Field of invention

The present invention relates to a padlock comprising a housing and a shackle protruding from the housing, wherein the shackle is slidably ar ranged in a slide structure provided in the housing in such a manner that the shackle is configured to be moved between a locked position and an open position.

Prior art

Padlocks have existed for millennia and they are a completely integral part of the way we keep belongings safe in multiple contexts. Until recently, padlocks have been exclusively mechanical devices provided with locking mechanisms using various ingenious mechanical principles.

Key-based locking mechanisms have been a main type in this respect but also a multitude of combination locks where a physical input is made di rectly to the lock itself either by means of a wheel, cylinder or other device has been well known. With the emergence of modern information technol ogy and advancements in electronics, this has changed and in recent years new electronic padlocks have been brought on the market.

Known electronic padlocks are based on similar system architectures in that they establish a wireless connection through a mobile computing de vice, such as a smartphone, to the Internet. Every time the padlock is controlled, i.e. opened, access is granted, etc., it requires the mobile com puting device as a means for establishing a connection to the Internet.

Some padlocks comprise a number of movable locking members arranged in such a way that their position can be controlled typically by an electric motor whereby the padlock can be locked or unlocked.

WO2018134663A1 discloses a padlock having locking members formed as are balls that are arranged and configured to be manipulated by a rotating cam connected to a small electric gear motor. In this way the shackle can either be put in a locked state or in an unlocked state.

US20120011902A1 discloses a padlock with locking members formed as cylinders that can be controlled by an electric motor also connected to a rotating cam, whereby the shackle can either be put in a locked state or in an unlocked state.

A drawback of these prior art pad locks arises from the fact that they can only change from the unlocked to the locked state by means of an actua tor such as an electric motor. It means that these prior art pad locks must rely on a sensor system that detects the shackle being pushed into a closed position, an actuator that must be activated to manipulate the lock ing members, and a power source to drive the actuator. It has been ob served that this prior art design has some draw backs since if any one of these three subsystems fail, the pad lock will not be able to lock. This could specifically be a problem when a user pushes the shackle into closed position believing such a pad lock is locked, but due to failure of any of the subsystems this will not be the case. A user in such a situation will thus leave the pad lock unlocked and thus unprotected from theft.

As a result, there is a need for a solution that will not be dependent on a multitude of subsystems for performing the most important functionality of a pad lock, i.e., locking. And in addition, there is a need for a solution, where the shackle cannot be in a closed position without the pad lock be ing in a locked state.

DE2438737A1 discloses a padlock intended for single use. It comprises two locking members and a blocking member in connection with a spring. When the shackle is pushed into the closed position it is not possible to open the lock again without breaking it due to the spring keeping the blocking member in place. This lock has the advantage that it relies on a simple spring for locking which increases the reliability, however if the spring in connection with the blocking member fail to work, a user is not likely to discover this, and the pad lock therefore has the same draw back as other prior art pad locks. In addition, since the lock cannot be opened again without breaking it, it has more resemblance with a seal than with a pad lock.

WO9725503 discloses a security system comprising an electrical padlock which overcomes some of the issues of the traditional system. The securi ty system, however, suffers from potential issues such as the possibility of having the shackle be in a locked state without the padlock being in a locked state.

Thus, there is a need for an alternative to the prior art padlocks.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art. More specifically, it is an object to provide a padlock that will always be brought into a locked state when the shackle is pushed into the closed position without relying on a multitude of subsystems to make this happen.

Summary of the invention

The object of the present invention can be achieved by a padlock as de fined in claim 1. Preferred embodiments are defined in the dependent sub claims, explained in the following description and illustrated in the accom panying drawings.

The padlock according to the invention is a padlock comprising a housing and a shackle protruding from the housing, wherein the shackle is slidably arranged in a slide structure provided in the housing in such a manner that the shackle is configured to be moved between a locked position and an open position, wherein two or more blocking elements are moveably arranged in a locking channel provided in the housing and extending from a side portion of the slide structure, wherein a groove is provided in the shackle, wherein the groove is shaped to receive a portion of a front blocking element being the blocking element that is arranged closest to the groove when the front blocking element is arranged in a position, in which the front blocking element extends in extension of the locking chan nel into the groove, wherein a displacement channel extends adjacent to the proximal end of the locking channel and wherein that a displacement element is movably arranged in the displacement channel, wherein an ac tuator with an displacement member is arranged to displace the displace ment element along the longitudinal axis of the displacement channel wherein the actuator is configured to move the displacement member in to:

- a first position, in which the padlock is locked, wherein the front block ing element extends in extension of the locking channel into the groove

- a second position, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the front blocking element does not extend in extension of the locking channel into the groove.

