The present invention relates generally to systems and devices for providing security to a particular area or structure.
The field of protecting an individual's personal property as well as industrial/commercial real estate has mushroomed in the last 20 or 25 years from a multi-million to a multi-billion dollar industry. Initially, this industry concerned itself with protecting structures, such as homes or businesses from intrusion, particularly by thieves or other nefarious individuals. Generally, entry points to the particular structure, such as doors or windows were wired in a manner such as to produce a signal if the door or windows were opened without shutting off an alarm. Similarly, if a window is broken, an alarm would be emitted and/or transmitted to a remote location such as a police station or a monitoring agency.
Unfortunately, valuable personal property such as audio/visual components, computers and the like were provided with sensors such that if the item or personal property was either moved without permission or transported across a threshold, such as the perimeter of the individual's residence or place of business, an alarm would be sounded as well as alerting the police or the monitoring agency.
Additionally, during the last several years, we have witnessed an alarmingly large increase in the amount of domestic as well as international terrorism being perpetrated on innocent individuals. Although a large amount of time, effort and money has been budgeted for developing different devices, systems and methods of protecting both individuals as well as their personal property, this increase in terrorism has not abated. This is partly due to the fact that access control devices supervise access at perimeter doors, but fail to detect vandalism or terrorist threats to the exterior and the immediate vicinity of a structure or area to be protected.
Prior art security protection intrusion devices consist of a single wire cable attached to a fence or similar structure to sense vibration, noise or the actual cutting of the cable.
A number of U.S. patents have issued in the security field. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,213,122, issued to Rotman et al describes an intrusion detection system for protecting a metallic structure, such as an airplane, trailer, hangar or other metallic object or housing. The purpose of this patent was to secure the physical integrity of the metallic structures by detecting any attempts to penetrate through a zone or protection surrounding the metallic structures. As shown in
U.S. Pat. No. 4,588,988, issued to Karas describes a system for the protection of a particular secure area from intruders by sensing the deformation of a physical barrier surrounding the secure area, such as a barbed wire fence or fences shown in
U.S. Pat. No. No. 5,446,446 issued to Harman describes a device that uses a cable with a center conductor and one or two sense wires. Although this cable can detect the point of intrusion, it depends upon vibration and is best attached to a chain link fence. It is not effective on solid structures such as brick, block or concrete walls or similarly constructed buildings. Additionally, since this system operates on a sensed vibration, many false positive outputs could occur.
The deficiencies of the prior art are addressed by the present invention which, in its preferred embodiment, includes a cable, such as a coaxial cable, designated as a power transmission cable, in direct communication with a device for producing a radio frequency signal, such as an oscillator. A second cable, such as a coaxial cable, designated as a data cable, would be spaced from the first cable and substantially parallel to that first cable or concentric with that first cable. A plurality of radio frequency identification (RFID) chips would be attached to or incorporated into the data cable at discrete locations. Although the present invention need not operate in this manner, generally, the RFID chips would be equally spaced from one another. An electromagnetic field would be created by the power transmission cable and induced into the data cable. Each of the RFID chips would be provided with a unique address which would be continuously or intermittently transmitted to a system controller provided at one end of the data cable. If there is no interference to the electromagnetic field, all of the RFID chips would transmit its unique address to the system controller on a regular basis. However, if there is interference to the electromagnetic field caused by an intruder between the power transmission cable and the data cable, or if the power or data cable has been completely severed, one or more of the RFID chips would cease producing a signal along the data cable or while producing such a signal, it would not be received by the system controller. Therefore, based upon the information received, or not received by the system controller, the exact position of the intruder would be determined.
Other embodiments of the present invention would utilize the technology of the present invention but would provide frequency sources at both ends of the power cable as well as system controllers at both ends of the data cable. A further embodiment would utilize the teachings of the present invention by creating a closed loop configuration of both the power transmission cable as well as the data cable.
A further embodiment of-the present invention would incorporate both the power cable and the data cable into a single pad of various widths, and lengths, allowing for a quick and efficient manner of deploying the intrusion detection device.
