Improvements in Time Locks
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 27th May, 1890-Accepted, 27th Sept., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Time Locks,
I, CHARLES FRANKLIN MYERS, of McKinstry's Mills, in the County of Carroll
and State of Maryland, United States of America, Merchant, do hereby declare the
nature of my invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN TIME LOCKS," and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :-.
The general objects of my invention are to provide a time lock for the doors
of safes, vaults and strong rooms, which shall preclude the opening of the doors at
all times, except during the intervals for which it may be set to open. The
specific objects are to provide for the accidental derangement of the time mechanism
by providing two sets of mechanism operating in unison or independently of each
other, to provide for the automatic unlocking of the time mechanism when, from
oversight or accident, it may be allowed to run down, and to provide for the
automatic unlocking of the time mechanism in the event of the breaking of the
main spring or other operative part of the time mechanism. My invention consists
in the peculiar construction and arrangement of the various parts of the time lock,
which I will now proceed to more particularly describe with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which,
Figure 1 is an inside view of a safe door, showing my time lock applied to the
bolt work;
Figure 2 is a rear view of my time lock mechanism, on an enlarged scale and in the
locked position;
Figure 3 is a front view of the same;
;
Figure 4 is a front view of the same, with the front frame plate removed;
Figure 5 is a vertical section through lines --x of Figures 2, 3 and 4:
Figure 6 is a horizontal section through lines y-y of the same figures;
Figures 7 and 8 are details.
Referring to Figure 1, Z, represents the bolt work which is arranged in the door as
usual and is thrown forward to lock the door, or drawn back to open it, by means of
a knob or handle in the usual way. L, is my time lock which has at its upper
end a horizontally-arranged locking bar B, sliding in guides or keepers B', B', on the
frame plate. This locking bar has at its outer end a pivoted or jointed locking
latch B, which is provided with a lug or right-angular extension B³, near its end,
which is arranged to drop through a staple or recess in the bolt work. When this
bolt work is projected to the right to lock the safe door, and the locking bar is also
projected to the right and locked by the time mechanism, and the pivoted locking
latch B, is in its horizontal position with its lug dropped through the staple of the
bolt work, it will be seen that it is absolutely impossible to throw back the bolt work
until the bar B is released by the time mechanism.
The object of the pivoted latch B' is to permit the locking bar to be disconnected
from the bolt work when it is desired to do so, and for which purpose the locking
latch is raised out of the staple of the bolt work. A pin B serves to hold the
locking latch against rising when the bolt work and latch are connected, and when
the parts are to be disconnected the pin is withdrawn and the latch raised and.
pin reinserted just beneath the latch so as to hold the latch in elevated position, as in
dotted lines, Figure 1.
I will now proceed to describe how the locking bar B is locked and unlocked by the
time mechanism.
On the rear side of the frame plate and rigidly attached to the locking bar B,
see Figure 2, there are arranged two horizontal abutment arms B, B³, which
slide over
or abut against the two segmental tumblers B6, B6, which are pivoted
TD 1177

page_text: to the back side of the frame plate. When these tumblers are in the position
shown, the arms B' abut against these tumblers and the locking har B cannot be
withdrawn, but when the tumblers are turned on their pivots, as shown in dotted
lines, the abutment arms pass freely over the tops of these tumblers and leave the
bar B free to be withdrawn. Each abutment arm moves beneath a stationary pin
or lug B', on the frame plate, which pin or lug serves to prevent the abutment
arm from springing up when locked by the tumbler in case an attempt should be
made to force back the locking bar. It is the office of the time locking mechanism
to adjust these tumblers so as to turn the tumblers out of range of the abutment
arms, and for this purpose each tumbler has a slot B³, in which plays a pin a,
which is attached to the end of a lever A, on the front side of the back plate,
and which pin extends at right angles through the same, see Figures 4 &c. Each
lever A is fulcrumed upon a common pin a, in the middle and is held up into a
parallel position against the locking bar B, by a separate coil spring a* and a³, one
end of each of which springs is attached to the fulcrum pin, and the other end to a stud
on the lever. The two levers A, A, are respectively connected to the cross head of a
vertical slide (, C¹, by means of independent link bars A2, A2, which have a slotted
connection with said cross head, so that levers A can move up and down about their
common fulcrum, without reference to their connection to the cross head of the slide,
the object of which will be explained further along. A', Figs. 3, 4, and 5, is a pro-
tecting cap which is screwed to the fulcrum pin of the levers A, for the purpose of
covering and protecting the springs a'. The slide C, C¹, is made in two parts.
