Device for the monitoring of the movement of an object, especially a vehicle Technical Field The invention'relates to a device for monitoring the movement of an object, especially a vehicle, over time through a GPS recorder which comprises a GPS antenna, a GPS receiver, and a microprocessor.

Background Art For measuring the motion of a vehicle or other moving object (for example, a boat, <BR> <BR> motorcycle, construction machine, etc. ) a GPS receiver with a GPS antenna and a microprocessor is used. This equipment follows the position of the vehicle over time and the data resulting from the measurement is processed by the microprocessor.

This equipment will be further referred to in this document as the"GPS recorder." Such equipment though can be referred to by other names such as"Electronic book <BR> <BR> of travel"or"Electronic record of operation. "Each name essentially describes the same device, working according to the above listed principles.

In current equipments the data from the GPS recorder is written into the internal memory of the GPS recorder. At the end of some defined period the data is transferred from the vehicle to a computer where it is to be processed into graphics or text.

The largest problem of current GPS recorders occurs during the transfer of data from the vehicle to a computer for processing. Currently there are three major methods used for accomplishing this task, they are as follows : The first method assumes that every GPS recorder has internal memory and an connector for connecting to a computer. The operator of the vehicle at the end of the designated time period must connect the GPS recorder to the device where the records will be stored/processed (usually a notebook computer) by means of a computer cable and then transfer the data from the vehicle to the computer. This method has the following disadvantages: the necessity of arranging interconnecting connector into the interior of the vehicle, a lack of interoperability, the high costs for the processing equipment and the necessity to train operators.

The second method assumes that the transfer of the data from the internal memory of the GPS recorder will be accomplished by the means of a radio or mobile telephone network. This solution is financially expensive because it is necessary to pay tariffs for the transfer of the data. With an expanded amount of data there is a significant increase in the cost for usage. Additionally the equipment can be quite complicated.

, The disadvantages of this method are the. high costs of equipment ;, a highs c, osts ; for usage ! and limited amounts of data transfer capacity.

The third method uses external memory in the form of a module ; that is. remoyable from the GPS recorder. The module comprises internal memory in the form of. integrated circuits as well as control circuit. The disadvantages are the large size of the equipment, the difficult of installing the device into the interior oftthe vehicle, unfavorable ratios of price to memory capacity and a complicated mechanical construction.

Disclosure of Invention The listed deficiencies have been solved by a device for time depended monitoring of the. movement of an object, especially a vehicle, through a GPS recorder which comprises a GPS antenna, a GPS receiver, and a microprocessor, pursuant to the invention based on the fact that the GPS recorder is by a cable conntected. with a recording device for recording data onto a multimedia card.

The. device according to the invention enables the use of ordinary affordabie commercial multimedia cards of various types (MMC, SD,, SmartMedia, CompactFlash), originally designed for digital cameras and camcorders. The price of multimedia cards is significantly cheaper than the price of any of the specially constructed external memory devices for a GPS recorder that are currently available on the market. Readers and recording equipment for these cards can be manufactured to very small dimensions with a negligible weigh and can be connected by means of a cable placed in the interior of a vehicle.

In order to prevent the usage of unauthorized multimedia cards, it is beneficial if the recording device is provided with a reading circuit.

It is also useful if the microprocessor of the GPS recorder is connected to an immobilizer so that the vehicle's motor will not start without an authorized multimedia card.

The recording device can be provided with. an optical signaling, for example a multicolored electroluminescent element which through coded shine informs the user about chosen information.

It is also useful if the GPS recorder is provided with buffer for the recording of data in the case of a failure of the immobilizer and/or the recording device.

In order to prevent the erasure or other destruction of data on the multimedia card by using known devices, the microprocessor of the GPS recorder is connected to an external coding module for coding of the access to the data on the multimedia card.

According to the preferred embodiments the GPS recorder is provided with an access port for external data, especially for information about fuel consumption and/or vehicle systems voltage and/or the state of the engine.

Brief Description of Drawings The invention will be better understood through the help of Fig. 1 and 2. Fig. 1 illustrates the simplest example of the device for monitoring the movement of an automobile over time. Fig. 2 is another example of the implementation containing several useful additional functions.

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention Fig. 1 is the simplest embodiment of the device for the monitoring of the movement of an object over time. In the presented example the monitored object is an automobile 9, however the device according to the invention can be used for monitoring the movement of buses, motorcycles, boats and construction machines, etc. The acquired data can be used for creating an overview of the movement of company vehicles.

