Modular school computer system and method

• US 6,992,566 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2002
• Issued: 01/31/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Striemer, Bryan Lester
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, NAM V
• Application Number:
  US10/124,885
• Publication Number:
  US 20030197607A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,384 Days
• Field of Search: 340/10.1, 340/10.3, 340/10.4, 340/10.42, 340/10.51, 340/10.52, 340/7.2, 340/7.23, 340/7.29, 340/7.55, 340/426.2, 340/414.1, 340/414.2, 340/825.36
• US Class Current: 340/10.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 1/10 together with the recording, indicating or registering of other data, e.g. of signs of identity
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence

Abstract

A local wireless device serves as a unique identifier for students and teachers in a school system. The school is equipped with multiple stationary hubs for tracking the location of students and teachers. The school may also be equipped with multiple mobile hubs, such as hand-held hubs and hubs on school buses, which allow easily and quickly determining if a student or teacher is where he or she should be. The local wireless device may be used in conjunction with a pager, mobile phone, a voicemail device, and devices for storing, reviewing and sending audio and video files. The preferred embodiments also includes a single device that provides all of the above-mentioned functions. In addition, a wireless display may be coupled to the local wireless device as needed. The function of these devices may be controlled according to the needs of the system. For example, some of the functions may be disabled during class periods, but enabled between classes. The preferred embodiments thus disclose many different wireless devices that are all integrated into the school'"'"'s computer system to customize their function according to the needs of the school.

Claims

1. A method for accounting for students and teachers at a school, the method comprising the steps of:

(A) providing each student and teacher a wireless identification module that comprises;

a wireless transmitter;

a wireless receiver; and

an identification mechanism that uniquely identifies the wireless identification module;

(B) determining at the beginning of a class period which students and teachers should be present in a selected classroom;

(C) determining which of the students and teachers that should be present in the selected classroom are in fact present as indicated by the presence of their wireless identification module in the selected classroom;

(D) reporting to a computer system the attendance records for the class as determined in step (C); and

(E) automatically changing an “

absent”

in the attendance record to a “

tardy”

if a student that is not present at the beginning of the class period later enters the classroom, as determined by the presence of the student'"'"'s wireless identification module.

2. A method for accounting for students and teachers at a school, the method comprising the steps of:

(A) providing each student and teacher a wireless identification module that comprises;

a wireless transmitter;

a wireless receiver; and

an identification mechanism that uniquely identifies the wireless identification module;

(B) determining at the beginning of each class period which students and teachers should be present in a selected classroom;

(C) determining which of the students and teachers that should be present in the selected classroom are in fact present as indicated by the presence of their wireless identification module in the selected classroom;

(D) reporting to a computer system the attendance records for the selected classroom as determined in step (C);

(E) activating a mobile wireless hub when students and teachers in the selected classroom are evacuated and need to be accounted for;

(F) the mobile wireless hub retrieving from the computer system the attendance record for the selected classroom;

(G) after evacuating the students and teachers, the mobile wireless hub determines from the wireless identification module of each evacuated student and teacher which students and teachers are present and accounted for;

(H) comparing the students and teachers that are present and accounted for against the list of students and teachers in the attendance record for the selected classroom; and

(I) generating a list of missing persons for all students and teachers marked present in the attendance record for the selected classroom.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising the steps of:

(J) activating a plurality of wireless hubs to determine whether any of the missing persons are within range of any of the wireless hubs;

(K) if any of the missing persons are located in step (J), indicating their location on the mobile wireless hub;

(L) for any missing persons not located in step (J), indicating on the mobile wireless hub the last recorded location of each missing person.

4. A method for tracking bus riders, the method comprising the steps of:

(A) providing a mobile data terminal in view of the driver of the bus, the mobile data terminal including a first local wireless interface that includes a receiver with adjustable sensitivity;

(B) providing a wireless identification module to each authorized rider of the bus, each wireless identification module comprising a second local wireless interface that may communicate with the first local wireless interface in the mobile data terminal;

(C) when the driver is ready to let riders board the bus, adjusting the sensitivity of the receiver in the mobile data terminal to a low setting that requires that a wireless identification module come within a first distance to communicate with the mobile data terminal;

(D) automatically establishing a link between the first local wireless interface in the mobile data terminal and the second local wireless interface in a wireless identification module when the wireless identification module comes within the first distance to the mobile data terminal, such as when a rider that is carrying the wireless identification module boards the bus, the link allowing the mobile data terminal and the wireless identification module to communicate via the first and second local wireless interfaces;

(E) the mobile data terminal determining from identification information received from the wireless identification module whether the wireless identification module belongs to an authorized rider of the bus;

(F) if any identification information received by the mobile data terminal indicates that the wireless identification module that sent the identification information is not authorized to ride the bus, alerting the driver via the mobile data terminal;

(G) after all riders have boarded the bus, adjusting the sensitivity of the receiver in the mobile data terminal to a higher setting that allows monitoring all riders on the bus.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the steps of:

(H) the mobile data terminal dynamically generating a bus route comprising a plurality of stops based on the authorized riders that boarded the bus;

(I) the mobile data terminal determining which riders should get off at each stop;

(J) the mobile data terminal monitoring which riders get off the bus at each stop, and notifying the driver if;

any rider that gets off at a particular stop should not get off at that stop; and

any rider that should get off at a particular stop does not get off.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the driver indicates to the mobile data terminal when the bus stops at each stop.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein a global positioning system (GPS) receiver automatically detects when the bus stops at each stop.