GB2250524A

GB2250524A - Entrance booth with a metal detector for controlling access and an enlargeable entrance

Info

Publication number: GB2250524A
Application number: GB9125701A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Rinaldo Rinaldi
Original assignee: Saima Sicurezza SpA
Current assignee: Saima Sicurezza SpA
Priority date: 1990-12-06
Filing date: 1991-12-03
Publication date: 1992-06-10
Anticipated expiration: 2011-12-03
Also published as: GB2250524B; ES2035803A1; IT9001224A0; IT1242640B; FR2670240B1; DE4218661A1; ES2035803B1; GB9125701D0; FR2670240A1; IT9001224A1

Abstract

An entrance booth incorporates a metal detector (14, 15) for controlling access and features an enlargeable doorway (12, 13) so as to prevent armed persons entering protected premises. The doorway can be adjusted in width by sliding aside or (as shown) by rotating one or both of the uprights bounding the doorway, the columns or panels of which house the electrical transmitter/receiver devices of the metal detector, to allow disabled persons in wheelchairs to pass. <IMAGE>

Description

.) -2) 5 j 5 __) 4 1 ENTRANCE BOOTH WITH A METAL DETECTOR FOR CONTROLLING

ACCESS AND AN ENLARGEABLE ENTRANCE

This invention relates to an entrance booth with a metal detector for controlling access in the field of security systems designed to prevent armed persons entering protected premises. The feature of the present invention is the provision of an enlargeable entrance for allowing disabled persons in wheelchairs to pass.

At the present time, for protection against armed criminals, places such as banks, insurance offices, jewellers' shops and the like have one entrance equipped with a metal detector to safeguard against armed criminals, and another emergency entrance/exit.

The entrance which is protected by the metal detector normally consists of a round or, more commonly, square booth, with interactive locking doors under the control of the metal detector which, if unactivated, allows the doors to be opened in succession in order to admit individuals or groups of people into protected premises.

When activated. however, the metal detector prevents the revolving door or sliding door or panel which leads from the booth into the protected premises from opening until either a member of staff instructs the control device to cancel the alarm, or, in the case of an automatic security entrance, until a series of operations has been carried out to check that no foreign bodies, such as weapons, have been left in the booth by the would-be criminal who could then collect them on subsequently re-entering the building after having passed through the metal detector unarmed.

The emergency entrance/exit normally remains closed and the staff open it only in special circumstances, such as when bulky objects have to be brought into the building; when a lot of people have to be evacuated quickly from the premises and would be delayed by passing through the entrance booth with interactive doors and metal detector; and Jastly, when a disabled person in a wheelchair has to enter the protected building.

This last case is because the passage of a wheelchair requires a door width and transit way which is greater than the maximum permitted distance between the transmitter and receiver units of the metal detector for efficient functioning of the metal detector.

In order to achieve satisfactory uniformity of the magnetic field within the controlled passage, and therefore satisfactory discriminating power and satisfactory sensitivity from the metal detector, this distance should not exceed 80 cm unless very large metal detectors are employed, which are not generally used even in large spaces.

At the present time, disabled persons in wheelchairs are unable to enter protected premises without going through an emergency door, - a situation to which they object because it draws attention to the difference between them and able-bodied citizens.

Access by disabled people in wheelchairs to protected premises such as banks therefore involves numerous disadvantages, such as:

the need for a member of staff within the protected premises to go to open and close the emergency door when the disabled person arrives and leaves; the premises are at risk during the moments when the emergency door is opened to allow the disabled person to enter and leave, because this door is not coupled with another locking door; the complaints of disabled persons who wish to behave like all other people including entering protected - 3 premises in the normal way.

The disabled person, however, is prevented from going through, entrances protected by a metal detector because these are usually some 70 cm wide, substantially less then the width of normal wheelchairs which are some 90 cm wide.

