Building security system

• US 8,049,613 B2
• Filed: 11/26/2008
• Issued: 11/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast Cable Communications LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast Cable Holdings LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Poder, James
• Primary Examiner(s): POPE, DARYL C
• Application Number:
  US12/324,139
• Publication Number:
  US 20100127850A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,070 Days
• Field of Search: 340/506, 340/511, 340/517, 340/521, 340/3.1, 340/825.36, 340/825.49
• US Class Current: 340/517
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2491 Intrusion detection systems, i.e. where the body of an intruder causes the interference with the electromagnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/00 Alarm systems in which the location of the alarm condition is signalled to a central station, e.g. fire or police telegraphic systems
• 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 25/002 Generating a prealarm to the central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253

Abstract

A security system that can be used in a home, office, or other building in order to generate alarms or take other actions depending on conditions within the building. The security system may rely on sensors within the building which sense various conditions and collect other data. The information learned from the sensors can be communicated to a location outside the building for processing, such as, but not limited to, processing associated with a need to instigate an alarm.

Claims

1. A method of security a facility comprising:

sensing conditions proximate the facility;

transmitting data detailing the sensed conditions over a data network to an alarm system located outside of the facility;

processing the sensed conditions data with the alarm system to determine a need to activate an alarm;

prior to activating the alarm, processing information received from a user in the facility to verify authenticity of the need to activate the alarm, wherein verifying authenticity of the alarm includes displaying a verification request on a display within the facility and receiving a response from the user to the verification request; and

activating the alarm with signals communicated from the alarm system if the alarm system determines the need to activate the alarm.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising displaying the verification request and receiving the response with a settop box (STB) used to process television signals for output to a television.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising activating the alarm with instructions issued from a gateway located inside the facility, the gateway activating the alarm upon receipt of the signals communicated from the alarm system.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the gateway is one of a settop box (STB), router, or cable modem.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising transmitting the sensed conditions over the data network with the gateway.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising, prior to activating the alarm, verifying accuracy of one or more of the sensed conditions used to determine the need to activate the alarm from information associated with another one or more of the sensed conditions.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising verifying accuracy of the alarm without the alarm system requiring additional sensed conditions to be transmitted from the facility after the need to activate the alarm is determined.

8. The method of claim 6 wherein the another one or more of the sensed conditions is video recorded on a digital video recorder and transmitted to the alarm system.

9. The method of claim 6 wherein the another one or more of the sensed conditions is a live video feed of at least one of an area within the facility or outside but proximate the facility.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein the another one or more of the sensed conditions is an input received by a settop box (STB) used within the facility used to process television signals for output to a television.

11. The method of claim 6 further comprising transmitting an alarm activation message to an address other than an address of the facility in which the alarm is activated if the need to activate the alarm is verified.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising preventing a gateway located at the facility from activating the alarm unless signals authorizing activation of the alarm are received from the alarm system.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising continuously reporting the sensed conditions to the alarm system regardless of whether the sensed conditions have changed.

14. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting data detailing the sensed conditions to a digital video recorder (DVR).

15. The method of claim 1 further comprising

activating a video camera to record video representative of conditions proximate the facility to a digital video recorder (DVR);

transmitting at least a portion of the recorded video to the alarm system; and

activating the alarm only if the video confirms the determined need to activate the alarm.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising transmitting the video to the alarm system only after the alarm system determines the need to activate the alarm.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein activating the alarm includes playing a security alert within the facility.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein activating the alarm includes illuminating a light within the facility.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein activating the alarm includes transmitting an electronic message detailing a nature of the alarm to an address of device registered with the alarm system.

20. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

verifying that one of the sensed conditions has surpassed a threshold associated with normal operation with data transmitted from sensors that have not surpassed the threshold.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising continuously sensing the conditions after determining that one of the sensed conditions surpassed the threshold.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising verifying that one of the sensed conditions surpassed the threshold from sensed conditions occurring after determining that one of the sensed conditions surpassed the threshold.

23. A method, comprising:

sensing conditions proximate the facility;

transmitting data detailing the sensed conditions over a data network to an alarm system located remotely from the facility;

processing, by the alarm system, the sensed conditions data with the alarm system to determine a need to activate an alarm at the facility;

displaying, on a video display device that a user at the facility is watching, a verification request asking the user to verify the need to activate the alarm; and

in response to receiving user input verifying the need to activate the alarm, activating the alarm with signals communicated from the alarm system if the alarm system also determines the need to activate the alarm.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the verification request asks the user to verify the need to activate the alarm by selecting a button on a remote control.