ACCESS CONTROL SYSTEM FOR RESTRICTED AREA

• US 3,866,173 A
• Filed: 10/02/1973
• Issued: 02/11/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Charles J. Moorman, Daniel F. Yorke, Frederick A. Reuter, Martin R. Meyer
• Original Assignee: Charles J. Moorman, Daniel F. Yorke, Frederick A. Reuter, Martin R. Meyer
• Inventors: Moorman, Charles J., Reuter, Frederick A., Yorke, Daniel F., Meyer, Martin R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pitts, Harold I.
• Application Number:
  US05/402,703
• Time in Patent Office: 497 Days
• Field of Search: 340/149R,149A,274 317/134 70/278 235/61.7B
• US Class Current: 340/5.54
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/23 by means of a password
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration

Abstract

An access control system for controlling the entry and exit of personnel through a door or a gate of a restricted area. A person seeking to enter the restricted area inserts a personnel identification card with magnetically encoded data thereon into a card reader located outside the restricted area. Then, a secret number is entered on a keyboard. The system performs checks on the card and keyboard data to determine if the person seeking to enter the restricted area is authorized to enter this area. If all the checks are passed satisfactorily, the door is opened and the person can enter the restricted area. A written record of each attempt to enter the restricted area is made by a printer thereby providing a chronological record of all system events. The system also provides means for preventing persons in a defined group from entering a restricted area as well as circuitry to prevent entry by selected individuals. The system also includes a card erase mechanism which erases the magnetically recorded card data after a predetermined number of unsuccessful entry attempts. Since only the magnetically encoded data is erased, the card may be used by this person for other purposes as printed and photographic information is usually included on such cards. The access control system also includes egress monitoring in the form of a printed record of personnel egress from the restricted area, the egress monitoring becoming active when the individual leaves the restricted area and allows the door to close behind him.

Claims

1. An access control system for controlling movement into and out of a restricted area through a door by personnel having an identification card;

the system comprising, in combination;

a remotely controllable door lock mechanism for selectively permitting the door to the restricted area to be opened in response to door unlock signals, said door lock mechanism being normally locked, a personnel detector within the restricted area to detect a person within said restricted area adjacent said door and in response thereto to generate a personnel signal, a door sensor for producing a door open signal when the door to the restricted area is open;

an egress detector responsive to the occurrence of said door open signal and personnel signal to produce an egress signal;

a personnel identification card reader located outside the restricted area for reading card data from a personnel identification number;

a central control responsive to said egress signal to provide a read signal to said card reader;

a recorder;

said central control including means operative to receive the personnel identification number from said card reader and to actuate said recorder to record that an egress has occurred and the personnel identification number from the card read by said card reader; and

said central control including further means operative to produce a door unlock signal to unlock said door in response to specified conditions including reading of a card inserted in said reader by a person outside said restricted area seeking entry who inserts a personnel identification card in said reader when the door is locked.

2. The access control system of claim 1 additionally including:

means associated with said card reader for producing a card absence signal when no card is in said reader, means for producing a humanly perceptible signal in response to coincidence of a said card absence signal and said egress signal, said humanly perceptible signal reminding personnel leaving the restricted area to insert their personnel identification card into said card reader.

3. The access control system of claim 2 wherein:

said central control is operative after a predetermined period of time to turn off said egress signal causing said humanly perceptible signal to be generated only for a predetermined time period in the absence of card insertion.

4. The access control system of claim 3 wherein:

said central control includes means to actuate said recorder to indicate that an egress has occurred and that no personnel identification card had been read upon expiration of said predetermined time period without card insertion.

5. The access control system of claim 1 additionally including:

a keyboard located near said card reader outside the restricted area, said keyboard being provided for entering, by personnel seeking to enter the restricted area, a secret number which corresponds to the personnel identification number on their personnel identification card;

said central control being responsive to entry of said secret number on said keyboard to transfer said keyboard entered number to said central contrOl and also to read the personnel identification card in said card reader;

said central control including a verification circuit to verify that the secret number corresponds to the personnel identification number read from the personnel identification card, said central control producing a door unlock signal if said verification circuit determines that the secret number and the personnel identification number properly correspond to each other.

6. The access control system of claim 5 wherein:

said central control is operative to activate said recorder when the secret number and personnel identification number correspond to indicate that a normal entry has occurred and also to record the personnel identification number from the card read by said card reader, thereby providing an access control system with a means for providing a record of all movement of personnel through a doorway of a restricted area.

