WO2007019611A1

WO2007019611A1 - System and method for electronic mustering

Info

Publication number: WO2007019611A1
Application number: PCT/AU2006/001153
Authority: WO
Inventors: Christopher John Mahoney; William Hazard Northup; Yong-Lip The
Original assignee: Compete Holdings Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2005-08-12
Filing date: 2006-08-11
Publication date: 2007-02-22

Abstract

A system and method for electronic mustering enable a thin client terminal to be used to safely and remotely monitor evacuations from dangerous zones. The system includes a plurality of identification (ID) readers (105) that are operatively connected to a server (115). At least one thin client terminal (125, 130) is operatively connected to the server (115). Computer program code executed on the server (115) effects the display of a graphical user interface (GUI) at the terminal (125, 130) to enable remote monitoring of a mustering process.

Description

TITLE System and Method for Electronic Mustering

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to personnel location monitoring. In particular, although not exclusively, the invention relates to a system and method for efficiently and remotely monitoring the mustering of individuals from diverse zones of a work site.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

At many types of work sites the ability to rapidly evacuate and account for all on-site personnel is a critically important function. In particular, employers at dangerous industrial and military sites such as mines, nuclear plants, petrochemical plants, and firing ranges have a strict duty of care to ensure that all on-site personnel can be rapidly accounted for in the event of an accident, or in other dangerous circumstances such as planned blasting at a mining site. Systems for meeting that duty of care are generally known as mustering systems.

Prior art mustering systems include manual and electronic systems. Manual mustering is where a manual process is used to track the movements and location of people within a site. That is usually done by training or informing everyone that is allowed access to a site on where to assemble or muster in the event an emergency or other alarm is raised. A usual practice is for certain nominated individuals to take a roll call at various muster locations. Information collected through the roll call is then reconciled with a list of all persons known to be on the site. By a process of elimination using all the muster roll calls, it is possible to identify missing persons so that emergency response teams can act to locate the missing persons, or so that dangerous activities such as blasting work can be suspended until all personnel are safely accounted for. Manual mustering suffers from many disadvantages including the fact that muster headcounts are often prone to error, especially in emergency situations that may include fear, panic or elements of chaos. Further, the speed of reconciliation of manual muster roll calls is relatively slow and is also subject to error.

Electronic mustering systems can track the movements and location of people on a site in a real-time fashion. Computer systems are used to receive data from electronic personnel identification systems, such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags or biometric access control systems. For example emergency/muster assembly points may include electronic ID readers so that head counts can be tallied and monitored in real-time. Where all personnel are required to be electronically tagged before being granted access to a particular site, it is possible to quickly identify people who have not appeared at a muster assembly point in the event of an emergency. Ready access to such information can assist rescue efforts and save lives.

However, prior art electronic mustering systems also suffer significant disadvantages. For example, self-contained, hard wired systems can be useless in the event of a major industrial accident where equipment at particular muster assembly points is destroyed or is otherwise inaccessible. Further, prior art networked systems are generally accessed using "thick client" or "client / server" terminals that require dedicated software to be pre-installed on the terminals. Such predetermined thick client or client / server terminals may also become unavailable or incapacitated in the event of major emergencies or localized power failures, impeding an efficient accounting of all personnel. There is therefore a need for an improved system and method for electronic mustering, which system and method overcomes many of the above described disadvantages of the prior art.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION Therefore an object of the present invention is to overcome or at least alleviate one or more of the above limitations including providing an improved system and method for electronic mustering.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved system and method for efficiently and remotely monitoring the mustering of individuals from diverse zones of a work site.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, in one form, the present invention is a system for electronic mustering comprising: a plurality of ID readers; a server operatively connected to the plurality of ID readers; and at least one thin client terminal operatively connected to the server; wherein computer program code executed on the server effects the display of a graphical user interface at the terminal to enable remote monitoring of a mustering process.

Optionally, the computer program code enables boundaries and definitions of site zones and muster zones to be reconfigured remotely via the thin client terminal.

Optionally, the computer program code enables mustering alarms to be set and reset remotely via the thin client terminal.

According to another form, the present invention is a method for electronic mustering comprising the steps of: configuring site zones and muster zones; receiving at a server cardholder location data from ID readers; and remotely monitoring the zones using at least one thin client terminal operatively connected to the server.

