Securely Controlling an Electronic Lock

A method of controlling an electronic lock, the method performed at a server and comprising:

• establishing a wide-area network communication link between the server and a mobile device;
• establishing a communication session with the electronic lock, wherein the communication session enables exchanging data between the electronic lock and the server over a communication path comprising the wide-area network communication link and a short-range wireless communication link between the electronic lock and a mobile device;
• and
• sending a command to the electronic lock using the communication session, wherein the command causes the electronic lock to lock or unlock.

An electronic lock comprising:

• a lock mechanism having a locked state and an unlocked state;
• and
• a controller configured to:
• establish a short-range wireless communication link between the electronic lock and a mobile device;
• establish a communication session with a server, wherein the communication session enables exchanging data between the electronic lock and the server over a communication path comprising the short-range wireless communication link and a wide-area network communication link between the mobile device and the server;
• receive a command from the server using the communication session;
• and
• in response to receiving the command, lock or unlock the electronic lock by transitioning the lock mechanism to the locked stated or the unlocked state, respectively.