EP0424356A1 - Locking cylinder - Google Patents

Abstract

A lock cylinder (1) carries a bore (4) passing through the cylinder housing (5), the cylinder core (6) and the key channel (3). A radiation source (9) and a sensor (10) are provided in a rose (8) or in another component surrounding the lock cylinder (1). Electronic signals of different amplitudes are generated by bores (13 to 20) of differing size which are located in the key bit of a flat key (12) and which fade out the beam path in the bore (4) of the lock cylinder. These signals are divided in a receiver (11) into a clock track (21) and a code track (22) by means of two threshold values. The code resulting from this is compared in a comparator circuit (23) with at least one desired code of one or more code stores (26, 27, 31, 32, 33, 34). When the codes correspond, the release of an electromechanical blocking mechanism (25) additionally provided takes place. One code store (26) contains a cyclically activatable sequence of codes (C1, C2, C3), a further store (27) is freely programmable (Cn) after the insertion of a programming key into the lock, and a third store (31 to 34) allows individual direct access to the storage locations (C10, C20, C30, ... Ci) by means of a programming unit (35). <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to a lock cylinder with a cylinder core rotatable in a lock housing and with tumblers which can be pushed into a release position from a core and housing bridging position by a key which can be inserted into a key channel of the cylinder core, and with at least one the lock housing and the cylinder core and the Key channel in the cylinder core penetrating bore, in which a radiation source, for example an infrared transmitter diode for transmitting a signal, and opposite this a sensor is provided, to which a receiver and a comparison circuit for comparing a signal caused by recesses of the key by stopping off the beam path when plugging in with a or a plurality of code signals which can be stored in at least one code memory is connected downstream, an electromagnetic interlock in the lock cylinder or in a mortise lock being connected to the comparison circuit connected. The invention further relates to a key for such a locking cylinder.

In the case of individual locks, there is a desire to be able to reprogram the locking cylinder if a key is lost or stolen. In the known designs, the insertion of a key of a second key set leads to the rearrangement of the mechanical tumbler pins, as a result of which the reprogramming is carried out and can no longer be locked with the keys in the first key set. Multiple reprogramming is not possible with these versions.

With locking systems, it is often necessary to change locking authorizations, i.e. to make restrictions or extensions. This requires the exchange of locking cylinders and in many cases is only possible by replacing the entire locking system.

Access control systems are also known which operate on the basis of punched card codes or with magnetic track codes. A punch card or check card replaces the key. Electronic or mechanical readers determine the card code and, based on the target / actual comparison with the stored codes, derive the cardholder's possible blocking authorization. In a The key back of a flat key for a cylinder lock carries marks in the form of incisions, the position of which relative to one another results in the code which, in addition to the mechanical locking mechanism, controls an electromechanical locking device.

Lock cylinders are also known which, in addition to the mechanical pin tumblers, have an electronic locking level. For this purpose, the key is coded in addition to the variation criteria of the key profile and the toothing in such a way that a target / actual comparison is carried out electronically on the lock side after code recognition. Such a lock therefore only locks when the key profile fits into the key channel, when the toothing moves the core and housing pins of the cylinder into the parting area between the core and the housing and when code correspondence between the key and the lock has been determined. The specialist literature reveals active key systems, static passive key systems and dynamic passive key systems. In the active key systems, a transmitter is provided in the key, which sends a code to the lock for comparison with the lock-side code. Static solid key systems include a key with marks such as notches or bores, which are scanned as soon as the key is fully inserted into the lock and has come to rest at least for a short time. The snapshot of the coding is subjected to the target / actual comparison, which then leads to unlocking if there is a match. In the dynamic passive key system, the key code is successively removed during the insertion movement as it slides past read heads, the signals arriving one after the other are stored and the memory content is then subjected to a target comparison.

Typical representatives of the aforementioned active key systems can be found in DE-OSes 30 05 890, 29 22 230 and 30 06 128. Transmitters are housed in the key, the code of which can be reprogrammed or changed by a random number generator in synchronism with the lock code during each locking process. These systems are not only complex, but also prone to malfunction due to the wireless transmission path.

DE-OS 1 553 363 relates to a static passive key system. The key, which has a perforated pattern, is inserted into the key channel. One key side is illuminated over the entire area. Light only passes through in the hole positions and activates photocells that trigger the unlocking process. This system requires a large-area light source and a large number of photocells, so that this construction is not suitable for adapting conventional cylinder locks.

Static passive systems are also shown in DE-OS 29 25 214 and DE-AS 25 16 283. While in the first case, when the key is in the idle state, a hole pattern of the key lies between a large-area radiation source and a chain of light-sensitive elements of the lock, it is in second case notches in the key back. All such static passive key systems require large-volume fittings in the lock, which, as mentioned, preclude the adaptation of existing, highly specialized locking cylinders.

