A STRIKER AND A METHOD FOR FORMING A STRIKE PLATE

Abstract

 A striker (1) comprising: a front side; a sloping side; an elongated slot in the front side configured to receive a moveable bolt of a lock and having a top sidewall, a bottom sidewall, and two longitudinal sidewalls (14); and a strike plate (8) which is integrally formed from a single metal plate and which forms said front side, said sloping side, said top sidewall and said bottom sidewall. The strike plate comprise: a first attachment surface comprising an attachment opening; and a second attachment surface comprising an attachment opening. The attachment openings are configured to receive a bolt or screw for attaching the striker to a support surface.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a striker for cooperating with a lock having at least one moveable bolt which is movable between an extended and a retracted position. The present invention is further related to a method for forming a strike plate particularly for the striker according to the invention.

[0002] A known striker comprises: a substantially flat front side; and an elongated slot in said front side, the elongated slot extending in a longitudinal direction and being configured to receive said at least one moveable bolt in its extended position, the elongated slot having a top sidewall, a bottom sidewall, two sidewalls which are substantially parallel to said longitudinal direction and a bottom. Attachment openings are provided in the bottom and are configured to receive a bolt or screw for attaching the striker to a support surface.

[0003] Such strikers are typically used at gates or doors in an enclosure, and are already known from patent publication EP 1 600 584 A1 and US 6,684,669 B1. These known strikers are mounted on a post and are adapted for locking the gate or door, in conjunction with the latch bolt and the deadbolt. These known strikers consist mainly of two parts, namely a block and an angled (usually L-shaped) section. The angled section is made of metal, one leg fitting adjustably into the block, and the other leg being provided as a striker for the gate. The block is made of cast aluminium, with a slot for the latch bolt and the deadbolt. In particular, the block is made of stainless cast aluminium because this is the simplest and cheapest way of obtaining such a shape.

[0004] However, cast aluminium is a fragile material that can easily be broken. Therefore, it is possible to force the striker by exerting sufficient force on the gate, causing the striker to break, thereby enabling the deadbolt to be released out of the slot, thus enabling the gate to be opened. This force can be exercised, for example, by placing a crowbar between the gate and the post.

[0005] A further disadvantage of the already known striker is that the block, which is made of cast aluminium, will wear out over time. In particular, due to the frequent closing of the gate or door causing the latch bolt to scrape over a sloping side of the block. This wear is of course undesirable and also hinders the gate or door from closing automatically. A gate or door that automatically closes is already known and can, for example, work with a hinge provided for that purpose, as in patent publication EP 1 680 567 B1. A further disadvantage of the known strikers is that the cast aluminium corrodes quickly. As a result, the latch bolt can less easily slide over the sloping side of the striker, hindering the automatic closing of the gate or door, and the gate or door will often not close when this is done with a gate closer with spring. Certainly in the case of children, it is important that the gate, whose lock is provided so that children cannot release it, for example in a fence around a swimming pool, closes in a reliable way.

[0006] In order to alleviate the problems with the cast aluminium, the present Applicant has already developed an improved striker which is disclosed in patent publication EP 3 239 440 A1. The striker disclosed therein has a three part structure which comprises a supporting member with an L-shaped section and a strike plate mounted thereon. The supporting member is typically injection moulded from a plastic material. The L-shaped section is made of metal, one leg fitting adjustably into the supporting member, and the other leg being provided as a striker for the gate. The strike plate is integrally formed from a metal plate and forms said two sidewalls of the slot, the bottom of the slot, said sloping side, and said front side of the striker. Attachment openings are provided in the bottom through which bolts are placed to attach the striker to the post.

[0007] The strike plate further comprises an opening in the bottom of the slot adjacent to a recess in the supporting member. The opening and the recess together form a cavity which provides a security in case the deadbolt cannot fully extend into the slot, for example, if the gate and the post on which the striker is mounted connect with virtually no play. It is therefore only in exceptional cases that the deadbolt will extend into this slot in its extended position.

