Controlling IOT devices via public safety answering point

• US 10,627,794 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2018
• Issued: 04/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Carpenter, Philip W., Scheller, James D., Johnson, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Ramesh B
• Application Number:
  US16/113,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20190187643A1
• Time in Patent Office: 603 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2613 Household appliance in general
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/00 Automatic or semi-automatic exchanges
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5116 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/33 for indoor environments, e.g. buildings
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/38 for collecting sensor information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

Novel tools and techniques are provided for implementing Internet of Things (“IoT”) functionality with a Public Safety Answering Point (“PSAP”). In some embodiments, a computing system located at a PSAP might receive a first message indicative of an emergency situation, analyze the first message to determine one or more actions to be taken, and identify one or more devices (e.g., household devices; vehicular components associated with a vehicle; utility devices; devices disposed in, on, or along a roadway; devices disposed throughout a population area; etc.) for performing the determined one or more first actions. The computing system might then autonomously control each of the identified one or more devices to perform tasks based on the determined one or more first actions to be taken, thereby implementing smart environment functionality (e.g., smart home, building, or customer premises functionality, smart vehicle functionality, smart utility, smart roadway functionality, smart city functionality, etc.).

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, with a computing system at a public safety answering point (“

PSAP”

), at least one first message indicative of an emergency situation occurring at a customer premises;

analyzing, with the computing system, the at least one first message to determine one or more first actions to be taken in response to the emergency situation;

identifying, with the computing system, at least one of one or more household devices associated with the customer premises, one or more first vehicular components associated with a vehicle known to be associated with a resident of the customer premises, one or more utility devices associated with a utility service provider supplying at least one of electrical power, gas, or water to the customer premises, one or more second vehicular components associated with each of one or more emergency response vehicles, or one or more emergency response devices associated with one or more emergency responders for performing the determined one or more first actions to be taken, based at least in part on the analysis of the at least one first message; and

autonomously controlling, with the computing system, at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform one or more tasks, based at least in part on the determined one or more first actions to be taken.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the at least one first message indicative of the emergency situation occurring at the customer premises comprises:

receiving, with the computing system, at least one first sensor data indicative of the emergency situation from each of one or more Internet of Things (“

IoT”

)-capable devices via machine-to-machine communications, each of the one or more IoT-capable devices comprising one or more first sensors that collect the at least one first sensor data at the customer premises.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or more first sensors of each of the one or more IoT-capable devices each comprises one or more thermometers in one or more rooms of the customer premises, one or more infrared (“

IR”

) thermometers aimed at one or more positions in the one or more rooms, one or more air flow sensors in the one or more rooms, one or more air flow sensors in air ducts directed toward the one or more rooms, one or more indoor solar light sensors, one or more outdoor solar light sensors, one or more outdoor wind sensors, one or more neighborhood weather station sensors, one or more regional weather station sensors, one or more motion detectors detecting presence of people or animals in at least one of the one or more rooms or outside the customer premises, one or more humidity sensors in the one or more rooms, one or more smoke detectors detecting smoke in the one or more rooms, one or more gas detection sensors detecting gas in the one or more rooms, one or more biometric sensors identifying at least one person, or one or more health sensors detecting health information for at least one person.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one first sensor data that is received from each of the one or more IoT-capable devices each comprises sensor data that exceeds a predetermined threshold for each corresponding type of sensor, wherein sensor data that does not exceed the predetermined threshold for each corresponding type of sensor is prevented from being sent to the computing system.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the at least one first sensor data from each of the one or more IoT-capable devices via machine-to-machine communications comprises:

receiving, with the computing system, at least one first sensor data from each of the one or more IoT-capable devices via machine-to-machine communications, via one or more first application programming interfaces (“

APIs”

) established between the computing system and each of the one or more IoT-capable devices.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one first sensor data indicates at least one of a type of emergency situation, a location of the emergency situation within the customer premises, locations of live electrical wiring throughout the customer premises, locations of gas sources throughout the customer premises, locations of water sources throughout the customer premises, a location of at least one person within the customer premises, an identity of the at least one person within the customer premises, a location of at least one animal within the customer premises, or health information associated with the at least one person within the customer premises.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

sending, with the computing system, one or more first control instructions to the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular devices, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks, based at least in part on the determined one or more first actions to be taken.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

autonomously controlling, with the computing system, the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices, via one or more second APIs established between the computing system and each of at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified one or more household devices comprise one or more of a furnace, an air conditioner, one or more thermostats, one or more automated window opening or closing systems, one or more automated door opening or closing systems, one or more automated skylight opening or closing systems, one or more automated window covering systems, one or more humidifiers, one or more dehumidifiers, one or more ventilation fans, one or more cameras, one or more automated lighting systems, one or more smoke or gas detectors, one or more automated gas intake valves, one or more water intake valves, or one or more user devices associated with at least one person located in the customer premises.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

