Keyless Entry
Keyless entry is when someone doesn't need a traditional key to open a door, instead the key is replaced with a number pad and/or electronic sensor and some kind of RFID tag.
The "Key" Problem
At the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective we had a proliferation of keys to our shop, mostly legitimate, some not. This was mainly the result of not having a solidified volunteer structure and a laxed key policy for who had access to the shop. The issue was that every time a volunteer would copy, lose, move, or go MIA -- there would be an unaccounted master key to our shop floating around.
Possible Solutions
Re-key the Door
To re-key the door and provide copies to all the legitimate people on the key list would cost around $100 and $3 per key. We could do this, but then we didn't want to do it again.
Re-key the Door with a Special Key
Most Locksmith shops have a proprietary system that in theory only they can make copies of. They keep a list of authorized people from your organization, so when someone comes to make a copy, they have to present photo ID before they get a copy. This was around $200 and $7 per key. However we still would have to deal with the lost key problem.
Number Pad Keyless Entry
We considered using a number pad, but in today's world of fast cell phone texting that didn't seem like a good idea at all.
Smart Key (RFID) Entry
This uses a card reader that smart cards (passive RFID) that look like thick credit cards and/or keychains are waved by. The downside is that it is by far the most technical, expensive and complex of all the solutions. On average outfitting a single door was around $2,500 -- luckily we were able to get almost everything donated.
- A log is kept which holds people accountable for using the shop off hours.
- RFID cards are granted and denied access, so if someone loses a card -- we just disable that card.
- We have the ability to grant limited access -- so someone can only open the door for an hour on a given day.
- Web based control.
Howto Install Keyless Entry
Parts
- Parts for installing a smart card system.
HES 5000 Series Strike (Installation Instructions) - this is the mechanism that releases the door latch.
HID ProxPoint Plus 6005 (Installation Guide) - this is the smart card reader.
PowerDsine 1-Port Power over Ethernet Midspan 3001 (User Guide) - this uses the ethernet cable to send power to the the control module.
Integral Intelli-M - this is the "brains" that control who has access which includes the eIDC Control Module (Model #S-EIDC), Power Connector (Model #S-PCON), Supervisor Plus software (Model #S-IMS-E)
Additional parts may be needed for your door. In our case we had to replace the deadbolt with a deadlatch lock and a paddle handle.
Installation Tips
- Since we are using the PowerDSine, we don't need to use the external power supply to the PCON.
- The system is 24v, so the HES 5000 Series Strike needs to be rewired (page 5).