Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6360570
-
Patent Number
6,360,570
-
Date Filed
Monday, August 14, 200023 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, March 26, 200222 years ago
-
Inventors
-
-
Examiners
Agents
- Kamrath; Alan
- Rider, Bennett, Egan & Arundel, LLP
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 070 224
- 070 370
- 070 371
- 070 DIG 39
- 070 451
- 070 207
- 070 221
- 070 372
- 070 466
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A lockset knob assembly comprises an outer knob housing, an inner knob housing, a spindle, and a sleeve. The outer knob housing includes a first end with a first opening and a second end with a first 8-shape hole. A periphery defining the first 8-shape hole includes a retaining flange projecting inward toward the first end of the outer knob housing. The inner knob housing includes a first end with a second opening and a second end with a second 8-shape hole in an end face of the second end. The second 8-shape hole is larger than the first 8-shape hole. The inner knob housing is mounted in the outer knob housing with the retaining flange of the outer knob housing engaged in the second 8-shape hole to thereby preventing relative movement between the inner knob housing and the outer knob housing. The inner knob housing further including a number of slots and a number of radially extending grooves, each groove being adjacent to and communicated with an associated slot. The spindle includes a number of longitudinal projections that are extended through the slots of the inner knob housing and then bent so as to be positioned in the grooves of the inner knob housing, respectively, the spindle further including a first engaging portion. The sleeve is mounted in the spindle and includes a second engaging portion that is engaged with the first engaging portion, thereby preventing longitudinal movement and rotational movement of the sleeve relative to the spindle.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lockset knob assembly for use with an interchangeable lock core.
2. Description of the Related Art
Locks allowing interchanging of lock cores have been used, and two typical types thereof include knobs and lever handles for receiving the interchangeable lock cores.
FIGS. 5 through 7
of the drawings illustrates a conventional lockset knob assembly for use with an to interchangeable lock core. The lockset knob assembly includes an outer knob housing
80
, an inner knob housing
81
, a sleeve
82
, and a spindle
83
that is operably connected with a transmission shaft of a lockset transmission assembly. The lockset is unlatched when the spindle
83
is turned. The sleeve
82
is mounted in the spindle
83
and includes a number of inner radial protrusions
831
for positioning the sleeve
82
. As illustrated in
FIGS. 5 and 6
, the spindle
83
includes a number of longitudinal projections
832
that are extended through associated slots
811
in the inner knob housing
81
and then bent so as to be positioned in associated grooves
812
in the inner knob housing
81
. As illustrated in
FIGS. 5 and 6
, the inner knob housing
81
is inserted into the outer knob housing
80
via an opening in an end of the outer knob housing
80
with an 8-shape hole
813
in an end face of the inner knob housing
81
aligned with an 8-shape hole
802
in an end face of the outer knob housing
80
. Then, the outer knob housing
80
is rolled to reduce the diameter of the opening
801
, thereby enclosing the inner knob housing
81
.
After mounting a lock core
84
via the 8-shape holes
813
and
802
, a proper key is inserted into the lock core
84
and then rotated through a pre-determined angle to make a wing
841
project outward and be located behind the sleeve
82
, thereby preventing disengagement of the lock core
84
. Replacement of the lock core
84
can be easily achieved by means of inserting the proper key into the lock core
84
and rotating the key through the pre-determined angle in a reverse direction until the wing
841
retracts into the lock core
84
to thereby allow removal of the lock core
84
and subsequent insertion of a new lock core.
