BACKGROUND ART A recurring problem is unauthorised persons making unlawful entry into private and public buildings. Entry often takes place once the burglar has first broken the glass in the window of a door, which may then be opened. There are innumerable ways of protecting property by various types of burglar-proof apparatuses such as burglar grilles.

Owners of buildings which may conceivably be burglary prone and which do not have security windows, generally strengthen the windows by some form of break-in protection and, in the choice of a security-classified form of break-in protection, insurance companies offer reductions in premiums and excesses, which in the long term entails reduced overheads if the buildings are often subjected to attempted break-in.

It is previously known in the art to protect buildings from break-in by placing break-in protection inside and outside openings such as windows and doors. The grids or grilles of these apparatuses are often fixedly mounted in position, which does not make an aesthetically attractive appearance when goods are to be displayed through the grille which covers the surface of the window, for example if the burglar grille is mounted in a display window in a shop.

Break-in protection devices often have several components such as grille components, anchorage devices, locking devices etc. USPS 3,167, 828 is one example of a burglar grille which has a unitary grille which may be lifted in place in its entirety and secured to the surrounding surface of the window by means of anchorages. The burglar grille appears to be

heavy and unwieldy to handle in addition to the fact that it has no form of central locking device.

USPS 4,400, 912 is another example of a burglar grille. The grille proper consists of transverse and longitudinal bars which are not fixedly secured to one another, the bars being secured in anchorages fixed to the wall. This burglar grille also appears to be circumstantial and difficult to mount and dismount, and the apparatus above all lacks any possibility of central locking.

PROBLEM STRUCTURE The present invention has for its object to design the break-in protection described by way of introduction so that it obviates the shortcomings in prior art technology. In particular, the present invention has for its object to design the above-intimated break-in protection so that it is simple to mount and dismount and that it offers the possibility of central locking. The present invention further has for its object to design the break-in protection so that it may be security classified, which entails that the owner qualifies for reduced premiums and excesses from insurance companies. Finally, the present invention has for its object to realise a break- in protection which is aesthetically attractive.

SOLUTION The objects forming the basis of the present invention will be attained if the apparatus intimated by way of introduction is characterised in that the first grille-forming components are straight, separate bars or rods, that one of the second grille-forming components is secured in the wall, one along each of two opposing sides of the opening, that these grille-forming second components are tubular and that they each display at least one opening for accommodating a portion of the first grille components with which they are intended to form a grille, and that at least one of the second grille components has a locking member with an open position and a locking position, the first grille-forming components being blocked in their grille-forming position in the locked position of the locking member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS The present invention will now be described in greater detail hereinbelow, with reference to the accompanying Drawings. In the accompanying Drawings: Fig. 1 is a plan view of a first embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention, with its horizontal components in a protracted, open. position; Fig. 2 is a plan sectional view, taken along the plane of the paper, in a protracted, open position in the area marked A in Fig. 1 ; Fig. 3 is a plan view of a first embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention with its horizontal components in a closed, mounted position; Fig. 4 is a plan sectional view, taken along the plane of the paper, in a closed, mounted position in the area marked B in Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention, with its horizontal components in a protracted, open position; Fig. 6 is a plan sectional view, taken along the plane of the paper, in a protracted, open position in the area marked C in Fig. 5 ; Fig. 7 is a plan view of a second embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention, with its horizontal components in a closed, mounted position; Fig. 8 is a plan sectional view, taken along the plane of the paper, in a closed, mounted position in the area marked D in Fig. 7; and Fig. 9 is a plan partial view of a third embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention showing the bars in an open position, marked E, in a retracted position, marked F and in a closed position, marked G.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The subject matter of the present invention relates to a burglar grille which is intended to prevent or at least impede unauthorised entry by unauthorised persons through an opening in a building, such as a window or a door.

The basic principle behind the burglar grille is a number of first and second loose components, substantially horizontal and vertical, which intersect one another and which may readily be joined together to form a grille and just as readily be dismounted. The burglar grille also includes permanent anchorages along the edges of the window opening, in which the loose components are secured. The edges of the window opening are marked by broken lines in the Figures. The burglar grille also displays a central locking device which locks the bars in a locked and closed state.

