GB1583807A

GB1583807A - Combination lock

Info

Publication number: GB1583807A
Application number: GB2879877A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1976-07-10
Filing date: 1977-07-08
Publication date: 1981-02-04
Also published as: ES460641A1; DE2730692A1; FR2357711A1; PT65355B; BR7704498A; IT1080584B; PT65355A; BE856651A

Description

(54) COMBINATION LOCK (71) I, EDUARDO AUGUSTO DIAS DOS SANTOS, a Portuguese Subject of Rua Jose Teixeira Lopes da Praia de Miramar, Portugal, do hereby declare the invention for which I pray that a patent may be granted to me, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to a combination lock, and in particular to a combination lock, which when fitted on a lock, blocks the access to the keyhole of the lock.

However complicated the key to a lock may be and however robust and efficient the locking system may be, every lock is more or less vulnerable to being opened by means of an adequate picklock. Moreover, it is always possible to open the lock by means of the key or a duplicate, possibly obtained illicitly. Such an illicit duplicate key may be easily obtained especially if the key remains in position in the lock for long periods of time and is available to several people, as is the case of motorcars in garages and workshops, of doors and cupboards in factories and offices, and of certain safes and archives.

It is also possible that the authentic key or one of its duplicates may be used illicitly by an unauthorised person for the purpose of theft or any other dishonest purpose.

However, by fitting a device according to this invention to a lock, opening of the lock by means of a picklock, or using a false or illicitly used key, will not be possible, because only the holder of the combination of the present device can operate the opening of such a lock.

According to a first aspect of the pre sent invention, there is provided a combin ation lock for preventing access to the key hole of a lock, to a control button or to another such item, the combination lock including receptor means either secured to the outer face of the lock or other said item, or capable of being located, in use, about the outer face of said item, the receptor means being adapted to receive a blocking assembly which releasably engages and co operates therewith so as to block access to the said item,the blocking assembly and the receptor means being adapted and arranged so that they can be engaged with and disengaged from each other only when each of a number of indexable units in the blocking assembly is positioned in a pre-selected position corresponding to a chosen combination.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a combination lock for preventing the unauthorised operation of a door-fastening which operates by rotation of a driving shaft, the combination lock including receptor means which in use is mounted on the door in a position about the end of said driving shaft, and a blocking assembly which engages and cooperates with the receptor means and the driving shaft, the blocking assembly and the receptor means being adapted and arranged so that in a locked position the blocking assembly, and hence the driving shaft, cannot rotate relative to the receptor means, and in a released position, which position is determined by positioning each of a number of indexable units in the blocking assembly in a pre-selected position corresponding to a chosen combination, the blocking assembly can be disengaged from the receptor means and rotated relative thereto thereby to rotate the driving shaft and release or engage the door fastening.

One of the main advantages of the combination lock of the present invention is that it can be used with most kinds of lock on the market without being necessary to carry out any changes on the mechanism of the lock. The safety of any lock will therefore be enormously increased in a very practical, easy and efficient way.

The device of the present invention presents certain other advantages in that it is relatively simple and easy to manufacture, and furthermore has a combination which can be easily changed.

