JP7706301B2 - Door handle device - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a handle device used to open and close a door.

Conventionally, a handle device for a single-leaf door has been used that includes a base that is fixed to the door, a roller-equipped handle that is supported on the base so that it can rotate around an axis, and a biasing mechanism that biases the handle in a direction around the axis.

When this type of door handle device is closed, with the door in contact with the door stop of the door frame, the handle is rotated in one direction around its axis, and the roller is pressed against the inclined surface of the engagement portion on the door frame, pulling the door towards the door stop of the door frame. When the handle is rotated to its limit in one direction, the roller stops in a state where it is in strong contact with the engagement portion. When the handle is rotated in the other direction to its limit, the pulling of the door gradually weakens. As the handle is rotated to its limit in the other direction, the roller leaves the engagement portion and is retracted to a position where it cannot collide with the door frame.

This type of door handle device is used for soundproof doors and airtight doors. In the case of soundproof doors and airtight doors, an elastic member is provided on the door or door stop of the door frame. When the elastic member is compressed by the aforementioned pulling of the door, the adhesion between the door and the door stop increases, and sound insulation and airtightness between the door and the door frame can be improved.

The biasing mechanism for this type of door handle device typically uses the elastic force of a spring to bias the handle in one direction around the axis (the direction in which the door is turned to close) or in the other direction (the direction in which the door is turned to open).

If a door is equipped with a biasing mechanism that can bias the handle in only one direction, even if the handle attempts to rotate in the other direction due to its own weight when the door is closed, the biasing force resists this and prevents the handle from rotating in the other direction, keeping the roller in an appropriate stopping position relative to the engagement part of the door frame, so the door will not open on its own. On the other hand, if the handle does not rotate in the other direction enough when opening the door, the biasing force will hold the roller in a position where it may collide with the door frame, and if the handle operator opens the door without realizing this, the roller may collide with the door frame.

On the other hand, if a biasing mechanism that can bias the handle only in the other direction is provided, the biasing force prevents the handle from rotating insufficiently in the other direction when the door is opened, preventing a collision between the roller and the door frame. On the other hand, if the contact between the engagement parts of the roller and the door frame is incorrectly loose when the door is closed, the biasing force may cause the handle to rotate in the other direction on its own, causing the door to open naturally.

There are advantages and disadvantages to biasing the handle in one direction or the other in this way, so a biasing mechanism has been proposed that biases the handle toward one side of a predetermined rotation position located midway through the handle's rotation range to rotate it in one direction, and biases the handle toward the other side of the predetermined rotation position to rotate it in the other direction (Patent Document 1).

The biasing mechanism disclosed in Patent Document 1 utilizes magnetic attraction and magnetic repulsion caused by the magnetic force of a permanent magnet attached to the handle and the magnetic force of a permanent magnet attached to the base to bias a handle that is closer to one side of the intermediate position of the handle's rotation range in one direction, and bias a handle that is closer to the other side of the intermediate position in the other direction. Therefore, the door handle device of Patent Document 1 can prevent collisions between the roller and the door frame when the door is opened or closed, and prevent the door from opening naturally, by using a biasing mechanism with a simple structure that uses permanent magnets.

JP 2017-66815 A

However, if a door handle device is equipped with a biasing mechanism that uses the magnetic force of a permanent magnet as in Patent Document 1, there is a concern that wear powder from iron-based materials and magnetic particles from the surrounding environment will be attracted to the permanent magnet over long-term use and accumulate in the gap between the handle and the base, causing malfunctions and visual stains.

In view of the above background, the problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a door handle device that uses a biasing mechanism that uses the elastic force of a spring to prevent collision between the handle roller and the door frame, and also prevents the door from opening naturally.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a door handle device that includes a base that is fixed to a door, a roller-equipped handle that is supported on the base so as to be rotatable about an axis, and a biasing mechanism that biases the handle that is closer to one side of the axis with a predetermined rotation position located midway through the rotatable range of the handle in a direction to rotate the handle in that direction, and biases the handle that is closer to the other side of the axis with the predetermined rotation position in a direction to rotate the handle in the other direction. The biasing mechanism has a configuration that includes a coil spring, a joint that rotates one winding end of the coil spring around the axis in response to the rotation of the handle, and a spring support that receives the other winding end of the coil spring so that the coil spring swings relative to the base in response to the rotation caused by the joint.

