Patent Description:
Existing access controls may allow an individual to unlock rooms via a key card and/or mobile device if the individual is authorized to access the room. Blanket authorization to rooms may create unintended access to rooms that need a level of supervision. In a University, Hotel, or Commercial space there may be private access areas with restricted access(e.g., classrooms). Access to these private access areas may only be given to a Primary User, such as, for example, a Professor, Manager or a Supervisor. However, other users may also need to access this private access area, thus requiring the other users to walk up to a front desk to request that the front desk manually grant access, which is time consuming.

<CIT> discloses an access control system and a method of capturing user intent when the user interacts with multiple access controls.

<CIT> discloses a dual authentication access control system for controlling access to a secured area, wherein a supervisor is allowed to approve access requests by a person wanting to gain access to the secured area from a remote location.

According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of determining access in an access control system as claimed in claim <NUM>.

Determining a location of a superior individual may further comprise: receiving an access request to the first access control from the superior individual; and calculating a location of the superior individual in response to a time of the access request to the first access control from the superior individual and a time of the access request to the first access control from the subordinate individual.

Determining a location of a superior individual may further comprise: receiving an access request to a second access control from the superior individual; and calculating a location of the superior individual in response to a time of the access request to the second access control from the superior individual and a time of the access request to the first access control from the subordinate individual.

Determining the location of a superior individual may comprise using a global positioning system.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer program product tangibly embodied on a computer readable medium as claimed in claim <NUM>.

Technical effects of embodiments of the present disclosure include determining access to an access control for one individual based upon activity of a second individual.

The following descriptions should be considered by way of example only.

Access to these private access areas may only be given to a Primary User, such as, for example, a Professor, Manager or a Supervisor. However, other secondary users may also need to access this private access area, thus requiring the other users to walk up to a front desk to request that the front desk manually grant access, which is time consuming. Embodiments disclosed herein seek to address the need for a way to automatically grant access to intended secondary users if a certain level of supervision set by the primary user of the room is met.

<FIG> schematically illustrates an access control system <NUM>. The system <NUM> generally may include a mobile device <NUM>, a key card <NUM>, a server <NUM>, a wireless access protocol device <NUM>, and an access control <NUM>. The access control system <NUM> may include any number of mobile devices <NUM>, key cards <NUM>, servers <NUM>, wireless access protocol devices <NUM>, and access controls <NUM>. It should be appreciated that, although particular systems are separately defined in the schematic block diagrams, each or any of the systems may be otherwise combined or separated via hardware and/or software. In the illustrated embodiment, the access controls <NUM> may control access through/past an impediment <NUM>. For instance, the impediment <NUM> may be a door, a turnstile, a gate, a garage, or any known impediment known to one of skill in the art. The access control system <NUM> may include any number of impediments <NUM>. In an example, the access control <NUM> may be a door lock on a door controlling access to a room <NUM> and thus the door is the impediment <NUM>.

A physical key card <NUM> or mobile device <NUM> belonging to an individual <NUM> may be granted access to one or more access controls <NUM> (e.g. the door lock on an office, hotel room or classroom assigned to the individual) that control access to an impediment <NUM>. In one example, when an individual <NUM> begins working at a new building their mobile device <NUM> or key card <NUM> will be granted access to access controls <NUM> operably connected to impediments <NUM> of rooms/buildings where they are allowed to enter and/or work. In another example, when an individual <NUM> checks into the hotel room their mobile device <NUM> or key card <NUM> will be granted access to an access control <NUM> that locks the room <NUM>. In yet another example, an individual <NUM> may be granted access to a classroom or study room however that access may be conditioned on whether a teacher is already in the room. In yet another example, a subordinate individual 302b may be granted access to say a room in an office premises, only if the superior individual 302a is present in the room <NUM>. There may be one or more key cards <NUM> or mobile devices <NUM> authorized to actuate an access control <NUM> (e.g. a husband and a wife in a hotel; multiple workers in a collaborative workspace; multiple students in a school).

