Abstract:
Disclosed herein is an improved drawer latch mechanism, particularly suited for attaching to the front side of a drawer. The drawer front latch preferably has a handle with a full-length grip that is sufficiently large so that it may be operated while wearing gloves, holding a towel or other types of hand coverings. The handle is used to open and close the drawer such that the action of pulling on the handle to open the drawer releases spring-loaded latches biased to be in a locked position. Pushing the drawer closed causes catch surfaces of tapered leading ends of the latch to engage with drawer mounting walls of the cabinet and latch the drawer closed.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/166,075, filed Nov. 17, 1999. 
    
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     (Not applicable.) 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Drawers, such as those used in tool chests, are well-known to have latching mechanisms to protect against theft or unexpected opening in the event the chest is moved or tipped upright. Common latch mechanisms include key or combination locks and sliding levers restraining movement of the drawers. Such latch mechanisms typically require the user to apply both hands to the latch in order to open the drawer. Moreover, typical latch mechanisms often include small components that are difficult to operate while wearing hand coverings. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides an improved drawer latch mechanism, particularly suited for attaching to the front side of a cabinet drawer. The latch mechanism of the present invention allows a drawer to be unlatched with one hand in the single motion needed to open the drawer. 
     Specifically, a support is mounted at the front face of the drawer which provides a pivotal connection to which a handle is attached so that it can pivot with respect to the front of the drawer. A latch is also attached at the pivotal connection. The latch is operated by the handle to pivot between a closed position in which the latch engages the cabinet (or drawer mount) and an open position in which the latch is free from the cabinet. In this way, the latch can be pivoted to open when the drawer is pulled by the handle. 
     In one preferred form, the latching mechanism includes a spring biasing the latch closed. Additionally, the latch preferably has a leading end that includes a downwardly extending catch surface that engages a cabinet wall when the latch is in the closed position. The leading end is tapered to define an angled surface that travels up and into a latch opening so that the catch surface engages the cabinet wall. 
     In another preferred form, the support member is wider than the drawer front and the latching mechanism has two latches, one at each end of the support member with the drawer front disposed therebetween. The support member also has a downwardly extending lip which engages a top edge of the drawer front to mount the latch mechanism to the drawer. 
     The support member and the handle can be extruded components with the pivotal connection extending the length of the support member. The handle has a grip, preferably extending its length, sized so that it may be grasped while wearing gloves, mittens, etc. 
     The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will appear from the following description. In this description reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof and in which there is shown by way of illustration a preferred embodiment of the invention. Such embodiment does not necessarily represent the full scope of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the drawer front latching mechanism of the present invention, shown connected to a front of a drawer; 
     FIG. 2 is a back perspective view of the drawer front latching mechanism of FIG. 1, shown detached from the drawer; 
     FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of one end of the latching mechanism with an end cap shown in phantom; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross-section view taken along line  4 — 4  of FIG. 1, showing the drawer closed and the latches locked; 
     FIG. 5 is a side cross-section view taken along line  5 — 5  of FIG. 3, showing the drawer closed and the latches unlocked; 
     FIG. 6 is a side cross-section view similar to FIG. 5, showing the drawer opened; 
     FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view showing one end of an alternate, inverted embodiment of the latching mechanism; and 
