US1942045A - Antibandit electric time lock - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 2, 1934.

w. T. BENHAM ANTIBANDIT ELECTRIC TIME LOCK Filed May 5, 1953 flaw-M3 Patented Jan. 2, 1934 nm'rsn STATES rarest series ANTIBANDIT ELECTRIC TIME LOCK William T. Benham, Norwood, (Ohio, assignor to The Mosler Lock Company, Inc., Covington, Ky., a corporation of Ohio Application May 3, 1933. Serial No. 669,220

10 Claims. (Cl. 70-432) The present invention relates to improvements to the relatively elaborate types of lock control in a time lock mechanism and has for an object as well as to the simpler form herein described the provision of a simple, inexpensive, but ex and illustrated. The device is small and comceptionally effective automatic control mechapact, adapting it to use upon a door for closing nism which is preferably, but not necessarily, eleca circular aperture as small as six inches in diso tric motor driven, and which is adapted for use ameter in which typ of embodiment the alltO- eith directly ith a j ki bglt ith or ithmatic check disc assembly of the invention would out auxiliary key lock or looks, or has a further directly Operate 150 deg 311 extension the 100kcontrol in connection with a combination lock of 1 bolt leeked position- The device is never- 0 any approved design. theless effective as a means to dog intermediate 6 Another object is to provide a. simple arrangemechanism that may control the more compliment of control parts that is ideal for use as an sated typ of belt W011i on e (1001 Of y Size anti-bandit lock for a money chest or the like, 0 W t might be desiredproviding a necessary time delay, after being prop- In the embodiment illustrated, the device conerly set into operation, before a locking bolt can S Of 3 11101111111118 Plate 10 adapted to be Secured to be moved to open position. upon an imperforate inner face of a safe or Another object is to provide the device of the strong-box door such as 11 and has a shelf-like character described which is adapted for autobase 12 projecting therefrom to complete the matic locking upon moving of the lock bolt to a supp rt means for the device A da so closed or locked position. upright 13 on the shelf 12 serves to journal one A further object is to provide a simple arrangeend 14 of an arbor member 15 which has its opment of parts in a device operable by a self-start- 1 end 15 JOE-mailed in the plate FiXed ing synchronous motor which is adapted to be enon the arbor adjacent plate 10 is a gear 17 ergized from the exterior of a money chest, safe, and immediately adjacent thereto is a check disc 5;: strong-box. or the like, whereby the motor is re- 18 fixed for rotation with the arbor 15 and gear 35, quired to operate iorapredetermined delay period 17. The check disc 18 has a radially disposed and to automatically condition the device at the slot 19 Wide enough to receive a slide member end of such delay period to permit opening of the 20 which in this simple embodiment constitutes lock bolt and to, at the same time, de-energize an extension of a locking bolt 21. A check disc go the motor. 22 is mounted for limited free rotation relative g5 These and other objects are attained by the to check disc 13 and has a radially disposed remeans herein described and disclosed in the access 23 therein which, when brought into registry companying drawing, in which: with slot 19 permits slide 20 to be moved there- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a device of the ininto for retracting a locking bolt. An arcuate vention, part being broken away. notch 24 in the face of disc 22 and a stud 25 in Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the the adjacent face of disc 18 limit the relative center of the device of Fig. l. rotation of said check disc members while a Fig. 3 is a view taken on line 33 of Fig. 2. spring 26 a groove 27 on an enlarged portion Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an automatic check of the arbor 16 serves to normally urge the check disc forming a detail of the invention. discs to a position wherein the radial slots are 5 Fig. 5 is a fragmental edge view of a door showin a condition of non-registry. The spring 26 ing the simple lock bolt of Fig. 3 in conjunction is fastened at its one end by a pin 28 to the shaft with a key locked operating knob or handle. and has a hook portion 29 engageable in a seat ig. 6 is a diagrammatic View of an exterior en- 30 in the disc 22. Disc 22 has an elongated aperergizing and signal fixture adapted to be carried ture 31 extending transversely of and communiby the door of a safe or the like in conjunction eating with the radial slot 23 and in this aperture with a wiring diagram of the electrical control of is reciprocably mounted a release block 33 urged a device of the invention. by springs 34 toward the periphery of disc 22.

