Security monitoring methodology using digital audio

• US 20050242945A1
• Filed: 04/29/2005
• Published: 11/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Advantor Systems, Securitas Technology Corporation
• Original Assignee: Infrasafe, Inc.
• Inventors: Perkinson, Charles
• Granted Patent: US 7,411,490 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/531
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements

Abstract

A security monitoring methodology and device using digital audio. A security control device integrates physical intrusion detection functions, physical access control functions, and compressed, streaming, digital audio transmission capability. The device provides interfaces for a number of sensor inputs, including standard alarm monitoring sensors and audio sensors. The device is capable of communicating with a monitoring system over a variety of digital networking configurations options, including TCP/IP, via embedded Ethernet interface, or serial modem communications over telephone or digital cellular networks using PPP network protocol. The device may use backup channels of communications including telephone and cellular network communications. All communications with the device, whether to monitoring receiver or other local devices, may be secured with a minimum AES 128-bit encryption.

Claims

1. A universal controller comprising:

one or more inputs that receive signals from one or more sensors;

a data compressor that compresses signals received from the sensors into compressed data, said data compressor in communication with said one or more inputs to receive the signals from the sensors;

a buffer in communication with said data compressor to store the compressed data;

a detector in communications with said data compressor to receive the compressed data and determine when a triggering event has occurred; and

a packet transmitter that transmits the compressed data to disparate locations in response to the determination of the triggering event,

wherein the transmitted compressed data corresponds in time to the triggering event and a predetermined amount of time preceding the triggering event.

2. The universal controller as recited in claim 1 further comprising a communications controller in communication with said packet transmitter, said communications controller selecting from two or more networks to transmit the compressed data.

3. The universal controller as recited in claim 1 further comprising an encryption device in communication with said packet transmitter, wherein said encryption device encrypts the compressed data before the transmitter transmits the compressed data.

4. The universal controller as recited in claim 3 wherein the encryption device uses AES encryption.

5. The universal controller as recited in claim 1 wherein the sensors are one of an audio sensor and a detection sensor.

6. The universal controller as recited in claim 1 wherein the signals are digitized and compressed into MP3 format.

19. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising a backup network.

20. The security control system as recited in claim 19 wherein the backup network is one of a telephone network and a cellular network.

7. A method of processing signals received from security systems, comprising:

receiving one or more input signals from one or more sensors;

summing the one or more input signals;

digitizing the summed one or more input signals;

compressing the digitized signals as data;

buffering the compressed data;

detecting the compressed data to determine when a triggering event occurred; and

transmitting the compressed data to disparate locations in response to the determination of the triggering event in substantially real-time,

wherein the transmitted compressed data corresponds in time to the triggering event and a predetermined amount of time preceding the triggering event.

8. The universal controller as recited in claim 7 further comprising selecting from two or more networks to transmit the compressed data.

9. The method as recited in claim 7 further comprising encrypting the triggering event data before it is transmitted.

10. The method as recited in claim 7 wherein the network is the Internet.

11. A security control system, comprising:

remote sensor devices to detect when a triggering event has occurred;

controller devices for processing input data from the remote sensor devices for storage as multiple data streams, and routing the data streams over networks; and

network interfaces providing communications between the controller and the networks,

wherein each one of the controller devices is connected to a plurality of the sensor devices; and

wherein the controller devices transmit the data streams which corresponds in time to the triggering event and a predetermined amount of time preceding the triggering event by selecting from two or more networks.

12. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising a memory device for storing the input data.

13. The security control system as recited in claim 11 wherein the controller is coupled to one of the networks via a high-speed network connection.

14. The security control system as recited in claim 13 wherein the high-speed network connection is a cable-modem connection.

15. The security control system as recited in claim 13 wherein the high-speed network connection is an x-DSL connection.

16. The security control system as recited in claim 11 wherein the high-speed network connection is a wireless connection.

17. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising user interfaces coupled to the controller devices.

18. The security control system as recited in claim 11 wherein the networks are digital networks.

21. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising alarm input wiring connected with the sensor devices and configured for one of two-state monitoring with no end-of-line resistor, three-state monitoring with one end-of-line resistor which monitors an alarm switch and the status of the alarm input wiring, and five state monitoring with two end-of-line resistors which monitors an alarm switch, a tamper switch, and the wiring status with a single input.

22. The security control system as recited in claim 11 wherein the communications are configured with or without encryption.

23. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising an off-the-shelf user control and annunciation module connected with the controller and consisting of a back-lit LCD display, with touch-screen, and wherein all of the display output of the module, and touch-coordinate input, is processed by the controller, and wherein the module is configurable to provide a user with one of a standard numeric key sequence, a direct sequence with the beginning numeric key chosen randomly, and a randomized sequence of numeric keys.

24. The security control system as recited in claim 11 further comprising:

at least one speaker coupled with a monitor having visual indicators to correlate audible security monitoring sounds with the location from which a sound indicating a triggering event is originating.