Patent Description:
A double wing gate is known and usually comprises: a lock gate wing and a striker gate wing, each gate wing having an outer rectangular frame which is constructed from a plurality of tubular members including an upper member, a lower member, a post member, and a latch member; a lock inserted in the latch member of the lock gate wing, the latch member of the lock gate comprising an elongated opening through which the lock can be inserted, the lock comprising a face plate which covers said elongated opening; a lock handle assembly and lock key cylinder inserted through the latch member of the lock gate and the lock, the latch member of the lock gate comprising a first set of mutually opposing openings through which the lock handle assembly extends and a second set of mutually opposing openings through which the lock key cylinder extends; and a striker assembly mounted on the latch member of the striker gate wing.

A downside of such a double wing gate is the amount of different parts required to assemble such a double wing gate. More specifically, in the lock gate wing (or leaf), an elongated opening is provided for inserting the lock together with openings allowing the placement of the lock handle assembly and lock key cylinder. However, in the striker gate wing (or leaf), such openings are not present and typically there are only two bolt openings for attaching the striker assembly. In other words, there are different drill patterns in the latch members of both gate wings. Therefore, a supplier of double wing gates has to have a double stock of wings, one set suitable for inserting the lock and one set suitable for the striker assembly. This also requires doubled manufacture lines as different latch members have to be manufactured.

<CIT> discloses a lock assembly for a double wing gate. The lock assembly comprises a lock and a striker. The lock is mounted on the outside of a lock gate wing with the latch bolt and the dead bolt extending through the latch member. The striker is provided on the striker gate wing as a separate unit mounted on the exterior surface of the latch member.

<CIT> discloses a lock assembly for a double wing gate. The latch member of both gate wings is provided with an elongated rectangular opening to allow mounting a morticed lock assembly and a morticed striker assembly inside a respective latch member. The latch member of the striker gate wing has no further openings, whereas the latch member of the lock gate wing has openings for the lock handle assembly and the key cylinder.

<CIT> discloses a double wing gate with infill panels for fire protection. Each gate wing is provided with a handle assembly. The wings open in a mutually opposite direction and abut against one another in the closed position. A latch bolt is provided on each gate wing to engage a striker assembly on the other gate wing. A first pair of latch bolt and striker assembly is provided on the front side of the double wing gate and a second pair of latch bolt and striker assembly is provided on the rear side of the double wing gate.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a double wing gate which addresses the above mentioned downsides.

This object is achieved according to the invention in that the latch member of the striker gate wing comprises an elongated opening, a first set of mutually opposing openings and a second set of mutually opposing openings which are identical to respective ones in the latch member of the lock gate wing with the striker assembly covering the elongated opening of the latch member of the striker gate wing and in that the double wing gate further comprises: a first covering mounted on the latch member of the striker gate wing and covering one opening of said first set of mutually opposing openings and one opening of said second set of mutually opposing openings; and a second covering mounted on the latch member of the striker gate wing and covering the other opening of said first set of mutually opposing openings and the other opening of said second set of mutually opposing openings.

