US1073295A - Combination-lock for plug-and-socket fixtures. - Google Patents

Description

G. I. SILBERT.

COMBINATION LOCK FOR PLUG AND SOCKET FIXTURES.

APPLICATION FILED rmmo, 1911.

1,073,295. Patented Sept. 16,1913.

smmnnmiiil INVENTOR J v Gustaf 11317667 1 UNITED STATES PAJEEN'A. 4 orsios.

GUSTAF I. SILBERT, F GHICAGO, YLLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY HESNE ASSZGNMENTS, T0 CHI-ILLE'LECTRIC COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A GORPORATION 938 ILLINOIS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 16, 1913.

Applicatienfiled February 20,1911. Serial No. 609,657.

I of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combination-Locks for Plug-and-Soc et Fixtures; and I do hereby declare that e following is a full,

' tion clear, and exact description thereof, refer ence being had'to the accpm nying drawings,-and to the characttr of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in combination locks for pl and socket electric fixtures, such as electric lamps, plugand cord attachments, adapter fixtures and the like, wherein one member is locked to the other by a combination lock mechanism of the general ty e shown in my pending a plicafor nited States Letters Fatent, Serial No. 572,482, filed Jilly 18th, 1910.

Among the objects of the present invention is to provide an improved lock mechanism for -such fixtures arranged to avoid the necessity of a dial on one of the parts and a coiiperating indicator ,on the other part to facilitate the release of'the locking elements, thereby enabling the locking elements to be released from each other in compare tive dark and inaccessible places.

Another object ofthe invention is to im-' prove the general construction of such locks and the invention consists in the-metters hereinafter set forth. and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

tially in elevation and partially in section of alamp base and socket mounting embodyin my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view 0 the base member of the lamp, with' parts broken away. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the ,ppper part of the lamp base showing the ock tumblers carried thereby.

Fig. 4 1s a plan view of one of the tumblers and combined spacing ring and tumbler pro cction.

tion of the sheet metal socket cup. Fig. -7 is a cross section showing a modified form of clicking member. Fig. 8 is a detail illustrating' a modified form of spring-pressed element adapted to cooperate with the clicking member of the base or socket.

In the drawings-Figure 1 is a view par- Fig. 5 is a similar view of another tumbler. Fig. 6 is an axlal sec- As shown in the drawings, 10 designates a porcelain or other insulating body of 'a socket and 11 designates the base of an electrio lamp having a reduced end to enter said socket. I The insulating body 10 is res cessed at its lower end to receive a sheet metal socket cup 12 which carries on the inner surface of its cylindric wall 15 a series of spaced, angularly separated projections 14 with spaces 16; between them and which constitute the fixed elements of the combination lock. The said cup may bev made of sheet metal by a, stamping. or swaging' operation, and the spaced, angularly separated locking projections 14 may be formed therein by shearin 'themetalof the cylindric wall 15 inwar ly as shown in Fig. 6, so as to leave the spaces 16 between sa'd projections. he base 11 formed at its inner end with a concentric tubular extension or neck 18 which is looseiy surrounded by a sheet metal tumbler bear in;; sleeve 19. The lower end of said sleeve is enlarged at .20 td fit closely in the outer end of the socket cup 12, and said enlarged end.20 isformed with a notch 21 to engage a projection 22 formed on the innercylindr1c wall of the cup to prevent the tumbler sleeve from turning in the cup when the base extension is inserted thereinto. Mounted on said tumbler sleeve and free to rotate thereon are one or more tumblers 24, 25, two being herein shown.

2t designates a third tumbler, which is fixed to the end of the tubular extension or neck 18 of the base, ima manner hereinafter described, so that said latter tumbler turns with the base extension or neck. The tumblers 26, 25 and 24 are spaced from each other by spacing rings 28, which preferably have the form of thin open rings that may be made of clock spring stock. T he lower loose tumbler is spaced from the enlargement 20 of the tumbler bearing sleci'c by means of a curved spring Wire 30 which is provided at one end with :1 lug or extension 31 adapted to extend upwardly through one of a plurality of angulurly separated opening 32 of ,thc tumbler Q4. Arranged overthe upper fixed tumbler 26 is a second curved spring wire 33 that is provided with a downwardly extending "end or lug 34-. which is'adaptcd to extend through one of aplurality of angulnrly separated openings (or other form of plug) is i 35 in the upper fixed tumbler 26. The said extensions or lugs 31 and 34 of the wires 30 and 33 are adapted to cooperate with logs on the intermediate tumbler consisting as herein shown of a pin 36 which extends through a suitable opening in the inter mediate tumbler. The lugs 31 and 34 constitute tumbler controlling lugs or elements by which the freely rotative tumblers l4 and are controlled through the medium of the fixed tm'nbler 2G and its lug 34 in a manner familiar in combination or permutation locks.

