Gartner, Klaus W. (Downey, CA)
Uyeda, Tim M. (South San Gabriel, CA)

05/492979

11/11/1975

07/26/1974

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Sargent & Greenleaf, Inc. (Rochester, NY)

109/64

109/56

E05G1/08; E05G1/00; E05G1/00

109/56,47,64,58,65,66

Taylor, Dennis L.

Mason, Fenwick & Lawrence

What is claimed is

1. A door and door mounting assembly for mounting a companion pair of hinged doors in a pair of laterally aligned access openings flanking a common vertical reference plane between them, comprising wall members defining frames surrounding said pair of access openings including a vertical partition between said pair of access openings having a pair of vertically spaced mounting openings extending entirely therethrough of predetermined cross-sectional shape and located near the forward edge thereof, a pair of laterally spaced doors conforming substantially to the configuration of the access openings to close the same and having confronting adjacent hinge end portions and mutually remote bolt end portions, a hinge structure interconnecting said adjacent edge portions of the pair of doors for swinging movement about a common hinge axis between a closed coplanar position and an open outwardly diverging angular position, the adjacent edge portions of said doors defining mounting edges having rearwardly facing abutment shoulders for abutting the forwardmost edge of said vertical partition and each door having an upper and a lower integral mounting lug projecting inwardly toward said common plane and forming with the lugs of the companion door upper and lower complementary pairs of lugs extending into the uppermost and lowermost of the pair of mounting openings respectively when said doors are swung to said closed position for coupling the doors to the vertical partition, the respective upper and lower complementary pairs of lugs each having cross sections in said common plane collectively defining for each pair a shape conforming to the shape of the uppermost and lowermost mounting openings respectively whereby each complementary pair of lugs fully occupies its associated mounting opening when the doors are in closed position, and shoulder means at the free edges of the doors for releasably restraining each door in closed position in its access opening to coact with the lug formation of such closed door and the associated mounting opening receiving the same in supporting the companion door hinged thereto when such companion door is swung to open position.

2. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said mounting openings are of rectangular shape having a predetermined height and width, and said mounting lugs forming a pair of vertically spaced rectangular mounting lugs on each of the doors of a hinged-together pair providing a lug extending from each door of such pair into each of said pair of openings tightly interfitting in the openings in vertically stacked pairs of complementary lugs in each openings.

3. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said pair of doors have hinge knuckle members projecting outwardly from the hinge edge of each door with the knuckle members of each door in vertically lapping relation to the knuckle member of the companion door of the pair and the knuckle members of one door being positioned vertically between the knuckle members of the companion door, and hinge pins extending along a common vertical axis through the lapping knuckle members of the pair of doors.

4. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 2, wherein said pair of doors have hinge knuckle members projecting outwardly from the hinge edge of each door with the knuckle members of each door in vertically lapping relation to the knuckle member of the companion door of the pair and the knuckle members of one door being positioned vertically between the knuckle members of the companion door, and hinge pins extending along a common vertical axis through the lapping knuckle members of the pair of doors.

5. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein each of said doors include a key lock mechanism having a slidable bolt member movable between retracted and projected positions providing said shoulder means when in projected position and having an interlock lug projecting therefrom, and each door of a companion pair including a pivoted interlock member therein having a shoulder formation urged to an intercepting position in the opening movement path of said interlock lug by resilient means to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a projecting nose portion bearing against a like nose portion of the interlock member of the companion door when said doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to release positions spacing such shoulder formation out of said opening paths of said interlock lugs.

6. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 4, wherein each of said doors include a key lock mechanism having a slidable bolt member movable between retracted and projected positions providing said shoulder means when in projected position and having an interlock lug projecting therefrom, and each door of a companion pair including a pivoted interlock member therein having a shoulder formation urged to an intercepting position in the opening movement path of said interlock lug by resilient means to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a projecting nose portion bearing against a like nose portion of the interlock member of the companion door when said doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to release positions spacing such shoulder formation out of said opening paths of said interlock lugs.

7. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein each of said doors includes a key lock mechanism having a slidable bolt member movable between retracted and projected positions, and each door of a companion pair including a movable interlock member urged by resilient means to an intercepting position disposing a first portion thereof in the opening movement path of a portion of said bolt member to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a second portion bearing against a portion of the interlock member of the companion door when the doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to inactive positions spacing said first portion out of the opening paths of the associated portions of said bolt members.

8. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said pivoted interlock member is an integral unitary cast member having a first portion curving from the pivot axis thereof upwardly and toward the companion door and terminating in said nose portion and having a second portion extending along a second path curving upwardly and away from the companion door in diverging relation to the path of the first upwardly curving portion and terminating in a generally vertical shoulder surface defining said shoulder formation and a thinner portion extending integrally therefrom along a generally U-shaped recurving path forming a spring member bearing against a stationary surface of the associated door and providing said resilient means.

9. A safe deposit cell door construction for safe deposit box installations and the like to provide front closures for a pair of side-by-side cells in an array of plural horizontal rows and plural vertical columns of cells, comprising vertical and horizontal wall members forming frames surrounding said cells defining a pair of front access openings and including a divider wall lying in a vertical plane separating said pair of cells, said divider wall having a pair of vertically spaced mounting formations a pair of laterally spaced companion front safe deposit cell doors for said pair of cells conforming substantially to the configuration of the access openings to close the same and having contronting adjacent hinge end portions and mutually remote free ends, a hinge structure interconnecting said adjacent edge portions of the pair of doors for swinging movement about a common hinge axis between a closed coplanar position and an open outwardly diverging angular position, the adjacent hinge end portions of said doors having mounting formations coactive with the mounting formations of the divider wall for coupling the pair of companion doors to the divider wall, a slidable bolt member in each door having a bolt formation at the free edges of the doors for releasably restraining each door in closed position in its access opening, the bolt member being movable between retracted and projected positions and having an interlock lug projecting therefrom, a lock mechanism for locking said bolt member in projected position, and each door of a companion pair including a pivoted interlock member therein having a shoulder formation urged to an intercepting position in the opening movement path of said interlock lug by resilient means to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a projecting nose portion bearing against a like nose portion of the interlock member of the companion door when said doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to release positions spacing such shoulder formation out of said opening paths of said interlock lugs.

10. A door and door mounting assembly for mounting a companion pair of hinged doors in a pair of laterally aligned access openings flanking a common vertical reference plane between them, comprising wall members defining frames surrounding said pair of access openings including a vertical partition between said pair of access openings having a pair of vertically spaced mounting openings near the forward edge thereof, a pair of laterally spaced doors conforming substantially to the configuration of the access openings to close the same and having confronting adjacent hinge end portions and mutually remote bolt end portions, a hinge structure interconnecting said adjacent edge portions of the pair of doors for swinging movement about a common hinge axis between a closed coplanar position and an open outwardly diverging angular position, the adjacent edge portions of said doors defining mounting edges having rearwardly facing abutment shoulders for abutting the forwardmost edge of said vertical partition and having confronting integral mounting lug formations projecting inwardly toward said common plane and collectively conforming to the cross-sectional configuration of said mounting openings extending into and substantially fully occupying said mounting openings when said doors are swung to said closed position for coupling the doors to the vertical partition, and shoulder means at the free edges of the doors for releasably restraining each door in closed position in its access opening to coact with the lug formation of such closed door and the associated mounting opening receiving the same in supporting the companion door hinged thereto when such companion door is swung to open position, each of said doors including a key lock mechanism having a slidable bolt member movable between retracted and projected positions providing said shoulder means when in projected position and having an interlock lug projecting therefrom, and each door of a companion pair including a pivoted interlock member therein having a shoulder formation urged to an intercepting position in the opening movement path of said interlock lug by resilient means to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a projecting nose portion bearing against a like nose portion of the interlock member of the companion door when said doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to release positions spacing such shoulder formation out of said opening paths of said interlock lugs.

11. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 10, wherein said vertical partition has a vertically spaced pair of said mounting openings, and said mounting lug formations on said doors comprising a pair of vertically spaced mounting lugs on each of the doors of a hinged-together pair providing a lug extending from each door of such pair into each of said pair of openings tightly interfitting in the openings in vertically stacked pairs of lugs in each opening.

12. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 11, wherein said pair of doors have hinge knuckle members projecting outwardly from the hinge edge of each door with the knuckle members of each door in vertically lapping relation to the knuckle member of the companion door of the pair and the knuckle members of one door being positioned vertically between the knuckle members of the companion door, and hinge pins extending along a common vertical axis through the lapping knuckle members of the pair of doors.

13. A door and door mounting assembly as defined in claim 10, wherein said pivoted interlock member is an integral unitary cast member having a first portion curving from the pivot axis thereof upwardly and toward the companion door and terminating in said nose portion and having a second portion extending along a second path curving upwardly and away from the companion door in diverging relation to the path of the first upwardly curving portion and terminating in a generally vertical shoulder surface defining said shoulder formation and a thinner portion extending integrally therefrom along a generally U-shaped recurving path forming a spring member bearing against a stationary surface of the associated door and providing said resilient means.

