Patent Publication Number: US-11391063-B2

Title: Cable lock having dual unlocking mechanism

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/694,244, filed Jul. 5, 2018, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates generally to a padlock and, more specifically, to a cable lock having a dual unlocking mechanism. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A cable lock is a lock having a flexible cable, instead of a shackle, arranged to pass through an opening to prevent an unauthorized use of an object or structure. In a lock having a dual unlocking mechanism, the lock can be opened by a combination locking system or by a key-overriding system. In a lock having a shackle, the lock body must have a reasonably long channel in the lock body to accommodate the heel of the shackle. If the toe is arranged to move up and down a distance to lock and open the lock, the heel must be allowed to move the same distance. With a flexible cable, one end of the cable can be fixedly attached to the lock body. There is no need to provide a long channel in the lock body to accommodate the cable. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present invention is directed to a cable lock having a flexible cable, instead of a shackle. The lock has a shaft moveable relative to the lock body so that the top part of the shaft can be moved out of the lock body to open the lock. The lock has a combination unlocking system and a key-overriding system. Thus, the lock can be unlocked by a lock-opening combination or by a correct key. The first end of the cable is fixedly attached to the lock body and the second end is removably engaged with a shaft slot near the top of the shaft. When the lock is operated in the locked mode, the shaft slot is located inside the lock body, preventing the second end of the cable from being removed from the shaft slot. When the lock is operated in the open mode, the shaft slot is located outside the lock body, allowing the second end of the cable to be removed from the shaft slot. 
     Thus, it is an aspect of the present invention to provide a lock operable in a locked mode and in an open mode. An embodiment of the lock comprises: 
     a cable having a first cable end and a second cable end; 
     a lock body arranged to secure the first cable end, the lock body having a cutout to receive the second cable end; 
     a shaft locatable in a first shaft position when the lock is operated in the locked mode and in a second shaft position when the lock is operated in the open mode, the shaft having a shaft slot arranged to secure the second cable end of the cable; and 
     a plurality of clutches forming a clutch stack, the clutch stack arranged to control movement of the shaft in a movement direction relative to the lock body, wherein 
     when the shaft is located in the first shaft position, the shaft slot is located inside the lock body, preventing the second cable end from being released from the lock body, and 
     when the shaft is located in the second shaft position, the shaft slot is located outside the lock body, allowing the second cable end to be removed from the shaft slot. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the lock further comprises: 
     a first unlocking mechanism operatively coupled to the clutch stack, and 
     a second unlocking mechanism operatively coupled to the clutch stack, the first unlocking mechanism comprising a plurality of dials engageable with the clutch stack, wherein when the dials are arranged to match a lock-opening combination, the clutch stack is arranged to allow the shaft to move in the movement direction relative to the clutch stack from the first shaft position to the second shaft position, and wherein the second unlocking mechanism comprises a latch plate locatable 
     in a first plate position to prevent the clutch stack from moving in the movement direction relative to the lock body, and 
     in a second plate position to allow the clutch stack to move together with the shaft in the movement direction relative to the lock body, causing the shaft to move from the first shaft position to the second shaft position, wherein the second unlocking mechanism further comprises a cylinder operable by a key, the cylinder arranged to cause the latch to move from the first plate position to the second plate position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, each of the dials is associated with a different one of the clutches and each of the clutches comprises an extended fin, and wherein each of the dials has a plurality of dial slots, each dial slot dimensioned to receive the extended fin of the associated clutch for rotation together, wherein the shaft further comprises a plurality of protrusions, each protrusion associated with one of the clutches, and each of the clutches has an inner ring with an opening gap formed thereon, and wherein 
     when the lock is operated in the locked mode, the inner ring of at least one of the clutches is arranged to prevent the shaft from moving in the movement direction relative to the clutch stack so as to move the shaft slot out of the lock body, and 
     when the dials are arranged to match the lock-opening combination, the opening gap on the inner ring of each of the clutches is aligned with the associated protrusion of the shaft, allowing the shaft to move in the movement direction relative to the clutch stack from the first shaft position to the second shaft position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the latch plate comprises a pin slot. The lock further comprises: 
     a cam having a cam slot and a cam pin, the cam pin movably engaged with the pin slot, and 
