Patent Publication Number: US-2022211218-A1

Title: Removable Handle Having An Optimized Assembly

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This invention consists of a removable handle designed to work with a cooking container, such as a saucepan, a frying pan or a stewpot, with a side wall that is extended upward by an outwardly curved portion. 
     STATE OF THE ART 
     Document EP3319497 discloses a removable handle designed to work with a cooking container having a side wall that is extended upward by an outwardly curved portion comprising a free end. The removable handle extends in a longitudinal direction and includes an internal support member and an external support member designed to rest against, respectively, an inner surface and an outer surface of the side wall, as well as an upper support member designed to rest against the free end of the curved portion. The removable handle includes a lock that is movable between an open position and a closed position, the lock comprising a blocking wall designed to be separated from the internal support member when the lock is in the open position and designed to generate a force on the free end when the lock is in the closed position, under the action of a means of pressurization. The removable handle includes a gripping body that extends along the longitudinal direction and a structural part that includes the internal support member and the upper support member. 
     The assembly of such a removable handle is done by associating the various parts in the gripping body in several directions, which requires inversions of the gripping body. 
     Moreover, the assembly of the structural part and the lock on the gripping body is done by screwing. Thus, the assembly of such a removable handle with screwing and inversion operations of the gripping body is very difficult to automate. A screwing operation may also cause problems of operational reliability of the removable handle over time, if the screw becomes progressively loosened. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention is intended to remedy these disadvantages. 
     The technical problem at the root of the invention consists in proposing a removable handle intended to cooperate with a cooking container that is of simple design and economical to implement. 
     Another purpose of the invention is to propose a removable handle that has reliable operation over time. 
     To that end, an object of the invention is a removable handle designed to cooperate with a cooking container having a side wall that extends upward by an outwardly curved portion comprising a free end, said removable handle extending in a longitudinal direction and including an internal support member and an external support member designed to rest against, respectively, an inner surface and an outer surface of the side wall, as well as an upper support member designed to rest against the free end of the curved portion, said removable handle comprising a lock movable in translation between an open position and a closed position, the lock comprising a blocking wall designed to be separated from the internal support member when the lock is in the open position and designed to generate a force on the free end when the lock is in the closed position, under the action of a means of pressurization, said removable handle comprising a gripping body that extends along the longitudinal direction and a structural part that comprises the internal support member and the upper support member, characterized such that the structural part and the lock form a subassembly and such that the gripping body includes a housing for receiving the subassembly, the housing comprising an insertion orifice arranged in a front face of the gripping body and dimensioned to allow the assembly of the subassembly in the gripping body by insertion along the longitudinal direction. 
     Thus, producing a subassembly makes it possible to control the operation of the lock relative to the gripping body. Moreover, the insertion of the subassembly along the longitudinal direction is a simple assembly movement. 
     Advantageously, the gripping body comprises the external support member. 
     Thus, the structural part that does not include the external support member is more compact. 
     Preferably, the removable handle comprises a clip attached to the structural part in order to define a housing for receiving and guiding the lock in translation, the clip forming part of the subassembly. 
     Such a design makes it possible to guarantee good guidance of the lock on the structural part. 
     Advantageously, the structural part and the clip are made of a metal material, the clip being welded onto the structural part. 
     The welding enables the assembly of the clip on the structural part to be maintained in a precise and stable manner over time. Furthermore, the lock is guided in its movement in translation between two metal parts that are used very little over time. 
     Advantageously, the lock is made of a metal material. 
     Thus, the metal lock moves in translation in a guide produced with metal parts. Such a construction is robust and durable. 
     Preferably, the housing comprises a tubular portion that extends along the longitudinal direction and one free end of which opens onto the front wall in order to form the insertion orifice. 
     A tubular portion is very strong, particularly at the external support member, and makes it possible to surround the subassembly to hold it in position once inserted into the gripping body. 
     Advantageously, the housing comprises two upper side grooves and the structural part comprises two side wings, the two side wings being intended to slide in the two grooves during insertion of the subassembly into the housing. 
     Thus, the subassembly is properly guided during its insertion into the gripping body and is retained securely in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction after insertion. 
     Preferably, the removable handle comprises a self-locking device of the subassembly in the gripping body at the end of insertion. 
