Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
10548~9
Ba~kground of the Invention
This invention relates to the general field of industrial
and private security, and more particularly to means for preventing
unauthorized access to unattended spaces having closure members such
as hinged, sliding, or rolling doors. Although designed primarily
for use in industrial applications, for securing the doors of
garages, warehouses, truck trailers, and the like, the invention
is susceptible to size reduction, retaining the inventive principle,
to the point where it can be used for private homes, truck cabs,
storage cabinets, and related applications.
The problem of unauthorized intrusion is most serious in
connection with professional intruders, since the usual amateur is
ill-equipped, ill-trained, and ill-informed as to where intrusions
will be profitable and as to the safeguards to be encountered, and,
hence, is soon apprehended. In the nature of things there are un-
avoidably many instances where warehouses, railroad cars, truck
trailers, seasonal storage facilities, and the like must, as a
practical matter, be left individually unattended, although within
general security supervision as by the rounds of a night watchman
or security patrol, or by a central, remote alarm system.
~ s those familiar with the field of security know, it
is very nearly impossible to design any arrangement for keeping
a determined, unalarmed, leisurely and well-equipped intruder
out of any unattended space. Locks and other security measures
are designed to delay the intruder, for an interval of unwelcome
duration, or to require him to gain the desired access by means
so noisy, or otherwise so equipped with alarms, as to summon
security personnel to the scene, or perhaps to make his retreat
from the ~ea inconvenient or time-consuming, particularly if
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the object of his attention is itself bulky, heavy, or awkward
to handle. Premises secured according to these principles are
usually passed over by miscreants in favor of other premises not
so pxotected.
Professional intruders are not deterred by reluctance
to damage a lock, a door, a hinge, a wall, or the like. Moreover,
they are modern enough to be equipped with portable tools of
relatively great power such as hardened bolt cutters or battery
energized drills, hydraulic powered spreader bars, and hole saws.
Any security device exposed on the outside of a protected area
is susceptible to violence: thus, padlocks, hinge pins, and so
on are little more than invitations to commence destruction at a
particular spot.
Summary of the Invention
This invention comprises a locking arrangement particu-
larly adapted for utility against professional intruders. All of
its operating parts are mounted on the inside of the door to be
protected. It is also so constructed that its moving member may
be strong and heavy, to an extent impossible if the member itself
were key-actuated, actuation of the member being by means of an
operator of bar-like strength, and key operation being limited to
means for preventing insertion of the actuator. While the
invention is principally disclosed in connection with a truck
trailer, it is also shown in use with an upwardly sliding or
rolling garage door, and its utility for warehouses, railroad cars,
refrigerated chambers, and so on is readily apparent. One embodi-
ment of the invention further includes means for preventing the
moving member from initial displacement when a trailer door is
moved laterally in its own plane, and may include further redundant
padlocking means for preventing easy unauthorized a~cess to the
key first mentioned.
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It is a principal object of the invention to provide
a ne.w and improved means for locking a closure member in a closed
position comprising: a bolt component for mounting on the inside
of a closure member, including a housing and a boss projecting
to extend through the closure member to the outside surface there-
of; a bolt member arranged to slide in said housing; a bolt
operator arranged for rotation within said housing, around an
axis passing through said boss, to cause sliding movement of
said bolt; an aperture in said boss aligned with said axis for
passing an actuator to said bolt operator; a stop plate movable
in a cavity in said boss between a first position, in which it
affords access of the actuator to said operator, and a second
position, in which it extends across said axis to prevent pass-
age of said actuator; and key actuated means in said boss to
move said stop plate between its first and second positions.
Preferably the bolt member includes a rack, and said
bolt operator comprises a pinion meshing with said rack, mounted
for rotation in said housing and axially formed with a non-circu-
lar aperture to receive the actuator.
Preferably the key actuated means includes a lock
secured in said boss by means accessible only from the side of
said boss, so as to be inaccessible through the material of a
closure member when the housing is installed therein. The lock
includes a shaft rotatable by a key in said lock and carrying
said stop plate, and the stop plate in its second position is
axially supported by means including the housing so that axial
force applied thereto through the aperture is without disabling
effect on the lock.
:, j
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Various advantages and features of novelty which charac-
terize my invention are pointed out with particularity in the
claims annexed hereto and forming a part hereof. However, for a
better understanding of the invention, its advantages, and objects
attained by its use, reference should be had to the drawing which
forms a further part hereof, and to the accompanying descriptive
matter, in which there are illustrated and described certain
preferred embodiments of the invention.
