Systems and methods for tracking an object

• US 7,038,589 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2002
• Issued: 05/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Dominik J. Schmidt, Mark Dean Street
• Original Assignee: Dominik J. Schmidt, Mark Dean Street
• Inventors: Schmidt, Dominik J., Street, Mark Dean
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phung
• Application Number:
  US10/287,327
• Publication Number:
  US 20040085209A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,276 Days
• Field of Search: 405/731, 405/391, 405/722, 405/721, 405/727, 408/257.1, 408/257.2, 405/724, 42/47, 421/18, 421/25, 421/33, 421/39, 42142-144
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1427 with transmitter-receiver for distance detection

Abstract

A portable apparatus to track an object includes a transmitter adapted to sending pulses of known duration and intensity; a receiver having one or more antennas to receive the pulses of known duration and intensity from the transmitter, the receiver and the transmitter having synchronized clocks to determine signal propagation time and distance, and wherein an alarm is generated if the determined distance exceeds a preset value.

Claims

1. A portable apparatus to track an object, comprising:

a transmitter adapted to sending pulses of known duration, intensity and angle of arrival;

a single-substrate CMOS receiver having one or more antennas to receive the pulses of known duration, intensity and angle of arrival from the transmitter along with reflected pulse echoes, the receiver and the transmitter having synchronized clocks to resolve distance to the transmitter by comparing signal arrival time differences in clock cycles from reflected echoes captured by the one or more and

wherein the angle to transmitter is simultaneously calculated by comparing the signal strength and arrival time from the one or more antennas and

wherein an alarm is generated if the determined distance exceeds a preset value.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is positioned on a wearable object.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is positioned on a watch.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is positioned on a body strap.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the strap further comprises metal antenna fibers woven into clothing to prevent shielding.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the antenna transceives extremely low frequency signals.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is a patch antenna.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is an angled patch antenna.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is an angled patch antenna with one or more rake fingers.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the receiver captures angle of arrival information using multiple patch antennas with a plurality of rake fingers.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the receiver integrates signals from different antennas using a modified CDMA detection process.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein prompt, late, early entries received by the rake fingers are correlated to determine arrival angles.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transmitter and receiver are selected from either 802.11 transmitter and receiver or Bluetooth transmitter and receiver.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the antenna is positioned on a secured body strap that can only be opened remotely.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the object is a biological object.

16. A portable apparatus to track an object, comprising:

a transmitter adapted to sending pulses of known duration and intensity;

a receiver to receive the pulses of known duration and intensity from the transmitter, wherein the receiver and the transmitter operate with synchronized clocks to determine signal propagation time and distance and wherein the receiver captures angle of arrival information using one or more patch antennas with a plurality of rake fingers and signals from different antennas are processed using a modified CDMA detection process; and

the one or more patch antennas coupled to the receiver, the antennas having metal antenna fibers woven into clothing to prevent shielding,

wherein an alarm is generated if the determined distance exceeds a preset value.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the transmitter and receiver comprises either 802.11 transmitter and receiver or Bluetooth transmitter and receiver.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the antenna transceives extremely low frequency signals.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the location signals comprises ultrasound signals.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the transmitter communicates with a remote network to transmit a user code and an approximate location as determined by the network.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the network comprises one of a local area network (LAN) and a wide area network (WAN).

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the network comprises one of a 802.11 network, a Bluetooth network, and a cellular network.

23. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the user code and approximate location tunnel through the network to a police computer or a national database.

24. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the distance measurement is accomplished by an active communication between the two units.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, further comprising a remote second unit with a second transmitter and a second receiver, wherein when the remote second unit senses emissions from the transmitter and receiver and emits signals to synchronize with the transmitter and receiver.