AU1696601A - Closing device with a rotor which has spring-loaded locking mechanisms in a stator, especially for vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a closing device (10) with a rotor (11) which has a cylindrical periphery (17) and which accommodates spring-loaded locking mechanisms on one side. With a closing device of this type, a pivoting tilting moment of the locking mechanisms may occur. A stator (21) for rotationally mounting the rotor (11) has a blocking channel (22) which is delimited by two flanks (23, 24) and into which the end of the spring-loaded locking mechanisms moves when the key is withdrawn, hereby preventing the rotor (11) from turning. The aim of the invention is to render the device more secure against break-in attempts by picking. To this end, there is a widened channel section (40) in the stator (21) on the flank (23) of the blocking channel (22) that is oriented in the direction of the tilting movement (25). When the rotor (11) is moved into a rotation position in the direction of the tilting direction of the locking mechanism following manipulation, the locking mechanism rests on an inwardly pointing support surface provided inside the widened channel section (40) with its end. The locking mechanism therefore projects beyond the periphery of the rotor (11), hereby intercepting any rotation of the rotor (11) back (26) in the opposite direction of rotation from the other flank (24) of the blocking channel (22), resulting from further manipulation.

Description

TRANSLATION: WO 01/34,925 Al PCT/EPOO/10,194 CLOSING DEVICE WITH A ROTOR WHICH HAS SPRING-LOADED TUMBLERS IN A STATOR, ESPECIALLY FOR VEHICLES The invention pertains to a closing device of the type indicated in the introductory clause of Claim 1. Such devices are subject to attempts to break them open by unauthorized persons. One of the methods used to break open locks of this type is manipulation by a process called "picking". In this case, the tumblers in the rotor are sorted in an unauthorized manner, that is, without the proper key, in such a way that the rotor can be turned in the stator by a picking tool. This is done by lifting each individual tumbler in sequence while simultaneously torquing the rotor. As a result of the unavoidable tolerances between the tumblers and their guides in the rotor on the one hand and the dimensions of the locking channel in the stator on the other, the manipulated tumbler once the torquing ceases -- is able to support itself by its outside edge on the inside surface of the receptacle in the stator. This tumbler is thus initially held in its sorted position. The same type of process is performed with the next tumbler in the sequence and then repeated until ultimately all of the tumblers have been manipulated. This picking process is made possible by the following circumstance. Each of the tumblers is spring-loaded at one end in the rotor. As a result, because of the tolerances mentioned, the tumbler tips in the rotor; a rotational tipping moment thus acts on the tumbler, which stands on edge, tipped in one of the rotational directions. This rotational direction of the rotor is referred to in brief in the following as the "tipping direction". The previously mentioned manipulation by picking is easier to do in the tipping direction than in the other direction, which is referred to here as the "opposite direction". Devices of this type can usually be rotated in both directions, starting from a "zero" position, which characterizes the rest position. The various functions of the associated lock or assembly are carried out in the positions reached by moving from the zero position. In the one direction of rotation, namely, in the tipping direction, a lock belonging to the device can be locked or some other associated assembly can be actuated, whereas the associated device can be unlocked or deactivated in the opposite rotational direction. Unauthorized persons could happen upon the idea of improving the picking process by manipulating the tumblers into their tipped positions and then by holding them at least temporarily in their sorted positions with respect to the rotor. One way in which the tumblers could be held in position would be to use a refrigerant spray, which, for a short time, prevents the tumblers from moving in the radial direction under the action of the springs; the rotor and the tumblers temporarily form a rigid structural unit. This unit can then be turned back by means of the picking tool in the opposite direction. The temporarily immobilized tumblers thus pass by the locking channel and arrive 2 on the opposite side, as a result of which the device arrives in a working position, which, under normal conditions, would be reached only by the use of the proper key, and in which the lock belonging to the device, for example, is unlocked or the associated assembly is deactivated. As a result of this modified approach, it is therefore possible by the use of a refrigerant spray or the like to use the picking method, which is relatively easy to apply to the tipping direction associated with only relatively minor locking functions, to the opposite rotational direction as well and thus to pick open the lock. This enhanced