Traditional cat eyes were originally designed to facilitate indoor personnel to observe outdoor conditions, but they have become the target of criminals. Cat eyes are usually installed in the middle and upper part of the door. Their structural characteristics make it possible for criminals to use special tools to reach into the room through the cat eye hole. They can use the lever principle to press down the inner handle and easily unlock the door. Relevant laboratory simulation tests show that 38% of smart door locks have cat eye mechanical loopholes. Criminal gangs use special tools to reach in through the cat eye hole and can complete illegal opening in an average of 9 seconds. This data is shocking and highlights the shortcomings of traditional cat eye design in security protection.
The "anti-cat eye unlocking" design of long panel interior door locks came into being to plug this security loophole. Its design ideas mainly cover two types: physical blocking and electronic induction. In terms of physical blocking, some long panel interior door locks have carefully designed physical locks or covers at the handles on the inside of the door. When the lock or cover is locked, even if external force is applied through the peephole, the door handle cannot be moved, thus effectively preventing the door from being unlocked through the peephole. For example, some door locks adopt a dial button design. After the user dials the button, the door handle can be directly fixed. The handle cannot be pressed inside the door, but the correct unlocking method can still be used outside the door to unlock the door without affecting normal use. From the perspective of electronic sensing, some high-end long-panel interior door locks are equipped with advanced sensing devices. When it is detected that someone is trying to turn the door handle by applying external force through the peephole, the door lock will quickly activate the protection mechanism and automatically lock the external unlocking function. This design can keenly perceive abnormal operations and respond in time, adding a solid line of defense to home safety.
From the actual use effect, the "anti-peephole unlocking" design has achieved remarkable results. For women living alone, this design greatly enhances their sense of security. Women living alone face relatively high security risks at night or when they are alone at home, and the "anti-peephole unlocking" function can effectively prevent criminals from invading through the peephole, allowing them to live more at ease. It is also of great significance for families with elderly people and children. Elderly people may not be able to respond to sudden safety situations in time due to inconvenience in movement or slow reaction; children may open the door lock due to curiosity or misoperation, which poses a safety hazard. The "anti-cat's eye unlocking" function can prevent such accidents from happening, providing more reliable safety protection for the elderly and children.
However, the actual effect of the "anti-cat's eye unlocking" function is not generalized, but is closely related to the quality and design of the door lock. High-quality door locks are more particular about the selection of materials and the structural design is more scientific and reasonable, which can better play the advantages of the "anti-cat's eye unlocking" function. For example, the double-bearing anti-cat's eye structure designed by a certain brand increases the torque required to open the inner handle to 18N・m, which is 3 times that of ordinary door locks, effectively blocking the tool conduction path, greatly increasing the difficulty for criminals to unlock through the cat's eye. Some door locks of poor quality may have defects in function realization, such as the insensitive sensing device cannot detect abnormal external forces in time; the physical blocking structure is fragile and easy to be damaged. Therefore, when choosing a long panel interior door lock, consumers must pay attention to product quality and brand reputation, and choose products that have been actually tested and verified by users.
In addition to the "anti-peephole unlocking" function, long panel interior door locks should also have a variety of other security protection mechanisms to build a comprehensive home security system. For example, some smart door locks are equipped with multiple verification mechanisms, and users can set a combination of multiple unlocking methods through mobile phone APP, such as fingerprint + password, password + dynamic verification code, etc. This method greatly increases the difficulty of unlocking. Even if the cat's eye is used by criminals, it cannot be unlocked smoothly without multiple verifications. Some smart door locks also have the function of real-time monitoring of the door lock status. When someone tries to unlock through the cat's eye, the user can receive an instant alarm notification, and can view the real-time video outside the door through the mobile phone APP, and take corresponding measures in time, such as remotely locking the door lock, calling the police, etc.
The "anti-peephole unlocking" design of the long panel interior door lock is of great significance in improving home security. Through physical blocking and electronic sensing design ideas, the risk of criminals opening the door through the peephole is effectively prevented, especially providing strong security protection for single women, families with elderly people and children. However, the function depends on the quality and design of the door lock, and it also needs to work in coordination with other security protection mechanisms.
