WO2007010371A1

WO2007010371A1 - Remote control system and method of monitoring a locking or alarm system via remote control

Info

Publication number: WO2007010371A1
Application number: PCT/IB2006/001989
Authority: WO
Inventors: Abduraghman Jacobs; Charles Alexander Schroeder
Original assignee: Abduraghman Jacobs; Charles Alexander Schroeder
Priority date: 2005-07-21
Filing date: 2006-07-20
Publication date: 2007-01-25

Abstract

A remote control system including a remote indicating unit (RIU) (10) operable by a user and a local control unit (LCU) (20) to monitor an alarm/locking system is provided. The RIU includes a receiver (40) to receive confirmation data from the LCU indicating the status of the alarm/locking system, memory (44) for storing the confirmation data; and indicating means (46) to signal the status of the alarm/locking system to the user. The RIU may further include an input key (12, 14) operable by the user to receive an input to control the status of the alarm/locking system and a transmitter (16) responsive to the input received from the user to transmit a control signal to the LCU. The LCU includes a transmitter (36) to transmit confirmation data to the RCU confirming the status of the alarm/locking system. The LCU may further include a time/date module (62) to generate time/date data that is logged by a logger (64) and stored in memory (66).

Description

REMOTE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD OF MONITORING A LOCKING OR ALARM SYSTEM VIA REMOTE CONTROL

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

THIS invention relates to a remote control system for vehicles, alarm systems and other remote locking applications and further relates to a method of monitoring a locking or alarm system via remote control.

It is well known that memory fails people when mundane every day events occur. Often, a person would lock his/her vehicle or arm an alarm system for certain premises, just to be unable to recollect as the person walks away, or within a few minutes or hours, whether the vehicle was locked or the alarm system armed. This typically results in the person either worrying until his/her return to the vehicle or premises, or alternatively returning to the vehicle or premises just to confirm that the vehicle was in fact locked or the alarm system had been armed.

It is an object of the invention to provide a remote control system and method of operating a locking or alarm system via remote control to address this problem. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a remote control system including a remote indicating unit and a local control unit,

the remote indicating unit including:

first receiving means to receive confirmation data from the local control unit indicating the status of the alarm or locking system;

memory means for storing the confirmation data; and

indicating means to signal the status of the alarm or locking system to the user; and

the local control unit including:

second transmitting means to transmit confirmation data to the remote control unit confirming the status of the alarm or locking system.

The remote indicating unit may further include

at least one input key operable by a user to receive an input to control the status of an alarm or locking system; and

first transmitting means responsive to the input received from the user to transmit a control signal to the local control unit.

Typically the local control unit may include second receiving means to receive the control signal from the remote indicating unit to control the status of the alarm or locking system. The remote indicating unit may also include a first decoder to decode the confirmation data when received from the local control unit.

Preferably, the remote indicating unit may include a status request key operable by the user to signal the status of the alarm or locking system.

The remote indicating unit may further include a first encoder to encode the control data before transmitting the control data to the local control unit.

The second transmitting means may be arranged to transmit a fail signal in the event of the local control unit not being able to control the status of the alarm or locking system in response to it receiving the control signal from the remote indicating unit.

The local control unit may include a time/date module and a logger to log predefined events and information.

The indicating means may be a vibration circuit, at least one source of illumination, such as a Light Emitting Diode (LED), an audible alarm circuit, or a display, for example.

The local control unit may include an interface to communicate the control data to the alarm or locking system. Alternatively, the local control unit may form part of the alarm or locking system.

The. local control unit may include an anti-tamper circuit to generate alert data when interference with the alarm or locking system is detected.

The first receiving means may in turn be arranged to receive the alert data from the local control unit, the alert data indicating interference with the alarm or locking system. The local control unit may include a second decoder to decode the control data received from the remote control unit.

The local control unit may include a second encoder to encode the confirmation data before transmitting the confirmation data to the remote control unit.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a remote indicating unit as defined above.

According to yet another aspect of the invention there is provided a local control unit as defined above.

According to yet another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of monitoring a locking or alarm system, the method including the steps of:

receiving, at a local control unit, control data to control the status of the system;

controlling the status of the system by activating or deactivating the system; and

transmitting confirmation data confirming the status of the system to a remote indicating unit, thereby enabling the remote indicating unit to indicate the status of the system to a user.

Typically the method may include generating data relating to the time and date of the transmission of the confirmation data.

