GB2483919A

GB2483919A - Portable door lock

Info

Publication number: GB2483919A
Application number: GB1016154.5A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Charles Halliday
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-09-27
Filing date: 2010-09-27
Publication date: 2012-03-28
Also published as: GB201016154D0; WO2012042254A1; EP2622158A1

Abstract

A portable door lock comprises an elongate member 1 having at one end thereof a wedge portion 2 for engaging the underside of a door and a flat portion 3 freely slidable beneath the door. Separable jacking means 12, 8 co-operate with the flat portion to lift the free end of the flat portion, thereby jamming the elongate member under the door to prevent opening thereof. LockÂing means 7 selectively prevent release of the jacking means when it has been operated to lift the free end of the flat portion. The locking mean may comprise a padlock engaging a loop (Fig 3). The jacking means may comprise a screw 12 engageable with a threaded hole passing through the flat portion 3. The wedge end may have an adjusting screw 5 with rubber faced foot 6. Teeth may be provided on the bottom of the bridging component 8 to engage with the floor or a projecting pin 21 may engage with a hole in the floor 22.

Description

PORTABLE DOOR LOCK

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a portable door lock, for example for temporarily locking an internal door of a building.

Background to the Invention

Providing security for rooms in multi-occupied buildings often presents a problem, because permanent modification of doors to provide locks is not pos-sible -often such buildings are the subject of short-term lettings. High-value portable items such as computers, mobile telephones and audio devices are at risk of theft from such rooms.

Various devices are available to secure doors from the inside of the room -i.e. while the occupant is present -such as a simple wedge under the door.

These do not, however, permit the door to be secured when the room is left un-attended.

Summary of the Invention

Accordingly, the invention provides a portable door lock, comprising an elongate member having at one end thereof a wedge portion for engaging the underside of a door and a flat portion freely slidable beneath the door, separa-ble jacking means co-operable with the flat portion to lift the free end of the flat portion, thereby jamming the elongate member under the door to prevent open-ing thereof, and locking means for selectively preventing release of the jacking means when it has been operated to lift the free end of the flat portion.

The jacking means may comprise comprises a screw engageable in a threaded hole passing through the flat portion.

The locking means preferably comprises means for selectively prevent-ing rotation of the screw. The screw may be provided with transverse thumb tabs on the head thereof whereby the screw may be rotated manually. The lock-ing means may comprise a hasp hinged to the free end of the flat portion and pivotable into engagement with the screw.

Preferably, the lock further comprises a bridging component locatable over the end of the flat portion of the elongate component and having an upper face provided with a hole through which the screw may pass, the upper face be-ing provided with an extension over which the hasp passes to engage the screw. The extension and the screw are suitably adapted to receive the shackle of a padlock.

The lock of the invention is lightweight and readily transportable and permits the securing of almost any door from the outside, without requiring any modification to the door or doorframe.

Brief Description of the Drawings

In the drawings, which illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the inven-tion: Figure 1 is a top plan view; Figure 2 is a side elevation showing the hasp in the open position; Figure 3 is a view corresponding to Figure 2, but with the hasp in the closed position thereof; Figure 4 is a side view of the door lock in use under a door having a minimal gap thereunder; and Figure 5 is a corresponding view to that of Figure 4, but with a larger gap beneath the door.

Detailed Description of the Illustrated Embodiment

Referring first to Figures 1 to 3, the portable door lock comprises an elongate strip 1 of steel plate bent in the vertical plane to form a wedge portion 2 which extends at a small angle to the remaining flat portion 3. The wedge portion 3 includes a short section 4 at the end thereof which extends in a plane parallel to the flat portion 3, and which has a threaded hole passing there-through, into which is threaded an adjusting screw 5 bearing in a detachable rubber4aced foot 6. The free end of the flat portion 3 has a pivotally-mounted hasp 7 in the form of a flat plate with an elongate slot therein (in an alternative configuration, a simple square loop formed of thin steel rod can be employed).

A separate bridging component 8 fits over the flat portion, adjacent to the free end thereof. The bridging component 8 consists of an inverted U-shape formed of folded flat steel plate, the free ends of the plate fitting either side of the flat portion 3 being formed a serrated or toothed configuration to enable the device to resist movement in use. The upper side 8a of the bridging component has a pair of holes 9 and 10 therethrough, one of the holes 10 being provided in an extension 11 projecting forward of the bridging component. A screw 12 passes through the first hole 9 and engages in a threaded hole provided through the flat section of the strip 1. The head of the screw 12 is a cruciform shape in plan so as to provide transverse thumb tabs by which the screw may be turned without the use of tools, each tab having therethrough a hole 13 corresponding in size and spacing from the centre of the screw 12 with the hole 10, so that the shackle 14 of a padlock 15 may be passed through the hole 10 and an aligned one of the holes 13 to prevent rotation of the screw. The padlock 15 is fitted af-ter the hasp 7 is raised to the vertical position passing over the extension 11 and the tab.

