Patent Abstract:
A pivoting lever closure is disclosed for the door, the sidewall or the like of an electrical control cabinet, a machine casing or the like, comprising an actuation shaft traversing the door leaf or the like, locking devices driven by the actuating shaft such as a sash lock and/or a bar lock, a cavity that can be placed on the door leaf or the like, an actuating lever which can be pivotally actuated on the actuating shaft around an axis which is perpendicular to the axis of the actuating shaft and which can be blocked in a pivoting position in the cavity by a locking device (i.e. a padlock) and can be swung out of the cavity. The actuating shaft can be rotated by the actuating lever from the cavity in the pivoting position.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     a) Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a swivel lever closure for the door, side wall, or the like, of a switch cabinet, machine enclosure or the like, with an actuating shaft which extends through the door leaf, with locking devices, such as a sash lock and/or bar lock, which are drivable by the actuating shaft, with a dish or cavity that can be placed on the door leaf or the like, with an actuating lever which is articulated at the actuating shaft so as to be swivelable about an axis extending vertical to the axis of the actuating shaft and which can be secured in a swiveled in position in the cavity by means of a locking device and can be swiveled out of the cavity, wherein the actuating shaft can be rotated by means of the actuating lever into the position which is swiveled out from the cavity. 
     b) Description of the Related Art 
     A swivel lever closure of the type mentioned above is known, for example, from page 2-105 of a catalog from DIRAK GmbH und Co. KG, Kaiserstr. 55-59, 58332 Schwelm. Further, reference is had to EP 0 054 225 B1 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,735. 
     All of the cited references show swivel lever shapes which extend in a straight line parallel to the surface of the door or the like when swiveled in. Therefore, when the lever is swiveled out, it extends at a sharply acute angle to this surface of the door leaf or the like, which is inconvenient on the one hand and, on the other hand, reduces the effective lever arm length by which the lever projects in the swiveled out state on the door leaf surface and accordingly increases the forces required for rotation. In this respect, a swivel lever closure described in DE 297 05 778 U1 has a slight inclination, but its cavity has a very long constructional length in comparison to the length of the fastening lever. 
     Further, with the exception of the first swivel lever from the catalog cited above, none of the swivel lever closures provides the possibility of locking with a padlock. 
     In contrast to the prior art, it is the object of the invention to shape the swivel lever closure in such a way that the cavity has only a slightly larger constructional length than the actuating lever and such that the swivel lever closure can be conveniently handled in the swung out state and nevertheless offers the possibility of locking with a padlock, wherein provisional locking should also be possible without a padlock. 
     This object is met first in that the actuating lever has a first shorter portion which proceeds from the axis of articulation at the actuating shaft and which is directed at an inclination away from the plane of the door leaf or the like when the lever is swiveled into the cavity, and a second, longer portion following the first portion which is directed at an inclination toward the plane of the door leaf when the swivel lever is positioned so as to be swiveled into the cavity. 
     As a result of these features, it is possible for the user when swiveling out the handle to move this handle into a position such that a substantial portion of the swivel lever extends either parallel to or at a smaller angle to the door leaf plane, which facilitates handling. 
     This lever shape is also advantageous in that particularly favorable relationships result when, according to another feature, the cavity has, in its area receiving the free end of the lever, a shoulder such as an eyelet which projects through a notch or slit of the lever end when the lever is in its swiveled in position. That is, in a surprisingly advantageous manner, the inclined shape creates space for this eyelet without increasing the constructional height. 
