WIRELESS NOTIFICATION SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ELECTRONIC RODENT TRAPS

• US 20140300477A1
• Filed: 02/11/2014
• Published: 10/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/25/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Woodstream Corporation
• Original Assignee: Woodstream Corporation
• Inventors: RICH, Christopher, DALY, Thomas J. Jr., LUNGER, Aaron W.
• Application Number:
  US14/177,561
• Publication Number:
  US 20140300477A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/573.2
• CPC Class Codes: A01M 23/00 Traps for animals
• CPC Class Codes: A01M 23/38 Electric traps
• CPC Class Codes: A01M 31/002 Detecting animals in a given area
• CPC Class Codes: A01M 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/18 Status alarms G08B21/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/10 using wireless transmission systems G08B25/009 takes precedence
• 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: H04M 11/00 Telephonic communication systems specially adapted for combination with other electrical systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/022 Paging systems personal calling arrangements or devices G08B3/1008; selective calling networks H04W84/022
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/04 adapted for relaying to or from another terminal or user
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

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. According to one embodiment, each trap is equipped with an RF transceiver and 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. According to an alternative embodiment, the traps individually report directly to the base station or to the base station via one or more repeaters, the repeaters enabling the range of the direct individual reporting configuration to be greatly increased.

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;

at least one repeating device configured to receive trap status data as a message and to repeat the message to another device; and

a base station computing device configured to receive said message at a distance from said trapping device and/or from said at least one repeating 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 RF transmissions containing trap status data and a plurality of repeating devices configured to receive the RF transmissions as messages and to repeat the messages to at least one other device, said one another device being selected from the group consisting of another repeating device and said base station.

3. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 2, wherein said plurality of repeating devices includes a plurality of repeaters.

4. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 3, wherein said traps have a default sleep state and an awake state, each trap entering the awake state to transmit a message containing trap status information and then, following transmission of said message, returning to the sleep state, each reporting trap ignoring any trap status messages transmitted by other traps and heard while the reporting trap is in the awake state.

5. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4, wherein said traps, upon dispatching a mouse, automatically wake up and send a message indicating trap activation.

6. 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.

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

8. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the plurality of repeating devices is a plurality of electronic trapping devices.

9. 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.

10. 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 having software loaded thereon that allows a user to check trap status data directly from the PC.

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

12. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 wherein said base station computing device is a cellular device which sends updates to the web site and said output is shown on a display of the cellular device.

13. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 wherein said base station computing device is an Ethernet device with internet connection which sends updates to the web site.

14. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 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. The remote notification electronic rodent trapping system as set forth in claim 4 wherein the repeaters are USB dongles.

18. A method for remote monitoring of one or more electronic rodent trapping devices from a base station comprising:

providing a system having a plurality of electronic trapping devices, a plurality of repeaters and a base station, each of said electronic trapping devices having a sleep state and an awake state, and further having an RF transceiver to send an RF transmission containing trap status data as a message, said base station computing device configured to receive said message at a distance from said trapping device and to provide a user with a computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said message;

entering, by one of said electronic trapping devices, the awake state and transmitting a message containing said trap status data;

upon completion of transmitting said message, said electronic trapping device entering the sleep state;

receiving, by a first one of said repeaters, said message and said first repeater repeating said message to the base station and/or to another repeater within range of said first repeater;

receiving said message from said first repeater 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 message.

19. The method as set forth in claim 18, 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.

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

21. The method as set forth in claim 19, wherein said step of providing a system having a plurality of electronic trapping devices and a plurality of repeaters includes having a first group of said plurality of repeaters repeat those messages within range of said first group of repeaters, a second group of said plurality of repeaters in range of said first group of repeaters in turn repeating the message, said message being received by said base station from at least one of said second group of repeaters.

22. The method as set forth in claim 18, further comprising the step of forwarding the computer output indicating the trap status data contained in said message 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.