The upper part C, bears the cross head connecting with the links, and is formed
with a vertical slot and is guided in its vertical movement by a stud c, projecting
through the slot and pins c, c, near its lower end projecting from the back plate.
The lower part C₁ of the slide fits in a groove at the lower end of C, see Figure 5,
and said lower part of the slide has at its lower end a T-shaped head consisting of
arms c, e, Figure 4, projecting horizontally from opposite sides of the same into
range of engagement with the main spring of the two clock movements D, D,
disposed on opposite sides of the central slide C, C¹. These arms c³ of the slide are
designed to be struck by the expanded clock spring when run down or broken and
furnish the means for automatically unlocking the tine lock mechanism whenever
such contingency occurs. The upper section C of the slide bears a spring bar C,
Figure 5, with a stud c', see Figure 5, on its inner side which passes through a hole
in the slide and is adapted to catch against the end of lower section C of the slide.
The upper section C also carries a vertical rock shaft C³, which has, see Figures 4
and 5, a horizontally-projecting arm c³, extending outwardly, and also another hori-
zontally-projecting arm c, which lies beneath the spring bar C2 and is adapted to pull
out the spring bar and take its stud away from the end of the lower section when-
ever the rock shaft is turned from right to left. The arm of the rock shaft is con-
nected by a spiral spring C, with the T-head section of the slide C", whereby the two
sections C and (of the slide are held together with an elastic tension. The T-head
of slide section C is guided in a vertical slot c', Figures 2 and 5, in the back plate and
on the rear side of the back plate, see Figures 2 and 5, is connected to a spiral
spring E, which is anchored at its upper end to the back plate, and the tension of
which spring serves to hold the slide C, C raised and permitting the arms A A to be
thrown up into the locked position by the springs a², a². When either main spring
breaks and its coil expands, or when either or both coils expand from running down,
said coils strike against the arm or arms c³ and forces both the lower slide section (
and the upper slide section C down together, see dotted lines, Figure 4, against the
tension of the spiral spring E on the back, and the link or pull bars A³, A³, are made
to pull down the levers A, A, and turn the tumblers out of the way of the locking bar
so that it can be withdrawn.
I will now proceed to describe how the time mechanism is made to effect the
unlocking and re-setting, and how it may be set to unlock at any stated time.
F', is a central shaft which passes through the slot of the upper slide section C,
and has a bearing in the front and back frame plates. This shaft is rotated by either

page_text: or both of the time mechanisms once in forty-eight hours through gears on the rear of
the back plate, which will be hereinafter described, and the revolution of this shaft is
made to lock and unlock the time mechanism, and also set it to unlock at any
desired time in the following manner.
On the shaft F, see Figures 4 and 5, is rigidly attached a disk F¹, bearing a
tripping tooth d¹, and also a disk F, bearing a tripping tooth d. In the place of
these disks with a single tooth, tappet arms" may be used. The disk F', is rigidly
connected to the shaft, but for purposes of adjustment is mounted upon the inner end
of a sleeve d, which encompasses shaft F. These two disks are arranged in a plane
to strike with their teeth, the horizontal tripping arm c of the rock shaft C³, and the
teeth of these disks are arranged at diametrically-opposite sides of the shaft so that
as the shaft revolves once in forty-eight hours, the teeth of the two disks will suc-
cessively strike the tripping arm once every twenty-four hours, or once every day,
to open the time lock. The shaft F, with these disks revolves in the direction of the
arrow, and when either of the teeth of said disks strikes the tripping arm it turns
the rock shaft C about its axis and the other arm of the rock shaft, see Figs. 4 and 5,
presses forward the spring bar (" and pulls its pin c away from the top end of lower
section C¹ of the slide, and the upper section C of the slide being now free to move
down from tension of the spring C (and also from gravity), it drops down and
through the slotted links, pulls down levers A, A, and opens the locking bar as before
described.