14. A safe deposit cell door construction for safe deposit box installations and the like to provide front closures for a pair of side-by-side cells in an array of plural horizontal rows and plural vertical columns of cells, comprising vertical and horizontal wall members forming frames surrounding said cells defining a pair of front access openings and including a divider wall lying in a vertical plane separating said pair of cells, said divider wall having a pair of vertically spaced mounting formations, a pair of laterally spaced companion front safe deposit cell doors for said pair of cells conforming substantially to the configuration of the access openings to close the same and having confronting adjacent hinge end portions and mutually remote free ends, a hinge structure interconnecting said adjacent edge portions of the pair of doors for swinging movement about a common hinge axis between a closed coplanar position and an open outwardly diverging angular position, means for coupling the pair of companion doors to the divider wall, a slidable bolt member in each door having a bolt formation at the free edges of the doors for releasably restraining each door in closed position in its access opening, the bolt member being movable between retracted and projected positions, and each door of a companion pair including a movable interlock member urged by resilient means to an intercepting position disposing a first portion thereof in the opening movement path of a portion of said bolt member to prevent opening movement of the bolt to retracted position and having a second portion bearing against a portion of the interlock member of the companion door when the doors are both in closed position to stress both interlock members to inactive positions spacing said first portion out of the opening paths of the associated portions of said bolt members.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to the construction of front closures or doors for safe deposit box cells and the like, and more particularly to a construction for hinged-together pairs of companion front closures or doors for a pair of side-by-side safe deposit box cells wherein the doors may be mounted at the forward edge of a vertical divider partition between the two cells forming frame members between them by means of lugs or projections extending into openings in the forward portion of the divider partition without requiring the use of mounting screws or fasteners.

It would be appreciated that safe deposit boxes as customarily arranged in safes, bank vaults and similar installations comprise a network or array of a large number of vertical rows and horizontal columns of safe deposit box cells defined by vertical and horizontal frame members forming partitions between adjacent storage cells for safe deposit boxes. The storage cells are of generally rectangular vertical cross section and each receive an associated safe deposit box which may be forwardly withdrawn from and inserted into the associated cell. Ordinarily, the assembly of the many doors in such a safe deposit box installation has been a very time-consuming and expensive procedure, as the persons mounting the doors in such installations are ordinarily required to install several screws or similar threaded fasteners in the hinge of each door for each safe deposit box cell. Obviously the labor consumed in assembling the large number of doors required for each bank vault array of safe deposit boxes, which usually extends over at least one large wall of the vault, is very considerable, and contributes a significant portion to the total cost of such a safe deposit box installation.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a novel construction for a multiple safe deposit box installation wherein the doors for each of the cells may be assembled to the partition-forming framework defining the plural safe deposit box cells without requiring use of screws or threaded fasteners.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a novel construction for the front covers or doors of safe deposit box cells wherein a pair of companion, side-by-side doors are hinged together and have a special configuration at their confronting hinged ends providing lugs or ears to interfit in recesses in the forward portions of the vertical divider partitions between adjacent pairs of cells, whereby hinged-together pairs of doors can simply be assembled on the partitions by swinging them from angular relation to alined coplanar relation to interfit the lugs in the mounting openings, and wherein each of the doors of a hinged pair when it is in closed position supports the other door for swinging movement to open position.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a novel construction for safe deposit cell doors of the type described in the immediately preceding paragraph, wherein interlock means are provided in the adjacent portions of each hinged pair of doors coactive to prevent opening of its associated door when the companion door is already in open position.

Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary front perspective view of a safe deposit box door assembly, embodying the present invention, with parts shown in section;

FIG. 2 is a horizontal longitudinal section view taken along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1, showing one of the doors in closed position and the other door in partially open position;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section view similar to FIG. 2, but showing both doors of the hinged pair swung into angular open position in process of assembly on one of the cell divider partitions;

FIG. 4 is a vertical section view taken along the line 4--4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a vertical fragmentary section view taken along the line 5--5 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a vertical fragmentary section view taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 4, showing the interlock levers of a companion pair of doors; and

