Asset management infrastructure

US8692649B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• International Business Machines Corporation · US

Inventors

• Lawrence A. Clevenger · Saratoga Springs, US
• Rainer Krause · Hochheim, DE
• Kevin S. Petrarca · Newburgh, US
• Carl Radens · Lagrangeville, US
• Brian C. Sapp · Guilderland, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Nov 15, 2011
• Grant date: Apr 8, 2014
• Expiry date: May 11, 2032

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G06Q10/087
• WIPO field: Control
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Asset management for control of electric appliances comprises a keycode unit and an equipment unit embedded in an appliance. The keycode unit is located in a protected environment and relates to an asset management area. The equipment unit may store an appliance identification code. The keycode unit and the equipment unit may be in communication contact, whereby the equipment unit sends positioning coordinates to the keycode unit, and wherein the equipment unit is adapted to lock the appliance via the lock unit, in response to a lock signal that the equipment unit receives from the keycode unit, if the appliance moves outside the asset management area.