Abstract:
Housing apparatus for protecting a padlock includes plate elements securable to a door with an aperture in the back of the housing for receiving a fixed hasp plate secured either to a second door or to a door frame. The housing includes a slot in a back plate for receiving the hasp plate and an open bottom for receiving a padlock. A front plate includes an aperture through which a key may be extended into a front opening padlock.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to protective housing for a padlock and, more particularly to a lock box for enclosing a padlock and protecting the padlock from being cut with bolt cutters and the like. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     U.S. Pat. No. Des. 378,189 (Small et al) discloses a protective padlock guard. The apparatus includes a flange adjacent to a padlock and disposed over the padlock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,505 (Volk, Jr.) discloses another type of shield for a padlock. The apparatus includes a plate which fastens over the padlock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,896,518 (Appelgren) discloses a box arrangement for protecting a padlock. The boxlike apparatus includes slots which cooperate with the lock and a hasp. There is also a plate on the housing which provides the actual protection for the padlock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,486 (Appelbaum) discloses a pivoting plate elements which include a double lock system. That is, the pivoting plate elements include a built-in lock, and the plate elements comprise a housing for a padlock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,216,903 (Chen) discloses a padlock which includes a concealed shackle. The padlock itself includes its own protective plate to prevent access to the shackle of the lock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,258 (Bunger) discloses a relatively complicated housing for preventing access to the shackle of a padlock. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,568 (Wightman) discloses a padlock protector apparatus which includes a pair of spaced apart parallel plates which are disposed on opposite sides of a padlock shackle to prevent access to the shackle. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,307,653 (Davis) discloses security apparatus which includes a slide bolt and an external keyed element. The apparatus requires a key to remove a plate which covers the padlock. The apparatus essentially comprises a double lock system. The slide bolt is secured by the padlock, and a plate the covers the shackle of the padlock. The plate includes an integral lock in order to move the plate. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,737,946 (Sole et al) discloses a shield assembly for a semi-trailer door latch. The apparatus includes plate elements extending in different directions and which prevent access to the padlock. The plate elements also prevent access to a latch handle of the semi-trailer door. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,314 (Cernansky) discloses a housing for protecting a padlock. The apparatus includes an elongated tube which is disposed over a slide bolt latch. The tube slides and latches to provide access in one direction and to prevent access in the opposite direction to a padlock. 
     The apparatus of the present invention provides a simpler and less expensive housing for receiving a padlock and for preventing access to the padlock. The padlock for which the present apparatus is designed is one with a front key system rather than a padlock with a bottom key system. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention described and claimed herein comprises a housing which is appropriately secured, as by welding, to one door of a pair of doors or to a single door of cooperating elements either on a second door or on a door frame. The housing includes an opening in the back for receiving a loop secured to either the second door or door frame and an aperture in the front of an apparatus for inserting a key for the lock. The padlock, with its front key receiving aperture, is inserted through the loop from the bottom. The: padlock is thus completely enclosed by the housing, with access to the lock key away from the front of the housing. 
     Among the objects of the present invention are the following: 
     To provide new and useful protective apparatus for a padlock; 
     To provide new and useful housing for a padlock; 
     To provide new and useful housing apparatus for enclosing a padlock; 
     To provide protective apparatus securable to a door and for cooperating with a fixed hasp secured to a second door or to a door frame; and 
     To provide new and useful housing apparatus for protecting a front locking padlock. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus of the present invention in a use environment. 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view, partially broken away, of the apparatus of the present invention in the environment of FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the lock box apparatus  10  of the present invention in a use environment. The use environment includes a truck  2  with a side post  4  and a door  8 . The lock box protective apparatus  10  is secured to the door  8  and cooperates with elements secured to the side post  4 . The protective nature is best illustrated in FIG.  2 . FIG. 2 comprises an exploded, perspective view, partially broken away, of the apparatus  10  in the environment illustrated in FIG.  1 . For the following discussion, reference will be made to both FIGS. 1 and 2. 
     The apparatus  10  includes a plate  12  which is appropriately secured, as by welding, to the door  8 . 
