FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a system for managing attendance at a site, in particular and automated system for checking people in and out of a site. It is particularly suited for managing the attendance of contractors at a work site but is also applicable to any site with casual or regular visitors.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] Managing the attendance of visitors to commercial premises is usually undertaken with the aid of a visitor book and passes worn by the visitor. The visitor writes their details in the visitor book and is given a pass to wear, with the whole process being overseen by a receptionist. The receptionist will vet the visitor and either grant them access or arrange for a staff member to escort them. This is a labour intensive process and can cause delay to the visitor, particularly when multiple visitors arrive at a site simultaneously. Further effort and time is consumed in signing the visitor out.

[0003] Such a manual procedure can also compromise a visitor's privacy, with their details easily seen by a third party looking at the visitors book.

[0004] Regular visitors such as subcontractors are often given a semi-permanent pass to speed their entry, however if an actual record of their attendance is required then they still need to sign in and out in some matter. This is particularly prone to errors or abuse at sites where there is no receptionist present to confirm the identity of a visitor and ensure that the time actually spent at the site is correctly recorded.

[0005] Managing the attendance of people at an event such as a conference or construction site is similarly time consuming with attendees having to register their attendance, usually with every attendee wanting to do so at the same time. For a conference there is usually no effort made to sign people out, or to register their attendance at every session of the conference as this would be very inconvenient for the attendees. This makes it impossible to have an accurate record of attendance.

[0006] Some mobile applications such as EventBrite have gone some way towards managing entry to an event, but are little more than an electronic ticket utilising a QR code. User pre-register online and receive a form of eTicket for their smart phone which is then scanned at entry points to a venue by a scanner on a device located permanently at the venue. Such systems do not handle people leaving events, make no provision for ad-hoc attendees and are unsuited for use at sites without supervision by security staff or a receptionist.

[0007] The object of this invention is to provide an automated system for managing attendance at a site that alleviates the above problems, or at least provides the public with a useful alternative.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The present invention provides a system for managing the attendance of users at a site, comprising a user application running on a user device comprising geolocation means; and a server application running on a server device, wherein the user application registers the attendance of the user at the site with the server application when the geolocation means indicates that the user device is present at the site.

[0009] Registering attendance at the site may be triggered by the user device scanning a QR code at the site; the QR code may be displayed on a terminal.

Preferably the geolocation means is a GPS device and the attendance of the user at the site is confirmed by a GPS reading from the GPS device. Alternatively the attendance of the user at the site is triggered by a GPS reading from the GPS device. Attendance at the site may also triggered by a Bluetooth beacon or NFC device.

[0010] Before registering their attendance at the site the user application may interrogate the user for credentials. Preferably the user credentials are validated against preconfigured credentials required for registering at the site.

[0011] In preference an access pass is sent from the server application to the user application following successful registration of the user at the site. The access pass preferably comprises a QR code.

[0012] The user application may also register departure of the user from the site with the server device. The user may trigger registering their departure from the site via the user application. Alternatively the user application may register departure of the user from the site when the geolocation means indicates that the user device is no longer present at the site. Preferably the user application prompts the user to confirm their departure from the site.

[0013] The user application may also interrogate the user for details regarding their attendance at the site.

[0014] It should be noted that any one of the aspects mentioned above may include any of the features of any of the other aspects mentioned above and may include any of the features of any of the embodiments described below as appropriate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] The present invention provides a system to manage attendance of attendees at a venue or site with the aid of a tablet device and preferably smartphones. Users (i.e. attendees or contractors) interact with a tablet device acting as a terminal at the venue either manually, via email on a smartphone or via a dedicated smartphone application to login (register) and logout (de-register) their attendance at the venue. The tablet device communicates with remote system software that provides access passes to the user either via the terminal or their smart phone. The system software also provides monitoring and reporting functions for administrators as well as configuration options. Use is made of geolocation technology to trigger entry and exit events allowing the system to be automated. Once a user has been registered the system may operate without a terminal, relying on geolocation technology alone. This may be further enhanced with the use of QR codes that a user can scan at a site to initiate registration of attendance. In such a situation the user's mobile device will interact with the remote system software and have the users location confirmed with the aid of the geolocation technology.

