U.S. patent number 3,777,422 [Application Number 05/200,889] was granted by the patent office on 1973-12-11 for skylight and safety device.
Invention is credited to Leopold Mathieu Lambert Janssen.
United States Patent |
3,777,422 |
Janssen |
December 11, 1973 |
SKYLIGHT AND SAFETY DEVICE
Abstract
The invention pertains to a skylight having a safety device
whereby said skylight is automatically opened in case of excessive
heat, said device including spring urged levers and a fusible
connection between the latter.
Inventors: |
Janssen; Leopold Mathieu
Lambert (Herseaux, BE) |
Family
ID: |
22743630 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/200,889 |
Filed: |
November 22, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
49/7; 49/8 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F24F
7/02 (20130101); F24F 11/34 (20180101) |
Current International
Class: |
F24F
7/02 (20060101); E05f 015/20 () |
Field of
Search: |
;49/7,8,1 ;160/2-4
;292/201,DIG.66 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Taylor; Dennis L.
Claims
I claim:
1. An emergency-releasable latch mechanism for the hingedcover of a
skylight, wherein the cover is heavily biased to open position
relative to an access opening but is normally restrained in closed
position by said latch mechanism, said mechanism comprising a
mounting bracket for supporting said mechanism adjacent an unhinged
edge of the cover, a first lever pivotally secured at one end to
said bracket for swinging movement in a plane generally
perpendicular to that of the access opening, a second lever
pivotally secured at one end to said first lever intermediate the
ends thereof, said second lever having at said one end a tooth for
locking engagement with an edge part of said cover and being
swingable into and out of cover-locking position, a fusible third
lever connecting the other ends of said first and second levers and
normally restraining said second lever in cover-locking position,
said third lever being actuable to free said second lever for
pivotal movement to release said cover, spring means biasing said
first lever about its pivot on said bracket in a direction
resiliently to urge said tooth into engagement with said edge part
of said cover, and manually operable means connected to said first
lever and able to pivot said first lever in a direction to bring
said tooth out of engagement with said edge part of said cover.
2. An emergency-releasable latch mechanism according to claim 1,
wherein said first lever has successive first, second and third
portions, said first and second and third portions being
substantially parallel to each other and wherein said second and
third levers and said third portions of said first lever form a
triangle wherein said third lever is substantially parallel to said
second portion of said first lever.
3. Skylight according to claim 1, wherein said cover is heavily
biased to open position by at least one device cooperating with an
arm one end of which is pivoted to a frame surrounding said opening
and another end of which is coupled to said cover, said device
including a ring resting on a hub formed by a first piece and a
second nut-shaped piece, said first and second pieces making
contact grooved surfaces and being united by an axial bolt on which
said nut is screwed, a spring being disposed around said hub the
one and other ends of said spring being engaged in said ring and in
said nut-shaped piece.
Description
This invention is related to opening type skylights and more
specifically to the problem of the automatic operation of the said
opening in the case of fire and this without prejudice to hand
operations.
A first object of the invention is that the disclosed safety device
is, at one and the same time, compact, small sized and located
without any prejudice neither for the efficiency nor for the
aesthetic of the skylight so fitted out with a safety device.
Another object of the invention resides in the fact that the
cross-type spring devices resting upon lateral sides of the
skylight are systematically abandoned what, undeniably, is not only
unaesthetic, but of an extremely precarious reliability.
Another object of the invention is found in the unitary character
of the safety device which, being permanently under tension in the
opening direction, operates almost instantaneously when the
constraint, respectively the closing mechanism is freed either
manually or automatically in consequence of a rise in temperature
over the maximum limit or a predetermined alert temperature.
These various objects of the invention are reached with the
skylight fitted with a safety device according to the invention and
which is characterized in that it is constituted at least by the
combination of a first lever articulating on a shaft and resting
upon the idle part of the skylight; a second lever so shaped so as
to form a hooking latch of the skylight opening, this second lever
being articulated on the first lever; between these two levers, a
fusible coupling; at least a spring type element permanently
attracting the whole of the said levers and the said fusible
coupling towards the engaging position, respectively the closing
one of the opening of the skylight.
This original combination can evidently be made up in infinitely
variable shapes in proportion to the morphology, dimensions and the
relating position of the elements characterizing this device.
It is therefore as by the virtue of an ordinary example, without
any limiting character, that a type is described in detail
hereafter by referring to the enclosed drawings in which:
FIG. 1 diagrammatically represents a lateral and open position view
of the skylight fitted with a safety device according to the
invention;
FIG. 2 represents an enlarged scale view of the distinctive part
indicated at F2 on FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a view of the safety device in the direction of the arrow
F3 on FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a view of the safety device in the direction of the arrow
F4 of FIG. 2;
FIGS. 5 and 6 represent, respectively, a sectional view along the
lines V--V and VI--VI of FIG. 3;
FIG. 7 represents an enlarged scale view of the part indicated at
F7 on FIG. 1;
FIG. 8 is a view of the safety device in the direction of the arrow
F8 of FIG. 7;
FIG. 9 represents an enlarged scale view of the distinctive part
indicated at F9 on FIG. 1;
FIG. 10 is a view of the safety device in the direction of the
arrow F10 on FIG. 9;
FIGS. 11 and 12 represent, respectively, a sectional view along the
lines XI--XI and XII--XII of FIG. 9;
FIG. 13 represents an enlarged scale view of the distinctive part
indicated at F13 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 14 is a sectional view along the line XIV--XIV of FIG. 13;
FIG. 15 is similar to FIG. 2, the safety device being represented
in the closed position of the skylight;
FIG. 16 is similar to FIG. 15, the safety device being represented
in its open position due to a manual operation.
FIG. 17 is similar to FIG. 15, the safety device being represented
in the open position.
