Patent Abstract:
An access opening closure device is provided for enabling passage of food or medication into a confined spaced without providing direct access from within the confined space to outside of the confined space. The device includes a housing defining a receptacle, an access door and a top cover. The top cover and the access door are independently movable between open and closed positions to provide access to within the receptacle. An engagement member is provided adjacent the access door to selectively look the door at a plurality of different positions.

Full Description:
[0001]    This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/182,040, which is incorporated in its entirety herein by reference. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND  
         [0002]    1. Technical Field  
           [0003]    The present disclosure relates to an access opening closure device for allowing articles to pass through an otherwise impervious wall. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to an access opening closure device for use in prisons and hospital psychiatric wards which allows an article to be passed through a cell or hospital room door without exposing a guard or hospital attendant to possible injury or battery by the prisoner or patient.  
           [0004]    2. Background of Related Art  
           [0005]    Prison cell and hospital room doors for confining dangerous inmates or patients which are fitted with an access opening to allow passage of food or medication without the necessity of opening the locked door are well known. The access opening may also be used to handcuff an inmate before unlocking the door. Typically, the access opening is small in relation to the door and is covered by a portal which may be closed to close the access opening. One problem associated with the above-described access opening/portal arrangement is that once the portal is opened, the confined inmate or patient has direct access to the area outside the confined space. Due to the violent nature of some confined inmates and/or patients, prison guards and hospital attendants are exposed to possible danger from the confined inmate or patient when direct access is available.  
           [0006]    Accordingly, what is needed is an access opening closure device of simple construction which can be used in association with existing doors having access openings and is operable to allow passage of articles through the access opening without allowing an inmate or patient direct access from the confined space to the area outside of the confined space.  
         SUMMARY  
         [0007]    An access opening closure device is provided for use in prisons, hospital psychiatric wards and the like is disclosed. The closure device includes a housing defining a receptacle, an access door and a top cover. The top cover is preferably formed from a transparent material and is movably supported on the housing to open or close a top opening in the housing. The access door is preferably formed from stainless steel and is movably supported on the housing to open or close a rear opening in the housing. A bracket assembly is secured to the housing about the rear opening. The bracket assembly is adapted to secure the housing about an access opening in a door, e.g., a prison cell door. The device also includes three locks. A first lock is positioned to retain the top cover in a closed position. A second lock is positioned to retain the access door in its closed position and a third lock is positioned to retain the access door in its open position. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    Various preferred embodiments of the access opening closure device are described herein with reference to the drawings, wherein:  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the presently disclosed access opening closure device;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the access opening closure device shown in FIG. 1 with the top cover in its open position and its access door in its closed position;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along section lines  3 - 3  of FIG. 1;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the access opening closure device shown in FIG. 1 with the top cover in a closed position and the access door in an open position;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 is a partial cutaway view taken along section lines  5 - 5  of FIG. 4;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present disclosed access opening closure device; and  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 7 illustrates a partial cutaway, cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of access door  14  and lock  44 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0016]    Preferred embodiments of the presently disclosed access opening closure device will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings, in which like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding elements in each of the several views.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIGS. 1 and 2, illustrate an access opening closure device, shown generally as  10 . Briefly, closure device  10  includes a housing  12 , an access door  14  and a top cover  16 . Housing  12  has a bottom wall  18 , a pair of side walls  20  and  22  and a front wall  24  which defines a receptacle  25  for receiving food, medication or the like. A plurality of drain holes  29  (FIG. 2) are formed through the bottom wall  18  to allow fluid to drain therefrom. Side walls  20  and  22  have a height that increases from front end  26  to rear end  28  of housing  12 . Alternately, the side walls can be rectangular. In extreme cases, when a prisoner or patient must be subdued before the guard enters the cell, the reduced height of front end  26  compared to rear end  28  of housing  12  enables the guard to spray a subduing agent, such as pepper spray or mace, directly into the cell. Preferably, housing  12  is constructed from stainless steel, although other materials having the requisite strength requirements can also be used.  
