Patent ID: 7028517

Claim:
A programmable cylinder lock comprising: a substantially cylindrical core having front and back ends and a keyway having a key entry at the core front end and extending along the core longitudinal axis toward a core back end, the keyway having a top wall and an opposed open bottom and opposed left and right sidewalls shaped to closely receive a key blade having opposed top and bottom edges and opposed left and right flanks; a substantially cylindrical shell having a longitudinal bore closely coaxially surrounding the outer surface of the core, wherein the core has a neutral position within the shell such that the keyway top and bottom are at 0 and 180 degree positions, respectively, relative to the axis when viewed from the keyway entry and the core can rotate within the shell bore when a properly coded key is fully inserted in the keyway; a plurality of tumbler bores located in the shell and penetrating the shell bore at a 0 degree angle relative to the neutral position of the core; a respective plurality of tumblers located in the tumbler bores and biased toward the shell bore so as to contact the core; a plurality of pin bores extending a uniform distance from the outer surface of the core to penetration of at least one keyway sidewall at an intermediate angle to the axis; an activator pin in at least one of the pin bores, said activator pin having a length substantially equal to said uniform distance and a shape for interacting with the pin bore such that the pin can freely enter into the keyway; and a filler pin in at least one of the pin bores, said filler pin having a length no greater than said uniform distance and a shape for interacting with the pin bore such that the pin cannot enter into the keyway.