System and method for using operator as a repeater

• US 7,561,020 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2005
• Issued: 07/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Chamberlain Group LLC
• Original Assignee: The Chamberlain Group, Inc. (The Chamberlain Group LLC)
• Inventors: Fitzgibbon, James J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Holloway, III; Edwin C
• Application Number:
  US11/167,895
• Publication Number:
  US 20060290467A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,478 Days
• Field of Search: 340/5.71, 340/825.72, 340/825.69, 340/5.8, 340/545.1, 340/5.65, 340/5.64, 340/5.22, 340/10.3, 340/521, 455/420, 455/100, 455/11.1
• US Class Current: 340/5.7
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/77 using wireless control
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/106 for garages
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/0019 the keyless data carrier having only one limited data transmission rangs
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/00928 for garage doors
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00182 operated with unidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks

Abstract

A moveable barrier operator that is used as a repeater includes a receiver device having an input, a transmitter device having an output, an apparatus responsive to predetermined signals received by the receiver for controlling the position of a barrier; and a controller. The controller is coupled to the receiver device and the transmitter device and controller is programmed to receive a signal from a signaling actuation device at the input of the receiver device. The controller is programmed to responsively re-transmit the signal to at least one other moveable barrier operator from the output of the transmitter device when indicated by the signal.

Claims

1. A moveable barrier operator configured to be operated in an area enclosed by a moveable barrier, the moveable barrier operator comprising:

a receiver device configured to receive signals at multiple frequencies at the moveable barrier operator, which receiver receives incoming signals at the moveable barrier operator and which incoming signals include a security code;

a transmitter device configured to transmit signals at multiple frequencies, the transmitter device at the moveable barrier operator which transmitter device transmits the incoming signals and which incoming signals include the security code;

a barrier positioning apparatus at the moveable barrier operator, the barrier positioning apparatus configured to be responsive at a plurality of frequencies to the incoming signals which include the security code and which incoming signals are received by the receiver to control the position of a barrier; and

a controller at the moveable barrier operator, the controller coupled to the receiver device and the transmitter device, the controller being programmed to receive a received signal from the receiver device and being programmed to responsively re-transmit the received signal as second signals to at least one other moveable barrier operator from the transmitter device when indicated by the signal, the at least one other moveable barrier operator configured to be operated in a second area enclosed by at least one other moveable barrier and the at least one other moveable barrier operator configured responsively receive, recognize the security code at a plurality of frequencies and determine whether to actuate the at least one other moveable barrier operator or re-transmit the second signal.

2. The moveable barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the controller is programmed to re-transmit the incoming signals from the transmitter device using substantially the same frequency as the incoming signals.

3. The moveable barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the controller is programmed to re-transmit a signal from the transmitter device with a frequency different from the frequency of the incoming signals.

4. The moveable barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the controller is programmed to halt the re-transmission of a signal when a count representing signal re-transmissions reaches a predetermined threshold.

5. The moveable barrier operator of claim 4 wherein a retransmitted signal includes a marker in the signal, the marker indicating the count of re-transmissions.

6. The moveable barrier operator device of claim 1 wherein the controller is programmed to delay the re-transmitting for a time period related to a signal strength of a signal.

7. The moveable barrier operator of claim 1 wherein the controller is programmed to re-transmit the signal after a delay period from when a signal has been entirely received.

8. The moveable barrier operator of claim 7 where the delay period is determined by a characteristic selected from the group consisting of a fixed length time interval, a signal strength, and information contained within the transmission.

9. A method of operating a moveable barrier operator in an access controlled area with access controlled to the area by a barrier operated by the moveable barrier operator and the moveable barrier operator operating as a signal repeater, the method comprising:

receiving an incoming signal at a first moveable barrier operator from a mobile barrier actuating device and which incoming signal includes a security code; and

if there is not a match of the security code with a stored security code at the first moveable barrier operator to actuate the barrier operator, responsively, re-transmitting the incoming signal from the first moveable barrier operator to a second moveable barrier operator in a second accessed controlled area, the second moveable barrier operator configured to responsively receive, recognize the security code at a plurality of frequencies and determine whether to actuate the second moveable barrier operator or re-transmit the incoming signal.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein re-transmitting the signal comprises re-transmitting the signal without using the incoming signal to actuate the first moveable barrier operator.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein re-transmitting the signal comprises re-transmitting a signal without substantially altering the frequency of the signal.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein re-transmitting the signal comprises re-transmitting a signal with a frequency different than a frequency of the incoming signal.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the incoming signal has a frequency selected from the group consisting of 315 MHz and 390 MHz.

