Automatic vehicle information retrieval for use at entry to a secure site

• US 7,103,614 B1
• Filed: 05/24/2002
• Issued: 09/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: the united states of america as represented by the secretary of the navy
• Original Assignee: the united states of america as represented by the secretary of the navy
• Inventors: Kucik, Daniel P.
• Primary Examiner(s): RIMELL, SAMUEL G
• Application Number:
  US10/154,468
• Time in Patent Office: 1,565 Days
• Field of Search: 340/933, 340/932.3, 382/104, 702/159, 707/104.1
• US Class Current: 340/937
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/017 identifying vehicles G08G1/015, G08G1/054 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/20 Monitoring the location of vehicles belonging to a group, e.g. fleet of vehicles, countable or determined number of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/914 Video
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/915 Image
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/916 Audio
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A method and system are provided for automatically retrieving information associated with vehicles that must sequentially pass an entrance to a secure site. Prior to the entrance to the secure site, a plurality of vehicles can be aligned in a queue having a front end located at the secure site'"'"'s entrance. When a vehicle enters the queue, identifying indicia on the vehicle'"'"'s license tag is automatically transmitted to one or more remotely-located databases in order to retrieve information associated with the license tag. When the vehicle reaches the front of the queue, the information so-retrieved is automatically made available in a human recognizable format to security personnel at the secure site'"'"'s entrance.

Claims

1. A system for automatically retrieving vehicle information maintained at remotely-located databases for vehicles that must sequentially pass an entrance to a secure site wherein a plurality of vehicles are aligned in a queue leading up to the secure site with the queue having a front end located at the entrance and having a back end located a distance away from the entrance, said system comprising:

sensing means for detecting the presence of each vehicle entering the back end of the queue and for generating a signal indicative thereof, wherein each vehicle has a license tag coupled thereto;

a camera coupled to said sensing means and positioned to capture an image of each license tag in response to generation of said signal;

a controller coupled to said camera for automatically accessing one or more of the remotely-located databases to retrieve information stored thereat that is associated with each license tag, said controller ordering said information so-retrieved to correspond to the order of the plurality of vehicles in the queue;

triggering means for generating a trigger signal when the each vehicle reaches the front of the queue, said sensing means and said triggering means separated by a distance to accommodate the time that it takes for said controller to retrieve said information as each vehicle travels from the back end of the queue to the front end of the queue; and

at least one device located at the secure site and coupled to said triggering means for making said information so-retrieved for each vehicle available in a human recognizable format in response to generation of said trigger signal wherein said information so-retrieved and made available corresponds to the vehicle at the front end of the queue.

2. A system as in claim 1 wherein said triggering means comprises a sensor positioned to detect the presence of each vehicle as it reaches the front of the queue.

3. A system as in claim 1 wherein said at least one device comprises at least one display device.

4. A system as in claim 1 wherein said at least one device comprises at least one audio device.

5. A system as in claim 1 wherein said at least one device comprises at least one display device and at least one audio device.

6. A system as in claim 1 wherein said controller includes a wireless transceiver for wirelessly transmitting said information so-retrieved, and wherein said at least one device includes at least one hand-held wireless receiver for wirelessly receiving said information transmitted by said wireless transceiver.

7. A method for automatically retrieving vehicle information maintained at remotely-located databases for vehicles that must sequentially pass an entrance to a secure site wherein a plurality of vehicles can be aligned in a queue leading up to the secure site with the queue having a front end located at the entrance and having a back end located a distance away from the entrance, said method comprising the steps of:

detecting the presence of each vehicle entering the back end of the queue and generating a signal indicative thereof, wherein each vehicle has a license tag with identifying indicia thereon;

forming an electronic image of the identifying indicia for each vehicle in response to generation of said signal;

automatically submitting said electronic image to one or more of the remotely-located databases, wherein information stored thereat that is associated with the identifying indicia is accessed during the time it takes for each vehicle to travel from the back end to the front end of the queue;

ordering said information so-accessed to form ordered information that corresponds to the order of the plurality of vehicles in the queue;

generating a trigger signal when each vehicle reaches the front end of the queue; and

making said ordered information for each vehicle available at the entrance of the secure site in a human recognizable format in response to said trigger signal wherein said ordered information made available corresponds to the vehicle at the front end of the queue.

8. A method according to claim 7 wherein said step of making comprises the step of displaying said ordered information in a visual format.

9. A method according to claim 7 wherein said step of making comprises the step of playing said ordered information in an audio format.

10. A method according to claim 7 wherein said step of making comprises the steps of:

displaying said ordered information in a visual format; and

playing said ordered information in an audio format.

11. A method according to claim 7 further comprising the step of wirelessly transmitting said ordered information from the entrance of the secure site.