US2039019A - Delayed control timelock guard - Google Patents

Description

W. DELAYED CONTROL TMELOCK GUARD Filed Nov. l5, 1933 Sheetsheei; l

1 'W623i Y W. 3. Mmmm m" AL. l)

DELAYED CONTROL TNELOCK GUARD Filed Nov. l5, 1933 L Sheets-Sheet 2 @www WV. GC. NELLE@ En" ML DELAYED CONTROL TMELOCK GUARD Filed Nov. l5, 1933 31935@ W. Mmmm ET AL, Y DEL/WED CONTROL TIMELOCK GUARD Filed Nov. l5, 1935 L Sheets-Sheet @my Mm i Patente 2,039,019' nnmrnfn c'oN'rnor. rrrlrnrloort cnn This invention relates to a` delayed control timelock guard" and' r`more particularly tortirnecontrol' mechanism" for protecting'the' dial of a c ombiatibninck ancrerl controlling access'to key-controlledlocks, the' handles of locks; and other means by which locks'ma'y be manipulated to closed or opened position. v o

An object ofthe invention isto' provide guard mechanism for locksA by which accessv to means for manipulating the locks is prevented' until a predeterminedtime has elapsed; Another'object is to provide," improved clockworkecontrol mechanism; which is normally idle lor unrestrained, and which may be energized bythe operator to release the'guardiafter a predetermined time and thusprovideaccess tothe lock-control means; A further object' is to provide a dialguard and clockw'orkc'ontrol means' forv mainl taining the guard in locked position, the clockwork being normally idle but capable of being energizedby the operator for eiecting the release ofthe lockingf-me'ans'after a" predetermined time. Other specic objects' and advantages will ap# pear as Vthe specification proceeds.

The invention is"illustrated, in'a preferred embodiment; by the' accompanying` drawings; in which- Figure lis a View in elevationof our improved delayed control-guardyFig. Za rear face View; Fig. 3, a front face View with the" protecting cover or cap removed; Fig. 4, an'inner face viewofthe cover or" cap; ,Figs: 5 and 6, enlarged broken lsectional elevationstaken respectively at' the lines 5 5 and iii-6 on Fig. 7;'Fig. 7, `a plan'sectional view taken as indicated at line 'l on Fig.'6 and showing the locking bolt `actuating mechanism; Fig; 8, a view similar to that in Fig. 6, but show'- ing they locking bolt in locking engagement with the-'cover or guard=cap Fig'. 9; abroken vertical sectional'view taken"l as indicated" at line' 9 9 of Fig. 8; FigplO, a broken side'elevationoi'the cover or cap showing one of the grooved locking lugs and the socket for the reception of the locking-bolt; Fig; 1l, a plan sectional View' taken as indicated at line ll-ll' of Fig.` 1;Fig. 12, a sectional View similar to that in Fig. ll, showing the" dial-cover' equippedwith a hinge support; and Fig.- 13, al broken` rear view in elevation of a modified formof device in which the dial is held against movement for a purpose which Vwill be later set out.

`Forthe purpose of illustration, the invention is shown in connection with the dial cina combination lock, although it will be understood that theguardlmay be employed in connection with keyecontrolled' locks or with manually operated handles, etc. H

In the illustration given inFigs. l to ll inclusive, A1 designates a' dial-guard casing; B, a removableguard' cap or cover; and C, clockworkcontrollccking mechanism for securing the cover or guard'cap" to casing' A.

, The casing A may be of anyv suitable construction and of `any suitable material. Preferably, drillproof nsteel or othermetal'is employed. As shown more clearly in Figs. 2, 3, 5, 7, and 9, the casing" A" provides at itsl upper side a circular housingfl adaptedto'receive the dial Il of a combination' lock. The housing lll is kopen at its frontv and at its' rear is provided with a wall l2 centrally'apertured at li'to receive the `dial stem I Llh'lhel tumblers, lock and other parts of the combnation'lock on the inside of thel door, being oi' well known construction, are not shown. In Figs. 1 and 2, the housing lis shown secured to theI wall of a safe door D, screws l 5" passing through perforations lt in wall l2 of the housing and into the wall of the door. Any suitable means for securing casing A to the door wall may, of coursegbe used.' The housing lli is provided with a: nl'imfber` of curved locking lugs il which are adaptedtto interlock with elements carried by thegu'ard cover B, as'willbe later described.