According to the above configuration, the joint part rotates one end of the coil spring in response to the rotation of the handle around its axis, and the spring support part receives the other end of the coil spring so that the coil spring swings relative to the base in response to the rotation. Therefore, the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring biases the handle can be changed in response to the rotation of the handle, and the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring biases the handle to rotate in one direction or the other can be switched at a predetermined rotation position of the handle. Therefore, when forming a door opening and closing device using this door handle device, a door, and a door frame, by appropriately determining the arrangement of the door handle device relative to the door and door frame, when the door is closed, it is possible to bias the handle so that the stop position of the roller relative to the door frame is appropriately maintained, thereby preventing the door from opening naturally, and to bias the handle so that insufficient rotation in the other direction is prevented when opening a closed door, thereby preventing a collision between the roller and the door frame.

As described above, by adopting the above configuration, the present invention can provide a door handle device that uses a biasing mechanism that uses the elastic force of a spring to prevent collision between the handle roller and the door frame and prevents the door from opening naturally.

FIG. 2 is a rear view showing the operation of the biasing mechanism of the door handle device according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a door is brought into close contact with a door frame using the door handle device according to a first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the door handle device shown in FIG. FIG. 1 is a partial vertical cross-sectional view showing a biasing mechanism of a door handle device according to a first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a side view of the door handle device shown in FIG. 2 . FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a joint portion between a link plate and a biasing mechanism of a handle according to a first embodiment; FIG. 11 is a rear view showing the operation of the biasing mechanism of the door handle device according to the second embodiment of the present invention; 8A is an enlarged view of the spring support portion of FIG. 7 and its vicinity, and FIG. 8B is a perspective view of the spring support portion according to a second embodiment.

The door handle device according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

The door handle device 1 shown in Figures 1 to 3 comprises a base 3 fixed to a door 2, a handle 4 supported on the base 3 so as to be rotatable about an axis C1, and a biasing mechanism 5 that biases the handle 4.

Hereinafter, the direction along the axis C1, which is the central axis of rotation of the handle 4, will be referred to simply as the "axial direction", the direction perpendicular to the axis C1 will be referred to simply as the "radial direction", the circumferential direction rotating in one direction around the axis C1 will be referred to simply as the "one direction", and the circumferential direction rotating in the other direction opposite to the one direction around the axis C1 will be referred to simply as the "other direction". The axial direction corresponds to the forward and backward directions of the door 2, door frame 6, and door handle device 1.

The door handle device 1 shown in the figure is an example of a device assembled for a right-handed door. In other words, the hanging side (hinge) of the door 2 is located on the right side when facing the front (visible surface) of the door 2, which is a single-leaf door, and the door end side of the door 2 is located on the left side, making this a door handle device 1 in which the base 3 is located on the door end side of the front of the right-handed door 2.

The base 3 consists of a portion that is always stationary relative to the handle 4 and the door 2 when attached to the door 2, and includes a portion that supports the axial and radial loads from the handle 4.

The handle 4 is made up of parts that always displace integrally in the direction around axis C1 relative to the base 3 and door 2. The range in which the handle 4 can rotate around axis C1 relative to the base 3, door 2, and door frame 6 is limited to a certain extent. The rotatable range of the handle 4 is from the position where the handle 4 has rotated to its limit in one direction (position a depicted by a solid line in FIG. 1) to the position where the handle 4 has rotated to its limit in the other direction (position b depicted by a dashed dotted line in FIG. 1). In the illustrated example, the rotatable range of the handle 4 is set to a range of 70° around axis C1.

The biasing mechanism 5 biases the handle 4 in one direction when it is in one direction, with a predetermined rotation position (position c depicted by a two-dot chain line in Figure 1) located midway through the rotation range of the handle 4 as the boundary, and biases the handle 4 in the other direction when it is in the other direction, with position c as the boundary.

