IT201800005500A1 - ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM FOR CONTAINERS, IN PARTICULAR, FOR CONTAINERS - Google Patents

Description

of the patent for industrial invention entitled:

"ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM FOR CONTAINERS, IN PARTICULAR, FOR CONTAINERS"

The present invention relates to an anti-theft system for a container and / or a swap body, in particular, for a container used for transporting goods.

As we have said, in particular the present invention finds advantageous, but not exclusive application in the context of freight transport by container, to which the following description will make explicit reference without thereby losing generality.

This anti-theft system is used both to prevent the container from being stolen, tampered with and / or relieved (or replaced) of its load, and to track the position of the container itself at any moment and in real time.

The containers currently on the market include at least two doors closed from the outside by means of latches possibly equipped with anti-theft equipment.

However, being placed outside the container, these anti-theft equipment can be easily neutralized and / or damaged by malicious people.

Therefore, the thefts of goods contained in containers are quite frequent, especially in the shipping and / or arrival ports of the goods themselves.

These are, therefore, huge losses from an economic point of view which also negatively affect the amount of insurance policies.

Therefore, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide an anti-theft system for a container, and / or a swap body, in particular, for a container, placed inside, which considerably increases transport safety and protection. of the goods transported.

Furthermore, this system is used to remotely detect the instantaneous position of the container.

According to the present invention, therefore, an anti-theft system is provided as claimed in claim 1, or in any one of the claims dependent, directly or indirectly, on claim 1.

For a better understanding of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is now described, purely by way of non-limiting example and with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of the anti-theft system object of the present invention;

Figure 2 shows a front view of a door equipped with an electromechanical equipment of the door and forming part of the anti-theft system illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 shows an enlargement of a latch mechanism belonging to the electromechanical apparatus of Figure 2;

Figure 4 shows an enlarged detail of the bolt mechanism illustrated in Figure 3;

Figure 5 illustrates a latch mechanism mounted on a wing of a door;

Figure 6 shows some enlarged and exploded details of the bolt mechanism illustrated in Figure 5; And

Figure 7 illustrates a further kit object of the present invention.

In Figure 1, 100 indicates, as a whole, an anti-theft system for a container, in particular, a container 10; this system 100 is the main object of the present invention.

The container 10 comprises, in a known manner, five closed walls suitable for defining an external envelope 11 enclosing inside it a space (SP) suitable for receiving and stowing the goods (not shown).

The external envelope 11 is closed by a door 12 for loading / unloading goods.

As illustrated in Figure 2, the door 12 advantageously but not necessarily comprises two leaves 12A, 12B hinged respectively to a left upright 11A and to a right upright 11B; these uprights 11A, 11B being integral with the external envelope 11 of the container 10.

In another embodiment of the present invention the door has a single leaf.

The anti-theft system 100 (figure 1) includes:

- an electronic device 20 for data detection and remote control; And

- an electromechanical device 30 suitable for opening / closing the door 12 of the container 11; said electromechanical equipment 30 being able to control locking / unlocking means placed inside the container (see below).

The electronic equipment 20, in turn, comprises at least one remote transceiver device, such as for example a mobile phone 21 and / or a computer and / or a call center coupled to any electronic transceiver device 23 able to connect with at least one bridge airplane 24. This airlift 24 can also be used directly from the mobile phone 21.

The electronic equipment 20 as a whole is adapted to exchange data and commands with an antenna 31 (Figure 2) belonging to the electromechanical equipment 30.

In this way it is possible an interaction between the electronic control unit and a remote device, so that at any time the information relating to the status of the container and its load is made available, as well as making it possible to send commands to the electromechanical equipment installed on the container when, for example, anomalous events are observed.

In this case, the authorized operator (excluding the driver of the truck who is transporting the container) can send coded commands to the electronic control unit for opening / closing the door 12.

Furthermore, the path of the container 10 can be traced by means of a GPS, GPRS system, and in case of lack of signal automatically by means of a high orbit IRIDIUM satellite.

One or more sensors can be connected to the electronic control unit in order to generate signals that represent one or more malfunctions and / or tampering conditions of the container.

As shown in figure 2, the antenna 31 (equipped with a retractable drawer where three antennas are housed and whose external part that receives the signal is protected with special material for protection against knocks and impacts but which allows the signal itself to pass perfectly ) is electronically connected to an electronic control unit 32 (electronic card) which is in turn connected through known types of wiring with a plurality of latch locks 33, 34, 35, 36.

