Patent Application
20130056612
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a lock lever set and, more particularly, to a universal lock lever set for mounting to a patio door that has non-standard center to center spacing between mounting holes and rotates about at least two hinges to an open or close position.
2. Description of Related Art
Patio door lock sets are known in the prior art. More specifically, by way of example, U.S. PreGrant Publication No. 2006/0082166 to Lawrence, discloses a locking mechanism for sliding glass patio doors which has improved strength and increased resistance to forced entry for new and existing sliding glass patio doors.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,373,794 to DePass discloses a lock assembly for use with a sliding door which includes a non-handed miniature mortise lock having a retractable and extendable tongue able to move between a locked position and an unlocked position.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,261,330 to Hauber discloses a rotatable latch lever which is located beyond a vertical pull handle on a sliding door and a rotatable latch located opposite the handle so that the latch is conveniently rotatable from beyond the pull handle to avoid interference with the latch lever.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,688,656 to Becken discloses a multi-point lock and method for locking with two remote mortise locks operated by a central actuator to which they are mechanically linked. The mortise locks are mounted with opposite orientation so that they simultaneously engage separate keepers from opposite directions.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,170 to Clancy discloses a multi-point sliding door latch adapted to be fitted in a single opening in the lock face of a sliding door and arranged for coaction with a keeper structure on an associated jamb for coaction with a handle assembly mounted on the sliding door and including a tail member operated by a thumb turn or a key lock.
In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, there is disclosed a universal door lever set assembly for a patio door that has non-standard center to center spacing between mounting holes and rotates about at least two hinges to an open or close position comprising:
a first sub-plate having side walls which extend down from one side of the sub-plate wherein the edges of the side walls are adapted to be located on an outside surface of the patio door;
a first vertical slot located near the top of the sub-plate;
a first reinforcement block adapted to be located between the first sub-plate and the outside surface of the patio door;
a hole located in the first reinforcement block positioned to be in alignment with the first vertical slot;
a second vertical slot located near the bottom of the sub-plate;
a second reinforcement block adapted to be located between the first sub-plate and the outside surface of the patio door; and
a hole located in the second reinforcement block positioned to be in alignment with the second vertical slot;
wherein the first and second reinforcement blocks adjacent the first sub-plate are adapted to move toward or away from each other until the center to center spacing between the holes in the first and second reinforcement blocks are the same as the non-standard center to center spacing between the mounting holes on the patio door.
The more important features of the invention have thus been outlined in order that the more detailed description that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may better be appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter and will form the subject matter of the claims that follow.
Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
The foregoing has outlined, rather broadly, the preferred feature of the present invention so that those skilled in the art may better understand the detailed description of the invention that follows. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter that form the subject of the claims of the invention. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they can readily use the disclosed conception and specific embodiment as a basis for designing or modifying other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention and that such other structures do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention in its broadest form.
Other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description, the appended claim, and the accompanying drawings in which similar elements are given similar reference numerals.
Door manufacturers make patio doors which use multipoint locking mechanisms. Different door manufacturer make difference door prep distances for the thru-bolts to lock hub and lever hub. Even the same door manufacturer may have various door preps if they use different lock mechanisms. For example, where the profile cylinder is below the handle, see
Where the American cylinder is above or below the handle, see
Where the American cylinder is above the handle, see
Where the American cylinder is below the handle, see
The inventor specializes in manufacturing design driven decorative door hardware for high end residential market. In the past few years the inventor has developed lever sets and trims for the home with interior doors, entry doors and patio doors. While interior doors are usually manufactured in a standard size, patio doors have always been a problem for many distributors. More often the distributor has to go to the home owner's house to measure the distance of the prep and figure out the functions. Therefore, instead of developing multiple tooling which is required to manufacture multiple sub plates, the inventor has designed a universal multipoint lock lever set which can be used with over 90% of the patio doors which are presently being manufactured. The lock lever set disclosed provides compatibility and flexibility for distributors and installers because it can be attached to patio doors with non-standard mounting holes, requires less tooling investment and less inventory for manufacturers and, when attached to a patio door, provides a clean and contemporary look.
Looking at
Referring to
Located within an opening in the patio door and positioned between the two sub-plates is a spindle 28 which is attached at each end to a patio door lever handle 30 with a set screw. Located on the spindle 28, and going from right to left is a bi-directional spring with a wide angle which allows the lever handles to go up and down which is required in most multipoint locking mechanisms. The spring also helps to keep the lever handles in a horizontal position and prevents sagging. Located next to the spring is an active driving plate 33 which is provided for active functions. Continuing with
Each sub-plate 12 has bumps 48 which cooperate with dimples 50 on the cover plate 12 to allow the cover plate to have a snap on fit with the sub-plate. Thus, the sub-plate can be used with different cover plates to provide different functions such as a cover plate which has an opening for a lock mechanism or a cover plate which has no opening for receiving a locking mechanism. Each cover plate has a hole 52 which is aligned with a hole 54 through which an end of the spindle extends and is sized to receive the end of a lever handle. Each sub-plate has a cylinder hole 56 for receiving a locking mechanism.
While there have been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to the preferred embodiments, it will be understood that the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention and not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments discussed were chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are entitled.