The combination lock of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the following drawings, in which: - Figure 1 is a cross section, taken along the line AB of Figure 2, of the part of one embodiment of a combination lock according to the invention which is connected to the aperture of a cylinder lock or is an integral part of the escutcheon of the cylinder lock, Figure 2 is a front view of the part shown in cross-section in Figure 1; Figure 3 is an elevation, partly in section, of the blocking assembly, which co-operates with the part shown in Figure 1, the section being taken along part of the line EF in Figure 4;; Figure 4 is a front view of the blocking assembly of Figure 3, Figure 5 is a side view of the device of Figure 3 showing the blocking assembly placed in the cylinder lock, Figure 6 is a front view of a disc used in the blocking assembly of Figure 3, Figure 7 is a side view of the disc of Figure 6; Figure 8 is a front view, viewed in the direction S in Figure 9, of a drum with indicia used in the blocking assembly of Figure 3; Figure 9 is a side view of the drum of Figure 8; Figure 10 is a cross section of the blocking assembly taken along the line CD of Figure 3; Figure 11 is a side view, partly in section, taken along the line GH of Figure 12, of another embodiment of the receptor means of the combination lock of the invention; Figure 12 is a front section of the receptor means of Figure 11;; Figure 13 is a side view, in partial section, taken along the line KL of Figure 14, of the blocking assembly which co-operates with the receptor means of Figures 11 and 12; Figure 14 is a front view of the part shown in Figure 13, in partial section, taken along the line IJ of Figure 13; Figure 15 is a side view in partial section, taken along the line MN in Figure 16, of one of the rings used in the blocking assembly of Figures 13 and 14; Figure 16 is a front view of the ring shown in Figure 15; Figures 17 and 18 are front and side views respectively of the blocking assembly of Figures 13 and 14 placed in position in the receptor means of Figures 11 and 12; and Figure 19 is a section of an embodiment of a further combination lock in accordance with the second aspect of the present invention.

The combination lock illustrated in Figures 1 to 10 includes four rotatable drums or dials, each of which is marked with numbers from 0 to 9. The combination of this lock is thus one chosen from 104 (i.e. 10,000) possible combinations.

It is to be understood that the number of drums and of the numbers, letters or other indicia on the drums can be varied without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The form of device of the present invention illustrated in Figures 1 to 10 consists of two main parts, namely: A first part, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, and which essentially consists of a cylindrical housing 3 fastened to the escutcheon 5 of a lock, which in this case is of the "YALE" type. The inside wall of the cylindrical housing 3 has four circular channels 4, bounded by walls 10. Each of the walls 10 has a sector-like portion 11 which has been cut away, all the said cut away portions being aligned in the direction in which the key is inserted or withdrawn into the lock.

A second part as shown in Figures 3, 4 and 6 to 10; this second part, when assembled in housing 3, blocks access to the lock.

The second part, referred to as the blocking assembly, consists of a substantially cylindrical body 13 having four windows 12 disposed side by side in a side wall thereof thereby enabling the numbers on the drums to be seen. The body 13 supports a shaft 7 rigidly fastened thereto and disposed along the longitudinal axis of the said cy lindrical body 13 (as shown in Figure 3).

Four concentric drums 18 are rotatably mounted on shaft 7. The end of each of said drums 18 carries an integral flangelike portion 21. The outer face of the flange like portion 21 of each drum has numbers from 0 to 9 marked thereon.

Between each of the facets of the drum which carries a number or other indicium there is a depression 19 which co-operates with a spring 20 for indexing the position of each of the drums when they are rotated.

Each flange-like portion 21 contains a serrated portion of larger diameter which enables the drum 18 to be easily rotated.

The drums 18 are dimensioned to form concentric tubes and have, at their other ends, a toothed portion 17 having ten teeth (see Figures 8 and 9) for engaging with, and transmitting rotatory movement to, an annular disc 8, one of which is shown in Figures 6 and 7. The toothed portion 17 of each drum 18 engages a correspondingly toothed portion on the inside face of the said annular disc 8. The toothed portion on each annular disc 8 has a number of teeth 16 which co-operate, and interact,with the teeth on the inner ends of respective drums 18. Each disc 8 carries a radially extending section 9 which is of slightly smaller dimen sions than the corresponding cut away portions 11 on the walls of the channels of the housing 3, the sectors 9 having a thickness which is slightly less than the width of the channels 4 in the housing 3. The assembly of discs 8 and drums 21 is held on shaft 7 by means of a ring 15 secured to the shaft 7 by means of a circlip 14.

