# US 10,783,506 B2 · Methods and systems for access control to secure facilities

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- Number: US 10,783,506 B2
- Document ID: US10783506B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/248,486
- Filed: 2016-08-26
- Published: 2017-03-02
- Granted: 2020-09-22
- Earliest claimed: 2015-08-28
- Assignees: Transparent Wireless Systems, LLC
- Applicants: Transparent Wireless Systems, LLC
- Inventors: Santanu Dutta; Partha Chakravartti
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10783506B2

## CPC

- G06Q 20/145: {Payments according to the detected use or quantity}
- G06Q 50/40: Business processes related to the transportation industry (shipping G06Q10/083)
- G07C 9/00309: {operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks}
- H04L 63/0861: {using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan (cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231)}
- H04W 4/025: {using location based information parameters}
- H04W 12/06: Authentication
- H04W 12/08: Access security
- G07C 2209/63: Comprising locating means for detecting the position of the data carrier, i.e. within the vehicle or within a certain distance from the vehicle
- H04W 12/63: Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
- H04W 12/71: Hardware identity
- H04W 12/72: Subscriber identity
- H04W 84/12: WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
- G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE
- H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M)
- H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72)

## Abstract

A method for controlling access to a facility including: sending a first signal from a handset to a plurality of beacon modules using a low energy wireless technology, the signal comprising an identification of the handset or a user; determining received signal strength indication from each of the plurality of beacon modules and determining a time averaged received signal strength indication from each of the plurality of beacon modules. The method also includes determining the location of the handset based on the pattern of the received time-averaged signal strength indications from the plurality of beacon modules, sending a second signal from the beacon modules to an authentication server, the second signal comprising (i) the identification of the handset or a user and (ii) the time-averages received signal strength indication or individual received signal strength indication from each of the plurality of beacon modules and determining at the authentication server the nearest user or handset to an access controlled gate of the facility if a signal from more than one handset is received. The method also includes determining if the handset or user is authorized to enter the facility and opening a gate to allow access to the facility if the handset or user is authorized.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method for controlling entrance or egress access to a facility having an access controlled gate controlled by a server in which a plurality of handsets located at a plurality of distances from the gate are sending signals, the method comprising:
sending a first signal from each handset to a plurality of beacon modules using a wireless technology, the signal comprising an identification of the handset or a user;
for each of the first signals, determining at each of the plurality of beacon modules, a plurality of Advertisement packets having received signal strength indication values received from each of the plurality of handsets;
averaging the received signal strength indication values to determine averaged values of signal strength indication, received by each of the beacon modules for each of the first signals;
sending second signals from the beacon modules to the server, the second signal comprising (i) the identification of each handset or a user and (ii) the averaged received signal strength indication values or non averaged received signal strength indication values from the plurality of beacon modules;
determining at the server, the nearest user or handset relative to an expected location based on the averaged received signal strength indication values or non averaged received signal strength indication values;
determining, based on authenticating the nearest handset or user, if the nearest handset or user is authorized to enter the facility; and
opening a gate to allow access to the facility if the nearest handset or user is authorized,
wherein a location of the nearest handset or user is determined relative to the locations of other handsets or users, and a determination is made that the user who is allowed access to the facility is the one that is most likely to be in the expected location.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the facility is a parking garage.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein first signal further comprises a password.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, wherein all signals involving the handset comprises exclusively short range wireless technologies with no use of long range wireless technologies.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, wherein the short range technologies comprise Bluetooth.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of beacon modules surround a location where the user is expected to be positioned.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The method of claim 6, wherein an actual location of the user is within 0-5 feet a gate.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the expected location is within 0-5 feet of an access gate.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein the expected location is within 1-3 feet of an access gate.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising using strong authentication of the user, wherein strong authentication comprises:
authenticating the user to the handset; and
responsive to successful authentication of the user performed in the handset, the handset executing digital signatures using the user's private key stored in the handset.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein authenticating the user to the handset comprises using a biometric signature comprising voice, fingerprint or a combination thereof.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The method of claim 11, further comprising:
sending a request_positive_confirmation message together with a token comprising a random data string from the sever to a beacon module;
forwarding the request_positive_confirmation message and the token from the beacon module to the handset;
confirming to the handset an intention to enter the facility;
responsive to confirming the intention to enter the facility, the handset encrypting the token with a private key and returning to the beacon module the encrypted token and a digital certificate that contains a public key corresponding to the private key used to encrypt the token;
forwarding the encrypted token and the digital certificate from the beacon module to the server;
checking the validity of the public key contained in the received digital certificate with the server and, responsive to confirmation of validity, decrypting the token data with the said public key, and subject to the decrypted token matching the sent token, declaring the user as authenticated and opening the gate.

### Claim 13 (depends on 11)

The method of claim 11, wherein the authentication transaction involves the steps of:
the server sending a request_positive_confirmation message together with a token comprising a random data string to a beacon module,
the beacon module forwarding the request_positive_confirmation message and the token to the handset,
the user confirming to the handset his intention to enter,
responsive to the user indicating his intention to enter, the handset encrypting the token with a secret symmetric key and returning to the beacon module the encrypted token,
forwarding the encrypted token from the beacon module to the server; and
decrypting on the server, token data with the same symmetric key used by the handset, and opening the gate when the decrypted token matches the sent token.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, where strong authentication comprises public key infrastructure.

### Claim 15 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein strong authentication comprises symmetric encryption.

### Claim 16 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the method of controlling access is used for both entrance and egress of the garage.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the second signals comprises Wi-Fi.

### Claim 18 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the location of the handset or user determined relative to other handsets or users comprises comparing patterns of received signal strength indication values as received by the plurality of beacons from each handset located in a coverage range of the beacons.

### Claim 19 (depends on 18)

The method of claim 18, wherein the handset determined to be in the expected location is the handset whose pattern of received signal strength indication values most closely matches an expected pattern for the expected location.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the server performs time averaging of the non-time averaged received signal strength indication values.

### Claim 21

A system for controlling access to a facility comprising:
a plurality of beacon modules using a wireless technology, wherein each beacon module has a beacon module identification; and
a server performing handset or user authentication,
wherein the plurality of beacon modules are configured to:
receive an identification signal from each of a plurality of radio transmitters, each radio transmitter being associated with a user;
measure a radio signal attribute which depends on the distance of the radio transmitter from the beacon module receiver;
determine a relative location of each radio transmitter, based on the radio signal attribute, with respect to an expected location compared to the relative locations of other radio transmitters with respect to the expected location; and
determine that the user who is allowed access to the facility is the one that is most likely to be in the expected location.

### Claim 22 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the relative location of the handset is determined from average values of the received signal strength indications corresponding to the handset as received by the plurality of beacon modules.

### Claim 23 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the plurality of beacon modules are configured to surround the handset.

### Claim 24 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the facility is a parking garage.

### Claim 25 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the system is configured to use strong authentication.

### Claim 26 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the strong authentication comprises public key infrastructure.

### Claim 27 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein strong authentication comprises symmetric encryption.

### Claim 28 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, wherein the beacon modules are configured to determine the location of the handset within 0-5 feet of a gate.

### Claim 29 (depends on 28)

The system of claim 28, wherein the beacon modules are configured to determine the location of the handset within 1-3 feet of a gate.

### Claim 30 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, further comprising a biometric sensor.

### Claim 31 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, where the determination of the relative location is made by analyzing distributions of the measured radio signal attribute over the beacon module identifications.

### Claim 32 (depends on 21)

The system of claim 21, where the radio signal attribute is the time-averaged received signal strength indication received by each beacon module from each radio transmitter.