A simple trip-wire or magnetic circuit associated with a shipping container provides continuity, which is detected electrically. Simply, if continuity is disabled by a forced entry of the container, electrical detection means, such as a radio-frequency-identification (rfid) tag, will alert the owner or monitoring station. The trip-wire concept would require the replacing of a broken trip wire (resulting from forced entry), while the magnetic circuit concept can be reused repetitively. In a second embodiment a magnetic circuit and the detection device (rfid tag) are embedded into the shipping article during manufacturing. The preferred detection device, an rfid tag, could also be a battery backed transceiver type on which a replaceable or rechargeable battery could be mounted on the inside of the shipping container during manufacturing. The rfid tag would communicate with an interrogator unit, which could be connected to a host computer. The interrogator and/or the host computer and/or other alarm devices would then monitor the shipping container's status (opened or closed).
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0. 48. For a secure container having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving first and second closure members together and apart, respectively, an improved security device for signalling whether the aperture is opened, comprising:
(a) an electrical device, mounted on the apparatus adjacent the aperture, for detecting whether the aperture is open or closed, the electrical device comprising a circuit to be irreversibly disrupted when the aperture is opened to access interior of the secure container; and
(b) an rfid transceiver tag sealed inside a package and attached to the secure container via adhesive, the rfid transceiver tag coupled to the electrical device to determine whether the circuit is disrupted, the rfid transceiver tag having an integrated circuit (IC) chip and an antenna, the IC chip having memory to store identification information of the rfid transceiver tag and having a circuit to receive and transmit radio frequency signals via the antenna, wherein when an interrogation command is received via the antenna, the rfid transceiver tag transmits the identification information of the rfid transceiver tag and transmits a radio frequency alarm after the electrical device detects the aperture has been opened.
0. 32. A method for signalling whether an aperture is opened, comprising the steps of:
providing an apparatus having first and second closure members including at least a door, and having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving the first and second closure members together and apart to close and open the door, respectively;
after the door is closed, attaching an electrical detection device to the door, the detection device having an rfid device mounted via adhesive and having a wire arranged to form a circuit which is to be irreversibly disrupted if the door is opened, the rfid device to store information identifying the apparatus;
detecting whether the aperture is opened, based on whether the circuit is disrupted, using the rfid device;
interrogating a plurality of rfid transceiver tags for an alarm status using an interrogator unit that communicates with the rfid transceiver tags wirelessly via radio frequency interrogation signals; and
in response to detecting that the aperture is opened, transmitting the stored information identifying the apparatus in response to the radio frequency interrogation signals and transmitting a radio frequency alarm signal from the rfid transceiver tags to the interrogator unit if the aperture is detected to have been opened.
0. 41. A secure container system for signalling whether an aperture of the apparatus is opened, comprising:
a container having first and second closure members and having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving the two closure members together and apart, respectively;
an electrical detection device, mounted on the apparatus adjacent the aperture, for detecting whether the aperture is opened, the electrical detection device comprises an rfid transceiver tag and an electrical circuit, the electrical circuit to be irreversibly disrupted when the aperture is opened to access interior of the container, the rfid transceiver tag sealed inside a package and attached to the container via adhesive, the rfid transceiver tag having an antenna and having memory to store identification information of the rfid transceiver tag and having a circuit to receive and transmit radio frequency signals via the antenna; and
an interrogator wirelessly coupled with the rfid transceiver tag via radio frequency signals, wherein in response to a command from the interrogator the rfid transceiver tag transmits the identification information of the rfid transceiver tag to the interrogator and transmits an alarm signal to the rfid interrogator after the electrical circuit detects the aperture has been opened.
