Abstract:
A lock, in particular a brake disk lock for motorcycles, comprising a lock housing and a bolt lockable thereto; with the bolt having a stop member, a bolt head and a bolt neck arranged therebetween, and with the lock housing having a receiving region to receive the bolt head of the bolt, a lock cylinder and a latch movable by a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder to lock or unlock the bolt head inserted into the receiving region. The lock housing further has at least one conversion element, by means of which a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder can be converted into an axial locking or unlocking movement of the latch.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to a lock, in particular a brake disk lock for motorcycles, comprising a lock housing and a bolt lockable thereto, with the bolt having a stop member, a bolt head and a bolt neck arranged therebetween, and with the lock housing having a receiving region to receive the bolt head of the bolt, a lock cylinder and a latch movable by a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder to lock or unlock the bolt head inserted into the receiving region. 
     To lock an object using such a lock, the bolt is guided with its bolt head pointing forwards through a passage aperture of the object, for example, through a venting aperture of a motorcycle brake disk, so that the stop member abuts one end of the passage aperture and the passage aperture grips around the bolt neck. The lock housing is then set onto the bolt head protruding from the other end of the passage aperture such that it projects into the receiving region of the lock housing. The latch is subsequently guided over the bolt head by means of a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder. The lock is secured against being removed from the passage aperture by the abutting of the stop member and the locked lock housing at respective ends of the passage aperture. 
     It is known to lock the bolt head inside the lock housing to provide a locking sleeve with a peripheral groove, which can be rotatably actuated by the lock cylinder, as the latch. The bolt head of the bolt can be inserted into or removed from the receiving region of the lock housing through a correspondingly wide section of the peripheral groove in the unlocked state of the lock. The locking sleeve is turned to lock the lock, with a narrower section of the peripheral groove being turned along the bolt neck over the bolt head of the bolt so that the bolt head is locked against removal from the lock housing. 
     The disadvantage with the known lock is that the accommodation of the locking sleeve rotating around the receiving region requires additional space in the environment of the receiving region. The design of the lock thus becomes larger in an unwanted manner in the environment of the receiving region. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a lock whose locking mechanism requires the lowest possible volume, in particular in the environment of the receiving region provided for the bolt head of the bolt. 
     This object is satisfied for a lock of the kind initially mentioned by the lock housing further having at least one conversion element, by means of which a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder is convertible into an axial locking or unlocking movement of the latch. 
     With the lock in accordance with the invention, a conversion element therefore provides that a rotational movement of the lock cylinder actually effects an axial movement of the latch. In an unlocking movement, the latch is therefore removed from the receiving region in a lateral direction in a straight line and thus in the most direct way possible so that no free space has to be left free for a locking or unlocking movement of the latch or for a corresponding locking mechanism in the whole other environment of the receiving region. A cylindrical free space surrounding the receiving region, as is required in the prior art, can, in particular, be omitted. The axial movement of the latch effected by the conversion element thus leads to a substantial reduction in the space requirements of the locking mechanism in the environment of the receiving region of the lock housing. 
     As the action of the conversion element results in the latch only having to execute an axial movement, it can be made flat or only slightly curved at least in the environment of the receiving region of the lock housing, so that a further advantageous reduction in the depth of the lock housing is achieved. 
     The invention furthermore allows a new shape for the bolt head of the bolt. The bolt head has previously been spherical in shape, that is, designed with a round cross-section corresponding to the rotational movement of the locking sleeve. As only an axial locking or unlocking movement is provided in the invention, it is sufficient if the bolt head extends in a disk-shaped, flat manner with a round or angular outline within a plane which extends perpendicularly to the direction of the insertion of the bolt head into the lock housing or to the longitudinal direction of the bolt neck. Such a disk-shaped design of the bolt head leads to a further reduction in the lock housing depth and to the volume required for the receiving region. 
     The conversion element mentioned can be provided as or on a separate component that connects to both the lock cylinder and the latch. Alternatively or additionally, a conversion element can be integrated in the latch and/or the lock cylinder. 
