LOCKING DEVICE FOR AUTOMOTIVE GEARBOXES

Abstract: The present invention is a locking device for automotive gearboxes that mechanically secures the gearshift lever, and thereby protects the automobile against theft. The device consists of a bracket (1) and an outer sleeve (2), which are permanently fastened to the automobile's structure, and a locking unit (3), which is a rod with a disk lock (4) inside. The locking unit (3) incorporates a catch (9) with a click spring (13), which catch (9) fits into a circumferential groove (10) inside the outer sleeve (2); the outer sleeve (2) is fastened to the bracket (1). A return spring (14) is mounted in the outer sleeve (2).

Description: Locking Device for Automotive Gearboxes The present invention is a locking device for automotive gearboxes that mechanically secures the gearshift lever, and thereby protects the automobile against theft. Earlier Polish invention application P-304267 and Polish utility model application W-100764 describe a gearshift lever locking device, installed under the floor at the gearshift lever, and consisting of a bracket fastened to the automobile's structure, a lock assembly attached to the bracket, and a locking bolt, m the design described in those applications, two parallel openings-pass through the whole length of the lock assembly, one housing the locking bolt, and the other, the shaft that attaches the i ck assembly to the bracket. The lock assembly comprises a body, a rotor assembly and a key that move a set of slides, a housing that encases the body, and a cover that shields the set of slides. The bolt that locks the gearshift lever has at its end, a head with a spring permanently fastened to it (the head protrudes from the housing), and along its circumference, a neck into which the set of slides fits. The essence of the present invention is that its lock and a catch with a click spring are located inside the locking unit. The catch fits into a circumferential groove on the internal surface of the outer sleeve, which sleeve is attached to the bracket. A return spring is mounted within the outer sleeve. The lock is a disk lock. The design of the invented device is such that the only items permanently installed in the automobile are the bracket and the sleeve holding the lock. Since the device is engaged by means of sliding the locking unit into the sleeve, if the lock, which is the crucial component of the device, is damaged, only the locking unit containing the lock has to be replaced, and it is not necessary to remove the bracket and mount a new device. Furthermore, when the automobile is being overhauled or repaired, the locking unit, which contains the lock, need not remain inside it and may be taken out. This prevents unauthorized persons from gaining access to the lock. Finally, the device is very easy to install. The enclosed Figures illustrate a version of the device: Fig. 1 shows the exterior of the locking unit with the key in it; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the device; Fig. 3 is its exterior view from the bracket; and Fig. 4 is a cross section of the device. The locking device for automotive gearboxes consists of a bracket 1 and an outer sleeve 2, which are permanently fastened to the automobile's structure, and a locking unit 2., which is a rod with a disk lock 4. inside. A mounting ring 5. holds the lock in the body £, which is an integral part of the locking unit 2. The locking unit 2 is coaxial, at its one end, with a locking bolt 2 having the shape of a truncated cylinder, and at its other end, with -a shielding sleeve £. The body 6. incorporates a catch £, which * fits into a circumferential groove 10 inside the outer sleeve 2? the catch £ is engaged and released by means of the lock 4., via a recess H in the catch's £ side and an eccentric projection 12 in the lock , and by means of a click spring 13 located inside the catch jJ. A return spring 14. is mounted in the outer sleeve 2., at the point where the latter is attached to the bracket 1. The invented device is installed near the automobile's gearshift lever; as the rod of the locking unit slides into the outer sleeve, the lever, set in the "reverse" or "parking" position, is secured in its current position. When the locking unit is being introduced into the opening of the outer sleeve, the catch located within the former moves inward, contracting the click spring inside the catch. At the same time, the locking unit's flare presses the return spring, located inside the outer sleeve. As the locking unit slides further into the outer sleeve, the catch is brought to the circumferential groove inside the sleeve, and is pushed into the groove by means of the click spring inside the catch. At this moment, the device has been set in its locking position. The gearshift lever is released by means of taking the locking unit out of the outer sleeve and thereby removing it from the vicinity of the automobile's gearshift lever: the key is turned in the lock, the catch withdraws into the locking unit, and the return spring inside the outer sleeve, contracted when the locking unit was intro- duced into the opening of the sleeve, now pushes the unit out and releases the gearshift lever.

Claims: Patent Claims A locking device for automotive gearboxes, consisting of a bracket, a locking unit in the shape of a rod, a lock and a return spring, whose distinctive features are that the locking unit (2) contains a lock (4.) and a catch ( ) with a click spring (12) , the catch (£) fits into a circumferential groove (10) inside an outer sleeve (2) , the outer sleeve (2) is fastened to a bracket (1) , and a return spring (14) is located within the outer sleeve (2) • The device specified in claim 1, whose distinguishing feature is that the lock (4) is a disk lock.

Inventors: CHMIELECKI CZESDAW, GARDYZA LESZEK, PIATKIEWICZ MAREK, PIEKUTOWSKI MAREK, CHMIELECKI, CZESDAW, GARDYZA, LESZEK, PIATKIEWICZ, MAREK, PIEKUTOWSKI, MAREK
Applicants: CHMIELECKI CZESDAW, GARDYZA LESZEK, PIATKIEWICZ MAREK, PIEKUTOWSKI MAREK, CHMIELECKI, CZESDAW, GARDYZA, LESZEK, PIATKIEWICZ, MAREK, PIEKUTOWSKI, MAREK
Application year: 1997
Main classification: B60R25
IPC codes: B60R25