Lock Box Window for Visual Audit Without Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional lock boxes in industrial settings require all authorized individuals to be present to open and inspect the contents, making the process time-consuming and inefficient during maintenance or audits.
Innovation Solution
A lock box design with a transparent window and internal organization system that allows locks and keys to be arranged in an array, enabling visual inspection without opening the box, using a lock organization support plate and securement bracket to secure locks and a key holder for visibility of keys through the window.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a lock box is secured with a lockable lid and internal cavity for storing locks, then security and protection of locks are improved, but inspection and auditing become time-consuming and inefficient requiring all authorized individuals to be present
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical action of opening the lock box with optical viewing through a window. The window allows visual inspection of lock contents without mechanical opening, substituting the mechanical system (opening/closing) with an optical system (viewing through transparent material), thereby eliminating the time loss associated with opening the box for inspection while maintaining security
Solution Approach 2:
The window acts as an intermediary element between the interior cavity and the exterior environment. It mediates the need for security (keeping the box closed) and the need for inspection (viewing contents) by providing a transparent interface that allows visual access without compromising the locked state of the container
2Ease of operation
If locks are loosely stored in the internal cavity, then ease of access is improved, but organization and visibility for inspection deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the internal cavity into multiple compartments or organized sections using dividers or racks. This segmentation allows locks to be arranged in an organized array rather than loose storage, improving visibility through the window while maintaining ease of access by providing designated locations for each lock
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs transparent or translucent materials for the window and potentially for organizational elements within the cavity. This allows light to pass through, making the arranged locks visible from the exterior while maintaining the security of the closed box, thereby solving the visibility issue without compromising security
Data Source
AI summary
Lock boxes and methods of removably storing locks that have key holes and are operable with keys are provided. The lock boxes include a container body having an exterior and an interior cavity defined by walls of the container body with a window for viewing the interior cavity from the exterior, and structure within the interior cavity configured for arranging locks removably placed within the interior cavity so that the locks are arranged in an array and so that the key holes of the locks or any keys inserted therein are simultaneously visible through the window and so that all of the locks within the interior cavity can be audited through the window to confirm that the keys thereof are within the locks without accessing the interior cavity of the container body. Keys removed from locks that have been removed from the interior cavity can be similarly audited.