Linea Lever by zerafa studio llc zerafa from usa

Typical lever action has inherent benefits over a traditional knob, associated primarily with “mechanical advantage”; however, there is a practical issue that we experience with levers. As lever geometry places the downward force at some distance from the fulcrum or pivot point, the wear on the handle connection to the spindle can be significant. Over time, it is not uncommon for the connection between, handle, spindle and door to become compromised.

To achieve the inherent benefits of a traditional knob with the aesthetic and mechanical qualities of a lever, our design seeks to subtly shifts the hand position closer to the fulcrum or axis of rotation to limit the stress placed on the spindle connection. This shift is designed to maintain the mechanical advantage of the lever, but reduce the stress on the primary connections.

To accomplish this, we depart from the traditional handle mounting arm geometry that typically extends out from the spindle perpendicular to the lever. Instead, we form the handle from the simple progression of a single line that begins parallel to the rose face to unify the rose and handle mount geometry then extends out towards the back-set and returns on itself to form the grasp bar. Finding inspiration in a quote by artist Brice Marden, “Line is an organism of growth”, our u-shaped line begins with a uniform thickness required for the handle that is thickened at the rose to accommodate the spindle connection and again at the grasp area for comfort. As the handle design positions the hand slightly towards the back-set dimension, the u-shaped geometry provides a protective wrap to shield the hand from the door jamb.

The resulting lever we have named Linea, is a pure expression of the simple machine in the spirit of the Colombo Design’s commitment to modern design and innovation.