[0008] The main advantage of this known striker is that the integrally formed strike plate is less fragile than cast aluminium and thus breaks less easily. The strike plate will also not wear out quickly because of the scraping of the latch bolt over the strike plate due to the frequent closing of the gate or door. However, the known striker is relatively expensive due to the volume and size of the strike plate.

[0009] DE 203 00 114 A1 discloses an adjustable strike plate for a door which can be adjusted to exert more or less pressure on the door. More specifically, the strike plate comprises a flat upper section having an elongated slot therein. The lower section of the strike plate has a further elongated slot in which an adjusting member is placed. The further elongated slot is provided with L-shaped sections at the top and bottom with a first leg thereof extending away from the flat front surface and a second leg being parallel to the flat front surface. The second leg is corrugated and provided with elongated openings. Likewise, the adjusting part is provided with corrugated sections and openings. Bolts and nuts are used to attach the adjusting part to the strike plate.

[0010] It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved striker that maintains the advantages of the striker disclosed in EP 3 239 440 A1 but which is cheaper to manufacture.

[0011] This object is achieved in that the striker comprises a strike plate which is integrally formed from a single metal plate and which forms said front side, said top sidewall and said bottom sidewall, the strike plate further comprising: a first substantially flat attachment surface extending from the top sidewall along the bottom of the elongated slot and comprising an attachment opening; and a second substantially flat attachment surface extending from the bottom sidewall along the bottom of the elongated slot and comprising an attachment opening. The attachment openings are configured to receive a bolt or screw for attaching the striker to a support surface. The substantially flat attachment surfaces typically form part of the bottom of the elongated slot. The strike further preferably does not form said two sidewalls.

[0012] The strike plate according to the present invention only comprises said front side, said top sidewall, said bottom sidewall and two attachment surfaces. In other words, the strike plate does not necessarily form the sidewalls of the elongated slot and does not form the entire bottom of the elongated slot. The strike plate according to the present invention thus comprises less material when compared to the known strike plate and is therefore cheaper while maintaining the advantages of using an integrally formed strike plate. There is also no need to provide an opening in the bottom of the strike plate as in the known strike plate disclosed in EP 3 239 440 A1 as the strike plate according to the present invention does not form the bottom of the elongated slot.

[0013] An alternative solution to decrease the cost of the striker is to rely on a thinner strike plate. However, this would reduce the overall strength of the striker which is not desirable.

[0014] As used herein, the phrase "strike plate which is integrally formed from a single metal plate" is intended to mean that the strike plate is formed from starting from a single metal plate which is subsequently deformed (e.g. due to folding, bending, compressing, stretching, and/or removing material, for example by stamping, cutting, filing, drilling, or milling) into the desired shape. Furthermore, casting, which involves pouring a liquid metal in a mould to cool, is not considered as falling under the phrase "strike plate which is integrally formed from a single metal plate" since the initial product is in liquid form and thus cannot be considered as a single metal plate.

[0015] In an embodiment of the invention the top sidewall extends between the front side and the first flat attachment surface and the bottom sidewall extends between the front side and the second flat attachment surface. This minimizes the material required for the strike plate as the attachment surfaces are attached to the front side along the top/bottom side of the elongated groove.

[0016] In an embodiment of the invention the striker further comprises: a substantially flat rear side which is configured to be mounted against a support surface; and a supporting member which forms at least said two sidewalls, part of said bottom and part of said rear side, the supporting member supporting said strike plate and being preferably injection moulded from a plastic material. The supporting member provides support for the strike plate and allows for an additional cavity to be provided into which a deadbolt can extend through the bottom of the slot. Injection moulding the supporting member is a well-known technique which allows manufacturing the supporting member is an efficient manner. A striker with a substantially flat rear side is useful to mount the striker to a flat support surface, e.g. the side surface of a post.

[0017] Preferably, the strike plate further comprises at least one alignment opening in said front side and the supporting member comprises at least one alignment protrusion which is located at least partly in said at least one alignment opening. The alignment openings aid in assembling the striker and avoid wrongly positioning the strike plate on the supporting member.