In this embodiment, the skylight is substantially constituted by
the frame 1, the opening 2 and the safety device whose essential
elements are shown at 3.
The frame and opening can be of essentially variable shape and
size, nevertheless one will have generally to do with a dome or a
quadrangular base pyramidal construction. Between the frame 1 and
the opening 2 are interposed two arms 4 one end of which rests up
against the opening 1 through the intervention of a spring coupling
5, the other end of the said arm 4 being engaged into the
strap-bolts 6 which are integral with the opening 2. The spring
coupling 5 is, preferably, made so as to adjust the spring
sollicitations of the opening. For this purpose, each arm 4 is
integral with a ring 7 which rests upon a hub formed of two pieces
8-9, these two pieces being coaxial and in mutual contact through
the grooved surfaces, respectively 10-11. The piece 9 is shaped in
the form of a nut and is integral with the first piece 8 by the
intervention of an axial bolt 12. Around the said bipartited hub
8-9 is disposed a spiral spring 13 of which one end is engaged into
the ring 7 and the other end, 15, is engaged into the said piece 9
in nut form. Therefore, by turning the said nut in one direction or
the other, one can respectively increase or reduce the winding
degree, respectively the inside tension of the said spiral spring
13.
Through this device, one therefore obtains that the opening 2 is
premanently attracted towards the opening position yet that the
described devices are extremely compact, located and practically
without any injurious influence on the general aesthetic of the
skylight.
The properly so called safety device is supported by the frame 1 of
the skylight and more specially by the median part of the edge 16
of the frame opposite the frame edge and the hinges of the opening.
This safety device is destined to co-operate with a hooking catch
17 supported by the centre part of the edge of the opening 2
opposite the said hinge edge. This safety device is, in the
circumstances, constituted by a first lever 18 articulated on a
shaft 19 resting upon the frame part I of the skylight. A second
lever, 20, is shaped so as to form the hooking latch 21 destined to
cooperate with the hooking catch 17 of the opening 2. This second
lever is articulated on the first one through a shaft 22. Between
these two levers 18-19, is interposed a fusible coupling 23. A
spring type element 24 encircles the said shaft 19 and rests up, by
its end 25, on the corresponding part of the collar, and is, by its
other end, 26, integral with the said first lever 18. This
disposition is such that the assembly of the said levers 18-19 and
the fusible coupling 23 forming a triangulation which is
permanently attracted towards the hooking position or closing
position of the said latch 21 because of the attraction of the
spring 24. In the circumstances, is also integral with the lever 18
an arm 27 to which is connected a cable 28 susceptible of being
ended off by a handle or some other gripping element in the view of
the manual operation of the device.
The operation of this safety device is extremely simple. In fact,
in the idle or closing position, the opening 2 is folded back onto
the frame 1 and the hooking catch 17 is immobilized by the latch
21.
For manual operation, it just requires excerpting a traction on the
cable 28, which has for effect to tilt the triangulated assembly
18-20-23, thus freeing the hooking catch of the opening which,
attracted by the spring return type device 5, is brought to the
fully open position.
One will also note that the arm 4 passing in the strap-bolt 6 is
fitted, towards its free end, with a head 29 forming, at one and
the same time, stop and preferably damping device, purpose for
which this head will, for example, be made from proper synthetical
material, such as neoprene.
In other respects, if the temperature in the building, for example
because of a fire, reaches the melting temperature of the material
composing the fusible coupling 23, the latter breaks, thus
disuniting the triangulated assembly. Under the double effect of
the gravity and the attraction of the spring type elements 5, the
second lever 20 is folded back, which brings about the separation
between the latch 21 and the hooking catch 17. The opening 2 is
therefore found free and brought almost instantaneously to the
fully open position through the effect of the arms 4 with their
respective spring type system 5.
The triangulation ensuring the automatic opening offers the
advantage of appreciably reducing the traction and effort of the
shearing on the fusible coupling, and more specially on the
composing white metal thereof. This advantage is reinforced by the
fact that the ratio of the lever arm of the oscillating staple 20
and the arm 18 (FIGS. 15, 16, 17) is in the order of 4 to 1.
Effectively, numerous proposed systems are hazardous and cannot be
directly mounted, that is in order to excert a direct traction on
the fusible coupling because of the fact of the maximal applicable
effort in shear security on the welded white metal of the fusible
coupling. This maximal effort is in the order of 50 kg. The safety
device disclosed in the present invention appears quite well to be
the only monolithical device allowing the use of a fusible coupling
excluding tighteners, cables or other elements acting often and
through necessity on two staples and hooking catches instead of
only one as in the present case.
It will be noted that the operation of the safety device is
systematic and that the latter is, at one and the same time,
simple, compact, unitary, foolproof and of a constant efficiency in
the absence of any delicate part or submitted to dangerous
attractions. In fact, this total security comes especially from the
absence of intermediate parts such as cable, tighteners, pins and
various accessories. Now, the regulations of public order imply the
use of one fuse under the complementary requirement that the said
one and only fuse cannot undergo dangerous attractions. More
particularly, the device disclosed by the present invention brings
a systematic solution for fitting large skylights which require
great efforts for the opening.
Evidently it goes without saying that the morphology, the sizes and
the relating position of the various elements previously described
are essentially variable in so far as they stay in the same
context.
One may also, for the very large skylights, apply one or more of
such safety devices which are rendered mutually integral in order
to be simultaneously operated under the same conditions.
The fusible coupling between the two main levers can be carried out
under the forms and with the use of material or combinations of
various materials by basing, for example, on the devices and the
material which have already been used in various installations
destined to fight fires.
The invention concerns the device itself as well as all the
skylights or similar elements applied to such a safety device.
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