PROTECTIVE TRANSFER TUNNEL ARRANGEMENT

Abstract: Telescopic transfer-hatch construction for the protected transfer of money or other valuables between two objects, such as buildings or vehicles. The construction (1) comprises an outer tunnel (2) fixedly mounted in one of the objects and within the outer tunnel a slidable tunnel (6). A door (7) is located in a fixed inner tunnel (4) which is connected to the fixed outer tunnel (2). By means of the construction, which can be mounted in the wall of a building, a protected connection can be established. As soon as a hatch or a door mounted in a money transport car is positioned in front of the construction, the inner tunnel (6) will be unlocked and moved against the car, a hood (31) joining the car. After locking the slidable tunnel (6) the door (7) will be unlocked.

Description: Transfer-hatch construct ion. Telescopic transfer-hatch construction for establishing a connection closed off on the outside and connecting two objects, such as buildings or vehicles, which construction comprises an outer tunnel mounted to one of the objects, and within the outer tunnel a slidable tunnel, each of the objects being provided with a door, which can be locked only from inside the object when the connection has been established. A construction of said type is known from the Netherlands patent application 7512086. The object of constructions of this kind is to eliminate the weak link there is when transferring valuables between two objects. For that purpose it is required that the connection between the two objects is established before opening the doors which close off the entrance from the objects to the connecting tunnel. A drawback of the known construction is that it is relatively complicated and, consequently, little attractive from an economic point of view. Another drawback of the known construction is that it is not selfclosing off with regard to the object in which it is mounted. An object of the present invention is to provide a construction of the sort described, which does not have said drawbacks. For that purpose the tunnel according tot the invention is provided with a fixed inner tunnel, which is located at some distance from the inner sides in the fixed outer tunnel, which inner tunnel is stiffly connected at one of its ends to a corresponding end of the fixed outer tunnel, allowing the moving in and out, with regard to the free ends, of the slidable tunnel between said two fixed tunnels,and the door being mounted in the free end of the inner tunnel for closing off the same, which door is provided with a door locking mechanism, which in its locked position can also lock the slidable tunnel when it is withdrawn. In this way a relatively simple construction ensures in its extended position a safe connection between the objects, and in its withdrawn position a good closing-off of the object in which the construction is mounted. By moreover making the transfer hatch of armour steel a very high degree of protection will be obtained. The invention will be elucidated in what follows with the help of an embodiment, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the transfer hatch with the slidable tunnel extended and the position of the door in the inner tunnel; Fig. 2 is a sectional view of a money transport vehicle parked near a transfer hatch mounted in a wall; Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the transfer hatch taken along line III-III of Fig. 5, with the slidable tunnel withdrawn; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the transfer hatch taken along line IV-IV of Fig. 5 with the slidable tunnel withdrawn; Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the transfer hatch taken along line V-V of Fig. 3, with the slidable tunnel withdrawn. As shown in the drawing the transfer hatch 1 (see Fig. 1) comprises a fixed outer tunnel 2, which can be put through an opening in a wall 3 (see Fig. 2). At some distance from its inside the outer tunnel is provided with a fixed inner tunnel 4, one end of which is stiffly connected with a corresponding end of the fixed outer tunnel 2 by means of a profiled connecting frame 5. A slidable tunnel 6, which can be withdrawn and extended, is placed between said two fixed tunnels 2 and 4 via their free ends. By making use of e.g. a profile which is not further described, the distance between the fixed tunnels, specifically with regard to their bottom parts, and preferably at their free ends, can thus be chosen that in this case it is somewhat greater than the thickness of the plate the slidable tunnel is made of. Owing to a lubricant the slidable tunnel can be withdrawn and extended in an easily slidable way. The purpose of this construction is that the free end of the inner tunnel will hardly bend. Especially in the case of a very heavy transfer hatch, e.g. when it is made of armour steel, it is essential for a smooth working that the inner tunnel will not bend at its free end. This bending will considerably increase because of the fact that a door 7 is located at the free end of the inner tunnel, which door will cause an extra bending force in case it is also made of armour steel. This bending force can be considerably received by making the profiled connecting frame 5 heavy enough, but it is obvious that in that case the whole construction will be very substantial. Instead of using a lubricant for the sliding of the slidable tunnel 6 between the two fixed tunnels 2 and 4 a construction of guide rails is preferably used. As shown in Fig. 4 the slidable tunnel 6 can be withdrawn and extended by means of guide rails 8 and 9 coupled to the outer tunnel 2 and the inner tunnel 4, respectively, A