FIG. 7 is an exploded fragmentary rear perspective view showing one of the doors and a portion of its companion door and part of the stationary partition framework.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, the present invention is concerned with mounting of doors for safe deposit box cells or storage compartments on the framework or nest module structure defining the vertical partitions and horizontal partitions for the safe deposit box cells or storage compartments. Specifically, the invention is concerned with a novel method of mounting a pair of laterally adjacent doors for a pair of laterally adjacent safe deposit box cells or storage compartments, together with means for preventing opening of one of the companion doors when the other companion door is already open. In the illustrated embodiment, the door structure, indicated generally by the reference character 10, forms the front closure or door for each of the substantially rectangular storage compartments or cells 11 which house the conventional safe deposit boxes and which are formed by the framework or nest module structure, indicated generally by the reference character 12, made up of vertical frame members or partitions 13 and horizontal frame members or partitions 14. Usually the nest modules or framework units are about two feet high by about 3 feet wide and about 12 inches deep defining twelve vertical rows of eight cells or cubicles.

In accordance with the present invention, the vertical frame members 13 of the framework or nest module structure define the side walls or vertical partitions separating the respective laterally alined cells from each other, and the horizontal frame member 14 define the top and bottom walls of the safe deposit box cells. The alternate vertical partitions are indicated by the reference character 13a, and the intervening vertical partitions between each pair of partitions 13a are indicated by the reference character 13b and define the partition separating an adjacent pair of side-by-side or laterally alined cells 11a and 11b. The outer or forward edge portions of each of the alternate partitions 13a, except for those forming the outermost side walls of the whole module or framework unit is provided with a front trim member 15 in the illustrated embodiment which is of T-shaped horizontal cross section, as illustrated more clearly in FIG. 3, providing a flange or lip 15a extending toward the center of the flanking safe deposit box cells providing a forward stop surface 15b against which a stop shoulder, to be later described, at the free end of the front wall of the associated door abuts to properly locate that end of the door and providing a rearwardly facing keeper shoulder 15c behind which the end of the bolt projects when the bolt is in the locking or projected position.

The intervening vertical wall members or partition members 13b are each provided near their forwardmost edge, but spaced an appropriate distance rearwardly therefrom, with a pair of vertically spaced rectangular openings or sockets, generally indicated at 16, the uppermost one of which is designated 16a and the lowermost one is 16b, for reception of mounting lugs or ears, to be later described, projecting from the hinge end of each of a companion pair of hinged-together doors, to achieve mounting of the hinged ends of the doors to the intermediate partition 13b.

To reduce the fastening of hinge components by screws or similar threaded fasteners to each of the hinged doors for the safe deposit box cells, and to avoid the necessity of screw fastening the hinge component to the vertical frame members or their trim members defining the nest module framework, the doors of the safe deposit box cells 11, in accordance with the present invention, are formed in laterally alined sets or groups of companion pairs of doors, indicated for example 20a and 20b, hinged together by a hinge mechanism indicated generally at 21. The pair of companion doors 20a and 20b are provided with structure enabling them to swing from a relatively inclined angular position extending in outwardly diverging planes relative to the vertical partition on which they are to be mounted to a coplanar position alined with the common front plane of the pair of associated storage compartments or cells 11a and 11b. The hinge ends of the companion doors are provided with mounting lugs or ears extending inwardly toward each other and toward the intermediate vertical partition to be projected into complimentary openings or sockets in the intermediate partition and hold the pair of companion doors assembled on the nest module framework. To this end, each of the safe deposit box doors 20 are formed in the preferred embodiment of a cast front door section 22 defining a front wall 23, integral top and bottom flanges 24 and 25 at the upper and lower edges of the front wall or plate section 23, and a free end flange 26 entending rearwardly having an inclined outer face inclining inwardly toward the center axis of the door and having an integral lip or stop shoulder formation 27 at its forwardmost end defining a rearwardly facing shoulder 27a to abut against the forwardly facing stop surface portion 15b of the T-shaped trim formation 15 on the front end of the associated partition 13a. Each door also has a rear cover plate casting 28 defining a rear wall 29 having openings in marginal portions thereof to receive fastening screws to extend into tapped openings in the front door casting 22 for assembling the rear cover plate onto the front wall portion. The rear cover plate casting 28 also includes a forwardly extending integral hinge end wall flange 30 which, in conjunction with hinge components hereinafter described, closes the hinge end of the mechanism cavity or chamber 31 defined within the door. The front plate or wall portion 23 of each door is also provided, for example, with a circular opening 32 for a guard key, bounded by an annular surround of smaller diameter, in the illustrated embodiment, at the entrance end of the circular opening and communicating with a slightly enlarged circular recess portion opening through the rear surface of the front wall to define a journal for a conventional rotary guard key plug, whose rearmost end may be journaled in an appropriate smaller diameter circular opening in the rear wall 29. Similarly, a circular renter's key opening 33 is provided in the front wall 23 of the illustrated embodiment, likewise communicating with an enlarged circular recess portion opening through the rear surface of the front wall to define a front journal for the renter's key plug which may be journaled at its rearmost end in an appropriate opening in the rear wall 29. Suitable conventional gated tumbler levers operated by the guard key and the renter's key may be housed in the mechanism chamber 31 formed between the front and rear walls 23 and 29, and the renter's key plug in accordance with conventional practice, may have the usual tang or actuating projection thereon for retracting and projecting the bolt, indicated by the reference character 34, having a generally rectangular bolt plate portion 34a slidably supported in the mechanism chamber and guided for rectilinear movement and having a bolt nose portion 34b which slides in and may project through a suitable opening provided in the free end flange 26. It will be observed from FIG. 2 that in the projected position, the nose portion 34b of the bolt has a flat front surface which is spaced rearwardly from the rear surface or shoulder 27a of the lip 27 a distance corresponding to the thickness of the flange portion 15a of the T-shaped trim formation 15, whereby the bolt extends in rearwardly lapping relation to the flange 15a in the projected position of the bolt to lock the associated door in closed position.