     FIG. 8 is a back perspective view of the drawer front latching mechanism of FIG. 7, shown detached from the drawer. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to FIG. 1, the drawer front latching mechanism  10  can be attached at a front surface of a drawer  12  slidable within a drawer mounting frame  14  of a cabinet  15 . Referring to FIGS. 1-3, the latching mechanism  10  includes a support member  16  that has a generally hook-shaped cross-section. The support member  16  is preferably extruded aluminum or plastic extending a length greater than that of the front surface of the drawer  12  to which it is being attached. The support member  16  includes a back plate portion  18  preferably having an angled upper lip  19  forming an inverted channel  20  extending along a rear top edge  22  for attaching the drawer front latching mechanism  10  to the drawer  12 . It should be noted that the latching mechanism  10  of the present invention could be attached to the drawer with suitable adhesives or fasteners, such as threaded fasteners, instead of, or in addition to, the inverted channel  20 . The support member  16  has a lower extremity defining a front wall or face portion  24  having an inwardly extending lip  26  at its top edge  28 . The face portion  24  includes a lengthwise channel  30  along a middle portion and an arcuate pivot groove  32  along a bottom of the inside surface of the face portion  24 . The support member  16  also includes two threaded grooves  34 , suitably located along the support member  16 , for receiving threaded fasteners for securing an end cap  35  at each end of the support member  16 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, an elongated handle  36 , also preferably extruded aluminum or plastic, has an arcuate bottom edge (not shown) sized to fit within the pivot groove  32  of the support member  16 . The pivotal handle  36  also includes a generally L-shaped grip  38  extending from a top end  40  of the handle  36  outwardly from the drawer  12  and downward. The grip  38  terminates in a lengthwise bead  42  and forms a hand grip for grasping the handle  36  when opening the drawer. The grip  38  and the lip  26  of the support member face portion  24  define a cavity  44  sized large enough to grasp the lip  38  while wearing hand coverings, such as gloves and mittens. The lip  26  of the support member face portion  24  acts to retain the handle  36  within the support member  16  and restrict its rotation. The handle  36  has notched bottom comers sized to accommodate spring biased latches  46 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 2,  3  and  4 , each latch  46 , preferably made of metal or a suitable rigid plastic, has a trailing end  48  defining an arcuate projection  50  sized to fit within the pivot groove  32  of the support member  16 . Referring specifically to FIG. 4, the trailing end  48  of each latch  46  has a bore  52  sized to receive a compression spring  54  extending from the middle channel  30  of the support member face portion  24 . The trailing end  48  of the latches  46  also includes a ledge  56  that is engaged by the handle  36  as it is pivoted. The latches  46  extend inwardly from this end  48  through openings  58  in the back plate portion  18  of the support member  16  to a tapered leading end  60 . Each tapered leading end  48  defines a lateral catch surface  62  and an angled bottom surface  64  extending downward from a leading edge  63  to the catch surface  62 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, the latch mechanism  10  is affixed to the drawer  12  by placing the inverted channel  20  over the top edge of the drawer front with the lip  19  within the drawer  12 . A suitable adhesive or threaded fastener may be used to secure the latch mechanism  10  in place. With the handle  36  released and the drawer  12  shut as shown in FIG. 4, a user can grasp the grip  38  of the handle  36  by inserting his or her fingers into the cavity  44  defined by the handle  36  and support member  16 . By pulling outwardly, the handle  36  pivots within the pivot groove  32  in a counterclockwise direction with respect to the support member  16  about a pivot axis  53 . As the handle  36  is rotated, the ledges  56  of the latches  46  are engaged by the handle  36 , which pivots the latches  46  within the pivot groove  32  about the pivot axis  53  toward an open position, as shown in FIG.  5 . This action disengages the leading end catch surface  62  of each latch  46  from a corresponding fixed stop portion  66  of the drawer mounting frame suitably located at the sides of the drawer  12 . The drawer  12  can then be opened by continuing to pull outward, as shown in FIG.  6 . Thus, using the latching mechanism  10  of the present invention, the drawer  12  can be easily unlatched and opened with one hand by pulling outward on the handle in a single motion. 
     Furthermore, due to the forces exerted by the compression spring  54 , the handle  36  and latches  46  return to a locked position automatically when the handle is released. Consequently, as the drawer  12  is closed, by pushing inwardly on any part of the latching mechanism  10 , the angled surfaces  64  of the leading ends  60  of the latches  46  travel up and over the stop portions  66  so that the catch surfaces  62  engage the stop portions  66  and lock the drawer  12  shut, as in FIG.  4 . The movement of the latches  46  to lock the drawer  12  occurs independent from, and without movement of, the handle  10 . 
