Abstract:
A protected cabinet for cash or other valuables, designed to protect the cash or valuables from being robbed, the protected cabinet comprising: a housing, for receiving and housing two drawers, having a front opening through which one or both drawers simultaneously may be withdrawn; a first drawer, adapted to be moved into and out of the housing through the front opening, coupled to a front panel, the front panel adapted to substantially cover the front opening of the housing; a second drawer, positioned over the first drawer, adapted to be moved into and out of the housing through the front opening, when engaged to the first drawer, substantially covering the first drawer when engaged to it, preventing view of contents of the first drawer; engagement mechanism for engaging the second drawer to the first drawer, whereby one drawer is regularly used for transactions or presentation of the cash or valuables kept in it, whereas the other drawer is used as an emergency, decoy, drawer, pulled open in emergency instances, such as in a robbery, by operating the engagement mechanism.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a National Phase Application of PCT International Application No. PCT/IL02/00802, International Filing Date Oct. 2, 2002, claiming priority of Israel Patent Applications, 147324, filed Dec. 26, 2001, and 148005, filed Feb. 5, 2002. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to protection from robbery or theft. More particularly, the present invention relates to a protected cabinet for cash or other items of value. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Various methods of protection against robberies were developed over the years. Some of these methods include, forced delays before a safe door can be opened, doors locking when an emergency button is hit, silent alarm button, hidden beneath the desk, actuated to notify the police a robbery is in progress, etc. 
     Most of these methods impose obstructions on the robbers, and thus may cause the robbers to panic, or enrage them, leading to unnecessary violence or even casualties. 
     Often, In bank robberies, a robber enters a bank during working hours, finding the cashier sitting in front of an open cash drawer, and forces the cashier, at gun point, to hand over all the money found in that exposed drawer. 
     Methods and devices limiting the robber&#39;s access to his desired catch—money found in teller cabinets or safes, is dangerous, for the frustrated robber may take out his frustration on bank employees or customers. This notion has lead to the introduction of hidden drawers. 
     In U.S. Pat. No. 4,366,997 (Lopez et al.), titled HIDDEN DRAWER ARRANGEMENT FOR BANK TELLER CABINET, there was disclosed a hidden drawer arrangement for a cash transaction cabinet. A drawer is mounted in slide-out fashion in a compartment of a cabinet. A plain face panel on the drawer extends the width of the compartment to have the appearance of an immobile structural element of the cabinet. A latch arrangement is provided on the bottom of the drawer and is hidden by a lower section of the drawer face panel extending below the plane of the drawer bottom. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,035,792 (Price et al.), titled CASH REGISTER SECURITY SYSTEM, disclosed a cash register security system having a first latch normally adapted to engage and securely hold within a cash register a false drawer, a release device connected to the first latch for releasing the first latch from engaging and holding the false drawer within the cash register, a second latch adapted to engage and hold within the cash register a cash drawer, the second latch normally being in disengagement with the cash drawer, a locking device connected to the second latch for locking the second latch in engagement with the cash drawer and holding the cash drawer within the cash register, an alarm circuit connected to the release device and the locking device and an alarm switch connected to the alarm circuit for operating the alarm circuit and activating the release device and the locking device whereby the cash drawer is locked within the cash register and only the false drawer may be ejected from the cash register after the alarm switch is operated. A police silent alarm, a plurality of cameras and a flashing beacon also are connected to and operated by the alarm switch. This patent does not describe the physical properties of the drawer chest, but rather discloses an electronic scheme. 
     In FR Pat. 2535573 (Diemert et al.) there was disclosed a hidden drawer that normally nests within the drawer cabinet, and upon engagement using a hidden a cable, the hidden drawer is revealed, allowing access to its content. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,390,361 (Gund) disclosed a method of protecting an active cash drawer from robbery comprising the following steps: housing the active cash drawer together with an emergency cash drawer in a housing having a frontal opening to accommodate the opening of a cash drawer; arranging for the active cash drawer to open through the frontal opening in the housing to facilitate routine cash transactions; generating an alarm signal in the event of a robbery and arranging for the emergency cash drawer to open instead of the active cash drawer subsequent to the alarm signal. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the frontal opening is generally the height of a cash drawer and the cash drawers vertically shift upwards within the housing subsequent to the alarm signal so that the active cash drawer is aligned behind the frontal opening prior to the alarm signal and the emergency cash drawer is in alignment with the frontal opening subsequent thereto. 
