Electric Locking Device Spring-Loaded Slip Ring Contact
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electric locking devices for doors and windows face issues with maintaining reliable contact between the handle antenna and the evaluation circuit due to wear and tear, leading to unreliable operation and potential contamination, especially as tolerances increase over time.
Innovation Solution
A locking device with a spring-loaded slip ring connection ensures reliable contact between the handle and the evaluation circuit, allowing for easy assembly and compensation of tolerances, using a large area slip ring for secure contact and providing two antennas for enhanced functionality and signal strength evaluation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a point contact connection is used between the handle and evaluation circuit, then the structure is simple, but reliable contact cannot be ensured due to wear and increasing play over time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical point contact system (sliding contact with small contact plate) with a spring-loaded slip ring system that provides continuous surface contact. This substitution eliminates the wear and play issues inherent in point contact mechanical systems while maintaining electrical connectivity between the handle antenna and evaluation circuit.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a spring-loaded mechanism that dynamically adapts to wear and dimensional changes over time. The spring maintains constant contact pressure between the slip ring and contact surface, compensating for wear and ensuring continuous reliable electrical contact without requiring precise mechanical tolerances.
2Reliability
If a wire connection is used between the handle and evaluation circuit, then reliable contact can be ensured, but the assembly becomes more complex and difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the electrical connection function from the mechanical handle structure and implements it through a separate slip ring component. This allows the handle to be assembled independently and then easily connected to the evaluation circuit without requiring complex wire routing or direct electrical integration, simplifying both manufacturing and assembly processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The slip ring acts as an intermediary component between the handle and the evaluation circuit. It provides a reliable electrical connection interface that is easier to assemble than direct wire connections, while also serving as a mechanical interface that accommodates dimensional tolerances and wear through its spring-loaded design.
3Volume of stationary object
If a small contact area is used for the slip ring, then the structure is compact, but contact reliability decreases due to contamination and wear
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the contact area parameter of the slip ring from a small point contact to a larger surface area contact. This parameter change increases the contact reliability by distributing wear and contamination effects over a larger area, while the spring-loaded mechanism ensures consistent contact pressure across this expanded surface.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a reliable, durable, and contamination-insensitive connection, enabling secure and automatic operation of the lock based on signal strength, allowing authorized access and ensuring the lock is always open when an authorized person is inside, enhancing security and convenience.
Implementation Method 1
The contact is established via a sliding contact in the form of a small contact plate resting on a slip ring... The relatively large area of the slip ring results in a secure contact, with the slip ring also enabling the blocking device to be assembled easily... Tolerances that occur between the handle and the evaluation circuit can be compensated for by the spring-loaded preload
Implementation Method 2
very weak electrical signals emitted by the electric key are capacitively transmitted to the antenna of the lock via the person who is carrying the key
Data Source
AI summary
The electronic interlocking device comprises an electronic evaluation circuit (22) and a rotated handle (1), such as a knob or a pusher, where an electrode or an antenna is connected with the evaluation circuit for receiving the data containing signals of an authorized medium. The handle is provided as the electrode or antenna, where an abrasive ring (12) has a disk-shaped base body which is electrically provided in contact with a metallic lock washer (8) that is engaged with the handle in a circumferential groove (7).