While the device of the present invention is The release block 33 is disposed entirely within- 5-3 herein illustrative of an adaptation thereof to the body lines of disc 22 and carries a protruding anti-bandit protection, it is to be understood that pin 35 which is adapted to engage upon a pin 36 the device is also adaptable to numerous forms which is fixed to the upright 13. Pin 36 is in the for use as a time lock. path of pin 35 when the release block is in its The simple automatic check disc structure formprojected position.

ts ing a feature of the invention is readily adaptable A holding cap 37 is secured to the arbor 15 by any suitable means such as a set screw and serves to retain the discs 18 and 22 in proper side by side relation adjacent gear 17. The cap 3? is of smaller diazneter than disc 22 and is cut away similarly to disc 18 so that pin 35 may be engaged with and disengaged from pin 36 in the normal operation of the device.

rom the foregoing it will be a, parent that when gear 17 is turned in a counter clockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 1 and 3, discs 18 and 22 will be rotated therewith, the slots 19 and 23 in the respective discs bei g norm-ally out of registry by reason of the yielding spring connection 25. As the di cs approach the completion of a single revolution under the influence oi 17, pin 35 on the release block 33 will abut pin 36, thus holding back the disc 22 while check disc 18 continues to rotate, placing spring 26 under tension. This further movement brings into registry the slots 19 and 23 at a position wherein the slide 26 may be moved into the notches. The rotation of the gear is arrested at this point by shutting off the actuating force as will her inafter be explained.

The slide then be retracted so that the bolt 21 or any other locking member or associated part may be rendered inoperative. The movement of the slide as into the notches d presses the release block 33 which carries the pin out of engagement with pin 36 so that spring 26 immediately tends to effect a relaive rotation of the check discs, thus conditioning the device as shown in Fig. 3, from which position the discs will forthwith automatically move to a position of non-registry of the slots as soon as the slide 20 is withdrawn therefrom. It will be noted that the slide will thus be automatically dogged to locking position as soon as it is withdrawn from the slots.

The means for rotating the gear 17 may be any substantially constant speed mechanism that is subject to starting and stopping under the control of the check discs or means actuated therefrom.

In the embodiment illustrated herein a selfstarting synchronous motor indicated generally as 38 is employed, the roto' shaft 39 being journaled in the plate 10 and carrying a pinion 4-1 meshing with gear 17. The motor 38 is supported on plate 10 by studs 42, l3, and i l, providing a compact, simple and inexpensive actuating means for the device. The winding :5 of the motor 38 has one lead as connected to a binding post 47 carried by a suitable insulating member 48 on the shelf-lik member 12, said binding post having a lead 49 connected thereto and terminating exteriorly of the safe, strong box, chest, or the like within which the mechanism of the invention is disposed. The other lead 59 of the motor winding 45 is connected to a binding post 51 which is electrically connected with a condu or plate 52 having a contact 53 thereon from wl a circuit may be completed through movable con tact 54 on switch arm 55. A flexible lead 56 connects movable contact 54 with a binding post 57 from whence extends a lead 58 terminating ex teriorly of the strong box or the like. The laminations 59 of the motor 33 carry a small induction coil 60 one end of which is connected by wire 61 to a suitable signal device such as a low voltage electric lamp 62 disposed at any suitable location exteriorly of the safe or strong box controlled by the device of the invention, the other end being grounded.

In my ccpending application patent for a delayed lock control and filed of even date herewith, I have illustrated means whereby the energizing current may be supplied through and the signal lamp ca iled by a very small fixture mounted upon the exterior of a door of any size which is controlled by the device. It will be understood that the means illustrated in said copending application may be applied to the device of the present invention. It will also be understood that any other desired form of external electr'cal connection and signal means may be employed.

