NON-HANDED, CONCEALED-SCREW LOCK MOUNTING MECHANISM

DISPOSITIF DE MONTAGE DE SERRURE A VIS DISSIMULEES PERMETTANT LA POSE SANS EGARD A LA MAIN DE LA PORTE

English Abstract

A non-handed door lock capable of installation on doors of varying thicknesses and having concealed screws (160) on both inside
and outside handle assemblies (10) has inner and outer chassis (50, 150) which may be reversed depending upon the handing of the door.
The inner chassis (150) provides the concealed screws (160) for mounting the outer handle assembly (10) and also provides the threaded
stud (170) for mounting the inner handle assembly (10). Although the handle assemblies (10) are functionally interchangeable, proper
installation of the chassis (50, 150) results in hidden mounting screws (160) and attachment features which are only accessible from the
inside of the door.

Claims

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CLAIMS:
1. A door lock having concealed screws on both
inside and outside members, comprising:
an outside chassis having means for engaging an
outside handle assembly and a bolt drawbar cam,
an inside chassis having means for engaging an
inside handle assembly and a bolt drawbar cam and
having means also for attaching inside and outside
handle assemblies with concealed screws; and
two interchangeable handle assemblies for
attaching to said inside chassis.
2. The door lock of claim 1, wherein the means,
in said inside and outside chassis, for engaging a bolt
drawbar cam comprises an axially fixed outer spindle,
said outer spindle having a non-cylindrical axial bore
in its inward end, said bore containing an axially
congruently-shaped captured inner spindle projecting
therefrom a sufficient distance to engage a bolt
drawbar cam of a mounted door latch bolt assembly.
3. The door lock of claim 1, wherein the means
for attaching inside and outside handle assemblies to
said inside chassis comprises an externally threaded
stud on said inside chassis for threaded engagement
with internal threads of a rotatably mounted bushing of
the inside handle assembly of said interchangeable
handle assemblies on an inside face of a door and two
or more mounting legs, containing said concealed
screws, for telescopically engaging internally threaded
posts on the outside one of said handle assemblies.
4. The door lock of claim 3, further comprising:
means for adjusting said lock to fit securely in
doors of differing thicknesses.

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5. The door lock of claim 1, wherein the means,
on said inside and outside chassis, for engaging said
inside handle assembly and said outside handle
assembly, respectively, comprises spindle bores in
inside and outside handles, said bores having
longitudinal features which intermesh with congruent
longitudinal features of spindles on said inside and
outside chassis.

Description

~ W094/25709 2 1 6 1 4 4 2 PCT~S94/04521
NON-HANDED, CONr~AT~T~'n-SCREW LOCK lI~uN-llN-~ MECHANISM
Bach~o~.d of the Invention
This invention relates generally to door hardware
and more particularly to door locks capable of either-
handed installation and having concealed screws on both
5 inside and outside lock portions.
When selecting door locks, the handing of the
door must be considered to avoid upside down or
backward mounting of levers or inappropriate mounting
of door knobs whose security is compromised by exposed
10 mounting screws. The necessity for considering the
myriad combinations possible between door locks of
different designs and handing requirements imposed by
architectural or occupancy requirements creates a
significant cost burden due to inventory requirements,
15 construction delays, and correction of errors in
installation. These difficulties are well known to
persons familiar with door hardware installation during
construction or remodelling.
The foregoing illustrates limitations known to
f 20 exist in present devices and methods. Thus, it is
apparent that it would be advantageous to provide an
alternative directed to overcoming one or more of the
limitations set forth above. Accordingly, a suitable
alternative is provided including features more fully
25 disclosed hereinafter.

W094/~5709 2 1 6 1 4 4 2 PCT~594/045~1 ~
SummarY of the Invention
In one aspect of the present invention, this is
accomplished by providing a door lock having concealed
screws on both inside and outside members, and
including an outside chassis having means for engaging
an outside handle assembly and a bolt drawbar cam; an
inside chassis having means for engaging an inside
handle assembly and a bolt drawbar cam and having means
for attaching inside and outside handle assemblies with
the concealed screws; and two interchangeable handle
assemblies for attaching to the inside chassis.
The foregoing and other aspects will become
apparent from the following detailed description of the
invention when considered in conjunction with the
accompanying drawing figures.
Brief DescriPtion of the Drawinqs
Figure l is an exploded partially sectional
elevation view of a door lock mounting mechanism
according to the present invention.
Detailed Description
In discussing the present invention, the terms
handle assembly, knob assembly, and lever assembly,
when used, are interchangeable. They are used in their
generic form to refer only to the portion of a door
lock which is grasped with the hand to operate the
latch mechanism.
Figure l is an exploded partially sectional
elevation view of a door lock mounting device according
to the present invention. The lock, or latch bolt
assembly, is not illustrated since it is not part of
the present invention, but it may be any of a commonly
available array of such latch bolt mechanisms.
Otherwise, the lock of the present invention includes
two identical handle assemblies l0 consisting of knobs
15 which are rotatably captured in bushing 20. The