A spring 20, one of which is shown in Figure 10, engages each of the drums 6 to restrict the free rotation of the drums. The free end of each spring 20 is shaped to engage the clefts 19 in the flange-like portions 21 of the drums 18. The opposite ends of the springs 20 are secured to the cylindrical body 13 of the blocking assembly, thus ensuring that when the drum is rotated from one indexed position to another, a number or indicium appears in the appropriate window 12.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the shaft 7 extends at one end into a guide portion suitable for insertion into a key hole 2.

The guide portion 1 is blank (without teeth) and has a cross-section which is the same as that of the key hole 2 which is intended to be blocked. In this way the guide portion 1 can be inserted into the lock in the normal way, but it cannot turn in the lock as it has no teeth.

In use, the various drums 18 are rotated by turning their respective serrated portions until the numbers or indicia corresponding to the combination of the lock appear in the windows 12 of the blocking assembly.

If owing to position or to deficient lighting it is not easy to see the numbers in the windows, the drums are turned in the decreasing direction of the numbers until the figure 0 appears in every window, and the drums cannot turn in that direction beyond this figure owing to the interaction of stops 21a on each of the drums 18 against stops 22 on the body 13 (see Figure 10). The drums are then turned in the opposite direction and the number of clicks which each drum undergoes as a result of the spring 20 hitting the bottom of the grooves 19 are counted, the number of such clicks being equal to the number which appears in the respective window 12.

Once the proper combination has been set in the blocking assembly all the sectors 9 will be aligned. The guide portion 1 of the blocking assembly is then inserted into the key hole 2 of the lock, whereupon sectors 9 will pass through respective cut away portions 11 on the housing 3 until the blocking assembly is fully engaged with the housing 3 as shown in Figure 5.

Finally the drums are rotated so that the combination is broken. By such rotation the sectors 9 turn inside the circular channels 4 to positions different from those which correspond to the position of the cut-away portions 11 , thus preventing the withdrawal of the sectors and therefore of the blocking assembly from the lock.

The assembly is thus anchored to the housing 3 which is integral with the lock.

As a result, access to the lock is blocked.

In order to remove the blocking assembly, the combination is re-set and the blocking assembly is pulled away from its housing on the lock.

The combination of the blocking assembly can be easily changed by removing the circlip 14, the ring 15 and the discs 8 from shaft 7. The drums 18 are rotated so that a new combination appears in the windows 12 and the discs 8 are re-positioned on respective drums 18 and re-engaged with the toothed portions 17 of the said drums in such a manner that their sectors 9 are all aligned in the correct position corresponding to cut-away portions 11 on the housing 3.

Ring 15 and circlip 14 are then remounted on shaft 7 to keep the drums 18 and discs 8 assembled together.

An alternative embodiment of the device of the invention is illustrated in Figures 11 to 18, and comprises two main parts: A first fastening part, illustrated in Figures 11 and 12, which consists of an integral cylindrical extension protruding from the escutcheon 23 of a lock, also of "YALE" type. The surface of the cylindrical extension has four circular channels 24 bounded by walls 25 each of which is interrupted by four transverse grooves 26, the grooves on each of the walls being aligned with one another. The lower part of the cylindrical extension is of larger diameter thereby to form an annular lateral flange which carries four reference scales each divided into ten portions, respective portions bearing a numeral from 0 to 9. The reference scales from an upstanding edge which surrounds a circular channel 27.Two clefts 28 are provided at the top and bottom portions of this outer upstanding edge, each cleft being between two of said reference scales and serving to accommodate, in use, corresponding lugs 31 in a removable blocking assembly (described in more detail below).

The blocking assembly, or second part of the lock, is shown in Figures 13 and 14 and details thereof are shown in Figures 15 and 16. This second part includes a lid in the shape of a hollow cylinder 29 closed at one end. The lower edge 30 of the blocking assembly is arranged to fit into the circular channel 27 of the fastening part. The outer walls of the cylinder 29 include two position fastening lugs 31 which fit into the clefts 28 of the fastening part and have four slots 32, through each of which protrudes a lever 33 for controlling the rotation of one of four rings 34.

