Motor lock with overload protection

Abstract

The present invention relates to a motorized lock with a locking bolt movable between a locking position and an unlocking position, and a drive motor which is coupled to the locking bolt via a drive mechanism comprising a rotatable gear element in the form of a gear that is at least partially toothed. The drive element is mounted on a bearing element so as to be translationally movable between an engaged position, in which a drive-effective connection to the drive motor exists, and a disengaged position, in which the drive-effective connection is released. The drive element is preloaded in the direction of the engaged position by a preload element to allow it to move translationally into the disengaged position in the event of overloading of the drive mechanism.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a motor lock according to the preamble of claim 1, as is essentially known from WO 2019 / 042 993 A1.

[0002] Such motor locks are used to selectively lock and unlock doors, gates, or windows. The locking bolt can, for example, be a sliding locking bolt or a pivoting locking hook. To increase burglary protection, a motor lock can also be equipped with multiple locking bolts that can be adjusted individually or together. An electric motor can serve as the drive motor, which acts on the movable locking bolt via a gear mechanism. Furthermore, such motor locks, such as the one described in the aforementioned WO document, can be manually operated via a locking cylinder using a key, thus enabling the locking bolt to be switched between its locked and unlocked positions.

[0003] Since the gear mechanism of such a motor lock is generally self-locking, in the event of a drive motor failure or a defect in the gear mechanism, it may be impossible to manually return the locking bar to its unlocked position using the locking cylinder to open the motor lock. Furthermore, the motor lock may jam in the unlocked position of the locking bar. If the drive motor lock is actuated in this case to move the locking bar to its locked position, the gear mechanism may be overloaded.

[0004] The invention is therefore based on the object of protecting a generic motor lock from excessive stress on the gear mechanism and of providing measures that allow the motor lock to be manually unlocked, for example, in the event of a defect in the drive motor and / or the gear mechanism, provided that the motor lock has a corresponding actuating element for manually actuating the locking bolt.

[0005] This object is achieved by a motor lock having the features of claim 1 and in particular in that the gear element is mounted on a bearing element so as to be translationally movable and thus floating between an engaged position in which there is a drive-effective connection between the gear element and the drive motor and a disengaged position in which the drive-effective connection is interrupted, wherein the gear element is preloaded by a preloading element in the direction of its engaged position.

[0006] If, for example, the gear mechanism is overloaded with a locking bar stuck in the unlocked position, the gear element can deflect translationally into its disengaged position, in which the drive connection between the drive motor and the gear element is eliminated. If the forces transmitted by or to the gear element exceed a certain threshold, this results in the forces acting on the inclined tooth flanks of the gear element being converted into a translational deflection movement of the gear element.If, for example, the drive motor is actuated while the locking bolt is stuck in its unlocked position, the gear element can move into its disengaged position and consequently slip through when the drive motor is continued to be actuated, so that the gear device and / or the drive motor cannot be overloaded.

[0007] If the motor lock also features an actuator, such as a key-operated locking cylinder, the motor lock can be unlocked using this actuator even if the gear mechanism and / or drive motor are defective. If, in this case, an attempt is made to move the locking bolt into its unlocked position via the locking cylinder in order to open the motor lock, the gear mechanism can slip into its disengaged position due to the self-locking nature of the gear mechanism as soon as the forces acting on the gear mechanism exceed a certain level due to manual operation of the motor lock.In this case, the gear element moves into its disengaged position due to manual operation, so that the locking bolt can be moved into its unlocked position by means of the locking cylinder due to the fact that there is no longer any drive-effective connection between the gear device and the locking cylinder.

[0008] If it is then possible to release a possibly stuck locking bolt and / or to repair a defect in the drive motor and / or the gear mechanism, the gear element is automatically pushed back into its engaged position by the pre-tensioning effect of the pre-tensioning element, so that the motor lock can then be operated again by motor.

[0009] Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be discussed below. Further embodiments may also emerge from the dependent claims, the description of the figures, and the figures themselves.

[0010] Thus, according to one embodiment, the gear element can mesh with an intermediate gear driven by the drive motor, wherein the gear element is mounted for translational movement in the direction of the rotational center or center of the intermediate gear. The direction of movement in which the gear element is movable due to its translational movement is thus aligned with the center of the intermediate gear. The forces acting between the tooth flanks of the two meshing gears can thus be effectively converted into the desired evasive movement of the gear element.

