US3411330A - Combined latch and lock structure - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 19, 1968 w. E. ATKINSON COMBINED LATCH AND LOCK STRUCTURE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 31, 196'? I 9 A. o

' INVENTOR WALLACE EATKmsoN \smwii fiww'uoafiw web ATTORNEYS W. E. ATKINSON COMBINED LATCH AND LOCK STRUCTURE Nov. 19, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 31, 1967 I NVENTOR ALLAcE. E. ATKINSON mum 69m we ATTORNEYS BY 7m asm Nov. 19, 1968 w. E. ATKINSON COMBINED LATCH AND LOCK STRUCTURE 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 31, 1967 INVENTOR WALLACE E..ATKINSON BY V m gmwwuug flmwu.

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,411,330 COMBINED LATCH AND LOCK STRUCTURE Wallace E. Atkinson, Dinwiddie County, Va., assignor to Long Manufacturing Co., Inc., Petersburg, Va., a corporation of Virginia Filed July 31, 1967, Ser. No. 657,143 Claims. (Cl. 70-71) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A combined latch and lock structure for luggage cases and similar receptacles including a keeper and a latch section respectively mounted on the separable luggage sections. The latch section includes a stationary base plate having a slide cavity and a hook plate slidable therein having rack teeth. A cover member is pivotally mounted on the base plate for arcuate movement, having an integral gear or gear section for driving the hook plate into and out of latched relation with the keeper upon rotation of the cover member. A fence plate, finger actuated, is slidably carried by the cover plate and includes fence tabs coacting with gatings in tumbler wheels of a pair of dial and tumbler wheel assemblies on the cover plate for combination locking and unlocking of the fence plate and thus of the cover member.

The present invention relates in general to a combined latch and lock structure especially adapted for application to containers or receptacles, such as luggage, having separable parts to be releasably secured in closed position, and more particularly to a combined latch and lock structure for luggage cases and similar containers having a cover section hinged to a body section, the latch and lock structure including combination lock dial members to be adjusted in accordance with a selected combination for unlocking the latch mechanism, these dial members being incorporated in a pivoted cover plate member which is shifted through a selected are to effect unlatching of the mechanism.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a combined latch and lock structure haping a novel arrangement of plural combination dial members arranged in the front cover or face plate portion thereof for locking and unlocking of the latch and lock structure.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a combined latch and lock structure having a novel arrangement of rotatable combination dial members in a pivotally supported front cover plate adapted to be swung through a selected are from a normal position upon appropriate setting of the combination dial members to effect release of the latch device.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a novel latch and lock structure of the type described in either of the two preceding paragraphs, wherein a rectilinearly movable catch plate haping rack teeth thereon is driven by a gear formation upon rotation of the gear formation following appropriate setting of the combination dial members to latch and unlatch the catch plate from a keeper member.

Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a novel latch and lock structure having rotatable combination dial members incorporated in a generally rectangular elongated cover plate member which covers the major components of the latch and lock structure in the normal closed condition to present an attractive and pleasing appearance and wherein the structure is comprised of relatively few parts.

Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation view of a combined latch and lock structure constructed in accordance with the present invention, shown in latched condition on a portion of a luggage receptacle;

FIGURE 2 is an exploded perspective view of the components of the latch and lock mechanism;

FIGURE 3 is a rear elevation view of the arcuately movable front cover portion of the latch mechanism taken along the line 3-3 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical transverse section view, taken along the line 44 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a front elevation view of the mounting plate portion of the latch mechanism, taken along the line 5-5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is a horizontal longitudinal section view taken along the line 66 of FIGURE 5, and

FIGURE 7 is a front elevation view of the latch and lock structure, with the cover member in release position.

