WO2009074839A1

WO2009074839A1 - Cylinder lock

Info

Publication number: WO2009074839A1
Application number: PCT/IB2007/003864
Authority: WO
Inventors: Claudio Ranzato; Fabio Grop
Original assignee: New Art System S.R.L.
Priority date: 2007-12-12
Filing date: 2007-12-12
Publication date: 2009-06-18

Abstract

A cylinder lock comprising a body (1 ) and a rotor (2), adapted to be rotated in said body and to receive a key (18), an engagement profile (9) adapted to engage with a closing mechanism of a door or window or another closing mechanism and to be driven by said rotor, a plurality of coding pins (7) adapted to block said rotor with respect to the body and to release it if a key with appropriate coding is inserted into the rotor, characterized in that, with respect to an insertion direction of said key, said pins are arranged some on one side with respect to said profile and some on the opposite side.

Description

Cylinder lock

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a cylinder lock. PRIOR ART Cylinder locks are commonly used in the field of doors and windows. Said locks comprise a cylindrical rotor rotatable with respect to a fixed body; a series of coding pins of different length and corresponding driver pins slide in corresponding holes obtained in the body and in corresponding holes of the rotor, aligned with the holes of the body when the lock is closed. The holes may be arranged either in essentially radial direction with respect to the rotor or parallelly to a radial direction but slightly offset, e.g. to make room for several series of pins. By inserting a key with a code corresponding to the lock, generally reproduced as a shaped profile along a side edge of the key blade (vertical keys) or as a series of indents of appropriate depth on at least one face of the key blade (flat keys), the pins are pushed against the bias of a spring outwards from the rotor; if the profile of the key is right, the end surfaces of the pins, in contact with the surfaces of the ends of the driver pins will align with the side surface of the rotor, in contact with the inner surface of the body. The rotor is thus free to rotate taking the pins with it in the holes and drives, in a variable manner, an element having a profile (which may be a simple tooth) adapted to engage and drive the closing mechanism, belonging to the lock, mechanism (sometimes named "lock" itself) which controls the bolts or the other closing elements. A further coding element is given by the shape of the transverse section of the key blade, which must correspond to the cavity of the rotor in which it must be inserted. The cylinder lock is appropriately fixed inside the closing mechanism, e.g. by means of screws accessible only when the lock is open.

The removal of the cylinder lock makes the mechanism in general accessible and maneuverable by anyone. The lock may have opposite rotors, in order to be accessible from both sides of the door or window. In such a case (double cylinder), the coding pins are double (two series, one for each rotor) which increases the size of the lock. Devices which allow the engagement of the element having the driving profile by one of the rotor, in which the key is inserted, are generally present. The other rotor remainsblocked. If the possibility of opening the door or window from both sides is not desired, it is possible to have only one rotor (half cylinder); in such a case, the rotor may be integral always with the driving profile. Even if there is only one series of coding pins, the pins are aligned only on one side with respect to the engagement profile with the closing mechanism in the known locks. The engagement profile, on the other hand, must generally be positioned essentially in the centre of the thickness of the door or window, given the structure of the closing mechanism. Therefore, both with double and half cylinders, the protrusion of the lock with respect to the centre of the thickness of the door or window is considerable and cannot be reduced without reducing the number and/or the size of the coding pins, or their reciprocal distance, and consequently, the safety and the lock-picking resistance of the lock. The problem is compound by the need to insert safety elements such as drill-proof plates or bars. If the door or window is thin, this may become a problem. For example, in the case of metallic doors or windows, such as gates, the wings comprise a metallic section frame, usually of standard size; within there are accommodated the closing mechanism and the cylinder lock, which often protrudes from the section, given the above-discussed problem of dimensions. In this manner, the cylinder lock may be gripped by means of pincers or other lock-picking tools, which allows its relatively easy removal. For this reason, the doors or windows must be equipped with elements, such as safety plates and the like, which considerably increase costs and dimensions. It is therefore desirable a cylinder lock of reduced dimensions with respect to the existing cylinder locks, specifically adapted to be applied to doors and windows of reduced thickness, e.g. in the metallic sections commonly used for the construction of metallic gates, either without protruding outwards on either side, or so as to protrude by a shorter length in order to either eliminate or reduce the need for additional safety elements. SUMMARY The above-described problems have now been solved by means of a cylinder lock comprising a body and a rotor, adapted to be rotated in said body and to receive a key, an engagement profile adapted to engage with a closing mechanism of a door or window or another closing mechanism and to be driven by said rotor, a plurality of coding pins adapted to block said rotor with respect to the body and to release it if a key with appropriate code is inserted into the rotor, characterized in that, with respect to a direction of insertion of said key, said pins are arranged some on one side with respect to said profile and some on the opposite side.