     a cylinder having a key slot and a fork, the key slot dimensioned to receive a key, the fork engaged with the cam slot for rotation together, wherein when the key is inserted into the key slot to turn the cylinder along with the cam, the latch plate is caused to move from the first plate position to the second plate position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the lock body has a first body side and an opposing second body side, the first body side having a fixed-end slot to receive the first cable end and the cutout to receive the second cable end, wherein the inner ring of each of the clutches has an upper side and an opposing lower side, wherein the upper side is closer to the first body side than the second body side, wherein when the lock is operated in the locked mode, the shaft is located in the first shaft position, and each of the protrusions of the shaft is located adjacent to the lower side of the inner ring of the associated clutch and when the lock is caused to change from the locked mode to the open mode by the first unlocking mechanism, the shaft is located in the second shaft position, and each of the protrusions of the shaft is located adjacent to the upper side of the inner ring of the associated clutch, allowing the shaft to rotate relative to the lock body so that each of the protrusions of the shaft is spaced from the opening gap of the associated clutch while each of the protrusions of the shaft is located adjacent to upper side of the associated clutch, wherein when the shaft is pushed toward the second body side of the lock body, the clutch stack is caused to disengage from the dials, allowing the dials to be rotated independently of the clutches to set a different lock-opening combination. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock of the present invention in the locked mode. 
         FIG. 1B  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock taken along the marked line of  FIG. 1A . 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a cover. 
         FIG. 3A  is a perspective view of one half of the lock body. 
         FIG. 3B  is another perspective view of the same half of the lock body. 
         FIG. 4A  is a perspective view of another half of the lock body. 
         FIG. 4B  is another perspective view of the body half of  FIG. 4A . 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a cable end. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a latch plate. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a cam. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of a cylinder. 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of a shaft. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of a clutch. 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective view of a dial. 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of a spacer ring. 
         FIG. 13A  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the open mode unlocked by the lock-opening combination. 
         FIG. 13B  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock taken along the marked line of  FIG. 13A . 
         FIG. 14A  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the open mode unlocked by the key-overriding system. 
         FIG. 14B  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock taken along the marked line of  FIG. 14A . 
         FIG. 15A  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the reset mode. 
         FIG. 15B  is a cross-sectional view of the cable lock taken along the marked line of  FIG. 15A . 
         FIG. 16  is another cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the locked mode. 
         FIG. 17  is another cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the open mode unlocked by the lock-opening combination. 
         FIG. 18  is another cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the open mode unlocked by the key-overriding system. 
         FIG. 19  is another cross-sectional view of the cable lock in the reset mode. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a lock  10  with dual unlocking mechanism: a combination unlocking system and a key overriding mechanism. Thus, the lock  10  can be opened by a lock-opening combination or by a correct key. As seen in  FIGS. 1A-19 , the lock  10  has a lock body made of two halves  30 , 40  held together with one or more security pins  130  and a cover  20 . The lock body  30 / 40  has a body channel dimensioned to receive a stack of clutches  100  and a shaft  90 . The lock body  30 / 40  also has a plurality of body slots  37 / 47  to receive a plurality of dials  110 , each dial  110  associated with a clutch  100 . The shaft  90  has a shaft body  95  movably engaged with the stack of the clutches  100 . The shaft  90  has a cable-neck slot  91  on the top part of the shaft body  95 . The lock  10  comprises a cable  48  having a first cable end  50  secured in the lock body  30 / 40  and a second cable end  50 ′ having a cable neck  51 ′ removably engaged with the cable-neck slot  91 . The lock body also has a shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  in communication with the body channel, the shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  dimensioned to receive the cable-neck slot  91  when the lock  10  is operated in a locked mode. Each of the clutches  100  has an extended fin  103  located on the clutch&#39;s outer surface, and an inner ring  101  having an opening gap  102  formed thereon. Each of the dials  110  has a plurality of dial slots  111  dimensioned to receive the extended fin  103  so that when each of the dials  110  is turned, the associated clutch  100  is also turned. The shaft body  95  of shaft  90  has a plurality of protrusions  92 , each protrusion  92  associated with a clutch  100 . Each of the protrusions  92  is located below the inner ring  101  of an associated clutch  100  when the lock  10  is operated in the locked mode. The opening gap  102  on the inner ring  101  is dimensioned to allow the protrusion  92  to pass through to open the lock by the combination unlocking system. 
