GB2429037A

GB2429037A - Lock assembly and method of fitting

Info

Publication number: GB2429037A
Application number: GB0516630A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Martin Stace; Andrew John Wilkes
Original assignee: Assa Abloy Ltd
Current assignee: Assa Abloy Ltd
Priority date: 2005-08-12
Filing date: 2005-08-12
Publication date: 2007-02-14
Anticipated expiration: 2025-08-12
Also published as: CN1932222A; GB2429037B; GB0516630D0

Abstract

A mortice lock assembly for a door has a casing 1 having a front faceplate 2, a rear wall 3 and a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing 1. Extending from the rear wall 3 are a plurality of location elements 171 to 177 for forming location marks at which bores can be drilled to provide an aperture to receive the lock. Upper and lower surfaces 5,6 of the casing are curved to fit into the aperture so formed.

Description

Lock assembly and method of fitting thereof The invention relates to lock

assemblies, and to methods of fitting the lock assemblies.

Mortise locks offer a relatively high level of door security as a consequence of the main part of the lock mechanism being embedded within the door. In order to fit a mortise lock, a recess ("mortise") suitably configured for receiving the lock has to be created in the opening edge of the door. The formation of the mortise is a relatively laborious process, and requires relatively precise positioning of the mortise relative to any strike or other object with which in use the lock is intended to cooperate.

There is a need for a mortise lock assembly that can simplify the fitting operation.

The invention provides a mortise lock assembly for a door, comprising: a casing; a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing; and a plurality of location elements extending from the rear wall, for indicating a position for forming a recess in the door for receiving the lock assembly.

The location elements provided in accordance with the invention enable a location for forming of a recess within a side edge of a door to be marked by means of pressing the location elements against the side edge. Making use of the marks so formed, it is made possible for the recess to be formed relatively easily and quickly. The use of the location elements to provide location marks, which can then be used as a guide for forming the recess, also allows the position of the recess to be determined with relatively high precision. The location marks may be formed in any suitable way. Preferably, they are formed by means of forcing the lock assembly against the side edge of the door such that the location elements form recesses in the side edge. Any other suitable marking method may however be used.

The invention also provides a mortise lock assembly for a door, comprising: a casing having a front faceplate and a rear wall opposed to the front faceplate; a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing; the casing further comprising an upper wall and a lower wall, each extending from the faceplate to the rear wall and at least one of said upper and lower walls being of convexly curved configuration.

Use of a casing having convex upper and lower walls has been found to offer advantages on fitting the lock assembly.

In one especially preferred embodiment of the invention there is provided a mortise lock assembly for a door, comprising: a casing having a front faceplate and a rear wall opposed to the front faceplate, the casing further comprising an upper wall and a lower wall, each extending from the faceplate to the rear wall and at least one of said upper and lower walls being of convexly curved configuration; a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing and having a locking member for engaging with a strike member; a plurality of location elements extending from the rear wall, for indicating a position for forming a recess in the door for receiving the lock assembly; wherein the rear wall is of elongate configuration and is bounded by opposed longitudinally extending side edges and opposed end edges, the opposed end edges being of arcuate configuration, and there is at least a first location element that is substantially coincident with the centre of the arcuate upper edge of the rear wall and there is at least a second location element that is substantially coincident with the centre of the arcuate lower edge of the rear wall.

In the fitting of a lock assembly having the said arrangement of location elements and arcuate edges, the precision of fitting of the lock assembly can be improved.

References herein to improvements in the precision of the fitting of lock assemblies are to be understood as referring to improving the precision of fitting by a fitter of a given skill level.

Advantageously, the location elements are fixedly attached to the rear wall of the casing. The location elements are preferably integrally formed with the rear wall of the casing, for example as a metal casting. The location elements may be projections, for example, elongate pointed projections.

Advantageously, the rear wall is of elongate configuration being bounded by opposed longitudinally extending side edges and opposed end edges, at least one of the end edges being arcuate. Advantageously, there are opposed and oppositely arcuate end edges. Advantageously, the arcuate end edges are substantially hemispherical and concentrically arranged with respect to a respective location element. There may be two location elements associated with arcuate ends of the rear wall, and at least one additional location element positioned therebetween.

Advantageously, there are a total of three to eight location elements.

Advantageously, both the upper and lower walls are of convexly curved configuration, preferably of substantially semicircular convex configuration. Advantageously, the semicircular configuration has a radius which is substantially uniform along the upper and lower walls from the face plate to the rear wall.