[0018] Preferably the striker further comprises an L-shaped stop configured for stopping a closing motion of a closure member on which the lock is mounted, the L-shaped stop having a first leg and a second leg, the first leg being mounted to the supporting member and forming part of said rear side, the second leg protruding from the front side of the striker, the L-shaped stop preferably being manufactured (e.g. by extrusion moulding or by metal folding) from metal. More preferably the first leg of the L-shaped stop and the supporting member each have a grooved region which cooperate with one another to allow adjusting a spacing between the second leg of the L-shaped stop and said elongated slot.

[0019] The second leg of the L-shaped section forms a door stop for a gate or door with the lock such that the at least one bolt (e.g. the latch bolt and the deadbolt) are immediately aligned correctly to be extended into the slot and the cavity, respectively. The grooved regions allow that the L-shaped section cannot be moved relative to the supporting member as a result of the stroke of the gate or door, while at the same time allowing to adjust the distance between the second leg of the L-shaped section and the elongated slot in the striker. If the L-shaped section is extruded from metal, this grooved region can also be easily manufactured.

[0020] In an embodiment of the invention the striker comprises a substantially flat rear side which is configured to be mounted against a support surface, the striker having a height which is measured as a shortest distance between said front side and said rear side, a shortest distance between said rear side and said attachment surfaces being at most 35%, preferably at most 30%, and more preferably at most 25%, of said height. Placing the attachment surfaces closer to the rear of the striker naturally also places them closer to the support on which the striker is mounted. As such, decreasing this distance is advantageous as any force exerted on the striker is then transmitted over a smaller distance to the support. In other words, less strong fixation means (e.g. bolts or screws) may be used thus decreasing the overall cost of the striker. However, when the distance is too low, there is no longer any room for a cavity in the supporting member, which cavity is used to account for leeway on the extended state of the at least one bolt, in particular a dead bolt.

[0021] In an embodiment of the invention the striker comprises at least one sloping side adjacent said front side and configured for automatically depressing said at least one moveable bolt, said at least one sloping side preferably being formed by said strike plate. Such a sloping side is a convenient way to automatically depress a latch bolt. Furthermore, providing this as part of the strike plate ensures that the sloping side is sufficiently wear-and-tear resistant.

[0022] In an embodiment of the invention the strike plate is made of a non-corrosive metal, e.g. stainless steel or aluminium. This aids in avoiding wear-and-tear damage and/or damage due to the outdoors use.

[0023] In an embodiment of the invention the strike plate further comprises an angled section adjacent said front side. In this way, the side of the striker opposing said angled slope comprises an L-shaped section. This drastically improves the overall strength and rigidity of the strike plate.

[0024] In an embodiment of the invention a shortest distance between said front side and each flat attachment surface is comprised between about 1.2 cm and about 2.5 cm, with particular lower limits of about 1.5 cm, about 1.7 cm and about 1.8 cm and with particular upper limits of about 2.2 cm, about 2.0 cm and about 1.9 cm. Such a depth is typically sufficient to receive the bolt of the door lock in its latching or locking state with sufficient play to account for bolt tolerances.

[0025] The object according to the invention is also achieved with a method for forming the strike plate described above, the method comprising: a) providing a substantially flat metal plate; b) removing material from the flat metal plate to form: an elongated opening extending in a longitudinal direction, the opening having a top side, a bottom side and two sides substantially extending in the longitudinal direction; c) creating a top lip extending away from the top side of the elongated opening and a bottom lip extending away from bottom side of the elongated opening; d) removing material from the flat metal plate to form an opening in each lip; and e) performing, on each lip, at least two separate folding operations thereby deforming each lip to an L-shaped element having a first leg and a second leg, the first leg extending substantially perpendicular away from the flat metal plate and the second leg extending substantially perpendicular away from the first leg such that the second leg is substantially parallel to the flat metal plate, the second leg comprising said opening.

[0026] The method results in the strike plate described above which requires less material to manufacture. Furthermore, the method is also easier to execute when compared to a known method of manufacturing the strike plate which required at least four distinct folding operations, each along the longitudinal direction of the elongated slot, to create the elongated slot, while the method according to the invention requires four distinct folding operations along the transverse direction of the strike plate. The material thus has to be folded over a smaller distance which requires less force. The machines used for folding the strike plate can thus less expensive.