picking method therefore creates the considerable danger that the locking function especially to be valued, which is reserved for the rotation of the rotor in the opposite direction, can be circumvented. A security closing device is described in US 3,973,421. This closing device can be shifted from a locked position into three different working positions, each of which can have a different security function assigned to it. The user of such a system can be given access to specific working positions, that is to specific security functions, by specially designed keys. In the locked position, the first tumbler can be rotated in the counterclockwise direction; a sidepiece of the locking channel prevents rotation in the clockwise direction. The second tumbler, however, is prevented by a sidepiece of the locking channel from rotating in the counterclockwise direction. This rotation, however, can be enabled by picking, so that the first 3 working position in the counterclockwise direction can be reached. The other two working positions can be reached under normal conditions by rotation in the clockwise direction with the help of an appropriate key. By applying the picking method to manipulate the closing device, the first tumbler could be moved out of its rest position in the clockwise direction. The movement of the second tumbler is not prevented, so that it is possible to reach the first working position in the clockwise direction. Further movement from this working position is initially prevented at both tumblers by recesses of different depth in the stator. It is nevertheless possible to use the picking method to rotate both tumblers in the same way into the next working position and to gain access to the closing function which is worth protecting. A device which prevents attempts at picking the lock is also described in US Patent No. 2,013,730. For this purpose, an elastically supported, rotating catch is provided, which rotates in the channel holding the rotor; when this catch grips behind the end piece of the tumbler, it prevents the tumbler from rotating any farther in, for example, the clockwise direction. This blocking of the tumbler, however, requires a great deal of effort with respect to production technology. The invention is based on the task of developing a simple, compact closing device of the type indicated in the introductory clause of Claim 1, which cannot be picked at all or which can be picked only with great difficulty. This is achieved according to 4 the invention by the measures listed in the characterizing clause of Claim 1, to which the following special meaning is attached: The measure according to the invention has the effect that, after the completion of the previously described picking process in the tipping direction of the rotor, the tumbler or tumblers are not in the fully sorted position on the cylindrical circumference of the rotor as would be required for the purpose of rotating the rotor by the use of a picking tool or the like in the opposite direction. What makes this possible is the widening of the channel indicated in the characterizing clause of Claim 1. After the manipulations in the tipping direction, it is true that the rotor is in a position in which it can rotate, but the tumbler or tumblers project radially beyond the cylindrical circumference of the rotor. The tumbler or tumblers thus engage in the widened channel, where they come to rest against an inward-directed support surface. When the enhanced picking method mentioned above, according to which the tumbler or tumblers are held in place by refrigerant spray or the like in the manipulated rotational position of the rotor, is now applied, it is still impossible for the rotor to rotate in the opposite direction. That is, in the attempt to achieve such rotation in the opposite direction, the tumblers projecting beyond the circumference of the cylinder run up against the opposing sidepiece of the locking channel. The rotor thus becomes blocked in the stator. It is therefore impossible to pick open the device according to the invention. 5 Additional advantages and measures can be derived from the subclaims, from the following description, and from the drawings. The drawings show the invention and the state of the art on the basis of exemplary embodiments. Cross sections through the device in various positions are shown on a greatly enlarged scale: - Figure 1 shows a closing device according to the state of the art in the zero position of the rotor, characterizing the rest position, after the key has been withdrawn; - Figure 2 shows the lock of Figure 1 after the key has been inserted; - Figure 3 shows the lock of Figure 1 after a picking tool (not shown) has been used successfully to apply the above described picking process to the indicated tumbler in the tipping direction of the rotor; - Figure 4, which is similar to Figure 1, shows the starting condition of the device designed according to the invention before the properly associated key has been inserted; - Figure 5, which is similar to Figure 3, shows the initial phase of the picking process on the lock of Figure 4; - Figure 6 shows a later phase of the picking process reached after that of Figure 5 in the case of the device according to the invention shown in Figure 4; and - Figure 7 shows the final phase of the picking process, in which the lock cannot be opened in the case of the device according to the invention shown in Figure 4. 