The means for the control of motor 38 consist of the switch a-=rzi 55 which is pivoted on plate 13 and a finger 66 which extends through an aperture 6'? in said plate. A spring 68 resiliently urges arm 55 upwardly tend 'ig to lift contact 54 away from contact to break the motor circuit. The perip cries of check discs 18 and 22 normally depress finger 56, thereby holding the arm 55 down and retaining the contacts in circult closing position. Disc 22 has a notch 69 in its periphery and disc 18 has a notch 70 in its periphery, said notches normally being in complete non-registry when slots 19 and 23 of said discs are in non-registry. Upon rotation of the discs as aforesaid and the registry of the slots for the reception of slide 20, the notches 69 and '76 also register allowing switch arin 5 to be raised under the influence of the spring 63 whereupon the motor is de-energized regardless of external connection of the leads 49 and 58 with a source of electricity. The signal 62 is energized all times when the motor is turning so that custodian of the safe controlled by the device is apprised of th fact and may externally shut off the source of current supply by opening the switch or disconnecting the plug-in socket or such other external control means as may be employed. When the motor is (ls-energized by the automatic separation of switch contacts 53 54, the signal 62 is also tie-energised.

It should he noted that the peripheral notches 69 and 70 do not move completely out of register until slide 20 is completely removed the slots in the check discs but remain partially open after the pins 353 have been tripped and thus allow the finger 66 to remain elevated sufficiently to leave switch contacts 53-"4 in non-contactrelation. In my previously mentioned copending application, I have also illustrated diagrammatically one simple form of connecting yoke whereby the unlocking of a combination lock of any approved form may be made dependent upon the delayed movement of the device.

The device of the invention, however, may be used to directly control a bolt 21 as illustrated herein, the bolt being manually thrown by an external knob or handle 71. Knob '71 controls shaft 72 upon which an arm '73 is mounted by any suitable means such as key 74- and set screw '75. The free end of the arm 72 carries a pin 76 operating in a slot '7? in bolt 21 so that turning of the handle efiects reciprocation of the bolt. The handle 71 may have housed within it a suitable lock cont olled by a key 73, such construction being old and well known, the specific structure of which forms no part of the invention. In such a device, a locking pin '79 is projected, upon operation of the key 78 into a recess in the body of door 11. The pur ose of the key lock is to prevent unauthorized actuation of the bolt even though the device of the invention has conditioned the check discs to permit unlocking of the device. Conversely, the device of the invention serves to enforce a pre-determined delay interval during which one in possession of a key could not open the door. This pre-determined delay interval may, for many purposes, be merely a fifteen or twenty minute time period which has proved to be an ample safeguard and deterrent in cases of daylight hold-ups as well as sneak thievery or surreptitious acts. It will be understood, however, that the device is likewise adapted to long time delay intervals, e. g. one hundred hours, by the mere interposition of reduction gearing between the motor pinion and the gear 1'7.

Assuming that the external ends of the circuit to the motor of the device terminate in an external pair of conductor prongs 80 and 31, and that these may be supplied from a suitable source of A. C. house current by a suitably connected lamp cord 8'7 having a push-in socket 82, the operation of the device would be as follows. When the bolt 21 is projected to locking position, check discs 18 and 22 are normally in the position shown in Fig. 1 wherein the slide 20 is dogged in locking position. Opening of the door 11 by the actuation of handle 71 or by any other means having connection with the slide 20 is definitely precluded. When it is desired to unlock the device, the motor circuit would be energized by attaching the energized lamp cord or the like to the contacts 80-8i whereupon the motor would begin to rotate, due to the fact that a circuit is complete through switch contacts 5354. The gear 17 would be rotated by the motor until pin 35 on the release block 33 engaged pin 36 whereupon further movement of disc 22 would be arrested. At this time notch 69 is in such position that finger 66 would enter save for the fact that notch in disc 18 has not yet come into registry with notch 69. The further movement of disc 18 with the gear 17 brings the slots 19 and 23 into registry and in position to receive the slide 20. At this moment notch '70 registers with notch 69 in the peripheries of the check discs and finger 66 raises under the influence of spring 68, separating the contacts 53 and 54 and stopping the motor. During the running period of the motor the small induced current through coil 60 and wire 61 energizes the signal. Upon stopping of the motor, coil 60 and the signal 62 are automatically de-energized. The slide 20 may now be operated. As the slide 20 is moved inwardly, it contacts the release block 33 and pushes it against the yielding resistance of spring 34 and at the same time trips pin 35 from beneath pin 36 allowing disc 22 to turn slightly on the arbor, such movement tending to move notches 69 and '70 slightly out of registry, but insufiiciently to again close the circuit through contacts 53-434. The authorized operator of the device being apprised of the fact that the device is in condition to permit opening of the strong box or safe now disconnects the motor circuit from the source of electric supply by removing the plug-in cap from the contact prongs S1.