[0016] The system replaces paper or PC based visitor books and wearable passes and badges at a range of sites and events. The system is designed for corporate locations, trade shows, construction sites, hotels, bars, members clubs and the like to allow venues to provide a better and more cost effective visitor and contractor management system. The system incorporates various levels of automation and confirmation, both for the visitors desire to log in or out of a site as well as granting access which can be configured by an administrator. For contactors the system can be used to ensure that they have appropriate permits for the site that they are attending and keep an accurate log of the time that they were on site. [0017] The invention in its simplest form comprises a user application running on a user device (e.g. smartphone); a terminal application at a venue running on a terminal device (e.g. tablet device) and a server application running on a server device, but also encompasses systems with multiple users, venues, terminals and even servers. The various components communicate with each other using standard networking techniques, the specific details of which are unimportant as are the specific details of the various devices, allowing the invention to be implemented by various technologies as are known in the art. The system is ultimately controlled by the server application including a database which is accessed by administrators to configure and monitor the system. A terminal device is located in a venue for interacting with the attendee who preferably has a smartphone which preferably has the access application installed. The terminal interacts with the attendee and the system software to obtain access passes for the attendee which are sent to the terminal and the users smartphone either via email or a dedicated application. Optionally the access passes are printed via the terminal at a local printer. Geolocation devices in the form of Bluetooth beacons, NFC and/or GPS infrastructure allow the user's presence at the venue to be determined.

[0018] The system is operable in several modes, from fully manual to fully automatic depending on a site's requirements and what aspects of the system a user chooses to adopt. Operation of the system will first be described from a user interaction point of view where a terminal is available, starting with a manual system and then progressing to a fully automatic system. The server system software and configuration will then be discussed.

[0019] A terminal will typically sit on the reception desk for a venue or at the entrance to a work site and will be dedicated to running the terminal application which presents a home screen for the user to interact with.

[0020] A visitor (without the user application) will initiate the sign in process

(registration) by tapping the screen and will then be prompted to enter their particulars. Details required include name; and email address for users with mobile devices.

Optionally the visitor must allow the terminal to capture their image. The visitor's details are then forwarded to the central server which then issues an access pass. The access pass is forwarded to the terminal and also transmitted to the visitor by email or SMS. An access pass includes the visitor's name, photo id, arrival time, venue details and host name (discussed below). The pass also includes a QR code which encodes the access pass information allow the transfer of pass details by visual means. The access pass is displayed on the terminal and also stored to allow the visitor to check out later. A welcoming message is displayed along with the access pass including entry instructions or important venue related information such as OH&S information. The user will confirm their signing in. Optionally the terminal can be used to print an access pass. The visitor will now have access to the venue, either by displaying their printed pass or by displaying the email or SMS on their smartphone with the access pass enclosed. The email or SMS will also provide a link to allow the user to install the user application.

[0021] On return visits a visitor without the user application will need to repeat the same process. This encourages the visitor to adopt the user application. The user is further encouraged if they encounter the same system at a different venue.

[0022] When the user leaves the venue they can sign out by either using the terminal or by following a link in their email or SMS access pass. For a manual sign out the user selects their access pass from a sign out screen displaying a list of all current access passes and the server is notified. In the case of an email initiated sign out the terminal is notified by the server. The visitor's access pass is then removed from the terminal. A visitor may also be automatically signed out automatically after a

predetermined time interval. Optionally an email is sent to the visitor after they have checked out which may include a preconfigured message such as a thankyou for visiting the venue and/or a prompt to install the user application.

[0023] The above scenario provides some advantages over a manual visitor book system, more so for the venue administrator than the visitor who can then access the system sever to view either live or historical access details. Further advantages are provided when the visitor chooses to install the user application.

[0024] The user application is installed on the visitor's smartphone, enabling them to preload their name, email address and photo id. These details are stored on the central server.

[0025] To facilitate automatic and semi-automatic check in the user application utilizes geolocation services including Geofencing, NFC, and/or Bluetooth beacons such as Eddystone beacons, iBeacons and AltBeacons to determine when the visitor is at a venue and instigate communication with the terminal. The user application will be aware of the venue location in advance to take advantage of standard Geofencing. A Bluetooth beacon or NFC may be used to broadcast the venues identity for use when visiting a venue ad-hoc.