Referring to the drawing, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, the latch and combination lock structure of the present invention, hereinafter referred to generally as the latch assembly, is indicated generally by the reference character 10 and comprises two basic sub-assemblies or sections, the keeper section 11 and the latching section 12. The keeper section 11 is, in the illustrated embodiment, mounted on the front wall of a separable receptacle cover 13, while the latching section 12 is mounted on the front wall of the lower receptacle body or tray portion 14, both of these sections being located immediately adjacent the plane of separation 15 between the two receptacle sections.

The keeper section 11 is of very simple construction, being a single integral body formed of an elongated keeper mounting bar portion 16 having its lower edge aligned with the plane of separation 15 and including a raised keeper boss or shackle formation 17 having the appearance of a U-shaped shackle when viewed from one end of the keeper section 11, defining a recess or bore 18 extending through the boss 17 in parallelism with the longitudinal axis of the bar portion 16 opening through both ends of the boss 17.

The latching section 12 comprises an elongated mounting plate 20 adapted to be secured to the front wall of the receptacle body portion 14, for example, by suitable screws, rivets or other well known fastening means, having parallel upper and lower edges 21, 21 located in parallelism with the plane of separation 15 with the upper edge 21 immediately adjacent that plane, and having end edges 22, 22', respectively, extending perpendicularly to the edges 21, 21' and along a convex arcuate path be tween the edges 21, 21'.

The mounting plate 20 is designed to be located relative to the keeper mounting bar portion 16 so that the perpendicular edge 22 is aligned with one of the ends of the keeper mounting bar portion 16, while the mounting plate 20 is somewhat foreshortened relative to the length of the mounting bar portion 16 so that the convex arcuate end edge 22' of the mounting plate 20 lies inwardly of the other end of the keeper mounting bar 16. The mounting .plate 20 is provided with a forwardly opening cavity 23 having parallel upper and lower side walls 24, 24' paralleling the upper and lower edges 21, 21, defining guide surfaces for guiding a hook plate 25 located within the cavity 23 along a rectilinear reciprocative path paralleling the side walls 24, 24. To this end, the hook plate 25 has parallel rectilinear guide edges or surfaces 26, 26' in sliding abutment with the side walls 24, 24', and includes a catch hook formation 27 extending into an excursion 23a of the cavity 23 and movable along the rectilinear path of the slide plate 25 between a latching position wherein the hook tongue 27a projects into the zone of the recess 28 opening through the upper edge of the mounting plate 20 and a retracted position wherein the hook tongue 27a is completely withdrawn from the recess 28. It will be noted from FIGURE 4 that the upper portion of the rear Wall of the mounting plate 20 adjacent the edge 21 thereof nearest the plane of separation is offset outwardly from the front surface of the front wall of receptacle body 14 a distance corresponding substantially to the thickness of the keeper mounting bar portion 16 to receive the latter between the rear surface of the mounting plate and the front wall of the receptacle in the closed condition of the receptacle, the recess 28 being located and sized to receive the keeper boss 17 therein in the closed condition of the receptacle so that the hook tongue 27a can be projected into the keeper boss recess 18 upon appropriate movement of the hook plate to latch the keeper and latching sections 11, 12 together.

Disposed in outwardly covering relation to the mounting plate 20 is an elongated cover member 30, which in the illustrated embodiment is in the configuration of a rectangular solid having rounded corners, the long upper and lower edges 31, 31' thereof being coextensive longitudinally with the keeper mounting bar portion 16 and the cover member being of appropriate size to completely cover the keeper and the mounting plate 20 in the normal latched condition of the latch assembly 10. The cover member 30 is pivotally secured to the mounting plate 20 adjacent the perpendicular straight end 22 of the latter by pivot pin 32, with the end 34 of the cover member registering with the mounting plate edge 22 in the normal latched position of the cover member. Optionally, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, the cover member 30 may be provided with a thickened end portion 33 over the region of the cover member 30 lying between the convex arcuate end 22 of the mounting plate 20 and the adjacent end 34' of cover member 30 aligned with the corresponding end of the keeper mounting bar 16, the thickened end portion 33 extending rearwardly substantially to the surface of the front wall of receptacle body portion 14 and having a convex transition surface 33a corresponding to the configuration of and located immediately adjacent the convex end 22' of the mounting plate 20. The cover member 30 has integrally formed thereon in concentric relation to the pivot pin 32 an integral gear formation or gear sector 35 having gear teeth 35a along a selected circumferential portion of the periphery thereof meshing with rack teeth 36 on an adjacent portion of the hook plate 25 to drive the hook plate 25 along its rectilinear path upon relative rotation of the cover member 30 with respect to the mounting plate 20 over a selected arcuate path about the axis of the pivot pin 32.

