Patent Application
20070030117
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to a coded lock, more particularly to a coded lock which is used in an electronic apparatus to protect its components from being stolen.
2. Description of Related Art
Computer equipment, and intellectual property stored on hard disks in computer systems, can be worth millions of dollars to the owners. Particularly where small, expensive, and portable computers are involved, asset management is becoming very difficult.
As computers have become more common, theft of computers, of their components, and of the information stored in them has become more prevalent. Employees continue to be the primary source for losses due to theft. For example, employees who have compatible systems at home may be tempted to swap boards and input devices at work to repair their systems at home. Employees are not the only threat. Repairmen, janitors, delivery-persons, contractors, customers, invited guests, and even security people themselves have an opportunity to steal computer property.
The increasing use of plug-and-play and hot-swappable units has been helpful for thieves, since these architectures have accelerated moves toward modular components which can be quickly attached or removed from a system.
A conventional theft-prevention method is mounting a coded lock on a side face of a computer a code be input to allow access. U.S. Pat. No. 6,307,738 discloses a computer, which includes a microprocessor, a user input device which is operatively connected to provide input to the microprocessor, a memory which is connected to be read and write accessible by the microprocessor, and an output device connected to receive output from the microprocessor; an internal power supply connected to provide power to the microprocessor and the memory, the microprocessor, the memory, and the power supply all being locked by a case; and an electro-mechanical lock electronically controlled by the microprocessor to lock and unlock the case at a direction of a user through application software, wherein the electro-mechanical lock keeps the case in a locked position when the computer system is powered off.
The electro-mechanical lock is controlled by the application software only when the computer is on. If the computer can't be powered up, the computer remains locked up, so the conventional method is troublesome and inconvenient.
What is needed is a coded lock used in a computer which can be used to gain access to the computer whether the computer is on or off.
A coded lock in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention used in an electronic apparatus, the coded lock comprises an input circuit module for inputting a password, a control chip connected to the input circuit module to receive the password, and an electronic lock connected to the control chip to lock and unlock a case of the electronic apparatus when a correct password is input.
Other advantages and novel features will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Referring to
Referring also to
A working voltage of the control chip 19 is provided by the system power 16 or an exterior direct-current power supply (not shown), generally the working voltage is +5V. The input circuit module 18 is coupled to an input device such as a keypad 122 (see
The user establishes preset passwords, the preset passwords include two passwords: one is an administrator level password, and the other is a user level password. In regional network management, an administrator can establish and revise the administrator password and the user password; the user can only establish and revise the user password.
Referring to
When the “on” option is chosen the controlling circuit 21 produces a first controlling signal, then the first controlling signal is transmitted to an input of the driving circuit 22. The driving circuit 22 produces a first driving signal according to the first controlling signal. The first driving signal is transmitted to the electronic lock 20 to execute an unlocking function.
When the “off” option is chosen the controlling circuit 21 produces a second controlling signal, the second controlling signal is transmitted to the input of the driving circuit 22. The driving circuit 22 produces a second driving signal according to the second controlling signal. The second driving signal is transmitted to the electronic lock 20 to execute locking function.
When the “setting” option is chosen the preset password/s can be re-established, changed, or deleted.
The electronic lock 20 is mounted on the base 10, when the electronic lock 20 is locked it will not unlocked unless one of the preset passwords is input and the ‘on’ option selected. The control chip 19 controls the electronic lock 20 independently and the electronic lock 20 doesn't need a software application to control the switching, so the electronic lock 20 whether the computer is powered on or off.
It is believed that the present embodiment and its advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the example hereinbefore described merely being a preferred or exemplary embodiment.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200510036440.3 | Aug 2005 | CN | national |
