FORM 2
The Patent Act 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
The Patent Rules  2005

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(SEE SECTION 10 AND RULE 13)

TITLE OF THE INVENTION

“RFID based Smart Library System”

APPLICANT:

Name : Vishnu Vikraman

Nationality : Indian

Address : College OF Engineering Perumon  Perinad P O  Kollam Dist  Kerala  India  Pin - 691601

The following specification particularly describes and ascertains the nature of this invention and the manner in which it is to be performed:-

FIELD OF INVENTION
[001] The embodiments herein relate to library automation and more particularly to an improved library automation system using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[002] Libraries all over the world face continuous challenges in improving the user experience and managing their collection. In the past  libraries have vastly increased their collection and now offer a variety of multimedia items. However  the task of searching a book is always a tedious task for a patron. Though  a librarian may be able to assist a patron  it is not always the case that he/she can locate the book within in a short span of time  particularly if the library has a huge collection. Librarians also get occupied in searching and sorting the books left in the wrong location by the patron.
[003] Over the years many systems and techniques have been introduced to enrich the library experience from card catalogues  typewriters and bar codes. Most of these methods have proved to be cumbersome in one way or the other. The introduction of RFID systems has been beneficial to many libraries. A RFID tag is used in place or in conjunction with bar code labels. These RFID tags may store the item identification number as well as any other information about the item. A primary advantage of RFID tags is that they may be read without an optical scanner or line of sight to the RFID tag. In addition to speed and ease of use  RFID tags may also be used for security surveillance purposes.
[004] In the existing systems  the RFID tags are attached to the library contents; whether it is a book  CD  DVD and so on. Further  if the user has to find a specific content  he/she has to approach each content and has to manually check using a suitable device such as a RFID scanner. Disadvantage of this system is that it requires lot of human efforts and also consumes lot of time.