A combination locking mechanism is carried by the pivotal cover member 30 for selectively locking the cover member 30 in the normal latched position aligned with the keeper section 11, which in the illustrated embodiment comprises a pair of dial and tumbler wheel assemblies, indicated generally by the reference characters 37, 37a. Each of the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a are of like construction, and include an externally exposed combination dial member 38 and a tumbler wheel member 39 axially aligned with and located rearwardly of the associated dial member 38 and releasably assembled therewith by suitable fastening means, such, for example, as screw 4 40. Each of the dial members 38 has a forward cylindrical portion exposed forwardly of the lock for manual manipulation, preferably recessed in correspondingly configurated wells in the front surface of the cover member 30, provided with a knurled or roughened periphery and with graduation markings and numbers on the front surface thereof adjacent the periphery. An integral hub portion 42 extends rearwardly or inwardly from the cylindrical dial portion 41 and terminates in an inwardly facing surface 42' having interlocking formations such as serrations, saw teeth, radial ridges, and the like thereon. The tumbler wheel 39 disposed rearwadly in coaxial alignment with the dial member 38 has a rearmost cylindrical tumbler wheel portion 43 provided with a radially outwardly opening peripheral gate or recess 43 at a selected angular position thereon, as is customary with combination lock tumbler wheels, and includes a forwardly projecting integral hub portion 44 of smaller diameter corresponding to the diameter of the hub portion 42, similarly provided with an interlocking forwadly facing surface 44' having similar interlocking formations such as serrations, saw teeth or the like thereon to interfit with the corresponding formations on the surface 42'.

The inwardly or rearwardly facing surfaces of the larger diameter cylindrical dial portion 41 of the dial member 38 has a plurality of detent recesses 41' at selected angular positions along a circumferential path of a diameter intermediate that of the hub portion 42 and outer periphery of the dial portion 41, to receive portions of detent balls 45 suitably located in recesses in the cover member 30 so as to register with detents 41 and frictionally restrain the dial member 38 at angular positions corresponding to the dial graduations thereon. The detent balls 45 are retained in their accommodating apertures by an annular washer 46 associated with each of the dial members 38 disposed immediately rearwardly of the location of the detent balls 45 and surrounding the hub portion 42 of the dial member, and are biased forwardly or outwardly toward the cylindrical dial portion 41 by suitable spring members, or, as illustrated in the preferred embodiment, by a single spring strip 47 spanning the zone of the two dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a and having apertures suitably located therein to accommodate the hub portions of the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies. A rectilinearly movable, elongated fence plate 48 is disposed immediately rearwardly of the spring member 47 and just forwardly of the larger diameter tumbler wheel portions 43 of the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a, the fence plate 48 having elongated slots 49, 49' therein through which the hub portions 44 of the tumbler wheel members 39 project and having fence lugs or tabs 50 projecting rearwardly therefrom alongside the peripheries of the tumbler wheel portions 43. A spring 51 disposed in a suitable well in the cover member 30 bears against one end of the fence plate 48 to continuously bias the same to the normal, locked position illustrated in FIGURE 3, the opposite end 52 of the fence plate 48 having a flange forming a finger piece thereon and being located in alignment with the end 34 of the cover member 30 when in its normal position. The fence plate 48 also has an inwardly projecting stop lug 53 near the lower edge of the fence plate 48 which extends into the cavity 23 of the mounting plate 20 and is located at the normal position of the fence plate 48 near the lower side of wall 24 of the cavity to abut side wall 24' upon attempted pivotal movement of the cover member 30 from the normal aligned relation with the mounting plate 20 and prevent such pivotal movement of the cover member 30 as would drive the hook plate 25 to a position releasing hook 27 from the keeper. As will be observed from FIGURE 3, when the tumbler wheel portions 43 are properly positioned in accordance with the combination of the lock, the peripheral gates 43' therein are aligned with the fence lugs 50 along the slide axis of the fence plate 48 to accommodate inward movement of the fence plate 48 to a retracted release position. At this release position of the fence plate 48, the stop lug 53 is aligned with a cavity extension 54 along an arcuate path centered on the axis of the pivot pin 32, permitting arcuate movement of the cover member 30 from the normal aligned condition with the mounting plate 20 to an angular position spaced from that normal position a sufiicient distance to effect driving of the hook plate 25 to a released relationship with the keeper. When the tumbler wheel portion 43 of the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a are not angularly positioned in accordance with the particular combination of the lock, the tumbler wheel gates 43' are spaced from alignment with the fence lugs 50 so that uninterrupted portions of peripheries of the tumbler wheel portions 43 lie immediately adjacent the fence lugs 50 and prevent inward movement of the fence plate 48 to the retracted release position and thus prevent alignment of the stop lug 53 with the cavity extension 54 so that the cover member 30 cannot be rotated from its normal aligned relation with mounting plate 20. As shown in the drawings, the cover member 30 is provided with a concave recess 55 in the end wall of 34' thereof, registering with the finger piece end 52 of the fence plate 48 to permit movement of the finger of the operator in contact with the finger piece end 52 over a sufficient distance to effect manual shifting of the fence plate 48 to the retracted release position.

