Disappearing Doorknob Concept

Disappearing Doorknob Concept

Innovative door handle system, designed by Arnaud Lapierre, promises to ensure your privacy by hiding the knob when the door is locked.

Doorknob Condition uses clever pulley system that retracts the exterior door knob when pulled from the inside.

Hidden Doorknob

Hidden Door Knob

Disappearing Door Knob Concept

Disappearing Door Knob

Hidden Doorknob Concept

Disappearing Doorknob

Also check out: Gun Shaped Door Handle

  1. izzy

    that’s kind of cool.

  2. GustaveCo

    Genius.
    I want that.

  3. laura

    that’s pretty ingenious. i’m wondering if it works the other way around though, which would cause problems when the person is locked in

  4. Julie

    That’s pretty sweet… Although is that a keycard slot for getting in from the outside even if it is locked?
    Be amazin for public toilet doors

  5. :D

    pure genius…!…

  6. @jodie_nodes

    Unless there is another mechanism on the other side to click/lock it… I’m thinking that anyone with a suction cup or chewing gum could get it open…

  7. Paul Sample

    Wooow that’s really ingenious, I love it!

  8. Ben

    Surely the fact that it is locked stops the door from being opened. I think it is a solution looking for a problem

  9. Dominic

    Cool i guess

  10. Critical Eye

    Great design… adds security when the door is locked, instantly shows the state of the lock, and looks cool.

  11. Machine

    The only problem i see with this nice solution is that somebody outside might get his fingers squeeze when trying to open the door while somebody is inside and just pulling the knob.

  12. David

    As is often the case, some of the best ideas are some of the most simple. Genius.

  13. Kirvi Inci

    I can see Fire Marshalls pitching a serious fit about these. They are interesting though.

  14. Karin Stewart

    OOOH!!! I love the security…and the privacy! Let’s go buy one and test it out!

  15. John

    Okay, now THAT is cool and ingenious! Not like that paper sneaker thing.

  16. Perigee

    just a waste, complex mechanism leads to failure, since the knob should carry pull/push force and turn force ….

  17. Josh

    What if you hit it accidentally from the outside? :-P

  18. Angel

    I love it! Where can I buy?

  19. Roland

    awesome :) and so simple….damn, simple things are the best :)

  20. Hillie

    Yes i totaly agree with Critical Eye! Nice add on security and a great way to see if a door is locked in big toilet rooms!

  21. Duke

    I could use one of this at my house to keep my little brother out of my room

  22. Dat

    What if you were to suction cup that end and pull back…?

    Great design though.

  23. Nanuk

    It’s nice for toilets, but a stupid concept for any other door since it clearly tells you whether someone’s inside or not (unless of course you can push it in from the outside as well) which provides a nice invitation for burglars.

  24. Dude

    Interesting idea, though I doubt something like this would ever be picked up simply because of the potential for abuse. What’s to keep someone from putting the handle in ‘backwards’ and using it to keep someone in, rather than out.

  25. jojo

    Great for hotels.

  26. r2s

    A door lock is only as good as the door jamb. if the door jamb is weak so is the door. I don’t think this lock is so much for security as it is for novelty/privacy. that being said, I love it. fun, interesting and functional design. it will sell very well if the pricing is right. great job!

  27. r2s

    where is the latch though?

  28. Sam

    Just to say, these would be illegal in the UK.
    A While back fire fighters went into a building and saved those in need, in their line of duty the door closed; the door handle was flush to the door itself, making it near on impossible to find the way out(shortened adaption by me to get the point across). Those firefighters died because they couldnt find their way out, and eventually ran out of oxygen.

  29. frigobox

    LOCKING THE DOOR prevents people from getting in, EVEN PEOPLE WITH SUCTION CUPS.

    Jesus.

    The retractable knob is just so people don’t go TRYING to open a LOCKED door.

  30. spira

    The knob itself doesn’t lock the door. The lock locks the door. The knob is just to make it clearer that the door is locked so people don’t try to open it, which from experience is really annoying. It’s a smart idea.

