Telemetry-enabled trap monitoring system

Abstract

Disclosed is a trap including a status LED configured to indicate a trap status, a door sensor configured to indicate a door status, and a status button, configured to: 1) wake a micro controller such that the telemetry-enabled trap can be registered with a telemetry system, and 2) cause the status LED to indicate at least the trap status and the door status. Also disclosed is a method for monitoring the trap. The method includes receiving GPS data, monitoring the GPS data for valid positional information, and receiving an event message from a trap tracker module.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A trap comprising:
 a status LED configured to indicate a trap status;   a door sensor configured to indicate a door status; and   a status button, configured to:
 wake a micro controller such that the telemetry-enabled trap can be registered with a telemetry system, and 
 cause the status LED to indicate at least the trap status and the door status. 
   
     
     
         2 . An apparatus for capturing animals comprising:
 a trap having a movable trapping member;   a circuit comprising:
 a sensor arranged to sense a status of the movable trapping member, 
 an indicator; and 
 a controller arranged to receive a signal from the sensor and control the indication in response to the signal. 
   
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , further comprising a GPS module electrically coupled to the controller for receiving positional data. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the indicator is selected from a group comprising: a LED, a transmitter, and an audible indicator. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , further comprising a status activator in electrical communication with the controller, the controller having a sleep state and a wake state, the controller programmed to:
 wake upon receiving an input from the status activator, and   cause the indicator to indicate at least status of the door.   
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the status activator is selected from a group comprising: a button, a switch, and a toggle. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , further comprising:
 a battery in electrical communication with the status LED, the sensor, and the activator; and   a battery charger in electrical communication with the battery.   
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein the battery charger is a smart battery charger. 
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the sensor is selected from the group comprising: a momentary switch, a Hall Effect sensor and an optical interrupter device. 
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the controller is a micro-controller in electrical communication with the status activator. 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , further comprising a telemetry module in electrical communication with the controller. 
     
     
         12 . A trap tracker monitoring system comprising:
 a receiver configured to receive a message;   a memory housing a database configured to store the message and trap information; and   a processor configured to display a trap tracker web application, the trap tracker web application configured to present the message and the trap information through a web browser.   
     
     
         13 . The trap tracker monitoring system of  claim 12 , further comprising a telemetry network configured to route a message to a wireless communications transfer protocol (WCTP) gateway. 
     
     
         14 . The trap tracker monitoring system of  claim 13 , wherein the message comprises positional data, a sensor indication, and a battery voltage indication. 
     
     
         15 . A method for monitoring a trap, the method comprising:
 receiving an event message from a trap tracker module, the event message comprising GPS data; and   monitoring the GPS data for valid positional information.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein monitoring the GPS data for valid positional information comprises monitoring the GPS data during a status check. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein monitoring the GPS data for valid positional information comprises monitoring the GPS data while the trap is being registered. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the message comprises a battery voltage indication. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising determining when the trap needs to be serviced, wherein the determination that the trap needs to be serviced is based at least on the battery voltage indication. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising monitoring the trap for a trap event. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 20 , wherein monitoring the trap for the trap event comprises waking a micro-controller from a sleep mode at predetermined time intervals to determine if the trap event occurred. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising receiving a heartbeat message indicating the trap is operating properly and no event has occurred. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22 , further comprising determining a maintenance schedule based on information contained in the heartbeat message.