FR2874115A1 - Electronic security tag with loop, protecting, sealing or identifying equipment and objects, includes tab attachment and permanently-locking strand holding them together - Google Patents

Abstract

The carrier (9) has an attachment (10) for a tab (3) and a permanent locking strand (4) holding them together. The strand is a destructible component (4) fixed to the tab. The carrier and tab have through-holes (12) in which the flexible strand (4) is engaged when inserted. Carrier and/or tab have cutters (13) severing the strand during their separation, after prior connection. Complementary components (3, 10) engage for attachment. The locking mechanism is formed inside through-holes (12) of the complementary parts, which allow the flexible strand to be engaged. These complementary parts have adjacent components in the through-holes, presenting sharp edges (14) cutting the strand during separation of substrate and tag, after prior connection. The support chamber (14) holds identification comprising programmable integrated circuit electronics (15). The insertion opening for them, is sealed by thermal welding of the parts (16) of the substrate which form the opening. The flexible strand is fixed to the tab and passes through the hole penetrating it, being held by catches (7, 8). The strand is beaded (113) with conical locking sections, permitting insertion but not extraction through the catches. The construction and its variants are further detailed in accordance with the foregoing principles. An independent claim is included for an injection mold.

Description

Sealing device with identification support

  The present invention relates to the field of sealed devices.

  Commonly used sealing devices comprise a wafer provided with a flexible wire capable of being engaged through a through-hole of the wafer, means for holding the wire in the hole in order to constitute a tamper-proof loop.

  Currently, the chip may carry identifying information that is either previously produced or made during the crushing of the chip around the wire inserted in the hole of the latter.

  The purpose of the present invention is to propose an improvement to the sealing devices, in particular enabling them to be identified more easily.

  The sealing device according to the invention comprises a wafer, a flexible wire, and means for connecting the wire to the wafer so as to form a loop.

  According to the invention, this sealing device further comprises a support, interlocking means for coupling said support to said wafer and locking means for irreversibly locking said support and said wafer, said locking means comprising a part destructible integral with said pellet.

  According to the invention, to constitute said locking means, said support and said pellet preferably comprise through holes through which said flexible wire is likely to be engaged when they are coupled.

  According to the invention, said support and / or said chip preferably comprise cutting means for cutting said flexible wire during the separation of the support and the chip previously coupled.

  According to the invention, to constitute said interlocking means, said support and said pellet preferably comprise complementary parts engaging one into the other.

  According to the invention, to constitute said locking means, said complementary parts of said support and said pellet preferably comprise through-holes located opposite each other when they are coupled and through which said flexible wire is capable of to be engaged.

  According to the invention, said complementary parts preferably comprise adjacent parts situated in the zone of said through holes, at least one of which has a cutting edge for cutting said flexible wire during the separation of the previously coupled support and pad.

  According to the invention, said support preferably comprises a chamber for receiving an identification member.

  According to the invention, the access opening for the insertion of said identification member into said support chamber can advantageously be closed by contacting and heat sealing the parts of this support defining this opening.

  According to the invention, said identification member is preferably constituted by an electronic circuit comprising an integrated circuit chip, possibly reprogrammable.

  According to the invention, the flexible wire is preferably integral with said wafer and is adapted to engage in at least one through hole of the latter, the wall of this through hole and the flexible wire comprising hooking means preventing the extraction of this wire.

  The present invention will be better understood on studying a sealing device described by way of nonlimiting example and illustrated by the drawing in which: FIG. 1 represents a perspective view of a sealing device according to FIG. invention in uncoupled position; - Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the seal device of Figure 1 in the locked position and locked; - Figure 3 shows a horizontal longitudinal section or flat seal device according to the invention in the nested position; - Figure 4 shows a vertical longitudinal section of the sealing device according to the invention in the nested position; and Figure 5 shows a longitudinal flat section of the sealing device according to the invention in the locked position and locked.

  The sealing device 1 shown in the figures comprises a first part 2, for example a plastic material and made in one piece, which comprises a flat pellet 3 of parallelepipedal shape and a flexible wire 4 which extends for example from from the middle of a small side 5 of the pellet 3.

  In parallel with its small face 5 and its large faces, the pellet 3 has a through hole 6 through which the flexible wire 4 can be engaged.

  Substantially in the middle of its length, the through hole 6 has internally projecting hooking teeth 7.

  In different places along its length, the flexible wire 4 has annular attachment teeth 8 projecting outwardly.

  The internal hooking teeth 7 of the pellet 3 and the external gripping teeth 8 of the flexible wire 4 are such as to allow the flexible wire 4 to be engaged in the hole 6 of the pellet 3 but that they prohibit its extraction, except breaking or breaking the flexible wire 4.

  The sealing device 1 further comprises a second portion 9, for example of a plastic material and made in one piece, constituting a support.

  This support 9 is flat and of parallelepipedal general shape.

  Parallel to its large faces, the support 9 has a main longitudinal chamber 10, parallelepiped, open on a small side 11 of this support. This chamber 10 is of complementary shape to that of the pellet 3, so that the pellet 3 can be engaged by interlocking in the chamber 10, until the side 5 of the pellet 3 comes substantially flush with the side 11 of the support 9, the flexible wire 4 remaining outside.

