In situ inventory tracking system

Abstract

The invention is comprised of physical containment and control units coupled with a fault-tolerant sensor system and one or more servers which receive sensed input and invoke functions within virtual processing components (objects) to perform silent monitoring and critical inventory tracking and compliance reports.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An in situ inventory and stock management system, comprised of:
 a plurality of in situ containment and control units coupled with at least one sensor assembly in communication with a plurality of virtual processing components located on a remote server wherein said virtual processing components are comprised of the following:   a unit class for tracking location and attributes of said plurality of in situ containment and control units;   an inventory class for tracking each item within a list of inventory items;   a processing component for comparing the current date to an item expiration date to determine if a date threshold has been exceeded;   an event class for instantiating an inventory event object when a sensed input is received or a date threshold is exceeded;   a mapping class for tracking and updating location attributes of said plurality of in situ container units; and   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , which further includes a personnel class which instantiates a plurality of personnel objects and invokes functions to identify attributes. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein said personnel class is a processing component configured to instantiate a personnel object representing each personnel. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein each of said personnel objects includes attributes selected from the group consisting of personnel identification, unit identification number, date opened, and authorization status. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said unit class is a processing component configured to instantiate containment and control unit objects representing each of said plurality of in situ containment and control units, and to associate each of said plurality of in situ containment and control units with a unique identification number. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein each of said containment and control unit objects includes attributes selected from the group consisting of unit identification number, date deployed, unit status, content list code, item data, item status, and date item stored. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said inventory class is a processing component configured to instantiate inventory objects, wherein each of said inventory objects has attributes representing an item stored within said containment and control unit. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein each of said inventory objects includes attributes selected from the group consisting of unit identification number, item description, quantity, inventory number, date deployed, and expiration date. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said event object is a processing component configured to instantiate event objects, corresponding to a signal received from said sensor assembly of said containment and control unit. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein each of said event objects includes attributes selected from the group consisting of unit identification number, date opened and event type. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said mapping class is a processing component configured to instantiate a quasi-unique mapping object, which reflects the status attribute of each of said plurality of in situ containment and control units at a specific point in time. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein each of said mapping objects includes attributes selected from the group consisting of unit identification number, unit location, and unit status. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein said sensor assembly includes one or more sensors which transmit a signal when one of said plurality of in situ containment and control units is opened, wherein said at least one sensor is operatively coupled with said server. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein said sensor assembly further includes one or more sensors selected from the group consisting of a location sensor, a camera, a video sensor, a timer, and a transmitter, wherein said at least one sensor is operatively coupled with said server. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein said signal updates at least one attribute of a unit object. 
     
     
         16 . A method for using a in situ inventory and stock management system, comprised of the steps of:
 storing items in at least one containment and control unit;   coupling said at least one containment and control unit with a sensor assembly which sends a signal to a server when said unit is opened;   performing at least one containment and control unit status monitoring function;   performing at least one item status monitoring function; and   updating an event log when a signal is received.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , which further includes the step of comparing expiration dates to the current date. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 16 , which further includes the step of receiving said signal created by an event selected from a group consisting of opening of said at least one containment and control unit, tampering with said at least one containment and control unit, moving of said at least one containment and control unit, expiration of said items, supplementing said items, and replacing said items. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 16 , which further includes the step of performing at least one location status monitoring function upon receiving a signal. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16 , which further includes the step of displaying the location and status of said at least one containment and control unit.