Rekeyable lock cylinder

A rekeyable lock cylinder comprising:

• a cylinder assembly including:
• a cylinder body defining a longitudinal axis;
• and
• at least one pin mounted on the cylinder body;
• an inner sleeve disposed within the cylinder body, the inner sleeve defining a slot extending along the longitudinal axis and at least one pin opening for receiving at least a portion of the at least one pin, wherein the at least one pin is inwardly biased towards the inner sleeve and selectively moveable between an engaged position, whereby the inner sleeve is blocked from rotating around the longitudinal axis relative to the cylinder body, and a disengaged position, whereby the inner sleeve is allowed to rotate around the longitudinal axis relative to the cylinder body;
• and
• a plug assembly disposed at least partially within the inner sleeve, the plug assembly including:
• a plug body defining a keyway opening;
• at least one key follower slidably mounted on the plug body;
• a first carrier subassembly having a locking bar and at least one first rack, the at least one first rack coupled between the locking bar and the at least one first rack, wherein the locking bar is selectively movable between a locked position and an unlocked position upon receipt of a valid user key within the keyway opening, wherein in the locked position, the locking bar is disposed at least partially within the slot of the inner sleeve blocking rotation of the plug assembly around the longitudinal axis relative to the inner sleeve, wherein in the unlocked position, the locking bar is retracted from the slot of the inner sleeve allowing rotation of the plug assembly around the longitudinal axis relative to the inner sleeve, and wherein the at least one first rack is selectively disengagable from the at least one key follower to allow rekeying between different user keys;
• and
• a second carrier subassembly having at least one slider and at least one second rack, the at least one second rack coupled between the at least one slider and the at least one second rack, wherein the at least one slider is selectively moveable between a blocked position and an unblocked position upon receipt of a valid master key within the keyway opening, wherein in the blocked position, the at least one slider extends into the at least one pin opening of the inner sleeve forcing the at least one pin towards the disengaged position, wherein in the unblocked position, the at least one slider is retracted from the at least one pin opening of the inner sleeve allowing the at least one pin to move towards the engaged position, and wherein the at least one second rack is selectively disengagable from the at least one key follower to allow rekeying between different master keys.

A method of assembling a rekeyable lock cylinder comprising:

• providing a cylinder assembly having a cylinder body defining a longitudinal axis and a chimney housing at least one pin slidable therein;
• providing an inner sleeve defining a slot extending along the longitudinal axis and at least one pin opening;
• providing a plug assembly having a plug body with at least one key follower slidable therein;
• mounting a first carrier subassembly to a first side of the plug body of the plug assembly, the first carrier subassembly having a first carrier selectively slidable along the longitudinal axis for rekeying between different user keys, a locking bar slidably mounted on the first carrier and selectively engageable with the slot of the inner sleeve, and at least one first rack coupled between the at least one key follower and the locking bar to control movement of the locking bar;
• mounting a second carrier subassembly to a second side of the plug body of the plug assembly, the second carrier subassembly having a second carrier selectively slidable along the longitudinal axis for rekeying between different master keys, at least one slider slidably mounted on the second carrier, wherein based on a position of the at least one slider within the second carrier, the at least one pin is selectively engageable with the at least one pin opening of the inner sleeve, and at least one second rack coupled between the at least one key follower and the at least one slider to control movement of the at least one slider;
• inserting the plug assembly including the first and second carrier subassemblies at least partially within the inner sleeve, wherein the plug assembly is selectively rotatable within the inner sleeve based on position of the locking bar and the at least one slider;
• and
• inserting the inner sleeve with the plug assembly at least partially within the cylinder body, wherein the inner sleeve is selectively rotatable within the cylinder body based on position of the at least one pin.