As shown in Figure 16, each of the four rings 34 has an outwardly extending lever 33 and four inwardly extending lugs 35 disposed regularly about the inner circumference of the ring. The outer circumference of each ring also has ten recesses 36 which enable each ring to be indexed when the blocking mechanism is in use, by cooperating with ball-bearings 39 biased toward said recesses 36 by coil springs 38 housed, in pairs, in lugs 31.

The four rings 34 are maintained in position within the inside of the hollow cylinder 29 by means of a ring 37 which is screwed into position.

In this embodiment of the device, the code is a combination of four figures, each chosen from ten possible figures, that is, there are 10,000 possible combinations.

Naturally, the combination may be one selected from a greater or a lesser number of combinations depending on the number of the rings 34 or on the number of indicia on each ring from which a selection must be made.

In use, the blocking assembly is inserted into the fastening part by first selecting the proper combination by turning each of the four levers 33 until it coincides with the respective chosen figure on the underlying scale. Should there be any difficulty in seeing such figures, each lever can be moved in an anti-clockwise direction to the appropriate stop and then each slide can be moved in a clockwise direction while the number of clicks caused by the impact of a ball-bearing 39 in a recess 36 is counted until the chosen combination is obtained.

Once the combination has been established, each lug 35 of each ring 34 is in a position corresponding to the position of the grooves 26 of the fastening part. Since the grooves are slightly larger than the said lugs 35, the lugs then pass through the grooves to the inside of the channels 24 in the fastening part, while at the same time the edge 30 and the projections 31 in the blocking assembly fit into the appropriate circular channel 27 and the clefts 28 in the fastening part.

If the levers 33 are then rotated, the lugs 35 move inside the channels 24 to positions different from those occupied by the grooves 26. The blocking assembly is thereby anchored to the fastening part attached to the lock and thus prevents admission to the lock of any key or picklock.

The blocking assembly can only be removed from the lock, and therefore access to the key can only be resumed, by returning the levers 33 to the pre-selected figures of the combination.

In this alternative embodiment the combination can also be easily changed, by screwing off the ring 37 and altering the order of the rings 34. Rings 34 can also be replaced by others having levers 33 at different positions relative to lugs 35.

Although the device of the invention has been particularly described with reference to a "YALE" lock, it may be adapted for use with any type of lock. This leads to an important consequence of the present invention, that is, the degree of complexity of the lock is not important.

Therefore if used in combination with the device of the invention a lock of a more economical and of a simple construction can be used with absolute safety.

It will be evident that the device of the invention is also applicable for preventing the access to any other mechanism different from the key hole of a lock, such as a general electrical control button, a mechanical release button, or such like, in which case the said other mechanism would be made integral with the fastening part of the blocking device of the present invention.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Figure 19, the need for a key and a lock mechanism is obviated. In this embodiment a shaft 40 is connected with the blocking assembly and extends through the fastening part, through a hole in the door and ends in a plate 41. In use after setting the chosen combination on the blocking assembly, the blocking assembly is pulled away from the door until a ring 42 on the shaft 40 abuts against the fastening part which is connected to the door by means of screws 43. In this position of the blocking assembly the position fastening lugs 31 cease to engage in the grooves 28 and the blocking assembly is then able to move within the circular channels 24 of the fastening part.

The rotational movement of the blocking assembly is then transmitted through the plate 41 to the driving parts of the lock, thereby opening or closing the lock, and so avoiding the need for a key and associated lock mechanism.

The word "YALE" used in this specification is a registered Trade Mark.

WHAT I CLAIM IS: 1. A combination lock for preventing access to the key hole of a lock, to a control button or to another such item, the combination lock including receptor means either secured to the outer face of the lock or other said item, or capable of being located, in use, about the outer face of said item, the receptor means being adapted to receive a blocking assembly which releasably engages and co-operates therewith so as to block access to the said item, the blocking assembly and the receptor means being adapted and arranged so that they can be engaged with and disengaged from each other only when each of a number of indexable units in the blocking assembly is positioned in a pre-selected position corresponding to a chosen combination.

