Patent Application
20130026771
A. Field
This invention relates to a security seal for sealing articles or mechanisms against tampering in a manner revealing any tampering with the seal that would release or open the seal.
B. Related Art
Security seals are known for sealing articles and mechanisms such as, for example, electric, gas and water meters, against tampering in a manner that reveals any tampering with the seal for the purpose obtaining access to the sealed article or mechanism. Such seals are revealed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,782,513 granted Jul. 21, 1998 to Ian Nazzari; U.S. Pat. No. 6,283,517 granted Sep. 4, 2001 to Ian Nazzari; U.S. Pat. No. 998,878 granted to Dinsmoor; U.S. Pat. No. 1,132,970 granted Mar. 23, 1915 to Peyton; U.S. Pat. No. 1,878,991 granted. Sep. 20, 1932 to Murray; U.S. Pat. No. 5,427,423 granted Jun. 27, 1995 to Georgopoulos; U.S. Pat. No. 6,996,584 granted Nov. 22, 2005 to Debrody et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 7,243,963 granted Jul. 17, 2007 to Castro.
Known prior art tamper indicating seals tend to be costly and/or are not sufficiently secure against surreptitious tampering by imaginative thieves or intruders using special tools and equipment designed to open the seals without any visible or readily visible sign showing such opening. In the case of lock wire or hasp type seals that have internal detents or locking elements designed to prevent opening of the seal and release of the hasp or wire once the seal is connected to the article or mechanism to be sealed and closed, thieves or intruders have been found to use small drills or punches to reach the locking detents or locking elements inside the seal body and thereby release the detents of locking elements with only a small, difficult to observe, hole left in the seal outer body as the only evidence of tampering with the seal. The thieves or intruders are thus able to gain access to the previously sealed articles or mechanisms without detection, and to replace the seal in a sealing mode after the tampering without visible signs of damage to the seal because the seal does not readily show the manner in which the seal was opened.
There is a need, therefore, for a tamper indicating security seal that provides better resistance against surreptitious outside access to the locking mechanism within the seal, particularly in the environment of a security seal using bendable locking fingers engaging fixed abutments within the seal body.
The present invention provides improved security against surreptitious, unauthorized access to the internal locking mechanism of a security seal that employs a captured lock wire for sealing an article or mechanism against visible tampering with.
The seal is an assembly including a locking insert and an outer body, wherein the outer body has an upper end, a central cavity having an opening facing the upper end, and a cavity bottom. A central guide having opposed sides is located centrally within the cavity arising upwardly from the cavity bottom. The central guide has along a side thereof at least an upper and a lower locking abutment vertically spaced apart from each other and projecting distally from said one side, said locking abutments having locking finger engaging surfaces on lower sides thereof. The locking insert includes a first and second downwardly extending leg and a central opening between the legs. A first and second locking finger, each having a distal end and being connected in a cantilever manner at an end opposite said distal end to the second leg in a vertically spaced apart relationship along said second leg, extends from the second leg in an upwardly diagonal direction toward the central opening. The locking fingers are configured to be resiliently bendable laterally to a sufficient extent under lateral applied force to permit lateral movement of their respective distal ends from at-rest positions and to return to said at-rest positions after removal of said lateral applied force. The locking insert has a main body central wall to which the first and second legs are attached and from which the first and second legs extend downwardly. The central wall, first and second legs and locking fingers are configured to be received and to fit closely within said central cavity with the first and second legs disposed on opposite sides of said central guide in juxtaposed relationship. The distal ends of said first and second locking fingers are configured to be respectively juxtaposed said locking finger engaging surfaces from below said upper and lower locking abutments when the locking insert is fully received in said central cavity, thereby resisting any motion of the locking insert in a direction of withdrawal upwardly from the central cavity.
This arrangement of seal elements provides improved resistance to tampering with the locking fingers by drilling or punching through the outer and inner body elements to reach the locking fingers to release them from the locking abutments in a manner not readily visible and which would permit re-assembly of the seal elements after opening of same to further hide the unauthorized access to the article or mechanism that is sealed.
