Means for locking a displaceable or rotatable part

Locking means for preventing rotation of a rotatable lock cylinder core relative to a lock housing, comprising:

• (a) half shells surrounding said core and coupled thereto for rotation therewith;
• (b) an electromagnet;
• (c) an armature operatively associated with said electromagnet, said armature being retractable into said electromagnet upon energization of said electromagnet;
• (d) a locking pin member located with the lock housing engageable with one of said half shells to prevent rotation of said half shells;
• (e) a sleeve member coaxially surrounding said locking pin member and located on an end of said armature extending from said electromagnet;
• (f) a groove circumferentially surrounding said locking pin member;
• and
• (g) a plurality of balls located within bores in said lock housing radially movable between said grooves surrounding said locking pin member and an interior wall of said sleeve member, said radial movement of said balls being selectively limited by selective positioning of said sleeve member.

In a locking means of the type for locking a part which is movably displaceable by means of an electromagnet, the improvement of:

• a locking pin having a first circumferential groove adapted to receive a plurality of balls,
• a cup-shaped retainer sleeve coaxially confining said locking pin and having a second circumferential groove complementary to the shape of the balls,
• the radial mobility of the balls being a function of the axial position of the sleeve with the first and second circumferential grooves,
• and relatively displaceable parts keyed to said locking pin,
• whereby the displacement of the parts is a function of the displacement of the pin in an axial direction which is permitted only when the balls are movable radially in the registered circumferential grooves.

In a lock, nested rotatable rings journaled in a stationary member and having a notched cut-out with stop faces:

• a lock pin received in said notched cut-out and engageable with said stop faces to lock said rings against displacement,
• said lock pin having a body member, a sleeve concentrically disposed relative to said body member,
• first and second circumferential grooves formed in said body member and said sleeve,
• a plurality of balls radially mobile in said grooves when in register with one another,
• and actuating means to selectively move said locking pin into and out of engagement with said stop faces when permitted so to move by the position of said balls in said grooves.