     Diemert and Lopez both deal with a hidden drawer arrangement, that can be used for concealing valuables etc., so that the latter may be saved, but the hidden drawer merely provides a concealed space for use. Price and Gund describe decoy drawers containing little sums of money, that are to be opened during robbery, aimed at fooling the robber to think the decoy drawer is the real operating drawer, and thus settle for the money found there, believing no more money can be stolen. 
     It is the purpose of the present invention to provide a novel protected cabinet for bank tellers or the like, having a normally operated drawer that would contain the sums of money required for the normal operation of the teller, and a decoy drawer that in the event of a robbery substitutes the normal drawer, leading the robber to believe the decoy drawer is in fact the normal drawer, and thus make do with what is found in it 
     Other advantages and objects of the present invention will be appreciated after reading the present specification and viewing the accompanying drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     There is thus provided, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a protected cabinet for cash or other valuables, designed to protect the cash or valuables from being robbed, the protected cabinet comprising:
     a housing, for receiving and housing two drawers, having a front opening through which one or both drawers simultaneously may be withdrawn;   a second drawer, positioned over the first drawer, adapted to be moved into and out of the housing through the front opening, when engaged to the first drawer, completely covering a top face of the first drawer when engaged to it, preventing view of contents of the first drawer; and   an engagement mechanism having an external actuation knob for engaging the second drawer to the first drawer and said first and second drawers to the front panel, the engagement mechanism being operable only when both drawers are fully inside the housing with the front panel covering the front opening.   engagement mechanism for engaging the second drawer to the first drawer,
 
whereby one drawer is regularly used for transactions or presentation of the cash or valuables kept in it, whereas the other drawer is used as an emergency, decoy, drawer, pulled open in emergency instances, such as in a robbery, by operating the engagement mechanism.
   

     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the drawers are provided with partitions, dividing the drawers into compartments. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the front panel is provided with a handle. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a key lock is provided in order to allow opening of the drawers only when using a key. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first drawer has a back portion normally hidden within the housing, and provided with a latching mechanism that in a first state prevents fully withdrawing the first drawer, keeping the hidden portion inside the housing, and in a second state releases the hidden portion to be withdrawn and exposed out of the housing. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the latching mechanism comprising a lever pivotally connected to a partition defining the hidden portion, the lever coupled to an arm having a wedge, so that when the lever is pressed the wedge is lifted over a ligule provided at the bottom of the housing  22 , making the withdrawal and exposure of the hidden compartment possible. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, second drawer is prevented from opening when the first drawer is opened, by means of a stopper mechanism. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stopper mechanism comprises a lever pivotally coupled to the second drawer at a pivot, the lever having a ligule that may be inserted into a recess in a partition between the first drawer and the second drawer, an end of the lever limited by a stopper protruding inwardly from the housing, and wherein the stopper mechanism is operated to free the second drawer by a latch inserted through the recess, lifting the lever over the stopper. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the engagement mechanism comprises a latch coupled to the first drawer actuated by a knob provided on the drawer front panel, whereby when the latch is extended it engages into a recess provided in the second drawer, causing the second drawer to be opened when the drawer front panel is pulled, and when it is retracted, it leaves the recess, disengaging the second drawer. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the operation of the knob is limited by a limiting mechanism so that engaging the second drawer is possible only when the first drawer is retracted into the housing and the drawer front panel covers the opening of the housing. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the limiting mechanism comprises a bar having a bore through which an axle having a polygonal cross section, coupled to the knob passes, the bore shaped in such a way that an upper portion of the bore matches the polygonal cross section of the axle, and a lower portion substantially larger so as to allow the axle to turn inside, and suspended from the axle, thus preventing turning of the axle, the bar extended to a length slightly longer than required to reach the bottom of the housing, so that when the front panel is pushed to cover the opening the bar is lifted freeing the axle to turn. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the housing is provided with an inclination so that the first drawer is automatically retracted to a closed state, when not held manually 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a stopper for stopping the retraction of the first drawer caused by the inclination, and leaving the first drawer open for as long as the stopper is used. 