6 Figures 1-3 show the state of the art 10', whereas Figures 4-7, in the form of corresponding diagrams, show the closing device 10 according to the invention. In both cases, the same reference numbers are used to designate corresponding parts. As can be seen in Figures 1-7, these devices 10, 10' show the following similarities in their basic design. The devices 10, 10' comprise a rotor 11, which has a diametric guide 12 for a plate-shaped tumbler 13. This tumbler 13 is spring-loaded in one direction, as indicated by the force arrow 14. A spring 15, installed in a lateral chamber, is used to exert this elastic force; after the key has been withdrawn, the end of the spring pushes one end 16 of the tumbler into one of the two locking channels 22 provided here. The locking channels 22, which are diametrically opposite each other, are in a stator 21. In the present case, the device 10, 10' comprises an entire set of tumblers; after the key 30 has been inserted, as can be seen in Figure 2, the tumblers make contact with various points on a cam 31, these points being offset from each other in the longitudinal direction. In the present case, the cam is formed by one of the walls of a profiled channel, but it could also be designed in some other way such as a sequence of wards. Because the key 30 here is designed as a so-called reversible key, these cams 31 are provided on both sides of the shaft of the key as mirror-inverted images of each other. For space reasons, the direction of the spring-loading 14 alternates from one tumbler 13 to the next in the set, for which reason, when no key 7 is present as shown in Figure 1, adjacent tumblers 13 will travel into two opposite locking channels 22. The locking channel 22 is limited by two sidepieces 23, 24. The rotor 11 is provided with a cylindrical periphery 17, beyond which, in the starting position of Figure 1, the ends 16 of the tumblers 13 project. The stator 21 has a receptacle 27, the shape of which conforms to that of the periphery 17, and in which the rotor can be turned in two opposite directions 25, 26 by the inserted key 30, as shown in Figure 2. The home position of the rotor 11 in the resting state is characterized by the dash-dot line 11.0 in the figure, which is referred to as the "zero" position. The rotor 11 has a suitably profiled key channel 18 extending in the longitudinal direction of the axis 20, illustrated in dash-dot line in the figures, around which the rotor 11 can be turned in the direction of the arrow 25 or 26. For this purpose, the key 30 is normally used. After the key 30 has been inserted as shown in Figure 2, the tumblers 13 are sorted onto the circumference 17 of the rotor 11 and no longer project into the locking channels 22 assigned to them. This sorting is accomplished by opposing shoulders 19, which are positioned in correspondence with the associated contact points of the cam 31 provided on the key. In the case of a plate system with, for example, eight tumblers 13, four different heights in the one and/or in the other direction with respect to a baseline height of the cam 31 are sufficient to individualize and differentiate the individual devices 10, 10'. By means of the inserted key 30, the rotor 30 can be turned 8 along with the tumblers 13 in rotational direction 25 from the previously described zero position 11.0 of Figure 2 to the first working position, also indicated in this figure by the dash-dot plane 11.1. Drivers or the like connected to the rotor 11 can thus execute the desired functions in the unit with which the device 10, 10' is intended to cooperate. Plane 11.1 can be one of several working positions of the rotor 11. For the sake of conceptual differentiation, rotation in the direction of the arrow 25 is referred to in the present case as the "tipping direction" for reasons which will be better understood later, whereas rotation 26 in the other direction is called the "opposite direction". As a result of unavoidable manufacturing tolerances affecting the dimensions of the tumblers 13 on the one hand and of the guides 13 in the rotor 11 on the other hand, it is possible for the spring-loading 14 to tip the tumblers 12 onto one edge, as can be seen in Figure 1. A torque acting on the tumbler 13 develops, the direction of which is illustrated in Figure 1 by an arrow of rotation 28. This tipping in direction 28 is limited by internal stops, e.g., by contact between the projection holding the spring-loading 14 and the receptacle 27 of the stator 21. The edge 32 of the tumbler according to Figure 1, i.e., the edge facing in the tipping direction 25 of Figure 2, is in a position more favorable to breaking open the lock by so called "picking", to be described further below, than the other edge 33. This is explained more thoroughly on the basis of Figure 3. 