     By self-locking device, it is understood that the subassembly and the gripping body are secured together at the end of insertion, without adding another part or additional operation. Such a device is particularly economical. 
     Advantageously, the structural part comprises a lamina provided with a transverse opening and the housing comprises a lug, the lamina having the transverse opening and the lug forming the self-locking device of the subassembly in the gripping body. 
     Advantageously, the removable handle comprises means of maneuvering the toggle lock comprising a lever mounted [so as to be] movable in rotation on the structural part and on the gripping body. 
     Preferably, the housing comprises an inverted U-shaped portion that extends along the longitudinal direction, said inverted U-shaped portion comprising a lower opening for insertion of the lever. 
     Advantageously, the means of maneuvering the toggle lock comprises a connecting rod and a compression spring forming the pressurization means. 
     The pushing of the spring on the lock takes place along the longitudinal direction when the lock is in the closed position. This arrangement makes it possible to adapt the position of the lock to the thickness and length of the free end. 
     The invention also relates to a cooking container comprising a side wall that is extended upward by an outwardly curved portion comprising a free end having an upper edge and a lower edge and equipped with a removable handle as described above. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       The purposes, aspects and advantages of this invention, according to the description given below of a particular embodiment of the invention presented by way of non-limiting example, will be better understood by referring to the attached drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a removable handle fitted to a cooking container according to a particular embodiment of the invention, the lock being in the closed position; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the removable handle fitted to a cooking container of  FIG. 1 , the lock being in the open position; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the removable handle along the median vertical cross-section plane III-III of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the removable handle along the median vertical cross-section plane IV-IV of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the gripping body of the removable handle illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view from below of the subassembly formed by the structural part, the clip, the lock and the connecting rod of the removable handle illustrated in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view from above of the subassembly illustrated in  FIG. 6 . 
     
    
    
     Only those elements required in order to understand the invention have been depicted. In order to facilitate interpretation of the drawings, the same elements are labeled with the same references across all the figures. 
     It should be noted that in this document, the terms “horizontal”, “vertical”, “lower”, “upper”, “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “rear”, “longitudinal”, “transverse”, used to describe the removable handle, refer to this removable handle when positioned for use, when it is fitted onto a cooking container resting flat on a working surface. 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 1 to 4 , a removable handle  1  is designed to work with a cooking container  60 , which comprises a horizontal bottom wall  68 , a side wall  61  rising from the bottom wall  68 , and an outwardly curved portion  64  that extends toward the exterior. The side wall  61  comprises an inner surface  62  and an outer surface  63 . The curved portion  64  extends the side wall  61  and delimits the upper opening of the cooking container  60 . The curved portion  64  comprises a free end  65  provided with an upper edge  66  and a lower edge  67  ( FIGS. 3 and 4 ). The upper edge  66  and lower edge  67  are preferably superimposed in a vertical plane. 
     The removable handle  1  extends in a longitudinal direction  3 . The removable handle  1  comprises a gripping body  2 , which comprises, at a front end turned toward the cooking container  60 , a front face  4  forming an external support member  14  designed to cooperate with the outer surface  63  of the side wall  61 . In a vertical cross-section plane oriented in the longitudinal direction  3  ( FIGS. 3 and 4 ), the external support member  14  is substantially vertical. The gripping body  2  comprises a metal reinforcement  80  that serves as flame guard and comprises the external support  14 . The removable handle  1  comprises a median vertical plane that extends along the longitudinal direction  3  and forms a plane of symmetry for the removable handle  1 . 
     According to  FIGS. 3, 4, 6 and 7 , the removable handle  1  has a clip  50  made of metal material. The clip  50  comprises two tabs  51   a,    51   b  arranged on either side of a vertical median plane. The two tabs  51   a,    51   b  form an upper support member  15  designed to cooperate with the upper edge  66  of the free end  65  ( FIG. 3 ). The two tabs  51   a,    51   b  extend along the longitudinal direction  3 , at the front end. 
     The removable handle  1  comprises a structural part  10  made of metal material. The structural part  10  is substantially flat and comprises an end tab  13 . The end tab  13  extends downward and comprises an inner wall forming an internal support member  12  designed to cooperate with the inner surface  62  of the side wall  61 . 
