subject: Operate the device remotely or with a variety of electronic actions [print this page] Operate the device remotely or with a variety of electronic actions
Robert Campbell, owner of Advantage Locksmith in New York City, says fingerprint scanner allow for greater key control as they have no cylinders and tumblers to replace, so you can operate the device remotely or with a variety of electronic actions. They also allow transaction logging which gives you the ability to audit the device and print a list of when and by whom the lock was activated.
A magnetic lock works by securing the door via a large electric magnet that seals the door to the frame. This magnetism can be turned on or off via the power to the unit. Electric strike, mortise, cylindrical locks and crash bars are modifications to more traditional locks that are activated electronically by means of the many options that electric-powered devices allow. These can be remote access, security punch codes, security tokens like smart cards, or biometric scanners like retinal and finger print scanners.
What happens to power-based locks when the electricity goes out?
Campbell says it depends on the type of fingerprint scanner it is. Is it fail safe or fail secure? With fail-safe locks, if the power goes out, a signal is sent to lock and lock will remain unlocked until power is restored. So if the power goes out, you will be able to exit the space.
So perhaps the individual doors to hotel rooms with card access are fail-safe locks because people might have to get out in case of emergencies. Fail secure refers to more secure electric-lock applications (perhaps used in banks), where the doors are typically unlocked, but once power goes out, the doors are automatically locked. Certain businesses and institutions need fail-secure locks.
Otherwise, any reasonably intelligent thief will just cut the power and gain access whenever he wants. These locks typically have key override so you are covering all bases for any given situation.