The present invention is based on the realization that the manufacturing process could be simplified and the stock of parts could be reduced by using gate wings having latch members with the same drill pattern. In order to achieve this goal, the present inventors modified the striker assembly to cover the elongated opening and they included additional coverings to cover the lock handle assembly and key cylinder openings. By these modifications, all openings present in the latch member (which openings are essential to allow placement of a functioning lock) are covered in the striker gate wing. As such, there are no uncovered openings which are very undesirable as the double gate wing is designed for outdoor use. In other words, by having a striker assembly which covers the elongated opening and by having a first and second covering to cover respective openings in the first and second set of openings, latch members with the same drill pattern may be used for the lock gate wing and the striker gate wing. There is thus no longer any need or requirement to have different manufacturing processes and/or maintain a double stock, one for each gate wing.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the latch members of the lock gate wing and the striker gate wing are identical. Preferably, the lock gate wing and the striker gate wing are identical. This further reduces the stock required and/or further reduces the number of different manufacturing processes as not only the drill patterns in the latch members are identical, but rather the entire latch members, preferably the entire gate wings, are identical.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the striker assembly comprises: a striker mounting plate which engages an outer surface of the latch member of the striker gate wing, the striker mounting plate including at least one fixation lever which is located inside the latch member of the striker gate wing and which is movably mounted on the striker mounting plate between a retracted position and an extended position, the fixation lever being able to be inserted through said elongated opening when in its retracted position and the fixation lever engaging an inner surface of the latch member of the striker gate wing when in its extended position to fix the striker mounting plate to the latch member of the striker gate wing; and a striker fixed to the striker mounting plate. Preferably, the at least one fixation lever is rotatable or slideable between its retracted position and its extended position. Preferably, the striker mounting plate completely covers the elongated opening. Using a moveable fixation lever is a convenient way to fix a mounting plate to a tubular member as described in <CIT>. Providing a rotatable (or pivotable) or a slideable fixation lever offers flexible design choices. Using the striker mounting plate to completely cover the elongated opening is an easy way to cover this opening in a leak-tight manner as the mounting plate is directly fixed to the latch member.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in case of a rotatable fixation lever, the striker mounting plate comprises, per fixation lever: a stop for limiting a rotational movement of the fixation lever, the stop defining the extended position of the fixation lever; and a fixation opening which extends through the striker mounting plate and through the fixation lever, the striker being fixed to the striker mounting plate by a rotatable fixation element, in particular a bolt, extending through the striker and the fixation opening, wherein the fixation lever is configured to be rotated from its retracted position to its extended position by rotating said rotatable fixation element in the fixation opening. In this preferred embodiment, the striker is mounted to the striker mounting plate by at least one bolt. During the mounting, the striker mounting plate is also fixed to the latch member as the fixation lever is rotated to its extended position. Multiple assembly steps are thus performed by a single operation thereby saving time on constructing the double gate wing.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the striker assembly comprises a striker having: a body which is inserted through the elongated opening into the latch member of the striker gate wing; a front plate attached to the body, the front plate preferably completely covering the elongated opening; and at least one fixation lever on said body which is located inside the latch member of the striker gate wing and which is movably mounted on said body between a retracted position and an extended position, the fixation lever being able to be inserted through said elongated opening when in its retracted position and the fixation lever engaging an inner surface of the latch member of the striker gate wing when in its extended position to fix the striker to the latch member of the striker gate wing. Preferably, the at least one fixation lever is rotatable or slideable between its retracted position and its extended position. In this alternative embodiment a mortised striker assembly is provided where part of the striker (i.e. its body) is inserted into the latch member. This reduces space between the gate wings when compared to a surface mounted striker assembly. Providing a rotatable (or pivotable) or a slideable fixation lever offers flexible design choices. Using the striker front plate to completely cover the elongated opening is an easy way to cover this opening in a leak-tight manner.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the first covering and the second covering are connected with one another by at least one fixation element extending through the latch member of the striker gate wing, the at least one fixation element preferably extending through said first or said second set of mutually opposing openings. Connecting the coverings together forms a simple way of mounting the coverings to the latch member without requiring other moving parts (e.g. fixation levers).

In an embodiment of the present invention, the first covering is formed by a first dummy handle and/or the second covering is formed by a second dummy handle. Dummy handles improve the functionality of the double wing gate as the striker gate wing can now also be moved (e.g. opened or closed) easily with appropriate handholds which is not the case for a generic covering (e.g. a flat plate).

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock further comprises: a body attached to the face plate and which is inserted in the latch member of the lock gate wing; at least one fixation lever which is located inside the latch member of the lock gate wing and which is movably mounted on said body between a retracted position and an extended position, the fixation lever being able to be inserted through said elongated opening when in its retracted position and the fixation lever engaging an inner surface of the latch member of the lock gate wing when in its extended position to fix the lock to the latch member of the lock gate wing. Using a moveable fixation lever is a convenient way to fix a mounting plate to a tubular member as described in <CIT>.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock handle assembly comprises: a spindle extending through the latch member of the lock gate wing and through the lock; a first handle mounted on one end of the spindle; and a second handle mounted on the other end of the spindle. This is a usual construction of a lock handle assembly and can be readily applied by the skilled person.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the lock handle assembly further comprises: at least one first escutcheon covering said one opening of the first set of mutually opposing openings and said one opening of the second set of mutually opposing openings; and at least one second escutcheon covering said other one opening of the first set of mutually opposing openings and said other one opening of the second set of mutually opposing openings. Preferably, the latch member of each gate wing comprises at least one further set of mutually opposing openings, the at least one first escutcheon being fixed to the latch member of the lock gate wing by fixation means extending inside one of said at least one further set of mutually opposing openings and the at least one second escutcheon being fixed to the latch member of the lock gate wing by fixation means extending inside the other one of said at least one further set of mutually opposing openings. More preferably, the first covering further covers said one of said at least one further set of mutually opposing openings and the second covering further covers said other one of said at least one further set of mutually opposing openings. Escutcheons allow to finish the lock gate wing in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Moreover, escutcheons ensure that the sets of openings are sealed in a leak-tight manner. Providing additional escutcheon mounting openings allows for an easy placement of each escutcheon. Modifying the coverings to also cover the escutcheon mounting openings avoids uncovered openings in the latch member of the striker gate wing.