An individual <NUM> may utilize their key card <NUM> to unlock and/or lock an access control <NUM> by inserting the key card <NUM> into the access control <NUM>, placing the key card <NUM> proximate to the access control <NUM>, or swiping the key card <NUM> through the access control <NUM>. An individual <NUM> may utilize their mobile device <NUM> to unlock and/or lock the access control <NUM> operably connected to their assigned room through an access request <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> may store credentials to unlock and/or lock the access control <NUM>. Some credentials may be used for multiple access controls <NUM>. For example, an access control <NUM> operably connected to a hotel room of the individual <NUM> and an access control <NUM> operably connected to a hotel pool may respond to the same credential of the individual <NUM>. In another example, an access control <NUM> operably connected to a first classroom and an access control <NUM> operably connected to a second classroom may respond to the same credential of the individual <NUM>. Other credentials may be specific to a single access control <NUM>.

The mobile device <NUM> is a wireless capable handheld device such as a smartphone that is operable to communicate with the server <NUM> and the access controls <NUM>. Wireless communication may occur between the access control <NUM> and the mobile device <NUM> via short range wireless communication, such as for example Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, infrared, or any other short-range wireless communication method known to one of skill in the art. In an embodiment, the short-range wireless communication is Bluetooth. The mobile device <NUM> may transmit an access request <NUM> to the access control <NUM> by short-range radio transmission when the mobile device <NUM> is placed proximate the access control <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> may have to be within a selected range of the access control <NUM> in order to utilize short-range wireless communication. For example, the selected range may be manually set by an individual <NUM> as a chosen range or automatically set based on the limitations of hardware associated with the mobile device <NUM> and/or the access control <NUM> or may be manually set by the Hotel/Office/University Management. Wireless communication may occur between the mobile device <NUM> and the access control <NUM> via RFID or any other short-range wireless communication method known to one of skill in the art. An access request <NUM> transmitted from the mobile device <NUM> may be transmitted manually by an individual <NUM> through an application on the mobile device <NUM> and/or automatically when the mobile device <NUM> is within a selected range of the access control <NUM>.

Each access control <NUM> is a wireless-capable, restricted-access, or restricted-use device such as wireless locks, access control readers for building entry, and other restricted-use machines. The mobile device <NUM> or key card <NUM> submits credentials to the access controls <NUM>, thereby selectively permitting an individual <NUM> to actuate (i.e., access or activate) functions of the access controls <NUM>. An individual may, for example, submit a credential to an electromechanical lock to unlock it, and thereby gain access to a room or area past the impediment <NUM>. In another embodiment, the access control <NUM> may be composed of a reader and the reader passes the credential read from the key card <NUM> or mobile device <NUM> to a controller that then commands an impediment <NUM> to be opened. The controller may be the server <NUM> or located on the server <NUM>. In yet another embodiment, the mobile device <NUM> communicates to the server <NUM> the credential, which then communicates to the access control <NUM> to indicate the credential or a command to unlock the access control <NUM>. In any case, the mobile device <NUM> and/or key card <NUM> can be used to actuate the access control <NUM>.

The server <NUM> may be local and/or cloud based. The server <NUM> may provide credentials and other data to the access control <NUM>, such as firmware or software updates to be communicated to one or more of the access controls <NUM>. Although the server <NUM> is depicted herein as a single device, it should be appreciated that the server <NUM> may alternatively be embodied as a multiplicity of systems, from which the mobile device <NUM> receives credentials and other data. The access controls <NUM> may communicate directly with the server <NUM> or through the wireless access protocol devices <NUM> or through the mobile device <NUM>.