Optionally, the method further includes the step of reconfiguring the site zones and muster zones remotely via the thin ciient terminal. Optionally, the method further includes the steps of setting and resetting mustering alarms remotely via the thin client terminal.

Further features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To assist in understanding the invention and to enable a person skilled in the art to put the invention into practical effect, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing components of an electronic mustering system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a screen shot of a general graphical user interface (GUI) showing an administrator's site management summary according to a particular embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a screen shot of a general GUI showing an administrator's expanded site management summary according to a particular embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a screen shot of a general GUI showing zone configuration tools according to a particular embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a screen shot of a general GUI showing a mustering controller according to a particular embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a screen shot of a general GUI showing a cardholder summary report according to a particular embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 7 is a generalized flow diagram illustrating the steps of a method for electronic mustering according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention are presented as apparatus components and method steps related to electronic mustering. Elements of the apparatus are illustrated in concise outline form in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are necessary to understanding the embodiments of the present invention, but so as not to clutter the disclosure with excessive detail that will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art in light of the present description. In this patent specification, adjectives such as first and second, left and right, top and bottom, upward and downward, etc., are used solely to define one element or method step from another element or method step without necessarily requiring a specific relative position or sequence that is described by the adjectives. Words such as "comprises" or "includes" are not used to define an exclusive set of elements or method steps. Rather, such words merely define a minimum set of elements or method steps included in a particular embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 there is a schematic diagram showing components of an electronic mustering system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Personnel ID readers 105 are operatively connected to an access controller 110 which in turn is networked to a server 115. The server 115 is then networked to a local area network (LAN) including for example a router 120 and a plurality of local access stations including thin client terminals such as standard PCs 125. Additional access to the LAN is then obtainable through other media, such as the Internet or an extranet, from remote devices including thin client terminals such as PCs 130, mobile phones or personal digital assistants.

Numerous ID readers 105 may be positioned at various locations in and around a work site. For example, such readers 105 may be located at all site entry and exit points and at designated emergency/mustering assembly points. Further, access to specific zones inside a work site may be monitored using the readers 105. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the readers 105 may include both active readers, such as those requiring that an ID card be manually swiped or a fingerprint manually entered, and passive readers, including RFID tags or photographic techniques such as facial recognition, which can passively monitor personnel locations. In an emergency or in the event that a particular site zone needs to be evacuated, the ID, status and location of all personnel then can be easily and quickly monitored using any of the local access stations or remote devices. Following is a brief functional overview of one exemplary and particular embodiment of software that is executed on the server 115 so as to enable operation of the mustering system 100. The software may operate in various standalone and integrated versions with various operating systems such as Microsoft Windows 98, 2000, ME, NT4, or XP, and interaction between the software and users is managed through proprietary graphic user interfaces (GUIs) integrated with web browsers such as Microsoft Windows Explorer. Referring to FIG. 2 there is a screen shot of a general GUI 200 showing an administrator's site management summary according to a particular embodiment of the present invention. Access to the GUI 200 is obtainable for example from either a LAN PC 125 or a remote PC 130 using a password protected login screen. The GUI 200 thus can be displayed at any thin client terminal having a web browser, without a need to download or install any additional proprietary software.

The administrator's GUI 200 includes a summary of various site and muster zones and a total cardholder count for each zone. Site zones are designated areas that can be configured based on various criteria such as activities within the zones or recognized risk levels within the zones. Muster zones are areas including emergency/muster assembly points and readers 105. In the event of an emergency or drill, all personnel are trained and expected to move quickly from a site zone to a muster zone. Further details of any particular zone are obtainable in an expanded site management summary by marking the check box next to a zone and then clicking on the "+" sign.

Referring to FIG. 3 there is a screen shot of a general GUI 300 showing an administrator's expanded site management summary according to a particular embodiment of the present invention. Here, particular personnel identifications are listed including their status or name, card swipe point, time of last card swipe, and card number.

In addition to the preset invention enabling monitoring of mustering systems using local or remote thin client terminals, further advantages of specific embodiments of the present invention include the ability to remotely and dynamically reconfigure zone boundaries and other parameters of a system 100. The ability to reconfigure features of the system 100 can be very important in applications such as mine sites where the entire geography of a work site may be constantly changing. For example, referring to FIG. 4 there is a screen shot of a general GUI 400 showing zone configuration tools according to a particular embodiment of the present invention. The configuration tools enable boundaries of zones to be redefined and to have new zones added and old ones deleted as required by the needs of a particular work site.

Other features of the software enable further exploitation of mustering data from remote locations for various purposes. For example a search screen enables individual cardholders to be searched by name, number or status and their location displayed immediately. Referring to FIG. 5 there is a screen shot of a general GUI 500 showing a mustering controller according to a particular embodiment of the present invention. The GUI 500 is a Web Based Control Interface (WBCI) that functions to set and clear mustering alarms. After a mustering alarm is set by clicking on an alarm button 505, various site zones may be displayed in multiple colours, for example red and green. Site zones where there are individuals present are highlighted in red, and site zones that are not occupied are highlighted in green. As individuals move from a site zone to a muster zone, a cardholder count in the site zone is decremented in real time and the cardholder count in the corresponding muster zone is incremented in real time. At the completion of a successful alarm and muster, all site zones should be cleared of all individuals and highlighted green.

The software further enables remote and immediate generation of various reports about individuals, using cardholder location data, and/or zones. For example, referring to FIG. 6 there is a screen shot of a general GUI 600 showing a cardholder summary report according to a particular embodiment of the present invention.

An embodiment of the software on the server 115 is described below as a set of computer program components which cooperate to control the performance of operations of data processing when loaded and executed on the server 115. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the art that the individual steps of methods of the present invention can be implemented in computer program code and that a variety of programming languages and coding implementations may be used to implement the methods described herein. Moreover, computer programs included in the software are not intended to be limited to the specific control flows described herein, and one or more of the steps of the computer programs may be performed in parallel or sequentially. One or more of the operations described in the context of a computer-program- controlled implementation could alternatively be implemented as a hardware electronics component.

The computer program components may be stored on any computer readable medium, including storage devices such as magnetic or optical disks, memory chips, crypto-smart cards or other storage devices suitable for interfacing with a general purpose computer. The computer readable medium may also include a hard-wired communication medium such as exemplified in the mustering system 100, or wireless medium such as exemplified in a GSM or CDMA mobile telephone system. According to one embodiment of the invention, an extensible stylesheet language (XSL) is used for machine coding a rule. A person of skill in the art should recognize, however, that other programming languages may be used instead of XSL, such as, for example, SQL, Java, JavaScript, or any procedural, object-oriented, or structured programming language conventional in the art. Further, a thin client terminal such as the LAN PCs 125 or remote PCs

130 can be any entity, such as a workstation, or specific components thereof (e.g., a terminal, personal computer, mainframe computer, workstation, handheld device, electronic book, personal digital assistant, peripheral, etc.), or a software program running on a computer directly or indirectly connected or connectable in any known or later-developed manner to any type of computer network, such as the Internet. For example, a representative thin client terminal is a personal computer that is x86-, PowerPC.RTM., PENTIUM-based, or RISC- based, that includes an operating system such as IBM. RTM, LINUX, OS/2. RTM, MAC OS. or any member of the MICROSOFT WINDOWS family (made by Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash.) and that includes a Web browser, such as MICROSOFT INTERNET EXPLORER, or NETSCAPE NAVIGATOR (made by Netscape Corporation, Mountain View, Calif.), with or without a Java Virtual Machine (JVM) and support for application plug-ins or helper applications. A thin client terminal also may be a notebook computer, a handheld computing device (e.g., a PDA), an Internet appliance, a telephone, an electronic reader device, or any other such device connectable to a computer network.

The server 115 as referred to herein can be any entity such as a workstation, a computer platform, an adjunct to a computer or platform, or any component thereof, such as a program that can respond to requests from a user. Of course, a "user" can be broadly construed to mean anyone who requests, receives, or manipulates a file, and a "server" can be broadly construed to be the entity that sends or forwards a file. The server 115 also may include a display supporting a graphical user interface (GUI) for management and administration, and an Application Programming Interface (API) that provides extensions to enable application developers to extend and/or customize the core functionality thereof through software programs including Common Gateway Interface (CGI) programs, plug-ins, servlets, active server pages, server side include (SSI) functions and the like.