0. 1. For an apparatus having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving first and second closure members together and apart, respectively, an improved security device for signalling whether the aperture is opened, comprising:
(a) an elongated electrical conductor having first and second ends, the conductor extending between the two closure members and being attached to both the first closure member and the second closure member so that the two closure members cannot be moved apart more than a predetermined amount to open the aperture without breaking the conductor; and
(b) an rfid transceiver, connected to the two ends of the conductor, including an electrical circuit for detecting when electrical continuity between the two ends of the conductor is broken and subsequently transmitting a radio frequency alarm signal.
0. 2. A security device according to
0. 3. A security device according to
0. 4. A security device according to
0. 5. For an apparatus having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving first and second closure members together and apart, respectively, an improved security device for signalling whether the aperture is opened, comprising:
(a) an electrical device, mounted on the apparatus adjacent the aperture, for detecting whether the aperture is open or closed; and
(b) an rfid transceiver which transmits a radio frequency alarm signal after said device detects the aperture has been opened.
0. 6. A security device according to
0. 7. A security device according to
0. 8. A security device according to
0. 9. A security device according to
0. 10. A security device according to
0. 11. For an apparatus having an aperture which is selectably closed and opened by moving first and second closure members together and apart, respectively, an improved security device for signalling whether the aperture is opened, comprising:
(a) an electrical device, mounted on the apparatus adjacent the aperture, for detecting whether the aperture is open or closed, wherein the electrical device includes:
(i) first and second electrical contacts mounted on the first closure member, and
(ii) a third electrical contact mounted on the second closure member at a position such that, when the two closure members are moved together so as to close the aperture, the third electrical contact mates with both the first and the second contacts so as to complete an electrical continuity between the first and second contacts; and
(b) an rfid transceiver which transmits a radio frequency alarm signal in response to said electrical continuity being broken.
0. 12. A secure apparatus for signalling whether an aperture of the apparatus is opened, comprising:
an apparatus having first and second closure members and having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving the two closure members together and apart, respectively;
an electrical device, mounted on the apparatus adjacent the aperture, for detecting whether the aperture is opened; and
an rfid transceiver which transmits an alarm signal after said device detects the aperture has been opened.
0. 13. Apparatus according to
0. 14. Apparatus according to
a hinge mounted on a first end of each closure member;
wherein the conductor extends between the two closure members at a second end of each closure member opposite the hinge.
0. 15. Apparatus according to
a handle mounted on the second end of one of the closure members; and
a strap encircling the handle;
wherein the rfid transceiver is mounted on the strap.
0. 16. Apparatus according to
the electrical device includes
first and second electrical contacts mounted on the first closure member, and
a third electrical contact mounted on the second closure member at a position such that, when the two closure members are moved together so as to close the aperture, the third contact mates with both the first and second contacts so as to complete an electrical continuity between the first and second contacts; and
the rfid transceiver transmits said radio frequency alarm signal in response to said electrical continuity being broken.
0. 17. Apparatus according to
0. 18. Apparatus according to
0. 19. Apparatus according to
0. 20. Apparatus according to
0. 21. Apparatus according to
said apparatus is a suitcase; and
the first and second closure members are external walls of the suitcase.
0. 22. Apparatus according to
said apparatus is a doorway;
the first closure member is a door frame; and
the second closure member is a door.
0. 23. A method for signalling whether an aperture is opened, comprising the steps of:
providing an apparatus having first and second closure members and having an aperture capable of being closed and opened by moving the first and second closure members together and apart, respectively;
detecting whether the aperture is opened; and
in response to detecting that the aperture is opened, transmitting a radio frequency alarm signal.
0. 24. A method according to
mounting adjacent the aperture an electrical detecting device having an electrical condition responsive to whether the aperture is opened; and
detecting whether the aperture is opened by detecting the electrical condition of the detecting device.
0. 25. A method according to
the step of mounting an electrical detecting device comprises extending between the two closure members an elongated electrical conductor having first and second ends, and attaching the conductor to both the first closure member and the second closure member so that the two closure members cannot be moved apart more than a predetermined amount to open the aperture without breaking the conductor; and
the step of detecting whether the aperture is opened comprises detecting whether electrical continuity between the two ends of the conductor is broken.
