Abstract:
A substantially totally enclosed radio-cassette car radio mountable in an automobile dashboard, by which all operative parts thereof are enclosed within the protective casing, and there being a combination lock-type set of dials of a combination lock mounted inside the protective casing operatively locking the volume knob at zero volume when the lock is in a locked state, and the connections within the protective casing preventing access thereto in absence of destroying the radio.

Description:
This invention is directed to an anti-burglary automobile radio and/or cassette-playing unit. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Prior to the present invention, thefts of radios and/or cassette-playing units from automobiles have become notoreous because of inability to deter such thefts which have been rampant. Merely securing the same immovably into the dashboard of the auto has merely resulted in the dashboard itself being ripped-out and destroyed. 
     Valuable automobiles have thus been repeatedly molested, causing major damage thereto, with the thieves still proceeding to get at and remove the radios for resale thereof. The fancier the radio and/or cassette-playing unit, the greater the risk of theft from and destruction of the automobile dashboard. 
     Prior to the present invention, there has been no apparent effective deterent to these malicious thefts. 
     THE OBJECTS 
     Objects of the present invention are directed to the overcoming and deterring of problems and difficulties and theft of automobile radios and/or cassette-players in the nature of those discussed above. 
     Another and more specific object is to obain a unit making it impossible to utilize operatively the automobile radio and/or cassette player unit even if successfully stolen in absence of destroying the unit and/or its ornamental appearance, whereby commercial resale value thereof is eliminated. 
     Another more specific object is obtain an inoperative radio and/or cassette-player unit rendered worthless in absence of secret knowledge, without otherwise destroying its commercial value by otherwise destruction of the unit. 
     Another object is to render it impossible to jam or incapacitate the safety device of this invention forcefully by abuse thereof, in absence of destroying the entire unit. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Broadly the invention may be described as an automobile anti-burglar device embodying an electronic unit and mechanism for one or more conventional and/or commercially-available and/or otherwise desired electronic function(s) which function is ineffective or inoperative in one position and state of its control levers and knows thereof, and operative in an alternate position and state of its control levers; together as a part of the basic inventive minimal combination is a dial-type combination lock unit and mechanism thereof of conventional and/or commercially-available and/or otherwise desired type having a plurality of combination dials, mounted and adapted alternately securing or locking, and unsecuring or unlocking the electronic unit in alternately its inoperative state and its operative state, such that when locked in its inoperative position and state it has no useful utility; and also together as another part of the basic inventive minimal combination, is the protective enclosure casing and its inner and outer support structure substantially totally encasing the electronic unit and the dial-type lock within encased inner space to an extent assuring that the inner parts cannot be reached in absence of destroying the casing, ornamental appearance and commercial value of the electronic unit as an item for sale or resale. Obviously there are wire holes for the electrical circuitry thereof, and lever and knob holes, and there is provided space for external access to the dials (dial wheels and/or knobs) to the combination lock. Also there is provided appropriate mechanism as required, for manual release from and alternately for the securing (locking) the lever (or its knob) in the inoperative position and state, and appropriate mechanism to adjust the electronic unit to the operative position state and/or functioning position and state when in the released or unlocked condition. The protective enclosure casing also includes outer mounting structure necessary for it to be mountable on or in an automobile dashboard. 
     Likewise, the electronic unit is adapted preferably to be automobile dashboard-mountable, and the electronic unit is an audio device mountable in the automobile dashboard. 
     The electronic unit is preferably one or both a radio and/or a cassette-player. 
     In a further preferred embodiment, there is a key structure(s) of one or more integrated parts, having a key located within the protective enclosing casing but having a portion of the structure extending externally of the protective casing so as to provide for a push and pull button or other equivalent lever and/or knob by which the key may be manually retracted from or inserted into it locking position and/or state. When in the locking position, the combination lock may be manually locked such as by spinning the dial(s) such that a lever cannot be moved, such as a knobbed shaft cannot be turned from its off and/or zero or inoperative position. 
     Preferably the lever (the term lever intended herein to encompass an equivalent rotary shaft and/or knob thereof and gears) controls volume, such that when in the no-volume or zero-volume position results in there being no discernible sound, and accordingly when locked in that position, the radio and/or cassette-player is/are rendered inoperative and having no practical utility nor commercial value. Thus, is such an embodiment, when the key is pushed (or pulled) into the locking position and state when the lever is positioned in the zero or inoperative position, the volume is locked at a position at which any sound that would otherwise be discernible with the radio and/or cassette-player activated otherwise, is totally inaudible, making the radio and/or cassette-player useless. 