The method may further include storing event data and the time and date data in a memory. The method may further include detecting interference with the system and transmitting alert data to the remote indicating unit in response to detecting the interference.

Also, the method may include receiving alert confirmation data that the alert data has been received by the remote indicating unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 is a simplified block diagram illustrating a remote indicating unit and a local control unit to monitor and control the activation or deactivation of a locking or alarm system according to a first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 shows an example screen shot of events logged by a logger module of the local control unit of Figure 1 , in a further embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is a simplified block diagram illustrating a system to monitor a locking or arming system using an existing remote control unit and a remote indicating unit, according to yet a further embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 4 is a simplified flow diagram showing the operations of a method of monitoring a locking or alarm system according to an embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS This invention relates to a remote control system including a remote indicating unit and local control unit used to monitor and control the status of a system. The system to be monitored or controlled may typically be an alarm system or locking system of a vehicle, private or business premises, or may relate to any other application where remote control systems are used to activate, deactivate, arm or disarm systems.

Although the embodiments used to describe invention relates to a motor vehicle and the vehicle's locking/alarm system, it will be appreciated that the remote indicating unit and local control unit can be used in other systems, of which examples have been given above. It will further be appreciated that the remote control system, in particular the local control unit, may form part of the alarm system and/or locking system or alternatively, that the remote control system may operate through an interface with an independent alarm and/or locking system.

Referring first to Figure 1 , a remote indicating unit 10 for a motor vehicle is shown. The remote indicating unit 10 is a wireless device and includes an input key, for example one or more push buttons 12 and 14, operable by a user to receive an input for controlling the status of the locking/alarm system of the vehicle, e.g. to lock and arm the vehicle with the lock push button 12 and to unlock and disarm the vehicle with the unlock push button 14.

The remote indicating unit 10 may be incorporated in a key or key-like device of a vehicle (as shown in Figure 1) or may be a separate unit adapted to fit to a key ring as described in more detail according to Figure 3.

The remote indicating unit 10 (RIU) may include first transmitting means in the form of a transmitter 16, responsive to the input received from the user. The transmitter 16 transmits a control signal (shown as arrow 18) incorporating control data based on the input received from the user, i.e. lock/arm or unlock/disarm, to a local control unit 20 (LCU). The remote indicating unit 10 may include a second encoder 22 to encode the control signal 18 before it is transmitted to the local control unit 20. The control signal and other signals described in detail below may typically be RF signals or signals using GPRS technology or a combination thereof. Any other new communication technology that may provide the same functionality may also be used.

The local control unit 20 is in communication with a locking system 24 and an alarm system 26 of the vehicle and is used to control the status of the systems 24, 26. It should be appreciated that the invention may relate to either a locking system 24 or an alarm system 26, or to a combination locking/alarm system, and any combination of these systems are therefore used in the description of the invention.

The local control unit 20 includes second receiving means in the form of a receiver 28 to receive the control signal 18 from the remote indicating unit 10. The local control unit 20 may include a second decoder 30 to decode any encoded signals received from the remote indicating unit 10.

Once the control signal 18 is received from the remote indicating unit 10, an interface 32 of the local control unit 20 communicates with the locking and alarm modules 24 and 26 of the vehicle. For example, in the event that a user has pressed the lock push button 12 on the remote indicating unit 10, the interface 32 use the control data to instruct the local control unit 20 that the locking system 24 and alarm system 26 of the vehicle should be activated. The interface 32 of the local control unit 20 relays this data to the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 thereby controlling the status of the locking and alarm systems.

In this example embodiment of the invention the local control unit 20 is a separate unit interfacing with an independent locking system 24 and alarm system 26. Alternatively, the local control unit 20 may form part of the locking and/or alarm system of the vehicle. Confirmation data, shown as arrow 34, is now transmitted by second transmitting means such as a transmitter 36 of the local control unit 20 to the remote indicating unit 10. The confirmation data 34 is typically an RF signal and indicates the status of the alarm and locking system 24 and 26, thereby confirming that the local control unit 20 has controlled the status of the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 of the vehicle in response to the control signal 18 received, e.g. the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 have been armed/locked or disarmed/unlocked. The confirmation data 34 may be encoded by a second encoder 38 before it is transmitted to the remote indicating unit 10.

Alternatively, the second transmitting means 36 may be arranged to transmit a fail signal in the event of the local control unit 20 not being able to control the status of the alarm or locking system in response to it receiving the control signal 18 from the remote indicating unit 10. Thus, the fail signal would indicate that an instruction was not executed, for example, if a door was not properly closed, and therefore the locking system 24 and alarm system 26 could not be set.

