This invention relates in general to security for containers that can hold one or more items and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for sealing such containers.
One common use for containers is the shipment of goods from one location to another. Goods are packed into the container, and a door of the container is closed and latched. Then, the container is transported to a destination by one or more vehicles, such as trucks, planes, trains and/or ships. At the destination, the container door is unlatched and opened, and the goods are removed.
The transportation industry has recognized that it is important to provide security for the goods being transported in such containers. As one aspect of this, there is a need to prevent goods from being removed from a container while it is in transit to its destination, even if the container itself is not stolen, misrouted or misplaced. There is also a need to prevent someone from opening the container and inserting some additional item, such as a bomb.
For this purpose, there are existing seal devices that are used to seal or lock the latch mechanism for the door of the container. The most common type of seal device has a disposable bolt and a reusable housing. The bolt is inserted through the latching mechanism of the container, and the reusable housing is then pressed onto an end of the bolt. The bolt and housing have cooperating structure that completely prevents withdrawal of the end of the bolt from the housing in a direction opposite to its insertion direction. To remove this seal device from a container, the disposable bolt must be cut with a bolt cutter.
Some seal devices of this type also include radio frequency identification (RFID) tag circuitry. If the circuitry detects any form of tampering with the seal device, the circuitry transmits a wireless signal that contains information indicative of the tampering. While seal devices of this type have been generally adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been satisfactory in all respects.
A better understanding of the present invention will be realized from the detailed description that follows, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
The seal device 10 includes two spaced metal parts 26 and 27 that have a high magnetic permeability, and that are fixed against movement with respect to each other. In the disclosed embodiment, the parts 26 and 27 are each made of steel, but they could alternatively be made of any other suitable material. The parts 26 and 27 each have approximately the shape of the letter âFâ. In this regard, the parts 26 and 27 have respective main portions 31 and 32 that extend parallel to each other. The part 26 has two spaced and parallel projections 36 and 37 that extend outwardly from the main portion 31 approximately perpendicular thereto, in a direction toward the part 27. Similarly, the part 27 has two spaced and parallel projections 38 and 39 that extend outwardly from the main portion 32 approximately perpendicular thereto, in a direction toward the part 26.
The projection 37 is located at one end of the main portion 31, and the projection 39 is located at one end of the main portion 32. The projections 37 and 39 are aligned with each other, and have a space between their outer ends. The projection 36 is provided at a location approximately halfway along the length of the main portion 31, and the projection 38 is provided at a location approximately halfway along the length of the main portion 32. The projections 36 and 38 are aligned with each other, and have a space between their outer ends. The main portion 31 has a cylindrical opening 41 extending therethrough near an end remote from the projection 37, in a direction approximately parallel to the projections 36 and 37. The main portion 32 has a cylindrical opening 42 extending therethrough near an end remote from the projection 39, in a direction approximately parallel to the projections 38 and 39. The cylindrical openings 41 and 41 are coaxially aligned.
A permanent magnet 51 is disposed between and engages the outer ends of the projections 36 and 38. The magnet 51 serves as magnetic field generator. A circuit board 61 is fixedly coupled to each of the parts 26 and 27 by several screws or bolts, one of which is identified by reference numeral 62. A magnetic field detector 66 is supported on the circuit board 61, at a location between the ends of the projections 37 and 39 on the parts 26 and 27. In the disclosed embodiment, the detector 66 is a Hall effect sensor, but it could alternatively be any other type of suitable detector, one example of which is a magnetoresistive sensor. A radio frequency identification (RFID) tag circuit 68 is also provided on the circuit board 61, and is responsive to the output of the Hall effect sensor 66. The tag circuit 68 is a type of circuit that is well known in the art, and it is therefore not described here in detail. The tag circuit 68 includes a not-illustrated transceiver that can send and receive wireless signals.
