System and method for wireless asset tracking
View Patent ↗A system and method employing a combination of long-range and short-range asset location systems, preferable a GPS-based system combined with an RFID-based system. The short-range system regularly activates itself, or is remotely polled, to determine if the asset is within range of the short-range transceivers, and the long-range system is activated to determine the location of the asset when it is outside the range of the short-range transceivers. In at least some embodiments, the asset is an automobile equipped with both RFID and GPS-based transceivers.
1. A method for locating a physical object, comprising:
detecting if localized location information corresponding to the physical object has been received, the localized location information corresponding to a location determined from a signal received from a short-range transmitter;
if the localized location information has been received, then storing the localized location information;
if no localized location information has been received for a predetermined amount of time, then
sending a location request;
receiving secondary location information corresponding to the physical object, the secondary location information corresponding to a location determined from global positioning satellites; and
storing the secondary location information.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the localized location information is determined by a real-time location system.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the short-range transmitter is an RFID transmitter.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the location request is sent over a wide-area wireless network.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the secondary location information is received over a wide-area wireless network.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined amount of time is one day.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the physical object is a vehicle.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the physical object has both an RFID transmitted and a GPS receiver.
9. A computer program product tangibly embodied in a machine-readable medium, comprising:
instructions for detecting if localized location information corresponding to the physical object has been received, the localized location information corresponding to a location determined from a signal received from a short-range transmitter;
instructions for, if the localized location information has been received, then storing the localized location information;
instructions for, if no localized location information has been received for a predetermined amount of time, then
sending a location request;
receiving secondary location information corresponding to the physical object, the secondary location information corresponding to a location determined from global positioning satellites; and
storing the secondary location information.
10. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the localized location information is determined by a real-time location system.
11. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the short-range transmitter is an RFID transmitter.
12. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the location request is sent over a wide-area wireless network.
13. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the secondary location information is received over a wide-area wireless network.
14. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the predetermined amount of time is one day.
15. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the physical object is a vehicle.
16. The computer program product of claim 9 , wherein the physical object has both an RFID transmitted and a GPS receiver.
17. An asset location system, comprising:
means for detecting if localized location information corresponding to the physical object has been received, the localized location information corresponding to a location determined from a signal received from a short-range transmitter;
means for, if the localized location information has been received, then storing the localized location information;
means for, if no localized location information has been received for a predetermined amount of time, then
sending a location request;
receiving secondary location information corresponding to the physical object, the secondary location information corresponding to a location determined from global positioning satellites; and
storing the secondary location information.
18. The system of claim 17 , further comprising a real-time location system configured to receive a signal from the short-range transmitter and thereby determine the location of the physical object.
19. The system of claim 17 , further comprising means for transmitting the location request over a wireless telephone network.
20. The system of claim 17 , further comprising means for receiving the secondary location information over a wireless telephone network.
21. The system of claim 17 , wherein the short-range transmitter is an RFID transmitter.