Patent Publication Number: US-5890320-A

Title: Barrier gate especially for small children

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a barrier gate of the type, that includes a frame which is secured in an opening such as a doorway or a staircase so as to seal off the opening, and an openable gate with a locking mounted in the frame for locking the gate in a closed position. 
     2. The Prior Art 
     An example of such a child safety gate is known from GB-A 2 226 845. A disadvantage is that the lower corner of the gate is not fixed in the locking position and Is deflectable. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This problem is solved by a child safety gate according to the invention which includes a locking member with an operation handle at the upper member of the gate for the activation of an engaging part at the lower member of the gate, the engaging part being designed for engaging the lower member of the gate which is designed for receiving the engaging part. Hereby a safe fixation of the lowermost corner of the gate is obtained. It is understood that of necessity other looking devices can be fixed to the top corner of the gate, e.g., activated through the same operation handle. 
     In a simple manner the locking device is designed with an operation handle which is downwardly loaded with a spring, i.e., when opening the gate it is to be pulled upwards. This ensures an easy handling for adults combined with it being a difficult movement, if not even an impossible one, for small children to operate. At the same time it is possible to provide an extra security through a heavy spring load, which only can be overcome by an adult person. 
     The locking device is preferably fixed to the upper member of the gate, with the operation handle below the member and at a distance such that an adult person, with the palm of his hand on the upper member, can nevertheless reach below the operation handle and activate it with his fingers. This results in an operation that is easy to accomplish and a simple construction. 
     The engaging part is in a particularly simple manner formed at the end of a bar connected to the operation handle and where the end extends through the introduction in the upper member of the gate and can go into a locking engagement with a lock hole on the top side of the lower member of the gate frame. Hereby a safe locking of the lowermost corner of the gate is achieved. 
     In order to unload or as a stop for the operation handle, the bar is designed with a stopping means for co-operation with the top side of the lower member of the gate frame for determination of the extreme position of the bar. This gives a simple construction as the operation handle in this case does not need to be designed with proper stops. 
     Alternatively, the engaging part can be shaped as a fork fitting that grips around the top side of the lower member of the frame, which also provides a safe fixation. 
     A particularly simple embodiment is achieved by forming the fork fitting so that it also grips around the lower member of the gate and is guided thereon. Hereby extra equipment for guiding the fitting is avoided. 
     The connection between the operation handle and the engaging parts does not necessarily have to be a rigid connection, but could be a wire, a string, a strap or the like, and that the engaging part is spring-loadedly arranged for locking engagement in the lower member of the gate. In such a case the guidance is suitably hidden away in a tube with a view to the child&#39;s safety. 
     A particularly preferred embodiment of the locking device includes a U-shaped part fixed straddling on the upper member of the gate, and the operation handle extends up between the sides of the U-shaped part, and a spring means is placed between the lower side of the upper member of the gate and the top side of the operation handle. This construction is simple and easy to mount and easy to operate but foremost child proof. 
     In barrier gates of the type where a fixed grid piece is present at each side of the gate, the operation handle can be designed in a U-shape with an elongation beyond the front edge of the gate intended for engagement across the top side of the upper member of the gate frame for providing a locking engagement therewith. Hereby, a fixation of the top corner of the gate is obtained as well. The fixation can be further improved in that the elongated part furthermore is provided with a dowel for engagement with a hole on the top side of the upper member of the gate frame. 
     The invention will in the following be further explained with reference to the accompanying drawing that exclusively displays the essential parts for the understanding of the invention. 
    
    
     In the drawings: 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 shows a section of the front end of a first embodiment of the gate. 
     FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the handle, and 
     FIG. 3 shows a section at the front end of a second embodiment of the gate according to the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     In the figures a gate is displayed where a number of gate bars 8 extend between an upper member 4 and a lower member 6. The gate is hinged to the frame at the side that is not shown in the drawing. The lower member of the frame is shown by the reference number 10. 
     The locking device of the gate comprises a handle 12, which consists of a U-shaped top part 14 that is placed on the upper member 4 of the gate and that extends beyond the member 4. Below the upper member 4 an underpart 16 is placed in the top part 14. This underpart 16 is slidably placed in the top part 14 and loaded by spring 18 to an extreme position, i.e., downwards. The spring-load could be provided by coil springs, but most suitably a leaf spring is used. To the underpart a bar 20 is connected that also functions as a gate bar. The end of the bar is formed as a fork fitting 22 that grips around the lower member of the gate and extends down on the side of the lower member of the frame, and through this locks the lower corner of the gate in a closed position. In the plane of the gate the bar 22 could be provided with not shown side guiding projections on the lower member of the gate. 
     Instead of the fork fitting the bar can extend through a hole in the lower member of the gate and down in an underlying hole in the lower member of the frame, whereby a locking effect is achieved. 
     In FIG. 3 a second embodiment of the gate according to the invention is shown where the handle 12 has an extension for engaging the top side of the upper member on the gate that here is of the type where both sides of the gate have a grid piece. The handle is loosely placed on the upper member of the gate, but is otherwise spring-loaded as before, as the handle has a bottom piece where the bar 20 is connected to. The spring is provided between the bottom piece and the lower side of the upper member of the gate in such a way that the handle is held down by the spring force. By pulling the handle as a whole upwards to the position indicated in dotted lines, the locking engagement is released, as the bar is pulled up from the lower member and the extension of the handle is lifted free from the upper member. 
     By the invention a simple locking mechanism is thus provided that in the locked position of the gate simultaneously fixes the lower corner of said gate.