As shown in Figs. 1, 3, and 4, the base 3 comprises a case body 7 and a case lid 8 connected thereto. Figs. 1 and 3 show the case body 7 with the case lid 8 removed. The case body 7 has a front wall that forms the front of the base 3 and peripheral side walls that protrude rearward from the front wall, and is open on the rear side relative to the front wall. As shown in Fig. 2, the case body 7 is of a surface-mounted type that is fastened to the front of the door 2. The case lid 8 shown in Fig. 4 is fastened to the rear side of the case body 7.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the base 3 has an opening 9 that penetrates the base 3 in the axial direction. Between the front wall and peripheral side walls of the case body 7 and the case lid 8, there is the opening 9 and a continuous internal space 10. The opening 9 and the internal space 10 are spaces for arranging the supported part of the handle 4 and the biasing mechanism 5. A collar 11 and a sliding member 12 are arranged between the front wall of the case body 7 and the supported part of the handle 4. The handle 4 is supported in the axial and radial directions by the case body 7 of the base 3 via the collar 11 and the sliding member 12. The collar 11 and the sliding member 12 are parts for improving the sliding property of the handle 4 when it is rotated.

As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the handle 4 has a handle body 13, a roller 14 for tightly fitting the door 2 to the door frame 6, a link plate 15 fitted to the handle body 13, and a handle nut 16 connected to the handle body 13.

The handle body 13 is composed of an axial core portion 17 inserted into the opening 9 and internal space 10 of the base 3, an external axial portion 18 that is always axially opposed to the front of the base 3 outside the base 3, a grip portion 19 that protrudes radially from the external axial portion 18, and a fastening base portion 20 that protrudes radially from the external axial portion 18 in a direction different from that of the grip portion 19.

The handle body 13, link plate 15, and handle nut 16 are integrated by threadingly engaging the handle nut 16 with the shaft center 17 of the handle body 13 while the inner circumference of the link plate 15 is fitted into the shaft center 17. This integration results in the outer shaft 18 being supported axially on the front of the front wall of the base 3 via the collar 11, the outer circumference of the shaft center 17 being supported radially on the inner circumference of the opening 9 of the base 3 via the collar 11, and the link plate 15 being supported axially on the back of the front wall of the base 3 via the sliding member 12, forming a rotating shaft of the handle 4 centered on the axis C1.

The handle 4 can be rotated in one direction or the other by applying torque in one direction or the other to the grip portion 19 of the handle body 13.

The tightening base 20 of the handle body 13 holds the roller 14 in a rollable manner. The roller 14 is made of a hollow cylinder. The tightening base 20 has a support shaft that extends in the radial direction. The roller 14 is fitted to the support shaft of the tightening base 20 at the inner circumference of the hollow portion. The roller 14 can roll around a rolling axis in the radial direction.

As shown in Figures 1, 2, and 5, the roller 14 is pressed against the engagement portion 21 of the door frame 6 by rotating the handle 4 in one direction, and is released from the engagement portion 21 by rotating the handle 4 in the other direction.

The door frame 6 has a door stopper 23 that receives the front door end 22 of the door 2. The door stopper 23 has an elastic member 24 and a frame portion 25 that supports the elastic member 24. The elastic member 24 is disposed on the rear side of the frame portion 25. The engagement portion 21 is disposed on the front side of the frame portion 25. The door frame 6 and the handle 4 can only come into contact with each other at the engagement portion 21 and the roller 14. The engagement portion 21 has a slope 26 that slopes upward toward the front side, and an engagement surface 27 that is aligned in the vertical direction relative to the horizontal. The engagement portion 21 is detachably provided on the frame portion 25 as a receiving metal member.

When the roller 14 is pressed against the slope 26 of the door frame 6, the front door end 22 of the door 2 is pulled in such a direction that it comes into close contact with the door frame 6, so that the elastic member 24 of the door frame 6 is pressed against the door 2, and the door 2 and the elastic member 24 are brought into close contact with each other. This improves the sound insulation and airtightness between the door 2 and the door frame 6.

As the handle 4 rotates in one direction, the roller 14 climbs over the slope 26 of the door frame 6. When the handle 4 reaches position a, where it has rotated to its limit in one direction, the roller 14 stops in contact with the engagement surface 27 of the door frame 6.