The hinge assembly interconnecting the two doors 20a and 20b forming a companion pair of doors 20, in the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, are formed by a pair of casted hinge members 35. The casted hinge members 35, two of which are provided in vertically spaced relation on the left-hand door 20b and two on the other door 20a, are each provided with a body portion of substantially rectangularized Y-shaped configuration, providing a first rearwardly extending web or flange portion 35a extending from the crosswise web portion 35b to interfit the rearmost end thereof in one of the two vertically spaced complimentary sockets 37 of the rear cover plate casting 28b for the door 20b. A forwardly extending short flange 35c extends from one end of the crosswise web 35b and a longer front web portion 35d terminating in a hinge knuckle 35e extends forwardly in parallelism with the front flange 35c from the other end of the crosswise web 35b defining a groove 35f therebetween. The size, spacing and configuration of the flange 35c is appropriate to tightly interfit into one of the rearwardly opening sockets 38 in the front casting 22, while the web portion 35d having a hinge knuckle formation thereon extends through the edge recess 39 at the hinge end of the front casting 22. The tight interfitting of the flange portion 35c in its socket 38 and the shaping of the groove 35f to tightly interfit the tongue shaped portion 40 left between the socket 38 and the recess 39 provides secure mounting of the hinge members 35 on the left-hand doors 20b. If hinging of a door on an outer vertical end wall of a nest module is required, a hinge member in the form of a flat hinge member having a rectangular body portion adapted to abut and outwardly overlap the forwardmost portion of the outer end wall and be secured thereto by fastening screws 41 may be provided to mate with the hinge members 35 of the adjacent door. The upper and lower marginal portions of such flat hinge members would have forwardly projecting web portions terminating forwardly in a hinge knuckle formation similar to the knuckle formation 35e of the companion hinge member 35 to be coupled together with hinge pins. The annular, substantially cylindrical knuckle formations 35e of the hinge members for the companion pair of doors are positioned to lie in vertically aligned, lapping relation to each other and each have a central bore or aperture which aligns with the corresponding bore in the companion knuckle member to receive a hinge pin 44.

It will be apparent that when the hinge members 35 have been assembled on the hinge ends of their associated safe deposit cell doors 20a and 20b in the manner just described, and the hinge knuckle formations of the companion hinge members 35 are coupled together by inserting the hinnge pins 44 in the aligned knuckle openings, the hingedly interconnected pair of companion doors 20a and 20b can then be readily assembled on the nest module frame structure 12 without screws or similar threaded fasteners. The operator simply swings the hingedly interconnected pair of companion doors 20a and 20b to an open position about the hinge axis at an angle of about 40° to 60° relative to each other, thereby swinging the confronting portions of the hinge members 35 and the confronting hinge ends of the doors 20a and 20b away from each other so that the hinge ends of the doors assume a forwardly diverging angular relation. The rear cover plate castings 28 for each door are provided at their hinge end with integral door mounting lugs 46 to interfit in the mounting holes 16, whereby the hinged ends of the doors in this open position may then be inserted into a pair of adjacent cells flanking one of the intervening partitions 13b to substantially abut the shoulder formations 45 at the front portion of the hinge ends of the doors in abutment with or immediately adjacent the forward end of the intervening partition 13b. In this position, the pair of inwardly projecting door mounting lugs 46 projecting inwardly from the inner ends of each of the rear cover plate castings 28a and 28b are disposed in alinement with the mounting holes 16 in the intermediate partition 13b with the lugs of one door vertically offset from those of the companion door. It will be noted that the mounting lugs 46a on the right-hand casting 28a in the illustrated embodiment are disposed nearer the horizontal center line of the casting than the lugs 46b on the casting 28b, so that one of each of the lugs 46a and 46b lie immediately adjacent each other in each one of the openings 16 therefor in the intermediate partition 13b.