Hereby, a reliable and practical padlock is obtained.

Further, the actuator could be arranged to retract the displacement mem ber immediately after displacing the displacement element thus rendering the lock in an unlocked state where the spring member is exerting a force on the displacement element and the shackle spring is exerting a force on the shackle thus keeping the lock in an unlocked state. If the shackle is pushed into the closed position, the spring member will immediately dis place the displacement element in such a way that the blocking elements will be displaced in the locking channel and the front blocking element will engage in the groove of the shackle thus bringing the lock into a locked state. If the spring member for some reason fail to bring the front blocking element to engage in the groove, the shackle spring will immediately push the shackle to an open position, and it will be clearly visible that the lock is not in a locked state. It should be noted that this way of changing from unlocked to locked state does not depend on an electronic system or pow er supply from battery or similar, simply the forces exerted by the spring member and the shackle spring. This provides a reliable and practical solution.

In an embodiment, a spring member is arranged in the displacement channel in such a manner that the spring member pushes the displace ment element towards the displacement member.

In one embodiment, a spring shackle is placed in the shackle cavity exert ing a force on the shackle.

In one embodiment, the displacement member is a pin extending along the longitudinal axis of the displacement channel.

In one embodiment, the pin is slidably arranged in a bore provided in a support portion, wherein the pin is configured to be moved into:

- a first configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the pin protrudes from the support portion and hereby pushes the rear dis placement element towards the spring member and

- a second configuration, in which the padlock is locked, wherein the pin is retracted into the support portion.

In one embodiment, in the second configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, the pin is completely retracted into the support portion so that the displacement element rests on locking ball.

In one embodiment, the support portion has a geometry feature that keeps the displacement members inside the displacement channel.

In one embodiment, the shackle spring has a stroke length large enough to push the shackle fully out of the land cavity.

In one embodiment, the housing comprises a first housing part made of a metal alloy. The metal alloy may be any suitable type of metal alloy in cluding aluminium. In one embodiment, the housing comprises a second housing part made from a polymer material. In a preferred embodiment, the second housing part is produced by an injection moulding procedure (plastic injection moulding).

In one embodiment, a battery is arranged in the housing and the actuator is an electric actuator arranged and configured to move the displacement member.

It may be beneficial that the displacement member is a pin extending along the longitudinal axis of the displacement channel.

It may be an advantage that the pin is slidably arranged in a bore provid ed in a support portion, wherein the pin is configured to be moved into:

- a first configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the pin protrudes from the support portion and hereby pushes the displacement element towards the spring member and

- a second configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the pin is retracted into the support portion.

In one embodiment, in the second configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, the pin is completely retracted into the support portion so that the displacement element rests on the support portion when the padlock is orientated in such a manner that the displacement element is provided above the support portion.

In one embodiment the support portion has a dedicated geometry feature that allows the blocking members to be displaced just enough in the lock ing channel for the lock to open but keeping the blocking members from exiting the locking channel.

In one embodiment, the diameter of the displacement channel is smaller than the diameter of the locking channel and the diameter of the blocking elements, thus the blocking elements cannot completely exit the locking channel.

It may be an advantage that the housing comprises:

- a processor; - a memory;

- a control program stored in the memory for controlling the actuator and

- a communication unit configured to communicate with the processor to configure the control program. In one embodiment, the locking channel extends basically perpendicular to the displacement channel.

In one embodiment, the locking channel extends basically perpendicular to the shackle.

In one embodiment, the blocking and displacement elements are balls.

In one embodiment, the blocking and displacement elements are cylindri cal rollers.

In one embodiment the displacement element has a dedicated hole to accommodate and securely position the spring member.

