System and method for registering and maintaining field equipment inventory based on individualized equipment and location information

• US 5,959,275 A
• Filed: 03/25/1997
• Issued: 09/28/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Communications Corporation (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Stokes, Darel R., Hughes, Craig T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Thien Minh
• Assistant Examiner(s): St. Cyr, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US08/823,942
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/379, 235/380, 235/381, 235/382
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0022 arrangements or provisions for transferring data to distant stations, e.g. from a sensing device "transfer between computer elements G06F13/00 "; data-transmission H04L

Abstract

A system and method for registering and tracking network equipment at the circuit card level. A computer network server is coupled with an equipment database that contains location and identification data for telecommunication network assets. A hand-held client, comprising a display, keyboard, bar code scanner and printer is coupled, via a radio link, to the computer network server. The hand-held client is used to register network assets and to query the equipment database for information relating to network assets. Users visit remote sites and register network assets in real-time, while walking through the equipment bays. In one embodiment, bar codes are used to display part numbers and serial numbers on circuit cards. In addition, bar codes are used to identify circuit card locations in terms of predefined identification numbers for the site, equipment bay, rack, shelf and slot. In other embodiments, some or all of the preceding information is entered into the keyboard of the hand-held client. The user begins the registration process by entering a starting location into the hand-held client. Next, beginning at the starting point, each circuit card is registered by scanning the part and/or serial number(s) into the hand-held client. After such numbers are entered, the equipment database is updated in real time with the new information. After data for one slot position is entered, the display screen on the hand-held client is automatically updated with location information for the next slot position, so that the registration process can continue in a step-by-step fashion.

Claims

1. A method for registering and tracking, in a remote equipment database, a plurality of network assets at the circuit card level, said network assets being installed in equipment bays located within field sites, said method comprising the steps of:

entering location data of a network asset into a hand-held client, that identifies a particular starting registration location of said network asset, wherein said hand-held client receives layout information of the equipment bay from the remote equipment database;

entering identification data of a network asset into said hand-held client, that identifies a particular network asset positioned at said starting registration location;

transmitting said location and identification data from said hand-held client to a remote server; and

storing said location and identification data in the remote equipment database.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of transmitting said location and identification data is accomplished via a wireless data communication means.

3. The method of claim 1, further, comprising the steps of:

anticipating a next registration location; and

displaying said next registration location on a display device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

printing a representation of said identification data or said location data for immediate placement within said field sites.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

querying said remote equipment database for equipment data related to one or more particular network assets; and

receiving from said remote equipment database said equipment data including said location and identification data related to said one or more particular network assets.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of entering location data comprises the step of scanning a bar code, wherein said bar code represents said location data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said entering identification data step comprises scanning a bar code, wherein said bar code represents said identification data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said location data comprises a predefined location hierarchy.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein said predefined location hierarchy includes specifications for a site, row, bay, rack, shelf, and slot.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein said identification data comprises at least one from the group of:

a serial number, a manufactures part number and an internal part number.

11. A computer program-product storage device readable by a computer system, tangibly embodying a computer program-product comprising instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to perform method steps for registering and tracking a plurality of network assets at the circuit card level, said network assets being installed in equipment bays located within field sites, said method steps comprising the steps of:

receiving location data that uniquely identifies a particular starting registration location;

receiving network asset identification data that identifies a particular network asset positioned at said starting registration location;

transmitting said location data and identification data to a remote server via wireless data communication means, wherein said remote server sends layout information to the storage device comprising the layout of the equipment bay; and

storing said location and identification data in a remote equipment database.

12. The computer-program product of claim 11, further comprising instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to perform the steps of:

anticipating a next registration location; and

displaying said next registration location on a display device.

13. The computer-program product of claim 11, further comprising instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to perform the step of:

printing a representation of said identification data or said location data for immediate placement within said field sites.

14. The computer-program product of claim 11, further comprising instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to perform the step of:

querying said remote equipment database for equipment data related to one or more particular network assets; and

receiving from said remote equipment database said equipment data including said location and identification data related to said one or more particular network assets.

15. The computer-program product of claim 11, wherein said step of inputting location data further comprises instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to perform the step of:

accepting said location data from a bar code scanning device, wherein said bar code scanning device is used to scan a bar code that represents said location data.

16. The computer-program product of claim 11, wherein said step of inputting identification data further comprises instructions executable by the computer system to enable the computer system to:

accepting said identification data from a bar code scanning device, wherein said bar code scanning device is used to scan a bar code that represents said identification data.

17. The computer-program product of claim 11, wherein said location data comprises a predefined location hierarchy.

18. The computer-program product of claim 17 wherein said predefined location hierarchy includes specifications for a site, row, bay, rack, shelf, and slot.

19. Computer-program product of claim 11, wherein said identification data comprises at least one from the group of:

a serial number, a manufactures part number and an internal part number.

20. A system for registering and tracking a plurality of network assets at the circuit card level, said network assets being installed in equipment bays located within field sites, said system comprising:

an equipment database comprising identification and location data for network assets at a circuit card level;

a network server coupled with said database; and

a hand-held client in data communications with said network server via a wireless data communications link, wherein said equipment database sends layout information to said hand-held client comprising the layout of the equipment bay and wherein said hand-held client is used within the field site for sending and receiving said location and identification data pertaining to said network assets between said hand-held client and said equipment database.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein said hand-held client further comprises a bar code scanner capable of scanning bar codes representing said location and identification data.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein said wireless data communication link is a spread spectrum radio link.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein said location data includes data pertaining to a site, row, bay, rack, shelf and slot.

24. The system of claim 20 wherein said identification data includes at least one from the group of:

a serial number, a manufactures part number and an internal part number.

25. A system for registering and tracking a plurality of network assets at the circuit card level, said network assets being installed in equipment bays located within field sites, said system comprising:

a storage means for storing identification and location data for network assets at a circuit card level; and

a portable registration means in data communications with said storage means, for sending said identification and location data to said storage means and further including;

a query means for requesting said identification and location data from said storage means, wherein said storage means transmits information to the portable registration means reflecting the actual layout of the equipment bay;

a display means for displaying said identification and location data; and

a printing means for printing said location and identification data for immediate placement in said field sites.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein said registration means further comprises a scanning means for inputting said location and identification data by scanning symbolic representations of said location and identification data.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein said data communication means comprises wireless data communication link.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein said location data includes data pertaining to a site, row, bay, rack, shelf and slot.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein said identification data includes at least one from the group of:

a serial number, a manufactures part number and an internal part number.