CENTRAL STATION ALARM VERIFICATION SYSTEM AND METHOD

• US 20160300465A1
• Filed: 04/10/2015
• Published: 10/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2015
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: Digital Monitoring Products, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Digital Monitoring Products, Inc.
• Inventors: Britton, Jeffrey M., Ellison, Kevin D., Britton, Rick A.
• Application Number:
  US14/684,199
• Publication Number:
  US 20160300465A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19669 Event triggers storage or change of storage policy
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19682 Graphic User Interface [GUI] presenting system data to the user, e.g. information on a screen helping a user interacting with an alarm system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19684 Portable terminal, e.g. mobile phone, used for viewing video remotely
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19697 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/001 Alarm cancelling procedures or alarm forwarding decisions, e.g. based on absence of alarm confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/188 Data fusion; cooperative systems, e.g. voting among different detectors

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a system configured to facilitate remote verification of alarm events. Responsive to detection of an alarm event at a location of interest, clips of security video information and/or substantially real-time images may be presented to an end user on a user device associated with the end user, and/or to a reviewer via a central station, to facilitate determination of whether or not the detected alarm event is false. The system is configured to facilitate remote verification of alarm events by the end user and/or the reviewer while still protecting the privacy of the end user. The system may be configured to allow review of the clips and/or the substantially live images by the reviewer at the central station only responsive to detection of an alarm event, and only for a temporary period of time following the detection of the alarm event.

Claims

1. A system configured to facilitate verification of alarm events, the system comprising:

a server configured to;

receive an indication that an alarm event has been detected for a location of interest;

receive security video information associated with the alarm event from one or more cameras monitoring the location of interest;

cause electronic recording of one or more clips of security video information from the one or more cameras, an individual clip comprising security video information from an individual camera for a period of time that corresponds to a time of the alarm event; and

generate substantially real-time image information for the one or more cameras; and

a central station configured to receive the indication that the alarm event has been detected and facilitate a determination by a reviewer of whether the detected alarm event is a false alarm event or a verified alarm event, the server configured to, responsive to a request from the central station, provide the real-time image information and a selectable list of the clips for display to the reviewer by the central station such that the determination by the reviewer is based on the clips and the real-time image information;

wherein, the selectable list of clips and the real-time image information are only accessible to the reviewer via the central station for a pre-determined amount of time following the determined alarm event.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a local security monitoring device located at the location of interest configured to detect the alarm event and transmit the indication that the alarm event has been detected to the server and the central station, the local security monitoring device including the one or more cameras.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the local security monitoring device is configured to transmit the indication that the alarm event has been detected to the server via the central station.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the local security monitoring device is configured to transmit the indication that the alarm event has been detected to the central station via the server.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate electronic storage of one or more clips in the selectable list of clips by the reviewer using the central station so that the electronically stored clips remain accessible to the reviewer after the pre-determined amount of time expires.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate electronic storage of one or more of the substantially real-time images by the reviewer using the central station so that the electronically stored images remain accessible to the reviewer after the pre-determined amount of time expires.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate emailing clips from the reviewer using the central station to an end user.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the server is configured, responsive to direction from the end user via a user device associated with the end user, to electronically store one or more clips on the server.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate emailing substantially real-time images from the reviewer using the central station to an end user.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the server is configured, responsive to direction from the end user via a user device associated with the end user, to electronically store one or more real-time images on the server.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate pan and tilt control of the one or more cameras by the reviewer using the central station during the pre-determined amount of time.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the server has a pre-determined electronic address, and wherein, responsive to receiving the indication that the alarm event has been detected, the central station requests the real-time image information and the selectable list of the clips using the pre-determined electronic address.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate manual clip recording by the reviewer using the central station video verification system during the pre-determined amount of time.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to facilitate manual image recording by the reviewer using the central station during the pre-determined amount of time.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the server is located remotely from the central station.

16. A method for facilitating verification of alarm events with a verification system, the system comprising a server and a central station, the method comprising:

receiving, with the server, an indication that an alarm event has been detected for a location of interest;

receiving, with the server, security video information associated with the alarm event from one or more cameras monitoring the location of interest;

causing, with the server, electronic recording of one or more clips of security video information from the one or more cameras, an individual clip comprising security video information from an individual camera for a period of time that corresponds to a time of the alarm event;

generating, with the server, substantially real-time image information for the one or more cameras;

receiving, with the central station, the indication that the alarm event has been detected; and

facilitating, with the central station, a determination by a reviewer of whether the detected alarm event is a false alarm event or a verified alarm event, the server configured to, responsive to a request from the central station, provide the real-time image information and a selectable list of the clips for display to the reviewer by the central station such that the determination by the reviewer is based on the clips and the real-time image information;

wherein, the selectable list of clips and the real-time image information are only accessible to the reviewer via the central station for a pre-determined amount of time following the determined alarm event.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising detecting the alarm event and transmitting the indication that the alarm event has been detected, with a local security monitoring device located at the location of interest, to the server and the central station, the local security monitoring device including the one or more cameras.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising transmitting the indication that the alarm event has been detected to the server via the central station.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising transmitting the indication that the alarm event has been detected to the central station via the server.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, electronic storage of one or more clips in the selectable list of clips by the reviewer using the central station so that the electronically stored clips remain accessible to the reviewer after the pre-determined amount of time expires.

21. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, electronic storage of one or more of the substantially real-time images by the reviewer using the central station so that the electronically stored images remain accessible to the reviewer after the pre-determined amount of time expires.

22. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, emailing clips from the reviewer using the central station to an end user.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising, responsive to direction from the end user via a user device associated with the end user, electronically storing one or more clips on the server.

24. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, emailing substantially real-time images from the reviewer using the central station to an end user.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising, responsive to direction from the end user via a user device associated with the end user, electronically storing one or more real-time images on the server.

26. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, pan and tilt control of the one or more cameras by the reviewer using the central station during the pre-determined amount of time.

27. The method of claim 16, wherein the server has a pre-determined electronic address, and wherein, responsive to receiving the indication that the alarm event has been detected, the central station requests the real-time image information and the selectable list of the clips using the pre-determined electronic address.

28. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, manual clip recording by the reviewer using the central station during the pre-determined amount of time.

29. The method of claim 16, further comprising facilitating, with the server, manual image recording by the reviewer using the central station during the pre-determined amount of time.

30. The method of claim 16, wherein the server is located remotely from the central station.