Electronic lock with selectable power off function

A lock apparatus, comprising:

• a lock housing;
• an electronic controller operable to control a state of the lock apparatus between locked and unlocked positions;
• and
• an electronic actuator electrically coupled to the electronic controller and movable between first and second positions corresponding to the locked and unlocked positions of the lock apparatus, respectively;
• and
• wherein the electronic controller is operable to provide a selected electrical state of the lock apparatus as one of an electrically locked (EL) state and an electrically unlocked (EU) state in an electric power-off condition.

An electronic lock, comprising:

• a lock housing;
• a printed circuit board (PCB) having a memory, a microcontroller, and an electrical energy storage device configured to store electrical energy;
• an electronic actuator operable to move the electronic lock between locked and unlocked positions when a command signal is received from the microcontroller;
• wherein the microcontroller and electronic actuator receive electrical power from an external power source under a power-on condition and receive electrical power from the electrical energy storage device during an electric power-off condition;
• and
• wherein the microcontroller is operable to provide a selected electrical state of the electronic lock as one of an electrically locked (EL) state and an electrically unlocked (EU) state in the electric power-off condition, wherein the electrical energy storage device in the electric power-off condition is configured to supply stored electrical energy to the electronic actuator to move the electronic actuator between the locked and unlocked positions.

A method for controlling an electronic lock under a power-off condition, the lock including a lock member and a lock housing, the method comprising:

• selecting an electrical state of the lock member in the power-off condition by way of an electronic controller, wherein the desired electrical state includes one of an electrically locked (EL) state and an electrically unlocked (EU) state;
• and
• moving the lock member to the desired electrical state via stored electrical energy in the power-off condition;
• and
• wherein the selecting is performed by sending an electronic command to the electronic controller to determine the selected electrical state.