[0027] In an embodiment of the invention step c) comprises removing material to form: a first set of two mutually parallel narrow channels substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the top side of the elongated opening thereby forming the top lip; and a second set of two mutually parallel narrow channels substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the bottom side of the elongated opening thereby forming the bottom lip. Material is preferably removed to form channels having a width which is equal to or greater than a thickness of the flat metal plate. Furthermore, all material removal steps, i.e. steps b) to d), are preferably performed in a single material removal step. Although the lips can be formed by tearing the flat metal plate, it is preferred to first create narrow channels (e.g. using die cutting, punch tooling, cutting, laser cutting, etc.) that delimit the lips to avoid tear marks on the strike plate. Forming channels with a width equal to or exceeding the plate thickness reduces the risk that the punch used for punch tooling the plate breaks. Finally, the manufacturing process can be performed quite fast by performing all material removal steps in a single operation which may be achieved, for example, by punch tooling.

[0028] In an embodiment of the invention said at least two separate folding operations comprise: a first folding operation along a first folding line over an angle of between 80° and 100° in a first rotational direction; and a second folding operation along a second folding line which is substantially parallel to the first folding line over an angle of between 80° and 100° in a second rotational direction which is opposite to the first rotational direction, wherein, preferably, the first folding line is nearer the opening in the lip than the second folding line. The angle of between 80° and 100° is usually a bit smaller than 90°, e.g. 85°. This is due to the fact that the force required for bending further drastically increases when bending the plater above the 90° angle. Doing the inner folds first is also easier as this allows folding in the direction in which the openings/channels were stamped for both folding operations.

[0029] In an embodiment of the invention the method further comprises: folding the flat metal plate along a folding line extending substantially in the longitudinal direction and being adjacent the elongated opening thereby forming a sloping side and/or an angled section.

[0030] The invention will hereafter be explained in further detail by way of the following description and the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a striker according to the invention mounted on a post.

Figure 2 shows a longitudinal cross-section through the striker according to the invention.

Figure 3 shows a detail of figure 2.

Figure 4 shows a partially exploded view of the striker according to the invention with a partial cut-away.

Figure 5 shows a lock with a latch bolt and a deadbolt in cooperation with the striker according to the invention.

Figure 6 shows a rear-side perspective view of the striker according to the invention.

Figure 7A to 7C show various steps in manufacturing the strike plate for use in the striker according to the invention.

[0031] Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a striker 1 according to the invention, mounted on a surface of a post 2 (or more general a support). The striker 1 is mounted with its rear side against the surface of the post 2, and is attached thereto by two bolts 3 which pass through the striker 1. Each bolt 3 is part of a fixture set as described in EP 1 907 712 B1 or in EP 3 575 617 A1. For each fixture set, the bolt 3 is inserted through the striker 1 into a fixation element 4 having a square cross-section that fits into a square section 5 (indicated in figure 6) on the backside of the striker 1. For each fixture set, the bolt 3 is screwed into an automatically fastening nut element 6 that is located inside the support 2. It will be readily appreciated that more or fewer fixture sets may also be used to fix the striker 1 to the support 2. Moreover, other and/or additional fastening means may also be used.

[0032] The striker 1 comprises three distinct structural elements, namely a supporting member 7, a strike plate 8 and an L-shaped (i.e. angled) section 9. The supporting member 7 and the strike plate 8 jointly define an elongated slot 10. The elongated slot has a bottom 11 and four sidewalls, i.e. a top sidewall 12, a bottom sidewall 13 and two longitudinal sidewalls 14. The L-shaped section 9 has a first leg 15 parallel to the surface of the post 2 and forms a part of the rear of the striker 1, and a second leg 16 forms a striker for closing a gate 17. The L-shaped section 9 is extruded from metal and thus forms a single element, which increases the strength of the striker 1.