As shown in Figures 3 and 6, the link plate 15 of the handle 4 is a connecting element for transmitting torque in the direction around the axis C1 between the handle 4 and the biasing mechanism 5. The link plate 15 is made of an annular plate material. The link plate 15 is formed with an axle through hole 28 for connecting with the biasing mechanism 5. The axle through hole 28 passes through the axial direction between both plate surfaces of the link plate 15. The inner circumference of the link plate 15 and the axial center portion 17 of the handle body 13 are formed with meshing portions 29, 30 that can engage with each other in one direction and the other direction. Due to the engagement of the meshing portions 29, 30, the handle body 13 and the link plate 15 can always be displaced in the rotational direction together when the handle 4 rotates around the axis C1.

The biasing mechanism 5 shown in Figures 1 and 4 has a joint part 31 connected to the handle 4 so as to be relatively rotatable around the first joint axis C2, a spring support part 32 connected to the base 3 so as to be relatively rotatable around the second joint axis C3, and a coil spring 33 interposed between the joint part 31 and the spring support part 32.

The joint portion 31 is made of a single first link member connected to the link plate 15 by a first joint shaft 34. The spring support portion 32 is made of a single second link member connected to the case body 7 and the case lid 8 by a second joint shaft 35. The coil spring 33 is made of a compression coil spring.

The first joint axis C2 coincides with the central axis of the first joint shaft 34. The second joint axis C3 coincides with the central axis of the second joint shaft 35. The first joint axis C2 and the second joint axis C3 are set in the axial direction. Hereinafter, the direction along the imaginary straight line L perpendicular to the first joint axis C2 and the second joint axis C3 is referred to as the straight line L direction.

The joint 31 has a head 36 that receives one end of the coil spring 33, a shaft through hole 37 that fits onto the first joint shaft 34, a slit 38 that fits into the shaft through hole 28 of the link plate 15, and a shaft 39 that extends from the head 36 in the direction of the straight line L.

The head 36 is a stepped shaft whose diameter decreases toward the second joint axis C3 in the direction of the straight line L. The large-diameter shaft portion of the head 36 receives one winding end of the coil spring 33 in the direction of the straight line L. The small-diameter shaft portion of the head 36 supports the coil spring 33 in the spiral diameter direction and guides the inside of the coil spring 33 in the direction of the straight line L.

The shaft through hole 37 and slit 38 of the joint 31 are formed in the large diameter shaft portion of the head 36. The shaft through hole 37 passes through the large diameter shaft portion of the head 36 in the axial direction and is formed as a stepped hole with an axial hole centerline. The slit 38 forms a space that extends radially so as to be perpendicular to the large diameter hole portion of the shaft through hole 37, and receives both plate surfaces around the shaft through hole 28 of the link plate 15 in the axial direction.

The first joint shaft 34 is made of a single stepped shaft. The large diameter shaft portion of the first joint shaft 34 fits into both shaft through holes 37, 28 of the joint portion 31 and the link plate 15. The small diameter shaft portion of the first joint shaft 34 fits into the small diameter hole portion of the shaft through hole 37. By tightening the small diameter shaft portion of the first joint shaft 34 at the point where it protrudes from the small diameter hole portion of the shaft through hole 37, the first joint shaft 34 is prevented from coming off so as to maintain a constant position in the axial direction relative to the head 36 and the link plate 15. When the handle 4 rotates around the axis C1, it is always in a state where it can be displaced around the axis C1 together with the link plate 15, and the joint portion 31 and the link plate 15 are connected in a state where they can swing relatively around the first joint axis C2.

The shaft 39 of the joint 31 passes through the inside of the coil spring 33, and is combined with the spring support part 32 at the shaft part on the side opposite the head 36. The side opposite the head 36 of the joint 31 is guided in the direction of the straight line L by the spring support part 32.

The spring support part 32 has a flat surface 40 that receives the other winding end of the coil spring 33, a slide hole 41 that passes through the spring support part 32 from the flat surface 40 in the direction of the straight line L, and an axial through hole 42 that extends in the axial direction perpendicular to the slide hole 41.

