Locks – Special application – For automotive vehicles
Patent
1990-07-26
1991-10-01
Wolfe, Robert L.
Locks
Special application
For automotive vehicles
70237, E05B 6512
Patent
active
050522043
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention concerns security devices for preventing the unauthorised operation of internal combustion engines.
The organized theft of motor vehicles has become endemic in most western countries. Most anti-theft devices currently on the market are, in fact, alarms. Some of these alarms suffer from being activated by car phones, two-way radios and the like. To be effective, alarms also rely on the intervention of third parties when an alarm goes off. In modern society there is a growing reluctance for third parties to act to protect the property of others. Furthermore, alarms are only effective against inexperienced thieves. Experienced thieves are able to deactivate the alarms before starting the car and harmlessly driving away. In many western countries substantial income has been earned by organized thieves who steal cars, take them to a safe garage, strip them and sell the parts to wreckers yards.
In order to provide a device that is more effective against such organized thieves, exhaust pipe caps have been developed which can be placed in position to effectively block the exhaust pipe thereby preventing the motor from running for long even if it is possible to get it started. U.S. Pat. No. 4,683,735 describes such a cap. U.K. Patent No. 2,193,531 describes a device having a lockable insert that can be fitted onto the end of an exhaust pipe. The insert blocks the exhaust pipe when in place. Both these devices however are located at a point in the exhaust system that is easy for a thief to attack and remove the device.
An object of the present invention is to provide an immobilizing device for a motor vehicle that is more difficult to remove.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a security device for an internal combustion engine having an exhaust outlet, said device comprising a valve mechanism for the exhaust outlet, valve control means for operating the valve mechanism and means for locking the valve control means, said valve mechanism being capable when installed and operated, of closing the inlets or outlet in which it is installed.
Provision of a valve control means enables the device installed to be operated any number of times. However the devices of the prior art require installation and removal each time the driver leaves the car and returns respectively.
Preferably the valve has a first member having a gate and a second member which is connected to the valve member and is capable of passing through the gate when it is in the open position to cause the valve member to move to an open or closed position but is incapable of passing through the gate when it is in the closed position thereby locking the valve member in the open or closed position, the valve control mechanism being connected to the first and second members such that it is capable of causing the gate of the first member to open or close and the second member to move through the gate when it is open.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention the first member comprises a rotatable lever having a head with a skirt depending therefrom, the skirt having a gap therein to define a gateway, the lever being rotatable about an axis and the second member comprises a rotatable lever having a head with a skirt depending therefrom in a direction opposite to the skirt of the second member and rotatable about an axis parallel to the axis of the first member such that when the first member is located with its gate in the open position, the skirt of the second member can pass through the gateway and when the first member is located in the closed position the skirt of the second member engages the skirt of the first member thereby preventing rotation of the second member.
In a further embodiment of the invention, the valve control mechanism comprises a housing, a rotatable disc attached to one end of an axle, a lockable rotatable control knob attached to the opposite end of the axle, a pair of slidable plates mounted inside the housing, each having one end of a pair of cables secured thereto, the cables being enclosed with sheaths, on
REFERENCES:
patent: 1060239 (1913-04-01), Empey
patent: 1282067 (1918-10-01), Gohring
patent: 1475275 (1923-11-01), Bowman
patent: 1570797 (1926-01-01), Thomas
patent: 1696957 (1929-01-01), Jacobi
patent: 3747378 (1973-07-01), Hiatt
patent: 4683735 (1987-08-01), Magrobi
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