Loose components of the burglar grille should readily be capable of being separately stored when the grille is dismounted.

The first embodiment, which is shown in Figs. 1 to 4, requires a free area along the wall on one side of the window opening. It is necessary that the free area be at least as wide as the window opening in order for it to be possible to pass in the horizontal components 2 from the side into openings in the vertical components 3.

In the first embodiment, the burglar grille is mounted such that the vertical grille components 3 are secured on the wall with requisite anchorages 8 and 9, as well as suitable anchorage elements. The vertical grille components 3, apart from an anchorage rail 6 secured at the one window or door edge (and provided with blind openings), have through holes which are in line with one another, in which event the horizontal components 2 may be slid into these openings. The horizontal components are locked using a central locking device 4.

The second embodiment, which is shown in Figs. 5 to 8, does not require a free area along the wall adjacent the window opening, since the horizontal components 2 are slid into at least one centrally disposed vertical component 3 prior to their mounting on the wall. As in the first

embodiment, anchorage rails 6 are permanently secured along opposing side edges of the window opening. These anchorage rails 6 have blind openings.

In the second embodiment, the burglar grille is mounted such that the vertical grille components 3 are secured on the wall with requisite anchorages 8 and 9. The horizontal components 2 are displaced alternatingly in opposing directions into engagement with the anchorage rails 6 and are then locked by means of a central locking device 4.

In both of the embodiments, the ends of the horizontal components 2 are accommodated in the blind openings in the anchorage rails 6 which are disposed along the opposing edges of the window opening.

In the first embodiment, the substantially horizontally disposed components 2 are preferably of circular cross section, such as a circular bar, a tube or a combination of both, where the tube is of greater hardness than the interiorly disposed bar which is of greater toughness. The bars 2 extend throughout the entire width of the whole of the window opening so that they protect the window opening, and they also extend out over a part of the periphery of the window opening, in order to be able to obtain sufficient anchorage in the wall. Since the bars are of circular configuration, this entails that a burglar will have difficulty in attempting to saw off the bars 2, since the bars will rotate freely in the holes of the vertical components 3, which impedes the attempted break-in.

The vertically disposed components 3 are substantially vertically disposed rails such as square <BR> <BR> tubes, U-profiles etc. , which extend throughout the entire height of the window opening so that they protect the window opening, and they also extend out over a part of the periphery of the window opening in order to obtain sufficient anchorage in the wall, by means of the anchorages 8 and 9.

The vertically disposed components 3 include an anchorage rail 6, at least one intermediate rail 7 and a central locking device 4 whose holes are slightly larger than the diameter of the bars 2 in order to obtain a simple insertion of the bars.

As was intimated above, the anchorage rail 6 has blind openings which are provided on that side which is turned to face in towards the window opening and towards the locking device 4

which is disposed on the opposite side of the window opening. When the burglar grille is in its closed and locked state, the ends of the bars 2 are accommodated in the blind openings of the anchorage rail 6.

At its opposing ends, the intermediate rail 7 is fixable by means of the anchorage 8 in the surrounding wall of the window opening. The intermediate rails 7 have through holes on the longitudinal edges of the rails which are turned to face towards the periphery of the window opening. The intermediate rail 7 may be provided with a laterally projecting horizontal pin 10 on its lower portion in order to support against the anchorage 8 during the mounting operation.

The locking device 4 is externally formed as a vertical component 3, the locking device 4 being disposed along a vertical side edge of the window opening and having an open position and a closed/locked position. In the open position, the locking device 4 has exposed, through- going apertures, through which the bars 2 are reciprocally slidable, as shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3. In the closed position, which is shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, the locking device 4 prevents the bars 2 from being moved away from their closed position. In the closed position, a certain clearance in the horizontal direction may be permitted for the bars 2 but not so great that they can be removed from their closed position.

In the closed position of the locking device 4, the holes are closed on that side which is turned to face away from the window opening by means of a locking member 5 and makes a form of blind openings which accommodate the end portions of the bars 2.

The locking member 5 extends inside the tubular (preferably of rectangular cross section) outer casing 35 of the locking device 4, which permits guiding in the longitudinal direction of the locking member. The locking member 5 is displaceable in its longitudinal direction and is preferably an elongate profile of a cross section in the form of a square tube or a U-profile.