     The plate  12  is divided into two portions, a door portion  14  and an housing portion  16 . The door portion  14  is appropriately secured, as by welding, to the door  8 . The housing portion  16  extends beyond the door  8  and overlaps the side post  4 . A padlock housing or box  19  is secured to the housing portion  16 . The housing portion  16  becomes a back wall of the housing or box  19 . 
     Extending through the housing portion  16  is an aperture  18 . The purpose of the aperture  18  will be discussed in detail below. 
     Extending outwardly from the housing portion  16  is a side plate  20 . The side plate  20  is substantially perpendicular to the housing portion  16  of the plate  12 . 
     Spaced apart a relatively short distance from the housing portion  16  is a front plate  22 . The front plate  22  is appropriately secured to the side plate  20 , just as the side plate  20  is appropriately secured to the housing portion  16  of the plate  12 . A slot  24  extends upwardly from the bottom of the front plate  22 . The front plate  22  is substantially parallel to the housing portion  16  of the plate  12 . 
     A second side plate  26  is appropriately secured to the front plate  22  and to the housing portion  16  of the plate  12 . The side plate  26  is generally parallel to the side plate  20 , but obviously spaced apart from it. The housing or box portion is then closed by a top plate  28 . The top plate  28  is secured to both the back plate  12 , the side plates  20  and  26 , and the front plate  22 . Thus, the box or housing or enclosure  19  is open only at the bottom. The plates  20 ,  22 ,  26 , together with the plate portion  16 , comprise walls of the housing or box or enclosure  19  for a padlock, with the plate  28  comprising a top wall. The bottom of the box  19  is open to receive a padlock. 
     A lock plate or fixed hasp plate  30  is appropriately secured, as by welding, to the side post  4 . The plate  30  includes an aperture  32  which extends through the plate. The plate  30  is substantially perpendicular to the side post  4  and, when the door  8  is closed, the lock plate  30  extends through the aperture  18  in the housing portion  16  of the plate  12  and into the interior of the box or housing  19 . 
     In FIG. 2, a padlock  40  is shown spaced apart below the housing  19 . With the door  8  closed, and the fixed hasp plate  30  extending through the aperture  18 , the padlock  40  may be inserted upwardly through the open bottom of the housing  19  and the shackle of the padlock  40  may then be inserted through the aperture  32  in the hasp plate. The slot  24  in the front wall or plate  22  provides access for a key  50  to be inserted into a front key slot  42  of the padlock  40 . With the key  50  removed from the lock, and the lock  40  in place, the padlock  40  is protected by the box apparatus  10  so as to prevent access to the padlock  40  for the use of a bolt cutter, or the like, on the shackle of the padlock  40 . 
     It will be noted that the padlock  40  is of the “Buffalo” type, in which the padlock  40  is generally circular with a relatively short, curved shackle and a front key slot or keyway  42 . This type of padlock is particularly advantageous in the circumstances in which the apparatus  10  is employed. 
     It will be understood that the apparatus  10  is preferably made of relatively thick steel for maximum protection, thus rendering it very difficult for a would-be thief to interfere with the lock system. 
     It will be noted that a single door has been discussed and illustrated. However, it is obvious that the apparatus  10  may also be employed with double doors. In such case, the plate  12  is secured to one door and the hasp plate  30  is secured to the second door. 
     Moreover, while a front keyed padlock is illustrated, it is obvious that a bottom keyed padlock may also be used. In such case, the housing  19  may need to be elongated by lengthening the plate  22  and spacing apart the plate  26  a greater distance from the plate  20 , as shown by the dashed line in FIG.  2 . 
     While the principles of the invention have been made clear in illustrative embodiments, there will be immediately obvious to those skilled in the art many modifications of structure, arrangement, proportions, the elements, materials, and components used in the practice of the invention, and otherwise, which are particularly adapted to specific environments and operative requirements without departing from those principles. The appended claims are intended to cover and embrace any and all such modifications, within the limits only of the true spirit and scope of the invention.