FACSIMILE AWARE ALARM MONITORING STATION AND METHOD

• US 20110286590A1
• Filed: 01/22/2010
• Published: 11/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Johnson Controls Tyco IP Holdings LLP (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Original Assignee: Tyco Safety Products Canada Limited (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Raikhlin, Pavel, Foisy, Stephane
• Granted Patent: US 10,198,934 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 379/100.17
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/06 Monitoring of the line circuits, e.g. signalling of line faults
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/185 Signal analysis techniques for reducing or preventing false alarms or for enhancing the reliability of the system
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/066 Telephone sets adapted for data transmision
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/2066 Call type detection of indication, e.g. voice or fax, mobile of fixed, PSTN or IP

Abstract

A method and security system arrangement are disclosed for processing incoming signals at an alarm monitoring station. The method includes analyzing the incoming signals to assess if any particular incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal to thereby identify whether or not a given incoming signal is a facsimile signal. If the analyzing identifies that a given incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal, thus identifying that the given incoming signal is likely a facsimile signal, the alarm monitoring station refrains from initiating an alarm handling procedure to handle the given incoming signal. Caller ID information may be extracted from the facsimile signals received by the alarm monitoring station, and added to a call block list. Calls originating from caller IDs on the call block list may be blocked by the alarm monitoring station.

Claims

1. A method of processing incoming signals at an alarm monitoring station, said method comprising:

analyzing said incoming signals to assess if any particular incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal to thereby identify whether or not a given incoming signal is a facsimile signal; and

if said analyzing identifies that a given incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal, refraining from initiating an alarm handling procedure to handle said given incoming signal.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said incoming signals are telephony signals and wherein a characteristic of a facsimile signal is the presence of a greater than expected amount of signal power in the facsimile band based on signal power in the telephony band and further wherein said analyzing comprises comparing signal power of said given incoming signal in said facsimile band to signal power of said given incoming signal in said telephony band.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said comparing comprises comparing a ratio of signal power in said facsimile band to signal power in said telephony band to a constant, whereby a ratio greater than said constant is indicative of a facsimile signal.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said constant is a ratio of the bandwidth of said facsimile band to the bandwidth of said telephony band.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising based on said analyzing, generating for each incoming signal an indicator indicating whether or not each incoming signal is a facsimile signal.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein said analyzing identifies a given incoming signal as a facsimile signal when said given signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal over a pre-defined period of time.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said incoming signals are received at a receiver of said alarm monitoring station over a communications network and some of said incoming signals are sent from alarm transmitters at monitored premises.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising initiating an alarm handling procedure for incoming signals identified by said analyzing as not facsimile signals.

9. The method of claim 7 wherein said initiating an alarm handling procedure comprises sending a handshake signal to an alarm transmitter transmitting said given incoming received signal.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising extracting an identifier of a facsimile machine transmitting a particular incoming signal from said particular incoming signal for incoming signals identified by said analyzing as facsimile signals.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising logging said identifier in a call-block log.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein said identifier is an automatic number identification (ANI) or a caller ID (CNID).

13. The method of claim 7 wherein said incoming signals received over said communications network comprises receiving said incoming signals over at least one of a PSTN network and a cellular network.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising prior to said analyzing:

extracting from incoming signals identifiers identifying origins of said incoming signals;

comparing said identifiers to a call block list; and

initiating said analyzing for signals whose identifiers are not listed in said call block list.

15. An security system arrangement comprising:

a communication network;

an alarm transmitter at a monitored premise for sending an alarm signal over said communication network;

a central monitoring station comprising;

a network interface module in communication with said communication network for receiving incoming signals;

a facsimile tone detection module operable to;

analyze said incoming signals to assess if any particular incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal to thereby identify whether or not a given incoming signal is a facsimile signal; and

in response to said analyzing identifying that a given incoming signal includes characteristics of a facsimile signal, refrain from initiating an alarm handling procedure to handle said given incoming signal.

16. The security system arrangement of claim 15 further comprising a processor in communication with said facsimile tone detection module, said processor operable to:

receive an indication from said facsimile tone detection module that a given incoming signal is identified as a facsimile signal;

extract or receive an identifier identifying an origin of said given incoming signal; and

add said identifier to a call block list.

17. The security system arrangement of claim 15 further comprising a call block module in communication with both said network interface module and said facsimile tone detection module, said call block module operable to:

determine an identifier of an origin of a given received signal;

compare said identifier to a call block list, said call block list comprising a list of identifiers; and

pass said given received signal to said facsimile tone detection module for signals whose identifiers are not on said call block list.

18. The security system arrangement of claim 15 wherein said facsimile tone detection module comprises:

a component for measuring signal power of said incoming signals in said facsimile band and for measuring signal power of said incoming signals in a telephony band; and

a comparator for comparing power of a given incoming signal in said facsimile band and power of said given incoming signal in said telephony band.

19. The security system arrangement of claim 17 wherein said identifier is an automatic number identifier (ANI) or a caller ID (CNID).

20. The security system arrangement of claim 15 wherein said communication network is at least one of a PSTN network and a cellular network.

21. A method of processing incoming signals at an alarm monitoring station, said method comprising:

analyzing said incoming signals to assess if any particular incoming signal includes characteristics of a given signal type, said given signal type having a characteristic fingerprint, to thereby identify whether or not a given incoming signal is of said given signal type; and

if said analyzing identifies that a given incoming signal includes characteristics of said given signal type, refraining from initiating an alarm handling procedure to handle said given incoming signal.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein said analyzing comprises analyzing if said incoming signal is a modem signal.