Patent Description:
Handle lock assembly structures, which are suitable for linear movement and have an arm that the user can move in the vertical direction, have been used for many years. Such handle lock assemblies of a conventional type have a construction in which: a main body of the assembly is fixedly mounted on a door of a box or container and a handle or lever is moved relative to the main body. In this type of handle lock assembly, a lock plug is also incorporated in the handle wherein the handle is pushed back rearward relative to the main body and held in its closed position in the main body.

It may be desirable to change the handle having the lock plug for a variety of reasons. When such changes are necessary, it is potentially both expensive and time-consuming, which generally results to change the lock as a whole. In order to change different types of locking systems in the current technique, the lock must be completely disassembled and replaced with another one. So, replacing the handle lock assembly with the new one is relatively time-consuming and may require the services of a skilled professional locksmith.

A prior art publication in the technical field of the invention may be referred to as <CIT>), which discloses a handle lock assembly comprising a main body with an arm connection housing; an arm located along a longitudinal axis of the main body and supported at one end; and a lock plug on the arm.

An object of the present invention is to provide a handle lock assembly that allows easy interchange of a handle of a handle lock assembly.

Another object of the invention is to provide a handle lock assembly that increases the versatility of the lock plugs with a plurality of handle configurations.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved gear system for the handle lock assembly which offers an easier opening and closing and requires less contact.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a handle lock assembly of a relatively simple and inexpensive design.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a handle lock assembly that is adapted to various doors that are different from each other in thickness and have limited space.

The present invention advantageously expands the scope of use by allowing different types of handles to be used.

The invention relates to a handle lock assembly for a door of a cabinet, the handle lock assembly comprising: a main body having a handle housing extending along a longitudinal axis of the handle lock assembly; a handle adapted to move between an unlocked position in which the handle is lifted from the handle housing and a locked position in which the handle is substantially within the handle housing; and a lock plug provided at the handle. Said handle lock assembly further comprises: at least one geared portion formed on the handle, being rotatable within the main body when the handle is lifted; a movable member having at least one toothed portion for rotating a pinion gear by the movement of the movable member; a plurality of the engagement holes formed in the movable member meshing with corresponding teeth of the geared portion so as to convert a rotational movement from the handle to a linear movement; a movable bearing member placed within the handle housing; at least one pin receiving portion formed on the bearing member; and at least one pin formed on the handle, attachable to the pin receiving portion when placing an interchangeable handle. The present invention proposes the handle lock assembly, in which the handle can be replaced much easier and which still offers a high level of security.

The handle lock assembly which is the subject of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings for better understanding thereof, which drawings are only attached for better explaining the present invention and are not limiting the invention.

The invention will now be explained in detail in this section with reference to the accompanying drawings and the list of reference numerals used in the appended drawings is as follows;.

The present invention relates to a handle lock assembly (<NUM>) for a door of a cabinet, the handle lock assembly (<NUM>) comprising: a main body (<NUM>) having a handle housing (<NUM>) extending along a longitudinal axis (X) of the handle lock assembly (<NUM>); a handle (<NUM>) adapted to move between an unlocked position in which the handle (<NUM>) is lifted from the handle housing (<NUM>) and a locked position in which the handle (<NUM>) is substantially within the handle housing (<NUM>), and a lock plug (<NUM>) provided at the handle (<NUM>). Said handle lock assembly (<NUM>) further comprises: at least one geared portion (<NUM>) formed on the handle (<NUM>), being rotatable within the main body (<NUM>) when the handle (<NUM>) is lifted; a movable member (<NUM>) having at least one toothed portion (<NUM>) for rotating a pinion gear (<NUM>) by the movement of the movable member (<NUM>); a plurality of the engagement holes (<NUM>) formed in the movable member (<NUM>) for engaging with corresponding teeth (<NUM>) of the geared portion (<NUM>) so as to convert a rotational movement from the handle (<NUM>) to a linear movement; a movable bearing member (<NUM>) placed within the handle housing (<NUM>); at least one pin receiving portion (<NUM>) formed on the bearing member (<NUM>); and at least one pin (<NUM>) formed on the handle (<NUM>), attachable to the pin receiving portion (<NUM>) when placing an interchangeable handle (<NUM>). So that different types of handles (<NUM>) having a different types of lock plugs (<NUM>) can be easily disassembled and attached to the handle lock assembly (<NUM>).

