This application claims the benefit of Australian Provisional Patent Application No. 2015901832 filed 20 May 2015, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to key operable lock mechanisms, and in particular relates to a lock mechanism in which the key interacts magnetically with magnetic locking elements.
Key operable locks are widely used to control latches or padlocks intended for use on doors, windows, hatches and other movable members adapted to close an access opening. Key operable locks comprise a keyway into which a key may be inserted, and a barrel which when rotated effects unlocking of the lock to release a latch or bolt or the like. Rotation of the barrel is possible only if the key, when inserted into the keyway, aligns with locking elements of the lock. However, locks that rely on mechanical interaction between the key and the locking elements can be physically felt or manipulated, so that by inserting a lock picking tool or such instruments into the keyway the locking elements can be picked or decoded, compromising security.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like which has been included in the present specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention as it existed before the priority date of each claim of this application.
Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.
In this specification, a statement that an element may be “at least one of” a list of options is to be understood that the element may be any one of the listed options, or may be any combination of two or more of the listed options.
According to a first aspect the present invention provides a lock comprising:
a barrel defining a keyway, the barrel when rotated unlocking the lock;
a plurality of locking element cavities each containing a locking element which is free to move within the respective locking element cavity, and each locking element being movable in response to a respective local magnetic field applied by a magnetic key when positioned within the keyway, whereby the locking element may take any one of a number of positions within the respective locking element cavity and when in one position the locking element vacates other possible positions;
a locking bar movable between a first locking bar position in which rotation of the barrel is obstructed by the locking bar, and a second locking bar position in which the barrel is free to rotate, the locking bar comprising coded projections which extend into the respective locking element cavities when the locking bar moves from the first locking bar position to the second locking bar position; and
a code plate shaped in registration with the coded projections of the locking bar such that when the locking bar is in the first locking bar position the code plate and the coded projections of the locking bar form a substantially uninterrupted surface;
wherein the locking elements prevent movement of the locking bar from the first locking bar position to the second locking bar position except when each locking element has been magnetically moved to a coded position within the respective locking element cavity.
According to a second aspect the present invention provides a method of operating a lock, the method comprising:
inserting a magnetic key into a keyway defined by a barrel;
the key applying respective local magnetic fields to a plurality of respective locking elements so as to move each locking element to a coded position within a respective locking element cavity, whereby the locking element may take any one of a number of positions within the respective locking element cavity and when in one position the locking element vacates other possible positions; and
applying a rotational force to the key in order to apply a radial force to a locking bar, to move the locking bar from a first locking bar position in which rotation of the barrel is obstructed by the locking bar and in which a code plate shaped in registration with the coded projections of the locking bar and the coded projections of the locking bar form a substantially uninterrupted surface, to a second locking bar position in which the barrel is free to rotate, whereby in the second locking bar position coded projections of the locking bar extend into the respective locking element cavities.
According to a third aspect the present invention provides a non-transitory computer readable medium for producing a lock, comprising instructions making up a digital blueprint file which, when executed by one or more processors, causes performance of the following:
three-dimensional printing of a barrel defining a keyway, the barrel when rotated unlocking the lock;
three-dimensional printing of a plurality of locking element cavities each configured to contain a locking element which is free to move within the respective locking element cavity, and each locking element being movable in response to a respective local magnetic field applied by a magnetic key when positioned within the keyway, whereby the locking element may take any one of a number of positions within the respective locking element cavity and when in one position the locking element vacates other possible positions;
three-dimensional printing of a locking bar movable between a first locking bar position in which rotation of the barrel is obstructed by the locking bar, and a second locking bar position in which the barrel is free to rotate, the locking bar comprising coded projections which extend into the respective locking element cavities when the locking bar moves from the first locking bar position to the second locking bar position; and
three-dimensional printing of a code plate shaped in registration with the coded projections of the locking bar such that when the locking bar is in the first locking bar position the code plate and the coded projections of the locking bar form a substantially uninterrupted surface;
wherein the locking elements prevent movement of the locking bar from the first locking bar position to the second locking bar position except when each locking element has been magnetically moved to a coded position within the respective locking element cavity.
According to a fourth aspect the present invention provides a magnetic key for unlocking a magnetic lock, the magnetic key comprising a plurality of magnets for producing respective local magnetic fields, the magnets positioned upon the key in a manner that when the key is positioned in the keyway of a magnetic lock the magnets urge magnetic locking elements of the lock to coded positions, whereby the locking element may take any one of a number of coded positions within the respective locking element cavity and when in one position the locking element vacates all other possible positions, and whereby the locking elements permit movement of a locking bar to an unlocked position only when in the respective coded positions.