The system <NUM> may include an access determination engine <NUM> configured to determine access for a subordinate individual 302b to an access control <NUM> at the destination <NUM> based upon the location of a superior individual 302a. In an example, the superior individual 302a may be a teacher and a subordinate individual 302b may be a student. The access determination engine <NUM> is comprised of modules <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> including an access request tracking module <NUM>; a location determination module <NUM>; and an access determination module <NUM>. Each module <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may be located on either the mobile device <NUM> or the server <NUM>. Alternatively, the modules <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> may be distributed between the mobile device <NUM> and the server <NUM>.

The access request tracking module <NUM> is configured to receive and save access requests <NUM> from an individual <NUM>. The access request <NUM> may be from a key card <NUM> (e.g., swiping the key card <NUM> through the access control <NUM> or placing the key card <NUM> in close proximity to the access control <NUM>) or a mobile device <NUM> belonging to an individual. The access request <NUM> requests access to a specific access control <NUM>. The access request <NUM> will include a credential identifying the individual <NUM> to the access control <NUM>. For instance, a superior individual 302a may request access to a specific access control <NUM> located at destination <NUM> in order to gain access to the destination <NUM>. The access request tracking module <NUM> receives the access request <NUM> and saves details of the access request <NUM> including: a timestamp of the access request <NUM> indicating when the access request <NUM> was received; a credential of the individual <NUM> that transmitted the access request <NUM>; and a verdict whether or not access was granted to the individual <NUM>.

The location determination module <NUM> is configured to determine a location of the individual <NUM>. The location of the individual <NUM> may be determined by the timing of an access request <NUM> at an access control <NUM> and calculated walking time away from the access control <NUM>. For instance, a superior individual 302a may transmit an access request <NUM> to an access control <NUM> at a destination <NUM> associated with a room <NUM> only three minutes ago, thus it may be determined that the superior individual 302a is still located with the room <NUM> since only three minutes have passed. The location of the individual <NUM> may be automatically determined by a location of the mobile device <NUM> being carried by the individual <NUM>. The location of the mobile device <NUM> may be determined through a global positioning system (GPS) or other wireless signal detection using at least one of the mobile device <NUM>, the access controls <NUM>, and the wireless access protocol devices <NUM>. The wireless signal detection may include detecting the signal strength of the wireless signal at different locations and triangulating the location based upon the signal strength.

The access control <NUM> may be configured to continuously advertise a wireless signal <NUM>. The advertisement is the access control <NUM> declaring its presence to any nearby listening device and if it is a connectable advertisement it is an opportunity for another device (i.e., nearby mobile device <NUM>) to connect to the access control <NUM>. For example, the wireless signal <NUM> of the access control <NUM> may be a Bluetooth signal. The mobile device <NUM> is configured to detect the wireless signal <NUM> and determine a location of the mobile device <NUM> in response to a signal strength of the wireless signal <NUM>.

The wireless access protocol device <NUM> may be configured to advertise a wireless signal <NUM>. The advertisement is the wireless access protocol device <NUM> declaring its presence to any nearby listening device and if it is a connectable advertisement it is an opportunity for another device (i.e., nearby mobile device <NUM>) to connect to the wireless access protocol device <NUM>. For example, the wireless signal <NUM> of the wireless access protocol device <NUM> may be a Wi-Fi signal. The mobile device <NUM> is configured to detect the wireless signal <NUM> and determine a location of the mobile device <NUM> in response to a signal strength of the wireless signal <NUM>.

The location of the mobile device <NUM> may also be determined using the wireless access protocol device <NUM> and/or the access controls <NUM> to detect a signal advertised by the mobile device <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> may be configured to advertise a wireless signal <NUM>. The advertisement is the mobile device <NUM> declaring its presence to any nearby listening device and if it is a connectable advertisement it is an opportunity for another device (i.e., access control <NUM> or wireless access protocol device <NUM>) to detect this advertisement and triangulate the location of the mobile device <NUM>. The wireless access protocol device <NUM> and/or the access controls <NUM> are configured to detect the wireless signal <NUM> and determine a location data of the mobile device <NUM> in response to a signal strength of the wireless signal <NUM>. The location of the mobile device <NUM> may be triangulated by relaying up to the location determination module <NUM> the strength of each wireless signal <NUM> detected and then the location determination module <NUM> can triangulate the position.

Wireless signal interaction data between the mobile device <NUM> and at least one of the access device <NUM> and the wireless access protocol device <NUM> may transmitted to the server <NUM> to determine a location of the mobile device <NUM>. In an embodiment, the location determination module <NUM> may be located on the server <NUM> and may be used to determine a location of the mobile device <NUM>. The server <NUM> may use signal strength detected between the mobile device <NUM>, access controls <NUM>, and the wireless access protocol device <NUM> to determine a location of the mobile device <NUM>.

The access determination module <NUM> may determine whether or not to allow a subordinate individual 302b to actuate the access control <NUM> at the destination <NUM> in response to a location of a superior individual 302a. The access determination module <NUM> may have a policy to identify if the access request <NUM> is indeed being made by an intended user, in this case a subordinate individual 302b. The access determination module <NUM> may have a policy where the subordinate individual 302b is not allowed to enter the room <NUM> until the superior individual 302a is within the room <NUM>. For example, students may not be allowed to enter a classroom until a teacher is within the classroom. The access determination module <NUM> may have a policy where the subordinate individual 302b is not allowed to enter the room <NUM> until the superior individual 302a is within a selected distance of the room <NUM>. For example, the teacher may be on their way to a classroom and thus the students may enter the classroom when the teacher is within a selected distance of the classroom. As mentioned above, a location of the superior individual 302a may be determined based upon the actual location of the superior individual (i.e., through wireless signal tracking) or through location prediction in response to access requests <NUM> sent to access controls <NUM>. For instance, a teacher may be determined to be in the building and on their way to the classroom based on an access request <NUM> sent within the last few minutes to an access control <NUM> operably connected to the front door of the school.

Referring now to <FIG> with continued reference to <FIG>. <FIG> shows a block diagram of an example electronic lock system <NUM> including the access control <NUM>, the mobile device <NUM>, key card <NUM>, and the server <NUM>. The access control <NUM> generally includes a lock actuator <NUM>, a lock controller <NUM>, a lock antenna <NUM>, a lock transceiver <NUM>, a lock processor <NUM>, a lock memory <NUM>, a lock power supply <NUM>, a lock card reader <NUM>, and a credential module <NUM>.

The access control <NUM> may have essentially two readers, one reader <NUM> to read a physical key card <NUM> and the credential module <NUM> to communicate with the mobile device <NUM> via the lock processor <NUM> and the transceiver <NUM> and antenna <NUM>. In addition to utilizing the mobile device <NUM> to actuate the access control <NUM>, a physical key card <NUM> may also be used to actuate the access control <NUM> by being inserted into the access control <NUM> for the access control <NUM> to read the physical key card <NUM> (e.g. a magnetic strip on an encoded card <NUM>). The physical key card <NUM> is capable of being encoded with card data, such as, for example, a magnetic strip or RFID chip. The card data may include credentials to grant access to a specific access control <NUM>. For example, for a period the mobile device <NUM> may be granted access to a specific access control <NUM>, such as, for example, a period of stay/employment/enrollment for the individual <NUM> possessing the mobile device <NUM>.

The access control <NUM> is responsive to credentials from the mobile device <NUM>, and may, for example, be the lock of a turnstile or a door lock. Upon receiving and authenticating an appropriate credential from the mobile device <NUM> using the credential module <NUM>, or after receiving card data from lock card reader <NUM>, the lock controller <NUM> commands the lock actuator <NUM> to lock or unlock a mechanical or electronic lock. The lock controller <NUM> and the lock actuator <NUM> may be parts of a single electronic or electromechanical lock unit, or may be components sold or installed separately. In an embodiment, the access control <NUM> is composed of separate components, such as, for example, a reader (e.g., transceiver <NUM> and/or antenna <NUM>) at a door <NUM>, a processor <NUM> that gets the credential from the reader, and then a lock actuator <NUM> that gets a signal from the processor <NUM> to actuate an electromechanical lock.