A dynamic passive key system is known from CH-PS 640 297. The key itself has at least two code tracks on a non-mechanical basis, avoiding clock information when inserted into the key channel by means of at least two lock-side reading heads, and code information associated with the clocks is derived. The clock information is required because each person inserts the key at different speeds and the insertion speed does not keep constant over the entire depth of the key channel. The effort with two tracks and associated with two or even four reading heads is great, in particular the reading heads require a lot of electrical energy. A system with only a single track and a single reading head should be aimed for, since the key itself is only slightly modified and only an electrical sensor would be required in the lock. The read head would have to abstract both clock and code information from one track without reducing the code capacity.

The invention aims to provide such a simple dynamic passive key system that is industrial Key that can be easily produced requires little energy and is particularly reliable. This system should be able to be superimposed unconditionally on a high-quality key-lock combination on a cylinder basis, so that in particular the diversity of variations is increased and changes regarding the locking authorization can also be made on site without having to replace the lock. This is achieved according to the invention in that only a single sensor is provided and two threshold values are set in the receiver for the analog signal arriving from this sensor and obtained only from a signal track of the key, the signals detected above the lower threshold and the clock signals above Upper threshold signals are code signals that are connected as a clocked code to the comparison circuit, at the second input of which there is at least one code memory. In addition to the mechanical variation criteria, an electronic-mechanical security level is superimposed on the system. The mechanical signal track of a key can be detected when inserted into the key channel and two state variables can be distinguished or determined in this way. In this way, the clock is obtained in a very simple and reliable manner via one state variable and the code from the second. The values received can be light intensities or light quantities when IR or laser scanning of bores or countersinks. The system can be used to increase the security of a single cylinder as well as for the flexible design of a locking system and for the immediate assignment and withdrawal of blocking authorizations for the single cylinder as well as for the system. While the security against violence is taken over by the mechanical locking mechanism, the electronics scanning the mechanical code of the key ensure an enormous increase in variation and flexibility. It is expedient if the code memory contains a plurality of codes which can be called up cyclically one after the other, which can be activated individually in each case by inserting a key containing the new code, the previous code in the code memory being deactivated at the same time. The lock code changes cyclically without additional effort. An advantage of this system lies in the fact that such a locking cylinder can be programmed by the owner himself at any time. For this purpose, it is useful if the code memory for input or. Reprogramming of key codes by a predetermined control code, for example a programming key, can be switched through to the receiver. This makes the code memory accessible. A programmable memory can also be provided, which deletes all previously entered codes when a programming key is inserted and is briefly open for reprogramming by successively inserting all lock-authorized keys. In addition to being time-limited, programming can also be ended by inserting the program key again. If, for example, a key is given to a craftsman for a short time, the blocking authorization for this key can be revoked at night, on the weekend or after work has ended. The embodiment suitable for this is characterized in that the code memory has memory locations whose codes can be entered individually by means of a pluggable or optically or inductively connectable programming device. Even if the handyman or a neighbor holding the key loses the key during his or her absence, only the code of the lost key has to be deleted from the signal memory by the programming device. Even if the teeth and profiling match, which would lead to the mechanical tumblers being overcome, the lock cannot be locked with this key - should it have fallen into the wrong hands.

The memory of this code memory can be individually accessed by the programming device. A clock chip can be assigned to the code memory, so that certain blocking authorizations can take place as a function of time. For example, employees' office keys can only be locked on weekdays between 8 and 6 p.m. The clock chip can also be connected to an event memory, which registers each locking attempt, including the key code, with the time and date. The event memory can be read out by means of optical, inductive coupling or via a plug by means of a reader, at most with a printer.

In terms of design, it is a special embodiment characterized in that the radiation source and the sensor are provided in a rosette which can be pushed over the locking cylinder. It is also advantageous if the energy of the radiation source via isolated mounting screws in the rosette from a battery in a housing, which is preferably designed as part of a long plate of the fitting opposite the rosette, as well as the received signal from the sensor via these mounting screws in the housing provided receiver and then the comparison circuit can be fed.

The key for a locking cylinder is characterized in that a single signal track in the form of openings is provided in the key bit, which is located one behind the other in the direction of insertion of the key into the key channel and which is used as signal information for the passage cross-sections for the beam path of the radiation source which differ in order to distinguish at least two state variables have, wherein the openings are preferably formed as bores with two different bore diameters. The openings can advantageously be poured out by a material which is permeable to the radiation of the radiation source, in particular a plastic.

• Fig. 1 zeigt in schematischer Darstellung den Schloßbereich ei­ner Tür mit Einstemmschloß und Schließzylinder zusammen mit ei­nem Blockschaltbild zur Funktionsdarstellung, Fig. 2 den Schließ­zylinder zusammen mit einer Rosette in Frontansicht und Fig. 3 einen Schlüssel.

