Patent ID: 7703241

Claim:
A security gate for controlling passage of personnel, through an accessway to or from a controlled-access region, the security gate comprising: (a) a first support structure deployed on a first side of the accessway; (b) a second support structure deployed on a second side of the accessway opposite said first support structure; (c) for each of said first and second support structures, a first set of vertically-spaced elongated barrier elements extending from said support structure in a first barrier formation and a second set of vertically-spaced elongated barrier elements extending from said support structure in a second barrier formation; and (d) a mechanical actuator system deployed so as to synchronously move at least said first and second barrier formations of said first and second support structures such that: (i) said first and second barrier formations assume a first state in which said first barrier formations are spaced apart to allow entrance of a person into the gate from an entrance side while said elongated barrier elements of said second barrier formations of said first and second support structures are at least partially interspaced so as to prevent passage of a person from the gate to an exit side, and (ii) said first and second barrier formations assume a second state in which said second barrier formations are spaced apart to allow exit of a person from the gate to an exit side while said elongated barrier elements of said first barrier formations of said first and second support structures are at least partially interspaced so as to prevent entry of a person from the entrance side into the gate.