AU642970B2 - Trolley with coin lock - Google Patents

Abstract

A trolley has a coin lock and a key for locking trolleys in a parking queue to each other or for releasing the trolley at the end of the column when a deposit coin is inserted in the coin lock. The coin lock locks the deposit coin when the trolley is released. To release the trolley, the deposit coin in the coin lock executes a movement in the direction of its axis of rotation.

Description

TROLLEY WITH COIN LOCK DISCL 0 SURE The invention relates, particularly, to a trolley having a coin lock and a key for locking trolleys in a parking queue to each other or for releasing the trolley at the end of the column when a deposit coin is inserted in the coin lock, whereby the coin lock locks the deposit coin when the trolley is released and frees the deposit coin when the trolley is recoupled to the other trol I eys.

Trolleys with this deposit coin system are known, in principle, through DE-A 25 54 916 and are on the market in the meantime in different types of application. Each trolley is basically equipped with a coin lock and with a key which is usually attached to a chain. When the trolley is coupled to other trolleys, the key of the last but one trolley or the key of a collecting point is in the coin lock of the trolley, whereas this same key is ready for use when the next trolley is to be recoupled.

The trolley at the end of the column, respectively, will generally be disconnected. In the same way, it is also possible to disconnect the trolley at the beginning of the column, respectively or, when the trolleys are to be redistributed by the personnel, to unlock the column of trolleys in the middle As the trolley will only be released if a deposit coin is introduced in the coin machine and as the user only gets his coin back if he reconnects the trolley to one of the various collecting points, the trolleys do no not stay uselessly around. One can reduce staff looking, collecting and bringing the trolleys back and one can manage with a smaller number of trolleys, as the unused trolleys are always concentrated at points where they are required.

To encourage the distribution of this trolley with a deposit coin system, the aim of the present invention is to reduce the outlay for the coin lock, and in particular its dimensions. The coin lock will thereby be better integrated in the trolley, will thus protrude ltss in the depot or over the external contour. And not least, the coin lock will distinguish itself through easy handling and reasonable production costs.

This task of the invention is solved in such a way that the deposit coin in the coin lock executes, when the trolley is released, a movement in the -1 2 direction of the axis of rotation. The invention derives from the following concept: all existing deposit coin systems work according to the principle that the coin must be introduced at the coin level, whereby, in most cases, a slider protruding from the coin lock is used, on which the coin is inserted, which must then, in order to release the key of the front trolley, be pushed over a relatively long way. Even in the case of large constructional outlays, the sliding path and, consequently, the length of the slider protruding from the coin lock can never be smaller than the coin diameter.

On the contrary, the deposit coin according to the system or the invention moves in the direction of the coin axis and consequently, the sliding path and the dimensions of the coin lock resulting therefrom are, in this case, consequently smaller than in the case of known systems. In most cases, a sliding path which is of the order of the coin thickness will suffice. A sliding path of 1 mm to approximately 1 cm is according to the construction design advantageous.

In accordance with the invention there is disclosed a coin-operated trolley lock and a key to lock together adjacent trolleys standing in a parked line or to release a trolley from said line by inserting a redeemable coin, the lock having at least one positioning element which is operably associated with said coin and said key, said positioning element being capable of releasing said key and thus the trolley while arresting said coin or, alternatively, of releasing said coin while arresting said key, characterized in that said redeemable coin undergoes in the coin-operated lock when the trolley is released, wherein the cross-section of the positioning element extends into the cross-section of a coin holder to such a degree that the positioning element can be operated with the redeemable coin but not by the next sma'ler coin.

The invention also includes a trolley having a lock with the above features.

The lock will suitably consist of cylindrical pins with two annular grooves, the upper one of which is designed to hold the coin in positive *0* S 8lu Q~7) -3locking, and the lower one is designed to release the key and, at the same time, for self-locking with the means provided herefor. In this respect, a few, easily produced parts are sufficient.

The means for locking the slider when the latter is pressed can be formed by a bolt introduced In the already mentioned hollow space to accommodate the key, said bolt engages, when the key is pulled out by spring pressure, into openings of the slider, but frees the slider when the key is introduced, so that it pushes the coin in the upper position of release of the latter.

To prevent any misuse of the coin machine, it is advisable to work not only with one slider, but with several sliders arranged in space, which can be pressed down simultaneously, so that the key of the next trolley can be freed. Other characteristics hereto are included in claims 6 to 8.

A further development of the invention aims at letting the user choose between two different deposit coins instead of dictating him the use of a specific deposit coin. This is advisable, in particular, in regions close to frontiers, where various currencies are being used. To this end, according to the invention, two coin holders of different sizes are mounted in the coin lock which act jointly with either one or the same sliders. The coin holders will suitably be arranged on edge and on either sides of the hollow space pro'tided for the key. The coin lock will te fed with coins, in this case, not from above, but from the left or the right.