     While the present invention can be utilized with an off and on switch, the preferred embodiment utilizes a lever and/or equivalent control (such as buttons) that control volume or some other equally critical function, such as the change-of station knob, lever, button or the like. It can, however, be readily appreciated, that with volume locked to zero, the unit can have no value, whereas off-on switches could be possibly by-passed. In contrast, the volume-control lever (or equivalent thereof) cannot be by-passed, in the absence of tearing-apart the protective casing and/or the combination lock and/or the inner working elements of the radio, such that the resale value of the unit would be substantially destroyed. Under such conditions, made by the present invention, there is eliminated any incentive to steal such units from an automobile, since the normal object of such thieves is to secure the money available upon the sale of the stolen property. Here the stolen property would have no value because no-one but the owner would know the lock&#39;s combination. Obviously, the more dials (wheels and/or levers) included as a part of the combination dial face, the more complex the combination. Even three dials, however, make available sufficient possible combinations as to make theft unpopular because of difficulty in ascertaining the combination by devious approach or guesswork. 
     In the above-described preferred embodiment, the outer (exterior) end of the lever or knob thereof is graspable to be typically pulled-out to remove the key from its blocking position such that thereafter the volume lever or knob thereof may be turned to the desired level of audible volume. When ready to relock, the volume lever or knob thereof may be manually adjusted to be returned to the zero or no-volume, i.e. inoperative position and state, whereupon thereafter the combination lock is actuated to be returned to its locked state. 
     In a further preferred embodiment, the key-lever that includes the blocking-key on the inwardly-end thereof includes at-least two joined but separable parts that are typically frictionally normally held together sufficiently to enable normal withdrawal pressure to withdraw the key from its locked position and state, if the correct lock combination has been dialed earlier, and/or to allow pressing of the outer (exterior) end of the leever or knob to cause the key to be returned to the locking position and state, after which the lock may be again returned to its locking position and state of being locked. However, the frictional fit is insufficiently binding as to prevent the pulling-off of the exterior portion from and away from the interior portion(s) of the key-lever, such that excessive pulling pressure will not destroy the combination lock nor serve to nor tend to withdraw the key from its blocking position when the combination lock is in a locked position and state. 
     It is likewise a preferred embodiment that prevents a ramming and jamming inwardly of the key-lever in a manner that might destroy the combination lock and/or dislodge the key from its blocking position, by virtue of the protective enclosing casing forming a recess having an inward inaccessible hole through which the key-lever extends inwardly to the lock and blocking position. Also preferred is the channel formed by the recess-shaped structure being of a small size and arrangement preventing the use of tweezers and/or pliers to grasp and pull-out on an inner portion of the key lever, and to prevent the use of a screw driver or equivalent probe to destroy inner lock and/or blocking-key arrangement and function(s) thereof. In effecting this, the recess channel has a diameter no larger than the portion of the key lever extending therethrough, preferably. Likewise, the key lever is made of preferably wedge-mated male and female portions and in a further preferred embodiment, the outer-most portion of the key lever is the female portion and the channel diameter is almost identical to the outside diameter of the female portion, the channel diameter thus being defined as being only fractionally larger, suffiently large for insertion and rotation and/or pulling and pushing through the channel, but no larger than necessary for such function thereof; in this embodiment, the inner-most portion is obviously the male member. In another preferred embodiment in which the outer-most portion of the key lever is the male portion, the male member and the channel and the hole at the inner end of the channel each are almost of identical diameter, the channel and hole being only fractionally larger than the outer diameter of the male member/portion of the key lever, and in this embodiment, the inner portion obviously being the female member. The manner by which these preferred arrangement serve to further prevent bypassing the combination lock and/or the blocking key, will be better understood when described below with reference to the Figures. 
     Also, preferably the length of the male and/or female member utilized as the outer-most portion of the key-lever, is preferably sufficiently short as to prevent jamming it through the recess inner-end hole and destroying the function of the lock and/or disengaging the key from its blocking position and state when in the locked state. 
