Combination Rotary Lock Clutch Assembly Against Forced Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional combination locks can be forcibly opened without the correct password due to direct connection between the lock core and lock tongue, compromising security.
Innovation Solution
An anti-vandal combination rotary lock design featuring a lock casing, front cover, lock core seat, combination lock assembly, and clutch assembly, which requires the correct password to unlock the limiting shaft, preventing unauthorized rotation of the lock tongue by engaging the connecting unit with the connecting sleeve.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the lock core is directly connected to the lock tongue, then the operation is simple and the structure is compact, but the security is poor and the lock can be forcibly opened without the correct password
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a clutch assembly as an intermediary component between the lock core and the lock tongue. This clutch assembly includes a connecting unit with a non-circular cross-section that engages with a corresponding recess in the connecting sleeve. The clutch assembly acts as a mediator that transmits rotational force from the lock core to the lock tongue only when the correct password is entered, thereby preventing forced opening while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The clutch assembly is designed to be dynamically engageable and disengageable based on the rotational position of the lock core. When the lock core is rotated to the correct position (correct password), the connecting unit engages with the connecting sleeve, enabling force transmission. When rotated to any other position, the engagement is disengaged, preventing force transmission. This dynamic engagement mechanism provides security without requiring a permanently complex structure.
2Reliability
If the limiting shaft is engaged in the locating slot to prevent rotation, then the lock is secured, but the limiting shaft can still be pressed down and moved out of the slot by force
Solution Approach 1:
The clutch assembly serves as an intermediary between the limiting shaft assembly and the lock tongue. Even when the limiting shaft is engaged in the locating slot and prevents rotation of the lock core, the clutch assembly's connecting unit remains disengaged from the connecting sleeve. This means that any force applied to the lock tongue cannot be transmitted back to the lock core, as the clutch assembly blocks this force transmission path. The clutch assembly thus mediates the mechanical interaction, providing resistance to forced opening.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the force transmission path into distinct components: the lock core, the clutch assembly, and the lock tongue. The clutch assembly is positioned as a separate segment between the other two components. This segmentation allows the system to maintain the limiting shaft's rotational constraint while adding an independent force-blocking segment (the clutch assembly) that prevents backward force transmission, thereby enhancing resistance to forced opening without compromising locking reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
An anti-vandal combination rotary lock has a lock casing sleeving a front cover outside the lock casing, a lock core seat mounted in the lock casing, and a combination lock assembly and a clutch assembly mounted on the lock core seat. The clutch assembly can selectively connect or separate the lock core seat and a lock tongue. The user must first adjust the combination lock assembly to an unlocked state, and then holds and presses the front cover to drive the lock core seat to connect the lock tongue through the clutch assembly, so that the lock tongue is rotated to an unlocked position or a locked position. When the password entered is incorrect, the lock core seat cannot be driven through the front cover to connect the lock tongue through the clutch assembly.