Incidentally, the electronic control unit 32 (electronic card) as well as being designed to command the opening / closing of the hatch 12 can also be programmed to perform the following functions:

- trace the path of the container 10;

- weigh the goods contained in container 10 at any time;

- record the opening / closing time of the door 12 by authorized operators;

- record any shocks and / or anomalous stresses and / or inclinations to which the container has been subjected 10.

All these detected data can be advantageously stored in a memory present in the electronic control unit 32 itself.

Furthermore, the data collected can be viewed and / or printed at any time by an authorized user.

It should be noted that, although in the embodiment illustrated in the figures attached to each door 12A, 12B a respective pair of latch locks 33, 34, 35, 36 is fixed (respectively, the pair of latch locks 33, 36 to the door 11A on the left, and the pair of latch locks 34, 35 to the right wing 11B), in other embodiments not shown a single latch lock is associated / fixed to each wing.

It should also be noted that instead of the electrical connection cables between the various components of the electromechanical equipment 30 for opening / closing, it is possible to adopt more sophisticated connection means based on the use of WI-FI technology, or of infrared LEDs. .

The elimination of wiring can be a very important factor, given that the containers are very often stored in ports where the saltiness could damage the electrical cables and prevent the correct passage of signals between the various components of the electromechanical control equipment of the locking bolts. opening / closing the tailgate 12.

All this, moreover, to provide the safety lock with the fundamental feature constituted by its removability (see below).

As shown again in Figure 2, the electromechanical equipment 30 also comprises a battery 37 charged by an electric motor 38 preferably, but not necessarily, with permanent magnets.

The starting point for driving the electric motor 38 can be given by means of a piston actuator 39.

In use, when the system detects that the battery 37 is discharging, the piston actuator 39 is activated which provides the cue to set in motion the permanent magnets of the electric motor 38, which charges the battery 37.

It is obvious that, without departing from the scope of the present invention, other methods for charging the battery 37 can be successfully adopted, such as, for example, the use of external electromagnetic fields for remote battery charging, or known systems that exploit the vibrations of the container generated during its transport.

In any case, the electrical powers absorbed by the electric motors used for opening and closing the doors are very low, and to charge the battery 37 the required powers are so low that extremely high-performance systems are currently available that allow the battery to be recharged 37 without using the electric motor 38 and the piston actuator 39.

For example, the container could be equipped with a small solar panel (for example 1 m2) placed on the roof of the container itself to recharge the battery 37.

Figure 3 shows an enlargement of a latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36.

It should be said incidentally that, since in the present embodiment the latch locks 33, 34, 35, 36 are identical to each other, it will suffice to describe one of them to describe them all.

It is obvious to the man of art that bolt locks with different electromechanical characteristics can be used simultaneously to close the same door.

Each latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36 (figure 3) comprises a support plate 300 (fixed to a door 12A or 12B), to which a relative closing mechanism 301 is attached.

The support plate 300, in turn, is provided with an edge 302 on which a lid 303 can be fixed so as to keep the closing mechanism 301 in a protected environment.

More in detail and with reference to Figure 3, the closing mechanism 301 comprises a casing 301A containing inside it a worm / helical wheel reducer 301B whose helical wheel is rotated by an electric motor 301C (powered by the battery 37 shown in figure 2).

The worm-screw 301D (of longitudinal axis (Y)) engages with a nut 301E obtained in a cross bar 301F resting on the aforementioned support plate 300.

Perpendicularly to the crossbar 301F, two locking pins 301G (latches) extend parallel to the worm screw 301D (and therefore, ultimately, parallel to the axis (Y)).

In a known manner, the rotation of the worm screw 301D around the axis (Y) (according to a double pointed arrow (R)) causes the translation of the cross bar 301F and the locking pins 301G according to a double pointed arrow (F).

Therefore, a lowering / raising of the crossbar 301F and of the locking pins 301G can be obtained according to the direction of rotation of the output shaft of the electric motor 301C.

In the lowered position (illustrated with dashed lines in figure 3) each end of each closing pin 301G will engage in a respective seat 11C made in a crosspiece 11D which can be the lower (figure 3) or upper (figures 4, 5 ) of the supporting structure of the container 10.

