Tamper resistant security tag
AssigneeTyco Fire & Security GmbH
InventorsWING Kei HO, Gopal Chandramowle
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Security tag includes a housing and a movable locking element. A latch within the housing is resiliently biased toward the movable locking element and movable responsive to a magnetic field between a locked position and an unlocked position. A guide structure is arranged to constrain movement of the latch. The latch and the guide structure are cooperatively arranged to ensure an engagement that will disrupt a motion trajectory of the latch occurring when the housing is subjected to a physical impact. Consequently, the latch is selectively inhibited from moving fully from the locked position to the unlocked position when the housing is subjected to the physical impact.
Claims20
A tamper-resistant security tag comprising:
- a housing;
- a locking element movably disposed within the housing;
- a latch disposed within the housing and movable responsive to application of a magnetic field between a locked position, in which movement of the locking element is prevented by the latch, and an unlocked position, in which movement of the locking element is unrestricted by the latch;
- a resilient member arranged to resiliently bias the latch in a direction toward the locked position;
- a guide structure within the housing arranged to constrain a movement of said latch;
- the latch and the guide structure cooperatively arranged to facilitate engagement between at least one portion of the guide structure and a portion of the latch, said engagement configured to disrupt a motion trajectory of the latch occurring when the housing is subjected to a physical impact, whereby the latch is selectively inhibited from moving fully from the locked position to the unlocked position when the housing is subjected to the physical impact.
A tamper-resistant security tag comprising:
- a housing;
- a movable locking element disposed within the housing;
- a latch disposed within the housing and resiliently biased toward the movable locking element, the latch movable responsive to application of a magnetic field between a locked position, in which movement of the locking element is prevented by the latch, and an unlocked position, in which movement of the locking element is unrestricted by the latch;
- a guide structure within the housing arranged to constrain a movement of said latch;
- the latch and the guide structure cooperatively arranged to facilitate engagement between at least one portion of the guide structure and a portion of the latch, said engagement configured to disrupt a motion trajectory of the latch occurring when the housing is subjected to a physical impact, whereby the latch is selectively inhibited from moving fully from the locked position to the unlocked position when the housing is subjected to the physical impact.
A method for preventing defeat of a security tag, comprising:
- disposing within a housing of the security tag a latch which is resiliently biased toward a movable locking element, and movable responsive to application of a magnetic field between a locked position, in which movement of the locking element is prevented by the latch, and an unlocked position, in which movement of the locking element is unrestricted by the latch;
- providing a guide structure within the housing to constrain a movement of said latch;
- and
- disrupting with the guide structure a motion trajectory of the latch occurring when the housing is subjected to a physical impact, whereby the latch is selectively inhibited from moving fully from the locked position to the unlocked position only when the housing is subjected to the physical impact.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.