Methods and Systems for Enhancing Firearm Safety Through Wireless Network Monitoring

• US 20140360073A1
• Filed: 07/30/2013
• Published: 12/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yardarm Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Gunnegate, LLC
• Inventors: Menezes, Joaquim, Stewart, Robert J
• Granted Patent: US 9,404,698 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 42/70.11
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 45/005 Chain-locks, cable-locks or padlocks with alarms
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 45/06 Electric alarm locks E05B45/005 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 17/063 comprising a transponder
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 17/08 for inhibiting firing in a specified direction, e.g. at a friendly person or at a protected area F41A27/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F41A 17/46 Trigger safeties, i.e. means for preventing trigger movement F41A17/02 - F41A17/40 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/10 using wireless transmission systems G08B25/009 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

A firearm includes a firing mechanism and a sensor device. The sensor device includes a subscriber identity module configured to communicate with a server over a signaling channel of a wireless communications network. The Sensor device is configured to enable/disable the firing mechanism in accordance with instructions received by the SIM from the server. Movements and/or attempted operations of the firearm may be monitored using an application running on a mobile device, which application receives information concerning the firearm over the signaling channel of the wireless communications network.

Claims

1. A system, comprising a sensor device of a firearm, the sensor device including a subscriber identity module (SIM), and a remote monitoring station, the remote monitoring station configured to receive location information regarding the firearm from the SIM and to enable/disable operation of the firearm via one or more instructions passed as unstructured supplementary service data messages to the SIM over a dedicated signaling channel of a wireless communications network.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the monitoring station is configured to provide an alert upon one or more of:

receipt of information from the SIM corresponding to (i) movement of the firearm, (ii) an attempted operation of the firearm, (iii) disabling of a safety of the firearm, and (iv) a change in mode of the firearm.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor device further includes a motion sensor.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensor device is configured to enable/disable operation of the firearm in accordance with the instructions received by the SIM from the remote monitoring station.

5. (canceled)

6. A system, comprising:

a firearm, a sensor device included in the firearm, the sensor device including a subscriber identity module (SIM), and a remote monitoring station, wherein the remote monitoring station is configured to communicate with the SIM over a wireless communications network, and the SIM is configured to store network state information, including a location area identity (LAI) received from a base transceiver station (BTS) of the wireless communication network in a dial buffer of the SIM and to provide the contents of the dial buffer to the remote monitoring station via unstructured supplementary service data messages passed over a dedicated signaling channel of the wireless communications network.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the LAI is stored in the dial buffer upon a detected change in location of the firearm.

8. A method, comprising:

storing network state information, including a location area identity (LAI) received from a base transceiver station (BTS) of a wireless communication network in a dial buffer of a subscriber identity module (SIM) included in a sensor module of a firearm, and transmitting the contents of the dial buffer to a remote monitoring station via unstructured supplementary service data messages passed over a dedicated signaling channel of the wireless communications network.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the LAI is stored in the dial buffer upon a detected change in location of the firearm.