  31. I put the "T" in obey

    well this is awesome in just about every way… except, there are a few very serious game ending flaws to it, in my opinion at least. first, you get this on your door and you live in an apartment complex in a crappy part of town, if someone with ill intent knows what they’re looking at and the knob is retracted, they then know your house is probably unoccupied and its a good time to kick in the door and loot. Also, what if some jerkoff puts glue in the crack or something heavy against it, then you’re locked in

  32. MR Obvious

    Wont this tell burglars that no ones home and its safe to break and enter

  33. SidewinDr

    Why would a visibly locked door be any different from a locked door from a burglar’s perspective? A locked door is a locked door. Burglars can always knock to see if anyone’s inside, if there aren’t, then it’s time to rob. It’s not as if a normal door will be more burglar-proof than this. This is a good idea, kinda like putting a ‘do not disturb’ sign; people trying to open locked doors is annoying when you locked the door because you want peace and quiet.

  34. Rarrrr

    Door knobs need to be replaced entirely.
    Hate having my hands full while faced with a closed door.

  35. Pieter

    I don’t see the point of this idea. Who wants no knob on one side and a really long funny one on the other side? “Get a grip…”

  36. V

    I can see allot of serial killers are going to order these knobs, alright.

    Where can I get a few? haha I joke… about buying of course; but not former.

  37. MF

    I think a lot of you miss the point, I don’t think this is the type of door knob that would ever been used on the outside of a door to begin with, so it would never be an issue with burglars. You need much more heavy duty knobs for outside doors.
    For and inside door, its a cleaver idea. I think especially if you have small children and were able to push the knob in from the outside.

  38. Ben Koshkin

    I would think over the next 10 years that these innovative door knobs will become the standard of the motel/hotel industry.

    Ben Koshkin

  39. Shaun

    I can’t really see people carrying a door knob around in their pocket as opposed to keys, not really the right shape or size for a pocket…

  40. tam

    Something we could use in good old SA.

  41. Jer

    Wow some of these comments really show peoples stupidity! “Does it work the other way around?” look at the pics genious! I do believe it says PROTOTYPE for all you with the rediculous comments about the design.

  42. Rown

    all perfect things are simple

  43. Hashim

    My city is famous for locks and these door knobs, locks etc are made here. I hope I can get this made here for my new home yay! nice concept btw

  44. Viet

    The design is awesome. Ensures privacy and i luvs it.

    Another idea with this concept:
    Design the entire door and that flat area of the doorknob to match the wall. Decorate onto that side of the door inconspicuous things.
    When the door knob is pulled in, it blends into the door, and the door blends into the wall … and voila .. not only disappearing doorknob, but also disappearing door.

  45. arkano

    where can I buy one?

  46. dRock Slimpin

    My mind is officially blown. Wow. Ancient with +infinity defense lmao.

  47. Henderson

    Yeah it’s interesting but it’s not going to stop bad people who have suckers who can pop the handle back and attack. I don’t think this is a sufficient locking device.

  48. Onlooker

    Right, no-one here seems to have noticed the major flaw in this – even the designers. the MAJOR FLAW. Unless the designers have of course. Think about it:

    If the knob can be pushed in from the outside, if no-one is the other side of the door the door can never be opened again!

    This would be very easy to do accidentally / deliberately in a toilet or something (which yes is the main possible use for these).

    If the knob can be pushed from the other side, then there’s no means of turning it, and no means of getting in to turn it, ergo, no more door opening. Jeez.

  49. FR0ZTB1TE

    a burgelur would not know because you would not push the doorknob in because then you will be locked out

    the doorknob is on the door not in your pocket

    this is something you use when the door is alewady locked but when you want privacy, like a do not disturb sign

    there are no problems with it
    except serial killers will love them, but oedo bear will hate them

  50. FR0ZTB1TE

    dear onlooker

    several people have pointed this out, i assume that you will need to twist and push to get it out

  51. FR0ZTB1TE

    yes there would need to be a method of un turning it
    maybe the key should make it pop out and the toilet maitanence could have theese keys and they should check regularly

  52. FR0ZTB1TE

    to henderson
    its privacy not locking

  53. FR0ZTB1TE

    there are no problems watesoever with this

  54. juliai defries

    Cool design, but wouldn’t it be easy to inadvertantly lock yourself out of the room if the door should shut in the retracted handle position?