Nevertheless, when removing the lock core
84
, the sleeve
82
may be rotated inadvertently and thus hinder insertion of the new lock core, as a central portion of the sleeve
82
no longer aligns with a lower portion of the 8-shape hole
813
of the inner knob housing
81
. In addition, since the inner knob housing
81
and the outer knob housing
80
are not positioned relative to each other, the inner knob housing
81
and the outer knob housing
80
may be moved relative to each other during rolling of the outer knob housing
80
, such that the 8-shape holes
813
and
802
thereof no longer align with each other. Additional adjustment for re-achieving the alignment of the 8-shape holes
813
and
802
is required. Furthermore, the inner and outer knob housings
80
and
81
are formed by means of punching and rolling thin metal plates and are thus very thin, especially in the 8-shape holes
802
and
813
. As a result, even though a lock core
84
is mounted in the 8-shape holes
802
and
813
, the lockset can be picked easily by means of inserting a sharp article through a point A in
FIG. 6
to damage the outer end face of the outer knob housing
80
and then the lock core
84
and the inner knob housing
81
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A lockset knob assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises:
an outer knob housing including a first end with a first opening and a second end with a first 8-shape hole in an end face of the second end, a periphery defining the first 8-shape hole including a retaining flange projecting inward toward the first end of the outer knob housing;
an inner knob housing including a first end with a second opening and a second end with a second 8-shape hole in an end face of the second end, the second 8-shape hole being larger than the first 8-shape hole, the inner knob housing being mounted in the outer knob housing with the retaining flange of the outer knob housing engaged in the second 8-shape hole to thereby prevent relative movement between the inner knob housing and the outer knob housing, the inner knob housing further including a plurality of slots and a plurality of radially extending grooves, each said groove being adjacent to and communicated with an associated said slot;
a spindle including a plurality of longitudinal projections that are extended through the slots of the inner knob housing and then bent so as to be positioned in the grooves of the inner knob housing, respectively, the spindle further including a first engaging portion; and
a sleeve mounted in the spindle and including a second engaging portion that is engaged with the first engaging portion, thereby preventing longitudinal movement and rotational movement of the sleeve relative to the spindle.
The first engaging portion is a protrusion and the second engaging portion is an engaging slot for engaging with the protrusion. Alternatively, the first engaging portion is an engaging slot and the second engaging portion is a protrusion for engaging with the engaging slot.
In accordance with the present invention, the sleeve of the lockset knob assembly is reliably positioned so as not to interfere with changing of the lock core. The retaining flange that projects inward from a periphery defining the 8-shape hole of the outer knob housing engages with a periphery defining the 8-shape hole of the inner knob housing to thereby prevent relative movement between the inner knob housing and the outer knob housing during the rolling procedure for enclosing the inner knob housing by the outer knob housing. In addition, the thickness of the periphery defining the 8-shape hole of the outer knob housing is increased and the strength thereof is improved to prevent picking of and damage to the lockset.
Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is an exploded perspective view of a lockset knob assembly in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 2
is a sectional view of the lockset knob housing in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 3
is a sectional view taken along line
3
—
3
in FIG.
2
.
FIG. 4
is a front elevational view of the lockset knob housing in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 5
is an exploded perspective view of a conventional lockset knob assembly.
FIG. 6
is a sectional view of the conventional lockset knob housing.
FIG. 7
is a sectional view taken along line
7
—
7
in FIG.
6
.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to
FIGS. 1 through 4
and particularly to
FIG. 1
, a lockset knob assembly in accordance with the present invention generally includes an outer knob housing
10
, an inner knob housing
20
, a sleeve
30
, and spindle
40
. The inner knob housing
20
is formed by punching and then rolling to present a form shown in FIG.
1
. The outer knob housing
10
includes a first end with an opening
11
and a second end with an 8-shape opening
12
in an end face
14
thereof. As illustrated in
FIG. 2
, a periphery defining the 8-shape opening
12
includes a retaining flange
13
that projecting inward therefrom (namely, toward the first end of the outer knob housing
10
).
The inner knob housing
20
has a volume smaller than that of the outer knob housing
10
and includes a first end with an opening
21
and a second end with an 8-shape hole
22
in an end face
25
thereof. The 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
is larger than the 8-shape hole
12
of the outer knob housing
10
such that the retaining flange
13
is extended into the 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
when the inner knob housing
20
is mounted into the outer knob housing
10
, thereby preventing relative movement between the inner knob housing
20
and the outer knob housing
10
. The inner knob housing
20
further includes a number of slots
23
and a plurality of grooves
24
. Each groove
24
extends radially outward and is adjacent to and communicated with each slot
23
, best shown in FIG.
2
.
The sleeve
30
includes a flange
31
in an end thereof and a sector wing
32
on an outer periphery thereof. A slot
33
is defined in the outer periphery of the sleeve
30
and located at a position opposite to the sector wing
32
. The sleeve
30
further includes an engaging portion
34
in the form of an engaging slot
341
shown in
FIG. 1
or a protrusion.