The seal assembly includes a lock wire that may be secured or captured at one end thereof by the seal locking insert or the outer body, and an arrangement of lock wire apertures and grooves on or in the locking insert and outer body that enable the lock wire to be threaded by a user through an article or mechanism to be sealed and then through the seal outer body and locking insert in a manner permanently securing the wire to the seal outer body and locking insert after the insert is fully received in the central cavity of the outer body. The seal assembly thus cannot be opened to release the lock wire without evident damage to the seal locking insert, outer body or lock wire elements, which would indicate tampering with the seal assembly.
With reference to the appended drawings:
With reference to
As seen in
The locking insert 12 comprises a main body central wall 28 depending downwardly as illustrated below a locking insert cover 30 that includes a front side as shown in
Locking insert 12 also has a second leg 32 extending essentially parallel to first leg 22, and both the first and second legs 22, 32 of the locking insert extend perpendicular to the locking insert cover 30 in a downward direction as illustrated. A central opening 34 is provided between the first and second legs 22, 32.
The terms “front”, “rear”, “upwardly”, “downwardly” and similar expressions denoting orientation or position as used in this description are used with reference to the drawings to describe relative orientations, directions or positions of the elements relative to each other as illustrated for convenience only and are not intended to denote actual orientations or directions in actual use, since in actual use the orientations and directions of the seal elements could exist in any orientation of direction, depending on the position of the seal.
Vertically spaced inclined cantilevered locking fingers 38, 40 extend inwardly and upwardly at a diagonal angle from an inner side edge 42 of second leg 32 and terminate in the central opening 34 between the first and second legs 22, 32, as seen in
The locking insert cover 30 is somewhat larger in thickness than the central wall 20 and has laterally spaced cover projections 44 on the front and rear sides of the cover extending downwardly as shown perpendicular to the top side of the cover 30.
The locking insert 12 also has a locking insert closure edge 46 that projects laterally from one side of the locking insert along an upper portion of the central wall 28. The function of this closure edge will be explained in the description below.
The outer body 16 has a central cavity 48 with an opening located at and facing towards the upper end of the outer body, the cavity being intended to receive the central wall 28 and first and second legs 22, 32 of the locking insert 12 (except the cover 30) in a snug fitting relationship. Thus, the thickness of the locking insert including the central wall, the legs 22, 32 and the locking fingers 38, 40 is dimensioned to closely fit into the central cavity 48 of the outer body. The cavity 48 moreover is shaped to conform closely with the shape of the locking insert below the cover 30, as illustrated. In this example, the locking insert 12 has laterally spaced shoulders 50 at the upper area of the central wall 28 of the locking insert that serve as a transition between the upper wider area of the central wall 28 and the lower more narrow portion of the locking insert defined by the first and second legs 22, 32. The inner space of the outer body central cavity 48 is shaped to closely conform to the outer form of the locking insert 12, and accordingly the inner space includes inner shoulders 52 that will be juxtaposed with the locking insert shoulders 50 when the locking insert is fully assembled within the outer body. Likewise, the lower ends of the first and second legs 22, 32 will be juxtaposed with the bottom wall of the cavity 48.
The locking insert 12 has a first lock wire groove 54 extending vertically as shown in the front wall of the first leg 22 that intersects the lock wire head socket 20 from above. The first lock wire aperture 26 intersects the first lock wire slot 54 at an upper end of the slot. As previously described, the first lock wire aperture 26 extends through the first leg 22 from the front to the rear side thereof.
A second lock wire groove 56 extends vertically along the rear side of the first leg 22 (see
A second lock wire aperture 58 is provided in the second leg 32 of the locking insert 12 and extends through the second leg from front to back. A third lock wire groove 59 extends vertically on the front side of the second leg 32 of the locking insert 12 and intersects the second lock wire aperture 58 at its lower end, and a fourth lock wire groove 60 provided on the rear side of the second leg 32 of locking insert 12 extends vertically along the second leg parallel to and opposite the third lock wire groove 59. The third and front grooves extend along the second leg only for a limited length such that when the locking insert is fully received in the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16, the upper ends of the third and fourth grooves 59 and 60 will be aligned with the front and rear outer body lock wire apertures 72, 74 to be described below.
