Door lock

Claim 2

In a door lock having two side plates forming part of a housing for the lock, a bolt mounted between said side plates for sliding between a retracted, unlocked position and an extended, locked position, and at least one actuating element mounted on one of said plates for rotation about a first axis, and having an inner end that is disposed between said plates, an improved bolt-operating mechanism, comprising: an actuating member carried by the actuating element on the inner end portion thereof and rotatable with the actuating element about said axis; a toggle joint comprising first and second toggle links joined together by a first pivot; a second pivot joining said first link to the inner end of said bolt; a third pivot spaced inwardly from said bolt and mounting said second link in said housing alongside said inner end of said actuating element, for rotation about a second axis spaced from said first pivot, whereby back and forth rotation of said second link extends and contracts said toggle joint to extend and retract said bolt; said second link being movable in a bolt-extending direction from a bolt-retracted position in which said first pivot is angularly spaced from a line between said second and third pivots, on one side of said line, to a bolt-extended position in which said first pivot is on the other side of said line; spring means for urging said toggle joint yieldably toward the bolt-retracted position until the bolt is substantially extended, and toward the bolt-extended position after the bolt is substantially extended; and abutment means on said second link disposed in te path of rotation of said actuating member to be engaged and moved, along with the second link, to a selected bolt-extended position during rotation in one direction, and to be engaged and moved from said bolt-extended position to a selected bolt-retracted position during rotation in the other direction; said second axis being offset from said first axis away from said bolt and the rotation of said actuating element being eccentric relative to the rotation of said abutment means on said second link; and said abutment means defining an aperture for receiving and releasing said actuating member as an incident to the eccentric rotation thereof, in said bolt-extended and bolt-retracted positions of said second link.

Claim 3

A door lock as defined in claim 1 in which said actuating member is an arm projecting radially from the inner end of said actuating element, for insertion in and retraction from said aperture during the eccentric rotation and said abutment means comprise two elongated and parallel tabs on said second link projecting toward said one of said plates, and defining a slot for receiving said arm as the latter is rotated.

Claim 4

A door lock as defined in claim 1 in which said spring means comprise a toggle spring including: a telescoping support pin pivoted at one end in said lock and at the other end on said second link, and a spring mounted on said support pin and urging said second link away from said one end of said support pin, said toggle spring being positioned to go over-center and reverse the effective angular direction in which it urges said second link as said toggle joint is extending said bolt toward the locked position and retracting said bolt toward the unlocked position.

Claim 5

A door lock as defined in claim 3 in which said toggle spring is positioned to go over-center before said toggle joint goes over-center during locking of the bolt.

Claim 6

In a door lock having two side plates mountable against the opposite sides of a door adjacent one edge thereof, a bolt mounted between said plates for sliding between a retracted, unlocked position and an extended, locked position, and at least one actuating element mounted on one of said plates for rotation about a first axis and having an inner end that is disposed between said plates, an improved bolt-operating mechanism, comprising: an actuating member carried by the inner end of said actuating element and projecting radially outwardly therefrom; a toggle joint comprising first and second toggle links joined together by a first pivot; a second pivot joining said first toggle link to the inner end of said bolt; a third pivot spaced inwardly from said bolt and supporting said second link at a point on the second link spaced from said first pivot, for rotation about a fixed second axis that is parallel to said first axis and is offset therefrom away from said bolt, said third pivot being positioned adjacent the inner end of said actuating element to support said second link for eccentric rotation relative to said first axis; said second link being movable in a bolt-extending direction from a bolt-retracted position in which said first pivot is angularly spaced from a line between said second and third pivots, on one side of said line, to a bolt-extended position in which said first pivot is aligned with said line; abutment means on said second link projecting toward the side plate on which said actuating member is mounted and defining an aperture, said aperture being positioned, when said second link is in said bolt-retracted position, to receive said actuating member during the initial portion of the rotation of said actuating element from said one angular position, thereby to couple said second link to said actuating member for movement of said second link to said bolt-extended position; said aperture also being positioned on said second link to release said actuating member due to said eccentric rotation as the link reaches said bolt-extended position, whereby the actuating element is rotatable on to said one angular position; and spring means for urging said toggle joint yieldably toward the bolt-retracted position until the bolt is substantially extended, and toward the bolt-extended position after the bolt is substantially extended.

Claim 7

In a door lock having two side plates mountable against the opposite sides of a door adjacent one edge thereof, a bolt mounted between said plates for sliding between a retracted, unlocked position and an extended, locked position, and at least one actuating element mounted on one of said plates for rotation about a first axis and having an inner end that is disposed between said plates, an improved bolt-operating mechanism, comprising: an actuating member carried by the inner end of said actuating element and projecting radially outwardly therefrom; a toggle joint comprising first and second toggle links joined together by a first pivot; a second pivot joining said first toggle link to the inner end of said bolt; a third pivot spaced inwardly from said bolt and supporting said second link at a point on the second link spaced from said first pivot, for rotation about a fixed second axis that is parallel to said first axis and is offset therefrom away from said bolt, said third pivot being positioned adjacent the inner end of said actuating element to support said second link for eccentric rotation relative to said first axis; said second link being movable in a bolt-extending direction from a bolt-retracted position in which said first pivot is angularly spaced from a line between said second and third pivots, on one side of said line, to a bolt-extended position in which said first pivot is aligned with said line; abutment means on said second link projecting toward the side plate on which said actuating member is mounted and defining an aperture, said aperture being positioned, when said second link is in said bolt-retracted position, to receive said actuating member during the initial portion of the rotation of said actuating element from said one angular position, thereby to couple said second link to said actuating member for movement of said second link to said bolt-extended position; said aperture also being positioned on said second link to release said actuating member due to said eccentric rotation as the link reaches said bolt-extended position, whereby the actuating element is rotatable on to said one angular position; and spring means for urging said toggle joint yieldably toward the bolt-retracted position until the bolt is substantially extended, and toward the bolt-extended position after the bolt is substantially extended.

