Locking chip

A locking chip is the Transformer component which implements stasis lock, a form of protective shutdown.

Without a locking chip, damage a Transformer can normally survive will instead kill them outright. It can only be safely installed or removed when a Transformer is in repair mode.

Un-formatted protoforms do not have locking chips; this function is performed by the stasis pod's locking chip.

Fiction

Beast Wars cartoon

The locking chip in Airazor's stasis pod was destroyed when it crashed. Rhinox removed Cheetor's as a temporary replacement.The Spark

From Teletraan I: The Transformers Wiki, a Wikia wiki.