JPH0213711B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a detection device for detecting whether or not a key is inserted in a cylinder lock used in a key switch of an automobile or the like.

Cylinder locks are generally used in automobile key switches, and there are steering devices that automatically lock the steering wheel when the key is removed from the cylinder lock to prevent theft, and alarms when the door is opened with the key inserted. It is well known that a warning device is provided to prevent a key from being locked inside a vehicle.

The steering lock device includes a lock link that rotates in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key, and a lock link that engages the rear end of the lock link when the key is inserted and is held in the unlocked position to enable rotation of the steering shaft. It is generally known that a locking member is provided, which disengages the rear end of the locking link when the steering shaft is removed and moves to the locked position, disabling the rotation of the steering shaft (for example, (See Publication No. 39303). The above-mentioned structure for rotating the lock link in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key is such that the lock link is pushed up directly with the key in the above patent publication, but in general, the key is inserted into the key insertion slot side of the cylinder lock. A detection piece is provided on the key that moves up and down when the key is removed, and the tip of the lock link is brought into contact with the top surface of the key detection piece, so that the lock link is driven via the key detection piece when the key is inserted or removed. There are many things that have been done.

Additionally, as an alarm device, the cylinder lock is equipped with a key detection piece that is pushed out by the inserted key until the outer end is flush with the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder lock. It is known that a key detection switch is provided on a fixed outer circumferential member housing a cylinder lock (for example, see Japanese Patent Publication No. 33614/1983).

However, all of these key detection pieces have a structure in which the top surface is flush with the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder lock when the key is inserted, and due to manufacturing errors or key deformation, the top surface of the key detection piece may If there is a step that is not flush with the outer circumferential surface, the lock link and key detection switch members may get caught on the step when the cylinder lock is rotated, making it impossible to smoothly rotate the cylinder lock. In addition, the lock link and key detection switch must be placed in a position that matches the orientation of the key when the key is inserted or removed, so there are also restrictions on the shape and installation direction of the key switch. Ta.

The present invention has focused on these points, and has developed a key insertion/removal detection system that does not require high accuracy of parts and allows the position of the lock link or key detection switch to be relatively freely selected relative to the key insertion/removal position. This device was developed for the purpose of providing a device in which a rotating plate for key detection, which rotates when pressed by a key inserted into a cylinder lock, is rotatably attached to the outer peripheral member housing the cylinder lock. The cylinder lock is characterized in that a guide portion is formed on the cylinder lock to hold the key detection rotary plate in the rotated position pushed by the key when the cylinder lock is rotated by the key.

By keeping the tip of the lock link or the member of the key detection switch in contact with the key detection rotating plate, the operated parts can be operated in response to the insertion and removal of the key, and the key detection rotating plate itself The cylinder lock does not rotate even when the cylinder lock rotates, and simply pushes the operated member, so the rotation of the cylinder lock is not hindered. In addition, the position where the key detection rotary plate contacts the key and the position where it contacts the operated member do not necessarily have to be the same, so the operated member may be placed at a different position relative to the key insertion/removal position. This makes it possible to reduce restrictions on the shape and mounting direction of the key switch, increasing the degree of freedom in design. Furthermore, by increasing the distance to the rotational fulcrum of the key detection rotary plate at the position where it contacts the operated member relative to the position where it contacts the key, the stroke of the latter can be expanded. It also has the advantage of increasing the detection sensitivity of key insertion and removal, making it possible to operate more reliably.

Next, a first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an operating section of a lock link of a steering lock device will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view of the key switch. In the figure, 1 is the rotary switch section 2 at the rear end.
3 is a cylinder outer provided at the front end of the body 1; 4 is a cylinder lock; the cylinder lock 4 is rotatably housed inside the cylinder outer 3, which is a fixed outer peripheral member; The locking function is performed by the cylinder lock 4 and the cylinder lock 4. 5 is a rotating plate for key detection;
Reference numeral 6 denotes a lock link, and the key detection rotating plate 5 is rotatably attached to the cylinder outer 3. The lock link 6 is attached to the cylinder outer 3 at a fulcrum 7, and a spring 8 applies rotational force. The tip 6a is brought into contact with the key detection rotary plate 5. 9 is a cam that rotates together with the cylinder lock 4 to operate the switch in the rotary switch section 2;
10 is a locking member, and 11 is a key.

The locking member 10 has a well-known function from the above-mentioned patent publication, etc., and to briefly explain, it is biased toward the rear side of the figure by a spring (not shown), and is perpendicular to the plane of the drawing according to the rotation of the cam 9. It's starting to move in that direction. In the lock position, the rear part protrudes from the body 1 to lock the steering shaft (not shown), and in the unlock position, the rear part moves toward the front in the figure and enters into the body 1, unlocking the steering shaft. state. The figure shows an unlocked state in which the key 11 is inserted, and the locking link 6 has its tip 6a pushed up by the key detection rotary plate 5, and its rear end 6b lowered to engage the groove 10a on the top surface of the locking member 10. As a result, the locking member is prevented from moving toward the rear and is held in an unlocked state. When the key 11 is removed, the key detection rotary plate 5 is lowered, so the tip 6a of the locking link 6 is lowered, the rear end 6b is raised and removed from the groove 10a, and the locking member 10 moves toward the rear. This results in a locked state.

