The present invention relates generally to devices for protecting security seals on latches for cargo doors, shipping containers and the like.
Conventional cargo carrying vehicles and shipping containers have swing-out cargo doors that include a latch assembly. The typical latch assembly, shown in
As shown in
Where access to the cargo is to be limited, such as when the cargo comprises foods, chemicals, hazardous wastes, or the like, a tamper-evident security seal 34, such as a ribbon seal, a padlock seal, a cable seal, or the like, is installed through the aligned hasp holes. These seals are commercially available and typically are embossed with serial numbers. The serial number of the seal may be included on the bill of lading or shipping papers by the shipper. Upon delivery, the recipient can verify the integrity of the cargo by checking the serial number of the intact seal on the cargo door with the serial number on the billing of lading. If the seal is broken or bears a different number, the recipient may, and usually does, refuse delivery.
However, because the security seal 34 is exposed to the environment during shipment, it is vulnerable to accidental damage and to malicious damage by vandals when the cargo carrying vehicle or shipping container is left unattended. Consequently, even if no tampering or theft of the cargo occurs, the integrity of the cargo may be questioned on delivery if the seal is no longer intact. This results in unnecessary expense to the shipper and the owner of the cargo, as well as delay and inconvenience to the recipient.
The present invention provides a protective enclosure or lock box assembly for enclosing and protecting these tamper-evident security seals. The lock box assembly of the present invention includes a lock box that covers the sealed latch so that the seal is not vulnerable to damage or accessible to vandals. The box is secured to the latch assembly in a way that does not interfere with the holes in the hasps through which the seal is attached.
The present invention comprises a lock box assembly for a latch assembly comprising a latch arm engageable with a hasp assembly, where the hasp assembly comprises first and second hasps with aligned apertures therein to receive a security seal. The hasp assembly is adapted to restrain the latch arm therein.
The lock box assembly comprises a lock box that includes first and second box members. The first box member comprises a housing with side walls, and preferably has a closed end, an open end, a closed top, open bottom, and two closed sides. The first box member is sized and shaped to enclose a first portion of the hasp assembly. The sides include latch-receiving recesses, such as latch slots with open ends, and the latch slots are sized to receive a first portion of the latch arm. In addition, the first box member includes lock-receiving recesses that preferably are provided by aligned locking holes in the sides.
The second box member a housing with side walls, and preferably has an open end, a closed end, a top, and two closed sides, and is sized and shaped to enclose a second portion of the closed hasp assembly. The sides of the second box member include latch-receiving recesses, such as latch slots with open ends, and the latch slots are sized to receive at least a second portion of the latch arm. In addition, the first box member includes lock-receiving recesses that preferably are provided by aligned locking holes in the sides.
The first box member is engageable with the second box member to form an enclosure for the hasp assembly and security seal. Preferably, the open end of the first box member is receivable in the open end of the second box member to form a continuous enclosure for the hasp assembly. When the first box member is received in the second box member, the open ends of the latch slots in the first and second box members overlap to form an enclosed slot on each side of the latch box sized to receive the latch arm extending therethrough.
The lock-receiving recesses in the first and second box members are positioned to cooperate when the first and second box members are engaged so that when a lock is received therein, the first and second box members are locked together and around the latch arm. For example, in the preferred embodiment, the locking holes in the first and second box members are aligned to receive a locking pin therethrough. When a locking pin is engaged in the locking holes in the lock box, the first box member is secured to the second box member with the latch arm in the enclosed latch slots. Thus, the lock box is secured to the hasp assembly over the aligned hasps and any seal therein, thereby obstructing access to the seal and the hasp assembly. Advantageously, the assembled lock box encloses but does not engage the aligned apertures in the hasp assembly
Turning now to the
With continuing reference to
Referring still to
The second box member 44, seen in
The second box member 44 includes a latch slot 84 and 86 in each side 78 and 80. Preferably, the latch slots 84 and 86 are L-shaped slots with open ends 84a and 86a continuous with the open bottom 76 of the second box member and straight sections 84b and 86b that extend a distance generally toward the closed end 70. As best seen in
More specifically, the second box member 44 is first placed over the upper half of the hasp assembly 20 and the first box member 42 so that the entire latch arm 14 is received in the open ends 84a and 86a of the slots 84 and 86. Then, the second box member 44 is moved downwardly until the latch arm 14 is positioned fully in the straight (upper) portions 84b and 86b of the slots 84 and 86, as seen
With continuing references to
When the locking pin 100 is engaged in the locking holes 90, 92, 96 and 98 in the lock box 40, the first box member 42 is secured to the second box member 44 with the latch arm 14 secured in the enclosed latch slots 88. This, in turn, secures the entire lock box 40 to the hasp assembly 20 over the aligned hasps 24 and 26 and any seal 34 therein. In this way, access to the seal 34, as well as the hasp assembly 20, is obstructed.
The lock box members 42 and 44 may be formed of any suitable material, but steel is ideal and preferably stainless steel. The members 42 and 44 may be formed in any suitable manner; cutting the shape from square tubular steel is acceptable. The preferred form for the closed end, the closed top, and two closed sides of both the first and second box members is solid and planar to form a box that is generally rectangular in longitudinal cross section. However, other shapes may be employed.
The embodiments shown and described herein are exemplary. Some elements or features of the present invention may be found in the art and, therefore, have not been described in detail herein. The description and drawings are illustrative only, and changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of the various parts and elements described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. The description and drawings do not point out what an infringement of this patent would be, but rather merely provide one example of how to use and make the invention. The limits of the invention and the bounds of the patent protection are measured by the claims.
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