Patent Publication Number: US-2007109107-A1

Title: Theft identification and deterrence system for an automobile

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention relates generally to security systems and, more particularly to a theft identification and deterrence system for an automobile. The present system not only detects an attempted unauthorized entry into a vehicle, but provides notice to a vehicle owner and transmits a picture of the alleged thief to the owner and, selectively, to the police.  
      Auto theft continues to be a major problem in the United States. With a vehicle theft occurring approximately every 25 seconds in the U.S., only about 14% of those thefts result in an arrest. The high rate of vehicle theft results in inconvenience and danger to auto owners as well as to increased insurance premiums for all motorists.  
      Various devices and systems have been proposed in the art for detecting when a vehicle is being broken into. However, the frequency of false alarms with car alarms has lead to apathy and unconcern by people in proximity to the vehicle from which the alarm is sounding from. Other devices have been proposed that dial a person&#39;s cell phone or pager when their car&#39;s alarm has been activated. Although assumably effective for their intended purposes, the known systems and patent proposals are still subject to false alarms or require the vehicle owner to physically return to their vehicle to verify the authenticity of the alarm.  
      Therefore, it would be desirable to have a system that includes a camera to take and then transmit a picture of the potential thief to the vehicle owner&#39;s cell phone to provide the owner an opportunity to verify the authority (or lack of authority) of the person who has accessed the vehicle. Further, it would be desirable to have a system that enabled a vehicle user to selectively disarm the alarm system from a remote location if the access is authorized or to call the police if the access is unauthorized. Still further, it would be desirable to have a system that would continuously update either the user or police with pictures of the thief as a theft continues.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      A theft identification and deterrence system for an automobile according to the present invention includes a camera adapted to be mounted inside the automobile, such as on the dashboard, for capturing images. The system further includes a sensor capable of sensing a triggering event indicative of an entry or attempted entry of a person into the automobile. Further, a microcontroller is connected to the sensor and camera for actuating the camera to capture one or more images of the person who has entered the automobile upon sensing that entry.  
      The microcontroller is also connected to a transmitter for transmitting a captured image to a user viewing unit, such as a cell phone having a viewing screen. The microcontroller is in electrical communication with first and second switches such that a user is able to selectively activate or deactivate the system remotely. More particularly, the user is able to send a signal from his cell phone to the processor to deactivate the security system if the user determines that the person in the vehicle is authorized. This might be a situation where a friend or family member of the automobile owner is authorized to enter the vehicle. On the other hand, the owner may notify the police and allow the microcontroller to continue to collect images with the camera.  
      Therefore, a general object of this invention is to provide a theft identification and deterrence system.  
      Another object of this invention is to provide a system, as aforesaid, that senses when a potentially unauthorized person has entered a vehicle.  
      Still another object of this invention is to provide a system, as aforesaid, that includes a camera for capturing digital images of a person who has entered a vehicle.  
      Yet another object of this invention is to provide a system, as aforesaid, that may be deactivated by a user from a remote location if the access is deemed to be authorized.  
      A further object of this invention is to provide a system, as aforesaid, in which a user may notify police if the access is deemed to be unauthorized and thus deemed to be a theft in progress.  
      A still further object of this invention is to provide a system, as aforesaid, which can store an amount of digital images and can transmit said stored images.  
      Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein is set forth by way of illustration and example, embodiments of this invention.  
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a front view of an automobile dashboard on which a theft identification system is mounted according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a rear perspective view of the dashboard on which the system as in  FIG. 1  is mounted;  
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating the components of the system according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating the logic of the microcontroller of the present invention.  
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
      A system according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to  FIGS. 1 through 4  of the accompanying drawings. More particularly, a theft identification and deterrence system  100  for an automobile (also referred to herein as a security system  100  for an automobile) according to the present invention includes a camera  110 , a transmitter  120 , and a microcontroller  130  (also referred to herein as a processor  130 ).  
      The camera  110  is mounted inside the automobile for capturing images.  FIGS. 1 and 2  show the camera  110  mounted in an automobile dash  2 , though the camera  110  may be mounted in other places inside the automobile as well, such as on a sun visor, steering wheel, or the like. The camera  110  may capture still images or video images of the automobile interior, and cameras suitable for various lighting conditions may be used. The camera  110  preferably performs well in low light applications, and even more preferably is a day-night camera. Day-night cameras automatically switch to black and white in low light situations and automatically switch to color when the light level is adequate. Most monochrome or black and white cameras have a lower Lux rating than color cameras, and therefore perform better in low light situations.  
