System and method for creating and managing a personalized web interface for monitoring location information on individuals and objects using tracking devices

• US 8,244,468 B2
• Filed: 11/06/2007
• Issued: 08/14/2012
• 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: Beydler, Michael L., Morse, David M., Mejia, Desiree, Scalisi, Joseph F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Elchanti, Husseinn A.
• Application Number:
  US11/935,901
• Publication Number:
  US 20090119119A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,743 Days
• Field of Search: 701/205, 701/207
• US Class Current: 701/519
• 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. An expanded cellular communication system comprising:

one or more tracking devices;

a display device for displaying a user interface;

a server coupled to the display device, the server having stored computer-executable instructions that, when executed at the server, configure the server to implement;

a user dashboard interface module configured to display a user dashboard interface on the display device and to monitor a group of the 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;

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; and

a battery management module arranged to set the tracking device in a low power mode for a specified duration in response to a loss of contact with the tracking device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the alert module provides the alert message upon a user successfully logon to the user dashboard interface module.

3. The system of claim 1, 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.

4. The system of claim 1, 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.

5. A system comprising:

a mapping display;

a server coupled to the mapping display, the server storing the computer-executable instructions that, when executed on the server. configure the server to implement;

a coverage zone module to monitor location coordinates of a tracking device, the module 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 the 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,

the alert system arranged to notify a contact having a closest address to at least one of a last known address or a current address of the tracking device when the tracking device exceeds a reset distance from a specified set of location coordinates; and

a battery management module arranged to set the tracking device in a low power mode for a specified duration in response to a loss of contact with the tracking device.

6. The system of claim 5, 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.

7. The, system of claim 5, 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,

8. The system of claim 5, 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.

9. The system of claim 5, 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.

10. The system of claim 9, 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.

11. The system of claim 10, 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,

12. The system of claim 5, 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.

13. The system of claim 5, further comprising an acknowledgement system to automatically alert a user of status information of the tracking device upon successful logon,

14. The system of claim 5, 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 east one of 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,

15. The system of claim 5, 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.

16. A system comprising:

a display device;

a server coupled to the display device, the server storing server-executable instructions that, when executed on the server, configure the server to implement;

a location and tracking webpage interface displayed on the displayed device and 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.

17. The system of claim 16, 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.

18. The system of claim 16, 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.

19. The system of claim 16, 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.

20. The system of claim 16, 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.

21. The system of claim 16, 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.

22. The system of claim 16, 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.