For automatically re-setting the time lock, the shaft F has back of the slide
section C, a disk G, rigidly attached thereto and provided at diametrically-opposite
points with wiper cams 9 g, which successively strike once in twenty-four hours a
stud e, on the rear side of the slide C and again raise said slide to its set position, ie.
to a position where the pin c on spring bar ( drops over the top end of lower slide
section C. To reduce friction, the stude of the slide C should have an anti-friction
roller on it where the wiper cams bear against it. In this connection the function
of the slots in the link bars A and the springs a' of the levers A, A, may be under-
stood. Their purpose is to permit the time mechanism to reset the tripping devices
even while the locking bar is unlocked. For when the levers A, A, are down and
the locking bar is thrown back, the slots in the link bars permit the slide section (to
be raised by the resetting mechanism to its set position any time in the day. After-
wards when the locking bar is thrown forward to lock the same, just as soon as the
tumblers are freed from the arm of the bar, the springs a³ of the levers A, A, throw
up said levers and turn the tumblers into the locked position independently of the
setting devices.
I will now describe the means for setting the time mechanism to open at any
number of hours ahead.
For this purpose the shaft F, sleeve d, and the two disks F', F", with their
diametrically-arranged teeth may be regarded as one device, moving together. On
the front side of the front frame plate is arranged a dial H, Figure 3, consisting of
forty-eight sub-divisions, each representing an hour. The zero point o, corre-
sponds exactly to the portion of the rock shaft arm on the rear. The shaft F, has
also on this dial, see Fig. 5, an index hand f, corresponding in its radial position to
the radial position of the tooth d of disk F¹, and the sleeve d has also an index
hand f¹, on the dial, which index hand corresponds in its radial position to the radial
position of the tooth d of disk F. It will therefore be perceived that the relation
of the two index hands fand f¹ to the zero point of the dial, is an exact counter-
part of the relation of the tripping teeth of the two disks to the tripping arm of the
rock shaft. It being remembered that the index hands and shaft revolve once in
forty-eight hours and that there are forty-eight sub-divisions on the dial, the index
hand approaching the zero point will mark between it and the zero point the number
of hours in the future from the present time that will have to elapse before the
disk tooth representing that index band will trip the mechanism and open the lock.
Thus if the present time be nine o'clock at night, as indicated by the two time locks
in Figure 3, and it is desired to have the time lock open at nine o'clock next

page_text: morning the following is the method of adjustment-the intervening hours being
computed are found to be twelve. One of the index hands for f¹ (whichever is in
rear of the twelfth mark, since the hands are not adapted to move backward), is
turned forward until it rests upon the mark 12, which means that the tooth of the
disk in the rear is just the same time distant from the tripping arm of the rock shaft,
and when the twelve hours shall have elapsed, the rock shaft arm will be tripped
and the time lock opened.
The purpose in making the shaft F and dial represent forty-eight hours is to make
the lock mechanism capable of being set for a longer period than one day, so as to
cover Sunday or a holiday. When this extra long time adjustment is to be made,
the sleeve d with its disk F and index hand f' is given an adjustment into perfect
coincidence with the disk F' and index hand f³, i.e. one index hand is turned
directly over the other, which causes the teeth of the two disks to also come into exact
coincidence. Now as the revolution of the shaft is once only in forty-eight hours,
it will be seen that the time lock will be tripped only once in forty-eight hours and
may be set for a forty-eight hour interval before opening. For connecting the
sleeve d and shaft F together so as to revolve as one, the end of the shaft is flattened
to receive a similar shaped opening of the index hand, see Figure 8, and the hub of
this hand has a clutch face that is rigidly connected by nut n, to the hub of the other
hand and its attached sleeve and disk.
I will now proceed to describe how the two clock movements D, D, are made to
rotate (either independently or conjointly) the shaft F once in forty-eight hours.