         [0018]    Referring also to FIG. 3, top cover  16  is pivotably attached to the top of front wall  24  via hinge assembly  29 . Preferably, hinge assembly  29  is fastened to cover  16  and front wall  24  by screws  27 . However, other fastening techniques may also be used including adhesives, welding, etc. Top cover  16  is pivotable from a first closed position enclosing housing  12  to a second open position uncovering housing  12 . Preferably, cover  16  is constructed from a durable, transparent material such as Lexa® which permits viewing of the contents of receptacle  25  when top cover  16  is in the closed position. Alternately, other materials having the requisite strength requirements can also be used including stainless steel, aluminum or fire safe material having the requisite strength requirements.  
         [0019]    A series of brackets including a top bracket  30 , a side bracket  32  and a bottom bracket  34  are secured to the rear end of housing  12  by welding. Alternately, the series of brackets can be secured to housing  12  using other known fastening procedures. Each of the brackets includes a smooth concavity  33  for slidably receiving access door  14 . The concavities formed in top and bottom brackets  30  and  34  define a guide track along which door i 4  may be slid between open and closed positions. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the guide track is formed in top and bottom brackets  30  and  32  at a position adjacent the back side  31  of the brackets which is to be positioned against the prison cell or hospital room door  35 . By forming the guide track in this manner, access door  14  can be positioned close to door  35  while retaining the required thickness for strength. Side bracket  32  also includes a concavity (not shown) into which the forward end  36  of door  14  is positioned when door  14  is closed. Each of the brackets also includes a series of holes dimensioned to receive screws. The screws facilitate securement of the housing about an access port in door  35 .  
         [0020]    Access door  14  is slidably positioned along the guide track formed between top and bottom brackets  30  and  34 . Door  14  includes a handle  40  to facilitate opening and closing of the door. Preferably, the top and bottom edges  37  and  38  of door  14  are radiused to permit door  14  to slide freely along the guide track. Door  14  is movable from a closed to an open position to permit access into housing  12  from within the confined space. A stop  41  (FIG. 2) is fastened to one side of access door  14 . Stop  41  is positioned to engage side wall  22  when access door  14  is in the open position to prevent door  14  from sliding out of the guide track. Preferably, sliding door  14  is constructed from stainless steel. However, other materials having the requisite strength requirements may also be used.  
         [0021]    A pair of locks  42  and  44  are secured adjacent to access door  14 . Preferably, locks  42  and  44  are secured to top bracket  30  via screws. Alternately, locks  42  and  44  can be secured to door  35  and/or other fastening techniques may be used to secure the locks in place. Referring to FIG. 4, each lock includes a spring biased projection  54  and  55  which is urged downwardly towards the bottom frame. A catch  56  is secured to access door  14  and is positioned to engage projection  54  of lock  42 . When projection  54  is positioned within catch  56 , access door  14  is locked in a closed position. Projection  54  of lock  42  can be lifted from catch  56  by rotating key  58 .  
         [0022]    Lock  44  is positioned above top edge  37  of access door  14 . A pair of recesses  48  and  50  formed in top edge  37  are positioned to receive projection  55  of lock  44 . When projection  55  is biased into recess  48 , access door  14  is locked in an open position. When projection  55  is biased into recess  50 , access door  14  is locked in a half-open position. The combination of locks  42  and  44  prevents access door  14  from being slammed between its open and closed positions.  
         [0023]    A lock  66  is also provided on top cover  16 . Lock  66  includes a spring biased projection  68  which is receivable in a catch  20  to lock top cover  16  in the closed position. Catch  70  can be secured to top bracket  30 . Alternately, catch  70  can be secured to other support structures, such as door  35 .  
