Handle

2 Specic needs

For other uses, see Handle (disambiguation).

A handle is a part of, or attachment to, an object that can Other requirements may apply to specic handles:
be moved or used by hand. The design of each type of
A sheath or coating on the handle that provides
handle involves substantial ergonomic issues, even where
friction against the hand, reducing the gripping force
these are dealt with intuitively or by following tradition.
needed to achieve a reliable grip.
Handles for tools are an important part of their function,
enabling the user to exploit the tools to maximum eect.
Designs such as recessed car-door handles, reducing
the chance of accidental operation, or simply the inconvenience of snagging the handle.
Sucient circumference to distribute the force comfortably and safely over the hand. An example where
this requirement is almost the sole purpose for a
handles existence is the handle that consists of two
pieces: a hollow wooden cylinder about the diameter of a nger and a bit longer than one handwidth, and a sti wire that passes through the center of the cylinder, has two right angles, and is
shaped into a hook at each end. This handle permits
comfortable carrying, with otherwise bare hands, of
a heavy package, suspended on a tight string that
passes around the top and bottom of it: the string
is strong enough to support it, but the pressure the
string would exert on ngers that grasped it directly
would often be unacceptable.

A modern claw hammer with rubber handle

General design criteria

Design to thwart unwanted access, for example, by

children or thieves. In these cases many of the other
requirements may have reduced importance. For
example, a child-proof doorknob can be dicult for
even an adult to use.

3 Pull handles
Flat-nose pliers with thermoplastic handles

One major category of handles are pull handles, where

one or more hands grip the handle or handles, and exert
force to shorten the distance between the hands and their
corresponding shoulders. The three criteria stated above
1. Sucient strength to support the object, or to other- are universal for pull handles.
wise transmit the force involved in the task the hanMany pull handles are for lifting, mostly on objects to be
dle serves.
carried.

The three nearly universal requirements of are:

2. Sucient length to permit the hand or hands grip- Horizontal pull handles are widespread, including drawer
ping it to reliably exert that force.
pulls, handles on latchless doors and the outside of car
doors. The inside controls for opening car doors from
3. Suciently small circumference to permit the hand inside are usually pull handles, although their function of
or hands to surround it far enough to grip it as solidly permitting the door to be pushed open is accomplished by
as needed to exert that force.
an internal unlatching linkage.
1

REFERENCES

a rarer device seen on mechanically complicated doors

like those of airliners, where (instead of the whole hand
moving down as it also rotates, on the door handles just
described) the axis of rotation is between the thumb and
the outermost ngers, so the thumb moves up if the outer
ngers move down.

5 Handles for wide-range motion

Many drawers use pull handles.

Two kinds of pull handles may involve motion in addition

to the hand-focused motions described:
Pulling the starting cord on a small internalcombustion engine may, besides moving the hand
toward the shoulder, also exploit simultaneously
pushing a wheeled vehicle away with the other hand,
stepping away from the engine, and/or standing from
a squat.
Some throwing motions, as in a track-and-eld
hammer throw, involve pulling on a handle against
centrifugal force (without bringing it closer), in the
course of accelerating the thrown object by forcing
it into circular motion.

Twist handles

Many doors use twist handles.

Another category of hand-operated device requires

grasping (but not pulling) and rotating the hand and either the lower arm or the whole arm, about their axis.
When the grip required is a st grip, as with a door handle that has an arm rather than a knob to twist, the term
handle unambiguously applies. Another clear case is

The handles of bicycle grips, club-style weapons, shovels

and spades, axes, hammers, mallets and hatchets, baseball
bats, rackets, golf clubs, and croquet mallets involve a
greater range of ergonomic issues.

6 References

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

7.1

Text

Handle Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handle?oldid=668528678 Contributors: Mac, Glenn, Jerzy, Alexf, Sam Hocevar,
YUL89YYZ, Xevious, Jag123, PaulHanson, Paleorthid, Wtmitchell, FlaBot, Dustin Howett, DVdm, Raelx, Gene.arboit, Retired username,
Bota47, Ybbor, SmackBot, George Rodney Maruri Game, Andrew Dalby, Peterlewis, Peter M Dodge, Mattisse, Escarbot, JAnDbot, MERC, Bongwarrior, Dekimasu, Jim.henderson, J.delanoy, Whitebox, ABF, TXiKiBoT, AlleborgoBot, Logan, SieBot, Mgros, Faradayplank,
Ivan1984, Lascorz, ClueBot, Laudak, 1ForTheMoney, The Baroness of Morden, Addbot, Luckas-bot, Um, Taka76, Pinethicket, HRoestBot, EmausBot, T3dkjn89q00vl02Cxp1kqs3x7, Look2See1, ClueBot NG, Kingben821, Wconway58, Drdrtoto, Epicgenius, Skatermor99,
Nick Watto, Nickisdabomb1, Arthropleura and Anonymous: 38

7.2

Images

File:Ambox_important.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work, based o of Image:Ambox scales.svg Original artist: Dsmurat (talk contribs)
File:Claw-hammer.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Claw-hammer.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Evan-Amos
File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: ? Contributors: ? Original
artist: ?
File:Door_handle.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Door_handle.jpg License: CC BY 2.0 Contributors: windows, doors and handles Original artist: marya from San Luis Obispo, USA
File:Drawer_handle.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Drawer_handle.jpg License: CC BY-SA 2.0
Contributors: drawer and wood grain Original artist: iluvrhinestones from seattle, oceania
File:Question_book-new.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/99/Question_book-new.svg License: Cc-by-sa-3.0
Contributors:
Created from scratch in Adobe Illustrator. Based on Image:Question book.png created by User:Equazcion Original artist:
Tkgd2007
File:Tool-pliers.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Tool-pliers.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Evan-Amos
File:Wiktionary-logo-en.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Wiktionary-logo-en.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Vector version of Image:Wiktionary-logo-en.png. Original artist: Vectorized by Fvasconcellos (talk contribs),
based on original logo tossed together by Brion Vibber

7.3

Content license

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0