Door latch for recreational vehicle and other applications

A door latch having special utility in recreational vehicles and the like comprising:

• a latch housing, said latch housing having (i) first and second toothed rack assemblies;
• (ii) first and second gear members, said tooth rack assemblies being slidably disposed in said housing such that said gear members are disposed thereinbetween, and (iii) an elongated shaft disposed in said first gear assembly wherein said first gear is a working pinion gear and said second gear is a stablizing pinion gear, said first and second gears maintaining said first and second racks in a parallel and spaced apart configuration;
• a retractable bolt member having an extended and a retracted position, said bolt member disposed in said housing between said first and second rack assemblies such that movement of either of said racking assemblies causes said bolt to move into said retracted positions;
• a door knob, said door knob having an elongated hollow stem, said shaft extending into said stem and being secured therein such that movement of said knob causes said first gear member to rotate thereby moving said bolt into said retracted position;
• and
• wherein a spring means is circumferentially disposed about said shaft and adjacent said working pinion gear such that said working pinion gear is rendered selectively disengageable from said rack assembly thereby permitting lateral movement of said door knob.