     In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a conversion element provided inside the lock housing is made as an inclined guide which cooperates with a further conversion element, in particular a cam or a further inclined guide. This inclined guide or the further inclined guide can be made, for example, as a curved edge of a part of the lock housing, as an end of a section of a lock housing part extending with a curve or as a groove extending with a curve inside the lock housing which abuts in each case the cam or the further inclined guide respectively or engages with the cam or the further inclined guide respectively. 
     It is furthermore possible for two pairs comprising in each case an inclined guide and a cam cooperating therewith or an inclined guide cooperating therewith respectively, with one pair effecting the locking movement of the latch and the other pair the unlocking movement in response to a corresponding rotary actuation of the lock cylinder. As an alternative, a single pair of cooperating conversion elements can also be provided, for example for the unlocking movement of the latch. In this case, the respective counter axial direction of the lock can be effected by a restoring spring. 
     It is furthermore preferred when a driver is provided in the lock housing which is rotationally effectively connected to the lock cylinder and has one or more conversion elements. As a result of this, no special conversion elements have to be provided on the lock cylinder itself, which allows the use of commercial lock cylinders in an advantageous manner. Such a driver is, however, not absolutely necessary; for example, the cam of the lock cylinder can also cooperate with a conversion element, for example an inclined guide, provided on the latch. 
     In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one holding element is provided in the environment of the receiving region to hold the bolt head of the bolt inserted into the receiving region. When unlocking the bolt head inserted into the receiving element, such a holding element prevents the bolt from accidentally leaving the receiving region and falling out of the lock housing. 
     Such an uncontrolled release of the bolt from the lock housing can lead to damage to the locked object, for example to damage to a motorcycle rim surrounding a brake disk. Such an uncontrolled release of the bolt can, however, frequently not be easily avoided, as when the lock is being unlocked, the lock cylinder is rotatably actuated by one hand and the lock housing held against it by the other. This problem is solved by the holding element which only releases the bolt already unlocked, when the user deliberately pulls the unlocked bolt out of the lock housing or pulls the lock housing off the bolt. 
     Such a holding element cannot be provided easily for a lock in accordance with the prior art since - as explained - the locking sleeve serving as the latch surrounds the receiving region of the lock housing along its whole periphery and thus does not leave any space for an additional holding element. 
     The holding element preferably has at least one latch element at which the bolt head can be latched when inserted into the receiving region. This latch element can, for example, be formed by a closed ring-like holding edge or one or more pairs of latch arms opposing one another in each case which grip resiliently behind the bolt head. To fulfill the holding function described even when the bolt hangs down vertically, the holding force exerted by the holding element is preferably greater than the weight of the bolt. 
    
    
     The invention is described below by way of example with reference to the drawings. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a lock in accordance with the invention comprising a lock housing and a bolt released therefrom; 
     FIGS. 2 a  and  2   b  are exploded representations of the lock with an inner housing, a cylinder housing and a driver disk arranged therebetween, with the driver disk assuming an unlocking state or a locking state; 
     FIG. 2 c  is a detailed view of the inner housing, the cylinder housing and the drive disk of FIG. 2 a;    
     FIGS. 3 a  and  3   b  are exploded representations of the lock, with the driver disk and a sliding latch arranged thereon assuming an unlocked and a locked state relative to one another respectively; 
     FIGS. 4 a  and  4   b  are exploded representations of the lock, with the sliding latch assuming an unlocked and a locked state respectively; 
     FIGS. 5 a  to  5   c  show the lock of FIG. 1 in a top view, in a lateral cross-section along the plane Vb—Vb and in a lateral cross-section along the plane Vc—Vc respectively; 
     FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b  show the lock housing with a bolt inserted therein, but not locked, in a lateral cross-section and in a further lateral cross-section along the plane VIb—VIb respectively; 
     FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b  show the lock of FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b  in a locked state; 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the sliding bolt diagonally from below; 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the driver disk diagonally from above/the front; and 
     FIGS. 10 a  and  10   b  are side views of the driver disk and the sliding latch arranged thereon in an unlocked and a locked state respectively. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 shows a lock comprising a lock housing  11  and a bolt  13  released therefrom. The lock housing  11  has a lock housing casing  14  made of metal which has a key aperture  15  at the tip of a truncated cone-shaped section and is partially surrounded at a cylindrical section connecting thereto by a protective cap  17  made of plastic. The lock housing casing  14  and the protective cap  17  have an insertion aperture  19  on the jacket surface of the cylindrical section of the lock housing casing  14 . 
