ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 6 -- United States Patent no. 12,378,798, issued on Aug. 5, was assigned to JAPAN CASH MACHINE Co. LTD. (Osaka, Japan).
"Locking/unlocking device" was invented by Hiroyuki Oiyama (Osaka, Japan).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "The device includes a key unit 330 that includes a key 331, and a key rotation motor 333 applying a rotation driving force for locking/unlocking the lock to the key, and a key movement mechanism 360 that moves the key unit back and forth. The key movement mechanism includes a rack plate 365 that applies a driving force to the key unit by moving back and forth between an initial position and an advanced position, and a helical extension spring 371 that...