9 In the picking process, as already mentioned above, while the rotor 11 is located in the zero position 11.0 of Figure 1, a suitable tool is used to push each of the interfering tumblers one by one against the force of the spring-loading 14. At the same time, a gentle torque is exerted in the tipping direction 25. This has the result that, ultimately, as illustrated in Figure 3, the manipulated tumbler 13 is completely removed from the locking channel 22 and has just enough room to support itself by its favored edge 32 against the inside surface of the receptacle 17 in the stator 21. The same procedure is then performed on each of the following tumblers. Ultimately, all of the tumblers 13 in the rotor are supported by their edges 32 against the inside surface of the receptacle 17 of the stator, and in this state it is already possible to turn the rotor 11 a certain minimal amount from the zero position 11.0 according to Figure 3. After this first picking phase, the rotor 11 can be moved in the tipping direction 25 of Figure 2 into the working position 11.1 also indicated there, where the functions assigned to the device 10', 10 could then also be performed by the picking tool. In the case of the device 10 according to the invention, functions which are inessential to the security of the device 10 are assigned to the working position 11.1, which is shown in Figure 6 and which will be described in greater detail below; when the device is used in a vehicle lock, for example, one of these inessential functions could involve the locking of the 10 associated lock. Thus, even though the rotor has been moved to the working position 11.1 in Figure 6, the manipulations described above would still not make it possible to open the lock 10 according to the invention. It is true that a similar assignment of functions could also be made in the case of the known device 10', and that, as a result, the previously mentioned turning of the rotor 13 by the picking tool in the tipping direction 25 would not result in the breaking-open of the lock. Ultimately, however, the known device can be picked open by another trick. As shown in Figure 3, it would be possible in the known device 10' to hold the tumbler 13 temporarily in place after it has been pulled into the rotor by manipulations in the tipping direction 25. For this purpose, it is sufficient, for example, to introduce a refrigerant spray 34 or the like through the key channel in the direction of the injection arrow 35 to hold this manipulated position of the tumbler 13 for at least a short time. This is illustrated in Figure 3 by retention points 36, which can consist of ice crystals, for example, between the tumbler 13 and the inner boundaries of the guide 12 provided in the rotor 11. The spring-loading 14 is thus rendered ineffective. In the known device 10', the rotor 11 could then be turned back again in the opposite direction 26 of Figure 3. Because of the temporary retention of the tumbler 13 in the rotof 11 in this manipulated position, the rotor can be turned past the associated locking channel 22, without the retained tumbler 13 being able to escape 11 in the radial direction under the action of the spring-loading 14. Thus the rotor 11 also arrives in the opposite working position 11.2, already described in conjunction with Figure 2, where essential functions are to be performed on the associated unit. In the case of a lock, an unlocking function would then be performed in the working position 11.2. Thus it can be concluded that, by means of the described turning back and forth 25, 26 in conjunction with appropriate manipulations and means for holding the tumblers in place, it is ultimately possible to pick open the lock associated with the known device 10'. The invention prevents this possibility by means of a very simple, inexpensive measure, which is explained on the basis of Figures 4-7. It is sufficient merely to present the differences; otherwise, the previous description also applies here, as already mentioned. An essential difference of the invention consists in that, according to Figure 4, the one sidepiece 23 facing in the tipping direction does not have the same step height as the opposite sidepiece 24 facing in the opposing direction 26. The difference in height is accounted for in the case of the device 10 by a widened channel section 40, which is provided in the stator 21 at least in the area of one of the tumblers 13. A combination channel with its own height profile is thus present here, consisting of the locking channel 22 and* the widened channel section 40. It is possible to say that the overall sidepiece of this combination channel facing in the tipping direction is 12 divided into sidepiece sections 37 and 38, which are rotationally offset with respect to each other. In the present case, only two such sidepiece sections are provided. The sidepiece section which is farther to the outside when looking in the radial direction forms the previously mentioned first sidepiece 23 of the locking channel 22, although, as already mentioned, it is smaller than the original sidepiece. The other sidepiece section 38 of this combination channel is located at the inner end of the widened channel section 40. The two sections 37, 38 are rotationally offset with respect to each other by the given width 47 of the widened channel section 40. This widened section has a depth 41 which makes it larger than the