Communications: electrical – Land vehicle alarms or indicators – Of burglary or unauthorized use
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-02
2001-07-17
Pope, Daryl (Department: 2736)
Communications: electrical
Land vehicle alarms or indicators
Of burglary or unauthorized use
C340S425500, C340S539230, C307S010200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06262656
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention is in the field of security. It pertains to fleet and individual vehicle security and, more specifically, a system for foiling of carjackings and car thefts over a large area. The preferred embodiment of the system of the invention employs a new add-on vehicular system with means of responding to large area or nation-wide commands over paging networks, to remotely stall or stop or deter the unauthorized use or theft of a vehicle or a fleet automobile or a group of fleet vehicles, as well as to help the recovery of stolen vehicles, without necessitating portable controls or vehicular user set controls or portable key chain controls or cellular phones or separation of vehicular transmitter and receiver systems from owner carried transmitter and receiver systems to activate the system. In a second embodiment, two-way paging is employed in the system of the invention to additionally provide remotely controlled transmission of data from the vehicles, including position coordinates.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
One of the most traumatic experiences of modern times is to be subjected to a carjacking after a fearsome encounter with a criminal, without any concrete hope of foiling the carjacker or recovering the vehicle. Everyday, thousands of vehicles are being stolen from fleets or individuals or hijacked without any quick resolutions being available. Since a vehicle is one of the easiest means of getaway, the stolen vehicle is typically utilized to quickly place a large distance between the scene of the crime, the victim and law enforcement agencies. This phenomenon has dramatically changed our lives as we no longer feel tranquil and free of fear when moving about in a vehicle, or when observing stop signs or traffic signals, or going towards our parked cars or enjoying a ride. Often when a friend or a loved one leaves with a car, there is a sinking feeling of anxiety for their safety. Furthermore, in most cases, when the recovery of the stolen vehicle is delayed beyond several hours, it is taken apart and its subsystems sold through various criminal networks. Prompt action is required to foil carjackers and recover the vehicles.
This type of crime is not unique to the United States, as exemplified during a recent trip to Moscow where a car was carjacked right in front of the hotel in plain daylight. Car thefts and carjackings are major issues in many developing nations. The loss of one's vehicle in a large city like Moscow is quite debilitating, especially where there is widespread crime and when the cost of a replacement car can be prohibitive. In most cases, all any victim can do, is to report such a crime to the police by telephone as soon as possible, hoping the vehicle can be recovered. Carrying portable security remote controls is of no value in the case of a carjacking. The criminal almost always frisks and robs the victims, often making them lie face down and searching them thoroughly.
Criminals are also stealing government and police vehicles, posing a greater hazard to citizens and public safety organizations. Car dealerships and garages suffer equally when unattended vehicles are stolen at night or on weekends. Other vulnerable fleets include rental cars, military and commercial trucks carrying cargo, distribution vehicles with cargo, vehicles transporting money or precious items, very expensive tractors and bulldozers, armored personnel carriers, tanks and vans used for moving.
A simple, effective vehicular security system that can be accessed over a wide area to foil fleet or individual vehicle carjackings and car thefts during getaways, that can also help locate the stolen vehicles, as well as deter the theft of unattended vehicles, is needed to stop the rampage of carjackings and car thefts plaguing society. The system of the invention specifically and effectively addresses and fills this need.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
The present invention has not been found in prior art, nor does prior art suggest or teach anything resembling the method of this invention. There are various conventional and seemingly exotic vehicle security systems on the market falling into a number of well-known categories. However, there are no vehicular systems designed for fleet managers and vehicle owners to directly, over the phone—from anywhere in the world where there is telephone service, to foil carjackings and car thefts in progress, for one or more vehicles at a time, over wide geographical areas, using pager networks that are available in most parts of the world, without needing portable control transmitters or portable and mobile transceivers, with means to clearly point out stolen vehicles, plus means to prevent the use of the vehicles for getaways and additional means to also deter the theft of parked fleet vehicles and individual cars with a single phone call.
The following are the known types of vehicular security or anti-theft protection systems as compiled from pertinent sources, including “Installation News” a periodical that specializes in vehicle security products, recent shows related to vehicular security systems, previous patents and security product supply stores such as Radio Shack and Sears:
Motion sensor based car security systems
Entry code activated car security systems
Key chain transmitter or other portable transmitter controlled car security systems
Proximity detector car security systems
Vehicular security systems that alert the owner by sending a transmitted signal
Key controlled electrical security systems
Mechanical security systems
Cellular phone controlled security systems
Data transmission based security system with centralized remote control
Vehicular transceiver and portable transceiver system activated by their separation
None of the above prior art car security systems is designed for foiling fleet, as well as individual carjackings and car thefts in progress by means of simple phone calls placed by the owner of the car or manger of the fleet, using wide area paging networks, without having to use portable remote controls or expensive cellular systems that can be ripped out or without relying on a control system managed by others from some other location. None of the prior art vehicular systems are designed for vehicle operators and fleet managers to arm and disarm both the carjacking related getaway foiler mode or unattended car protection mode, for one or more vehicles, from any telephone in the world.
Examining prior art systems in more detail, the motion sensor type car security systems employ motion sensors, such as pendulums, which upon movement of the car or its portions, close electrical contacts that produce alarms, such as the honking of the horn or activation of the lights. Some motion sensing systems, when triggered by motion, also open electrical contacts that prevent starting of the car. In addition to simple mechanical opening and closure of contacts, such systems can use digital circuitry with solid state control of various portions of the vehicle. Other versions of this type of security system also cause an alarm to be triggered when a door or window or other locked portion of the vehicle is opened. However, these types of systems are ineffective during carjackings, as most vehicles are carjacked while occupied or in the presence of the legitimate operator or with the keys of the car and the controls of the security system provided to the carjacker under duress and with the security system inactivated. Furthermore, these systems can not foil the progress of the carjacking after the thief drives away in the stolen vehicle nor can they provide control for fleets to provide instant securing of fleet vehicles whether attended or unattended.
Entry code activated systems employ a keypad that is in or on the vehicle, to activate or deactivate the security system of the vehicle, which when activated, produces various alarms and can also prevent starting of the car. With some versions, a short-range radio signaling employing a portable quasi-pager is provided to alert the vehicle's legitimate operator
Byrd Joseph E.
Kasparian Kaspar A.
Breneman & Georges
Pope Daryl
Telectronics, Inc.
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