The bolt is now in unlocked position. The user of the strong box or money chest would normally leave the control device in condition so that the door might be opened and closed as frequently as desired during business hours without throwing the bolt 21 to a locked position. If the user would of necessity have to leave the immediate vicinity for a time during which he could not watch the strong box, he would merely throw the bolt 21 to locking position whereupon the automatic check discs would automatically assume a position such as shown in Fig. 1 where the slide 20 would be effectively dogged to looking position. This automatic locking and unlocking of the check discs takes place whether 80 the motor circuit is supplied with electrical energy or not. In order to open the look again it would be necessary to again-energize the motor circuit through prongs 8081. It should be noted that the contact switch 55 is automatically closed when the check discs are in the position shown in Fig. 1.

The externally controlled plug-in device is normally removed, thus de-energizing the conductors so and 58 immediately after the device has been unlocked. The user or custodian of the strong box or money chest to which the device is applied would normally leave the slide 20 in the position shown in Fig. 3 during business hours. He can thus open and close the money chest as often as necessary and, upon the appearance of a suspicious looking person, need merely throw the bolt or other locking mechanism which action withdraws the slide and allows the check discs to assume the position illustrated in Fig. 1 wherein the slide is effectively dogged to locking position. In order to thereafter again unlock the door 11 of the money chest, it is necessary to again attach electric supply plug 82 and wait for the pre-determined time delay interval during which the motor automatically conditions the check discs and stops, the motor remaining de-energized until the slide 20 has been again moved to open position and is again withdrawn.

The energy required for actuating the device is very slight during the major portion of the time delay interval of operation and, for about the last thirty seconds of its operation said motor carries a somewhat greater load which 115 approximates four or five ounces of resistance to movement. Any reliable self-starting synchronous clock motor is found to serve the purpose of actuating the device in an ideal fashion.

What is claimed is:

1. An anti-bandit lock comprising a slide, a movably mounted slotted check means normally dogging the slide to locked position and adapted for movement to a position wherein the slide may enter the slot to assume an open position, motor driven means to move the check means out of dogging position, an exterior-1y energizable motor for actuating said motor driven means and a deenergizing switch for the motor adapted for automatic opening of the motor circuit under the influence of movement of the check means to open position.

'2. An anti-bandit lock control comprising in combination a self-starting synchronous motor, a slotted check member movable by said motor, a bolt controlling slide normally dogged into locked position by said check means and adapted to enter the slot in the check means, a control switch adjacent the motor yieldably urged to open position and retained in closed position by the check means, said check means upon movement to open position by said motor enabling automatic opening of the control switch for stopping the motor with the check means in open position.

3. In a device of the class described the combination of a motor, a rotatable arbor, speed reducing drive means for rotating the arbor from the motor, a first slotted check disc fixed to the arbor, a second slotted check disc carried by the arbor and adapted for limited rotation relative to the first check disc, yielding means normally retaining the second check di c at one limit of movement wherein the slots in the check discs are in non-registry, a release block movable bodily with the second check disc and adapted for reciprocation therein, a lug carried said release block, a fixed pin disposed in the path of the lug and adapted, upon pro-determined rotation of the check discs, to arrest movement of said second check disc whereby the slots in the discs may assume a condition of re istry under further rotation of the first disc by said motor, a slide member adapted to enter the registering slots in the check discs and to move the release block in said second disc whereby the lug is disengaged from the pin and a self-opening control switch normally retained in closed position by the discs when the slots are in nonregistry and released to open position for deenergizing the motor when the discs assume a position wherein the slots are in registry.