0. 26. A method according to
0. 27. A method according to
providing a container having first and second external walls, wherein said apparatus is the container and said first and second closure members are the first and second external walls of the container, respectively.
0. 28. A method according to
embedding an rfid transceiver within a wall of the container;
wherein the transmitting step comprises the rfid transceiver transmitting the radio frequency alarm signal.
0. 29. A method according to
mounting a replaceable battery within the container so as to be accessible only from the interior of the container; and
connecting the battery to the rfid transceiver.
0. 30. A method according to
providing a suitcase as said container.
0. 31. A method according to
receiving radio frequency interrogation signals; and
transmitting said radio frequency alarm signal only after receiving a radio frequency interrogation signal subsequent to said detecting that the aperture is opened.
0. 33. A method according to claim 32, wherein the wire is arranged across the closure members.
0. 34. A method according to claim 32, further comprising communicating the alarm status to a host computer coupled to the interrogator if the interrogator receives the alarm signal from the rfid device.
0. 35. A method according to claim 34, wherein the interrogator interrogates the rfid device in accordance with software running on the host computer coupled to the interrogator.
0. 36. A method according to claim 32, further comprising continually interrogating the rfid device using an interrogator to continually monitor for an alarm.
0. 37. A method according to claim 32, wherein detecting whether the aperture is opened comprises electrically detecting continuity between two electrical contacts.
0. 38. A method according to claim 32, further comprising monitoring a status of the aperture as being either opened or closed via a host computer.
0. 39. A method according to claim 32, wherein the apparatus comprises a shipping container.
0. 40. A method according to claim 32, wherein the rfid device is hermetically sealed.
0. 42. A secure container system according to claim 41, wherein the electrical circuit extends between the closure members.
0. 43. A secure container system according to claim 41, wherein the electrical detection device is powered by a battery.
0. 44. A secure container system according claim 41, further comprising a host computer coupled to the interrogator to receive the alarm signal.
0. 45. A secure container system according to claim 44, wherein the interrogator interrogates the rfid device in accordance with software running on the host computer coupled to the interrogator.
0. 46. A secure container system according to claim 41, wherein the interrogator continually interrogates the rfid device to continually monitor for an alarm.
0. 47. A secure container system according to claim 41, wherein the rfid transceiver tag electrically detects continuity between two electrical contacts to detect whether the aperture is opened.
0. 49. A security device according to claim 48, wherein the circuit spans the closure members.
0. 50. A security device according to claim 49, wherein the electrical detection device is powered by a battery.
0. 51. A security device according to claim 50, wherein the rfid transceiver tag electrically detects continuity of the circuit to detect whether the aperture is opened.
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This application More than one reissue application has been filed for the reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 5,831,531, which reissue applications are the intial reissue application Ser. No. 12/038,473, filed Feb. 27, 2008, and the present reissue continuation application Ser. No. 12/057,270, filed Mar. 27, 2008, which is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/038,473, filed Feb. 27, 2008, which is a reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 5,831,531, granted from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/827,037 filed Mar. 25, 1997, which is a continuation of application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/421,571 filed Apr. 11, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,646,592, which is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/151,599 filed Nov. 12, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,406,263, which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 07/921,037 filed Jul. 27, 1992, now abandoned.
This invention relates generally to anti-theft devices and in particular to a method for detecting unauthorized opening of containers and baggage.
Protecting personal property has become a major industry from a security system standpoint. Security systems today can be as elaborate as those installed to protect banking institutions, equipped with video cameras, hooked-up as alarms to the local police station and security guards, or be as simple as a car alarm that is sounded when the door is forced open.
Likewise, the shipping industry is faced with an increasingly growing security problem in that containers, packages, baggage, luggage and mail (all of which may be referred to as simply “shipping container” hereinafter) are vulnerable to being opened by unauthorized personnel, who might steal the contents. As this problem increases it becomes necessary to protect these articles in order to protect the customer's property.