[0033] As is best shown in figure 4, the strike plate 8 forms a front side 18 of the striker 1 which front side 18 is provided with an opening 19 which forms part of the elongated slot 10. Adjacent the front side 18, the strike plate 8 forms a sloping side 20 and an L-shaped end 21. The sloping side 20 is used for automatically depressing a latch bolt 22 of a lock 23 which cooperates with the striker 1. The L-shaped end 21 improves the rigidity and strength of the strike plate 8, but in other embodiments, the L-shaped end 21 may be absent. The strike plate 8 further forms the top sidewall 12 and the bottom sidewall 13 of the elongated slot 10. The top sidewall 12 extends to the top attachment surface 24 and the bottom sidewall 13 extends to the bottom attachment surface 25. Each attachment surface 24, 25 forms a small part of the bottom 11 of the elongated slot 10 and is provided with an attachment opening 26 through which the bolt 3 of the fixture set extends. Figure 2 further shows that the supporting member 7 has attachment openings 27 in the bottom 11 of the slot 10 through which the bolts 3 can be placed to secure the striker 1 to the post 2 as already described above. Likewise, openings are provided in the post 2 for the bolts 3.

[0034] Since the striker 1 is provided for attachment to the surface of a post 2 or other support which is in the open air, it is advantageous that the metal of the strike plate 8 is stainless steel. Furthermore, it is advantageous for the strength of the striker 1 that the strike plate 8 is made of steel, in particular stainless steel.

[0035] The supporting member 7 is preferably made of thermoplastic plastic which is moulded in the necessary shape. The shape of the front side of the supporting member 7 of the striker 1 corresponds to the shape of the strike plate 8. In particular, the strike plate 8 is also supported by the supporting member 7 at the height of the sloping side 20 of the striker 1, so that the strike plate 8 can be deformed even less easily. The rear of the supporting member 7 forms, together with the first leg 15 of the L-shaped section 9, the rear of the striker 1.

[0036] Figure 2 further shows that the supporting member 7 has two protrusions 28 corresponding to two round openings 29 in the strike plate 8. These protrusions 28 are provided to secure the strike plate 8 to the supporting member 7. To this end, the round openings 29 of the strike plate 8 are placed on the protrusions 28. Afterwards, the tips of the protrusions 28 protruding through the strike plate 8 may be heated and plastically deformed so that the protrusions 28 become stuck in the openings 29. Naturally more or less protrusions and openings 28, 29 may be used.

[0037] Figure 2 also illustrates that the bottom 11 of the elongated slot 10 has a deeper recessed region 30 caused by an opening 31 in the supporting member 7. As described above, this provides leeway for a dead bolt 32 of the lock 23.

[0038] Figure 5 shows a perspective view of the striker 1 in conjunction with a gate 17 with a lock 23 in a closed position thereon. For the sake of clarity, only one tube of the entire gate 17 is shown. The lock 23 is an externally mounted lock on a gate 17. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the striker 1 can also be used for a door in which the lock 23 is internally mounted or for a gate with an internal lock 23. The lock 23 comprises a door handle 33 and a lock cylinder 34 which operate a latch bolt 22 and a deadbolt 32, respectively, and can move them between an extended and a retracted position. The latch bolt 22 has a 'throw length', i.e. the distance between the retracted and extended position. The dead bolt 28 is of a rotating type in the illustrated embodiment with a hook-shaped element. However, a dead bolt of the sliding type may be also be used with the striker 1 according to the invention in which case the deeper recessed region 30 is advantageous.

[0039] It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the door handle 33 and the lock cylinder 34 may be replaced by other mechanisms for operating the latch bolt 22 and/or the deadbolt 32. It will also be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the latch bolt 22 of the lock 23 is intended to be used frequently for opening and closing the gate 17. In contrast, the deadbolt 32 is intended for securing the gate 17 and the deadbolt 32 and the striker 1 must therefore be secured together sufficiently such that the gate 17 cannot be easily broken open.

