Monitoring and alarm system for custom applications

• US 4,644,478 A
• Filed: 09/13/1983
• Issued: 02/17/1987
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/1983
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Hayes, Robert B., Stephens, Lawrence K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gruber, Felix D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HERNDON, HEATHER R
• Application Number:
  US06/531,650
• Time in Patent Office: 1,253 Days
• Field of Search: 364/550, 364/900 MS File, 364/551, 364/478, 364/579, 364/580, 364/182, 364/422, 364/188, 340/713, 340/720, 340/723, 340/825, 340/36, 340/506, 340/870, 340/16, 340/525, 340/505, 340/511
• US Class Current: 702/188
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 19/00 Alarms responsive to two or more different undesired or abnormal conditions, e.g. burglary and fire, abnormal temperature and abnormal rate of flow
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 23/00 Alarms responsive to unspecified undesired or abnormal conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/014 Alarm signalling to a central station with two-way communication, e.g. with signalling back

Abstract

A monitoring and alarm system of general purpose design can be customized for use with many different applications to provide sophisticated alarming and control functions based on logical relationships among several sensed variables. A central processing unit is connected to receive a plurality of inputs from various sensors, the variety and type of which are the choice of the user depending on the specific application to which the monitoring and alarm system is to be connected. The central processing unit is programmed to provide the user with an interactive display to first define the variables in the application and the states and/or limits of the variables. This action defines a logical group. Next, the user enters the alarm/action functions to be performed on the condition that all the conditions in the logical group are true. Once this interactive process has been completed, the central processing unit performs the alarm and control functions specified by the user.

Claims

1. A general purpose monitoring and alarm system which is customized by a user for a specific application comprising:

a central processing unit,

a plurality of sensors polled by said central processing unit to provide output signals representative of sensed variables to said central processing unit,

display means connected to and controlled by said central processing unit for displaying a series of screens facilitating the interactive entry of variable definitions and creation of logical groupings of defined variables corresponding to said sensed variables and the states and limits of each of the variables in a group, and

alarm means controlled by said central processing unit in response to all the conditions defined by the states and limits of variables in a logical group being true.

2. A monitoring and alarm system as recited in claim 1 wherein said display means further receives user inputs specifying desired alarm responses, and said central processing unit controlling said alarm means to provide said specified desired alarm responses.

3. A monitoring and alarm system as recited in claim 2 wherein said display means further receives user inputs specifying desired control responses when said conditions are true, said system further comprising controller means controlled by said central processing unit for effecting said control responses.

4. A method of customizing a general purpose monitoring and alarm system to a specific application, said monitoring and alarm system having a central processing unit, a plurality of sensors connected to provide outputs to said central processing unit, and display means to receive user inputs, said method being performed by a user interactive program in said central processing unit and comprising the steps of

prompting the user for an alarm/action name,

after an alarm/action name has been entered using said display means, prompting the user to enter at least one variable name corresponding to one of said sensors and to choose the state or alarm limit of interest,

saving the user entered variable names and their corresponding states or alarm limits, and

then prompting the user for an alarm action whenever the states and/or alarm limits for the corresponding variable names that were saved are all logically true.

5. The method as recited in claim 4 further comprising the steps of determining the types and placement of sensors for said specific application and connecting said sensors to said application and said central processing unit.

6. The method as recited in claim 4 further comprising the steps of

prompting the user to enter at least one control output to occur whenever the states and/or alarm limits for the corresponding variable names that were saved are all logically true, and

transforming the user entered data into a record that is entered into an alarm/action file of the central processing unit.

7. The method as recited in claim 6 further comprising the step of determining the type and placement of at least one controller for said specific application and connecting said controller to said application and said central processing unit, said controller being responsive to said control output.