1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention relates to electronic locks generally, and more particularly to certain new and useful advances yielding improved actuation and tamper-resistance of an electronic lock, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the drawings accompanying and forming a part of the same.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Conventional mechanical locks include the basic components of a body, a rotatable cylinder positioned within the body and a series of tumblers. When locked, the tumblers extend from the rotatable cylinder into the body to prevent rotation of the cylinder relative to the body. A specifically shaped key inserted in a keyhole within the cylinder engages the tumblers and moves them such that the cylinder is free to rotate relative to the body, thus unlocking the lock.
Electronic locks provide additional security features, but their relatively small size limits the size and number of internal components that can be housed therein. Although a solenoid is incorporated within a rotatable cylinder of an electronic lock, the solenoid's power source is typically incorporated within a key of the electronic lock. The power source delivers electrical power to the solenoid when the key engages the rotatable cylinder and microprocessor in the rotatable cylinder determines that a code stored in a memory of the key authorizes access.
To resist tampering by sharp blows, some electronic locks incorporate a spring-biased tamper element into the rotatable cylinder. When a sharp blow to the face of the electronic lock moves the solenoid plunger from its locking position, the sharp blow simultaneously moves the spring-based tamper element to interferingly engage the one or more tumblers.
To resist tampering by an external magnetic field, some electronic locks at least partially enclose the solenoid plunger with a ferromagnetic material. When a strong external magnetic field is applied to the electronic lock, the ferromagnetic enclosure causes the solenoid plunger to move out of the ferromagnetic enclosure and block the movement of one or more tumblers, which movement would otherwise unlock the electronic lock.
Notwithstanding the features of electronic locks referenced above, it would be advantageous to develop an electronic lock that has at least one of improved power consumption, improved attack resistance, and improved environmental robustness.
Described herein are embodiments of an electronic lock having a solid-state actuator, a voltage multiplier, and/or a circuit that is coupled with the solid-state actuator and configured to resist tampering.
In one aspect, an electronic lock includes a piezo-electric actuator positioned in a plug of a rotatable core. The piezo-electric actuator is configured to resist movement of a locking member during a non-normal unlocking operation. The locking member is at least partially positioned within a recess of the plug. The electronic lock is configured to resist an externally induced acceleration of the electronic lock by shunting electrical power produced by an externally induced motion of the piezo-electric actuator back to the piezo-electric actuator.
Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.
Reference is now made briefly to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Like reference characters designate identical or corresponding components and units throughout the several views, which are not to scale unless otherwise indicated.
Embodiments of an electric lock, and associated key, are herein described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings briefly described above.
Referring to
Referring now to
The channel 40 is sized and shaped to matingly receive the outer body engaging end 27 of the locking member 26, when aligned with the channel 40. In the illustrated embodiments, the channel 40 has a generally semi-circular cross-section with a radius corresponding to a radius of the locking member 26 (best shown in
As best shown in
Advantageously, the outer body 14 can have the same outer configuration as a conventional mechanical lock, so the electronic lock 10 can be used to retrofit many unique types of conventional mechanical locks. For example, the outer body 14 can include a first portion 50 having a generally cylindrical outer shape adjoined to a second securing portion 52 also having a generally cylindrical outer shape. In other implementations, the outer body 14 can have a generally rectangular, circular, triangular, or other desirable shape.
The rotatable core 12 includes a plug 18 having a generally cylindrical shape. To improve environmental robustness, the plug 18 may have one or more o-ring channels 73, 74 (best shown in
As shown in
For example, as shown in
The locking member 26 has a generally elongate cylindrical shape with a pivoting end 23 and an outer body engaging end 27. In one embodiment, the locking member 26 is a standard hardened dowel pin.
The pivoting end 24 of the recess 20 can be slightly cupped and configured to receive the rounded pivoting end 23 of the locking member 26 and to facilitate movement of the locking member 26 relative to the recess 20, such as a vertically-oriented rotation of the locking member 26 about its pivoting end 24 when coupled to the recess 20. The tumbler receiving end 25 of the recess 20 can include an opening 28 (best shown in
As
The plug 18 includes a keyhole 38 (best shown in
Referring again to
Referring briefly to
Referring primarily to
In one embodiment, the solid-state actuator 90 is a piezo-electric actuator. However, other types of solid-state actuators may also be used, and embodiments of the invention are not limited merely to piezo-electric actuators.
