The present disclosure relates to the field of locksets for doors.
Door locksets employing handles to actuate a latch bolt upon rotation of the handle have been available for years. More recently, locksets have been developed in which the latch bolt is actuated not only by rotation of the handles, but also upon pushing on or pulling a handle arm.
Although such locksets still perform the function of actuating the latch bolt, such locksets function quite differently than traditional lockset designs, and also employ different and complex structures. As such, structures traditionally used for features such as privacy locks or other types of locking mechanisms will not necessarily work well with the improved locksets. Previous designers have been unsuccessful in designing reliable and cost-effective privacy locks that work well with the improved locksets.
In some lockset embodiments, mount plates and/or cover plates are arranged on opposing sides of the door to which the lockset is mounted. As such, the door is sandwiched between the plates, and the lockset is secured in place in the door. Since doors can vary in thickness, the distance between the plates may need to be adjusted in order to obtain a proper fit. In some locksets the cover plate is threadingly connected to a spindle or housing of the lockset so that the distance between opposing plates can be adjusted by rotating one or both plates.
However, in some lockset embodiments a privacy lock or other feature may be accessed through an opening in at least one of the cover plates or mount plates. Proper access through the opening may require proper alignment of the hole with an internal feature of the lockset, which alignment is difficult or impossible when the plate is rotated to adjust the lockset to fit door thickness.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds