Patent ID: 7362229

Claim:
A method for providing a record on a portable device that a location was visited during an inspection, while contemporaneously collecting ancillary data on the portable device, comprising the steps of: (a) affixing a token adjacent to the location, the token having been selected from a group consisting of: (i) a token comprising a radio frequency transponder that is excited by radio frequency energy emitted by the portable device, producing an altered radio frequency signal that is detected by the portable device; (ii) a token comprising a pattern of magnetic flux, wherein the portable device detects the pattern of magnetic flux from the token to produce a signal indicative of a specific type of component associated with the token; and (iii) a token comprising an optical pattern, wherein the portable device detects the optical pattern of a token to produce a signal indicative of a specific type of component associated with the token; (b) enabling an operator to move the portable device proximate the location; (c) in response to the portable device responding to the token to detect being moved proximate the location, automatically producing a record stored within the portable device that the portable device was proximate the location, said record providing evidence that the operator was sufficiently close to the location to perform an inspection at the location; and (d) further in response to the portable device being moved proximate the location, automatically transferring and storing the ancillary data in the recording device, said ancillary data having been collected by a data collection device disposed proximate the location.