Tools – Wrench – screwdriver – or driver therefor – Rigid jaws
Patent
1996-12-16
1999-09-14
Meislin, D. S.
Tools
Wrench, screwdriver, or driver therefor
Rigid jaws
70233, 411402, 411910, B25B 1306, B62H 500, E05B 7100, F16B 4100
Patent
active
059505060
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to locking device for bicycles, comprising a nut which can be screwed onto a threaded rod of the bicycle, a key part and a cap, the base of which, when the nut is located on its thread, is situated between the nut and a part of the bicycle which is opposite the nut, and the cylindrical wall of which cap surrounds the nut and ends in the region of the end face of the nut, and which cap, in the tightened state, is freely rotatable, the surfaces of the nuts of a plurality of bicycles differing from one another and that part of the key part of a bicycle which engages the nuts being adapted in a positively locking manner to certain nuts of this bicycle.
In a known locking device of this kind (U.S. Pat. No. 4,674,306), the key part is rigidly connected to a lock for locking the bicycle, for example to a fixed post. The differences in respect of the nut surfaces are limited to the end faces of the nut. The cap is positioned in a sliding manner, i.e. practically without clearance, on the nut (with a circular peripheral face).
This locking device has a number of drawbacks: the combination of key and lock is disadvantageous in as much as anyone who breaks open the lock then has the key at his disposal and can thus loosen the nut. Under certain circumstances it may even be that the key protection is unimportant for anyone who breaks open the lock, which can be carried out without a problem using an appropriate tool, since he is then able to steal the entire bicycle. The fact that the differences with respect to the nut surfaces are limited to the end faces of the nuts has the disadvantage that a thief can loosen a nut using hammer and chisel. He is also able to loosen the nuts if he compresses the cap using a strong pair of pliers and thus presses against the nut and then turns the cap and nut using the pair of pliers.
The object of the invention is to design the locking device mentioned at the outset such that greater security compared to the known case is provided with regard to loosening the nuts or theft of individual parts of the bicycle, in particular the wheels and/or the saddle.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This object is achieved according to the invention in that the key part is designed as a separate key, in that the peripheral surfaces of the nuts are different, and in that the cap is at such a short distance from that part of the nut which projects furthest radially outwards that the key can engage around the nut.
The key part is thus a pure key which can be taken away by the owner of the bicycle. A third party thus has virtually no way of coming into possession of the key. In addition, since the irregularities relate to the periphery of the nut, a thief is unable, or less able than in the known case, to loosen a nut with hammer and chisel. Finally, he is unable, or less able than before, to grip and then rotate a nut by deforming the cap; this is prevented by the distance which the cap is at from the nut (in particular>1 mm). By means of the separation according to the invention of lock and key, the bicycle can also be protected better overall against theft than with the U-shaped lock in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 4,674,306, which is relatively easy to break open; instead of this lock, a lock which is more difficult to break open, e.g. a steel-casing lock, is used.
The locking device according to the invention is primarily used to fasten a wheel shaft and/or a seatpost on the bicycle frame and/or a saddle on the seatpost. However, it is additionally also suitable, for example, for fastening the handlebars and/or the bottom bracket bearing on the frame.
A further development of the invention consists in the cap projecting slightly beyond the nut in the tightened state of the locking device. In this way, the nut is particularly well protected.
Furthermore, it is proposed that in the tightened state of the locking device, the outer wall of the cap runs conically away from the frame of the bicycle. As a result, the cap can no longer, or can scarcely, b
REFERENCES:
patent: 1658886 (1928-02-01), Dickey
patent: 2248695 (1941-07-01), Bradshaw
patent: 3034386 (1962-05-01), Corlett et al.
patent: 3060785 (1962-10-01), Corlett et al.
patent: 3709401 (1973-01-01), Walstrom
patent: 3930428 (1976-01-01), Hale
patent: 4151897 (1979-05-01), Schoch
patent: 4674306 (1987-06-01), Halpern
patent: 4732517 (1988-03-01), Crouch et al.
Meislin D. S.
Stone Mark P.
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