actual receptacle for the rotor 11. As Figure 4 shows, however, this section is not as deep as the total radial depth 42 of the locking channel 22, which can be measured on the opposite sidepiece 24. The depth 42 of the locking channel is determined essentially by the difference in height between the base 39 of the channel and the circumference 17 of the cylinder. It is obvious that only a single tumbler 13 could be provided in the rotor 11 of the device 10. The device 10, however, usually has a set of tumblers 13 with opposing shoulders 19, which are individually offset with respect to each other in the height direction. It is sufficient to provide a widened channel section 40 at only one of these tumblers, whereas the rotor 10 can be designed in the usual manner in the rest of the area where the tumblers sit. A plate system with eight tumblers 13 has been found to give good results, where the widened section 40 is located at the best possible point in terms of either production efficiency or space availability. The first or the last tumbler can be used for this purpose, but the tumbler with an opposing shoulder 19 with an especially favorable height in terms of the security effect to be explained below is especially suitable. For manufacturing reasons, it is also possible to use a group of tumblers for this purpose, namely the group of the set farthest toward the front or the group farthest toward the rear. It is especially secure, of course, to provide each tumbler 13 of the set with a widened section 40 of this type. In this case, the increased clear radial width 41 could be different for each tumbler, if necessary. Figure 5 shows the device 10 according to the invention in the manipulated situation which has already been shown and described on the basis of the known device 10' in Figure 3. In Figure 6 shows the previously described rotation 25 of the rotor 11 with manipulated tumbler 13 in the tipping direction to the rotational point representing the working position 11.1, which is harmless in itself, but this position differs essentially from the similar position of the known device 10' explained on the basis of Figure 3. In the device according to the invention, as Figure 6 shows, the manipulated tumbler 13 comes to rest against an inward-facing support surface 44 of the widened channel section 40. The end piece 43 of the tumbler 13 projects beyond the circumferential surface 17 of the rotor 11. When now, 14 similar to the situation in Figure 3, retention points 36 are created by the use of a refrigerant spray 34 or the like, nothing is accomplished, as can be derived from Figure 7. In Figure 7, as illustrated by the retention points 36, the tumblers 13 are held at least temporarily in their manipulated, radially offset position in the rotor of Figure 6. If then, proceeding from the harmless working position 11.1 also indicated in Figure 7, the rotor is forced in the opposite direction 26, the projecting end piece 43 of the manipulated tumbler 13 strikes the opposite, second sidepiece 24 of the locking channel 22. Further rotation of the rotor 11 in the direction of the imaginary arrow 46 from the zero position 11.0 shown in Figure 7 is blocked. The working position 11.2 cannot be reached by the picking method described. The device 10 according to the invention is pick-proof. In the present case, the radial depth 41 of the widened channel section 40 is constant with respect to the clearance 45 indicated by the brace in Figure 7, otherwise unchanged at this point, which clearance is determined by the cylindrical circumference 17 of the rotor 11. The support surface 44 in the widened section 40 is therefore essentially coaxial to the rotor axis 20. If necessary, however, it would also be possible to provide profiling here. As explained in more detail on the basis of Figure 6, it is advisable to provide the widened channel section 40 with a width 47, extending in the tipping direction 25, which is greater than 15 the angle 48 between the zero position 11.0 and the working position 11.1 at the greatest distance from the zero position. 16 List of Reference Numbers 10 device according to the invention 10' device according to the state of the art 11 rotor of 10 and 10' 11.0 zero position of 10 and 10' (Figures 1 and 6) 11.1 working position of 10 and 10' at 25 (Figures 2 and 6) 11.2 working position of 10 and 10' at 26 and 46 (Figures 2 and 7) 12 diametric guide 13 tumbler 14 arrow of the spring-loading of 13 15 spring for 14 16 end of 13 17 cylindrical circumference of 11, outline 18 key channel in 10 for 30 19 opposing shoulder on 13 for 31 20 axis of 11 21 stator of 10 and 10' 22 locking channel in 21 for 16 and 43 23 first sidepiece, facing in direction 25 24 second sidepiece, facing in direction 26 25 arrow pointing in tipping direction of 11 26 arrow pointing in the opposite rotational direction of 11 27 receptacle in 21 for 11 28 rotation arrow of 13 in 12 for tipping rotation (Figure 1) 29 projection on 13 30 key for 10 and 10' 31 cam on 30, control path 32 one edge of 13 facing in direction 23 (Figure 1) 33 other edge of 13 facing in direction 24 (Figure 1) 34 refrigerant spray 35 injection arrow for 34 36 retention point between 13 and 11 (Figures 3 and 6) 37 outer sidepiece section at 23 (Figure 4) 38 remaining sidepiece section at 40 (Figure 4) 39 base of channel 22 (Figure 4) 40 widened channel section 41 radial depth of 40, enlarged clearance of 40 (Figure 4) 42 depth of locking channel (Figure 4) 43 projecting end piece of 13 (Figure 6) 44 support surface in 40 for 43 (Figure 6) 45 clearance for 11 in 21 (Figure 7) 46 locked further rotation of 13 at 10 (Figure 7) 47 width of 40 48 angle between 10.0 and 10.1 (Figure 6) 17