In an embodiment of the present invention, each latch member has a rectangular cross section, wherein, preferably, each rectangular cross section has a first side, a second side, a third side, and a fourth side, the first side of the latch member of the lock gate wing facing the first side of the latch member of the striker gate wing, the second side of each latch member being opposite to its first side, the elongated openings being located in the first side of a respective latch member, said one opening of the first set of mutually opposing openings and said one opening of the second set of mutually opposing openings being located in the third side of a respective latch member, and said other one opening of the first set of mutually opposing openings and said other one opening of the second set of mutually opposing openings being located in the fourth side of a respective latch member. Rectangular (incl. square) latch members are a common practice in double wing gate and are more suited to insert a lock and/or to mount a striker assembly and/or to mount covering plates when compared to circular, elliptical, or other kinds of latch members.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the first covering and the second covering are part of a single integral covering. The single integral covering may also include the striker mounting plate or the striker front plate. However, separate coverings are preferred since these can be used for latch members having a different size, while a single integral covering requires a different covering for each different latch member design.

The advantages described above and the object according to the present invention are also achieved with a method of constructing the double wing gate described above, the method comprising: inserting the lock in the latch member of the lock gate wing through the elongated opening and afterwards fixing the lock to the latch member of the lock gate wing; placing at least a part of the lock handle assembly through the first set of mutually opposing openings and through the lock; placing at least a part of the lock key cylinder through the second set of mutually opposing openings and through the lock; and mounting the striker assembly, the first dummy handle and the second dummy handle to the latch member of the striker gate wing.

The invention will be further explained by means of the following description and the appended figures.

Moreover, the terms top, bottom, over, under and the like in the description and the claims are used for descriptive purposes. The terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and the embodiments of the invention described herein can operate in other orientations than described or illustrated herein.

<FIG> shows a perspective view of a double wing gate <NUM> according to the present invention. The double wing gate <NUM> comprises a lock gate wing <NUM> and a striker gate wing <NUM>. The lock gate wing <NUM> is provided with a lock assembly and the striker gate wing <NUM> is provided with a striker assembly <NUM> as better shown in <FIG>. Each wing (also known as a leaf) <NUM>, <NUM> is hingedly connected to a support <NUM> and comprises an outer rectangular frame which is constructed from a plurality of tubular members including an upper member <NUM>, a lower member <NUM>, a post member <NUM>, and a latch member <NUM>. The lock assembly and the striker assembly are both mounted on and/or in a respective latch member. According to the invention, as will become more apparent below, each wing <NUM>, <NUM> (or at least the latch members <NUM> thereof) are identical to one another.

<FIG> shows an exploded view of the various components mounted to the latch members <NUM> with details of the exploded view focussing on the lock assembly being shown in <FIG> and on the striker assembly in <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, each latch member <NUM> comprises an elongated opening <NUM> in the sides facing one another and two sets of mutually opposing openings <NUM>, <NUM> in the sides adjacent the facing side. Additionally, in the illustrated embodiments, there are a further two sets of mutually opposing openings <NUM> in the sides adjacent the facing side. As the double wing gate <NUM> is meant for outdoors use, all openings <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> have to be covered in order to avoid water and/or dirt from entering the interior of the gate wings <NUM>, <NUM>. It will be readily appreciated that the two openings in each adjacent side (i.e. one opening of the first set <NUM> and one opening of the second set <NUM>) may form part of a single elongated opening (or slot) or that such an elongated opening is present just in one of both adjacent sides.