     In this connection, it is noted that the swivel lever actuation according to page 2-105 of the catalog from DIRAK GmbH &amp; Co. KG also has an eyelet whose purpose, according to this reference, is to secure the swivel lever by means of a padlock. A disadvantage in this known arrangement is that the shoulder projects far over the surface of the swiveled in swivel lever and accordingly not only increases the constructional height, but also presents an obstacle to persons passing by it. Due to the fact that the shoulder in the center of the cavity projects out very far, this shoulder also impedes the user&#39;s hand when the lever is swiveled out. In contrast to this known arrangement, the shoulder or eyelet according to the invention through which the padlock can be inserted presents less of an obstacle. This is achieved primarily in that the cavity carries the shoulder, such as an eyelet, in its area receiving the free end of the lever rather than in the center, wherein the shoulder projects through the notch or slot of the lever end when the lever is in the swiveled in position. Due to the special shape of the lever, in which the area of the junction between the two inclined areas is the area located farthest away from the door leaf surface, the eyelet does not project out as far as the farthest projecting area of the swivel lever and therefore no longer presents an obstacle. In addition to this, the eyelet is located below the projecting area of the lever when the latter is arranged vertically, as is usually the case, and also presents less of an obstacle. 
     As a result of the arrangement of the eyelet, it is possible for the shoulder or the eyelet to be mounted so as to be swivelable against spring force and to form a protuberance or offset which secures the swivel lever in the swiveled in state. A disadvantage of the known arrangement, wherein the swivel lever is prevented from swiveling out only when a padlock is actually inserted, is avoided by means of this feature. However, there are also cases in which a padlock of this type will not be provided at least at certain times, in which case the known arrangement is not protected against an unintentional swiveling out of the swivel lever. This swiveling out can occur when, as a result of shaking movement such as can occur during earthquakes or during operation of a vibrating machine, the swivel lever exits from its cavity, in which case there is a risk that it will rotate with the driving shaft to the extent that the locking device opens and, e.g., the door leaf of the switching cabinet secured by the closure will stand open. Switching cabinets which are located, e.g., on crane installations where there are often a plurality of, e.g., as many as 30, switching installations which are enclosed by a switch room are subject to especially strong shaking movements. It is unacceptable for switch cabinet doors of this type to be able to open unintentionally due to shaking movements, even if they do not all have padlocks. 
     EP 0 054 225 B1, U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,735, and DE 297 05 778 U1, but also the arrangement known from the catalog (see the note on the possibility of combination with a profile cylinder), offer the possibility of providing a profile cylinder which can likewise secure the actuating lever irrespective of a padlock. However, combining a swivel lever closure with a padlock as well as a profile cylinder complicates the arrangement because two keys are then necessary, a first key for the padlock and a second key for the profile cylinder. 
     OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Obviously, it is not possible in the known arrangements according to the above-cited references to simply press in and lock the actuating lever. When a key-actuated arrangement is provided, it must—at least in the European and U.S. patents—first be locked by means of a key, e.g., as in the case of a cylinder lock, or a padlock must be inserted in order to lock as in the catalog reference. 
     Therefore, the invention also has the primary object of further developing the known arrangement in such a way that the actuating lever can be pressed into its locked position and securely held in this position also without the use of a padlock and without using a cylinder which is actuated by key. 
     Further, it should be possible to move the actuating lever out of this pressed in secured position without special tools. 
     These additional objectives are met in that the above-mentioned shoulder or eyelet is mounted so as to be swivelable against spring force and a protuberance or offset is formed by the eyelet which secures the swivel lever in the swiveled in state. In this connection, it is advantageous that the eyelet performs two functions simultaneously, namely, it provides a bore hole for receiving the shackle of a padlock which, when inserted, prevents the lever from swiveling out and also provides a protuberance or offset which brings about a locking by means of simply pressing in when the padlock is not used. 
     It is particularly advantageous in this respect when the spring loading of this protuberance or eyelet is carried out in such a way that it acts in the same direction as the weight of an inserted padlock. 
     Further, it should be possible to release the actuating lever from this pressed in, locked position without needing special tools. This is achieved in that the eyelet head can be moved out of its locking position against the spring force simply by exerting a pressing force with the thumb. 
     It may be advantageous when the actuating lever also has an additional lock which can be actuated by means of a tool. This provides a security which, while inferior in degree to the security afforded by a padlock, makes it possible to lock when there is no padlock present in such a way that the locking cannot be canceled without a tool. In order to meet this object, a locking device can be provided in the area of the driving shaft, which locking device can only be actuated by a tool such as a wrench, screwdriver, or the like and which prevents rotation of the actuating shaft by the swivel lever. 