As the slider, in case different sizes of coins are used, must comprise corresponding displaced active areas for the operation with the coins, it can be advisable for productional and technical reasons to fashion the slider in three parts following each other longitudinally, the middle one of which corresponds to the key and both external ones correspond to a deposit coin, repectively, whereby both parts are braced by means of a spring with each other in both directions of the axes.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of two examples of an embodiment with the help of the drawings, wherein: Fig. 0 A queue of trolleys coupled to each other.

Fig. 1. A topview of a first structural shape of the coin lock with a partial section along line E in Fig. 8; -4- Fig. 2. A section along line A in Fig. 6; Fig. 3. A section along line C in Fig. 7; Fig. 4 A section along line B in Fig. 6; Fig. 5 A section along line D in Fig. 7; Fig. 8 A section along line F in Fig. 1; Fig. 9 A view similar to Fig. 7, however, when an improper attempt to unlock is effected; Fig. 10 Another structural shape for two deposit coins in a vertical section; Fig. 11 The same view as in Fig. 10, however, with the coin locked; Fig. 12 A vertical section through Fig. 10 along line G, and Fig. 13 A side view of Fig. 11 in the direction of the arrow H.

It should be noted that in Fig. 6, 7, 9 the sections are in the surfaces of separation of the coin lock housing, that Fig. 1, 2, 4 and 6 and the left half of Fig. 8, on the one hand, Figs. 3, 5, 7 and the right half of Fig. 8, on the other hand, illustrate the same operation phases, respectively.

In Fig. 0 the coupling principle Is first of all illustrated. There, numerous trollis A driven Into one another are shown which are provided with a coin lock B respectively, and are thereby coupled together via a flexibel element 5 with the next trolley or to a fixed collecting point (depot) C.

Should a trolley be disconnected generally the trolley located at the end of the queue a deposit coin must be introduced in iLs coin lock, whereupon the coin lock frees the connection to the trolley located just In front of it. On the other hand, the user gets its deposit coin back when the trolley is recoupled to the other trolleys.

The structure and the operation of a first embodiment of the invention will be described in the following disclosure by means of Figs. 1 to 9.

A lower housing 1 of the coin lock B is connected by means of rivets 2 to the upper housing 3 and is itself attached by means of a screw 4 with intermediary arrangement of a flat belt 5 to the grab handle of a trolley. At the free end of the flat belt 5 a key 8 is fixed by means of rivets 7. Said key is not shown on the drawings, on the other hand, a similar key 8, which is attached at the end of the flat belt which belongs in the direction of motion to the next trolley in the column of parked trolleys.

In the bores 9 and 9' which end in the manner of pocket holes under juts 27 of the housing 3, the cylindrical pins 10 and 10' are movable and are under the action of a compression spring 11. The pins 10, 10' are provided with annular grooves.

The housing parts 1 and 3 form a hollow space 14 of such a height, that the key 8, which is made of sheet metal having approximately the thickness of a coin, can be easily pushed in. The hollow space 14 contains two bolts and 15' with shoulders 16, as well as a bridge which is under the action of a compression spring 18.

The system is located in the position such as illustrated on the left half in Figs. 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8, said position in which the trolley, on which grab handle 6 the illust,ated device is mounted, is connected to the next trolley via the flat belt It is apparent from Fig. 6 that the key 8 cannot be pulled out for the pins 10 and 10' are partially engaged in openings 19, which it is provided with. Simultaneously, it holds back with its front edge the bridge 17 against the action of the spring 18 and also leaves via its shoulders 16 the bolt and 15' out of engagement.

On the upper side of the housing upper side 2 a surface 21 is located in which in the region of the juts 27 the basin-like coin holder 22 is sunk in.

The latter is measured such that the coin can'be accommodated therein with short play, and its center line is located approximately on the same plane as the axes of the pins 10 and 10. The bores 9, 9' are also arranged such that their cross sections protrude out a little less than the difference of radii of the deposit coin to the next smaller coin in the coin holder. On its edge a stopper 23 is also provided.

When a deposit coin is then (in Fig. 1 from left) introduced via the surface 21 until it bears against the stopper, it herewith penetrates (as shown on the left half of Fig. 8) by means of its border region the annular grooves 13 of the pins 10 and When pressed down subsequently toward the bottom in the coin holder 22, it displaces at the same time the pins 10 and 10' against the action of the' springs 11 by approximately their thickness toward the bottom until they are positioned such as illustrated in Fig 8 on the right. As a result, the annular grooves reach the level of the hollow space 14 such that, as shown in -6- Fig. 7, the key can be pulled out from the right whereby the trolley provided with the device of the invention is ready for use. Simultaneously, however, the spring 18 pushes via the bridge 17 and the shoulders 16 the bolts 15 and partly in the annular groov'es 12, and this before the key has left the latter. The pins 10, 10' cannot thus rise toward the top either under the action of the spring 9 or be lifted in some way from above, with the result that the coin, although visible to a large extent remains captive in positive locking.

