GB2566679A

GB2566679A - Tracking Device

Info

Publication number: GB2566679A
Application number: GB1714742.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Rae Middleton Jason
Original assignee: Trak Global Solutions Ltd
Current assignee: Trak Global Solutions Ltd
Priority date: 2017-09-13
Filing date: 2017-09-13
Publication date: 2019-03-27
Anticipated expiration: 2037-09-13
Also published as: GB201714742D0; GB2566679B

Abstract

Tracking or GPS device for monitoring location, movement or operation of a vehicle for example, and method for recovering the memory of said device. The device comprises a memory 7 for storing information recorded by the device, wherein the memory 7 is mounted to a part of the device that separates from the remainder of the device when a force is applied. The memory 7 may be mounted to part of a circuit board or PCB 2, wherein other components 3, 4, 5, 6 may be mounted to the remainder of the board 2, said part of the board 2 connected to the remainder of the board 2 by a region arranged to snap or break when a force is applied. The part of the board 2 to which the memory 7 is mounted may be partially surrounded by a slot or partially or wholly surrounded by a weakness line.

Description

TRACKING DEVICE

Technical Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a tracking device and particularly, but not exclusively, to a tracking device for tracking location, movement and/or operation of a vehicle.

Background to the Invention

Tracking devices are routinely used to monitor the location, movement and/or operation of vehicles, particularly road vehicles. Information gathered by tracking devices is useful in management of fleets of vehicles and for monitoring driver behaviour which can be used to help asses risk and thus establish an insurance premium for insuring a vehicle.

Tracking devices may be built into a vehicle by the manufacturer or fitted after manufacture.

Most current tracking devices are arranged to transmit gathered information to 15 a server via a communications network. To this end the device may be provided with an antenna and associated electronics to enable it to connect to a wireless telecommunications network. Or it may be provided with means to establish a wired or wireless connection to another device, such as a cell phone, which provides a connection to a communications network.

As a connection to a communications network may not always be available and/or there may be a delay in transmission of information over the network a tracking device will typically also include a memory in which gathered information is stored, at least until it has been transmitted to and stored on a server.

In the event that a vehicle to which a tracking device is involved in an incident, such as a collision, information gathered by the tracking device may be useful in establishing what caused the incident and/or happened to the vehicle. However, if the tracking device is damaged or otherwise rendered inoperative by the incident it is likely that the most useful information is only stored on the memory of the device because the device was damaged prior to transmission of the last recorded information to a server. The memory can be difficult to recover if the vehicle is damaged by the incident and it may be impossible to recover information from the memory if the tracking device, especially its memory, is also damaged by the incident.

Embodiments of the present invention seek to address these problems.

Summary of the Invention

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a tracking 15 device for tracking a vehicle, the tracking device comprising a memory for storing information recorded by the tracking device wherein the memory is mounted to a part of the tracking device that will preferentially separate from the remainder of the device when a force is applied between the memory and the remainder of the device.

Mounting the memory to a part that will preferentially separate from the 20 remainder of the device facilities recovery of the memory, even if the device is partially destroyed and/or trapped in a damaged vehicle, and allows the data stored on the memory to be recovered. It also reduces the risk of the memory being damaged as a force applied between the memory and the remainder of the device will tend to separate the memory from the remainder of the device before it damages the memory. Indeed the memory is preferably designed to withstand a force greater, preferably significantly greater, than that required to separate it from the remainder of the device.

The tracking device may be for tracking position, movement and/or operation of a vehicle.

The part of the tracking device to which the memory is mounted may separate from the remainder of the device by breaking from the remainder of the device. This provides a simple solution to the need to provide for separation of the memory.

The memory may be a memory device. The memory may be non-volatile 10 electronic memory. The memory may be self-powered. The memory may be comprised in at least one integrated circuit. The memory may have any suitable format, such as FAT format. The memory may be USB compatible or arranged to be read by an appropriate separate reader. The reader may present as a FAT drive.

The memory may be mounted to a circuit board to which other components of 15 the tracking device are also mounted.

