Abstract:
A vehicle pedal lock includes an inner portion that is attached to a brake pedal and which can also be attached to a clutch pedal and an outer portion that locks the pedals to the inner portion whereby the pedals cannot be operated. The portions have handles that telescopingly fit together and can be locked together.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to the general art of locks, and to the particular field of special applications for locking automotive vehicles. 
   Car theft is one of the most prevalent crimes in most cities. In some cities, some vehicles can be stolen in less than one minute. This problem raises insurance rates for everyone and creates headaches for car owners and law enforcement agencies alike. 
   In view of this problem, the art contains numerous examples of locks and tracking devices and systems, all of which are intended to defeat a potential thief, or track the vehicle so a thief cannot dispose of the vehicle before being apprehended. 
   Many of these locks are complicated and difficult to place and thus may not be used. Some of the locks are extremely expensive and thus may be marginally effective. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a lock for a motor vehicle which is secure yet which is inexpensive and easy to operate. 
   While some locks, such as the steering wheel “club” are fairly easy to operate, they are also easy to defeat by a potential thief who has the right tools. This problem arises because the “club” is positioned in a location that is easily accessed by a potential thief. The thief need only break through a window and he has immediate access to the club. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a lock for a motor vehicle which is easy to set and release by an authorized person, yet which is positioned in a location that is inconvenient and difficult to reach for a potential thief who may wish to defeat the lock. 
   Still further, some mechanical locks are specific to particular vehicles and cannot be used on other vehicles. For example, certain steering wheel locks will fit one variety of vehicles but cannot be fit on the steering wheel of other vehicles. 
   Therefore, there is a need for a lock for a motor vehicle which is amenable to use on a wide variety of vehicles. 
   PRINCIPAL OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
   It is a main object of the present invention to provide a lock for a motor vehicle which is secure yet which is easy to operate. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a lock for a motor vehicle which is amenable to use on a wide variety of vehicles. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide a lock for a motor vehicle which is easy to set and release by an authorized person, yet which is positioned in a location that is inconvenient and difficult to reach for a potential thief who may wish to defeat the lock. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   These, and other, objects are achieved by a pedal lock that includes an inner portion that is attached to a brake pedal of a motor vehicle and which can also be attached to a clutch pedal of the motor vehicle and an outer portion that locks the pedals to the inner portion whereby the pedals cannot be operated. The portions have handles that telescopingly fit together and can be locked together. 
   Using the pedal lock embodying the present invention will permit a person to quickly and securely lock the pedals of his motor vehicle in a manner that will prohibit operation of the motor vehicle. The lock is quite secure, yet is easy to operate and set. By disabling the brake and/or clutch pedals, the lock embodying the present invention is positioned to be very inconvenient and difficult to reach; therefore, a potential thief will not be able to “smash and run” because the lock is located in a difficult-to-reach location. However, the lock is easily disengaged by the owner of the vehicle who has a key. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a pedal lock embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is an elevational view of a handle portion of the pedal lock shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a plan view of an outer portion of the pedal lock embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  is a plan view of the outer portion shown in  FIG. 3  with the outer portion rotated 90°. 
       FIG. 5  is an exploded view of an inner portion of the pedal lock embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 6  is a side view of the inner portion of the pedal lock. 
       FIG. 7  is a side view of the inner portion of the pedal lock as seen 90° from  FIG. 6 . 
       FIG. 8  shows the inner and outer portions of the pedal lock embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 9  is a plan view of the assembled pedal lock of the present invention. 
       FIG. 10  shows the pedal lock attached to a brake pedal of a motor vehicle. 
       FIG. 11  is a side view showing the pedal lock attached to a brake pedal. 
       FIG. 12  shows a detailed view of the pedal lock attached to a brake pedal. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. 
   Referring to the Figures, it can be understood that the present invention is embodied in a pedal lock  10  which achieves the above-stated objectives. 
   Lock  10  comprises a first portion  12  which is best shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4  and which includes a cylindrical body  14  which has a first end  16  which is a top end when first portion  12  is in use, a second end  18  which is a bottom end when first portion  12  is in use, and a longitudinal axis  20  which extends between first end  16  and second end  18 . A bore  22  extends from second end  18  towards first end  16 . A slot  24  (see  FIG. 2 ) is defined in cylindrical body  14  and extends in the direction of longitudinal axis  20 . A locking pin-accommodating hole  26  is defined through body  14  for a purpose that will be understood from the teaching of the ensuing disclosure. 
   A handle  30  is located on first end  16  so lock  10  can be easily gripped and manipulated. 
   A foot plate  40  is unitary with second end  18  of cylindrical body  14  and can be affixed thereto by welds or the like. Foot plate  40  is best shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 . 