[0026] A site may also display a unique QR code that is read by the user's smartphone to initiate entry or exit. The QR code may be displayed on the terminal or printed out and placed in a convenient position near the entry. Displaying multiple QR codes facilitates simultaneous entry by multiple parties. As a security measure the QR codes can be changed when desired to ensure that a copy of the QR code cannot be used to initiate an entry or exit. An entry or exit initiated by QR code may also be verified by a geolocation service.

[0027] Having determined that it is at a venue the user application will identify the visitor to the terminal. The terminal will then load the visitor's details from the central server and add them to a sign in screen for pre-identified visitors. The visitor will access the terminal using a dedicated sign in icon which will take them to the screen of pre-identified visitors from which they will select their own profile to sign in. To ensure that an incorrect profile is not chosen, either deliberately or by accident, a push notification including an access pass is sent to the user application on the visitor's smart phone which the visitors then validates. The visitors profile is then removed from the sign in screen. Alternatively an access pass is automatically sent to the visitor when they arrive at a venue. In a similar manner geolocation services can be used to determine when the visitor leaves a venue and instigate signing out. This may be fully automatic or require confirmation via the user application

[0028] Geofencing (and not Bluetooth beacons or NFC) is also used by the user application to determine when a visitor leaves a venue by a pre-set radius (for example 500m). The application communicates with the server advising that the visitor has left the venue. Optionally the action is confirmed by the visitor.

[0029] Alternatively the user application allows visitors to tap and reveal a sign out icon which allows the user to manually sign out of a venue.

[0030] In addition to managing access to a venue, the system can also manage access to particular hosts at a venue. Hosts are typically staff associated with a venue and have their details stored in the server database and also downloaded to the terminals at a venue. When signing in at a terminal a visitor will be presented with a directory of hosts to select whom they are visiting. The host will be sent a notification, either via email or the user application. The host will either: accept the visitor, accept the visitor after a delay or deny access to the visitor. Optionally a greeting message can be sent from the host to a visitor, for example: "meet you in the canteen". If granted access then an access pass is then generated for the visitor including the host's details. If access is accepted after a delay the host indicates how long before the visitor is allowed access. This is displayed to the visitor and their access pass encoded accordingly. Hosts may have delegates that receive and respond to access requests on their behalf. Hosts may be hierarchically grouped into companies and departments to facilitate their selection. A simple search function is also provided on the host selection screen.

[0031] Visitors may also be invited to a venue. Invitations are stored with the visitors profile in the server database and are sent to the terminal to be used to determine if an access pass is granted to a visitor at a venue.

[0032] On signing into a venue the terminal application can optionally educate the visitor regarding venue information and/or OH & S requirements. The user can be compelled to view and acknowledge a number of screens of information and even compelled to correctly answer questions regarding the information before an access pass is provided. The user may also need to provide a signature as part of their acknowledgement.

[0033] Contractor Management

[0034] The system is particularly useful for managing the attendance of workers at a site, especially staff attending on an ad hoc basis such as contractors. A site may be remote from a company's office such as mine site or a building site and have little or no infrastructure to support normal monitoring of attendance.

[0035] A contractor would first register with the system. This could be as described above when the contractor is offsite to ensure the bona fides of the registration. Once registered the contractor could then visit a site and check in and out. This could be done as above when a terminal running the application is present, but could also be triggered by geofencing, i.e. when the application on the contractor's phone determines that the contractor is at a site it initiates check in. This could be fully automatic of require confirmation by the contractor. Similarly when the application determines that the contractor has left the site it could automatically initiate a check out. Again this could be confirmed by the contractor. Alternatively a QR code is printed and displayed at the site and the contractor scans the code to initiate a check in and/or a check out. This is used in conjunction with geolocation services to ensure that a copy of the QR code is not being used at a different location.

[0036] A site may have specific requirements for attendance such as a license to carry out particular work or to be trained regarding site hazards. When a contractor initiates a check in the contractor will either be quizzed regarding the required licenses or training. This information may then be checked against the system database or third party systems interrogated to confirm the information supplied by the contractor.

