Mobile correctional facility robots

• US 10,690,466 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2017
• Issued: 06/23/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Original Assignee: Global Tel-Link Corporation
• Inventors: Hodge, Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): Mancho, Ronnie M
• Application Number:
  US15/491,728
• Publication Number:
  US 20180304465A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,161 Days
• Field of Search: 700245, 700248
• CPC Class Codes: F41B 15/02 Batons; Truncheons; Sticks; Shillelaghs
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 13/0012 Electrical discharge weapons, e.g. for stunning
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 7/005 Unmanned ground vehicles, i.e. robotic, remote controlled or autonomous, mobile platforms carrying equipment for performing a military or police role, e.g. weapon systems or reconnaissance sensors F41H11/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 9/04 Gas-blowing apparatus, e.g. for tear gas F41H9/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F42B 12/745 the core being made of plastics; Compounds or blends of plastics and other materials, e.g. fillers
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0282 generated in a local control room

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to mobile correctional facility robots and systems and methods for coordinating mobile correctional facility robots to perform various tasks in a correctional facility. The mobile correctional facility robots can be used to perform many of the tasks traditionally assigned to correctional facility guards to help reduce the number of guards needed in any given correctional facility. When cooperation is employed among multiple mobile correctional facility robots to execute tasks, a central controller can be used to coordinate the efforts of the multiple robots to improve the performance of the overall system of robots as compared to the performance of the robots when working in uncoordinated effort to execute the tasks.

Claims

1. A mobile correctional facility robot comprising:

a plurality of actuators, wherein the plurality of actuators is based on a type of the mobile correctional facility robot;

a sensor array;

a memory comprising computer program instructions; and

a hardware processing unit configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform a task execution method using the plurality of actuators and sensor data corresponding to physical properties of an environment surrounding the mobile correctional facility robot detected using the sensor array, the task execution method comprising;

transmitting status information of the mobile correctional facility robot to a central controller;

receiving, based on status information of the mobile correctional facility robot, a delivery task from the central controller;

receiving, based on the delivery task, a delivery item and a delivery destination;

authenticating the delivery item;

securing, in response to the authenticating, the delivery item using one or more of the plurality of actuators;

transporting the delivery item to the delivery destination; and

performing a second authentication of the delivery item prior to delivering the delivery item.

2. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the hardware processing unit is further configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform a coordination method among a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots.

3. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the status information of the mobile correctional facility robot comprises a location of the mobile correctional facility robot or an alert issued by the mobile correctional facility robot.

4. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 3, wherein the alert is issued by the mobile correctional facility robot in response to recognizing an event in the sensor data, wherein the event is a predetermined spoken word or phrase or a predetermined behavior.

5. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the hardware processing unit is configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform the task execution method upon receiving the delivery task from the central controller.

6. The mobile correction facility robot of claim 5, wherein the delivery task is received from the central controller based on both the status information of the mobile correctional facility robot transmitted to the central controller and status information transmitted to the central controller from a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots.

7. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the central controller is one of a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots.

8. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, further comprising a mechanical arm, wherein the mechanical arm is used to deploy non-lethal force.

9. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the delivery item is a video message or an inmate.

10. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the hardware processing unit is further configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform a monitoring method comprising:

detecting an object in the sensor data;

extracting one or more features of the object in the sensor data; and

recognizing an event in the sensor data associated with the object, wherein the event comprises physical harm to an inmate or physical contact between inmates.

11. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 10, wherein the hardware processing unit is configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform the task execution method upon recognizing the event.

12. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 10, wherein the monitoring method further comprises:

transmitting an alert based on the event recognized in the sensor data.

13. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 12, wherein the alert is transmitted to the central controller as part of a coordination method among a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots.

14. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 10, wherein the hardware processing unit is further configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform the task execution method and the monitoring method in parallel.

18. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the type of mobile correctional facility robot comprises at least one of a service type or an enforcement type.

19. The mobile correctional facility robot of claim 1, wherein the task execution method further comprises:

receiving an enforcement task;

traversing a route to perform the enforcement task;

determining or receiving the enforcement task, and

performing the enforcement task, using one or more of the plurality of actuators to deploy non-lethal force.

15. A method for operating a mobile correctional facility robot, the method comprising:

transmitting status information of the mobile correctional facility robot to a central controller;

receiving a delivery task from the central controller, wherein the delivery task is received from the central controller based on both the status information of the mobile correctional facility robot transmitted to the central controller and status information transmitted to the central controller from a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots;

receiving, based on the delivery task, a delivery item and a delivery destination;

authenticating the delivery item;

securing, in response to the authenticating, the delivery item using one or more actuators of the mobile correctional facility robot;

transporting the delivery item to the delivery destination; and

performing a second authentication of the delivery item prior to delivering the delivery item.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the status information of the mobile correctional facility robot comprises a location of the mobile correctional facility robot.

17. A mobile correctional facility robot comprising:

a plurality of actuators, wherein the plurality of actuators is based on a type of the mobile correctional facility robot;

a sensor array;

a memory comprising computer program instructions; and

a hardware processing unit configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform a method comprising;

transmitting status information of the mobile correctional facility robot to a central controller;

receiving a delivery task from the central controller, wherein the delivery task is received from the central controller based on both the status information of the mobile correctional facility robot transmitted to the central controller and status information transmitted to the central controller from a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots;

receiving, based on the delivery task, a delivery item and a delivery destination;

authenticating the delivery item;

securing, in response to the authenticating, the delivery item using one or more of the plurality of actuators;

transporting the delivery item to the delivery destination; and

performing a second authentication of the delivery item prior to delivering the delivery item.