AU644004B2 - Retractable door or window stop - Google Patents

Description

RETRACTABLE DOOR OR WINDOW STOP

Background to the Invention

The invention relates to a door or window stop and is concerned w ith a novel and inventive improvement to the stop shown in published United Kingdom patent specification number 2 190 136. This published specification and the prior specifi¬ cation number 2 166 489 brought forward against it by the United Kingdom Patent Office in their preliminary examination and search of it , constitutes the most relevant art known to the applicant .

Each of these prior specifications discloses a door or window stop , intended in use to hold shut an inward opening door and /or to allow the door to be opened to only a limited extent , whilst also being retractable to allow the door to be fully opened and closed without hindrance ; and comprising in combin- ation the following features :

( a ) a barrel w hich , in use , is screwed or otherwise fixed to the floor or the wall reveal adjacent the closing edge of the door or window and inside the room or other area to which the door or window gives access ;

( b ) a spigot w hich , w hen in a first position , protrudes from the barrel to bear against or adjacent a surface of the door or window and which is retractable into a second position into the barrel so as not to impede the passage of the door or window edge;

( c ) means enabling the spigot to be moved alternately into its protruding and its retracted positions by a user ' s hand or foot ;

( d ) means tending positively to retain the spigot in its protruding position once the spigot has been moved into that position;

(e ) the spigot comprising a substantially flat bar , and the means enabling the spigot to be moved into and out of its protruding position including a pivot linking one end of the bar to the barrel so that the bar swings about the pivot into and out of the barrel;

(f ) stop means included in the barrel to define the limit of movement of the bar into its protruding position.

Such a stop will be referred to from now on as a stop "of the kind in question" .

Summary of the Invention

The stops , of the kind in question, that are disclosed in both the prior United Kingdom patent specifications listed above , are stops in which there is no means urging the bar into its non-protruding retracted-into-the-barrel position.

They rely on the force of gravity , operating in conjunction with a sufficiently friction-free ease of relative movement of the stop parts , to send the bar fully home . There is a risk in such circumstances that the bar might stick in a partly-protruding position .

According to the present invention, in its broadest aspect , a stop of the kind in question is therefore characterised by the incorporation of a spring means , acting between the bar and the barrel to urge the bar into its non-protruding position; and is further characterised by the feature that the spring means is positioned between the underside of the bar and that portion of the barrel into which the bar retracts .

Since the stops shown in specifications 2 166 489 and 2 190

136 have sold , and been used satisfactorily , in quantity , it is not immediately apparent that there is any need for any such bar-urging means . Even after that realisation , the conven¬ tional way to incorporate such a spring means would be by way of a torsion spring on the bar pivot . Doing it in the way just defined , by contrast , has the twin advantages of giving a far neater appearance to the stop whilst making the bar-retracting movement more positive to minimise the risk of partial sticking-open .

Advantageously the spring means acts on a protrusion formed on the underside of the bar . The protrusion could project from an otherwise substantially flat underside surface of the bar or it could effectively be formed by grooving or otherwise forming a channel in the underside of the bar , one sidewall of the channel then constituting the protrusion.

Preferably the spring means is an elongate spring w hose longi¬ tudinal axis runs across the longitudinal axis of the bar and w hose opposite ends are trapped between respective opposite side members of the said portion of the barrel into w hich the spring retracts ; with a portion of the spring intermediate its ends acting on the underside of the bar . It is technically difficult to incorporate any spring means into the barrel whilst keeping it effectively hidden from view and this is a partic¬ ularly neat way of doing it.

In the case just outlined , the spring is conveniently a coiled spring, again for reasons of technically efficiency combined with ease of insertion and positive subsequent retention in the barrel . The spring could be a leaf spring. But it could also be constituted by a coiled-rod form of spring and this is a currently preferred embodiment.

The invention includes within its scope a door or window stop substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings . One such stop will now be described with reference to the drawings .

Brief Description of the Drawings

An example of a stop in accordance with the invention will now be described , by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of the stop when closed;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the stop when closed;

Figure 3 is a plan view of the stop when open;

Figure 4 is a plan view of the stop showing the position of the spring;

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section through the spigot . Description of the Preferred Embodiment

A stop 10 is intended , in use , to limit the Movement of a window or door that is also retractable to r.llow the door or window to be fully opened or closed without hindrance .

The stop 10 is intended in use to limit the movement of a window or door but is also retractable to allow the door or window to be fully opened or closed without hindrance .

Referring to Figure 1 , the stop 10 comprises a barrel 11 which is generally cuboid in shape and has only a small depth to allow it to be set within a recess in a floor or wall reveal .

The barrel includes a recess 12 in which a spigot 16 , a spring 14 and a tongue 13 are mounted .

Referring now to Figures 2 and 3 , the spigot 16 in a first position shown in Figure 3 , protrudes from the barrel 11 to bear against or adjacent a surface of the door or window and which is retractable into a second position , as shown in Figure 2 , into the barrel 11 so as not to impede the passage of the door or window edge . The tongue 13 comprises a substantially flat bar and the means enabling the tongue to be moved into and out of its protruding position includes pin 15 w hich provides a pivot giving a tongue pivotal axis about which the tongue 13 can be swung into and out of the barrel 11 .

The spigot 16 includes the tongue 13 w hich here comprises a cut out of the spigot which means that the rest of the spigot 16 is generally U-shaped . The spigot 16 is pivotally mounted about pivot pin 17 to the spigot 16 which defines a tongue pivotal axis , which is parallel to the tongue pivotal axis 15 and is situated remote from the tongue pivotal axis 15.

In the retracted position, shown in Figures 2 and 4, the tongue 13 lies parallel to the surface of the spigot 16 , so that the flange 18 , which is attached to the floor or wall reveal , barrel

11, spigot 16 and tongue 13 present a flat surface over which a window or door may pass . A coiled torsion spring 14 acts between one side wall of a channel 19 formed in the spigot 16. Its opposite ends are trapped in a U-shaped channel

20 within the barrel 11 and either side of the spigot 16. The spring 14 will tend to urge the spigot 16 to remain parallel with the flange 18 , the barrel 11 and the flange 13.

The tongue 16 has an end 21 , opposite the pivotal end 17 , which extends beyond the stop means 22. This protruding end 21 provides a handle which conveniently provides the means for the tongue 13 to be moved into and out of its protrud¬ ing position.

As can be seen, this is an easily operated stop which can be used in many different positions to act as a stop to hold a door either open or closed or partially opened or closed but can also be used to define a limit position of movement of a window to provide a lock on, for example , a sash window which can easily be retracted to allow smooth movement of a door or window .

It will be appreciated that the stop may equally be made from any suitable nylon, plastics or non-ferrous materials .

It will further be appreciated that the stop can be used in many other situations than with doors and windows since it can be used wherever a retractable stop is required .

Claims (6)

C AIMS :

1. A door or window stop of the kind in question and characterised by the incorporation of a spring means , acting between the bar and the barrel to urge the bar into its non- protruding position; and is further characterised by the feature that the spring means is positioned between the under side of the bar and that portion of the barrel into which the bar retracts .

2. A stop according to Claim 1 and in which the spring means acts on a protrusion formed on the underside of the bar .

3. A stop according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 and in which the spring means is an elongate spring whose longitudinal axis runs across the longitudinal axis of the bar and whose opposite ends are trapped between respective opposite side members of the said portion of the barrel into which the spring retracts ; and a portion of the spring intermediate its ends acts on the underside of the bar .

4. A stop according to Claim 3 and in which the spring is a coiled spring.

5. A stop according to Claim 4 and in which the spring is of coiled-rod form .

6. A door or window stop substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings .