REVERSIBLE VENTILATION SLIDE INHIBITOR

Abstract

A reversible ventilation slide inhibitor adapted to be positioned on a sliding member, including: a lockable body with first and second passages, a locking barrel located between the first and second passages capable of being rotated between a locked and unlocked position, and a reversible stop piece with first and second pins. Each of the pins adapted to be inserted into either of the passages, thereby making the reversible stop piece reversible between an active and an inactive position. The reversible stop piece in the active position abuts a sliding member, to prevent movement of the sliding member beyond a fixed point on a track on which the sliding member is adapted to slide. When in the inactive position allows the sliding member to bypass the reversible stop piece to an unrestricted opening distance.

Claims

1. A reversible ventilation slide inhibitor with reversible stop piece comprising: a lockable body with first and second passages; a locking barrel located between the first and second passages within the lockable body and capable of being rotated between a locked position and an unlocked position; a reversible stop piece with first and second pins, wherein each of the first and second pins of the reversible stop piece are adapted to be inserted into either one of the first and second passages of the lockable body, thereby making the reversible stop piece reversible between an active position and an inactive position; wherein the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor is adapted to be positioned on a window sill onto which a sliding member is installed; and wherein the reversible stop piece in the active position abuts a sliding member movement beyond a fixed point on a track on which the sliding member is adapted to slide, and when in the inactive position the reversible stop piece allows the sliding member to bypass the reversible stop piece to an unrestricted opening distance.

2. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein each of said first and second passages comprise a top opening and a bottom opening, wherein each top opening is of a diameter larger than the diameter of the bottom opening to allow a securing device to be inserted through the top opening of each passage and to be captured by a smaller diameter bottom opening.

3. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein the first passage is substantially parallel to said second passage.

4. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein each of said first and second passages is adapted to receive either the first pin or second pin of the reversible stop piece.

5. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein the first passage comprises an aperture through which the locking barrel is able to rotate between the locked position and the unlocked position.

6. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 5, wherein said locking barrel is capable of being rotated between the locked position and the unlocked position, further wherein the locking barrel engages with the first pin of the reversible stop piece that is inserted into the first passage when in the locked position to capture the reversible stop piece and prevent its removal from the lockable body.

7. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 6, wherein the reversible stop piece comprises a first and a second parallel pins.

8. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 7, wherein the first and second pins are secured to an underside of a stop bracket.

9. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 8, wherein the stop bracket comprises a shelf vertically projecting from one edge of the stop bracket to form a stop ledge.

10. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 9, wherein the stop bracket is adapted such that when in the active position the stop ledge will protrude over an elongated track of the sliding member and limit opening of the sliding member beyond a fixed point on the track.

11. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 9, wherein the stop bracket is reversed and inserted into the lockable body in the inactive position whereby the stop ledge protrudes away from the track of the sliding member, thereby allowing the sliding member to bypass the stop ledge and move beyond a fixed point on the track to an unrestricted open position.

12. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein the locking barrel is positioned between the first and second passages and accessed via a keyhole located at a front side of the lockable body.

13. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein each of the first and second pins are adapted to be positioned in either of the first or the second passages, thereby making the reversible stop piece reversible.

14. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein once inserted into the lockable body, the pin contained within the first passage of the lockable body engages with the locking barrel when in the locked position to capture the reversible stop piece and prevent its removal from the lockable body.

15. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor according to claim 1, wherein once inserted into the lockable body, the in contained in the second passage of the lockable body stabilises the reversible stop piece and prevents rotational movement of the reversible stop piece upon contact with the sliding member.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a perspective view of reversible ventilation slide inhibitor, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0029] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates an exploded view of the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor from FIG. 1, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0030] FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of reversible ventilation slide inhibitor with stop piece inserted and the locking barrel in the locked position, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0031] FIG. 4A schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of the lockable body with the locking barrel in the unlocked position and the reversible stop piece partially inserted, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0032] FIG. 4B schematically illustrates a cross-sectional view of the lockable body with locking barrel in unlocked position and stop piece removed, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0033] FIG. 5A schematically illustrates the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor installed on a window or door frame with stop piece in the active position, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure;

[0034] FIG. 5B schematically illustrates the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor installed on window or door with stop piece in the inactive position, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the disclosure. The reversible ventilation slide inhibitor is comprised primarily of a lockable body 1, a locking barrel 2 and a reversible stop piece 3. The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary and are not intended to be limited to the structural and functional details described herein. Terms such as front, back, top and bottom will be used with reference to orientation of the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor in the drawings. In real life applications, the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor may be installed in any orientation required by the specific application.

[0036] FIG. 1 depicts the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor with the reversible stop piece 3 inserted into the lockable body 1 such that the stop ledge 4 extends over the back side of the lockable body 1 with the locking barrel 2 facing the front. This particular exemplary embodiment is herein described as the active position. In the alternative, inactive position (not shown), the reversible stop piece 3 may be removed from the lockable body 1 and re-inserted in the reverse position such that the stop ledge 4 extends over the front side of the lockable body 1.

[0037] In some embodiments, the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor may be adapted to be positioned on a first sliding member, when movement and opening distance of a second adjacent sliding member is sought to be restricted.