     The drawer front latching mechanism  10  can be used with drawers of any length and depth. The length of the latching mechanism  10  can be varied as needed according to the length of the drawer front. The height of the latching mechanism  10  can also be varied, however, preferably the height remains constant and a suitable facing  70  is disposed at the front of the drawer  12 . Referring to FIGS. 4-6, the latching mechanism  10  is attached proximate the top of the drawer front and a top portion of the facing  70  fits within a gap  72  defined by the drawer front and an offset in the back plate  18 . The facing  70  may be affixed to the back plate  18  and/or the front of the drawer  12  using suitable adhesives or fasteners and is sized as needed to cover the front of the drawer not covered by the latch mechanism  10 . 
     An alternate, inverted embodiment of the latch mechanism is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 in which the handle extends downwardly toward the bottom of the drawer. Similar reference numerals are used to reference elements similar to those in the above described embodiment albeit with the suffix A. The latch mechanism  10 A of this embodiment is constructed similar to the first embodiment, however, an inverted channel  20 A for attaching the drawer front latching mechanism  10 A to the drawer (not shown) is mounted to an edge  22 A of a support plate back plate portion  18 A that is generally adjacent an extremity defining a face portion  24 A and an inwardly extending lip  26 A. The face portion  24 A includes a lengthwise channel  30 A along a middle portion and an arcuate pivot groove  32 A along a top inside surface of the face portion  24 A. 
     An elongated handle  36 A has a beaded top edge (not shown) sized to fit within the pivot groove  32 A of the support member  16 A. The pivotal handle  36 A also includes a generally L-shaped grip  38 A extending from a bottom end  40 A of the handle  36 A outwardly from the drawer and upward to define an upwardly opening cavity  44 A. The grip  38 A terminates in a lengthwise bead  42  and forms a hand grip for grasping the handle  36 A when opening the drawer. 
     The handle  36 A has notched upper comers sized to accommodate a spring biased latches  46 A as described above but in an inverted orientation. As before, the latches  46 A extend inwardly through openings  58 A in the back plate portion  18 A of the support member  16 A to a tapered leading end  60 A. Each tapered leading end  48 A defines a lateral catch surface  62 A and an angled top surface  64 A extending upwardly from a leading edge  63 A to the catch surface  62 A. 
     As in the first described embodiment, the latch mechanism  10 A is affixed to the drawer by placing the inverted channel  20 A over the top edge of the drawer front with the lip within the drawer. A suitable adhesive or threaded fastener is preferably used to secure the latch mechanism  10 A in place near a bottom edge of the support  16 A. With the handle  36 A released and the drawer, a user can grasp the grip  38 A of the handle  36 A by laying his or her fingers into the cavity  44 A. By pulling outwardly, the handle  36 A pivots within the pivot groove  32 A in a clockwise direction with respect to the support member  16 A about a pivot axis  53 A. As the handle  36 A is rotated, ledges  56 A of the latches  46 A are engaged by the handle  36 A, which pivots the latches  46 A within the pivot groove  32 A about the pivot axis  53 A toward an open position, as shown in FIG.  7 . This action disengages the leading end catch surface  62 A of each latch  46 A from a corresponding fixed stop portion  66 A of the drawer mounting frame suitably located at the sides of the drawer. The drawer can then be opened by continuing to pull outward. 
     The above description describes preferred embodiments of the present invention. However, the invention may include other aspects not specifically delineated above. For example, the handle may include a pull knob suitably fastened to the support member which may be attached to the drawer front via suitable fasteners or hangers, rather than a lengthwise inverted channel. 
     Therefore, the above in no way is intended to limit the scope of the invention. Accordingly, in order to apprise the public of the full scope of the present invention, reference must be made to the following claims.