``The casingA also comprises` a housing i3 for the. clockwork and locking mechanism C. As shown moreclearly in Fig.'4 9, the housing IB is formed` integrally with housing l but is turned outwardly, downwardly and rearwardly to form a chamber which is kopen at its rear end. The front wall lll'of housing l is perforated to receive'the stem of a winding key 2li. The top walldf housing |I8`is aperturedat 2l `to permit the`extension'tnerethroughof a locking' bolt 22 and arelease'memb'er 23. Interiorly of housing ltlandintegrallyiormed with the front wall i9 thereof"arek supporting posts 2li which extend rearwardlyand supportthe' framework 25 of timing'mechanism 26.

The` cover or"v guard cap B may also be of any' suitable construction. YIn the illustration given,l the coveris provided with cylindrical side walls 2l adapted toV be received Within the housing' lili The front Wall 28 is provided centrally with aihollow' extension forming a knob or handie 292 Formed integrally with the side walls 2l are three spaced and rearwardly extending locking ylugs 39. Each of the locking lugs t!) is providedwith'agroove 3l as shown more clearly Fig.J 9,l adapted to `receive the locking lugs il carried by housing lll. With this construction, when the lugs and i'l are aligned so that lugs il are received within grooves 3l of lugs 35, the guard-cover cannot be removed without further rotation of the cover to disengage the interlocking lugs. Such further rotation is prevented by engagement oi the locking bolt 22 with a recess 32 which is located in Wall 2l' of the guard-cover B adjacent one of the lugs 35, as shown more clearly in Fig. 9.

If desired, the dial-guard cover may be in the form indicated by B in Fig. 12. With this construction, the cover is supported by the hinge member 33 which rotatably supports cover B on pin 35. With this construction, the dial cover may be rotated, after the locking lug has been retracted, so as to disengage the locking lugs and the cover may then be swung on hinge member 33 back to an unobstructing position.

The lock-controlling mechanism C may also be of any suitable construction. In the illustration given, the frame 25 is secured by screws to supporting lugs 2li within housing IS. The frame 25 carries on its rear side clockwork mechanism of well known construction. On the iront side of frame 25 is supported the main spring casing 55 and mechanism for controlling the operation of the locking bolt 22. A curved bracket support 35a is secured to frame 25 and serves to look the spring casing 35 rigidly in position. The locking bolt 22 is guided for longitudinal movement within a supporting metal strap 35 which is secured to the frame 25. At its lower end 3l, the bolt 22 is reduced in diameter and extends through a collar 38 carried by the lower end oi the metal strap 35. A compression spring 39 seats upon collar 33, and at its upper end, engages the shoulder il@ formed by the reduced lower end of the bolt. Just above the shoulder ll, a bolt-release pin 5l is carried by the bolt 22. Bolt 22 is also provided with a latch pin 52 which is positioned above pin 4l, as shown more clearly in Fig. 6.

The main spring within the casing 35 is connected through shank 53 and the reduced threaded end 53a with the internally threaded stem 25 of the winding key. Also, fixed upon shank i3 of the main spring is a pinion 155. As shown more clearly in Fig. 7, a driving gear 45 is carried upon the free end of shaft 45 which, in turn, is supported by frame 25. The driving gear d5 is connected through idler pinion ll with the main spring pinion d@ so that the gear 45 rotates directly with the rotation of the main spring stem 43.

