GB2286163A - Vehicle security system - Google Patents

Abstract

A vehicle security system (10) comprising a bar (11) with a pointed tip and means (14, 15) for attaching it to a vehicle (C) in a position in which it projects downwardly and forwardly of the vehicle so that its tip can engage the ground (G) to prevent movement of the vehicle, the bar being lockable in the ground-engaging position and releasable for withdrawal to a position spaced from the ground from inside the vehicle. <IMAGE>

Description

VEHICLE SECURITY SYSTEM, A METHOD FOR 8ECURING A VEHICLE AND A VEHICLE FITTED WITH A SECURITY 8YSTEM The present invention relates to a vehicle security system particularly for a towed vehicle such as a caravan or trailer, to a vehicle fitted with such a system and to a method for securing a vehicle.

With the ever increasing use of caravans, trailers and the like there is also an increased incidence of theft and a greater desire to provide security systems to prevent such theft. The object of the present invention is to provide such a security system which is particularly applicable to towed vehicles but which could be adapted for use with any vehicle.

Accordingly the present invention provides, in one aspect, a vehicle security system including groundengagement means attachable to the vehicle at an attachment point thereon so as to project beneath the vehicle by a distance such that the ground engagement means engage the ground to prevent movement of the vehicle, the security system further including releasable locking means for locking the ground-engagement means in the ground-engaging position.

In use of such a system, the ground engagement means would be locked in the ground-engaging position when it is wished to prevent the vehicle from being moved, for example by an unauthorised person, but can be unlocked by an authorised person to allow movement. The locking means may release either the entire system or the groundengagement means so that they can be removed completely from the vehicle but more preferably enable the groundengagement means to be moved away from the ground engaging position while still being retained on the vehicle. In the former case, the system may, for example, include a releasable, lockable clamp device for supporting the ground engagement means which can be clamped to a suitable part of the vehicle; the groundengagement means may be fixed or movable relative to the clamp device. In the preferred case, however, the security system includes a support device for the groundengagement means which can be fixed substantially permanently to the vehicle and the ground-engagement means are lockable to the support device in the groundengaging position.

Various forms of ground-engagement means may be envisaged including, for example, a suction pad or pads carried at the lower ends of support members which can be attached at their upper ends to the vehicle but, for simplicity, the ground-engagement means preferably comprise a spike carried at the end of a support member which is so arranged that, when attached to the vehicle, the spike can be pressed against or into the ground beneath the vehicle while the vehicle is stationary and/or is forced into the ground if any attempt is made to move the vehicle while the security system is operational.

Preferably the spike comprises simply the pointed lower end of an elongate member which can be attached by an upper portion to the vehicle so as to project downwardly and forwardly relative to the direction of normal forward movement of the vehicle in its operative position.

The support device for the ground-engagement means preferably allow the ground-engagement means to be adjustable in height relative to the vehicle between a raised position, out of contact with the ground and a lowered, ground-engaging position, the locking means being capable of locking the ground-engagement means against movement relative to the support device in the ground engaging-position. For this purpose the groundengaging means may, for example, be pivotable on the support device or slidable relative thereto, in which case the sliding may be controlled by a ratchet mechanism, or a screw-thread engagement may be provided between the ground-engagement means and the support device to ensure a very secure connection between the two parts. In the latter case, the support device preferably includes an internally-threaded hollow member which can be secured to the vehicle while the ground-engagement means comprise an elongate bar having external screw threading along at least a portion thereof for engaging the threading of the hollow member.

The ground-engagement means may be movable by hydraulic, mechanical or other actuator means controllable electronically but, in currently preferred embodiments, are movable manually. Likewise, the locking mechanism may be electronically and remotely controllable but manually-operable locking means are currently preferred.

The ground-engagement member may be locked to the support device in its position of use in any convenient manner but a simple and convenient way is found to be by the provision of a locking bar which can be passed through cooperating apertures in the ground-engagement means and the support device to prevent their relative movement.

The locking bar itself is preferably retained in the locking position by a suitable lock operable in any known manner such as by a key, combination, remote control, etc.

The actual form of the support device may vary according to the type of vehicle to be secured. In the case of a towed vehicle having a closed compartment, such as a caravan or horse box, the support device is preferably adapted for attachment to the floor of the vehicle with the locking means and any means for adjusting the position of the ground-engagement member available solely from the interior of the compartment. Thus any would-be thief must break into the compartment itself before he can tackle the locking and adjusting means.