Brief Description of the Drawings
In the drawings, FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a
truck trailer having my invention installed at rear and side doors;
FIGURE 2 is a view in perspective of the mechanism removed
from the rear door and viewed from the outside;
FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary view in perspective of the
mechanism from inside the trailer;
FIGURE 4 is a view in elevation of the mechanism of
FIGURE 2, with parts broken away for clarity of illustration;
FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5
of FIGURE 3;
FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the
line 6-6 of FIGURE 5;
FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the
line 7-7 of FIGURE 3;
FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the
line 8-8 of FIGURE l;
FIGURE 9 shows my invention applied to a garage or ware-
house door;
FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary view similar to FIGURE 9 to a
larger scale and seen from within;
FIGURE 11 is a view like FIGURE 4 showing a second embodi-
ment of the invention;
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FIGURE 12 is a perspective view of a truck trailer having
a modified embodiment of my invention installed at its doors;
FIGURE 13 .is a view in perspective of the improved
mechanism removed from the door, and showing the side which
engages the door;
FIGURE 14 is an end view of the bolt component of the
improved mechanism seen from the left in FIGURE 13, with parts
broken away;
FIGURE 15 is a view in elevation of the bolt component
of the improved mechanism showing the side which is remote from
the door, with parts broken away;
FIGURE 16 is a view like FIGURE 15 of the strike component
of the improved mechanism;
FIGURE 17 is a detail showing a portion of the bolt
mechanism in a different condition; and
FIGURE 18 is a sectional view taken along the line 18-18
of FIGURE 13.
Descri tion of the Preferred Embodiments
p
Turning now to Figure 1, a truck trailer 20 is shown to
have a side door 21 hinged along its forward edge 22 and a pair
of rear doors 23 and 24 hinged at their outer edges 25 and 26 to
overlap centrally at 27, and having the usual latching hardware
operated by handles 30 and 31. My closure mechanism, indicated by
the reference numeral 32, is better shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4
to comprise a strike or socket component 33 attached to door 24, as
by fastenings 34, and a bolt component 35, attached to door 23 as
by fasteners 36. Fasteners 34 and 36 may be rivets, carriage bolts,
or any such devices which are not amenable to removal from outside
the door.
Bolt component 35 is shown to comprise a mounting plate
40 of generally rectangular out:Line with an upper projection 41,
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to which there is welded or otherwise secured a hollow cylindrical
boss 42 of circular cross section, and of axial length equal to or
less than the thickness of the door 23, so that when inserted from
within the trailer into a round hole 43 in the door, the end cap
44 of the boss 42 does not project outwardly therebeyond.
A housing 45 is secured in any suitable manner to the
surface of plate 40 opposite boss 42, and like plate 40, is
generally rectangular with an upper projection at 46. The upper
surface 47 and lower surface 50 of housing 45 are horizontal, its
end 51 and the upper surface 52 of portion 46 are beveled toward
plate 40, and its end 53 is open. Mounting plate 40 and housing
45 cooperate to form a channel in which a bolt member 54 may slide
horizontally as suggested at 55. Bolt member is of very signifi-
cant dimensions and weight. A stop screw 56 may project downwardly
from member 54 to move in a slot 57 in housing 45, for physically
limiting the horizontal movement of member 54 in each direction,
and a spring urged ball detent 60 may be provided in housing 45
to engage in depressions 61 and 62 in bar member 54 at the ends
of its travel. Also, the end 63 of member 54 may be shaped and
beveled if this is preferred.
As mentioned, bolt member 54 is strong and massive, and
is not suitable for movement by turning of any conventional key.
Actuation of the bolt member is accomplished by a bolt operator
in the form of a pinion 64 mounted for rotation on hubs 65 and 66
in aligned openings in housing 46 and mounting plate 41. Pinion
64 is axially apertured at 67, the aperture being splined or
hexagonal or of some other non-circular conEiguration. Pinion 64
is positioned in housing 44 so that its axis 69 passes through
boss 42, and a bore 70 is formed in cap 44 in line with axis 69
and of diametex greater than that of the circle circumscribing
aperture 67. Pinion 64 meshes with a rack 71 cut in the upper
edge of bolt member 54.
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It will be clear, as suggested in Figure 2, that if an
ac1:uating tool such as a T- or L-wrench having a hexagonal or
splined shaft, as shown at 72, is inserted through bore 70 in cap
44, it may pass through to aperture 67 of pinion 64. Such a tool
may be constructed with the ruggedness required to turn pinion 64,
thus moving bolt member in its channel.
