Water Friend or Foe System for Global Vessel Identification and Tracking

• US 20090045909A1
• Filed: 08/13/2007
• Published: 02/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Miller, Landon C. G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,979,088 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/5.800
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/78 discriminating between different kinds of targets, e.g. IFF-radar, i.e. identification of friend or foe G01S13/75, G01S13/79 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 15/00 Tags attached to, or associated with, an object, in order to enable detection of the object record carriers for use with machines having a detectable tag or marker G06K19/00

Abstract

A Water Friend or Foe System (WFSS) includes a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card in a SIM reader on a marine vessel. A transmitter, which is coupled to the SIM reader, transmits information from the SIM card, as well as positioning information, to a WFFS tracking station.

Claims

1-8. -8. (canceled)

9. A method for tracking marine vessels, the method comprising:

encoding a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card with marine vessel information about a marine vessel;

supplying the SIM card to a SIM card reader on the marine vessel; and

receiving, from a first transceiver on the marine vessel, the marine vessel information and a real-time vessel location of the marine vessel.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a transmission of security information, for the marine vessel, that has been derived from the SIM card, wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted upon the marine vessel being initially brought on line with a Water Friend or Foe System (WFFS), and wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted in an Automatic Identifier System (AIS) message type that has been adapted for transmitting security and marine vessel information.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a transmission of security information, for the marine vessel, that has been derived from the SIM card, wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted upon the marine vessel being initially brought on line with a Water Friend or Foe System (WFFS), and wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted in a (GMDSS) message type that has been adapted for transmitting security and marine vessel information.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

coupling a security device to the SIM card reader on the marine vessel.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the security device causes the first transceiver to transmit an alarm message if the SIM card reader is tampered with.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

encoding a security protocol on a SIM card for the marine vessel; and

in response to the security device detecting an unauthorized use of the SIM card in the SIM card reader on the marine vessel, transmitting an alarm signal from the first transceiver to a second transceiver at a WFFS tracking station.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the unauthorized use is detected by a failure to enter a correct user password for the SIM card at the SIM card reader.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

embedding a fingerprint recognition membrane on a SIM card for the marine vessel, wherein the unauthorized use is detected by the fingerprint recognition membrane detecting an unauthorized user inserting the SIM card into the SIM card reader on the marine vessel.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the computer-usable medium is a component of a remote server, and wherein the computer executable instructions are deployable to a supervisory computer from the remote server.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the computer executable instructions are capable of being provided by a service provider to a customer on an on-demand basis.

17. A computer-readable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code comprising instructions executable by the processor and configured for tracking marine vessels by performing the steps of:

encoding a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card with marine vessel information about a marine vessel; and

supplying the SIM card to a SIM card reader on the marine vessel, wherein the marine vessel information and a real-time location of the marine vessel are transmittable to a tracking station.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions are further configured for:

encoding a security device on a SIM card for the marine vessel; and

transmitting, by the transceiver on the marine vessel, an alarm message if the security device detects an unauthorized use of the SIM card.

21. A method for tracking marine vessels, the method comprising:

encoding a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card with marine vessel information about a marine vessel;

supplying the SIM card to a SIM card reader on the marine vessel;

receiving, from a first transceiver on the marine vessel, the marine vessel information and a real-time vessel location of the marine vessel;

receiving a transmission of security information, for the marine vessel, that has been derived from the SIM card, wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted upon the marine vessel being initially brought on line with a Water Friend or Foe System (WFFS), and wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted in an Automatic Identifier System (AIS) message type that has been adapted for transmitting security and marine vessel information;

receiving a transmission of security information, for the marine vessel, that has been derived from the SIM card, wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted upon the marine vessel being initially brought on line with a Water Friend or Foe System (WFFS), and wherein the marine vessel information and security information are transmitted in a (GMDSS) message type that has been adapted for transmitting security and marine vessel information;

coupling a security device to the SIM card reader on the marine vessel, wherein the security device causes the first transceiver to transmit an alarm message if the SIM card reader is tampered with;

encoding a security protocol on a SIM card for the marine vessel;

in response to the security device detecting an unauthorized use of the SIM card in the SIM card reader on the marine vessel, transmitting an alarm signal from the first transceiver to a second transceiver at a WFFS tracking station, wherein the unauthorized use is detected by a failure to enter a correct user password for the SIM card at the SIM card reader; and

embedding a fingerprint recognition membrane on a SIM card for the marine vessel, wherein the unauthorized use is detected by the fingerprint recognition membrane detecting an unauthorized user inserting the SIM card into the SIM card reader on the marine vessel.