Patent ID: 9614811
Date: 2017-04-04
CPC Classifications: G06Q,G08B

Claim:
1. A system for managing objects distributed in an object location space, said system comprising: a container having a plurality of mutually electrically isolated electrically conductive paths; a container microcontroller coupled to said plurality of mutually electrically isolated electrically conductive paths for supplying address and control signals to said paths, said container microcontroller having terminals for receiving information signals from a host computer and for supplying information signals to the host computer; a plurality of object receptacles positioned in said container, each of said plurality of object receptacles having said container microcontroller including a memory device for storing information signals identifying all object receptacle microcontrollers in the container and the location in the container of such object receptacle microcontrollers, said container microcontroller being configured to supply said address signals via said one of said electrically conductive paths to said object receptacle microcontrollers, to periodically generate said polling signal, and to receive said signal including said unique system address generated by said object receptacle microcontroller in response to said polling signal, said container microcontroller being further configured to compare each information signal received in response to the generation of said polling signal with said information signals stored in said memory device, and to store in said memory device any received information signal not present in said memory device, said container microcontroller being further configured to delete from said memory device any stored information signal not included in those information signals received in response to the generation of said polling signal, said container microcontroller being further configured to respond to a data base update request signal from the host computer by sending said information signals stored in said memory device to the host computer.