Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
Automated Tamper-Resistant Container Pool
The invention provides an automated tamper-resistant user's inventory storing
container pool
characterized by enclosing non-tamper-resistant containers in a tamper-
resistant shell, wherein
authorized user access to the containers is provided through tamper-resistant
gateways. The
container to be accessed is transported from inside the shell to one of the
gateways by a
transporting device. The shell is controlled by a controller that communicates
with the user
through a console. The controller authenticates the user, selects the relevant
container, and
instructs the transporting device to deliver the selected container into the
user access gateway.
The invention is ideally suited for providing the fully automated, unguarded,
round the clock
operating depository for valuable inventory, such as cash, jewellery,
documents, and private
information in administrative and residential buildings, hotels, and banks.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The disclosed invention generally pertains to safety box pools and adjacent
locker sets which
mean to store valuable inventory. More specifically, the invention relates to
the adjacent
locker pools with access controlled by a central computer device (or
controller) basing on user
authentication. The disclosed invention possesses a range of advantages and
benefits over the
conventional tamper-resistant safety box pools with automated access
authorization. In
particular, the main idea of the invention is based on enclosing in a tamper-
resistant shell a
plurality of non-tamper-resistant containers whereto authorized user access is
provided through
gateways. This minimizes the vulnerability of the whole system. Moreover,
because each non-
tamper-resistant container is less expensive than a personal tamper-resistant
safety box, and
since the authorized user access is secure and provided automatically this
innovation decreases
considerably the cost of the system, as well as ongoing operating, guarding,
and maintenance
expenses. Also the time of the service being available becomes extended.
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
The invention is ideally suited for providing a fully automated, unguarded,
round the clock
operating depository for valuable inventory, such as cash, jewellery,
documents, and private
information in administrative and residential buildings, hotels, and banks.
2. Description of Prior Art
Security for valuables holders has always been of major concern of deposit box
systems
developers. The safety deposit box pools, specifically those with centralized
access control,
have long been known. The following patents describe some of the archetypes.
Canadian patent # CA 1322394 "STORAGE SYSTEM WITH ADJACENT BINS
CONTROLLED BY A MICROPROCESSOR DEVICE" describes the pool of safety
boxes where access to each of them is controlled by a microprocessor device (a
controller).
The controller authenticates the user, selects which particular safety box the
user is authorized
to get access to, and unlocks the door of this box. This idea has been widely
used in the
automated banking safety box pools technology.
The above invention is not deprived of a certain disadvantage. As long as a
user has access to
the premises where the safety boxes are installed, it is important to prevent
the user form
breaking into somebody else's safety box. Therefore each safety box in the
pool is required to
be tamper-resistant and equipped with a tamper-resistant door and lock.
Canadian patent CA 1005697 "SAFE DEPOSIT BOX SYSTEM" presents the method of
protecting a set of non-tamper-resistant containers placed inside a tamper-
resistant shell. This
method is devoid of the disadvantage of the previous solution. Each safety box
can be non-
tamper resistant, because the safety box pool is enclosed in the tamper-
resistant shell. However
this solution presupposes solely group access to the whole safety box pool.
This makes this
solution pointless for the systems that are supposed to provide unattended
individual access to
the depository for valuable inventory.
2
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
Canadian Patent # CA 1207411 "ARTICLE DISPENSER" describes the dispensing
machine that stores articles, dispenses them to authenticated cardholders, and
returns the
articles back for further storing. The disclosed invention compares favourably
to the solution
presented in the given patent owing to the following features:
~ The disclosed invention is designed for storing not only low-value articles,
but valuable
inventory.
~ The disclosed invention is equipped with a tamper-resistant shell, whereas
the article
dispenser described in the above patent is not provided with tamper-resistant
means.
~ The disclosed invention is equipped with tamper-resistant gateways whereas
the article
dispenser is not secured against penetration into the dispenser through its
delivery and
return gateways.
