"High security" all depends on the environment. High security in terms of residential premises is going to have lower standards in comparison to commercial high security, likewise for government.
Here is some information on ANSI and BHMA grading. Only a few of those links pertain to locks themselves; there is a pdf on high security cylinders
here but you may want to look at the others aswell so you have an idea of the differences. The full documents aren't available without purchase, but there should be enough information for your project there. If you need more in-depth information though, I'm sure some of our US residents can help you out further. That link will get you started anyway.