Referring to <FIG>, the bearing member (<NUM>) has at least one adjustment member (<NUM>) arranged in an adjustment member housing (<NUM>) of the bearing member (<NUM>) and as can be seen in <FIG> and <FIG>, one end of the adjustment member (<NUM>) is rotatably attached to the main body (<NUM>). This end of the adjustment member (<NUM>) can be in the form of a pin arranged to attach the corresponding hole formed in the main body (<NUM>). Advantageously, said adjustment member (<NUM>) is rotatable between a first position in which the bearing member (<NUM>) is retracted and a second position in which the bearing member (<NUM>) is at least partly moved under an upper covering portion (<NUM>) of the handle housing (<NUM>). The first position of the adjustment member (<NUM>) and the bearing member (<NUM>) can be seen in Fig. 4a wherein the handle (<NUM>) is attached to the bearing member (<NUM>), and in <FIG> by using a suitable tool (i.e. Allen key) adjustment member (<NUM>) is rotated and the bearing member (<NUM>) is at least partly moved under the upper covering portion (<NUM>) of the handle housing (<NUM>). So, said adjustment member (<NUM>) is used to change the location of the handle (<NUM>) when replacement is needed.

The adjustment member (<NUM>) can be formed as an eccentric pin, so an off-axis upper part (<NUM>) of the adjustment member (<NUM>) is housed in the bearing member (<NUM>) and when rotated by the user, the upper part (<NUM>) urges the bearing member (<NUM>) to move linearly within the handle housing (<NUM>). The upper part (<NUM>) is arranged to abut the adjustment member (<NUM>) and urges to move the bearing member (<NUM>) when rotated. The adjustment member housing (<NUM>) is preferably circular and is formed with respect to the adjustment member (<NUM>). In a possible embodiment, a snap ring (<NUM>) in the form of a "C" is used to attach the adjustment member (<NUM>) to the bearing member (<NUM>).

Referring to <FIG>, the bearing member (<NUM>) has two similar oppositely oriented pin receiving portions (<NUM>) for receiving corresponding pins (<NUM>) of the handle (<NUM>). Preferably, two pins (<NUM>) are oppositely arranged at the planar lateral surfaces (<NUM>) of the geared portion (<NUM>) of the handle (<NUM>) to fit into the corresponding pin receiving portions (<NUM>). <FIG> shows the engaged position of the corresponding pins (<NUM>) within the corresponding pin receiving portions (<NUM>). When the user wants to change the handle, (s)he can easily rotate the adjustment member (<NUM>) to retract the bearing member (<NUM>) from the operating position, so the handle (<NUM>) can be removed from its housing. Said pins (<NUM>) can have a circular cross-section and so the pin receiving portions (<NUM>) are shaped and dimensioned with respect to corresponding pins (<NUM>). In a possible embodiment, the pin receiving portions (<NUM>) have a U-shaped cross-section for a better and easy engagement.

Referring to <NUM> and <NUM>, the movable member (<NUM>) has a plurality of similar engagement holes (<NUM>) for meshing corresponding teeth (<NUM>) of the geared portion (<NUM>). With this arrangement, when the handle (<NUM>) is lifted (i.e., at least partly rotated around an axis), the movable member (<NUM>) is forced to move in the direction of the longitudinal axis (X) of the handle lock assembly (<NUM>), which causes the pinion gear (<NUM>) to rotate. There is at least one toothed portion (<NUM>) with a plurality of engaging teeth (i.e., in the form of a rack) on one of the lower walls of the movable member (<NUM>) and these meshing teeth interact with the pinion gear (<NUM>) and ensures its rotation. The pinion gear (<NUM>) can have an inner groove that is shaped and dimensioned with respect to an engagement protrusion of the transmission bar (<NUM>). The pinion gear (<NUM>) can be arranged to snap fit with the transmission bar (<NUM>) and in a possible embodiment, both of them are produced as a single part. The transmission bar (<NUM>) having a rectangular or square cross-section can be attached to locking means (not shown) with respect to the desired locking type (i.e., longitudinal locking rods or a hook/tongue).

