This invention is related to locks for containers and in particular to the big freight containers that are used for freight at sea as well as on land. Practically all longer transports are today carried out by means of con- tainers since in this way a transport from door to door is possible. These containers however have a serious disadvantage in that the locking of them is not at all sufficiently reliable. As a result of this it has become comparatively common that containers are looted on their way from sellar to buyer, which in turn result in enormous insurance fees in comparison to the value of the trans¬ ported goods. A number of different solutions has during the years been presented in order to come to terms with this but so far no satisfactory solution of the problem has been- found.

Against the background of the above problem the invention has a,s its object to provide a container lock that is very secure also in the presence of untrustworthy elements provided with torch burners. This object is in accordance with the invention solved by placing one or more lock bolts on the inside of the container doors without the presence of any access opening through the doors. The locking is instead affected from the side of the container, so to say .along the sur- face of the door. This is done in such a way that in the side of the container is a hole arranged and from this it is possible by means of a suitable key means or grip means provided with a key in its front end to extend the grip means to the lock bolt to free the lock that holds this on its place and pull the lock bolt to a freeing and push it to a locking position respectively. Since the lock bolt or the lock bolts are entirely unaccessable from the outside the lock will no longer be the weak point of the container and this therefore receives a considerable greater safety against manipulation. Since the locking

means securing the lock bolt or lock bolts is placed far inside the container it is not possible to reach it by means of skeleton key pistols or the like. If desirable it is even possible to make the accessability more difficult by allowing the key holder to be flexible and arrange a more or less bent pipe into the lock bolt. With this variety it is also possible to locate the opening for key and actuating means on the door of the container without the opening in the proximity of the locking means itself, but these are still well protected. Further preferable developments of the invention are apparent from the patent claims and the following embodiment described with reference to the drawings. On the drawings fig 1 shows a locking device in accordance with the invention seen from the side of the container and fig 2 the actuation means for the lock of fig 1.

The lock shown in fig 1 includes a locking bolt 1 which is siideable sidewise in a first profile 2 located on one of the container doors and a further profile 3 located on the other container door. The locking bolt 1 is in its rear end provided with a connection piece 4 in the rear end of which a lock 5 is arranged. This lock can be constituted by a cylinder lock or some other multiple holder lock and has a locking pin 6 that can be brought in or out of grip with a corresponding recess in a pipe 7 enclosing the lock 5. The lock 5 has its key opening turned away from the locking bolt 1 and its extension piece 4 towards the free end of the pipe 7 extending out to the side of the container. The connection piece 4 and/or the lock 5 is in its into the pipe 7 inserted end in addition to the key opening provided with bayonetlike gripping means 1. Furthermore springs 9 are fastened to the locking bolt 1 pretensioning the locking bolt against its freeing position. In the pipe 7 a key holder 10 is insertable. Even

this is provided with bayonet gripping means 11 corre¬ sponding to the gripping means 8 on the lock or the extension piece 4. The key holder 10 has a slot and securing means for taking and holding a key therein so that it can be brought in and out of grip with the lock 5. In its from the key ?turned? end the key holder 10 is provided with a shaft 12 which extends to an outer actuation handle or key grip 13.

When the lock in the container is to be freed the key is mounted in the key holder, is brought in through the pipe 7 from the side of the container by means of key holder 12 until the key is entirely inserted into the lock.Thereafter the key is turned to free the locking pin 6 and at the same time the bayonetlike gripping means 11 and 8 are brought into grip with each other. Thereafter the locking bolt can either be allowed to be withdrawn to its freeing position by means of the springs 9 alter¬ natively can this movement be supported by pulling the key holder. Hereby the locking bolt 1 is transferred to the open position and if so is desired further holes in the wall of the pipe 7 can be arranged for the locking pin 6 so that even the open position of the lock can be locked. The described lock can not only be used to lock a second container door to the first door but can also be used for by means of links, pivotable locking means or via bendable or inclined pipes be used to lock two container doors and these directly to the container respectively.

Preferably opposite to the locking bolt 1 and the pipe 7 a further pipe is arranged that extends to the other side of the container, so that if the container, when freighted should be deformed pushing of the locking bolt 1 out of grip is possible if this should bind to such an extent that the normal gripping means does not have the strength to move it. In the end of the pipes extending to the sides of the container there are of course corre-

sponding openings in the sides of the container whereas the pipes preferably are arranged on the inner sides of the container doors as well as the lock itself. Preferably the key is easily removable from the key holder and a cellar can thus after packing of the container lock this and send the key to the buyer who thereby becomes the only one that can open it.

Within the frame of the invention it is of course also possible to allow the locking to include more than two steps, for example the locking can be used to lock.

The above described locking can principally be said to be in two steps, first the key turning and then in the second step the bolting or the unbolting respectively is achieved by means of the key holders displacement length- wise. If a yet stronger bolting is required the two steps in accordance with the invention can be used to lock a further still stronger locking so that a locking in three or more steps is achieved. The third locking can include siideable and/or turnable means. By means of the invention even very heavy moveable strong bolting means can be locked satisfactorily with very small keys without the locking cylinder itself constituting a weak link in the locking system, seen from a burglery point of view.