Nested Access Barrier Reducing Structural Bulk
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional access control systems for restricted areas, such as public transit stations, face challenges in preventing unauthorized access while maintaining accessibility for disabled persons and reducing the bulk of the structure, which can lead to feelings of confinement and restricted passage width.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an access control device with a primary barrier and secondary entry and exit barriers that retract into trunk portions, allowing authorized passage while preventing unauthorized access and minimizing structural bulk, enabling handicapped-accessible passages to share a common trunk with adjacent passages.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an airlock type access control with two barriers (entrance and exit) is used to prevent unauthorized access, then unauthorized passage is prevented, but the structure requires significant bulk and hardware support, resulting in loss of useful width on the control line
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nesting by placing the exit barrier inside the entrance barrier structure. The exit barrier is positioned within the space defined by the entrance barrier, allowing both barriers to coexist in a compact configuration. This nested arrangement prevents unauthorized passage while minimizing the overall structural footprint and preserving useful width on the control line.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a linear arrangement of barriers to a spatial configuration where the exit barrier is positioned in three-dimensional space within the entrance barrier's envelope. This dimensional reorganization allows the system to maintain security functionality while reducing the two-dimensional footprint on the control line.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the passage width is increased to accommodate wheelchairs and disabled persons, then accessibility is improved, but multiple persons can potentially pass through simultaneously, permitting unauthorized passage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the passage control function into two distinct barriers: an entrance barrier and an exit barrier. This segmentation allows the passage to be controlled in stages, maintaining security while accommodating wider passage dimensions for accessibility. The segmented control prevents unauthorized passage even when the passage width accommodates multiple persons or wheelchairs.
Solution Approach 2:
The entrance barrier performs preliminary action by controlling access before the user reaches the exit point. This preliminary control mechanism ensures that only authorized persons can enter the passage, while the wider passage design accommodates accessibility needs. The preliminary action at the entrance prevents unauthorized passage before it can occur at the exit.
3Ease of operation
If conventional fan-shaped barriers with retracting portions are used, then passage is permitted when barriers retract, but it is relatively easy for a person to straddle and climb over the barrier
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the functions of multiple barriers into a coordinated system where the entrance barrier and exit barrier work together. This combined approach maintains ease of operation for authorized passage while the dual-barrier configuration prevents straddling and climbing, as unauthorized persons would need to overcome both barriers in sequence rather than bypassing a single barrier.
Data Source
AI summary
An access control device includes a primary access barrier configured move between a closed position and an open position. The primary access barrier may be configured to extend into an access passage of the access control device to prevent access through the access passage when in the closed position and to move away from the access passage to permit access through the access passage when in an open position. An entry access barrier is positionable in the access passage of the access control device on a first side of the primary access barrier, and an exit barrier is positionable in the access passage of the access control device on a second side of the primary access barrier opposite the first side. Systems and methods relate to access control devices.