Flush Toggle Latch Mechanism for Aircraft Oven Door
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional door locks and appliances with rotary knobs and handles are prone to failure, pose hazards, and are costly to modify, necessitating a novel, cost-effective, and user-friendly locking mechanism.
Innovation Solution
A toggle latch device with a housing featuring a Y axis and X axis, utilizing a locking pin and button system for translation within conduits, combined with a buckling spring and crank mechanism to achieve locking and unlocking with a single button actuation, maintaining a flush button position for ease of use and reduced maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional rotary knobs with handles are used for latching, then the door can be locked, but the device adds weight and creates safety hazards for passersby
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the traditional external rotary knob and handle from the door assembly, extracting only the essential locking function and implementing it through a flush-mounted button mechanism. This eliminates the protruding components that add weight and create safety hazards while maintaining the core locking capability through a simplified internal toggle latch mechanism.
2Reliability
If traditional rotary knobs with handles are used, then the door can be locked, but the mechanism is prone to failure
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is segmented into distinct functional components: a button for user actuation, a piston for force transmission, a toggle latch for locking engagement, and a spring for resetting. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and simplifies the overall mechanism by eliminating the complex gear trains and linkages found in traditional rotary knobs.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using a rotary motion to engage the latch as in traditional knobs, the patent inverts the approach by using a linear push-button actuation that triggers a toggle mechanism. This inversion simplifies the user interface and reduces mechanical complexity while maintaining reliable locking function.
3Reliability
If locking devices are incorporated within a door housing, then the structure is protected, but it requires costly modifications to the housing
Solution Approach 1:
The toggle latch mechanism is designed as a pre-assembled unit that can be installed into a standard door housing without requiring costly structural modifications. The mechanism includes all necessary mounting features and adaptors built-in, allowing for straightforward installation while maintaining the protective enclosure of the door housing.
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 toggle latch device efficiently translates button actuation into locking pin movement, providing a secure and user-friendly locking mechanism that is cost-effective and reduces the risk of foreign matter accumulation, suitable for various applications including aircraft ovens and vehicle skins.
Implementation Method 1
at least one button spring biased for extension of the button to the flush position may return the button to its flush position
Implementation Method 2
the buckling spring configured for asserting a buckling spring force on the crank end of the rod
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 1C
AI summary
A toggle latch device translates a first push and release of a button (110) to a locking pin (160) translation from retracted to extended from within a housing. A second push and release of the button reverses the locking pin translation from extended to retracted back within the housing. The latch button remains desirably flush with the housing after each push and release. The translation of the latch button and that of the locking pin is angularly displaced by 90 degrees allowing the toggle latch device to employ a unique lever system which includes a buckling spring combined with a reversing hat which forces the locking pin in each of extension and retraction.