Intelligent sensor network

• US 8,710,983 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2013
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intergrated Security Corp.
• Original Assignee: Intergrated Security Corp.
• Inventors: Malkowski, Bernard M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bugg, George
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dorsey, Renee
• Application Number:
  US13/888,316
• Publication Number:
  US 20130335219A1
• Time in Patent Office: 358 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 340/539.22
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/22 Electrical actuation
• 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: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

The present application describes a sensor network and method for monitoring and detecting intrusion activities in accordance with various illustrative embodiments. In one embodiment, a method includes receiving a first input from a first sensor at a first sensor node of a wireless ad hoc sensor network, and comparing the first input to a first predefined input threshold associated with an intrusion activity. The method also includes wirelessly communicating an indication of the intrusion activity to a gateway device via a second sensor node of the wireless ad hoc sensor network. The gateway device may include an interface between the wireless ad hoc sensor network and a user-interactive system configured to monitor the wireless ad hoc sensor network.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a first input from a first sensor at a first sensor node of a wireless ad hoc network;

receiving a second input from a second sensor at the first sensor node, wherein the second sensor is separate from and external to the first sensor, and wherein the first sensor node comprises the first sensor and the second sensor;

comparing the first input to a first predefined input threshold associated with an intrusion activity at the first sensor node;

comparing the second input o a second predefined input threshold associated with the intrusion activity; and

wirelessly communicating an indication of the intrusion activity from the first sensor node to a gateway device via a second sensor node of the wireless ad hoc sensor network, wherein the gateway device comprises an interface between the wireless ad hoc sensor network and a user-interactive system configured to monitor the wireless ad hoc sensor network.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, at the first sensor node, an existence of the intrusion activity in response to both the first input meeting or exceeding the first predefined input threshold and the second input meeting or exceeding the second predefined input threshold.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first predefined input threshold and the second predefined input threshold are time dependent.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining if a combination of the first input and the second input falsely indicates the intrusion activity by comparing the first input and the second input to predefined false alarm thresholds.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

recording in real-time a sensor input associated with a false alarm intrusion event; and

storing the sensor input as a false alarm threshold at the first sensor node.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the wirelessly communicating an indication of the intrusion activity to a gateway device comprises transmitting the indication of the intrusion activity via a plurality of single communication hops over a plurality of sensor nodes.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the transmitting the indication of the intrusion activity via a plurality of single communication hops over a plurality of sensor nodes comprises transmitting the indication of the intrusion activity via a plurality of distinct paths between the first sensor node and the gateway device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first sensor node comprises a memory that stores a plurality of possible intrusion activities and a plurality of predefined input thresholds associated with the respective intrusion activities.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving at the first sensor node a user input from the gateway device regarding a network or sensor setting change.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising using inputs from different types of sensors to discriminate between intrusion activities and non-intrusion activities.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically detecting a change in location of a sensor node in the wireless ad hoc network;

transmitting an updated location of the sensor node; and

altering a sensing zone of the wire less ad hoc network based on the updated location.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising confirming existence of the intrusion activity using an input from a second sensor different from the first sensor.

13. A sensor network comprising:

a first sensor node including a first sensor and a second sensor, wherein the first sensor is separate from and external to the second sensor;

a second sensor node wirelessly coupled to the first sensor node within a wireless ad hoc network, wherein the second sensor node includes a third sensor; and

a gateway device wirelessly coupled via the wireless ad hoc network to the first sensor node and the second sensor node, wherein the gateway device comprises an interface between the wireless ad hoc sensor network and a user-interactive system configured to monitor the wireless ad hoc sensor network;

wherein the first sensor node is configured to receive a first input from the first sensor and a second input from the second sensor, compare the first input to a first predefined input threshold associated with an intrusion activity, compare the second input to a second predefined input threshold associated with the intrusion activity, and wirelessly communicate an indication of the intrusion activity to the gateway device via the second sensor node.

14. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the first sensor node is further configured to determine an existence of the intrusion activity in response to both the first input meeting or exceeding the first predefined input threshold and the second input meeting or exceeding the second predefined input threshold.

15. The sensor network of claim 14, wherein the first sensor node is further configured to determine if a combination of the first input and the second input falsely indicates the intrusion activity by comparing the first input and the second input to predefined false alarm thresholds.

16. The sensor network of claim 13, further comprising a plurality of additional sensor nodes, wherein the first sensor node is further configured to wirelessly communicate the indication of the intrusion activity to the gateway device via a plurality of single communication hops over the plurality of additional sensor nodes.

17. The sensor network of claim 16, wherein the first sensor node is further configured to transmit the indication of the intrusion activity via a plurality of distinct paths over the wireless ad hoc network between the first sensor node and the gateway device.

18. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the first sensor node comprises a memory configured to store a plurality of possible intrusion activities and a plurality of predefined input thresholds associated with the respective intrusion activities.

19. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the gateway is further configured to initiate an action in response to receiving the indication of the intrusion activity.

20. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the first sensor comprises an accelerometer configured to sense acceleration forces in three respective axes, and wherein the first sensor node is configured to distinguish between the intrusion activity and a false intrusion activity based on the acceleration forces sensed in the three respective axes.

21. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the gateway device is further configured to cause display of a graphical user interface depicting a site-specific graphic showing locations of the first sensor node and the second sensor node and further showing respective sensing regions of the sensor network associated with the first sensor node and the second sensor node.

22. The sensor network of claim 13, wherein the first sensor comprises a volumetric sensor.