Systems, methods, and devices for securing cargo

• US 9,953,530 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2016
• Issued: 04/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Commercial Finance Corp. s. de R.L.
• Original Assignee: Commercial Finance Corp. s. de R.L.
• Inventors: Lloreda, Mauricio, Lopez, Ivan, Herrera, Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Fan, Hongmin
• Application Number:
  US14/991,718
• Publication Number:
  US 20160203718A1
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 39/005 Locks with means for tracking the location of locked items, e.g. freight containers
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 83/02 Locks for railway freight-cars, freight containers or the like; Locks for the cargo compartments of commercial lorries, trucks or vans
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 83/08 with elongated bars for actuating the fastening means
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 19/186 with a pair of hooks, which are movable towards each other for grasping of an element on the wing, respectively on the frame, or for grasping of an element on each of the wings forming a double door
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/34 Route searching; Route guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 2009/0092 for cargo, freight or shipping containers and applications therefore in general
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00309 operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/00896 specially adapted for particular uses
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/127 to a central station ; Indicators in a central station
• 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

Abstract

Enhanced methods and systems for securing and monitoring cargo are described. Some examples provide a cargo monitoring system (“CMS”) that is configured to track, identify, and report about anomalous conditions or events related to cargo shipments. The CMS may include a software system that receives conditions information from electromechanical locks that secure cargo. The locks include data terminals that facilitate near real time monitoring of cargo. The electromechanical locks are installed on the bars or other mechanism (e.g., door rings) that lock the doors of a cargo container, train car, van door, or the like. The data terminals include logic that is configured to transmit to the CMS information about current conditions, such as location, temperature, lock status (e.g., open, closed), tamper attempts, and the like. The cargo monitoring system interprets the received information and performs various actions based thereon, such as to transmit alerts if anomalous conditions are detected.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring cargo, the method comprising:

receiving conditions information from sensors of an electromechanical lock that secures cargo by attachment to doors securing the cargo and that is configured to transmit conditions information that includes an indication of a current location of the cargo and at least one of an indication of whether the lock has been inclined and whether the doors secured by the lock have leaned, wherein the received conditions information indicates that the doors secured by the lock have leaned;

receiving an indication of a route that is to be traveled by the cargo;

determining whether the cargo has deviated from the route based on the current location of the cargo;

transmitting a notification of the deviation when the cargo has deviated from the route; and

transmitting a notification that the cargo load has been tampered with when the lock has been inclined or when the doors secured by the lock have leaned.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the received conditions information indicates that the lock has been inclined.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the lock secures a cargo container that includes the cargo and wherein the cargo container has doors secured by the lock.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the lock secures a van that includes the cargo and wherein the van has doors secured by the lock.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the conditions information also includes an indication of a battery level that is part of the electromechanical lock.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the receiving an indication of a route includes receiving an indication of multiple road segment that must be traveled by the cargo.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the multiple road segments have been specified via an interactive mapping user interface.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the receiving an indication of a route includes:

receiving an indication of a location or region where stopping is allowed and receiving an indication of a location or region where travel or stopping is explicitly not allowed.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the indicated location or region where travel or stopping is explicitly not allowed is a predetermined hazardous area.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein the indicated location or region where stopping is allowed is a determined rest area.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the receiving an indication of a location or region where stopping is allowed includes an indication of a threshold time where stopping is allowed.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the determining whether the cargo has deviated from the route also includes receiving an indication of time the cargo has stopped at a location or region where stopping is allowed and further comprising:

when the received indication of time the cargo has stopped at the location or region where stopping is allowed exceeds the indicated threshold time,

determining that the cargo has deviated from the route based upon stopping at the location or regions where stopping is allowed; and

transmitting a notification of deviation of the cargo; and

when the received indication of time the cargo has stopped at the location or region where stopping is allowed does not exceed the indicated threshold time,

determining that the cargo has not deviated from the route based upon stopping at the location or regions where stopping is allowed; and

not transmitting a notification of deviation of the cargo.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based on the conditions information, an average speed of a vehicle carrying the cargo; and

when the speed exceeds a specified threshold, transmitting a notification that the vehicle is exceeding the speed threshold.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing multiple notification levels, including a first level for informational messages, a second level for warning messages, and a third level for serious alert messages, wherein a corresponding separate and distinct notification mechanism is used for each of the levels.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the corresponding separate and distinct notification mechanisms are chosen from a set of:

email, text message, telephone call to a contact person, and telephone call to law enforcement.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including contents that are configured, when executed, to cause a computing system to perform a method for monitoring cargo, the method comprising:

receiving conditions information from sensors of an electromechanical lock that secures cargo by attachment to doors securing the cargo and that is configured to transmit conditions information that includes an indication of a current location of the cargo and at least one of an indication of whether the lock has been inclined and whether the doors secured by the lock have leaned, wherein the received conditions information indicates that the doors secured by the lock have leaned;

receiving an indication of a route that is to be traveled by the cargo;

determining whether the cargo has deviated from the route based on the current location of the cargo;

transmitting a notification of the deviation when the cargo has deviated from the route; and

transmitting a notification that the cargo load has been tampered with when the lock has been inclined or when the doors secured by the lock have leaned.

17. A system for monitoring cargo, the system comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

logic instructions stored in the memory and configured, when executed by the processor, to perform a method comprising;

receiving conditions information from sensors of an electromechanical lock that secures cargo by attachment to doors securing the cargo and that is configured to transmit conditions information that includes an indication of a current location of the cargo and at least one of an indication of whether the lock has been inclined and whether the doors secured by the lock have leaned, wherein the received conditions information indicates that the doors secured by the lock have leaned;

receiving an indication of a route that is to be traveled by the cargo;

determining whether the cargo has deviated from the route based on the current location of the cargo;

transmitting a notification of the deviation when the cargo has deviated from the route; and

transmitting a notification that the cargo load has been tampered with when the lock has been inclined or when the doors secured by the lock have leaned.

18. A method for monitoring cargo, the method comprising:

receiving conditions information from sensors of an electromechanical lock that secures cargo by attachment to doors securing the cargo and that is configured to transmit conditions information that includes an indication of a current location of the cargo, an indication of at least an acceleration sensed by the lock by an accelerometer that is part of the electromechanical lock, and at least one of an indication of whether the lock has been inclined and whether the doors secured by the lock have leaned;

receiving an indication of a route that is to be traveled by the cargo;

determining whether the cargo has deviated from the roue based on the current location of the cargo;

transmitting a notification of the deviation when the cargo has deviated from the route; and

transmitting a notification that the cargo load has been tampered with then the lock has been inclined or when the doors secured by the lock have leaned.

19. A method for monitoring cargo, the method comprising:

receiving conditions information from sensors of an electromechanical lock that secures cargo by attachment to doors securing the cargo and that is configured to transmit conditions information that includes an indication of a current location of the cargo and at least one of an indication of whether the lock has been inclined and whether the doors secured by the lock have leaned;

receiving an indication of a route that is to be traveled by the cargo;

determining whether the cargo has deviated from the route based on the current location of the cargo;

transmitting a notification of the deviation when the cargo has deviated from the route;

determining, based on the conditions information, that a vehicle carrying the cargo is wandering prior to entering the indicated route; and

in response, transmitting a notification that the vehicle is wandering prior to entering the indicated route; and

transmitting a notification that the cargo load has been tampered with when the lock has been inclined or when the doors secured by the lock have leaned.