In the case of a towed vehicle having two wheels, with its centre of gravity forward of the wheels, as is the normal arrangement, the ground engagement means are preferably attached forward of the wheels so that the vehicle's weight, which tends to pivot the front end of the vehicle downwardly about the wheel axis urges the ground-engagement means into engagement with the ground.

In the case of a towed vehicle which does not have a closed compartment, the security system may conveniently be attached to the tow bar. Circumstances may, however, dictate that the ground-engaging spike is attached in a plough-like arrangement.

In another aspect, the invention provides a method of securing a vehicle, comprising providing a security system as described above, attaching the groundengagement means to the vehicle in such a way that the ground-engagement means project beneath the vehicle and into engagement with the ground so as to prevent movement of the vehicle, and locking the ground-engagement means in the ground-engaging position.

Depending on the type of security system according to the invention chosen, there may be no need to modify the vehicle itself in order to fit the system. In use of many embodiments, however, it will at least be necessary to fix the attachment means for the- system in a substantially permanent manner to the vehicle to support the ground-engagement means. This may be achieved by any suitable secure fixing method, such as welding, riveting or bolting.

In security systems for use with a vehicle having a closed compartment it is preferable to house lockoperating means within the compartment for greater security; in such a case, the system must have a part, comprising or including the ground-engagement means, locatable outside the compartment, and a part comprising or including the lock-operating means locatable inside the compartment. Embodiments may be envisaged in which the parts can be fitted independently, without modification to the compartment body itself other than to secure the attachment means but, in most cases, an aperture must be formed in the vehicle body to accommodate interconnecting parts of the system.

In preferred embodiments, the system includes an elongate member carrying the ground-engagement member at one end and adapted to be supported by the attachment means with the ground-engagement member outside the compartment and its opposite end within the compartment. The method for securing the vehicle would thus include a step of forming an aperture in the compartment body through which the elongate member can extend when secured in place. The aperture would preferably be made in the compartment floor since this is usually structurally strong and can serve as the anchorage point for the attachment means but the aperture could be formed in the compartment wall, preferably near the bottom and close to the reinforcing member which would provide the anchorage for the attachment means. The attachment means may be fitted to the outside, inside or both sides of a wall or floor, as appropriate.

The invention further provides a vehicle fitted with a security system as described above.

One embodiment of the invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a security system according to the invention attached to the floor of a caravan, only part of which is shown; Figure 2 is a schematic view on a smaller scale showing the security system of Figure 1 installed in a caravan; Figure 3 is a plan view of two parts of the security system of Figure 1 shown separate; Figure 4 is a plan view of the security system of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a sectional view of a variant of the security system taken on a line corresponding to the line V-V of Figure 1; and Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 showing a further variant of the system.

With reference to the drawings, a caravan security system is generally indicated 10 and comprises essentially a ground-engagement bar 11 and attachment means generally indicated 12 for securing the bar 11 to the floor 13 of a caravan generally indicated C in Figure 2. The groundengagement bar comprises essentially a cylindrical steel rod, approximately 25mm in diameter. In practice, although only one security system 10 is shown in situ in the caravan C of Figure 2, two such systems would preferably be provided.

As seen particularly in Figures 1 and 4, the attachment means 12 include two rectangular attachment plates 14 and 15 shown fixed to the caravan floor 13 with the plate 14 above it and the plate 15 beneath. The fixing is by means of four bolts 16 which are welded to and project upwardly from the lower plate 15, adjacent the corners thereof. These bolts 16 pass through cooperating, aligned apertures (not shown) formed in the floor 13 and through corresponding apertures 16a in the top plate 14 and are secured by nuts 19 (not shown in Figure 4) screwed onto their upper, threaded ends which project above the top plate 14. For convenience of fitting, circular apertures (not shown) just larger than the bolts 16 are formed in the caravan floor 13 while oval apertures 16a are formed in the upper attachment plate 14 to allow the position of the upper plate 14 to be adjusted longitudinally of the lower plate 15.

The nuts 19 may be of a self-locking type or may be welded or otherwise secured in place to ensure that the plates 14 and 15 cannot be removed easily once bolted in situ. Moreover the plates 14 and 15 themselves are of robust galvanized steel sheet, approximately 5mm thick and about 150mm by 200mm in length, although neither these measurements nor the shape of the plates 14, 15 and arrangement of the bolts 16 should be considered limiting. In a variant of the security system (not shown), the bottom plate 15 has an additional security flange which can be bolted to the chassis of the caravan.