  55. brian

    fire hazard ?

  56. wolemi

    I think that there is something that prevents the doorknob to be pushed in from the outside and lock yourself out, there is just no way the designer(s) didn’t think of that, and I think it is a pretty good idea, I would buy it !
    also I assume this knob is not suitable for front doors and than there is no problem with burglers, not that it would make it any unsafer from burglers if it was !

  57. ben

    yes an extreme one as a firefighter i could see that as a big problem wen i go into a house i look for doors and if it doesn’t have a handle on it it will take us longer to get to you which drastically decreases your chances of survival and puts us in danger as well because then we have to force the door open to make sure theirs no one inside and then we need to bring more fire fighters in to search the rest of the house which puts them in danger to

  58. Mac

    Here is a use for it:

    In the US when you go to a hotel, you get a door knob hanger to put outside your door on the knob. One side says “do not disturb” to let house cleaning know they shouldn’t come in. the other side says something like “please clean” to let house keeping know they can come in during their daily route and clean the room/make the bed etc.

    If hotels had these knobs, the person inside simply pulls in their knob. No more millions of paper door knob hangers printed each year!

  59. Brendan Wenzel

    This just got added to my “Want List”

  60. axslinger

    They need one that works for windows

  61. Garrett

    FIRE HAZARD MUCH?

  62. bob frivers

    @jodie_nodes – yeah dude, most cats carry a suction cup around with them….gum?! Seriously? WTF yo. Hey here’s a thought, maybe if they don’t have a suction cup the will have The Jaws of Life in their pocket< they can just clip it off…..moron.

  63. anorthernhiker

    I am amazed by the number of people that comment saying that it would alert someone that you were away. Don’t they lock the doors when they go to bed?

  64. tommy

    Great idea!!!

  65. Panda

    If any of you lazy people would click on the link to read more you would realize this is not supposed to be a knob to an exterior door. Its supposed to act more as an “occupied” signal for bedrooms and bathrooms than an actual lock

  66. Sedayu

    woowww., nice idea

  67. Rob

    To the people saying waaah this wouldn’t stop a burgular etc … get a clue. It’s for PRIVACY. i.e. if you’re in there doing the deed with your wife, you don’t want some random kid/relative/maid etc. start jiggling the knob and have your lady immediately jump off your er… basically it can be a total mood killer when someone disturbs you like that. Then you have to answer them saying “just a minute” or make some excuse. Instead they get the message right away with this.

  68. Rob

    Oh and how is this a fire hazard any more than a regular lock? You have to break down regular locked doors if no one opens them from the inside, and you have to break these as well? WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE GENIUSES?

  69. Sam Westley

    I like this from a design point of view, it would be ‘nice’ to have it inside the house.

    Not for serious security :P

  70. Niki

    i don’t think that they would be a good idea for the home. how many times has a child locked themselves in a bathroom by accendent, while the parent tries to jimmy the lock? its a good idea, just not for places that have young children

  71. Emily

    This is so dumb. So only one person can be in a room at a time? What if you want to have ppl over, you can’t just yell “Come on in the door’s open!” You would have to go push your doorknob through, locking yourself in. dumb

  72. Jenna thieler

    We would like to use these is a restaurant concept we are currently working on. How can we make that happen?? They look amazing!

  73. seanmarvin

    where can I get one?
    this would be perfect for the nights when my dad gets drunk and tries to get in my room while I’m trying to sleep.

  74. Mark

    That’s a really cool and ingenious idea. I love seeing the haters and jealous types on here, nitpicking any little perceived ‘possible’ problems with this design…might be better off trying to create something cool themselves

  75. Matt

    How would a fireman or an ambulance driver get in in an emergency?

  76. Alexander

    Actually, this is one of the most ingenious and time saving ideas.

    Privacy? Clearly shows that this door is not meant to be open at the moment.

    Fire hazard? It’s actually an ANTI-fire trick, because with this lock, firefighters actually KNOW there is someone inside and that the door is locked, hence they know that this door IS to be knocked down.