     The combination unlocking system is controlled by the dials  110  such that when the dials  110  are turned to match a preset lock-opening combination, the opening gap  102  of each of the clutches  100  is aligned with the associated protrusion  92  of shaft  90 , allowing the shaft  90  to move upward relative to the clutches  110  so that the cable-neck slot  91  is moved out of the shaft-protrusion cutout  43 . The cable neck  51 ′ of the cable  48  can then be released from the cable-neck slot  91  to open the lock  10 . 
     The lock  10  has a latch plate  60  movable between a first latch position and a second latch position. The latch plate  60  has a blocking surface  61 . When the latch plate  60  is located in the first latch position, the blocking surface  61  of the latch plate  60  is in contact with the upper surface of the topmost clutch  100 , preventing the stack of clutches  100  from moving upward relative to the lock body. When the latch plate  60  is located in the second latch position, the blocking surface  61  is spaced from the topmost clutch  100 , allowing the stack of clutches  100  to move upward together with the shaft  90 . The key-overriding system is controlled by a cylinder  80  and a cam  70 . The cam  70  has a cam slot  72  provided on the lower surface of cam  70  and an extended pin  71  extended from the upper surface of cam  70 . The cylinder  80  has an extended fork  81  arranged to engage with the cam slot  72  for rotation together. The latch plate  60  also has a pin-receiving slot  62  dimensioned to receive the extended pin  71  of cam  70 . When a correct key  140  is inserted into the cylinder  80  to turn the cylinder  80 , the cam  70  is also turned in the same manner. As the cam  70  turns, the extended pin  71  of cam  70  moves the latch plate  60  away from the top surface of the stack of clutches  100 . As such, the shaft  90  can be pulled upward along with the entire stack of clutches  100  so that the cable-neck slot  91  of shaft  90  is moved out of the shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  of lock body  30 / 40 . The cable neck  51 ′ of the cable  48  can then be released from the cable-neck slot  91  for lock opening. 
     Locked Mode ( FIGS. 1A-12  and  FIG. 16 ): 
     When the lock  10  is operated in the locked mode, the cable-neck slot  91  of the shaft  90  is located in the shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  of lock body  30 / 40 , preventing the cable end  50 ′ of cable  48  from being released from the cable-neck slot  91 . 
     In the locked mode, the setting of dials  110  is different from the lock-opening combination. The opening-gap  102  of at least one of the clutches  100  is not aligned with the associated protrusion  92  of shaft  90 , and the protrusion  92  is located directly below the inner ring  101  of the at least one of the clutches  100 . The inner ring  101  of the at least one of the clutches  100  prevents the shaft  90  from moving upward relative to the stack of the clutches  100 . As the cable-neck slot  91  of shaft  90  remains in the shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  of lock body  30 / 40 , the cable end  50 ′ of cable  48  cannot be released from the cable-neck slot  91 . At the same time, the latch plate  60  is located at the first latch position, preventing the stack of the clutches  100  and the shaft  90  from moving upward. 
     Furthermore, when the key  140  is not present, the cylinder  80  and the cam  70  cannot turn to move the latch plate  60  from the first latch position to the second latch position. 
     Unlock by Combination ( FIGS. 13A-13B  and  FIG. 17 ): 
     When the lock  10  is operated in the locked mode, the opening gap  102  of at least one of the clutches  100  is misaligned with the associated protrusion  92  of shaft  90 , and the protrusion  92  is located directly below the inner ring  101  of the at least one of the clutches  100 . The inner ring  101  acts as a barrier to prevent the associated protrusion  92  from moving through. Thus, the shaft  90  cannot move relative to the clutches  100 . At the same time, the extended fin  103  of each of the clutches  100  resides in one of the dial slots  110  of the associated dial  110 , causing the clutch  100  to rotate along with the associated dial  110 . When the dials  110  are turned to match the lock-opening combination, the opening gap  102  of each of the clutches  100  is aligned with the protrusion  92  of shaft  90 . The inner ring  101  of a clutch  100  is no longer a barrier to the associated protrusion  92  of shaft  90 . As such, the shaft  90  can be pulled upward relative to the clutches  100  so that the cable-neck slot  91  is moved out of the shaft-protrusion cutout  33 / 43  of lock body  30 / 40  (see  FIG. 13A , for example). The cable end  50 ′ can then be moved sidewise to release the cable neck  51 ′ of cable  48  from the cable-neck slot  91  of shaft  90  to open the lock  10 . It should be noted that when the lock  10  is unlocked by the combination unlocking system, the latch plate  60  is located in the first plate position and the blocking surface  61  prevents the clutches  100  from moving upward relative to the lock body  30 / 40 . The shaft  90  is the only component in lock  10  that has a vertical movement relative to the lock body  30 / 40 . 
