AU6742290A - Safe - Google Patents

Description

S A F E

The invention refers to a safe, particularly a burglar- an fireproof safe for retaining objects, comprising a casing an an interior for receiving said objects, in which sai interior can be made accessible for placing objects therei or for removing the stored objects therefrom.

From Dutch patent application 8702444 a column-shaped safe i known for retaining objects, comprising a casing with bottom and a wall that define an inner space with an openin at the side of said casing facing away from said bottom, a interior with a receiving member that is provided with a least one receiving space for said objects, and displacemen means for displacing said interior through said opening in a least one certain direction between a position o presentation, in which said receiving space is accessible, and a closing position, in which said interior is entirel accommodated in said inner space. Here the interior is shape as a stacking rack that comprises a pluralily of compartment for receiving cash-boxes. The walls of said casing ar provided with openings through which cash-boxes can be place in a compartment or removed therefrom. Displacement means ar present in the shape of piston-cylinder assemblies tha extend through said stacking rack to the underside of a cove that, in closing position, also closes off the side openings. The piston-cylinder assemblies are designed to present the lowest compartments of the stacking rack to the side openings, if necessary_* The operation of said piston-cylinde assemblies is programmed in such a way that, when the cash boxes are being inserted, the stacking rack can only be move upwards sufficiently for the lowest, still empty compartmen to be aligned with the entrance opening in question and, whe the cash-boxes are being removed, can be moved upwards unti the highest, filled compartment is aligned with the remova opening in question.

Safes, traditionally made of metal, are generally placed o the floor and are used for several workrooms as a depot fo goods that have to be retained. As a rule, several person will be involved in depositing or removing goods that have t be retained, which will result in increased labour costs, i addition to which, the bigger the company or organization the more organizational efforts it will require to deposi and remove the goods that have to be retained.

The present invention is in particular aimed at a safe tha is to be used in a place to work, incorporated in a des structure, for instance. It is therefore the principal aim o this invention to provide a safe that is properly suited fo this purpose, particularly by providing and increase potential accessibility of the receiving member for the user

According to the invention there is provided a safe fo retaining objects, comprising a casing with a bottom and wall that define an inner space with an opening at the sid of said casing facing away from said bottom, an interior wit a receiving member that is provided with at least on receiving space for the objects, and displacement means fo displacing said interior through said opening in a certai direction and in an opposite direction between a position o presentation, in which said receiving space is accesible, a a closing position, in which said interior is entirel accommodated in said inner space, characterized in that sai displacement means are always located outside the portion the receiving member that is able to exit said opening. In this way as good as maximum accessibility of the receivin member is provided if the latter is raised outside th casing, and practically the entire cross section of th receiving member is available for depositing objects.

The displacement means are preferably driven in the certai direction. It is remarked that said certain direction can b chosen as the direction from inside to outside or vice versa

According to a preferred embodiment the displacement mean comprise members that extend in the direction of displacemen and in the border area between the receiving member and th wall.

According to a further development of the safe according t the invention the displacement means comprise tension mean that are tensioned when said interior is displaced in direction opposite to said certain direction in order to urg said interior into said certain direction. It would b preferable for the displacement means tp comprise at leas one coil spring of which one end is preferably attached to the bottom side of said interior and the other end is attached to said casing, near the opening. In this way the user can be presented with a highly accessible receiving member, in addition to which it is conceivable that the interior can thus be easily pressed down by hand while the coil spring is being tensioned until the interior is entirely accommodated in the casing. In this case, of course, locking means are provided to keep the interior within the casing counter to the tension force. When these locking means are operated then the interior is raised automatically.

According to another further development of the safe according to the invention the displacement means are adapted to displace said interior both in the certain direction and in the opposite direction. The displacement means preferably comprise first transmission means arranged on said interior, and second transmission means arranged on the inside of said wall of said casing, said first and said second transmission means being formed for inter-engaging cooperation, driving means being provided for driving one of said transmission means. The first transmission means are preferably formed by worm wheels, the second transmission means being formed b scew thread segments extending along the inner space. In this way displacement means are provided which, while enablin maximum presentation room for the user's benefit, permit a controlled displacement of the interior in both directions. This controllability can be further enhanced by providing th safe according to the invention with operating means fo operating said displacement means in such a way that onl selected, random, contiguous portions of said receivin member are let out of said opening.

