Kinematic asset management

• US 10,467,442 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2018
• Issued: 11/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Timble Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Timble Incorporated
• Inventors: Reynolds, James C., Dennis, Gary, Iyer, Prakash
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Thien M
• Application Number:
  US16/051,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20180336379A1
• Time in Patent Office: 462 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/40 Safety devices, e.g. detection of obstructions or end positions
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/13 Receivers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10297 arrangements for handling protocols designed for non-contact record carriers such as RFIDs NFCs, e.g. ISO/IEC 14443 and 18092 cryptographic protocols H04L9/00; network security protocols H04L63/00; real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00; network protocols for data switching network services H04L67/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/24 Reminder alarms, e.g. anti-loss alarms

Abstract

A system for managing kinematic assets is disclosed. In one embodiment, the system comprises an electronic identification device associated with an asset. The system further comprises a container comprising a reader disposed within the container for receiving a unique identification of the identification device. The container further comprises a reader node for maintaining an inventory record comprising the asset and for generating a report when the asset is not detected by said reader. The report further comprises a location of the container when said report is generated. The system further comprises a kinematic asset management platform comprising an asset registry for storing data conveyed by the report and a reports engine for generating a second report conveying the location of said container when the report is generated.

Claims

1. A method of determining a location of a particular asset disposed in one of a plurality of locations, wherein a plurality of assets is disposed at each of the locations, the method comprising:

with a kinematic asset management platform, receiving an indication to determine at which of the locations the particular asset is disposed;

with the kinematic asset management platform, generating a request for at least a plurality of reader nodes, wherein the reader nodes are disposed at the locations, and wherein at least one reader node is disposed at each of the locations;

with each particular reader node, polling the assets disposed at the location of the particular reader node to generate an inventory of assets at the location of the particular reader node;

with each particular reader node, in response to the request, transmitting an indication of the inventory of the assets at the particular reader node to the kinematic asset management platform;

with the kinematic asset management platform, receiving the indications of inventories of assets from each of the reader nodes; and

with the kinematic asset management platform, determining a particular location at which the particular asset is disposed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the locations is mobile.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one of the locations is fixed.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the particular asset is a tool.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the particular asset is an employee.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the reader nodes is configured to poll the assets disposed at the location of the at least one reader node in response to the request from the kinematic asset management platform.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one reader node is configured to poll the assets disposed at the location of the at least one reader node using an RFID interrogator.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the reader nodes is configured to poll the assets disposed at the location of the at least one reader node prior to the request from the kinematic asset management platform.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the kinematic asset management platform is configured to use a relational database to determine the particular location at which the particular asset is disposed.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising, with the kinematic asset management platform, determining the asset based on a task to be performed.

11. A method of determining that a particular asset is disposed in one of a plurality of locations, the method comprising:

with a kinematic asset management platform, receiving one or more reports indicating that the asset is disposed in the one location;

with the kinematic asset management platform, maintaining a history of the location of the particular asset;

with the kinematic asset management platform, receiving one or more reports indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location; and

with the kinematic asset management platform, determining, based on the history of the location of the particular asset, that the report indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location is erroneous and that the particular asset is disposed in the one location.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the one location is mobile.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein another of the plurality of locations is fixed.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

determining that the asset is disposed in the one location while the location is moving, wherein the one or more reports indicating that the asset is disposed in the one location indicates that the location was moving when the asset was determined to be disposed in the one location; and

determining that the asset is not disposed in the one location while the location is still moving, wherein the one or more reports indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location indicates that the location was moving when the asset was determined to not be disposed in the one location.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein at least one of the assets is a tool.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein at least one of the assets is an employee.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the report indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location is transmitted to the kinematic asset management platform by a reader disposed at the one location.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the reader is configured to determine whether the particular asset is at the one location using an RFID interrogator.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

with the kinematic asset management platform, receiving a second report indicating that the asset is disposed in the one location; and

based on the one or more reports indicating that the asset is disposed in the one location, on the one or more reports indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location, and on the second report indicating that the asset is disposed in the one location, determining that the report indicating that the asset is not disposed in the one location is erroneous.