The lock transceiver <NUM> is capable of transmitting and receiving data to and from at least one of the mobile device <NUM>, the wireless access protocol device <NUM>, and the other access controls <NUM>. The lock transceiver <NUM> may, for instance, be a near field communication (NFC), Bluetooth, infrared, ZigBee, or Wi-Fi transceiver, or another appropriate wireless transceiver. The lock antenna <NUM> is any antenna appropriate to the lock transceiver <NUM>. The lock processor <NUM> and lock memory <NUM> are, respectively, data processing, and storage devices. The lock processor <NUM> may, for instance, be a microprocessor that can process instructions to validate credentials and determine the access rights contained in the credentials or to pass messages from a transceiver to a credential module <NUM> and to receive a response indication back from the credential module <NUM>. The lock memory <NUM> may be RAM, EEPROM, or other storage medium where the lock processor <NUM> can read and write data including but not limited to lock configuration options. The lock power supply <NUM> is a power source such as line power connection, a power scavenging system, or a battery that powers the lock controller <NUM>. In other embodiments, the lock power supply <NUM> may only power the lock controller <NUM>, with the lock actuator <NUM> powered primarily or entirely by another source, such as user work (e.g. turning a bolt).

While <FIG> shows the lock antenna <NUM> and the transceiver <NUM> connected to the processor <NUM>, this is not to limit other embodiments that may have additional antenna <NUM> and transceiver <NUM> connected to the credential module <NUM> directly. The credential module <NUM> may contain a transceiver <NUM> and antenna <NUM> as part of the credential module. Or the credential module <NUM> may have a transceiver <NUM> and antenna <NUM> separately from the processor <NUM> which also has a separate transceiver <NUM> and antenna <NUM> of the same type or different. In some embodiments, the processor <NUM> may route communication received via transceiver <NUM> to the credential module <NUM>. In other embodiments the credential module may communicate directly to the mobile device <NUM> through the transceiver <NUM>.

The mobile device <NUM> generally includes a key antenna <NUM>, a key transceiver <NUM>, a key processor <NUM>, a key memory <NUM>, a GPS receiver <NUM>, an input device <NUM>, an output device <NUM>, a key power supply <NUM>, and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor <NUM>. The key transceiver <NUM> is a transceiver of a type corresponding to the lock transceiver <NUM>, and the key antenna <NUM> is a corresponding antenna. In some embodiments, the key transceiver <NUM> and the key antenna <NUM> may also be used to communicate with the server <NUM>. In other embodiments, one or more separate transceivers and antennas may be included to communicate with server <NUM>. The key memory <NUM> is of a type to store a plurality of credentials locally on the mobile device <NUM>. The mobile device <NUM> may also include a mobile device application <NUM>. Embodiments disclosed herein, may operate through the mobile device application <NUM> installed on the mobile device <NUM>. The IMU sensor <NUM> may be a sensor such as, for example, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, or a similar sensor known to one of skill in the art.

Referring now to <FIG> with continued reference to <FIG>. <FIG> shows a flow chart of method <NUM> of determining access in an access control system <NUM>. The method <NUM> may be performed by the mobile device <NUM> and/or the server <NUM>. At block <NUM>, an access request <NUM> to a first access control <NUM> is received from a subordinate individual 302b. The access request <NUM> may be from a key card <NUM> or a mobile device <NUM> belonging to the individual, as described above. The first access control <NUM> may control access past an impediment <NUM> where a subordinate individual 302b is scheduled to meet a superior individual 302a.

