Intelligent lock based on distance sensing and control method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses an intelligent lock based on distance sensing and a control method thereof, and belongs to the technical field of intelligent locks. The lock comprises a main controller, a distance sensing module and a lock executing mechanism. The control method comprises the following steps: acquiring a real-time distance between the authorization equipment and the lock through the distance sensing module; the main controller compares the real-time distance with a preset unlocking threshold value and a preset locking threshold value; when the distance is smaller than an unlocking threshold value, the lock is controlled to be automatically unlocked; and when the distance is larger than or equal to the locking threshold value, the lock is controlled to be automatically locked. According to the invention, full-automatic operation of unlocking when approaching and locking when leaving is realized, and the problems of complicated operation and low safety of a traditional lock are effectively solved. The scheme is not only suitable for take-out boxes and express boxes, but also can be widely applied to various containers such as tool boxes, cosmetic cases, file cabinets and the like needing convenient and safe protection, and has high universality and practicability.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of intelligent lock, and in particular to an automatic lock based on distance sensing and a control method thereof. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the booming development of delivery service (such as take-out, express delivery) industry, the safety problem of delivery box (such as take-out box) used by delivery personnel is increasingly prominent. At present, most of the delivery boxes do not have locking function, or only use simple mechanical buckle, which cannot be effectively locked. This leads to the risk of taking or stealing the contents in the box by others when the delivery personnel temporarily leaves the delivery vehicle (such as electric vehicle, motorcycle) to send food upstairs, causing direct economic loss to the delivery personnel.

[0003] In the prior art, there are also some electronic locks, but they mostly need the user to manually press the key, swipe the card or perform multi-step operation through the mobile phone APP to unlock and lock. This is tedious for the delivery personnel who need to open and close the box frequently, and seriously affects the work efficiency. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a smart lock solution that can automatically complete the locking and unlocking operation without human intervention and is safe and reliable. SUMMARY

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to provide a smart lock based on distance sensing and a control method thereof to solve the problems of tedious operation, easy theft and low automation of delivery box lock in the prior art.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose, the present application adopts the following technical solutions: In a first aspect, the present application provides a smart lock based on distance sensing, comprising: · a main controller; · a distance sensing module electrically connected with the main controller, for detecting the real-time distance between an authorized device and the lock; · a lock execution mechanism electrically connected with the main controller, controlled by the main controller to perform locking or unlocking action; · a power module for supplying power to the main controller, distance sensing module and lock execution mechanism.

[0006] Preferably, the distance sensing module is one of Bluetooth module, Wi-Fi module or UWB module. The authorized device is a smart phone or a special electronic tag that has been pre-bound with the Bluetooth module.

[0007] Preferably, the lock execution mechanism is one of rudder, electromagnetic lock or electric push rod.

[0008] In a second aspect, the present application provides a control method of a distance-sensing based intelligent lock, applied to the intelligent lock described above, and comprising the following steps: • The distance-sensing module continuously or periodically detects the signal strength of the authorized device and calculates the real-time distance; • The main controller compares the real-time distance with a preset first threshold and a preset second threshold; the first threshold is smaller than the second threshold; • When the real-time distance is smaller than the first threshold, the main controller determines that the authorized device is close and controls the lock execution mechanism to perform an unlocking action; • When the real-time distance is greater than or equal to the second threshold, the main controller determines that the authorized device is far away and controls the lock execution mechanism to perform a locking action.

[0009] Preferably, the control method further comprises a binding step: in the initial setting, the unique identifier of an authorized device is bound to the main controller and stored.

[0010] The present application has the following advantages: 1. Fully automatic operation: realizes the full-automatic operation of "opening when close and locking when leaving", greatly improves the user experience and work efficiency, and is particularly suitable for scenarios such as delivery and logistics that need to frequently open and close the box.

[0011] 2. High safety: by binding a specific authorized device (such as the delivery person's own mobile phone), it effectively prevents unauthorized personnel from opening the box and solves the problem of stolen goods.

[0012] 3. Wide applicability: the present application is not only suitable for take-out boxes and express boxes, but also can be widely applied to makeup boxes, tool boxes, file cabinets, intelligent luggage and other containers that need temporary safekeeping, and has a broad market application prospect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0013] Figure 1 is a system composition block diagram of the intelligent lock of an embodiment of the present application.

[0014] Figure 2 is a flow chart of the intelligent lock control method of an embodiment of the present application.

[0015] Figure 3 is a mechanical structure schematic diagram of the intelligent lock (taking a rudder machine as an example) of an embodiment of the present application.

[0016] • Figure 1(System block diagram) Description: Draw a block diagram with the "main controller" (e.g. ESP32) at the center. Draw three lines from the main controller to the "distance sensing module" (e.g. Bluetooth module), "lock actuator" (e.g. servo / electromagnetic lock), and "power module" (e.g. power bank). Next to the "distance sensing module", draw an icon of an "authorized device" (e.g. mobile phone) and use a wireless signal symbol to represent communication.

[0017] · Figure 2 (Flowchart) Description: The flowchart starts with "system power-on initialization". Then go to "detect authorized device signal strength (RSSI) and calculate distance". Then the judgment box "distance < unlock threshold?", if yes (Yes), flow to "control lock unlocking"; if no (No), flow to another judgment box "distance ≥ lock threshold?", if yes (Yes), flow to "control lock locking"; if no (No), return to the previous detection step. Form a loop.

