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US 2023/0403534 A1Published application
Systems, devices, and methods for inventory management via equipment tracking
AssigneeElectro Rent Corporation
InventorTim Bealby
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Systems, devices, and methods for wirelessly locating and tracking a multitude of devices in real-time within a finite space, graphically representing the location of said devices, and deriving utilization of tracked assets being deployed within the space by utilizing one or more short-range wireless readers and one or more short-range wireless tags, collocated with a tracked device.
Claims15
A method comprising:
- detecting one or more short-range wireless readers placed within a finite space, wherein the one or more short-range wireless readers are in communication with a Real-Time Location Server (RTLS);
- collocating a short-range wireless tag device configured to transmit short-range wireless signals with a desired tracked device;
- collecting, by the RTLS server, signal metrics from the one or more short-range wireless readers;
- determining short-range wireless tag coordinates of the short-range wireless tag device based on a coordinate system origin and plot location, the received collected signal metrics, and a provided static environmental coordinate associated with the short-range wireless tag device according to the coordinate system;
- transmitting the determined short-range wireless tag coordinates to a database server;
- comparing, by the database server, the determined short-range wireless tag coordinates with a predetermined radius value associated with a set of static environmental coordinates related to one or more known device bench locations within the finite space;
- and
- modifying the determined short-range wireless tag coordinates to match those of the provided static environmental coordinate, wherein the modified short-range wireless tag coordinates are located within the predetermined radius value thereby wirelessly locating and tracking a number of tracked devices in real-time within the finite space.
5 more elements
A system comprising:
- a plurality of Bluetooth® readers systematically placed within a predetermined distance and range from each other and from a Bluetooth® tag in a finite space;
- a tracked device collocated to the Bluetooth® tag, wherein the Bluetooth® tag is configured to transmit signal metrics;
- a switch configured to couple the plurality of Bluetooth® readers to a Real-Time Location Server (RTLS);
- wherein the RTLS is configured to:
- communicate with the plurality of Bluetooth® readers within the finite space via the switch, wherein the plurality of Bluetooth® readers are configured to receive signal metrics from the Bluetooth® tag, and wherein the Bluetooth® tag is configured to transmit short-range wireless signals and the signal metrics;
- collect the received signal metrics, the received signal metrics comprising at least one of:
- a unique identifier and a timestamp;
- measure the signal metrics received from the plurality of Bluetooth® readers;
- determine a location of the tracked device based on the measured signal metrics;
- generate a set of X, Y, and Z coordinates of the Bluetooth® tag location using the determined location of the tracked device and the measured signal metrics;
- and
- transmit the generated set of X, Y, and Z coordinates and measured signal metrics to a database server;
- wherein the RTLS using the measured signal metrics detects a unique identification number and a date/timestamp corresponding to an instance of transmission, wherein the unique identification number is associated with the tracked device;
- one or more database servers configured to:
- receive signal metrics from the RTLS to triangulate and calculate an angle of attack in which the Bluetooth® tag signal was received;
- establish a coordinate system with origin and plot location based on the received measured signal metrics and a provided static environmental coordinate of a short-range wireless tag device according to the established coordinate system;
- compare the received Bluetooth® tag coordinates with a predetermined radius value and a set of environmental coordinates related to known locations within the finite space, and modify the received Bluetooth® tag coordinates to match those of the provided static environmental coordinate that the Bluetooth® tag coordinates are within a radius value distance;
- and
- transmit, to a client portal, a plotted representation of the modified Bluetooth® tag coordinates, overlaid onto a client provided static environment.
16 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.