Latch assembly and arrangement including a latch assembly

A latch assembly includes a plate and an arm pivotable between a closed and an open position relative to the plate about a pivot axis. The pivot axis is substantially aligned with a line of entry of a connecting bar to a latched position in which, when the arm is in the closed position, the connecting bar is entirely surrounded by both the plate and the arm together and partially surrounded by the arm and the plate individually. The plate is fixed relative to the line of entry.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY

The present invention relates generally to latching arrangements.

To erect certain articles such as table tops, bunks, cabinets, chairs, and the like, it is common to latch them to other articles, such as walls, particularly in arrangements such as truck cabs and ship or boat cabins where the most use must be made of relatively little space. When the articles are not in use, they can typically be folded out of the way or otherwise stowed and, often, are latched in the folded or stowed position, as well. There are, of course, numerous uses for latch assemblies in other forms of arrangements, as well, such as on gates, and on automobile doors, hoods, and trunks, to name but a few.

It is usually desirable to make latches as unobtrusive as possible. However, most latches are designed such that they have relatively high profiles. Walls to which articles such as table tops, bunks, cabinets, chairs and the like are latched often have fairly large, obtrusive recesses in which connecting or striker bars intended to mate with other latch components on the articles are disposed. It is desirable to provide a latch assembly that can have a comparatively low profile such that the size of a recess in which a connector bar for the latch assembly is disposed can be minimized.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a latch assembly comprises a plate and an arm pivotable between a closed and an open position relative to the plate about a pivot axis. The pivot axis is substantially aligned with a line of entry of a connecting bar to a latched position in which, when the arm is in the closed position, the connecting bar is entirely surrounded by both the plate and the arm together and partially surrounded by the arm and the plate individually, the plate being fixed relative to the line of entry.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an arrangement comprising a latch assembly is provided. The arrangement comprises a first assembly comprising a surface and, extending relative to the surface, a connecting bar. The arrangement also comprises a second assembly comprising a surface and a plate attached to the surface, and an arm pivotable between a closed and an open position relative to the plate about a pivot axis, and wherein the pivot axis is substantially aligned with a line of entry of the connecting bar to a latched position in which, when the arm is in the closed position, the connecting bar is entirely surrounded by both the plate and the arm together and partially surrounded by the arm and the plate individually, the plate being fixed relative to the line of entry.

In accordance with still another aspect of the present invention, a latch assembly includes a plate and an arm, at least one of the plate and the arm being pivotable about a pivot axis such that the plate and the arm are adapted to define a closed and an open position. The pivot axis is substantially aligned with a line of entry of a connecting bar to a latched position in which, when the plate and the arm are in the closed position, the connecting bar is entirely surrounded by both the plate and the arm together and partially surrounded by the arm and the plate individually. At least one of the plate and the arm is fixed relative to the line of entry.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An arrangement21comprising a latch assembly23is shown inFIGS. 1 and 2. The arrangement comprises a first assembly25comprising a surface27such as a wall and, extending relative to the surface, a connecting bar29. The connecting bar29may be in any suitable form, such as in the form of a U-shaped member as illustrated inFIG. 3or in the form of a striker pin.

The connecting bar29can extend from a member30(FIG. 3) that is secured inside of the wall27and is substantially concealed by a member such as the member that is referred to here as a bezel31. The bezel31comprises an opening33through which the connecting bar extends, an outer surface35, and a recess37in the outer surface in which the opening is disposed. The connecting bar29may extend past the outer surface35of the bezel31but, ordinarily, will not so that it does not project into an area proximate the wall27and present a hazard. The recess37can be formed with walls shaped to help guide an entering latch assembly23toward the connecting bar29, such as by sloping inwardly in a direction away from the surface35. The connecting bar29may be a rigid bar or a flexible member such as a cable, and can take any suitable form, such as having a U-shape or being a straight member, and such as being circular in shape as shown or having some other shape, such as the shape of a plate.

As seen inFIGS. 1 and 2, the arrangement21also comprises a second assembly39comprising a surface41(shown in phantom) and the latch assembly23including a plate43attached to the surface. The surface41may be any number of structures, such as a table top, a bunk, a chair, a cabinet, to name but a few. The plate43may be attached to the surface41in any suitable manner, such as by bolts extending through a flanged portion of the plate.

The latch assembly23also comprises an arm45pivotable between a closed position (FIG. 1) and an open position (FIG. 2) relative to the plate43about a pivot axis47. Thus, the plate43, and the surface41attached to the plate, can also be considered to pivot about the pivot axis47relative to the arm45. The pivot axis47is substantially aligned with a line of entry49of the connecting bar29to a latched position in which, when the arm45is in the closed position, the connecting bar is entirely surrounded by both the plate43and the arm together and partially surrounded by the arm and the plate individually. The arm45can extend parallel to the line of entry49when the arm is in the closed position. Ordinarily, to minimize the height of the latch assembly23, the plate43is fixed relative to the line of entry49although the plate, to which the surface is attached, might alternatively be pivotable and the arm can be fixed relative to the line of entry.

