GB2413357A

GB2413357A - Security Device

Info

Publication number: GB2413357A
Application number: GB0408997A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Adrian Wise; Robert Murray
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-04-22
Filing date: 2004-04-22
Publication date: 2005-10-26
Anticipated expiration: 2024-04-22
Also published as: GB0408997D0; GB2413357B

Abstract

A security device for protecting a region of a surface, the device comprising a shield 12 for positioning adjacent to the surface so that the shield covers the region, a protrusion 14 rising from the shield, there being a bore 15 through the protrusion and the shield allowing access to the surface, and a removable obstruction 23 which can be locked into a predetermined position 21 along the length of the protrusion, the obstruction preventing access to the surface through the bore when the obstruction is in the predetermined position. Preferably the shield can be mated to the surface using a threaded bolt. Preferably the device is used on a cash machine, for example a parking meter. Also claimed is a security device comprising a shield and moveable member which sandwich a housing.

Description

24 1 3357 "A Security Device" THIS INVENTION relates to a security device,

and in particular concerns a security device for preventing unauthorised access to a region of a surface, for instance a region of the surface of a parking meter or other cash-holding installation to which the public have access.

Many conventional parking meters have an aperture in a bottom exterior surface thereof, through which cash which has been collected by the parking meter may be extracted by an authorised party. The aperture is aligned with a downward-facing outlet of a cash-holding vessel located within the parking meter.

Typically, a robust slideable plate, for instance made of steel, is positioned at the outlet of the cash-holding vessel. The plate has an aperture therein, which is of roughly equal size to the outlet of the cash-holding vessel and also to the aperture in the bottom surface of the parking meter. In a closed position of the plate, the aperture thereof is not aligned with the outlet of the cash-holding vessel or within the aperture in the bottom surface of the parking meter. In order to extract the cash from cash-holding vessel, it is necessary to slide the metal plate from its closed position into a dispensing position, in which the aperture and the plate is aligned with the aperture in the bottom surface of the parking meter, and the outlet of the cash-holding vessel, to allow cash to be removed from the parking meter.

A locking mechanism is provided to prevent unauthorized parties from sliding the plate from the closed position into the dispensing position. The plate is formed with a notch in a side surface thereof, and a sturdy rod or other protrusion of the locking mechanism protrudes into the notch, in a locked state, to prevent the plate from sliding back and forth. An authorised party may, by operating the locking mechanism using a key, withdraw the protrusion from the notch, thereby allowing the plate to be moved back and forth.

Due to the large quantities of cash which are often present in parking meters, parking meters are common targets for criminals. One way in which the above-described arrangement is attacked is by drilling out the lock of the locking mechanism and, by inserting a long, thin tool such as a screwdriver into the hole thus created, moving the protrusion of the locking mechanism so that it no longer protrudes into the notch of the plate.

The plate can then be slid freely from the closed position into the dispensing position, and cash held in the cash-holding vessel will then fall through the outlet of the cash-holding vessel and through the aperture in the bottom surface of the parking meter.

Experience has shown that practiced criminals can perform this operation quickly, while making relatively little noise.

It is an object of the present invention to seek to improve the security of such cash-holding installations.

Accordingly, one aspect of the present invention provides a security device for protecting a region of a surface, the device comprising: a shield for positioning adjacent the surface so that the shield covers the region; a protrusion rising from the shield, there being a bore through the protrusion and the shield allowing access to the surface, and a removable obstruction which may be locked in a predetermined position along the length of the protrusion, the obstruction preventing access to the surface through the bore when the obstruction is in the predetermined position.

Advantageously, the shield may be secured to the surface.

Preferably, the device further comprises a threaded bolt which may be placed in the bore and mated with a threaded aperture in the surface to secure the shield to the surface.

Conveniently, the obstruction prevents access to the bolt through the bore when the obstruction is in the predetermined position.

Advantageously, the protrusion has a passage passing at least part of the way therethrough and intersecting the bore, and the obstruction comprises a bar which may be inserted into the passage so that the bar obstructs the bore.