     The bolt  13  has a round stop disk  21  and a cylindrical bolt neck  23  connecting thereto which opens on an essentially spherically shaped bolt head  25 . The bolt neck  23  has a gripping section  27  on the stop disk  21  side and a bolt section  29  tapered relative to the gripping section  27  on the bolt head  25  side. The bolt  13  is made in one piece of metal. 
     FIGS. 2 a  and  2   b ,  3   a  and  3   b  and  4   a  and  4   b  show exploded representations of parts of the lock of FIG.  1 . An essentially hollow-cylindrical cylinder housing  31  made of metal and an inner housing  33  made of plastic and fixed thereon, which essentially has the shape of a cylinder segment, are provided inside the lock housing casing  14 . A driver disk  35  made of metal is provided between the cylinder housing  31  and the inner housing  35 . 
     The lock housing casing  14  furthermore contains a sliding latch  37  made of metal. This has a bolt section  39  which is provided to contact and slide along the inner housing  33  and which is designed with an essentially cylinder segment shape with a longitudinal recess so that the bolt section  39  appears to be U-shaped in a top view. A deflection section  41 , which essentially has the shape of a hollow cylinder segment and which is provided to contact the driver disk  35 , connects to the closed side of the U-shape of the bolt section  39 . 
     Furthermore, a housing cover  43  and—not shown in FIGS. 2 a  to  4   b —a lock cylinder arranged inside the cylinder housing  31 , a drill protection disk arranged between the lock cylinder and the key aperture  15  of the lock housing casing  14  and a stop spring are provided. 
     FIGS. 5 b  and  5   c ,  6   a  and  6   c  and  7   a  and  7   b  show the construction of the lock with the bolt  13  released, the bolt  13  inserted and the bolt  13  locked respectively. The cylinder housing  31  and the lock cylinder (not shown in the figures) inserted therein are held by the stop spring shown with reference numeral  45  in FIG. 5 b.    
     The driver disk  35  is supported between the cylinder housing  31 , the inner housing  33  and the sliding latch  37  such that it can be rotationally moved around the longitudinal axis of the lock housing  11 . It has a central coupling recess  47  with which the lock cylinder engages to transfer a rotational movement. 
     In extension of the insertion aperture  19  of the lock housing casing  14  with respect to an insertion direction  49  perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the lock housing  11 , the inner housing  33  has an essentially semispherical receiving recess  51  which forms a receiving region  53  together with the interior of the lock housing casing  14  between the insertion aperture  19  and the accepting recess  51  (FIG. 5 b ). 
     The upper side of receiving recess  51  opens with respect to the representation of FIG. 5 b  on a holding edge  55  which extends perpendicularly to the insertion direction  49  within one plane. In deviation from a circular shape, this has two latch cams  57  formed on the inner housing  33  and lying opposite one another which project into the receiving recess  51  (FIG. 5 c ). A restoring spring slot  59  is provided in the inner housing  33  behind each of the two stop cams  57  (FIG. 2 c ). 
     The housing cover  43  adjacent the inner housing  33  is secured to an inner peripheral surface of the lock housing casing  14  by means of a retaining ring  61 . Adjacent to this, the protective cap  17  has a stabilizing vane arrangement  63  and a protective cap cover  65 . The protective cap  17 , the vane arrangement  63  and the protective cap cover  65  are not shown in FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b.    
