The present disclosure relates to a handcuff shield. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a shield for handcuffs that prevents the unauthorized release of the handcuffs.
Law enforcement personnel and prison guards routinely use handcuffs for prisoner restraint. Handcuffs are generally of standardized construction and include a pair of wristlets pivotally and rotatably connected by a short link chain or hinged. Each wristlet comprises a ratchet mechanism consisting of a ratchet bar pivotally connected to a wristlet body. The ratchet bar and wristlet body have opposed teeth such that when the ratchet bar is pivoted into the wristlet body, the teeth of the ratchet bar engage the teeth of the wristlet body to prevent withdrawal of the ratchet bar in the opposite direction. Once applied to the wrist of a prisoner, the ratchet bar is released or disengaged with a key insertable into a keyhole on the wristlet.
A problem encountered in the use of conventional handcuffs is that prisoners have a certain degree of freedom to manipulate their hands because of the flexible connection between the wristlets. As such, it is possible for a prisoner to escape from the handcuffs by inserting an object into the ratchet mechanism to release the ratchet bar from the wristlet body, or by picking the lock. To avoid such problems, shielding and reinforcing devices have been previously proposed to help prevent the unauthorized release of these handcuffs.
To this end, what is needed is a handcuff shield that can be easily and quickly attached to handcuffs to prevent access to the ratchet mechanism and keyhole. The shield locks to the handcuffs covering the ratchet mechanism and keyhole to prevent the unauthorized release of the handcuffs.
In one embodiment, a handcuff shield includes a first wall, a second wall extending parallel to and spaced from the first wall, and an end wall connecting the first wall and the second wall to form a channel therebetween for receiving a pair of handcuffs. The end wall covers a ratchet mechanism of the pair of handcuffs to prevent the unauthorized release of the pair of handcuffs when the handcuff shield is attached thereto.
In another embodiment, a handcuff assembly includes handcuffs having a pair of wristlet bodies attached to one another by a chain link or hinged. The wristlet bodies are each formed with a set of teeth. A ratchet bar is pivotally attached to each wristlet body with each ratchet bar being formed with a set of teeth. When the ratchet bar pivots towards the wristlet body, the teeth of the ratchet bar engage the teeth of the wristlet body to lock the handcuffs to a prisoner. The handcuff assembly further includes a handcuff shield formed with a first wall, a second wall and an end wall that connects the first wall to the second wall to form a channel therebetween. The handcuff shield slidably receives the handcuffs within the channel such that the end wall of the handcuff shield covers the wristlet body to prevent access to the engaged teeth of the wristlet body and ratchet bar.
In yet another embodiment, a method of securing a prisoner includes attaching handcuffs to the prisoner by latching a ratchet mechanism of the handcuffs to secure the handcuffs to the prisoner until released by inserting a key into a keyhole of the handcuffs. The method further includes sliding a handcuff shield over the handcuffs to cover the latching mechanism and keyhole and inserting a locking device into a slotted opening formed in the handcuff shield to lock the handcuff shield to the handcuffs such that the handcuff shield prevents unauthorized access to the ratchet mechanism and keyhole of the handcuffs.
In the accompanying drawings, structures are illustrated that, together with the detailed description provided below, describe exemplary embodiments of the claimed invention. Like elements are identified with the same reference numerals. It should be understood that elements shown as a single component may be replaced with multiple components, and elements shown as multiple components may be replaced with a single component. The drawings are not to scale and proportion of certain elements may be exaggerated for the purpose of illustration.
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Handcuff shield 100 quickly and easily attaches to a standard pair of handcuffs to shield the ratchet mechanism and keyhole of the handcuffs from access. When in the attached and locked position of
To the extent that the term “includes” or “including” is used in the specification or the claims, it is intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as that term is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “or” is employed (e.g., A or B) it is intended to mean “A or B or both.” When the applicant intends to indicate “only A or B but not both” then the term “only A or B but not both” will be employed. Thus, use of the term “or” herein is the inclusive, and not the exclusive use. See Bryan A. Garner, A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage 624 (2d. Ed. 1995). Also, to the extent that the terms “in” or “into” are used in the specification or the claims, it is intended to additionally mean “on” or “onto.” Furthermore, to the extent the term “connect” is used in the specification or claims, it is intended to mean not only “directly connected to,” but also “indirectly connected to” such as connected through another component or components.
While the present application has been illustrated by the description of embodiments thereof, and while the embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the application, in its broadest aspects, is not limited to the specific details, the representative apparatus and method, and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of the applicant's general inventive concept.