SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CONFIGURING ACCESS CONTROL DEVICES

• US 20110038278A1
• Filed: 05/21/2008
• Published: 02/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Goel, Parveen Kumar, Reddy, Chandrakanth C., Bhandari, Neelendra, Joshi, Priteshkumar D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,351,350 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4068 Electrical coupling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00904 for hotels, motels, office buildings or the like
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/65 Central control
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 70/7107 And alternately mechanically actuated by a key, dial, etc.

Abstract

Described herein are systems and methods for configuring access control devices. In overview, some embodiments provide for a method whereby a smartcard is used to configure a disconnected access control device. A user presents this smartcard to a connected access control device which, in response to the presentation of this card, allows the user to download to the smartcard one or more aspects of configuration data for a specified disconnected access control device. The user subsequently presents the smartcard to the relevant disconnected access control device, which uploads and selectively applies the one or more aspects of configuration data.

Claims

1. A method, performable by a connected access control device, for providing one or more aspects of configuration data for a disconnected access control device, the method including the steps of:

(a) receiving, whilst in a first mode of operation, data indicative of an instruction to adopt a second mode of operation;

(b) being responsive to the data received at (a) for adopting a second mode of operation;

(c) receiving data indicative of the disconnected access control device;

(d) obtaining first data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data for the disconnected access control device;

(e) writing to one or more carrier substrates collectively second data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data for the disconnected access control device, wherein the disconnected access control device is configured for reading the one or more carrier substrates and selectively applying the one or more aspects of configuration data

(f) resuming the first mode of operation.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein one or more carrier substrates include one or more smartcards.

3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the data indicative of an instruction to adopt a second mode of operation is provided by one of the smartcards.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein, in the first mode of operation, the connected access control device performs an access control functionality and, in the second mode of operation, the access control device performs a configuration download functionality.

5. A method according to claim 1 including the steps of:

(g) providing an interface for allowing user selection of the one or more aspects of configuration data from a list of available aspects of configuration data; and

(h) receiving data indicative of user-selection of the one or more aspects of configuration data.

6. A method according to claim 1 wherein the first data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data is substantially identical to the second data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data.

7. A method according to claim 1 including the step of writing to at least one of the carrier substrates data indicative of the number of one or more carrier substrates.

8. A method according to claim 1 including the step determining the number of carrier substrates to which the second data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data is to be collectively written.

9. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more aspects of configuration data include any one or more of the following:

access configuration data;

hardware configuration data; and

scheduling data.

10. (canceled)

11. A method, performable by a disconnected access control device, for selectively applying one or more aspects of configuration data, the method including the steps of

(a) receiving, whilst in a first mode of operation, data indicative of an instruction to adopt a second mode of operation;

(b) being responsive to the data received at (a) for adopting a second mode of operation;

(c) reading from one or more carrier substrates collectively data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data;

(d) selectively applying the one or more aspects of configuration data;

(e) resuming the first mode of operation.

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein one or more carrier substrates include one or more smartcards.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein the data indicative of an instruction to adopt a second mode of operation is provided by one of the smartcards.

14. A method according to claim 11 wherein, in the first mode of operation, the disconnected access control device performs an access control functionality and, in the second mode of operation, the access control device performs a configuration upload functionality.

15. A method according to claim 11 including the steps of:

(f) determining, for each aspect of configuration data, whether that aspect of data satisfies predetermined criteria; and

(d) in the case that the relevant aspect of data satisfies the predetermined criteria, applying that aspect of configuration data.

16. A method according to claim 11 including the step of erasing the data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data once that data is read.

17. A method according to claim 11 including the step of being responsive to data indicative of the number of one or more carrier substrates for determining whether step (c) is complete.

18. A method according to claim 11 including the step of erasing the data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data once that data is read.

19. A method according to claim 11 wherein the one or more aspects of configuration data include any one or more of the following:

access configuration data;

hardware configuration data; and

scheduling data.

20. A method according to claim 11 including the step of writing to a carrier substrate data indicative of successful or failed application of one or more aspects of the configuration data.

21-27. -27. (canceled)

28. An access control device configured to perform a method for providing one or more aspects of configuration data for a disconnected access control device, the method including the steps of:

(a) receiving, whilst in a first mode of operation, data indicative of an instruction to adopt a second mode of operation;

(b) being responsive to the data received at (a) for adopting a second mode of operation;

(c) receiving data indicative of the disconnected access control device;

(d) obtaining first data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data for the disconnected access control device;

(e) writing to one or more carrier substrates collectively second data indicative of the one or more aspects of configuration data for the disconnected access control device, wherein the disconnected access control device is configured for reading the one or more carrier substrates and selectively applying the one or more aspects of configuration data

(f) resuming the first mode of operation.

29. (canceled)