A still further embodiment of the present invention would be used to count the passage of various items on a conveyor belt or individuals passing a certain point at various events, such as a sporting contest.
Yet a further embodiment of the present invention would determine if unauthorized individuals were climbing or scaling various structures, such as trees, bridges, monuments, building walls or roofs.
A further embodiment of the present invention would utilize the power transmission cable/data cable combination to protect an area or structure by burying the cable combination underground or under water.
Yet a further embodiment of the present invention would embed the power transmission cable/data cable combination to concrete, glass, wood or other material.
Still a further embodiment of the present invention would include a data cable substantially or completely encircling an object or objects to be protected. The data cable would include a plurality of RFID chips and an electromagnetic field would be created utilizing a single omni-directional radio-frequency oscillator.
A further embodiment of the present invention would affix the data cable to the top a series of poles, thereby used as an invisible fence to detect intruders.
The foregoing aspects and other features of the present invention are explained in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:
Referring to the drawings,
In the preferred embodiment, each of the RFID chips would be passive in nature and would be powered by the electromagnetic field 26. Therefore, each of the RFID chips need not include or be connected to an independent source of power. Consequently, the chips would be “sleeping” until “activated” by the electromagnetic field 26. Each of these chips, as will be later explained, would be provided with its own unique address. According to the teachings of the present invention, if there is no disturbance to the electromagnetic field, each of the RFID chips would generate a signal including its specific chip address in the direction of the arrow 36 to be received by a system controller 26. However, if there is a disturbance to the electromagnetic field created by severing either of the cables 12 or 14 or by an individual or other object coming between the cables 12 and 14 at a particular spot, the system controller 26 would not receive signals from any of the RFID chips or would receive signals from only a certain number of the RFID chips.
The system controller 26 is connected to a microprocessor such as embodied in a personal computer (PC) 28. Software, hardware or firmware, included in the system controller 26 and/or the PC 28 would be used to locate the spot of intrusion. For example, if the data cable 14 was severed at a point between RFID chip 18 and RFID 20, the system controller 26 would receive data signals from only RFID chips 16 and 18. The determination of the location of this point of severing would be ascertained by the fact that address information was received from only the RFID chips 16 and 18 and that since RFID chip 18 was furthest from the system controller 26, the point of intrusion must be between RFID chip 18 and RFID chip 20. The system controller 26 or the PC 28 would contain information allowing the exact physical location of the break or disturbance to the electromagnetic field, i.e., at a point 100 ft. from the system controller, to be determined. This would be true in the instance in which cable 12 as well as cable 14 were not severed but the electromagnetic field was disturbed between RFID chip 18 and RFID chip 20 by the presence of an unauthorized individual.
Alternatively, the spot of intrusion would be determined by the time it would take for the system controller to receive a signal from the most remote RFID chip reporter, such as chip 18 in the description of this first example. This would be accomplished since the radio frequency transmitter 24 would be in communication with the system controller 26 thereby allowing the system controller to become aware of when particular signals were being transmitted over the power cable 12, thereby creating the electromagnetic field 26 which would power each of the RFID chips. It is noted that the transmitter 24 would transmit either a continuous signal or an intermittent signal.
The PC 28 would contain or be connected to a particular display 30 which could illustrate the exact point of intrusion. The display 30 could be connected to an alarm 32 showing the specific point of intrusion within a specific zone. This alarm 32 could sound an audio alarm as well as produce a visual alarm as well as automatically informing particular individuals, such as individuals located at a security company of the occurrence as well as location of an intrusion. Based upon the information received by the system controller 26 as well as the PC 28, the exact time, date, location and duration of an intrusion would be determined and maintained in the memory of the system controller 26 or the PC 28.
