Patent GB-1209933-A (GB)
Title: Magnetically operated mechanism
Inventor: SEDLEY BRUCE SAMUEL
IPC: G07F7/08
Filed: 1967-11-03
Abstract: 1,209,933. Turnstiles. B. S. SEDLEY. 3 Nov., 1967 [4 Nov., 1966], No. 49993/67. Heading G4T. [Also in Divisions E1-E2] A magnetically operated mechanism comprises a magnet carrying block 71 having a plurality of spaced wells 72, a locking plate 78 having a plurality of wells which coincide with the wells of the block in the locking position of the plate and each of which has substantially the same area as the corresponding magnet carrying block well, a plurality of magnet locking pins 73 disposed in selected wells in the magnet carrying block and axially movable therein, said locking plate being mounted for slidable movement over one face of said magnet carrying block for movement with respect thereto, in the locking condition of said mechanism selected ones of said locking pins extending into said locking plate wells whereby to lock said locking plate against movement with respect to said magnet carrying block and in the retracted position serving to unlock said locking plate to permit movement of the locking plate, a code actuation card 91 having a plurality of permanently magnetized spots, each providing a magnetic pole of predetermined polarity on one surface of said card at selected locations corresponding to the location of said selected pins, and means 86, 87 for receiving said code actuation card whereby when the card is inserted into said means said selected pins are moved out of the wells in the locking plate to permit the locking plate to move. The movement is caused by the repulsion between poles of the magnet pins and the poles of the card. In the construction shown, the locking plate is disposed underneath the magnet carrying block 71 so that the pins enter the wells in the locking plate under the force of gravity. The pins are prevented from falling through the wells in the locking plate by a retaining plate 81 fixed to the locking plate but in a modification the wells have bottoms to prevent the pins falling through the locking plate. The front end of the plate 81 is bent upwardly to provide a guide for the code actuation card. The end of the locking plate remote from the upwardly bent part of the plate 81 includes a downwardly extending lip 84 which is adapted to abut a switch 85 to actuate the same, the locking plate being moved by pressure on the card 91 so that it abuts the lip 84, the movement taking place as soon as the locking pins have been repelled by the poles of the card. The switch 85 can control a solenoid or other apparatus and reference is made in the Specification to story telling mechanisms and to turnstiles. If a code actuation card having an incorrect combination of spots is inserted into the means 86, 87 some of the magnet pins are not repelled from the locking plate which is therefore prevented from movement. In another construction the guide means for the code actuation card is disposed above the magnet carrying block and below the magnet carrying block is a second guide means for a code combination set card which is similar to the code actuation card in having a plurality of permanently magnetized spots each of which provides a magnetic pole of predetermined polarity on one surface of the card at selected locations corresponding to the locations of selected pins; when the code combination set card is disposed underneath the magnet carrying block the selected pins determined by its coding are raised into the wells in the locking plate and the code actuation card acts before to repel such pins to free the locking plate for movement by the code combination card to actuate a switch; in this construction every well in the magnet carrying block contains a magnet locking pin, this arrangement enabling the combination of the mechanism to be changed merely by inserting a different code combination set card into the guide means for same underneath the magnet carrying block, the locking plate as an alternative to actuating a switch can move a latch bolt 54, as shown in Fig. 10, a lip 16 of the looking plate moving the bolt 54 via a pivoted member 51, the bolt being spring-loaded by a spring 61 to the latching position, the arrangement enabling it to latch automatically. A modification of this construction is described in which instead of a code combination set card a rotatable code combination set member is positioned underneath the magnet carrying block, the member having a plurality of wells each receiving a combination set magnet locking pin; the arrangement permits selected pins of the magnet carrying block to be repelled upwardly into the wells of the locking plate, the combination being changeable by rotating the code combination set member. Another modification is described in which a code combination set belt is employed which is carried by roller underneath the magnet carrying block, the belt having predetermined magnetized spots which are brought into registry with selected magnet pin wells, the combination being changed by moving the belt. In another modification instead of a code combination set card a plurality of strips are used, the strips carrying a predetermined number of magnetized spots along their lengths and the strips being insertable into a guide means to particular depth as required by the selected combination. In a further construction using a code combination set card the guide means for the card is positioned above the magnet carrying block and is arranged to attract selected magnet pin so that they are no longer disposed in the wells in the looking plate; the code actuation card is insertable into guide means underneath the magnet carrying block and repels the remaining magnet pin to release the locking plate.. Both the code actuation and set cards may comprise a sheet of bonded barium ferrite composite material, i.e. a material that has ferrite particles suspended in a rubber or plastics matrix, the particles being mechanically orientated by applying a magnet field during solidification of the matrix; the magnetized spots are produced by an electromagnet which includes polepieces forming a gap adapted to receive the card and having a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the spots; the spots are magnetized so that the north or south pole appears on a given face. The spots can be arranged so that the card can be used with either face co-operating with the magnet pins.