Personal locator transmitter

• US 5,014,040 A
• Filed: 10/16/1989
• Issued: 05/07/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Instantel, Inc. (Positiveid Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Instantel, Inc. (Positiveid Corporation)
• Inventors: Saito, Shin, Fakhry, Kamal, Weaver, Philip W.
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Assistant Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US07/422,028
• Time in Patent Office: 568 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572, 340/573, 340/539
• US Class Current: 340/568.1
• CPC Class Codes: A44C 5/14 characterised by the way of fastening to a wrist-watch or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A44C 5/2076 with the two ends of the strap or chain abutting each other or sliding in the main plane or a plane parallel to the main plane of these two ends A44C5/2009 - A44C5/2061 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0222 Message structure or message content, e.g. message protocol
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0227 System arrangements with a plurality of child units
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/023 Power management, e.g. system sleep and wake up provisions
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0286 Tampering or removal detection of the child unit from child or article
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0288 Attachment of child unit to child/article
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 3/1083 Pager locating systems

Abstract

A personal locator transmitter adapted to be worn on the wrist and having the size and appearance of a conventional wrist-watch. This transmitter is provided with a programmable memory, a transmitter controlled by the memory, an antenna for reliably radiating signals from the transmitter regardless of orientation of the wrist of a user and including both a manually operable alarm activated by pressing a button, and an automatic alarm actuated by an attempt to remove the unit from the wrist of the wearer. The unit is controlled by a control memory comprised of an EEPROM encoded with unique identification codes and other information as required in the specific application.

Claims

1. A personal locator device adapted to be worn on the wrist and having the size and appearance of a conventional wrist-watch and including a molded casing and an integral strap extending therefrom, said casing containing a programmable memory, a transmitter controlled by said programmable memory, an omni-directional antenna, a back plane, and a battery, said integral wrist strap having a free end, said free end being adapted for insertion through a slot in said casing, a metal strip extending from said casing through said integral strap, means for locking said free end in said casing, said locking means including an electrical contact for contacting said metal strip when said free end is engaged therein, to complete a circuit, interruption of said circuit causing an alarm code to be transmitted by said transmitter.

2. A personal locator transmitter as claimed in claim 1 and including manually operable means for generating said alarm code transmitted by said transmitter.

3. A personal locator transmitter as claimed in claim 1 wherein said bursts of data on a continuous basis under control of said programmable memory.

4. A personal locator transmitter as claimed in claim 3 wherein said programmable memory includes means for turning said transmitter on at pre-determined intervals, and means for modulating the carrier of said transmitter with a pre-determined binary coded data stream.

5. A personal locator transmitter as claimed in claim 1 wherein said programmable memory is an EEPROM.

6. A personal locator transmitter as defined in claim 1 wherein said programmable memory and said transmitter are mounted on a printed circuit board within said casing.