At block <NUM>, a location of the superior individual 302a is determined. The location of the superior individual 302a may be determined using access requests <NUM>. In one example, the location of the superior individual 302a may be determined by: receiving an access request <NUM> to the first access control <NUM> from the superior individual 302a; and calculating a location of the superior individual 302a in response to a time of the access request <NUM> to the first access control <NUM> from the superior individual 302a and a time of the access request <NUM> to the first access control <NUM> from the subordinate individual 302b. The first access control <NUM> may be located at the destination <NUM>. In another example, the location of the superior individual 302a may also be determined by: receiving an access request <NUM> to a second access control <NUM> (i.e., the second access control <NUM> being different than the first access control <NUM>) from the superior individual 302a; and calculating a location of the superior individual 302a in response to a time of the access request <NUM> to the second access control <NUM> from the superior individual 302a and a time of the access request <NUM> to the first access control <NUM> from the subordinate individual 302b. The second access control may be located at a location different from the destination <NUM>.

The location of the superior individual 302a may also be determined using wireless tracking and/or a GPS. According to one embodiment of the invention, the location of the superior individual 302a is determined by: detecting a wireless signal <NUM> emitted from a mobile device <NUM> being carried by the superior individual 302a using one or more access controls <NUM>; determining a signal strength of the wireless signal <NUM> emitted from the mobile device <NUM> between the mobile device <NUM> and each of the one or more access controls <NUM>; and determining the location of the mobile device <NUM> in response to the signal strength determined between the mobile device <NUM> and each of the one or more access controls <NUM>. According to another embodiment of the invention, the location of the superior individual 302a is determined by: detecting a wireless signal <NUM> emitted from a mobile device <NUM> being carried by the superior individual 302a using one or more wireless access protocol devices <NUM>; determining a signal strength of the wireless signal <NUM> emitted from the mobile device <NUM> between the mobile device <NUM> and each of the one or more wireless access protocol devices <NUM>; and determining the location of the mobile device <NUM> in response to the signal strength determined between the mobile device <NUM> and each of the one or more wireless access protocol devices <NUM>.

At block <NUM>, it is decided whether to actuate the first access control <NUM> in response to the location of the superior individual 302a. The first access control <NUM> may be commanded to actuate when the location of the superior individual is within a room <NUM> secured by the first access control <NUM>. The first access control <NUM> may be commanded to actuate when the location of the superior individual 302a is within a selected distance of a room <NUM> secured by the first access control <NUM>. When the location of the superior individual 302a is within a selected distance of a room <NUM> secured by the first access control <NUM>, it may be determined that the superior individual 302a will arrive at the room <NUM> within a period of time based upon average or predicted walking speed. The predicted walking speed may be specific to the superior individual 302a or a general average walking speed of individuals <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A method (<NUM>) of determining access for a subordinate individual in an access control system (<NUM>), the method comprising:
receiving (<NUM>) an access request (<NUM>) to a first access control (<NUM>) of a room (<NUM>) from a subordinate individual (302b);
determining (<NUM>) a location of a superior individual (302a);
deciding (<NUM>) whether to actuate the first access control in response to the location of the superior individual; and
commanding the first access control (<NUM>) to actuate when the location of the superior individual (302a) is within, or within a selected distance of, the room (<NUM>) secured by the first access control (<NUM>);
wherein determining the location of the superior individual (302a) comprises:
detecting a wireless signal (<NUM>) emitted from a mobile device (<NUM>) being carried by the superior individual (302a) using one or more access controls (<NUM>) or one or more wireless access protocol devices (<NUM>);
determining a signal strength of the wireless signal emitted from the mobile device (<NUM>) between the mobile device (<NUM>) and each of the one or more access controls (<NUM>) or each of the one or more wireless access protocol devices (<NUM>); and
determining the location of the mobile device (<NUM>) in response to the signal strength determined between the mobile device (<NUM>) and each of the one or more access controls (<NUM>) or each of the one or more wireless access protocol devices (<NUM>).