Because the connecting bar29is only partially surrounded by the arm45and the plate43individually, the latch-assembly23can include latch assemblies wherein dimensions of the latch assembly can be minimized as compared to latch assemblies wherein one or more components individually include material surrounding a connecting bar by 360°. By minimizing latch assembly dimensions, it is possible to minimize the size of any recess for a connecting bar in any structure to be latched to a structure to which the latch assembly is connected.

A “latch assembly” in the sense used in the present application comprises a plate and an arm. The structure comprising the latch assembly may comprise, but does not necessarily also comprise, components that typically are sold together with the plate and the arm, such as a connecting bar, a table, a cabinet, a bunk, a truck cab, or a truck. “Line of entry” in the sense used in the present application is intended to refer to the line along which the connecting bar29travels from the point at which the arm45is pivoted to the fully open position as shown inFIG. 2to the point at which the arm45is pivoted to the closed position as shown inFIG. 1, as when the connecting bar is in the latched position. Terms such as “can” and “may” are open-ended and are intended to reflect that something can or may be provided, but that something is not essential; however, the failure to use such terms is not intended to reflect that something is essential. Similarly, open ended terms such as “comprise” and “include” are intended to have the same meaning and are not intended to exclude the presence of other structure, materials, or acts.

The latch assembly23shown inFIGS. 1 and 2comprises a stop51arranged to stop the arm45in the closed position. The stop51can be in any suitable form. The stop51shown inFIGS. 1 and 2comprises a cylinder53bolted to the plate43by a bolt55. A similar cylinder57is bolted to the plate43by a bolt59to define a pivot assembly centered around the pivot axis47. The arm45includes an opening61(FIG. 3) in which the cylinder57of the pivot assembly is disposed. The cylinders53and57can be used to facilitate mounting of a cover plate63(FIG. 3) at a suitable spacing from the plate43.

In the embodiment shown inFIGS. 1 and 2, the stop51is substantially aligned with the line of entry49. The stop may be disposed elsewhere, however, aligning the stop51with the line of entry49facilitates minimizing the dimensions of the latch assembly23. The arm45is typically formed with a notch65for receiving the connecting bar29at a point remote from the pivot axis47. The notch65can be substantially aligned with the line of entry49, which will ordinarily aid in keeping the size of the latch assembly23to a minimum. The arm45can be formed with a recessed area67between the pivot axis47and the notch65where the stop51is intended to contact the arm. In this way, the combined thickness of the arm45and the stop51does not make the latch assembly23unnecessarily large.

A forward surface69of the plate43and a forward surface71of the arm45can be sloped or otherwise arranged to define a V-shape when the arm is in the closed position. The V-shape can facilitate guiding of the connector bar29from an unlatched position to the latched position. The centerline of the V-shape can be substantially parallel to the line of entry49.

In the latch assembly23, it is desirable that the arm45automatically tends to move to the closed position. This can be accomplished by the arm45being arranged so that a force such as gravity causes the arm to pivot about the pivot axis47to the closed position. For example, as shown inFIG. 4A, a second arm175can extend from a pivot axis147of an arm145and be weighted by a mass M so that gravity will cause the arm to pivot upwardly to the closed position; or, as shown inFIG. 4B, the arm245can be arranged so that it pivots downwardly to a closed position. Ordinarily, however, some form of non-gravity means for causing the arm to move to the closed position will be provided. As seen inFIGS. 1 and 2, a spring77such as a torsion spring can be arranged to move the arm45to the closed position. Instead of torsion springs, other resilient spring devices can be used, such as compression or tension springs, compressible rubber members, and the like. Yet another possible non-gravity means for causing an arm345to move to the closed position is seen inFIG. 5and is in the form of a magnet377, which may be a permanent magnet or an electro-magnet that attracts a ferromagnetic arm or a magnet mounted on an arm. Of course, the arm may also be moved manually between a closed and an open position, if desired.

As seen inFIGS. 1 and 2, the arm45can form part of a lever, the lever comprising a second arm75extending from proximate the pivot axis47. The second arm75can extend substantially parallel to the arm45, althoughFIGS. 1 and 2show the arm extending at a non-zero angle relative to the arm and relative to the line of entry49. Having the second arm75extend at a non-zero angle relative to the arm45and the line of entry49can be useful to, inter alia, facilitate activating the arm so that it moves from the closed to the open position.

An activating member81can be attached to the arm45or the second arm75and arranged such that application of a force upon the activating member tends to move the arm to the open position. The activating member81inFIGS. 1 and 2is in the form of a cable83including an enlarged portion85that can be attached to the plate43, such as in a notch86, to keep the cable in a desired location. The activating member81can also function as a stop to limit pivoting of the arm45relative to the plate43. By pulling on the cable83, the activating member81will cause the arm45to pivot from a closed position (FIG. 1) to an open position (FIG. 2). Instead of activating members in the form of flexible members such as cables, rigid activating members such as the rod87shown in phantom inFIG. 2can be used. The activating member need not extend in or substantially in the plane of the arm45as with the illustrated cable83and rod87and may, for example, be in the form of a member extending perpendicular to the arm and upon which a user can supply a force to cause the arm to move from the closed to the open position.

While this invention has been illustrated and described in accordance with a preferred embodiment, it is recognized that variations and changes may be made therein without departing from the invention as set forth in the claims.