The electromagnetic field created by transmitting radio frequencies through the power transmission cable 12 would allow the electromagnetic field to be created in the data cable 14 through the air as well as through various materials, such as wood, concrete, brick and glass allowing both the power transmission cable 12 and the data cable 14 to be placed behind or embedded within these or other materials, thereby protecting their integrity as well as the cable becoming less intrusive. A system according to the present invention would operate to adjust the field intensity, alarm thresholds, duration and frequency of intrusions based upon various parameters included in the microprocessor of the PC 28 as well as any microprocessor associated with the system controller 26. The filtering of parameters would allow for analog or digital reports and graphic user displays to be produced.
A third embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in
A power transmission cable 100 according to the teachings of the present invention is illustrated in
A typical RFID chip 200 is shown in
A fourth embodiment of the present invention 220 is illustrated with respect to
A transmitter of RF frequency 224 located in the center of the data cable 22 would also be embedded in a or attached to a planar surface such as the wall or table. The transmitter 224 would radiate an RF signal producing the electromagnetic field 226. It is noted that the signal transmitter would broadcast a 360° pattern, thereby encompassing the RFID chips 228, 230, 232 and 234 of the data cable 222. Similar to the previously-described embodiments, each of the RFID chips would include a unique identification address to a system controller 238. The system controller is in communication with a personal computer 240 incorporating a display 242 or connected to a separate display. The system controller 238 and the PC 240 are, in turn, connected to an alarm 244. Any attempt to remove or disturb the protected object (not shown) would interfere with the electromagnetic field 26 and cause one or more of the RFID chips to fail to report to the system controller 238, thereby causing an alarm to be activated. Although
Furthermore, it is noted that if the item or items to be protected are metallic in nature, such as jewelry or particular types of antiques, these metallic objects would affect the electromagnetic field by absorbing a portion of this field resulting in a diminished field. This adjusted response would establish a “baseline” at the system controller 238. Therefore, the removal of that object would result in a change from the “baseline” and would result in an alarm. Consequently, in this situation, one or more of the RFID chips 228, 230, 232 and 234, would report not only its unique address to the system controller 238, but also the value of the electromagnetic field 226. In this instance, an alarm condition would be reported even if all of the RFID chips would constantly report their own unique addresses, if the strength of the electromagnetic field is less than the baseline reading.
Referring to
A power transmission cable 280 is connected to a radio frequency signal generator 282 for producing signals creating an electromagnetic field 281. The cable 280 could lie on the ground near the poles 284, 286, 288, 290 and 292. Alternatively, the cable 280 could be buried in the ground, thereby helping to hide its existence. The cable 280 could be formulated with a single window slit running the length of the cable or with a plurality of windows periodically arranged on the cable 280. In both of these instances, the transmitted signal would be directed upward, thereby creating an electromagnetic field which would enclose the data cable 270 and the RFID chips 270, 272, 274 and 276.
The data cable 270, similar to the previously-described embodiments, would be connected to a systems controller 294, which in turn would be connected to a PC 296, a display 298 and an alarm system 300.
The electromagnetic field 281 would awake the RFID chips from the “sleep” mode, allowing each of the RFID chips 272, 274 and 276 to produce a unique address signal transmitted from the data cable 270 to the system controller 294. It is noted that the data cable 270 could be directly hard-wired to the system controller 294 or a wireless communication could be created between the data cable 270 and the systems controller 294. Normally, if there is no obstruction to the electromagnetic field 281 created by an intruder or intruders, each of the RFID chips 272, 274 and 276 would continuously or intermittently transmit its unique identification code to the systems controller 294. However, if one or more intruders would disrupt the electromagnetic field 281 beneath one or more of the RFID chips, it would interrupt the transmission of the unique address from one or more of the RFID chips to the system controller 294. The appropriate lack of receipt of one or more of the unique chip addresses would result in the determination that an alarm situation has occurred as well as specify the location or locations of an intruder. Since this particular embodiment is designed to sense an intruder entering a protected piece of property between the poles 284, 286, 288, 290 and 292, it is noted that each of the RFID chips 272, 274 and 276 are located between two of the poles. Although the exact dimensions are not crucial to the present invention, it is noted that the data cable including the RFID chips are attached to the top of the poles at approximately eight to ten feet from the ground with the poles spaced approximately 30 to 40 feet apart.