OBJECT OF INVENTION
[005] The principal object of the embodiments herein is to provide a method and system for a library to accurately gauge the status of its resources.
[006] Another object of the invention is to provide a method and system to track the resource of a library accurately within a short span of time.
[007] Another object of the invention is to provide a system and method to use the RFID system for preventing theft of contents from a library.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION
[008] Accordingly the invention provides a system for automating content search in a library  the system provided with at least one means configured for tracking location of a content in the library using a signal based tracking mechanism and displaying the tracked location to a user using a central control unit.
[009] There is also provided a system for issuing a content to a user in a library  the system provided with at least one means configured for checking authenticity of the user suing an authentication system associated with a central control unit and issuing the content to the user upon authentication being successful using said central control unit.
[0010] There is also provided a system for preventing theft of contents in a library  the system provided with at least one means configured for fetching value of a bit in a specific bit position in content Id of the content using a transceiver  checking if the fetched value is equal to a set specific value using a micro controller and triggering alert on the fetched value being not equal to said set value using a pre configured alert mechanism.
[0011] There is also provided a method of automating content search in a library  the method comprises tracking location of a content in the library and displaying the tracked location to a user.
[0012] There is also provided a method for issuing a content to a user in a library  the method comprises checking authenticity of the user and issuing the content to the user upon authentication being successful.
[0013] There is also provided a method for preventing theft of contents in a library  the method comprises fetching value of a bit in a specific bit position in content Id of the content  checking if the fetched value is equal to a set specific value and triggering alert on the fetched value being not equal to the set value.
[0014] These and other aspects of the embodiments herein will be better appreciated and understood when considered in conjunction with the following description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood  however  that the following descriptions  while indicating preferred embodiments and numerous specific details thereof  are given by way of illustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the embodiments herein without departing from the spirit thereof  and the embodiments herein include all such modifications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES
[0015] This invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings  throughout which like reference letters indicate corresponding parts in the various figures. The embodiments herein will be better understood from the following description with reference to the drawings  in which:
[0016] FIG. 1illustrates a block diagram of a smart library RFIS system  according to embodiments as disclosed herein;
[0017] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram depicting the process of retrieving and issuing library content in a smart library system  according to the embodiments as disclosed herein.
[0018] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram depicting the process of locating library content in a smart library system  according to the embodiments disclosed herein; and
[0019] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting the process of implementing theft protection in a smart library system  according to the embodiments as disclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
[0020] The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein can be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly  the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.
[0021] The embodiments herein achieve a RFID based smart library system which can accurately detect library content in a short span of time. The system can also check for authentication of the patron besides providing anti theft alarm generation.
[0022] Referring now to the drawings  and more particularly to FIGS. 1 through 4  where similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the figures  there are shown preferred embodiments.
[0023] FIG. 1illustrates a block diagram of a smart library RFID system  according to embodiments as disclosed herein. As depicted in FIG.1  the smart library system comprises a central control unit 101  rack unit 102  content unit 103 and a theft protection unit 104. The central control unit 101 further comprises of a user interface module 101.a  content search module 101.b  microcontroller module 101.c  transceiver module 101.d  sensor module 101.e  processor module 101.f  encoder module 101.g and decoder module 101.h.The microcontroller 101.c used is an AVR microcontroller. The AVR microcontroller 101.c uses on-chip flash memory for program storage. The sensor module 101.e is a fingerprint sensor  which is used to identify the patron.
[0024] Whenever  a new library resource/content is acquired  a content unit 103 is attached to the resource. The content unit 103 may further comprise a microcontroller unit 103.a  a decoder unit 103.b  an encoder unit 103.c and a transceiver unit 103.d along with an RFID tag in which the unique id and other information specific to that particular content is saved. The RFID based system reduces repetitive scanning of individual items at the circulation desk during check in  and check out.
[0025] When a patron requires a book (or any other library content)  the central control unit 101 transfers a unique data related to that particular book to the microcontroller module 101.c.The microcontroller module 101.c encodes and transmits that data to the rack unit 102. the rack unit 102 transmits the received encoded data to all associated content units 103. If the book with the specific transmitted code  upon receiving the data from corresponding rack unit 102  reverts with suitable acknowledgement information. Upon receiving this information  the rack unit 102 sends a specific message signal to the central control unit 101 indicating presence of the book in that particular rack. This information is then communicated with the user using a suitable user interface module 101.a. For example  the location may be displayed to the user using displayed using a display device such as a screen.
[0026] A theft protection unit 104 is implemented for security purposes. The theft protection unit 104 comprises of a transceiver module 104.a  encoder module 104.b  a decoder module 104.c. and a microcontroller module 104.d. The theft protection unit 104 checks and identifies whether specific library content has been issued or not before a user leaves the library with content. Further  upon identifying that the user is leaving the library without issuing the content  the theft protection system 104 alert to the central control unit 101 which in turn may trigger an alarm.
[0027] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram depicting the process of retrieving and issuing library content in a smart library system  according to the embodiments as disclosed herein. Each library resource is assigned with a code whose MSB value is always set to ‘0’. The transceiver module 103.d comprises of the transmitter and receiver. The receiver of the book section is always turned ON while the transmitters are always turned OFF. As depicted in FIG.2  initially the user is authenticated (201) as to whether he/she is a patron of the library or not. The user is identified by means of a fingerprint sensor or any other suitable means of authentication. The fingerprint sensor detects whether the person is authorized or not. If the person is authorized  the system checks (202) whether the user wants to search for a new content or to return an already issued content. In order to search for content  the user may be provided with a suitable search interface which is built on suitable platforms. For example  front end of the search interface may be built on Visual Basic (VB) and back end may be built on Microsoft access. The user can enter specific keywords such as content name  author name  published year and so on as search terms in the search interface. If the content information is available in an associated database  the unique id associated with that particular content may be displayed to the user. Further  the user can search (204) for location of the content using the obtained unique id.
[0028] Once the library content is found (205) then the location is displayed (206). Further  the content may be fetched by the user or the librarian from the mentioned location and the librarian can issue (207) library content. While issuing the content  the MSB bit of unique id associated with the content is complimented from "0" to "1" by the system. In case  the content is not found  then a message is displayed (208).
[0029] A theft protection unit 104 is implemented for security purposes. The theft protection unit 104 comprises of a transceiver module 104.a  encoder module 104.b  a decoder module 104.c. and a microcontroller module 104.d. The theft protection unit 104 checks and identifies whether specific library content has been issued or not before a user leaves the library with content. Further  upon identifying that the user is leaving the library without issuing the content  the theft protection system 104 alert to the central control unit 101 which in turn may trigger an alarm. Further  in some embodiments  some actions listed in FIG. 2 may be omitted.
[0030] FIG.3 is a flow diagram depicting the process of locating library content in a smart library system  according to the embodiments disclosed herein. In order to search for a specific content in library  a user can enter keywords corresponding to the required content on a search interface in a central control unit 101. The central control unit may compare the entered keywords with a database. The database may comprise information such as name  unique Id  author""s name  associated keywords and so on related to each content in the library. The search provides unique id corresponding to the searched content to the user.
[0031] Further  the user can search for location of the content using the unique id corresponding to that particular content. While searching for the content  unique id of the content is transmitted (302) from central control unit 101 to the rack unit 102. In a preferred embodiment  the unique Id is transmitted after encoding the Id using a suitable encoding scheme.
[0032] Upon receiving the data from the central control unit 101  each rack unit 102 transmits received data to all the content units 103 associated it. The decoder module 103.b associated with the content unit 103 decodes the received data and transmits the decoded data to associated microcontroller module 103.a. The microcontroller module 103.a compares the received data i.e. unique Id with the unique Id associated with the content unit 103. If the Ids match  the rack unit 102 is informed which in turn sends (306) a message specifying location of the content to the central control unit 101. Upon receiving the location information message from the rack unit  the central control unit 101 displays (307) the identified location to the librarian and/or the user. The various actions in method 300 may be performed in the order presented  in a different order or simultaneously. Further  in some embodiments  some actions listed in FIG. 3 may be omitted.
[0033] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram depicting the process of implementing theft protection in a smart library system  according to the embodiments as disclosed herein. In the smart library system  each library content is assigned a unique id. the unique Id may preferably be an 8 digit number. In a preferred embodiment  Most Significant Bit (MSB) of the unique id is always kept "0" while assigning the id to the content. While issuing the content to a user  the MSB value is complimented to "1".
[0034] While a user is making an exit from the library  a transceiver module 104.a in the theft protection unit 104 installed in the library retrieves (401) unique Id associated with the content. Further  the theft protection unit 104  using the retrieved Id  checks (402) if the content has already been issued or not. In a preferred embodiment  the theft protection unit 104 checks whether the content has already been issued or not by checking if MSB of the fetched Id is set to "1". Unique Id with MSB value set to "1" may indicate an issued content.
[0035] If the content is an issued one  then the theft protection unit 104 may not take (404) any action. If the content is identified to be not issued  then the theft protection unit 104 may trigger (404) an alert to indicate the theft to an admin or security staff in the library. The alert may be any pre-configured action such as ringing an alarm  blinking a light and so on. The various actions in method 400 may be performed in the order presented  in a different order or simultaneously. Further  in some embodiments  some actions listed in FIG. 4 may be omitted.
[0036] The embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented through at least one software program running on at least one hardware device and performing network management functions to control the elements. The elements shown in Fig. 1 include blocks which can be at least one of a hardware device  or a combination of hardware device and software module.
[0037] The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can  by applying current knowledge  readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept  and  therefore  such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore  while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments  those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.