     In another preferred embodiment, as an integral part of the key-lever which key-lever is in the nature of two spaced-apart shaft portions, the shaft portions are interconnected by a spring device having opposing mating structures biased apart by a spring, typically a coil spring. Thereby, the key-lever (shaft) may be pressed inwardly in a direction that normally would insert the key into the blocking position and state, but whch if the volume lever has not yet been returned to zero-volume position so as to align its key-receiving structure and aperture thereof, presses the key against volume lever (or an element thereof, such as a gear) while the spring thereby becomes compressed as the opposing mating structures are forced closer together, i.e. the spring device makes the key lever compressible. Thereafter, when the volume lever is returned to the inoperative position and state of zero volume, the key promptly slips into its blocking position and state, preventing. the volume from being turned-up until withdrawal of the key by pulling-out (typically) of the key-lever. 
     In a still further preferred embodiment, there is provided a switch and circuitry therefor connected with an electromagnet mounted in association with typically the volume lever or some portion of its mechanism such as a gear thereof having the aperture therein as a part of the key-receiving structure, actuation of the electromagnet causes the volume lever or gear thereof to return to the zero-volume position and state. Such actuation is by way of closing of electrical contacts by pressing inwardly (typically) the key-lever (typically a shaft) in a direction that normally would insert the key into the aperture of the key-receiving structure. Accordingly, whenever the volume lever (shaft) has not been readjusted to the position of zero-volume at the time of pressing inwardly (typically) the key-lever (shaft), the key becomes instantaneously inserted into its blocking state, ready for the final locking of the lock. It is to be understood that an obvious variation would be for the pressing inwardly of the key-lever to also simultaneously cause the combination lock to become again locked, as the key is inserted simultaneously into the aperture of the key-receiving structure and as the volume lever (or gear thereof carrying the key-receiving structure&#39;s aperture, is returned to the zero-volume position. 
     In a further preferred embodiment, in order to make certain that the key-lever is fully properly extended (pulled-out) to withdraw the key from its blocking position, and likewise to make certain that the key-lever is fully pressed-in to a position where the key will be or will become fully inserted to its blocking position and state, there is provided in association with the key-lever a toggle type arrangement tending to bias the lever toward alternately either pressed inward position or pulled-out position. A typical arrangement is illustrated in the drawings. 
    
    
     The invention may be better understood by making reference to the following Figures. 
     THE FIGURES 
     FIG. 1 illustrates graphically and diagramatically, in top and partial cross-sectional view with blocks representing particular conventional elements and/or units, the inventive encased radio and cassette-player with combination lock thereof lockable of the volume control into the zero-volume inoperative state and position, and further illustrating preferred features. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates graphically and diagrammatically, a typical in-part view of preferred key-lever gears and inclusive of the key-receiving structure and aperture formed thereby having the key received therein, in an elevation plan view thereof with the key in cross-section. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates graphically and diagrammatically, a typical view of a front face of the inventive encased radio and cassette-player of FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates graphically and diagrammatically, an alternate preferred embodiment of the key-lever, in in-part view, for the inventive encased radio and cassette-player of FIG. 1. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The FIG. 1 illustrates the inventive encased radio and cassette-player 4 having its integral parts as follow. There is shown mounted on an inner wall of the protective casing 50 its mounting brackets 51 and 51b, and the radio 5 (shown in block), the cassette-player 6 (shown in block), the volume-control unit 7 (shown in block), the volume control knob 8 on volume control shaft 11 that revolves volume control gear 9a having its teeth 9b meshed with teeth 10b of volume control gear 10a that includes the key-receiving structure forming the key-receiving aperture 15 with the key 31a inserted therein in the blocking position preventing the turning of the gears 10a and 9a and accordingly preventing the revolving of the shaft 11 and its knob 8, when turned to the zero-volume position and state. When the key 31a is withdrawn from the aperture 15, the knob 8 may be revolved to a volume at which audio sound is discernible to the ear, by causing the shaft 12 to be revolved to turn-up volume of the volume unit 7. Mounted and anchored on shaft 12 or on some other equivalent shaft, is a magnetizable structure or material 13, around which is an electromagnet 14 in the nature of a motor-arrangement such that energizing of the electromagnet causes the shaft to revolve in a direction that returns the gears 10a and 9a and the knob 8 to the zero-volume position and state, if and when prior thereto the volume earlier had been turned to an audible position and