     The internal support member  12  and the external support member  14  are offset in the longitudinal direction  3  ( FIG. 3 ) to allow the insertion of the side wall  61  and the free end  65  during the assembly of the removable handle  1  on the cooking container  60 . 
     The removable handle  1  comprises a locking member formed by a lock  20  movable in translation in the longitudinal direction  3  between an open position ( FIG. 4 ) and a closed position ( FIG. 3 ). The lock  20  comprises a blocking wall  21  at the front end. As can be seen in  FIG. 4 , when the lock  20  is in the open position, the blocking wall  21  is designed to be separated from the upper support member  15  to enable the insertion of the side wall  61  between the internal support member  12  and the external support member  14  and to allow the upper edge  66  of the free end  65  to rest against the upper support member  15 . 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 3 , when the lock  20  is in the closed position, the blocking wall  21  is designed to rest against the lower edge  67  of the free end  65  and thus block the upper edge  66  against the upper support member  15 . In a vertical cross-section plane comprising the longitudinal direction  3 , a straight line at the blocking wall  21  and the longitudinal direction form an angle α of between 40 and 50°, preferably 45°. 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 6 , the removable handle  1  comprises a return means of the lock  20  placed between a tab  58  borne by the clip  50  and a stop  28  borne by the lock  20 . The return means is formed by a spring  11 . The spring  11  works under compression when the lock  20  is in the closed position. The spring  11  is adapted to apply a return force on the stop  28  in order to pull the lock  20  toward its open position. 
     According to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the removable handle  1  comprises means of moving the locking member formed by the lock  20 . The means of movement comprise a lever  30  mounted pivotally on the structural part  10  and the gripping body  2  around a pivot pin  34  extending in a transverse direction, perpendicular to the longitudinal direction  3 , and a connecting rod  40  that enables the movement of the lock  20  when the lever  30  is pivoted. The connecting rod  40  is mounted pivotally by a first end  45  to the lock  20  around a pin  43 , and by a second end  42  to the lever  30  around a pin  44  that is mounted so as to slide in an oblong opening  31  made in the lever  30  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     The lever  30  is movable between a closed position and an open position after moving through an intermediate position of unstable balance. When the lever  30  is in the closed position the lock  20  is in the closed position, and when the lever  30  is in the open position the lock  20  is in the open position. Furthermore, the means of movement also comprise a spring  47  arranged on a rod  41 . The pin  44  is inserted into the rod  41  and into the oblong opening  31 . The spring  47  is mounted so as to slide on the rod  41  and rests on a transverse wall  32  of the lever  30 . This compression spring  47  forces back the pin  44  via the rod  41  to enable the position of the lock  20  in a closed position to adjust to the thickness of the side wall  61  of the cooking container  60 . 
     According to  FIG. 3 , when the lever  30  is in the closed position, the pin  44  around which the second end  42  pivots is located above a line passing through the pivot pin  34  and the pin  43 . The second end  42  is held in contact with the structural part  10  under the action of the compression spring  47 . Thus, the lock  20  naturally stays in its closed position, without the user having to maintain any effort on the removable handle  1 . The intermediate position with unstable balance of the lever  30  is reached when the pin  44  around which the second end  42  pivots is moved under the line passing through the pivot pin  34  and the pin  43 . 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , the structural part  10 , the clip  50  and the lock  20  form a subassembly. The lock  20  comprises a substantially flat central portion  22  that extends along the longitudinal direction  3 . The clip  50  covers the central portion  22  of the lock  20  and is attached to the structural part  10  by laser welding. The clip  50  and the structural part  10  form a housing  23  for receiving and guiding in translation the lock  20 . The subassembly also comprises the spring  11 , the connecting rod  40  and the pin  43 . 