The operation of the latch assembly should be apparent from the foregoing description of the structure. To review the operation thereof, however, the cover member 30 of the latching section 12 is normally in longitudinal alignment with the mounting plate 20 in covering relation to the mounting plate 20 and to the keeper section 11 with the hook tongue 27 projecting through or into the recess 18 of the keeper boss 17 of the keeper section, latching the cover portion 13 and body portion 14 of the receptacle or luggage against separation from each other. With the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a out of registry with the angular positions constituting the selected combination of the lock, the uninterrupted portions of the peripheries of the tumbler wheel portions 43 lie immediately adjacent the fence lugs 50 on the fence plate 48 to prevent inward movement of the fence plate 48 to the retracted release position, wherein the stop lug 53 would be aligned with the cavity extension 54, and therefore the cover member 30 cannot be rotated from the latching position. Upon manual adjustment of the dial and tumbler wheel assemblies 37, 37a to the proper angular positions for the selected combination of the lock, the peripheral gates 43' of the tumbler wheel portions 43 are then placed in alignment with the fence lugs 50, to accommodate movement of the fence plate 48 inwardly of the end 34' of the cover member 30 to the retracted release position by pressure of the finger of the operator against the finger piece in 52. When the fence plate 48 reaches the retracted release position, the stop lug 53 thereon then becomes aligned with the cavity extension 54 in the mounting plate 20, so that the cover member 30 can be manually rotated about the axis of the pivot pin 32 from the normal aligned relation with the mounting plate 20 to the downwardly pivoted position illustrated in FIGURE 7, this arcuate movement of the cover member 30 being adequate to drive the hook plate 25 from latched relation with the keeper to unlatched relation wherein the hook tongue 27a is retracted from the keeper boss 17, this movement of the hook plate 25 being achieved by the gear drive effect produced by the gear formation 35 on the cover plate 30 and the rack teeth 36 on the hook plate 25. To return the cover member 30 to the latching position in alignment with the mounting plate 20, the cover member 30 is swung upwardly to aligned relation with the mounting plate 20, during which the fence plate 48 is cammed to the retracted release position by engagement of the inclined stop lug 53 with an edge of the cavity extension 54. This return movement of the cover member 30 and the gear formation 35 integral therewith drives the hook plate 25 in the opposite direction from the position illustrated in FIGURE 7, to the position illustrated in FIGURE 1, during which the hook tongue 27a is projected into the recess 18 of the keeper boss 17 to interlock the keeper and latching sections. The fence plate 48 is limited in'its outward travel under the influence of spring 51 by the stop lug 56 in the cover member 30 projecting into a suitable elongated recess 57 in the upper edge of the fence plate 48.

