ON-LINE SECURITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

• US 20060235697A1
• Filed: 04/14/2005
• Published: 10/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ADVANCED RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTE
• Original Assignee: ADVANCED RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTE
• Inventors: FILIBECK, Michael W.
• Application Number:
  US10/907,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20060235697A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/273
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 1/20 Checking timed patrols, e.g. of watchman
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/005 Alarm destination chosen according to a hierarchy of available destinations, e.g. if hospital does not answer send to police station

Abstract

The Internet provides communication between a server and security officers, supervisors, client representatives, and a security system computer at a client site. On-line access to the server provides integration and management of security system functions such as maintenance of call lists and reports, shift management, and supervision of security officers. The use of the Internet for communication between the server and the client site computer not only provides faster and more reliable communication but also enables the client site computer to request the server to schedule a contingent future event including a need to service a call list unless the client site computer reports a condition warranting the removal of the contingent event from the schedule. For example, the failure of a security officer to visit a check point at a scheduled time results in the server accessing a call list to notify a designated recipient.

Claims

1. A security management system comprising a server on the Internet, the server being programmed for maintaining a database including a call list for a site in response to user access over the Internet, the server being programmed for accessing the call list in order to send a notification of an abnormal condition at the site to a recipient on the call list.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is programmed for receiving a report of the alarm condition at the site, the report of the alarm condition being transmitted over the Internet from the site to the server.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is programmed for receiving a message of a normal condition at the site, the message being transmitted over the Internet from the site to the server, and wherein the server is programmed for accessing the call list upon failing to receive the message from the site.

4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the message indicates that a security officer has visited a check point at the site.

5. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the message is periodically sent from the site to the server to provide an indication of data transmission capability from the site to the server.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is programmed for scheduling future contingent events, and for removing an indication of an event from a list of scheduled events in response to receipt of a message from the site regarding the event.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the call list specifies a notification method for the recipient, and the server is programmed for using the notification method specified for the recipient for notifying the recipient.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the server is programmed for detecting a failure of the recipient to be notified using the notification method specified for the recipient, and for using an alternative notification method upon detecting the failure of the recipient to be notified using the notification method specified for the recipient.

9. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is programmed to provide the user access over the Internet when the user executes an Internet browser program.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is programmed to provide on-line access over the Internet to four classes of users, including an administrator class, a supervisor class, a security officer class, and a client class, and wherein the server is programmed to provide a different set of user service functions to each of the four classes of users.

11. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the user access over the Internet further includes scheduling security officer shifts at the site, managing use of keys at the site, and managing access of visitors to the site.

12. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the user access over the Internet further includes user access over the Internet to reports of activity at the site.

13. A security management system comprising a server on the Internet;

the server being programmed for maintaining data about security officers, supervisors of the security officers, and clients having sites to be monitored;

the server being programmed for access by operation of an Internet browser program by the security officers, supervisors of the security officers, and representatives of the clients;

the server being programmed for setting up respective call lists of recipients and methods for notifying the recipients of abnormal conditions at the sites, and for scheduling security officer shifts at the respective sites, managing use of keys at the respective sites, and managing access of visitors to the respective sites.

14. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the server is programmed to receive over the Internet a report of an alarm condition from a site, and to respond to the report of the alarm condition from the site by accessing a call list for the site to notify a recipient on the call list of the alarm condition.

15. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the server is programmed to schedule a time for receipt of a message from a site, and to respond to a failure to receive a message from the site at the scheduled time by accessing a call list for the site to notify a recipient on the call list of the failure to receive a message from the site at the scheduled time.

16. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the server provides access over the Internet to reports of activity at the sites including log reports of security officer activity, visitor reports, and incident reports.

17. A method of managing security at a site, the site including a security system computer linked via the Internet to a server, the server being accessible over the Internet by a user operating an Internet browser program, said method comprising:

the user accessing the server using the Internet browser program to set up a call list for the site, the security system computer sending messages over the Internet to the server to report normal conditions at the site to the server at scheduled times, and upon failing to receive a message reporting a normal condition at the site at a scheduled time, the server accessing the call list in order to send a notification to a recipient on the call list.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least some of the messages report a security officer visiting check points at the site.

19. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein at least some of the messages are sent periodically from the site computer to the server to indicate data transmission capability.

20. The method as claimed in claim 17, which includes the server scheduling future contingent events, and the server removing indications of at least some of the future contingent events from a list of scheduled events in response to receipt of at least some of the messages from the site.

21. The method as claimed in claim 17, which includes the user accessing the server over the Internet using the Internet browser program to schedule security officer shifts at the site, manage use of keys at the site, and manage access of visitors to the site.

22. A computer-implemented method of managing security at a site, the method comprising:

scheduling a security officer to visit check points at the site;

setting up a call list including at least one recipient to be notified in the event of the security officer failing to visit at least one of the check points at a scheduled time; and

upon detecting a failure of the security officer to visit said at least one of the check points at the scheduled time, accessing the call list to notify said at least one recipient.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the call list specifies a particular method for notifying said at least one recipient, and the particular method is used for notifying said at least one recipient of the failure of the security officer to visit said at least one of the check points at the scheduled time.

24. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the call list is set up by an Internet server in response to a user operating an Internet browser program to access the server.

25. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the call list specifies at least a first recipient and a second recipient, and the method includes sending a first notification to the first recipient, and then sending a second notification to the second recipient upon failing to receive an acknowledgement from the first recipient after a certain period of time.

26. A computer-implemented method of managing security at a site, the method comprising:

scheduling a security officer to visit the site;

setting up a call list including at least one recipient to be notified upon detecting a failure of the security officer to follow a designated path at the site; and

upon detecting a failure of the security officer to follow the designated path at the site, accessing the call list to notify said at least one recipient.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the call list specifies a particular method for notifying said at least one recipient, and the particular method is used for notifying said at least one recipient of the failure of the security officer to follow the designated path at the site.

28. The method as claimed in claim 26, wherein the call list is set up by an Internet server in response to a user operating an Internet browser program to access the server.

29. The method as claimed in claim 26, wherein the call list specifies at least a first recipient and a second recipient, and the method includes sending a first notification to the first recipient, and then sending a second notification to the second recipient upon failing to receive an acknowledgement from the first recipient after a certain period of time.