Sealing system for sealing of doors of transport vehicles with door specific seals

• US 9,111,467 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2011
• Issued: 08/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deutsche Post AG
• Original Assignee: Deutsche Post AG
• Inventors: Paavilainen, Samuli, Lemola, Jussi
• Primary Examiner(s): Mitchell, Katherine
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mekhaeil, Shiref
• Application Number:
  US13/636,105
• Publication Number:
  US 20130008087A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,616 Days
• Field of Search: 49/13, 49/14, 49/65, 49/67, 244/129.4, 244/129.5, 292/307.R, 292/307.B
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 3/03 of security seals means for indicating unauthorised opening of container closures B65D, e.g. B65D27/30, B65D55/02; theft deterrent tags E05B73/0017

Abstract

Provided is a sealing system for sealing of doors of transport vehicles comprising at least one door with at least one first electrical contact and a corresponding door frame with at least one second electrical contact, where the first and the second contact are arranged on the same side of the door and the door frame and are electrically connected to build an open electrical circuit, and a seal to be attached to the closed door and the door frame suitable to close the open electrical circuit between first and second electrical contact in order to indicate the closure of the door. Additionally provided is a portable logging device for recording the sealing of doors as used by the sealing system and to a method to operate such a sealing system.

Claims

1. A sealing system for sealing of doors of transport vehicles comprising at least one door with at least one first electrical contact means and a corresponding door frame with at least one second electrical contact means, where the first and the second contact means are arranged on a same side of the door and the door frame and are electrically connected via door, door hinge and door frame to build an open electrical circuit, and a seal to be attached to the door and the door frame suitable to close the open electrical circuit between the first and second electrical contact means in order to indicate sealing of the door, further comprising at least one portable logging device to record sealing the door with at least a data insert unit to insert a particular type of the transport vehicles, a display unit supporting an operator to find the doors for later execution of sealing, where the display unit displays a location of each door of the particular type of the transport vehicle wherein the seal has to be attached, wherein the location is displayed as a marker on a displayed lay-out or blueprint of the transport vehicle, the data insert unit to record an executed attachment of the seal to the door, and a data unit to store the data as sealing data, where the open electrical circuit comprises spring mounted contact points at adapted holes as part of the first and second electrical contact means providing an electrical contact to a first and a second conductive areas of the seal.

2. The sealing system of claim 1, wherein an indication means is arranged within the closed electrical circuit in or on the seal, and being activated by closing the open electrical circuit, to detect a break of a closed electrical circuit during an activated status of the indication means.

3. The sealing system of claim 2, wherein a power supply is arranged within the closed electrical circuit in order to operate at least the indication means.

4. The sealing system of claim 2, wherein the indication means comprises a sending means suitable to send out a warning signal in response to the detected break of the closed electrical circuit.

5. The sealing system of claim 4, further comprising at least one receiving station arranged within a clearance area to receive the warning signal.

6. The sealing system of claim 5, further comprising a machine-readable code suitable to identify the certain door, wherein the portable logging device comprises a reading unit suitable to read the machine-readable code and to store the machine-readable code as part of sealing data in the data unit.

7. The sealing system of claim 6, comprising a computer system suitable for receiving and storing the sealing data from the portable logging device.

8. The sealing system of claim 6, wherein the machine-readable code is a barcode label glued on a surface of the seal facing away from the door.

9. The sealing system of claim 8, where the first and second electrical contact means and the first and second conductive areas are arranged at the surface of the seal, door and door frame and are magnetic providing a magnetic force strong enough to fix the seal to the door and door frame.

10. The sealing system of claim 5, where the receiving station further comprises alarm means suitable to provide an alarm signal at least inside the clearance area as a response of the received warning signal.

11. The sealing system of claim 4, wherein the sending means, is a RFID chip.

12. The sealing system of claim 4, wherein the send out warning signal comprises a code suitable to identify a location of a sealed door.

13. The sealing system of claim 1, where the portable logging device is adapted to provide number of doors to be checked for this particular transport vehicle after having inserted the type of the transport vehicle into the data insert unit of the portable logging device.

14. The sealing system of claim 1, where the portable logging device is adapted to count a number of executed attachments of seals and compares the number with an expected and to be check number of doors for this particular type of transport vehicle.

15. A method for operating a sealing system, comprising:

providing at least one door with at least one first electrical contact means and a corresponding door frame with at least one second electrical contact means, where the first electrical contact means and the second electrical contact means are arranged on a same side of the at least one door and corresponding door frame, and are electrically connected to build an open electrical circuit via door, door hinge and door frame;

providing at least one portable logging device to record sealing the door with at least a data insert unit, a data unit and a display unit;

inserting a particular type of a transport vehicle into the data insert unit of the portable logging device;

displaying a location of each door of the particular type of the transport vehicle where the seal has to be attached in the display unit, where the location is displayed as marker on a displayed lay-out or blueprint of the transport vehicle;

followed by closing the open electrical circuit by attaching a seal to the first electrical contact means of the door and to the second electrical contact means of the door frame in order to indicate sealing the door where the open electrical circuit comprises spring mounted contact points at adapted holes as part of the first and second electrical contact means providing an electrical contact to a first and a second conductive areas of the seal;

recording an executed attachment of the seal to the door with the data insert unit; and

storing the data as sealing data in the data unit.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein closing the open electrical circuit comprises:

activating an indication means after or by attaching the seal; and

sending out a warning signal by the indication means after detecting a break of the closed electrical circuit during an activated status of the indication means.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising:

receiving the warning signal with at least one receiving station arranged within a clearance area; and

providing an alarm signal at least inside a clearance area as a response of the received warning signal.