A further adaptation of the present invention would mount a data cable including a plurality of RFID chips on the outside perimeter of a ship. The associated power transmission cable connected to a radio frequency source would create an electromagnetic field encompassing the ship and the data cable. This embodiment would detect the unauthorized boarding of the ship at any location of the ship.
Having described the intrusion detection system according to the present invention, the method of utilizing such a system to monitor either entry or exit from a particular secured environment as well as determining whether various structures or trees are being mounted or scaled will be described. When used to protect a particular structure such as a building, chemical storage tanks, gas lines, oil lines or other types of pipelines, a power transmission cable is embedded in the particular structure, pipeline or the like, or is buried parallel to the structure. The data transmission cable is embedded into the particular structure or buried in the ground parallel to the power transmission cable in a manner to provide a protected environment next to the structure or, in the case of a building or similar structure surrounding that building or similar structure. The data cable would be provided with a plurality of RFID chips along the entire length of the data cable or along at least one portion of the data cable. The data cable would be connected to the system controller which in turn would be connected to a PC having a display incorporated therein as well as possibly being connected to an alarm. A radio frequency generator such as an oscillator is connected to the power transmission cable and would produce either a continuous or intermittent signal. Particularly when an intermittent signal is produced, the radio frequency transmitter would be connected to the system controller allowing the system controller to monitor the location of the signals received by the system controller. Since each of the RFID chips is provided with an unique address, the system controller by itself or in conjunction with the PC would be able to determine whether there was an intrusion and the exact location of that intrusion.
If the system is operating properly, and there is no intrusion, the system controller should receive signals on a continuous or intermittent basis from all of the RFID chips. However, if an intrusion is sensed, or the power transmission cable or data cable would be severed, the system controller would not receive signals from any of the RFID chips beyond the location of the intrusion. The exact location of this intrusion would be pinpointed by the system controller either by being provided in its memory or its associated PC the exact physical location of each of the RFID chips or by determining this position utilizing the sensed time between transmitting an RF signal by the radio frequency transmitter and receiving a signal from the RFID chip immediately in front of the point of intrusion.
For ease of installation, the power transmission cable as well as the data cable would be incorporated into a single pad of various widths and lengths, these pads being either buried in the ground or embedded in various materials, such as glass, wood, concrete and other radio frequency acceptable materials. Similarly, if an area was to be protected, the power transmission/data cable combination would be embedded in or surround the entire area.
Along with its utilization in the field of intrusion detection and protection, the present invention could be utilized in various other environments. For example, the present invention could be utilized to count the number of individuals entering a certain area, such as a sporting event or a ship. In this instance, the power transmission cable would be provided on one side of a gate or gang plank and the data cable would be provided on the second side of the gate or gang plank. Thereafter, a continuous signal would be transmitted over the power transmission cable to induce an electromagnetic field between the power transmission cable and the data cable, thereby inducing a current in the data cable. The system controller and PC connected to the data cable would be able to count the number of interferences within the electromagnetic field, each interference due to an individual passing through the gate or gang plank.
Similarly, the present invention could be utilized in conjunction with a conveyor belt. For example, if the power transmission cable is provided on one side of the belt and the data cable is provided on the other side of the belt parallel to the power transmission cable, discrete items being transported on the conveyor belt could be counted. Additionally, with respect to a continuous item being transported on the conveyor belt, the sensing of a signal produced by one of the RFID chips would indicate the complete passage of that continuous item.
Additionally, the present invention could be utilized in conjunction with determining whether a particular portable item such as an electrical appliance or a firearm would interfere with the electromagnetic field in a manner to decrease the intensity of the field, thereby resulting in an alarm to be produced.
It is to be understood that the above-described embodiment of the invention are illustrative only, and that modifications thereof may occur to those skilled in the art. For example, although the present invention is illustrated in the drawings is provided with a separate system controller and PC, these two devices could be incorporated into a single entity. Accordingly, this invention is not to be regarded as limited to the embodiments disclosed herein.