Alarm verification system and method thereof

• US 10,152,873 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2017
• Issued: 12/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CHeKT , LLC
• Original Assignee: CHeKT , LLC
• Inventors: Usie, Wesley Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Girma, Fekadeselassie
• Application Number:
  US15/486,624
• Publication Number:
  US 20180301016A1
• Time in Patent Office: 607 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/001 Alarm cancelling procedures or alarm forwarding decisions, e.g. based on absence of alarm confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 27/001 Signalling to an emergency team, e.g. firemen

Abstract

Provided are an alarm verification system and a method thereof. According to the present invention, when occurrence of an emergency situation such as a crime or a fire is uncertain when a predetermined alarm is generated, a verification request message is transmitted to an emergency contact network which is registered in advance and, when information on the occurrence of an emergency situation is included in a response message thereof, information on the occurrence of an emergency situation is provided to a server of a police station, a hospital, a fire station, or the like, which is registered in advance so that it is possible to avoid payment of penalty for erroneously reporting for occurrence of an emergency situation, perform prompt action in response to the occurrence of the emergency situation, improve convenience in use, and improve reliability of the entire system.

Claims

1. An alarm verification method for ensuring reliability for an alarm, the method comprising:

transmitting a verification request message, by a communication unit, to two or more terminals corresponding to one or more emergency contacts included in an emergency contact network which is registered in advance, if a situation is not accurately determined by a control unit whether it is an emergency situation based on at least one of image information obtained by a photographing unit and sensing information sensed by a sensor unit when a predetermined alarm is generated;

checking whether at least one response message is received from at least one terminal among the two or more terminals within a predetermined time after transmitting the verification request message to the two or more terminals, by the control unit, wherein the verification request message includes real-time verification status information from the one or more emergency contacts included in the emergency contact network; and

performing a function by the control unit corresponding to response information included in the at least one response message received from the at least one terminal among the two or more terminals within the predetermined time after transmitting the verification request message to the two or more terminals,

wherein the performing of the function by the control unit corresponding to the response information, includes;

determining whether information indicating that the situation is the emergency situation is included in the at least one response message received from the at least one terminal among the two or more terminals;

providing information on occurrence of the emergency situation to a server which is registered in advance, when information indicating that the situation is an emergency situation is included in the at least one response message received as a determination result;

ending the process without proceeding an additional procedure, when a second response message received from one terminal among the two or more terminals indicates that the situation is not the emergency situation follows a first response message received from a different terminal among the two or more terminals that indicated the situation is the emergency situation and providing information on occurrence of the emergency situation from the first response message to a server which is registered in advance;

generating a third activity log related to the occurrence of the emergency situation as reported by the first response message received;

storing the generated third activity log in a storage unit;

generating a fourth activity log related to the second message received; and

storing the generated fourth activity log in the storage unit.

2. The alarm verification method of claim 1, wherein the verification request message includes at least one of a predetermined number of snap shots before and/or after occurrence of the situation with respect to a situation occurrence time related to the emergency situation, the situation occurrence time information, an address link information for checking a real-time image, a response field, and information on remaining time to response.

3. The alarm verification method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing information on occurrence of the situation to the server which is registered in advance by the control unit, when the at least one response message transmitted from at least one terminal among the two or more terminals is not received within the predetermined time after transmitting the verification request message to the one or more terminals as the checking result;

generating a first activity log related to occurrence of the situation, by the control unit; and

storing the generated first activity log in the storage unit, by the control unit.

4. The alarm verification method of claim 3, wherein the first activity log includes at least one of a predetermined number of snap shots before and/or after occurrence of the situation with respect to a situation occurrence time related to the situation, a moving image for a predetermined time, a situation occurrence time information, a verification request message transmitting time information, a verification request message receiving time information for each of the one or more terminals corresponding to the emergency contact, information for each of the one or more terminals indicating whether the response message is transmitted from each of the one or more terminals, and a situation occurrence reporting time information.

5. The alarm verification method of claim 1, wherein the performing of the function corresponding to the response information, includes:

determining whether information indicating that the situation is the emergency situation is included in the at least one response message received from the at least one terminal among the two or more terminals;

providing information on occurrence of the emergency situation to a server which is registered in advance, when information indicating that the situation is an emergency situation is included in the at least one response message received as a determination result;

ending the process without proceeding an additional procedure, when information indicating that the situation is not the emergency situation is included in all of the at least one response message received as the determination result;

generating a second activity log related to the occurrence of the emergency situation; and

storing the generated second activity log in the storage unit.