[0011] According to a further embodiment, the gear element can accommodate a circular ring-shaped rotating ring bearing, which in turn accommodates the preload element. The preload element is thus located, so to speak, within the gear element, so that the preload element does not take up any additional installation space in the motor lock.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment, a circular segment-shaped or substantially semicircular bearing shell is formed on the bearing element, which is received by the rotating ring bearing and which, in turn, partially accommodates the preload element. In particular, it can be provided that the preload element is supported on the bearing shell in order to urge the transmission element toward the intermediate gear.

[0013] The preload element can, in particular, be an elastically compressible spring element. In particular, it can be provided that the spring element comprises a first circular segment section, which is received by the bearing shell and which engages the inner circumference in a drivingly effective manner, and a second circular segment section diametrically opposite the first circular segment section, which engages an inner circumference section of the rotating ring bearing. Due to the fact that the preload element is inherently compressible, it is thus tensioned between the bearing shell and the rotating ring bearing, so that the gear element is always urged into its engaged position by the preload element.

[0014] According to yet another embodiment, it can be provided that the two circular segment sections of the prestressing element are connected to one another via at least two spring struts, which can be elastically deflected in such a way that the second circular segment section can approach the first circular segment section. In particular, the spring struts can have a V-shape with two legs each, wherein the free end of one leg is connected to the first circular segment section and the free end of the other leg is connected to the second circular segment section. Preferably, the two spring struts are oriented such that tips formed by the two legs of the respective spring strut point towards one another. In other words, one spring strut is rotated by 180 degrees compared to the other spring strut.This allows the spring struts to occupy the space between the two circular segment sections, so that no additional space is required for the spring struts within the motor lock.

[0015] In order to be able to lock and unlock the motor lock using the drive motor, a further embodiment can provide a driver on the gear element that protrudes axially from the gear element. Upon rotation of the gear element in a first direction of rotation, the driver reaches a first coupling position in which, via a first control element of the motor lock, a first operative connection exists between the gear element and the locking bar. This connection transfers the locking bar into its unlocked position upon continued rotation of the gear element in the first direction of rotation.When the gear element rotates in a second direction of rotation opposite to the first direction of rotation, the driver reaches a second coupling position in which a second control element of the motor lock creates a second operative connection between the gear element and the locking bolt, which moves the locking bolt into its locking position as the gear element continues to rotate in the second direction of rotation. Therefore, when the gear element is rotated in the first direction of rotation, the locking bolt is moved into its unlocked position via the driver and the first control element. However, when the gear element is rotated in its second direction of rotation, the locking bolt is moved into its locking position via the driver and the second control element.

[0016] Since the motor lock is accessible in the unlocked position for removal in the event of a defect in the drive motor and / or the transmission device, it may be desirable for the previously described overload protection to only be effective when the motor lock is locked and thus cannot be removed. Accordingly, according to a further embodiment, the motor lock can be provided with a stop that prevents translational deflection of the transmission element due to excessive stress on the transmission device when the first coupling position is reached.If the motor lock is unlocked by motor via the first control element and a defect occurs in this position, for example, in the gear mechanism, the locking bolt cannot be manually moved into its locked position, for example, using a locking cylinder. This would otherwise result in the previously described slipping of the gear mechanism, which would, over time, undesirably lead to increased wear on the gear mechanism and, in particular, on the gear mechanism itself. Therefore, to prevent wear-related failure of the gear mechanism, the stop prevents the gear mechanism from slipping in the first coupling position, as the motor lock can be removed for repair in this position.

[0017] According to a further embodiment, it can be provided that the gear element has a decoupling position between the two coupling positions, in each of which there is a drive-effective coupling between the drive motor and the locking bolt, in which decoupling position the drive-effective coupling between the drive motor and the locking bolt is interrupted, and that the motor lock has a control device which is designed to place the gear element in one of the coupling positions for a motor-driven switching of the locking bolt and to place it in the decoupling position for a manual switching of the locking bolt.

[0018] The active connection between the drive motor and the locking bolt is thus interrupted during manual lock operation. Therefore, no power is transferred to the drive motor during manual locking or unlocking, allowing the locking cylinder to be operated with minimal force. However, during motorized lock operation, the gear element in the coupled position ensures that the drive force of the drive motor is transferred to the locking bolt in the desired manner.

