Identification systems employing frequency-based coded information

• US 5,793,306 A
• Filed: 12/29/1995
• Issued: 08/11/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Elina Tsyvkina, Michael Vershinin
• Original Assignee: Elina Tsyvkina, Michael Vershinin
• Inventors: Vershinin, Michael, Tsyvkina, Elina
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Asongwed, Anthony A.
• Application Number:
  US08/581,349
• Time in Patent Office: 956 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.69, 340/825.73, 340/825.72, 340/825.22, 340/825.07, 340/825.54, 340/825.83, 340/426, 307/10.1, 307/10.22, 307/10.3, 307/10.5, 307/10.6, 307/10.7
• US Class Current: 340/12.53
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/04 operating on the propulsion system, e.g. engine or drive motor

Abstract

An identification or protection system for vehicles, doors, lights and other electronic objects possessing a disabled state, having a disabling circuit operatively associated with the identification system so that when said resulting circuit is activated, the object achieves its disabled state; a transmitter transmitting a signal for a period of time at least once during a succession of time intervals using frequency-based coding; a receiver configured to receive the signal transmitted by the transmitter, the receiver causing the disabling circuit to disable the object when the receiver does not receive a number of consecutive signals from said transmitter which exceeds a pre-determined threshold.

Claims

1. An identification system for an object having a disabled state, said identification system comprising:

a disabling circuit operatively associated with the identification system so that when said disabling circuit reaches a pre-determined state, the object achieves its disabled state;

a transmitter transmitting a set of signals simultaneously over a plurality of frequencies for a period of time at least once during a succession of time intervals using frequency-based coding; and

a receiver configured to receive the set of signals over the plurality of frequencies simultaneously transmitted by said transmitter, said receiver causing the disabling circuit to disable the object when said receiver does not receive at least a pre-determined number of consecutive signals over a plurality of frequencies from said transmitter.

2. The identification system of claim 1, wherein said object is selected from the group consisting of doors, safes, vehicles, utilities, computers, lights, and any other equipment which requires exclusive and/or regulated use and any part thereof.

3. The identification system according to claim 1, wherein said time interval, and said number of consecutive signals constituting a threshold for disabling said object, are changeable by an operator of said identification system.

4. An identification system according to claim 1, wherein the transmitter transmits the set of signals with a recognizable signal pattern, and the receiver corroborates the receipt of the set of signals from the transmitter by analyzing the signal pattern in the set of signals.

5. An identification system according to claim 1, wherein the transmitter transmits the set of signals on a plurality of frequencies using a different modulation technique for each frequency.

6. An identification system according to claim 5, wherein the receiver receives each of the set of signals on each of the frequencies, the receiver corroborating the transmission of the set of signals from the transmitter on each of the frequencies.

7. An identification system according to claim 1, wherein the set of signals with the pluralities of frequencies each have a distinct signal pattern.

8. A protective system for preventing theft of an object having a disabled state, said protective system comprising:

a disabling circuit operatively associated with an electrical system of the object so that when said disabling circuit reaches a pre-determined state, the object is electronically disabled;

a transmitter transmitting a set of signals simultaneously over a plurality of frequencies for a period of time at least once during a succession of time intervals using frequency-based coding; and

a receiver connected with said disabling circuit and configured to receive the set of signals over the plurality of frequencies simultaneously transmitted by said transmitter, said receiver causing the disabling circuit to disable the object when said receiver does not receive at least a pre-determined number of consecutive signals over a plurality of frequencies from said transmitter.

9. A protective system according to claim 8, wherein said transmitter transmits the set of signals with a recognizable signal pattern, and

said receiver corroborates the receipt of the set of signals from the transmitter by analyzing said signal pattern in the set of signals.

10. A protective system according to claim 8, wherein said transmitter transmits said set of signals on a plurality of frequencies using a different modulation technique for each frequency.

11. A protective system according to claim 10, wherein said receiver receives each of said set of signals on each of said frequencies, said receiver corroborates the transmission of the set of signals from the transmitter on each of said frequencies.

12. A protective system according to claim 11, wherein for every time interval said transmitter changes the signal pattern of said set of signals by changing at least some of said frequencies, and wherein said receiver alters its processing of signals received to correspond to the changes in the signal patterns of the transmitter.

13. The protective system according to claim 12, wherein said receiver and transmitter changes signals according to a pseudo-random pattern.

14. A protective system according to claim 8, wherein said signals on said pluralities of frequencies each have a distinct signal pattern.

15. The protective system according to claim 8, wherein said disabling circuit partially disables the object.

16. The protective system according to claim 15, wherein said disabling circuit partially disables the protected object for a set period of time, after which said disabling circuit stops all functioning of the object relating to a predetermined use thereof.

17. The protective system of claim 8, wherein said object is selected from the group consisting of doors, safes, vehicles, utilities, computers, lights, and any other equipment which requires exclusive and/or regulated use and any part thereof.

18. The protective system according to claim 8, wherein said time interval, and said number of consecutive signals constituting a threshold for disabling said object, are changeable by an operator of said protective system.

19. A system for providing security for an object having a disabled state, the system comprising:

a disabling circuit operatively connected to the object for causing the object to achieve the disabled state;

a transmitter having a multi-frequency signal generator for simultaneously transmitting a plurality of signals each being modulated at a plurality of different frequencies in a frequency-based coding scheme; and

a receiver having a plurality of filters with outputs, with each filter separating a respective one of the plurality of signals simultaneously transmitted from the transmitter according to the frequency-based coding scheme, wherein the receiver causes the disabling circuit to disable the object when the receiver does not receive at least a pre-determined number of consecutive signals from the transmitter at the output of each filter corresponding to the frequency-based coding scheme.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the receiver, responsive to a match between the plurality of signals transmitted from the transmitter and a pre-determined set of data corresponding to authenticity, disables the disabling circuit to allow operation of the object.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the object is a motor vehicle which operates using energy from an energy source connected thereto, and which is in a disabled state when the energy from the energy source is discontinued;

wherein the disabling circuit is operatively connected to the energy source for causing the motor vehicle to achieve the disabled state by the discontinuation of the energy from the energy source to the motor vehicle; and

wherein the receiver causes the disabling circuit to disable the motor vehicle by discontinuation of energy thereto when the receiver does not receive at least a pre-determined number of consecutive signals from the transmitter at the output of each filter corresponding to the frequency-based coding scheme, to provide security in the use of the motor vehicle.