The remote indicating unit 10 includes first receiving means such as .a receiver 40 to receive the confirmation data 34 and may include a first decoder 42 to decode the encoded confirmation data 34 on receipt. The remote indicating unit 10 further includes memory means 44 to store the confirmation data 34.

On receiving the confirmation data 34 indicating means 46 on the remote indicating unit 10 signals the status of the alarm/locking system 24 and 26 to the user. For example, in one embodiment of the invention the indicating means 46 may be one light emitting device (LED) which will illuminate as soon as the confirmation data 34 is received by the remote indicating unit 10. This will signal to the user that the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 of the vehicle have been locked and armed. It will be appreciated that the indicating means 46 may be more than one LED, for example a red LED that illuminates once the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 of the vehicle have been unlocked and disarmed, a green LED that illuminates once the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 of the vehicle have been locked and armed and an amber LED that illuminates should the status of the locking and alarm systems not be known.

Alternatively, a single LED may flash when the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 are locked/armed and the single LED may illuminate for a predetermined period when the systems are unlocked/disarmed.

It will further be appreciated that the indicating means 46 may be other sources of illumination, a vibration circuit or an audible alarm circuit. For example, on receipt of the confirmation data 34 the indicating means 46 may emit a distinctive tone for each of the statuses of the system, which may include the switching of a mentioned LED with the option of vibrating the remote indicating unit 10 for a short duration.

In a more advanced remote indicating unit, the indicating means 46 may be a display that shows the status of the locking/alarm systems 24, 26 as a short message, e.g. "Armed", "Locked" etc.

The remote indicating unit 10 may further include an additional input key such as a status request key 48, operable by a user when the user wants to determine the last confirmation data 34 received by the local control unit 20. On operating or pressing the status request key 48 the indicating means 46 displays the status of the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26, received and stored in the memory means 44 as the last confirmation data 34.

Alternatively, if the request key 48 is not incorporated in the remote indicating unit 10, the push buttons 12 or 14 on the remote indicating unit 10 may act as status request keys when out of range of the local indicating unit 20. In this scenario, when one of the push buttons 12 or 14 is operated or pressed the indicating means 46 will display the status of the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26 received and stored in the memory means 44 as the last confirmation data 34.

Where the remote indicating unit 10 attempts to transmit control data 18 to the local control unit 20 and the local control unit 20 is not within range of the remote indicating unit 10, no confirmation data 18 will be received from the local control unit 20. In these circumstances the indicating means 46 of the remote indicating unit 10 will show the last stored confirmation data 34 received from the local control unit 20.

Where the remote indicating unit 10 and local control unit 20 are out of range and there has been no activity between the two units for a predetermined period of time, for example 24 hours, the remote indicating unit 10 may revert to a no status available signal, should the status of the system be requested by the user. This is to ensure that the remote indicating unit 10 does not report a status where the remote control system has been dormant for lengthy periods of time.

To address the potential problem of the remote indicating unit 10 and the local control unit 20 being out of RF range, in one version of the invention, the units 10, 20 may be fitted with modules to allow the units to communicate using cellular telephony. In an embodiment, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) may be used to enable the required data to be transmitted between the units 10, 20. For example, a status request signal may be sent from the remote indicating unit 10 to the local control unit 20, with the local control unit 20 establishing the status of the locking and/or alarm system 24, 26 and transmitting confirmation data 34 indicating the status back to the remote indicating unit 10. In addition, GPRS may also be used to arm/lock or disarm/unlock the locking and alarm systems 24, 26 by sending the control signal using this technology. The local control unit 20 may further include an anti-tamper circuit 50 which detects tampering with the locking system or alarm system 24 and 26 of the vehicle. The anti-tamper circuit 50 also detects the sounding of an alarm of the vehicle (by the locking or alarm system), in instances where an intruder attempts to enter or enters the vehicle. The anti-tamper circuit 50 may also, in addition to the above, receive a panic signal from a user device. The panic signal may be generated from a separate panic user device (not shown) or may be generated from an additional key incorporated in the remote indicating unit 10.

As soon as the anti-tamper circuit 50 detects any tampering or interference with the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26, or when the alarm system sounds an alarm or a panic signal is received, the circuit 50 generates alert data 52 which is transmitted to the remote indicating unit 10 via the transmitter 34. The alert data 52, if encoded by the encoder 38, is decoded by the decoder 42 of the remote indicating unit 10. Once the alert data 52 is received, an alarm is sounded by the indicating means 46 to warn the user, for example of interference with the alarm and/or locking system. The alarm may be an LED flashing, or alternatively, a vibration circuit, an audible alarm circuit sounding the alarm or a message on a display.