The rotor may, according to an embodiment of the invention, consists of two parts arranged on opposite sides of said profile, said parts being made integral by other elements, e.g. an element which presents said profile.

A key adapted to actuate the pins on both sides with respect to the profile must be inserted in order to rotate the rotor and actuate the lock.

The invention further relates to a key adapted to actuate said lock.

The object of the appended claims is a particular embodiment of the invention.

LIST OF THE FIGURES

The present invention will now be illustrated by means of the detailed description of preferred, but not exclusive embodiments, provided only by way of example, with the aid of the accompanying figures in which: figure 1 diagrammatically shows a perspective, longitudinal section view of a lock according to the present invention; figure 2 diagrammatically shows an exploded view of a lock according to the present invention; figure 3 diagrammatically shows a longitudinal section view of a lock according to the present invention with key inserted; figures 4 and 5 diagrammatically show a perspective view of two portions of a rotor for a lock according to the present invention; figure 6 diagrammatically shows a key for a lock according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT

With reference to the figures, the lock according to the present invention comprises a body 1 and a cylindrical rotor 2 adapted to rotate therein about its axis. The springs 5, which push the driver pins 6 and by means of these the coding pins 7, accommodated in holes of the rotor aligned with the holes of the body in locked position, are accommodated in a series of holes 3. The holes 3 may be arranged either radially with respect to the rotor or offset, i.e. incident on the rotor, but in a direction parallel to the radial direction, and may be closed by caps 4. Only by aligning the contact surfaces of the pins and of the driver pins with the surface of the rotor, by inserting a key with a code corresponding to the length of the pins, the rotor may be rotated. From this point of view, the operation of the lock is similar to that of the known cylinder locks.

The rotor 2 may consist of two separate parts, 2' and 2"; on each of them, part of the coding pin systems acts. However, when the lock is assembled, both parts must be made integral. In this manner, only by acting on the pins of both sides the lock may be opened. This is possible by means of a key with an appropriate code which is inserted at the same time in both parts of the rotor, as shown in figure 3. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, an element 8 which carries the engagement profile, which may comprise a tooth 9 adapted to drive closing mechanism members, in a known manner, is contemplated. Such a type of profile may be made in any appropriate form and may be standardized, so as to couple with commercial mechanism types. The element 8, as shown in figure 2, is adapted to engage both parts of the rotor so as to be integral in rotation with both of them. For example, the element 8 may have an annular shape and inner diameter such as to receive the ends of the parts of the rotor. The indents 11 adapted to engage with the teeth 10 of the element 8 may be present on such ends. Known systems for locking the various components in their seats, such as snap rings 12 adapted to be fixed to the grooves 13 of the parts of the rotor to withhold them in the notch 14 of the body 1 when the lock is assembled. Other assembly systems may however be created. The rotor may even be formed by a single part which crosses the entire body, fixed in position e.g. again by means of snap rings, and the tooth or profile may be provided in other manner. Solutions similar to those seen in the known locks may be adopted e.g. for the cylindrical means, by appropriately modifying them. With respect to the double cylinder, alternative engagement mechanisms of either one rotor or the other are no longer necessary.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, both parts of the rotor consist of two reciprocally mating portions which, when the lock is assembled, form a complete rotor with the through seat 19 intended to receive the key. The fact that the portions are separate at the seat of the key (reciprocally resting on the edges 20) makes them easy to manufacture even by casting, unlike a rotor or a part of a complete rotor which could required more complex machining operations. However, any possible constructive solution deemed appropriate may be adopted. As shown in figure 3, the key must cross the element 8 and have a coding profile adapted to appropriately operate the pins on both sides to fully release the rotor. A lock with flat key which carries coding holes on one side surface of the blade is shown. It is however possible to built a lock according to the present invention which is actuatable by means of vertical keys with the code on the edge of the blade. The appropriate orientation will be given to the seat with respect to the pins, as occurs in the known locks.