In its closed position, the locking member 5 is locked in the vertical direction by means of a padlock or a cylinder lock which fixes the locking member 5 in the outer casing 35 and prevents the bars 2 from being removed. The lock is a central lock which, via the locking member 5, blocks all of the openings which are located in the side of the locking device 4

facing away from the window opening and which are exposed in the open state of the locking device.

The outer casing 35 of the locking device 4 has hole formations 11 and 12 and the locking member 5 has hole formations 13 and 14 which permit free passage of the bars 2 in the open position, as shown in Fig. 2. The hole formations 11,12 and 13 preferably have round holes and the hole formation 14 preferably has long, narrow holes which extend in the longitudinal direction of the outer casing 35. The length of the long and narrow holes is substantially as long as twice the diameter of the round holes.

The first hole formation 11 has an upper hole edge 15 and a lower hole edge 16, the second hole formation 12 has an upper hole edge 17 and a lower hole edge 18, the third hole formation 13 has an upper hole edge 19 and a lower hole edge 20 and the fourth hole formation 14 has an upper hole edge 21 and a lower hole edge 22.

In the open position, the holes are through-going and the upper holes edges 15,17 and 19 lie in a common line and the lower hole edges 16,18 and 20, and 22 lie in a common line. The upper hole edge 21 is offset out of this symmetry to a position above the upper hole edges 15, 17 and 19 of the hole formations 11,12 and 13, respectively.

In the closed position, which is shown in Fig. 4, the locking member is displaced downwards but may also be displaced upwards if desired, in relation to the outer casing 35, in which event the upper hole edges 15,17 and 21 lie in a common line and the lower hole edges 16 and 18, as well as the upper hole edges 19 lie in a common line. The lower hole edges 20 and 22 of the locking member lie in a common line beneath the line through the hole edges 16 and 18 in order, by such means, to close the apertures of the outwardly directed openings of the outer casing 35 and form closed holes.

The anchorages 8 are fixed on the surrounding surface of the window opening. The anchorages 8 are formed as yokes which are manufactured from sheet metal in compliance with the outer configuration of the intermediate rail 7 and may also be formed with through holes in each side edge, which also have their counterpart in the intermediate rail 7 through which a horizontal bar may be slid in order to strengthen the apparatus further and in particular to prevent the intermediate rail 7 from being lifted upwards. Hereby, the

intermediate rail 7 is insertible in an anchorage 8 which, between itself and the wall, encloses an end portion of the intermediate rail. The anchorages 8 which are located at the lower edge of the window opening may also include a bottom. The intermediate rail 7 may also be provided in its lower region with a vertical pin 9 which is disposed in a recess in the floor.

The burglar grille is mounted in that the anchorages 8 are secured on the horizontal periphery of the window opening and the anchorage rail 6 and the locking device 4 are secured using requisite fixing elements on the surrounding vertical periphery of the window opening. The intermediate rails 7 are passed into the upper anchorages 8 from beneath, and are slid up a short distance in order subsequently to be able to be moved into the lower anchorages 8 from above and then rest on the horizontal pins 10 until the horizontal bars 2 are inserted.

Alternatively, when the rail 7 is provided with a vertical pin 9, the lower anchorages 8 are dispensed with and the pin 9 is inserted into and secured in a recess in the floor. The locking device 4 is located in an open position and the horizontal bars 2 are displaced in completely into the openings of the vertical components 3, whereafter the locking member 5 is slid to its closed and locked position and is locked.

The burglar grille is dismounted in that the lock of the locking device 4 is opened and the locking member 5 displaced to its open position, whereupon the bars 2 are drawn out of the vertical components 3. The intermediate rails 7 are lifted up and removed from their lower yokes or recesses and removed from the upper rails 8 by moving them downwards.

The locking device 4, the locking rail 6 and the anchorages 8 are fixedly secured in the wall and are not dismounted. The bars 2 and the intermediate rails 7 can now be gathered together to form an elongate package and be stored at the requisite site until the burglar grille is to be mounted in position again.

The second embodiment has horizontal bars 2 which have been described above. In one major variation of the second embodiment, the bars 2 have only half of the length of that of the first embodiment, since they only extend over half of the width of the window opening.