7. The access control system of claim 5 wherein:

said central control includes a blocking circuit responsive to said read personnel identification number for determining if said read personnel identification number corresponds to a person who has been blocked from entering the restricted area, said blocking circuit including recorded manifestations of blocked personnel for producing a block signal if said read personnel identification number corresponds to a person blocked, said blocking signal being operative to inhibit generation of said door unlock signal to prevent unlocking said door lock mechanism.

8. The access control system of claim 7 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a plurality of interrupted connections, each associated with one personnel identification number, each interrupted connection being selectively rendered continuous by a connector means, said blocking signal being generated when the personnel identification number of the card read by said card reader corresponds identically to an interrupted connection rendered continuous by a connector means.

9. The access control system of claim 7 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a group block circuit for blocking groups of personnel from entering the restricted area, said group blocking circuit responding to selected portions of said read personnel identification number to produce said block signal when the selected portions of said personnel identification number corresponds to a group who have been blocked.

10. The access control system of claim 9 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a plurality of interrupted connections, each associated with one personnel identification number, each interrupted connection being selectively rendered continuous by a connector means, said blocking signal being generated when the personnel identification number of the card read by said card reader corresponds identically to an interrupted connection rendered continuous by a connector means.

11. The access control system of claim 5 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a group block circuit for blocking groups of personnel from entering the restricted area, said group blocking circuit responding to selected portions of said read personnel identification number to produce said block signal when the selected portions of said personnel identification number corresponds to a group who have been blocked.

12. The access control system of claim 11 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a plurality of interrupted connections, each associated with one personnel identification number, each interrupted connection being selectively rendered continuous by a connector means, said blocking signal being generated when the personnel identification number of the card read by said card reader corresponds identically to an interrupted connection rendered continuous by a connector means.

13. The access control system of claim 5 wherein:

said card includes access area data recorded thereon, said access area data being correlated to restricted areas to which personnel can bE selectively admitted;

an indicator means having at least two output signals correlated to at least two different time periods;

said central control includes an access area control circuit responsive to said access area data and said indicator means, said access area control circuit being operative to inhibit generation of said unlock signal to prevent unlocking of said door lock mechanism if the access area data read the personnel identification card does not include data indicating that the individual is permitted to enter the restricted area to which entry is sought at the time of day indicated by said indicator means.

14. The access control system of claim 5 additionally including:

an entry attempt counter responsive to reading of said keyboard entered data, said entry attempt counter being incremented each time said keyboard receives a complete secret number entered therein, said entry attempt counter producing an erase card signal when said counter reaches a predetermined value, said erase signal being input to said card reader, said card reader including circuitry responsive to said erase signal to erase the card data on the card inserted therein, thereby preventing further use of the personnel identification card to enter the restricted area, said counter being reset without production of said erase signal in response to said unlock signal.

15. The access control system of claim 1 wherein:

said card data of each said personnel identification card includes a multi-digit number in machine readable form coded thereon, said number including a multi-digit personnel identification number; and

said central control further responsive to said card reader for receiving the personnel identification number read by said card reader, said central control including a settable decoder responsive to selected digits of the read personnel identification number, said decoder producing a block signal when the selected digits of the read personnel identification number corresponds identically to the preset setting for said decoder, said block signal being operative to prevent the generation of unlock signals, thereby preventing an individual who belongs to a group of individuals blocked from entering the restricted area from entering the restricted area.

16. The access control system of claim 1 wherein:

said card data of each said personnel identification card includes a multi-digit number in machine readable form coded thereon, said number including a multi-digit personnel identification number; and

said central control further responsive to said card reader for receiving the personnel identification number read by said card reader, said central control including a settable decoder responsive to selected digits of the read personnel identification number, said decoder producing a block signal when the selected digits of the read personnel identification number corresponds identically to the preset setting for said decoder, said block signal being operative to prevent the generation of unlock signals, thereby preventing an individual who belongs to a group of individuals blocked from entering the restricted area from entering the restricted area.

17. The access control system of claim 16 wherein:

said blocking circuit includes a group block circuit for blocking groups of personnel from entering the restricted area, said group blocking circuit responding to selected portions of said read personnel identification number to produce said block signal when the selected portions of said personnel identification number corresponds to a group who have been blocked.