The cam release disk i8 is also freely mounted upon shaft l5 and held in adjacent relation to the driving gear 55 by means of sleeve member 4S which extends about shaft d5. As shown more clearly in Figs. 6 and '7, the disk 4S is provided on one side with a groove in which is pivotally mounted a cam latch device 55 having a latch projection 5i with an inclined cam surface 52 on its upper side. A spring 53 urges the lower arm of the member 55 outwardly. Adjacent the ends of the latch member 55 are shoulders 54 and 55 adapted to be engaged by pins 55 and 5l, respectively. The pins 55 and 5l are secured to the driving gear 55. The gear 55 is preferably provided with a series of adjustment openings 58 which are interorly threaded to receive the threaded pin 56. By shifting pin 55 from one to another of the openings 55, the period of the delayed movement can be varied. The metal strap 36 is provided with a stop notch 59 adapted to engage pin 56 and a stop notch 60 adapted to engage pin 51.

The bell crank latch member 23 is provided with a latch arm Gl extending under the top portion of metal strap 36 and engages pin 42 when the bolt 22 is in its lowered or retracted position, as shown more clearly in Fig. 6. The other arm 52 of the bell crank extends in a vertical direction and into the slot 2|. A spring 63 urges the arms 6I and 62 in a clockwise direction. The guard cap or cover B is provided with means for tripping the latch or bell crank 23 to release pin 42 and the locking bolt 22. The release mechanism is shown clearly in Figs. 5, 6, and 8. Adjacent the bolt socket 32 is a small chamber 65 in which is pivoted a release cam member 65. The member 65 is provided at one end with a downwardly turned head 66 adapted to engage the end of the lever 62. A compression spring 5'! urges the head 66 in a downward direction.

In the modication illustrated in Fig. 13, mechanism is provided for locking the dial against movement. The dial can be freed for scattering the tumblers by a slight turn of the winding key. Meshing with gear 45 is a rotatably supported pinion 68. Fixed to the shaft 59 upon which pinion 68 is also fixed is a crank arm l5. Pivotally connected to the end of crank arm l@ is a latch bar 'H which is guided within bracket 'l2 secured to the casing A. The dial Ila is provided at its edges with spaced notches 'I3 adapted to be engaged by the pointed end 14 of latch rod ll.

Operation.

In the operation of the mechanism, assuming I that the dial guard B is removed and that the locking bolt 22 is held in retracted position by the latch member 23, the combination is operated in the usual manner for throwing the main locking bolt (not shown) to locking position, the tumblers being scattered by rotating the dial member ll as in the ordinary operation. The dial-cover B is then placed in position over the dial and rotated so that the ribs I7 of the casing A interlock with the grooves 3l of the dial-guard B. When the guard is rotated to the position shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a slightly additional rotation brings the release member 65 into engagement with the arm 52 of the bell crank 23 and swings it in a forward direction. This movement causes the latch arm 6| to depress the locking bolt 22 against spring 39 until the latch bar 5l slips over pin 42. The locking bolt 22 is now free and as soon as the socket 32 is aligned with the bolt 22, the bolt springs upwardly into the socket under the force of spring 39, as shown more clearly in Fig. 8. The guard B is now securely locked in position and cannot be rotated to free it from engagement with casing A.

When it is desired to open the safe and to remove the dial guard B, the operator grasps the winding key and turns it in the direction for winding the clockwork heretofore idle. As shown more clearly in Fig. 5, the pinions 24 and 4'! and the driving gear t5 are moved in the direction indicated by arrows in Fig. 5 during the winding operation. As the gear 155 rotates in clockwise direction, the cam member 50 passes the pin 4|, rocking on its pivot to permit the latch 5l to pass the pin. The stop 59 engages pin 56 and prevents further winding of the clockwork. When the key is released by the operator, the clockwork, which is unrestrained, immediately accable drives the pinions dll and 'il and*` driving gear l5 in the direction oppositev to the arrows shown in Fig. 5. The rotation of gear t5 inrcount'erclockwise direction brings pinl into engagement with shoulder 55 ofthe cam` member 48' and eventually'latch 5l engages' pin 6H. After a predetermined time, the latch 5| draws the locking bolt 22 to the lower position shown in Fig. 6, at which point the latch arm lil slips over pin t2 and locks it against upward movement. The cam member lil continues to move until the latch il slips oiT the pin lll and the member 50 reaches the position shown in Fig. 6. The guard-cover B may now be rotated slightly to disengage the pin Il from grooves 3l and the cover may be removed. If a hinge support is employed, as illustrated in Fig. 12,. the cover B may,` after the disengagement of the locking lugs,A be swung to one side on the hinge arm. 33.