The vertically disposed components 3, which were described above, include two anchorage rails 6 and at least one locking device 4.

The two anchorage rails 6 are formed in accordance with the foregoing and are placed on the opposing vertical sides of the window opening, with their openings turned to face towards the locking device 4 in towards the window opening.

The locking device 4 is formed in analogy with the above-described device, but differs in certain respects from it. Thus, it is placed in the centre of the window opening, between the two anchorage rails 6. The hole formations on the locking member 5 of the locking device 4 are also positioned and formed in a different manner.

The locking member 5 is locked in its closed position in the vertical direction, with a lock in accordance with the foregoing description.

The hole formations 23 and 24 of the locking device 4 have round holes, and the hole formations 25 and 26 of the locking member 5 have alternatingly round and long-narrow holes. On the one side of the locking member 5, every second hole is round and every other is long and narrow. The opposing side of the locking member 5 also has every second hole round and every other hole long and narrow, but these holes are offset one step, which entails that when the hole formation 25 comprises a long and narrow hole, the hole formation 26 on the opposing side of the locking member 5 has a round hole, and vice versa.

The first hole formation 23 has an upper hole edge 27 and a lower hole edge 28, the second hole formation 24 has an upper hole edge 29 and a lower hole edge 30, the third hole formation 25 has an upper hole edge 31 and a lower hole edge 32 and the fourth hole formation 26 has an upper hole edge 33 and a lower hole edge 34.

In the open position, which is shown in Fig. 6, the holes are through holes and the upper hole edges 27,29 and 33 lie in a common line and the lower hole edges 29,30 and 32 and 34 lie in a common line. The upper hole edge 31 is offset from this symmetry to a position above the upper hole edges 27,29 and 33 of the hole formations 23,24 and 26, respectively.

In the closed position, which is shown in Fig. 8, the locking member is displaced downwards in the outer casing 35 of the locking device 4, in which event the upper hole edges 27,29 and 31 lie in a common line and the lower hole edges 32 and 34 lie in a common line. The lower hole edges 32 and 34 of the locking member 5 lie in a common line below the line through the

hole edges 28 and 30 in order, by such means, to close the apertures in the outwardly directed openings of the outer casing 35 and form closed holes.

The locking device 4 is fixable by means of the anchorage 8 in accordance with that described above, and a vertical pin 9, which rests in a recess in the floor. The pin 9 is disposed on the downwardly directed transverse end of the locking device 4.

The burglar grille is mounted in that the anchorage 8 is secured on the upper, horizontal periphery of the window opening and the anchorage rails 6 are secured on the surrounding, vertical peripheries of the window opening. Hereafter, the horizontal bars 2 are slid in the locking device 4 in its open position, whereafter the locking device 4 is moved into the upper anchorage 8 from beneath and is slid up a slight distance in order thereafter to be able to move in the vertical pin 9 in the recess in the floor. The locking device 4 is now in a wholly open position and the horizontal bars 2 are displaced alternatingly to the right and the left in the openings of the anchorage rails 6. Hereafter, the locking member 5 is slid to its closed and locked position and is locked.

The burglar grille is dismounted in that the lock of the locking device 4 is opened and the locking member 5 is slid to its open position, the bars 2 being drawn out of the anchorage rails 6 to a rest position in the locking device 4. The locking device 4 is lifted up out of the recess in the floor and then removed from the anchorage 8 by being moved downwards.

The anchorage rails 6 and the anchorage 8 are fixedly secured in the wall and are not dismounted. The bars 2 and the locking device 4 can now be gathered together to form an elongate package and be stored at the requisite site until the burglar grille is to be mounted in position again.

A third embodiment of the subject matter of the present invention which is employed when there is insufficient space beside the window to insert the bars is shown in Fig. 9, which shows the bars in an open position, marked E, in an inserted position, marked F and in a closed position, marked G.

The horizontal bars 2 which were described above extend in over the whole of, or alternatively a part of the width of the window and the vertically disposed components 3

which were described above include a locking device 4, an anchorage rail 6 and at least one intermediate rail 7 which has a locking member 5.

