Year: 1887

page_text: 1887
Date of Application, 24th Sept.,
Complete Left, 7th Jan., 1888
Complete Accepted, 10th Feb., 1888
I, WILLIAM WILSON HORN, of 151 Strand, Middlesex, Patent Agent (a communi-
cation to me from abroad by Thomas Bason, and Samuel Hazlehurst, both of
Inglewood, Illinois, United States of America) do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in door latches, and
which improvements consist in the combination of the handle for opening the door,
with suitable mechanism for operating the latch bolt, and which combination may be
described as follows :-
The latch bolt is suitably fitted into a casing embedded in the door and which latch
bolt is recessed having its rear walls divided into two sections inversely inclined.
The said latch bolt is provided with a projection, upon which is a spring which serves
to return the bolt when operated upon by the door handle.
The door handle is carried by two arms that are mounted in boxes and and connected
to a face-plate. Inside one of the said boxes and connected to the aforesaid plate is a
spiral spring, coiled around a spur which forms part of a pivot upon which the handle
turns. The pivot in the other box is provided with a lever which passes through the
aforesaid sliding bolt and serves to operate said sliding bolt when the handle is pulled
or pushed backwards.
The action of the aforesaid door latch is as follows.
When the handle is pulled or pushed backwards against the tension of the spiral
spring in the aforesaid boxes, the lever arms which pass through the aforesaid latch
bolt are brought to bear upon it and draw it inwards, thus allowing the door to open.
When the handle is let free by the operator the latch bolt again resumes its normal
position.

page_text: I, WILLIAM WILSON HORN, of the firm of Horn & Son, Patent Agents, of
151 Strand, in the county of Middlesex, (a communication to me from abroad by
Thomas Bason and Samuel Hazlehurst both of Englewood, Illinois, United States of
America), do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
This invention relates to door-latches, the object of the invention being to provide
an improved form of latch wherein the parts are so constructed and arranged that the
latch may be thrown into and out of engagement with the keeper by a simple pull
upon the handle of the door.
To the end named the invention consists, essentially, of a pivotally-mounted handle
provided with a lever-arm that is arranged to engage with a spring-pressed latch or
locking-bolt, as will be hereinafter more fully described, and specifically pointed out
in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming
a part of this
specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in all
the views.
Fig. 1 is a face view of a portion of the door provided with my improved form of
latch. Fig. 2 is a side view of a portion of the door. Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation
taken on line of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a view of the interior of the latch, representing
the same as it appears when arranged in connection with the door, the door being
shown in section, and a portion of the latch-case cover being broken away in order to
disclose the interior construction, the operating-levers, which are arranged in
connection with the latch and connected to the handle, being also shown in section.
Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view taken on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a perspective
view of one of the lever-arms, which extend from the handle to the latching-bolt.
Fig. 7 is a face view of the same lever-arm, and Fig. 8 is a central sectional view of
the lower handle-supporting box.
In constructing such a latch as the one forming the subject-matter of this
application, I provide a a bolt, 10, that is formed with a central recess and an inclined-
face end, 11, which end is normally held extending beyond the lock-piece by a spring,
as will be hereinafter described. The rear walls of central recess, 12, of the bolt 10
are divided into sections, and these sections are inversely inclined, as shown at 2 and 3
in Fig. 5.
The bolt described is fitted within a case, 20, which may be of the form illustrated
in the drawings-that is, may be a combined lock and latch case-or the case might
be a simple latch-case. The case 20 is provided with an upwardly-extending post, 14,
while the bolt 10 is formed with an inwardly-extending post or projection, 15,
about which there is coiled a spring, 16, that abuts against the post 14 and against