The basic component of the device is a standard GPS recorder 1 for example a type Trimble SQ, comprising a receiver 2 with a GPS antenna 4 and a microprocessor 3, (in this case an Atmel 82C52 microprocessor). The GPS receiver 2 and the microprocessor 3 are arranged together in a box.

There is a recording device 6 for recording of data on a multimedia card 7 connected to the GPS recorder 1 by a cable 8. The recording device 6 is determined by the type of. multimedia card 7 that is to be used. From the commercially available types of multimedia cards 7 it is possible to mention SD, MMC, SmartMedia, CompactFlash, etc., with a capacity of 32MB, 64MB, etc. Of course it is possible to use multimedia card 7 having any capacity in accordance with the expected data quantity.

The recording device 6 has minimal weigh and size making it therefore possible to attach it to the dashboard of the automobile in a place of easy access from the driver's side of the automobile.

Upon entering the automobile 9 the driver inserts his multimedia card 7 into the recording device 6 and after every start of the engine of the automobile 9 the GPS recorder 1 is automatically activated after which the GPS receiver 2 with the help of the GPS antenna 4 searches for satellites of the global position system which are at that moment accessible. From the signals of the satellites the precise position of the automobile 9 is determined. Information about the position of the automobile 9 depending on time is recorded onto the multimedia card 7 with help of the recording device 6. The GPS recorder 1 is automatically deactivated when the engine of the automobile 9 is shut off.

Information about the movement of the automobile 9 can be easily transferred from the. Tnuitimedia : card 7 to a personal computer through the assistancej of a commercially available multimedia card reader connected, ! pc ! rt tq the personal computer. The subsequent processing of the data regarding movement of the automobile 9 is already quite well known and therefore will not be described in this document. The extent of the processing of the data depends entirely, upon the software that one uses.

Fig. 2 shows a broader embodiment of the invention, which would eliminate the possibility of unauthorized usage of the companies'vehicles and the falsification of information.

The interest of the owner of the vehicle is that the data from. the GPS recorder 1 is always complete. In other terms, this means it is not possible to drive the vehicle without having the data from that journey recorded. The recording. device 6 is therefore provided with a reading circuit 10 which enables the sampling of the information stored in the multimedia card 7, while the microprocessor 3 of the GPS recorder 1 which is connected to the immobilizer 11.

In cases where the reading circuit 10 in the recording device 6 discovers an unauthorized multimedia card 7 or the complete absence of a multimedia card 7, the immobilizer 11 restricts the starting of the vehicle. The GPS recorder 1 thus fulfills a secondary function of security for the vehicle. Thus the multimedia card 7 serves as a form of identification element bearing the authorization data.

The GPS recorder 1 is also provided with a buffer 5 in cases where the immobilizer 11 fails, for example when a disconnected circuit is over bridged by a cable. In cases when this occurs the immobilizer 11 will not be abble to stop the automobile 9 from being started even when there is no authorized multimedia card 7 inserted however if subsequently the authorized multimedia card 7 is inserted then all data about the journey in which there was no authorized multimedia card 7 will be later copied onto the authorized multimedia card 7 from the buffer 5 of the GPS recorder 1.

The GPS recorder 1 in the embodiment according to Fig. 2 is also provided with an access port 12 for external data. This modification enables the recording of, in addition to information about the movement of the vehicle, other information such as fuel consumption, board voltage, diagnostic information about the state of the dengine, etc. all onto the multimedia card 7 The recording device 6 is provided with an optical signaling which signals the state of the GPS recorder 1 (on, off, and other information) and the state of the immobilizer 11, or other diagnostic functions. This integration into the recording device 6 simplifies the whole assembly lowering the number of needed wires.

The software used in the GPS recorder 1 has the ability to restrict access to the data on the multimedia card 7 through the means of a password since there are various commonly used devices (e. g. computer, video camera, camera) which could be used to change or destroy mistakenly or intentionally the data stored in the various types of <BR> <BR> the multimedia cards 7 (SD, MMC, SmartMedia, CompactFlash, etc. ) which are not protected by a password. This function is usually not available by the above mentioned devices (e. g. computer, camcorder, camera). Therefore an external coding module 13 is provided which activates the protective function by means of a password on the multimedia card 7 and is compatible with the program that comes with the GPS recorder 1.