RFID Door Entry - Electric Door Release Required

air

Hi All,
My front door is one of those annoying types that have been fitted to houses in estates over the past number of years where you have to lock it with a key after you close it!
I see this as a major fire safety issue also as it means that if you dont leave a key in it on the inside someone could have difficulty getting out.
The plus side of the door is that when you raise the handle upwards to lock it, it has 5 independent locking points in the frame which makes it pretty secure.

Anyways, what I would like to do is to install a RFID receiver that will automatically open the door for me when I walk up to it. On the inside I think that it should just open when the handle is pushed, although I might combine this with a push button also to add to security.

Anyway I have the RFID side of it sorted & have no problem with that end of it but I'm struggling to select a suitable door strike / release to go with it.

Any input appreciated.

Pataman

Just go to your local locksmith and get a replacement euro lock with a thumbwheel on the inside and that should solve the problem. About €40 and a lot less hassel.

air

Ah but the door wont open when I walk up to it then
I agree though it would be a nice solution otherwise. I might go for it in the interim.

Victor

How is your mechanism meant to operate the 5-point locking system? They usually tak a bit of effort.

Talk to these guys
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http://www.crothers.ie/
http://www.ata.ie/
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air

I was down the locksmiths today & did a bit more thinking about it etc.
The 5 point locking (not sure if it's 4 or 5) would be a problem alright.
I was considering fitting multiple electric strikes but it would add to complexity / cost / hassle etc.
It would be great if I could get an electric actuator for the barrel to activate the existing locking mechanism but I havent come across anything like this yet if it exists.
Dont know about the relevance of this to computer security ?

I've also emailed the supplier of the RFID unit to enquire about power consumption as I'm not inclined to add any phantom loads to my house if i can help it.

Victor

Do you have a porch - an inner and outer door. Put the electronic lock on one and the ordinary lock on the other.

air

No porch I'm afraid, that'd kind of defeat the purpose anyway, my distant dream is to walk up to the door & have it open without any action on my part (spring loaded)

endplate

your not asking for much are you. Having worked with RFID in my last job I know what you require. Firstly you will need to set up a portal near your door then you need a reader which will instruct a controller to open a lock once a signal is received that lock is open then a motor is instructed to open your door then a sensor will instruct the controller to shut the door after you have walked through. We don't want it accidently closing on you eh. finally you need a RFID tag which has to be programed with your access code. Now it's very possible to do this and expensive. To set this up you will need a computer programer and a good RFID tag as holding one close to your body will effect it's preformance

patrido

electromechanical door systems are used a lot in commercial applications, so they might be worth looking into. i have seen them work with push operated switches, card readers and biometric readers, so i don't see why it couldn't be interfaced with an rfid reader.

an important question though is how strong / reliable is the contact. the electromagnetic types might not be reliable enough. you'd really need a number of bolts that are mechanically similar to a normal door, but electrically actuated. though you consider pneumatic for that star trek touch

also consider what happens when there's a power cut (are you locked in/out or is the house open to all). and a good backup interface to your alarm system would be worth looking into.

air

Thanks lads, endplate, I've got the RFID side of things sorted thanks - board, fobs, programming the lot.
Patrido, I've already got sources for the door releases which are designed to serve this function, I'm just hoping to get something to integrate with my existing multipoint locking system at this stage.

Victor

I think what you need to go for is a standard touchless card system, change the locks to suit and swap the card for the RFID tag.