The alarm may be sounded periodically by the indicating means 46 of the remote indicating unit 10. This periodic alarm may continue while the remote indicating unit 10 is within radio range of the local control unit 20.

The transmitter 16 of the remote indicating unit 10 may further send alert confirmation data 58 confirming that the alert data 52 has been received. Once this alert confirmation data 58 is received by the receiver 28 of the local control unit 20, no further alert data 52 will be transmitted to the remote indicating unit 10. It will be appreciated that the alert confirmation data 58 may be encoded before it is transmitted by the remote indicating unit 10, in which case it will be decoded on receipt by the local control unit 20. The local control unit 20 may also include a local control unit indicating means 60, such as an audible alarm, to sound an alarm at the vehicle when the anti-tamper circuit 50 detects interference with the locking and/or alarm system 24 and 26. Alternatively, the local control unit 20 may use the interface 32 to communicate an alarm signal to the locking and alarm systems 24, 26 of the vehicle. This will result in an alarm being sounded by both the remote indicating unit 10 and the local control unit 20 (via the remote indicating unit or the locking or alarm system of the vehicle). It will be appreciated that GPRS may also be used for these communications.

The remote indicating unit 10 typically includes a power source 54 such as a miniature battery with suitable capacity.

The local control unit 20 is supplied with power from the motor vehicle battery, locking or alarm system or from an external Alternating Current (AC) to Direct Current (DC) power supply unit with suitable power ratings. The local control unit 20 typically also includes an internal back-up power source 56 such as a battery with sufficient capacity to send the alert data 52 to the remote indicating unit 10 when the anti-tamper circuit 50 detects tampering with the locking and alarm systems 24 and 26. This internal back-up battery may also be used to sound the vehicle alarm and may be rechargeable.

The local control unit 20 may further include a time/date module 62 to provide data relating to the time and date, e.g. timestamp data, of a predefined event. The time/date module 62 may in one version take the form of a GPS receiver. The local control unit 20 may further include a logger 64 to log the predefined events and information.

The predefined events may the locking/arming, unlocking/disarming of the vehicle, or alternatively any interference or other signals, such as panic signals, received by the local control unit 20. The logged information may be stored in memory means 66 in the form of a non-volatile secure memory stack capable of storing a predefined number of records. When the memory stack is full, the earliest record may be deleted to allow the latest record to be stored. Each logged record may comprise the following information:

1. Event number

2. Date (determined using the time/date module 62)

3. Time (determined using the time/date module 62)

4. Action (e.g. predefined event)

5. Confirmation of success/failure of execution of instruction

6. Remote Control/Indicating Unit Identification, so as to distinguish between a plurality of different remote units that may be used.

7. GPS co-ordinates, in the event of the local control unit 20 including a GPS receiver. In instances where the GPS receiver is out of reception range, the last known co-ordinates of the local control unit 20 will be stored and presented.

8. Date/time when power to the local control unit 20 is connected/disconnected.

9. Other

The remote indicating unit's Remote Control/Indicating Unit Identification may be used as a reference by the local control unit 20 to signal to a first user of a first remote indicating unit that another authorised user has set the status of the locking/alarm systems 24, 26 with the remote indicating device of the other authorised user.

The local control unit 20 may further be adapted to be in communication with the ignition system of a vehicle. This adaptation may be useful for the local control unit 20 to reset the status of the remote indicating unit 10 to "disarm" or "unlock" once the ignition of the vehicle has been switched on. This may be done notwithstanding that the doors of the vehicle may have locked automatically on starting the vehicle. The local control unit 20 may also have a unique Identification Reference, so that the data stored in the logger 64 may be retrieved in any one of a number of well known ways, and then printed. For example, the data may be wirelessly transmitted to a personal computer.

The predefined event data and time/date data may be particularly useful to insurance companies. For example, insurance companies would be able to verify an insurance claims by confirming, from a printout of the logged data that locking and/or alarm systems of vehicle or premises were locked or armed prior to the burglary taking place. The GPS co-ordinates may also be useful to determine the location of a vehicle prior to it being stolen.