   Foot plate  40  includes a first surface  42  which is a bottom surface when first portion  12  is in use, a second surface  44  which is a top surface when first portion  12  is in use, a first side  46  which is a top side when first portion  12  is in use, a second side  48  which is a bottom side when first portion  12  is in use, and a width dimension  50  which extends between first side  46  and second side  48 . 
   Foot plate  40  further includes a first end  52 , a second end  54 , and a length dimension  56  which extends between first end  52  and second end  54 . Foot plate  40  is contained in a plane that is perpendicular to longitudinal axis  20  of cylindrical body  14 . 
   A slot  60  is defined along the length dimension  56  of foot plate  40  and intersects bore  22  of cylindrical body  14 . A pedal-engaging stop plate  64  is fixedly mounted on first surface  42  of the foot plate  40  adjacent to slot  60  such as by bolts  66 , or the like, and extends in the length direction of the foot plate  40 . 
   As is best shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  5 ,  6  and  7 , lock  10  further comprises a second portion  70  which is an inner portion in use. Second or inner portion  70  includes a cylindrical body  72  which is sized and shaped to be telescopingly accommodated in bore  22  defined in cylindrical body  14  and to extend through slot  60  defined in the foot plate  40 . Cylindrical body  72  includes a first end  74  which is a top end when inner portion  70  is in use, a second end  76  which is a bottom end when inner portion  70  is in use, and a longitudinal axis  78  which extends between first end  74  and second end  76 . A handle  80  extends transversely to longitudinal axis  78  and is located to extend through slot  24  defined in cylindrical body  14  of first or outer portion  12 . A plurality of locking pin-receiving holes  82  are defined in body  72  at locations that are spaced apart from each other in the direction of longitudinal axis  78 . 
   A clutch pedal-engaging element  90  is fixedly mounted on second end  76  of body  72  and is located adjacent to first surface  42  of the foot plate  40  when in use whereby the foot pedal is located between second end  76  of body  72  and clutch pedal-engaging element  90 . Clutch pedal-engaging element  90  extends in the direction of length dimension  56  of the foot plate  40 . The clutch pedal-engaging element  90  includes two sections  92  and  94  which are movably connected to each other as indicated by double-headed arrow  96  so various spacings between the foot pedals of a motor vehicle can be accommodated. Mounting elements, such as bolts  98 , or the like, can be used to fix element  90  to the body  72 . 
   A brake pedal-engaging element  100  is rotatably mounted on second end  76  of body  72 . Brake pedal-engaging element  100  is located adjacent to first surface  42  of foot plate  40  when in use whereby the foot pedal is located between second end  18  of body  14  of outer portion  12  and brake pedal-engaging element  100 . The brake pedal-engaging element  100  extends in the direction of length dimension  56  of the foot plate  40  and is rotatable on inner portion  70  to rotate between a first position shown in solid lines in  FIG. 1  orientated transversely to slot  60  defined through the foot pedal and a second position oriented to extend through slot  60  defined in the foot plate  40 . 
   A lock element  110  is mounted on body  14  of first portion  12  and includes a lock pin  112  that extends through locking pin-accommodating hole  26  defined through body  14  of first portion  12  and into one of the locking pin-receiving holes  82  defined in body  72  of inner portion  70  when first portion  12  is locked to second portion  70 . Lock element  110  includes a key lock or a combination lock, or the like, and will lock the inner portion  70  to the outer portion  12  and these two portions will not be able to be moved with respect to each other unless lock element  110  is removed. This will lock the pedals and prevent use of the vehicle until lock  10  is removed. 
   As can be understood from the foregoing, operation of lock  10  is as follows: the first and second portions  12 ,  70  are manipulated relative to each other to move the brake pedal and clutch pedal elements away from the foot plate  40 . The elements are then manipulated to sandwich brake pedal P and clutch pedal C between the brake pedal-engaging element  100  and the clutch pedal-engaging element  90  and the foot plate  40 . As can be seen in  FIG. 11 , the brake pedal is also forced against stop plate  64  to further disable that pedal. The first and second portions  12 ,  70  are then moved with respect to each other to secure the brake pedal and the clutch pedal. Lock element  110  is then set to lock the first portion  12  to the second portion  70 . Lock  10  then disables the brake pedal and the clutch pedal until lock  110  is released. While the brake pedal and the clutch pedal have been discussed, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that either pedal can be disabled by itself without the other, or an accelerator pedal can be disabled either by itself or in conjunction with the other or both of the other pedals. This situation is indicated in  FIG. 10 , with accelerator pedal A being shown as well as brake pedal P and clutch pedal C. 
   It is to be understood that while certain forms of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements of parts described and shown.