Adjustable appliance door handle
View Patent ↗An appliance door handle includes a bar and at least one, e.g., a pair, of bracket assemblies. Each bracket assembly engages the bar and may be moved, i.e., located and fixed at a determined position along the length of the bar. The bracket assembly may be set (fixed) at positions on the bar that are suitable for engaging and mating with mounting lugs or adapters that protrude from a door. Each bracket assembly is configured to engage and mate with various appliance door handle mounting lugs or adapter. The adapter may be installed or removed to facilitate engaging and mating with a particular appliance door handle mounting lug or a particular door.
1. An adjustable handle comprising:
a bar, the bar being elongate, the bar having a first section extending from a first end of the bar, and a second section extending from a second section of the bar, the first section and the second section having a same cross-sectional shape and size;
at least one bracket, each bracket of the at least one bracket including
a body;
a bar channel extending through the body of the bracket from a first side of the body to an opposite second side of the body, the bar channel being sized and shaped to receive a portion of one of the first section and the second section of the bar, and the bar being movable through the bar channel and relative to the body of the bracket;
a mounting compartment, the mounting compartment comprising a cavity accessible from a mounting compartment aperture in a third side of the body of the bracket;
an adapter, the adapter comprising a structure sized and shaped to be engaged within and removable from the mounting compartment, the adapter receiving and being mechanically attached to a door-mounted attachment, the door-mounted attachment being a door-mounted lug; and
a first threaded channel extending from a side of the body, through the body, to the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, and a first set screw threadedly received in the first threaded channel, the first set screw being configured to secure the bracket to the adapter when a portion of the set screw extends into the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body.
2. The adjustable handle of claim 1 , each bracket of the at least one bracket further including a second threaded channel extending from the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, through the body, to the bar channel, and a second set screw threadedly received in the second threaded channel, the second set screw being configured to secure the bracket to the bar when a portion of the second set screw extends into the bar channel.
3. The adjustable handle of claim 2 , the adapter including a first access aperture aligned with a secondary aperture and the second threaded channel when the adapter is engaged within the mounting compartment.
4. The adjustable handle of claim 3 , the secondary aperture being circular in cross-section shape.
5. The adjustable handle of claim 1 , the adapter including a second access aperture aligned with the first threaded channel when the adapter is engaged within the mounting compartment.
6. The adjustable handle of claim 1 , the structure of the adapter comprising a rectangular cuboid.
7. The adjustable handle of claim 6 , the structure of the adapter being formed from bent sheet metal.
8. The adjustable handle of claim 6 , the structure of the adapter being hollow.
9. An adjustable door handle attached to door-mounted lugs protruding from a door, the adjustable door handle comprising:
a bar, the bar being elongate, the bar having a first section extending from a first end of the bar, and a second section extending from a second section of the bar, the first section and the second section having a same cross-sectional shape and size;
two brackets, each bracket of the two brackets including
a body,
a bar channel extending through the body from a first side of the body to an opposite second side of the body, the bar channel being sized and shaped to receive a portion of one of the first section and the second section of the bar, and the bar being movable through the bar channel and relative to the body of the bracket,
a mounting compartment, the mounting compartment comprising a cavity accessible from a mounting compartment aperture in a third side of the body of the bracket, the mounting compartment being shaped and sized to engage one of a pair of door-mounted lugs protruding from a door;
a first threaded channel extending from a side of the body, through the body, to the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, and a first set screw threadedly received in the first threaded channel, the first set screw securing the bracket to a lug of the pair of door-mounted lugs protruding from a door, a portion of the first set screw extend into the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body and abutting the lug.
10. The adjustable door handle attached to a pair of door-mounted lugs protruding from a door, of claim 9 , the bar having a circular cross-section shape.
11. The adjustable door handle attached to a pair of door-mounted lugs protruding from a door of claim 9 , each bracket of the two brackets further including a second threaded channel extending from the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, through the body, to the bar channel, and a second set screw threadedly received in the first threaded channel, the first set screw securing the bracket to the bar, a portion of the second set screw extending into the bar channel and abutting the bar.
12. An adjustable door handle attached to at least one door-mounted lugs protruding from a door, the adjustable door handle comprising:
a bar, the bar being elongate, the bar having a first section extending from a first end of the bar, and a second section extending from a second section of the bar, the first section and the second section having a same cross-sectional shape and size;
at least one bracket, each bracket of the at least one bracket including
a body,
a bar channel extending through the body from a first side of the body to an opposite second side of the body, the bar channel being sized and shaped to receive a portion of one of the first section and the second section of the bar, and the bar being movable through the bar channel and relative to the body of the bracket,
a mounting compartment, the mounting compartment comprising a cavity in a third side of the body of the bracket, the mounting compartment being shaped and sized to engage a first type of door handle mounting lug, and
an adapter engaged within the mounting compartment, the adapter comprising a rectangular cuboid structure and including a lug compartment with a secondary aperture for receiving and engaging a second type of door handle mounting lug, the second type of door handle mounting lug having a size that is different from a size of the first type of door handle mounting lug, each lug of the at least one door-mounted lug protruding from the door being the second type of door handle mounting lug and, a portion of the lug being received into the lug compartment.
13. The adjustable door handle attached of claim 12 , the bar having a circular cross-section shape.
14. The adjustable door handle of claim 12 , each bracket of the at least one bracket further including a second threaded channel extending from the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, through the body, to the bar channel, and a second set screw threadedly received in the second threaded channel, the second set screw securing the bracket to the bar, a portion of the set screw extends into the bar channel and abutting the bar.
15. The adjustable door handle of claim 14 , the adapter including a first access aperture aligned with the secondary aperture and the second threaded channel.
16. The adjustable door handle of claim 12 , each bracket of the at least one bracket further including a first threaded channel extending from a side of the body, through the body, to the cavity accessible from the mounting compartment aperture in the third side of the body, and a first set screw threadedly received in the first threaded channel, the first set screw securing the bracket to and abutting the portion of the lug received through the secondary aperture into the lug compartment.
17. The adjustable door handle of claim 16 , the adapter including a first access aperture aligned with the secondary aperture and the first second threaded channel, and a second access aperture aligned with the first threaded channel.