A locking insert upper transverse abutment 64 extends downwardly and inwardly from the upper wall 66 of the central opening 34 and the inner side edge 42 of the second leg, respectively, above the upper locking finger 38.
The outer body 16 is configured and arranged to receive the locking insert 12 within the central cavity 48 in a manner to be described below, and includes along the upper edges of the outer body on opposite sides of the opening to the cavity 48 cover projection mating depressions 68 that are intended to receive and cooperate with the locking insert cover projections 44 when the locking insert 12 is fully received in the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16.
The outer body 16 also is provided with an outer body side slot 70 that receives the locking insert closure edge 46 of the locking insert 12 when the locking insert is received in the outer body. When so located, the closure edge 46 essentially closes the side slot 70.
Outer body 16 includes a front outer body lock wire aperture 72 and a rear outer body lock wire aperture 74, the purpose of which will be described below.
The outer body 16 has a base 76 that is somewhat enlarged compared to the main body of the outer body to facilitate manipulation of the seal assembly during use.
Projecting upwardly from the bottom of the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16 is a central guide or locking projection 78 that is fixed to the outer body preferably by molding the projection 78 integrally with the outer body and/or the base 76 of the outer body.
The central guide 78 includes upper and lower locking abutments 80, 82 that project outwardly from one side of the guide projection 78 and face towards the side of the central cavity 48 that will be occupied by the distal ends of the locking fingers 38, 40 (i.e., towards leg 32 of locking insert 12) when the locking insert 12 is received in the central cavity 48, as seen in
It will also be observed that the second leg 32 of locking insert 12 will be lodged between the central guide and locking projection 78 and the wall 90 of the central cavity 48 that is opposite the inner wall 88, so that the outer elongated side 92 of the second leg 32 is juxtaposed the inner wall 90 when the locking insert 12 is received in the cavity 48 of the outer body 16.
Each security seal will be permanently marked with a unique serial number 100 and/or other visible identifier that preferably will be placed both on the locking insert, for example on central wall 28, and on the outer body in a manner such that the serial number can be visually matched on the insert 12 and the outer body 16 after the locking insert is fully received in the central cavity 48 because of the transparency of the outer body 16. The serial number or identifier may be placed at other locations on the locking insert 12 and the outer body 16 with or without other indicia such as a bar code, for example, but preferably in permanent manner that resists alteration without a visible indication of tampering. To enable observation of the serial number 100 and any other indicia displayed within the outer body 16, the outer body is made of transparent material or a material sufficiently transparent for the intended purpose, so as to enable viewing of information displayed within the outer body while protecting the displayed information from alteration after assembly. The transparency of outer body 16 also enables visual inspection of the condition of the locking fingers 38, 40 and the lock wire 14 within the seal after assembly and closure of the seal.
