US-20260125929-A1 - SINGLE DEGREE OF FREEDOM COMPONENTS FOR LOCK ASSEMBLIES

Abstract

A pick shield for a door lock assembly that is configured to be restricted to a single degree of freedom relative to a backing plate of the door lock assembly when being secured to at least a portion of the door lock assembly. The pick shield is configured to be secured to the door lock assembly using one or more shield mounts that have previously been secured, or are an integral part of, the backing plate. One or more attachment bodies of the pick shield are configured to engage with the shield mount(s) in a manner that, upon the pick shield being displaced to an attached position, securely attaches the pick shield to the door lock assembly. Thus, and installer can securely install the pick shield to the door lock assembly merely by a displacement of the pick shield about the single degree of freedom.

Inventors

• Ravi Telang
• Matthew Stonebraker
• Vishal Salitkumar Kusanale
• Nagesh Varadaraju
• Suresha Chandrasekharareddy

Assignees

• SCHLAGE LOCK COMPANY LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20251230

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A pick shield for a door lock assembly that includes a bolt portion having a bolt and a shield mount securely coupled to a backing plate, the pick shield comprising: a shield that at least partially defines a cavity of the pick shield, the cavity sized to receive placement of at least a portion of the bolt portion, the shield configured to extend above or below at least a portion of the bolt portion at a location that accommodates at least a portion of the bolt being extendable from the cavity in a direction that is generally perpendicular to a central longitudinal axis of the pick shield; and an attachment body having an arm portion and an aperture portion, the arm portion inwardly extends into the cavity in at least a direction toward the central longitudinal axis of the pick shield, the aperture portion configured to restrict, with the shield mount securely affixed to the backing plate, the pick shield to a single degree of freedom relative to at least the backing plate as the pick shield is displaced with at least a portion of the shield mount in the aperture portion from a detached position to an attached position, the attachment body being further configured to securely retain a position of the pick shield relative to at least the backing plate at least upon the pick shield reaching the attached position in a manner that resists movement of the pick shield independent of the backing plate.
2. 2 . The pick shield of claim 1 , wherein the single degree of freedom is a rotation movement about the central longitudinal axis.
3. 3 . The pick shield of claim 2 , wherein the aperture portion includes a passageway and an aperture opening, the passageway extends from an inlet that extends through a sidewall of the arm portion to the aperture opening, the sidewall defining at least a portion of a shape of an anterior portion of the arm portion, and wherein, at the attached position, at least a portion of the shield mount is positioned in the aperture opening.
4. 4 . The pick shield of claim 3 , wherein the attachment body comprises a first attachment body and a second attachment body.
5. 5 . The pick shield of claim 4 , wherein the aperture opening for each of the first attachment body and the second attachment body is positioned about a mounting diameter.
6. 6 . The pick shield of claim 5 , wherein the passageway for both the first attachment body and the second attachment body extends in a curved configuration about a portion of the mounting diameter.
7. 7 . The pick shield of claim 6 , wherein the first attachment body and the second attachment body are inwardly offset from an orifice of the cavity, the orifice being located at a first end of the pick shield.
8. 8 . The pick shield of claim 1 , wherein the single degree of freedom is a linear displacement in a direction that is perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis.
9. 9 . The pick shield of claim 1 , wherein the single degree of freedom is a linear displacement in a direction that is parallel to the central longitudinal axis.
10. 10 . The pick shield of claim 1 , wherein the shield mount is a mounting post of the door lock assembly.
11. 11 . A pick shield for a door lock assembly that includes a bolt portion having a bolt and a shield mount securely mounted to a backing plate, the pick shield sized for placement in a cross bore of a door and comprising: an outer wall comprising an upper shield and a lower shield, the outer wall defining a cavity sized to receive placement of at least a portion of the bolt portion, a recess positioned between the upper shield and the lower shield at a location that accommodates passage of at least a portion of the bolt out of the cavity through the recess; and an interference tab that outwardly extends beyond the outer wall to provide the pick shield with an adjustable interference size that is larger than a corresponding size of the outer wall, the interference tab being configured for selective displacement from a rest position to a displaced position by an engagement of the interference tab with a wall that defines at least a portion of the cross bore, the interference tab further configured to exert an at least outwardly directed force against the wall that assists in a retention of a position of the pick shield within the cross bore.
12. 12 . The pick shield of claim 11 , wherein the interference tab comprises a plurality of interference tabs, and wherein the adjustable interference size is a diameter.
13. 13 . The pick shield of claim 11 , wherein the interference tab is coupled to the outer wall by a hinge.
14. 14 . The pick shield of claim 11 further including a face flange, and wherein the interference tab includes a first end and a second end, the first end being coupled to the outer wall, the second end being separated from the outer wall, the second end also separated from the face flange by a gap, the gap being sized to receive a placement of a portion of a wall of the door between the second end and the face flange.
15. 15 . The pick shield of claim 11 , wherein the pick shield includes an inner ring that is inwardly offset from the outer wall, wherein the interference tab extends from the inner ring through a recess in the outer wall.
16. 16 . The pick shield of claim 11 , further including at least two attachment bodies having an arm portion and an aperture portion, the arm portion inwardly extends into the cavity in at least a direction toward a central longitudinal axis of the pick shield, the attachment body configured to restrict the pick shield to a single degree of freedom at least as the pick shield is displaced, with a portion of at the shield mount in the aperture portion, from a detached position to an attached position, and wherein the at least two attachment bodies being configured to, at least upon the pick shield reaching the attached position, securely couple the pick shield to at least the backing plate in a manner that prevents movement of the pick shield independent of movement of the backing plate.