[0037] Additional registration processes described above may also include the requirement for the user attending a venue to provide responses to registration questions regarding the user's qualifications/credentials. These questions comprise a set of "induction" questions which the user can also answer on their mobile device at the same time as attending the site, or the user can "pre-register" from their mobile and answer these questions on their mobile device in advance of attending the venue. The approval of the user's application for approved induction status is transmitted to the Administrator of the venue where that administration can accept or reject the

application. If accepted the user when attending site can proceed to the registration phase.

[0038] The same process above applies also to "permits" where a user is attending a site with the purpose of conducting special works or actions requiring a permit. For example "hot works" or safe work method statement may need to be filled out prior to a user conducting works at a venue. Existing system for permits are paper based like the sign in site books. Again any permits requiring approval will be sent to the Host/ administrator for acceptance or rejection.

[0039] Upon checkout a contractor may also be interrogated. On departing the venue, the user will receive a notification asking them to confirm they are departing the venue. This notification may also contain a request to confirm the nature of the works or to provide a report based on the users activities at the venue. This de -registration process is triggered by the user's location.

[0040] The above process are very useful where an organisation is looking to track the attendance of their field staff or contractors to a high volume of physical locations and they wish to verify the actual attendance of the users and their frequency of their attendance. At present, organisations have no system to track attendance or existing specialised GPS third party devices are cost prohibitive. By utilising users mobile devices which are used for normal mobile telephony, organisations can cost effectively deploy a mobile application to utilise the phones systems to track attendance for commercial purposes of registration. As the attendance of a contractor at a site can be reliably recorded, the attendance information may be used to reconcile invoices from the contractor for attendance.

[0041] User Application

[0042] The central server facilitates configuration and monitoring of the system as well as real time functionality which can be accessed by administrators via a web portal.

[0043] An administrator may view the visitors at a venue and sign them out. A messaging facility exists that allows a message to be sent to either all or to selected visitors and may be based on their presence at the venue or even on their specific location. Such messaging could be used to broadcast emergency evacuation signals or for example to notify conference attendees that lunch is over in 5 minutes and it is time to return for the next seminar.

[0044] Details of all entry and exit events are stored in the database and may be exported in a spreadsheet for external analysis. The system also displays real time and historical information regarding the attendance at a venue including the number of attendees, entry time, exit time, duration of visit and host visited. This information can be accessed for all or individual visitors, hosts or venues.

[0045] An invitation mimics the action of a conventional ticket. By interfacing the server application with a ticketing application such as EventBrite, the system can be used to control access to a venue based on prepaid (or free) tickets.

[0046] The system can also be used to provide access to other security systems, by for instance providing a QR code that can be scanned at an access point. The QR code may include a security code which itself may be restricted to a certain time period.

[0047] The system can also incorporate various security levels for determining if a user is granted access to a venue. A high security site may require that the user's bona fides are manually validated before they are registering with the system. To help verify a user's bona fides they are optionally prompted to provide a mobile phone number when registering. A PIN code is sent to the user application which must be reentered to activate a user's profile.

[0048] Each venue or site can set a security level which a user must satisfy before being granted access. This can include: photo-id, SMS verification, email verification and/or company details.

[0049] The system records a user's profile details and their interaction with the system, i.e. every time that they attend a venue. An administrator is able to see: when a user established their profile, their company details, number of visits to particular and specific venues, invitations they have been sent and any notes recorded against their name by venue administrators.

[0050] The above user details are combined to determine a security level for a user which will be shown to the user via the user application. A user will be notified when changes are made to their security level.

[0051] The reader will now appreciate the present invention which provides management of access to sites and venues. The use of geolocation technology allows the system to be largely automated and handle site specific requirements such as verifying the permits and training of a contractor. Uniquely both the entry and exit of a user are monitored allowing the duration of attendance at a site to be verified. The use of QR codes also allows entry and exit at a site to be triggered without the use of a dedicated site terminal, instead utilising on the ubiquitous smart phone.

[0052] Further advantages and improvements may very well be made to the present invention without deviating from its scope. Although the invention has been shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope and spirit of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatus. Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in this field. [0053] In the present specification and claims (if any), the word "comprising" and its derivatives including "comprises" and "comprise" include each of the stated integers but does not exclude the inclusion of one or more further integers.