Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
2140612
IMPROVED SECURITY CLOSURE ARRANGEHENT
~ A CK~-R~UND OF THE INVENTION
5 a) Field of the invention
The present invention relates to a security closure
arrangement that has been specially designed for safes, but
that is equally applicable to other practical applications in
10 which a door or other closure closes an opening. The invention
encompasses a safe having said security closure arrangement.
b) Description of the Prior Art
A safe may be a fixed element, for example built into a
wall, or an independent element, whose stability and
resistance to theft is ensured by its own weight. In either
case, as is well known, the safe has a basic structure defined
by a casing, and an access opening in the casing provides
20 access to the interior of the casing.
The opening in the casing is closable by a door that
usually opens outwardly so as not to reduce the capacity of
the safe. The size of the casing is determined by the desired
25 internal capacity of the safe, and both the casing and the
door are constructed with sufficient robustness to provide the
degree of security required.
The door of a safe is usually connected to its casing by
30 hinge means comprising a hinge or a set of hinges, these
generally connecting one of the side edges of the door to the
adjacent part of the periphery of the opening although it is
also known for the hinge means to be situated at the upper or
lower edge of the door.
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Locking of the door in a closed and locked state is
commonly effected by bolt means comprising a bolt or a set of
bolts worked by a locking mechanism, there being a multitude
of known locking arrangements both regarding the number and
5 arrangement of the bolts as well as the structure of the
locking mechanism itself. For example, it is well known to
have a set of bolts that, in the closed and locked state,
extend into sockets disposed around the periphery of the
access opening. When the safe is to be opened, the bolts can
10 be retracted into the door by the locking mechanism.
Known safes suffer from either complexity or lack of
security, or both. On the other hand, safes having relatively
simple locking arrangements can be forced open, most often by
15 breaking the hinges or other elements that attach the door to
the casing. This vulnerability is maximised where the door
occupies the same general plane as the periphery of the access
opening, as is common.
The security lock proposed by the present invention aims
to overcome these disadvantages; it is based on an entirely
novel functional design which enjoys the dual benefits of
structural simplicity and high security.
25 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with these objects, the present invention
provides a safe comprising: a casing; means defining an access
opening in the casing, said access opening having a periphery
30 of a first width; a door capable of closing the access opening
and having a width greater than the first width; and support
means for movably supporting the door; wherein the support
means includes means for tilting the door to open or close the
access opening, and means for displacing the door to engage
35 behind the periphery of the access opening.
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-- 3
In a preferred embodiment, the door is mounted on hinges
and can be displaced sideways in its own plane with respect
to the hinges, the door being slightly oversized with respect
to the access opening in the direction of such displacement.
5 Thus, on closing, the door occupies the plane immediately
inside the entrance of the safe.
In this way, when the door is displaced slightly towards
the hinges, the door can freely pivot open and closed, whilst
10 when it is displaced in the opposite direction when closed,
all of its edge opposite the hinges engages behind the
corresponding part of the periphery of the access opening and
consequently prevents opening of the door. In a sense,
therefore, the door itself acts as a very large and strong
15 bolt.
To effect the displacement of the door within its own
plane, that is within the closing plane, a crank or cam may
be provided between the hinge or hinges and the door, in
20 addition to guides to allow the displacement of the latter.
When suitably driven from the outside with the help of any
appropriate closing mechanism, the crank or cam allows
relative displacement in one or other direction between door
and hinge, so that the door adopts locked or unlocked
25 positions with respect to the periphery of the access opening.
Whilst displacement in the plane of the door allows a
simple driving mechanism and is preferred, the broadest aspect
of the invention is not limited to movement solely in the
30 plane of the door. One component of the door's movement may
be in a direction that does not lie in the plane of the door:
for example, the door may move both forwards and sideways as
it assumes the locked position.
2~0~C~
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The foregoing summary of the invention, as well as the
following detailed description of the preferred embodiments,
5 will be better understood when read in conjunction with the
appended drawings. For the purposes of illustrating the
invention, there are shown in the drawings embodiments which
are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that
the invention is not limited to the specific arrangements and
10 instrumentalities disclosed.
Figure 1 is a partial schematic cross-sectional side
elevation of a safe provided with the security closure
arrangement of the present invention, the door of the safe
15 having a horizontal pivot axis situated adjacent to its lower
edge.
Figure 2 is a partial schematic cross-sectional plan view
of another safe provided with the security closure arrangement
20 of the present invention, the door of the safe having a
vertical pivot axis situated adjacent to a side edge.
D~-~rTPTION OF THE PREFERRFD ~HBODINENTS
Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the security closure
arrangement of the invention is applied to a safe provided
with a body or casing 1 which, in the embodiments illustrated,
is embedded in a wall 2, but which can also be an independent
30 free-standing element. The casing 1 has a front frame 3
forming an access opening 4 to the interior 5 of the safe,
protected by a corresponding door 6, which in the embodiment
illustrated in Figure 1 tilts or hinges about a horizontal
axle 7 and in the embodiment of Figure 2 tilts or hinges about
35 a vertical axle 7'.
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In both embodiments, a hinge portion 8 is mounted in
pivotal fashion upon the axle 7 or 7'. The hinge portion 8
includes guides 9 such as holes which receive rods 10 attached
to the internal face of the door 6, the guides 9 allowing the
5 door 6 to be displaced in its own general plane parallel to
the hinge portion 8, between two limit positions. In one limit
position, represented by a broken line in the drawings, the
door 6 can tip freely to open the safe, and in the other limit
position, represented by a continuous line, the door 6 engages
10 behind the frame 3 of the opening 4 to prevent the door 6
being opened.
The displacement of the door 6 is effected by a crank
mechanism comprising a crank 11 that passes through and pivots
15 about the door 6. On its outer end, the crank 11 carries an
operating wheel 12, whilst the inner end of the crank 11 is
defined by a cranked arm 13 terminating in a journal 14 which
is received in a bearing 15 forming part of the hinge portion
8. Thus, turning the wheel 12 in one or other direction causes
20 the displacement of the door 6 in one or other direction
relative to the axle 7 or 7'.
The illustrated door driving mechanism is simply a
preferred example of a solution, and in every case will be
25 assisted by a closing or locking mechanism of a conventional
type.
In the closed situation represented by a continuous line
in the Figures, the door 6 rests with two or three of its
30 edges against the frame 3. In this way, the structure offers
a maximum level of security, since the door 6 is prevented
from tilting outwardly to open the safe whilst forcing the
door inwardly (which would in any event be pointless since it
would not open the door) can also be avoided by the use of
35 appropriate internal buttresses.
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-- 6 --
It can be seen that, in the embodiment of Figure 2, the
axle 7' is situated very near to an edge of the access opening
4 whereas the axle 7 of Figure 1 is relatively central. This
difference is due to the differing orientations of the
5 respective axles 7 and 7'. Specifically, as the axle 7' is
vertical, the weight of the door 6 does not influence its
opening motion whereas, as the tilting axle 7 is horizontal,
the weight of the door 6 causes the opening motion to be
excessively abrupt. Accordingly, where the axle 7 is
10 horizontal, it is preferred to position that axle relatively
centrally so that the lower part of the door, together with
the driving mechanism of the same, constitute a type of
counterweight which balances and slows the motion of the door
6.
The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms
without departing from the spirit or essential attributes
thereof and, accordingly, reference should be made to the
appended claims rather than to the foregoing specification as
20 indicating the scope of the invention.