state. Typically if the volume knob is not at the zero position, the switch contacts 18 and 19 are brought together to close the electrical circuit of the electromagnet by virtue of the contact 19 mounted on key-lever spring device-opposing structure 17a being pressed toward contact 18 mounted on sidewall 17b of the other spring device-opposing structure when the key-lever is pushed inwardly, the key lever being composed collectively of the knob 32, the female member 31c, the male member 31b, the main structure key-lever structure 31, its key-lever lock-engaging structure 31d, the spring device 16, and the key 31a. The contacts are brought together because the key 31a presses against the face of the gear 10a (not being aligned with the aperture 15) causing the spring 17 to become compressed, when the knob 32 is pressed inwardly and when the knob 8 has not yet been returned to the zero-volume position. Circuit lead 22 connects electrical contacts 18 and 20. Circuit lead 24 connects electrical contact 21 with electrical lead 26 which is one of the power leads from the radio 5 and cassette play 6, the other power lead being power lead 25. Lead 23 connects electrical contact 19 to the lead 25. A battery power-source is represented by battery 27. Holding resiliently the main body key-lever portion 31 in its pushed-in position and state as illustrated, is the toggle-like spring 28 having its portion 28a in depression 29; when the knob 32 is pulled-outwardly, the spring portion 28a slips over the dividing hump and presses and slips retainingly into the depression 30. The spring 28 is mounted indirectly on the inside face of the protective casing, but may be mounted on other appropriate support structure. The dials 33&#39; of the combination lock 33 must be dialed according to the particular combination of that lock, and after correctly dialing the proper combination, the knob 32 may be pulled outwardly to thereby withdraw the key 31a from the blocking position in the aperture 15 of the gear 10a, thereafter allowing the knob 8 to be turned to turn-up the volume. Radio buttons 34 or any other equivalent radio controls are herein represented as merely symbolic. Likewise, the tuner knob 35 is only symbolic of any of various knobs that conventionally may be a part of a particular radio, the invention not being in the particular type of radio nor knobs thereof, apart from the invention as described. Electrical leads 38 and 39 are symbolic of circuitry leading from the radio to typical a digital monitor 16a that exhibits the particular station number being tuner-in at the moment. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates an elevation plan view in a part view of the mechanism and with cross-section of the shafts 11 and 12 and of the key 31a, exhibiting the typical relationship of the gears 9a and 10a having teeth 9b and 10b, and of the hole 15 and the key positioned therein, and of the stop-key 51 mounted on gear 10a (typically) and the abutment 52 against which the stop-key 51 abuts when the knob is returned to or positioned at the zero-volume or inoperative position and state, this stop-key 51 and the support structure-mounted abutment 52 being also shown in the FIG. 1. This Figure also illustrates typically intermeshing teeth 9b and 10b of the wheels, each being drivable of the other thereby. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a typical front face appearance of the inventive unit of FIG. 1 as already described. The knobs 40 and 41 symbolically represent a plurality of knobs or the like that normally would be functionally associated with the conventional or desired cassette-player 6 having typical front-lid 42. In FIG. 1, there is shown symbolic and diagramatic electrical leads 43 and 44 leading to the volume-control leads 36 and 37, and likewise electrical leads 53 and 54 leading to the speaker leads 45a and 45b, and likewise the power leads 55 and 56. Also symbolically shown is speaker 46 diagrammatic of one or more speaker appropriately connected and mounted. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates diagramattically and symbolically an alternate embodiment shown in-part, of the key lever, here designated (in so far as its component parts are shown) as knob 32&#39;, pull-push male-member shaft 31c&#39;, channel (space) 49&#39;, channel-defining walls (recess walls) 47&#39; (analagous to FIG. 1 recess-forming walls 47), female mated member 31b&#39; having female channel space 48&#39; into which the male-member shaft 31c&#39; is frictionally mated. 
     While other locks such as key-actuated locks and/or computer-card locks or the like might ordinarily be considered to be mechanical equivalents or otherwise equivalents to a combination mechanical lock of this invnetion, such is not the case for the present invention, the combination being critically the only type lock that is employable, because it is not readily possible to by-pass such a lock. On the other hand, a key actuated lock can normally be easily and rapidly picked. A computer-card that is inserted to actuated circuits often can be bypassed by manually fouling the card reading circuitry inside the card-insertion slot, to cause a fouling of electrical circuits or the like which would serve to effectively bypass the lock, causing release of the blocked lever and/or gear thereof. 
     Thus, for the present invention, there is no substitute for the combination lock, because to do so would defeat the utility of the invention. 
     Otherwise, within the spirit of the invention, it is possible to make such variations and substitution of equivalents as would be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in this technology.