The attachment plates 14 and 15 have respective ovalshaped through apertures 20,21 respectively with inclined edges in central regions thereof. The apertures 20,21 serve for the fixing of two support sleeves 22,23 to the attachment plates 14,15 respectively. For this purpose one end of each sleeve 22,23 is cut at an angle of the order of 60 (at present an angle of 65C is preferred) to its axis so that it has an oval end face with an end peripheral wall which is a mating fit in the respective aperture 20 or 21 in the attachment plate 14 or 15.

These ends of the sleeves 22,23 are welded in the respective apertures 20,21 by weld beads not shown such that the sleeves 22,23 project at 65C to the respective plates 14,15, the apertures 20,21 being so positioned that, when the plates 14,15 are fitted to the caravan floor 13 as shown, the axes of the sleeves 22,23 are aligned. A rectangular aperture 24 is also cut in the caravan floor 13 of such a size that both of the apertures 20,21 in the plates 14,15 open into it so that it puts the bores of the sleeves 22,23 into communication with each other to allow the bar 11 to be inserted through them, as shown in Figure 1.

The internal surfaces of the sleeves 22 and 23 are in fact threaded and a substantial portion 25 of the bar 11 also has external threading matching that of the sleeves 22,23 so that the bar 11 can in fact be screwed into the sleeves 22,23. One end portion, indicated 26 of the bar 11 which is intended to project from the lower tube portion 23 is, however, unthreaded and terminates in a conically-tapered tip 27. The opposite end of the bar 11 is formed with an axially-projecting hexagonal head 28 for receiving a wrench by which the bar 11 may be rotated and thereby moved axially in the sleeves 22,23.

Conveniently the hexagonal head 28 is of the same size as a wheel nut of the caravan C so that it can be operated by the same wrench as the wheel nut.

A further feature of the security system 10 is a locking system for securing the bar 11 in a selected position within the sleeves 22,23. The locking system comprises a longitudinally-extending, diametral through-slot 30 in the threaded portion 25 of the bar 11, terminating close to each end of the threading, and corresponding throughslots 31 in diametrally opposed positions in the wall of the upper sleeve 22. The bar 11 may be rotated in the sleeves 22, 23 to move it longitudinally of the tube portions themselves and at every 1800 of rotation its slot 30 will be brought into alignment with the slot 31 in the upper sleeve 22, as shown by the position selected in Figure 1. In this position, a locking bar, best seen in Figures 3 and 4, may be passed through the aligned slots 30,31 to prevent relative rotation and movement of the bar 11 in the sleeves 22,23. The locking bar 33 in fact has a rectangular section, approximately 6mm x 18mm, which is a close fit in the sleeve slots 31 and has one end formed with an aperture 34 for receiving the bar 35a of a padlock 35 while its opposite end portion 36 is bent at right angles to provide a stop for abutting the outer surface of the sleeve 22. As is clearly seen in Figure 4, when the locking bar 33 is passed through the aligned slots 33,31 with its end portion 36 abutting the sleeve 22 and the padlock 36 engaged and locked in the aperture 34, the locking bar cannot be removed and secures the threaded bar 11 in its selected position. The padlock 35 is of toughened steel which cannot be cut with bolt cutter. Covers (not shown) may be provided for the ends of the locking bar 33 and the slots 31.

In order for the security system 11 to be used, it will be appreciated that the plates 14 and 15 with the threaded tubes 22,23 must first be fitted to the caravan floor 13. For this purpose the apertures for the bolts 16 and for the threaded bar 11 must first be cut in the floor 13 in a suitable location. The location should be at the front end of the caravan as shown in Figure 2 for reasons which will be explained below, the aperture 24 being so arranged that when the locking bar 11 is inserted through it, the bar projects downwardly and forwardly of the caravan floor 13. It is also preferable for the security system to be fitted within an internal compartment of the caravan, such as underneath a transversely-extending bunk at the front of the caravan further to hinder access to would-be thieves.

Once the plates 14,15 have been bolted to the floor 13, the unthreaded end portion 26 of the bar 11 may be inserted downwardly, from the interior of the caravan, into the sleeves 22,23 until the threaded portion 25 engages the internal threading of the upper sleeve 22.

