Sensor device configuration

• US 10,591,345 B2
• Filed: 03/07/2019
• Issued: 03/17/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nectar Limited
• Original Assignee: Nectar Limited
• Inventors: Gurumohan, Prabhanjan C., Phumbhra, Aayush
• Primary Examiner(s): Dalbo, Michael J
• Application Number:
  US16/295,988
• Publication Number:
  US 20190310126A1
• Time in Patent Office: 376 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 19/00 Table service
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 23/16 combined with drinking vessels or with lids therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/2961 for discrete levels G01F23/2962 - G01F23/2968 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/2962 Measuring transit time of reflected waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/2968 Transducers specially adapted for acoustic level indicators
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/114 Indoor or close-range type systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/43 using wireless personal area networks [WPAN], e.g. 802.15, 802.15.1, 802.15.4, Bluetooth or ZigBee
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/823 where the data is sent when the measured values exceed a threshold, e.g. sending an alarm
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A sensor device includes an interrogation signal transmitter configured to transmit an interrogation signal to determine an identifier associated with an amount of content included in a container engaged by the sensor device. The interrogation signal transmitter is configured to transmit the interrogation signal that travels through air included in the container to reflect off the content in the container.

Claims

1. A sensor device, comprising:

an interrogation signal transmitter configured to transmit an interrogation signal used to determine an identifier associated with an amount of content included in the container engaged by the sensor device, wherein the interrogation signal is one of a plurality of different options of interrogation signals each with a different shape and/or waveform that the sensor device is configured to transmit based on a sensor configuration, wherein the interrogation signal is configured according to a shape and/or a size of the container, and the interrogation signal transmitter is configured to transmit the interrogation signal that travels through air included in the container to reflect off the content in the container; and

a communication transmitter configured to wirelessly transmit the identifier associated with the amount of content included in the container.

2. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the interrogation signal transmitter is a transceiver and the transceiver is configured to receive the interrogation signal that has been reflected off the content included in the container.

3. The sensor device as recited in claim 2, wherein the received interrogation signal is filtered based at least in part on the received sensor configuration.

4. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the sensor device is a bottle cap of the container.

5. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the sensor device includes a spout.

6. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the amount of content is an amount of liquid.

7. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the sensor configuration is associated with the content included in the container.

8. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the sensor configuration is specific to a container type of the container.

9. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the communication transmitter transmits the identifier associated with the amount of content using a wireless personal area network advertisement packet.

10. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the sensor configuration specifies the shape and/or the waveform of the interrogation signal.

11. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the different shapes and/or waveforms of the interrogation signal options include different signal amplitudes.

12. The sensor device as recited in claim 1, wherein the interrogation signal transmitter is further configured to transmit another one of interrogation signal from the plurality of different options of interrogation signals.

13. A system, comprising:

a communication receiver configured to receive a sensor device identifier from a sensor device; and

a processor coupled with the communication receiver and configured to;

associate the sensor device identifier with a container; and

provide a sensor configuration to the sensor device, wherein the sensor configuration is utilized by the sensor device to determine a fill identifier associated with an amount of content included in the container engaged by the sensor device, wherein the sensor device is configured to transmit an interrogation signal, the interrogation signal is one of a plurality of different options of interrogation signals each with a different shape and/or waveform that the sensor device is configured to transmit, wherein the interrogation signal is configured according to a shape and/or a size of the container, and the interrogation signal transmitter is configured to transmit the interrogation signal that travels through air included in the container to reflect off the content in the container.

14. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein receiving the identification associated with the container type includes receiving an image of a barcode of the container.

15. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to receive the fill identifier and determine a fill value corresponding to the fill identifier for the container type.

16. The system as recited in claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to provide a notification in the event the fill value is below a threshold.

17. The system as recited in claim 15, wherein the processor is further configured to automatically place an order for the content in the event the fill value is below a threshold.

18. The system as recited in claim 13, further comprising a storage configured to track an inventory for the content included in the container.

19. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to analyze a historical depletion pattern of the content and determine a quantity of the content to reorder.

20. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to analyze a depletion pattern of the content across a plurality of sensor devices of a plurality of user entities.