AN ELECTRONIC LOCKING SYSTEM

• US 20170154483A1
• Filed: 07/10/2015
• Published: 06/01/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kenneth Grant Metcalf, Peter Alexander Cordiner
• Original Assignee: Kenneth Grant Metcalf, Peter Alexander Cordiner
• Inventors: Cordiner, Peter Alexander, Metcalf, Kenneth Grant
• Granted Patent: US 10,127,750 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/00 Programme-control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00769 with data transmission performed by wireless means
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2209/63 Comprising locating means for detecting the position of the data carrier, i.e. within the vehicle or within a certain distance from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00571 operated by interacting with a central unit
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/0069 actuated in a predetermined sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes

Abstract

A system and method for enabling opening of an electronic locking device (12) from a remote location is disclosed. A remotely accessible server (14) receives an opening request to open an electronic locking device (12) which secures a closing member (18). The opening request includes a unique identifier of the electronic locking device (12) and personal identification information of a mobile communications device (28) requesting to open the electronic locking device (12). The server (14) then determines, based on predefined parameters, whether the mobile communications device (28) is permitted to open the electronic locking device (12). If the server (14) determines that the mobile communications device (28) is permitted to open the electronic locking device (12), then it transmits an opening instruction to the electronic locking device (12) to unlock the closing member (18). In an embodiment, the predefined parameters include a proximity range of the mobile communications device (28) to the electronic locking device (12).

Claims

1. A method for enabling opening of an electronic locking device from a remote location, the method being carried out at a remotely accessible server and including:

receiving an opening request to open an electronic locking device which secures a closing member, the opening request including a unique identifier of the electronic locking device and personal identification information of a mobile communications device requesting to open the electronic locking device;

determining, based on predefined parameters, whether the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device; and

in response to determining that the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device, transmitting an opening instruction to the electronic locking device to unlock the closing member.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the step of determining, based on predefined parameters, whether the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device includes:

receiving location information of the mobile communications device and, wherein the predefined parameters include a proximity range of the location information of the mobile communications device to a geographical location of the electronic locking device.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the location information of the mobile communications device is included in the opening request or is received in a location detection notification in response to the remotely accessible server transmitting a location detection request.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the geographical location of the electronic locking device is obtained by one of the group of:

retrieving a stored geographical location referenced by the unique identifier of the electronic locking device from a system database, receiving the geographical location in the opening request, or requesting the geographical location from the electronic locking device.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method includes, in response to receiving the opening request:

transmitting a location detection request to the electronic locking device prompting the electronic locking device to determine its geographic location; and

receiving a location detection notification which includes the geographic location data of the electronic locking device.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method includes, in response to receiving the opening request:

transmitting a location information request to the mobile communications device prompting the mobile communications device to determine its location; and

receiving a location information notification from the mobile communications device which includes the location information of the mobile communications device.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the remotely accessible server is configured to perform secondary location verification and for the step of determining, based on predefined parameters, whether the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device includes the steps of:

retrieving information relating to a secondary verification device from a system database;

receiving a location verification notification from the secondary verification device which includes location data of the secondary verification device; and

wherein the predefined parameters include a proximity range of the location data of the secondary verification device to an expected location.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the remotely accessible server is configured to, in response to retrieving information relating to the secondary verification device, transmit a location determination request to the secondary verification device prompting the secondary verification device to determine its location.

9. The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the expected location is one or more of:

a fixed designated location, a street address, a location in close proximity to the geographic location of the electronic locking device, or the location of the mobile communications device.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the personal identification information includes a mobile device identifier associated with the mobile communications device and a personal identifier of the user of the mobile communications device.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the personal identifier includes a confirmation that a particular sequence of buttons or movements have been entered on the mobile communications device.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein specific locations on which the user is required to press down to enter the particular sequence of movements required for confirmation are not visible or marked on the mobile communications device.

13. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein a plurality of mobile device identifiers and a plurality of personal identifiers are stored on a system database and wherein the predefined parameters include an identifier match of the received personal identification information and the stored mobile identifiers and the stored personal identifiers.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the remotely accessible server is configured to transmit, in the event that the received personal identification information does not match the stored mobile identifiers and stored personal identifiers, a security alert notification to one or more electronic devices that an unauthorised mobile communications device is requesting to open the electronic locking device.

15. An electronic door locking system comprising a remotely accessible server including:

an opening request receiving module for receiving an opening request to open an electronic locking device which secures a closing member, the opening request including a unique identifier of the electronic locking device and personal identification information of a mobile communications device requesting to open the electronic locking device;

an opening determination module for determining, based on predefined parameters, whether the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device; and

an opening instruction transmitting module for transmitting an opening instruction to the electronic locking device to unlock the closing member in response to determining that the mobile communications device is permitted to open the electronic locking device.

16. The system as claimed in claim 15, in which the system includes one or more electronic locking devices each of which secures a closing member and is capable of communicating with the remotely accessible server over a communications network.

17. The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the remotely accessible server is configured to perform location verification and includes a location information receiving module for receiving location information of the mobile communications device, a location comparing module for comparing the location information of the mobile communications device with a geographical location of the electronic locking device and, wherein the predefined parameters include a proximity range of the location information of the mobile communications device and the geographical location of the electronic locking device.

18. The system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the remotely accessible server includes a location detection request transmitting module and receives the location information of the mobile communications device in a location detection notification in response to transmitting a location detection request to the mobile communications device.

19. The system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the remotely accessible server includes one or more of:

a geographical location retrieving module for retrieving a stored geographical location referenced by the unique identifier of the electronic locking device from a system database or a geographical location receiving module for receiving the geographical location in the opening request or in response to transmitting a location detection request by means of a location detection request transmitting module.

20. The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the remotely accessible server includes a location detection request transmitting module for transmitting a location detection request to the electronic locking device prompting the electronic locking device to determine its geographic location, and a location detection notification receiving module for receiving a location detection notification which includes the geographic location data of the electronic locking device.

21. The system as claimed in claim 18, wherein the remotely accessible server includes a location information notification receiving module for receiving a location information notification from the mobile communications device which includes the location information of the mobile communications device.

22. The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the remotely accessible server is configured to perform secondary location verification and includes a secondary verification device retrieving module for retrieving information relating to a secondary verification device from a system database, a secondary verification location notification receiving module for receiving a location verification notification from the secondary verification device which includes the location data of the secondary verification device, a secondary location verification comparing module for comparing the location data of the secondary verification device to an expected location, and for the remotely accessible server to be configured to mark, by means of the parameter marking module, at least some of the predefined parameters as having been met, if the location data matches the expected location.

23. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the personal identification information includes a mobile device identifier and a personal identifier of the user and wherein a plurality of mobile device identifiers and a plurality of personal identifiers are stored on a system database, wherein the remotely accessible server further includes an identifier comparing module for comparing the received personal identification information with the plurality of mobile identifiers and the plurality of personal identifiers stored on the system database and, wherein the predefined parameters include an identifier match of the received personal identification information and the stored mobile identifiers and the stored personal identifiers.

24. An electronic locking device capable of securing a closing member and comprising a lock and a communications module, the lock being capable of unlocking the closing member based on instructions received from the communications module, the communications module being capable of communicating with a remotely accessible server and being configured to:

receive a lock opening request from a mobile communications device, the lock opening request including personal identification information of the mobile communications device;

transmit an opening request to the remotely accessible server, the opening request including a unique identifier of the electronic locking device and the personal identification information of the mobile communications device; and

in response to the mobile communications device being permitted to open the electronic locking device, receive an opening instruction from the remotely accessible server to unlock the closing member and instruct the lock to unlock the closing member.