2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the receptor means is substantially in the form of a hollow cylinder,the inner surface of the cylinder having a number of adjacent, circumferential channels and at least one longitudinal channel parallel to the axis of the cylinder and extending from the free

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. housed, in pairs, in lugs 31. The four rings 34 are maintained in position within the inside of the hollow cylinder 29 by means of a ring 37 which is screwed into position. In this embodiment of the device, the code is a combination of four figures, each chosen from ten possible figures, that is, there are 10,000 possible combinations. Naturally, the combination may be one selected from a greater or a lesser number of combinations depending on the number of the rings 34 or on the number of indicia on each ring from which a selection must be made. In use, the blocking assembly is inserted into the fastening part by first selecting the proper combination by turning each of the four levers 33 until it coincides with the respective chosen figure on the underlying scale. Should there be any difficulty in seeing such figures, each lever can be moved in an anti-clockwise direction to the appropriate stop and then each slide can be moved in a clockwise direction while the number of clicks caused by the impact of a ball-bearing 39 in a recess 36 is counted until the chosen combination is obtained. Once the combination has been established, each lug 35 of each ring 34 is in a position corresponding to the position of the grooves 26 of the fastening part. Since the grooves are slightly larger than the said lugs 35, the lugs then pass through the grooves to the inside of the channels 24 in the fastening part, while at the same time the edge 30 and the projections 31 in the blocking assembly fit into the appropriate circular channel 27 and the clefts 28 in the fastening part. If the levers 33 are then rotated, the lugs 35 move inside the channels 24 to positions different from those occupied by the grooves 26. The blocking assembly is thereby anchored to the fastening part attached to the lock and thus prevents admission to the lock of any key or picklock. The blocking assembly can only be removed from the lock, and therefore access to the key can only be resumed, by returning the levers 33 to the pre-selected figures of the combination. In this alternative embodiment the combination can also be easily changed, by screwing off the ring 37 and altering the order of the rings 34. Rings 34 can also be replaced by others having levers 33 at different positions relative to lugs 35. Although the device of the invention has been particularly described with reference to a "YALE" lock, it may be adapted for use with any type of lock. This leads to an important consequence of the present invention, that is, the degree of complexity of the lock is not important. Therefore if used in combination with the device of the invention a lock of a more economical and of a simple construction can be used with absolute safety. It will be evident that the device of the invention is also applicable for preventing the access to any other mechanism different from the key hole of a lock, such as a general electrical control button, a mechanical release button, or such like, in which case the said other mechanism would be made integral with the fastening part of the blocking device of the present invention. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Figure 19, the need for a key and a lock mechanism is obviated. In this embodiment a shaft 40 is connected with the blocking assembly and extends through the fastening part, through a hole in the door and ends in a plate 41. In use after setting the chosen combination on the blocking assembly, the blocking assembly is pulled away from the door until a ring 42 on the shaft 40 abuts against the fastening part which is connected to the door by means of screws 43. In this position of the blocking assembly the position fastening lugs 31 cease to engage in the grooves 28 and the blocking assembly is then able to move within the circular channels 24 of the fastening part. The rotational movement of the blocking assembly is then transmitted through the plate 41 to the driving parts of the lock, thereby opening or closing the lock, and so avoiding the need for a key and associated lock mechanism. The word "YALE" used in this specification is a registered Trade Mark. WHAT I CLAIM IS:

1. A combination lock for preventing access to the key hole of a lock, to a control button or to another such item, the combination lock including receptor means either secured to the outer face of the lock or other said item, or capable of being located, in use, about the outer face of said item, the receptor means being adapted to receive a blocking assembly which releasably engages and co-operates therewith so as to block access to the said item, the blocking assembly and the receptor means being adapted and arranged so that they can be engaged with and disengaged from each other only when each of a number of indexable units in the blocking assembly is positioned in a pre-selected position corresponding to a chosen combination.

outer end of the cylinder to the innermost circumferential channel, the number of said circumferential channels corresponding to the number of indexable units in the associated blocking assembly.

