US 11,457,344 B2Granted

Mobile EAS alarm response proximity enforcement using wireless technologies

AssigneeSensormatic Electronics Corporation

InventorsJohn J. Clark, Adam S. Bergman

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Abstract

Systems and methods for responding to an Electronic Article Surveillance (“EAS”) alarm's issuance. The methods involve: receiving, by a mobile device, a short range communication signal from a fixed device located in proximity to EAS equipment issuing the EAS alarm; automatically transitioning an operational mode of the mobile device from a first operational mode in which alarm response functions are disabled to a second operational mode in which alarm response functions are enabled, in response to the short range communication signal's reception; receiving, by the mobile device, a user input for inputting a reason code specifying a reason for the EAS alarm's issuance; and communicating the reason code from the mobile device to an external device for causing a deactivation of the EAS alarm's issuance.

Claims2

Dependent claims

A method for responding to an Electronic Article Surveillance (“EAS”) alarm, comprising:

disabling EAS alarm response functions of a mobile device;
receiving, by the mobile device and after the disabling, a first EAS alarm of an EAS equipment;
receiving, by the mobile device and after receiving the first EAS alarm, a short range communication (SRC) signal from a fixed device located in proximity to the EAS equipment issuing the first EAS alarm;
enabling, in response to receiving the SRC signal, the disabled alarm response functions;
receiving, by the mobile device via the enabled alarm response functions, a user input indicating a reason code specifying a reason for the first EAS alarm;
determining whether the reason code is a certain reason code of a plurality of predetermined reason codes;
and
automatically activating operations of select input devices of the mobile device to obtain information about a surrounding environment in response to a determination that the reason code is the certain reason code.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/098,122Filed 13 Nov 2020 · continuation
Priority: 15 Dec 2016
Published: US 2021/0067939 A14 Mar 2021
Granted: 27 Sep 2022
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification7 codes

H04W 4/80
Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor: services using short range communication, e.g. near-field…
G08B 13/2454
Specific applications combined with EAS: checking of authorisation of a person accessing tagged items in an EAS system
G08B 13/246
Specific applications combined with EAS: check out systems combined with EAS, e.g. price information stored on EAS tag
H04W 4/33
Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes: for indoor environments, e.g. buildings