Preferably, the passage passes all of the way through the protrusion, the passage has a first width at a central portion thereof, and in a locked position, the bar has securing portions at either end thereof, the securing portions having widths greater than the first width so that the bar may not be removed from the passage.

Conveniently, the passage has end portions having widths greater than the first width to accommodate, at least partially, the securing portions.

Another aspect of the present invention provides an apparatus comprising: an outer surface defining an enclosure for retaining cash or other valuable items; an access region on an outer surface of the apparatus through which the items may be removed from the enclosure; and a security device according to the above positioned adjacent the outer surface so that the shield covers the access region.

Advantageously, the apparatus is provided with a pair of rails on the outer surface thereof, and the shield is received by the rails and prevented thereby from being removed from the apparatus in a direction directly away from the outer surface.

A further aspect of the present invention provides a security arrangement for an apparatus having a housing with a first aperture therethrough, the arrangement comprising: a movable element having a second aperture therethrough, the movable element being located within the housing and being movable between a first position, in which the first and second apertures are not aligned, and a second position, in which the first and second apertures are substantially aligned; and a security device comprising a shield, the security device being adapted to be located outside the housing and secured to the movable member through the first aperture when the movable member is in the first position thereof, such that the housing is sandwiched between the movable member and the security device and the shield of the security device substantially blocks access to the first aperture.

Another aspect of the present invention provides a method of securing an apparatus having a housing with a first aperture therethrough and a movable element located within the housing and having a second aperture therethrough, the movable element being movable between a first position, in which the first and second apertures are not aligned, and the second position, in which the first and second apertures are substantially aligned, the method comprising the steps of: providing a security device having a shield; and securing the security device to the movable element through the first aperture when the movable element is in the first position thereof, such that the security device is located outside the housing and the shield of the security device substantially blocks access to the first aperture.

In order that the present invention may be more readily understood, embodiments thereof will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a bottom view of conventional parking meter; Figures 2 and 3 show schematic representations of the parking meter of Figure 1 in locked and open positions, respectively; Figure 4 shows a part of a security device embodying the present invention; Figure 5 shows a further part of a security device embodying the present invention; Figure 6 shows a security device embodying the present invention installed on the parking meter of Figure 1; and Figure 7 shows a schematic view of the security device of Figure 4 installed on the parking meter of Figure 1.

With reference firstly to Figure 1, a conventional parking meter 1 has a bottom exterior surface 2, which is formed from a sturdy material such as steel.

The bottom surface 2 has an approximately circular dispensing aperture 3 therein, this dispensing aperture 3 being aligned with an outlet of a cash- holding vessel 4 which is located within the parking meter 1.

A peripheral raised portion 5 is located on the bottom surface 2. The raised portion 5 is substantially "U"-shaped, and surrounds the dispensing aperture 3 on three sides, namely left and right sides and a rear side thereof.

The inner surfaces 6 of the "U"-shaped projection which are on the left and right sides of the dispensing aperture 3 are provided with inwardfacing rails, formed on parts of the protrusion 5 which are furthest from the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1. These rails are principally provided to assist in the correct location of a cash removal vessel, as use by an authorised party to empty the parking meter 1 of cash.

A sturdy plate 7 lies inside the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1, and is parallel therewith. The plate 7 has an aperture 8 therethrough, and the plate is slideable between a closed position, in which part of the plate 7 blocks the aperture 3 in the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1, and a dispensing position, in which the aperture in the plate 7 substantially aligns with the aperture 3 in the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1.

A first locking mechanism 9 is provided adjacent the "U"-shaped raised portion 5. The plate 7 has a notch (not shown) formed in a side thereof which lies close to the first locking mechanism 9.

The first locking mechanism 9 is provided with a rod or other protrusion (not shown) which, in a locked position, protrudes into the notch in the plate 7, thereby locking the plate 7 in the locked position, and preventing the plate 7 from sliding into the dispensing position thereof. The first locking mechanism 9 is provided with a keyhole 10, which is adapted to receive a key to move the protrusion of the first locking mechanism 9 so as to lock or unlock the first locking mechanism 9.