controlling, with the computing system, operation of at least one of the furnace, the air conditioner, the one or more thermostats, the one or more automated window opening or closing systems, the one or more automated door opening or closing systems, the one or more automated skylight opening or closing systems, the one or more automated window covering systems, the one or more humidifiers, the one or more dehumidifiers, the one or more ventilation fans, the one or more cameras, the one or more automated lighting systems, the one or more smoke or gas detectors, the one or more automated gas or water intake valves, or the one or more user devices associated with the at least one person located in the customer premises.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified one or more first vehicular components or the identified one or more second vehicular components comprise at least one of a vehicle brake system, a vehicle gear system, a vehicle electronic throttle control system, a vehicle guidance system, a vehicle steering system, a vehicle turn signal system, a vehicle heads-up display system, a vehicle digital instrument gauge cluster, a vehicle display device, a vehicle navigation system, a vehicle speaker system, a vehicle door locking or unlocking system, an automatic vehicle door opening or closing system, a vehicle window opening or closing system, or a vehicle sun-roof or moon-roof opening or closing system.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

controlling, with the computing system, operation of the at least one of the vehicle brake system, the vehicle gear system, the vehicle electronic throttle control system, the vehicle steering system, the vehicle turn signal system, the vehicle heads-up display system, the vehicle digital instrument gauge cluster, the vehicle display device, the vehicle navigation system, the vehicle speaker system, the vehicle door locking or unlocking system, the automatic vehicle door opening or closing system, the vehicle window opening or closing system, or the vehicle sun-roof or moon-roof opening or closing system.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

controlling, with the computing system, the vehicle display device; and

causing, with the computing system, the vehicle display device to display information associated with the emergency situation.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified one or more utility devices comprise at least one of one or more electric utility devices, one or more gas utility devices, or one or more water utility devices.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

controlling, with the computing system, at least one of the one or more electric utility devices, the one or more gas utility devices, or the one or more water utility devices to perform at least one of turn on, turn off, reroute flow, or adjust flow amount.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified one or more emergency response devices comprise at least one of a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop, a global positioning system (“

GPS”

) device, or a personal digital assistant.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein autonomously controlling the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform the one or more tasks comprises:

sending, with the computing system, at least one of a key or a passcode to the one or more emergency response devices, wherein the at least one of the key or the passcode allows the one or more emergency response devices to control at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, or the identified one or more utility devices.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

receiving, with the computing system, a first location associated with at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, or the identified one or more utility devices;

tracking, with the computing system, a second location associated with at least one of the identified one or more second vehicular components or the identified one or more emergency response devices; and

based on a determination that the first location and the second location overlap, autonomously controlling, with the computing system, at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform one or more additional tasks.

19. A system, comprising:

a computing system located at a Public Safety Answering Point (“

PSAP”

), comprising;

a first transceiver;

at least one first processor; and

a first non-transitory computer readable medium communicatively coupled to the at least one first processor, the first non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer software comprising a first set of instructions that, when executed by the at least one first processor, causes the computing system to;

receive at least one first message indicative of an emergency situation occurring at a customer premises via the first transceiver;

analyze the at least one first message to determine one or more first actions to be taken in response to the emergency situation;

identify at least one of one or more household devices associated with the customer premises, one or more first vehicular components associated with a vehicle known to be associated with a resident of the customer premises, one or more utility devices associated with a utility service provider supplying at least one of electrical power, gas, or water to the customer premises, one or more second vehicular components associated with each of one or more emergency response vehicles, or one or more emergency response devices associated with one or more emergency responders for performing the determined one or more first actions to be taken, based at least in part on the analysis of the at least one first message; and

autonomously control at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform one or more tasks, based at least in part on the determined one or more first actions to be taken; and

the at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices, each comprising;

a second transceiver;

at least one second processor; and

a second non-transitory computer readable medium communicatively coupled to the at least one second processor, the second non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer software comprising a second set of instructions that, when executed by the at least one second processor, causes at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to;

receive control instructions from the computing system; and

perform the one or more tasks based on the received control instructions.

20. An apparatus, comprising:

one or more first processors; and

a non-transitory computer readable medium communicatively coupled with the one or more first processors, the non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer software comprising a set of instructions that, when executed by the one or more first processors, causes the apparatus to;

receive at least one first message indicative of an emergency situation occurring at a customer premises;

analyze the at least one first message to determine one or more first actions to be taken in response to the emergency situation;

identify at least one of one or more household devices associated with the customer premises, one or more first vehicular components associated with a vehicle known to be associated with a resident of the customer premises, one or more utility devices associated with a utility service provider supplying at least one of electrical power, gas, or water to the customer premises, one or more second vehicular components associated with each of one or more emergency response vehicles, one or more emergency response devices associated with one or more emergency responders for performing the determined one or more first actions to be taken, based at least in part on the analysis of the at least one first message; and

autonomously control at least one of the identified one or more household devices, the identified one or more first vehicular components, the identified one or more utility devices, the identified one or more second vehicular components, or the identified one or more emergency response devices to perform one or more tasks, based at least in part on the determined one or more first actions to be taken, wherein the apparatus may be located at a public safety answering point (“

PSAP”

).