The spindle
40
includes a number of longitudinal projections
42
that are extended through the associated slots
23
in the inner knob housing
20
and then bent so as to be positioned in the associated grooves
24
in the inner knob housing
20
. The spindle
40
further includes an engaging portion
43
in the form of a protrusion
431
shown in
FIG. 1
or an engaging slot for engaging with the engaging portion
34
of the sleeve
30
.
In assembly, referring to
FIGS. 1 and 2
, the sleeve
30
is mounted into the spindle
40
with the engaging portion
34
engaged with the engaging portion
43
. Thus, rotational movement and longitudinal of the sleeve
30
relative to the spindle
40
are both prevented. Next, the longitudinal projections
42
of the spindle
40
are extended through the slots
23
in the inner knob housing
20
and then bent so as to be positioned in the associated grooves
24
in the inner knob housing
20
. Thus, the sleeve
30
is sandwiched between the inner knob housing
20
and the spindle
40
with a central portion of the sleeve
30
aligned with a lower portion of the 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
. Then, the outer knob housing
10
is mounted around the inner knob housing
20
via the opening
11
with the retaining flange
13
of the outer knob housing
10
positioned in the 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
, best shown in
FIGS. 2 and 4
. Thus, relative movement between the outer knob housing
10
and the inner knob housing
20
is avoided during rolling of the outer knob housing
10
. As a result, the 8-shape hole
12
of the outer knob housing
10
is always aligned with the 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
.
After mounting a lock core
50
via the 8-shape holes
12
and
22
, a proper key is inserted into the lock core
50
and then rotated through a pre-determined angle to make a wing
51
project outward and be located behind the sleeve
30
, thereby preventing disengagement of the lock core
50
. Replacement of the lock core
50
can be easily achieved by means of inserting the proper key into the lock core
50
and rotating the key through the pre-determined angle in a reverse direction until the wing
51
retracts into the lock core
50
to thereby allow removal of the lock core
50
and subsequent insertion of a new lock core.
According to the above description, the sleeve
30
of the lockset knob assembly is reliably positioned so as not to interfere with changing of the lock core
50
. The retaining flange
13
that projects inward from a periphery defining the 8-shape hole
12
of the outer knob housing
10
engages with a periphery defining the 8-shape hole
22
of the inner knob housing
20
to thereby prevent relative movement between the inner knob housing
20
and the outer knob housing
10
during the rolling procedure for enclosing the inner knob housing
20
by the outer knob housing
10
. In addition, the thickness of the periphery defining the 8-shape hole
12
of the outer knob housing
10
is increased and the strength thereof is improved to prevent picking of and damage to the lockset.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.
Claims
- 1. A lockset knob assembly comprising:an outer knob housing including a first end with a first opening and a second end with a first 8-shape hole in an end face of the second end, a periphery defining the first 8-shape hole including a retaining flange projecting inward toward the first end of the outer knob housing; an inner knob housing including a first end with a second opening and a second end with a second 8-shape hole in an end face of the second end, the second 8-shape hole being larger than the first 8-shape hole, the inner knob housing being mounted in the outer knob housing with the retaining flange of the outer knob housing engaged in the second 8-shape hole to thereby preventing relative movement between the inner knob housing and the outer knob housing, the inner knob housing further including a plurality of slots and a plurality of radially extending grooves, each said groove being adjacent to and communicated with an associated said slot; a spindle including a plurality of longitudinal projections that are extended through the slots of the inner knob housing and then bent so as to be positioned in the grooves of the inner knob housing, respectively, the spindle further including a first engaging portion; and a sleeve mounted in the spindle and including a second engaging portion that is engaged with the first engaging portion, thereby preventing longitudinal movement and rotational movement of the sleeve relative to the spindle.
- 2. The lockset knob assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first engaging portion is a protrusion and the second engaging portion is an engaging slot for engaging with the protrusion.
- 3. The lockset knob assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first engaging portion is an engaging slot and the second engaging portion is a protrusion for engaging with the engaging slot.
US Referenced Citations (8)