SENSING DEVICE AND METHOD TO MONITOR PERISHABLE GOODS

• US 20140313055A1
• Filed: 04/17/2014
• Published: 10/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digi International Canada, Inc. (Digi International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Bluenica Corporation (Digi International Inc.)
• Inventors: Warkentin, Colin, DiLalla, Chris, Wojtowicz, Mirek, Steele, Sara
• Granted Patent: US 9,712,893 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/870.16
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/02 Food
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/43 using wireless personal area networks [WPAN], e.g. 802.15, 802.15.1, 802.15.4, Bluetooth or ZigBee
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/823 where the data is sent when the measured values exceed a threshold, e.g. sending an alarm
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/88 Providing power supply at the sub-station
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/883 where the sensing device enters an active or inactive mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

Abstract

A sensing device monitors conditions in a local environment and wirelessly communicates those conditions. The sensing device has a sealed body comprised of a material suitable to contact food and which is cleanable for re-use. The sensing device has a condition sensor, a processor, a memory and a communication device, a motion sensor and an energy source such as a battery carried by the sealed body. The motion sensor detects motion of the sealed body and acts as a switch for the processor. The sensing device may be placed in contact with perishable food products to monitor conditions in the environment around perishable food products. Conditions of the perishable food are monitored by placing a sensor which has been activated by motion in the environment containing perishable food products and detecting, storing and transmitting information collected by the condition sensor to a receiver.

Claims

1. A sensing device for monitoring conditions in a local environment containing perishable goods and wirelessly communicating said monitored conditions, the sensing device comprising:

a sealed body comprised of a material suitable to contact food and which is cleanable for re-use;

a low-energy wireless communicator contained within said sealed body;

a condition sensor carried by said sealed body;

a processor operatively connected to the condition sensor and the wireless communicator, the processor contained in said sealed body;

an energy source operatively connected to the processor to supply power;

a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor, for detecting motion of said sealed body, to act as a switch for said processor; and

wherein said sensing device may be placed in contact with perishable food products to monitor conditions affecting said perishable food products and communicate the monitored conditions by means of said wireless communicator.

2. The sensing device of claim 1 in which the sensing device further comprises a memory operatively connected to the condition sensor to store monitored conditions obtained by the condition sensor, the memory contained in said sealed body.

3. The sensing device of claim 1 further comprising a status display interface on said sealed body and operatively connected to the processor which indicates a current status of the sensing device.

4. The sensing device of claim 2 in which the low-energy wireless communicator further comprises a Bluetooth™

low-energy (BLE) protocol radio module.

5. The sensing device of claim 1 in which the energy source is a battery.

6. The sensing device of claim 5 in which the battery is a lithium battery.

7. The sensing device of claim 1 in which the sensing device is activated by motion detected by the motion sensor.

8. The sensing device of claim 1 in which sensing device is a temperature sensing device and the condition sensor is a temperature sensor.

9. The sensing device of claim 8 in which the processor is adapted to cause the temperature sensor to detect a temperature in an environment in response to motion of said sealed body being detected by the accelerometer.

10. The sensing device of claim 4 in which both the memory and the processor are integrated into an internal processor of the BLE protocol radio module.

11. The sensing device of claim 1 in which the sealed body is comprised of a food-grade material and is configured to be sanitized.

12. A method of monitoring a condition of perishable food products using a sensing device, the sensing device comprising a sealed body comprised of a material suitable to contact food and which is cleanable for re-use, a low-energy wireless communicator contained within said sealed body, a condition sensor contained in said sealed body, a processor operatively connected to the condition sensor and the wireless communicator, the processor contained in said sealed body, an energy source operatively connected to the processor to supply power, a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor, for detecting motion of said sealed body, the method comprising:

providing a sensing device which is placed in an environment containing the perishable food products;

in which the sensing device is activated by inducing motion to be detected by the motion sensor;

detecting a condition in the environment using the condition sensor;

storing the detected condition in the environment on the sensing device in the form of stored condition data; and

transmitting the stored condition data to a receiver using the low-energy wireless communicator.

13. The method of claim 12 in which the environment is one of a walk-in freezer or refrigerator, a display case, a warehouse and a vehicle cargo area.

14. The method of claim 12 in which all of the steps of detecting the condition in the environment, storing the detected condition and transmitting the stored condition data are done in real-time.

15. The method of claim 14 in which the step of transmitting the stored condition data to a receiver further comprising uploading the stored condition data to a server.

16. The method of claim 12 in which the steps of detecting the condition in the environment and storing the detected condition are repeated multiple times before the step of transmitting the stored condition data occurs.

17. The method of claim 12 in which the processor stores a configuration record correlating threshold conditions to an occurrence of a plurality of events, and the method further comprises monitoring at least one of:

the condition in the environment using the condition sensor; and

motion of the sealed body using the motion sensor; and

recording the occurrence of an event when the at least one of the condition in the environment and the motion detected by the motion sensor correlates to an event in the plurality of events.

18. The method of claim 12 in which the step of detecting the condition in the environment using the temperature sensor is triggered after motion is detected by the accelerometer.

19. The method of claim 12 in which the step of detecting the condition in the environment is triggered by the processor at set intervals.

20. A system for monitoring a condition of perishable food products, comprising:

at least one sensing device, comprising;

a sealed body comprised of a material suitable to contact food and which is cleanable for re-use;

a low-energy wireless communicator contained within said sealed body;

a condition sensor contained within said sealed body;

a processor operatively connected to the condition sensor and the wireless communicator, the processor contained in said sealed body;

an energy source operatively connected to the processor to supply power;

a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor for detecting motion of said sealed body, to act as a switch for said processor; and

a hand-held mobile device having a wireless communicator which communicates with the low-energy wireless communicator of the sensing device.

21. The system of claim 20 in which the low-energy wireless communicator is a Bluetooth™

low-energy (BLE) protocol radio module and the wireless communicator of the hand-held mobile device uses a Bluetooth™

low-energy (BLE) protocol.

22. The system of claim 20 in which the system further comprises at least two sensing devices and in which the at least two sensing devices are configured to communicate with each other.

23. The system of claim 20 in which the sensing device is a temperature sensing device and the condition sensor is a temperature sensor.

24. The system of claim 20 in which the motion sensor is an accelerometer.

25. The system of claim 20 in which the energy source is a lithium battery.

26. A sensing device for monitoring conditions in a local environment containing perishable goods and wirelessly communicating said monitored conditions, the sensing device comprising:

a sealed body comprised of a material suitable to contact food and which is cleanable for re-use, the sealed body having a wedge end;

a low-energy wireless communicator contained within said sealed body;

a condition sensor carried by said sealed body and situated within the wedge end of the sealed body;

a processor operatively connected to the condition sensor and the wireless communicator, the processor contained in said sealed body;

an energy source operatively connected to the processor to supply power;

wherein the wedge end of the sensing device may be placed in the local environment containing perishable food products to monitor conditions affecting said perishable food products and communicate the monitored conditions by means of said wireless communicator.

27. The sensing device of claim 26 further comprising a block end forming part of the sealed body opposite to the wedge end.

28. The sensing device of claim 26 in which the condition sensor further comprises a temperature sensor.

29. The sensing device of claim 26 further comprising a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor, for detecting motion of said sealed body, to act as a switch for said processor.

30. The sensing device of claim 27 further comprising a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor, for detecting motion of said sealed body, to act as a switch for said processor.

31. The sensing device of claim 28 further comprising a motion sensor operatively connected to the processor, for detecting motion of said sealed body, to act as a switch for said processor.