The combination of the lock may be changed by removing the Wires 33 and 30 from their tumblers and inserting their lugs through other openings 32 and 35 of the lun'iblers, as will be evident, thereby providing for a wide range of variation of adjust:

mcnt. The said tumblers 24, 25 and 26 are provided with a. plurality of peripheral, angularly iarated notches 38 adapted to pass over the projections or shoulders 14 of the socket cup 12 when said notches are arranged in line with each other, as shown in Fig. I i. When the lamp is to be locked to the socket, the said notches are thus arranged in line with each other and the base or plug extension is inserted into the socket. Thereafter the base is turned or rotated to angular-1y shift the tumblers into the notches 16 between the projections 14 andthereby lock the base in the socket. In this manner the lamp base or plug is locked in the socket and can be released only by angular transposition of the tumblers in a predetermined cxmccrted order for which the tumblers have been previously arranged. In rotating the lamp base or plug to transpose the tumblers to releasing position, the innermost tumbler 26 is rotated directly by the lamp base, and the loosely mounted tumblers 24 and 25 are rotated indirectly thereby through the interaction of the lugs 31, 34 and, 36 until the notches 38 of the tumblers are brought into line with the projection 14 of the socket cup.

In order that the tumblers of the lamp base or plug may be thus angularly transposed without the necessity of employing a dial on the one part to coiipcrate with a pointer or ind cator on the other part, one oi said parts is provided with an annular notched member and the other part is providcd with a yielding click device arranged to pass over said notched member in such a way that upon rotation of one of the parts the passing of the click device over the notched member will audibly indicate the extent of angular movement of the movable part; and the relation of the parts are so arranged that the movable partis turned a predetcrniincd angular distance in one direction and a predetermined distance in the other direction, as indicated by the clicking sound as the-click device passes over the curved notched member, until the notcbes of the tumblers have been brought into line with the projections l t-of the socket cup.

As herein shown (Figs. 1, 2 and 3) 4O designates a sheetmetal ring provided Wlth a flange 41 which closely fits over the upper end of the base extension" or neck ]8 and is fixed to turn therewith. The horizontal portion of said ring is provided throughout its. principal part with a plurality of angularly spaced notches 42, and with a smooth or unnotc-hed portion 43. The upper end of the cup is provided with a clicking device consisting of a spring 14 having a downwardly turned, rounded terminal 45 adapted to be pressed by the resiliency of the spring into engagement with the notched ring 40. The terminal end 45 of the spring permits the notched ring or member to be turned in either direction.

The parts are so arranged that the spring 44 produces an audible click each time it passes over one of the notches. \Vhen it passes over the smooth or unnotched portion no clicking is heard. Therefore, starting with the spring on the unnotched portion 43 of the ring 40 the base or plug is turned in one direction until a predetermined number of clicks are heard, is thence turned in the other direction for a predetermined number of clicks, and so on until the notches 38 of the tumblers are brought into line with each other and with the projections 14 of the socket cup 12, whereupon the base or plug may be removed from the socket. The audible'clicking provided for enables the lock to be released without the necessity of employing av dial on one of the movable parts to cooperate with a pointer or indicator on the other part, thereby permitting the lock to be released in dark and other relatively inaccessible places.

The notched clicking ring 40 may be attached to the extension or neck of the base by having the end of the base extension flanged t-hereover, as indicated at 50 in Fig. 1, with the ring notched to press the metal of the neck therein to afford an interlocking connection. as indicated at 51. The innermost tumbler may likewise be notched to receive outwardly pressed parts 52 of the neck to fix said tumbler thereon. Obviously the said clicking ring and innermost tumbler may be otherwise non-rotativcly fixed to the extension or neck of the base or plug. Instead of employing the leaf sprin 44 as the clicking device, I may provide the plunger form of device 53 shown in Fig. 8, which is backed by a spring 54 located i a socket in the socket body 10.

In Fig. 7 is shown a form of notched ring 55 wherein the notches 56 for engagement with the clicking device are formed on the edge of the ring. In this form of ring it will usually be made of somewhat heavier gage than in the device shown in the other figures.

One side of the lamp (or plug) circuit is closed through the socket cup 12 and through bolts 60 by which the socket cup is attached to the insulating socket body, and the other side of the circuit is closed through a yielding terminal 61 and a sleeve surrounding the outer end thereof and bearing on the central terminal of the lamp base, as shown in Fig. 1.

The construction may be varied within the scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details shown except as such limitations are imposed by the prior art. For instance. the clicking device and notched ring may be reversed with the former on the plug or base and the latter on the socket.

I claim as my invention 1. In an electric plug and socket fixture, a socket, a fixed cup shaped member therein provided at its annular wall with angularly spaced locking projections, a spring controlled member extending through the end wall of the cup shaped member, a plug adapted to enter said cup shaped member and provided with tumblers to engage said projections, and a ring carried by said plug member and having a terminal which extends inwardly beyond said end wall and a plug adapted to enter and to be locked to the angularly spaced projections of said cup shaped member and provided with a circular ring member having a smooth and a notched port-ion for engagement with the terminal of said spring.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses, this 16th day of February A. D. 1911.

GUSTAF I. SILBERT.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM L. HALL, WILLIAM GOLDBERGER.

cm of this patent fliay be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

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