In some embodiments each locking element may comprise a magnetic ball, magnetic disc, magnetic hexagonal tile, or the like.
In some embodiments, a plurality of locking bars may be provided circumferentially about an axis of the barrel, whereby all locking elements must be unlocked and moved radially inward in order to unlock the lock, thereby increasing a number of lock and key combinations which may be effected and thus increasing security of the lock.
In some embodiments of the invention, rotation of the barrel may be obstructed by the locking bar while in the first locking bar position by a protrusion of the locking bar engaging in a respective recess positioned in a lock element radially outwards of the locking bar, whereby radially inward movement of the locking bar permits disengagement of the protrusion from the recess. In such embodiments, a radially inward force may be generated upon the locking bar by providing an angled face upon the locking bar protrusion, configured to produce a radial force from a rotational force.
The locking element cavities may in some embodiments comprise a substantially triangular shape, defining three or six possible coded positions of the locking element. Additionally or alternatively, some or all of the locking element cavities may take any other suitable shape such as a substantially square, hexagonal or circular shape, defining any suitable number of possible coded positions of the locking element.
In preferred embodiments of the invention, a code plate is provided between the locking bar and the barrel, the code plate comprising cavities for the locking bar projections to pass through, the cavities of the code plate are preferably matched to the shape of the locking bar projections so that in the first locking bar position the code plate and the radially inner surface of the locking plate projections together present a substantially uninterrupted surface, such as a planar surface, to the locking elements. Such embodiments may assist in minimising the possibility of the lock being picked or decoded by picking tools or such instruments which may be exacerbated if discernible discontinuities arise in the surface presented by the code plate and the radially inner surface of the locking bar projections. Providing the code plate thus ensures that the balls do not naturally, or unnaturally, settle into the coded position either through vibration or manipulation.
The code plate provided as a part of the present invention may be particularly useful for utilisation in a magnetic lock, which may otherwise utilise movable members to limit entry of the locking elements into the cavities of the locking projections except when each locking element has been moved, magnetically or otherwise, to a coded position within the respective locking element cavity, and which is further appropriate for use in cylinder locks due to size constraints, manufacturing/assembly complexity and potential failure of moving parts in past designs.
In some embodiments the locking bar projections are preferably shaped so as to align with and substantially completely occupy the locking element cavities when in the second locking bar position, except in respect of the coded position within each locking element cavity which is never occupied by the locking bar projections.
In preferred embodiments of the invention the magnets provided in the magnetic key possess the minimum magnetic fields required to ensure the respective locking elements are able to take any of the coded positions within the respective locking element cavity, the magnetic field strength being controlled by, or by a combination of, factors such as magnet length, radius, material or grade, and being constructed of a magnetic material with a high maximum operating temperature, high coercivity and low susceptibility to corrosion, such as samarium cobalt. Such embodiments recognise that the cavities may be oriented such that in order take a coded position the magnets may be required to attract the locking elements upwards, against gravity, from the lowest to the highest part of such cavities.
In preferred embodiments of the invention there are five locking element cavities provided in respect of each of two locking bars located on either side of the barrel defining the keyway, with each cavity comprising six coded positions for the respective locking element. Such embodiments permit approximately sixty million permutations. Additionally or alternatively, the locking element cavities may be provided in any orientation or arrangement on the barrel including being slightly offset in position, hence increasing the number of possible key combinations within the space provided by the barrel.
In some embodiments of the invention the number of possible coded positions within a single locking element cavity may be increased, for example from a substantially triangular shaped cavity with a three positions-per-side having six coded positions, to five positions-per-side permitting twelve or fifteen coded positions per cavity, depending on the arrangement. In such embodiments the adoption of a finer position resolution could be assisted by the inclusion of dimple-like structures on the locking bar projection to ensure the locking elements are maintained in their coded position.
In some embodiments master keying may be effected by providing more than one ball pocket in each locking bar coded projection.
In some embodiments the key may be provided in two pieces, with magnets located on the inside, to be subsequently joined in order to conceal the location of magnets. In this manner such embodiments may utilise a coating to conceal the location of the magnets.
In some embodiments the or each locking bar may be produced in more than one piece and/or composed of more than one material. The coded projections may in some embodiments be composed of polyoxymethylene, or similar material, to frustrate radiographic decoding attacks.
An example of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
In
As shown in
Extending inwardly from the outer cylindrical periphery of the body 10 are two longitudinally extending recesses 13 which are adapted to receive locking bars 4 which have coded projections 14. The locking bars 4 are biased to a radially outer position by means of springs 15, being in a radial direction relative to the cylindrical nature of barrel 5. The locking bars 4 are slidably received within the recesses 13 so as to be movable from a radially inner position allowing rotation of the barrel 5 to a radially outer position engaged within grooves 16 formed on the internal surfaces of the casing 2, as shown in
Each of the longitudinally extending recesses 13 is provided with a number of cavities 17 associated with magnetically susceptible steel balls 3, the number of cavities varying depending on the desired security level of the magnetic lock. It is to be appreciated that whilst the cavity 17 shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As can be seen in
The key 25 is composed of a key blade 27 as depicted in
The threaded portion 34 of the end plug 7 extends rearwardly from the head portion 33 and is coaxial therewith. The generally cylindrical threaded portion 34 also includes a pair of opposite flat sections 37 which separate the threads 38, such that the end plug 7 has the general appearance of a bolt. Of course there are many other suitable configurations.
In the assembled condition the threaded portion 34 of the end plug 7 is slid through the end cap 39 shown in
Finally, the combination of the flat sections 37 and threads 38 of the end plug 7 are adapted to be inserted into an aperture 43 provided in the latch 8 upon assembly of the magnetic lock 1 as shown in
Embodiments of the invention may thus provide a lock which can be rotated about any plane or axis, and the balls will not be mislocated within the chamber. Such utility is useful for moveable objects incorporating the lock, such as padlocks.
Some embodiments of the present invention may thus provide a key operable lock mechanism which is highly resistant to manipulation and mechanical malfunction, and may provide such characteristics in a relatively small lock mechanism, such as a camlock, allowing for incorporation into a large range of cylinder formats.
These and/or other embodiments of the invention may provide a lock mechanism that, in addition to the abovementioned characteristics, is capable of, being manufactured in a simple and economical manner, and functioning in any plane of operation, such as in a padlock or other moveable object.
Although the nominal ball positions are shown in
Some embodiments of the invention may utilise 3D printing for construction of one or more portions of the device. Accordingly, in some embodiments the present invention may reside in a digital blueprint comprising a digital file in a format configured for use with rapid prototyping and computer aided design (CAD) and/or manufacturing, such as being in the STL (stereolithography) file format. Such digital blueprint files, whether produced by performing a three dimensional scan of an embodiment of the invention, or produced by a CAD development software tool, or the like, are within the scope of the present invention.
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. For example, the following variations or alterations may arise in other embodiments within the scope of the present invention.
In some embodiments master keying may be effected by providing more than one ball pocket 18, 19 in each locking bar coded projection 14.
In some embodiments the end plug 7 can be affixed in the recess 36 in the rear end face 12 of the barrel 5 by welding or other fixation mechanism, or produced in one piece with the barrel 5.
The key 25 may be provided in two pieces, with magnets 29 located on the inside, to be subsequently joined in order to conceal the location of magnets 29. In this manner the current embodiment may utilise a coating to conceal the location of the magnets 29.
The ball cavities 17 may be provided in any arrangement within the recess 13, including slightly offset positions, although the described embodiment provides a very large number of key combinations within the space provided by conventional lock barrel dimensions. Moreover, the ball cavities 17 may be formed in any suitable shape or combination of shapes.
In other embodiments any suitable number of locking bars 4 may be provided, each travelling radially inwards to effect unlocking. The or each locking bar 4 may in some embodiments be oriented in any suitable manner relative to the radius and circumference of the barrel 5.
The latch 8 and end plug 7 could be configured to trigger any type of locking arrangement such as deadlocks, etc.
In some embodiments the barrel 5 may be retained within the casing 2 without the use of an end cap 39 through a retaining ring which is sprung, or slid, into a groove machined into the rear of the casing 2 and/or barrel 5.
In some embodiments the casing 2 may be formed such that the barrel 5 may be loaded from the front and key retention engaged through a spring loaded ball bearing, or any other suitable mechanism.
The locking bar 4 may be produced in more than one piece and composed of more than one material; the coded projections 14 for example may be composed of polyoxymethylene, or similar material, to frustrate radiographic decoding attacks.
The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not limiting or restrictive.
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2015901832 | May 2015 | AU | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/AU2016/050391 | 5/20/2016 | WO | 00 |