    Brilliant design, I love it.

  77. Josh

    Okay, I just wanted to say that it is not a fire hazard because the door knob is only “not there” when the door is locked, so it is only as much a fire hazard as any locked door is.

  78. zargoned

    Get drunk once and never get back in.

  79. Josway

    yeah that’s really handy for abusive parents who like locking their kids in closet in a hurry

  80. TRON

    what happens if the doors closes and is locked and your on the side without a handle, and it is a small closet, do you have to kick the door out and broken, due to an unfortunate mishap, and what if your an 80 year old woman who lives alone, just sit there and die???

  81. Not Very Smart

    Put a magnet on the stainless doorknob and pull it out. Twist then break in.

  82. dani h.

    I think it’s a cool idea, but what if there’s nobody in the room and you just push it??? how would you open the door again?

  83. Alex Stucky

    I’d like the idea better, if it wasn’t electronic powered by a keycard. I think you could still use a traditional key, and as you turn the key it’ll pop out mechanically. Don’t get me wrong though, I totally want one of these! :O

  84. Bojan Landekić

    This is not a fire-hazard! Fire fighters would have to break down any locked door, regardless if it had a handle or not! So it doesn’t make it any more dangerous. In fact, it makes it safer, because if there’s no handle, you know there’s someone inside for sure and the door should be looked at first before other rooms!!!

    Second, so many people say it’s stupid because if you lock the door and then close it while standing outside you can’t open it again. What if it had a handle and you did the same thing? How does the handle help you to unlock a locked door? See the stupidity of your arguments? The handle doesn’t help in unlocking a locked door.

    Someone said what if your child locks themselves into a bathroom. How will a handle help you get them out any faster? In fact, with this door, you’ll know for sure that your child is IN the bathroom. If you had a traditional door with a traditional handle, you’d have to knock and listen for their response! This door handle makes it easier in those cases, too.

    This is all around a better solution!!! It will save lives.

  85. David Fox

    That’s an amazing idea. ROCK ON!

  86. Jeff

    Pull knob slowly and fingers don’t get pinched. Also to keep criminals from pulling the know back out… Use a spring loaded pin located in the center of the inside knob to be pushed in momentarily while returning the knknob to normal operating position. No finger pinching that way.

    Just a thought…

  87. Lyn Z

    Tron, If you install this door knob backwards on a small closet, you deserve to be locked in, 80 year old woman or not. This handle serves no purpose on a closet.
    To everyone worried about getting locked out-because this handle is mainly designed for restroom stalls and works on a pulley system, it probably would accept any card in the slot. The card more than likely hits a lever and releases the handle allowing a parent or medical personal to open the door if someone can’t open the door themselves. The purpose of the door knob, is to alert people that whatever exists on the other side is occupied. To the best of my recollection, security, other than privacy, wasn’t mentioned in the description.

  88. palmer

    How much is it going to coast

  89. Scott g

    I’m sure you can only pull the white handle in an only lock is from that side, But the thought of being able to use a suction cup to open from the silver side is a thought although I’m sure the card slot has something to do with unlocking it from the silver side… so maybe I just answered the question can you use a suction cup to open it from the silver side!!!

  90. Rob

    How much is this and when can I get a few

  91. Miguel a.

    Where can I get this

  92. Bk

    I believe this is a great idea that way it is noticeable the room is occupied. Would love to buy one for my bathroom.

  93. Rebecca elledge

    When I saw this it was God himself sent that to me… I have unknown persons coming into my home even with security…somehow they are getting pass it… I really believe this will be the only way to keep them out … No other lock has stopped them …I have changed my locks 4 times In 6 months and it is breaking the bank…I live alone and they hurt my three dogs …animals don’t lie….
    Just wished I knew this really worked and for how much …it is really terrible to be alone and

  94. David Smith

    It does not meet ADA requirements

  95. Jenny

    How do I get one or two or three?????

  96. Isabella

    Umm but if everyone had this doorknob and forgot to lock their door, it would be an easy target for break-ins because it will stand out from other houses.

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