17. 17 . A method for securely coupling a pick shield to a plate of a door lock assembly that includes a bolt portion having a bolt, the method comprising: securing a shield mount to the plate; placing a portion of the shield mount within a portion of an aperture portion of an attachment body of a pick shield, the pick shield having an outer wall that at least partially defines a cavity and a shield, the cavity sized to receive placement of at least a portion of the bolt portion at a location above or beneath the shield and to accommodate selective extension of at least a portion of the bolt out of the cavity in a direction that is generally perpendicular to a central longitudinal axis of the pick shield; displacing, with a portion of the secured shield mount in the aperture portion, the pick shield from a detached position and toward an attached position, the aperture portion configured to confine the pick shield to a single degree of freedom of movement relative to at least the plate as the pick shield is being displaced from the detached position to the attached position; and securely affixing, by displacing the pick shield to the attached position, the pick shield relative to at least the plate in a manner that resists displacement of the pick shield independent of displacement of the plate.
18. 18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein displacing the pick shield comprises rotating the pick shield about the central longitudinal axis.
19. 19 . The method of claim 17 , wherein displacing the pick shield comprises linearly displacing the pick shield in a direction that is perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis.
20. 20 . The method of claim 17 , wherein displacing the pick shield comprises linearly displacing the pick shield in a direction that is parallel to the central longitudinal axis.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure generally relates to lock assemblies, and more particularly, but not exclusively, to components of lock assemblies that are configured for secure affixing to the lock assembly via single degree of freedom. BACKGROUND Lock assemblies can assist with controlling access to, or passage through, an opening. For example, lock assemblies in the form of door lock assemblies can assist in controlling whether an associated door can, or can not, be opened. An example of such door lock assemblies are spring-loaded locks. With spring-loaded locks, when the door to which the lock device is attached is in a closed position, a spring force can facilitate a latch of the lock device being extended into an opening in an adjacent door jamb. With the latch in an extended position within the opening of the door jamb, the lock device can be locked so that the lock device prevents the latch from being retracted out from the door jamb. Lock devices in the form of deadbolts can similarly be configured for linear displacement between retracted/unlocked and extended/locked positions. Moreover, the door can be locked in a closed position relative to the door jamb by the deadbolt being selectively extended into an opening in the door jamb. With both spring-loaded and deadbolt locks, among other types of lock devices, the lock devices can thus be unlocked via linear displacement of the associated latch or deadbolt to their retracted position. Such designs can be particularly susceptible to tampering, including lock picking wherein an illicit attempt is made to unlock the lock device using a pick or other device to pull the latch or deadbolt to the retracted position. Past attempts to address such tampering issues have included an installer of the lock device using a hand tool(s), during installation of the lock device, to add additional components to the lock device. Yet, such hand tools can be cumbersome for at least some installations and/or installers. Further, the steps involving operating such hand tools during lock installation can result in inadvertent movement of at least a portion of the lock device, including at least a portion of the lock device falling or popping out of the associated cross bore in the door in which the lock device is being installed, or from the hand of the installer. Such inadvertent movement of the lock device can be costly, including, for example, resulting in damage to the face plate or other exterior decorative features of the lock device. In certain instances, such damage can necessitate purchasing replacements parts for that damaged components, if not replacement of the entire lock device, thereby increasing the cost of the lock device and associated installation and the installation time. SUMMARY The present disclosure may comprise one or more of the following features and combinations thereof. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a pick shield is disclosed for a door lock assembly that includes a bolt portion having a bolt and a shield mount securely coupled to a backing plate. The pick shield can include a shield that at least partially defines a cavity of the pick shield, the cavity being sized to receive placement of at least a portion of the bolt portion. The shield can extend above or below at least a portion of the bolt portion at a location that accommodates at least a portion of the bolt being extendable from the cavity in a direction that is generally perpendicular to a central longitudinal axis of the pick shield. The pick shield can further include an attachment body having an arm portion and an aperture portion. The arm portion can inwardly extend into the cavity in at least a direction toward the central longitudinal axis of the pick shield. The aperture portion can be configured to restrict, with the shield mount securely affixed to the backing plate, the pick shield to a single degree of freedom relative to at least the backing plate as the pick shield is displaced with at least a portion of the shield mount in the aperture portion from a detached position to an attached position. Additionally, the attachment body can be further configured to securely retain a position of the pick shield relative to at least the backing plate at least upon the pick shield reaching the attached position in a manner that resists movement of the pick shield independent of the backing plate. In another embodiment, a pick shield is disclosed for a door lock assembly that includes a bolt portion having a bolt and a shield mount securely mounted to a backing plate. The pick shield can include an outer wall comprising an upper shield and a lower shield. The outer wall can define a cavity sized to receive placement of at least a portion of the bolt portion. Additionally, a recess can be positioned between the upper shield and the lower shield at a location that accommodates passage of at least a portion of the bolt out of the cavity through the recess. The pick sh