CLAIMS
1. A method for automating content search in a library  said method comprises:
transmitting a content Id corresponding to said content from a central control unit to a plurality of rack units in said library;
transmitting said received content Id to a plurality of associated content units by each of said rack unit;
identifying if said received content Id is same as own content Id by said plurality of content units;
sending an acknowledgement message to corresponding rack unit by at least one of said plurality of content units on said received content Id being same as own content Id;
sending at least one of a confirmation message and a location information to said central control unit by the rack unit upon receiving said acknowledgement message; and
displaying said tracked location to a user.

2. The method as in claim 1  wherein said content id is unique for each of said plurality of contents.
3. The method as in claim 2  wherein said content id is manually assigned to each content in said library.
4. The method as in claim 1  wherein said identifying if the received content id is same as own content Id by a content unit further comprises comparing said received content Id with content Id by each of said plurality of content units.
5. A method for issuing a content to a user in a library  said method comprises:
checking authenticity of said user; and
complementing at least one bit in a specific bit position in content Id of said content to a specific value on authentication being successful.

6. The method as in claim 5  wherein at least one of said specific bit position and specific value are preconfigured.
7. The method as in claim 6  wherein said specific bit position is Most Significant Bit (MSB) of said content Id.
8. A method for preventing theft of contents in a library  said method comprises:
fetching value of a bit in a specific bit position in content Id of said content;
checking if said fetched value is equal to a set specific value; and
triggering an alert on said fetched value being not equal to said set value.

9. The method as in claim 8  wherein at least one of said specific bit position and said specific set value are preconfigured.
10. The method as in claim 9  wherein said specific bit position is Most Significant Bit (MSB) of said content Id.
11. A system for automating content search in a library  said system provided with at least one means configured for:
transmitting a content Id corresponding to said content from a central control unit to a plurality of rack units in said library;
transmitting said received content Id to a plurality of associated content units by each of said rack unit;
identifying if said received content Id is same as own content Id by said plurality of content units;
sending an acknowledgement message to corresponding rack unit by at least one of said plurality of content units on said received content Id being same as own content Id;
sending at least one of a confirmation message and a location information to said central control unit by the rack unit upon receiving said acknowledgement message; and
displaying said tracked location to a user using a central control unit.

12. The system as in claim 11 is further configured for assigning unique content Id for each of said plurality of content units.
13. The system as in claim 11 is further configured for identifying if the received content id is same as own content Id by comparing said received content Id with content Id by each of said plurality of content units using said content unit.
14. A system for issuing a content to a user in a library  said system provided with at least one means configured for:
checking authenticity of said user using an authentication system associated with a central control unit; and
complementing at least one bit in a specific bit position in content Id of said content to a specific value using said central control unit on said authentication being successful.

15. The system as in claim 14 is further provided with at least one means configured for pre configuring at least one of said specific bit position and specific value using said central control unit.
16. A system for preventing theft of contents in a library  said system provided with at least one means configured for:
fetching value of a bit in a specific bit position in content Id of said content using a transceiver;
checking if said fetched value is equal to a set specific value using a micro controller; and
triggering an alert on said fetched value being not equal to said set value using a pre configured alert mechanism.

17. The system as in claim 16 is provided with at least one means configured for pre-configuring at least one of said specific bit position and said specific set value using a central control unit.
Dated: 26th Day of October 2012 Signature:
Dr Kalyan Chakravarthy
(Patent Agent)

ABSTRACT
The embodiments herein relate to library automation and more particularly to an improved library automation system using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. Each content in the library is assigned with a unique code. Availability of a particular content in the library may be checked by entering the content particulars at a central control unit. Further  if the content is available in the library  location of the content may be found out using the RFID based mechanism. The system searches for specific content using the unique corresponding to that content and displays location of the content on a display screen associated with the central control unit. The system also provides a theft protection mechanism which identifies unauthorized traffic of contents to outside of the library and alerts the library staff.
FIG. 2