PORTABLE TRACKING/LOCATING SYSTEM, METHOD, AND APPLICATION

• US 20110187527A1
• Filed: 02/01/2011
• Published: 08/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alan Hyman, Jane Yusko, Penny Goodwill
• Original Assignee: Alan Hyman, Jane Yusko, Penny Goodwill
• Inventors: Hyman, Alan, Yusko, Jane, Goodwill, Penny
• Application Number:
  US13/018,844
• Publication Number:
  US 20110187527A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/539.13
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 1/08 using electric transmission ; transformation of alarm signals to electrical signals from a different medium, e.g. transmission of an electric alarm signal upon detection of an audible alarm signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A tracking system including a tracking device and a tracked device. The tracking device includes a smart phone type device with a radio transceiver dongle connected to it through a USB connection. Communications from the traced device to the tracking device (for example, the transceiver in the dongle) take the following form: RF communications that do not travel over a pre-existing communication network (for example, a pre-existing internet network, a pre-existing cell phone network) and that use Multi-Use Radio Service (MURS), xbee (zigBee), FSK, OSK, ISM Band standards that provide two-way radio frequency spectrum, or any frequency available thru Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) 47 Code of Federal Regulations (“C.F.R.”) §15, or any available frequency that is sanctioned for long distance use (e.g., 0.5 miles or more, 300 meters or more) by the appropriate governing body, rather than Bluetooth radio communications, or any other type of RF communications that can only transmit, as a practical matter under normal operating conditions, less than 300 feet.

Claims

1. A tracking system comprising:

a tracking device; and

a tracked device;

wherein;

the tracking device comprises a computer and a base radio receiver;

the computer comprises tracking software;

the tracked device comprises a position determination sub-system and a tracked radio transmitter;

the position determination sub-system is structured and/or connected to determine positional information relating to the location of the tracked device and to communicate this information to the tracked radio transmitter;

the base radio receiver and tracked radio transmitter are structured so that the tracked radio transmitter transmits the positional information to the base radio receiver by long range direct radio communication; and

the base radio receiver is structured and/or connected to communicate the positional information to the tracking software.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the computer further comprises a user interface;

the tracking software is programmed to communicate the positional information to the user interface; and

the user interface is structured, connected and/or located to communicate the positional information in human readable form to a user through the user interface.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the computer further comprises a data communication port;

the base radio receiver is a peripheral device; and

the base radio receiver is in data communication with the computer through the data communication port and the tracking software receives the positional information from the base radio receiver through the data communication port.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the tracked device is sized and shaped to be small and light enough to be attached to a child or household pet.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the base radio receiver and tracked radio transmitter are structured so that the tracked radio transmitter transmits the positional information to the base radio receiver in one or more of the following forms:

Multi-Use Radio Service band standard, xbee band standard, FSK band standard, OSK band standard and/or ISM band standard.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the base radio receiver and tracked radio transmitter are structured so that the tracked radio transmitter transmits the positional information to the base radio receiver reliably under normal operating conditions over distances greater than 300 meters.

12. The kit system of claim 2 wherein the radio transceiver of the dongle and the radio transceiver of the first tracker are structured so that the radio transceiver of the first tracker transmits the positional information to the radio transceiver of the dongle in one or more of the following forms:

Multi-Use Radio Service band standard, xbee band standard, FSK band standard, OSK band standard and/or ISM band standard.

13. The kit system of claim 1 wherein the radio transceiver of the dongle and the radio transceiver of the first tracker are structured so that the radio transceiver of the first tracker transmits the positional information to the radio transceiver of the dongle reliably under normal operating conditions over distances greater than 300 meters.

7. A tracking kit sub-system for use in a larger tracking system comprising a smart phone type device comprising a user interface, the tracking kit sub-system comprising:

tracking software;

a dongle; and

a first tracker;

wherein;

the dongle comprises a radio transceiver;

the dongle is connectable to the smart phone type device by a wired data communication connection;

the tracking software is programmed to be installable on and to run on the smart phone type device;

the first tracker comprises a Global Positioning System sub-sub-system and a radio transceiver;

the Global Positioning System sub-sub-system is structured and/or connected to determine positional information relating to the location of the tracked device and to communicate this information to the radio transceiver of the first tracker;

the radio transceiver of the first tracker and the radio transceiver of the dongle are structured so that the radio transceiver of the first tracker transmits the positional information to the radio transceiver of the dongle by long range direct radio communication;

the radio transceiver of the dongle is structured and/or connected to communicate the positional information to the tracking software, when connected to the smart phone device, through the wired data communication connection; and

the tracking software is programmed, when installed and running on the smart phone type device, to communicate the positional information to the user interface so that the positional information will be output by the user interface in human readable form.

8. The kit sub-system of claim 7 wherein the wired data communication connection is structured as a Universal Serial Bus connection.

9. The kit sub-system of claim 7 wherein the tracking software is further programmed, when installed and running on the smart phone type device, to communicate the positional information to the user interface so that the positional information will be output against a background representing a road map.

10. The kit sub-system of claim 7 wherein the tracking software is further programmed, when installed and running on the smart phone type device, to communicate the positional information to the user interface so that the positional information will be output against a background representing a co-ordinate grid.

11. The kit system of claim 7 wherein the first tracker is sized and shaped to be small and light enough to attached to a child or household pet.

14. A method, performed by processing hardware of a computer programmed to provide functionality of tracking remote objects in conjunction with user interface, a long range direct radio transceiver, a Global Positioning System sub-system and an internet network communication sub-system, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting, by the user through the user interface, of a remote object to track;

determining which of the following alternative conditions is applicable;

condition (i) the long range direct radio transceiver, the Global Positioning System sub-system and the internet network communication sub-system are all available;

condition (ii) the long range direct radio transceiver and the Global Positioning System sub-system are available, but the internet network communication sub-system is not available;

or condition (iii) the long range direct radio transceiver is available, but the Global Positioning System sub-system and the internet network communication sub-system are not available;

receiving positional information of the remote tracked object by the long range direct radio transceiver through long range direct radio communications from the remote tracked object;

if the determining step determines that condition (i) applies, then;

assembling positional relating to the remote tracked object received at the receiving step by the long range direct radio transceiver with information from the Global Positioning sub-sub-system and the internet network communication sub-sub-system to generate a condition (i) type display indicating the position of the remote tracked object, and

displaying the condition (i) type display through the user interface in human readable form;

if the determining step determines that condition (ii) applies, then;

assembling positional relating to the remote tracked object received at the receiving step by the long range direct radio transceiver with information from the Global Positioning sub-sub-system to generate a condition (ii) type display indicating the position of the remote tracked object, and

displaying the condition (ii) type display through the user interface in human readable form; and

if the determining step determines that condition (iii) applies, then;

generating a condition (iii) type display indicating the position of the remote tracked object received at the receiving step by the long range radio transceiver, and

displaying the condition (iii) type display through the user interface in human readable form.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the processing hardware is processing hardware of a smart phone type device.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the communications received at the receiving step are in one or more of the following forms:

Multi-Use Radio Service band standard, xbee band standard, FSK band standard, OSK band standard and/or ISM band standard.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the communications received at the receiving step are received from the remote tracked object at a distance of greater than 300 meters.