     FIG. 8 shows the sliding latch  37  diagonally from below, with nonvisible edges being shown by broken lines. Some edges of the U-shaped bolt section  39  of the sliding latch  37  are chamfered to allow the insertion of the bolt  13  into the receiving region  53  of the lock housing  11  (cf. FIGS. 5 b  and  5   c ) and to ensure a positive gripping of the bolt section  29  of the bolt neck  23  and of the bolt head  25  of the bolt  13  (cf. FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b ). 
     A guide cam  67  is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the deflection section  41  of the sliding latch  37 . A curved shoulder edge  69  extending and opening on an engagement slot  71  on the bottom side of the sliding latch  37  shown in FIG. 8 extends between the bolt section  39  and the deflection section  41 . 
     FIG. 9 shows the side of the drive disk  35  facing the lock cylinder in a perspective view. An unlocking tongue  73  is formed on the outer periphery of the driver disk  35  in axial extension in the direction of the lock cylinder, said unlocking tongue  73  having the shape of a curved triangular surface and having a curved unlocking end surface  75  which extends up to an engagement recess  77  on the jacket surface of the driver disk  35  (cf. also FIGS. 2 b ,  3   b  and  10   b ). 
     The driver disk  35  has a locking tongue  79  in axial extension of the outer periphery of the driver disk  35 , said locking tongue  79  having the form of a curved trapezoid surface and having a locking end surface  81  which curves up to the edge of the jacket surface of the driver disk  35  (cf. also FIGS. 2 b ,  7   a  and  10   b ). 
     The lock shown in the figures serves to lock an object by inserting the bolt  13  into a passage aperture of the object and by a subsequent locking of the bolt  13  to the lock housing  11 . The gripping section  27  of the bolt neck  23  is thus caught radially by the passage aperture and axially by the stop disk  21  or the lock housing  11 . In accordance with the invention, a rotary actuation of the lock cylinder or of the driver disk  35  connected thereto is converted during locking into an axial locking or unlocking movement of the sliding latch  37 . This conversion is described in more detail below. 
     The sliding latch  37  is drawn back out of the receiving region  53  of the lock housing  11  in the unlocked state of the lock to allow the insertion of the bolt  13  through the insertion aperture  19  into the lock housing  11  or the removal of the bolt  13  from the lock housing  11  (cf. FIGS. 5 a  to  5   c ). This unlocked state of the lock corresponds to a position of the driver disk  35 , in which the locking tongue  79  of the driver disk  35  penetrates the engagement slot  71  of the sliding latch  37  and in which the locking end surface  81  is opposite the shoulder edge  69 . Furthermore, the guide cam  67  of the sliding latch  37  is located at the tip of the unlocking tongue  73  of the driver disk  35 . This unlocked position of the driver disk  35  can be seen in particular from FIG. 10 a  and from FIGS. 2 a ,  2   c ,  3   a ,  4   a ,  5   b  and  6   a.    
     To lock the bolt  13  inserted into the lock housing  11  in accordance with FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b , starting from this unlocked state, the lock cylinder is rotatably actuated by means of a fitting key and thus the driver disk  35  is turned counter-clockwise through 90° with respect to the view of FIG.  9 . In this way, the locking end surface  81  of the locking tongue  79  comes into areal contact with the shoulder edge  69 , whereby the sliding latch  37  is forced into an axial movement away from the driver disk  35  during a continuing rotary movement (cf.  10   a ). 
     The axial movement of the sliding latch  37  is therefore due, on the one hand, to the sliding along of the curved locking end surface  81  along the correspondingly curved shoulder edge  69  and, on the other hand, to the fact that the bottom side of the sliding latch  37  abuts the top side of the inner housing  33  or of the cylinder housing  31  respectively (cf. FIGS. 4 a  and  4   b ) and its upper side abuts the inner peripheral surface of the lock housing casing  14  (cf. FIGS. 6 a  and  6   b  and FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b ). The sliding latch  37  can therefore not escape laterally to follow the rotational movement of the driver disk  35 . 