Claim 8

In a door lock having two escutcheon plates mountable against the opposite sides of a door adjacent one edge thereof, means for clamping said escutcheon plates together and against the sides of the door, a bolt mounted between said plates for sliding between a retracted, unlocked position and an extended, locked position, and at least one mortise cylinder secured in one of said escutcheon plates and having a key plug therein that is rotatable about a first axis and has an outer end for receiving a key in one angular position of said key plug and an inner end that is disposed between said escutcheon plates, an improved bolt-operating mechanism, comprising: an actuating arm secured to the inner end of said key plug and projecting radially outwardly therefrom; a toggle joint comprising first and second toggle links joined together by a first pivot; a second pivot joining said first toggle link to the inner end of said bolt; a third pivot spaced inwardly from said bolt and supporting said second link at a point on the second link spaced from said first pivot, for rotation about a fixed second axis that is parallel to said first axis and is offset therefrom away from said bolt, said third pivot being positioned adjacent the inner end of said key plug to support said second link for eccentric rotation relative to the axis of the key plug; said second link being movable in a bolt-extending direction from a bolt-retracted position in which said first pivot is angularly spaced from a line between said second and third pivots, on one side of said line, to a bolt-extended position in which said first pivot is on the other side of said line; a pair of spaced, parallel coupling tabs on said second link projecting toward the escutcheon plate on which said key plug is mounted and defining a slot between them, said tabs being positioned, when said second link is in said bolt-retracted position, to receive said actuating arm between them during the initial portion of the rotation of said key plug from said one angular position, thereby to couple said second link to said actuating arm for movement of said second link to said bolt-extended position; said tabs also being positioned on said second link to release said actuating arm due to said eccentric rotation as the link reaches said bolt-extended position, whereby the key plug is rotatable on to said one angular position; and spring means for urging said toggle joint yieldably toward the bolt-retracted position until the bolt is substantially extended, and toward the bolt-extended position after the bolt is substantially extended.

Claim 9

In a door lock having two escutcheon plates mountable against the opposite sides of a door adjacent one edge thereof, means for clamping said escutcheon plates together and against the sides of the door, a bolt mounted between said plates for sliding between a retracted, unlocked position and an extended, locked position, and at least one mortise cylinder secured in one of said escutcheon plates and having a key plug therein that is rotatable about a first axis and has an outer end for receiving a key in one angular position of said key plug and an inner end that is disposed between said escutcheon plates, an improved bolt-operating mechanism, comprising: an actuating arm secured to the inner end of said key plug and projecting radially outwardly therefrom; a toggle joint comprising first and second toggle links joined together by a first pivot; a second pivot joining said first toggle link to the inner end of said bolt; a third pivot spaced inwardly from said bolt and supporting said second link at a point on the second link spaced from said first pivot, for rotation about a fixed second axis that is parallel to said first axis and is offset therefrom away from said bolt, said third pivot being positioned adjacent the inner end of said key plug to support said second link for eccentric rotation relative to the axis of the key plug; said second link being movable in a bolt-extending direction from a bolt-retracted position in which said first pivot is angularly spaced from a line between said second and third pivots, on one side of said line, to a bolt-extended position in which said first pivot is on the other side of said line; a pair of spaced, parallel coupling tabs on said second link projecting toward the escutcheon plate on which said key plug is mounted and defining a slot between them, said tabs being positioned, when said second link is in said bolt-retracted position, to receive said actuating arm between them during the initial portion of the rotation of said key plug from said one angular position, thereby to couple said second link to said actuating arm for movement of said second link to said bolt-extended position; said tabs also being positioned on said second link to release said actuating arm due to said eccentric rotation as the link reaches said bolt-extended position, whereby the key plug is rotatable on to said one angular position; and spring means for urging said toggle joint yieldably toward the bolt-retracted position until the bolt is substantially extended, and toward the bolt-extended position after the bolt is substantially extended.

Claim 10

A door lock as defined in claim 6 in which said coupling tabs are positioned on said second link with said slot approximately ninety degrees on opposite sides of the line between said second and third pivots in said bolt-extended position and said bolt-retracted position.

Claim 11

A door lock as defined in claim 7 in which said first pivot is positioned on said second link to be disposed more than ninety and less than one hundred eighty degrees from said line when said second link is in said bolt-retracted position.

Claim 12

A door lock as defined in claim 6 in which said spring means comprise a telescoping spring support, means pivotally mounting one end of said support in said lock and the other end on said second link to move back and forth between oppositely over-center positions as said second link is moved between said bolt-extended and bolt-retracted positions, and a coiled compression spring fitted over said spring support and acting on said second link to urge the latter oppositely in said oppositely over-center positions.

Claim 13

A door lock as defined in claim 6 in which two mortise cylinders are mounted in substantially coaxial relation on said escutcheon plates, with the inner ends thereof spaced apart on opposite sides of said second link, and each having an actuating arm thereon, said second link having two pairs of spaced, parallel tabs projecting in opposite directions for coupling engagement with said actuating arms.

Claim 14

A door lock as defined in claim 10 in which said second link comprises two side-by-side plates mounted on said third pivot for movement in unison, and each having a pair of said tabs integrally formed thereon and bent at right angles to the plate to project toward the adjacent escutcheon plate.

Claim 15

A door lock as defined in claim 6 including stop means for determining both positions of said second link.