When it is desired to change the combination of the lock mechanism, the dial and tumbler Wheel assembly 37, 37a must be disposed in the proper combination position for the previously established combination to align the tumbler wheel gates 43' With the fence lugs 50 on the fence plate 48 so that the fence plate can be disposed in the retracted release position to seat the fence lugs 50 in the tumbler Wheel gates 43' and restrain the latter against rotation. The screws 40 are then rotated to a sufficient extent to release the dial members 38 from coupled rela tion with the tumbler wheel members 39 to permit angular adjustment of the dial members 38 independent of the tumbler wheel members 39 and the dial members are rotated to the desired new combination positions, whereupon the screws 40 are tightened to again intercouple the surfaces 42', 44' of the hub portions 42 and 44 against relative rotation.

While but one preferred example of the present invention has been particularly shown and described, it is apparent that various modifications may be made therein within the spirit and scope of the invention, and it is desired, therefore, that only such limitations be placed on the invention :as are imposed by the prior art and set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A combined latch and lock device adapted to be mounted on coplanar front surfaces of separable parts of a container adjacent a :line of separation therebetween, comprising a keeper to be aflixed to one of said front surfaces adjacent said line having an apertured keeper formation opening along an axis parelleling said line, a latching assembly to be mounted on the other of said front surfaces adjacent said line including an elongated base member to be fixed to said other of said front surfaces and an elongated cover member pivotally supported on said base member adjacent a corresponding end of each for arcuate movement between a latching position and a release position, said base member and cover member having their longitudinal axes parellel to each other and to said line of separation at the latching position of said cover member, a rectilinarly slidable hook plate carried by said base member movable along a slide axis paralleling said line between projected and retracted limit positions and having a hook formation respectively extending in interlocking relation in and withdrawn from the aperture of said keeper formation at said projected and retracted limit positions, said hook plate having rack teeth thereon and said cover member having integral gear teeth means meshed with said rack teeth for driving said hook plate between :said projected and said retracted positions upon arcuate movement of said cover member between said latching and release positions, a plurality of rotatable combination dial assemblies on said cover member having tumbler means controlled thereby, and manual release means on said cover member restraining said cover against movement from said latching position and movable to release the same for movement to said release position, said release means being restrained by said tumbler means to permit releasing movement thereof only at positions of said dial assemblies corresponding to aselected dial combination.

2. A combined latch and lock device as defined in claim 1, wherein said cover member is an elongated substantially rectangular body lying in completely covering relation to said keeper and base member in said latching position when said hook formation is interlocked with said keeper formation.

3. A combination latch and lock device as defined in claim 2, wherein said combination dial assemblies comprise a pair of circular dial members having graduation markings thereon disposed in side-by-side relation in a common plane for rotation about parallel axes, a cylindrical tumbler wheel respectively controlled by each of said dial members for rotation about the axis of the associated dial member having a peripheral gate therein, said dial members being exposed at a front face of said cover member in a plane substantially paralleling the plane of said front surfaces and the axes of said dial members eing perpendicular to said planes.

4. A combined latch and lock device as defined in claim 3, wherein said release means comprises a rectilinearly slidable fence plate having an externally exposed end portion adjacent an end of said cover member for imparting inward movement to said fence plate between first and second limit positions along a slide axis and having fence formations located immediately adjacent said tumbler means at first limit position, said tumbler means having recesses disposable along said slide axis adjacent said fence formations to accommodate movement of said fence plate to said second limit position at the dial assembly positions corresponding to the selected dial combination, said fence plate having a stop member enegageable with said base member to prevent angular movement of said cover member from said latching position, and said base member having recess means registrable with said stop member and when said fence plate occupies said second limit position to accommodate angular movement of said cover member to said release position.