[0019] Preferably, the control device is designed to return the gear element to the uncoupling position after each motor-driven adjustment of the locking bolt. The drive-effective coupling between the drive motor and the locking bolt is thus only established when necessary, i.e., when a motor-driven adjustment is to be performed. This ensures that the user can manually operate the motor lock practically at any time with minimal effort.

[0020] As already mentioned, the gear element can be placed in two different coupling positions, each of which provides a drive-effective coupling between the drive motor and the locking bolt. The decoupling position, on the other hand, is located between the two coupling positions, i.e., in a middle position, so to speak. This opens up the possibility of providing a different transmission path for motorized locking than for motorized unlocking. In each of the two coupling positions, one of the two transmission paths is active, while the other is inactive. From the decoupling position, the gear element can be moved into both the first and second coupling positions without first reaching the other coupling position.

[0021] The control device can be an electronic control device that correspondingly controls an electromagnetic actuator coupled to the transmission element. In particular, the control device can be designed to adjust the transmission element between the first and second coupling positions and the decoupling position by controlling the drive motor. In this case, no separate drive is required to adjust the transmission element. Rather, the adjustment of the transmission element to a coupling position and the switching of the locking bolt to the locking position can be carried out directly one after the other by means of the drive motor during continuous motor operation.Likewise, the setting of the gear element into the at least one decoupling position and the switching of the locking bolt into the unlocking position by means of the drive motor can take place directly one after the other during continuous motor operation.

[0022] As already mentioned, the gear element interacts with the locking bolt via a driver, which on the one hand is able to act on a control element operatively connected to the locking bolt when the gear element moves towards one of the coupling positions, and on the other hand can be moved into a retracted position spaced from the control element by moving the gear element towards the decoupling position. By retracting the driver from the control element, the drive connection between the drive motor and the locking bolt is severed, and no power is transmitted from the locking bolt to the drive motor during manual lock operation. By moving the gear element in the opposite direction, the driver can be moved back towards the control element.As soon as it hits this, there is a drive-effective coupling between the transmission element and the control element in the corresponding direction.

[0023] Preferably, the driver in the retracted position is positioned completely outside the movement path of the respective control element. During manual lock operation, the control element can thus be moved along with the locking bolt in any desired manner without transmitting force to the drive motor. The control element can move freely between its extreme positions, defined, for example, by stops.

[0024] It can be provided that the locking bolt can be adjusted by moving a transmission element, wherein the driver is arranged on the gear element and is able to actuate the transmission element directly or indirectly upon movement of the gear element in the direction of one of the coupling positions. The transmission element can be a movable plate, rod or the like that can be coupled to one or more drive rod elements and is provided for controlling the locking bolt, for example via one or more pivot bolts. By means of such a transmission element, it is easily possible to set not only the locking bolt but also other locking elements, e.g. the locking bolts of secondary locks of the motor lock, into the locking position to lock the motor lock.

[0025] Furthermore, it can be provided that the gear element is rotatable about a rotational axis, and the driver is formed by a projection that protrudes axially from the gear element with respect to the rotational axis. This enables a particularly simple construction. Preferably, the projection is formed integrally with the rotatable gear element.

[0026] A special embodiment of the invention provides that the projection has an at least substantially circular sector-shaped cross-section in a sectional plane extending perpendicular to the rotational axis. The surfaces extending obliquely to one another can form loading surfaces, which, after a rotation of the gear element into the movement path of the control element, extend substantially transversely to the displacement direction of the control element, which is advantageous with regard to force transmission.

[0027] According to a further embodiment, the two control elements can be located on either side of the rotation axis, wherein the first control element can be acted upon by the driver when the gear element rotates in a first direction of rotation, and the second control element can be acted upon by the driver when the gear element rotates in an opposite second direction of rotation. Starting from a center position, either one or the other control element can be acted upon by rotating the gear element, depending on the direction of rotation.

[0028] The control elements can each be designed as a flat iron with a loading projection protruding from a flat side, particularly at the end. The loading projections can, in particular, point toward each other. Furthermore, the control elements can be slidably mounted in a lock housing of the motor lock.

[0029] Furthermore, it can be provided that the movement path of the first control element runs parallel to the movement path of the second control element at a predetermined distance, and that the driver, in the retracted position, is arranged entirely in the space between the two movement paths. By rotating the gear element to the center position corresponding to the retracted position of the driver, a complete interruption of the operative connection between the drive motor and the control elements can be achieved.

