Integrated electronic article surveillance and people counting system

• US 20040239503A1
• Filed: 04/20/2004
• Published: 12/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sensormatic Electronics LLC (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Original Assignee: Sensormatic Electronics Corporation (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Tribbey, Scott Alan, Fallin, David B., Clark, John Jay, Rider, William Matthew, Watkins, Harry
• Granted Patent: US 7,161,482 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00 Individual registration on entry or exit
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2462 Asset location systems combined with EAS inventory, tracking, logistic G06Q10/00; entrance control systems G07C9/00

Abstract

An integrated electronic article surveillance (EAS) and people counting system including an EAS system, a people counting system, and an alarm management unit. The alarm management unit accepts the EAS data signal from the EAS system and a people count signal from the people counting system for facilitating correlation of EAS and people count data. A method of monitoring a passageway and an alarm management unit associated with an integrated system are also provided. There is also provided a people counting system for determining a direction of travel of people including first and second people detection devices and a controller. The controller provides an output representative of a direction of travel in response to the outputs of the first and second people detection devices.

Claims

1. An integrated electronic article surveillance (EAS) and people counting system comprising:

an EAS system configured to detect the presence of an active EAS marker in an interrogation zone of at least one passageway of an establishment and to provide an EAS data signal representative of EAS data;

a people counting system configured to count people who pass through said at least one passageway and to provide a people count signal representative of people count data; and

an alarm management unit configured to accept said EAS data signal and said people count signal.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said alarm management unit is further configured to cause storage of said EAS data and said people counting data.

3. The system of claim 2, further comprising a point of sale network, wherein said point of sale network comprises a processor for accessing a database, wherein said EAS data and said people count data is stored in said database.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people through said at least one passageway per incident of an EAS alarm of said EAS system.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people out of said at least one passageway.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people through any of a plurality of passageways of said establishment per incident of an EAS alarm of said EAS system.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein said correlated output is representative of a number of people out of any of said plurality of passageways of said establishment.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said correlated output is representative of a number of people occupying said establishment.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said EAS system if configured to operate in a first power state and a second power state, wherein said EAS system consumes less power in said second power state then said first power state, and wherein said EAS system is configured to enter said second power state when said people count signal is representative of less than a first predetermined people count over a first predetermined time interval.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein said EAS system is configured to enter said first power state from said second power state if said people count signal is representative of a second predetermined people count over a second predetermined time interval.

11. A method of monitoring at least one passageway:

providing EAS data to an alarm management unit from an EAS system associated with said at least one passageway;

providing people count data to said alarm management unit from a people count system associated with said at least one passageway; and

providing a correlated output signal in response to said EAS data and said people count data provided to said alarm management unit.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

storing said EAS data and said people count data.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people through said at least one passageway per incident of an EAS alarm of said EAS system.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people out of said at least one passageway.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people through any of a plurality of passageways per incident of an EAS alarm of said EAS system.

16. The method of claim 15, and wherein said correlated output is representative of a number of people out any of said plurality of passageways.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein said at least one passageway is associated with an establishment, and wherein said correlated output is representative of a number of people occupying said establishment.

18. A people counting system for determining a direction of travel of people, said system comprising:

a first people detection device configured to detect passage of people through an associated passageway and provide a first people detection signal;

a second people detection device configured to detect said passage of people through said associated passageway and provide a second people detection signal, said second people detection device mounted a predetermined distance from said first detection device; and

a controller configured to receive said first and second people detection signals and provide an output representative of a direction of travel in response to said first and second people detection signals.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said controller is configured to indicate a first direction of travel if said first signal is received a predetermined time interval before said second signal.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein said controller is configured to indicate a second direction of travel if said second signal is received a predetermined time interval before said first signal.

21. The system of claim 18, wherein said predetermined distance is between about 0.25 inches and 12.0 inches along said direction of travel.

22. A method of determining a direction of travel of people comprising:

mounting a first people counting device a predetermined distance from a second people counting device; and

determining said direction of travel based on which of said first people counting device and said second people counting system is triggered first.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said direction of travel is a first direction if said first people detection device is triggered first.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said direction of travel is a second direction opposite from said first direction if said second people detection device is triggered first.

25. An alarm management unit comprising:

a people counting system interface configured to accept a first signal representative of people count data from an associated people counting system;

an EAS system interface configured to accept a signal representative of EAS data from an associated EAS system; and

an output interface configured to provide a correlated output signal based on said first and second signal.

26. A machine readable medium whose contents cause a computer system to perform a method of integrating EAS data and people count data comprising:

receiving said EAS data from an EAS system;

receiving said people count data from a people count system; and

providing a correlated output signal in response to said EAS data and said people count data.

27. The machine readable medium of claim 26, wherein said method further comprises:

storing said EAS data and said people count data.

28. The machine readable medium of claim 27, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people through at least one passageway per incident of an EAS alarm of said EAS system.

29. The machine readable medium of claim 27, wherein said correlated output signal is representative of a number of people out of said at least one passageway.

30. A machine readable medium whose contents whose contents cause a computer system to perform a method of determining a direction of travel of people comprising:

receiving a first people count signal from a first people counting device and a second people count signal from a second people counting device, wherein said first people counting device is mounted a predetermined distance from said second people counting device; and

determining said direction of travel based on which of said first people counting device and second people counting system is triggered first.

31. The machine readable medium of claim 30, wherein said direction of travel is a first direction if said first people detection device is triggered first.

32. The machine readable medium of claim 31, wherein said direction of travel is a second direction if said second people detection device is triggered a predetermined time interval before said first people detection device.