US1461725A - Lock - Google Patents

Description

lll?

emma .my i7, 1923.

STATES mom c. cooran; or cmcaeo, mmora.

Lock. l

To all w/wm z't l concern.'

Be it known that I, THOMAS C. COOPER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Locks, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in locks and more particularly to locks of the type primarily adapted for use in connection with .automobiles for the purpose of preventing any unauthorized removal of the spare tires carried thereby.

Cue object of the invention is to provide a lock of this character which shall be of rugged design, simple in construction and operation and economical to manufacture; one which may be readily and quickly applied and removed, and one wherein all of the, operating parts are completely housed in such wise as to render the same inaccessible, all rivets and other fastening `means being dispensed with.

Another object is to provide a lock' of the type described.y which shall be designed to cooperate with the tire or its support tol which said lock is applied in such manner that said tire or support will provide a barrier against any unauthorized tampering with the lockin mechanism and in suchmanner as to e ectively prevent any unauthorized removal of said lock.

Cther objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description `taken 1n, connection with the accompanying drawings wherein two forms of the invention are illustrated.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the lock showing the same as applied to a plurality of tires.

Fig. 2 is a lvertical longitudinal sectional View taken through the lock.

. Fi 3 is a rear plan view of the locking memer with the cover removed.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4 4 of Fi 2.

ig. 5 is a view illustrating the lock as applied to a single tire and its support, and

Fig. 6 is a side elevation illustrating. a sli htly modified form of lock.

eferring more in detail to the drawings, the lock is shown as com rising a staple or U-shaped member 10, pre erably constructed of hardened steel. The Shanks or legs of the staple 10 are preferably serrated or provided with a plurality of teeth as shown at screw-threaded plugs 24 application mea July 1s, 191s. smal m. 245,447.

11, said Shanks being designed to project through a plurality of apertured wings or lugs 12 disposed on oppositesides of the lock proper which is designated as a whole as 13. The lock proper comprises preferably Va malleable casting 14 which is designed to mechanism and wlth this in view said casting 1s provided with a suitable chamber 15 adapted to receive said mechanism, the outer edges 16 of the side walls of said chamber being preferably curved inwardly substantially as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawin pointe out. The end walls 17 of the castlngl are preferably provided with suitable apertures 18 through which the lockingbolts 19 are adapted to extend into engagement with the serrations or teeth 11 provided on the shanks of the staple or U-shaped member rlhe bolts 19 are reduced as at 20 at their inner ends, said reduced portions being adapted to slidably engage within the sleeves 21 and being provided with oppositely projecting pins 22 which are ldesigned to engage within the slots 23 provided in said sleeves 21 in such wise as to limit the movements of said bolts in both directions. The inner ends of the sleeves 21 are provided with suitable between which the bolts 19 are adapted to urge normally mainplugs and the inner ends of positioned coiled springs 25 said bolts outwardly and to tain them in their projected positions substantially as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The bolts 19 and the sleeves 21 are also preferably constructed of hardened steel so as to lend rigidity and strength to the lock and further, to provide against all for the purposes to be hereinafter,y

attempts to break the lock or render it other-` wise ineffective by the use of force.

The front wall of the casting 14 is preferably provided with a central screw-threaded aperture 26 adapted to receive a barrel or drum 27 which is designed to contain the lock controlling mechanism (not shown) which may be of any suitable type, said barrel or drum being provided with the usual key opening in order that a key of special design may be inserted therein for the purpose of mani ulating the. locking mechanism. A suitablie set screw is shown at 28 which serves to maintain the barrel or drum 27 in its proper adjusted position.

The'barrel 27 is provided at vits inner end with a suitable rotatable member 29 which is operatively connected in any suitable manner to the mechanism housed within said w1/barrel and which is accordingly controlled and operated thereby upon a proper movel ment of the key. Attached in any suitable manner at opposite endsl of this rotatable member 29 are toggle members 30, the outer ends of which are pivotally secured by means of the screws 31 to the inner ends of the sleeves 21, as shown more clearly in Figs. 2\and3.

It is desirable to provide suitable guides for the sleeves 21 land with this in view, it

is preferred to cast integral vwith the housing 14 suitable upstanding lugs 32 which are 'apertured as at,33 to receive said sleeves and 'to permit of them reciprocating therethrough. The cover plate for the locking mechanism is shown at 34, the same being 2 preferably formed of metal of channel construction, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4, thesides of said cover being designed to frictionally engage the sides of the housing 14 so as to maintain said cover in position. The sides of the guiding lugs 32 terminate short of the sides ofthe housing 14 lin. order to permit of the sides of the cover 34 reachingsubstantially to the bottom of thechamber 15 when in position. Itv will also be noted that when the cover is in position theysame engages the lugs` 32 not only on the sides thereof, but also on the top, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4. No means for holding the cover in position 35 other than the vfrictional engagement of the sides thereof with the sides of the casting', need be provided, as willv hereinafter a ar.

