GAS CYLINDERS MONITORING BY WIRELESS TAGS
First Claim
1. A method for monitoring gas cylinders, comprising:
- receiving, at one or more wireless receivers, a wireless signal transmitted by a wireless transponder fixed to a gas cylinder, wherein the wireless signal includes an identifier identifying the gas cylinder;
determining, based on one or more locations of the one or more wireless receivers, a location of the gas cylinder;
determining whether the location of the gas cylinder matches an intended location, wherein the intended location is retrieved from a database by using the identifier included in the wireless signal; and
upon determining that the location of the gas cylinder matches does not match the intended location retrieved from the database, generating an alert communicating that the gas cylinder is not in the intended location.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Embodiments of the present invention generally provide methods and systems for managing gas cylinders by using radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology. In one embodiment, each gas cylinder includes a RFID transponder configured to transmit a RFID signal. The RFID signal may include an identifier for the gas cylinder, as well as data such as gas pressure, temperature, flow rate, battery level, etc. The RFID signals are received by RFID receivers, and are transmitted to a server (e.g., via a computer network). In one embodiment, the gas cylinder data received by the server is collected in a database, and thereafter used by a gas cylinder management software application. The gas cylinder management application performs tasks including selectively generating alarms, locating specific gas cylinders, and replenishment of gas supplies.
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Citations
37 Claims
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1. A method for monitoring gas cylinders, comprising:
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receiving, at one or more wireless receivers, a wireless signal transmitted by a wireless transponder fixed to a gas cylinder, wherein the wireless signal includes an identifier identifying the gas cylinder;
determining, based on one or more locations of the one or more wireless receivers, a location of the gas cylinder;
determining whether the location of the gas cylinder matches an intended location, wherein the intended location is retrieved from a database by using the identifier included in the wireless signal; and
upon determining that the location of the gas cylinder matches does not match the intended location retrieved from the database, generating an alert communicating that the gas cylinder is not in the intended location. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 31, 34, 35)
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10. A method for monitoring gas cylinders, comprising:
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receiving, at one or more wireless receivers, a plurality of wireless signals transmitted by a plurality of wireless transponders, wherein each transponder is fixed to one of a plurality of gas cylinders, and wherein each wireless signal includes an identifier identifying the respective gas cylinder;
determining, based on the receipt of the plurality of wireless signals by the one or more wireless receivers, the available supplies of at least one type of gas at one or more locations;
determining whether the available supplies of at least one type of gas are less than one or more required minimum levels specified for the one or more locations and for the respective type of gas; and
upon determining that the available supplies of at least one type of gas are less than one or more required minimum levels specified for the one or more locations and for the respective type of gas, generating an alert communicating a requirement for additional supplies of the respective gas at the respective location. - View Dependent Claims (11)
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12. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program which, when executed by a processor, performs a process for managing gas cylinders, the process comprising:
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receiving, at one or more wireless receivers, a wireless signal transmitted by a wireless transponder fixed to a gas cylinder, wherein the wireless signal includes an identifier identifying the gas cylinder;
determining, based on one or more locations of the one or more wireless receivers, a location of the gas cylinder;
determining whether the location of the gas cylinder matches an intended location, wherein the intended/proper location is retrieved from a database by using the identifier included in the wireless signal; and
upon determining that the location of the gas cylinder matches does not match the intended location retrieved from the database, generating an alert communicating that the gas cylinder is not in the intended location. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 32, 36)
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21. A system for the management of gas cylinders, comprising:
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a processor;
a database stored on a computer readable storage medium;
at least one wireless receiver disposed at a fixed position of a storage facility;
a plurality of gas cylinders stored in at least one location;
a plurality of wireless transponders, each fixed to a different gas cylinder of the plurality of gas cylinders, and each configured to transmit at least one wireless signal including an identifier identifying the respective gas cylinder; and
a gas cylinder management application which, when executed by the processor, is configured to receive the data included in the wireless transmissions, and to selectively generate alerts communicating the presence of gas cylinders in improper locations based on the received data. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 37)
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Specification