The fitting of the lock to secure a door will now be described with particu-lar reference to Figures 4 and 5. Figure 4 illustrates the use of the lock with a door having limited clearance beneath it (typically just greater than the thick-ness of the strip 1, for example 4mm). Firstly, with the adjusting screw 5 raised as far as possible, to bring the foot 6 into contact with the underside of the sec-tion 4, and with the hasp 7 lowered into the same plane as the flat portion 3, the hasp and the flat portion are pushed under the door 16 from the inside of the room so as to project to the outside. This is done while the door is open, and therefore it is necessary to hold on to the hasp 7 as the door is closed by the person leaving the room, so as to ensure that it can be pulled from the outside to bring the wedge portion 2 into engagement with the inner bottom edge of the door. The bridging component 8 is then located over the flat portion 3 and the screw 12 is inserted through it and into engagement with the threaded hole in the flat portion. The screw 12 is rotated so that it projects from the underside of the flat portion to engage the surface beneath, in this case a carpet 17. The teeth on the bridging component engage in the carpet 17 to hold the lock in po- sition as the screw is rotated. It is important that the fiat section 3 is substan-tially horizontal at the start of this operation. Engagement of the screw 12 with the floor surface tends to raise the fiat section into firm engagement with the underside of the door. The screw is positioned so that one of the thumb tabs aligns with the projection 11, and the hasp 7 is then pivoted upwardly to enclose the tab and the projection 11, as shown in Figure 4. A padlock can then be en-gaged with the aligned holes as hereinbefore described. The door is firmly locked, and cannot be opened from either side (it will be appreciated that it is very important that the lock should be applied only when all the occupants of the room have left it through the door 16).

Figure 5 shows the use when there is a significantly larger gap under the door. In this case, the adjusting screw 5 is screwed down so that the foot is spaced below the portion 4 by a distance such that the flat portion 3 can extend under the door horizontally while just touching the underside of the door. The screw 12 then has to be rotated further to lift the flat portion 3 relative to the bridging portion until the flat portion firmly engages the underside of the door to prevent its being moved.

It will be appreciated that the lock can be used as a simple wedge to hold a door closed from the inside, by omitting the bridging component 8 and the screw 12, and simply push the flat portion 3 and hasp 7 under the door until the wedge portion 2 engages the door, and the rotating the adjusting screw 5 by a few turns to wedge the door firmly. Alternatively, the screw 5 may be removed, and the elongate member I inverted, a rubber pad 20 provided on the upper surface of the portion 4 then engaging the ground and holding the device against movement.

Where the lock is to be used regularly with a stone or other hard floor, where the teeth projecting from the bridging component will not be able to grip into the surface, the lock may be adapted by the provision of a third hole through the upper side 8a of the bridging component on the opposite side of the hole 9 from the projection 11, and by passing through the third hole a fixing pin 21 (Figure 5) having a fiat plate 21a as a head, the fiat plate resting against the upper side 8a and being retained beneath the tabs of the screw 12 to prevent its removal when the padlock has been positioned. The pin projects through an-other, unthreaded, hole through the fiat portion 3 and into an aligned bore 22 drilled in the floor. An alternative to this arrangement for such floors, where a hole cannot be drilled, might be the provision of a removable rubber-faced foot for the end of the screw 12. The fiat plate 21 a projects beyond the side of the bridging component 8 and this projection may be provided with a small hole therethrough for attachment of one end of a short chain (not shown), the other end of which is secured to a hole in the side of the bridging component. The chain thus serves to keep the pin 21 ready for use.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A portable door lock, comprising an elongate member having at one end thereof a wedge portion for engaging the underside of a door and a flat portion freely slidable beneath the door, separable jacking means co-operable with the flat portion to lift the free end of the flat portion, thereby jamming the elongate member under the door to prevent opening thereof, and locking means for selectively preventing release of the jacking means when it has been oper-ated to lift the free end of the flat portion.
2. A portable door lock according to Claim 1, wherein the jacking means comprises a screw engageable in a threaded hole passing through the flat portion.
3. A portable door lock according to Claim 2, wherein the locking means comprises means for selectively preventing rotation of the screw.
4. A portable door lock according to Claim 2 or 3, wherein the screw is provided with transverse thumb tabs on the head thereof whereby the screw may be rotated manually.
5. A portable door lock according to Claim 3 or 4, wherein the locking means comprises a hasp hinged to the free end of the flat portion and pivotable into engagement with the screw.
6. A portable door lock according to Claim 5, further comprising a bridging component locatable over the end of the flat portion of the elongate component and having an upper face provided with a hole through which the screw may pass, the upper face being provided with an extension over which the hasp passes to engage the screw.
7. A portable door lock according to Claim 6, wherein the extension and the screw are adapted to receive the shackle of a padlock.
8. A portable door lock, substantially as described with reference to, and/or as shown in, the drawings.