Door lock

Abstract

A door lock adapted to fit over the door hinge and clamp the hinge plates to prevent pivotal movement of the plates about the hinge pin to prevent opening of the door.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to door locks and more particularly to a door lock adapted to be installed on a door hinge.

Most doors include locks which are operated by means of keys of various types. In many homes, motels, hotels and other places, there are provided additional locking means to prevent entry. Such means have taken the form of door bolts, door chains and door stops. Generally, the prior art locking means are unsightly, difficult to install and expensive.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved door lock.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive, easy to install door lock.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a door lock which is unnoticeably mounted on the door hinge.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are achieved by a door lock adapted to fit over the hinge and to engage and clamp the outer surfaces of the hinge plates to prevent pivotal movement of the hinge plates about the hinge pin.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a door with a door lock in accordance with the invention mounted on the upper hinge.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a door lock in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the door lock shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of another embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a single piece door lock in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of another single piece door lock.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of still another single piece door lock.

FIG. 9 is an elevational view showing a doorway with a door and associated hinge.

FIG. 10 shows opening of the door of FIG. 4.

FIG. 11 is a view of the same door with a door lock in accordance with the invention installed to show the locking action.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1, there is a doorway 11 formed in the wall 12 and adapted to receive a door 13. The doorway includes conventional molding 14 which cooperates with the floor molding 16 to finish the doorway. The door includes spaced hinges 17. In the example of FIG. 1, door lock 18 is applied to the upper hinge. It is understood that a door lock may be applied to more than one of the hinges.

Referring to FIG. 2, the door 13 is shown mounted on the hinge plate 19 of the hinge 17. The plate 21 of the hinge is secured to the door jamb. The door is shown in a closed position with its surface adjacent the door stop 22. The door hinge has mounted thereon the door lock 18 of the type shown and described in FIGS. 3 through 8.

The door lock shown in FIG. 3 includes upper and lower body portions 26 and 27. The body portions are formed by longitudinally slotting tubular elements to form a solid section 28 with slot 29 extending to the other end of the tubular element. The slot permits the body portions to slip onto the hinge until the end 31 of the slot abuts the hinge plates. The body portions are held on the hinge by means which hold the two sections together. More particularly, the holding means may comprise a coil spring 32 having its ends in engagement with tabs 33 and 34. The lower body portion may first be mounted on the hinge, the spring stretched and the upper body portion slid onto the hinge where they are held in place.

Referring particularly to FIG. 2, it is seen that the edges 36 and 37 of the slot impinge upon the outer surface of the hinge plates 19 and 21 to clamp the hinge in its closed position. Thus, as one seeks to rotate or open the door, the hinge plates are held or clamped in a closed position by the force of the lock member. The lock member is made of a thickness whereby to withstand the forces which may be applied thereto upon an attempt to open the door. The solid sections 28 provide added strength. It is apparent that the elements can take other shapes such as rectangular and the like as long as they can fit over the hinge and clamp the hinge plates.

The two sections 26 and 27 may be held by means of a leaf spring 40 such as shown in FIG. 5. The spring 40 is attached to the section 27 and extends longitudinally and terminates in a clip 45 which engages the section 26. Thus, the two portions are slipped onto the hinge and the spring slipped over the top of upper portion 26 to maintain and hold the lower section.

Rather than employing two sections, the lock may be formed from a single tubular section such as section 38, FIG. 6, which includes longitudinal slot 39 terminating at the solid portion 41. The slot is slipped over the hinge and the lock is held in place by gravity. The strength of the solid section and the material of the slotted portion clamp the hinge plates.

The door lock may be formed from a rigid, tubular channel section 42 having longitudinal slot 43 defined by the spaced facing edges 44 and 46 of the channel, FIG. 7. The channel is preferably circular in section for sliding over the door hinge. Suitable stop means are provided at the upper end of the channel body 42 to prevent the door lock from falling off of the hinge. Such stop means might comprise bending inwardly the spaced upper edges 47 and 48 to close off the opening whereby when the lock is inserted over the hinge, the hinge plates abut and wedge into the wedge-shaped portion 49 of the opening 43. The channel member is made of a thickness whereby to withstand the forces which may be applied thereto upon an attempt to open the door. For added strength, the door lock body may be provided with one or more ribs 51, FIG. 8, which act to provide further rigidity to the channel member. As described above, it is apparent that the channel member can take other shapes such as rectangular and the like as long as it can fit over the hinge and clamp the hinge plates.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown a door 13 with its hinge 17, the door being in a closed position. In FIG. 10, the same door 13 is shown in its opening position wherein the outer edge 53 has cleared the adjacent portion of the door frame and the hinge plates have opened. The same door 13 is shown in FIG. 11. However, it includes the door lock 18 in accordance with the invention. The lock prevents opening of the hinge plates and, as a consequence, the screws which attach the hinge plates to the door or to the frame or both pull loose. The outer edge 53 of the door then moves against the opposite jamb and provides further locking action.

The channel or slot edges may be made slightly thinner to more easily slide over the hinge in those instances where the hinge is closely adjacent the jamb and molding.

It is apparent that the door lock is relatively inexpensive to manufacture and can be easily installed by the occupant by merely slipping the lock over the hinge.

Claims

I claim:

1. A door lock adapted to slide onto and cooperate with a door hinge having hinge plates which are fastened one to a door and one to a door frame, comprising at least one tubular section having a longitudinal slot with opposed spaced edges, the spacing between said edges being substantially equal to the combined thickness of the hinge plates, whereby when the door is closed the tubular section can be slid onto the hinge with the edges of the slot impinging upon the outer surface of the hinge plates to clamp the plates and prevent pivotal movement of the hinge plates about the hinge pin, whereby force applied to open the door will tend to pull the hinge plates from the door and frame thereby moving the outer edge of the door against the opposite side of the door frame for providing further locking action to prevent opening of the door, said opposed spaced edges being bent endwardly at one end of said tubular section for limiting the longitudinal movement of said section on said hinge and at least on rib extending around the periphery of said tubular section to provide rigidity therefore.

2. A door lock adapted to slide onto and cooperate with a door hinge having hinge plates to prevent opening of a door which is hinge supported in a doorway, comprising a pair of tubular sections each having a longitudinal slot with opposed spaced edges, the spacing between said edges being substantially equal to the combined thickness of the hinge plates, whereby when the door is closed the tubular section can be slid onto the hinge with the edges of the slot impinging upon the outer surface of the hinge plates to clamp the plates and prevent pivotal movement of the hinge plates about the hinge pin, whereby force applied to open the door tends to separate the hinge from the door and doorway thereby moving the outer edge of the door against the opposite side of the doorway for further locking action, means at one end of each of said tubular sections for limiting the longitudinal movement of said section on said hinge, and means cooperating with said tubular sections for holding the two sections together on the hinge.

3. A door lock as in claim 2 wherein said holding means comprises spring means.

4. A door lock as in claim 2 wherein the slot in each tubular section extends to one end of the tubular section and to a point spaced from the other end to leave a solid tubular section.