The flat surface 40 of the spring support part 32 receives the other winding end of the coil spring 33 in the direction of the straight line L. The shaft 39 of the joint part 31 is passed through the slide hole 41 of the spring support part 32. The spring support part 32 can slide relative to the shaft 39 in the direction of the straight line L in the slide hole 41. The second joint shaft 35 and the shaft through hole 42 of the spring support part 32 are divided into two parts in the direction of the second joint axis C3 by the slide hole 41, one of which is the front wall side of the case body 7 and the other is the case lid 8 side, so that the shaft 39 passes through the slide hole 41. One split shaft part 35a of the second joint shaft 35 is formed integrally with the front wall of the case body 7. The other split shaft part 35b of the second joint shaft 35 is fixed to the case lid 8 by being pressed into a pin hole 43 formed in the case lid 8. By fitting the shaft through hole 42 of the spring support part 32 into one of the split shaft parts 35a, fitting the other split shaft part 35b fixed to the case lid 8 into the pin hole 43, and fastening the case lid 8 to the case body 7, the spring support part 32 is always connected to the base 3, handle 4, and coil spring 33 in a state that is immovable in the straight line L direction but can swing relatively to the base 3 around the second joint axis C3.

The coil spring 33 is held by the head 36 of the joint 31 and the flat surface 40 of the spring support 32 so that the spiral axis of the coil spring 33 is oriented in the direction of the straight line L.

The coil spring 33 is placed between the joint 31 and the spring support part 32 in a pre-compressed state so that it can apply an elastic force in the direction of the straight line L to the joint 31 and the spring support part 32 throughout the entire range of rotation of the handle 4. The elastic force of the coil spring 33 is transmitted in the following order: joint 31, first joint shaft 34, link plate 15, and handle body 13.

The joint 31, coil spring 33, and spring support 32 form a link whose length can be changed in the direction of line L. The pair connecting this link to the handle 4 side is composed of the link plate 15, first joint shaft 34, and head 36 so that it has one degree of freedom of rotation about the first joint axis C2, while the pair connecting this link to the base 3 side is composed of the shaft 39 of the joint 31, the spring support 32, and second joint shaft 35 so that it has two degrees of freedom of rotation about the second joint axis C3 and sliding in the direction of line L.

1, as the handle 4 rotates about the axis C1, the joint 31 is rotated by the first joint axis 34 on the handle 4 side, while the spring support part 32 cannot rotate about the axis C1 relative to the handle 4. In other words, the first joint axis C2 moves integrally with the rotation of the handle 4, but the second joint axis C3 remains in a fixed position relative to the handle 4 and the base 3. For this reason, as the handle 4 rotates about the axis C1, the joint 31 rotates one winding end of the coil spring 33, and the spring support part 32, to which torque about the second joint axis C3 is applied from the other winding end of the coil spring 33, rotates about the second joint axis C3, and the orientation in which the spring support part 32 supports the other winding end of the coil spring 33 changes. Therefore, the joint 31, the coil spring 33, and the spring support 32 swing relative to the handle 4 around the first joint axis C2, while swinging relative to the base 3 around the second joint axis C3. As the joint 31 swings, the shaft 39 of the joint 31 and the slide hole 41 of the spring support 32 slide relative to each other in the direction of the straight line L, changing the distance between the joint 31 and the spring support 32 in the direction of the straight line L, and the amount of compression (elastic force) of the coil spring 33 changes. When the handle 4 is in a predetermined rotation position (position c), the direction of the straight line L is perpendicular to the axis C1, and the amount of compression of the coil spring 33 is maximum, and the amount of compression of the coil spring 33 decreases as the handle 4 moves away from position c in one direction or the other.

A torque acts on the handle 4 in a direction and magnitude corresponding to the elastic force of the coil spring 33, the direction of the line L, and the positional relationship of the axes C1 to C3. This torque rotates the handle 4 in one direction when the handle 4 moves in one direction from the boundary of position c, where the axis C1 is located on the extension of the line L, and rotates the handle 4 in the other direction when the handle 4 moves in the other direction from the boundary of position c. In this way, the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring 33 biases the handle 4 to rotate in one direction or the other switches at the boundary of position c as the joint portion 31, the spring support portion 32, and the coil spring 33 swing relative to the base 3 and the handle 4 in response to the rotation of the handle 4 around the axis C1.