The anchorage rail 6 is formed and disposed in accordance with that described above along one of the vertical sides of the window opening and the locking device 4, which is placed on the opposite side of the window opening with the second hole formations 12 turned to face towards the anchorage rail 6.

The locking device is formed in analogy with that described above, but differs in certain respects from it. The first hole formation 11 of the locking device 4 on the outer casing 35 is lacking and the second hole formation 12 preferably has elongate holes 36 which are as wide as the diameter of the second hole formation 12 and which extend from the original hole formation 12 of the outer casing 35 on the front piece of the outer casing 35 substantially halfway, as is shown in Fig. 9.

The third hole formation 13 of the locking device 4 on the locking member 5 is lacking and the fourth hole formation 14 preferably has elongate holes which are as wide as the diameter of the hole formation 12 and which extend from the lower hole edge 22 of the locking member 5 on the front piece of the locking device, substantially halfway.

In the open position of the locking member 5, the locking device 4 permits an elongate opening from the side edge of the locking device 4 facing towards the window opening to half of the front piece of the locking device 4.

In the closed position of the locking device 4, the elongate holes 36 of the outer casing 35 are closed on the front piece by the locking member 5, only the original second hole formation 12 being open and through-going and also permitting passage for the bars 2.

The intermediate rail 7 has elongate holes 37 which extend from the first hole formation 23 over the front piece of the intermediate rail 7 to the second hole formation 24.

The intermediate rail 7 is provided with a locking member inside the intermediate rail 7 which, in the third embodiment, is formed in analogy with the above locking member 5, but with the exception that the elongate hole extends from the hole of the one side edge to the

hole of the other side edge, across the front piece of the locking member and that both of the hole formations on the side edges of the locking member are elongate.

The burglar grille is mounted in that the locking device 4, the anchorage rail 6 and the intermediate rail 7 are secured using requisite anchorage elements in accordance with that described above. Hereafter, the horizontal bars 2 are placed in from the front straight into the locking device 4 and the intermediate rail 7 when they are in open position in accordance with the position marked E. Hereafter, the bars 2 are slid into the anchorage rails 6 in accordance with the positions marked F, whereafter the locking device 4 and the locking member of the intermediate rail 7 are set in the closed position in accordance with the position marked G, and the locking device 4 and the locking member of the intermediate rail 7 are locked using requisite locks in accordance with that described above.

The burglar grille is dismounted in that the locks of the locking device 4 and the intermediate rail 7 are opened and the locking member 5 of the locking device 4 and the locking member of the intermediate rail 7 are slid to their open positions, in which event the bars 2 are slid horizontally out of the anchorage rail 6 and are picked straight out from the locking device 4 and the intermediate rail 7. The intermediate rail 7 is then lifted out of its anchorages.

The locking device 4 and the anchorage rail 6 are fixedly anchored in the wall using requisite anchorage elements as described above, and are not dismounted.

DESCRIPTION OF ALTERNATIVE EMBODIMENTS The burglar grille may be modified depending on the configuration, size or orientation of the window opening. For example, the burglar grille may be pivoted around its centre axis in order to obtain a different orientation of the components of the grille, i. e. the horizontal bars 2 change place with the vertical rails 3, the locking device 4, the anchorage rails 6 and the intermediate rails 7.

In the first embodiment, the lock may also fixedly lock the intermediate rails 7 in the vertical direction.

The second embodiment may also include two locking devices 4, or alternatively more, which are placed out with uniform spacing in the window opening and secured in accordance with that described above.

The locks of the second embodiment may also fixedly lock the locking device 4 in the anchorage 8 in order that the burglar grille will not be able to be moved in the vertical direction out of its mounted position.

The different components in the burglar grille 2 may be designed with different cross sections, which entails that the formation of the holes is modified in accordance with the chosen profile configuration. The bar 2 may have a cross section in the form of, for example, a square rod, flat profile, the vertical rail 3 may have a cross section in the form of a C-profile, the locking member 5 may have a cross section in the form of a U-profile, square profile, and the rail 3, the locking device 4, the anchorage rail 6 and the intermediate rail 7 may also have round cross sections, in which event the apparatuses are pivoted through a quarter of a turn in order to position the burglar grille in its open and closed positions, respectively.