     There are various possible embodiment forms for this additional locking device which will be described more fully in the following. 
     With respect to design, it is advantageous when the cavity has two projections, preferably with the same dimensions, which project through the door leaf or the like, wherein one projection forms a locking shaft bearing and the other projection is formed by the fastening for the shoulder or eyelet. On the one hand, this secures the cavity against rotation on the door leaf; on the other hand, fastening can be carried out by means of parts which are present in any case and accordingly certain elements of the closure can serve a dual purpose. 
     It is advantageous when the fastening is carried out in such a way that the closure is constructed such that it can be used in a right-handed manner as well as in a left-handed manner, i.e., such that its actuation projections advantageously require through-openings in the door leaf which are identical and symmetric to the center of the door and the connection between the lever arm and driving shaft can be switched in such a way that turning to the right and turning to the left can both lead to a desired function. 
     The projections can form circumferential threads on which fastening screw nuts can be screwed, so that the door leaf is clamped between the latter and the cavity. This results in a particularly simple assembly of the arrangement. 
     The actuation used for the swivel lever closure according to the invention is suitable for actuating a sash lock or also a flat bar lock or a round bar lock. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will be described more fully in the following with reference to embodiment examples shown in the drawings. 
     FIG. 1 shows a side view of a swivel lever closure, constructed according to the invention, for a door of a switch cabinet, wherein locking can be carried out by a padlock, additional locking is provided by means of an eyelet offset, and additional locking is provided in the area of the lock shaft; 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of the arrangement according to FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line A—A in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 shows a side view of the actuation device (cavity with handle) for the swivel lever closure; 
     FIG. 5 is a top view of the arrangement according to FIG. 4; 
     FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 1, in which the locking in the area of the driving shaft is modified; 
     FIG. 7 is a top view of the arrangement according to FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 8 is a sectional view along line A—A of FIG. 6 for describing the locking in the area oft lock shaft; and 
     FIGS. 9 and 10 show two additional embodiment forms of a swivel lever closure according to the invention in a side view. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 shows a side view of a closure  12  for a switch cabinet  14  or machine housing wall or the like, wherein the closure  12  comprises a swivel lever actuation  10  with a cavity  18  which is arranged on the outer surface  16  of the switch cabinet door  14  or the like. A locking shaft or actuating shaft  20  which in this case drives a sash  22  and locking bars  24 ,  26  extending along the door leaf  14  is arranged in the cavity  18 . The bars  24 ,  26  are articulated at a disk  27  which also carries or forms the sash&#39;tongue  22  and which is fastened to the actuating shaft  20  by means of a screw  29 . When the actuating shaft  20  is rotated, the disk  27  and, with it, the sash  22 , are also rotated; moreover, the locking bars  24 ,  26  articulated at the disk  27  are displaced upward or downward. According to FIG. 1, the locking bar  24  is mounted in a bar guide  31  which may be made of plastic and may be held by a Stub bolt  33  which is spot-welded to the door leaf  14 . A holder  35  which carries a run-up roller  37  is arranged and clamped on the lower end of the bar  24 . When the bar  24  is displaced downward,-the roller  37  runs up on an angled surface  17  formed by the cabinet frame  15  and in so doing presses the door leaf  14  via the bar guide  31  against the frame angle  19 , wherein the inner surface of the door leaf  14  carries a U-shaped holding web  21  for a sealing strip  23  against which the front edge of the angle  19  presses in a sealing manner. The locking bar  24  can be constructed as a flat strip or as a solid round bar or, as is shown here, as a tubular arrangement that is pressed flat at its articulated end. 
