Materials tracker with peel-off-activated circuitry for shipment and administration monitoring
AssigneeEtherwhere Corporation
InventorFarrokh FARROKHI
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A materials tracker includes a housing having an adhesive base configured for attachment to a package, a flexible printed circuit board disposed within the housing, and a battery configured to power the flexible printed circuit board. The materials tracker includes a non-stick peel-off layer covering the adhesive base, wherein removal of the peel-off layer activates the battery by breaking an electrical connection that maintains the battery in a deactivated state during storage. The materials tracker includes location tracking circuitry configured to record location data and timing data.
Claims19
A materials tracker, comprising:
- an adhesive base configured for attachment to a package;
- a flexible printed circuit board disposed adjacent the adhesive base and including location tracking circuitry;
- a battery configured to power the flexible printed circuit board;
- and
- a non-stick cover covering the adhesive base, wherein removal of the non-stick cover activates the location tracking circuitry by breaking an electrical connection that maintains the location tracking circuitry in a deactivated state during storage, and wherein the location tracking circuitry is configured to record a location of the materials tracker and a time upon the breaking of the electrical connection.
A method of tracking materials, comprising:
- providing a materials tracker having an adhesive base covered by a peel-off layer, a flexible printed circuit board, a battery, and location tracking circuitry
- removing the peel-off layer from the materials tracker, wherein removal of the peel-off layer activates the battery to power the location tracking circuitry by breaking an electrical connection;
- attaching the materials tracker to a package via the adhesive base;
- recording, by the location tracking circuitry, a first location of the package in response to the attachment of the materials tracker to the package;
- recording, by the location tracking circuitry, a second location of the package in response to a delivery of the package to a delivery address;
- removing the materials tracker from the package, wherein removal causes a metal element to remain adhered to the package and break a connection between a pair of terminals;
- and
- recording an administration time in response to a breaking of the connection between the pair of terminals.
A circuit activation mechanism for a tracking device, comprising:
- a power management unit having an enable pin, wherein the power management unit is coupled between a battery and a location tracking circuit;
- a removable conductive element connecting the enable pin to the battery to maintain the power management unit in an operational state;
- and
- an adhesive layer mechanically coupled to the removable conductive element, wherein physical removal of the adhesive layer from a package disconnects the removable conductive element from the enable pin to transition the power management unit to a non-operational state.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.