According to an economical version of the safe according t the invention, the interior fits snugly in the inner spac and it is provided with a sealing at the end proximal to th bottom for sealing the slit between the walls and th interior, said interior fitting snugly in the inner spac and, at the side facing the bottom, being provided with sealing for sealing the narrow slit between the walls and th interior, the displacement means comprising means fo selectively increasing and reducing the pressure in the spac between the interior and the bottom of the casing in order t let said interior move in and out of said casing as if i were a piston. In this way a simple and maintainabl structure is provided, in which the walls can be exempt fro displacement means and can therefore entirely be used fo performing their protective fuctions.

The safe accroding to the invention may comprise a cover fo closing said opening, said cover being arranged fo displacement in dependence of the displacement of sai interior. In this way user-convenience is enhanced further o account of the fact that the user does not need to remembe to move the cover after the interior has been lowered int the casing again. The cover is preferably attached onto th interior and fits snugly and completely in the opening of th casing. In this way the safe can be provided with a pleasan appearance at the place of work.

The contents of the intended safe will generally exist data carriers or diskettes, tapes and floppy disks, but al of labotoratory materials or other valuable objects. In ord to prevent valuable information form getting lost in t event of a fire, it would be preferable for the casing a the cover, if present, to have a fire-resistant or fire-pro construction.

The present invention also provides a locking or unlocki system. As the safe considered will be used near computers a rule, it would be very practical to put this computer use as well to open and close the safe, so that it will n always be necessary to use keys. Any person having access (a section of) the safe considered will be able to enter h personal password, causing the safe to open and the part the receiving member reserved for the person in question become accessible. In this connection it is remarked that i PCT-patent application 89/02968 a locking system i described, in which a programmable computer operates t locking and unlocking mechanism of a transportable container The invention distinguishes itself principally herefrom i that according to the invention not only the safe is locke and unlocked, but also that the receiving member is mad accessible at a section thereof suitable for or assigned t each individual. This is an important provision because i this way individual distinctions may be made in a organisation as regards the access to part of the contents o the safe.

It would furthermore be advantageous if the displacemen means were adapted to let the receiving member exit th opening entirely.

The invention will now be further elucidated on the basis o several examplary embodiments, represented in the enclose drawings, in which are shown: fig. 1: a horizontal cross-section of an embodiment of the column-shaped safe according to the invetion; fig. 2: a portion of a vertical cross-section of the same column-shaped safe; fig. 3: a vertical cross-section of a further embodimen of a column-shaped safe according to the invention; fig. 4: a vertical cross-section of yet another embodiment of the column-shaped safe according to the invention; figs. 5A and 5B: perpendicular vertical cross-sections of yet another embodiment of the column-shaped safe of the invention. figs. 6A and 6B respectively: a vertical cross-section and a horizontal cross-section of yet another embodimen of the column-shaped safe according to the invention; figs. 7A and 7B: an isometric representation of yet another embodiment of the column-shaped safe according to the invention, especially suitable for incorporation in a desk; fig. 8: a schematic horizontal cross-section of the receiving member of the column-shaped safe depicted in figures 7A and 7B; and fig. 9: a vertical cross-section of yet another embodi¬ ment of the column-shaped safe according to the invention.

Figure 1 shows a cross-section of the column-shaped safe a constructed in highly heat-resistant and shock-proo synthetic materials. The outer jacket 1 and the intermediat jacket 4 are joined together by a adhesive layer 3 to form stiff body. Together with the intermediate jacket 6 the heat resistant foam structure 5 forms a sandwich structure. Th high-quality properties of the synthetic materials suited fo these purposes make it possible for considerably thinne walls to be used than those for the traditional safes. Th interior 7, as part of the frame 9, can move up and dow along guides 8 as visualized in figures 3 and 4. Number 10 i an example of the way in which diskettes and tapes are place into the interior member. Figure 2 shows a longitudinal section in which an example shown of how the safe may be secured to the floor, a slee 14 being fastened with clamping plate 11, which is provid with a protrusion 13 preventing the safe from coming loo from floor screw bolt 12. A loose ring 5 of the afor mentioned foam material ensures the necessary heat insulati from beneath.