14. The method of claim 9 wherein re-transmitting a signal comprises re-transmitting a signal having a frequency selected from the group consisting of 315 MHz and 390 MHz.

15. The method of claim 9 comprising placing a marker in the signal, the marker representing a count of re-transmissions of the signal.

16. The method of claim 15 comprising halting the re-transmitting of the signal when the count reaches a predetermined threshold.

17. The method of claim 9 comprising delaying the re-transmitting for a time period related to a signal strength of the signal.

18. The method of claim 9 wherein the re-transmitting comprises re-transmitting the signal a time period after the signal has been entirely received.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the time period is determined by a characteristic selected from the group consisting of a fixed length time interval, a signal strength, and information contained within the transmission.

27. The method of claim 9 wherein the incoming signal includes a first code and comprising comparing the first security code to a stored security code and when the first security code does not match a stored security code stored at the first moveable barrier operator, retransmitting the signal and responsively actuating a barrier when the first security code matches the stored security code.

20. A method for operating a movable barrier operator comprising:

transmitting a signal from a mobile barrier actuating device to a first moveable barrier operator which is responsive to a plurality of frequencies and which is in an access controlled area with access controlled to the area by a moveable barrier operated by the first barrier moveable operator, the first barrier moveable operator configured to move the moveable barrier, the signal transmission including a security code to permit actuation of a moveable barrier operator to move the barrier;

receiving the signal with the security code from the barrier actuating device at a first moveable barrier operator which is configured to receive signals at a plurality of frequencies;

determining whether there is a security code match which permits actuation of the first moveable barrier operator;

actuating the first moveable barrier operator when there is a security code match;

when there is not a security code match to permit the actuation of the first moveable barrier operator, re-transmitting the security code from the first moveable barrier operator to a second moveable barrier operator which is responsive to a plurality of frequencies and which is in a second access secured area secured by a second moveable barrier operated by the second moveable barrier; and

if there is a security code match, the first barrier operator is actuated and there is no further retransmissions of the security code.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein re-transmitting the security code comprises re-transmitting the signal with the security code without substantially altering a carrier frequency of the signal.

22. The method of claim 20 wherein re-transmitting the signal comprises re-transmitting the signal with a different carrier frequency than a carrier frequency of the received signal.

23. The method of claim 20 comprising delaying the re-transmitting for a time period related to a signal strength of the signal.

24. The method of claim 20 wherein the re-transmitting comprises re-transmitting the signal a time period after the signal is entirely received.

25. The method of claim 24 where the time period is determined by a characteristic selected from the group consisting of a fixed length time interval, a signal strength, and information contained within the transmission.

26. A moveable barrier operator comprising:

a receiver device configured to be responsive to a plurality of frequencies, the receiver device at the moveable barrier operator and having an input;

a transmitter device at the moveable barrier operator having an output, the transmitter configured to transmit configured to transmit at a plurality of frequencies and configured to transmit a first security code which permits actuation of a moveable barrier operator;

a barrier positioning apparatus at the moveable barrier operator responsive to signals transmitted at a plurality of frequencies and which signals include the first security code received by the receiver and which apparatus controls access to a secured area and a position of a barrier;

a controller at the moveable barrier operator coupled to the receiver device and the transmitter device, the controller being programmed to receive a signal which includes the first security code from the receiver device and to responsively re-transmit the signal to at least one other moveable barrier operator from the transmitter device when indicated by the signal received by the controller; and

the controller being programmed to retransmit the signal when the first security code does not match a stored security code stored at the moveable barrier operator, and

the controller being programmed to actuate the barrier when the first security code matches the stored security code, and if there is a security code match and the first barrier operator is actuated, the controller being programmed not to further retransmit the first security code.