[0030] According to a further embodiment, it can be provided that the first control element and the second control element are to be acted upon in the same displacement direction, wherein one of the control elements is directly attached to a displaceable transmission element or is formed integrally with it, and the other control element is operatively connected to the transmission element via a conversion device, which effects a reversal of direction with respect to the displacement directions of the respective control element and the transmission element. Thus, both control elements can be designed for actuation in the same direction, wherein the driver selectively causes the locking bolt to extend or retract, depending on which control element is acted upon.

[0031] A special design can consist in the motor lock comprising a base lock body in which the locking cylinder and the locking bolt are mounted, and in the drive motor being attached to an additional lock body that is detachably coupled to the base lock body. Such a motor lock can be easily converted into a lock that can only be operated manually by detaching the additional lock body from the base lock body. Similarly, an existing manually operated lock can be converted into a motor lock by coupling the additional lock body to the base lock body.

[0032] The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 shows a side view of a generic motor lock with the cover plate removed; Fig. 2 shows a partial perspective view of the motor lock of the Fig. 1Fig. 3 shows a gear mechanism of the motor lock of the Fig. 1 from one opposite Fig. 1 opposite side; Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of the gear mechanism of the Fig. 3 shows; Fig. 5 shows a side view of a section of a motor lock designed according to the invention and in particular of an additional lock body; and Fig. 6 shows an exploded view of the additional lock body of the Fig. 5 shows.

[0033] The Fig. 1 The motor lock 11 shown has a basic lock housing 12, on which a follower 13 for a manually operable handle (not shown), a lock latch 15 and a locking bolt 17 are mounted in a generally known manner. The locking bolt 17 can be switched between a locking position and an unlocking position and in Fig. 1shown in the unlocked position. A locking cylinder (not shown) is inserted into a recess 19 of the base lock housing 12 and can be operated by turning a key. By operating the locking cylinder, the locking bolt 17 can be manually switched from the unlocked position to the locked position and vice versa.

[0034] In addition to this manual adjustment via the locking cylinder, a motor-driven adjustment of the locking bolt 17 can also be carried out. For this purpose, a drive motor 20 is provided, which is housed in an additional lock housing 21 and is preferably designed as an electric motor. An electronic control device 25 for controlling the drive motor 20 is also housed in the additional lock housing 21. Furthermore, a gear device 27 assigned to the drive motor 20 is located in the additional lock housing 21. In the embodiment shown, the additional lock housing 21 is detachably coupled to the base lock housing 12 so that it can be removed if necessary in order to use the motor lock 11 as a manual lock. In principle, the additional lock housing 21 could also be designed to be integrated with the base lock housing 12.For better visibility of the components of the motor lock 11, the basic lock housing 12 and the additional lock housing 21 are in . Fig. 1 each without the usual cover plate 104 (see Fig. 6 ) is shown.

[0035] Fig. 2 shows the area of ​​the recess 19 in an enlarged perspective view. The locking bolt 17 is coupled via a pivot lever arrangement 34 to a plate-shaped transmission element 30, which is mounted in the lock housing 12 so as to be displaceable in the direction of the double arrow 35. A change lever 36 is displaceably mounted on the cover plate 104 (not shown) (see Fig. 6 ) and coupled to the transmission element 30.

[0036] At a lower end portion of the transmission element 30, a retaining pin 38 is attached, via which a first, displaceable in the additional lock housing 21 ( Fig. 1) mounted control element 40 can be coupled to the transmission element 30. For better visibility, Fig. 2 The first control element 40 is shown separated from the transmission element 30, so that there is no engagement between the retaining pin 38 and the associated receptacle 43 of the first control element 40. However, if the retaining pin 38 is located in the receptacle 43, the locking bolt 17 can be switched between the locking position and the unlocking position by moving the first control element 40.

[0037] A second control element 45 is arranged at a distance from the first control element 40 and is also slidably mounted in the additional lock housing 21. In the illustrated embodiment, both the first control element 40 and the second control element 45 are designed as elongated flat irons.

[0038] The second control element 45 serves to actuate a drive element 50, which is slidably mounted on the base lock housing 12, and a drive lever 53, which is coupled to the transmission element 30 via a control lever 55. For the linearly displaceable guidance of the drive element 50, a guide projection 56 is arranged thereon, which is received in an elongated recess in the cover plate 104 (not shown). Fig. 6 ) is guided in a sliding manner. A first end 57 of the drive element 50 projects into the path of movement of a locking lug of the locking cylinder (not shown) and can be acted upon by it. The drive lever 53 also projects with its free end into the path of movement of the locking lug.