     Furthermore, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the stopper comprises a plate pivotally attached to the housing coupled to a foot passing through the housing facing the first drawer, so that when the plate is pressed towards the housing the drawer is kept in place. 
     Finally, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a spring is provided in order to remove the foot away from the first drawer when the plate is not pressed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In order to better understand the present invention and appreciate its practical applications, the following Figures are provided and referenced hereafter. It should be noted that the Figures are given as examples only and in no way limit the scope of the invention. Like components are denoted by like reference numerals. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a protected cabinet in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1  with the regular drawer in an opened state. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates the protected cabinet of  FIG. 2  showing the latch mechanism of the hidden compartment. 
         FIG. 4   a  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular and emergency drawers in the closed state. 
         FIG. 4   b  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in an opened state. 
         FIG. 4   c  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in a fully opened state (exposing the hidden compartment of the regular drawer). 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in a fully opened state. 
         FIGS. 6   a ,  6   b ,  6   c  and  6   d  illustrate various stages of operation of a security mechanism limiting the operation of the drawer knob. 
         FIG. 7  illustrate a view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the emergency drawer in an open state. 
         FIG. 8   a  illustrates a side sectional view of the engagement mechanism for engaging and disengaging the emergency drawer. 
         FIG. 8   b  illustrates a top view of the engagement mechanism for engaging and disengaging the emergency drawer. 
         FIG. 8   c  illustrates the latch device used in the engagement mechanism of  FIGS. 8   a ,  8   b.    
         FIG. 9   a  illustrates a view of another preferred embodiment of the protected cabinet of the present invention, with the regular drawer in an opened state, provided with a stopper and an inclination. 
         FIG. 9   b  illustrates a top sectional view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 9   a , showing the operation of the stopper. 
         FIGS. 10   a  and  10   b  show a see-through view of a stopper mechanism for preventing opening of the emergency drawer when the regular drawer is in an opened state. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The protected cabinet of the present invention is aimed at providing a secured cabinet for cash and other valuables, for use by a public service provider, such as a bank teller (hereinafter referred to as “a teller”). 
     An aspect of the present invention is the provision of a regular drawer and an emergency drawer in the cabinet. Under regular circumstances, the regular drawer is used by the teller for transactions carried our during then regular course of business. When an emergency situation, namely a robbery, occurs, the teller switches to the emergency drawer, that contains some money and hands it to the robber to appease him, making him believe he got all the content of the cash drawer (the fact that there are two drawers in the cabinet is of course kept a as secret and not revealed to the public). 
     Another aspect of the present invention is the provision of such protected cabinet with safety means aimed at preventing opening of the emergency drawer when the regular drawer is opened, in order to avoid inadvertent exposure of the emergency drawer, or opening by a thief or robber that has already got hold of the contents of the regular drawer, and thus preventing soaring of the losses. 
     Another aspect of the present invention is the provision of a hidden compartment to the regular drawer, thus allowing safe disposal of cash or valuables in the regular drawer, hidden from the public, and especially from ill-intentioned persons. 
     Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be appreciated after reading the present specification and reviewing the accompanying drawings. 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 1 , illustrating a protected cabinet in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A drawer cabinet  20  comprises a housing  22 , preferably made of steel or other rigid durable material, having a drawer front panel  24 , on which operation knob  30 , handle  28  and key lock  26  are provided. Inside the housing, behind the drawer front panel are provided two drawers (not shown in this Figure. See other Figs.), positioned one over the other. One drawer—the bottom drawer, in the drawer cabinet depicted in the drawings—is a drawer used regularly for storing cash or other valuables, being opened and closed by the teller in his usual course of action during his work according to his needs (hereinafter—the regular drawer), and the other drawer—the top drawer in the embodiment shown in the drawings—is an emergency drawer, to be used only in an emergency. The emergency drawer is provided as a decoy, aimed at being opened in the instance of robbery, making the robber believe this is in fact the regular drawer and thus limiting the loss to the predetermined sums of money or valuables that are placed there in advance (it is recommended that small amount of money is indeed placed in the emergency drawer, so that the robber faces to big a disappointment that might result in him becoming violent or enraged). Of course, in other embodiments of the present invention the drawers can be also placed the other way around—the regular drawer being the top drawer and the emergency drawer being the bottom one, and this arrangement is also covered by the present invention. Both drawers are preferably mounted on rails (not shown in the figure) allowing their motion in and out of the housing. The drawer front panel  24  substantially and effectively covers the opening of the housing, hiding both drawers behind it, and in fact does not provide any hint as to the existence of two drawers in the cabinet. It is desired to make the cabinet so that a person not familiar with its design will assume it contains only one drawer. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1  with the regular drawer in an opened state. The regular drawer preferably has several divisions within it, dividing the drawer into compartments  34  for keeping different values of bill notes or coins in them. The regular drawer has a hidden portion located at the back of the drawer, and is normally inside the housing, a latch mechanism, whose lever  38  is shown, preventing its inadvertent withdrawal and exposure (see also  FIG. 3 ). Emergency drawer  40 , has no markings, or handles or any other kind of indication suggesting it is a drawer, and its front wall appears to be an immobile part of the housing. As is explained hereinafter, the emergency drawer is preferably provided with a safety mechanism (see  FIG. 10 ) preventing its opening, when the regular drawer is opened. This is important in order to avoid a situation where, in a robbery, the robber picks the contents of the regular drawer and in addition opens the emergency drawer and takes what money or valuables that are found there too. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates the protected cabinet of  FIG. 2  showing the latch mechanism of the hidden compartment. Partition  43  divides the regular drawer into two main parts, the regularly accessed by the teller (seen exposed in  FIG. 2 ), and a hidden part—the hidden compartment generally not accessed by the teller in the usual course of action. Lever  38  is pivotally connected to partition  43 , so that when its end is pushed arm  44  is lifted withdrawing wedge  46  from ligule  48 , provided at the bottom of the housing  22 , making the withdrawal and exposure of the hidden compartment possible. Spring  42  is optionally provided, to counter pull lever  38  back to its engaged position, balancing the weight of arm  44 . Latch  36  is preferably provided, operated by a key inserted in the key lock  26 , with a matching recess provided in the top surface of the housing (not shown) so that the drawer cabinet may be opened only when using a key. 
       FIG. 4   a  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular and emergency drawers in the closed state.  FIG. 4   b  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in an opened state.  FIG. 4   c  illustrates a sectional side view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in a fully opened state (exposing the hidden compartment of the regular drawer). 
       FIG. 5  illustrates a view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the regular drawer in a fully opened state, exposing the hidden compartment  35 , and allowing the teller to access it. 
     When an emergency situation rises, namely a robbery takes place, the teller must immediately close the regular drawer, if it is not already closed, and operate knob  30  to engage the emergency drawer. Knob  30  preferably may be operated only when the drawers are closed, preventing any erroneous switching and consequent release of the wrong drawer. 
       FIGS. 6   a ,  6   b ,  6   c  and  6   d  illustrate various stages of operation of a security mechanism limiting the operation of drawer knob  30 . Axle  31  of knob  30 , which is coupled to the engagement mechanism of the emergency drawer (see  FIGS. 8   a – 8   c ), is passed through a bore  37  in bar  33 , suspended over the axle. Bore  37  has a rectangular shape at its upper end, matching the cross sectional shape of the axle, and a lower wider portion large enough to allow axle  31  to be turned freely when not enclosed by the upper rectangular portion. When bar  33  hangs freely on axle  31 , axle  31  fits into the upper rectangular portion of the bore, and thus is limited from turning. The length of bar  33  is determined to be such that its lower end  39  extends beyond the lower surface of the housing. When the front panel is drawn inside and closed end  39  is raised by the lower surface of the housing, thus freeing axle  31  from the limiting rectangular portion, allowing the turning of knob  30 . end  39  is preferably shaped as a wedge to ease its raising by the lower surface of the housing. 