5. A combination latch and lock device as defined in claim 3, wherein the dial members and tumbler wheels of each respective dial assembly each have confronting interlocking surfaces to be releasably intercoupled against relative rotation, adjustable securing means interconnecting the associated dial members and tumbler wheels to draw them into interlocked relation and withdraw the same therefrom for independent angular adjustment of the dial members and said release means including means for restraining said tumbler wheels against rotation during said independent adjustment of said dial members only when said release means is positioned to release said cover member.

6. A combination latch and lock device as defined in claim 1, wherein said combination dial assemblies comprise a pair of circular dial members having graduation markings thereon disposed in side-by-side relation in a common plane for rotation about parallel axes, a cylindrical tumbler wheel respectively controlled by each of said dial members for rotation about the axis of the associated dial member having a peripheral gate therein.

7. A combined latch and lock device as defined in claim 6, wherein said release means comprises a rectilinearly slidable fence plate having an externally exposed end portion adjacent an end of said cover member for imparting inward movement to said fence plate between first and second limit positions along a slide axis and having fence formations located immediately adjacent i said tumbler means at said first limit position, said tumbler means having recesses disposable along said slide axis adjacent said fence formations to accommodate movement of said fence plate to said second limit position at the dial assembly positions corresponding to the selected dial combination, said fence plate having a stop member engageable with said base member to prevent angular movement of said cover member from said latching position, and said base member having recess means registrable with said stop member and when said fence plate occupies said second limit position to accommodate angular movement of said cover member to said release position.

8. A combination latch and lock device as defined in claim 6, wherein the dial members and tumbler wheels of each respective dial assembly each have confronting interlocking surfaces to be releasably intercoupled against relative rotation, adjustable securing means interconnecting the associated dial members and tumbler wheels to draw them into interlocked relation and withdraw the same therefrom for independent angular adjustment of the dial members and said release means including means for restraining said tumbler wheels against rotation during said independent adjustment of said dial members only when said release means is positioned to release said cover member.

9. A combined latch and lock device as defined in claim 1, wherein said release means comprises a rectilinearly slidable fence plate having an externally exposed end portion adjacent an end of said cover member for imparting inward movement to said fence plate between first and second limit positions along a slide axis and having fence formations located immediately adjacent said tumbler means at said first limit position, said tumbler means having recesses disposable along said slide axis adjacent said fence formations to accommodate movement of said fence plate to said second limit position at the dial assembly positions corresponding to the selected dial combination, said fence plate having a stop member engageable with said base member to prevent angular movement of said cover member from said latching position, and said base member having recess means registrable with said stop member and when said fence plate occupies said second limit position to accommodate angular movement of said cover member to said release position, said tumbler means comprising circular tumbler wheels each having a peripheral gate at a selected angular position for accommodating movement of one of said fence formations radially inwardly of the circular perimeter of said tumbler wheels.

10. A combination latch and lock device is defined in claim 9, wherein the dial members and tumbler wheels of each respective dial assembly each have confronting interlocking surfaces to be releasably intercoupled against relative rotation, adjustable securing means interconnecting the associated dial members and tumbler wheels to draw them into interlocked relation and withdraw the same therefrom for independent angular adjustment of the dial members and said fence formations restraining said tumbler wheels against rotation during said independent adjustment of said dial members only when said release means occupies said second limit position.

References Cited UNITED STATES I PATENTS 1,782,212 11/1930 Recker -304 3,188,839 6/1965 Humphries 7070 FOREIGN PATENTS 16,349 12/ 1886 Great Britain.

MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner.

ROBERT L. WOLFE, Assistant Examiner.

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