The bar 11 may then be rotated with the aid of its hexagonal head 28 to move it further down through the sleeves 22,23. While the authorised user or owner of the caravan C wishes to move the van, the bar 11 may be left in a raised position with its tip 27 well above the ground C on which the caravan is standing but, whenever it is wished to prevent movement, the bar 11 may be rotated so as to lower it until its pointed tip 27 engages the ground indicated G on which the caravan C is standing. Indeed, if the ground is not too hard, the tip 27 may be made to penetrate the ground, as shown in Figure 1. The threaded bar may then be locked in this position by means of the locking bar 33 and padlock 35.

It will be appreciated, that once the ground-engaging bar 11 has been put into service in this way, any attempt to pull the caravan C forwardly will cause the tip 27 to dig into the ground and will obstruct such movement, particularly since the weight of the caravan during towing is arranged to bear down on the towing hitch of the towing vehicle and will therefore increase the force tending to push the tip 27 into the ground G. Moreover any thief wishing to deactivate the security system would not be able to raise the bar 11 out of engagement with the ground from outside the caravan partly because of the lock 33,35 but also because of the smooth surface of the lower end of the bar 11 which does not provide any grip.

He would therefore need to break into the caravan and would still require tools and a considerable amount of time to achieve the theft.

An alternative which a thief might consider would be to raise the front end of the caravan itself to disengage the bar 11 from the ground. This, however, would raise the caravan tow bar, indicated T, to a level above that at which it can be attached to a normal towing hitch of a vehicle, thus again preventing the theft. This antitheft aspect can also be enhanced by careful adjustment and levelling of the caravan itself. For this purpose, when the caravan is unhitched from the towing vehicle, the front end of the caravan may first be raised slightly on its jockey wheel (not shown) to raise the tow bar T above the level of attachment to the towing hitch. The rear of the caravan may then be raised to level the floor 13 and the ground-engaging bar 11 may then be lowered until its tip penetrates the ground. Clearly this arrangement will provide anti-theft security even on hard ground which the tip cannot penetrate since the contact of the tip with the ground will prevent lowering of the tow bar into the normal towing position.

The security system described above may be further enhanced by the provision of a block (not shown in the drawings) which can be fixed to the ground G and has a cooperating recess for receiving the tip 27 and part of the lower end 26 of the ground-engaging bar 11. Such a block may readily be fixed on a permanent site for a specific caravan equipped with the security system 10 but similar blocks may also be provided on semi-permanent or touring sites once the security system 10 is in widespread use.

The security system 10 has been described above in relation to a caravan but may readily be fitted, without modification, to any vehicle with a substantially flat floor. Moreover the attachment plates 14, 15 may readily be replaced by alternative attachment members for attachment to a structural part of a vehicle other than the floor. In yet a further alternative, the two plates 14, 15 with their respective sleeves 22, 23 may be replaced by a single sleeve member for receiving the ground-engaging bar 11 with appropriate support means for attachment to a vehicle structural member, particularly a tow bar.

Reference is now made to Figure 5 of the drawings which shows an alternative locking device for a security system. Parts of Figure 5 which are equivalent to those of Figures 1 to 4 are indicated by the same reference numerals increased by 100 and only the differences will be described below.

In Figure 5, the sleeve 122 is formed not with two through-slots 31 but with a through-aperture 13lb in one side and an opposing blind cavity 131a, opening from its interior, in the opposite side. The locking bar 133 carries an associated cylindrical, key-operable lock 135, one end of which can seat in the outer part of the through-aperture 131b, against an internal shoulder thereof with the bar 133 projecting from the lock 135 through the longitudinal slot 130 in the ground-engaging bar 111 into the blind cavity 131a. The lock 135 has a latch 135a which can project into a recess (not shown) in the wall of the aperture 131b to lock the bar 133 and cylinder lock 135 in position or which can be moved out of engagement with the recess to release the lock 135 and bar 133 so that they can be withdrawn.

With reference finally to Figure 6 of the drawings, a further embodiment of the invention is shown in which parts equivalent to those of Figure 5 are indicated by the same reference increased by 100 and only the differences will be described below.

In the embodiment of Figure 5, the screw-threaded sleeve 122 is replaced by a sleeve 222 with a smooth internal bore and the threaded ground-engagement bar 111 is replaced by a bar 211 having ratchet teeth 240 along its upper portion. Moreover, the locking bar 233, instead of passing right through the ground-engagement bar 211, has a bevelled operating end 239 which cooperates with the ratchet teeth 240.

The locking bar 233 carries a cylinder lock 235 which operates like the lock 135 of Figure 5 to retain the lock 235 itself and the locking bar 233 in the through aperture 231b with the operating end 239 of the locking bar 233 engaged between a selected pair of the ratchet teeth 240. In this position the locking bar prevents upward movement of the ground-engagement bar 228 but the locking bar is spring-loaded so that it can allow downward movement of the ground-engagement bar 228.

