SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CREATING AND MANAGING A PERSONALIZED WEB INTERFACE FOR MONITORING LOCATION INFORMATION ON INDIVIDUALS AND OBJECTS USING TRACKING DEVICES

• US 20090119119A1
• Filed: 11/06/2007
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LBT IP LLC (Location Based Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Location Based Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Scalisi, Joseph F., Beydler, Michael L., Mejia, Desiree, Morse, David M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,244,468 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/333
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records

Abstract

A personalized format webpage is generated to monitor location information. A management dashboard module is disclosed to provide a user access to location information of a tracking device associated with an object or an individual. An account services module provides menu options to the user. A wizard menu enables the user to enter billing information, identification settings of the tracking device, and coverage zones. Alert messages associated with the tracking device are generated in accordance with selected coverage zones and provided to the user.

Claims

1. A method to provide location information on a webpage for a subscriber in a personalized user format comprising:

providing a logon display to a user on the webpage, the login display comprising anti-key logger technology to prevent entries being recorded or stored;

providing user access to a location management dashboard module in response to detection of a successful user logon, the location management dashboard module comprising a listing of one or more groups of tracking devices the user is capable of monitoring;

providing an account services module in response to detection of the successful user login, the account services module comprising menu options in the personalized user format, the menu options comprising a XML format document having a wizard menu enabling the user to navigate and enter billing information, identification settings of at least one tracking device of the listing of one or more groups of tracking devices, and log contact information in a contact book;

providing an alert message associated with the at least one tracking device in response to detection of the successful user login;

providing a request signal to obtain location coordinates of the at least one tracking device of the listing of one or more groups of tracking devices;

providing by the at least one tracking device a first reply signal that comprises a first identification code to identify the at least one tracking device; and

displaying the location coordinates of the at least one tracking device to the user in response to the request signal.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

providing a second tracking device from the listing of the one or more groups of tracking devices, the second tracking device having a second transceiver to receive the first reply signal, compare the first identification code to a stored identification code, and communicate to a monitoring station a second reply signal that comprises the location coordinates of the at least one tracking device in part responsive to verification of the first identification code.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identification settings of the at least one tracking device comprises a menu having selectable icons to graphically represent on a map an object or individual.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the log contact information in a contact book comprises contact information of individuals to receive an alert message if a breach condition is detected on the at least one tracking device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the alert message comprises a short message service (SMS) communication to an identified individual in the contact book and automatic generation of another short message service (SMS) communication to another identified individual in the contact book if no responsive reply message is received by the user within a specified period.

6. An expanded cellular communication system interface comprising:

a user dashboard interface module configured to monitor a group of tracking devices in accordance with user selected coverage zones;

wherein the user selected coverage zones comprise coverage zones associated with one or more mapping areas determined to be at least one of a safe zone and unsafe zone;

an alert module configured to generate an alert message in accordance with detecting a breach condition of one or more of the user selected coverage zones; and

an identification module configured to be user selectable to remotely set control variables of an individual or an object associated with a tracking device of the group of tracking devices to partially establish conditions determining if the breach condition of one or more of the user selected coverage zones occurred.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the alert module provides the alert message upon a user successfully logon to the user dashboard interface module.

8. The system of claim 6, further comprising an icon module that provides graphical representations of the group of tracking devices;

wherein the icon module provides capability of selecting the tracking device to monitor and provide location coordinate information of the tracking device by another device of the group of tracking devices upon detection of no response during a specified period by a monitoring system of the location coordinates of the tracking device.

9. The system of claim 6, further comprising a battery management module capable of powering-down the tracking device for a specified period in response to a tracking device monitoring system not detecting location coordinates of the tracking device.

10. The system of claim 6, further comprising a battery management module capable of powering-on the tracking device for a specified period in response to a monitoring station previously powering-down the tracking device in response to the monitoring system not detecting the location coordinates of the tracking device.

11. A coverage zone module to monitor location coordinates of a tracking device comprising:

at least two user selectable coverage zones to locate the tracking device;

a user wizard interface to draw the at least two user selectable zones on a mapping display; and

an alert system to automatically poll location coordinates of the tracking device at designated periods and to provide an alert in response to a proximal distance of the location coordinates to the at least two user selectable zones;

wherein the alert communicates a user defined message responsive to the proximal distance of the location coordinates to the at least two user selectable coverage zones.