Referring to <FIG>, the movable member (<NUM>) can be used with a spring (<NUM>) and is configured to be spring-loaded with at least one spring (<NUM>) to control the movement of the movable member (<NUM>). The spring (<NUM>) is kept in an optimum position and the force of the compressed spring (<NUM>) is properly transferred to the handle (<NUM>) when the lock plug (<NUM>) is released. Moreover, the movable member (<NUM>) can have at least one vertically arranged upper guiding portion (<NUM>) arranged to abut the bearing member (<NUM>). In line with that, the bearing member (<NUM>) has a substantially U-shaped cross-section in which two upper guiding portions (<NUM>) are guided, as can be seen in <FIG>.

The present invention advantageously allows the use of more than one different type of handle (<NUM>). The lock plug (<NUM>) provided at the handles (<NUM>) may also be different.

Referring to <FIG>, the interchangeable handles (<NUM>) have the lock plug (<NUM>) with a lock plug cover (<NUM>) for closing or opening a keyhole of the lock plug (<NUM>). For the lock plug (<NUM>), after a suitable key is inserted into a keyhole of the lock plug (<NUM>) and then rotated, a spring-biased lock cam (not shown) can retract, and the handle (<NUM>) is released. When the user further lifts the handle (<NUM>), the movable member (<NUM>) is moved along the longitudinal axis (X) of the handle lock assembly (<NUM>) causing the pinion gear (<NUM>) to be rotated. <FIG> show a first and third types of lock plugs (<NUM>) having a keyhole for inserting a suitable key and a retractable spring-biased lock cam. Advantageously, the lock plug (<NUM>) at the handle (<NUM>) may differ. <FIG> have a similar types of lock plugs (<NUM>), and <FIG> shows a push-to-open lock plug (<NUM>).

The numbers and the shapes of the teeth can vary with respect to the geared portions (<NUM>) and the pinion gear (<NUM>). The handle lock assembly (<NUM>) presented within the scope of the present invention can be used on cabinets, boxes, or panel doors. The handle housing (<NUM>) is specifically arranged to receive the handle (<NUM>) such that the handle (<NUM>) and main body (<NUM>) form a single unit when the handle (<NUM>) is in the closed position.

Claim 1:
A handle lock assembly (<NUM>) for a door of a cabinet, the handle lock assembly (<NUM>) comprising:
a main body (<NUM>) having a handle housing (<NUM>) extending along a longitudinal axis (X) of the handle lock assembly (<NUM>);
a handle (<NUM>) adapted to move between an unlocked position in which the handle (<NUM>) is lifted from the handle housing (<NUM>) and a locked position in which the handle (<NUM>) is substantially within the handle housing (<NUM>); and
a lock plug (<NUM>) provided at the handle (<NUM>);
characterized in that said handle lock assembly (<NUM>) further comprises:
at least one geared portion (<NUM>) formed on the handle (<NUM>), being rotatable within the main body (<NUM>) when the handle (<NUM>) is lifted;
a movable member (<NUM>) having at least one toothed portion (<NUM>) for rotating a pinion gear (<NUM>) by the movement of the movable member (<NUM>);
a plurality of the engagement holes (<NUM>) formed in the movable member (<NUM>) meshing with corresponding teeth (<NUM>) of the geared portion (<NUM>) so as to convert a rotational movement from the handle (<NUM>) to a linear movement;
a movable bearing member (<NUM>) placed within the handle housing (<NUM>);
at least one pin receiving portion (<NUM>) formed on the bearing member (<NUM>); and
at least one pin (<NUM>) formed on the handle (<NUM>), attachable to the pin receiving portion (<NUM>) when placing an interchangeable handle (<NUM>).