In use, the lock wire head 18 of lock wire 14 of the security seal 10 according to the first embodiment will be placed in the lock wire head socket 20 in locking insert 12 by a user or manufacturer and the free end 24 of the lock wire will be threaded through the first lock wire aperture 26 from front to back, as shown in
In the partially inserted condition of the locking insert 12 into the cavity 48 of the outer body 16, the second lock wire aperture 58 in the second leg 32 of the insert 12 will be aligned with the front and rear outer body lock wire apertures 72, 74 as shown in
When if is desired to fully secure the seal, the free end 24 of the lock wire 14 will be threaded through a device to be secured or sealed (not shown) and then threaded through the rear outer body lock wire aperture 74, the second lock wire aperture 58 in the second leg 32 of the locking insert 12 and the front outer body lock wire aperture 72, so the free end 24 of the lock wire 14 now extends out through the front side of the outer body 16, as shown in
The locking insert 12 is then fully pressed downwardly into the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16 causing the lock wire 24 to lie within fourth lock wire groove 60 in the locking insert 12, the third lock wire groove 59 in the locking insert second leg 32 and the second lock wire groove 56 in the rear side of the locking insert first leg 22 as shown in
When the locking insert 12 is fully inserted into cavity 48, the locking insert cover projections 44 will be received into the mating depressions 68 in the outer body 16, with the lock wire 14 extending through the lock wire notch 62 in the cover 30, as seen in
When the locking insert 12 is fully inserted into the cavity 48 of outer body 16, it will be observed from the form and position of the locking insert first leg 22 and the central guide 78 that access to the locking fingers 38, 40 from the side of the outer body 16 where the inner wall 88 is located by drilling or punching is strongly impeded due to the presence of the material of the first locking insert leg 22 and the central guide 78, thereby providing security against surreptitious drilling of punching through the seal laterally from the side nearest to the first locking insert leg 22 to deflect and release the locking fingers 38, 40 from the locking abutments 80, 82 to thereby release the locking insert 12 from the outer body 16 followed by replacement of the locking insert 12 within the outer body 16 in a manner that cannot be readily detected. The configurations of the insert 12, central wall 28, cover 30 and the outer body material all further contribute to the relatively strong integrity of the seal against undetectable intrusion by someone desiring to release the seal from its sealing function. The upper end of the central guide 78 of the outer body 16 will be lodged against the transverse upper abutment 64 and the elongated side 84 of the central guide will be juxtaposed against the inner side 86 of the first leg 22 of the locking insert 12 which in turn will be juxtaposed along its opposite side to the inner wall 88 of the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16, thereby reinforcing the central guide 78 and its associated locking abutments 80, 82 against movement within the cavity 48. The outer elongated side 92 of the second leg 32 will be juxtaposed against the inner wall 90 of the cavity 48 as well when the locking insert is fully received in the cavity 48 as seen in
The seal may be pre-assembled partially by the manufacturer so that the condition of the seal 10 is as shown in
An alternate of the security seal assembly 10 shown in
In use, the locking insert 12 of the seal 110 is placed into the cavity 48 of the outer body 16 until the upper locking finger 38 is located below the upper locking abutment 80, then the captured wire 14 is threaded through the device to be sealed (not shown) and through apertures 74 and 72 of the outer body 16 and through the second lock wire aperture 58 in the locking insert second leg 32 so the security seal appears as depicted in
It will be noted that certain structural details provided in the first embodiment of
Likewise, the locking insert 12 of the second embodiment of the seal 110 will fit into the cavity 48 of the outer body 16 of the second embodiment in a manner enabling alignment of the apertures 74, 58 and 72 in the outer body 16 and the locking insert 12 when the locking insert 12 is partially received into the cavity of the outer body 16, like the first embodiment shown in
A third preferred embodiment 120 of a security seal made in accordance with the invention is shown in
In use, the third embodiment may be partially assembled by placing the locking insert 12 into the central cavity of the outer body 16 until the upper locking finger 38 is located under the upper locking abutment 80 of the outer body 16, and then the free end 24 of the lock wire 14 is threaded through apertures 74, 72 and 58 of the outer body and the locking insert 12 after being threaded through a device to be sealed (not shown). The locking insert 12 is then fully pushed into the central cavity 48 of the outer body 16 to fully secure the lock wire 14 to the outer body 16 and locking insert 12 in the same manner as the embodiment of
In the third embodiment, like the second embodiment, features of the locking insert 12 of the first embodiment not actually used in the third embodiment may be retained to enable common molds and dies to be used for the manufacture of the locking inserts used in the first and third embodiments. Likewise, it will be noted that the outer body 16 of the first and third embodiment are identical and interchangeable.
While preferred embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated in the drawings, the invention is not limited to the specific structures so described and illustrated, but rather is defined in accordance with the appended claims.