p'glie teeth or serrations 11 provided on the staple or U-sha-ped member v10 of the lock are so designed thatA the locking member -pro r, .which is designated `as 13, may be pus ed or moved inwardly in such wise that the bolts 19 lwill snap successively into the intervening recesses automatically ,as a result of their being yieldingly urged -normally outwardly by means of `the coiled springs 25. In other words, no manipulation of the lock controlling mechanism by means of the key is necessary to effect` an engagement of the bolts with the teeth or serrations 11. On the other hand, however, it will be noted that itl is necessary to manipulate the lock controlling mechanism by' means of the key in order to retract or withdraw the bolts from engagement with the teeth or serrations 11 so that the lock'- ,ing member roper 13 may be removed from the U-shape member 10 in order to` disassemble the lock when it is desired to remove the tire or tires held thereby. This withdrawal of the bolts is eected by turning 'the key in the proper direction-whereupon the member 29 is rotated in. such, wise as to re- 05' tract the sleeves l21 by means of the toggle -the purpose of locking one or more tires to their supports without any change oralteration t erein being necessitated. In Fig. 1 the lock is shown applied to a plurality of tires, said tires beingshown su ported in the usual manner upon a vtire rac of the ordinary twin construction. When it is desired to use the lock for the purpose of locking more than one tire, said loc/k is referably applied in a substantially ho'rnnontal position as shown, whereas when the lock 1s used in connection with a sin le tire, it may be applied in a substantiallyl vertical position as shown more clearly 1n Fig. 5 wherein one tire-is shown supported on the ordinary expansible ty of tire carrier. It is, of course, obvious t at when applied to a single tire and its su port the lock may be positioned horizonta if desired, or in 95 any other position that may prove convenient or advantageous. .0 j j In Fig. 6 the lock is shown as used for locking a tire to the rear part of the frame of the automobile and in order to render said lock adaptable'for such an application the top of the U-shapedf member or staple 10 is preferably angularly offset from". the Shanks or legs thereof so that both `the tire and the frame may be securely and snu ly engaged in order to prevent any free p ay between the lock` and the various parts embraced thereby.

From the above it is believed to be aparent that a lock has been provided which 1s not limited in its adaptation to the locking of tires to` their supports or tire racks but one which may' also be used in the locking of tires to the automobile itself or parts thereof and with this in view it is to be understood that i't is within the contemplation of the present im rovements to so construct the staple or -shaped member 10 as to permit of the spare tires being locked to any portion of the automobile which may prove most advantageous. The lock has also proved very effective in 'reventing thefts of automobiles vby loc ing one'of the front wheels thereof to the adjacent s ring or some'other part of the car. It wi Y, therefore, be apparent that the lock is not limited inits use to tires but, on the other hand, is of much broader adaptation and may be used for many other urposes.

In applying the lock itis mere y-neces 130 i recipes y sary to position the staple'or U-shaped member over the tire or tires to be locked and to then insert the shanks or legs thereof into the apertured wings or lugs l2 and move or push the locking member 13 up tightly against the tire or its support substantiall as shown in Fig. 1. As above described the inner edges of the'sides of the casting 14 are curved as at 16. By referring to Fig. 1 it will be noted that this permits of the locking member 13 readily adapting itself y to the cont/our of the tire rack or tire in contact. with which said locking member is moved. ln other words, the inwardly curved contour of the locking member 13 is to permit of its snugly fitting the tire or tire rack when said member is pushed into firm contact therewith in which position it is securel held by means of the enga ment of t e bolts 19 with the teeth or serrations provided on the Shanks or leus of the U-shaped member 10. This, it wlll be noted, not only renders the lock ri 'd when in its nal position but also provi es means whreby the tire or rack, a einst which the locking member 13 is belg, e`ectively obstructs all access to the cover 34 and hence to the locking mechanism housed thereunder in the chamber of the casting 14. Accordingly, it is unnecessary to provide any means for fastening the cover in position other than the sides thereof which maintain said cover against accidental dis lacement by frictional engagement wit the sides of the casting, as above described. The portionof the staple which contacts with the tire rack or other parts of the automobile is preferably covered with tubing of rubber, as shown iat 35, or some other suitable material in order to prevent any marring or scratching of the parte or other similar injury.

n win be noted ty riefen-ing to rig.

1 of the drawings that the lock comprises no accessible or exposed parts suchras might aiord means whereby the lock could be broken, tampered with or otherwise impaired. or rendered ineti'ective. 'In other words, a very rugged and rigid lock is provided which may only be -removed b a proper manipulation of the lock control ing mechanism thereof by one in possession of the key thereto.

It `is obvious .that various changes and modifications may be made in the construction herein illustrated and describedand accordingly it is not desired to restrict or limit the invention except where limitations ar in the appended claim.

I claim is f A ock comprising an embracing member provided with teeth, a locking member in the form of a one-piece casting adapted to lit said embracing member and to be moved therealong into engagement with the article -to be clamped, a

chamber in -said casting, a plurality of guides integral with said member and projecting into said chamber, sleeves slidably mounted within said guides, locking bolts slidably mounted in said slves, means for yieldingly maintaining said bolts normally projected through the end walls of said member into engagement with the teeth of said embracing member, means for limiting-the forward and reverse movements of said bolts, key-controlled mechanism, means connecting said sleeves therewith whereby said sleeves and bolts may be retracted, and a cover for said the side walls of said member bein designe to snugly fit the article clampe whereby access to said cover andsaid parts is tively obstructed.

In testimony whereof I have subscribed my name.

Para .t

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