Release monitoring through check-in and tethering system

• US 10,068,398 B1
• Filed: 08/03/2017
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/03/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Original Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Inventors: Hodge, Stephen L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mullen, Thomas
• Application Number:
  US15/668,493
• Time in Patent Office: 397 Days
• Field of Search: 3405731, 3405734, 34053911, 34053913
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/10 Human or animal bodies, e.g. vehicle occupants or pedestrians; Body parts, e.g. hands
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0227 System arrangements with a plurality of child units
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0261 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect trespassing over a fixed physical boundary, e.g. the end of a garden
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0269 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect the exact location of child or item using a navigation satellite system, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0272 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect exact location of child or item using triangulation other than GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0277 Communication between units on a local network, e.g. Bluetooth, piconet, zigbee, Wireless Personal Area Networks [WPAN]
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/22 responsive to presence or absence of persons
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/001 Alarm cancelling procedures or alarm forwarding decisions, e.g. based on absence of alarm confirmation

Abstract

A check-in and tethering system for monitoring persons such as released in court-ordered supervised programs and a method for operating such a system is disclosed. The system includes a tethered mobile device that provides a check-in procedure that requires a response from a user of the tethered mobile device in the form of at least one of a device identifier from a monitored tethered device attached to the user, a biometric response, or a performed action by the user. The tethered mobile device determines whether the response is valid and transmits a notification to a monitoring center in response to the determination.

Claims

1. A method for providing tethering-based monitoring, comprising:

receiving an indication to initiate a check-in procedure on a tethered mobile device;

initiating, based on the indication, the check-in procedure on the tethered mobile device, wherein the check-in procedure comprises;

transmitting, to the tethered mobile device, at least one of a real-time verification request that is configured to be displayed on the tethered mobile device and a check-in request that is configured to be transmitted from the tethered mobile device to a tethered monitoring device;

receiving a response to the at least one of the real-time verification request and the check-in request; and

performing a validation of the response, wherein the validation includes determining whether the response includes a verification response to the real-time verification request or a check-in response to the check-in request; and

performing a follow-up action based on the validation of the response.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the follow-up action includes transmitting an alert notification to a monitoring center in response to the validation of the response indicating an invalid verification response or an invalid check-in response.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the real-time verification request includes an identity check of a user of the tethered mobile device, the identity check including at least one of a biometric check of the user and an action request, wherein the action request includes a request for the user to perform an action.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining that a response to the identity check is not received within a predetermined response period; and

transmitting an alert notification to a monitoring center in response to the determining.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the check-in request includes a request for the tethered monitoring device to include a device identifier in the check-in response transmitted to the tethered mobile device and wherein performing the validation includes validating the device identifier in the check-in response.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating, by the tethered mobile device, the indication based on at least one of a timeout condition indicating that the tethered mobile device has not moved within a predetermined time period, and a schedule condition indicating that the check-in procedure is to be performed after the predetermined time period.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, to a monitoring center, a trip request, wherein the trip request includes a current location of the tethered mobile device and a destination; and

receiving, from the monitoring center, a trip itinerary in response to the trip request, wherein the trip itinerary includes a route from the current location to the destination.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

determining that the tethered mobile device has moved away from the current location;

tracking an updated location of the tethered mobile device;

determining whether the updated location is on the route; and

transmitting an alert notification to the monitoring center based on determining that the updated location is not on the route.

9. A tethered mobile device, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, the memory configured to store program code that when executed by the processor causes operations to be performed, the operations comprising;

transmitting, to a monitoring center, a trip request, wherein the trip request includes a current location of the tethered mobile device and a destination;

receiving, from the monitoring center, a trip itinerary in response to the trip request, wherein the trip itinerary includes a route from the current location to the destination;

receiving, from the monitoring center, an indication to initiate a check-in procedure on the tethered mobile device in response to the tethered mobile device moving to an updated location along the route;

initiating, based on the indication, the check-in procedure on the tethered mobile device, wherein the check-in procedure comprises;

receiving, from the monitoring center, at least one of a real-time verification request that is configured to be displayed on the tethered mobile device and a check-in request that is configured to be transmitted from the tethered mobile device to a tethered monitoring device; and

transmitting, to the monitoring center, a response to the at least one of the real-time verification request and the check-in request;

performing a validation of the response, wherein the validation includes determining whether the response includes a verification response or a check-in response; and

performing a follow-up action based on the validation of the response.

10. The tethered mobile device of claim 9, wherein the follow-up action includes transmitting an alert notification to the monitoring center in response to the validation of the response indicating an invalid verification response or an invalid check-in response.

11. The tethered mobile device of claim 9, wherein the real-time verification request includes an identity check of a user of the tethered mobile device, the identity check including at least one of a biometric check of the user and an action request, wherein the action request includes a request for the user to perform an action.

12. The tethered mobile device of claim 11, the operations further comprising:

determining that a response to the identity check is not received within a predetermined response period; and

transmitting an alert notification to the monitoring center in response to the determining.

13. The tethered mobile device of claim 12, wherein the check-in request includes a request for the tethered monitoring device to include a device identifier in the check-in response transmitted to the tethered mobile device and wherein performing the validation includes validating the device identifier in the check-in response.

14. The tethered mobile device of claim 13, the operations further comprising:

generating the indication based on at least one of a timeout condition indicating that the tethered mobile device has not moved within a predetermined time period, and a schedule condition indicating that the check-in procedure is to be performed after the predetermined time period.

15. The tethered mobile device of claim 12, the operations further comprising:

determining that the tethered mobile device has moved away from the current location;

tracking the updated location of the tethered mobile device;

determining whether the updated location is on the route; and

transmitting the alert notification to the monitoring center based on determining that the updated location is not on the route.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a processor in a tethered mobile device, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising:

receiving an indication to initiate a check-in procedure on the tethered mobile device;

initiating, based on the indication, the check-in procedure on the tethered mobile device, wherein the check-in procedure comprises;

transmitting, to the tethered mobile device, a real-time verification request that is configured to be displayed on the tethered mobile device;

receiving a verification response to the real-time verification request; and

performing a first validation of the verification response, wherein the first validation comprises determining whether the verification response includes an expected response to the real-time verification request; and

in response to the first validation, transmitting, to the tethered mobile device, a check-in request that is configured to be transmitted from the tethered mobile device to a tethered monitoring device;

receiving, from the tethered monitoring device, a check-in response, wherein the check-in response includes a device identifier of the tethered monitoring device;

performing a second validation of the check-in response, wherein the second validation comprises determining whether the check-in response includes the device identifier; and

performing a follow-up action based on the first and the second validation.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the follow-up action includes transmitting an alert notification to a monitoring center in response to a validation of the response indicating an invalid verification response or an invalid check-in response.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the real-time verification request includes an identity check of a user of the tethered mobile device, the identity check including at least one of a biometric check of the user and an action request, wherein the action request includes a request for the user to perform an action.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, the operations further comprising:

determining that a response to the identity check is not received within a predetermined response period; and

transmitting an alert notification to a monitoring center in response to the determining.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the check-in request includes a request for the tethered monitoring device to include the device identifier in the check-in response transmitted to the tethered mobile device and wherein performing the second validation includes validating the device identifier in the check-in response.