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U-Locks: The Next Generation

Last night I was thinking about ways to improve upon u-locks. Even though they offer the highest level of security available, they can still be defeated, as this post demonstrated.

So it occurred to me: Imagine a U-lock that had wires embedded in the shackle, such that when the lock is closed, a circuit is completed. If a thief tries to cut through the shackle, the wires are compromised, the circuit is broken, and that sends an alarm to your key, notifying you that somebody is cutting your lock. Seems like the next generation, doesn't it?

What ideas do you think could be implemented to improve bicycle locks?

Die packs or other stickly glue substances. Fine I'll settle for dye packs.
Perhaps the death penalty for thieves :)
Oh wait improve the locks.. Make them better integrated to the bike.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AllenG (Post 4854108)

The plastic housing around the lock needs to be made of a material that turns into the foulest, stickiest, tool marring, hand staining, of near impossible to wash off gunk, when subjected to pressure and heat. Slows em down a bit, and gives the thief a kind of a dye bomb to have to deal with too.

From the "Stolen" thread in Commuting

Hopefully Kryptonite will be paying attention. Keep those ideas rolling in....

I have a U that has a sound alarm in it. The shackle is steel it can be the wire. The one I have also goes off with a hard tap. It's a piece of junk. It does not work well. I have a few different cable alarms that trigger if you cut the wire or jiggle them. They false trigger or dont' work well. The nicest one I used for about two years and the switch just wore out, and is not repairable. I also have a bicycle alarm that activates with a remote like a car. It stopped working after about a year. They are all very cheaply made.

The problem is to make a good lock as you suggest and to sell them on the market there has to be something in the price for the retailer, the distrubutor and the manufacturer. The locks would have $50 to $100 added to the price for an existing lock. That probably won't sell well. All these lock makers would have been selling something like that years ago if it would sell.

The technical aspect of that idea is as easy as falling off a log. Making a profit and getting the price right is another thing altogether. There are probably a few here on the forums that might pay$150 or $200 for a lock like that, but that's not enough to keep from loosing your investment.