The doors 20a and 20b are swung to closed position about their hinge axis to position these door mounting lugs 46 in the openings 16 to thereby mount the pair of companion doors 20a, 20b in front closing relation to the pair of safe deposit box cells between the pair of alternate vertical partitions 13a, without the use of further mounting or fastening means, because at no time thereafter during normal use of the safe deposit box array will more than one of the pair of hingedly interconnected companion doors be open at one time. The bottoms of the doors 20a and 20b as well as the tops of the doors are preferably provided with recesses in which pads 47 of Teflon or similar material are seated to bear upon the upper and lower surfaces of the horizontal walls of the cells and provide wear surfaces.

The common practice in use of safe deposit box installations is to open only one safe deposit box cell at a time to withdraw the safe deposit box for use by the renter, and thus when any one of the doors of a hingedly interconnected pair if swung to open position to allow access to the contents of its associated cell, the other companion door normally remains in closed position and provides proper support for the open door, since the bolt 34 of the closed door securely holds the bolt end of the door clamped to the associated locking flange 15c, and the hinged end of the closed door is securely clamped to the trim member by the mounting lugs 46 extending into the openings 16 in the intermediate partition 13b. Thus the door which remains closed provides secure support for the companion door which is being opened, without necessitating any other fastening connection of the hinge structure to the nest module framework.

However, in order to ensure that under no circumstances can the closed door of the companion pair be opened when its companion is already open, an interlock mechanism is provided in the present invention which precludes movement of the bolt of the closed door to open position so long as its companion door is in open position. To this end, an interlock lever 50 is provided in a suitable cavity or chamber 51 therefor in the rearwardly facing surface of the front wall of the front door casting 22. The lever 50 is pivoted on a pivot pin 52, and has a nose 53 which projects through an opening in the end wall of the door, an integral leg portion 54 having a stop shoulder 55 thereon, and a spring extension formation 56, which in the preferred embodiment is integrally formed with the remainder of the lever. The lever may be made of thin brass or similar material which provides sufficient rigidity in the thicker leg and nose portions but which provides resilient spring action in the thin extension forming the spring 56. When the associated door, for example the door 20a, is in closed position, the nose 53 of the interlocking lever 50 projects through the opening at the hinge end of the cavity 51 bears against the adjacent confronting nose 53 of the lever 50 in the companion door to maintain the interlock lever 50 at a normal depressed or release position illustrated in FIG. 6 disposing the stop shoulder 55 at a horizontal level below the level of the integral ear formation or interlock lug 57 on the bolt 34. It will be noted that the right angular recess in the leg portion 54 defining the stop shoulder 55 is normally disposed vertically below and generally aligned with the interlock lug or ear 57 on the bolt 34 when the bolt is in projected or locked position. Since the spring extension 56 is stressed in this normal release position of the interlock lever 50, it will be apparent that when the companion door, for example the door 20b, is swung to open position, withdrawing the nose of the interlock lever 50 of the companion door 20b from contact with the nose of the interlock lever for door 20a as the door 20b swings to open position, the energy stored in the spring formation 56 is released shifting the interlock lever 50 of the door 20a in a clockwise direction to a raised position, whereupon the stop shoulder 55 engages or is positioned immediately toward the hinge end of the door from the interlock lug or ear 57, thereby providing a stop shoulder in the opening path of the lug 57 if an attempt is made to shift the bolt 34 of the door 20a to open position. The shoulder 55, being disposed immediately adjacent and in the opening path of interlock lug 57, thereby interlocks the bolt 34 of the door 20a to maintain it in locked position so long as the companion door 20b is in open position. When the door 20b is again swung to closed position and its bolt is shifted to locked position, engagement of the nose of the interlock lever of door 20b with the nose of the interlock lever for door 20a rotates the latter counterclockwise to the release position stressing the spring formation 56 of the latter and lowering the stop shoulder 55 of the latter below the interlock lug 57 to remove it from the opening path of the interlock lug 57.