A typical logger printout 80 is shown in Figure 2, and may include the following information:

1. Event number

2. Date (determined using the time/date module 62)

3. Time (determined using the time/date module 62)

4. Action (e.g. predefined events)

5. Confirmation of success/failure of execution of instruction

6. Remote Indicating Unit Identification

7. Local Control Unit Identification

8. GPS co-ordinates

9. Print out date

10. Date/time when power to the local control unit 20 is connected/disconnected (not shown)

11. Other

In a further embodiment of the invention, as will now be described with reference to Figure 3, a system to operate a locking or arming system using an existing remote control unit 100 is provided. The existing remote control unit 100 may include an input key, for example one or more push buttons 102 and 104, operable by the user to receive an input for controlling the status of the locking/alarm system, e.g. to lock and arm a vehicle with the lock push button 102 and to unlock and disarm the vehicle with the unlock push button 104.

The remote control unit 100 may further comprise a transmitter 106 for transmitting a control signal, indicated by arrow 110, to a master local control unit 108. The existing remote control unit 100 may or may not include indicating means 112 to indicate that such a control signal has indeed been sent.

The phrase "existing remote control unit" is to be interpreted broadly, and is meant to also include a keypad or keyswitch, in which case the connectivity (corresponding to arrow 110) would be a wired connection. For example, in an embodiment where the invention is implemented in an alarm system of premises, the existing remote control unit 100 will be a wired keypad.

The master local control unit 108 operates the locking system 114 and/or alarm system 116 of the vehicle.

The master local control unit 108 may either take the form of the local control unit 20 of the type described above, save for modifications to enable it to receive an instructing signal from the existing remote control unit 100, or it may take the form of an existing controller operating locking and/or alarm systems, save for modifications to enable it to operate in the manner described below. In any event, the master local control unit 108 is in communication with and is able to control the locking system 114 and the alarm system 116, as described above.

A slave local control unit 118 is fitted to the master control unit 108, and is used to determine the armed/disarmed status of the locking system 114 and the alarm system 116 and to communicate such information to a remote indicating unit 120.

The remote indicating unit 120 is a separate wireless device that may be attached to a keyring. Apart from the slave local control unit 118 not directly communicating with the existing remote control unit 100, the slave control unit 118 would typically be the same as local control unit 20. Similarly, the remote indicating unit 120 is typically the same as the remote indicating unit 10, except that it does not control the status of the locking system 114 and alarm system 116. This functionality rests with the existing remote control unit 100.

In particular, the slave local control unit 118 may include an interface 122 to communicate with the master local control unit 108 thereby to determine the status of the locking system 114 and the alarm system 116. The slave local control unit 118 may further include a receiver 124 and transmitter 126 for receiving and transmitting data signals to the remote indicating unit 120 (as described in more detail above) and may further include a decoder 128 and encoder slave receiver 130 to encode and decode signals as necessary.

Similar to local control unit 20, the slave local control unit 118 may include a back-up power source 132, time/date module 134, logger 136, memory 138 and indicating means 140.

It will be appreciated that, although not shown, the slave local control unit 118 may also include an anti-tamper circuit with similar functionality as described above. For example, the circuit may detect interference with the locking/alarm systems 114, 116 or may receive indication of such interference from the master local control unit 108.

The remote indicating unit 120 includes a status request key 142 to be operated when a user wants to determine the status of the locking system 114 and/or the alarm system 116.

The remote indicating unit 120 may further include a transmitter 144 and receiver 146 for transmitting to and receiving signals from the slave local control unit 118 (as described in more detail above) and may further include a decoder 148 and encoder 150 to encode and decode signals as necessary. The remote indicating unit 120 may also include memory means 152, indicating means 154 to signal the status of the alarm/locking systems 114 and 116, and a power source 156, similar to those described for remote indicating unit 10.

Figure 4 shows a simplified flow diagram of the operations of the method of monitoring a locking or alarm system, as described in some detail above.

In operation 180 control data to control the status of the locking or alarm system is received at the local control unit. The control data may be received either from an existing remote control unit (described according to Figure 3) or a remote indicating unit (described according to Figure 1 ).

The status of the locking or alarm system is controlled by the local control unit by activating or deactivating the locking or alarm system in operation 182.

In operation 184 confirmation data confirming the status of the locking or alarm system is transmitted by the local control unit to a remote indicating unit, thereby enabling the remote indicating unit to indicate the status of the locking or alarm system to the user.

Data relating to the time and date of a predefined event is generated in operation 186 by a time/date module, and in operation 188, this information, i.e. event data and the time and date data, is logged and then stored in a memory.