     The actuating shaft  20  is rotatably mounted inside a corresponding bearing bore hole of the cavity  18  and is axially fixed at its end facing the sash  22  by a disk  25  that is held by disk  27  and by the associated screw  29 , wherein an O-ring seal  37  is also advisably provided. For torsion bar support of the disk  27 , the shaft  20  advisably forms a polygon, such as a rectangle, on which a corresponding polygonal opening or rectangular opening of the disk  25  or  27  is mounted so as to be rigid with respect to rotation. At its opposite end, the actuating shaft  20  has a head  39  which, in itself, contacts the shoulder  41  of the bearing area of the cavity  18 , possibly so as to be sealed by means of an O-ring seat  43 . The head  39  carries at its outer end a half-cylinder projection  45  on which a handle or actuating lever  28  is articulated about an axis  30  extending transverse to the shaft axis  32  of the shaft  20 , wherein the half-cylinder projection  45  is received so as to fit in a corresponding recess  47  of the lever in such a way that the lever  28  can be swiveled out of the position in which it is inserted into the cavity  18  to the extent that it is freely rotatable about the axis  32  together with the shaft  20 . 
     The actuating lever  28  shown in FIG. 1 is enclosed on the sides in the swiveled in position by edges formed by the cavity  18 , so that the actuating lever is prevented by this enclosure from being rotated out of its position oriented to the cavity. Therefore, it is not possible to open the door in this position of the lever  28 . When the actuating lever  28  is directed vertically downward in its locking position, its own gravitational force or friction can suffice in itself to keep it in this position. However, during shaking movements such as those which can occur, for example, in crane installations, there is a risk that the actuating lever  28  will move out of its swiveled in position and be released from the cavity  18  and that, as a result of further shaking movement, a rotation will be carried out about axis  32 , so that the closure  12  opens in certain cases and therefore exposes the interior of the switch cabinet in an unwanted manner. It is also possible that an unauthorized person will swivel out the actuating lever  28  and move the closure out of its closed position into an open position by rotating about the axis  32  and will accordingly be able to open the door  14  of the switch cabinet  15 . 
     In order to prevent this, the cavity  18  can have a shoulder  40 , wherein an eyelet  42  is arranged at the free end of the shoulder  40  in such a way that, when the actuating lever  28  is swiveled into the cavity  18 , this eyelet  42  projects through an opening  44  in the actuating lever  28  and the shackle  46  of a padlock  48  can be inserted through the eyelet  42 , so that the actuating lever  28  is prevented from being swiveled out. 
     As is clear from FIG. 1, the actuating lever  28  is outfitted in the area of the opening  44  for the shoulder  40  with an edge  50  which can be engaged by an offset formed by the eyelet  40 , wherein this engagement is brought about on the one hand by the weight of an inserted padlock  48 , but, on the other hand, also by a pressure spring  54  which presses the shoulder  40  in the clockwise direction, this shoulder  40  being supported in the cavity  18  so as to be rotatable about an axis  55 . The pressure spring  54  is constructed as a spiral spring which, on the one hand, is received in a pocket  56  formed by the cavity and, on the other hand, is held at the other end by a projection  58  proceeding from the shoulder  40 . Therefore, in the rest position or inactive position, the eyelet  40  secures the hand lever  28  in the swiveled in position by its offset protuberance  52 . However, when the padlock  48  is removed from the eyelet  42 , the shoulder  40  can be pressed upward with the eyelet  42  in the counterclockwise direction about the axis  55  against the force of the spring  54  by the user&#39;s thumb, so that the surface  52  releases surface  50  and allows the hand lever  28  to be swiveled outward out of the position shown in the drawing until it is prevented from a further swiveling movement about the axis  30  in that the lever surface  60  strikes against the head surface  62 . The geometric relationships are advisably selected in such a way that the swivel limiting action takes effect when the hand lever  28  whose area  49  extends at an inclination to the plane of the door leaf  16  in the swiveled in position, as can be seen from FIG. 1, is then oriented, with respect to this surface  49 , substantially parallel and at a distance to the door plane  16  or is swiveled out somewhat farther, as is shown, e.g., in FIG.  4 . This is a position in which the hand lever  28  is disengaged from the edges of the cavity  18  on the one hand and from the shoulder  40  on the other hand and it is therefore possible for the hand lever  28  to rotate about axis  32 . 
