Patent ID: 8408091

Claim:
A rotary operator assembly comprising: a grip member, a spindle member, and an operator body member, the spindle member is attached to the operator body member and is rotatable with respect to the operator body member about an operative axis of rotation, the grip member is movably coupled to the spindle member and the operator body member and is translatable between a first translational position and a second translational position with respect to the operator body member, the grip member and the operator body member comprise cooperating elements for blocking rotation of the grip member with respect to the operator body member about the operative axis of rotation in the first translational position and for allowing rotation of the grip member with respect to the operator body member about the operative axis of rotation in the second translational position from a first angular position to a second angular position, wherein the grip member is movable with respect to the spindle member, the grip member being configured to operably couple with the spindle member in at least the second translational position, wherein the grip member comprises at least one portion cooperating with at least one portion of the spindle member for preventing translation of the grip member between the first translational position and the second translational position in the first angular position, the grip member and the spindle member comprising cooperating elements for allowing translation of the grip member with respect to the operator body member between the first translational position and the second translational position in a first relative angular position of the spindle member with respect to the grip member, and the cooperating elements for blocking translation of the grip member between the first translational position and the second translational position in a second relative angular position of the spindle member with respect to the grip member different from the first relative angular position.