3. A device according to Claim 2, in which the indexable units in the blocking assembly are a number of coaxial drums mounted rotatably on a common shaft in a housing, the outer face of each drum carrying numbers, figures, letters or other indicia, each drum engaging a respective disc for rotation about said shaft, the periphery of each disc having a radially extending sector which is shaped to be accommodated by and move along the said longitudinal channel in the receptor means when, in use, the blocking assembly is inserted into the receptor means and is also shaped to move along its corresponding circumferential channel in the receptor means when, in use, its associated drum is rotated about the said shaft, each disc having one sector per longitudinal channel of the receptor means.

4. A device according to Claim 3, wherein each disc can be disengaged from its associated drum so that the position of each disc relative to its associated drum can be changed thereby to vary the combination.

5. A device according to Claim 4, wherein each disc engages with one end of its associated drum by means of cooperating teeth on the disc and the said end of the drum, the assembly of discs and drums being maintained by a stop ring and circlip mounted on the said shaft.

6. A device according to any one of Claims 3 to 5, wherein each drum is provided with grooves for separating the individual indicia on each drum and a spring engages selectively in one of the grooves in each drum for indexing the drum to each position corresponding to a different indicium.

7. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the receptor means is substantially in the form of a hollow cylinder, the outer surface of the cylinder having a number of adjacent circumferential channels and at least one longitudinal channel parallel to the axis of the cylinder and extending from the free, outer end of the cylinder to the innermost circumferential channel, the number of said channels corresponding to the number of indexable units in the associated blocking assembly.

8. A device according to Claim 7, wherein the indexable units in the blocking assembly take the form of a number of indexable rings, equal in number to the number of circumferential channels in the receptor means, the rings having an inner diameter which is slightly greater than the diameter of the outer surface of the cylindrical receptor means, the inner periphery of each ring having at least one inwardly extending projection or lug which is shaped to be accommodated by and to move along the said longitudinal channel in the receptor means when, in use the blocking assembly is inserted into its corresponding circumferential channel in the receptor means when, in use, its associated ring is rotated, each ring having one projection or lug per longitudinal channel of the receptor means.

9. A device according to Claim 8, wherein the indexed position of each ring is indicated by the position of a reference marker on each ring relative to a scale shown on the blocking assembly.

10. A device according to Claim 8 or 9, which the indexed position of each ring can be selected by counting the number of clicks undergone by each ring as it is moved from a position in which it is at a limit of its possible rotatory movement, such clicks being caused by a spring system which indexes each of the rings in the blocking assembly.

11. A device according to Claim 8, 9 or 10, wherein the combination can be changed by altering the sequence of the rings in the blocking assembly or by altering the position of the levers or other reference markers of the rings relative to the inwardly extending projections or lugs on each ring.

12. A device for preventing access to a lock or like element substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to, and as illustrated in, Figures 1 to 18 of the accompanying drawings -

13. A combination lock for preventing the unauthorised operation of a doorfastening which operates by rotation of a driving shaft, the combination lock including receptor means which in use is mounted on the door in a position about the end of said driving shaft, and a blocking assembly which engages and co-operates with the receptor means and the driving shaft, the blocking assembly and the receptor means being adapted and arranged so that in a locked position the blocking assembly, and hence the driving shaft, cannot rotate relative to the receptor means, and in a released position, which position is determined by positioning each of a number of indexable units in the blocking assembly in a pre-selected position corresponding to a chosen combination, the blocking assembly can be disengaged from the receptor means and rotated relative thereto thereby to rotate the driving shaft and release or engage the door fastening.

14. A combination lock according to Claim 13 substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in, Figures 11, 12, and 14 to 19 of the accompanying drawings.