The entrance passage safeguarded by the metal detector could be made bigger, at the same time maintaining its efficiency and uniform powers of detection throughout the entire controlled area, by either lengthening the panels that house the transmitter-receiver devices for the metal detector, or by increasing the diameter of the columns containing the devices. This would, however, necessitate an increase in the size of the controlled passage as well as an increase in the size of the booth or entrance structure. This, in turn would create the problem that these protected entrances would take up excessive space, making it impossible to use them in small premises such as the numerous small banks or jewellery shops that often have a surface area of less than 100 square metres and would consequently be unable to make use of these larger entrance booths.

The object of this invention is to provide a compact entrance booth containing a metal detector to control effectively the access to premises where protection is necessary.

According to the present invention there is provided a security entrance booth with a metal detector for controlling access in the field of security systems designed to prevent armed persons entering protected premises, comprising an entrance doorway which is a variable width structure which includes uprights defining the width of the entrance doorway, electrical transmitter and receiver devices of the metal detector being housed within columns or panels constituting the respective uprights, and at least one of the uprights being movable to increase the width of the entrance doorway and thereby permit disabl ' ed persons in wheelchairs to enter the entrance booth.

In the preferred embodiments of this invention, the security entrance booth is a permanent f ixture with two doorways, - one to enter and one to leave, - the former having one or two lateral, mobile structures that have two positions, the first of which leaves a small space to enter, and the second enlarges this space to allow the disabled in wheelchairs to pass. The exit doorway is usually a fixed structure, wide enough to allow a wheelchair to pass, or it could take the same form as the enlargeable entrance doorway.

The aforementioned booth can be installed in the entrances to small protected premises and offer the following advantages:

the emergency exit need only be used in exceptional cases and is no longer needed to admit wheelchairs; the booth allows the disabled to have access to protected premises using the same entrance as that used by able-bodied citizens; the booth occupies a limited amount of space and consequently can be used at the entrance of small premises; the booth requires the use of inexpensive, massproduced metal or weapons detectors, or, at any rate, detectors similar to those currently used and therefore they do not need to be unusually large or have special features that would increase their range of action.

The security entrance booth structure which not only solves the problem the disabled have with entering - 5 these places, but also offers the aforementioned advantages, has an entrance doorway which can be adjusted in width by either sliding aside or rotating one or both of the uprights bounding the entrance doorway. The arcshaped panels, doors or other members which open and close the booth's entrance and exit remain unchanged both in structure and function in comparison with those known at the present time, so as not to impair the tried and successfully tested technique by which the interactively locking double door unit offers protection.

The present invention will be further understood from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments thereof which will be made, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a plan view of a booth according to the presept invention with the entrance doorway open and both of its movable uprights in the position defining a narrow entrance opening, and featuring several arcshaped elements movable along a cylindrical path to open or close the entrance and exit doorways; Figure 2 is a plan view of a booth according to the present invention with both movable uprights in the position which provides a wide entrance opening, and with two arc-sbaped elements to close and open the entrance doorway, which is shown in the closed position, and featuring a flat, laterally-binged door at the exit; Figure 3 shows a plan view of a booth according to the present invention in which the means for adjusting the width of the entrance doorway is of a telescopic type, and utilising arc-shaped panels to open and close the entrance and exit doorways; Figure 4 shows a plan view of a booth according to the present invention with means of the telescopic type for adjusting the width of the entrance doorway, in the wide opening position and featuring a single 6 rotating cylindrical structure having a single wide opening for opening and closing both the entrance and exit openings; Figure 5 As a plan view of the entrance part of another booth according to the present invention with sliding, interactively-locking doors and a device for controlling the width of the entrance doorway from one side only and of a type which is rotatable on hinges.

In the drawings 1 and 2 represent the f ixed lateral load-bearing structures of the booth, 3 indicates two flat panels which bound the passageway out of the booth and 4 indicates two arc-shaped panels which laterally bound the central part of the passageway through the chamber. 5 indicates a flat door, in the embodiment of Figure 2, hinged at point 30, which is capable of closing off the exit from the chamber and whose opening is controlled by electrical control circuitry which governs the position and movement of the arc-shaped components 6 and 7 which combine to make a booth or chamber of the interlocked type.

