Patent ID: 8334765

Claim:
An apparatus for tracking a status of a lock, comprising: at least one lock tracking device for tracking the status of the lock, wherein said lock tracking device is attached to a standard key and comprises a movement sensing device for sensing movement of a key relative to said lock and providing movement information about said movement; wherein said movement information enables tracking the movements of the key and determining the direction of rotation of the key relative to the lock; at least one wireless key unit; wherein each of said at least one wireless key unit is connected to one of the at least one lock tracking device, and wherein said at least one wireless key unit includes a transceiver unit for transmitting information obtained from the at least one lock tracking device regarding the status of the lock; and a lock status control unit for receiving information regarding the status of the lock from the at least one wireless key unit and wherein the lock status control unit is tracking the status of the lock wherein the lock status control unit is connected to a wireless network and wherein the lock status control unit receives information regarding the status of the lock from the at least one wireless key unit via said wireless network, thereby enabling the indication of the most recent status of the lock as relayed to a plurality key holders holding keys with attached key housings which correspond to said lock.