Pb, Inc

Other

The Boeing Company

Breadcrumb, LLC

Daniel Jabre Daoura

Nicholas Ryan Pearson-Franks

Kal Karel Lambert

Robert E Aldridge

Johnathan Charles Miller

Nick L Pearson-Franks

Michael J Goerz

Gabriel I Rowe

Bryan Emrich

Pawel P Kazimierowicz

In an embodiment, a battery radio jacket with flexible printed circuit operably mountable on an external surface of a standard battery, typically with a conductive adhesive backing, the jacket having end tabs for electrically connecting with the anode and cathode of the battery. Powered in parallel with a battery-operated appliance or load ('host asset'), the radio jacket transmits a unique radio identifier useful in finding and tracking the host asset. For convenience, the battery radio jacket as assembled on a standard battery, fits into the battery-receiving compartment of the battery-operated appliance without modification of the form factor of the battery. Optionally the radio jacket may include a switch for radio control of power to the appliance or load. The battery radio jackets enable radio links to smart devices such as smartphones and may be operated by a cloud host as part of a system for finding and tracking assets and for sensing and reporting battery status and environmental data.

Battery beacon systems and methods of use

XCB poly-radio devices as finders, locators, scanners, sensors, and Bluetooth (BT) radio topology reporters as part of a global lost-and-found services system. XCB devices function as 'smart objects' and combine dual transceivers operating in the telecommunications and the low power ISM radio spectra, with default power management overrides under local control of the BT modem. “Familiar zones” are defined, and a “familiarity index” versus a “strangeness index” based on meta-analysis of BT radio contact logs are used to assign location. Location, in concert with other sensor data, is coupled to conditional logic rules programmable by the user or the system administrator. Locations, determined by monitoring familiar and unfamiliar BT radio topology, trigger executable commands to smartphones, to smart devices generally, and to remote machines, and can for example, generate alerts to a user if radiotagged assets, children or pets have strayed, are lost, or are left behind. When tied to cloud predictive services or increased edge computing capacity, incipient loss of radiotag objects can be detected before an owner knows the smart object is lost. In another embodiment, XCB devices having a novel chip architecture for improved power management of cellular and MCU circuits mediated by BT radio modem that achieves “situational awareness” by monitoring the BT signal environment around the device.

XCB tracking devices, methods and systems

In a tracking device system, a networked smart device is enabled to cause execution of an executable function if a trigger condition of a conditional rule is satisfied. The conditional rules are customizable on a user interface of the smart device. The trigger condition may be any sensor information from a tracking device, or a location, a time, a date, a button press, a proximity, and more generally a trigger condition can be any condition that has a truth value by which an IF/THEN conditional rule can be evaluated and either is satisfied or not. Executable functions for use as conditional rules may be selected from functions of the smart device, but also may include functions of a remote apparatus or functions such as an alarm state activation of a tracking device display. Tracking devices typically include a Bluetooth® radio and may also have a cellular radio. The tracking device systems includes adio units in the substrate body of snow sports equipment items and provide system lost-and-found services over most of the globe and engaging Billions of users, for example.

Tracking device systems

Remote actuation of machines or machine systems is realized by a system for coupling a radiobeacon to a smart device and in turn to a broader network. The smart device is configured as a proximity-actuated 'community nodal device' by an application that operates as part of the system. The community nodal device is given instructions to function as a 'soft switch': to automatically &#x201c;upswitch&#x201d;, amplify, and broadcast low energy, local area radiobeacon &#x201c;messages&#x201d; to a cloud-based server, where the message is interpreted according to rules or policies established by an operator, and a command is transmitted for execution to a remote device. Conventional smart devices generally discard data not addressed to the owner of the smart device. Instead of discarding third party messages, the system preempts their handling, and using a soft switch formed from background resources, anonymously, without access to the message by a user interface of the proxy device, and without waiting for a network query from the host, engineers an &#x201c;upswitched transmission&#x201d; of radiobeacon-generated data to a cloud host. Advantageously, confidential sharing of ad hoc community resources results in a negligible load on background resources of the community nodal device. Messages may include a sensor data payload. Attached and embedded radiobeacons find use in tracking and finding lost winter sports equipment, for example.