These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and eluci- dated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

Description of the Drawings

The invention will become more fully understood from the detailed de scription given herein below. The accompanying drawings are given by way of illustration only, and thus, they are not limitative of the present invention. In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 shows a padlock according to the invention;

Fig. 2A shows a cross-sectional view of a portion of a padlock accord- ing to the invention arranged in an locked configuration;

Fig. 2B shows a cross-sectional view of the portion of the padlock shown in Fig. 2A arranged in an unlocked configuration;

Fig. 2C shows a cross-sectional view of the portion of the padlock shown in Fig. 2A arranged in an unlocked configuration with the displacement member fully retracted into the support portion;

Fig. 3 shows a partly exploded view of a padlock according to the invention;

Detailed description of the invention

Referring now in detail to the drawings for the purpose of illustrating pre ferred embodiments of the present invention, a padlock 1 of the present invention is illustrated in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a padlock 1 according to the invention. The padlock 1 comprises a housing 5. The housing 5 comprises a first housing part 10 and a second housing part 70. In one embodiment, the first hous ing part 10 is made of a metal alloy. In one embodiment, the second housing part 70 is made of a polymer material 70. A portion of the first housing part 10 has been inserted into the second housing part 70.

The padlock 1 comprises a shackle 20 protruding from the housing 5. The shackle 20 comprises a U-shaped portion. The padlock comprises a user interface 72 communicating with a processor arranged inside the housing 5 to control a locking mechanism arranged in the housing 5.

The user interface 72 is constituted by a plurality of buttons 73 moulded as an integrated part of the second housing part 70. In one embodiment, the buttons 73 are deformable by the touch of a finger and communicates with contacts provided on a printed circuit board arranged inside the hous ing 5.

The buttons 73 of the user interface 72 may be used to input a code or other input.

Fig. 2A illustrates a cross-section of a padlock 1 according to the invention in a locked configuration. Fig. 2B illustrates a cross-section of the padlock 1 shown in an open configuration. Fig. 2C illustrates a cross-section of the padlock 1 shown in an open configuration with the displacement member fully retracted into the support portion.

The padlock 1 comprises a housing 5. In one embodiment, the housing comprises a first housing part 10 made of a metal alloy and a second housing part 70 made of a polymer material. An insertion portion 7 of the first housing part 10 has been inserted into the second housing part 70.

The padlock 1 comprises a J-shaped shackle 20 comprising a U-shaped portion that protrudes from the housing 5. The padlock comprises a lock ing mechanism 30 arranged in the housing 5.

A shackle cavity 13 extends into the first housing part 10 from its upper surface 15. In the shackle cavity 13 one end of the shackle 20 is slidably arranged and the shackle 20 is moveably arranged and can be between the locked position as shown in Fig. 2A and the open position shown in Fig. 2B. and Fig 2C.

Additionally, a land cavity 16 extends from the upper surface into the first housing part 10 thereby providing a land for the opposite end of the shackle 20. The opposite end of the shackle 20 is positioned in the land cavity 16 when the shackle 20 is in the locked position and positioned out of the land cavity 16 when the shackle 20 is in the open position. A locking mechanism cavity 11 extends from a lower surface 17 of the first housing part 10. Inside the locking mechanism cavity 11 a locking mecha nism 30 is arranged to lock the shackle 20 in the locked position.

The locking mechanism cavity 11 is provided by a plurality of cylindrical sub-cavities extending into the first housing part 10. The cavities may be machined into the first housing part 10 or alternatively formed by mould ing the first housing part 10. The sub-cavities are provided with openings 12, 14 arranged in outer surfaces of the first housing part 10.

The second housing part 70 is attached to the first housing part thereby providing a compartment 71. Inside the compartment 70 a printed circuit board 90 including a processor 40 and a memory 50 is provided. The printed circuit board 90 further includes a communication unit (shown in Fig. 4) configured to communicate via radio frequency communication and to provide a radio interface for remote communication with the processor 40.

The padlock 1 is provided with a control program stored in the memory 50 and adapted to be executed by the processor 40. The control program is configured for controlling the locking mechanism 30 to release the shackle 20. The compartment 71 provided by the second housing part also houses a battery 60 for powering the locking mechanism 30, the processor 40, memory 50 and communication unit.

The locking mechanism 30 includes two locking balls 31, 31', and a cylin drical roller 31" arranged to engage with a groove 22 in the shackle 20 to lock the shackle 20 in the locked position. The locking mechanism 30 also includes an electric linear actuator 32 for manipulating the mutual position of the locking balls 31, 31' and cylindrical roller 31". As envisaged by the skilled person, fewer or more locking balls 31, 31' may also be included achieving substantially the same functionality. The electric linear actuator 32 includes an electric motor 321 and a gear 322 configured to rotate a spindle 323 for providing a linear force controlling the position of the dis placement member 24.