Claims (7)

1. Closing device (10) with a rotor (11) with a cylindrical circumference (17), which rotor has radial guides (12) for at least one plate-shaped tumbler (13), which is spring-loaded at one end, especially for vehicles, where the one-sided spring loading (14) in the guide (12) of the rotor (11) exerts a tipping torque (29) on the tumbler (13), with a stator (21), which has a receptacle (27) in which the rotor (11) can rotate; with an appropriate key (30) assigned to the device (10), which key can be inserted into the rotor (11) and used to turn (25, 26) the rotor (11); and with at least one locking channel (22) in the rotor (11), defined by sidepieces (23, 24), into which channel the tumbler (13) travels after the key (30) has been withdrawn, thus arriving at the same level as the sidepieces (23, 24) so that it can prevent the rotor (11) from rotating in the stator (21); where the rotor (11) can be turned by the inserted key (30) in the receptacle (27) of the stator (21) in either one of two opposite rotational directions from a zero position (11.0) to at least one additional working position (11.1, 11.2), that is, either in a tipping direction (25), which is the same as the direction in which the tumbler (13) is tipped, or in the opposite direction (26), proceeding in the other direction, characterized in that the stator (21) has a widened channel section (40) starting from the sidepiece (23) of the locking channel (22) facing in the tipping direction (25), this widened section extending at least over the initial rotational range of at least 18 one tumbler (13), the clearance (41) of this widened section being greater than that of the receptacle (27) for the rotor (11), whereas its depth is not as great as the radial depth (42) of the locking channel (22); in that, even without a key, the rotor (11) can be manipulated from the zero position (11.0) into a rotational position in which this tumbler (13) projects at least partially into the widened channel section (40), where it comes to rest against an inward-facing support surface (44), so that, in this manipulated position, the end piece (43) of this tumbler (13) projects beyond the circumferential surface (17) of the rotor (11); and in that, when this tumbler (13) is moved out of this rotational position in the other, opposite direction (26) by the use of refrigerant spray (34), which renders the spring loading (14) of this tumbler (13) ineffective and keeps this tumbler (13) in the manipulated position in the rotor (11), the end piece (43) strikes the sidepiece (24) of the locking channel (22).

2. Device especially according to Claim 1, characterized in that the sidepiece of the overall profiled channel in the stator (21) facing in the tipping direction (28), which channel consists of a locking channel (22) and a widened channel section (40), is divided into at least into two sidepiece sections (37, 38), rotationally offset from each other, where, looking in the radial direction, the outer sidepiece section (23) is assigned to the locking channel (22), whereas the remaining sidepiece section or sections (38) is/are assigned to the widened channel section (40) 19 with the radially offset depth.

3. Device according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 with a set of tumblers (13) in the rotor (11), which contact the inserted key (30) at points (31) longitudinally offset from each other, characterized in that the widened channel section (40) is located only in the contact area of the first and/or of the last tumbler (13) of the set or in the area of the group of tumblers (13) of the set located the farthest toward the front or the farthest toward the rear.

4. Device according to one or more of Claims 1-3 with a set of tumblers (13) in the rotor (11), which contact the inserted key (30) at points (31) which are longitudinally offset from each other, characterized in that the widened channel section (40) is provided in the contact area of all the tumblers (13) in the stator (21).

5. Device according to one of Claims 1-4, characterized in that the radial depth (41) of the widened channel section (40) in the stator (21) remains essentially constant, at least in certain areas.

6. Device according to one or more of Claims 1-5, characterized in that the support surface (44) of the widened channel section (40) is essentially coaxial to the axis (20) of the rotor (11).

7. Device according to one of Claims 1-6, characterized in that the width (47) of the widened channel section (40) extends over an angle of the receptacle (27) in the stator (21) which is 20 at least equal to the angle (48) of the rotational movement of the rotor (11) between the zero position (11) and the outermost working position (11.1). 21