Method and system for permitting remote check-in and coordinating access control

• US 9,818,244 B2
• Filed: 05/09/2014
• Issued: 11/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Assa Abloy AB
• Original Assignee: Assa Abloy AB
• Inventors: Elfstrm, Jan, Kjllman, Martin, Alexander, Arnon, Aase, Halvor
• Primary Examiner(s): Terrell, Emily C
• Application Number:
  US14/273,817
• Publication Number:
  US 20140247111A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,285 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00857 where the code of the data carrier can be programmed
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00904 for hotels, motels, office buildings or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/20 involving the use of a pass
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/22 in combination with an identity check of the pass holder
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for controlling access within a multi-facility room are provided. More specifically, a guest of the multi-room facility is allowed to remotely confirm reservations to the facility as well as bypass the front desk of the multi-room for check-in purposes. At a location within the facility, the guest is allowed to confirm their arrival, check-in, and have their access credential written with personalized access data that may be useable for the duration of the guest'"'"'s stay.

Claims

1. An access control module, comprising:

a network interface to a network;

a logic unit configured to make a determination to either permit or deny user access to an asset controlled by a networked access control module;

the logic unit configured to access via the network, a list of credential identifiers that identifies credentials allowed to perform remote check-in and store the list of credential identifiers as a locally-maintained list of credential identifiers; and

a provisioning module configured to perform the following functions during a single transaction with an access credential without requiring the access control module to utilize the network;

receive a credential identifier from the access credential that corresponds to credentials of a guest that has been authorized to check-in to the facility, but that currently has no access permissions for assets within the facility;

compare the credential identifier to the locally-maintained list of the credential identifiers;

determine that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers; and

based on determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers, invoke the access control module to encode the access credential that presented the credential identifier to the provisioning module with access data that is useable by the access credential with other access control modules within the facility.

2. The access control module of claim 1, wherein upon completion of the single transaction, the access control module connect to the network, via the network interface, and reports to at least one of a centralized database and centralized access control logic a successful check-in transaction has occurred.

3. The access control module of claim 1, wherein the network interface to the network is a cellular telephony interface to a cellular telephony network.

4. The access control module of claim 1, wherein the network interface to the network is a wireless interface, comprising at least one of radio-frequency, magnetic, and light-based data transmission and reception, to a wireless network comprising at least reception and transmission equipment operable to transmit and receive data with the network interface.

5. The access control module of claim 1, wherein the logic unit is further configured to, upon successfully accessing the list of credential identifiers, disconnect from the network.

6. The access control module of claim 1, wherein the provisioning module invokes the local access control logic to encode the access credential with the access data after determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers and wherein the provisioning module is further configured to perform the following functions during the single transaction:

request the access credential to provide the access data back to the access control module;

receive the access data back from the access control module;

determine the access data matches data that was supposed to be written by the access control module; and

after determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers and after determining that the access data matches data that was supposed to be written by the access control module, remove the credential identifier from the list of credential identifiers; and

after completion of the single transaction, connect to the network and report a successful check-in to the centralized access control logic via the network.

7. The access control module of claim 6, wherein, prior to having the access credential presented to the access control module and after reservations have been confirmed for a user of the access credential, the centralized access control logic generates and sends at least one message to the access control module via the network causing the access control module to add the credential identifier to the list of credential identifiers and wherein after the centralized access control logic receives the report via the network of the successful check-in from the access control module, the centralized access control logic generates and sends messages to other access control modules within the facility thereby causing each of the other access control modules to update their locally-maintained lists of credential identifiers to reflect the successful check-in.

8. A method of operating a facility having a first location with a credential programming system located in proximity therewith and a plurality of access control modules located within the facility, a first of the access control modules being at a location remote from the first location and comprising local access control logic configured to make a determination to either permit or deny user access to an asset controlled by the first access control module and a provisioning module configured to perform check-in operations similar to the credential programming system, the method comprising:

connecting, using a network, the first access control module to a central access control logic to obtain a list of credential identifier and upon successfully obtaining the list of credential identifiers, terminating the connection between the first access control module and the central access control logic;

establishing an inductive Radio Frequency (RF) coupling between the first access control module and an access credential;

receiving, at the first access control module and via the RF coupling, a message from the access credential, the message including a credential identifier;

extracting, by the first access control module and while the RF coupling is still established between the first access control module and the access credential, the credential identifier from the message;

comparing, by the first access control module and while the RF coupling is still established between the first access control module and the access credential, the credential identifier with credential identifiers contained within the list of credential identifiers maintained at the first access control module, the list of credential identifiers comprising credential identifiers that correspond to credentials of a guest that is authorized to check-in to the facility at a location other than the first location;

determining, while the RF coupling is still established between the first access control module and the access credential, that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers; and

based on determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers, encoding, by the first access control module and via the RF coupling, the access credential that presented the credential identifier to the first access control module with access data that enables the access credential to verify access permissions with the plurality of access control modules within the facility;

wherein the establishing, receiving, extracting, comparing, determining, and encoding steps are performed by the first access control module without requiring the first access control module to communicate with a central access control logic to obtain the credential identifier.

9. A method of managing a facility comprising a first asset and a second asset, the method comprising:

connecting a first access control module to a network to retrieve a list of credential identifiers, save the list of credential identifiers locally to the first access control module;

receiving, at the first access control module, a message from an access credential, the message including a credential identifier, wherein the first access control module comprises access control logic configured to make a determination to either permit or deny user access to the first asset;

extracting, by the first access control module, the credential identifier from the message;

comparing, by the first access control module, the credential identifier with credential identifiers contained within the list of credential identifiers maintained at the first access control module;

determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers maintained at the first access control module;

based on determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of identifiers maintained at the first access control module, permitting user access to the first asset even though the access credential does not have access data encoded thereon other than the credential identifier;

receiving, at a second access control module, a message from the access credential, the message including the credential identifier, wherein the second access control module comprises access control logic configured to make a determination to either permit or deny user access to the second asset and a provisioning module configured to perform check-in operations;

extracting, by the second access control module, the credential identifier from the message;

connecting the second access control module to the network to retrieve the list of credential identifiers, save the list of credential identifiers locally to the second access control module;

comparing, by the second access control module, the credential identifier with credential identifiers contained within a list of credential identifiers maintained for access by the second access control module, the list of credential identifiers maintained for access by the second access control module comprising credential identifiers that correspond to credentials of a guest is authorized to check-in to the facility and has not yet checked-in with a centralized programming system or any other provisioning module within the facility;

determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of credential identifiers maintained for access by the second access control module;

based on determining that the credential identifier matches at least one credential identifier in the list of identifiers maintained for access by the second access control module, encoding, by the second access control module, the access credential with access data that enables the access credential to verify access permissions with a plurality of access control modules within the facility, the plurality of access control modules including the first access control module and at least a third access control module.