When the shackle 20 is in the locked position as shown in Fig. 2A, the locking balls 31, 31' and cylindrical roller 31" are arranged on a straight line thereby fixating the position of the shackle 20. A spring member 33, arranged above the cylindrical roller 31" ensures that the locking balls are kept in line even if the padlock 1 is tilted. To release the shackle 20 and open the padlock 1, the linear actuator 32 is activated whereby the spindle 323 moves in an upwards direction forcing the cylindrical roller 31" against the spring member 33. When the cylindrical roller 31" is moved upwards, room is created for the locking balls to move out of engagement with the shackle groove 22. Hereby the shackle 20 is released and pushed partly out of the shackle cavity 13 by a shackle spring 23 arranged below the end of the shackle 20 arranged in the shackle cavity 13. The shackle spring 23 force pushes the shackle 20 into the open position and the op posite end of the shackle 20 out of the land 16. Hereby it is easily detect ed by a user that the shackle 20 is in the open position and the padlock 1 is open.

When the spindle 323 has moved the cylindrical roller 31" to release the shackle 20, the direction of rotation of the spindle 323 is returned and the spindle 323 moves back to its initial position. An advantage of this con struction is that no encoder is needed to control the position of the spindle 323. The spindle 323 is simply driven to the end and then reversed to drive the spindle 323 back to the initial position.

As activation of the electric linear actuator 32 and movement of the spin dle 323 is only needed to release the shackle 20 from the locked position, the padlock 1 is automatically locked when the shackle 20 is pushed from the open position and down into the locked position. Activation of the elec tric linear actuator is thus not needed to lock the padlock. Also, when the shackle is pushed into the locked position the shackle spring 23 is com pressed, thereby enabling the shackle spring 23 to push the shackle up wards when the shackle 20 is once again released.

The first housing part 10 being made from a metal alloy provides a hous ing that is very strong. Accordingly, it is difficult to access the locking mechanism 30, being a vital part of the padlock 1. As described above, the locking mechanism cavity 11 is provided with a number of openings 12, 14. These openings are needed for mounting the locking mechanism 30 inside the first housing part 10. The locking balls 31, 31' may be in serted through the opening 12 provided in a side surface of the first hous ing part 10 and the linear actuator components and cylindrical roller are inserted through the opening 14 provided in the lower surface of the first housing part 10.

The opening 12 in the side surface of the first housing part 10 is blocked by the shackle 20. Thus, when the shackle 20 is in the locked position, the locking mechanism cavity 11 is very difficult to open via the opening 12. The opening 14 provided in the lower surface of the first housing part 10 is blocked by a locking plate 18.

In one embodiment, the locking plate 18 is made of metal and may be fixed by screws, such as shear screws or snap off security screws. In one embodiment, the electric linear actuator 32 is fixated inside the locking mechanism cavity 11 by a screw or other locking member. The screw may be mounted into a screw bore provided in the side surface of the first housing part 10.

Fig. 3 illustrates a partly exploded view of a padlock 1 according to the invention. The padlock 1 comprises a user interface 72 communicating with the processor to control the locking mechanism. The user interface 72 is constituted by a plurality of buttons 73 being integrated parts of the second housing part 70 using multi-component injection moulding. The button 73 are deformable by the touch of a finger and communicates with contacts 74 provided on the printed circuit board 90. The buttons of the user interface 72 may be used to input a code or other input to control the control program and the locking mechanism.

As stated above, the second housing part 70 is made from a polymer ma terial, such as a fibre reinforced polymer material. The second housing part 70 is thus impermeable to water thereby protecting the internal func tional components of the padlock 1. As the second housing part 70 is made from a polymer, the compartment 71 provided by the second housing part 70 is suitable for housing the communication unit including a transceiver coupled to an antenna for transmitting and receiving radio frequency communication. The compart ment provided by the second housing part is also suitable for housing an embodiment of the communication unit being configured for communi cating in a sub-gigahertz radio frequency band. This frequency range has excellent properties for low power long range wireless communication. By providing a polymer enclosed compartment for housing the communication unit, transmission and reception performance related to radio communica tion is significantly improved compared to an all metallic padlock enclosing a communication unit and antenna.

