G. P. S. management system

• US 20060253252A1
• Filed: 05/24/2006
• Published: 11/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/1999
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bellsouth Intellectual Property Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ingman, R. T. Mitchell, Hamrick, Marvin R.
• Application Number:
  US11/439,670
• Publication Number:
  US 20060253252A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/213
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/16 Anti-theft; Abduction
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/0036 of measured values, i.e. measurement on mobile and position calculation on base station
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/00 Methods or arrangements for processing data by operating upon the order or content of the data handled logic circuits H03K19/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/001 Alarm cancelling procedures or alarm forwarding decisions, e.g. based on absence of alarm confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/002 Generating a prealarm to the central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/005 Alarm destination chosen according to a hierarchy of available destinations, e.g. if hospital does not answer send to police station
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/006 Alarm destination chosen according to type of event, e.g. in case of fire phone the fire service, in case of medical emergency phone the ambulance
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/207 with respect to certain areas, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas with possible alerting when inside or outside boundaries
• 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 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/00 Connection management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/903 Radio telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/904 Telephone telemetry

Abstract

A management system using Global Positioning System receivers for tracking remote units from a central office and quickly and conveniently determining if those remote units have varied from a set of predetermined parameters of operation. The system also includes provisions that allows information to be sent from the remote units to the central office and vice versa. The system also has safety features that promote the rapid dispatch of law enforcement personnel when requests for emergency assistance have been made from the remote units.

Claims

1-21. -21. (canceled)

22. A method for monitoring a vehicle comprising:

receiving Global Positioning System data at a remote unit of the vehicle;

using the Global Positioning System data to generate an actual value for a predetermined parameter;

comparing the actual value to a plurality of acceptable values for the predetermined parameter; and

noting an exception if the actual value does not equal one of the plurality of acceptable values for the predetermined parameter.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the predetermined parameter is speed and the actual value is an actual speed of the remote unit.

24. The method according to claim 22, wherein the predetermined parameter is stationary time and the actual value is an actual duration of remote unit stationary time.

25. A method for monitoring a vehicle with a remote Global Positioning System receiver, comprising:

receiving Global Positioning System data to determine an actual speed for the vehicle;

comparing the actual speed to a predetermined upper speed limit; and

noting an exception if the actual speed is greater than the predetermined upper speed limit.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein an exception is noted if the actual speed equals the predetermined upper speed limit.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein the Global Positioning System data is used to determine an actual duration of remote unit stationary time and the actual duration of remote unit stationary time is compared to a predetermined stationary time threshold, and if the actual duration of remote unit stationary time is greater than the predetermined stationary time threshold, noting an exception.

28. The method of claim 27, further comprising noting an exception if the actual duration of remote unit stationary time equals the predetermined stationary time.

29. The method of claim 25, further comprising generating at least one report.

30. The method of claim 25, further comprising noting if the actual speed is greater than the predetermined upper speed limit by generating a report that includes information related to instances where the actual speed is greater than the predetermined upper speed limit.