Article

Recovering your keys at kiosks

Many of us can relate to that horrible feeling when you into your pocket to pull out your keys only to find nothing but lint. You empty all of your pockets, but still your key remains elusive.

March 27, 2015 by Bradley Cooper — Editor, ATM Marketplace & Food Truck Operator

Many of us can relate to that horrible feeling when you into your pocket to pull out your keys only to find nothing but lint. You empty all of your pockets, but still your key remains elusive. Thus, you give in and make a phone call to a relative or friend that has a spare key. Afterwards, you have to take your spare key to a locksmith to get a duplicate made, and hope that it doesn't cost you hundreds of dollars just to replace one simple key. KeyMe, a kiosk manufacturer, attempts to make this process less painful with their key duplication kiosks.

Greg Marsh, CEO of KeyMe, first envisioned KeyMe when his fiancée was constantly getting locked out of their apartment. After spending hundreds of dollars on replacement keys from locksmiths which were low quality, he came up with the idea of utilizing a kiosk to make the process easier and more efficient.

KeyMe provides two main services to users: the key duplication kiosk and a mobile app for iOS which can store an image of your key.

"Copying a key is a core function of the machine, but what's truly unique about the idea is you can solve lockouts by saving the key on a cloud based platform," said Michael Harbolt, vice president of marketing for KeyMe.

In order to use the kiosks, a user can select whether they want to duplicate a car key or a regular key. With car keys, they can select their model, manufacturer and year. KeyMe then mails their customers a copy of the key. For a regular key, the user can simply insert the key and select a design such a simple brass key or one with a logo. The machine then outputs the keys from the kiosk to the user.

"If you insert your key, we digitally scan that key instead of mechanically tracing the key," Harbolt said. Harbolt explained that this process of digitally scanning the key helped to prevent certain problems in the key copying process, such as imperfections in the key.

"If your key is worn out, instead of just making an exact duplicate of that same worn out key and having the same problem we reset it to factory setting," Harbolt said. Essentially, the KeyMe kiosk creates a new copy of an old key.

The second feature of KeyMe is their mobile app which allows users to save an image of their keys to the app. Harbolt explained that if they lost their keys, they can use the app to order a replacement in the mail, or they can go to a kiosk and print out their key from there.

"They can also do the reverse - save their key at a kiosk (even their car keys), and easily order new copies shipped to them via the app," Harbolt said.

One area of concern about this mobile app is the issue of security. How do users prevent unauthorized access to their keys? Harbolt addressed these concerns by emphasizing that users have to provide their fingerprint in order to authorize any transactions with the mobile app. For example, if a user takes their cell phone to a kiosk to make a copy of one of their keys, they must provide their fingerprint.

Harbolt also mentioned that any potential thief would have to get through the Apple phone security, and they would have to know the Apple ID and password to access the mobile app.

"Anytime your key is accessed, we provide user notification so you would know right away that someone was able to get through all your passwords," Harbolt said. He argued that this process is more secure than your average locksmith who usually just requires a key and cash. Harbolt mentioned that KeyMe using a variety of methods to maintain the kiosks for retailers.

"We are currently using several servicing models for troubleshooting including third party and in-house — and have spoken to several partners about potentially taking on servicing as well."

MinuteKey is another key duplication kiosk manufacturer with locations at Lowe's, Walmart and other retailers. According to their website, they copy several different types of home and office keys, but currently do not offer support for car keys.

About Bradley Cooper

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Bradley Cooper is the editor of ATM Marketplace and Food Truck Operator. He was previously the editor of Digital Signage Today. His background is in information technology, advertising, and writing.

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