HOW THE BOWLEY LOCK WORKS
Can it be Picked?
In order to pick a lock, you must be able to reach each pin with the picking tool while applying a pre-torque to the lock. In order for a tool to reach the pins in the Bowley Lock, it must be shaped like a reverse fork, similar to the key. The key can only translate about 1/16 of an inch and that applies to the pick as well. Because of this limited stroke, it is almost impossible to reach more than one pin with a single pick certainly not more than 2 pins. That means you would need at least 3 individual picks in the lock at once. Moreover, the only place to apply torque to the lock cylinder is a small groove on the back wall of the lock. For this you would need another tool as well. It would be extremely difficult to manipulate 3 picks at once and apply the torque, especially in real life setting. Anything is possible of course so its not correct to say "un-pickable" for any lock. In a real life setting our cylinder technology offers far too high of a challenge for any criminal to try to "pick" their way in.
Can it be Bumped?
In order to bump a lock you must be able to apply torque to the lock during the bump itself. It is very hard to apply torque to our lock until the key is pushed all the way towards the back of the lock. Any torque before this will cause the idler to rotate which in turn causes the pins to lift and re-locks the cylinder to the housing. Not only that, the Bowley Lock works differently when compared to standard locks. Our pins move downward from their locked position. In a standard lock, the pins move upward to unlock the lock. Bumping is an upward motion causing the top pin to jump off the bottom pins. It simply doesn't work the same on a Bowley Lock. We have added several other technologies to our patent which further reduces the ability to bump a lock, and not just for the Bowley Lock, but for all pin tumblers locks. For now these features are our trade secrets that we are not disclosing, but we are already employing these technologies into our locks. After many attempts the Bowley Lock has not been bumped to date and may be effectively "unbumpable" as time goes on. Either way this lock will not be a lock that criminals want to attempt to bypass, which puts it in the highest category of high security locks.
In order to pick a lock, you must be able to reach each pin with the picking tool while applying a pre-torque to the lock. In order for a tool to reach the pins in the Bowley Lock, it must be shaped like a reverse fork, similar to the key. The key can only translate about 1/16 of an inch and that applies to the pick as well. Because of this limited stroke, it is almost impossible to reach more than one pin with a single pick certainly not more than 2 pins. That means you would need at least 3 individual picks in the lock at once. Moreover, the only place to apply torque to the lock cylinder is a small groove on the back wall of the lock. For this you would need another tool as well. It would be extremely difficult to manipulate 3 picks at once and apply the torque, especially in real life setting. Anything is possible of course so its not correct to say "un-pickable" for any lock. In a real life setting our cylinder technology offers far too high of a challenge for any criminal to try to "pick" their way in.
Can it be Bumped?
In order to bump a lock you must be able to apply torque to the lock during the bump itself. It is very hard to apply torque to our lock until the key is pushed all the way towards the back of the lock. Any torque before this will cause the idler to rotate which in turn causes the pins to lift and re-locks the cylinder to the housing. Not only that, the Bowley Lock works differently when compared to standard locks. Our pins move downward from their locked position. In a standard lock, the pins move upward to unlock the lock. Bumping is an upward motion causing the top pin to jump off the bottom pins. It simply doesn't work the same on a Bowley Lock. We have added several other technologies to our patent which further reduces the ability to bump a lock, and not just for the Bowley Lock, but for all pin tumblers locks. For now these features are our trade secrets that we are not disclosing, but we are already employing these technologies into our locks. After many attempts the Bowley Lock has not been bumped to date and may be effectively "unbumpable" as time goes on. Either way this lock will not be a lock that criminals want to attempt to bypass, which puts it in the highest category of high security locks.
From the middle ages to the early 1900's the security of a lock was derived from the complexity of the shape of the key which would be required to enter the lock while avoiding all the wards (stationary shields) in the lock that served to keep other objects from reaching the latch. The key was in essence a perfectly shaped tool in which to enter a lock and avoid the many barriers (wards) thus reaching the latching mechanism. This system was ultimately doomed by the advent of bendable wire which was able to be shaped to fit the lock
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In the early 1900's a new style of permutation lock was invented known as the pin tumbler lock. This new lock featured keys that were all the same shape with the exception of one surface in which a unique code was cut in. This coded surface would interact with the pin tumblers of a particular lock and allow you to open only that lock. The system was a brilliant design with a single but very large vulnerability. With the idea of many combinations at hand the key no longer need to be a special shape and as such the corresponding key hole allowed objects to enter the lock with direct access to the pins. This oversight has spurred the locksmithing industry and allowed professionals and criminals alike access to nearly all pin tumbler locks.
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The Bowley Lock Company Inc. combined the ancient technology of the warded lock and key with the current permutation technology of the pin tumbler lock to create a lock of the future with the best features of both. This Patented concept utilizes a special shaped key and places the the coded surface of the key on the outer fork which must travel behind a shield within the lock. The pin tumblers in the lock are behind the shield so no straight tool of any kind can even reach the pins. Tools in the shape of the key must be rotated into the lock and are unable to move far enough to access more then one pin. There is simply no room for multiple tools with in the lock so the possibility of picking the lock becomes infinitesimal.
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