The lock may be useable instead of a half cylinder lock and may be accessible only from one side of the door or window. In such a case, the blank side may be appropriately protected from drilling or lock-picking with the usual means. It is also possible to contemplate the possibility of inserting keys from opposite sides of the rotor so as to replace in this manner much more complex and cumbersome double cylinder locks. In such a case, it is worth noting that, while in the double cylinder according to the known art, the coding pins of the two rotors can be such that the same coding profile on the key may actuate them both, here the key is inserted from opposite sides into the same rotor. A simple possible solution contemplates two different keys, according to the access side, with opposite profiles. Otherwise, a key may present two different profiles which alternatively engage the series of pins according to the direction of introduction. The key in figure 6 presents two series of coding profiles 16 and 16', the circles indicate the position of the holes. In such a case, the seat intended for the key is arranged so that the pins are concerned by either one or the other series according to the insertion. In order to avoid the need for a symmetric key blade transverse section, which would reduce the coding possibilities, the seat may be wider than the blade of the key and be shaped so that the key is arranged on either one side or the other according to the direction of insertion. In the case of vertical keys, the opposite coding may be made on the two edges on the key blade. A further solution may be the symmetry of the pin coding with respect to the engagement profile in order to use a single key with a single coding profile. However, this would enormously reduce the coding complexity, making it equivalent to a lock with half the pins. It is worth noting that unlike a traditional double cylinder lock, if the lock according to the present invention is accessible from both sides, it presents the feature that, when the key is inserted from one side, the rotor on the opposite side may be maneuverable, thus the key must always be removed after having closed the door or window to ensure safety unless further locking systems are contemplated. This is not a problem in the case of most door and windows, such as metallic gates, in which the lock is more or less easily accessible from both sides also when the door or window is closed, therefore the need to remove the key is always present. It is apparent that the maximum dimensions of the lock from the sides of the engagement profile is considerably reduced with respect to the known art, without reducing either the number of pins or their strength, and it is easier to fully place the lock inside an even thin door or window. The pins on the two sides may be distributed according to needs. In the example shown, the higher number of pins on one side with respect to the other was determined by the need to insert a drill- proof bar 17 of appropriate material on one side, presumably the one outside the door or window. However, other arrangements may be created to reduce the dimensions or according to the needs.

The manufacturing materials may be those commonly used for cylinder locks. Other solutions commonly adopted in the field may be applied to the lock according to the present invention. Other coding solutions in addition to the pins described in the present application may be applied, e.g. a series of cup pins containing springs and driver pins may be contemplated the length of which is determined according to a code, accomodated entirely in the holes of the rotor and adapted to interfere with the grooves or blank holes in the body of the lock, if a key with an appropriate code is not inserted. An example of lock which presents such a solution is marketed by Iseo, model ISR11; a similar solution may also be applied to locks according to the present invention, if desired.

Claims

1. A cylinder lock comprising a body (1) and a rotor (2), adapted to be rotated in said body and to receive a key (18), an engagement profile (9) adapted to engage with a closing mechanism of a door or window or another closing mechanism and to be driven by said rotor, a plurality of coding pins (7) adapted to block said rotor with respect to the body and to release it if a key with appropriate coding is inserted into the rotor, characterized in that, with respect to a direction of insertion of said key, said pins are arranged some on one side with respect to said profile and some on the opposite side.

2. A lock according to claim 1, characterized in that said rotor consists of two parts (2', 2") arranged on opposite sides of said profile, said parts being integral in rotation.

3. A lock according to claim 2, characterized in that said parts are made integral by an element (8) which carries said engagement profile.

4. A lock according to claim 3, characterized in that it is adapted to be actuated by a key with appropriate coding inserted into a seat (19) of the rotor and crossed by said element.

5. A lock according to any preceding claim, adapted for the insertion of a key in only one end of said rotor.

6. A lock according to any claim from 1 to 4, adapted for the insertion of a key from one end of said rotor or from the opposite end.

7. A lock according to claim 6, adapted to be activated by a key having two profiles (16, 16") of alternative coding acting on said pins according to the end of the rotor in which it is inserted.

8. A key having two coding profiles adapted to actuate a lock according to claim 7.

9. An apparatus comprising a lock according to any claim from 1 to 7 and a key adapted to actuate it.