If the trolley is pushed back to the park after use and the key 8 of the next front trolley reintroduced in the hollow space 14, the key 8 presses with its front edge the bridge as well as, via the shoulders 16, the locks 15, back in the exit position, whereby the openings 19 are cove'ad by the cross sections of the bores 9, so that the pins 10, 10' spring to the upper position under the action of the springs. They thereby lock the key 8 to prevent it from being pulled out and, at the same time, raise the coin 24, such that it can be easily pushed out toward the left.

It is apparent from Fig. 8 that one cannot get hold of the pins 10, with the fingers because of the juts 27. To unlock the key one would have to press both pins simultaneously. Due to the fact that the coin can be seen, the incentive which might bring the current user to outwit the system is not after all that important.

On the contrary, it seems reasonable to think that [the user] might, after having used the trolley, be inclined to remove the coin with some improvized tool in order not to have to push the trolley back. If one thereby pushes the bridge 17 back, while one places such a tool in position approximately in the middle, the bolts 15, 15' do not follow, and the coin remains blocked. On the contrary, if one hits the bridge quite laterally or places the tool approximately in the direction of the arrow 25 against the shoulder 16 of the lock 15, the parts 15, 17, 15' clamp against the wall of the opening 14 a long time before the lock 15 is pushed cut of its engagement. If one tries to push out of engagement with a rectangular plate having the thickness of the opening 14 both locks simultaneously and thereby without tilting of the brigde 17, this plate penetrates the annular rings 12 ard holds the bores 10, To outwit the system, a impression of the key is necessary.

-7- The fastening screw 4 is already built in when the device is mounted.

It can then be pulled via an opening 26 in the housing upper part, whereby the bridge 17 is to be pushed back by means of a suitable tool. Later on, the way to the screw is always blocked either by the coin 24 or the key 8, in order to prevent the device from being unscrewed by unauthorized persons. The screw will be made accessible, in particular, in case of need by using a key 8 with corresponding bore-holes.

The use of a flat belt 5 and Its fixation by means of a screw 4 under the housing part 1 is not a characteristic necessary to the invention.

Instead of the flat belt, another flexibel, partly flexibel or rigid element could be used.

A further aspect of the invention will now be described in the following. It is self-evident that such a device should not be built in such a way that the coin may be removed with the same key located at the respective device. In the case of devices of the state of the art, the length of the chain for coupling of the trolleys is owing to its own size so short that It does not pass around the device. As far as the device of the Invention is concerned, it might be necessary, however, to mount strengthened portions in the flexibel element according to a technique known to the man of the art.

A second example of an embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figs. 10 to 13. It allows the selective use of two different deposit coins.

For better comprehension, parts corresponding to each other bear, whenever possible, the same references as in the previous drawings, whereby the references asslgned to the smaller deposit coin are denoted by a, the references assigned to the bigger coin are denoted by b.

As shown in Figs. 10 and 11, a coin holder 22a or 22b, respectively, is mounted in the coin lock on the left and on the right of the hollow space 14 for the key to be accommodated and each coin holder is provided on the edge, vertically to the coin plane, with movable sliders lOa or lOb such that the coin lock can be operated from each coin holder.

The sliders lOa or lOb operate according to the same principle as the ones previously described In the example of application, they are here merely adjusted to the different diameters of the proposed depos't coins and, consequently, displaced In relation to each other.

For productional and technical reasons the sliders lOa and lOb are not 88 formed as in the previously mentioned example as a one-piece part, but separated from each other by a middle part lOc or lOc'. Said middle part lOc or lOc' is spring-loaded between both sliders lOa and lOb or 10a' and 10b' and engages, when no deposit coin is inserted, into the openings 19 of the key, see Fig. 12.

Besides, the middle part lOc and lOc' correspond to the already cited bolts 15 and 15', which themselves via the shoulders 16 are in active connection with the bridge 17.

When the trolley is coupled, the key 8 of the trolley just in front being thus in the coin lock, the bolts 15, 15' are pushed in with their bridge 17 against the action of the spring 18 in the housing of the coin lock and, consequently, together with the middle pieces O10b and O10b'. Said condition is illustrated in Figs. 10 to 12.