~ W094/25709 2 1 6 1 4 4 2 PCT~94/045~1
method of capture, an "E" ring or other commonly used
retaining device, is not illustrated. Bushing 20 is
internally threaded and is itself rotatably captured in
trim ring 100 by a retaining ring, a formed flare, or
other means used for such rotatable retention
applications. Trim ring 100 is equipped with two or
more internally threaded hollow posts projecting into a
door cavity. Bushing 20 has provisions, not
illustrated, for application of torque to thread
bushing 20 onto stud 170 of inside chassis 150, as
appropriate. It is clear that handle assemblies 10 are
functionally identical and, so long as knobs 15 are
symmetrical, are interchangeable completely. In the
case of levers or other asymmetric handles, actual
interchangeability may be limited, although functional
interchangeability still applies. It should be noted
that handles 15 are equipped with bores 18, or spindle
sockets, having longitudinal teeth, corners, or grooves
for engaging mating longitudinal features of spindles.
Outer chassis 50 and inner chassis 150 have
several features in common and several slightly
different features. The body of chassis 50 has two or
more holes to accommodate internally threaded posts 30
of handle assemblies 10. Sleeve 70 projects outwardly
from the chassis body and supports outer spindle 85
which has longitudinal features designed to mesh with
previously described spindle bores 18 of handle
assemblies 10. Outer spindle 85 has an externally
cylindrical portion having a bore 82 in which inner
spindle 80 is captured in a driven arrangement. Inner
spindle 80 and bore 82 have longitudinal meshing
features which constrain inner spindle 80 and outer
spindle 85 to turn together. Biasing means 83 are also
included within bore 82 of outer spindle 85 to force
inner spindle 80 to an extended position. Inner
spindle 80 is captured within bore 82 by staking or
other common means which is not illustrated.

W094/25709 2 1 6 1 4 4 2 PCT~594/045~ ~
Inside chassis 150 is substantially identical to
outside chassis 50 with a few important exceptions.
Mounting legs 130 are spaced to mate with internally
threaded posts 30 of knob assemblies 10. When inserted
in the door cavity and aligned with outside chassis 50,
mounting legs 130 register with internally threaded
posts 30 such that poæts 30 fit smoothly within
alignment bores 165 in mounting legs 30. Mounting
screws 160 are inserted from the inside surface of
inside chassis 150 through mounting legs 130 into
engagement with the threads of internally threaded
posts 30, and when securely tightened, hold inside
chassis 150, outside chassis 50, and knob assembly 10
in securely fixed relationship with each other. Posts
30 extend through holes in outside chassis 50 into
alignment bores 165 in a telescopic arrangement which
permits adjustment for doors of varying thicknesses.
Mounting legs 130 also have recesses 168 behind the
heads of mounting screws 160. These recesses
accommodate internally threaded posts 30 of knob
assembly 10 when the knob assembly is mounted on the
inside of the door. Spindles 180 and 185 have the same
relationship by means of spindle bore 182 and spindle
bias 83 as has been described for the spindle couple of
outside chassis 50. Stud 170 supports spindle 185 in
its bore while the external threads provide connection
capability with bushing 20 of handle assembly lO. This
connection capability is a key feature of the present
invention in that it permits attachment of either of
the functionally identical handle assemblies 10 to
inside chassis 150, and, by simply reversing the
positions of inside chassis 150 and outside chassis 50,
the handing of the door can be changed, or
accommodated. Note that sleeve 70 of outside chassis
50 has no external threads, and, therefore, will not
engage the internal threads of bushing 20. Thus, after
installation, the outside handle assembly 10 presents

~ W094/25709 2 1 ~ 1 4 4 2 PCT~S94/04521
--5--
no access to either mounting screws 160 or to mounting
stud 170. Note also that internally threaded posts 30
of inside handle assembly 10 telescope smoothly into
recesses 168 of mounting legs 130 when the handle
assembly is finally attached to inside chassis 150 by
means of stud 170.
The door lock is pictured with two mounting posts
and two mounting legs but may, of course, be provided
with three or more legs. Size, weight, and strength
requirements of the installation will ultimately
determine the number of mounting legs required.

Representative Drawing