Figure 3 shows an example in which the interior 9 can ex the safe upwards by motorized means. This embodiment, ground plate 29, shows the cover 16 in an open position, t interior 9 being guided along a rail 17 on cover 16. When t frame is lowered into the safe again, element 14 reaches mechanism 14a at the underside of rail 17, causing the fra to close the cover behind it. Means 19 are incorporated cover 16, so that the safe can be closed by remote contro by electro-mechanical means, for instance. Ground plate shows a way of fastening.

Figure 4 shows an embodiment in which the cover 23 can placed on the frame. The cover may be removed if t exhibition value of the contents of the safe should make th desirable. The cover is provided with closing means 2 Removable frame elements 28, as well as closable fra elements 25 may be selectively raised from the safe in fra 9. To this end there are motorized means, which may remotely controlled by a computer or other means telecommunication, such as a telephone-operated circuit, be used as described at figure 3. Figure 4, however, shows embodiment in which the interior is pushed down into the sa by hand, causing tension to be brought onto spring drum 26 account of the fact that the latter is moved along a tooth profile 28 by gear wheels 27. When the safe is unlocked t energy stored in the spring drum can cause the interior t rise again.

Figures 5A and 5B represent the column-shaped safe 101 tha has walls 102 of fire-resistant material, as well as a interior 103 with receiving member 103^». At the upper side o the interior 103 the cover 104 is arranged, which fits snugl into the opening formed by walls 102. At the bottom side o the walls 102 there is a passage 105 that may have severa functions, for instance passing attachment means and/o control lines. At the bottom side of the interior 10 attachment profiles 106 are arranged, in which spring drum 107 are incorporated, around which a band spring 108 can coi up. The upper side of band spring 108 is attached to th inner side of the walls 102 by means of a not furthe represented attachment means 109. The column-shaped safe 10 is represented in its closed position. When non-represente locking means, such as for example locking pins, ar uncoupled, the tendency of the band spring 108 to coil u will cause the interior 103 to rise. The properties of th coil spring 108 are chosen in such a way that the entir receiving member 103^» (in other words the interior up to th dotted line) can be brought right out of the opening. It i conceivable that, after use, the interior can simply b pushed down by hand until the non-represented locking mean are activated, when at the same time cover 104 fits into th opening again. It can be seen that the cover 104 fits snugl into the opening in the walls 102, as a result of which t interior is screened off without the presence of hinges a locks, which would otherwise be detrimental on account of t formation of "heat bridges". Furthermore, the cover 20 cann be gripped by a wrench. The interior fits into the inn space of the casing like a giant cork.

In figures 6A and 6B another embodiment of the displaceme means for the interior of the column-shaped safe represented. At the bottom side, the walls 202 determine passage 205 that has the same function as passage 105 of t embodiment according to figures 5A and 5B. At its upper sid interior 203 with receiving member 203• carries a cover 2 which, again, fits snugly into the opening defined by t walls 202. A special feature is that at each vertex at t bottom side of the receiving member 203' a worm wheel provided that can be driven by drive 210 that is operat with the did means, of which only circuits 211 a represented, the drive 210 driving a gear wheel 208 th drives a gear belt, said gear belt driving said worm whee 206, via a non-represented gear transmission at each wo wheel. In the corners in the inner boudary 202' of the wal 202 threaded column segments 207 are provided, along whi the assiocated worm wheels 206 can move when these a driven. It will be clear that movement of the worm whe entails movement of the interior. In this way the receivi member 203' can be brought out of the opening in the wall 202 or at any desired lower position in a controlled manne As indicated before, all this can be brought into effect i dependence of the identity of the user.

Figures 7A, 7B and 8 show an example of a column-shaped saf according to the invention that is exceptionally suitable fo incorporation into office surroundings, in particular fo incorporation into a desk. The safe 301 comprises walls 30 that have bevelled sides at the top and connect to cover 30 of the interior 303 represented in figure 7B. Interior 30 comprises a receiving member with a plurality of receivin spaces 311 consisting of a number of trays 306 and 307, i which diskettes 308 are retained. In this case a fourt receiving space is left behind in the casing; it can onl exit if the identity of the user permits it to. Figure shows a cross-section of interior 303, the trays 308 bein hinged to the tray 307 at 309. When the trays are in close position, their removal openings face each other. By simpl hinging the trays 306 around the hinges 309, the entir contents of the trays are presented to the user in a pleasan way. Figure 8 furthermore shows guiding profiles that, i necessary, provide lateral stability for the interior brough out of the opening.