As illustrated in <FIG>, the lock assembly comprises a lock having a body <NUM> and a faceplate <NUM>. The body <NUM> of the lock is inserted into the elongated opening <NUM> and is located inside the latch member <NUM>. In other words, the lock is a mortised lock and its faceplate <NUM> fully covers the elongated opening <NUM>. On the body <NUM>, there are provided two fixation levers <NUM> that are moveable between a retracted position in which the body <NUM> can be inserted into the elongated opening <NUM> and an extended position in which each fixation lever <NUM> engages an inner surface of the latch member <NUM>. The fixation levers <NUM> are identical to those described in <CIT>.

The lock assembly further includes a key cylinder <NUM> which is inserted through the latch member <NUM>, in particular through the set of opposing openings <NUM>, and through the lock body <NUM>. Any conventional key cylinder <NUM> may be used, e.g. a single-barrel euro-profile cylinder as in the illustrated embodiment. The lock assembly also includes a lock handle assembly <NUM> which comprises two handles <NUM> and a spindle <NUM>. The spindle <NUM> is placed through the latch member <NUM>, in particular through the set of opposing openings <NUM>, and through the lock body <NUM>. Each handle <NUM> is mounted on an opposing end of the spindle <NUM>.

In the illustrated embodiment, the lock assembly is also provided with two escutcheons <NUM> that are fixed to the latch member <NUM> by means of screws or bolts <NUM> that are fastened in one of the openings <NUM>. The escutcheons <NUM> provide a finish to the latch member <NUM> of the lock gate wing <NUM> and aid in ensuring that the openings <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> are completely covered. It will be readily appreciated that each of the escutcheons can be replaced by two distinct escutcheons on each side of the latch member <NUM>, i.e. one escutcheon surrounding the lock handle assembly <NUM> and one escutcheon surrounding the key cylinder <NUM>.

As illustrated in <FIG>, the striker assembly comprises a striker mounting plate <NUM> and a striker <NUM> which is mounted on the striker mounting plate <NUM> by bolts or screws <NUM> that fit into openings <NUM>. The striker mounting plate <NUM> is mounted on/in the elongated opening <NUM> by use of a fixation mechanism <NUM> which is best illustrated in <FIG> and which is described in more detail below. In the illustrated embodiment, the striker mounting plate <NUM> fully covers the elongated opening <NUM>. However, the complete covering of the elongated opening <NUM> could also be achieved only once the striker <NUM> is mounted in case the striker mounting plate <NUM> does not fully cover the elongated opening <NUM> and the striker <NUM> then covers the remaining portion. A striker <NUM> is known in the prior art (e.g. from <CIT>) and will not be described further.

In order to cover the openings <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> on the latch member <NUM> of the striker gate wing <NUM>, the invention provides for a first covering <NUM> and a second covering <NUM>. In the illustrated embodiments, these coverings <NUM> are done in the form of dummy handles comprising a base part <NUM> and a finishing part <NUM> that is fastened to the base part <NUM>, e.g. by means of bent sides which latch onto the base part as in the illustrated embodiments, although other fastening means are naturally possible (e.g. glue). The base parts <NUM> are connected to one another by bolts of screws <NUM> extending through each base part <NUM> and through the latch member <NUM> (i.e. by virtue of the openings <NUM>, <NUM>) to engage in nut elements <NUM>. Alternatively, in a non-illustrated embodiment, one or both of the dummy handles <NUM>, <NUM> can be replaced by a simple plate to cover the openings. The shape and/or additional functionality of the coverings is not key to the present invention as long as all openings <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> in the latch member <NUM> are covered by them.