Opposite the openings: 58 may appear numerals (not` shown) indicating the number of minutes such as 10, 15, 20, 30, etc., during which the release of the locking bolt will be delayed. It will be observed that the shifting of pin 56 to the opening farthest from` shoulder lly will cause the pin 5l to move a greater distance from shoulder 55 when, inthe winding oper-ation, the gear d5 is turned to bring the pin 55. into engagement with shoulder 5ft. This requiresY that the driving gear d5 will move through a greater circuit, with a greater lapse of time, before pin 5l engages shoulder 55 and. begins to rotate the cam member Ml.

In the operation of the modification shown in Fig. 13, the dimensions ofl pinion B3 and the length of crank arm 'l' are such as to cause the latch bar to move into engagement with the notches I3 oi the dial Ha only after some time has-'elapsed .after therelease of locking bolt 22. During the time interval between the release of locking bolt 22 and the engagement of latch bar 'l2 with the dial notches 13, there is plenty of time'for the operator to' remove the guard' and to` manipulate the dial: to effect the release of the combination lock. Ii the operatory delays for a considerable time before removing the guard, it will be necessary for himto slightly turn the winding key in order. torelease the latch bar for the dialing operation.. After the safe has been opened and4 it is desired again to lock the safe, the engagement of latch bar 'll with the dial notches 13 prevents the operator from scattering the tumblers and requires him to turn the winding key slightly. This is suiiicient to remind the operator that the guard cover should be placed in position after the tumblers have been scattered. With the construction shown in Fig. 8, the presence of the hinge arm and the dialcover adjacent the dial also serves to remind the operator that to complete the locking operation, the dial-cover should be placed in position.

While we have shown specic mechanism adapted to produce certain results indicated, it will be understood that such mechanism is for the purpose of illustration and that other parts and devices may be readily substituted without departing from the spirit of our invention. The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecess-ary limitations should be understood therefrom, but the appended claims should be construed as broadly as permissible, in view of the prior art.

We claim:

1. A. dial-guard comprising a base-casing adapted to be supported adjacent the dial, a' cover for the dial, a locking bolt adapted to engage a recess in said cover to lock the same' to the basecasing, a spring urging said bolt toward said recess, releasable means for maintaining the locking bolt in retracted position, and means actuated by said cover for actuating said releasable means to release said locking bolt.

2. Dial-guard mechanism comprising a basecasing, means for securing said casing adjacent the dial of a lock, said casing providing a dial chamber extending around the dial and equipped with spaced locking lugs and said casing providing also below said dial chamber af closed clockwork housing, a dial-guard adapted to be mounted in said dial chamber and equipped with recesses adapted to receive the said locking lugs, a vertically guided locking bolt supported in said housing and adapted to engage a recess in said cover, clockwork in said housing, means driven by said clockwork for withdrawing the bolt when said means is moved in one direction and not affecting the position of the bolt when driven in the opposite direction.

3. A dial-guard for a combination lock comprising: a base-casing adapted to be supported adjacent the dial, a removable cover rotatably mounted in said casing about said dial, releasable locking means including a locking boltn for securing the cover to the base-casing, and means actuated by the rotation of said cover for actuating said releasable locking means to secure said cover to' the casing.

4. In combination with a combination lock equipped with a dial, timing mechanism, means for energizing and starting said timing mechanism, and means actuated by said timing mechanism for locking said dial against movement.

5. In combination with a combination lock equipped with a dial, timing mechanism, means for energizing and starting said timing mechanism, and manually-releasable means actuated by said timing mechanism for locking said dial against movement.

6. In combination with a combination lock equipped with a dial, clockwork, means for winding and starting said clockwork, means actuated by said timing mechanism for lockingy said dial against movement, and means actuated by the winding of said clockwork for releasing said diallocking means.