[0040] The lock 23 comprises a latch bolt spring to move the latch bolt 22 to its extended position. The door handle 33 is thus provided for moving the latch bolt 22, against the latch bolt spring, to its retracted position. When closing the gate 17, the latch bolt 22 is in the extended position, unless the door handle 33 is used to prevent this, and the deadbolt 32 is in its retracted position. The latch bolt 22 has a sloping side that strikes the sloping side 20 of the striker 1. Due to the movement of the gate 17 and the sloping side 20, the latch bolt 22 is depressed, which is also helped by the sloping surface of the latch bolt 22. As soon as the latch bolt 22 is beyond the sloping side 20, the latch bolt 22 will slide back out due to the action of the latch bolt spring, and extend into the slot 10 of the striker 1 and thus close the gate 17. To open the gate 17 again, it will then be necessary to use the door handle 33 to move the latch bolt 22 back to the retracted position, after which it will once again be out of the slot 10 and the gate 17 can therefore be opened again.

[0041] Figure 5 shows that the second leg 16 of the L-shaped section 9 serves as a striker for the gate 17. The second leg 16 extends from the front side of the striker 1 to beyond the slot 10 of the striker 1 and thus forms a striker for the gate 17 with the lock 23. The second leg 16 is provided with impact-damping elements 36 made of rubber in order to thus reduce the possible impact of the gate 17 against the second leg 16 and to avoid damage.

[0042] It will furthermore be apparent to a person skilled in the art that it is not necessary for both the latch bolt 22 to have a sloping side, and the striker 1 to have a sloping side 20. Either one will suffice to automatically press the latch bolt 22 when closing the gate 17. However, it is advantageous that both sloping elements are present, to allow more clearance between the post 2 on which the striker 1 is mounted and the gate 17 with the lock 23. This advantage can be further enhanced by the use of an adjustable latch bolt 22, where it is possible to adjust the distance between the latch bolt 22 and the lock 23 as described, for example, in patent publication EP 0 963 498 B1.

[0043] A further important advantage of the supporting member 7 is that, in contrast to the strike plate 8, it can easily be provided with a grooved section 37. The first leg 15 of the L-shaped section 9 has a grooved region 38 engaging the grooved section 37. The L-shaped section 9 has two elongated recesses 39 where the bolts 3 are located. The elongated recesses 39 in combination with the grooved sections 37, 38 make it possible to adjust the distance between the second leg 16 and a longitudinal side of the striker 1. This is advantageous since it allows the striker 1 to be adjusted to the thickness of the gate 17 on which the lock 23 is mounted. The grooved sections 37, 38 ensure that the L-shaped section 9 can no longer move relative to the supporting member 7.

[0044] Relevant distances of the strike 1 have also been indicated in figure 2. In particular, the total depth D of the striker 1, i.e. the distance between the front face of the strike plate 8 and the rear side (e.g. the rear of the supporting member 7 or the rear of the first leg 15) of the striker 1, and the slot depth d, i.e. the distance between the front face of the strike plate 8 and the bottom 11 of the slot 10. Preferably, the depth d of the slot 10 will be substantially equal to the throw length of the latch bolt 22 and, more preferably, the depth d of the slot 10 will be smaller than the throw length of the latch bolt 22. In figure 2, the depth di of the slot 8 will be approximately 1.5 cm and be provided for a latch bolt 22 with a throw length of approximately 1.8 cm, but depending on the throw length of the latch bolt 22, this depth d may vary. Furthermore, the depth D should preferably be between 2 and 3 cm, more preferably between 2.3 and 2.7 cm, and most preferably, substantially 2.5 cm. This total depth D should preferably be substantially equal to the throw length of the deadbolt 32 (in case a slideable deadbolt is used). It will therefore be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the total depth D of the striker 1 is dependent on the throw of the deadbolt 32. Specifically, if the slot 24 used has a deadbolt 32 with a throw length of 2.5 cm, the striker 1 will preferably have a total depth D of substantially 2.5 cm.

[0045] In the illustrated embodiment, the distance d is about 75% of the distance D. In other words, the recess 30 has a depth of about 25% of the striker depth D, although this may be increased up to 35% of the striker depth D. As mentioned above, in practice, a certain amount of variation is possible in the distance between the gate 17 and the post 2. The depth of the recess 30 is therefore sufficiently large to accommodate the possible play.

