System for interfacing an alarm reporting device with a cellular radio transceiver

• US 5,131,019 A
• Filed: 03/21/1990
• Issued: 07/14/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Versus Technology, Inc. (Midmark Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Versus Technology, Inc. (Midmark Corporation)
• Inventors: Sheffer, Eliezer A., Chebra, Ronald J., Haff, Richard W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Brown, Thomas W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Woo, Stella L.
• Application Number:
  US07/497,782
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 379/32, 379/33, 379/37, 379/38, 379/39, 379/40, 379/42, 379/43, 379/44, 379/46, 379/47, 379/48, 379/49, 379/51, 379/59, 379/60
• US Class Current: 379/39
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/009 Signalling of the alarm condition to a substation whose identity is signalled to a central station, e.g. relaying alarm signals in order to extend communication range
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems

Abstract

A system for interfacing an alarm reporting unit with a cellular radio transceiver so that the data which is produced by the alarm reporting unit is effectively matched to the radio transceiver, irrespective of its initial format, includes circuitry for matching the format of the alarm reporting unit to that of the cellular radio transceiver, and circuitry for matching the format of the cellular radio transceiver to that of the alarm reporting unit, to permit interactive communications which assure the reliable transmission of data while allowing suitable acknowledgement signals to be returned to the alarm reporting unit to regulate the effective transmission of data within the system, and isolation circuitry to effectively separate the alarm reporting unit from the cellular radio transceiver so that the alarm reporting unit can communicate with a monitoring facility via the cellular radio transceiver, as well as the wired telephone network. This further enables the data being produced to be simultaneously applied to the cellular radio transceiver as well as other communicating media which may be employed for purposes of redundancy.

Claims

1. A system for interfacing an alarm reporting device with a cellular radio transceiver for communicating with an alarm monitoring facility, wherein said alarm reporting device includes a control panel for monitoring an alarm sensor and for providing a signal indicating status conditions of said alarm sensor and a digital communicator for delivering a signal to said radio transceiver which includes said status indicating signal preceded by a dialing signal, and wherein said system comprises:

means for electrically coupling signals associated with said alarm reporting device and signals associated with said radio transceiver, while simultaneously isolating said alarm reporting device from said radio transceiver;

means for matching signals received from said alarm reporting device to said radio transceiver; and

means for matching signals received from said radio transceiver to said alarm reporting device;

wherein said coupling means is configured for simultaneous connection to a wired telephone network, and for placing said alarm reporting device in communication with said alarm monitoring facility using said wired telephone network; and

means for inhibiting the dialing signal received from said digital communicator, and means for developing a dialing signal for delivery to said radio transceiver, whereby the dialing signal developed by said interfacing system is substituted for the dialing signal developed by said digital communicator;

wherein said inhibiting means inhibits the dialing signal received from said digital communicator, but does not inhibit the status indicating signal received from said digital communicator.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said alarm reporting device includes a control panel for monitoring said alarm sensor and for providing said status indicating signal, and a digital communicator for delivering said status indicating signal to said radio transceiver.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said digital communicator operates according to a dual tone multi-frequency signal protocol or a rotary signal protocol.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein said system further includes means for interpreting said status indicating signal irrespective of said protocol.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein said interpreting means comprises:

means for recognizing pulses associated with said status indicating signal;

means communicating with said recognizing means for converting said recognized pulses into a digit in a dialing sequence; and

means communicating with said converting means for delivering said dialing sequence to said radio transceiver, to establish communications with said alarm monitoring facility.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said protocol is a dual tone multi-frequency signal protocol and said recognizing means is a tone-pair detection means.

7. The system of claim 5 wherein said protocol is a rotary signal protocol and said recognizing means is a rotary pulse detection means.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said recognizing means comprises:

means for introducing a signal at the output of said alarm reporting device, so that the impedance at said output will vary in accordance with pulses of said rotary signal; and

means for monitoring the output of said alarm reporting device, for detecting signal levels resulting from said variations in impedance.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said introduced signal has a frequency of from 10 to 30 kHz.

10. The system of claim 2 wherein said means for matching signals received from said alarm reporting device to said radio transceiver includes means for matching the voltage level and format of said signals received from said alarm reporting device to voltage level and format conditions associated with said radio transceiver.

11. The system of claim 2 wherein said means for matching signals received from said radio transceiver to said alarm reporting device includes means for matching the voltage level and format of said signals received from said radio transceiver to voltage level and format conditions associated with said alarm reporting device.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein said signals received from said radio transceiver are acknowledgement signals received from said alarm monitoring facility to regulate the delivering of signals from said alarm reporting device.

13. The system of claim 1 wherein said digital communicator operates according to a specified protocol, and said interfacing system operates irrespective of said protocol.

14. The system of claim 1 wherein said radio transceiver operates according to a specified protocol, and wherein said interfacing system operates according to a protocol which matches the protocol of said radio transceiver.

15. The system of claim 1 wherein said inhibiting means is responsive to acknowledgement signals received from said radio transceiver.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein said developing means develops said dialing signal responsive to the dialing signal from said digital communicator.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein said developing means comprises memory means for storing a desired telephone number and shift register means for receiving said telephone number from said memory means and for serially delivering said telephone number to said radio transceiver.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein said telephone number is transferred from said memory means to said shift register means when said shift register means detects the dialing signal from said digital communicator.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein said telephone number is serially delivered from said shift register means at a rate which matches a required transmission rate associated with said radio transceiver.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein said radio transceiver operates to transmit said telephone number as it is received from said shift register means.

21. The system of claim 1 wherein a relay selectively electrically couples said alarm reporting device with said cellular radio transceiver and said wired telephone network.

22. The system of claim 21 wherein said relay is a two position switch for coupling said alarm reporting device with either said cellular radio transceiver or said wired telephone network.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein said relay normally connects said alarm reporting device with said wired telephone network, isolating said alarm reporting device from said cellular radio transceiver.

24. The system of claim 23 wherein said interfacing system further comprises means for detecting a fault in said wired telephone network and for operating said relay to isolate said alarm reporting device from said wired telephone network and to electrically connect said alarm reporting device with said cellular radio transceiver.

25. The system of claim 24 wherein a telephone is selectively coupled with said wired telephone network by a relay for normally electrically coupling said telephone and said wired telephone network, and for electrically disconnecting said telephone from said wired telephone network when an alarm condition is signaled.

26. The system of claim 1 wherein said coupling means is configured for placing said alarm reporting device in substantially continuous communication with said alarm monitoring facility using said wired telephone network.

27. The system of claim 1 wherein said alarm reporting device is placed in communication with said alarm monitoring facility independent of said status indicating signal.