The memory, and in some embodiments only the memory, may be mounted to a portion of the circuit board which is connected to the remainder of the circuit board by a region of the circuit board arranged to preferentially break when a force is applied between the memory and the remainder of the circuit board. Other components may be mounted to the remainder of the board. The portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted may be partially surrounded by at least one slot, which may take the form of an elongate aperture through the circuit board. The portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted may be partially or wholly surrounded by a line of weakness in the circuit board. A line of weakness may be formed by perforations or by a thinning of the circuit board or some other suitable technique.

The portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted may form part of an outside edge of the circuit board. The portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted may be connected to the remainder of the circuit board along only part of an edge of the portion. In one embodiment the portion is substantially rectangular and connected to the remainder of the board only along one or part of one edge. The portion may have another shape, for example it might be generally circular or semi-circular. The remainder of the circuit board may have an outline shape, such as that of a rectangle, and the portion to which the memory is mounted may lie within that outline shape. An edge of the portion may form an edge of the circuit board. Or the portion may be entirely surrounded by the remainder of the circuit board.

The tracking device may further comprise one or more of the following: microprocessor (which may be programmable); power supply (which could include an energy storage device such as a battery); positioning device (such as a navigation system, e.g. Global Positioning System receiver); movement sensor; accelerometer; gyroscope; communication device; and antenna. Such tracking devices are well known to the person of ordinary skill in the art and so are not described in further detail.

The tracking device may comprise a housing. This may facilitate its mounting to a vehicle to be monitored. Alternatively it may form part of the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a vehicle comprising a tracking device according to the invention. The vehicle may be a road vehicle such as an automobile, truck or bus.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of recovering information from a tracking device according to the invention, the method comprising recovering the memory of the device and reading the memory.

The step of recovering the memory may include the step of separating, including 5 breaking, the memory from the tracking device. The step of recovering the memory may include the step of breaking of a portion a circuit board to which the memory is mounted from the remainder of the circuit board.

Detailed Description of the Invention

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood one or more embodiments thereof will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tracking device;

Figure 2 is a plan view of a circuit board of the tracking device of figure 1;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of the circuit board of figure 2;

Figure 4 is a plan view of the circuit board of figure 2 with part detached;

Figure 5 is a plan view of part of another embodiment of a circuit board; and

Figure 6 is a plan view of part of yet another embodiment of a circuit board.

Referring to the drawings a tracking device for use in vehicle comprises a generally cuboidal housing 1.

The housing houses a printed circuit board 2. Various electronic components which provide functionality for the tracking device are mounted on the circuit board 2, including a microprocessor 3, one or more positional or movement sensors 4, a power supply 5, antenna 6 and non-volatile memory 7 which in the illustrated embodiment takes the form of a generally rectangular integrated circuit.

The circuit board is generally rectangular in shape with rounded corners. A small, generally semi-circular, cut-out 8, 9 is formed in each long side of the board to locate the board in the housing 1. In addition, or as an alternative one or more locating apertures 10 may be formed through the board, such as shown in broken lines in figure

1.

Two, opposed, generally “L-shaped” cut outs are formed in one of the short sides of the board, one either side of the non-volatile memory 7. Each cut out comprises a substantially straight and parallel sided slot, forming the long arm of the L, which extends substantially at right angles from the short edge of the board to a point just beyond the innermost side of the volatile memory. At this point the two slots turn towards each other substantially through 90 degrees and extend towards each other forming the short arms of the opposed Ls. This leaves the region of the circuit board 2 on which the memory 7 is mounted connected to the remainder of the circuit board by a strip of board which is narrower than the distance between the long arms of the two slots. Electrical connections between the memory 7 and other components on the board are formed by tracks which run on this strip. The memory 7 is thus mounted to a substantially rectangular piece of circuit board which connected to the remainder of the circuit board only along part of one if its shorter sides. The rectangular piece lies within the overall perimeter of the circuit board 2.

The relatively narrow strip of circuit board connecting the portion of the circuit board supporting the memory 7 to the rest of the board provides a point of weakness at which the board will preferentially break in the event that sufficient force is applied between the memory 7, or region of the board on which it is mounted, and the remainder of the board, or component mounted on the remainder of the board. In practice a force tending to flex the board will cause it to snap. The force required to break off the region of circuit board on which the memory is mounted is less than the force required to break the memory or dislodge it from the board.

