Apparatus and method for tracking and gathering information associated with assets

1. A method of automatically tracking assets and gathering

information associated therewith, the method comprising:

providing a tracking beacon proximate to a shared asset, wherein the shared asset is contemporaneously used by two or more separate business entities;

the tracking beacon comprising a tilt plate comprising a front side and a back side, the front side comprising an outer touch surface and the back side comprising electronic components mounted thereon and the back side further comprising a raised center pivot and a plurality of spring loaded switches mounted thereon disposed around the periphery of the back side of the tilt plate such that by tilting the plate by pressing proximate the periphery of the outer touch surface two or more of the spring loaded switches mounted on the back side of the tilt plate are activated;

the spring-loaded switches alone or in combination controlling one or more assets;

wirelessly monitoring, with an asset tracking system, a location of the shared asset using the tracking beacon;

manually inputting information associated with the shared asset through an input element incorporated into the tracking beacon comprising a touch screen; and

updating an accounting system based on the information.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the input element comprises at least one button.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising gathering, using at least one sensor incorporated into the tracking beacon, environmental information associated with the shared asset.

4. A system for automatically tracking shared assets and gathering information associated therewith, the system comprising:

a least one processor;

at least one memory device operably coupled to the at least one processor and storing instructions for execution on the at least one processor, the instructions causing the at least one processor to:

associate a tracking beacon with a shared asset, wherein the tracking beacon is disposed proximate to the shared asset, and where the shared asset is contemporaneously used by two or more separate business entities;

the tracking beacon comprising a tilt plate comprising a front side and a back side, the front side comprising an outer touch surface and the back side comprising electronic components mounted thereon and the back side further comprising a raised center pivot and a plurality of spring loaded switches mounted thereon disposed around the periphery of the back side of the tilt plate such that by tilting the plate by pressing proximate the periphery of the outer touch surface two or more of the spring loaded switches mounted on the back side of the tilt plate are activated;

the spring-loaded switches alone or in combination controlling one or more assets;

wirelessly monitor a location of the shared asset through an input element comprising a touch screen incorporated into the tracking beacon;

wirelessly transmit the information from the tracking beacon to the shared asset tracking system; and

update an accounting system based on the transmitted information.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the input element comprises at least one button.

6. The system of claim 4 , wherein the instructions further cause the at least one processor to gather, using at least one sensor incorporated into the tracking beacon, environmental information associated with the shared asset.

7. A computer program product to automatically track shared assets and gather information associated therewith, the computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-usable program code embodied therein, the computer-usable program code comprising:

computer-usable program code that associates a tracking beacon with a shared asset, wherein the tracking beacon is disposed proximate to the shared asset, and wherein the shared asset is contemporaneously used by two or more separate business entities;

the tracking beacon comprising a tilt plate comprising a front side and a back side, the front side comprising an outer touch surface and the back side comprising electronic components mounted thereon and the back side further comprising a raised center pivot and a plurality of spring loaded switches disposed around the periphery of the back side of the tilt plate such that by tilting the plate by pressing proximate the periphery of the outer touch surface two or more of the spring loaded switches mounted on the back side of the tilt plate are activated;

the spring-loaded switches alone or in combination controlling one or more assets;

computer-usable program code that wirelessly monitors a location of the shared asset using the tracking beacon and record the location of a shared asset tracking system;

computer-usable program code that wirelessly transmits the information from the tracking beacon to the shared asset tracking system, and

computer-usable program code that updates an accounting system based on the transmitted information.

8. The computer program product of claim 7 , wherein the input element comprises a least one button.