Figure 9 represents a quite economical embodiment of the saf 401, comprising walls 402, interior 403 with cover 40 attached thereon and receiving member 403' incorporate therein. At the bottom side of the interior 403 a sealin collar 406 of resilient material is provided, which seals th narrow slit between the circumference of the bottom part o in the interior and the inner circumference of the walls. Here, the passage 405 is a passageway for a fluid unde pressure that, via line 407, is delivered from a compresso or hydraulic pressure source 408. By operating the pressur source, the interior is raised or brought back into th casing.

The column-shaped safes according to the invention may especially if the cover fits completely into the opening, b seperated from their surroundings in an economical and eas way by a bell member which is shaped simply - this especiall holds good for the safes according to figures 5 - 9 - an preferably made of material harder than diamond.

Claims (18)

1. A safe for retaining objects, comprising a casing with bottom and a wall that define an inner space with an openi at the side of said casing facing away from said bottom, interior with a receiving member that is provided with a least one receiving space for said objects, and displacemen means for displacing said interior through said opening in certain direction and in an opposite direction between position of presentation, in which said receiving space i accessible, and a closing position, in which said interior i entirely accommodated in said inner space, characterized i that said displacement means (8; 26, 27, 28; 106, 107, 108 206-209) are always located outside the portion of th receiving member (7'; 103'; 203') that is able to exit sai opening.

2. A safe according to claim 1, characterized in that sai displacement means (8; 26, 27, 28; 106, 107, 108; 206-209 are driven in said certain direction.

3. A safe according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in tha said displacement means comprise members (8; 28; 108; 207 that extend in the direction of displacement and in th border area between said receiving member and said wall.

4. A safe according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in tha said displacement means comprise tension means (26; 107, 108 that are tensioned when said interior (7; 103) is displace in a direction opposite to said certain direction in order t urge said interior into said certain direction.

5. A safe according to claim 4, characterized in that sai displacement means comprise at least one coil spring (108) .

6. A safe according to claim 5, characterized in that one en of said coil spring (108) is attached to the bottom side o said interior and the other end is attached to said casing near said opening.

7. A safe according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in tha said displacement means (207-209) are adapted to displac said interior both in said certain direction and in sai opposite direction.

8. A safe according to claim 7, characterized in that sai displacement means comprise first transmission means (206 arranged on said interior, and second transmission mean (207) arranged on the inside of said wall (202) of sai casing, said first and said second transmission means bein formed for inter-engaging cooperation, driving means (208 110) being provided for driving one of said transmissio means.

9. A safe according to claim 8, characterized in that sai first transmission means are formed by worm wheels (206) an said second transmission means are formed by screw threa segments (207) extending along said inner space.

10. A safe according to claim 7, when dependent on claim 2 characterized in that said interior (403) fits snugly int said inner space and is provided with a seal (406) at the e proximal to said bottom for sealing the slit between t walls (402) and said interior, said displacement mea comprising means for selectively increasing and reducing t pressure between said interior and the bottom of said casi closed by said seal in order to let said interior move in a out of said casing as if it were a piston.

11. A safe according to claims 7, 8, 9 or 10, characteriz bv operating means (211) for operating said displaceme means in such a way that only selected, random, contiguo portions of said receiving member are let out of sa opening.

12. A safe according to any one of the preceding claim characterized in that said displacement means (107, 108, 109 are formed and adapted in such a way so as to enable t receiving member (103') to exit the opening of said casin (102) completely.

13. A safe according to any one of the preceding claims characterized by a cover (23; 104; 204; 304) for closing sai opening, said cover being arranged for displacement i dependence of the displacement of said interior.

14. A safe according to claim 13, characterized in that sai cover (104; 204; 304) is attached onto said interior and fit snugly and completely in the opening of said casing.

15. A safe according to claim 13, characterized in that sai cover is connected with the walls of said casing and i provided with means (14a) that can cooperate with means (14 provided on said interior in order to let said cover releas or close said opening automatically by movement of sai interior in relation to said casing.

16. A safe according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the parts (5; 23; 102, 104; 202, 204 302, 304) separating said interior from the environment hav a fire-resistant or fire-proof construction.

17. A safe according to any one of the preceding claims suitable for incorporation into a desk structure.

18. A safe according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized bv a bell member that is made of burglar-proof material and fits over said casing.