Shipment Tracking System Detecting Signal Jamming and Unauthorized Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The security of cargo during transportation is compromised due to the inability of existing systems to detect signal jamming attacks and unauthorized handling of shipments, leading to potential theft and loss.
Innovation Solution
A data processing system that electronically tracks shipments as a group of co-located dots, monitoring for unscheduled deviations and triggering responsive actions to protect the shipment from attacks or unauthorized actions, including signal jamming detection and notification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional tracking systems are used to monitor shipment location, then basic location tracking is achieved, but the system cannot detect signal jamming attacks or unauthorized handling
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the shipment into multiple trackable components (shipment container, trailer, operator device) each with its own location tracking. By monitoring the relative positions of these segmented components, the system can detect anomalies such as unauthorized separation or jamming attacks without requiring a single complex detection system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously receives location data from multiple sources, compares actual positions against expected positions, and provides feedback when deviations occur. This feedback mechanism enables real-time detection of signal jamming and unauthorized handling by identifying when tracked components fail to move as expected or when location data becomes inconsistent.
2Reliability
If multiple location tracking signals are monitored to detect deviations, then security detection capability is improved, but data processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines multiple location tracking signals into a unified security assessment by monitoring whether shipment-related entities remain co-located as expected. Instead of analyzing each signal separately, the system merges the data by evaluating the spatial relationship between entities, simplifying the processing complexity while maintaining high security detection capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The location tracking system serves multiple functions simultaneously: basic location monitoring, security anomaly detection, jamming attack identification, and unauthorized handling detection. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate specialized systems, thereby managing data processing complexity while achieving comprehensive security monitoring.
3Loss of time
If real-time monitoring of shipment entities is implemented, then response time to threats is reduced, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic location updates rather than continuous real-time monitoring. Location tracking signals are received at scheduled intervals, and security assessments are performed periodically based on these updates. This periodic approach maintains adequate response time to threats while significantly reducing energy consumption compared to continuous monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies enhanced monitoring only when anomalies are detected rather than maintaining full surveillance at all times. Under normal conditions, standard periodic tracking is used with lower energy consumption. When deviations from expected co-location or movement patterns are detected, the system activates more frequent monitoring and alert protocols, achieving rapid response to threats only when necessary.
Data Source
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AI summary
A system electronically tracks each or multiple shipment-related entities as a group of co-located dots that are monitored to provide enhanced security of the shipment from attacks or unauthorized or illicit actions that can compromise the shipment's safety. A data processing system (DPS) receives a plurality of location tracking signals of multiple shipment-related entities, associates the location tracking signals as a shipment group that is assigned a unique shipment tracking identifier (STID), and presents the shipment group as a plurality of co- located dots on a shipment tracking user interface (STUI). The DPS monitors for any unscheduled deviations in at least one of an expected co-location/geo-location of the location tracking signals, identifies specific types of unscheduled deviations, and triggers a series of responsive actions to protect the shipment. The unscheduled deviations can include signal jamming attacks, incorrect pickup (or theft) of an operator-assigned shipment, and unexpected separation of the tracked entities.