Lever reading idea.

[Shrub]

I have just come up with another hairbrained scheme for lever locks or rather the reading of them and thought i would bore you all with it,

Imagine a P+C tool but instead of having holes for pins you have sprung contacts,

You would place the tool in the lock and turn until the contacts are touching the lever bellys,

The tool would have a common wire coming from the tool body and an individual wire coming from each (insulated from the body) contact,

Now i dont know the ins and outs yet but i am imagineing that every lever in lever locks has a differant amount of material making up that lever i.e there will be more of a cut out or the lever will be smaller, differant false knotches etc,

It is my idea that you would be able to measure the resistance of each lever depending on which wire you are measureing against the body (ground?) which will be on the curtain, the flow will go through the lock body but still a differant measurement should be possable on each lever,

As i say i dont know the workings or if its possable until i do some tests but i thought as i had just thought of it i would ask for any views or even to be told that yet again another idea is already in existance,

[wtf|pickproof?]

I'd say the success of this method heavily depends on the condition of the lock. Dirt, lube , oxydation, contact problems... might influence your results.
On the other hand, just give it a try and let us know.

just my 0,02 €
wtf|pickproof?

[Shrub]

I had thought about dirt etc but the worst bit is the levers touching each other, the idea that came to mind was somthing like a mega where a very high flow is put on but only for a short period, it will not jump across the lever gap but would get through grease which conducts anyway (mostly) if it means useing a wiping tool first its no biggy.

[funboy79015]

I have to say this is a creative idea. However, I am pretty sure that you will not be able to get any kind of consistent readings out from an instrument such as this.

The difference in the resistances of the levers will be very small (less than 1 ohm). The physical contacts just between the tool your considering and the levers will not be a consistent value and can be as high as 2-3 ohms. Not to mention the other physical contacts that are in the lock which have the same problem. Essentially, I think the differences you are trying to measure will be lost in noise.

Adding in the possibility that the levers can touch eachother then you can't even be sure what you are measuring (individual levers or some combination of levers).

[pinky]

this has already been done for 3 lock types by safe ventures, there walsall , avocet and era decoder works on a similar principle.

you have a reader pin that is pushed gently upward onto each lever, each lever differs, you feel the point of contact by pin with lever and the measurment of full lift, each is different and the lock is decoded.

not such a hairbrained scheme and one worth refining and pursuing.

[funboy79015]

Don't let my naysaying discourage you from trying it. Hopefully, you will prove me wrong.

[Shrub]

I had thought of the levers touching each other and at a push you may get a thin nylon finger between each one, almost like a comb tool but the teeth are going between the levers to insulate them,

I know there is a lot of faults and it was just an idea, i will have a measure of some levers to see what differances there are and may even try measureing a lock with the cover off and a scope to see if all the other factors make it just too inconsistant,

Pinky, it is measureing the resistance as in electrical terms not mechanical terms against the spring, i know the system you mean though, a classic lock that works on is a securefast i suppose, is that how slide rule decoders work?

You have given me an idea though, i summise that in a used lock each lever moves a differant distance hence the spring gets worn in in differant places along its length but at the same place on each lever of the same number, you could measure the differance in spring tension of each lever from the point where its normal bedded in state changes to the newer less bent section, this place would then be the normal lever height, or do you think the differance in a factory bent lever and one which a lockie has bent round and stuck in will counter act any system like this,

[raimundo]

The levers will be made of very nearly the same amount of material. the gates while placed differently will represent near same amounts of weight removed, as will the anti pic teeth, the electric path will be both through the springs on each lever as well as through the pin the levers are mounted on. On this pin, all the levers share contact. which contact is the path of first choice for the current, is there grease on the pin, or rust where the springs contact the case, You would have to crunch some data on the common readings amoung numerous locks.
Cool Idea, Work on it.

[Shrub]

Good points,
I thought the pivot would be the return which would make the spring past that thus not being measured,

The worst i have just thought of is a wet lock!!