Mechanized Airlock

This article has not been revised for the current version (***U50-587362***). It was last updated for *RP-381414*. It may contain inaccuracies.
This article has not been revised for the current version (***U50-587362***). It was last updated for *RP-381414*. It may contain inaccuracies.

## Mechanized Airlock

Blocks Liquid and Gas flow, maintaining pressure between areas.
Sets Duplicant Access Permissions for area restriction.

Functions as a Manual Airlock when no Power is available. Mechanized Airlocks open and close more quickly than other types of door.

### Auto In

**Green**: Open
**Red**: Close

## Materials

### Metal Ore

400 kg

**Mechanized Airlock** creates an airtight seal that maintains atmosphere and pressure between areas when closed. It can also control Duplicant movement by acting as a one-way door, or by blocking specific dupes from passing.

The Mechanized Airlock requires Power to open and close at the faster rate. Without Power, the opening and closing of the airlock takes ~1 second longer than a Manual Airlock. It only consumes Power during the open/close animation, and it will not draw any power while static.

Automation is still possible without power, but the door will open/close slower.

## Usage

Mechanized Airlocks are an upgrade to Manual Airlocks. Upgrading manual airlocks to these in high traffic areas can help save some time opening the door. If the airlock is leading to an unbreathable area, its fast opening speed can be a safety measure in order to not have Duplicants suffocating while the door opens.

### Automation

Mechanized Airlocks have a wide variety of uses outside of traffic control. They have a single input port; a green signal will open the door, while a red signal will close (and **lock**) the door.

An opened mechanized airlock will not transfer heat if there is no liquid or gas to occupy the space. This property can be combined with automation to control thermal conductivity between areas.

Mechanized Airlocks can also be used to push around gasses, liquids and items through a sequencer automation grid. This can be used to compress gasses and liquids beyond the densities allowed by Vents.
Matter will be destroyed if there is nowhere for it to go, however.

### Automation Signal Details

It appears the simulation speed isn't perfectly deterministic and will change the required signal durations for which the door reliably triggers. All tests & values found were done for the "Fast" simulation speed as any speed slower *should* be more reliable.

Minimum Green Signal time to reliably trigger an open: 0.4 Seconds

Minimum Red Signal time to reliably trigger a close: 0.6 Seconds

Fastest stable oscilation wavelength: 1.4 Seconds. As long as the above minimums are maintained you can vary the duty cycle so as to have the door spend more time in the open position or the closed position. Decreasing the wavelength below 1.4 seconds will cause hiccups at faster game speed.

It is recommended to add an extra bit of time to each of these values for reliability in critical designs (such as a high pressure door pump.)

## Tips

* This airlock, and all other doors can be built horizontally by rotating the blueprint. The default button is the letter: O
* Manual and Mechanized Airlocks count as floor tiles when closed, but not when open.
* Since Mechanized Airlocks can be opened and closed with Automation, buildings placed atop them can be effectively disabled/enabled without Duplicant intervention. This allows the automation of some buildings that do not have Automation inputs.
* Manual Airlocks and Mechanized Airlocks do not get damaged by high liquid pressure, which makes them, alongside with Airflow Tiles, perfect for building large liquid tanks or liquid compressors.
* Despite the name, the Airlock is not a fully-functional airlock, but rather an airtight door. Gases and liquids pass through it when opened. A proper airlock can be constructed by combing two Airlocks and some pumps.
	+ Keeping airlocks unpowered and slow in this case can help minimize gas-leakage, as pump will have more time to catch and vent-out incoming gasses.
* The sequencer automation for airlock pumps can be simplified with the pipe-loop.
* When open, a Mechanized Airlock does not transfer heat. With automation, a Mechanized Airlock in a vacuum can be used as a "heat switch" to regulate heat transfer between two solid objects.
	+ When used for heat transfer, Steel, Niobium and Thermium are the best building materials. Aluminum Ore and Wolframite are the only decent cheap options before Steel, since other Metal Ores have poor thermal conductivity.
* If placed in space, it will have the tooltip space exposure although it will not leak liquid or gas when opened.

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