possible bending of the free end of the inner tunnel 4 will then be transmitted via the guide rails and the slidable tunnel 6 to the outer tunnel 2 and received.. As shown in Fig. 3 the door 7, located in the inner tunnel 4, is pivotally mounted by means of a hinge 10 to the door frame 1], connected to the inner tunnel 4. The door 7 is provided with a door locking mechanism 12, comprising a lock 13, the bolt 14 of which can pass through the door frame 11 to lock the door with regard to the fixed inner tunnel 4, as well as through a hole 15 in a striking plate 16, mounted to the slidable tunnel 6. The position of the hole 15 is such that when the slidable tunnel is withdrawn , it is opposite the bolt. Now when the door is partly unlocked by means of a key 17, l.e. the bolt 14 is removed only from the hole 15, the slidable tunnel 6-can be moved outwards, whereas the inner tunnel 4 remains closed off, for the bolt is still in the door frame 11. Only when the operator has removed the bolt from the door frame 11 as well, the inner tunnel will become accessible. When the key 17 has not been removed from the lock, the door 7 will, in its open position, not run parallel to the inner wall of the inner tunnel. This problem can be overcome by removing the key from the lock, but then there is a chance that the key will get lost, which may have unpleasant consequences, when it is needful to lock the door quickly. To cope with this inconvenience the inner wall of the inner tunnel has been provided with a recess 18 at the height of the key 17 in the lock, the depth of which recess is at least equal to the length of that part of the key 17 which is not in the lock. The door can be provided with a window 19, preferably made of bulletproof glass, so that the operator can have visual contact with a vehicle 20, e.g. a money transport car (see Fig. 2). For safety's sake it is desirable that the transfer hatch 1 can only be operated from inside the protected room. In the case of Fig. 2 it is the room to the right of the wall 3. As already pointed out, the door 7 is opened from inside the inner tunnel 4, that is from inside the protected room. It has also been pointed out that the slidable tunnel 6 can be moved outwards, after the bolt 14 has been removed from the hole 15. As can be seen from Fig. 5 a locking mechanism 21 for the slidable tunnel which is preferably mounted in the upper surface of the transfer hatch, and can be operated from inside the inner tunnel 4,has been provided, so that said slidable tunnel 6 can also be moved outwards from inside the protected room. This locking mechanism 21 comprises a toothed rack 22, which is mounted to the inner side of the outer tunnel 2 and the centre line of which runs parallel to the centre line of the outer tunnel, and a draw latch 23, coupled to the slidable tunnel 6. The draw latch 23 is provided with a handle 24 and coupled to this a latch bolt 25, which passes through a slot 26 in the inner tunnel 4 (see Fig. 4) as well as through the slidable tunnel 6. Against the working of a spring 27 placed in a housing 28, which is mounted to the outside of the slidable tunnel 6, the latch bolt 25 can be drawn from the latch catch 29, which is mounted to the inner side of the outer tunnel 2. The slot 26 is located parallel to and under the toothed rack 22. After the bolt 14 (see Fig. 3) has been removed from the hole 15, and after the draw latch 23 has been drawn from the latch catch 29, the slidable tunnel can be pushed outwards from inside the transfer hatch 1, i.e. from inside the protected room, the latch bolt 25 moving through the slot 26 and taking along the slidable tunnel 6 via the housing 28. Dependent on the extent of moving out the slidable tunnel 6 the latch bolt will, after the release of the draw latch 23, snap behind one of the teeth 30 of the toothed rack 22,the teeth 30 being thus placed that the slidable tunnel 6 will be blocked in the direction of its withdrawn position. As shown in Fig. 2 the extent Of moving out the slidable tunnel 6 is determined by the distance from the vehicle 20 to the transfer hatch 1. In case the vehicle is a money transport car provided with a hatch which is not described in detail, the slidable tunnel 6 can be moved into this hatch after opening the same. The advantage of this circumstance is that a fully secured transfer of e.g.money can take place between the protected room and the money transport car. The persons in the money transport car need not come out of the car neither need they put their hands out of the hatch to receive or to hand over money, so that it has become very unattractive to commit a hold-up. In order to ensure the best possible joining between the slidable tunnel 6 and the body of the vehicle, the outside of the former has been provided with a hood 31, which is movable or immovable with regard to said slidable tunnel. This hood 31 is provided at its free end with a soft material 32 to prevent the vehicle 20 from being damaged. Moreover, the shape of the hood 31 is such that it can mainly join the body of the vehicle. Owing to the sIanting position of the hood 31 it forms at its upper side a canopy 33 (see Figs. 2 and 5), which can also serve as a drain for carrying off water. To ensure that no water or dirt can come between the two fixed tunnels 2 and 4, when the slidable tunnel 6 is in its withdrawn position, this tunnel has been provided with a sealing flange 34, mounted in such a way that when the slidable tunnel 6 is in its withdrawn position, this sealing flange closes off the room between the two fixed tunnels 4 and 6. In case a hood 31 is made use of, it can be mounted to said sealing flange 34. To ensure that the