A key actuated lock mechanism 80 is secured in cap 44 as
by threading into a suitable tapped hole, and is held in place
by a set screw 81: when the mechanism is installed, the set screw
is completely covered within the thickness of the door 23, and,
hence, is not available for unauthorized loosening. A non-circular
shaft 82 extends from lock mechanism 80 to rotate in the hollow
of boss 42 through a portion of a turn with turning of the proper
key, and an arm or stop plate 83 is riveted or otherwise secured
to shaft 82. In the locked condition of the mechanism, arm 83
projects directly across bore 70, as shown in Figure 6, to prevent
entrance of actuating tool 72 into aperture 67. The space between
arm 83 and hub 66 is very slight, so that even if a punch is
inserted into bore 70 and hammered violently against arm 83, the
latter is so firmly supported through pinion 64 by housing
projection 46 that no damage to the lock mechanism occurs which
could result in removal of arm 83 as an impediment to the actuator.
In the unlocked condition of the mechanism, arm 83 takes the
position shown in broken lines in Figure 6, clearing the path to
aperture 67 for an actuating wrench.
Strike or socket component 33 i5 shown to comprise a base
plate 90 to which is secured a housing 9l having an open end 92
and a beveled closed end 93, plate 90 and housing 9l defining a
socket sized to receive bolt member 54 when the latter is actuated
to the right as seen in Figure 4. Bar member 54 extends into the
socket for a very considerable distance, and yet remains contained
within housing 45 a considerable distance also. Thus, even if the
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latching hardware is released by handles 30, 31, my mechanism
prevents opening of either or both doors and, hence, prevents
access to the interior of the trailer. This would be true even
if doors 23, 24 were each vertically folded instead of solid
doors.
Figure 8 shows my invention in plan as applied to the
side door of the trailer. Here the bolt component 100 is secured
to door 21, and socket component 102 is secured to the body of the
trailer. In this application, socket component 102 may be omitted
if desired. This figure also shows that the customary overlap of
door 21 against the trailer protects the bolt member from
mechanical attack, as by levers or saws.
The placement of the locking mechanism inside rather
than outside of the door, while protecting the mechanism from
àttack by intruders, has one possible problem in that for vehicle
use, a moving bar could be so impacted by shifting cargo as to
prevent unbarring the door. The provision of housings 45 and 91
thus has the further virtue of preventing shifting cargo from
interferring with bolt operation. Even if heavy cargo impact
should dent one of the housings, the leverage available by use
of actuators like 72 is sufficient to force the bolt member into
the desired position.
Figure 9 shows a conventional rising door 110 of four
panels 111, 112, 113 and 114 with its conventional latch mechanism
at 115, and Figure 10 is a view of the inside of the door to a
larger scale, showing my mechanism installed just above the
conventional latch, socket component 120 being secured to wall 121
of the building and bolt component 122 being secured to door panel
112. Although the movement of closure 112 is one of sliding in
its own plane rather than hinging out of its own plane, it is
clear that access by intruders is prevented in this case as well
as in that shown in Figure 1.
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Figure 11 shows a modified embodiment of the invention.
Here, bolt member 130 is a generally U-shaped metal member having
reinforcing cross pieces 132 and 133. Mounting plate 134 and
housing 135 are simple rectangles, and the boss is repositioned
so that pinion 136 is located between the legs of the U, rack 137
being cut on the inside of the lower one of the legs. This
structure can be resorted to when it is desired to have even
greater strength and rigidity, by reason of larger dimensions than
is available in the structure first described. Socket member 140
is, of course, dimensioned to accord with the larger bolt member.
Figures 12-18 illustrate another embodiment of the
invention which comprises an improvement on the embodiment
described above. It has been found in practice that a bolt
member of sufficient strength to resist attack and perform its
~unctions reliably is of very considerable mass and hence possesses
considerable inertia. The violent shocks inherent in truck trans-
portation sometimes result in such forces acting on the bolt member
as detent 60 is unable to resist, and unintended inertial sliding
of the bolt member may occur to unbolt the door. This is prevented
in the improved embodiment of the invention.
Figure 12 shows a truck trailer 220, like that in Figure
1 having a side door 221 and end doors 222 and 223 including my
improved closure mechanism at 232. This mechanism is shown in
Figures13, 15 and 16 to constitute a strike or socket component
233 and a bolt component 235, which are attached on the inside of
the trailer by fastenings 234, 236.