The piezo-electric actuator 90 included in an embodiment of the electronic lock 10 is a special-purpose, miniature, piezo-electric actuator, which is configured to function in small spaces without additional resources, such as pumps. As used herein, the terms “special-purpose, miniature, piezo-electric actuator” and “piezo-electric actuator” each refer to a piezo composite bimorph actuator, or another type of piezo-electric actuator having like properties. Illustratively, these properties may include, but are not limited to: a size of about 25 mm×5 mm, ability to generate a large stroke relative to its size of about 1 mm, stability over a relatively large temperature range of about −30° C. to about 150° C. with a variation of less than about 0.1 mm in the actuator position, ability to engage within about 10 ms or faster, and operative when electrical energy in a range of about 1,000 Volts to about 2,500 Volts is applied. For purposes of illustration, a non-limiting example of a piezo composite bimorph actuator is a macro fiber composite (“MFC”) based bimorph actuator developed by the General Electric Global Research Center in Niskayuna, N.Y. In one embodiment, the piezo-electric actuator 90 is configured not to move to an unlocked state when subjected to an extreme temperature beyond its operating limits.
In an embodiment, the piezo-electric actuator 90 includes a first member 91 coupled with a second member 92. A substrate 93, which is formed of a ferrous material or a non-ferrous material, is disposed between the first member 91 and the second member 92. Each of the first member 91 and the second member 92 is an active layer comprised of a piezo-electric material, which is operational up to about 150° C., or about one half of Curie temperature.
The piezo-electric material can be comprised of known man made or industrial materials. For example, PZT (lead zirconate titinate), or a variation thereof, such as PZT 5A (available from Morgan Electro Ceramics, Bedford, Ohio), may be used. As another example, either a monolithic ceramic or a macro fiber composite (MFC) can be used. The MFCs have the added advantage that they result in much larger forces, and therefore greater movement is exhibited by the piezo-electric actuator 90. An MFC may be comprised of a sheet of aligned rectangular piezoceramic fibers, layered on each side with structural epoxy, which is then covered by polyimide film. The sheets of aligned rectangular piezoceramic fibers provide the added advantage of improved damage tolerance and flexibility relative to monolithic ceramics. The structural epoxy inhibits crack propagation in the ceramic and bonds the actuator components together. The polyimide film, which is the top and bottom layers of the actuator, may be comprised of an interdigitated electrode pattern on the film, and permit in-plane poling and actuation of the piezoceramic.
In one embodiment, the first member 91 is an active layer of a piezo-electric material that is polarized along a plane of the material, parallel to the substrate 93. Additionally, the second member 92 is an active layer of a piezo-electric material that is polarized through a thickness of the second member 92, perpendicular to the substrate 93.
In operation, both the first member 91 and the second member 92 are subjected to positive electric fields, which can be generated by the voltage multiplier circuit 77 (
In the embodiment wherein the first member 91 and the second member 92 are piezoelectric materials, the top piezoelectric material is polarized along the plane of the piezoelectric wafer such that the d33 piezoelectric coefficient is exploited (d33=374 pm/V for PZT 5A). The bottom piezoelectric material is polarized through the thickness such that the d31 piezoelectric coefficient is exploited (d31=−171 pm/V). Again, even though there is a positive electric field on both sides of the actuator, the actuator bends because the d33 and d31 coefficients are opposite in sign. Thus, the top expands and the bottom contracts from the piezo coefficient orientation, rather than the sign of the electric field.
As both active materials are subjected to positive electric fields, they do not exhibit the same problems as exhibited when an active material, particularly a piezoelectric material, is subjected to a negative electric field and an elevated temperature. In those cases, depolarization is seen at temperatures as low as about 50° C. In the present embodiments, there are no electric fields applied against the direction of polarization, therefore the active materials, such as piezoelectric materials, will retain their polarization at levels of at least about 50% of Curie temperature. For one common piezoelectric material PZT 5A, the piezoelectric properties are retained up to at least about 150° C., one half of Curie temperature.
Referring to
In another embodiment, the power supply 61 in the key 16 is configured to deliver about 300 Volts to the voltage multiplier circuit 77. For the key 16 to deliver 100 V plus to the contact pins 71 of the rotatable core 12, the power supply 61 may be a 3V battery coupled with a second voltage multiplier circuit 64 located in the key 16. The second voltage multiplier circuit 64 can be configured to have a predetermined multiplier factor, which will boost the initial power supply voltage to 100V plus, i.e., 300 V in one embodiment.
The voltage multiplier circuit 77 located in the plug 18, can also be configured to have a predetermined multiplier factor. For example, in one embodiment, the voltage multiplier circuit 77 has a 5:1 multiplier factor, which means that for every 1 Volt received from the power supply 61, the voltage multiplier circuit 77 can deliver 5 Volts to the piezo-electric actuator 90. Description of the 5:1 multiplier is merely exemplary, it being understood that other multiplier factors may be used in either voltage multiplier circuit 77, 64 inother embodiments of the invention.
In any event, the voltage multiplier circuit 77 is configured to multiply electrical power supplied by the power supply 61 when one or more flanges 70 (
In one embodiment, the voltage multiplier circuit 77 may have a series connected high voltage tandem flyback (“HVTF”) design, in which two flyback transformers have input windings connected in parallel and outputs connected in series. Of course, other voltage multiplier circuit designs are possible and contemplated. Implementation of the HVTF circuit topology permits use of a low power high voltage power supply 61 in the key 16. The second voltage multiplier circuit 64 can be similarly configured.