An embodiment of the subject of the invention is shown in the drawings.

• Fig. 1 shows a schematic representation of the lock area of a door with mortise lock and lock cylinder together with a block diagram for the functional representation, Fig. 2 shows the lock cylinder together with a rosette in front view and Fig. 3 shows a key.

A standard lock cylinder 1 is inserted in a mortise lock 2 of a door 3. The lock cylinder 1 has a bore 4 which passes through the lock housing 5 and the cylinder core 6 and the key channel 7. A rosette 8 is slid over the part of the locking cylinder 1 projecting outward beyond the door surface, in which a bore is also provided, which is aligned with the bore 4 in the locking cylinder. In the rosette bore there is on the one hand an infrared transmitter diode 9 and on the other hand an infrared sensor 10, the signal of which is sent to a receiver 11 leads. The incoming signal is compared in receiver 11 with two threshold values. If the lower threshold is exceeded, the receiver recognizes a clock signal; if the upper threshold is also exceeded, then a code signal ("1") is present.

When a key 12 (FIG. 3) is inserted into the key channel 7, the bores 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 provided in the key bit cycle the infrared beam between the transmitter diode 9 and the sensor 10. As a result of the different bore diameter at the key 12, the sensor emits signals of different strengths which lead to a clock sequence 21 and a code sequence 22 in the receiver 11 as a result of the aforementioned thresholds. The latter represents the electronic image of the mechanical hole track 13 to 20. In the exemplary embodiment, the holes 14, 15 and 17, that is to say the second, third and fifth holes, are larger in cross section than the other holes. The cross-sectional difference does not have to relate to the bore diameter, but concerns the effective dimming of the infrared beam. For example, holes of the same size could also be used, which are offset in height for a smaller passage cross-section compared to the central axis of the infrared beam on the key. For different dimming of the infrared beam, the holes could also run obliquely to the axis of the light beam in the key bar. This also influences the passage cross-section effective for dimming. Back to the exemplary embodiment, all bores 13 to 20 give a signal when the key 12 is inserted into the key channel 7, which signal lies above the lower threshold of the receiver 11. This is indicated by eight clock pulses from clock track 21. The larger passage cross section of the key bores 14, 15 and 17 results in a signal of higher amplitude, which not only exceeds the lower but also the upper threshold in the receiver 11. Opposite the clock track 21, these signals are at the clock positions two, three and five. The code for key 12 is therefore 01101000.

The determined code is compared in a comparison circuit 23 with a target code. If the code matches, an electromagnetic lock 25 is raised via a line 24, which acts in the mortise lock on the bolt or the bolt mechanism or in the lock cylinder on the cylinder core, the locking lug or the coupling between the cylinder core and locking lug.

The target code or codes, that is to say those codes which lead to the unlocking of the electromechanical locking mechanism, are contained in FIG. 1 in three memories or memory groups which can be implemented jointly or alternatively in a practical embodiment. The code memory 26 comprises three target codes (C₁, C₂, C₃), of which only the first code C₁ is initially effectively compared to the actual code performed via the code track 22 to the comparison circuit 23. As soon as a key with the code C₂ is inserted into the key channel 7, the code C₂ is activated. C₁ and C₃ are ineffective. In practice, three sets of keys are supplied with the lock system, whereby if a key of the first set is lost or stolen, which is coded with C₁, the reprogramming to C₂ is carried out by inserting a key of the second set. This process can be repeated with C₃ or several times. A cyclic sequence is possible, which finally starts again at C₁.

Alternatively or additionally, a freely reprogrammable memory 27 can be provided, which contains the codes C _n as target codes. The memory 27 can be opened for reprogramming by a code key, the code of which is compared in the comparison circuit 28 with a special code K of a read-only memory 29. If the key code of the programming key matches K, then a signal is sent to the code memory 27 or all codes of the keys subsequently inserted are stored in the memory 28. All original codes can be deleted for the time being, or the memory locations can be reassigned in sequence. When a programming key is inserted, the memory 27 can be opened, for example, for 2 minutes for reprogramming or reprogramming. This is indicated by a clock chip 30 and the dashed active connection to the memory 27. The reprogramming phase can also be ended by inserting the programming key again.

A third memory system comprises memories 31, 32, 33 and 34, the memory locations of which can be specifically accessed. For this purpose, a programming device 35 is provided, which is connected to the storage system via induction coils 36, 37. The aforementioned storage system allows the locking authorization to be coupled with a time span, as is shown by the dashed active connection between the clock chip 30 and the storage 31.