     Reset Combination ( FIGS. 15A-15B  and  FIG. 19 ): 
     As the shaft  90  is pulled upward to unlock the lock  10  by the combination unlocking system, each of the protrusions  92  of shaft  90  is located above the opening gap  102  on the inner ring  101  of the associated clutch  100 . The shaft  90  can rotate freely relative to lock body  30 / 40 . The user can turn the shaft  90  over a pre-determined angle (for example, the shaft  90  is rotated in a clockwise direction by 180 degrees) and push the shaft  90  downward. After the shaft  90  is turned, the protrusions  92  are moved away from the opening gaps  102  of the inner rings  101 . As the shaft  90  is pushed downward, it pushes the clutches  100  downward, causing the extended fins  103  of clutches  100  to disengage from the dial slot  111  of dials  110 . The dials  110  can be rotated independently of the clutches  100  to set a different lock-opening combination. When the shaft  90  is released, the spring below the spacer ring  120  is arranged to push the spacer ring  120  and the clutches  100  upward to their original positions so that each of the extended fins  103  of clutches  100  is again engaged with the dial slot  111  of the associated dial  110 . The spacer ring  120  has an outer protrusion  121  in the reset-protrusion slot  34 / 44  so that the spacer ring  120  is prevented from falling out when the lock  10  is being unlocked by the key-overriding system. 
     Unlock by Key ( FIGS. 14A-14B  and  FIG. 18 ): 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the extended fork  81  of cylinder  80  is always engaged with the cam slot  72  of cam  70 . When the correct key  140  is inserted into the cylinder  80 , the cylinder  80  can be turned along with the cam  70  relative to the lock body  30 / 40 . As the cam  70  is turned, the extended pin  71  of cam  70  residing in the pin-receiving slot  62  of the latch plate  60  causes the latch plate  60  to move away from the stack of clutches  100 . As such, the blocking surface  61  of the latch plate  60  is moved away from the upper surface of the topmost clutch  100 . The entire stack of the clutches  100  can be pulled upward together with the shaft  90  so that the cable-neck slot  91  of shaft  90  is moved out of the lock body  30 / 40 . The cable end  50 ′ of cable  48  can be released from of the cable-neck slot  91  of shaft  90 . However, while the duals  110  remains in the body slots  37 / 47  of lock body  30 / 40 , the dials  110  are still engaged with the stack of clutches  100 , preventing the dials  110  from turning relative to the clutches  100 . Thus, the lock-opening combination cannot be changed when the lock  10  is unlocked by the key-overriding mechanism. 
     Other Features: 
     The lock body  30 / 40  has a fixed-cable-end slot  32 / 42  which is arranged to receive the neck  51  of the first cable end  50  of cable  48 . The first cable end  50  is always secured to the lock body  30 / 40 . 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the body half  30  has a security-pin hole  31  and the body half  40  has a security-pin hole  41 . The lock  10  has a cover  20  with two pin holes  21 , each aligned with one of the security-pin holes  31  and  41  to receive a security pin  130 . The cover  20  and the lock body  30 / 40  are bonded together as one piece. 
     According to the present invention, the first cable end  50  and the second cable end  50 ′ are identical. However, the cable end  50  can be different from the cable end  50 ′. Furthermore, each of the clutches  100  has only one extended fin  103  arranged to engage with one of the dial slots  111  so that the clutch  100  is rotated together with the associated dial  110 . However, each of the clutches  100  can have two or more extended fins  103 . 
     Thus, although the present invention has been described with respect to one or more embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and various other changes, omissions and deviations in the form and detail thereof may be made without departing from the scope of this invention.