[0046] The striker 1 as described above can be used both for a left-handed and a right-handed gate 17 or door, since the striker 1 is symmetrical in its longitudinal direction; in other words, the bottom and the top of the striker 1 are identical, such that the striker 1 can be mounted upside down.

[0047] In the illustrated embodiment, the deadbolt 32 is of the rotatable type. This is beneficial as there is less variation on the throw of the deadbolt 32 so that the recess 30 depth can be minimized. This reduction in turn allows positioning the attachment surfaces 24, 25 closer to the post 2 which is advantageous as described above. In general, the attachment surfaces 24, 25 are at a distance from the post 2 which is at most 35% of the depth D, preferably at most 30% of the depth D, and most preferably at most 25% of the depth D.

[0048] In order for the deadbolt 32 to catch on the striker 1, the striker 1 is provided with an H-shaped element 40 located at the front side of the elongated slot 10. Biasing members (e.g. springs) 41 are used to urge the H-shaped element 40 in the desired vertical position irrespective of the orientation of the striker 1. More specifically, the striker 1 is used in two opposite vertical orientations depending on the handedness of the gate 17 and post 2. In other words, the striker 1 is turned upside down when used for left-handed gate/post systems when compared to its orientation for right-handed gate/post systems. The H-shaped element 40 slides downwards due to gravity and is maintained in the correct vertical position by the biasing members 41.

[0049] Figures 7A to 7C illustrate various stages in a method for forming the strike plate 8. In a first stage, a flat metal plate 50 is provided and material is removed to from an elongated opening 51 extending in a longitudinal direction, the opening 51 having a top side 53, a bottom side 54 and two sides substantially 52 extending in the longitudinal direction; a first set of two mutually parallel narrow channels 55 substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the top side 53 of the elongated 51 opening thereby forming a top lip 57; a second set of two mutually parallel narrow channels 56 substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the bottom side 54 of the elongated opening 51 thereby forming a bottom lip 58; and an opening 26 in each lip 57, 58. The material may be removed in a single stage or in multiple stages. Various methods for material removal are known to the skilled person, e.g. milling, cutting, stamping, punching, etc. The channels 55, 56 have a width which is preferably equal to or larger than the thickness of the metal plate 50. Alternatively, the lips 57, 58 are formed by tearing the metal plate 50.

[0050] In a second stage, illustrated in figures 7B and 7C, the lips 57, 58 are folded twice, once along each folding line 59, 60, over an angle of about 85° (or more general between 80° and 100°). In the illustrated embodiment, the folding operation along line 60 is executed first. In a third stage, which may happen prior to the second stage or after the second stage or even interleaved therewith, the metal plate 50 is folded along line 61 to create the sloping side 20 and preferably also along line 62 to create the L-shaped reinforcement 21. Various methods for material folding are known to the skilled person, e.g. air bending, bottoming, coining, etc.

[0051] Although aspects of the present disclosure have been described with respect to specific embodiments, it will be readily appreciated that these aspects may be implemented in other forms within the scope of the invention as defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A striker (1) for cooperating with a lock (23) having at least one moveable bolt (22, 32) which is movable between an extended and a retracted position, the striker comprising:

- a substantially flat front side (18); and

- an elongated slot (10) in said front side, the elongated slot extending in a longitudinal direction and being configured to receive said at least one moveable bolt in its extended position, the elongated slot having a top sidewall (12), a bottom sidewall (13), two sidewalls (14) which are substantially parallel to said longitudinal direction and a bottom (11) in which attachment openings (26) are provided that are configured to receive a bolt (3) or screw for attaching the striker to a support surface,

characterised in that the striker comprises a strike plate (8) which is integrally formed from a single metal plate and which forms said front side, said top sidewall and said bottom sidewall, the strike plate further comprising:

- a first substantially flat attachment surface (24) extending from the top sidewall along the bottom of the elongated slot and comprising at least one of said attachment openings; and

- a second substantially flat attachment surface (25) extending from the bottom sidewall along the bottom of the elongated slot and comprising at least one of said attachment openings.