[0039] A second end 59 of the drive element 50 serves to actuate a safety transmission lever 60, by means of which a safety element (not shown) can be switched from a safety position to a release position.

[0040] The safety element prevents the locking bolt 17 from being moved into the locking position when it is in the safety position.

[0041] When the locking cylinder's locking lug rotates counterclockwise as a result of a key operation, it initially acts on the first end 57 of the drive element 50 and pushes it upward. As a result of this movement, the second end 59 of the drive element 50 acts on the safety transmission lever 60 and pivots it such that the safety element is extended into its unlocked position. As a result, the transmission element 30 can move freely.

[0042] During the movement of the drive element 50, a driver section 61 formed in the region of the first end 57 acts on the drive lever 53 and also moves it upward. This causes the transmission element 30 to move downward. As a result, the motor lock 11 is locked by turning the key of the locking cylinder counterclockwise.

[0043] By turning the key in the locking cylinder clockwise, the change lever 36 can be moved upwards, whereby the transmission element 30 is raised and the motor lock 11 is unlocked again. Unlocking of the lock 11 by lifting the transmission element 30 can also be achieved via the follower 13 ( Fig. 1 ). An embodiment of the invention (not shown) provides that the safety transmission lever 60 and the drive lever 53 are actuated by a pusher, knob or handle instead of by a locking cylinder.

[0044] The two control elements 40, 45 can be used to motorize the locking bolt 17 between the locked position and the unlocked position, as explained in more detail below. Fig. 3 and 4 As can be seen, the drive motor 20 has a drive shaft 62, by means of which a worm gear 63 can be driven, which meshes with an intermediate gear 67. The intermediate gear 67 has an outer gear ring 68 and an inner gear ring 69, which can only be seen in rear view. While the outer gear ring 68 meshes with the worm gear 63, the inner gear ring 69 meshes with a gear element 70 in the form of a further gear, which in the embodiment according to the Figures 1 , 3 and 4 is rotatably mounted about a fixed rotation axis 78.

[0045] On a side surface 73 of the gear element 70, an axially projecting projection 75 is formed, which, as shown, has a substantially circular sector-shaped cross-section. When the gear element 70 is in the Fig. 3 When the control element 40, 45 is in a decoupling or central position, as shown, the projection 75 is arranged between the two control elements 40, 45. Respective mutually facing loading projections 76, 77 of the control elements 40, 45 project into the path of movement that the projection 75 executes upon rotation of the gear element 70 about the rotation axis 78.

[0046] If the gear element 70 starting from the position shown in Fig. 3shown central position is rotated counterclockwise, the projection 75 strikes the application projection 76 of the first control element 40 after overcoming the recognizable gap and moves this upwards in the direction of the arrow 80, whereby the transmission element 30 is raised and the locking bolt 17 is moved into the unlocking position.

[0047] If the gear element 70 starting from the position shown in Fig. 3 When the locking element 45 is rotated clockwise to the center position shown, the projection 75, after overcoming the gap, strikes the application projection 77 of the second control element 45 and displaces it upward in the direction of arrow 80, whereby the securing element is moved into the unlocking position, the transmission element 30 is lowered, and the locking bolt 17 is moved into the locking position. In this way, it is possible to lock and unlock the motor lock 11 by appropriately controlling the drive motor 20.

[0048] When the gear element 70 is in the center position and the projection 75 is accordingly spaced from the application projections 76, 77, there is no drive-effective coupling between the drive motor 20 and the locking bolt 17. Upon actuation of the locking cylinder, the drive shaft 62 of the drive motor 20 is thus not rotated, resulting in smooth actuation of the locking cylinder. The control device 25 is designed to return the gear element 70 to the center position according to Fig. 3 so that the motor lock 11 can be operated easily by hand at any time.

[0049] As previously explained, in the embodiment according to the Figures 1 , 3 and 4the gear element 70 is rotatably mounted about the fixed rotation axis 78. In contrast, in the embodiment according to the invention according to the Figures 5 and 6 provided that the gear element 70 is mounted in a floating manner in the additional lock housing 21, so that in the event of an overload of the gear device 27, it can move into a disengaged position in which it no longer meshes with the inner gear ring 69 of the intermediate gear 67.