      The microcontroller  130  is preferably in electrical communication with the camera  110  and the transmitter  120  for actuating the transmitter  120  to transmit images captured by the camera  110  ( FIG. 3 ). A sensor  140  for sensing a triggering event may also be in electrical communication with the microcontroller  130 . As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the sensor  140  may be a motion or proximity sensor  140  mounted in the dash  10 . Alternately, the sensor  140  may be a pressure sensor  140  mounted in a car seat, a glass-breaking sensor  140  in communication with a car window, or another suitable sensor  140 . The triggering event depends upon the type of sensor  140  used. For example, a triggering event for a motion sensor  140  could be the detection of motion; a triggering event for a proximity sensor  140  could be the detection of an object within a predetermined proximity; a triggering event for a pressure sensor  140  mounted in a seat could be the detection of pressure upon the seat; and so forth.  
      A first switch  150  may be in electrical communication with the microcontroller  130  for selectively activating the microcontroller  130  ( FIG. 3 ). The first switch  150  may be manually operable (such as a button on the automobile dash  2 ,) or the first switch  150  may be electrically operable upon receipt of a predetermined signal. If the first switch  150  is electrically operable, a key fob  152  that is compatible with the first switch  150  is preferably included for selectively activating the first switch  150 .  
      A second switch  160  may also be in electrical communication with the microcontroller  130  for selectively deactivating the microcontroller  130  ( FIG. 3 ). The second switch  160  is preferably a remotely operable switch  160 , such as a switch  160  that may be operated by receiving a signal from the key fob  152 , by telephone, through the internet, or by other remote methods. Further, it is possible to combine the first and second switches  150 ,  160 , and such is contemplated herein.  
      An electronics box  170  ( FIG. 2 ) may house the microcontroller  130 , and a battery  172  may be housed in the electronics box  170  as shown in  FIG. 3 . The battery  172  is preferably connected to the camera  110 , the transmitter  120 , and the microcontroller  130  so that these elements are powered even if the power supply from the automobile&#39;s battery  4  is interrupted. Alternately, the automobile battery  4  may be used to power these elements, or multiple power sources may be used. The battery  172  may be electrically connected to the automobile battery  4  to be selectively recharged.  
      A viewing unit  180  may be included or may be supplied by a user ( FIG. 3 ). The viewing unit  180  preferably has a viewing unit receiver  182  distinct from the transmitter  120  so that images sent from the transmitter  120  may be received and viewed upon the viewing unit  180 . The viewing unit  180  may be a mobile phone, a personal data assistant (PDA), a personal computer, a television, or another suitable device. Specifically, a mobile phone with a color viewing screen is currently preferred.  
      The system  100  may include a storage unit  190  in electrical communication with the camera  110  for storing a predetermined amount of digital images captured by the camera  110  ( FIG. 3 ). The microcontroller  130  may include programming for actuating the transmitter  120  to transmit the predetermined amount of images captured by the camera  110  and stored in the storage unit  190  when the sensor  140  senses the triggering event (as discussed above). The stored images may provide important information about the time period before the sensor  140  detects the triggering event.  
      A flowchart depicting a process  105  of the system  100  in use may be found in  FIG. 4 . At step S 1 , the user may arm the system  100  by operating the first switch  150  with the key fob  152  to activate the microcontroller  130 . The process then continues to step S 2 .  
      At step S 2 , the sensor  140  may detect a triggering event as discussed above. The process then continues to step S 3 , where the camera  110  may begin capturing images if it was not doing so already. The process then proceeds to step S 4 .  
      At step S 4 , the microcontroller  130  actuates the transmitter  120  to transmit the images captured by the camera  110 . The images are then received by the viewing unit receiver  182  so that the user may evaluate the images at step S 5 . If a theft is occurring, the user proceeds to step S 6 . If there was a false alarm, the user proceeds to step S 7 .  
      At step S 6 , the user may notify the police and allow the microcontroller  130  to continue transmitting images captured by the camera  110  in order to monitor the situation and identify the perpetrator. Obviously, the stored and transmitted images provide valuable evidence in affecting a later arrest and conviction. It should be appreciated that the images and/or video could also be transmitted directly to a base unit or directly to the police.  
      At step S 7 , the user may operate the second switch  160  to deactivate the microcontroller  130 . This step most likely corresponds to a situation where the user determines that the person entering the user&#39;s vehicle is authorized or where the theft event has been concluded.  
      According to another embodiment, the microcontroller  130  may include programming for automatically actuating the camera  110  to capture images when the sensor  140  detects the triggering event (as discussed above) and automatically actuating the transmitter  120  to transmit images captured by the camera  110 .  
      It is understood that while certain forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims and allowable functional equivalents thereof.