Data from the server 115 may be communicated to the thin client terminals of the local access stations and remote devices using either "push" or "pull" techniques, or both "push" and "pull" techniques. Pull or request techniques require a browser operating at a thin client terminal to regularly poll, often in near real-time, the server 115 to refresh the GUIs 200, 300, 500. Push or broadcast techniques involve the server 115 transmitting regular screen refresh updates to all thin client terminal browsers that are pointing to the URL of the server 115. Such techniques further enable the number of users of the system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention to be unlimited. Referring to FIG. 7 there is a generalized flow diagram illustrating the steps of a method 700 for electronic mustering according to an embodiment of the present invention. First, at step 705 individual site zones and mustering zones are configured using zone configuration GUIs such as GUI 400. Next, at step 710, cardholder location data are received at the server 115 from various ID readers 105. At step 715 the status of zones and/or cardholder locations can be remotely monitored using thin client terminals of local access stations and remote devices. At step 720 it is determined whether any zone definitions must be reconfigured. If so, the method 700 returns to step 710. Otherwise, at step 725 it is determined whether an alarm should be set. A mustering alarm may be set for purposes of a drill, or in the event of an actual emergency, using for example a GUI 500 as described above. If an alarm is not set, the zone and cardholder monitoring continues again at step 715. If an alarm is set, at step

730 it is determined whether the mustering that is initiated by the alarm has been completed successfully. Such determinations can be made also using for example a GUI 500. If the mustering process is not completed successfully and timely so as to safely account for all personnel, individual zones and personnel can be monitored and searched at step 715 until all personnel are accounted for. Finally, at step 735, after it is determined that a mustering process has been successfully completed, the mustering alarm is reset.

In summary, embodiments of the present invention comprise a system and method for efficiently and remotely monitoring the mustering of individuals from diverse zones of a work site. Thin client terminals can be used to safely and remotely monitor evacuations from dangerous zones. The flexible architecture of the system enables zone definitions to be created and changed quickly using remote thin client terminals. Systems and methods of the present invention are thus useful at various industrial and governmental locations including, for example, mines, shipping ports, ships, production facilities, office buildings, warehouses, campuses, and military bases. The invention further can assist with training drills, evacuations, people traffic monitoring, and real-time personnel location reporting.

The above description of various embodiments of the present invention is provided for purposes of description to one of ordinary skill in the related art. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to a single disclosed embodiment. As mentioned above, numerous alternatives and variations to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art of the above teaching. Accordingly, while some alternative embodiments have been discussed specifically, other embodiments will be apparent or relatively easily developed by those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, this patent specification is intended to embrace all alternatives, modifications and variations of the present invention that have been discussed herein, and other embodiments that fall within the spirit and scope of the above described invention.

Limitations in the claims should be interpreted broadly based on the language used in the claims, and such limitations should not be limited to specific examples described herein. In this specification, the terminology "present invention" is used as a reference to one or more aspects within the present disclosure. The terminology "present invention" should not be improperly interpreted as an identification of critical elements, should not be improperly interpreted as applying to all aspects and embodiments, and should not be improperly interpreted as limiting the scope of the claims.

Claims

CLAIMS We Claim:

1. A system for electronic mustering, comprising: a plurality of identification (ID) readers; a server operatively connected to the plurality of ID readers; and at least one thin client terminal operatively connected to the server; wherein computer program code executed on the server effects the display of a graphical user interface at the terminal to enable remote monitoring of a mustering process.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein boundaries and definitions of site zones and muster zones can be reconfigured remotely via the thin client terminal.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein mustering alarms can be set and reset remotely via the thin client terminal.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of ID readers are operatively connected to an access controller and the access controller is operatively connected to the server.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the server can transmit data to the thin client terminal using both push and pull techniques.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein an administrator's graphical user interface (GUI) is displayed by the thin client terminal and comprises a summary of site zones and muster zones and a total cardholder count for each zone.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein site zones can be configured based on activities within the site zones or based on recognized risk levels within the site zones.

8. A method for electronic mustering, the method comprising: configuring site zones and muster zones; receiving at a server cardholder location data from identification (ID) readers; and remotely monitoring the site zones and muster zones using at least one thin client terminal operatively connected to the server.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising: reconfiguring the site zones and muster zones remotely via the thin client terminal.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising: setting mustering alarms remotely via the thin client terminal.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of ID readers are operatively connected to an access controller and the access controller is operatively connected to the server.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the server can transmit data to the thin client terminal using both push and pull techniques.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein an administrator's graphical user interface (GUI) is displayed by the thin client terminal and comprises a summary of site zones and muster zones and a total cardholder count for each zone.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein site zones can be configured based on activities within the site zones or based on recognized risk levels within the site zones