Apparatus and method for providing audio delivery notification with a doorbell

• US 10,089,857 B2
• Filed: 04/06/2017
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (Wal-Mart Stores Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (Wal-Mart Stores Inc.)
• Inventors: Atchley, Michael D., Thompson, John P., Taylor, Robert C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, Brian
• Application Number:
  US15/480,916
• Publication Number:
  US 20170294110A1
• Time in Patent Office: 544 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/12 Manually actuated calamity alarm transmitting arrangements emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm, activators, e.g. details of alarm push buttons mounted on an infrastructure
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 3/10 using electric transmission; using electromagnetic transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

Systems, apparatuses, and methods are provided herein for providing audio notification. A system for providing audio notification comprises a communication device configured to communicate with a delivery arrival detection system, a doorbell coupler configured to couple to a stationary doorbell device, and a control circuit coupled to the communication device and the doorbell coupler. The control circuit being configured to receive a delivery notification from the delivery arrival detection system via the communication device and cause the stationary doorbell device to produce an audible sound via the doorbell coupler.

Claims

1. A system for providing audio notification comprising:

a communication device configured to communicate with a delivery arrival detection system;

a doorbell coupler configured to couple to a stationary doorbell device; and

a control circuit coupled to the communication device and the doorbell coupler, the control circuit being configured to;

receive a delivery notification from the delivery arrival detection system via the communication device; and

cause the stationary doorbell device to produce an audible sound via the doorbell coupler.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the delivery arrival detection system comprises a central server communicating with a delivery device comprising one or more of:

an autonomous motored delivery device, a semiautonomous motored delivery device, an unmanned aerial vehicle, an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle, a delivery vehicle, and a portable user device carried by a delivery person.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the central server sends the delivery notification to the control circuit based on tracking a location of the delivery device.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the delivery arrival detection system comprises a sensor configured to detect a proximity of a delivery device comprising one or more of an autonomous motored delivery device, a semiautonomous motored delivery device, an unmanned aerial vehicle, an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle, a delivery vehicle, and a portable user device carried by a delivery person.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the sensor comprises one or more of a radio frequency beacon sensor, a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag reader, a Wi-Fi transceiver, a short range radio receiver, a geofence sensor, a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor, an infrared sensor, a motion sensor, and a range sensor.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the stationary doorbell device comprises a sound-making device and a button located at an entrance of a building.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the control circuit is configured to cause the sound-making device to produce the audible sound such that the audible sound is audibly distinguishable from a sound produced by the sound-making device when the button is actuated.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the doorbell coupler is wired to a power source of the stationary doorbell device and a sound-making device of the stationary doorbell device.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the control circuit is coupled to a plurality of stationary doorbell devices each associated with a difference entrance of a building, and the control circuit is configured to select at least one of the plurality of stationary doorbell devices to actuate based on a delivery location indicated in the delivery notification.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to cause the stationary doorbell device to produce a plurality of audibly distinguishable sounds.

11. A method for providing audio notification comprising:

coupling a delivery bell controller to a stationary doorbell device, the delivery bell controller comprises;

a communication device configured to communicate with a delivery arrival detection system;

a doorbell coupler configured to couple to the stationary doorbell device; and

a control circuit;

receiving, at the control circuit, a delivery notification from the delivery arrival detection system via the communication device; and

causing, with the control circuit, the stationary doorbell device to produce an audible sound via the doorbell coupler.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the delivery arrival detection system comprises a central server communicating with a delivery device comprising one or more of an autonomous motored delivery device, a semiautonomous motored delivery device, an unmanned aerial vehicle, an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle, a delivery vehicle, and a portable user device carried by a delivery person.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the central server sends the delivery notification to the control circuit based on tracking a location of the delivery device.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the delivery arrival detection system comprises a sensor configured to detect a proximity of a delivery device comprising one or more of an autonomous motored delivery device, a semiautonomous motored delivery device, an unmanned aerial vehicle, an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle, a delivery vehicle, and a portable user device carried by a delivery person.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the sensor comprises one or more of a radio frequency beacon sensor, a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag reader, a Wi-Fi transceiver, a short range radio receiver, a geofence sensor, a Global Positioning System (GPS) sensor, an infrared sensor, a motion sensor, and a range sensor.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the stationary doorbell device comprises a sound-making device and a button located at an entrance of a building.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the control circuit is configured to cause the sound-making device to produce the audible sound such that the audible sound is audibly distinguishable from a sound produced by the sound-making device when the button is actuated.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the doorbell coupler is wired to a power source of the stationary doorbell device and a sound-making device of the stationary doorbell device.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein the control circuit is coupled to a plurality of stationary doorbell devices each associated with a difference entrance of a building, and the control circuit is configured to select at least one of the plurality of stationary doorbell devices to actuate based on a delivery location indicated in the delivery notification.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the control circuit is configured to cause the stationary doorbell device to produce a plurality of audibly distinguishable sounds.

21. A system for providing audio notification comprising:

a doorbell device comprising;

a button located at an entrance of a building;

a sound-making device; and

a power source; and

a delivery bell controller coupled to the doorbell device comprising;

a communication device configured to communicate with a delivery arrival detection system; and

a control circuit coupled to the communication device and configured to;

receive a delivery notification from the delivery arrival detection system via the communication device; and

cause the power source to supply power to the sound-making device of the doorbell device.