Patent Application
20120011905
Reversible doors which may be hinged on either the left or right side are well known. For buildings or rooms occupied by people, the doors, including primary doors and screen doors, typically have a mortise lock with a live bolt actuated by the door handle. The live bolt has a beveled edge facing the door frame or closing direction of the door. However, unlike reversible doors, mortise locks typically are not reversible, which necessitates right-hand and left-hand mortise locks to be used, depending upon which side of the door is hinged. Thus, there is a need to manufacture both left and right-hand mortise locks, and to maintain an inventory of such locks for sale. These dual manufacturing and inventory requirements lead to additional costs.
Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of a reversible mortise lock which can be used on either a left-hand or right-hand side of a door.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a mortise lock having a reversible live bolt so that the lock can be used on opposite side edges of the door.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a mortise lock having a live bolt which is slidably and pivotally mounted in the housing for orientation in opposite directions.
Yet another objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved mortise lock which can be quickly and easily changed from a right-hand lock to a left-hand lock.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a reversible mortise lock having a live bolt which can be rotated 180° front to back.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a reversible mortise lock wherein the live bolt is locked against reversibility once the lock is installed in a door edge.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a reversible mortise lock which can be changed from a right-hand to left-hand orientation prior to installation in the door.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a mortise lock having a live bolt which can be reversed without the use of tools for installation on left and right-hand side edges of the door.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a reversible mortise lock which is economical to manufacture, and durable and safe in use.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.
The reversible mortise lock of the present invention includes a housing with a live bolt pivotally and slidably mounted in the housing for movement between extended and retracted positions. A mortise plate is mounted on the housing and has an opening through which the live bolt extends. An actuator connected to the door handle moves the live bolt from the extended position beyond the mortise plate when the door is closed to a partially retracted position substantially flush with the mortise plate allowing opening of the door from the door frame. A finger pivotally mounted in the housing moves between a first position to limit retraction of the live bolt to the partially retracted position flush with the mortise plate and a second position to allow full retraction of the live bolt beyond the mortise plate. The finger is in the first position when the mortise lock is installed on either side edge of the door. Prior to installation, the finger can be moved by gravity to the second position simply by turning the mortise lock 180° top to bottom. When the finger is in the second position, the live bolt can be retracted beyond the mortise plate and then rotated 180° top to bottom so that the beveled edge faces the opposite direction. When the mortise lock is again turned 180° top to bottom, gravity causes the finger to fall to the first position, thereby preventing the live bolt from being fully retracted beyond the mortise plate, such that the live bolt cannot be rotated to the opposite direction.
The reversible mortise lock of the present invention is generally designated in the drawings by the reference numeral 10. The lock 10 includes a housing 12 with opposite side plates 14, 16 defining a chamber or compartment within the housing 12. A mortise plate 18 is secured to one side edge of the housing 12 using screws or other fasteners 20. The mortise lock 10 may include an optional dead bolt 22 slidable between a retracted position, as seen in
The mortise lock 10 of the present invention includes a live bolt 24 slidably and rotatably mounted within the housing 12. The live bolt 24 includes a head 26 with a beveled or curved front face 28, a flat rear face 30, and opposite upper and lower ends 32, 34. The head 26 of the live bolt 24 is mounted on a shaft 36 extending into the housing 12. The side wall 14 of the housing 12 has an inwardly turned tab 38 with a recess or hole through which the shaft 36 of the live bolt slidably extends.
An actuator 40 controls the sliding movement of the live bolt 20 between an extended position beyond the mortise plate 18 and a retracted position. A spring 21 normally biases the live bolt 20 to the extended position. The actuator 40 is pivotally mounted in the housing 12 and includes a square hole for receiving a drive shaft of the interior and exterior handles (not shown) of the door. The actuator 40 includes an arm 42 extending upwardly with an opening through which the live bolt shaft 36 extends through. The rear end of the shaft 36 includes an enlarged rim, bead, lip or flange to retain the shaft 36 on the arm 42 of the actuator 40. When a door handle is turned, the drive shaft rotates the actuator 40, which in turn pivots the arm 42 rearwardly so as to pull the shaft 36 rearwardly, thereby retracting the head 26 of the live bolt 20 from the extended position (shown in
The mortise lock 10 also includes a finger 48 pivotally mounted between the side walls 14, 16 of the housing 12 adjacent the live bolt 24. The finger 48 pivots about a substantially horizontal axis between first and second positions. The first position of the finger 48 is shown in
Thus, the beveled face 28 of the live bolt 24 can be selectively oriented towards the right or left side of the mortise lock 10 for installation of the lock on either the left or right side edge of a door, opposite the door hinges.
The invention has been shown and described above with the preferred embodiments, and it is understood that many modifications, substitutions, and additions may be made which are within the intended spirit and scope of the invention. From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.