In each clock movement I place a gear wheel I, Fig. 4, which meshes with the
main gear wheel on the winding shaft of this movement. This gear wheel is rigid
on a shaft that, on the rear side of the back frame plate, carries a rigid gear wheel I³,
see Figure 2. This gear wheel I2 meshes with a larger gear wheel I', which is fast
on a sleeve with a small gear wheel 1. Gear wheel I meshes with another larger
gear wheel I'. A similar train of gears extends from both clock movements and
their final wheels 15, 16, connect with a compound differentiating wheel J, J', which
is hung loosely on the shaft F and through which gears and compound wheel the
shaft F is rotated once in forty-eight hours, and through which also the two clock
movements act in unison to rotate it in the same direction, or either movement serves
to rotate it in case the other becomes inoperative. This compound differentiating
wheel is made of two parts J, J, hollowed out and facing each other with their
hollow sides. One of these wheel sections J, rests in the plane of the last wheel I'
of the train from one clock movement, and the other wheel section J¹ rests on the
plane of the last wheel I' of the train from the other clock movement. Within the
chainber formed by the hollow wheel sections there is arranged a ratchet wheel K,
Figures 2 and 5 which is fast on the shaft F and has forty-eight teeth. Each wheel
section has within its chamber a pawl and 1, which are respectively forced by
springs m,
into engagement with the ratchet wheel K. Now when both wheel
sections of the compound wheel are turned in the same direction, both pawls engage
the ratchet wheel and turn in unison the shaft F, but if one clock movement becomes
inoperative, that does not lock or interfere with the rotation of shaft F, but the
wheel section of the inoperative side simply stands still, and its pawl drags over the
ratchet teeth, while the other active wheel section with its pawl is acting upon and
turning the shaft F. In this way a safe-guard is provided for accident to one of the
movements and assurance is rendered doubly sure.
In order to set the tripping devices of the slide C, C, by hand a cord (or rod)
with a loop or pull knob r, is connected to the lower slide section C¹ and extends
through the enclosing case into easy access. By pulling down this knob the lower
section of the slide is brought down and is caught beneath the stud of the spring
bar on the upper slide section to set the devices.
In adjusting the size of the gear wheels of the clock movements and the distance
between the arms of the T-shaped slide and the main springs, this is so regulated
that the clock movement will strike the arms of the T-head at the expiration of
seventy-two hours, instead of the full time for which the movement is designed to

page_text: run, and by this means the clock mechanism will always be actuated by the first part
of the tension of the main spring and will not be liable to lose time as it might
through the last part of the relaxed condition of the spring.
For enclosing the time nechanism any suitable case may be employed, as shown in
Figure 1, and this case is provided with bolt-nuts, with rubber washers and flanges
for bolting it to a heavy cold chilled plate that acts as a protection to the front of the
tine mechanism. A suitable stay shoulder or abutment, is provided at the end of
the lock to resist a strain from a back thrust of the bolt work. The case is hinged
at z', to this abutment and opens like a door.
In constructing the arms A, A, they are made heavy and drop from gravity to open
the lock in case the coil springs at their fulcrum give way. Furthermore if the
spring E should break, the lock will also open, as the slide sections would in that case
drop from gravity.
Instead of using a T-head on the lower slide section C for the main springs to
strike against in opening the time lock, levers L, L, see Fig. 7, may be pivoted to the
case and also to the slide section C³, so as to be acted upon by the springs.
To provide for the tripping of the mechanism at an earlier or later period by the
expansion of the main springs of the clock mechanism, a set screw S, may be placed
in the end of the arms of the T-head (or the levers of Figure 7) by turning which
set screws up or down the spring is made to strike them at an earlier or later
period.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is-
1. The combination, with the bolt work of a safe door, and a time lock having a
sliding locking bar, of a pivoted latch jointed to the locking har and arranged to be
connected to or disconnected from the bolt work, substantially as shown and
described.
2. The combination, of the locking bar B, having one or more locking arms B³,
one or mere segmental tumblers B, with slots B8, one or more levers A, loosely
connected to the tumbler, means for pulling down said lever to open the lock, and a
time mechanism for operating the same, substantially as shown and described.