Position c is set to a position closer to one side than the midpoint that bisects the rotational range of the handle 4. More specifically, position c is set to a handle rotation position where the roller 14 moves away from the slope 26 of the door frame 6 in the other direction and protrudes from the edge of the door 2 toward the door frame 6. Position c in the illustrated example is a position where the handle 4 has rotated 25° in the other direction from the position where the handle 4 has rotated to its limit in one direction (position a), in other words, a position where the handle 4 has rotated 45° in one direction from the position where the handle 4 has rotated to its limit in the other direction (position b).

The magnitude of the torque in one direction and the torque in the other direction acting on the handle 4 based on the elastic force of the coil spring 33 are set to a value that is possible so that the handle 4 can be maintained in the corresponding position a or position b against the torque due to the weight of the handle 4.

When an operator (not shown) closes the door 2, he or she turns the handle 4 in one direction from position b when the door 2 is brought into close contact with the elastic member 24 of the door frame 6 (see Figures 1, 2, and 5 as appropriate). While the handle 4 rotates in one direction from position b to position c, the biasing mechanism 5 resists, so the operator turns the handle 4 vigorously to overcome this resistance. Then, while the handle 4 rotates in one direction from position c to position a, the one-way torque from the biasing mechanism 5 acts on the handle 4, increasing the assistance to the operator's manual handle turning operation. During this time, the roller 14 overcomes the inclined surface 26 and reaches the engagement surface 27. When the handle 4 reaches position a, the one-way torque from the biasing mechanism 5 exceeds the other-way torque due to the weight of the tightening base 20, and the handle 4 can be held at position a. Therefore, even if the operator releases his or her hand from the handle 4, the other-way torque due to the weight of the handle 4 will not rotate the handle 4 in the other direction on its own. This keeps the roller 14 in an appropriate position relative to the door frame 6, preventing the door 2 from opening naturally.

On the other hand, an operator opening the door 2 that is in close contact with the door frame 6 will turn the handle 4 from position a in the other direction. While the handle 4 rotates in the other direction from position a to position c, the biasing mechanism 5 resists, so the operator turns the handle 4 vigorously to overcome this resistance. During this time, the roller 14 descends the inclined surface 26 from the engagement surface 27 and disengages from the inclined surface 26, and the door 2 opens slightly as the elastic member 24 elastically restores, but the roller 14 still protrudes from the edge of the door 2 toward the door frame 6. Next, while the handle 4 rotates in the other direction from position c to position b, the torque in the other direction by the biasing mechanism 5 acts on the handle 4, increasing the assistance to the operator's manual handle turning operation. During this time, the roller 14 is in a position where it does not protrude from the edge of the door 2 toward the door frame 6, that is, where it cannot collide with the door frame 6. When the handle 4 reaches position b, the other-direction torque from the biasing mechanism 5 exceeds the one-direction torque due to the weight of the gripping part 19, and the handle 4 can be held at position b. Therefore, even if the operator releases the handle 4, the one-direction torque due to the weight of the gripping part 19 will not rotate the handle 4 in one direction on its own. This prevents the handle 4 from rotating in the other direction insufficiently, and prevents the roller 14 of the handle 4 from colliding with the door frame 6.

In particular, when an operator is in a hurry to open a thick and heavy door 2 such as a soundproof door or an airtight door, the operator may mistakenly believe that the stop of the small opening of the door 2 due to the elastic restoration of the elastic member 24 is the completion of the unlocking of the door 2, and may stop the manual rotation of the handle 4 just before position c, and may then ram into the front of the door 2 and try to roughly push the door 2 open. Even when such a rough door-opening operation is performed, the torque in the other direction by the biasing mechanism 5 acts on the handle 4 from position c, which is the small opening stop position of the door 2 (i.e., the position where the roller 14 is off the slope 26 and does not pull the door 2) and the position where the roller 14 protrudes from the end of the door 2 toward the door frame 6 (i.e., the position where the roller 14 may collide with the door frame 6 when the door 2 is opened), so that it is possible to effectively prevent insufficient rotation of the handle 4 in the other direction and prevent the roller 14 from colliding with the door frame 6.

