Magnetic shield for a solenoid operated locking device

Abstract

A magnetic shield for a locking device such as a gunlock having a first portion and a second portion configured for controlled movement with respect to the other portion and for being held in a fixed and locked position vis--vis each other. At least one of the first and second portions includes an electromechanical locking mechanism including a solenoid and solenoid activated spring loaded pin configured, in a first position, for preventing the first and second portions from moving with respect one another and in a second position for allowing the first and second portions to move vis--vis one another. A magnetically conducive shield is disposed on or in at least one of the first and second portion that includes the solenoid locking mechanism, for preventing an unauthorized magnetic field from causing the solenoid to retract the spring loaded pin thereby allowing the locking device to be opened.

Claims

1. A locking device, for securing an object within the locking device, said locking device comprising: a first portion and a second portion; at least one of said first portion and said second portion configured, in one mode, for movement with respect to the other of said first and second portions and in another mode, for being held in a fixed and locked position vis--vis each other; at least one of said first portion and said second portions including an electro-mechanical locking mechanism, said at least one of said first portion and said second portion including said electro-mechanical locking mechanism constructed of a non-magnetically conductive material, said electro-mechanical locking mechanism including a solenoid and spring loaded pin, said spring loaded pin responsive to activation and deactivation of said solenoid to cause said spring loaded pin to be operable between a first position and a second position, wherein in a first position, said spring loaded pin is configured for preventing said first portion and said second portion from moving with respect to the other of said first portion and said second portion, and wherein in a second position, said spring loaded pin is configured for allowing said first portion and said second portion to move with respect to the other of said first portion and said second portion, said solenoid of said electro-mechanical locking mechanism responsive to at least one of an electrical activation and activation from an external magnetic field of sufficient magnitude, to cause said spring loaded pin to be operable between said first position and said second position; and a magnetically conductive shield, disposed proximate said electro-mechanical device including the solenoid, and configured for shielding said external magnetic field of sufficient magnitude from activating said solenoid and spring loaded pin and operatively causing said spring loaded pin mechanism of said locking mechanism to move from said first position to a second position by sufficiently disbursing any magnetic forces from the external magnetic field of a magnet or other external magnetic field producing device away from the electro-mechanical device.

2. The locking device of claim 1, wherein said locking device includes a gunlock for securing a weapon.

3. The locking device of claim 1, wherein said magnetically conductive shield is disposed along an external portion of at least one of the first portion and the second portion.

4. The locking device of claim 3, wherein said externally disposed magnetically conductive shield is added to said locking device after construction and manufacturing of said locking device.

5. The locking device of claim 3, wherein said externally disposed magnetically conductive shield is added to said locking device during construction and manufacturing of said locking device.

6. The locking device of claim 3, wherein said magnetically conductive shield is disposed in an internal portion of at least one of the first portion and the second portion.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description, taken together with the drawings of one embodiment of the invention wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art clamshell gunlock in a closed position;

(3) FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a prior art clamshell gunlock in an open position;

(4) FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the prior art clamshell gunlock of FIG. 1 illustrating the solenoid and locking pin in the extended and locked position;

(5) FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the prior art clamshell gunlock of FIG. 1 illustrating the solenoid and locking pin in a retracted and unlocked position caused by an external magnetic field from, for example, a magnet;

(6) FIG. 5 is an end perspective view of a clamshell gunlock with an add-on magnetic shield according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

(7) FIG. 6 is a back side perspective view of the clamshell gunlock of FIG. 5 utilizing the add-on magnetic shield extending along an exterior length of a rear and bottom portion of the gunlock according to another embodiment of the invention;

(8) FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a clamshell gunlock utilizing the magnetic shield of the invention in a gunlock recess sized and located to accommodate the magnetic shield;

(9) FIG. 8A is a cross-sectional view similar to the view of FIG. 3 illustrating an internal magnetically conductive shield plate shielding the solenoid coil from magnetic fields; and

(10) FIG. 8B is a bottom exploded bottom view of the gunlock of FIG. 8A illustrating the installation and location of an inner magnetically conductive shield plate serving as a magnetic shield in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(11) The following detailed description is provided relative to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention having a magnetic gunlock shield which seeks to overcome various disadvantages in the prior art. Although the present invention will be explained in the context of a clamshell gunlock, the exemplary embodiment is not exclusive nor exhaustive of all possible embodiments and uses for the present invention. Specifically, the magnetic lock shield of the present invention provides a satisfactory solution for clamshell gunlocks for those persons who wish to secure their firearm in the above described ready state without sacrificing a quality of safety against unauthorized electromagnetic opening as well as other gunlocks and other solenoid operated locking devices.