Radiobeacon data sharing by forwarding low energy transmissions to a cloud host

In a tracking device system, a networked smart device is enabled to cause execution of an executable function if a trigger condition of a conditional rule is satisfied. The conditional rules are customizable on a user interface of the smart device. The trigger condition may be any information received in a signal from a tracking device, for example, sensor data, location, a time, a date, a button press, a proximity, and more generally a trigger condition can be any condition that has a truth value by which an IF/THEN conditional rule can be evaluated and either is satisfied or is not. Executable functions for use in conditional rules may be selected from functions of a smart device, but also may include any function of a remote machine, network or system. Bluetooth radiotag devices may also include a cellular radio modem for global networking. Network systems may include software for tracking groups of radiotags and for autoprovisioning location and tracking services.

XCB dual-radio devices as finders, locators, scanners, sensors, and radio topology reporters for pet location management services. Finding, tracking, scanning, locating and proximity monitoring are provided as complementary services supplemented by a Bluetooth Proximity Locator Services Toolkit and a Cellular Remote Locator Services Toolkit. The radiotag devices may also include a user interface with exterior 'homing' switch accessible to a user. The switch may activate an 'on demand' location fix and communication package useful in pet location services and recovery. For example, smart systems enable alerts, messaging, maps and mixed media support as community services for pet location and tracking.

Hybrid cellular Bluetooth tracking devices, methods and systems

An embodiment of a minder device includes a selector and a transceiver. The selector is configurable in one of multiple configurations each corresponding to a respective one of multiple responses. And the transceiver is configured to receive, from a host server via a cellular network, a message from a monitor device associated with the minder device, and to send, to the monitor device via a cellular network and the host server, the one of the responses corresponding to the one of the configurations in which the selector is configured. For example, such a device can be a less-expensive alternative to, and can allow more monitor control, than a smart phone. Furthermore, such a device can be suitable for tracking and locating children too young to have a smart phone, for tracking and locating pets, and for tracking and locating objects.

Private wireless network communications systems, methods and devices

XCB poly-radio devices as finders, locators, scanners, sensors, and radio topology reporters. XCB devices function as 'smart objects' in the TOT and combine transceivers operating in the telecommunications and the low power ISM radio spectra, with default power management setting overrides under local control of a Bluetooth modem controller, and can be authenticated on a variety of local area networks (LANs), personal area networks (PANs), piconets and cellular networks. Finding, wayfinding, tracking, scanning, locating and proximity monitoring are provided as complementary services supplemented by a Bluetooth Proximity Locator Services Toolkit, Cellular Remote Locator Services Toolkit, and a 'Tap-2-Connect' community-supported on-demand lost-and-found data or voice link between an owner and a passerby who finds a lost smart object. Data logging of local sensor data and ISM radio &#x201c;pollution&#x201d; enables provisioning of the physical web, piconets, tracking minders, geofences, living maps, walk-up computing, and &#x201c;proximity avoidance tools&#x201d; such as useful for wireless security and viral prophylaxis. The devices may include a user interface for communications and natural language voice control and optionally also include a display and video interface, with or without camera.

Remote actuation of machines or machine systems is realized by a system for coupling a radiobeacon to a smart device and in turn to a broader network. The smart device is configured as a proximity-actuated 'community nodal device' by an application that operates as part of the system. The community nodal device is given instructions to function as a 'soft switch': to automatically &#x201c;upswitch&#x201d;, amplify, and broadcast low energy, local area radiobeacon &#x201c;messages&#x201d; to a cloud-based server, where the message is interpreted according to rules or policies established by an operator, and a command is transmitted for execution to a remote device. Conventional smart devices generally discard data not addressed to the owner of the smart device. Instead of discarding third party messages, the system preempts their handling, and using a soft switch formed from background resources, anonymously, without access to the message by a user interface of the proxy device, and without waiting for a network query from the host, engineers an &#x201c;upswitched transmission&#x201d; of radiobeacon-generated data to a cloud host. Advantageously, confidential sharing of ad hoc community resources results in a negligible load on background resources of the community nodal device. Messages may include a sensor data payload. Bit overloading enables a sensor data payload to be compressed into a few hundred bytes or less.

In an embodiment, a battery includes a housing, a power terminal, a power cell, a switch, and a circuit. The power cell is disposed within the housing, and the switch is disposed within the housing and is coupled between the power cell and the power terminal. And the circuit is disposed within the housing and is configured to receive a control signal from a source external to the housing and to control the switch in response to the control signal.