Next, the key detection rotating plate 5 will be explained.
FIGS. 2 and 3 are schematic cross-sectional views of a portion provided with the key detection rotating plate 5. FIG. Rotating plate for key detection 5
The protrusion 15 that contacts the key 11 is connected to the cylinder lock 4.
It has a flat T-shape that protrudes toward the center of the cylinder outer 3.
It is rotatably supported. Reference numeral 17 denotes a notch provided in the cylinder lock 4 corresponding to the key detection rotating plate 5, and the bottom of the notch 17 is connected to the arc-shaped guide portion 1.
8, and this guide portion 18 is formed at a height that matches the key groove stepped portion 19 on the side surface of the inserted key 11. The tip 6a of the lock link 6 is in contact with the top surface of the tip 5a of the key detection rotating plate 5.

Now, when key 11 is not inserted, the third
As shown in the figure, the protrusion 15 enters into the key hole 20 provided at the center of the cylinder lock 4, and the tip 6a of the lock link 6 is lowered to be in a locked state. The key 11 is provided with a key groove stepped portion 19 as shown in FIG. 4, and when the key 11 is inserted,
The protruding piece 15 is pushed up to this key groove stepped portion 19, and the key detection rotary plate 5 is rotated clockwise to push up the tip 6a of the lock link 6. The lock link 6 rotates to switch between the locked state and the unlocked state.

The cylinder lock 4 is rotatable within the range of the notch 17, and when the key 11 is rotated, the protrusion 15 moves from the keyway step 19 to the guide part 18, and the guide part 1
8 is in the shape of an arc having the same height as the keyway stepped portion 19, so the key detection rotary plate 5 maintains a clockwise rotated position while the projection 15 slides on the guide portion 18. key 1 in the key insertion/removal position as shown in the figure.
The unlocked state will continue as long as 1 is not removed.

Note that since the protruding piece 15 is provided closer to the fulcrum 16 than the tip 5a, the tip 5a moves with a larger stroke than the protruding piece 15, and the movement of the tip 5a pushed to the keyway stepped portion 19 is expanded. The signal is transmitted to the lock link 6, and switching between the locked state and the unlocked state is reliably performed. Further, in this embodiment, the tip of the protruding piece 15 is brought into contact with the keyway stepped portion 19, but the key detection rotary plate 5 is not limited to the shape shown in the drawings, and the shape and the key 1
1 and the lock link 6, or the size of the notch 17 of the cylinder lock 4, the shape and mounting direction of the key switch can be arbitrarily selected within a certain range. It becomes possible.

FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment in which the present invention is applied to the operating section of a key detection switch, and shows a state in which a key is inserted.

In the figure, reference numeral 5' denotes a key detection rotating plate, which has exactly the same shape as the key detection rotating plate 5, and is similarly rotatably attached to the cylinder outer 3. , a notch 17' having a guide portion 18' similar to that of the first embodiment is formed. 25 is a key detection switch provided on the outer periphery of the body 1, and has a fixed contact 26 and a movable contact 2.
7 constitutes a normally open type switch. Reference numeral 28 denotes an operating member provided at a position corresponding to the movable contact 27, which is slidably housed in a support hole 29 provided in the body 1 and the cylinder outer 3.
8a is in contact with the spring piece 27a of the movable contact 27, and the tip 28b is in contact with the key detection rotating plate 5'.

The movable contact 27 is not in contact with the fixed contact 26 when the key 11 is not inserted, but when the key 11 is inserted, the key detection rotating plate 5' is pushed by the key 11 and moves downward in the figure. The operating member 28 presses the spring piece 27a and the movable contact 2
7 comes into contact with the fixed contact 26, and the key detection switch 2
5 turns on and detects that the key 11 is inserted. In combination with a door switch, for example, this constitutes a detection circuit for issuing an alarm to prevent forgetting to remove the key.

It goes without saying that this second embodiment may not be implemented independently as shown in FIG. 5, but may be implemented simultaneously with the first embodiment described above on one key switch.

As is clear from the description of the embodiments described above, the present invention provides a rotating plate for key detection on an outer peripheral member that accommodates a cylinder lock, and a guide portion that holds the rotating plate for key detection in a rotating position on a cylinder. It is formed in the lock, and the position of the lock link and key detection switch operating member can be selected quite freely with respect to the key insertion/removal position, which greatly improves the degree of freedom regarding the key switch shape and installation direction. In addition to being able to operate smoothly and reliably without the need for high precision parts, it also has the advantages of a simple structure and easy assembly because a rotating plate for key detection is provided on the outer peripheral member, which is the fixed side. be.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view of an embodiment of the present invention;
2 and 3 are schematic cross-sectional views of the main parts of the same as above, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main parts of the key, and FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway side view of another embodiment. 1...Body, 3...Cylinder outer (outer peripheral member),
4... Cylinder lock, 5, 5'... Rotating plate for key detection,
6... Lock link, 11... Key, 16... Fulcrum, 1
8, 18'...Guide part, 19...Keyway step part, 25
...Key detection switch.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A key detection rotating plate that rotates when pressed by a key inserted in the cylinder lock is rotatably attached to the outer peripheral member housing the cylinder lock, and when the cylinder lock is rotated by the key, the key detects the key. 1. A key insertion/removal detection device for a cylinder lock, characterized in that the cylinder lock is provided with a guide portion that holds a rotating detection plate in a rotated position when pressed by a key.