In an embodiment, a stem 84 of a tumbler blocking member 80 (
On one side of the stem 84, the tumbler blocking member includes a first flange 83 that is configured to interferingly engage an end of tumbler 30 when the piezo-electric actuator 90 occupies a first position, as shown in
To improve tamper resistance, an embodiment of an electronic lock 10 having a piezo-electric actuator (90) is configured to resist an externally induced acceleration of the electronic lock 10, or of one or more of its components, such as the piezo-electric actuator (90), the tumblers 30,31, the locking member (26), and so forth, by shunting electrical power produced by an externally induced motion of the piezo-electric actuator 90 back to the piezo-electric actuator 90.
For example, an embodiment of the electronic lock 10 includes tamper circuitry 200 (best shown in
In one embodiment, the plug 18 is configured to improve a resistance of the electronic lock 10 to an aggressive over-torque attack. In this regard, the unitary plug 18 has advantages over prior electronic locks having a multi-piece plug. In an over-torque attack an attempt is made to twist the end 47 of the removable core 12 with a torque sufficient to break the plug 18. In an embodiment, a unitary plug 18 is formed from a single piece of material, which may be a metal, a metal alloy, or combinations thereof.
The electronic lock 10 can be configured to improve resistance to a magnet attack. In a magnet attack, a magnet having a strong external field is held proximate the electronic lock 10 to urge one or more components of the plug 18 to move into unlocked positions. Thus, in one embodiment, to strengthen the electronic lock's resistance to magnet attack, at least one of the substrate 93, the stem 84, the flanges 81, 82, and/or the tumbler blocking member 80 each comprise one or more non-magnetic materials. Alternately, at least one of the substrate 93, the stem 84, the flanges 81, 82 comprise magnetic materials and are configured to become biased into locked positions when influenced by an external magnetic field.
To improve resistance to drilling, hardened drill pins 99, 103, 104 (
Referring to
If the applied torsional force meets or exceeds the predetermined maximum torsional force, such as by aggressive tampering of the electronic lock 10, the deformable projections 22 are configured to deform or collapse from the pressure being applied to them by the locking member 26. In other embodiments, resilient members (not shown) can be substituted for the deformable members 22 and configured to substantially resist deformation up to the predetermined maximum torsional force, but allow deformation, e.g., by flexing, upon reaching or exceeding the predetermined maximum torsional force.
On the other hand, a user seeking authorized access can insert an authorized key 16 into the keyhole 38 to perform a normal unlocking operation. As mentioned above, the electronic lock 10 may include a key 16 having a low power, high voltage power supply 61. The key 16 is engageable with the rotatable core 12 to actuate the piezo-electric actuator 90 to disengage the tumbler blocking member 80 and allow movement of the rotatable core 12 relative to the outer body 14.
For example, upon insertion of an authorized key 16, voltage is supplied from the low power, high voltage power supply 61 to the voltage multiplier circuit 77. The voltage multiplier circuit 77 increases the voltage supplied by the power supply 61 by a predetermined multiple and applies the multiplied voltage to the piezo-electric actuator 90 (
With the tumblers 30, 31 unrestrained from movement by the flanges 83, 81, respectively of the tumbler blocking member 80, the user's rotation of the key 16 causes the plug 18 to rotate and the locking pin 26 to move into the plug 18 as a result of its interaction with the channel 40. Further rotation of the plug 18 urges the locking pin 26 to slide out of the channel 40 and slide along the inner surface of the bore 36 (
Although the recess 20 and deformable projections 22 are formed in the rotatable plug 18 and the locking member receiving channel 40 is formed in the outer body 14 in the illustrated embodiments, it is recognized that in some implementations, the recess 20 and deformable projections 22 can be formed in the outer body 14 and the locking member receiving channel 40 can be formed in the plug 18. Further, other components inserted into or housed within the rotatable core 12 can be inserted into or housed within the lock outer body 14.
Unless otherwise noted, the various components of the electronic lock 10 described herein can be made from a strong, rigid material such as steel. Of course, in some applications, other materials can be used, such as, but not limited to, other metals, including aluminum, brass, stainless steel, zinc, nickel and titanium.
Referring briefly to
As used herein, an element or function recited in the singular and proceeded with the word “a” or “an” should be understood as not excluding plural said elements or functions, unless such exclusion is explicitly recited. Furthermore, references to “one embodiment” of the claimed invention should not be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features.
Although specific features of various embodiments of the invention may be shown in some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only. In accordance with the principles of the invention, the feature(s) of one drawing may be combined with any or all of the features in any of the other drawings. The words “including”, “comprising”, “having”, and “with” as used herein are to be interpreted broadly and comprehensively and are not limited to any physical interconnection. Moreover, any embodiments disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as the only possible embodiments. Rather, modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.