4. An anti bandit lock the combination of a reciprocably mounted slide, a movable check member normally dogging the slide to locked position and having a slot therein adapted to be aligned with the slide for receiving the a motor, means operated by said motor to moving the check member to a position wherein the slot therein may receive the slide, means to arrest the check member in the last mentioned position, means to stop motor when said slot is aligned with said slide and means operable by movement of the slide into said slot to release the arresting means whereby the check. me is released to dogging position when the slide withdrawn from the slot.

5. In combination with a motor having energizing circuit, an arbor and means rotate the arbor at reduced speed from aid motor, a slide reciprocable to locked and open positions, a pair of slotted check discs said arbor normally dogging the slide to locked posi ion, the slots in said discs being normally in non-registry, one of said discs having limited free movement on the arbor to permit registry of the slots in the discs, a movable lug carried by one of the discs, means in the path of said lug to a "rest the discs in position for entry of the slide into the lug being movable out of said position by slide upon opening movement of the slide switch adapted for automatic opening of the motor energizing circuit when discs are in position to receive the slide in the slots.

6. In a device of the clas" described the con.- bination of a self-starting electric clock motor, a self-opening control switch associated therewith, a of rotatable check d s having a resilient connection to permit limited relative movement, said discs having normally non-registering slots therein adapted for registry when the discs are moved t the pressure of the resilient connection, a slide movable to locked and open positions, a driving connection between the motor and said discs, a yieldable lug carried by one of the discs and a fixed in the path thereof forming together a releasable latch means for arresting the discs in position with the slots therein aligned to receive the slide, said slide,

upon movement into the slots serving to release said latch and subject the discs to the influence of the resilient connection, and a member assoiated with the control switch and said discs to release the control switch when said discs are in position to receive the slide.

7. In a loci: control device the combination of a slide movable to locked and open positions, check means normally dogging said slide to locked position, means to move the check means out of dogging relation to the slide, an electric motor for actuating said last mentioned means, latch means to hold the check means out of dogging relation, said latch means being releasable by said slide upon movement to open position, a?

control switch for the motor, and means controlling opening and closing of the switch as the check means assumes dogging and non-dogging positions.

8. In a device of the class described the combination of a pair of discs each having a radial slot and a peripheral notch, means yieldably holding the discs in position wherein said slots and said notches are non-registering, driving means for said di. cs, latch means to hold one of the discs after predetermined movement thereof by the driving means, said driving means continuing movement or" he other disc against the -ce of the yielding means to load the yielding means to effect registry of the notches and registry of the slots in said discs, a slide movable to position when said slots are in registry, movement of the slide into the slots releasing the means, and means movable into the regist l driving 9. An automatic time delay control device for a lock control slide, the combination of a slide movable to open locked positions, a plurality of rotatable discs, said discs having slots therein cap .ible of with one another for receiving the slide, means permitting limited relative movement of the discs to effect registry of the slots therein, yie table means normally retaining the discs in position wherein the slots are in nonregistry, driving means whereby the discs are rotated with the slots in non-registry, means to arrest one disc while an adjacent disc is moved by the driving means to efiect registry of the slots, means to stop the driving means and means to release the arresting means upon entry of the slide into the registering slots.

10. In an automatic check disc assembly the combination of an arbor, a disc fixed for rotation therewith, a second disc adapted for limited rotary movement relative to the first disc, said discs having slots registering when the discs are at one limit of relative movement, yielding means normally retaining the discs at the opposite limit of relative movement, a latch member yieldably mounted on one or" the discs, a fixed pin disposed the path of said latch member, and serving to arrest movement of said disc whereby to load the yieldablemeans as the adjacent disc is rotated by the arbor, and the slots in the discs are brought into registry, and a slide adapted for entry into the registering slots for releasing the latch member from the fixed pin.

WILLIAM T. BENHAM.

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