In operation 190 the local control unit detects interference with the locking or alarm system and in operation 192 the local control unit transmits alert data to the remote indicating unit in response to detecting the interference. The local control unit receives alert confirmation data from the remote indicating unit in operation 194, confirming that the alert data was received.

As mentioned, although the embodiments of the invention described above relates to a motor vehicle and its locking/alarm system, the remote indicating unit and local control unit may be used in any locking or alarm system, such as a locking/alarm system for premises, where remote control locking is used.

Claims

1. A remote control system including a remote indicating unit operable by a user and a local control unit to monitor or control an alarm or locking system _;

the remote indicating unit including:

memory means for storing the confirmation data; and

the local control unit including:

2. A remote control system according to claim 1 , the remote indicating unit further including:

at least one input key operable by the user to receive an input to control the status of the alarm or locking system; and

3. A remote control system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the local control unit includes second receiving means to receive the control signal from the remote indicating unit thereby to control the status of the alarm or locking system.

4. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the remote indicating unit includes a status request key operable by the user to signal the status of the alarm or locking system.

5. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the local control unit includes a time/date module to generate data relating to the time and date of a predefined event.

6. A remote control system according to claim 5, further including a logger to log the predefined event and the time and date data.

7. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second transmitting means is arranged to transmit a fail signal in the event of the local control unit not being able to control the status of the alarm or locking system in response to it receiving the control signal from the remote indicating unit.

8. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the indicating means is a vibration circuit, at least one source of illumination, an audible alarm circuit or a display.

9. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the local control unit includes an interface to communicate the control data to the alarm or locking system.

10. A remote control system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the local control unit forms part of the alarm or locking system.

11. A remote control system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the local control unit includes an anti-tamper circuit to generate alert data when interference with the alarm or locking system is detected or when a panic signal is received.

12. A remote control system according to claim 11 , wherein the first receiving means is arranged to receive the alert data from the local control unit, the alert data indicating interference with the alarm or locking system.

13. A remote indicating unit operable by a user, the remote indicating unit for use in a remote control system for monitoring or controlling an alarm or locking system, wherein the remote indicating unit includes:

receiving means to receive confirmation data from a local control unit, the confirmation data indicating the status of the alarm or locking system;

memory means for storing the confirmation data; and

indicating means to signal the status of the alarm or locking system to the user.

14. A remote indicating unit according to claim 13, the remote indicating unit further including:

transmitting means responsive to the input received from the user to transmit a control signal to the local control unit.

15. A remote indicating unit according to claim 13 or claim 14, wherein the remote indicating unit includes a status request key operable by the user to signal the status of the alarm or locking system.

16. A remote indicating unit according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the indicating means is a vibration circuit, at least one source of illumination, an audible alarm circuit or a display.

17. A remote indicating unit according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the receiving means is arranged to receive alert data from the local control unit, the alert data indicating interference with the alarm or locking system.

18. A local control unit for use in a remote control system to monitor or control an alarm or locking system, the local control unit including:

receiving means to receive a control signal to control the alarm or locking system from a remote unit; and

transmitting means to transmit confirmation data to a remote indicating unit confirming the status of the alarm or locking system.

19. A local control unit according to claim 18, including a time/date module to generate data relating to the time and date of a predefined event.

20. A local control unit according to claim 19, including a logger to log the predefined event and the time and date data.

21. A local control unit according to any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the transmitting means is arranged to transmit a fail signal in the event of the local control unit not being able to control the status of the alarm or locking system in response to it receiving the control signal from the remote unit.

22. A local control unit according to any one of claims 18 to 21 , including an interface to communicate the control data to the alarm or locking system.

23. A local control unit according to any one of claims 18 to 21 , wherein the local control unit forms part of the alarm or locking system.

24. A local control unit according to any one of claims 18 to 23, wherein the local control unit includes an anti-tamper circuit to generate alert data when interference with the alarm or locking system is detected or when a panic signal is received.

25. A method of monitoring a locking or alarm system, the method including the steps of:

26. A method according to claim 25, including generating data relating to the time and date of a predefined event.

27. A method according to claim 25 or claim 26, including storing predefined event data and the time and date data in a memory.

28. A method according to any one of claims 25 to 27, further including detecting interference with the system and transmitting alert data to the remote indicating unit in response to detecting the interference.

29. A method according to any one of claims 25 to 28, further including receiving alert confirmation data that the alert data has been received by the remote indicating unit.