As functionality of electronic devices has continued to increase and, in some cases, as electronic devices have been conveniently reduced in size, the popularity of these devices has continued to grow. Examples of such electronic devices include mobile phones, laptops, home appliances, televisions, personal computers, stereos and tablets, among other electronic devices. However, these electronic devices remain susceptible to theft and unauthorized use. There are times when electronic devices are stolen in which there is little way to identify the stolen device aside from a serial number on the device. Further, there are few processes to prevent unauthorized use of a stolen device. For example, assume that a flat screen television is stolen from a home that did not have a security system in place at the home. The flat screen television is subsequently installed at the thief's home for use and enjoyment by the thief. There is little the manufacturer and owner of the flat screen television can do in a situation like this.
Further, expensive home appliances such as refrigerators, dishwashers, microwave ovens and stoves are often stolen from warehouses, homes under construction and retail stores. Similar to the flat screen television example, these home appliances are able to be used by anyone that comes into possession of these home appliances including the thief. While some solutions to the problem of theft and theft deterrence of electronic devices include implementing password protection at the device, these solutions do not work with certain devices such as some home appliances. After all, who wants to have to input a password to use a stove or refrigerator? Further, the electronic devices that include password protection can often times be reset by the thief, thereby resetting the password and allowing the thief to use the stolen device.
Another solution for theft and theft deterrence for home appliances is to wire or wirelessly connect the home appliance to an alarm system at the premises. In this solution, when an alarm condition is sensed such as due to a break-in, the alarm system will automatically send a coded signal to the home appliance to disable the appliance. The alarm system can also send another coded signal to the home appliance to re-enable the appliance. However, requiring an alarm system to communicate and monitor the appliance disadvantageously limits the usefulness of this solution, and adds to the complexity of the system.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds