Adjustable Lever Latch Rectangular Locking Rod
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lever latches for hinged leaves require complex adjustments, risk mechanical strength compromise when embedded in thin leaves, and have limited locking rod travel, making them costly, bulky, and prone to cracking.
Innovation Solution
A lever latch with an adjustable locking rod mechanism that allows easy length adjustment without disassembly, embedded within the leaf thickness without compromising strength, featuring a support body with aligned seats for the actuation lever pin and a through-channel guide for the locking rod, enabling extended travel and reduced bulk.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the locking rod is made of circular section, then it provides sufficient strength, but it increases the bulk of the support body and requires deep milling that risks causing cracks in thin wood leaves
Solution Approach 1:
The locking rod is changed from a circular section to a rectangular section with different dimensions (width and height), allowing optimization of strength characteristics while reducing the overall volume required in the support body. The rectangular profile provides sufficient bending and torsional strength for locking function while occupying less space.
Solution Approach 2:
The cross-sectional parameters of the locking rod are changed from circular to rectangular with specific width and height dimensions. This parameter change allows the rod to maintain adequate strength for its locking function while reducing the bulk of the support body housing and minimizing the depth of milling required in the leaf.
2Volume of moving object
If the locking rod housing is made compact, then it reduces the milling depth required, but it limits the travel distance of the locking rod between locked and unlocked positions
Solution Approach 1:
The locking rod's movement path is reoriented from a purely horizontal direction to include a vertical component by angling the rod relative to the support body. This dimensional change allows the rod to achieve greater effective travel distance while occupying less horizontal space within the support body housing.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking rod is designed with adjustable positioning along the actuation lever, allowing its travel distance and positioning to be dynamically adapted. The rod can be repositioned to optimize both its travel distance for effective locking/unlocking and its space requirements within the support body.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the locking rod length is adjusted to accommodate different door thicknesses, then the latch becomes versatile, but it requires complex adjustment mechanisms and disassembly
Solution Approach 1:
The locking rod is designed with adjustable positioning along the actuation lever, allowing its effective length and positioning to be dynamically adapted. The rod can be repositioned to optimize both its travel distance for effective locking/unlocking and its space requirements within the support body.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking mechanism is divided into separable components - the locking rod can be independently adjusted or replaced. The rod features positioning elements that allow it to be set at different lengths and positions along the actuation lever, providing versatility without requiring complex integrated adjustment mechanisms.
4Reliability
If deep milling is performed on thin leaves to embed the support body, then the latch can be securely mounted, but it risks causing cracks in the wood
Solution Approach 1:
The cross-sectional parameters of the locking rod are changed from circular to rectangular with specific width and height dimensions. This parameter change allows the rod to maintain adequate strength for its locking function while reducing the bulk of the support body housing and minimizing the depth of milling required in the leaf.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking rod is changed from a circular section to a rectangular section with different dimensions (width and height), allowing optimization of strength characteristics while reducing the overall volume required in the support body. The rectangular profile provides sufficient bending and torsional strength for locking function while occupying less space.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The lever latch allows for easy, in-situ adjustment of the locking rod length, maintains mechanical strength, reduces manufacturing complexity and costs, and enhances locking performance with increased travel, making it suitable for various window and door applications.
Implementation Method 1
The latch then comprises a spring, which at one end is pivoted to the actuation lever in a position distal from the rotation pin of the actuation lever, and at the other end is fixed to a locking rod
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~6
Figure 7~9
AI summary
Lever latch for locking a leaf, which comprises a support body (2) susceptible of being embedded in a shaped cavity of a leaf, and provided with a guide (7) having at one end an outlet opening (70). The latch (1) also comprises an actuation lever (8), hinged to the support body (2) by means of a first pin (9) engaged at its ends in opposite seats (10), made on the lateral walls (3,4) of the support body (2). Then, an elongated plate-like spring (11) is provided which is engaged at a first end (11A) with a second pin (12) mechanically associated with the aforesaid actuation lever (8), and a locking rod (13) is also provided, slidably engaged in the guide (7) of the support body (2), and provided with a first free termination (13A) susceptible of being engaged in a hole of a fixed frame or of a floor and with a second termination (13B) fixed to the second end (11B) of the elongated plate-like spring (11). The actuation lever (8) is then manually actuatable to rotate around the first pin (9) between a first angular end stop position (A), in which the locking rod (13) projects from the outlet opening (70) of the guide (7), and a second angular end stop position (B), in which the locking rod (13) is more retracted in the guide (7). The lateral walls (3, 4) of the support body (2) are provided with a plurality of opposite seats (10) that are aligned along the longitudinal direction (Y) of the same support body (2), and are susceptible of selectively receiving the ends of the first pin (9) in order to vary the position of the actuation lever (8) and of the locking rod (13) along the longitudinal direction (Y) of the support body (2).