WIRELESS NOTIFICATION SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ELECTRONIC RODENT TRAPS

• US 20140085100A1
• Filed: 09/25/2012
• Published: 03/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Woodstream Corporation
• Original Assignee: Woodstream Corporation
• Inventors: RICH, Christopher, DALY, Thomas J. Jr.
• Application Number:
  US13/626,224
• Publication Number:
  US 20140085100A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/870.01
• CPC Class Codes: A01M 31/002 Detecting animals in a given area
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A remote notification electronic rodent trapping system and method is provided having a plurality of electronic rodent trapping devices configured to wirelessly communicate trap information to each other and to a PC or wireless device. Each being equipped with an RF transceiver, the rodent trapping devices form a mesh network with one another in which the trapping devices act as repeaters so that if one trap loses connectivity with the PC, information from that trap can be transmitted to the PC via another trap. The system and method can include forwarding trap status data to a remote notification website where the user can review the data. The web server hosting the website can also provide trap status data directly to a smartphone app on a user'"'"'s smartphone. In addition, the website can send email and text notification to any remote device capable of receiving email or text messages.

Claims

1. A remote notification electronic rodent trapping system comprising:

a least one electronic rodent trapping device having an RF transceiver and configured to send RF transmissions containing trap status data; and

a base station computing device configured to receive said RF transmissions at a distance from said trapping device and to provide an output to said computing device for review by a user, said base station computing device enabling the user to monitor status of the trapping device without having to be in physical proximity to the trap.

2. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1, wherein said system includes a plurality of electronic rodent trapping devices configured to send to and receive RF transmissions containing trap status data from each other and to communicate said RF transmissions to said base station.

3. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 2, wherein said plurality of trapping devices auto-form a mesh network, said trapping devices communicating said RF transmissions to said base station either directly or through another trapping device in said mesh network acting as a repeater.

4. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 3, wherein said mesh network is self healing, trapping devices on said network automatically finding new paths to the base station upon removal of or damage to one of the trapping devices.

5. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 wherein said base station computing device is a PC having a USB transceiver to receive said RF transmissions, said PC being connected to the Internet and having software that forwards trap status data contained in the RF transmissions to a remote notification website through which website a user, using an Internet enabled device, can monitor trap status.

6. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 5, wherein the remote notification website is able to send email and text notification to any remote device capable of receiving email or text messages.

7. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 6 wherein said text and/or email notification of trap status sent from said website identifies one or more specific traps and includes notice of a need for a particular trap to be checked, a particular trap'"'"'s battery life and/or a particular trap'"'"'s signal strength.

8. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 wherein said base station computing device is a PC having a USB transceiver to receive said RF transmissions, said PC being connected to the Internet and having software that forwards trap status data contained in the RF transmissions to a web server hosting a remote notification website, the web server being directly accessible to a user having a smartphone with a smartphone app through which the user, using the smartphone, can monitor trap status.

9. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said base station computing device is a PC having a USB transceiver to receive said RF transmissions, said PC having software loaded thereon that allows a user to check trap status data directly from the PC.

10. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 9 wherein said output provided to said base station computing device is shown on a display of the PC.

11. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said base station computing device is a cellular device and said output is shown on a display of the cellular device.

12. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said base station computing device is an Ethernet device having an online software tool.

13. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said base station computing device is a cellular device having an online software tool.

14. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said system further includes a remote notification website to which the base station computing device forwards trap status data over the Internet, said remote notification website being able to send email and text notification to any remote device capable of receiving email or text messages.

15. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 14 wherein said base station computing device is a PC.

16. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 15 wherein said second computing device is a cellular device or a PC.

17. A method for remote monitoring of an electronic rodent trapping device from a base station comprising:

providing an electronic trapping device having an RF transceiver and configured to send RF transmissions containing trap status data;

providing a base station computing device configured to receive said RF transmissions at a distance from said trapping device and to provide a user with a computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said RF transmissions;

transmitting by said electronic rodent trap a transmission containing trap status data;

receiving said transmission by said base station computing device; and

said base station computing device providing a user with a computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said RF transmissions.

18. The method as set forth in claim 17, further comprising the step of forwarding the computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said RF transmissions to a remote notification website where a user with an Internet enabled device can review and monitor the trap status data by logging onto the website.

19. The method as set forth in claim 18, further comprising the step of said website sending an email and text notification to any remote device capable of receiving email or text messages.

20. The method as set forth in claim 18, wherein said step of providing an electronic trapping device includes providing a plurality of electronic trapping devices, each trapping device having an RF transceiver and configured to send RF transmissions containing trap status data to each other and to the base station computing device, said step of providing a plurality of electronic trapping devices including having said plurality of electronic trapping devices auto-form a mesh network in which said trapping devices communicate said RF transmissions to said base station either directly or through another trapping device in said mesh network acting as a repeater.

21. The method as set forth in claim 17, further comprising the step of forwarding the computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said RF transmissions to a web server configured to receive and store the trap status data, a user with a smartphone and a smartphone app being able to review and monitor the trap status data using the smartphone app.