawer, with a suitable fixed cross-piece or shelf (M) used to anchor the said plate (6).

With reference to figure 5, the bracket (1 ) is attached to the back of the lower border (B) of the front panel (P) of the drawer (C), by means of screws inserted in the slots (2) of the flange (1 b), while the plate (6) is fixed to the shelf (M) by means of connection screws inserted in the slots (6a), in such a position that the catch (4c) is automatically attached inside the housing (6a) when the drawer (C) is closed.

Evidently, a front panel (P) that protrudes from the bottom (F) of the drawer (C) is used to fix the bracket (1 ), as shown in figure 5, in such a way as to hide the lever (4) whose enlarged head (4b) is accessed with fingertips under the lower border of the front panel (P), which must be provided with an internal notch (S) designed to house and hide the said enlarged head (4b).

The profile of the catch (4c) allows its tip to automatically override the front border (6c) of the plate (6), while the catch (4c) is released by pressing the enlarged head (4b) upwards, thus tilting the lever (4) until the catch (4c) is released from the housing (6b).

Figure 6 shows an alternative embodiment of the invention designed to be mounted under the bottom of a traditional drawer, being provided with a front panel with lower border flush to the bottom of the drawer.

In the said embodiment, the device is composed of a bracket (10) with overturned-L shape, whose horizontal wing (10a) is provided with a fixing flange (10b) with holes (20) with vertical axis used to insert the screws to fix the bracket (10) under the bottom (F).

Claims

1 ) Automatic locking device for drawers in closed position, characterised by the fact that it consists in a bracket (1 , 10) with overturned-L shape, whose horizontal wing (1a, 10a) is provided with a flange (1 b, 10b) provided with slots (2, 20), while the vertical wing (1c) ends with a fork (1d) with a through hole (1e) designed to insert a pivoting pin (3) introduced into the hub (4a) of a flat lever (4) subject to the return action of a spring (5) and ending with a catch (4c) designed to engage inside a suitable housing (6a) provided on a plate (6) with a series of slots (6b) for fixing screws.

2) Automatic locking device for drawers as claimed in the preceding claim, characterised by the fact that the return spring (5) is an helicoidal spring positioned between the bracket (1 , 10) and the lever (4).

3) Automatic locking device for drawers, as claimed in the preceding claim, characterised by the fact that the upper end of the return spring (5) is inserted into a corresponding housing (1f) under the horizontal wing (1a, 10a), while the lower end of the return spring (5) is inserted into a suitable housing (4d) in the upper part of the lever (4).

4) Automatic locking device for drawers, as claimed in one of the preceding claims, characterised by the fact that the slots (2) of the coupling flange (1b) have a horizontal axis. 5) Automatic locking device for drawers, as claimed in claims 1 , 2 y 3, characterised by the fact that the slots (20) of the coupling flange (1 b) have a vertical axis.

6) Automatic locking device for drawers, as claimed in one of the preceding claims, characterised by the fact that the slots (6) of the plate (6) have a vertical axis.

7) Automatic locking device for drawers, as claimed in one of the preceding claims, characterised by the fact that the tilting lever (4) ends with an enlarged head (4b) at the end opposite to the catch (4c).