An event memory 38 is also provided, which records all incoming codes simultaneously with the date and time (control lines 39, 40). Furthermore, it is also recorded whether the code has released the electromechanical locking mechanism 25. The event memory 38 can be read out via an inductive coupling 41, 42 by means of a display device 43 at most with a log printer 44.

The circuit has a battery 45 for energy supply, only one circuit to the infrared red diode being symbolically shown in FIG. 1. The battery 45 can be charged by means of an inductively coupled AC voltage via a rectified charger 46. The voltage supply can also take place without a battery, for example only with buffering via a capacitor with high capacitance via inductive coupling from the network with the interposition of a transformer (bell transformer). A single, common induction coil can be used for the inductive coupling of the programming device 35, the reading device 43, and the external voltage.

If the battery 45 is used, then a beep sounds as a signal for a positive code comparison by connecting an acoustic detector to the line 24. As soon as the voltage drops below a certain value that can be predicted, the beep is no longer used as a warning and that the battery will be replaced as soon as possible should. In an emergency, external voltage could be applied via the inductance (e.g. charging the aforementioned capacitor). Even if the voltage of the battery drops, the entire electronic system can be deactivated, so that only the mechanical locking criteria of a conventional locking cylinder are available for security and locking.

The mortise lock can be designed as a panic lock, i.e. the bolt can be withdrawn with the inside handle. The inside handle is decoupled from a possible outside handle. While the locking and unlocking from the outside of the door requires the correspondence of the electronic mechanical code, in one embodiment the mechanical unlocking of the locking cylinder is sufficient for the locking from the inside. "Unlocking" takes place from the inside using the handle. Of course, with increased security desired on both sides, a rosette with an infrared light barrier can also be provided on the inside of the door or lock.

The eight-digit code was only mentioned in the exemplary embodiment. In practice, codes of 14 or more digits can be used, for example four digits are used to represent a checksum. This means that the read code can be checked and a reading error can even be corrected.

There is also the possibility of casting the holes 13 to 20 with plastic, which is penetrated by the infrared beam. A groove can be provided on both sides of the key bit, in the bottom of which the bores 13 to 20 lie. In this case, the grooves can be poured out so that the sealing compound does not protrude over the surface of the key bit.

Claims (8)

1.Clock cylinder with a cylinder core that can be rotated in a lock housing and with tumblers that can be pushed from a position bridging a core and housing into a release position by a key that can be inserted into a key channel of the cylinder core, and with at least one the lock housing and the cylinder core and the key channel in Bore penetrating cylinder core, in which a radiation source, for example an infrared transmission diode for transmitting a signal, and opposite this a sensor is provided, to which a receiver and a comparison circuit for comparing a signal caused by recesses in the key by dimming the beam path when plugging in with one or more is connected in at least one code memory storable code signals, an electromagnetic interlock in the lock cylinder or in a mortise lock is connected to the comparison circuit, dad characterized in that only a single sensor (10) is provided and in the receiver (11) two threshold values for the incoming from this sensor 10) and obtained from only one signal track of the key (12) are set, the above the signals detected at the lower threshold are clock signals (clock track 21) and the signals detected above the upper threshold are code signals (code track 22) which are connected as clocked code to the comparison circuit (23), at the second input of which at least one code memory (26, 27, 31 -34). 2. Lock cylinder according to claim 1, characterized in that the code memory (26) contains several cyclically successively retrievable codes (C₁, C₂, C₃), each of which can be activated individually by plugging in a key containing the new code, the previous code in the code memory (6) being deactivated at the same time. 3. Lock cylinder according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the code memory (27) for programming or reprogramming key codes by a predetermined control code, for example a programming key, can be switched through to the receiver (11). 4. Lock cylinder according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the code memory has memory spaces (31, 32, 33, 34), the codes of which can be individually entered by means of a plug-in or optically or inductively coupled programming device (35, 36). 5. Lock cylinder according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the radiation source (9) and the sensor (10) are provided in a rosette (8) which can be pushed over the lock cylinder (1). 6. Lock cylinder according to claim 5, characterized in that the energy of the radiation source (9) via insulated mounting screws in the rosette (8) from a battery (45) in a housing, which preferably as part of a long plate of the rosette (8) opposite fitting is formed, as well as the received signal from the sensor (10) via these mounting screws to the receiver (11) provided in the housing and then to the comparison circuit (23). 7. Key for a lock cylinder according to claims 1 to 6, characterized in that a single signal track in the form of openings (13-20) is provided in the key bit, which are in the insertion direction of the key (12) in the key channel (7) one behind the other and which have signal information to distinguish at least two state variables of the radiation source, the openings preferably being designed as bores with two different bore diameters. 8. Key according to claim 7, characterized in that the Openings (13-20) are poured out through a material which is permeable to the radiation from the radiation source, in particular a plastic.

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