     The sliding latch  37  instead performs the axial movement described, by means of which it finally grips around the tapered bolt section  29  of the bolt neck  23  from three sides. On the conclusion of this locking movement, the locking tongue  79  of the driver disk  35  has left the engagement slot  71  of the sliding latch  37  (FIG.  8 ), and the guide cam  67  has come to lie in the engagement recess  77  on the jacket surface of the driver disk  35 . The position of the driver disk  35  achieved in the state of the lock locked in this way can be seen in particular from FIG.  10  and from FIGS. 2 b ,  3   b ,  4   b  and  7   a.    
     To now again retract the sliding latch  37  to again release the bolt  13 , starting from this locked state of the lock, the driver disk  35  is turned—by means of a corresponding rotary actuation of the cylinder lock using the fitting key—in a clockwise direction in accordance with the view of FIG.  9 . In this way, the unlocking end surface  75  of the unlocking tongue  73  (FIG. 10 b ) contacts the guide cam  67  of the sliding latch  37  and guides it along the whole length of the unlocking end surface  75  during a continuous rotational movement. In this way, the sliding latch  37  is drawn away from the bolt section  29  of the bolt neck  23  in an axial direction, and the locking tongue  79  gradually penetrates the engagement slot  71  of the sliding latch  37 . The unlocked state of the lock is again achieved in this way by conclusion of a 90° rotation of the driver disk  35 . 
     As the sliding latch  37  is moved in an axial direction for the locking and unlocking, only a lateral access of the sliding latch  37  to the receiving region  53  is required so that the environment of the receiving region  53  can be designed with a low construction depth on all other sides without having to take the locking mechanism into account. There is, in particular, with respect to the representation in accordance with FIGS. 5 b  and  5   c , no additional space requirement for the locking mechanism such as is the case with a rotating locking sleeve in accordance with the prior art. 
     In addition—deviating from the embodiment shown in the figures—a further reduction in construction depth can be achieved by the sliding latch  37  being made flat or at most arched in the shape of a hollow cylinder segment with a lower depth in the insertion direction  49  than the bolt section  39  of the sliding latch  37  shown and by the bolt  13  being shortened correspondingly. 
     In the embodiment shown in the figures, the space savings achieved by the only axial movement of the sliding latch  37  is used to allow a particularly advantageous latch hold of the bolt  13  inserted into the lock housing  11 , but not locked. This latch hold is described in more detail below. 
     The holding edge  55 , which restricts the receiving recess  51  of the inner housing  33  having a closed periphery, does not have a circular shape in the non-loaded state, but rather has the two latch cams  57  opposite one another (cf. FIG. 2 c  and FIGS. 5 b  and  5   c ). The inner periphery of the holding edge corresponds to the maximum outer diameter of the bolt head  25  in a plane which is perpendicular to the insertion direction  49  or exceeds this outer diameter only slightly. 
     When the bolt head  25  is inserted into the receiving recess  51 , the holding edge  55  is reshaped briefly to a shape corresponding to the outer diameter of the bolt head  25  due to the inner housing  33  being made of elastic plastic and to the provision of the restoring spring slots  59 . Following the full insertion of the bolt head  25  into the receiving recess  51 , the holding edge  55  springs back into its normal, non-circular shape so that the bolt head  25  is gripped at least by the two latch cams  57  (cf. FIG. 6 b ). The bolt  13  inserted into the lock housing  11  is held in this way even when the bolt  13  is not locked. 
     The user can remove the unlocked bolt  13  from the lock housing  11  safely and in a controlled manner by overcoming the holding force exerted on the bolt head  25  by the holding edge  55 . The user can, vice versa, insert the bolt head  25  into the receiving recess  51  before he subsequently locks the lock. 
     It should be noted with respect to the design of the holding edge  55  visible from FIG. 2 c  that its shape does not necessarily have to be closed, but can also be interrupted so that, for example, the two latch cams  57  can be designed as essentially free-standing latch arms. As an alternative to this, it is also possible to provide the holding edge  55  without latch cams, but with a closed, oval shape.