xEM access controller question: shorts on board

Ok question for anyone on here with circuit experiance. So I opened up the access controller cause I was curious and it’s wonky in there. Solder shorts, bent leads, all look like they were done on purpose but I really want to know why. Any info is welcome. I’m guessing it’s cheaper to just short from one part to another instead of redesigning the board. But as a soldered the use of solder blobs instead of jumper wires or something really bothers me lol.

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Yep thats right, the mods pins soldered exetra are factory/required.

The device was not manufactured to do what where doing with them from my research there a German (supposedly) imobiliser.

I presume they are modified to allow them to function as access controllers. Meaning someone at some point has backward engineered the device and has astablised if they link x to y and a to b then it does the desirable action

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Has anybody tested the protruding pins on the board for functionality?
Anything we are missing that we could exploit?
Looks to me like inputs at the power end
and ?trigger? bypass at the antenna / LED end
ie. if so, the trigger could be connected as a hidden backup, PIR/sensor or, an example, Use the antenna scan on one side of a door and a push to open from the pins on the other?

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I had a fumble around months ago but none seemed to do anything useful. On the input if I remember rightly looked like power lines

When I get around to it I’mma draw up a schematic.

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Thanks for the reply, I had just put it on my list,
That was the quickest ticked off project ever.
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Schematic sounds great, I will put it in our Wiring diagram repository whenever you are done :+1:
I did find the German website quite a while ago, but the last time I searched for it, I came up dry.
Pretty sure there was no schematics on there, I was looking for the max switching current info.

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I found a polish site where a guy is asking a question about his car. I had done a google lens search or I never would have found it but the board he shows has different shorts than ours I am really curious to know what this board was built for in the first place it seems to me with all of the people we have on this site we should be able to find a better way to do things then mod a board to get things to work for us it just seems unreliable to me.


https://citroen.org.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7935

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In that case you would be horrified if you start looking inside a large number of products :sweat_smile:

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its in my first post, it is an imobiliser made by a German company. Due to it being a serurity device that was factory fitted to some cars information is kept scarce. I did find the FCC report on it though.

Aint that the truth

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Yes and No,
I personally think the xAC is a great product, great price and the antenna is excellent for xSeries implants.

The Mod That @Devilclarke is working on ( Toggleator ) is a very elegant and simple add on solution.

Also I believe his longer term plan? is to possibly / maybe come up with an all encompassing design in conjunction with DT and I assume @TomHarkness for antenna design?
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Lol no I know the requirements for class 1 i.e. most consumer electronics and you are absolutely right if you take a look at those boards they are crazy.

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HAHA i did, anyway that would be what i would like to do yes.

looking at the FCC info this was filed in 1996, its a good chance that the “off the shelf” device (prior to conversion to xAC) is a new old stock potentially obsolete but 1000’s still exist in a warehouse.

EDIT: HRH Vertriebs GmbH the company that makes them no longer appears to exits (no longer registered as a company in Germany)

EDIT 2: company address is now owned by DRUCKEREI ZEIDLER GMBH & CO. KG a printers so even more cause to say the devices are New old stock

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Ya I noticed that after I posted and still had no idea what you were taking about. Had to do some searching and figured it out. Lol thanks.

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Maybe they are all in the Dangerous Things Warehouse…
So here is the plan, Let’s buy all the xACs so that you can make us the xAC V2… I would make a great businessman, that plan is flawless
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hehe, no problems there :smiley:

P.S. ive ordered some Rev 2 Toggleator’s

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No you are right after I thought about it. A custom made product would cost more, why pay the extra price when we have something that already works.

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Great sleuthing
image

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Actually, as you are a fine english gentleman,
THIS is more apt

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Thats the point, it “works” hence the mods and using what we have. There are 2 issues though;

  1. The stock will eventually run out.
  2. Only works with EM41 & 42 ID’S

To elaborate on point 2, the xEM is a T5557 chip that can replicate many different ID standards. The problem is if I have my xEM setup to unlock a door at work (HID) then I can’t use it for the xAC.

The ultimate goal is to have a universal LF rfid access controller that is tuned to work with implants.

Love it!!

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I think you mean “unobtainable” not “ultimate” :stuck_out_tongue:

Why would it be unobtainable? I see no reason if we design it.

125kHz modulated carrier should be easy to decode?

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