It is preferred that there are present on the rear wall a first locating element in the vicinity of the upper wall and a second locating element in the vicinity of the lower wall, the first locating element being substantially centrally positioned on the rear wall relative to the curvature of the upper wall and the second locating element being substantially centrally positioned on the rear wall relative to the curvature of the lower wall. Advantageously, there are a multiplicity of location elements arranged in a line and spaced apart along the length of the rear wall.

The invention further provides a method of fitting a mortise lock assembly in a door, comprising forming at least upper and lower location marks by placing the lock assembly against a door edge, forming upper and lower bores centred on the upper and lower location marks and having a diameter approximating to the thickness of a casing of the lock assembly to be received in the door, if necessary removing material between said upper and lower bores to form a recess extending continuously from an upper, curved surface of the upper bore to a lower, curved surface of the lower bore, and inserting into the recess a lock having convexly curved upper and lower walls conforming generally in configuration to the upper, curved surface and the lower, curved surface, respectively.

By way of example, an embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a lock assembly for a door; Fig. 2 is a side view of the assembly of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a rear view of the assembly of Fig. 1.

With reference to Fig. 1, the lock assembly is in many respects conventional. It is a mortise lock and includes a lock casing 1 into which the locking mechanism of the lock is fitted. The lock casing includes a face plate 2 and a rear wall 3. The lock casing also includes opposed side walls 4 and opposed upper and lower walls 5,6, respectively.

The lock assembly shown in the drawings is suitable for use in in a variety of doors, for example, but not exclusively, in a sliding door. It includes a hook bolt 7, which is arranged in the vicinity of an aperture (not visible in the drawings) in the faceplate 2. The hook bolt 7 is arranged to be interlockable, through that aperture, with a strike mounted on the door surround, for example with a cooperating member or aperture provided on the strike.

The cooperating member and strike are not shown in the drawings. The lock assembly is designed to be mortise fitted within the section of a part of the door, typically within a frame section of the door. When received within the door, the housing of the lock assembly is concealed except for the faceplate 2, which is arranged to be substantially in the same plane as the surrounding surface of the side edge of the door, that is, the surface that in use will be the leading surface when the door is slid shut.

The casing includes apertures for receiving other lock furniture, including a handle (aperture 8) and a lock cylinder (aperture 9) . Reference numerals 10, 11 and 12 designate securing means, for example, screws or rivets which hold the casing in place about the locking mechanism.

When the lock has been fitted, the lock cylinder and handle extend through at least the front face of the door.

The rear wall 3 of the lock assembly is of generally elongate configuration, having two longitudinally extending edges 13,14 and two end edges 15,16. The two end edges 15, 16 are of arcuate configuration and extend between the longitudinal edges at the ends thereof.

Spaced equidistant from one another along the rear wall are seven location elements 171 to 17 in the form of projections. In the embodiment shown, each projection is of substantially circular cross-section terminating in a distal tip 181 to 18 which is of smaller cross-section than a proximal portion of the projection. The cross-sectional configuration of the projections may be different from that shown. For example, the projections may be of square cross- section, or they may be of pyramidal configuration. The projections are rigidly attached to the rear wall 3. In practice, it will usually be expedient to form both the rear wall and the projections integrally, for example as a metal casting. Suitable metals include, inter alia, zinc and composite metal alloys, although any suitable metal may be used.

The projections 171 to 17 are arranged in a straight line extending longitudinally along the centre of the rear wall. The terminal projections, that is, the projections 171 to l7 that in the fitted lock assembly will be at the top and at the bottom, respectively, of the line of projections are so located relative to the arcuate end edges 15, 16 that the centre defined by the arcuate edge coincides with the centre of the respective projection. Thus, projection 171 is located at the centre of a notional circle of which arcuate edge 15 defines a part. Projection l7 is located at the centre of a notional circle of which arcuate edge 16 defines a part. In the embodiment shown, the arcuate edges 15, 16 are substantially semi-circular, which is preferred but not essential. It is preferred for the arcuate edges to be substantially semi-circular and to have a centre coinciding with the centre of the terminal projection. The upper and lower walls 5,6 of the casing 1 are each of semi-cylindrical configuration and are configured to have a curved surface having substantially the same radius as the arcuate edges 15,16.

References to coincidence with the centre of one of the projections are in general to be understood as meaning that the centre is substantially coincident with a central region of a tip of the projection that, in use, causes a location mark to be generated on the side edge of the door.