Tracking devices having extended service life for use as finders, locators, sensors, and radio contact reporters. The devices combine a Bluetooth digital radioset and a cellular frequency modulation radioset and are operative with or without a smart device and with or without a cellular radio network. Finding, locating and sensing are provided as a Bluetooth network service, as a cellular network service, or as a service mediated on a network that combines Bluetooth and cellular radio nodes, with 'Bluecell' devices acting as hubs. Bluecell devices can be authenticated on both Bluetooth and cellular networks. Systems and methods for using the dual radio devices are also disclosed. Power management schema made possible by dual radio control of on-board processing circuit function enable extended operation of Bluecell devices as part of an IoT. Remotely controllable devices having a service life of a year or more are described.

Bluecell devices and methods

Autonomous cellular transceivers for data logging, tracking and managing shipments, the devices having auto-provisioning capability. To auto-provision itself, the cellular device must be associated in a digital record with a particular shipment or object based on physical attachment or proximity&#x2014;without manual assistance. Subsequent logging, tracking and managing records in a database or databases accessible to one or more users must be updated to reflect that assignment. Auto-provisioning is achieved by associating a cellular identification number of the autonomous cellular device with a shipment or object having a unique shipping identification number or an inventory identification number. Once the identifiers are coupled, the system creates a 'shipment profile' of relevant data collected by a sensor or sensors on the cellular device while en route. The system will monitor, log, and report timepoint, waypoint, condition of the goods (as evidenced or extrapolated from sensor data) while in transit. Upon delivery, when polled, or at intervals, the system may publish a link to the data and/or a summary of the shipment status and condition, and push that link onto smart devices held by decision makers and agents in the logistics management tree. In a first instance, termed here 'contextual auto-provisioning', capture of location, direction of motion, and time of departure, and so forth, with correlation to known delivery routes, schedules, sounds, and other granular data, is used for autonomous data provisioning. Other means for auto-provisioning include &#x201c;RFID piggyback means&#x201d; and &#x201c;cellular ranked ping means&#x201d;. In a preferred application in cold chain monitoring, once self-assignment is made, the cellular device will log shipment temperature during transit and the cellular device or system will interrogate cellular networks for location and time. Reporting is by cellular radio, and can include temperature, location by cellular triangulation, projected arrival time, and any alarm notifications, for example. Reports can be directed to smart phones, to mobile clients more generally, and to cloud-hosted administrative services. Uses in logistics also include monitoring shipments for exposure to volatiles, humidity, or shock outside of accepted limits, or any diversion, delivery error, or delay of goods, particularly as applied to perishable goods such as foodstuffs and pharmaceuticals, or to manage inventory of items such as bulk materials, gas cylinders, blood bags, and so forth.

Cellular devices, systems and methods for logistics support

In a tracking device, a crescent-shaped PCBpartially encircles a batteryto minimize thickness of the device. A speakerand an LEDemit alerts upon command of a control apparatusor in response to motion or temperature sensed by sensor. A local networkhas one hubto tracking devicesand a wider area networkhas multiple hubs for more detailed tracking of devices. A wide area networktracks devices anywhere and stores data of each tracking device including its last known position and its sensor data. An apparatus and methods for finding and tracking a plurality of radiotag/objects designated as a groupby a user.

Tracking device programs, systems and methods

A rail-mountable electrical device having a 'plug-in' receptacle for receiving a pluggable power cord in series with the circuit breaker while mounted on a hot bus bar within a breaker panel. In a first embodiment, the AC circuit breaker/receptacle combination device provides an accessible power outlet direct inside the breaker panel, for example during early construction when wiring of peripheral outlets has not been completed. Disclosed in a second embodiment is a dummy breaker body which comprises a plug receptacle and no circuit breaker. The dummy breaker body seats on the hot bus bar in a breaker panel but does not draw electricity directly, and instead is wired in series with a true circuit breaker proximate on the hot bus bar in a cis- or trans-position. The two body parts, dummy breaker body and circuit breaker, function independently but in series electrical connection. In the various embodiments, NEMA-type or aviation-type plug receptacles are conveniently made accessible within the breaker panel using these devices.

Growing community of inventors

Renton, WA, United States of America

Daniel Jabre Daoura