Referring to Figure 1, two arc-shaped 9 are movable along part of a cylindrical and close the exit doorway of the chamber as to the door 5. The two arc-shaped panels replaced by a single arc-shaped panel 10 in panels 8 and path to opean alternative 8 and 9 are the embodiment of Figure 3. A substantially cylindrical structure 11 with a single wide entrance which allows passage by axially rotating the cylindrical structure 11 through 180 is illustrated in Figure 4 as a further example of a structure for controlling the transit of persons through the booth or chamber.

In Figures 1 and 2, 12 and 13 indicate the uprights which are vertical structures bearing panels with transmitter/receiver devices 14 and 15 of the metal detector, hinged in such a way that, when the device which controls the entrance doorway is activated, they both rotate about hinges 16 and 17 and move from the positions shown in Figure 1 to take up the configuration indicated in Figure 2 and substantially widen the entrance to the booth..

In an alternative embodiment only one of the two panels is rotated, and in yet another embodiment the rotation device is present on only one side of the entrance doorway to the booth.

The rotation is brought about by means of electric motors and a system of gears which can in any case also be operated by lever systems driven by hydraulic actuator units which may be of any kind and may for example be located on the top of the booth or chamber where the motor means for changing and controlling the movement of the arcshaped panels which open and close the entrance and exit doorways are housed. The device will in any case be connected to manual controls, located within the protected premises, for operation in the event of failure or a power cut.

In Figure 1, 20 indicates a structural wall made of brick, metal, glass or other material which borders the facade or the walls in which the booth in accordance with the present invention is inserted. 21 on the other hand indicates flexible folding surfaces with an aesthetic finishing function to connect the terminal part of the anterior side of curved surface 4 to the uprights 12 and 13 so -as to close off the part which is not involved in transit from view and in any case to close off any possible space beyond the line of action of the metal detector in which arms might be hidden.

A variety of materials can be used for the surfaces 21 provided that they are flexible and finish off the entrance to the booth aesthetically.

Figures 3 and 4 show column structures 22 and 23 - 8 which house the transmitter/receiver devices for the metal detector, while 25 indicates the uprights which house the columns 22 and 23, either or both of which are capable of translation, when the device controlling the change in width of the doorway is activated, by movement of a telescopic type with respect to corresponding fixed guide structures 26.

In Figure 5, 27 and 28 indicate two slidable panels of a door, and 29 indicates a fixed panel which extends as far as a hinge 31. A rotatable upright 32 bearing within it the metal detector device 15 shown in the form of a flat panel, but which may in practice be of any shape, is rotatable on hinge 31. In this arrangement of Figure 5, the means for adjusting the width of the entrance doorway is shown to be acting on one side only and the second part 14 of the metal detector is located on a fixed support constituting the other upright.

When the chamber is operating normally the entrance doorway is in the narrow width condition and is normally open, while the exit doorway will be correspondingly in the closed position.

When persons arrive an electric eye, a weight sensor, or any other known device activates the mechanism which controls the units, opening and closing the entrance and exit doorways in accordance with a programme.

If the metal detector is not set off, the entrance of a person within the booth will cause the entrance doorway to be closed by means of the curved sliding panels 6 and 7, in the examples indicated in Figures 1, 2 and 3, and the exit doorway will subsequently open by the movement of curved panels 8 and 9 in Figure 1, panel 10 in Figure 3 and in the case of Figure 2 will permit door 5 which is hinged laterally at point 30 to open.

- 9 In Figure 4 on the other hand it is cylinder 11 which, by rotating, first closes the entrance doorway and then, by continuing to rotate, opens the exit doorway as in the corresponding booths currently in use. In Figure 5 on the other hand it is entrance panels 27 and 28 and then the exit panels of the booth which are operated in succession.