Moreover the spring-loading is preferably such that, if the front end of the caravan is raised to disengage the ground-engagement bar 228 from the ground, the latter automatically moves downwards, overcoming the springbiasing of the locking bar 228, to remain in contact with the ground.

The lock 235 can be released and, with the associated bar 233, removed totally from the sleeve 222 to allow upward movement of the group-engagement bar when an authorised user wishes to move the caravan. The lock may have a secondary locing position in which it locks the locking bar against axial movement to prevent both upward and downward movement of the ground-engagement bar in the sleeve 222 so that the ground-engagement bar may be retained in a disengaged condition.

The upper end of the ground-engagement bar 211 terminates with a mushroom-shaped head 228 instead of the hexagonal head 128 since this bar does not need to be turned by a tool. Also this head limits the downward movement of the ground-engagement bar 228 in the sleeve 222 so that it cannot fall right through the latter.

Claims (19)

1. A vehicle security system including groundengagement means attachable to the vehicle at an attachment point thereon so as to project beneath the vehicle by a distance such as to engage the ground to prevent movement of the vehicle, the security system further including releasable locking means for locking the ground-engagement means in the ground-engaging position.

2. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 1, including attachment means adapted to be fixed substantially permanently to the vehicle to support the ground-engagement means on the vehicle, the groundengagement means being movable relative to the attachment means between the ground-engaging position and a release position in which they allow movement of the vehicle.

3. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 2, in which the locking means are lockable to secure the ground engagement means to the attachment means both in the ground-engaging position and in the release position.

4. A vehicle security system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the ground-engagement means comprise a spike carried by a support member attachable to the vehicle.

5. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 4, in which the spike comprises the end portion of an elongate member attachable to the vehicle so that it is inclined downwardly and forwardly of the normal direction of forward movement of the vehicle such that, in its ground engaging position, the spike would tend to be forced into the ground by forward movement of the vehicle.

6. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 5 as dependent on Claim 2 or Claim 3, in which the elongate member is movable axially of itself on the attachment means between a lowered, ground engaging position, when attached to a vehicle, and a raised, release position.

7. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 6, in which the elongate member and the attachment means have cooperating screw-threading to allow the axial movement of the elongate member.

8. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 2 or any one of Claims 3 to 7 as dependent on Claim 2, in which the locking means comprise a locking member insertable through, and lockable in, cooperating apertures in the attachment means and the ground-engaging member or a support for the ground-engaging member to prevent relative movement between the ground-engaging member and the attachment means.

9. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 6, in which the locking member is slidable axially between the ground-engaging and release positions, and cooperating lockable ratchet and pawl means are provided for locking the ground-engagement means in the ground engaging position.

10. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 9, in which the ground-engagement member is provided with a plurality of longitudinally-spaced ratchet teeth and the attachment means are adapted to support a releasable lock-operable pawl engageable with the teeth.

11. A vehicle security system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims for use with a vehicle having a closed compartment, adapted for the attachment to the vehicle with the locking means housed within the closed compartment.

12. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 11 as dependent on Claim 2, in which the attachment means are adapted to be fixed to a structural member of the compartment to support the ground-engaging member outside the compartment for engagement with the ground, the ground-engaging member being movable between its groundengaging and release positions from within the compartment.

13. A vehicle security system as claimed in Claim 12 as dependent on Claim 5, in which the attachment means are adapted to support the elongate member extending through an aperture in the compartment body with its groundengaging spike outside the body and its opposite end portion engageable by the locking means within the body.

14. A vehicle security system substantially as herein described with reference to, and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

15. A method of securing a vehicle, comprising providing a security system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, attaching the ground-engagement means to the vehicle in such a way that the ground-engagement means project beneath the vehicle and into engagement with the ground so as to prevent movement of the vehicle, and locking the ground-engagement means in the groundengaging position.

16. A method of securing a vehicle having a closed compartment, including providing a security system as claimed in Claim 11, forming an aperture in a wall or floor of the compartment through which the elongate member can extend and fixing the attachment means to the structural member of the compartment with the elongate member supported thereby extending through the aperture.

17. A method of securing a vehicle substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

18. A vehicle fitted with a security system as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 14.

19. A caravan fitted with a security system substantially as herein described with reference to, and as shown in, the accompanying drawings.