6. The alarm verification method of claim 5, wherein the second activity log includes at least one of the predetermined number of snap shots before and/or after the occurrence of the emergency situation with respect to the emergency situation occurrence time related to the emergency situation, a moving image for a predetermined time, the emergency situation occurrence time information, the verification request message transmitting time information, the verification request message receiving time information for each of the two or more terminals corresponding to the emergency contact, the information for each of the one or more terminals indicating whether the response message is transmitted from each of the one or more terminals, the response message from each of the one or more terminals, reception time information of the response message which is transmitted from each of the one or more terminals, and the emergency situation occurrence reporting time information.

7. The alarm verification method of claim 1, further comprising:

checking whether the predetermined alarm is generated based on at least one information among the image information obtained by the photographing unit and the sensing information sensed by the sensor unit, by the control unit;

determining whether at least one emergency situation among a crime, a patient, and a fire occurs, by the control unit, when the predetermined alarm is generated;

providing information on occurrence of the emergency situation to a server which is registered in advance, by the control unit when it is determined that the emergency situation occurs;

generating the third activity log related to the occurrence of the emergency situation, by the control unit; and

storing the generated third activity log in the storage unit, by the control unit.

8. The alarm verification method of claim 7, wherein the third activity log includes at least one of a predetermined number of snap shots before and/or after the occurrence of the emergency situation with respect to the emergency situation occurrence time related to the emergency situation, a moving image for a predetermined time, an emergency situation occurrence time information, and an emergency situation occurrence reporting time information.

9. The alarm verification method of claim 1, wherein the third activity log includes a set of moving images for five minutes before and/or after occurrence of the emergency situation, emergency situation occurrence time information on a time when the emergency situation occurs, a verification request message transmitting time information when the verification request message is transmitted to the two or more terminals, information on whether response message from at least one terminal among the two or more terminals is received, the first response message, a response message receiving time information on when the first response message transmitted from the first terminal is received, and time information on when the emergency situation occurrence information is provided to the server that is registered in advance.

10. The alarm verification method of claim 1, wherein the fourth activity log includes a set of moving images for five minutes before and/or after occurrence of the situation, an emergency situation occurrence time information on a time when the situation occurs, a verification request message transmitting time information when the verification request message is transmitted to the two or more terminals, information on whether a response message from the at least one terminal among the two or more terminals is received, the second response message, and the response message receiving time information when the second response message transmitted from the second terminal is received.

11. An alarm verification system for ensuring reliability for an alarm, the system comprising:

a photographing unit which obtains image information;

a sensor unit which senses a motion of an object and an on/off state of a door;

a communication unit which, if a situation is not accurately determined whether it is an emergency situation based on at least one of image information obtained by the photographing unit and sensing information sensed by the sensor unit when a predetermined alarm is generated, transmits a verification request message to two or more terminals corresponding to one or more emergency contacts included in an emergency contact network which is registered in advance; and

a control unit which, when at least one response message transmitted from at least one terminal among the two or more terminals is received within a predetermined time after transmitting the verification request message to the two or more terminals, performs a function corresponding to response information included in the least one response message received,

wherein the verification request message includes real-time verification status information from the one or more emergency contacts included in the emergency contact network,

wherein the alarm verification system receives two or more response messages sent from the two or more terminals within the predetermined time, and

wherein the alarm verification system ends the process without proceeding to an additional procedure when a second response message received from one terminal among the two or more terminals indicating the situation is not the emergency situation follows a first response message received from a different terminal among the two or more terminals indicating the situation is the emergency situation, the alarm verification system providing information on occurrence of the emergency situation from the first response message to a server which is registered in advance, a third activity log generated that contains information from the first response message and stored in a storage unit and a fourth activity log generated that contains information from the second response message and stored in the storage unit.

12. The alarm verification system of claim 11, wherein the control unit provides information on occurrence of the emergency situation to the server which is registered in advance, when information indicating that it is an emergency situation is included in the received at least one response message, generates a second activity log related to the occurrence of the emergency situation, and stores the generated second activity log in the storage unit.

13. The alarm verification system of claim 11, wherein the control unit generates the third activity log related to the first response message, stores the generated third activity log in the storage unit, generates the fourth activity log related to the second response message, and stores the generated fourth activity log in a storage unit.