       FIG. 7  illustrate a view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 1 , with the emergency drawer in an open state. When knob  30  is turned to engage the emergency drawer, the drawer is engaged to the regular drawer on top, and when the drawer front panel is pulled, the emergency drawer  40  (preferably divided into compartments  34 ) shows up, revealing its contents, and at the same time covering and concealing the regular drawer  32 . 
       FIG. 8   a  illustrates a side sectional view of the engagement mechanism for engaging and disengaging the emergency drawer.  FIG. 8   b  illustrates a top view of the engagement mechanism for engaging and disengaging the emergency drawer.  FIG. 8   c  illustrates the latch device used in the engagement mechanism of  FIGS. 8   a ,  8   b . The axle  31  coupled to knob  30  is used to actuate latch mechanism  50  (in the embodiment shown in the figure, a latch mechanism of the type used for doors is provided), the axle inserted in bore  51  of the latch mechanism  50 . In the engaged mode latch  52  extends over face plate  53 , inserted into a matching recess (see  63  in  FIG. 10   b ) in the bottom of emergency drawer  40 , whereas in the disengaged mode, the latch is retracted letting go of the emergency drawer. The end of the drawer is designated  47 . 
       FIG. 9   a  illustrates a view of another preferred embodiment of the protected cabinet of the present invention, with the regular drawer in an opened state, provided with a stopper and an inclination  60 . This is aimed at forcing the regular drawer to close, each time the teller releases his hold of the drawer. The default state of the drawer, as a result of this inclination, is closed. This way, the teller is less likely to be caught with the regular drawer open when a robber steps into the bank: and in any case; once the drawer is freed it shuts. Thus if the situation requires switching to the emergency drawer all the teller needs to do is turn the knob to the emergency mode, and when the drawer front panel is pulled the emergency drawer emerges. However, the teller might need, in the regular course of business, to free his hands and still hold the regular drawer opened. For this a stopper  56  is provided.  FIG. 9   b  illustrates a top sectional view of the protected cabinet of  FIG. 9   a , showing the operation of the stopper. The stopper, here in the form of a plate, is pivotally attached to housing  22 . Foot  58 , coupled to the plate is provided, passing through housing  22  facing the regular drawer, so that when the stopper plate is pressed towards the housing (the teller can use his thigh to do so), the drawer is kept in place, preventing its gliding back to the closed position. When the teller releases the stopper, the foot is resiliently retracted (by spring  59 ), and the drawer if freed to close. 
       FIGS. 10   a  and  10   b  show a see-through view of a stopper mechanism for preventing opening of the emergency drawer when the regular drawer is in an opened state. The stopper mechanism comprises a lever  62  pivotally coupled to the emergency drawer  40  (at the front wall) at pivot  66  with a ligule  64  that may be inserted in recess  63 , the other end of the lever limited by stopper  68  protruding inwardly from housing  22 . When the drawer front panel is fully retracted—i.e. the drawers are closed, knob  30  may be turned to engage the emergency drawer (see  FIG. 8   b ), and latch  52  when inserted into recess  63  pushes away ligule  64 , lifting lever  62  over stopper  68 , and releasing the emergency drawer to be pulled open. 
     It is noted that all means of engagement, locking and holding shown in the embodiments depicted in the figures accompanying this specification serve to explain the present invention, and in no way limit the scope of it. Other alternative such means may be employed by a person skilled in the art and would still be covered by the present invention. It is also noted that the engagement mechanism for the engagement of the emergency drawer can alternatively be replaced by a lock mechanism operated by a key. However, the inventor of the present invention recommends using a knob to render the protected cabinet a more authentic look, and prevent any suspicion raised by a robber who might be puzzled by the presence of two keys. 
     The protected cabinet of the present invention can incorporate other protection means such as an alarm system, either loud sounding siren, or silent (signaling an emergency signal at a near by police station). The latter is preferred, as it is an aim of the present invention to prevent risky situation where the robber might loose his temper and act irrationally. 
     It should be clear that the description of the embodiments and attached Figures set forth in this specification serves only for a better understanding of the invention, without limiting its scope as covered by the following claims. 
     It should also be clear that a person skilled in the art, after reading the present specification could make adjustments or amendments to the attached Figures and above described embodiments that would still be covered by the following claims.