     For this purpose, the actuating lever  28  has a first portion  64  proceeding from the articulation axis  30  at the actuating shaft  20 , which first portion  64  (as is shown) is directed at an inclination away from the plane of the door leaf  16  when the lever  28  is swiveled into the cavity  18  and which causes the distance of the lever from the door leaf when this lever is swiveled out, followed by a second portion  48  which is directed at an inclination toward the plane of the door leaf  16  in the position of the swivel lever  28  in which the swivel lever  28  is swiveled into the cavity; this second portion  49  forms the handle area. Accordingly, as viewed from the side, the two portions  64 ,  49  form a roof which is set on the plane of the door leaf  16  with a roof ridge area  66  that projects over all other parts of the closure actuating arrangement, including the shoulder  40 . The ridge area is advisably rounded so as to interfere as little as possible with persons passing by it. 
     When the lever is swiveled out, the lever area  49  achieves, e.g., an approximately parallel position with respect to the door leaf  16 . 
     At the same time, the lever area  64  achieves an almost perpendicular position, for example. This arrangement of the swivel lever facilitates the rotating movement. The construction according to the invention provides space below the lever allowing the uses hand a firm grip without this position of the lever being excessively inclined to the door leaf. 
     The transitional area between the two portions  64  and  49 , that is, the roof ridge  66 , forms a (rounded) angle which may range between 90° and 150°. In the embodiment form shown in the drawing, this ridge angle  68  is approximately 125°. 
     The great advantage in securing by means of a padlock  48 , as is shown in FIG. 1, consists in that an individual padlock  58  belonging to a certain person can be used, for example, at certain times and for certain reasons, so that it is possible for this person to secure a door against unauthorized opening. Only this person can open the padlock again by means of the appropriate key, remove the padlock, and then open the respective door closure  12  by swinging out and then turning the actuating lever  28 . When a special locking of this kind is not required at certain times, a padlock can also be advantageously omitted. In order for the actuating lever to be secured in the swiveled in position nevertheless in this case, there is provided the above-described hook device which is formed by the surface  52  of the shoulder  40  and the surface  50  of the cavity  18  and which snaps into the end position so as to lock when the actuating lever is swiveled in. Therefore, the lever can be locked without the need to insert a lock simply by swiveling in such that an unintentional opening, e.g., due to shaking movements, cannot take place. On the other hand, the locking can be canceled again without great effort in that the shoulder  40  is displaced upward with the thumb in order to be able to move the lever  28  out of its swiveled in position again. 
     The actuating lever  28  can be provided in the area of its articulation axis  30  with another spring device, not shown, so that it can also be moved out of its swiveled in position automatically when needed. When the shoulder  40  is pressed with the thumb in this case, the hook formed by the surface  50  is freed and the spring action presses the actuating lever  28  out of its swiveled in position provided it is not impeded by an inserted padlock  48 . 
     As is shown in FIG. 1, another (third) locking possibility can also be provided, wherein a spring-loaded pin  68  is arranged in the head  39  of the shaft  20 . In the position shown in the drawing, this pin projects into a slot  70  formed by the shaft bearing bore hole of the cavity  18 . The pin secures the shaft  20  against rotation in the position shown. In order to enable rotation out of the shown position, the pin  68  must be pressed back against the force of the spring  72  until it is entirely pulled back out of the slot  70 . This is achieved, for example, by means of a ball  74  which can be forced in the direction of the pin by a slotted screw  76 . This slotted screw  76  can be actuated, e.g., against the force of a spring  78 , by means of a tool such as a screwdriver and the screw is automatically forced back into its initial position, e.g., after the tool is removed. This means that in order to swivel the lever out of its shown position into an open position for the door closure, a tool such as a screwdriver must turn the slotted head screw  76  out of the shown position until the ball  74  has forced the pin  68  back against the force of the spring  70 , whereupon the hand lever  23  can be swiveled. When the tool is removed from the slotted head screw  76 , the latter returns to its initial position due to the spring force  78  and, when the lever is swiveled back into its shown position, allows the pin  68  to slide back into its locking position and accordingly lock the hand lever  28 . 
     According to FIG. 4, the cavity  18  has a projection  38  which projects through the door leaf, where it is part of a lock shaft bearing and, e.g., supports the shaft  20  with a rectangle  86  which proceeds therefrom and supports the disk  27  so as to be fixed with respect to rotation relative to it. A second projection  90  is provided at the lower end of the cavity  18  and contains, for example, the swivelable eyelet  40  which was described in connection with FIG.  1 . 
