Security wheel apparatus for deterring theft of manually operated wheeled vehicles
First Claim
1. A security wheel unit for attachment to a shopping cart to inhibit the unauthorized use and removal of the cart from a designated use area, comprising:
- wheel means having a closed chamber formed therein;
axle means journalled to said wheel means, said axle means being attached to a cart and fixed against rotation about its longitudinal axis;
rotation-inhibiting means disposed within said chamber and including a locking member movable between an unlocked position and a locked position in which it engages said axle means to prevent rotation of said wheel means;
counting means disposed within said chamber;
sensor means disposed within said chamber for sensing rotation of said wheel means and for generating an output signal which can be counted by said counting means, said sensor means including a mercury switch positioned to open and close at least one time for each revolution of said wheel means; and
actuating means disposed within said chamber and operative in response to said counting means, to cause said rotation-inhibiting means to be moved into said locked position after a predetermined count has been reached.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Apparatus for deterring unauthorized use and removal of steel or steel-and-plastic constructed swivel-wheel shopping carts by preventing the free movement of one or more of the installed wheels after the cart is moved a predetermined distance. A braking device, fully contained within a wheel, measures the distance traveled beyond an activating point by counting the number of rotations made by the cart wheel and compares the count to a preprogrammed stored attribute that defines the allowable distance the cart is allowed to travel once outside the shopping facility. Depending on the direction the cart is travelling, the counter is "armed" or "disarmed" when the cart passes over low-frequency magnetic arrays placed at the entry and/or exit of the shopping facility.
48 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A security wheel unit for attachment to a shopping cart to inhibit the unauthorized use and removal of the cart from a designated use area, comprising:
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wheel means having a closed chamber formed therein; axle means journalled to said wheel means, said axle means being attached to a cart and fixed against rotation about its longitudinal axis; rotation-inhibiting means disposed within said chamber and including a locking member movable between an unlocked position and a locked position in which it engages said axle means to prevent rotation of said wheel means; counting means disposed within said chamber; sensor means disposed within said chamber for sensing rotation of said wheel means and for generating an output signal which can be counted by said counting means, said sensor means including a mercury switch positioned to open and close at least one time for each revolution of said wheel means; and actuating means disposed within said chamber and operative in response to said counting means, to cause said rotation-inhibiting means to be moved into said locked position after a predetermined count has been reached. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A security wheel unit for attachment to a shopping cart to inhibit the unauthorized use and removal of the cart from a designated use area, comprising:
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wheel means including a cylindrical hub having a closed chamber formed therein; elongated axle means journalled to said wheel means and passing through said chamber, said axle means being attached to a cart and fixed against rotation about its longitudinal axis; and locking means disposed within said chamber and operative to count rotations of said wheel means about said axle means and to lock said wheel means to said axle means when a predetermined number of rotations have been counted, said locking means including sensor means having a mercury switch positioned to open and close at least one time for each revolution of said wheel means, and for generating at least one sense signal per revolution. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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Specification