How Auto Door Locks Work

Key fobs such as this one activate the power door lock mechanism.

How auto door locks work.

A rod con nects the actuator to the latch and another rod connects the latch to the knob that sticks up out of the top of the door. A car door in this car the power door lock actuator is positioned below the latch. See more pictures of car gadgets. To start with you need the right tools for the job.

When the actuator moves the latch up it connects the outside door handle to the opening mechanism. You will require one wrench to apply tension to the lock cylinder and one long pick to actually get the pins of the lock to move. Centrifugal clutch on the drive gear when the motor spins the gear the clutch swings out and locks the small metal gear to the larger plastic gear allowing the motor to drive the door latch. But in more complicated systems that have several ways to lock and unlock the doors the body controller decides when to do the unlocking.

Electric car door locks operate by receiving a radio signal transmitted by the car key fob signaling the actuator to activate which then routes the command through the correct path lock unlock and performs the desired action. If you move the door latch yourself all of the gears will turn except for the plastic gear with the clutch on it. On activation the actuator unit moves a rod attached to the rear of the latch door lock mechanism. The body controller is a computer in your car.

This method should work on most pin and tumbler locks that people normally use. Between the keypads keyless entry systems and conventional locks some cars today have four or five different ways to unlock the doors. When locked the latch will be depressed and the mechanism will be connected to prevent the door from being opened. In some cars that have power door locks the lock unlock switch actually sends power to the actuators that unlock the door.

By unlocking the car door using the internal latch or a key the visible latch will be in the up position and the car door locks release the door opening mechanism. The door latch on a car door is responsible for keeping the door shut against the body of the ca.