7. In combination with a combination lock equipped with a dial, means for lockingl said dial against movement, timing mechanism controlling the movement of said dial-locking means, and means for energizing and Starting said timing mechanism.

8. In combination: a safe door equipped with a lock having manipulating means exterior to said door; and a protecting unit comprising a housing mounted on the outer side of said door, said housing being equipped with a removable closure normally preventing access to the lock and equipped also with a clock-housing; means serving to lock said closure in closed position; and clock mechanism mounted in said clockhousing serving to unlock said closure after a predetermined period of operation, said clock mechanism being equipped with externally accessible winding means.

9. Means as specified in claim 8, in which the rst-mentioned housing comprises a member attached to the front face of the safe door having a forwardly extending flange adapted to encircle the manipulating means of the inst-mentioned lock, said member having said clock-housing -formed integral therewith.

10. A structure as specied in claim 8, in which -the first-mentioned housing comprises a member adapted to be attached to the safe door, having a forwardly extending peripheral flange and in which said clock-housing comprises a rearwardly open chamber having its Walls formed integral with one portion of said forwardly extending flange.

11. A lock-protecting device comprising: a casing for a dial-plate comprising a casing -member adapted to be secured to a door and having an opening for a dial-spindle, said casing-member carrying at one edge a housing; a complemental cover-member having interlocking relation with said casing-member and having one edge-portion adjacent said housing; a locking-bolt in said housing adapted to lockingly engage said covermember; and clock-mechanism in said housing having a gear-train controlling said locking-bolt.

12. A lock-protecting device comprising: a casing for a dial-plate comprising a casing-member adapted to be secured to a door and having an opening for a dial-spindle, said casing-member carrying at one edge a housing whichis integral with the casing-member and has an open side adapted to lie adjacent the outer surface of the door; a complemental cover-member having interlocking relation with said casing-member and having one edge-portion adjacent said housing; a locking-bolt in said housing adapted to lockingly engage said cover-member; and clockmechanism in said housing controlling said locking-bolt.

13. A structure as specified in claim 11, in which said housing is carried by the lower edgeportion of said casing-member and in which said locking-bolt is disposed in substantially vertical position.

14. A structure as specified in claim ll, in which said housing has an open side adapted to be closed by the front surface of the door when said casing-member is secured tok the door, and in which said clock mechanism is carried by a frame inserted through the open side of said housing and secured internally to said housing.

l5. A structure as specified in claim l1, in

which said clock-mechanism is mounted in a frame within said housing and said frame is equipped with a spring for projecting said locking-bolt to locking position and with a detent controlling the movement of said locking-bolt.

16. In combination: a door; a rotatable lockactuating spindle extending through the door and projecting at the outer side thereof; a casingmember secured to the door having an opening through which said spindle projects, said casingmember being of circular contour and having one edge-portion thereof equipped with a housing; a complemental cover-member having interlocking relation with said casing-member adapted to be rotated to non-interlocking position for removal; a dial secured on said spindle and housed by said casing-member and covermember; and a frame mounted in said housing equipped with a locking bolt adapted to engage said cover-member and having mounted therein clock-mechanism controlling the actuation of said locking-bolt.

17. Lock-protecting mechanism comprising: a casing-member having means to support a cover rotatably and permit turning movement of the cover about a lock; a removable cover associated with said casing-member and adapted to turn with relation thereto; a bolt; a spring serving to project said bolt; a cover-actuated latchdevice which restrains said bolt but permits projection of the bolt when actuated by the cover in the operation of turning the cover to locked position; and time-mechanism controlling retraction of said bolt.

18. Lock-protecting mechanism comprising: a casing-member having means to support a cover rotatably and permit turning movement of the cover about a lock; a removable cover associated with said casing-member and adapted to turn with relation thereto; a bolt; a spring serving to project said bolt to locking position; a coveractuated latch restraining said bolt until the cover is turned to locking position; time-mechanism; and means actuated by said time-*hechanism for automatically retracting said bolt to non-locking latched position.

WILLIAM C. MILLER. PAUL M. HAWKINS.

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