In-home-presence probability calculation method, server apparatus, and in-home-presence probability calculation system

• US 10,157,345 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2014
• Issued: 12/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Takahiro, Kusukame, Koichi, Shikii, Shinichi, Ohmori, Motoji, Hirose, Takako
• Primary Examiner(s): DAO, THUY CHAN
• Application Number:
  US14/543,015
• Publication Number:
  US 20150142140A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,492 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 7/01 Probabilistic graphical models, e.g. probabilistic networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport

Abstract

Specification of a time is received from a device that uses an in-home-presence probability calculation system, a probability that a person is at home at the specified time is calculated on the basis of a specified operation time and a specified correlation when the specified operation time is a time within a period of a certain time ending at the time at which the specification has been received, and information as to whether or not a person is at home is output to the device on the basis of the calculated probability.

Claims

1. An in-home-presence probability calculation method used in an in-home-presence probability calculation system that provides information as to whether or not a person is at home, the in-home-presence probability calculation method comprising:

receiving operation information on a device provided in a home via a network every time a certain operation is performed for the device;

specifying operation times at which the certain operation has been performed, in accordance with the received operation information;

receiving, every time a state is entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, time information of a time at which the state has been entered;

specifying in-home-absence times at which a state has been entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, in accordance with the received time information;

specifying a correlation between a set including the specified operation times and a set including the specified in-home-absence times;

receiving specification of a time from a device that uses the in-home-presence probability calculation system;

calculating, when a specified operation time, of the specified operation times, is a time within a period of a certain time ending at a time at which the specification has been received and when the correlation has a strength that satisfies a certain condition, a probability that a person is at home at the specified time on the basis of the specified operation time and the correlation; and

outputting the information as to whether or not a person is at home to the device that uses the in-home-presence probability calculation system on the basis of the calculated probability,

wherein, the device provided in the home is one of a plurality of devices provided in the home,

a target device, whose main power switch is to be turned OFF, is included among the plurality of devices, and

a correlation for the target device is specified as the correlation in the specifying of the correlation.

2. The in-home-presence probability calculation method according to claim 1, wherein time differences are calculated for the specified operation times, each of the time differences being a difference between a corresponding one of the specified operation times and an in-home-absence time that is first specified within a period from the corresponding one of the specified operation times, the period satisfying a certain condition, and the correlation is specified using a frequency distribution of the calculated time differences.

3. The in-home-presence probability calculation method according to claim 2, wherein the specified correlation is a cumulative frequency distribution of the time differences.

4. The in-home-presence probability calculation method according to claim 3, wherein the certain operation is an operation for turning off a main power switch of the device provided in the home.

5. The in-home-presence probability calculation method according to claim 4,

wherein the target device comprises a plurality of target devices,

correlations only for the target devices are specified as the correlation in the specifying of the correlation, and

when a correlation is specified having a strength that satisfies a certain condition among the specified correlations, the probability is calculated using the specified correlation that satisfies the certain condition.

6. A server apparatus that provides information as to whether or not a person is at home, the server apparatus comprising:

one or more memories;

circuitry which, in operation;

receives operation information on a device provided in a home via a network every time a certain operation is performed for the device;

specifies operation times at which the certain operation has been performed, in accordance with the received operation information;

receives, every time a state is entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, time information of a time at which the state has been entered;

specifies in-home-absence times at which a state has been entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, in accordance with the received time information;

specifies a correlation between a set including the specified operation times and a set including the specified in-home-absence times;

receives specification of a time from a device that uses the server apparatus; and

calculates, when a specified operation time, of the specified operation times, is a time within a period of a certain time ending at a time at which the specification has been received and when the correlation has a strength that satisfies a certain condition, a probability that a person is at home at the specified time on the basis of the specified operation time and the specified correlation,

wherein, the information as to whether or not a person is at home is output to the device that uses the server apparatus on the basis of the calculated probability,

wherein, the device provided in the home is one of a plurality of devices provided in the home,

a target device, whose main power switch is to be turned OFF, is included among the plurality of devices, and

a correlation for the target device is specified as the correlation in the specification of the correlation.

7. The server apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the target device comprises a plurality of target devices,

correlations only for the target devices are specified as the correlation in the specifying of the correlation, and

when a correlation is specified having a strength that satisfies a certain condition among the specified correlations, the probability is calculated using the specified correlation that satisfies the certain condition.

8. An in-home-presence probability calculation system that provides information as to whether or not a person is at home, the in-home-presence probability calculation system comprising:

a server apparatus comprising,

one or more memories;

circuitry which, in operation;

receives operation information on a device provided in a home via a network every time a certain operation is performed for the device;

specifies operation times at which the certain operation has been performed, in accordance with the received operation information;

receives, every time a state is entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, time information of a time at which the state has been entered;

specifies in-home-absence times at which a state has been entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, in accordance with the received time information,

specifies a correlation between a set including the specified operation times and a set including the specified in-home-absence times;

receives specification of a time from a device that uses the server apparatus; and

calculates, when a specified operation time, of the specified operation times, is a time within a period of a certain time ending at the time at which the specification has been received and when the correlation has a strength that satisfies a certain condition, a probability that a person is at home at the specified time on the basis of the specified operation time and the specified correlation,

wherein, the information as to whether or not a person is at home is output to the device that uses the server apparatus on the basis of the calculated probability,

wherein, the device provided in the home is one of a plurality of devices provided in the home,

a target device, whose main power switch is to be turned OFF, is included among the plurality of devices, and

a correlation for the target device is specified as the correlation in the specification of the correlation.

9. The in-home presence probability calculation system according to claim 8,

wherein the target device comprises a plurality of target devices,

correlations only for the target devices are specified as the correlation in the specifying of the correlation, and

when a correlation is specified having a strength that satisfies a certain condition among the specified correlations, the probability is calculated using the specified correlation that satisfies the certain condition.

10. An in-home-presence probability calculation method used in an in-home-presence probability calculation system that provides information as to whether or not a person is at home, the in-home-presence probability calculation method comprising:

receiving operation information on a device provided in a home via a network every time a certain operation is performed for the device;

specifying operation times at which the certain operation has been performed, in accordance with the received operation information;

receiving, every time a state is entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, time information of a time at which the state has been entered;

specifying in-home-absence times at which a state has been entered in which it is expected that no one is at home, in accordance with the received time information;

specifying a correlation between a set including the specified operation times and a set including the specified in-home-absence times;

receiving specification of a time from a device that uses the in-home-presence probability calculation system;

calculating, when a specified operation time, of the specified operation times, is a time within a period of a certain time ending at a time at which the specification has been received and when the correlation has a strength that satisfies a certain condition, a probability that a person is at home at the specified time on the basis of the specified operation time and the specified correlation; and

outputting the information as to whether or not a person is at home to the device that uses the in-home-presence probability calculation system on the basis of the calculated probability,

wherein time differences are calculated for the specified operation times, each of the time differences being a difference between a corresponding one of the specified operation times and an in-home-absence time that is first specified within a period from the corresponding one of the specified operation times, the period satisfying a certain condition, and the correlation is specified using a frequency distribution of the calculated time differences,

wherein, the specified correlation is a cumulative frequency distribution of the time differences,

wherein, the certain operation is one of a plurality of certain operations,

wherein, correlations for the certain operations are specified as the correlation in the specifying of the correlation, each of the correlations being specified for a corresponding one of the certain operations, and

wherein, when a correlation is specified having a strength that satisfies the certain condition among the specified correlations, the probability is calculated using the specified correlation that satisfies the certain condition.