Electronic house arrest system having officer safety reporting feature
First Claim
1. An electronic house arrest monitoring (EHAM) system for monitoring the presence or absence of an offender at a prescribed location remote from a central monitoring location, comprising:
- a tag carried by the offender, said tag having transmitter means therein for generating and transmitting a first multi-bit identification (ID) signal at low power, and hence over a short range, said first ID signal including a particular combination of bits that uniquely identifies the offender to whom the tag has been assigned;
a triggerable portable transmitter carried by an officer who visits the offender at the prescribed location, said triggerable portable transmitter including means for manually triggering the generation and transmission of a second multi-bit ID signal upon manual activation of a transmit switch, said second ID signal including a prescribed combination of bits that identifies a situation wherein the officer believes back-up assistance may be needed at the prescribed location;
an in-house monitoring unit at the prescribed location, said IMU including a receiver for receiving said first and second ID signals, and processing means for examining said received first and second ID signals and responding to said first ID signal with a first response and to said second ID signal with a second response different than said first response;
a central processing unit at the central monitoring location;
means for selectively establishing telecommunicative contact between said IMU and CPU;
said second response of said IMU including means for notifying said CPU of the receipt of said second ID signal through said established telecommunicative contact, and providing said CPU with information that identifies the prescribed location at which the second ID signal was received, whereupon appropriate action may be taken to dispatch back-up assistance to said prescribed location.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electronic house arrest monitoring (EHAM) system allows a monitoring officer, charged with the responsibility of making periodic and/or random physical checks with individuals whose presence at specific locations is being electronically monitored through the EHAM system, to immediately and silently report to a central monitoring location that backup help or assistance is needed at the monitoring location. The EHAM system includes an in-house monitoring unit (IMU) installed at or positioned near specific monitoring locations, that electronically monitors the specific monitoring location for the presence of a unique identifying signal, periodically transmitted from an electronic tag worn by a monitored individual. Telecommunicative contact is periodically and/or randomly established between the central monitoring location and the IMU. The monitoring office carries a small pocket transmitter. If the officer senses danger or otherwise needs backup assistance at or near a monitored location, the office siliently activates a transmit switch on the pocket transmitter that causes a "needs assistance" signal to be transmitted. The "needs assistance" signal is received by the IMU and immediately relayed, along with address-identifying data, to the central monitoring location. A "needs assistance" signal received at the central monitoring location causes immediate help or assistance to be dispatched to the indicated address.
52 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An electronic house arrest monitoring (EHAM) system for monitoring the presence or absence of an offender at a prescribed location remote from a central monitoring location, comprising:
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a tag carried by the offender, said tag having transmitter means therein for generating and transmitting a first multi-bit identification (ID) signal at low power, and hence over a short range, said first ID signal including a particular combination of bits that uniquely identifies the offender to whom the tag has been assigned; a triggerable portable transmitter carried by an officer who visits the offender at the prescribed location, said triggerable portable transmitter including means for manually triggering the generation and transmission of a second multi-bit ID signal upon manual activation of a transmit switch, said second ID signal including a prescribed combination of bits that identifies a situation wherein the officer believes back-up assistance may be needed at the prescribed location; an in-house monitoring unit at the prescribed location, said IMU including a receiver for receiving said first and second ID signals, and processing means for examining said received first and second ID signals and responding to said first ID signal with a first response and to said second ID signal with a second response different than said first response; a central processing unit at the central monitoring location; means for selectively establishing telecommunicative contact between said IMU and CPU; said second response of said IMU including means for notifying said CPU of the receipt of said second ID signal through said established telecommunicative contact, and providing said CPU with information that identifies the prescribed location at which the second ID signal was received, whereupon appropriate action may be taken to dispatch back-up assistance to said prescribed location. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A portable transmitter for use with an electronic house arrest monitoring (EHAM) system, said EHAM system including means for electronically monitoring the presence or absence of an offender at a prescribed location, said EHAM system including an in-house monitoring unit (IMU) at the prescribed location that is capable of establishing telecommunicative contact with a central monitoring station, said IMU further including means for communicating to said central monitoring station through said established telecommunicative contact an information signal that identifies a particular IMU and that indicates the presence or absence of the offender at the prescribed location, said portable transmitter comprising:
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a radio frequency (RF) oscillator that generates and transmits an RF signal; modulating means for modulating said RF signal with a multiplicity of bits of information, a subset of said bits including a prescribed first code that identifies a need for assistance; and a switch responsive to manual activation that when activated causes said modulated RF signal to be transmitted by said transmitting means; said transmitted modulated RF signal being receivable within a receiver circuit of said IU if said portable transmitter is in the vicinity of said IMU, whereby an officer carrying said portable transmitter can visit the offender at said prescribed location and manually activate the switch if a potential need for assistance is detected, thereby causing said first code to be included in the modulated RF signal that is transmitted by said portable transmitter, which first code is detected in the modulated RF signal received by the IMU receiver causes said IMU receiver to respond differently than the IMU receiver responds when electronically confirming the presence of the offender at the prescribed location. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of protecting an officer who is visiting offenders in the field, said offenders being monitored with an electronic house arrest monitoring (EHAM) system, said EHAM system including a plurality of in-house monitoring units (IMUs) respectively installed at or positioned near prescribed field locations, each of said IMUs being at a known field location, and each including means for electronically monitoring its respective field location for the presence or absence of the offender, each IMU further including means for establishing telecommunicative contact with a central monitoring station and electronically reporting the results of such monitoring, said method comprising the steps of:
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(a) providing said officer with a portable transmitter, said portable transmitter including means for selectively generating and transmitting an electronic signal, said electronic signal including a first code that identifies a need for back-up assistance, said electronic signal being receivable by an IMU that is within a few hundred feet of said portable transmitter at the time of said electronic signal is generated; (b) triggering the transmission of said electronic signal whenever said officer perceives that back-up assistance may be needed at a particular field location whereat the officer is visiting, said electronic signal being received within the IMU at the location where the officer is visiting; (c) verifying the presence of said first code in the electronic signal received within the IMU; (d) responding to the verification performed in step (b) in a way that is different from the electronically reporting response of the IMU when monitoring the presence or absence of the offender at the prescribed location, said response to the verification performed in step (b) including automatically establishing telecommunicative contact with the central monitoring station; (e) electronically notifying the central monitoring station through said telecommunicative contact of the identity of the particular IMU at which the first code was received and verified; and (f) determining the location of the particular IMU whereat the first code was received and dispatching back-up assistance to the determined location. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19)
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Specification