<FIG> illustrate a first means <NUM> to fix the striker mounting plate <NUM> to the latch member <NUM> of the striker gate wing <NUM>. The striker mounting plate <NUM> is provided with a rotatable fixation lever <NUM> on its rear side. In the orientation shown in <FIG> the fixation lever <NUM> is less wide than the elongated opening <NUM> and can thus be inserted into the elongated opening <NUM>, i.e. the fixation lever <NUM> is in its retracted state. In the centre of the fixation lever <NUM> there is provided an opening <NUM>, i.e. the bolt or screw opening used to mount the striker <NUM> to the striker mounting plate <NUM>. When fastening the bolt or screw <NUM>, the fixation lever <NUM> will be engaged by the bolt or screw <NUM> and will be rotated until it abuts against a stop <NUM> as shown in <FIG>. In this orientation the fixation lever <NUM> is in its extended state and is wider than the elongated opening <NUM> and thus engages with the inner wall of the latch member <NUM> in order to fix the striker mounting plate <NUM> to the latch member <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrate an alternative second means <NUM> to fix the striker mounting plate <NUM> to the latch member <NUM>. In this embodiment, instead of a rotatable fixation lever <NUM>, use is made of a slideable fixation lever <NUM>. In <FIG>, the fixation lever <NUM> is in its retracted position and can be inserted into the elongated opening <NUM>. After insertion, a tool (e.g. a screw driver) is inserted into an opening <NUM> in the striker mounting plate <NUM> (see <FIG>) to slide the fixation lever <NUM> into its extended position as shown in <FIG>. The fixation lever <NUM> now engages the inner wall of the latch member <NUM>. A protruding wall element <NUM> avoids that the fixation lever <NUM> is pushed backwards into the latch member and away from the inner wall. In order to secure the fixation lever <NUM>, a bolt or screw <NUM> is inserted through opening <NUM> in the latch member into opening <NUM> provided in the fixation lever <NUM> as shown in figure 4D. After placing the bolt or screw <NUM>, the fixation lever <NUM> is held in its extended position and the striker mounting plate <NUM> is fixed to the latch member <NUM>.

In still other embodiments, the striker mounting plate <NUM> is mounted to the latch member by a fixation lever as in <CIT>. Moreover, other fixation means (e.g. welding) are also possible.

<FIG> and <FIG> illustrate an alternative striker assembly for use in the double wing gate <NUM> described above, i.e. for use with the latch gate wing <NUM> thereof. The alternative striker assembly comprises a striker <NUM> having a body and a front plate, the body being inserted into the elongated opening <NUM> of the latch member <NUM>. The body comprises fixation levers <NUM> which are slideable between a retracted position and an extended position similar to the fixation lever <NUM> described above. When the fixation levers <NUM> are in their retracted position, the body can be inserted into the elongated opening <NUM> and, afterwards, a tool (not shown) is used to slide each fixation lever <NUM> to its extended position as shown in <FIG>. Bolts or screws <NUM> are then placed through an opening (not shown) in the striker front plate into the opening provided in the fixation lever <NUM> to fix the fixation levers <NUM> in their extended position in which they engage an inner surface of the latch member <NUM>. An assembled view of the alternative striker assembly is shown in <FIG>. In <FIG>, the openings <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> still have to be covered which may be achieved as described above with dummy handles <NUM>, <NUM> or other coverings. Naturally, other types (e.g. rotatable) of fixation levers are possible.

The main advantage of the alternative striker assembly is that the striker <NUM> is mostly located inside the latch member <NUM>, while, in the previous embodiments, the striker assembly was constructed on the outside of the latch member <NUM>. The distance between the latch members <NUM> of the gate wings <NUM>, <NUM> is thus decreased thereby improving safety.

Claim 1:
A double wing gate (<NUM>) comprising:
- a lock gate wing (<NUM>) and a striker gate wing (<NUM>), each gate wing having an outer rectangular frame which is constructed from a plurality of tubular members including an upper member (<NUM>), a lower member (<NUM>), a post member (<NUM>), and a latch member (<NUM>);
- a lock inserted in the latch member of the lock gate wing, the latch member of the lock gate comprising an elongated opening (<NUM>) through which the lock can be inserted, the lock comprising a face plate (<NUM>) which covers said elongated opening;
- a lock handle assembly (<NUM>) and lock key cylinder (<NUM>) inserted through the latch member of the lock gate and the lock, the latch member of the lock gate comprising a first set of mutually opposing openings (<NUM>) through which the lock handle assembly extends and a second set of mutually opposing openings (<NUM>) through which the lock key cylinder extends; and
- a striker assembly (<NUM>) mounted to the latch member of the striker gate wing,
characterized in that the latch member of the striker gate wing comprises an elongated opening (<NUM>), a first set of mutually opposing openings (<NUM>) and a second set of mutually opposing openings (<NUM>) which are identical to respective ones in the latch member of the lock gate wing with the striker assembly covering the elongated opening of the latch member of the striker gate wing and in that the double wing gate further comprises:
- a first covering (<NUM>) mounted on the latch member of the striker gate wing and covering one opening of said first set of mutually opposing openings and one opening of said second set of mutually opposing openings; and
- a second covering (<NUM>) mounted on the latch member of the striker gate wing and covering the other opening of said first set of mutually opposing openings and the other opening of said second set of mutually opposing openings.