Safety cabinet with interlock mechanism
First Claim
1. A safety cabinet comprising:
- an enclosure defining an opening;
a door rotatably attached to the enclosure, the door moveable between an open position and a closed position, the door configured to selectively cover at least a portion of the opening of the enclosure when in the closed position;
an interlock mechanism arranged with at least one of the enclosure and the door, the interlock mechanism including a mounting element, a fusible link, a catch, and a biasing mechanism, wherein;
the fusible link interconnects the mounting element and the catch,the catch is movable over a range of travel between a retracted position, in which the catch is in non-interlocking relationship with the door and the enclosure, and an interlocked position, in which the catch is in interlocking relationship with the door and the enclosure when the door is in the closed position to constrain relative movement between the door and the enclosure,the biasing mechanism is arranged with the catch to urge the catch to the interlocked position, andthe fusible link is connected to the catch such that the catch is constrained from moving to the interlocked position by the fusible link, and the fusible link is configured to melt at a predetermined temperature to thereby disconnect the catch from the mounting element to allow the biasing mechanism to move the catch relative to the mounting element to the interlocked position;
a latch system arranged within the door to selectively retain the door in the closed position, the latch system including a first latch rod assembly, the first latch rod assembly having a latch rod comprising the mounting element of the interlock mechanism and a distal latch rod segment comprising the catch of the interlock mechanism, the distal latch rod segment connected to the latch rod with the fusible link of the interlock mechanism, the latch system operable to selectively move the catch of the interlock mechanism over a range of travel between the retracted position and an intermediate extended position in which the catch is in interfering relationship with the door and the enclosure, the intermediate extended position disposed between the retracted position and the interlocked position, and the fusible link connected to the catch such that the catch is prevented from moving from the intermediate extended position to the interlocked position until the fusible link melts at the predetermined temperature.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A safety cabinet is disclosed which includes an enclosure having a double-wall construction and at least one door to selectively seal the enclosure. The safety cabinet includes a latch system for selectively retaining the door(s) in a closed position to cover the enclosure. The safety cabinet can be used to store, for example, flammable liquids, flammable waste, corrosives, pesticides, or combustible waste. The latch system includes fusible links that fuse when exposed to high ambient temperatures and cause the latch system to further engage the enclosure, thereby promoting the interlocking relationship between the door(s) and the enclosure when the safety cabinet is exposed to threshold high ambient temperatures.
150 Citations
17 Claims
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1. A safety cabinet comprising:
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an enclosure defining an opening; a door rotatably attached to the enclosure, the door moveable between an open position and a closed position, the door configured to selectively cover at least a portion of the opening of the enclosure when in the closed position; an interlock mechanism arranged with at least one of the enclosure and the door, the interlock mechanism including a mounting element, a fusible link, a catch, and a biasing mechanism, wherein; the fusible link interconnects the mounting element and the catch, the catch is movable over a range of travel between a retracted position, in which the catch is in non-interlocking relationship with the door and the enclosure, and an interlocked position, in which the catch is in interlocking relationship with the door and the enclosure when the door is in the closed position to constrain relative movement between the door and the enclosure, the biasing mechanism is arranged with the catch to urge the catch to the interlocked position, and the fusible link is connected to the catch such that the catch is constrained from moving to the interlocked position by the fusible link, and the fusible link is configured to melt at a predetermined temperature to thereby disconnect the catch from the mounting element to allow the biasing mechanism to move the catch relative to the mounting element to the interlocked position; a latch system arranged within the door to selectively retain the door in the closed position, the latch system including a first latch rod assembly, the first latch rod assembly having a latch rod comprising the mounting element of the interlock mechanism and a distal latch rod segment comprising the catch of the interlock mechanism, the distal latch rod segment connected to the latch rod with the fusible link of the interlock mechanism, the latch system operable to selectively move the catch of the interlock mechanism over a range of travel between the retracted position and an intermediate extended position in which the catch is in interfering relationship with the door and the enclosure, the intermediate extended position disposed between the retracted position and the interlocked position, and the fusible link connected to the catch such that the catch is prevented from moving from the intermediate extended position to the interlocked position until the fusible link melts at the predetermined temperature. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. An interlock mechanism for selectively retaining a door of a safety cabinet in a closed position, the interlock mechanism including a mounting element, a fusible link, a catch, and a biasing mechanism, wherein:
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the fusible link is connected to both the mounting element and the catch; the catch is movable over a range of travel between a retracted position and an interlocked position; the biasing mechanism arranged with the catch to urge the catch to the interlocked position; and the fusible link is connected to the catch such that the catch is constrained from moving to the interlocked position by the fusible link, and the fusible link is configured to melt at a predetermined temperature to thereby allow the biasing mechanism to move the catch to the interlocked position; wherein the catch comprises a bullet slam latch including a guide rod, a canister, and a bullet catch biased to the interlocked position, the guide rod connected to the fusible link such that the fusible link constrains the bullet catch of the bullet slam latch from moving to the interlocked position. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17)
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Specification