The padlock comprises a housing comprising a first housing part 10 and a second housing part 70. The housing comprises a shackle 20 protruding from the housing 5. The shackle 20 is slidably arranged in a slide structure 27 provided in the housing 5 in such a manner that the shackle 20 is con figured to be moved between a locked position (as shown in Fig. 2A) and an open (unlocked) position (as shown in Fig. 2C).

Two blocking elements 31, 31' are moveably arranged in a locking channel 26 and a cylindrical roller 31" is movable arranged in the displacement channel 28 that extends adjacent to the proximal end of the locking chan nel 26.

The locking channel 26 is provided in the housing 5 and extends from a side portion of the slide structure 27. A groove 22 is provided in the shackle 20. The groove 22 is shaped to receive a portion of the blocking element (the front blocking element) 31 positioned closest thereto. The front blocking element 31 is arranged in a position, in which the front blocking element 31 extends in extension of the locking channel 26 into the groove 22.

The displacement channel 28 extends adjacent to the proximal end of the locking channel 26. The displacement channel 28 is configured to receive a cylindrical roller 31".

The cylindrical roller 31" is arranged in the displacement channel 28 and has a bore to receive and keep in position the spring member 33. It can be seen that a displacement member 24 is movably arranged in the dis placement channel 28. An actuator is arranged to displace the displace ment member 24 along the longitudinal axis of the displacement channel 28.

The actuator 32 is configured to move the displacement member 24 into a first position, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the front blocking element 31 does not extend in extension of the locking channel 26 into the groove 22 as shown in Fig. 2B.

The actuator 32 is configured to move the displacement member 24 into a second position, in which the padlock is either locked as shown in Fig 2B or open and ready to be locked as shown in Fig. 2C.

A spring member 33 is arranged in the displacement channel 28. The spring member 33 is arranged in such a manner that the spring member 33 pushes the cylindrical roller 31" towards the displacement member 24.

The displacement member 24 is a pin extending along the longitudinal axis of the displacement channel 28. The pin 24 is slidably arranged in a bore provided in a support portion 25. The pin 24 is configured to be moved into a first configuration, in which the padlock is unlocked, wherein the pin 24 protrudes from the support portion 25 and hereby pushes the cylindri cal roller 31" towards the spring member 33.

The pin 24 is configured to be moved into a second configuration, in which the padlock is locked, wherein the pin 24 is retracted into the support por tion 25 as shown in Fig. 2A. In the second configuration, in which the pad lock is unlocked, the pin 24 is completely retracted into the support por- tion 24 so that the cylindrical roller 31" rests on the locking ball 31' as shown in Fig. 2C

The support portion 25 has a geometry feature 25' that extends in front of the locking channel whereby the geometry feature 25' eliminates the pos sibility for the locking balls 31, 31' to move completely out of the locking channel. It is understood that this is of particular importance since the spring-loaded cylindrical roller 31" must exert a force with a force compo nent parallel to the axis of the locking channel acting at the contact point of the neighbouring locking ball 31' in such a way that the locking balls 31, 31' are displaced in the displacement channel when the shackle is pushed into the closed position. If the locking ball 31' could move all the way into the displacement channel the force at the point of contact with the cylin drical roller 31" would only have a single component orthogonal to the locking channel in which case pushing the shackle to the closed position would not result in locking the lock.

List of reference numerals

1 Padlock

2 Open section

3 Front side

4 Wireless signal

5 Housing

6 Open end

7 Insertion portion

8 Distal portion

9 Indentation

10 First housing part 11 Locking mechanism cavity 12 Opening

13 Shackle cavity

14 Opening

15 Upper surface

16 Land cavity

17 Lower surface

18 Locking plate 20 Shackle 21 Gasket element 22 Groove

23 Shackle spring

24 Pin (displacement member)

25 Support portion 25' Geometry feature

26 Locking channel

27 Slide structure

28 Displacement channel

29 Longitudinal axis

30 Locking mechanism

31, 31' Blocking element 31" Displacement element 32 Actuator

33 Spring member

34 Upper portion

35 End portion 36 Lower portion a Angle 40 Processor 50 Memory 60 Battery 70 Second housing part

71 Compartment

72 User interface

73 Button

74 Contact 80 Communication unit

90 Printed circuit board 100 Locking system 110 Gateway 120 Network 130 Computing device

321 Motor

322 Gear

323 Spindel Li, I_ ₂ Length 1- ₃ , U, 1- ₅ Length

H Height C Center of mass D Diameter

Y, X Axis

Fx, FY, F res Force