Due to the smaller size and larger quantity of the shipping articles mentioned above, the protection system used must be compact for concealment purposes, and somewhat simple in operation, thereby making them easy to produce and install in mass quantities while being fairly easy to monitor and operate.
The anti-theft method of the present invention conveniently addresses all of these issues to provide a workable and fairly inexpensive solution to securing safe transportation of articles shipped in some type of enclosed shipping container.
The present invention introduces a method for protecting against the unauthorized opening of shipping containers which is disclosed in the several embodiments following.
A first embodiment comprises a simple trip-wire or magnetic circuit that provides continuity, which is detected electrically. Simply, if continuity is disabled by a forced entry of the container, electrical detection means, such as a radio-frequency-identification (RFID) transceiver tag (or simply RFID tag), will alert the owner or monitoring station. The trip-wire concept would require the replacing of a broken trip wire (resulting from forced entry), while the magnetic circuit concept can be reused repetitively.
A second embodiment comprises the magnetic circuit approach of the first embodiment by having the magnetic circuit and the detection device embedded into the shipping article during manufacturing. The preferred detection device, and RFID tag, could also be a battery backed transceiver type on which a replaceable or rechargeable battery could be mounted on the inside of the shipping container during manufacturing. The RFID tag would communicate with an interrogator unit, which could be connected to a host computer. The interrogator and/or the host computer would then monitor the shipping container's status (opened or closed). The RPID tag could also have an output that changes state upon alarm, so that another device could be connected to indicate the alarm via sound, flashing lights or other means.
Implementation of the present invention will become readily understandable to one skilled in the art in the detailed descriptions that follow.
Referring now to
In the next step, the rear battery epoxy is applied in station 20 before adding a stiffener and then folding the polymer base over onto the top cover as indicated in station 22. The epoxy material is then cured in station 24 before providing a final sealing step in stage 26 to complete the package as described in more detail below.
Referring now to
A pair of rectangular shaped batteries 38 and 40 are positioned as shown adjacent to the IC chip 32 and are also disposed on the upper surface of the base support member 30. The two rectangular batteries 38 and 40 are electrically connected in series to power the IC chip 32 in a manner more particularly described below. The device or package shown in
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
Next, a conductive epoxy is applied to the upper surfaces of the two batteries 38 and 40, and then the polymer base material 30 with the batteries thereon are folded over onto the cover member 42 to thus complete and seal the package in the configuration shown in
Referring now to
By using the communication approach taken in
Referring now
Expanded view of
Both attaching methods serve as examples of how the opening detection unit may be attached to containers or doors that open. It would be preferred to have the wire attached so that it is not easily detected by casual observance and not easily broken by accident. Tag 67 could be affixed to label 66 with tag 67 itself being adhered to a self-adhesive paper, such as stamp, and then applied to the label.
A second embodiment of an “unauthorized opening detection device” is shown in
Referring now to
The detection device of
The methods of the embodiments discussed above, can easily be implemented into security systems. For example, by attaching the RFID tag and continuity completing circuitry to span between an entry/exit door and the framework supporting the door, unauthorized entry can now be monitored by activating the system when the door is to remain closed. Other such security schemes could also use the monitoring methods of the present invention.
It is to be understood that although the present invention has been described in several embodiments, various modifications known to those skilled in the art, such as applying these techniques to any kind of containers (mail, freight, etc.) or by various methods of attaching the detection device to the container, may be made without departing from the invention as recited in the several claims appended hereto.
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Executed on | Assignor | Assignee | Conveyance | Frame | Reel | Doc |
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Dec 22 2009 | Keystone Technology Solutions, LLC | Micron Technology, Inc | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 023839 | /0881 | |
Dec 23 2009 | Micron Technology, Inc | Round Rock Research, LLC | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 023786 | /0416 |
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