Mobile device requiring identity-related information to unlock a lock in one of two modes for unlocking the lock

1 . A mobile device for locking or unlocking a lock configured to have a first state and a second state, wherein the first state of the lock corresponds to an open state and the second state of the lock corresponds to a locked state, the mobile device comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

instructions, stored in the memory, when executed by the processor, cause the mobile device:

to transmit a request to change a current state of the lock from a locked state to an unlocked state based on an exchange of information, via a wireless interface, between the mobile device and the lock, wherein the exchange of information includes a use of a shared digital key associated with at least one of a set of authorized persons allowed to change a state of the lock, wherein unlocking operates in a first mode and a second mode,

wherein in the first mode, even if a measured value associated with a property of electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets at least one selected relationship between at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change a state of the lock the mobile device requires identity-related information from a person attempting to change a state of the lock before transmitting the shared digital key to the lock, and

wherein in the second mode, as long as the measured value associated with the property of the electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets the at least one selected relationship between the at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change the state of the lock the mobile device transmits the shared digital key without requiring any identity-related information from the person attempting to change a state of the lock,

wherein in both the first mode and the second mode, the mobile device selectively provides operational requirements associated with the transaction resulting in the changing of the state of the lock from the locked state of the lock to the unlocked state of the lock.

2 . The mobile device of claim 1 , wherein the memory further comprises instructions configured to provide an identifier associated with the mobile device to a database to allow tracking of transactions associated with the lock.

3 . The mobile device of claim 2 , wherein the identifier comprises an encrypted version of the identifier associated with the mobile device.

4 . The mobile device of claim 1 , wherein the memory further comprises instructions configured to provide an explicit request or an implicit request, via the mobile device, to change a current state of the lock from a closed state to an open state.

5 . The mobile device of claim 1 , wherein the identity-related information comprises at least one of a fingerprint, a face ID, an iris scan, a voice input, or an electrical property associated with the person attempting to change the state of the lock.

6 . The mobile device of claim 5 , wherein the memory further comprises instructions to store an encrypted value corresponding to the at least one of the fingerprint, the face ID, the iris scan, the voice input, or the electrical property associated with the at least one of the set of persons attempting to change the state of the lock.

7 . The mobile device of claim 1 , wherein the memory further comprises instructions configured to provide a location associated with the mobile device to allow a locking system associated with the lock to perform a location check including a comparison of a location of the lock and the location associated with the mobile device.

8 . A method for operating a lock using a mobile device, wherein the lock is configured to have a locked state or an unlocked state, the method comprising:

transmitting a request to change a current state of the lock from a locked state to an unlocked state based on an exchange of information, via a wireless interface, between the mobile device and the lock, wherein the exchange of information includes a use of a shared digital key associated with at least one of a set of authorized persons allowed to change a state of the lock, wherein unlocking operates in a first mode and a second mode, and

wherein in the first mode, even if a measured value associated with a property of electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets at least one selected relationship between at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change a state of the lock the mobile device requires identity-related information from a person attempting to change a state of the lock before transmitting the shared digital key to the lock, and

wherein in the second mode, as long as the measured value associated with the property of the electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets the at least one selected relationship between the at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change the state of the lock the mobile device transmits the shared digital key without requiring any identity-related information from the person attempting to change a state of the lock,

wherein in both the first mode and the second mode, the mobile device selectively providing operational requirements associated with the transaction resulting in the changing of the state of the lock from the locked state of the lock to the unlocked state of the lock; and

allowing communication between the mobile device and a remote computing platform based on a designated storage mechanism access policy, wherein the remote computing platform is configurable to provide additional storage functionality to the mobile device regarding policies related to the lock.

9 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising the mobile device providing an identifier associated with the mobile device to a database to allow tracking of transactions associated with the lock.

10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the identifier comprises an encrypted version of the identifier associated with the mobile device.

11 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising the mobile device providing an explicit request or an implicit request to change a current state of the lock from a locked to an unlocked state.

12 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising storing encrypted values corresponding to the shared digital key.

13 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the identity-related information comprises one of a fingerprint, a face ID, an iris scan, or a voice input.

14 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising storing an encrypted value corresponding to at least one of the fingerprint, the face ID, the iris scan, and the voice input.

15 . The method of claim 8 , further comprising providing a location associated with the mobile device to allow a locking system associated with the lock to perform a location check including a comparison of a location of the lock and the location associated with the mobile device.

16 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions for operating a lock using a mobile device, wherein the lock is configured to have a locked state or an unlocked state, the method comprising:

transmitting a request to change a current state of the lock from a locked state to an unlocked state based on an exchange of information, via a wireless interface, between the mobile device and the lock, wherein the exchange of information includes a use of a shared digital key associated with at least one of a set of authorized persons allowed to change a state of the lock, wherein unlocking operates in a first mode and a second mode,

wherein in the first mode, even if a measured value associated with a property of electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets at least one selected relationship between at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change a state of the lock the mobile device requiring identity-related information from a person attempting to change a state of the lock before transmitting the shared digital key to the lock, and

wherein in the second mode, as long as the measured value associated with the property of the electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets the at least one selected relationship between the at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change the state of the lock the mobile device transmitting the shared digital key without requiring any identity-related information from the person attempting to change a state of the lock,

wherein in both the first mode and the second mode, the mobile device selectively providing operational requirements associated with the transaction resulting in the changing of the state of the lock from the locked state of the lock to the unlocked state of the lock.

17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the method further comprising the mobile device providing an identifier associated with the mobile device to a database to allow tracking of transactions associated with the lock.

18 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the method further comprising the mobile device providing an explicit request or an implicit request to change a current state of the lock from a locked to an unlocked state.

19 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the identity-related information comprises one of a fingerprint, a face ID, an iris scan, or a voice input.

20 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions for operating a lock using a mobile device, wherein the lock is configured to have a locked state or an unlocked state, the method comprising:

transmitting a request to change a current state of the lock from a locked state to an unlocked state based on an exchange of information, via a wireless interface, between the mobile device and the lock, wherein the exchange of information includes a use of a shared digital key associated with at least one of a set of authorized persons allowed to change a state of the lock, wherein unlocking operates in a first mode and a second mode,

wherein in the first mode, even if a measured value associated with a property of electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets at least one selected relationship between at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change a state of the lock the mobile device requiring identity-related information from a person attempting to change a state of the lock before transmitting the shared digital key to the lock, wherein the identity-related information comprises one of a fingerprint, a face ID, an iris scan, or a voice input, and

wherein in the second mode, as long as the measured value associated with the property of the electromagnetic waves processed during an attempt to change the state of the lock meets the at least one selected relationship between the at least one predetermined criterion and the measured value associated with the property of processed electromagnetic waves, to change the state of the lock the mobile device transmitting the shared digital key without requiring any identity-related information from the person attempting to change a state of the lock,

wherein in both the first mode and the second mode, the mobile device provides a location associated with the mobile device to allow a locking system associated with the lock to perform a location check including a comparison of a location of the lock and the location associated with the mobile device.

21 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20 , wherein the method further comprising the mobile device providing an identifier associated with the mobile device to a database to allow tracking of transactions associated with the lock.

22 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 21 , wherein the method further comprising the mobile device providing an explicit request or an implicit request to change a current state of the lock from a locked to an unlocked state.