The seal device 10 further includes a seal bolt 81 that is magnetically permeable, that has an elongate cylindrical shank 82, and that has a circular head 83 at one end of the shank, the head 83 having a diameter greater than the diameter of the shank 82. A circumferential groove 84 is provided in the shank 82, near an end remote from the head 83. In the disclosed embodiment, the bolt is made of steel, but it could alternatively be made of any other suitable material(s) of high magnetic permeability. In
The seal device 10 includes a retaining mechanism 88. The retaining mechanism 88 is known in the art, and is therefore not described here in detail. When the shank 82 of the bolt 81 has been inserted successively through the openings 41, 17, 18 and 42, and reaches the position shown in
The seal device 10 has a housing 91 that is indicated diagrammatically by a broken line. The housing 91 encloses the retaining mechanism 88, the circuit board 61, the magnet 51, and portions of the parts 26 and 27. The permanent magnet 51 produces a magnetic field, and the magnetic flux of this field will follow the path of lowest reluctance. More specifically, when the bolt 81 is installed and intact, as shown in
In essence, when the bolt 81 is installed and intact, as shown in
The seal device 110 includes an L-shaped part 121 that is magnetically permeable, and that has two legs 122 and 123 extending approximately perpendicular to each other. In the disclosed embodiment, the part 121 is made of steel, but it could alternatively be made of any other suitable material. A cylindrical opening 124 extends through the leg 122, near an outer end thereof.
The seal device 110 includes a block 144 that is made from an electrically insulating material. In the disclosed embodiment, the block 144 is made from a rigid and durable plastic material, but it could alternatively be made from any other suitable material. The block 144 is fixedly coupled to an outer end of the leg 123 of the part 121, for example by a plurality of screws or bolts that are not visible in
A cylindrical metal sleeve 148 is disposed within the opening 145 in the block 144. The outside diameter of the sleeve 148 is approximately equal to the inside diameter of the opening 145, such that the sleeve 148 is held within the opening 145 by a force fit. The sleeve 148 is also fixedly held in the opening 145 by a suitable adhesive, such as a commercially-available epoxy adhesive. The sleeve 148 could alternatively be held against axial movement in any other suitable manner. The sleeve 148 is made of a magnetically permeable material. In the disclosed embodiment, the sleeve 148 is made of steel, but it could alternatively be made of any other suitable material. The central cylindrical opening 149 through the sleeve is coaxially aligned with the opening 124 in the leg 122 of the part 121.
A permanent magnet 152 is disposed within the recess 146. In the disclosed embodiment, the magnet 152 is held in place by a known epoxy adhesive, but it could alternatively be held in place in any other suitable manner. One end of the magnet 152 contacts the sleeve 148, and the other end of magnet 152 contacts the leg 123 of the part 121. The circuit board 61 with the Hall effect sensor 66 thereon is fixedly supported on the leg 123 of the part 121, for example by two or more bolts that are not visible in
The shank 82 of the bolt 81 can be inserted through the central opening 149 in the sleeve 148, through the aligned openings 17 and 18 in the latch parts 13 and 14, and through the opening 124 in the leg 122 of part 121, until the head 83 of the bolt is engaging the upper end of the sleeve 148. In this position of the bolt, the not-illustrated retaining mechanism cooperates with the groove 84 to prevent withdrawal of the bolt in an upward direction.
When the bolt 81 is installed and intact, as shown in
In each of the disclosed embodiments, the static magnetic field produced by the permanent magnet is polarized. This increases the difficulty of defeating the seal device, because one would need to know the polarity of the magnetic field in order to attempt to introduce an external magnetic field that is properly polarized so as to mask the magnetic effect of cutting the bolt. Also, in each embodiment, portions of the flux paths that are not within the magnet, the bolt or the detector are virtually completely disposed within material having a high magnetic permeability. This reduces sensitivity of the seal device to external metal objects such as a container, as well as sensitivity to external magnetic fields.
Although selected embodiments have been illustrated and described in detail, it should be understood that a variety of substitutions and alterations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, as defined by the claims that follow.
This application claims the priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 of provisional application No. 60/906,051 filed Mar. 9, 2007.
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