Figures 2 and 3 show schematic views of the parking meter 1 with the plate 7 in the locked, and dispensing positions thereof, respectively.

As discussed above, it has been found that unauthorised access to the cash held within the parking meter 1 has been gained by drilling through the keyhole 10 of the first locking mechanism 9. A long slender implement, such as a screwdriver, can then be inserted into the hole so made, to move the protrusion so that the protrusion no longer protrudes into the notch formed in the plate 7. The plate 7 may then be slid freely into the dispensing position thereof, and the cash collected from the cash-holding vessel 4 within the parking meter 1.

Figure 4 shows a part of a security device 11 embodying the present invention. The security device 11 comprises a shield 12, which is substantially rectangular and planar in shape, and which has a pair of outward-facing flanges 13 on opposing sides thereof.

Rising from the shield 12, and substantially perpendicular to the plane thereof, is a substantially cylindrical protrusion 14. A central bore 15 passes through the centre of the protrusion 14 and through the shield 12. At the mouth of the bore 15 at the shield 12 end thereof, the bore 15 terminates in a portion of reduced width.

Preferably, the plate 7 is provided with a threaded hole 16 therein, the threaded hole 16 being visible through the dispensing aperture 3 in the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1 when the plate 7 is in the closed position thereof. Thus, the security device 11 can be placed on the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1, such that the shield 12 thereof contacts the bottom surface 2 and covers the dispensing aperture 3 therein. A screw may then be passed along the bore 15 and threaded into the threaded hole 16 in the plate 7. The termination of the bore 15 in the portion of reduced width allows the head of the screw 17 to hold the shield 12 in place.

In Figure 4, the security device 1 1 is depicted with a tool 18 inserted into the bore 15. The tool 18 comprises an elongate body 19, terminating in a head (not shown) which is operable to engage rotationally the head of a screw 17 used to secure the security device 11 to the plate 7. The tool 18 is also provided with a pair of radially-extending arms 20, allowing a user to apply rotational force to the tool 18. It will be appreciated that such a tool will be required to tighten or loosen a screw fixing the security device 11 to the plate 7.

The protrusion 14 of the security device 11 has a passage 21 extending therethrough, the passage 21 being approximately perpendicular to the bore 15, and passing therethrough. The passage 21 is preferably located roughly halfway along the length of the protrusion 14. Preferably, the passage 21 has a first width at a central portion thereof, and terminates at either end in portions having greater width. In advantageous embodiments of the invention, the passage 21 terminates at each end thereof in recesses 22 formed in the sides of the protrusion 14, each recess 22 having a shape that corresponds to part of a sphere.

Turning to Figure 5, this Figure shows a locking bar 23. The locking bar 23 comprises a substantially cylindrical body 24, one end of which terminates in, and is permanently fixed to, a substantially spherical first securing portion 25. A second substantially spherical securing portion 26 may be locked onto the other, free end of the cylindrical body 24, for instance by means of a key 27.

In use of the security device 11, the security device 11 is first secured to the plate 7 by means of a screw 17, as described above.

The second securing portion 26 of the locking bar 23 is removed, and the free end of the cylindrical body 24 thereof is inserted into the passage 21 passing through the protrusion 14. The first securing portion 25 is too wide to pass through the inner portion of the passage 21, and is received in the recess 22 at the entrance to the passage 21. The cylindrical body 24 is of sufficient length that the free end thereof protrudes into the recess 22 at the far end of the passage 21.

The second securing portion 26 is then locked onto the free end of the cylindrical body 24 of the locking bar 23, and is received in the remaining recess 22. Since both of the securing portions, 25, 26 are too wide to pass through the central portion of the passage 21, the locking bar 24 is locked securely in place in the passage 21.

It will be appreciated that the bore 15 is completely or substantially completely blocked by the presence of the locking bar 24 passing through the passage 21 in the protrusion 14.