12. The module of claim 11, wherein the module further provides relative positional measurement of an icon representation of the tracking device along a perimeter of the at least two user selectable coverage zones.

13. The module of claim 11, wherein the alert system communicates information between a battery management module and the coverage zone module in response to a battery management module detection of a low battery condition of the tracking device.

14. The module of claim 11, wherein the at least two user selectable coverage zones are programmable by a user and in part responsive to updates in a database with regards to location coordinates of at least one of criminals and sexual predators.

15. The module of claim 11, further comprising an acknowledgement system to periodically check if a recipient designated in a contact book successfully communicates an acknowledgement of the alert and to resend the alert to the recipient designed in the contact book upon detection of no acknowledgment of the alert.

16. The module of claim 15, wherein the acknowledgement system chooses another recipient from the contact book in response to detection of no acknowledgement of the alert by the recipient designated in the contact book.

17. The module of claim 16, wherein the acknowledgement system chooses another recipient from the contact book in an order designated by at least one of the user and a system administrator of a remotely located monitoring control station, and wherein the module graphically depicts as one or more icons indicative of directional information of the tracking device, and one or more battery level icons associated with the tracking device indicative of a battery charge level.

18. The module of claim 11, further comprising a smart interactive service to reduce a number of keystrokes required to setup or modify attributes associated with the at least two user selectable coverage zones.

19. The module of claim 11, further comprising an acknowledgement system to automatically alert a user of status information of the tracking device upon successful logon.

20. The module of claim 11, wherein the at least user selectable coverage zones comprise at least two overlapping coverage regions of at least one of a safety zone and at least one of a danger zone;

and wherein a relative location coordinate error margin between the safety zone and the danger zone prevents a false alert being generated and communicated to a user.

21. The module of claim 11, wherein the at least two user selectable coverage zones comprise graphical icons of tracking devices of a group of tracking devices that a user has monitoring permission;

and wherein at least one tracking device in the at least two user selectable coverage zones being responsive to communicate its location coordinates and relative location coordinates from the tracking device to a location monitoring station in response to the tracking device failing to respond during a specified interval to multiple, communicated location coordinate requests.

22. A location and tracking webpage interface comprising:

a management menu to provide graphical icons of objects or individuals associated with a tracking device;

a zone menu;

an alert menu to provide alert information associated with one or more coverage zones selected utilizing a wizard menu;

wherein the wizard menu comprises part of the zone menu; and

wherein the alert information is responsive to a location request; and

a battery management menu to adjust a power level of the tracking device responsive to detection or no detection of communication of location coordinates in response to the location request;

wherein the power level of the tracking device transitions to a low power level upon multiple failed location requests for the location coordinates and transitions to an operational power level within a specified period subsequent to transitioning to the low power level.

23. The interface of claim 22, wherein the zone menu comprises user selectable overlapping coverage zones to provide a mapping intersection area of safe and unsafe zones and a graphical velocity indicator to indicate speed and directional information of the tracking device relative to landmarks or street addresses on a mapping area.

24. The interface of claim 22, wherein the zone menu comprises overlapping user coverage zones;

and wherein the alert menu provides mapping area specific alert messages being at least partially responsive to a proximal location of the tracking device relative to the overlapping user coverage zones and a last measured battery level of the tracking device relative to distance from a battery charging station.

25. The interface of claim 22, wherein the alert menu comprises an alert message responsive to a last measured battery power level and a relative distance of the tracking device to a battery charging station.

26. The interface of claim 22, wherein the alert menu comprises an alert message responsive to a current battery power level of the tracking device and a distance of the tracking device to an open or currently available battery charging station.

27. The interface of claim 22, wherein the alert menu comprises an alert message responsive to a relative location of the tracking device to at least one of a group of tracking devices and in part responsive to a distance of the tracking device to a perimeter of an unsafe coverage area and a safe coverage area, a last measured battery power level, and distance to a battery charging station.

28. The interface of claim 22, further comprising a contact book menu comprising a list of individuals to contact in response to detecting a security breach of the tracking device, the list of individuals comprises one or more recipients to contact in accordance of a shortest distance between a recipient contact book address and at least one of a last known address or current address of the tracking device upon detecting a failure of a first selected recipient to provide acknowledgement of receipt within a specified period of at least one of multiple transmissions of an alert message.