[0038] Referring to FIG. 2, the lockable body 1 includes a first passage 5 and a second passage 6. Each of passages 5 and 6 is adapted to receive a fastening means, such as screws 12 (FIG. 3), for fastening the device to a secure structure (see screws 12 in FIG. 3). Each of the first and second passages is also adapted to receive either one of the first pin 7 or second pin 8 of the reversible stop piece 3 depending on the orientation of the reversible stop piece 3. The first passage 5 and second passage 6 are substantially parallel. The first passage 5 and second passage 6 differ only in that the first passage 5 may be in contact with an aperture 9. Locking barrel 2 may be inserted into aperture 9 and may be rotated with a use of a key (not shown) between the locked position, in which the curved edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 will protrude through aperture 9 into first passage 5, and the unlocked position, in which the concave edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 will align with the aperture 9 in the first passage 5, such that locking barrel 2 will not protrude through aperture 9 into first passage 5.

[0039] The reversible stop piece 3 is comprised of a first and second substantially identical pins. In some embodiments, the first and second pins may be positioned in parallel to one another. Making the stop piece reversible requires the first pin 7 and the second pin 8 to be substantially identically formed and separated by a distance corresponding to the distance between first passage 5 and second passage 6 of the lockable body 1. Both the first pin 7 and the second pin 8 are secured to the stop bracket 11. The stop bracket 11 may also extend along a portion of one edge of stop bracket 11 into a raised stop ledge 4, which projects vertically up and then away from the stop bracket 11. In some embodiments, stop bracket 11 may comprise a shelf vertically projecting from one edge of the stop bracket 11 to form stop ledge 4. The height and length of the said stop ledge 4 may be manufactured to variable dimensions depending on the dimensions required for different applications, e.g., different window/door sill widths.

[0040] The locking barrel 2 is designed to rotate by use of a key (not shown) between a locked position and an unlocked position. In the locked position the curved edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 protrudes through the aperture 9 into the first passage 5 such that it can engage with the pin inserted into the first passage 5 to capture the reversible stop piece 3 and prevent its removal from the lockable body 1. In the unlocked position, the concave edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 aligns with the aperture in the first passage 5. In this position, there is no protrusion through the aperture 9 and consequently no contact between the reversible stop piece 3 and the locking barrel 2, thereby allowing the reversible stop piece to be inserted and removed freely from the lockable body 1.

[0041] Referring to FIG. 3, the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor is depicted showing screws 12, inserted through both the first passage 5 and second passage 6 and captured by an opening at the bottom of each passage for fastening the device to a secure structure. In some embodiments other fastening means may be used instead of screws, such as bolts, glue, rivets nails and the like. In some embodiments, the diameter of the bottom opening, which is located at the bottom side of each passage is smaller compared to the diameter of the top opening of each passage, which is located at each of the passages' upper side. The reversible stop piece 3 is then shown inserted into the lockable body 1 above the screws 12, e.g., through the top opening of each of passages 5 and 6, which are of a larger diameter compared to the diameter of the bottom side opening. The locking barrel 2 is depicted in the locked position to demonstrate how the curved edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 protrudes through the aperture 9 and engages with the concave portion 7A of the first pin 7 inserted into the first passage 5. In this position the locking barrel 2 is in the locked position and the reversible stop piece 3 is captured and unable to be removed from the lockable body 1.

[0042] Referring to FIG. 4A, the locking barrel 2 is depicted in the unlocked position. The locking barrel may be rotated by use of a key (not shown) such that the concave edge 10 of the locking barrel 2 will align with aperture 9 of the first passage. In this position the locking barrel 2 does not protrude through the aperture 9 and does not engage with the pin inserted into the first passage 3. In the absence of any physical inhibition to its removal, the reversible stop piece 3 can be lifted freely and removed from the lockable body 1 as shown by FIG. 4B.

[0043] The substantially similar configuration of both the first pin 7 and second pin 8 enable the locking barrel 2 to engage either the first pin 7 or the second pin 8 depending on the orientation of the reversible stop piece 3 inserted into the lockable body such that the locking mechanism described herein can capture the reversible stop piece 3 in either the active or the inactive position. That is, in the active position, first pin 7 would be inserted into first passage 5 (while second pin 8 would be inserted into second passage 6), thereby enabling locking barrel 2 to engage the concave portion 7A of first pin 7 such to capture stop piece 3 in its active orientation. In the inactive position of stop piece 3, it is second pin 8 that is inserted to first passage 5 (while first pin 7 would be inserted into second passage 6), thereby enabling locking barrel 2 to engage the concave portion 8A of second pin 8 such to capture stop piece 3 in its opposite inactive orientation.

[0044] FIG. 5A depicts a real-life application of the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor fastened to a secure structure. In this exemplary embodiment, reversible ventilation slide inhibitor is fastened onto window sill 13 onto which a sliding member is installed. With the reversible stop piece 3 in the active position such that the stop ledge 4 traverses the window sill 13 of a sliding member, e.g., a window 15, to extend over the track 14. In this position a window sash, may move freely until abutment with the stop ledge 4 will inhibit further movement beyond the fixed restricted opening position.

[0045] FIG. 5B depicts the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor installed in the same position on window sill 13 but with the reversible stop piece 3 in the reversed inactive position such that the stop ledge 4 extends over the front side of the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor and away from the window 15. In the inactive position the sliding member (e.g., window 15 of FIG. 5A) can bypass the stop ledge 4 and move to an unrestricted open position beyond the reversible ventilation slide inhibitor.