         [0024]    In use, access opening closure device  10  is secured about an access opening in a door  35 , e.g., a prison cell door. In the closed position, access door  14  and top cover  16  are closed (FIG. 1). When it is desired to provide the confined person with some item, such as a lunch tray  60 , cover  16  is pivoted to open the top of housing  12 . To pivot cover  16 , lock  66  must be manually released. Lunch tray  60  is placed in receptacle  25  of housing  12  (FIG. 2). The access door  14  is closed. Next, sliding door  14  is slid open by manually rotating key  58  and pulling handle  40  (FIG. 4). It is noted that in order to slide access door  14  to the fully open position, projection  55  of lock  44  must be manually lifted over recess  50 . The confined person now has access to the interior of housing  12  but the interior of housing  12  is enclosed with respect to the passageway in front of cell door  35 . Thus, persons in the passageway are protected from any debris the confined person may attempt to throw through the access opening. With sliding door  14  in the open position and cover  16  in the closed position, the lunch tray or other item can be left in housing  12  for the confined person to retrieve at his or her convenience.  
         [0025]    Access opening closure device  10  may also be used to handcuff a prisoner before releasing the prisoner from the cell. To handcuff a prisoner, access door  14  need only be opened to its halfway point with projection  55  of lock  44  positioned in recess  50  of door  14 . After the prisoner places his hands through the access opening into receptacle  25 , top cover  16  can be pivoted open to facilitate the placing of the handcuffs on the prisoner. It is noted that, with top cover  16  pivoted in front of a prison guard, top cover  16  acts as a shield for the guard.  
         [0026]    Referring to FIG. 5, a slot  62  is formed in side bracket  32  adjacent the concavity formed in bottom bracket  34 . Slot  62  allows any debris positioned on the guide track in concavity  35 , when access door  14  is opened, to be pushed from the end of the guide track. Thus, access door  14  will not be prevented from closing by placing debris on the guide track.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 6 illustrates an alternate embodiment of the access opening closure device shown generally as  100 . Closure device  100  is substantially identical to closure device  10  except that.top cover  116  is slidable between open and closed positions along a track  113  formed about the top of housing  112 .  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 7 illustrates a partial cutaway, cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of access door  14  and lock  44 . (Note the five photographs attached hereto.) In the alternate embodiment, access door  14 ′ has a top edge  37 ′ having a plurality of teeth  39 ′. Adjacent teeth define recesses  50 ′. Lock  44 ′ includes a housing  100 , a lever  102  pivotably secured to housing  100  by a pivot pin  104 , a reciprocal engagement member  106 , a tubular inner housing  108  and a biasing member  110 . Tubular inner housing  108  is threadably received within a threaded bore  112  formed in top bracket  30 ′. Engagement member  106  includes an annular flange  114  and a tooth engaging distal end  116 . Biasing member  110  is positioned between flange  114  and the upper end of inner housing  108  and functions to urge distal end  116  of engagement member  106  into engagement with teeth  39 ′ of access door  14 ′. Lever  102  is manually pivotable in the direction indicated by arrow “A” in FIG. 7 to lift engagement member  106  from engagement with access door  14 ′. Teeth  39 ′ and lock  44 ′ prevent access door  14 ′ from being repeatedly slammed between open and closed positions. Housing  100  of lock  44 ′ can be secured to top bracket  30 ′ using screws  120 . Alternately, other attachment devices may be used to secure housing  100  to bracket  30 ′, e.g., brazing, welding, etc.  
         [0029]    It will be understood that various modifications may be made to the embodiments disclosed herein. For example, access door  14  need not slide horizontally but rather may slide vertically. Further, the dimensions of the access opening closure device can be varied to accommodate any size access opening. Moreover, the access opening closure device is not limited for use on hospital room and prison cell doors but rather may be used in other areas such as bank teller stations. Therefore, the above description should not be construed as limiting, but merely as exemplifications of preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the claims appended hereto.

Technology Classification (CPC): 4