Monitoring smart devices on a wireless mesh communication network

• US 10,152,860 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2017
• Issued: 12/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sensormatic Electronics LLC (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Original Assignee: Sensormatic Electronics Corporation (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Renkis, Martin A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Holder, Anner N
• Application Number:
  US15/401,741
• Publication Number:
  US 20170193773A1
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19619 Details of casing
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19621 Portable camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19656 Network used to communicate with a camera, e.g. WAN, LAN, Internet
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1966 Wireless systems, other than telephone systems, used to communicate with a camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19663 Surveillance related processing done local to the camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19673 Addition of time stamp, i.e. time metadata, to video stream
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1968 Interfaces for setting up or customising the system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19682 Graphic User Interface [GUI] presenting system data to the user, e.g. information on a screen helping a user interacting with an alarm system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/009 Signalling of the alarm condition to a substation whose identity is signalled to a central station, e.g. relaying alarm signals in order to extend communication range
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A surveillance system and method with at least one wireless input capture device ICD(s) and a corresponding digital input recorder (DIR) and/or another ICD, including the steps of providing the base system; at least one user accessing the DIR via user interface either directly or remotely; the DIR and/or ICD searching for signal from the ICD(s) and establishing communication with them, and the system providing for input capture and data transmission prioritization, thereby providing a secure surveillance system having wireless communication for monitoring a target environment with prioritization capabilities.

Claims

1. A system for wireless communication, comprising:

at least one processor; and

memory having instructions configured to cause the at least one processor to;

wirelessly communicate with electronic devices operable for wireless cross-communication directly with each other independent of any remote server device for forming a wireless mesh network of the electronic devices;

automatically control settings, activities, and/or functionality of at least one of the electronic devices; and

directly communicate with the at least one electronic device such that the at least one electronic device obtains environmental data.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory having instructions is further configured to cause the at least one processor to:

identify a first electronic device, a second electronic device, and a third electronic device each configured to directly communication with one another;

wherein the first electronic device and the second electronic device are also configured to indirectly communicate with one another via a communication path established by the third communication device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory is further configured to cause the at least one processor to make available to a remote viewing device, via a non-mesh network, data from one or more of the electronic devices.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the data includes live video captured by the electronic devices.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a request to view data from one or more of the electronic devices; and

in response to receiving the request to view data, authenticating a remote viewing device and/or operator of the remote viewing device to access the data.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory having instructions is furthered configured to cause the at least one processor to receive data from a remote server device and/or a remote viewing device for controlling the electronic devices.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the electronic devices is a camera and wherein, when the camera detects motion, an alarm is triggered and a notification that the alarm was triggered is sent to a remote server device and/or a remote viewing device.

8. A method, comprising:

automatically controlling wireless electronic devices'"'"' settings, activities, and/or functionality, wherein the wireless electronic devices are configured to communicate via a wireless mesh network, wherein each wireless electronic device includes

one or more sensors,

one or more input components for detecting and recording inputs,

a processor,

a memory, and

a transmitter/receiver; and

directly transmitting data to and receiving data from the wireless electronic devices.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising instructing the electronic devices to detect one or more of a temperature, moisture, sound, and presence of one or more chemicals, and wherein electronic devices are configured to extend a range of the mesh network.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving one or more settings from an operator;

automatically configuring, via a mesh network, a first wireless capture device based on the one or more settings and independent of any remote service, wherein the first wireless capture device automatically coordinates operation with a second capture device based on the settings and via direct communications with the one another; and

sending, via the mesh network, input data captured by the first wireless capture device and/or the second wireless capture device for viewing.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining whether an event detected by at least one of the first and second capture devices is a trigger event,

sending, via the mesh network, notification of the event; and

sending an alert and/or notification for the operator in response to detection of the trigger event.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising sending one or more images to a remote viewing device based on detection of an event or input by at least one of the wireless input capture devices, the remote viewing device is configured to inform an operator associated with the remote viewing device that the event or input was detected.

13. A system for wireless communication, comprising:

one or more processors; and

memory having instructions executable by the one or more processors to;

wirelessly communicate with electronic devices that communicate wirelessly via a mesh network, wherein the electronic devices are configured to automatically communicate via the mesh network;

automatically control settings, activities, and/or functionality of at least one of the electronic devices; and

directly communicate with one or more of the electronic devices to receive environmental data from another one of the electronic devices that transmits the environmental data via the mesh network and independent of any remote server device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the electronic devices are configured to communicate with one another based on relative positions of the electronic devices.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory is further configured to cause the system to communicate directly with at least one of the electronic devices that receives the environmental data and automatically transmits the received environmental data.

16. The system of claim 13, further comprising a digital input device that includes the one or more processors and the memory, and wherein the digital input device is programmed to enable remote viewing of the environmental data.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory has instructions that are executable to cause a notification to be sent to a user indicating detection of at least one of an event or input based on the environmental data.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory has instructions further configured to coordinate operation of the electronic devices based on the environmental data.

19. The system of claim 13, wherein the electronic devices are wireless input capture devices.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the memory has instructions further configured to send the environmental data via a wide area network to a remote server.

21. The system of claim 13, wherein the environmental data includes at least one of video, an image, a temperature, a motion detection, a moisture detection, a sound, or a presence of one or more chemicals.