(12) Three exemplary embodiments of the invention are described herein with reference to FIGS. 5-8 in which in a first embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the magnetic shield 70 is added-on to an existing clam shell lock exterior region at least along the bottom and/or side portions; while in another embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the shield 70a is embedded or built-in within at least a portion of the sidewall 80 and/or the bottom portion 82 of the clamshell gunlock and thus, may not be externally visible.

(13) These embodiments are illustrated and incorporated in connection with, for exemplary purposes only, a clamshell style gunlock device 2 having a hingeable top portion 4 and a bottom portion/casting 6 which are maintained in a closed position vis--vis one another when in a locked position. In the exemplary embodiment, the top portion 4 and body portion 6 interlock in an overlapping fashion along the front edge 11 of the gunlock 2 which provides a strong mechanical connection between the two components of the gunlock.

(14) The basic components, construction and operation of the exemplary clamshell style gunlock are well known in the industry and are incorporated herein by reference.

(15) The top portion 4 and bottom portion 6 engage at two points: along hinge 32 and along a front edge 11. The top portion 4 rotates about the hinge 32 such that the gunlock device 2 opens and closes in a clamshell fashion. When open, as illustrated, for example in FIGS. 2 and 4, the top portion 4 pivots or rotates about axis 51. When closed, as illustrated, for example in FIGS. 1, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8, the top portion 4 and body portion 6 engage at two points, providing a strong mechanical connection between the two components 4, 6 of the gunlock device 2. That is, in this embodiment illustrating a clamshell style gunlock, the solid physical connection along the front edge 11 and the pivot or hinge 32 between the body portion 6 and top portion 4 are sufficiently strong enough to ensure that the gunlock can retain the firearm securely.

(16) The clamshell gunlock 2 is held in a closed position by the clamshell gunlock's electro-mechanical locking mechanism 14 including an electronically operated solenoid 60, FIG. 6, which includes a spring 63 loaded magnetically conductive latch or pin 62, disposed in a normally extended position (as shown in FIG. 3), that engages with an opening 64 in the top portion 4 (see FIGS. 3 and 8A)

(17) Before operation, the gunlock 2 is securely mounted to an appropriate surface to prevent unauthorized removal of the firearm (not shown) to be secured in the gunlock 2 through and by means of the body portion 6. Such a surface might be any structurally secure surface where the firearm, tool or other object is to be secured, such as a police vehicle partition wall, trunk, dash of a vehicle, and the like. A number of mounting points (not shown) in the body portion 6 and appropriate mounting hardware (also not shown) mount the body portion 6

(18) In an exemplary embodiment, the clamshell gunlock's electro-mechanical locking mechanism 14 will automatically engage after a solid and precise connection has been made by the top portion 4 with the body portion 6. In this embodiment, during operation the top portion 4 pivots at the hinge 32 towards the body portion 6. The protrusion along the lip 11 of the top portion 4 engages a corresponding channel of the body portion 6 when the gunlock is in operation in a closed position. The spring loaded pin or latch 62 pushes upwardly into the opening 64 in the top portion 4, securing the gunlock in a locked position.

(19) In this embodiment, operating the locking mechanism 14 by electrically energizing the solenoid 60 to retract the solenoid locking pin 62 from engagement with the opening 64 in the top portion 4 quickly releases the connection between the body portion 6 and top portion 4 so that the top portion 4 may be pivoted upwardly apart from the body portion 6 (see FIGS. 2 and 4 for example) when access to the firearm locked in the gunlock 2 is desired. The locking mechanism 14 may be activated via a mechanical key override or electronically via a switch which energizes the solenoid 60.

(20) An electro-mechanical lock system 14 is used in multiple gunlock and/or other locking systems as it enables the use of various recognition systems for the activation, opening and control of the device by an authorized person. Examples of such systems which could be used include, but are not limited to: concealed pushbutton switches, time delays, computer operated solutions, biometric scanning technologies, RFID readers, facial or voice recognition systems, and various other solutions for controlling electro mechanic devices.

(21) As previously mentioned, an unexpected and unintended security weakness of these electro-mechanical lock systems was recently discovered. Specifically, if a strong enough magnet (a magnet, such as a rare earth magnet, or any other similarly designed magnetic field generator, such as a sufficiently strong electro-magnet, is passed underneath or adjacent that portion of a gunlock 2 utilizing an electro-mechanical lock system 14, the material of the gunlock (typically aluminum or an iron ore composite) does not prevent transmission of the magnetic force of the magnet or other magnetic field generator to the solenoid (see FIG. 4). Instead, the magnetic force generated by the magnetic field acts directly upon the solenoid 60, causing the solenoid to energize and retract the locking pin 62 from an engaging orifice 64 in an opposite component of the gunlock. Thus, the application of an external magnetic force proximate the solenoid activated gunlock enables unauthorized access to the securely held firearm in the gunlock 2. A magnet's strength is typically measured as its Gauss strength and thus based upon what magnet strength is needed to activate the solenoid would define the amount of magnetic field the present invention is shielding against.