[0018] · Figure 3 (Mechanical schematic diagram) Description: Draw a simple box (rectangle). At the junction of the box cover and the box body, draw a servo motor with a simple "L" shaped flapper as a lock tongue on the shaft of the servo motor. Draw a corresponding "lock catch" (a protrusion or hole that can hold the flapper) on the box body. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific examples. Example 1:

[0020] Reference Figure 1 The intelligent lock system of the present embodiment includes a main controller, a Bluetooth module, a servo motor, and a power module. The main controller uses an ESP32 development board, which integrates Bluetooth function, so there is no need to connect an independent Bluetooth module. The servo motor uses a SG90 9g micro servo motor. The power source uses a common 5V mobile phone power bank, which supplies power to the ESP32 development board through the USB interface, and the 5V output pin of the ESP32 development board supplies power to the servo motor.

[0021] Reference Figure 3 The servo motor is fixed inside the delivery box cover through a bracket. The shaft of the servo motor passes through the cover and a "L" shaped metal flapper is fixed on the shaft as a lock tongue. A metal lock catch is installed on the box body corresponding to the flapper. When the servo motor is rotated to 0 degrees, the flapper is turned into the lock catch to achieve locking; when the servo motor is rotated to 90 degrees, the flapper is turned out of the lock catch and the cover can be opened.

[0022] Reference Figure 2 The software flowchart of its control method is as follows: After the system starts, the ESP32 initializes its Bluetooth module and begins to continuously scan the MAC addresses and signal strength (RSSI) of the surrounding Bluetooth devices.

[0023] When a bound phone MAC address is scanned, the ESP32 reads its RSSI value and estimates the approximate distance through an empirical formula.

[0024] The ESP32 compares the estimated distance with the preset threshold (for example, the unlock threshold is set to 3 meters, and the lock threshold is set to 5 meters).

[0025] • If the estimated distance is less than 3 meters, the ESP32 sends a command to the steering engine to rotate it to 90 degrees, bringing the blocking piece out of the lock catch and achieving automatic unlocking.

[0026] • If the estimated distance is greater than or equal to 5 meters, the ESP32 sends a command to the steering engine to rotate it to 0 degrees, bringing the blocking piece into the lock catch and achieving automatic locking.

[0027] • If the distance is between 3 meters and 5 meters, the current state of the lock is maintained. Example 2:

[0028] In another embodiment, the lock actuator can use a 12V electromagnetic lock. At this time, the power module needs to use a lithium battery pack with an output of 12V, and a 5V relay module is connected between the ESP32 and the electromagnetic lock. The ESP32 controls the on-off of the relay to control the power-on (locking) and power-off (unlocking) of the electromagnetic lock. The control logic is exactly the same as in Example 1.

[0029] It should be noted that the above examples are only used to explain the present application and are not a limitation of the present application. Various modifications, replacements and improvements made by those skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A smart lock based on distance sensing, characterized in that, include: • Main controller; • A distance sensing module, electrically connected to the main controller, is used to detect the real-time distance between the authorized device and the lock; • The lock actuator is electrically connected to the main controller and is controlled by the main controller to perform locking or unlocking actions; • The main controller is configured to: control the lock actuator to unlock when the real-time distance is less than a first threshold; and control the lock actuator to lock when the real-time distance is greater than or equal to a second threshold, wherein the first threshold is less than the second threshold.

2. The smart lock based on distance sensing according to claim 1, characterized in that, The distance sensing module is one of a Bluetooth module, a Wi-Fi module, or a UWB module; the authorized device is a mobile terminal or a dedicated electronic tag that has been pre-bound to the distance sensing module or the main controller.

3. The smart lock based on distance sensing according to claim 2, characterized in that, The real-time distance is determined by detecting the Received Strength Indicator (RSSI) value of the Bluetooth or Wi-Fi signal emitted by the authorized device.

4. The distance-sensing-based smart lock according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lock actuator is one of a servo motor, an electromagnetic lock, or an electric push rod.

5. The distance-sensing-based smart lock according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a power module, which is a power bank or a lithium battery pack, used to power the main controller, the distance sensing module and the lock actuator.

6. The distance-sensing-based smart lock according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The main controller is also configured to receive and store a unique identifier of at least one authorized device during initial setup to complete the binding.

7. A control method for a distance-sensing smart lock, applied to the smart lock as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The method includes the following steps: • The real-time distance between the authorized device and the lock is obtained through the distance sensing module; • Compare the real-time distance with a preset first threshold and a second threshold, wherein the first threshold is less than the second threshold; • When the real-time distance is less than the first threshold, the lock actuator is controlled to perform an unlocking action; • When the real-time distance is greater than or equal to the second threshold, the lock actuator is controlled to perform a locking action.

8. The control method according to claim 7, characterized in that, Before the step of obtaining the real-time distance, a binding step is also included: • Receive a unique identifier of an authorized device and bind and store it with the smart lock.

9. The control method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The specific steps for "obtaining the real-time distance between the authorized device and the lock" are as follows: • Detect the Received Strength Indication (RSSI) value of the wireless signal emitted by the authorized device; • Calculate the real-time distance based on the received signal strength indication value.

10. The control method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: • When the real-time distance is between the first threshold and the second threshold, the current state of the lock actuator remains unchanged.

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