SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PROVIDING SECURITY AT A VEHICLE YARD

• US 20120176242A1
• Filed: 03/19/2012
• Published: 07/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: U.S. Security Associates Holding Corp. (Allied Universal Manager LLC)
• Original Assignee: US Security Associates Incorporated (Allied Universal Manager LLC)
• Inventors: Schneider, Charles R., Boylan, James P. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 8,698,625 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/540
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0428 Safety, monitoring G05B19/0423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24015 Monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2612 Data acquisition interface
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2628 Door, window

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing security at a vehicle yard are provided. A communicator may collect data associated with a plurality of vehicles or trailers during completion of a guard tour, and a processing station may receive the collected data from the communicator. The processing station may compare the collected data to expected data in order to generate one or more instructions that are returned to the communicator. The one or more instructions may include an instruction to collect additional data associated with a vehicle or trailer.

Claims

1. A communicator for use in a guard tour, the communicator comprising:

at least one scanning device configured to collect information associated with a plurality of vehicles or trailers during completion of a guard tour;

at least one network interface configured to communicate at least a portion of the collected information to a remote processing station via a network; and

at least one processor configured to (i) direct a guard to utilize the at least one scanning device to collect information associated with the plurality of vehicles or trailers, (ii) prompt the guard to collect additional information associated with one of the plurality of vehicles or trailers, and (iii) direct the at least one network interface to communicate the collected information and the collected additional information to the remote processing station.

2. The communicator of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

receive, from the remote processing station via the at least one network interface, a request to collect the additional information; and

prompt the guard to collect the additional information based upon the received request.

3. The communicator of claim 1, wherein the guard is prompted to collect one of (i) a temperature of a refrigerated trailer or (ii) an amount of fuel remaining in a fuel tank associated with a trailer.

4. The communicator of claim 1, wherein the at least one network interface is further configured to receive, from the remote processing station based upon an evaluation of at least one of the information or the additional information, an instruction associated with an identified exception associated with the guard tour, and

wherein the at least one processor is further configured to output the instruction for presentation to the guard.

5. The communicator of claim 4, wherein the identified exception comprises one of (i) an exception associated with a missing vehicle or a missing trailer or (ii) an exception associated with a missed guard tour point.

6. The communicator of claim 4, wherein the instruction comprises one of (i) an instruction to visit a missed guard tour point or (ii) an instruction to search for a missing vehicle or a missing trailer.

7. A system, comprising:

a communicator configured to collect data associated with a plurality of vehicles or trailers during completion of a guard tour; and

a processing station configured to (i) receive the collected data from the communicator, (ii) compare the collected data to expected data in order to generate one or more instructions to be returned to the communicator, the one or more instructions comprising an instruction to collect additional data associated with a vehicle or trailer, and (iii) communicate the generated one or more instructions to the communicator.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the instruction to collect additional information comprises one of (i) an instruction to collect a temperature of a refrigerated trailer or (ii) an instruction to collect an amount of fuel remaining in a fuel tank associated with a trailer.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the communicator and the processing station communicate in real-time via a cellular network.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the processing station is further configured to identify, based upon a comparison of the collected data to the expected data, at least one exception associated with the guard tour, and

wherein the one or more instructions comprise at least one instruction associated with the identified exception.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the identified exception comprises one of (i) an exception associated with a missing vehicle or a missing trailer or (ii) an exception associated with a missed guard tour point.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one instruction associated with the identified exception comprises one of (i) an instruction to visit a missed guard tour point or (ii) an instruction to search for a missing vehicle or a missing trailer.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the communicator comprises a first communicator associated with a first guard, and

wherein the processing station is further configured to (i) identify, based upon a comparison of the collected data to the expected data, at least one exception associated with the guard tour and (ii) communicate an alert associated with the identified exception to a second communicator associated with a second guard.

14. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a processing station from a communicator carried by a guard during a guard tour, data collected by the communicator and associated with a plurality of vehicles or trailers evaluated during completion of the guard tour;

comparing, by the processing station, the collected data to expected data in order to generate one or more instructions to be returned to the communicator, the one or more instructions comprising an instruction to collect additional data associated with a vehicle or trailer; and

communicating, by the processing station to the communicator, the generated one or more instructions.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the instruction to collect additional information comprises one of (i) an instruction to collect a temperature of a refrigerated trailer or (ii) an instruction to collect an amount of fuel remaining in a fuel tank associated with a trailer.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the communicator and the processing station communicate in real-time via a cellular network.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

identifying, by the processing station based upon a comparison of the collected data to the expected data, at least one exception associated with the guard tour,

wherein the one or more instructions comprise at least one instruction associated with the identified exception.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the identified exception comprises one of (i) an exception associated with a missing vehicle or a missing trailer or (ii) an exception associated with a missed guard tour point.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the at least one instruction associated with the identified exception comprises one of (i) an instruction to visit a missed guard tour point or (ii) an instruction to search for a missing vehicle or a missing trailer.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the communicator comprises a first communicator associated with a first guard, and further comprising:

identifying, by the processing station based upon a comparison of the collected data to the expected data, at least one exception associated with the guard tour; and

communicating an alert associated with the identified exception to a second communicator associated with a second guard.