Time control device for appliances

• US 5,046,157 A
• Filed: 02/03/1988
• Issued: 09/03/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Leland W. Poole, Stephen Smith, William C. Stewart
• Original Assignee: Leland W. Poole, Stephen Smith, William C. Stewart
• Inventors: Smith, Stephen W., Stewart, William C., Poole, Leland W.
• Primary Examiner(s): ORSINO JR, JOSEPH
• Assistant Examiner(s): Scutch, III, Frank M.
• Application Number:
  US07/152,032
• Time in Patent Office: 1,308 Days
• Field of Search: 340/309.15, 340/825.31, 340/825.33, 235/382, 235/382.5, 235/375
• US Class Current: 340/309.8
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/127 Shopping or accessing services according to a time-limitation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/2295 Parent-child type, e.g. where parent has control on child rights
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/357 Cards having a plurality of specified features
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/215 the system having a variable access-code, e.g. varied as a function of time
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 15/12 in which metering is on a time basis
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 Card verification

Abstract

A controlled device is disclosed for allowing a parent to control the use of an appliance by a child. The system includes a plurality of user cards, one of which is assigned to each child. A control device is interconnected with the circuitry of the appliance for actuating and deactuating the controlled appliance. The amount of time allotted to each child can be stored in the memory of the control device. The control device is responsive to input from the children'"'"'s user cards and actuates the controlled appliance when the time allotted to such user is greater than zero. Once the controlled appliance is actuated, the time allotted to the then current user is decremented until the appliance is deactuated. When the time alloted to the then current user reaches zero, the control device will automatically deactuate the controlled appliance and that child cannot use the appliance until more time is allotted to him or her. The parent is given a master card which allows him to manually increment or decrement the time allotted to each child user. Thus, the device may be used to positively reinforce desired behavior and to discourage undesired behavior.

Claims

1. A device for allowing a parent to control the use of an appliance by one or more children comprising:

(a) a plurality of child user cards, each encoded with a different user identification code;

(b) control means responsive to input of a user identification code from a valid user card for actuating the controlled appliance, the control means including;

1) a memory device for storing the amount of actual user time allotted individually to each user;

2) card reading means for allowing a user to input his user identification code;

3) means for actuating the controlled appliance when amount of actual user time allotted to such user is greater than zero;

4) tabulating means for automatically decrementing the amount of actual user time allotted to the then current user once the controlled appliance is actuated until the appliance is deactuated;

5) means for deactuating the controlled appliance when the amount of actual user time allotted to the then current user reaches zero; and

6) programming means for allowing an administrator to manually increment or decrement the amount of actual user time previously allotted to any user to positively reinforce desired behavior and to discourage undesired behavior.

2. The control device of claim 1 wherein the control means further includes disabling means for enabling and disabling the controlled appliance at predetermined times, which disabling means overrides the actuating means and renders all user cards invalid during the disabled periods.

3. The control device of claim 1 wherein the control means further includes means for automatically incrementing the time allotted to each user at predetermined times.

4. A device for allowing one person, and administrator, to control the use of an appliance by a plurality of users comprising:

(a) plurality of user cards, each encoded with a discrete user identification code;

(b) control means responsive to input of a user identification code from a valid user card for actuating the controlled appliance, the control means including;

(1) memory means for storing the amount of time allotted to each user;

(2) a control flag register having a plurality of control flags, one corresponding to each of the users, which flags are set to indicate that the corresponding user has time allotted and which flags are cleared to indicate that the corresponding user has no time allotted;

(3) a user flag register having a plurality of user flags, one corresponding to each of the users, which user flags are set to indicate that the corresponding user is currently using the appliance, and which flags are cleared to indicate that the corresponding user is not currently using the appliance;

(4) card reading means for allowing a user to input his user identification code into the control means;

(5) processing means including;

(a) means responsive to input of a user identification code for scanning the control flag register and, when the corresponding control flag is set, for actuating the controlled appliance and setting the corresponding user flag;

(b) means for scanning the user flag register at predetermined intervals and for decrementing time equal to the predetermined interval from each user whose corresponding user flag is set;

(c) means for deactuating the controlled appliance and for clearing the corresponding control flag and all of the user flags when the time allotted to the then current users reaches zero; and

(6) programming means for allowing the administrator to program the amount of time allotted to each user.

5. The controlled device of claim 4 wherein said control means further includes:

(a) means for keeping time of day;

(b) means for storing the beginning and ending times for a predetermined use period;

(c) means for comparing the time of day to the beginning and ending times and for enabling the controlled appliance when the time of day equals the beginning time, and for disabling the controlled appliance when the time of day equals the ending time.

6. The controlled device of claim 5 wherein the control means further include:

(a) means for storing a predetermined time limit for using the controlled appliance;

(b) means for automatically adding the predetermined time limit to the time allotted to each user at a predetermined interval.