transfer hatch 1 is firmly mounted in the wall 3 of the protected room, the outer tunnel 2 is provided at its free end with a first fixed clamping frame 35 pointing outwards and with a second clamping frame 36 also pointing outwards and movably mounted, with regard to the first clamping frame 35, along the outer tunnel 2. As clearly indicated in Figs. 3 and 5 the first clamping frame 35 joins the wall 3. The second clamping frame 36 is then moved in such a way that the transfer hatch I is clamped against the wall. The second clamping frame 36 is locked by means of locking means, which are not described in detail. Fig. 5 also shows a pair of stop brackets 37 and 38, the former of which is fixedly mounted to the inner side of the quter tunnel 2, whereas the latter is fixedly mounted to the outside of the slidable tunnel 6. Said stop brackets 37 and 38 are mounted in such a way that when the slidable tunnel has reached its maximum allowable extension, the stop bracket 38 of this tunnel butts against the stop bracket 37, thus preventing the slidable tunnel 6 from falling out with regard to its two fixed tunnels 2 and 4. In the inner tunnel 4 the door 7 can be provided with a draught strip 39 near the bottom threshold. The inner side of the transfer hatch 1 may also be provided with a gas-tight sealing, which is not further described, to preclude any form of draught, as well as to prevent that undesirable gas will be blown into the protected room. To obtain a quick transfer of e.g. money-bags or containers, it is desirable that the inner wall is as smooth as possible. Obstacles that are in the way are the open door 7, the draw latch 23 and the door frames 11. A transfer plane which is as smooth as possible can be obtained by means of guide strips 40, mounted in the inner tunnel 4, indicated by dot and dash lines in Fig. 3, and lined up with the above obstacles.

Claims: Claims. 1. Telescopic transfer-hatch construction for establishing a connection closed off on the outside and connecting two objects, such as buildings or vehicles, which construction comprises an outer tunnel mounted to one of the objects, and within the outer tunnel a slidable tunnel, each of the objects being provided with a door, which can be locked only from inside the object when the connection has been established, characterized by a fixed inner tunnel (4), which is located at some distance from the inner sides in the fixed outer tunnel (2) , which inner tunnel is stiffly connected at one of its ends to a corresponding end of the fixed outer tunnel (2), allowing the moving in and out, with regard to the free ends, of the slidable tunnel (6) between said two fixed tunnels (2, 4), and the door (7) being mounted in the free end of the inner tunnel, for closing off the same, which door is provided with a door locking mechanism (12), which in its locked position can also lock the slidable tunnel when it is withdrawn. 2. Construction in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the two fixed tunnels (2, 4) are stiffly connected with each other at one of their ends by means of a profiled connecting frame (5), this profiled connecting frame ensuring not only the stiff connection, but also the desirable distance between said two tunnels. 3. Construction in accordance with one of the claiins 1-2, characterized in that the slidable tunnel (6) is movably connected to the two fixed tunnels (2, 4) by means of guide rails (8, 9). 4. Construction in accordance with one or more of the claims 1-3, characterized in that the slidable tunnel (6) is provided with a striking plate (16), which has a hole (15) in such a position that when the slidable tunnel (6) is in its withdrawn position, the night bolt (14) of the door locking mechanism (12) can engage the hole (15). 5. Construction in accordance with one or more of the preceding claims 1-4, characterized in that a locking mechanism (21) for the slidable tunnel has been provided, so that this tunnel can be locked in a number of moved-out positions. 6. Construction in accordance with claim 5, characterized in that the locking mechanism (21) for the slidable tunnel comprises a toothed rack (22) mounted to the inner side of the outer tunnel (2), and a draw latch (23) coupled to the slidable tunnel (6) and provided with a latch bolt (25), which is movable in its axial direction against the force of spring means (27), one end of which latch bolt passes through a slot (26) located in the inner tunnel (6) and running parallel to the toothed rack, and the other end rests on the latch catch (29), when the slidable tunnel (6) is in its withdrawn position, and when the slidable tunnel is in its extended position, the spring latchbolt (25), which is movable in its axial direction, snaps behind one of the teeth (30) of the toothed rack (22) for blocking the slidable tunnel in the direction of its withdrawn position. 7. Construction in accordance with one or more of the claims 1-6, characterized in that the slidable tunnel (6) is provided with a sealing flange (34) for sealing the room between the two fixed tunnels (2, 4), when the slidable tunnel is in its withdrawn position. 8. Construction in accordance with one or more of the claims 1-7, characterized in that the outer tunnel (2) is provided at its free end with a first fixed clamping frame (35) pointing outwards, and with a second clamping frame (36) also pointing outwards and movably mounted, with regard to the first clamping frame, along the outer tunnel.

Inventors: KOEHLER, WILLEM GERARDUS
Applicants: STAAT DER NEDERLANDEN (STAATSBEDRIJF DER POSTERIJEN, TELEGRAFIE EN TELEFONIE)
Application year: 1983
Main classification: E05G7
IPC codes: E05G7, B60P3, A47G29