Near position c, the moment arm between the axis C1 and the contact portion that transmits the elastic force from the first joint axis 34 to the link plate 15 becomes relatively short, but since the distance between the first joint axis C2 and the second joint axis C3 becomes the shortest at position c and the elastic force of the coil spring 33 becomes the maximum, it is possible to make the other-direction torque by the biasing mechanism 5 greater than the one-direction torque by the weight of the gripping portion 19, even near position c. As a result, even when the operator releases his/her hand from the handle 4 immediately after the door 2 stops slightly opening as described above, the handle 4 can be quickly rotated in the other direction by the biasing mechanism 5.

In the illustrated example, the door handle device 1 is assembled for right-handed use, but this door handle device 1 can also be assembled for left-handed use by switching the orientation of the link plate 15 from front to back and engaging it with the handle body 13, switching the orientation of the joint portion 31 to the coil spring 33 from front to back, and connecting the base 3 with a second joint shaft using the split shaft portion 35a provided on the left side of the base 3 in Figure 1 and the pin hole in the case lid (not shown).

As described above, in this door handle device 1, the biasing mechanism 5 includes the coil spring 33, a joint 31 that rotates one end of the coil spring 33 around the axis C1 in response to the rotation of the handle 4, and a spring support part 32 that receives the other end of the coil spring 33 so that the coil spring 33 swings relative to the base 3 in response to the rotation of the one end of the coil spring 33 by the joint 31. Therefore, the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring 33 biases the handle 4 can be changed in response to the rotation of the handle 4 about the axis C1, and the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring 33 biases the handle 4 to rotate in one direction or the other can be switched at a predetermined rotation position (position c) of the handle 4. Therefore, when constructing a door opening and closing device using this door handle device 1, door 2, and door frame 6, by appropriately determining the positioning of the door handle device 1 relative to the door 2 and door frame 6, it is possible to bias the handle 4 so that the stopping position of the roller 14 relative to the door frame 6 is appropriately maintained when the door 2 is closed, thereby preventing the door 2 from opening naturally, and to bias the handle 4 so that insufficient rotation in the other direction is prevented when opening the closed door 2, thereby preventing collision between the roller 14 and the door frame 6.

In addition, in this door handle device 1, the joint portion 31 is connected to the handle 4 so as to be relatively rotatable around the first joint axis C2, the spring support portion 32 is connected to the base 3 so as to be relatively rotatable around the second joint axis C3, the first joint axis C2 and the second joint axis C3 are in a direction along the axis C1, the joint portion 31 is connected to a head 36 that receives the coil spring 33 in a direction along a straight line L perpendicular to the first joint axis C2 and the second joint axis C3, and a coil spring 33 extending from the head 36 in a direction along the straight line L. The joint 31, the spring support 32, and the coil spring 33 swing relative to the handle 4 around the first joint axis C2 and swing relative to the base 3 around the second joint axis C3 in response to the rotation of the handle 4 around the axis C1, changing the direction in which the handle 4 is biased by the elastic force of the coil spring 33. This allows the door handle device 1 to realize a biasing mechanism 5 by using three members (31-33) to form a link of variable length in the direction along the line L, and a simple link mechanism that connects this link to the base 3 and the handle 4 with two pairs.

In the first embodiment, an example was shown in which the spring support portion 32 of the biasing mechanism 5 was rotatably arranged with respect to the base 3, but it is also possible to realize a biasing mechanism by fixing the spring support portion to the base. As an example, a second embodiment is shown in Figures 7 to 8. Note that the following will only describe the differences from the first embodiment.

The spring support part 51 of the biasing mechanism 50 according to the second embodiment is made of a cylindrical member having integrally a pair of shaft restriction surfaces 52, 53 that form an opening angle of 70° toward the upward side, and a pair of shaft restriction surfaces 54, 55 that form an opening angle of 70° toward the downward side. The spring support part 51 is fixed to the rear surface of the case body 7 by screwing.

The shaft 39 of the joint portion 31 passes through the space between the pair of upper shaft restriction surfaces 52, 53 and the space between the pair of lower shaft restriction surfaces 54, 55. The upper shaft restriction surface 53 and the lower shaft restriction surface 54 are aligned along a first direction, while the upper shaft restriction surface 52 and the lower shaft restriction surface 55 are aligned along a second direction (a direction that forms an intersecting angle of 70° with the first direction). Therefore, the shaft 39 can swing relative to the spring support portion 51 on the base 3 side in response to the rotation of the handle 4 between positions a and b.

