System and method to manage movement of assets

• US 8,004,401 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2009
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Choubey, Suresh K., Joshi, Narendra B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Hung T.
• Application Number:
  US12/501,887
• Publication Number:
  US 20090273466A1
• Time in Patent Office: 771 Days
• Field of Search: 340/539.13, 340/539.12, 340/539.16, 340/539.17, 340/539.1, 340/572.1, 340/573.1, 340/825.49, 340/825.69, 340/286.07, 128/903, 128/920, 600/300, 600/301
• US Class Current: 340/539.13
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling

Abstract

An embodiment of a system to manage movement of at least one asset is provided. The system includes at least one tracking element operable to generate a signal representative of a location of the asset, and a controller in communication with the tracking element. The controller includes computer readable program instructions representative of the steps of receiving the signal representative of the location of the asset having a unique identifier; identifying a status indicator for the asset having the unique identifier; comparing a change in the location of the asset in view of the status indicator relative to a predetermined location change rule of an invalid movement of the at least one asset from one state to another without passing through a CLEANING state; and generating a signal representative of the invalid change in the location in response to an output of the comparing step for illustration on a display.

Claims

1. A system to manage movement of at least one asset, the system comprising:

at least one tracking element operable to generate a signal representative of a location of the at least one asset; and

a controller in communication with the at least one tracking element, the controller including a processor in communication with a memory, the memory including a plurality of program instructions to instruct the processor in execution of the steps of;

receiving the signal representative of the location of the at least one asset having a unique identifier,

identifying one of a plurality of status indicators for the at least one asset dependent on the signal representative of the location of the of the at least one asset,

comparing a change in one of the plurality of status indicators of the at least one asset relative to at least one predetermined rule, and

generating a display illustrative of a valid or an invalid change in the one of the status indicator in response to an output of the comparing step,

wherein the plurality of status indicators include a USE state, a DIRTY state, a CLEANING state, an INVENTORY state, and a SERVICE state, wherein the USE state represents the at least one asset being utilized by a subject, wherein the DIRTY state represents the at least one asset being stored temporarily before being taken to one of a location of the CLEANING state or the SERVICE state, wherein the CLEANING state represents the at least one asset either waiting to be or in the process of being cleaned, wherein the INVENTORY state represents the at least one asset previously moved from the CLEANING state is now in storage until deployed for use in accordance with the USE state, and wherein the SERVICE state represents the at least one asset requiring repair or to be discarded, and wherein the at least one predetermined rule includes a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the DIRTY state to one of the USE state and the INVENTORY state without passing through the CLEANING state.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a first of the plurality of status indicators is invalid for a first location while at least one of the remaining plurality of status indicators is valid for the first location according to a predetermined schedule rule stored in the memory, wherein if the system detects the at least one asset at the first location simultaneously with the first of the plurality of status indicators, the system generates an alarm.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of program instructions further representative of the step of:

measuring and recording a dwelling time of at least one asset at each of the plurality of status indicators; and

measuring and recording a quantity of the least one assets at each of the plurality of status indicators.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of program instructions further representative of the step of:

generating a signal representative of a most current location and a most current status indicator of the at least one asset for illustration on a monitor.

5. The system of claim 1, the plurality of program instructions further representative of the steps of:

comparing a change from a first to a second status indicator relative to at least one predetermined rule;

generating an output representative of an invalid change from the first to the second of the plurality of status indicators according to the at least one predetermined status indicator change rule; and

generating a signal in response to the output so as to cause an alarm on the display illustrative of the invalid change from the first to the second status indicator.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one predetermined rule further includes at least one of the following:

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the USE state to the INVENTORY state;

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the CLEANING state to one of the USE state and the DIRTY state;

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the INVENTORY state to one of the CLEANING state and the DIRTY state; and

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the SERVICE state to all other states except the CLEANING state.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one predetermined rule includes:

a rule of valid movement of the at least one asset from the USE state to one of the DIRTY state, the CLEANING state, and the SERVICE state;

a rule of valid movement of the at least one asset from the DIRTY state to one of the CLEANING state and the SERVICE state;

a rule of valid movement of the at least one asset from the CLEANING state to one of the INVENTORY state and the USE state; and

a rule of valid movement of the at least one asset from the INVENTORY state to one of the USE state and the SERVICE STATE.

8. A method of managing movement of at least one asset between a plurality of locations, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving the signal representative of the location of the at least one asset having a unique identifier;

identifying one of a plurality of status indicators for the at least one asset dependent on the signal representative of the location of the of the at least one asset, the plurality of status indicators including a USE state, a DIRTY state, a CLEANING state, an INVENTORY state, and a SERVICE state, where the USE state represents the at least one asset being utilized by a subject, wherein the DIRTY state represents the at least one asset being stored temporarily before being taken to one of a location of the CLEANING state or the SERVICE state, wherein the CLEANING state represents the at least one asset either waiting to be or in the process of being cleaned, wherein the INVENTORY state represents the at least one asset previously moved from the CLEANING state is now in storage until deployed for use in accordance with the USE state, and wherein the SERVICE state represents the at least one asset requiring repair or to be discarded;

comparing a change in one of the plurality of status indicators of the at least one asset relative to at least one predetermined rule, the at least one predetermined rule including a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the DIRTY state to one of the USE state and the INVENTORY state without passing through the CLEANING state; and

generating a display illustrative of a valid or an invalid change in the one of the status indicator in response to an output of the comparing step.

9. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising measuring a dwelling time of the at least one asset at each of the plurality of status indicators.

10. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising automatically assigning the status indicator to the at least one asset according to a predetermined schedule correlated to the location the at least one asset.

11. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising detecting a first of the plurality of status indicators as invalid for a first location while detecting at least one of the remaining plurality of status indicators as valid for the first location according to the predetermined schedule, wherein if the system detects the at least one asset at the first location simultaneously with the first status indicator, the method including the step of generating a signal to cause an alarm for illustration on the display.

12. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising:

generating a signal representative of a most current location and a most current status indicator of the at least one asset for illustration on a monitor.

13. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising:

comparing a change from a first to a second status indicator relative to an at least one predetermined status indicator change rule;

generating an output representative of an invalid change from the first to the second of the plurality of status indicators according to the at least one predetermined status indicator change rule; and

generating an alarm illustrative of the invalid change from the first to the second status indicator.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one predetermined status indicator change rule further includes at least one of the following:

a first rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the USE state to the INVENTORY state;

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the CLEANING state to one of the USE state and the DIRTY state;

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the INVENTORY state to one of the CLEANING state and the DIRTY state; and

a rule of invalid movement of the at least one asset from the SERVICE state to all other states except the CLEANING state.

15. The method of claim 8, the steps further comprising measuring and recording a quantity of the least one assets at each of the plurality of status indicators for illustration on the display.