Patent ID: 7823937

Claim:
A low profile glove box latch assembly, comprising: a housing; a handle mounted to rotate on said housing with pivot walls and operable between an open and closed positions, said handle having a guideway on each wall thereon; a handle spring to bias the handle to the closed position; an elongated lock plate slidably carried by said handle and having an engagement portion positioned between opposed ends of the lock plate, each end being received in a respective guideway of the handle, the engagement portion having a first surface and a second surface; a claw-shaped rotary pawl having a curved rear edge and a catch, said pawl being mounted to rotate in said housing between an open and closed positions to latch and unlatch a striker; a pawl spring to bias the pawl toward the open position; wherein when the pawl is in the closed position, the first surface of the lock plate will engage the catch to hold the pawl in the closed position; wherein, when the handle is operated toward the open position, the lock plate will slide out of engagement with the catch, the second surface will face the pawl to allow the rotation toward the open position.