It is preferred for the tip of each terminal projection 17', 17 to be centrally located with respect to a notional circle of which the respective arcuate edge 15, 16 is a part because, in use, a cylindrical bore generated in the side edge of the door, centred upon a location mark made by the associated projection, and having a suitable diameter, will generate an internal surface that substantially corresponds to the curved outer configuration of the upper wall or the lower wall, respectively, of the casing. That arrangement serves considerably to simplify the fitting of the lock assembly into the door.

Reference numeral 19 indicates an aperture for receiving an optional cable for a lock sensor. Reference numerals 20 and 21 indicate apertures for receiving screw fastening elements.

In use, the rear wall 3 of the lock assembly is placed against the side edge of the door in the position in which the lock assembly is to be mounted. The lock assembly is pushed against the side edge with sufficient force that a series of location marks is produced, one corresponding to each location element 17' to l7. A drill bit having a diameter substantially the same as the notional diameter of the arcuate edges can then be used to drill upper and lower bores, centered at the location marks at the top and the bottom, respectively, of the series of marks. The resultant bores will have an inner surface which, at the top of the upper bore and at the bottom of the lower bore, approximate to the configuration, respectively, of the upper and lower casing walls 5,6. The intervening material of the door can then be removed by drilling bores of similar diameter centred upon the intervening location marks, resulting in a mortise that requires little or no further shaping to receive the lock assembly. In that manner, the recess can be formed simply, quickly, and with precise positioning.

Whilst there is described above a mortise lock assembly having a hook bolt, the invention is applicable to any mortise lock. In particular, it will be appreciated that the provision of location elements and the configuration of the casing as described above and as claimed herein may be applied to mortise locks having hook bolts or other types of bolt, and which are suitable for any kind of door, including hinged doors or sliding doors.

Claims

Claims 1. A mortise lock assembly for a door, comprising: a casing having

a front faceplate and a rear wall opposed to the front faceplate; a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing; and a plurality of location elements extending from the rear wall, for indicating a position for forming a recess in the door for receiving the lock assembly.
2. A lock assembly according to claim 1, in which the location elements are fixedly attached to the rear wall of the casing.
3. A lock assembly according to claim 1, in which the location elements are integrally formed with the rear wall of the casing.
4. A lock assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the location elements are projections.
5. A lock assembly according to claim 4, in which the projections are elongate projections.
6. A lock assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the rear wall is of elongate configuration being bounded by opposed longitudinally extending side edges and opposed end edges, at least one of the end edges being arcuate.
7. A lock assembly according to claim 6, in which there are opposed and oppositely arcuate end edges.
8. A lock assembly according to claim 6 or claim 7, in which the arcuate end edges are substantially hemispherical and concentrically arranged with respect to a respective location element.
9. A lock assembly according to claim 8, in which there are two location elements associated with arcuate ends of the rear wall, and at least one additional location element positioned therebetween.
10. A lock assembly according to claim 8, in which there are a total of three to eight location elements.
11. A mortise lock assembly for a door, comprising: a casing having a front faceplate and a rear wall opposed to the front faceplate; a locking mechanism arranged at least partly within the casing; the casing further comprising an upper wall and a lower wall, each extending from the faceplate to the rear wall and at least one of said upper and lower walls being of convexly curved configuration.
12. A lock assembly according to claim 11, in which both the upper and lower walls are of convexly curved configuration
13. A lock assembly according to claim 11 or claim 12, in which the upper and lower walls are of substantially semicircular convex configuration.
14. A lock assembly according to claim 13, in which the semicircular configuration has a radius which is substantially uniform along the upper and lower walls from the face plate to the rear wall.
15. A lock assembly according to any one of claims 11 to 14, in which there are present on the rear wall a first locating element in the vicinity of the upper wall and a second locating element in the vicinity of the lower wall, the first locating element being substantially centrally positioned on the rear wall relative to the curvature of the upper wall and the second locating element being substantially centrally positioned on the rear wall relative to the curvature of the lower wall.
16. A lock assembly according to claim 15, in which the location elements are further as defined in any one of claims 2 to 5.
17. A lock assembly according to claim 15, comprising a multiplicity of location elements arranged in a line and spaced apart along the length of the rear wall.
18. A method of fitting a mortise lock assembly in a door, comprising forming at least upper and lower location marks by placing the lock assembly against a door edge, forming upper and lower bores centred on the upper and lower location marks and having a diameter approximating to the thickness of a casing of the lock assembly to be received in the door, if necessary removing material between said upper and lower bores to form a recess extending continuously from an upper, curved surface of the upper bore to a lower, curved surface of the lower bore, and inserting into the recess a lock having convexly curved upper and lower walls conforming generally in configuration to the upper, curved surface and the lower, curved surface, respectively.