     Both shoulders have the same outer diameter, for example, and have, e.g., an external thread so that a union nut can be screwed on. When the door leaf has corresponding openings that can receive the projections  88 ,  90 , the cavity can be arranged on the door leaf and secured by means of the two union nuts. 
     Alternatively, however, the fastening can also be carried out by means of special head screws  80 ,  82  which are guided through appropriate bore holes in the door leaf  16  and can be screwed into corresponding threaded bore holes inside the cavity  18 , not shown. 
     The openings are advisably arranged in the door leaf  16  in such a way that they are symmetric with respect to an axis  82  representing the center dividing line of the door leaf. In this case, the closure can be installed so as to be rotated by 180° so that a door can be converted from left-hand to right-hand. In this case, the door is rotated by 18°. 
     In order to be able to adapt the actuating direction of the swivel lever  28 , for example, to open in the rotating direction away from the edge of the door, a coupling element  25  is advisably provided according to FIG. 3, wherein the coupling element  25  is arranged on the rectangle  86  and can move between projections  92  (FIG. 4) formed by the cavity  18 . The movement path between stops formed by the projections  92  is, e.g., exactly 90°. 
     FIG. 4 shows that the end of the lever  28  has the shape of a nose-shaped projection  84  which is concealed and protected by the shackle of the padlock  48  when a padlock  48  is inserted. When the padlock  48  is removed, the projection  84  can be grasped by a finger after the eyelet  40  is displaced upward and the swivel lever  28  can be swiveled downward as is shown in dashed lines in FIG.  4 . The extent to which the lever can be swiveled out depends on the corresponding play or clearance formed between surface  45  and surface  62  according to FIG.  1  and can be selected as needed. In order to create additional space for the shackle  46 , the end of the lever  28  also has a depression or indentation  96 . 
     FIG. 6 shows an embodiment form in which the head  139  of the actuating shaft  120  has a somewhat different construction than that shown in FIG. 1. A locking pin  168  is displaced by means of an eccentric screw  176  inside a bore hole  94  in such a way that the pin  168  is either pulled back in the shaft area until it does not project into a slot  96  arranged axially in the shaft bore hole for the shaft  120 . Depending on the position of the screw  176 , the shaft  120  can accordingly be rotated in the cavity bore hole or not. 
     The advantage of the additional locking in the area of the actuating shaft  20 ,  120  is that the closure is locked even before the lever has reached the fully swiveled in position, that is, when it has not yet reached its end position. An arrangement of this kind is particularly important for the U.S. market, where this type of lock is known as a “defeater.” In the known devices, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,735, it is not possible to lock the closure until the lever is in its end position inside the cavity. This is disadvantageous in that it allows the closure to open in an unwanted manner in case of a rotational movement in the event that the user forgets to swivel in the lever. Therefore, the arrangement according to the invention offers greater security. 
     FIG. 9 shows a swivel lever arrangement  210  similar to that shown in FIG. 4, wherein the inclination of the second portion  249  of the hand lever  228  in its swiveled in position is reduced with respect to the fastening surface  53  of the cavity  218 , which results in a somewhat smaller constructional height. Further, the cavity  218  encloses the actuating lever  228  completely at its end provided with the countersink  296 . Moreover, the first portion  264  located in the area of the actuating shaft  220  is oriented at a steeper inclination relative to the run-up surface  53 . 
     FIG. 10 shows a swivel lever arrangement  310  with an even flatter second portion  349 , so that the overall height H is further reduced. It can also be seen that the free end of the actuating lever  328  is more securely enclosed by the cavity  318 , which offers greater protection for the actuating lever against unauthorized tampering than is the case, e.g., in the embodiment form shown in FIG.  1 . 
     COMMERCIAL APPLICABILITY OF THE INVENTION 
     While the foregoing description and drawings represent the present invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made therein without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention.

Technology Classification (CPC): 4