3. The combination, of the locking bar B, having one or more locking arms B*,
one or more segmental tumblers B°, with slots B³, one or more levers A, with springs
for holding it up and a stud playing in the slot of the tumbler, means for pulling
down said lever, and a time mechanism for operating the same, substantially as shown
and described.
4. The combination, of a locking bar B, having two locking arms B, B', two
segmental tumblers B, B6, with slots Bs, the two levers A, A, pivoted upon a common
fulcrum at their inner ends and having their outer ends provided with studs working
in the siots of the tumblers, springs for holding up these lovers, a slide for pulling
down these levers, and a time mechanism arranged upon each side of said slide,
substantially as shown and described.
5. The combination, with the locking bar B, and the means for locking it against
withdrawal, of a time lock tripping and setting mechanism, having a loose connection
with the locking mechanism for the locking bar, whereby the tripping mechanism
may be reset while the locking bar is withdrawn or unlocked, substantially as
described.
same, and the
6. The combination, with the locking bar, the locking devices for the
time mechanism for operating them, of an arm or lever connected to the locking
devices, and arranged in relation to the main spring of the time mechanism so as to
be struck by the expansion of the same to open the time lock in case the spring
becomes broken or run down, as described.
7. The combination, with the locking bar B, having one or more arms B, the
segmental tumblers B, one or more levers A, loosely connected to said tumblers,
one or more link bars connected to said lever, a slide connected to said link and

page_text: made in two parts held together by a spring, and provided with a setting device and
tripping device, substantially as shown and described.
8. The combination, of slide section O, having spring bar C², with setting stud c¹,
and also rock. shaft C, with arms c and e, the lower slide section C', and tripping
devices for the two sections of the slide, a time mechanism for operating the tripping
devices, and a locking bar arranged to be released by the tripping of the slide,
substantially as shown and described.
9. The combination, of the locking bar B, tumblers for locking it, levers and
attached links A2, and a compound slide for unlocking bar B, consisting of parts C
and C, held together by a spring, the upper slide section being provided with a
spring set stud, and a rock shaft with tripping arms, a time mechanism for operating
the trip arms, and a lift spring E, for the compound slide, substantially as shown and
described.
10. The combination, with the locking mechanism, the set mechanism and the
time movement, of a special dial H, and of a tripping mechanism for the set
mechanism, consisting of a shaft F, operated by the time movement and having a
disk with a tripping tooth, and also an index hand sustaining the same radial position
to the zero point of the dial as the tripping tooth does to the set mechanism,
substantially as described.
11. The combination, of a dial having forty-eight sub-divisions, or sub-divisions
which are multiples of the hours of a day, a shaft F, baving two disks with tripping
teeth or arms and corresponding index hands, one index hand and toothed disk or
arm being made adjustable with reference to the other toothed disk and index hand,
substantially as shown and described.
12. The combination, in a time lock with a dial graduated into multiples of 24, of
an independent index hand with a corresponding tripping device for each multiple
of 24, substantially as and for the purpose described.
13. The combination, with the compound slide C, C¹, carrying a spring and a
setting device, and means for connecting it to the locking bolt, as described, of a
shaft F, bearing both a tripping device and a lifting can for raising and resetting
the upper section of the slide, substantially as shown and described.
14. In a time lock having a double time movement, the combination, with said time
movement and the tripping devices, of an independent train of gears from each time
movement to the tripping devices, and a compound gear wheel connecting the
time movement with the tripping devices for conjoint or independent action,
substantially as shown and described.
15. The compound wheel, consisting of two hollow, loose, toothed gears J, J', a shaft F,
bearing the tripping devices, and also a rigid ratchet wheel within the hollow gears,
and spring pawls connecting the sections of the compound wheel to the ratchet, in
combination with the two independent time movements and the tripping devices,
substantially as shown and described.
Dated this 27th day of May 1800
Dated this 27th day of May 1800
C. F. MYERS.
By A. M. & Wm., Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London, Patent Agents.