[0050] According to the invention, it is particularly provided that the gear element 70 is mounted on a housing-fixed bearing element 82 so as to be translationally movable between an engaged position, in which it meshes with the inner gear ring 69 of the intermediate gear 67, and a disengaged position, in which the meshing connection with the inner gear ring 69 is canceled, wherein the gear element 70 is preloaded in the direction of its engaged position by a preloading element 84 made of a plastic material. If the gear element 70 therefore deviates towards its disengaged position, it is tended to be pushed back towards its engaged position by the preloading element 84. The direction of movement in which the gear element 70 can deviate due to its translationally movable mounting is limited to the center orthe axis of rotation of the intermediate gear 67, which means that the direction of movement of the gear element 70 passes through the axis of rotation of the intermediate gear 67.

[0051] In the following, the floating bearing of the gear element 70 will be discussed in more detail: As can be seen from the perspective view of the Fig. 5 can be removed, the bearing element 82 is formed as a type of base on a housing shell 102 of the additional lock housing 21. This, in turn, has a circular segment-shaped and, in particular, substantially semicircular bearing shell 86, which is received by a rotating ring bearing 88, which in turn is received by the gear element 70. Likewise, the bearing shell 86 receives a portion of the preloading element 84, wherein the preloading element 84 is supported on the bearing shell 84 in order to urge the gear element 70 in the direction of the intermediate gear 67.

[0052] As in particular the Fig. 5can be removed, the preload element 84 has a first circular segment section 90 and a second circular segment section 92. The first circular segment section 90 is received by the bearing shell 86 and bears against its inner circumference. In contrast, the second circular segment section 92 bears against an inner circumference section of the rotating ring bearing 88, which is diametrically opposite the inner circumference of the bearing shell 86, against which the first circular segment section 90 bears. Although the two circular segment sections 90, 92 already impart a certain inherent elasticity to the preload element 84 due to their convex curvature, the two circular segment sections 90, 92 are elastically connected to one another via two spring struts 94, so that the second circular segment section 92 can be moved towards the first circular segment section 90 counter to the preload effect of the two spring struts 94.Specifically, each spring strut 96 is formed by two legs 96 connected to each other in a V-shape, with the free end of one leg 96 connected to the first circular segment section 90 and the free end of the other leg 96 connected to the second circular segment section 92. The tips of the spring struts 94 formed by the two legs 96 point toward each other. Upon deflection of the two spring struts 94, the tips in question thus move toward each other, thereby limiting the maximum stroke of the preload element 84.

[0053] To prevent unwanted rotation of the preload element 84, radially inwardly projecting projections 98 are formed on the two free ends of the bearing shell 86, against which the free ends of the first circular segment portion rest. The first circular segment portion 90 is thus held in a form-fitting manner in the bearing shell 86, preventing the preload element 84 from rotating in the desired manner.

[0054] If, for example, the gear element 70 or its projection 75 is now in the position due to a clockwise rotation (the direction of rotation refers to the Fig. 3 ) in the second coupling position, in which the projection 75 rests against the application projection 77 of the second control element 45 in order to move it in the direction of the arrow 80 ( Fig. 3) upwards in order to move the locking bolt 17 into its locking position, and if at the same time an attempt is made to manually move the locking bolt 17 into its unlocking position by actuating the locking cylinder, this can result in the second control element 45 being forced downwards against the motor actuating force in the opposite direction of the arrow 80. If the force applied by the drive motor 20 and / or the force applied via the locking cylinder exceeds a certain value, this can result in the gear element 70 being able to move into its disengaged position against the pretensioning effect of the pretensioning element 84, in which position the locking bolt 17 can be manually moved into its unlocking position by means of the locking cylinder.

[0055] Since such slippage of the gear element 70 places significant stress on both the top surfaces of the teeth of the gear element 70 and those of the inner gear ring 69 of the intermediate gear 67, it may be desirable to permit such slippage of the gear element 70 only in the second coupling position, since in this position the motor lock 11 is locked and thus no access to the motor lock 11 for repair purposes is possible. Therefore, to prevent slippage in the unlocked position of the locking bolt 17, in which the motor lock 11 can be removed for maintenance purposes, the motor lock 11 has a stop 100 fixed to the housing, which prevents translational deflection of the gear element 70 when the projection 75 is in its first coupling position.In other words, the projection 75 rests against the stop 100 in its first coupling position, whereby a deflection of the gear element 70 into its disengaged position and thus a slipping of the gear element 70 can be prevented. List of reference symbols:

[0056] 11Motor lock 12Basic lock housing 13Lever follower 15Lock latch 17Locking bolt 19Recess 20Drive motor 21Additional lock housing 25Electronic control device 27Gear device 30Transmission element 34Swivel lever arrangement 35Double arrow 36Change lever 38Retaining pin 40First control element 43Receptacle 45Second control element 50Drive element 53Drive lever 55Control lever 56Guide projection 57First end 59Second end 61Carrier section 60Securing transmission lever 62Drive shaft 63Worm gear 67Intermediate gear 68Outer gear ring 69Inner gear ring 70Gear element 75Protrusion 76, 77Loading approach 78Rotation axis 80Arrow 82Bearing element 84Preload element 86Bearing shell 88Swivel ring bearing 90First circular segment section 92Second circular segment section 94Spring struts 96Legs 98Protrusions 100Stop 102Housing shell 104Cover plate

Claims

1. Motor lock (11) with a locking bolt (17) movable between a locking position and an unlocking position and a drive motor (20) which is drivingly coupled to the locking bolt (17) via a gear device (27) which comprises a rotatable gear element (70) in the form of a gearwheel which is toothed at least in some areas; characterized in that the gear element (70) is mounted on a bearing element (82) between an engaged position in which there is a drive-effective connection to the drive motor (20) and a disengaged position in which the drive-effective connection is canceled, and is preloaded by a prestressing element (84) in the direction of the engaged position in order to be able to move translationally into the disengaged position in the event of an overload of the gear device (27).

2. Motor lock (11) according to claim 1, characterized in thatthe gear element (70) meshes with an intermediate gear (67) driven by the drive motor (20), wherein the gear element (70) is mounted so as to be translationally movable in the direction of the center of the intermediate gear (67).

3. Motor lock (11) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the gear element (70) accommodates an annular rotary ring bearing (88), which in turn accommodates the preload element (84).

4. Motor lock (11) according to claim 3, characterized in that the bearing element (82) comprises a circular segment-shaped bearing shell (86) which is received by the rotating ring bearing (88) and which in turn receives the preload element (84).

5. Motor lock (11) according to claim 4, characterized in that the preloading element (84) is supported on the bearing shell (86) in order to urge the gear element (70) in the direction of the intermediate gear (67).

6. Motor lock (11) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in thatthe prestressing element (84) is an elastically compressible spring element.

7. Motor lock (11) according to claim 6, characterized in that the spring element comprises a first circular segment section (90) which is received by the bearing shell (86) and bears against the inner circumference thereof, and a second circular segment section (92) which is diametrically opposite the first circular segment section (90) and bears against an inner circumference section of the rotating ring bearing (88).

8. Motor lock (11) according to claim 7, characterized in that the two circular segment sections (90, 92) of the prestressing element (84) are connected to one another via at least two spring struts (94) which are deflectable in order to enable the second circular segment section (92) to approach the first circular segment section (90).

9. Motor lock (11) according to claim 8, characterized in thateach spring strut (94) has a V-shaped configuration with two legs (96), the free end of one leg (96) being connected to the first circular segment section (90) and the free end of the other leg (96) being connected to the second circular segment section (92).

10. Motor lock (11) according to claim 9, characterized in that the spring struts (94) are oriented such that tips formed by the two legs (96) of the respective spring strut (94) point towards each other.

11. Motor lock (11) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in thata driver (75) is provided on the gear element (70), which protrudes from the gear element (70) in the axial direction, wherein the driver (95) reaches a first coupling position upon rotation of the gear element (70) in a first direction of rotation, in which a first operative connection exists between the gear element (70) and the locking bar (17) via a first control element (40), which moves the locking bar (17) into its unlocking position upon rotation of the gear element (70) in the first direction of rotation, and wherein the driver reaches a second coupling position upon rotation of the gear element (70) in a second direction of rotation opposite to the first direction of rotation, in which a second operative connection exists between the gear element and the locking bar (17) via a second control element (45), which moves the locking bar (17) into its locking position upon rotation of the gear element (70) in the second direction of rotation;wherein the motor lock (11) has a stop (100) which, when the first coupling position is reached, prevents a translational deflection of the gear element (70) as a result of an overload of the gear device (27); 12. Motor lock (11) according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the motor lock (11) further comprises an adjusting element for manually actuating the locking bolt (17), wherein it is provided in particular that the adjusting element is a locking cylinder with a rotatable locking nose that can be actuated by means of a key.

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