If the metal detector gives an alarm, the exit doorway remains closed and the entrance doorway may remain open or may close for subsequent checks on any objects introduced beyond the line of action of the metal detector in accordance with programmes which may vary and which are already known.

As a person in a wheelchair arrives, the switching over occurs on the intervention of the electric circuitry and the mechanical parts that are peculiar to this booth. This solves a technical problem and has converted a traditional booth into one capable of enlarging its entrance doorway.

Thus the person in the wheelchair attracts the attention of an operator within the protected premises who controls the enlargement of the entrance doorway and switches off the metal detector as a controlling device, thereby changing the alarm circuitry from automatic to manual. In this way the person in the wheelchair is first allowed to enter the booth and then, while retaining the principle of interlocked doors, the operator can cause the exit doorway of the booth to open in order to allow the person access to the protected premises, or, if the person in the wheelchair is unknown, to ask the person to pass their bag, or anything which they may be carrying, through a bag passage space provided in the booth into the protected building to allow security checks to be made, the metal detector being de-activated or ignored as the wheelchair would cause it to become 10 excited. When the check has been completed, possibly with the help of personal magnetic cards with which persons in wheelchairs may have been provided, the operator will allow the person in the wheelchair to enter the premises and will then reposition the door and re-establish control by the metal detector.

Exit of the person from the protected premises will again require operation of the device for widening the entrance doorway to the booth to allow the wheelchair to pass and successively reset the entrance doorway to its narrow width, with the metal detector, if it is present in the exit path, being deactivated and reactivated.

The illustrated drawings are by way of examples to illustrate the structure of the components of the booth and in particular those details which may be provided on one or both sides to adjust the width of the entrance doorway, together with those parts capable of opening and closing the entrance and exit doorways. The means of opening and closing the entrance and exit doorways may be different in structure and in the logic used to control the transit of persons in a self-operative manner or with a control to check a true or false alarm on the part of appropriate personnel.

A special feature of the invention is, however, the presence in the entrance of metal detector transmitter/receiver devices of any configuration as an integral part of the uprights on either side of the entrance. The parts of the metal detector therefore move with the uprights when the controlling device enlarges the entrance doorway on one or both sides.

The booth in accordance with the present invention thus permits a standard supervision of the entrance using a metal detector, and is also equipped with a device that enlarges the entrance doorway to let people in wheel- 11 chairs pass, along with controlling circuitry that can be operated by hand from inside the premises.

1 12 -

Claims

CLAIMS:

A security entrance booth with a metal detector for controlling access in the field of security systems designed to prevent armed persons entering protected premises, comprising an entrance doorway which is a variable width structure which includes uprights defining the width of the entrance doorway, electrical transmitter and receiver devices of the metal detector being housed within columns or panels constituting the uprights, and at least one of the uprights being movable to increase the width of the entrance doorway and thereby permit disabled persons in wheelchairs to enter the entrance booth.

resnective
2. A security entrance booth according to Claim 1, comprising a fixed structure including the entrance doorway and an exit doorway, the entrance doorway being capable of adopting a first position with a narrow opening and a second position providing an opening of the increased width to permit wheelchairs to pass through.
3. A security entrance booth according to Claim 2 whicn further includes circuitry capable of operating the exit doorway automatically when the entrance doorway is in the first position, and capable of being controlled manually when the entrance doorway is in the second position.
4. A security entrance booth according to Claim 2 or Claim 3 wherein the exit doorway is a variable width structure.
5. A security entrance booth according to any one of Claims 1 to 4 wherein both the uprights are movable to increase the width of the entrance doorway.
6. A security entrance booth according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the or each movable upright includes a hipge on which the upright is pivotally moved to increase the width of the doorway.
7. A security entrance booth according to any one of Claims 1 to- 5 wherein the or each upright includes a telescopic structure for enabling the upright to be moved in a linear movement to increase the width of the doorway.
8. A security entrance booth substantially as bereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.