This has two benefits. One is that the memory can easily be removed, in- tact, from the board for analysis by snapping the board at the point of weakness and removing the small portion of board on which the memory is mounted. The other is that if a force is applied between the memory and the remainder of the board, for example as a result of a vehicle in which the tracking device is mounted being involved in an accident and being damaged, the portion of the board will preferentially snap off from the remainder of the board before sufficient force is applied to damage the memory. This increases the prospect of the memory surviving in such a situation and being able to be removed for analysis.

The memory is non-volatile and formatted as a FAT file system and so may be read by a suitable computer or device in the manner of a USB drive. The memory could have a different format.

In use the tracking device monitors the location, movement and operation of a 20 vehicle in which it is installed. This information is stored in the memory and transmitted via the antenna and a communications network to a remote server for storage. The information is stored on the memory 7 at least until it has been stored on the server. It can then be deleted from the memory 7.

In practice there tends to be a delay in information being transmitted to the server, for example due to availability of a connection to and the speed of the communications network. In the event that the vehicle in which the tracking device is mounted is involved in a collision which causes damage to the tracking device or otherwise impairs its function it is likely that the last information determined by the tracking device is stored to the memory 7 but was not transferred to the server. As that information may be useful in determining the cause of and/or liability for the accident or be otherwise useful it is useful to be able to recover the information from the memory. Providing the memory on an easily removable portion of the circuit board facilities this.

Figures 5 and 6 show other ways in which a circuit board 2 can be provided with a break off portion on which a memory 7 is mounted. Figure 5 shows an arrangement similar to that of figure 1 except that the break off portion 2 is generally semi-circular, so is separated from the remainder of the board by two arcuate slots.

Figure 6 shows an arrangement where the break off is portion generally circular and surrounded on all sides by the remainder of the board, from which it is separated by an arcuate slot which extends through approximately 330 degrees leaving just a narrow strip of the circuit board connecting the break off portion to the remainder of the circuit board 2.The above embodiment is described by way of example only. Many variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

A tracking device for tracking a vehicle, the tracking device comprising a memory for storing information recorded by the tracking device wherein the memory is mounted to a part of the tracking device that will preferentially separate from the remainder of the device when a force is applied between the memory and the remainder of the device.

A tracking device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the part of the tracking device to which the memory is mounted will preferentially break from the remainder of the device.

A tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the memory is a non-volatile electronic memory.

A tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the memory is self-powered.

A tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the memory is mounted to a circuit board to which other components of the tracking device are also mounted.

A tracking device as claimed in claim 5 wherein the memory is mounted to a portion of the circuit board which is connected to the remainder of the circuit board by a region of the circuit board arranged to preferentially break when a force is applied between the memory and the remainder of the circuit board.

A tracking device as claimed in claim 6 wherein the portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted is partially surrounded by a slot.

7.

8. A tracking device as claimed in claim 6 wherein the portion of the circuit board to which the memory is mounted is partially or wholly surrounded by a line of weakness in the circuit board.

9. A tracking device as claimed in any of claims 6 to 8 wherein the portion of the
5 circuit board to which the memory is mounted forms part of an outside edge of the circuit board.
10. A tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim further comprising one or more of the following: microprocessor; positioning device; movement sensor; accelerometer; gyroscope; power supply; battery; communication device; and

10 antenna.
11. A tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim comprising a housing.
12. A vehicle comprising a tracking device as claimed in any preceding claim.
13. A road vehicle comprising a tracking device as claimed in any of claims 1 to

11.
15 14. A method of recovering information from a tracking device as claimed in any of claims 1 to 11 comprising recovering the memory of the device and reading the memory.

15. A method as claimed in claim 14 wherein the step of recovering the memory includes the step of separating the memory from the tracking device.

20
16. A method as claimed in claim 15 wherein the step of recovering the memory includes the step of breaking the memory from the tracking device.
17. A method as claimed in claim 16 wherein the step of recovering the memory includes the step of breaking of a portion a circuit board to which the memory is mounted from the remainder of the circuit board.