Closure fasteners – Operators with knobs or handles
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-18
2002-03-26
Luu, Teri Pham (Department: 3627)
Closure fasteners
Operators with knobs or handles
C292S138000, C292S140000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06361090
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lock apparatus, more particularly to a lock apparatus which has a relatively simple structure to simplify the manufacturing process and assembly thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIGS. 1 and 2
illustrate a conventional lock apparatus
1
which is mounted on a door panel
2
to permit locking of the door panel
2
to an adjacent door frame
23
. As shown, in the conventional lock apparatus
1
, an elongated escutcheon
11
is mounted on an outer side
22
of the door panel
2
. The escutcheon
11
is formed with upper and lower fastening posts
112
, and a spindle hole
111
between the fastening posts
112
. The door panel
2
is formed with a spindle hole
25
aligned with the spindle hole
111
in the escutcheon
11
, and a pair of fastener holes
26
aligned with the fastening posts
112
, respectively. A lock core unit
12
is mounted on the escutcheon
11
adjacent to the outer side
22
of the door panel
2
. The lock core unit
12
has a cylindrical shell
121
extending into the spindle hole
111
and retained on the escutcheon
11
by means of a retaining ring
113
, and a key operable lock core body
122
mounted on the shell
121
and operable by a key
123
that drives axial rotation of the lock core body
122
relative to the shell
121
. The lock core body
122
has a drive end formed with a non-circular axial drive hole
124
. A lock housing
13
is fastened to an inner side
21
of the door panel
2
by means of a pair of screw bolts
130
. The screw bolts
130
extend respectively through a pair of fastening posts
137
in the lock housing
13
, the fastener holes
26
in the door panel
2
, and engage threadedly the fastening posts
112
of the escutcheon
11
. The lock housing
13
has a mounting wall
131
parallel to the door panel
2
, and a surrounding wall
134
that extends transversely from the mounting wall
131
toward the door panel
2
and that cooperates with the mounting wall
131
to confine a receiving space
135
in the housing
13
. The surrounding wall
134
is formed with a notch
136
which is disposed adjacent to the door frame
23
. The mounting wall
131
is formed with a circular mounting hole
132
which is axially aligned with the spindle holes
25
,
111
in the door panel
2
and the escutcheon
11
. The mounting wall
131
is further formed with a pair of diametrically opposite rivet projections
133
offset to the mounting hole
132
. A latch actuator
14
is mounted on the lock housing
13
at the mounting hole
132
. The latch actuator
14
includes a disc portion
141
retained at the mounting hole
132
, an eccentric actuating rod
143
projecting from the disc portion
141
, and an operable knob
142
formed on the disc portion
141
opposite to the actuating rod
143
and projecting from the lock housing
13
via the mounting hole
132
to permit manual operation of the latch actuator
14
. A latch member
15
is disposed movably in the lock housing
13
adjacent to the notch
136
. The latch member
15
is formed with an elongated slot
153
that permits extension of the actuating rod
143
therethrough, and is provided with a torsion spring
154
adjacent to the elongated slot
153
. The torsion spring
154
has a biasing leg
155
that extends across the elongated slot
153
and that abuts against a circumferential surface of the actuating rod
143
. When the operating knob
142
of the latch actuator
14
is operated to cause axial rotation of the disc portion
141
in the mounting hole
132
, the latch member
15
can be moved by the actuating rod
143
to project from the lock housing
13
via the notch
136
, or to retract into the receiving space
135
of the lock housing
13
. The lock housing
13
is further mounted with a coupling member
16
and an L-shaped retaining plate
18
. The coupling member
16
includes a circular disc
161
, an axially extending sleeve
163
connected to the circular disc
161
, and an axially extending flat spindle
17
. The circular disc
161
has an eccentric coupling hole
162
that has the actuating rod
143
extending therethrough. The spindle
17
has a first end
172
extending into and engaging co-rotatably the sleeve
163
, and a second end
171
extending through the spindle hole
25
in the door panel
2
and coupled to the drive hole
124
in the drive end of the lock core body
122
for co-rotation with the lock core body
122
. The retaining plate
18
includes a first plate portion
181
parallel to the mounting wall
131
and formed with a circular opening
183
which is aligned with the mounting hole
132
in the mounting wall
131
and which permits the sleeve
163
and the spindle
17
of the coupling member
16
to extend therethrough. The first plate portion
181
has diagonally opposite corners formed with through holes
184
(only one is visible) that permit extension of the rivet projections
133
therethrough. The rivet projections
133
are punched after extending through the through holes
184
for securing the retaining plate
18
on the lock housing
13
. The latch member
15
and the disc portion
161
of the coupling member
16
are retained between the mounting wall
131
and the first plate portion
181
of the retaining plate
18
. The retaining plate
18
further has a second plate portion
182
perpendicular to the first plate portion
181
and disposed in the notch
136
. In use, the lock apparatus
1
is operable from the inner side
21
of the door panel
2
by operating the knob
142
to move the latch actuator
14
to a locking position, where the latch member
15
projects from the lock housing
13
via the notch
136
and extends into a latch groove
24
formed in the door frame
23
, thereby locking the door panel
2
to the door frame
23
, and to an unlocking position, where the latch member
15
is retracted into the receiving space
135
, thereby unlocking the door panel
2
from the door frame
23
. The lock apparatus
1
can also be operated from the outer side
22
of the door panel
2
by operating the lock core unit
12
with the use of the key
123
. Since the latch actuator
14
is coupled to the lock core body
122
by virtue of the coupling member
16
, it can thus be driven by the key-operated lock core body
122
to move between the locking and unlocking positions. As the biasing leg
155
of the torsion spring
154
abuts against the circumferential surface of the actuating rod
143
, the latch actuator
14
can be retained in the locking and unlocking positions.
However, in order to mount the torsion spring
154
on the latch member
15
, the latch member
15
is formed with a spring hole
157
adjacent to the elongated slot
153
for retaining the torsion spring
154
. The latch member
15
has one side opposite to the latch actuator
14
and formed with an abutment shoulder
158
adjacent to the elongated slot
153
to permit the biasing leg
155
of the torsion spring
154
to abut against the abutment shoulder
158
when the torsion spring
154
is disposed in the spring hole
157
during assembly, thereby positioning the biasing leg
155
so as to facilitate assembly of the latch actuator
14
to the latch member
15
. In addition, the latch member
15
has another side facing the latch actuator
14
and formed with another abutment shoulder (not shown) for positioning an opposite leg (not shown) of the torsion spring
154
. Therefore, the latch member
15
has a relatively complicated structure, and the assembly of the latch actuator
14
to the latch member
15
involves complicated and labor intensive tasks. Moreover, the retaining plate
18
is secured to the lock housing
13
by means of the rivet projections
133
via a rivet joint process, which further complicates the manufacture and assembly of the lock apparatus
1
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a lock apparatus having a relatively simple structure so as to simplify the manufacturing and assembly processe
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