Bolt component 235 is shown to comprise a mounting or
base plate 240 of rectangular outline to which there is secured by
peripherally positioned screws 239 (See Figure 14) a cup-shaped
boss 242 of circular cross section and of axial length substantially
equal to the thickness of door 221 or door 223, so that when
inserted from within the trailer into a round hole in the door
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the end of the boss does not project outwardly therebe~ond.
A housing 245 is secured in any suitable manner to the
surface of plate 240 opposite boss 242, and like plate 240 is
generally rectangular. The upper surface 247 and the lower sur-
face 250 of housing 245 are horizontal, its end 251 is beveled to-
ward plate 240, and its end 253 is open. Plate 240 and housing
245 cooperate to form a channel in which a bolt member 254 may
slide horizontally. The bolt member comprises a bar 258 of
square cross-section bent into a roughly G-shaped configuration,
the opening being closed by a rack 259 welded thereto with its
teeth extending inwardly. No ball detent and cooperating de-
pressions are needed in this embodiment of the invention.
Actuation of bolt member 254 is accomplished by a bolt
operator in the form of a pinion 264 mounted for rotation on hubs
265 and 266 (see Figure 18) in aligned openings in housing 245 and
mounting plate 235. Pinion 264 is axially apertured, one end 267
of the aperture being splined, or hexagonal, or of some other non-
circular configuration such, for example, as pentagonal. Pinion
264 is positioned in housing 244 so that its axis 269 passes
through boss 242, and a bore 270 is formed, in the end of the
boss, in line with axis 269 and of diameter greater than that of
the circle circumscribing aperture 267. Pinion 264 meshes with
rack 259.
It will be clear that if an actuating tool 273 such as a
T- or L-wrench having a shaft 272 configured to mate with aperture
267 is inserted through bore 270, it may pass into the aperture
in the pinion. Such an actuating tool may be constructed with the
ruggedness required to slide bolt member 254 in housing 245.
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The face width of pinion 264 is somewhat less than the
space between base plate 235 and housing 245, and hubs 265 and
266 are both of greater axial dimensions than the thickness of the
metal in which they rotate. A spring 274 is partially housed in
one end of pinion 264 and acts against a cap 275 secured outside
housing 245 to normally urge the pinion toward plate 235. A short
piece of tooth rack 276 is welded inside plate 235 in a position
to normally engage the teeth of the pinion, and hence lock the
bolt member 254 against any linear motion. Element 276 is thinner
than the space "t" between pinion 264 and housing 245: when an
actuating tool is inserted into actuator 267 and bottomed, and
axial force is applied, the pinion moves axially, compressing
spring 273 until the pinion teeth disengage laterally from element
276 and the pinion is now free to turn, driving bolt member 254
as desired.
A key actuated lock member 280 is recessed in the end of
boss 242, being held in place by a lock nut 281. A non-circular
shaft extends from member 280 to rotate in the hollow of boss 242
through a portion of a turn, upon the insertion and turning of the
proper key, and an arm or stop plate 283 is non-rotatably secured
to the shaft as by a washer 284 and nut 285. In the locked
condition of the mechanism, stop plate 283 projects directly
across bore 270 to prevent entry of actuating tool 272 into
aperture 267, and further extends into a supporting groove 286 in
boss 242 to resist force axially applied through bore 270. In the
unlocked condition of the mechanism, stop plate 283 clears the
path to aperture 267 for the actuating tool.
Strike or socket component 233 is shown to comprise a
base plate 290 to which is secured a housing 291 having an open
end 292 and a beveled closed end 293, plate 290 and housing 291
defining a socket sized to receive bolt member 254 when the latter
is actuated to the left as seen in Figure 13.
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For additional security, a first lug 294 is welded to
boss 242 and a second lug 295 is pivoted to boss 242 about a pin
296. The lugs have pierced upstanding ears 297, 298 through which
a padlock 299 may be passed presenting a barrier to access to lock
member 280.
From the foregoing, it will be evident that I have
invented a new closure mechanism characterized by mounting wholly
within the space to be protected and constructed in size and
massiveness to resist efforts to disable it. An actuator of
comparable strength and durability is also provided. The actual
key actuated mechanism functions solely to move a blocking arm
into or out of a blocking position in which it prevents the
actuator from reaching the bolt operator, and may also be protected
by a redundant padloeking arrangement.
Numerous eharacteristies and advantages of my invention
have been set forth in the foregoing deseription, together with
details of the strueture and funetion of the invention, and the
novel features thereof are pointed out in the appended elaims.
The diselosure, however, is illustrative only, and changes may be
made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrange-
ment of parts, within the principle of the invention, to the full
extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in
which the appended claims are expressed.