The seats 11C can also be made in at least one upright of the leaves 12A, 12B. In this case, obviously, the closing pins 301G are horizontal, rather than vertical, as instead shown in the attached figures.

If the two ends of the two closing pins 301G are inserted in the seats 11C, the closing of the closing mechanism 301 is obtained and therefore, ultimately, the closure of the leaf 12A, or of the leaf 12B, on which the latch lock 33, 34 , 35, 36 is mounted.

If, on the contrary, the two closing pins 301G are raised and the respective ends are disengaged from the seats 11C, the closing mechanism 301 is in the open position and it is therefore possible to manually open the door 12A, or 12B, on which the bolt lock 33, 34, 35, 36 is mounted.

The remote actuation of the closing mechanism 301 is carried out by an authorized operator through the electronic control apparatus 20 by sending a signal to the antenna 31 connected to the electronic control unit 32, which processes the signal and induces the motor to be activated. electric 301C, in turn responsible for lowering / raising the two closing pins 301G in the manner seen above.

In the event of failure of the electric motor 38 and / or the battery 37, an emergency release device (not shown) is required to release the closing mechanism (301); said emergency release device being provided with a traction force double compared to the closing one.

If necessary, this emergency release device will perform a forced maneuver for the release (disengagement) of each locking pin 301G from its respective seat 11C allowing the opening of the door 12.

The two leaves 12A, 12B can be equipped with contact sensors (not shown) which ascertain the successful closing / opening of the two leaves 12A, 12B themselves and communicate it to the electronic control unit 32.

A feed-back signal is then generated so that the electronic equipment 20 (and therefore the operator) and / or dedicated call center is informed about the actual closing / opening status of the two leaves 12A, 12B of the door 12.

Figure 4 shows an enlargement of a support plate 300 of a latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36.

The support plate 300 and the closing mechanism 301 mounted thereon can be removed in a manner which will be described hereinafter.

In fact, as shown in Figure 4, any supporting plate 300 comprises a central plate 300A provided with two identical side wings 300B.

Each side wing 300B includes two respective slots 300C spaced vertically from each other; each shaped slot 300C serves to accommodate a respective pin 400 (figures 5, 6) used to fix, in a reversible manner, the bolt lock 33, 34, 35, 36 to a leaf 12A, 12B in the manner that will be described better below .

Advantageously, but not necessarily, as shown in Figure 4, each side wing 300B is equipped with a respective handle 300D, which allows easy movement of the entire latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36 by an operator.

As shown in greater detail in Figures 5, 6, to fix any latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36 to a door 12A, 12B, four blocks 401, advantageously made of steel, are welded onto the internal surface of the door 12A, 12B. carbon.

From each block 401 projects a respective pin 400, which, as we have said, can be inserted in a respective shaped slot 300C. The pin 400 can have a groove adapted to receive the sheet metal with which the support plate 300 has been constructed. The pin 400 can be welded to the block 401, or screwed into a threaded hole made in the block 401 itself.

Furthermore, as shown in particular in Figure 6, the shaped slot 300C has, in turn, two longitudinal sections 300C * separated by a widening 300C **.

In addition, a threaded hole 402 is made on the block 401, which, in use, is located in correspondence with the widening 300C **.

As always shown in Figure 6, there is also a bolt 403 which can be screwed into the threaded hole 402.

The bolt 403 comprises a threaded stem 403A which ends with a respective head 403B.

Furthermore, the bolt 403 is provided with a fixing pad 404 advantageously of conical shape, advantageously made of a plastic material, with a taper facing the threaded hole 402.

As we will see, the fixing pad 404 can slide along the threaded stem 404A.

The shaped slot 300C, the pin 400, the bolt 403 and the fixing pad 404 form a reversible fastening system 600 of a latch lock 33, 34, 35, 36 to any surface, in particular, to the internal one of a leaf 12A, 12B.

With particular reference to figures 6, 5, during assembly, the fitter first inserts the pin 400 into the opening 300C ** and then pulls the support plate 300 downwards (in the example of figure 6) so that the sheet rests on the terminal part of the upper longitudinal section 300C * (figure 6).

At this point the fitter inserts the rod 403A of the bolt 403 into the widening 300C ** and into the threaded hole 402 and begins to screw the bolt 403 itself.