  On both sides of the chamber 10 and parallel to its large faces, the support 9 has through-holes 12 which, when the pellet 3 is nested in the chamber 10, are located opposite the ends of the through hole 6 of this pellet.

  Thus, when the wafer 3 is nested in the chamber 10 of the support 9, the flexible wire 4 can be engaged, not only through the through hole 6 of the wafer 3 but also and at the same time through the through holes 12 of the support 9 located on both sides, so that the pellet 3 and the support 9 are then locked with each other.

  The through holes 12 of the support 9 are of substantially frustoconical shape open towards the outside, so that their inner edges adjacent to the chamber 10 are of reduced thickness and constitute cutting knives 13 for destroying the flexible wire 4.

  Thus, when the wafer 3 is nested in the chamber 10 of the support 9 and the flexible wire 4 is engaged through the through hole 6 of the wafer 3 and through holes 12 of the support 9, it is possible to cut or break by shearing the flexible wire 4 under the effect of the knives 13 when the pellet 3 is extracted from the chamber 10 of the support 9, for example by pulling on the part of the wire 4 adjacent to the pellet 3.

  In contrast to its chamber 10 and parallel to its large faces, the support 9 further has a secondary longitudinal chamber 14 in which is encased longitudinally an electronic circuit 15 of small dimensions.

  To install this electronic circuit, it is first possible to manufacture a support 9 having a chamber 14 having an opening for example on the side 16 of the support opposite to its side 11, to set up the electronic circuit 15 in the chamber 14, to put contacting the edges 17 of this opening and heat-sealing to close the chamber 14 and trap the electronic circuit 15 tightly.

  Advantageously and in a manner known per se, the electronic circuit 15 comprises an integrated circuit chip having identification information memories of the sealed device 1 and means for reading them remotely, these memories being reprogrammable remotely to edit the credentials they contain.

  The sealing device 1 which has just been described can be used in the following manner.

  Having on the one hand a first part 2 consisting of the pellet 3 and the flexible wire 4 and, on the other hand, a support 9 containing an electronic circuit 15 with programmed identification information memories, the pellet is nested. 3 in the chamber 10 of the support 9; the flexible wire 4 is passed through or around a part of an object to be protected or identified; and is engaged, by its free end, the flexible wire 4 through the corresponding through holes 6 and 12 of the pellet 3 and the support 9, by engaging the attachment teeth 7 and 8; this to form a loop of the desired size.

  Before removing the sealing device 1 from the object on which it was previously installed, the knives 13 break the flexible wire 4 by extracting the wafer 3 from the chamber 10 of the support 9.

  The first part 2 consisting of the chip 3 and the flexible wire 4 is then no longer usable but the support 9 enclosing the electronic circuit 15, remained intact, is again usable and can be reused, possibly by reprogramming its chip 18, with a first part 2 new to be installed on the same object or on another object.

  The sealing device 1 can advantageously be applied in the field of monitoring the use or protection of objects, machines or equipment such as electricity meters, gas or water, in the protection and control of objects to be transported such as suitcases, mailbags, coins or banknotes or in fields requiring monitoring of the pathways of objects or products, generally referred to as the traceability.

  The present invention is not limited to the example described above. Many alternative embodiments are possible without departing from the scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims (1)

2874115 CLAIMS   1. Sealing device comprising a pellet, a flexible wire and means for connecting the wire to the pellet so as to form a loop, characterized in that it further comprises a support (9), interlocking means (10) for coupling said support (9) to said wafer (3) and locking means (4) for irreversibly locking said support and said wafer, said locking means comprising a destructible portion (4) integral with said wafer .   2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that, to form said locking means, said support and said pad comprise through holes (12) through which said flexible wire is engageable when they are coupled .   3. Device according to one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that said support and / or said pellet comprise cutting means (13) for cutting said flexible wire during the separation of the support and the chip previously coupled.   4. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, to form said interlocking means, said support and said pellet comprise complementary parts (3, 10) engaging one into the other .   5. Device according to claim 4, characterized in that, to form said locking means, said complementary parts of said support and said pellet comprise through holes (12) located opposite each other when they are coupled and through which said flexible wire is engageable.   6. Device according to claim 5, characterized in that said complementary parts comprise adjacent parts located in the area of said through holes, at least one of which has a cutting edge (14) for cutting said flexible wire during the separation. support and pad previously coupled.   7. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said support comprises a chamber (14) for receiving an identification member.   8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that the access opening for the insertion of said identification member in said chamber of the support is closed by placing in contact and heat sealing parts (16) of the support defining this opening.   9. Device according to one of claims 7 and 8, characterized in that said identification member is constituted by an electronic circuit (15) comprising an integrated circuit chip.   10. Device according to claim 9, characterized in that said integrated circuit chip is reprogrammable.   11. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the flexible wire (4) is integral with said wafer (3) and is adapted to engage in at least one through hole (6) of the latter , the wall of this through hole and the flexible wire comprising hooking means (7, 8) preventing the extraction of this wire.