     The structural part  10  provided with the clip  50  comprises a part  46  provided with two side wings  15   a,    15   b  ( FIG. 7 ) arranged in proximity to the end tab  13 . The structural part  10  comprises a part in the form of a lamina  16  that extends along the longitudinal direction  3  from the part  46  provided with two side wings  15   a  and  15   b  up to a rear end that comprises an inverted U-shaped yoke  17 . The lamina  16  comprises a through-opening  18 , arranged in proximity to the rear end. The structural part  10  comprises a tab  19  ( FIG. 7 ) provided with a free end  24  deformed upward, transverse to the longitudinal direction  3 . 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 5 , the gripping body  2  comprises a housing  5  for receiving the subassembly. The housing  5  comprises a tubular portion  6  that extends along the longitudinal direction  3  and a free end  7  whereof opens onto the front face  4  in order to form an insertion orifice  8 . The insertion orifice  8  is arranged above the external support member  14 . The housing  5  comprises an inverted U-shaped portion  9  that extends along the longitudinal direction  3  in the extension of the tubular portion  6 . The inverted U-shaped portion  9  comprises a lower opening  25  for insertion and reception of the lever  30 . The housing  5  in the tubular portion  6  comprises two upper side grooves  26   a  and  26   b  that extend along the longitudinal direction  3 . The two side wings  15   a  and  15   b  of the structural part  10  are designed to slide in the two grooves  26   a  and  26   b  during insertion of the subassembly into the housing  5 , more particularly into the tubular portion  6 . The housing  5  comprises an upper face  27  provided with a lug  35  ( FIGS. 3 and 4 ). The lug  35  is arranged in the inverted U-shaped portion  9 . The lug  35  comprises a sloped face  36  designed to bend the lamina  16  elastically during assembly until the lug  35  penetrates into the through-opening  18  at the end of insertion. The lug  35  comprises a vertical face  37  that cooperates with the through-opening  18  to prevent the extraction of the subassembly of the gripping body  2 . The lamina  16  provided with the through-opening  18  and the lug  35  form a self-locking device of the subassembly in the gripping body  2 . The assembly of the lever  30  is achieved by inserting along a transverse direction, perpendicular to the longitudinal direction  3 , the pin  34  into two perforations  38   a  and  38   b  ( FIG. 5 ) of the gripping body  2  in the yoke  17  and in the lever  30 . Such an assembly ensures that the lug  35  is held in position in the through-opening  18 . 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 1 to 4 , the removable handle  1  comprises an opening button  70  that enables the lever  30  to be moved from its initial closed position to beyond its intermediate position with unstable balance. The opening button  70  is arranged on an upper face of the gripping body  2 . The opening button  70  is movable in rotation around a transverse axis, horizontal to the longitudinal direction  3  of the removable handle  1 . The opening button  70  is movable between a lowered resting position in which the lever  30  is in its closed position, an intermediate raised position in which the lever  30  is in its intermediate position of unstable balance and a raised position in which the lever  30  is in its open position. A spring  71  ( FIG. 7 ) for retaining the opening button  70  in its raised position is arranged on the structural part  10 . 
     In order to assemble the removable handle  1 , the opening button  70  and the metal reinforcement  80  are arranged on the gripping body  80 . A subassembly is then formed by positioning the lock  20  on the structural part  10  and by covering the central portion  22  of the lock  20  with the clip  50 . The clip  50  and the structural part  10  are secured together by laser welding. The subassembly is completed with the spring  11 , the connecting rod  40  and the pin  43 . The subassembly is then inserted through the orifice  8  into the housing  5  of the gripping body  2 . The two side wings  15   a  and  15   b  of the structural part  10  slide into the two grooves  26   a  and  26   b  and the lamina  16  is deformed downward by sliding along the sloped face  36  of the lug  35 . At the end of insertion, the lug  35  penetrates into the through-opening  18  and the upwardly deformed free end  24  of the tab  19  comes to rest on the upper face  27  of the housing  5  in order to compensate for the clearances between the two side wings  15   a  and  15   b  of the two grooves  26   a  and  26   b.  The lever  30  equipped with the rod  41  and the spring  47  is inserted into the inverted-U portion  9 , then the pin  34  is slid into the two perforations  38   a  and  38   b  of the gripping body  2 , in the yoke  17  in such a way as to secure it in the lever  30 . The assembly is completed by inserting the pin  44  into the oblong opening  31  to secure it in the rod  41 . Thus, the assembly of the removable handle  1  is achieved by a succession of operations that can be done in an automated way. 
     Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the described and illustrated embodiment, which was only provided by way of example. Changes can still be made, particularly with regard to the constitution of the various elements or by substituting technical equivalents, without departing from the scope of protection of the invention. 
     Thus, in one alternative embodiment not shown, the clip comprises two side tabs and the clip is assembled onto the structural part by crimping the two tabs onto the structural part.