Wireless speaker devices for wireless audio/video recording and communication devices

• US 10,499,011 B2
• Filed: 03/02/2018
• Issued: 12/03/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Siminoff, James, Roth, Joshua, Aoe, Andy, Phillips, Trevor, Sacre, Spiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phung-Hoang J
• Application Number:
  US15/911,013
• Publication Number:
  US 20180262715A1
• Time in Patent Office: 641 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 1/00 Systems for signalling characterised solely by the form of transmission of the signal
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19695 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors start video recording or forwarding but do not generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 3/10 using electric transmission; using electromagnetic transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2869 Operational details of access network equipments admission control or resource allocation in access networks H04L12/5692
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0291 Door telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/025 Door telephones adapted for television H04N7/186
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/148 Interfacing a video terminal to a particular transmission medium, e.g. ISDN
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/186 Video door telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user

Abstract

A wireless speaker device configured for use with a wireless A/V recording and communication device, such as a doorbell. The wireless speaker device, which includes a speaker, may connect to the user'"'"'s local area network (LAN), such as a Wi-Fi network. The LAN is connected to a wide area network (WAN), such as the Internet and/or a public switched telephone network (PSTN). When the wireless A/V recording and communication device detects a visitor, it sends a signal, via the LAN, to at least one device in the WAN, such as a server and/or a service. In response, the at least one device in the WAN sends a signal, via the LAN, to the wireless speaker device. The signal to the wireless speaker device includes a command for the wireless speaker device to emit a tone through its speaker. The wireless speaker device then emits a tone through its speaker to alert the user that a visitor is at the wireless A/V recording and communication device. The wireless speaker device may further include a wireless repeater configured to receive a wireless signal from the one or more LAN devices and rebroadcast the wireless signal. The wireless speaker device may further include a wireless communication module configured to transmit data wirelessly to and/or receive data wirelessly from another wireless device, independently of the LAN, via a direct connection to the another wireless device.

Claims

1. A wireless speaker device for use with an A/V doorbell, the wireless speaker device comprising:

a wireless repeater configured to rebroadcast wireless signals received from a router of a user network;

a wireless communication module configured to communicate with a client device associated with the A/V doorbell via a direct wireless connection that is independent of the user network, wherein the wireless communication module;

broadcasts a wireless provisioning beacon signal indicating that the wireless speaker device is available as a wireless access point;

receives credentials, from the client device, via the direct wireless connection that is independent of the user network; and

connects to the user network via the router using the credentials; and

a speaker configured to emit a tone in response to receiving a signal from the router indicating that the A/V doorbell has detected a visitor; and

wherein the wireless speaker device is stationary.

2. The wireless speaker device of claim 1, wherein the speaker is configured to receive the signal from the router indicating that the A/V doorbell has detected the visitor, in response to at least one of a visitor pressing a button of the A/V doorbell, and a visitor being detected by a motion detector of the A/V doorbell.

3. The wireless speaker device of claim 1, wherein the wireless repeater is configured to rebroadcast the wireless signals to the A/V doorbell when the A/V doorbell does not receive the wireless signals, or receives the wireless signals weakly, from the router.

4. The wireless speaker device of claim 1, wherein the speaker is configured to receive the signal from the router indicating that the A/V doorbell has detected the visitor when a server, in response to receiving a visitor detection signal from the A/V doorbell, sends the signal to the router.

5. The wireless speaker device of claim 1, wherein the direct wireless connection is established using a short-range wireless protocol.

6. The wireless speaker device of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication module is further configured to receive a first signal from the client device and transmit, in response to receiving the first signal, a second signal to another wireless device coupled to the wireless speaker device.

7. The wireless speaker device of claim 6, wherein the another wireless device comprises one of an electronic lock, a video recording device, and a light switch.

8. The wireless speaker device of claim 6, wherein the first signal and the second signal are for controlling the another wireless device by the client device.

9. The wireless speaker device of claim 6, wherein the direct wireless connection is a first direct wireless connection, and wherein the wireless speaker device is coupled to the another wireless device via a second direct wireless connection.

10. The wireless speaker device of claim 6, wherein the wireless speaker device is coupled to the another wireless device via the user network.

11. A non-transitory machine readable medium of a stationary wireless speaker device storing a program executable by at least one processing unit of the stationary wireless speaker device, the program comprising sets of instructions for:

rebroadcasting, via a wireless repeater, wireless signals received from a router of a user network;

emitting a tone, via a speaker, when a visitor detection signal is received from an A/V doorbell;

broadcasting, via a wireless communication module, a wireless provisioning beacon signal indicating that the stationary wireless speaker device is available as a wireless access point;

establishing a direct wireless connection with a client device, wherein the direct wireless connection is independent of the user network;

receiving credentials for the router, from the client device, via the direct wireless connection that is independent of the user network; and

connecting, via the wireless communication module, with the user network via the router using the credentials for the router.

12. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 11, wherein the program further comprises a set of instructions for receiving, via the wireless communication module, a first signal from the client device and transmitting to another wireless device coupled to the stationary wireless speaker device a second signal in response to receiving the first signal from the client device.

13. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 12, wherein the another wireless device comprises a security system.

14. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 12, wherein the first signal and the second signal are for controlling the another wireless device by the client device.

15. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 12, wherein the direct wireless connection is a first direct wireless connection, and wherein the stationary wireless speaker device is coupled to the another wireless device via a second direct wireless connection.

16. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 12, wherein the stationary wireless speaker device is coupled to the another wireless device via the user network.

17. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 11, wherein the client device comprises a smartphone.

18. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 11, wherein the direct wireless connection comprises Bluetooth.

19. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 11, wherein the set of instructions for emitting the tone further comprises a set of instructions for emitting the tone when a visitor is detected by a motion detector of the wireless doorbell.