Hence, it will be understood that access to the aperture 3 in the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1 is entirely blocked by the shield 12 of the security device 11. Indeed, there is no weak point through which a would-be thief might choose to drill to gain access to the aperture 3.

Even if a thief were to drill into the keyhole 10 of the first locking mechanism 9 and remove the protrusion thereof from the notch formed in the plate 7, the shield 12 of the security device 11 would prevent any cash being removed from the cash-holding vessel 4 within the parking meter 1.

As mentioned above, inward-facing rails are provided on the "U"-shaped raised portions on the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1. In preferred embodiments of the invention, the flanges 13 of the shield 12 co-operate with these rails to prevent the shield 12 from being removed from the bottom surface 2 of the parking meter 1 in a direction directly away from the bottom surface 2.

It will be appreciated that the present invention provides a robust solution to the problem of a weak point in existing parking meters, which will find utility in many cash-holding installations which are located in public places.

In the present specification "comprises" means "includes or consists of" and "comprising" means "including or consisting of".

The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following claims, or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means for performing the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately, or in any combination of such features, be utilised for realising the invention in diverse forms thereof.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A security device for protecting a region of a surface, the

device comprising: a shield for positioning adjacent the surface so that the shield covers the region; a protrusion rising from the shield, there being a bore through the protrusion and the shield allowing access to the surface; and a removable obstruction which may be locked in a predetermined position along the length of the protrusion, the obstruction preventing access to the surface through the bore when the obstruction is in the predetermined position.
2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the shield may be secured to the surface.
3. A device according to Claim 2, further comprising a threaded bolt which may be placed in the bore and mated with a threaded aperture in the surface to secure the shield to the surface.
4. A device according to Claim 3, wherein the obstruction prevents access to the bolt through the bore when the obstruction is in the predetermined position.
5. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein: the protrusion has a passage passing at least part of the way therethrough and intersecting the bore; and the obstruction comprises a bar which may be inserted into the passage so that the bar obstructs the bore.
6. A device according to Claim 5, wherein: the passage passes all of the way through the protrusion; the passage has a first width at a central portion thereof; and in a locked position, the bar has securing portions at either end thereof, the securing portions having widths greater than the first width so that the bar may not be removed from the passage.
7. A device according to Claim 6, wherein the passage has end portions having widths greater than the first width to accommodate, at least partially, the securing portions.
8. An apparatus comprising: an outer surface defining an enclosure for retaining cash or other valuable items; an access region on an outer surface of the apparatus through which the items may be removed from the enclosure; and a security device according to any preceding claim positioned adjacent the outer surface so that the shield covers the access region.
9. An apparatus according to Claim 8, wherein: the apparatus is provided with a pair of rails on the outer surface thereof; and the shield is received by the rails and prevented thereby from being removed from the apparatus in a direction directly away from the outer surface.
10. An apparatus according to Claim 8 or 9, comprising a vending machine.
11. A security arrangement for an apparatus having a housing with a first aperture therethrough, the arrangement comprising: a movable element having a second aperture therethrough, the movable element being located within the housing and being movable between a first position, in which the first and second apertures are not aligned, and a second position, in which the first and second apertures are substantially aligned; and a security device comprising a shield, the security device being adapted to be located outside the housing and secured to the movable member through the first aperture when the movable member is in the first position thereof, such that the housing is sandwiched between the movable member and the security device and the shield of the security device substantially blocks access to the first aperture.
12. A method of securing an apparatus having a housing with a first aperture therethrough and a movable element located within the housing and having a second aperture therethrough, the movable element being movable between a first position, in which the first and second apertures are not aligned, and the second position, in which the first and second apertures are substantially aligned, the method comprising the steps of: providing a security device having a shield; and securing the security device to the movable element through the first aperture when the movable element is in the first position thereof, such that the security device is located outside the housing and the shield of the security device substantially blocks access to the first aperture.
13 A device substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
14. An apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
15. An arrangement substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
16. A method substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
17. Any novel feature or combination of features disclosed herein.