The flat surface 56 of the spring support portion 51 extends along a direction perpendicular to the helical axis of the coil spring 33 when the handle 4 is in position c. Therefore, when the handle 4 is in position c, the flat surface 56 can receive the other winding end of the coil spring 33 in a direction perpendicular to the flat surface 56, and when the handle 4 is in a rotational position other than position c, such as positions a, b, the flat surface 56 can receive the other winding end of the coil spring 33 in an oblique direction corresponding to the amount of rotation of the handle 4 from position c.

When the joint 31 rotates one end of the coil spring 33 in response to the rotation of the handle 4, the mountain-shaped ridge formed by the upper shaft regulating surface 52 and the lower shaft regulating surface 54, or the mountain-shaped ridge formed by the upper shaft regulating surface 53 and the lower shaft regulating surface 55, supports the shaft 39 and regulates the swinging of the shaft 39. The coil spring 33, which is supported by the flat surface 56 as described above, can swing relative to the base 3 around a center roughly equivalent to the position of the second joint axis C3 in the first embodiment in response to the swinging of the shaft 39. Therefore, in the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the direction in which the elastic force of the coil spring 33 biases the handle 4 changes in response to the rotation of the handle 4.

In this way, the biasing mechanism 50 according to the second embodiment has a simpler structure than the biasing mechanism of the first embodiment, since the spring support portion 51 is fixed to the base 3.

On the other hand, the biasing mechanism 5 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 can always receive the other winding end of the coil spring 33 in a fixed direction when the handle 4 is rotated, so the oscillation and compression of the coil spring 33 are more stable than in the second embodiment. Therefore, if structural simplification is a priority, the second embodiment should be used, and if operational stability and durability are a priority, the first embodiment should be used.

The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, and it is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Door handle device 2 Door 3 Base 4 Handle 5, 50 Pressing mechanism 14 Roller 31 Joint portion 32, 51 Spring support portion 33 Coil spring 34 First joint shaft 35 Second joint shaft 36 Head 39 Shaft 40 Flat surface 41 Slide hole

Claims (2)

A base fixed to the door;
A roller-equipped handle supported rotatably about an axis relative to the base;
a biasing mechanism that biases the handle that is closer to one side around the axis with respect to a predetermined rotation position located midway through a rotation range of the handle in a direction to rotate the handle in the one direction, and biases the handle that is closer to the other side around the axis with respect to the predetermined rotation position in a direction to rotate the handle in the other direction,
the biasing mechanism includes a coil spring, a joint portion that rotates one winding end of the coil spring about the axis in response to rotation of the handle, and a spring support portion that receives the other winding end of the coil spring so that the coil spring swings relative to the base in response to the rotation by the joint portion ,
A door handle device characterized in that the coil spring is a compression coil spring arranged so that when the coil spring is in the specified rotation position, it is positioned away from the axis in a linear direction perpendicular to the axis and toward the spring support portion . A base fixed to the door;
A roller-equipped handle supported rotatably about an axis relative to the base;
a biasing mechanism that biases the handle that is closer to one side around the axis with respect to a predetermined rotation position located midway through a rotation range of the handle in a direction to rotate the handle in the one direction, and biases the handle that is closer to the other side around the axis with respect to the predetermined rotation position in a direction to rotate the handle in the other direction,
the biasing mechanism includes a coil spring, a joint portion that rotates one winding end of the coil spring about the axis in response to rotation of the handle, and a spring support portion that receives the other winding end of the coil spring so that the coil spring swings relative to the base in response to the rotation by the joint portion,
the joint portion is connected to the handle so as to be relatively rotatable about a first joint axis, the spring support portion is connected to the base so as to be relatively rotatable about a second joint axis, the first joint axis and the second joint axis are in a direction along the axis,
the joint portion includes a first link member having integrally a head that receives the coil spring in a direction along a straight line perpendicular to the first joint axis and the second joint axis, and a shaft that extends from the head in a direction along the straight line,
The door handle device according to claim 1, wherein the spring support portion comprises a second link member that supports the coil spring in a direction along the straight line and slides relatively against the axis in the direction along the straight line.

Images