2. The striker according to claim 1, characterized in that the top sidewall extends between the front side and the first flat attachment surface and the bottom sidewall extends between the front side and the second flat attachment surface.

3. The striker according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the striker further comprises:

- a substantially flat rear side which is configured to be mounted against a support surface (2); and

- a supporting member (7) which forms at least said two sidewalls, part of said bottom and part of said rear side, the supporting member supporting said strike plate and being preferably injection moulded from a plastic material.

4. The striker according to claim 3, characterized in that the strike plate further comprises at least one alignment opening (29) in said front side and the supporting member comprises at least one alignment protrusion (28) which is located at least partly in said at least one alignment opening.

5. The striker according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the striker further comprises an L-shaped stop (9) configured for stopping a closing motion of a closure member on which the lock is mounted, the L-shaped stop having a first leg (15) and a second leg (16), the first leg being mounted to the supporting member and forming part of said rear side, the second leg protruding from the front side of the striker, the L-shaped stop preferably being manufactured from metal.

6. The striker according to claim 5, characterized in that the first leg of the L-shaped stop and the supporting member each have a grooved region (37, 38) which cooperate with one another to allow adjusting a spacing between the second leg of the L-shaped stop and said elongated slot.

7. The striker according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the striker comprises at least one sloping side (20) adjacent said front side and configured for automatically depressing said at least one moveable bolt, said at least one sloping side preferably being formed by said strike plate.

8. The striker according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the strike plate does not form said two sidewalls.

9. The striker according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the strike plate is made of a non-corrosive metal, preferably stainless steel or aluminium.

10. The striker according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the strike plate further comprises an angled section (21) adjacent said front side.

11. The striker according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that a shortest distance (d) between said front side and each flat attachment surface is comprised between about 1.2 cm and about 2.5 cm, with particular lower limits of about 1.5 cm, about 1.7 cm and about 1.8 cm and with particular upper limits of about 2.2 cm, about 2.0 cm and about 1.9 cm.

12. A method for forming a strike plate (8) of the striker according to any one of the preceding claims, the method comprising:

a) providing a substantially flat metal plate (50);

b) removing material from the flat metal plate to form an elongated opening (51) extending in a longitudinal direction, the opening having a top side (53), a bottom side (54) and two sides (52) substantially extending in the longitudinal direction;

c) creating a top lip (57) extending away from the top side of the elongated opening and a bottom lip (56) extending away from bottom side of the elongated opening;

d) removing material from the flat metal plate to form an opening (26) in each lip;

e) performing, on each lip, at least two separate folding operations thereby deforming each lip to an L-shaped element having a first leg (12, 13) and a second leg (24, 25), the first leg extending substantially perpendicular away from the flat metal plate and the second leg extending substantially perpendicular away from the first leg such that the second leg is substantially parallel to the flat metal plate, the second leg comprising said opening.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein step c) comprises removing material to form:

- a first set of two mutually parallel narrow channels (55) substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the top side of the elongated opening thereby forming the top lip (57); and

- a second set of two mutually parallel narrow channels (56) substantially extending in the longitudinal direction away from the bottom side of the elongated opening thereby forming the bottom lip (58),

wherein, preferably, steps b) to d) are performed in a single material removal step, and/or

wherein, preferably, step c) comprises removing material to form the parallel narrow channels to have a width which is equal to or greater than a thickness of the flat metal plate.

14. The method according to claim 12 or 13, wherein said at least two separate folding operations comprise:

- a first folding operation along a first folding line (60) over an angle of between 80° and 100° in a first rotational direction; and

- a subsequent second folding operation along a second folding line (59) which is substantially parallel to the first folding line over an angle of between 80° and 100° in a second rotational direction which is opposite to the first rotational direction,

wherein, preferably, the first folding line is nearer the opening in the lip than the second folding line.

15. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein the method further comprises: folding the flat metal plate along a folding line (61) extending substantially in the longitudinal direction and being adjacent the elongated opening thereby forming a sloping side or an angled section.

Drawing