UK Patent (CIPO patent document # 1314856) "PNEUMATIC CASH TRANSFER
SYSTEMS AND CANISTERS FOR USE THEREIN" describes the applying of the similar
approach to transporting cash from a remote cashier to a bank, where the
cashier and the bank
are located in different security access zones. However, the cash transfer
system is not
designed for secure storing of valuables other than cash; neither it is
designed for the users'
inventory dispensing.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Considered broadly, the novelty of this invention constitutes in enclosing the
plurality of non-
tamper resistant containers in a tamper-resistant shell that is equipped with
a transporting
device and tamper-resistant gateways. The transporting device is used for
transporting the use
related container to one of the gateways, through where the user can access
the container. The
shell is controlled by a controller, which communicates with the users through
a console. The
controller authenticates the user, selects the relevant container, and
instructs the transporting
3
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
device to transport the selected container into the user access gateway. Upon
user access
session completion the controller signals the transporting device to return
the container back
into the shell.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the container pool
Fig. 2 is a side plan view of the gateway
Fig. 3 is a top plan of the container pool with multiple access zones;
delivery, return, and two-
way gateways
Fig. 4 is a side plan of the container pool modification
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
With reference to the drawings, the basic principles of this invention are as
follows:
Non-tamper-resistant containers (1) are enclosed in a tamper-resistant shell
(2). The containers
are designed for storing users' valuable inventory. A user can get access to
the container
through a gateway (3). The container is delivered into the gateway by the
transporting device
(4). The transporting device and the gateways are controlled by a controller
(5).
The controller communicates with a user by means of a console (6) through
which the
controller gets user authentication data. The console is placed outside the
shell. Using these
data the controller selects the container to be accessed, detects its location
in the shell, and
instructs the transporting device to transport the selected container into the
selected gateway
and to return the container back from the gateway into the shell. The
controller can be a
computer, and a console can be a keypad or a display device linked to the
given computer. As
an option, the console can include biometrical sensors and/or electronic ID
data readers, such
as smartcard readers.
4
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
The gateway is tamper-resistant and means to prevent penetration into the
shell through the
gateway. The gateway has three working positions. In the first working
position it is open for
transporting device access and closed for user access from the outside. In the
second working
position the gateway is open for user access and closed for access from the
gateway into the
shell. In the optional third working position the gateway is shut for any
access.
Fig 2. shows an example of a gateway that possesses two tamper-resistant gates
- an internal
gate (7) that provides access from inside the shell, and an external gate (8)
that provides access
from outside the shell. The internal gate is open for the period of the
container's being moved
into the gateway. The external gate unlocks as soon as the selected container
gets into the
gateway; meanwhile the internal gate is closed and locked.
After the external gate has been unlocked, the user can get access to the
container. Upon the
access session completion the user closes the external gate and signals the
end of the session.
Then the container is returned from the gateway back into the tamper-resistant
shell.
The returning of the container is performed in the following sequence: the
controller instructs
the external gate to shut and lock; the controller instructs the internal gate
to unlock and open;
the controller instructs the transporting device to remove the container from
the gateway;
optionally, the controller instructs the internal gate to lock.
As an option, the controller detects the completion of the user access session
automatically by
container proper positioning, and/or by container's being shut inside the
gate, and/or by the
external gate being shut.
Apart from the two-way type gateway (3) there can be two more types of
gateways. These are
delivery gateways (9) for transporting the containers to users and return
gateways (10) for
returning containers back into the shell.
The disclosed invention can contain more than one user access zones. In that
case each access
zone has at least one gateway of either type and at least one console.
CA 02501789 2005-03-29
Fig 3. shows an example of the container pool with the following user access
zones:
~ The user access zone ( 11 ) with one console (6), one delivery gateway (9),
and one
return gateway ( 10)
~ The user access zone (12) with one console (6) and two delivery gateways (9)
~ The user access zone (13) with one console (6) and one return gateway (10)
~ The user access zone (14) with one console (6) and one two-way gateway (3)
As an option, the container is a removable capsule that can be carried away by
the user. In this
case the container can be equipped with an identification token. The
identification token can
be used by the transporting device and the controller for the following
purposes: recognizing
the specific container; identifying its user; detecting container location
inside the shell.
For security reasons the tamper-resistant shell can have the following
embedded systems: fire
extinguishing system; explosive materials detection systems; motion detection
system; alarm
system; TV-camera monitoring system.
To enforce tamper-resistance the gateways can be placed remotely from the
tamper-resistant
shell, and the shell can be placed inside a restricted zone of the building or
in the physically
laboured access environment (i.e. underground, as shown in Fig. 4).
6
