CHILD ABANDONMENT MONITOR
First Claim
1. A child car seat, comprising:
- a base configured to couple to a vehicle seat;
a seat configured to couple to the base; and
a sensor device mounted to one of the base or the seat, the sensor device including a sensor that outputs a measurement signal indicating whether a child is present in the seat, a processor configured to receive the measurement signal and to determine, based on the measurement signal, whether a child is present in the seat, and a communication circuit controlled by the processor, the communication circuit transmitting a proximity signal in response to the processor determining that a child is present in the seat, the proximity signal being configured for reception by a first mobile device;
wherein the proximity signal causes a first alert to be communicated to a user of a first mobile device in response to the first mobile device exceeding a range from the sensor device; and
wherein a second alert is communicated to the user of a second mobile device if, after a threshold amount of time, the measurement signal continues to indicate that a child is present in the seat and no response is received by the sensor device in response to the first alert.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A child car seat is provided, comprising a base; a seat coupled to the base; and a sensor device mounted to the base or the seat, the sensor device including a sensor that outputs a measurement signal indicating whether a child is present in the seat, a processor that receives the measurement signal and determines whether a child is present, and a communication circuit that transmits a proximity signal configured for reception by a first mobile device. The proximity signal causes a first alert to be communicated to the first mobile device in response to the first mobile device exceeding a range from the sensor device, and a second alert to be communicated to a second mobile device if, after a threshold amount of time, the measurement signal continues to indicate that a child is present and no response is received in response to the first alert.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A child car seat, comprising:
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a base configured to couple to a vehicle seat; a seat configured to couple to the base; and a sensor device mounted to one of the base or the seat, the sensor device including a sensor that outputs a measurement signal indicating whether a child is present in the seat, a processor configured to receive the measurement signal and to determine, based on the measurement signal, whether a child is present in the seat, and a communication circuit controlled by the processor, the communication circuit transmitting a proximity signal in response to the processor determining that a child is present in the seat, the proximity signal being configured for reception by a first mobile device; wherein the proximity signal causes a first alert to be communicated to a user of a first mobile device in response to the first mobile device exceeding a range from the sensor device; and wherein a second alert is communicated to the user of a second mobile device if, after a threshold amount of time, the measurement signal continues to indicate that a child is present in the seat and no response is received by the sensor device in response to the first alert. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for child car seat proximity detection executing on a specifically programmed processor coupled to the child car seat, comprising:
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generating a proximity indication representative of a proximity of a first mobile device to the child car seat; determining, based on the proximity indication, that the first mobile device has exceeded a threshold range from the child car seat; generating a first abandonment alert indicating that the first mobile device has exceeded the threshold range from the child car seat; communicating the first abandonment alert to the first mobile device; determining that a first threshold amount of time, during which the first mobile device continues to exceed the threshold range from the child car seat, has passed without a response from the first mobile device; and responding to a determination that the first threshold amount of time, during which the first mobile device continues to exceed the threshold range from the child car seat, has passed without a response from the first mobile device by communicating a second abandonment alert to a second mobile device. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A system for preventing abandonment of a child in a vehicle car seat, comprising:
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a car seat having a harness with a chest clip housing a sensor device, the sensor device being configured to detect the presence of a child in the car seat; and a mobile device in communication with the sensor device; wherein the sensor device responds to detecting the presence of a child in the car seat by transmitting a proximity signal to the mobile device; and wherein the mobile device generates, based on the proximity signal, a first alert when the mobile device exceeds a first range of the sensor device and generates, based on the proximity signal, a second alert when the mobile device exceeds a second range of the sensor device. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification