Claims
- 1. A combination lock, comprising:
- a rotatable handle, the rotatable handle being unbiased and movable between a first orientation which indicates that the lock is in a locked state and a second orientation which indicates that the lock is in an unlocked state;
- a keypad mounted on the rotatable handle;
- a plurality of bolts movable between respective retracted positions and extended positions, the bolts being unbiased and permanently operably connected to the rotatable handle such that the bolts move in response to any substantial rotational movement of the handle;
- a blocking device including a rotatable member and a non-rotatable member, the rotatable member having a slidable element defining an aperture and movable between an extended blocking position which prevents substantial movement of the bolts and the rotatable handle and a retracted non-blocking position which does not prevent movement of the bolts and rotatable handle, the blocking device being biased to the extended blocking position and only movable into the blocking position when the rotatable handle is in the first orientation, the rotatable member further having a solenoid actuated pin adapted to enter the aperture and prevent the slidable element from moving to the retracted non-blocking position, the non-rotatable member having at least one groove adapted to receive the slidable element; and
- a controller operably connected to the keypad and blocking device, the controller producing a signal in response to a series of keypad inputs that corresponds to a predetermined combination;
- wherein the pin is moved in response to the signal from the controller.
- 2. A combination lock, comprising:
- a rotatable handle, the rotatable handle being unbiased and movable between a first orientation which indicates that the lock is in a locked state and a second orientation which indicates that the lock is in an unlocked state;
- a keypad mounted on the rotatable handle;
- a plurality of bolts movable between respective retracted positions and extended positions, the bolts being unbiased and permanently operably connected to the rotatable handle such that the bolts move in response to any substantial rotational movement of the handle;
- a blocking device including a rotatable member and a non-rotatable member, the non-rotatable member having first and second grooves adapted to receive the slidable element, the first groove corresponding to the respective extended positions of the bolts and the second groove corresponding to the respective retracted positions of the bolts, the rotatable member having a slidable element movable between an extended blocking position which prevents substantial movement of the bolts and the rotatable handle and a retracted non-blocking position which does not prevent movement of the bolts and rotatable handle, the blocking device being biased to the extended blocking position and only movable into the blocking position when the rotatable handle is in the first orientation, the rotatable member further having a tab movable between a first position where it will engage the non-rotatable member during rotation and prevent the slidable element from reaching the second groove and second position where it will not substantially interfere with rotation of the rotatable member; and
- a controller operably connected to the keypad and blocking device, the controller producing a signal in response to a series of keypad inputs that corresponds to a predetermined combination;
- wherein the blocking device can be moved from the blocking position to the non-blocking position in response to the signal from the controller.
Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/377,818, filed Jan. 25, 1995 now abandoned, which is itself a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/219,785, filed Mar. 30, 1994, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (50)
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
Date |
Country |
895629 |
Mar 1972 |
CAX |
4033008 |
Dec 1991 |
DKX |
2000217 |
Apr 1979 |
GBX |
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
377818 |
Jan 1995 |
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Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
219785 |
Mar 1994 |
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