(22) Therefore, a feature of the present invention provides advantages over the prior art solenoid operated gunlocks or other solenoid operated locking devices of any type or shape in the form of a shield against unwanted electromagnetic tampering. That is, by providing a magnetically conductive shield 70, FIGS. 5-8, such that the shield envelopes or shields all or a sufficient portion of the electro-mechanical locking mechanism 14 of the gunlock or other solenoid operated locking device, the shield 70 dissipates any magnetic forces generated by a magnet or other magnetic field generator and thus prevents any unauthorized electromagnetic activation of the solenoid and electro-mechanical locking mechanism 14.

(23) FIGS. 5 and 6 are perspective front and rear right side views illustrating an embodiment of a shield of the invention externally retrofitted to an existing gunlock by attaching the magnetic shield 70 along an exterior rear/bottom portion of a clamshell gunlock. The shield preferably extends along a rear and bottom region of the body portion 6 so as to substantially shield at least a bottom and/or rear portion of the internal solenoid 14 from external unauthorized magnetic interference. In this embodiment, the shield 70 may extend along only a portion of a length of the gunlock along the rear and/or bottom edge of the rear portion of the gunlock although this is not a limitation of the invention. The shield 70 should be sized (length, width and thickness) and arranged so as to sufficiently shield the internal solenoid from the effects of an external magnetic field causing it to activate in an unauthorized manner. The shield may be attached in any manner known in the art including utilizing screws, nuts and bolts, glue, welding or any other attachment means and her mechanism.

(24) Moreover, an additional advantage of the present embodiment is the ability to incorporate this shield with multiple types of gunlocks and provide a mechanical fix to an inherent electromagnetic weakness. By providing an L-shaped or other shaped metal plate having a width of between approximately 3 to 3.5, a length of between approximately 3 to 5, and a thickness of between approximately 0.1 to 0.2, this embodiment of the invention is of sufficient size to provide a magnetic shield for many different models of gunlocks against a wide variety of magnets and electro-magnets. The shield can be produced from any magnetically conductive material that is capable of sufficiently dispersing any magnetic forces from the magnetic field of the magnet or other magnetic field producing device away from the solenoid. Materials such as ceramic, aluminum, or glass are not sufficiently conductive and thus are insufficient to prevent any magnetic force from activating the solenoid.

(25) In accordance with a second embodiment of the magnetic shield for a gunlock or other locking device according to the invention, a shield 70a, FIG. 7 may be embedded into an exterior portion of the gunlock 2. As shown, the shield 70a is embedded in the bottom and side regions of the body 6 so as to substantially enclose at least a portion of the bottom and rear portions of the internal solenoid from external unauthorized magnetic forces which would serve to activate the solenoid. In this embodiment, the shield 70a extends along a length of the gunlock along the rear bottom edge of the rear portion of the gunlock a sufficient amount so as to shield the solenoid from external magnetic fields although the shield 70a may only have to extend along one or the other of the side or bottom region of the body portion 6.

(26) Another embodiment of the magnetic shield of the invention is shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B and illustrates an embodiment wherein the magnetic shield 70b is located internally to the gunlock and is designed and shaped to fit within the cavity 78 housing the solenoid 60 and to sufficiently shield the solenoid from unauthorized external magnetic fields.

(27) Accordingly, the present invention provides a magnetic shield for a solenoid activated locking device, such as a gunlock, that serves to disburse or dissipate any external magnetic fields or magnetic forces presented by a magnetic force generating device away from the solenoid to prevent unintended and unintentional activation of the solenoid by unauthorized individuals and wherein such action might allow the gunlock to be opened and unauthorized access to the gun, tool or other object stored therein.

(28) Although the present invention has been explained with regards to a clamshell gunlock, this is not a limitation of the present invention as the magnetic shield of the invention may be utilized in and with any type of gunlock or other locking device which utilizes an appropriately energized electromechanical device such as a solenoid to provide access to the locking device or gunlock without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

(29) Modifications and substitutions by one of ordinary skill in the art are considered to be within the scope of the present invention, which is not to be limited except by the allowed claims and their legal equivalents.