When a deposit coin is introduced in the coin lock (in Fig. 11 perpendicular to the drawing surface) until it is located over the coin holder 22b, it is then in engagement with the shoulders 13 of the sliders 10 and lob'. The subsequent active sliding way of the coin, which is carried out directly by hand, but which can also be effected mechanically, ther pushes all the sliding parts in the same proportion and in the same direction as when the coin is pushed. This state is illustrated in Fig. 11.

When said sliding movement is carried out, the middle parts lOc and of the sliders are driven from their position of engagement with the key 8.

The compression spring 8 can then bring the locks 15 and 15' into engagement with the slider middle parts lOc and lOc'. This condition is illustrated in Fig. II. It is also apparent that the middle parts 10c and lOc' are provided with two recesses fbe and 10f or lOe' and 10f' displaced in the sliding direction, In order that the middle parts lOc and lOc' are locked by the bolts both in the left end position according to Flg. 11 and In the right end position not shown on the drawing. The coin 24 is then secured against removal until, when the trolley is recoupled, the key 8 is pushed into the hollow space 14 and the bolt 15 is pressed back.

Both examples of application described herein have in common the advantage that the active operation way of the coins is carried out in the direction of the coin axis and that a particularly compact structural form of the coin lock Is obtained.

Claims (14)

1. A coin-operated trolley lock and a key to lock together adjacent trolleys standing in a parked line or to release a trolley from said line by inserting a redeemable coin, the lock having at least one positioning element which is operably associated with said coin and said key, said positioning element being capable of releasing said key and thus the trolley while arresting said coin or, alternatively, of releasing said coin while arresting said key, characterized in that said redeemaole coin undergoes a shift of position substantially in the direction of ls rotational axis in the coin-operated lock when the trolley is released, wherein the cross-section of the positioning element extends into the cross-section of a coin holder to such a degree that the positioning element can be operated with the redeemable coin but not by the next smaller coin.

2. A lock according to claim 1 characterized in that the degree of shift of the redeemable coin is of the order of magnitude of the thickness of the coin.

3. A lock according to claim 1 characterized in that the positioning element can be moved substantially in the direction of said coin rotational axis.

4. A lock according to claim I characterized in that said coin holder defines a recess that snugly holds the coin and that the positioning element Is a spring-loaded sliding element which is protectively covered by a projection and, when In a position where it is key inserted in a hollow space defined in said lock and, when in a depressed position, said sliding element releases said key and blocks the coin in said coin holder whereby said sliding element is locked by the S key against locking means urged against said key by spring pressure.

5. A lock according to claim 4 characterized In that the sliding "..element comprises a cylindrical bolt with upper and lower circular grooves, said upper groove serving to positively lock said coin in said coin holder, and the lower groove serving to selectively release and lock said key by said locking means. 35

6. A lock according to claim 4 characterized In that the means for locking the sliding element comprises locking bars which can be S" guided In said hollow space for accepting the key, said locking bars being engaged under spring force in the recesses of the sliding element ST 1 687d 10 when the key is ithdrawn from said hollow space but which releases the sliding element and thus the coin when the key is inserted into said hollow space.

7. A lock according to claim 6 characterized as comprising two opposed sliding elements and means for locking the sliding elements comprising two opposed locking bars in said hollow space with a bridge disposed between and engaging said locking bars whereby when the sliding elements are depressed and the key is withdrawn from said hollow space, the bridge urges the locking bar into the recesses of the sliding elements with the aid of a spring, while the locking bar and the bridge release the sliding elements when the key is inserted into said hollow space such that the locking bars and the bridge move into upper release positions, together with the coin.

8. A lock according to claim 7 characterized In that the bridge has such a ratio between its length and width at Its point of contact with the locking bars that, if an attempt is made to push one locking bar out of engagement, said bridge will be tilted and clamped between the locking bars.

9. A lock according to claim 3 characterized in that the lock has two different sized coin holders which cooperate optionally with the same sliding elements.

A lock according to claim 9 characterized in that said coin holders are disposed edgewise and adjacent the hollow space for the key.

11. A lock according to claim 9 characterized in that the sliding 25 elements are formed from three parts in succession in the longitudinal direction, of which a middle part corresponds to a key while two outer parts correspond to a redeemable coin.

12. A lock according to claim 11 characterized in that the parts of the sliding elements are tightly held with a spring In both axial directions.

13. A lock according to claim 1 characterized in that a screw, which can be reached through a bore in the upper part of the housing with a tool, for the purpose of fixing the housing of the coin-operated lock to a trolley, Is always covered during operation by the coin or by the S: 35 key. 9*S*

14. A coin-operated trolley lock substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the figures. 687d 11 A trolley with a coin-operated lock as claimed in any one of the preceding claims. DATED this TWENTY-FIFTH day of AUGUST 1993 Systec Ausbausysteme GmbH Patent Attorneys for the Applicant SPRUSON FERGUSON