The fixing pad 404 begins to slide on the stem 403A when the lower surface of the fixing pad 404 abuts the block 401. The fixing pad 404 slides on the stem 403A until it abuts the head 403B of the bolt 403, thus as was shown in figure 5.

Obviously, in order to carry out the desired tightening effect of the support plate 300 to the leaf 12A, 12B, at least part of the cross sections of the fixing pad 404 must have larger diameters than that of the widening 300C **.

The final situation is that shown in figure 5, in which the head 403B of the bolt 403 (whose stem 403A is screwed into the threaded hole 402) tightens the fixing plug 404, which, in turn, pushes on the support plate 300,

When the fitter wants to remove the support plate 300, all he has to do is unscrew the bolt 403 from the threaded hole 402 and carry out, in the reverse direction, the operations previously described.

This feature allows to realize a removable kit 500 which includes practically all the devices belonging to the electromechanical equipment 30, so that this electromechanical equipment 30 can be easily disassembled from a first container and mounted, just as easily, on a second container, already provided for example, of blocks 400 already welded to the leaves 12A, 12B and of seats 11C adapted to receive the locking pins 301G (latches) of the bolt locks 33, 34, 35, 36.

In this way, while for example a first container is under repair (or is traveling empty), the aforementioned kit 500 can be mounted and used on a second loaded container, with obvious advantages in terms of overall system management costs.

The main advantages of the anti-theft system object of the present invention are the following:

- considerable increase in transport safety and protection of transported goods, thanks to the opening from inside the hatch;

- possibility of moving electromechanical equipment (for example in the form of a kit) from one container to another with a consequent benefit; and

- undoubted insurance benefits; because, thanks to the unassailability of the anti-theft system, it is possible to obtain very low insurance premiums lasting one year.

Claims (15)

1. Anti-theft system (100) for a container (10), in particular, for a marine container; system (100) characterized by the fact of comprising: - an electronic device (20) for data collection and remote control; And - an electromechanical device (30) suitable for effecting the opening / closing of at least one door (12) of said container (10); said electromechanical equipment (30) being able to control locking / unlocking means (301) placed inside said container (10); said anti-theft system (100) being completely removable from a first container (10) to be optionally mounted on a second container (10). 2. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said electromechanical equipment (30) is fixed to the internal wall of the door (12) itself. 3. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact of comprising connection means based on the use of WI-FI technology, or of infrared LED rays, to connect together the devices included in said electromechanical equipment (30). 4. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said electromechanical equipment (30) comprises electrical energy storage means (37); said accumulation means (37) being electrically rechargeable through the use of external electromagnetic fields, and / or using the vibrations of said container (10). 5. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said electromechanical equipment (30) comprises at least one bolt lock (33, 34, 35, 36) comprising a relative closing mechanism (301 ). 6. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that said closing mechanism (301) comprises a casing (301A) containing inside it a worm / worm gear reducer (301B) whose helical wheel is rotated by an electric motor (301C). 7. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the screwless-end screw (301D) of said worm / helical wheel reducer (301B) engages with a nut (301F) obtained in a transverse bar (301F) carrying, in turn, at least one latch (301G). 8. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that it comprises an emergency release device which intervenes in the event of a fault to release said closing mechanism (301). 9. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that said bolt lock (33, 34, 35, 36) comprises a removable support plate (300); said removable support plate (300) comprising means for reversible fixing (600) to a surface. 10. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 9, characterized in that said reversible fixing means (600) comprise a shaped slot (300C), a pin (400), a bolt (403) and the fixing pad (404) associated with said bolt (403). 11. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that said removable support plate (300) comprises means (300D) for facilitating gripping of said latch lock (33, 34, 35, 36) from part of an operator. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises electronic means such as to trace the position of the container (10) itself at any instant and in real time. 13. Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises electronic means able to perform the following functions: - tracing the path of the container (10); - weigh the goods contained in the container (10) at any time; - record the opening / closing time of the hatch (12) by authorized operators; - record any shocks and / or abnormal stresses and / or inclinations to which the container has been subjected (10). Anti-theft system (100), as claimed in claim 12 and claim 13, characterized in that the detected data are stored in a memory; these detected data can be viewed and / or printed at any time by an authorized user. 15. Removable kit (500) comprising at least a part of the devices belonging to an electromechanical apparatus (30) suitable for opening / closing at least one door (12) of a container (10); said electromechanical equipment (30) being able to control locking / unlocking means (301) placed inside said container (10).