page_text: the forward wall of the recess 12, as clearly shown in Fig. 4, the spring 16 acting to
hold the bolt 10 in the position in which it is shown in said Fig. 4-that is, acting to
hold the bolt shot forward.
In connection with the latch described, I employ a handle, 30, that is carried by
two arms, 31 and 32, said arms being respectively provided with a projection, 7 and 78,
which projections fit within apertures formed in boxes 33 and 34. One of the
boxes (the box 33, as shown in the drawings) is made integral with the face-plate 34°,
while the other box is formed with an upwardly-extending lug or projection, 4, which
passes through an aperture, 5, that is formed in the plate, and bears against the inner
end of said plate, the main body of the box being forined with a threaded socket to
receive a screw, 6, which passes through the plate to engage with the box.
Upon the projection 7 of the upper arm of the handle 30. there is fitted a lever-arm,
35, which arm is held against accidental displacement by a screw, 8, which passes up
through the arm 31 and the projection 7 to engage with the lever 35, as best shown
in Fig. 3. On the projection 7" of the arm 32 there is formed a downwardly-extending
spur, 36, that fits within an apertured plate, 37, which said plate is in turn fixed to a
spiral spring, 38, that is mounted within the box 34.
In order that the throw of the handles 30 may be limited, I prefer to form the
arms 31 and 32 with toes 39, which are arranged to strike against the face-plate 34",
and so limit the throw of the handles. An inspection of the drawings will show that
the handles may be secured to either side of the door, one handle being arranged
above the other, so that the lever-arms 35 of the two handles will overlap, passing at
this time through properly-arranged apertures in the latch-case just in advance of the
inclined faces 2 and 3 of the rear wall of the bolt-recess 12.
From the construction described it will be seen that each handle may be operated
independently of the other, and in closing the door the latch-bolt will work
independently of the handle. The only strain upon the latch-bolt spring is that
necessary to keep the said bolt projected forward, and consequently the spring inay be
made light and flexible, so that it will work easily. When the handles have been
moved in the direction of the arrows shown in Fig. 5, so as to move their levers 35 in
a direction to force the latch-bolt within the casing 20, the springs 38 will be put
under tension, so that when the handles are released they will return the handles to
their normal position. (Shown in Fig. 5.)
If deemed advisable, a plain band-spring, such as that shown in dotted lines in
Fig. 4-may be used instead of the spring 16, and in case such flat spring is used I
have found it desirable to groove the rear end of the bolt, so that the spring will fit
within the recess so formed.
The latch described is simple, cheap, and durable, and not liable to get out of order,
as there are only two movable parts in the latch-case, and as the direction of the pull
required to throw the latch is the same as that required to open the door the latch is
almost automatic in its working.
can
The latch may be adjusted by varying the length of the lever 35 to any thickness of
door, and as the handle on the outside of the right hand door is the same as that on
the inside of a left-band door, and vice versa, the latch can be used on either right or
left hand doors without alteration or adjustment; and it will of course be understood
that when it is desired to open the door from one side only but one handle need be
employed, and that if it is desired to reverse from right or left, or vice versa,
readily be done by taking off the removable boxes and changing the handles. The
handles can be arranged to operate the bolt from either the upper or the lower arm by
attaching the lever the lever to either, as desired, so that when the latch is used in
connection with a lock the key-hole may be placed either above or below the handle.
The upright portion of the handle of such a latch as has been described may be
made of any proper material, such as metal, glass, porcelain, wood, or rubber.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The combination, with a spring-actuating sliding bolt, of a pivoted handle, a

page_text: lever connected to one pivot of the said handle and engaging the sliding bolt, and a
spring on the other pivot of the handle for returning the same to its normal position,
substantially as herein shown and described.
2. The combination, with a recessed bolt having its rear walls divided into two
sections inversely inclined, and provided with a projection, 15, and the spring 16 on
said projection, of the handle 30, provided with pivots 7 and 7ª, the pivots 7 being
provided with the extensions 36, the levers 35, connected to the pivot 7 of the handles,
and the springs 38 on the extensions 36 of the pivots 7", substantially as herein shown
and described.
3. The combination, with a sliding bolt formed with a central recess, of a spring
arranged within said recess, a handle carried by two arms that are mounted in boxes
and connected to a face-plate, a lever-arm extending through the sliding bolt and
connected to one of the handle-arins, a spur, 36, connected to the other handle-arm, a
plate 37, with which the spur 36 engages, and a spring, 38, connected to the plate,
substantially as described.