Thumb-turn artist in action in a simulated scene. Seen from inside of door. Tip of the wire is about to turn the lock open.

Japanese doors have been pretty vulnerable the last several years. The first wave of gate crashers, or door breakers, were lock pickers. Both local and Chinese gangs with sophisticated (or homemade) picking tools roamed around the urban area, and cracked house doors open from left to right. They had acquired the skill at in-house training school, then honed it with on-the-job practise sessions.

Then came the thumb-turn artists. They bored a hole through the door, thrust a flexible cable into it, and released the thumb-turn lock inside of the door. This genre was outsourced from China, usually. A local Japanese organizer recruited them in China (sometimes by Internet), smuggled them into Japan, and gave them a certain turf to plunder. After an intensive and relatively short workout, they were shipped back to China with their share of loot.

So far, no Indian gangs have been seriously considered as the object of outsourcing. Because this job is not very software-oriented, and capability of English language is totally unnecessary. Besides, their facial features would be too outstanding in Japanese residential area, I guess.


However, the majority of break-and-entry cases in Japan comes through a very low-tech approach, er, no-tech one rather. Yes, brute force, I mean, by a crowbar. Almost all the main doors in Japan open outwards. It means hinges are outside to be seen by everybody. This is the weak point. Insert a crowbar into the small gap around hinges, and apply brute force. Your friendly door pops open to welcome everybody.

All right, let's install a TV camera on the door. I doubt it will deter the determinedly skilled or unskilled door artisans. But, surely, it will work nice on YOUR psychology.

Sharp Doorscope. Left: monitor unit (HN-D150). Right: CMOS camera unit (HN-DC30).

Electronic giant, Sharp Corp. of Osaaka released a TV doorscope system.

The one and only merit of this doorscope is: You don't need to bore huge gaping holes on your precious door to install this TV camera. Families in rented flats would be summarily thrown into dungeons if their doors were found with drilled holes.

Screw off the fisheye spy lens in the door. Attach the adapter plate to the spy hole. Then insert the camera unit. Magnets fix it in its position firmly. That's all. No need for clumsy wiring job, either. Camera image (1/7-inch CMOS, 110,000 pixels) is transfered by wireless (2.4GHz, IEEE802.15.4 protocol) to the monitor unit. Range, around 40m. Powered by three AA batteries.

The monitor unit can handle altogether four channels. The unit is tethered to AC power, no freedom of movement. Remaining three channels? Maybe one extra camera unit for bedridden grandpa's room, one for teenage daughter's cupboard, one for... Oh, come on, you are getting just like Big Brother!

Adapter plate and camera unit. Four magnet pieces connect the both.

Monitor unit. No sound, a bit dull to watch.

Both camera unit (HN-DC30) and monitor unit (HN-D10) will cost around 18,000 yen (US$155) each. Pretty stiff, aren't they? All right, bought as a set (one camera + one monitor), I reduce the price down to 27,000 yen (US$235), how's that?

 

cheewee
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kaisei1
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