System and method for managing a remotely located asset

• US 7,656,271 B2
• Filed: 04/28/2003
• Issued: 02/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Id Systems Incorporated (PowerFleet, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Id Systems Incorporated (PowerFleet, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hecker, Yaron, Ehrman, Michael L., Jagid, Jeffrey M., Pimentel, Leonard, Ehrman, Kenneth S., Pinzon, Joseph M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zeender; F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHAAWAT, MUSSA A
• Application Number:
  US10/426,173
• Publication Number:
  US 20030225707A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,472 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 340/5.8
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/304 Boats
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/04 operating on the propulsion system, e.g. engine or drive motor
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/102 a signal being sent to a remote location, e.g. a radio signal being transmitted to a police station, a security company or the owner
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/302 using recording means, e.g. black box
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06312 Adjustment or analysis of established resource schedule, e.g. resource or task levelling, or dynamic rescheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/32 in combination with an identity check
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/127 to a central station ; Indicators in a central station
• 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: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/108 when the policy decisions are valid for a limited amount of time
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 : involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 : in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 : Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 : Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 : Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/76 : Group identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 : Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 : Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/10 : Connection setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A commercially viable solution for providing an asset management system that provides for accessing assets, tracking location of assets, managing OSHA compliance of the assets, and monitoring impact of the assets. The asset management system may utilize system architecture having intelligent wireless devices associated with the individual assets. The use of intelligent wireless devices allows for the asset management system to operate and maintain functionality substantially without loss of data in the event of a loss of communication between the wireless devices and a management computing system via a network, including an out-of-range condition of the wireless devices with respect to a local monitor.

Claims

1. A system for providing access to a mobile asset, comprising:

an access control device on a mobile asset, the access control device in communication with the mobile asset to selectively control whether the mobile asset is enabled for operation;

a memory in the access control device for storing in the access control device data which identifies a group of potential asset operators who are permitted to operate that mobile asset, the stored data further comprising authorization condition data associated with the group of one or more potential asset operators, the authorization condition data specifying certain environmental conditions which must exist in order for the mobile asset to be enabled for operation;

an input for the access control device that receives from an accessing operator an identifier;

a processor in the access control device configured to compare the received identifier to the stored data in order to confirm that the accessing operator is one of the group of permitted potential asset operators, compare a current environmental condition for the mobile asset to the authorization condition data in order to confirm that the specified certain environmental conditions for the group of potential asset operators to which the accessing operator belongs have been met, and control the mobile asset to be enabled for operation by the accessing operator if the comparisons are satisfied.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the stored data further comprises unique password data for each potential asset operator in the permitted group, the input receiving an accessing operator password, wherein the processor is further configured to compare the received password to the stored data in order to confirm that the password matches the unique password data before controlling the mobile asset to be enabled for operation.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset location area and the current environmental condition comprises a current mobile asset location, the processor operating to determine whether the current mobile asset location is within the mobile asset location area.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset operation day and the current environmental condition comprises a current day, the processor operating to determine whether the current day matches the mobile asset operation day for the accessing operator.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset operation time and the current environmental condition comprises a current time, the processor operating to determine whether the current time matches the mobile asset operation time for the accessing operator.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein:

the processor prompts the accessing operator, following enabling the mobile asset for operation, with a question related to operational status of the mobile asset;

the input receives a response to the question; and

the memory stores the response to the question.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

the processor being configured to determine, following enabling the mobile asset for operation, an existence of a certain operating condition of the mobile asset and prompt the accessing operator with a question related to the certain operating condition;

the input receiving a response to the question; and

the memory storing the response to the question.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

a transceiver for establishing an active communication link between the mobile asset and a wireless infrastructure, and configured to transmit the stored response using the active communication link over the wireless infrastructure; and

wherein if the active communication link cannot be established, the memory maintaining the stored response to the question.

9. The system of claim 1 further comprising the processor being configured, following enabling the mobile asset for operation, to monitor utilization of the mobile asset by that accessing operator and recording information concerning that utilization.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein the processor:

generates an event start notification associated with the accessing operator starting an operation with the mobile asset;

initializes an event counter value in response to the event start notification to maintain a count associated with an operating parameter of the mobile asset as utilized by the accessing operator;

updates the event counter value until an event stop notification is received;

generates an event stop notification associated with the accessing operator stopping the operation with the mobile asset; and

stores in the memory the event counter value in association with the accessing operator identifier.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is further configured to gather information from the accessing operator of the mobile asset, and wherein a list of questions for response by the accessing operator of the mobile asset is formed and distributed to the access control device for the mobile asset:

the processor further being configured to prompt the accessing operator with a first question from the list of questions;

the input receiving a response from the accessing operator in response to the first question;

the processor, based on the response, further selecting at least one additional question from the list of questions to prompt the accessing operator, and prompting the selected additional question for the accessing operator to respond.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein predetermined responses are provided by the processor for the accessing operator to select from in response to a prompted question.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to have the access control device disable at least a portion of the mobile asset based on the response.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the list of questions includes different lists for different types of mobile assets:

the processor of the access control device determining a type of mobile asset to which it is coupled, and accessing a particular one of the different lists based on the mobile asset type from which to prompt the accessing operator.

15. A system for providing access to a mobile asset, comprising:

an access control device on a mobile asset, the access control device in communication with the mobile asset to selectively control whether the mobile asset is enabled for operation;

a memory in the access control device storing data which identifies a group of one or more potential asset operators who are permitted to operate that mobile asset;

an input for the access control device that receives from an accessing operator an identifier;

a processor in the access control device configured to compare the received identifier to the stored data in order to confirm that the accessing operator is one of the group of permitted potential asset operators, and control the mobile asset to be enabled for operation by the accessing operator if the comparison is satisfied;

a transceiver for the access control device that receives over a wireless communications link by the access control device the data that is then stored in the access control device, the wireless sly received and stored data comprises authorization condition data associated with the group of potential operators, the authorization condition data specifying certain environmental conditions which must exist in order for the mobile asset to be enabled for operation; and

wherein the processor compares a current environmental condition for the mobile asset to the authorization condition data in order to confirm that the specified certain environmental conditions for the group of potential asset operators to which the accessing operator belongs have been met before controlling the mobile asset to be enabled for operation.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the wirelessly received and stored data further comprises unique password data for each potential asset operator in the permitted group, and wherein the input receives from an accessing operator a password, and wherein the processor compares the received password to the stored data in order to confirm that the password matches the unique password data, and wherein the processor controls the mobile asset to be enabled for operation by the accessing operator if both comparisons are satisfied.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset location area and the current environmental condition comprises a current mobile asset location, the processor further determining whether the current mobile asset location is within the mobile asset location area.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset operation day and the current environmental condition comprises a current day, the processor further determining whether the current day matches the mobile asset operation day.

19. The system of claim 15 wherein the certain environmental conditions comprise mobile asset operation time and the current environmental condition comprises a current time, the processor further determining whether the current time matches the mobile asset operation time.