Rotating sensor for occupancy detection

• US 8,809,788 B2
• Filed: 10/26/2011
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WTEC GmbH
• Original Assignee: Redwood Systems, Inc. (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Covaro, Mark
• Primary Examiner(s): Porta, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Malevic, Djura
• Application Number:
  US13/281,768
• Publication Number:
  US 20130107245A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,028 Days
• Field of Search: 250/316.1, 250/317.1, 250/318, 250/330, 250/338.3, 250/339.04, 250/339.14, 250/342
• US Class Current: 250/342
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 1/00 Registering, indicating or recording the time of events or elapsed time, e.g. time-recorders for work people registering or indicating the working of machines or vehicles G07C3/00, G07C5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/191 using pyroelectric sensor means

Abstract

A system to detect occupants is provided. The system may rotate the field of views of multiple sensors in order to scan an area. The system may scan the area multiple times. The system may determine the number of occupants in the area based on a comparison of a scan of the area with a scan of the area when the area is determined to be unoccupied. The system may determine the number of occupants in the area based on a maximum number of occupants detected by any of the sensors. The system may also determine a location of an object or an occupant from scans of the area obtained from multiple sensors.

Claims

1. A system to detect occupants, the system comprising:

a first sensor configured to rotate a field of view of the first sensor over an area;

a second sensor configured to rotate a field of view of the second sensor over the area, the second sensor positioned relative to the first sensor such that the field of view of the second sensor overlaps the field of view of the first sensor in at least a portion of the area; and

an occupant count module configured to;

determine a first number of occupants detected by the first sensor based on sensor data generated during the rotation of the field of view of the first sensor;

determine a second number of occupants detected by the second sensor based on sensor data generated during the rotation of the field of view of the second sensor; and

determine a number of occupants in the area to be a largest one of the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor and the second number of occupants detected by the second sensor.

2. The system of claim 1 further comprising a memory, wherein the rotation of the field of view of the first sensor is a first rotation of the field of view of the first sensor, and wherein the occupant count module is further configured to store a first image in the memory, the first image is based on the sensor data generated during the first rotation of the field of view of the first sensor over the area when the area is unoccupied, the first image comprising, for each heat source in the area detected by the first sensor during the first rotation, a corresponding angle at which the field of view of the first sensor is rotated when each heat source is detected.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the occupant count module is further configured to store a second image in the memory, the second image being based on sensor data generated by the first sensor during a second rotation of the field of view of the first sensor over the area, the second image comprising, for each heat source in the area detected by the first sensor during the second rotation, a corresponding angle at which the field of view of the first sensor is rotated when each heat source is detected.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the occupant count module is further configured to determine the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor based on a comparison of the first image and the second image.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the occupant count module is further configured to determine that the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor is a number of heat sources detected in the area by the first sensor during the second rotation that are not detected at corresponding angles of the field of view of the first sensor during the first rotation.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein a corresponding temperature of each heat source detected in the area by the first sensor during the second rotation of the field of view of the first sensor is determined from a difference between a first corresponding analog output value of the first sensor in the first image and a second corresponding analog output value of the first sensor in the second image, the first and second corresponding analog output values corresponding to an angle at which the field of view of the first sensor is rotated when each heat source is detected.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the first sensor and the second sensor are thermal sensors.

8. An apparatus to detect occupants, the apparatus comprising:

a memory; and

a processor in communication with the memory, the memory comprising instructions executable by the processor to;

determine a first number of occupants detected by a first sensor based on sensor data generated by the first sensor, wherein the sensor data is generated from information collected during a rotation of a field of view of the first sensor over an area;

determine a second number of occupants detected by a second sensor based on sensor data generated by a second sensor, wherein the sensor data is generated from information collected during a rotation of a field of view of the second sensor over the area, the second sensor positioned relative to the first sensor such that the field of view of the second sensor overlaps the field of view of the first sensor in at least a portion of the area; and

determine a total number of occupants in the area to be a largest one of a plurality of detected occupancy numbers, the detected occupancy numbers comprising the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor and the second number of occupants detected by the second sensor.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the rotation of the field of view of the first sensor is a first rotation of the field of view of the first sensor, a reference image is generated from information collected during a second rotation of the field of view of the first sensor over the area when the area is unoccupied, the reference image indicates a location of any heat source that is not an occupant, and the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor is based on a number of heat sources detected in the area from the information collected during the first rotation of the field of view of the first sensor that are not at the location of any heat source that the reference image indicates is not an occupant.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the memory further comprises instructions executable by the processor to:

receive the sensor data generated by the first sensor from the first sensor, the sensor data comprising a first angle at which the first sensor is rotated when a heat source is detected by the first sensor;

receive the sensor data generated by the second sensor from the second sensor, the sensor data comprising a second angle at which the second sensor is rotated when the heat source is detected by the second sensor; and

determine a location of the heat source in two dimensions based on the first angle, the second angle, and a spatial knowledge of the first sensor and second sensor.

11. A method for detecting occupants, the method comprising:

rotating a field of view of a first sensor over an area;

rotating a field of view of a second sensor over the area, the second sensor positioned relative to the first sensor such that the field of view of the second sensor overlaps the field of view of the first sensor in at least a portion of the area;

determining a first number of occupants detected by the first sensor during the rotation of the field of view of the first sensor;

determining a second number of occupants detected by the second sensor during the rotation of the field of view of the second sensor; and

determining a number of occupants in the area to be equal to a largest one of a plurality of detected occupancy numbers, the detected occupancy numbers comprising the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor and the second number of occupants detected by the second sensor.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining a location of a heat source detected by the first and second sensors in the area based on a position of the first sensor relative to the second sensor.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining locations of heat sources detected by the first and second sensors in the area that are not occupants by rotating the field of view of the first sensor and the field of view of the second sensor in response to a determination that the area is unoccupied.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising determining the first number of occupants detected by the first sensor as the number of heat sources detected in the area by the first sensor that are not any of the heat sources determined not to be occupants when the area is unoccupied.

15. The method of claim 13 further comprising determining the second number of occupants detected by the second sensor as the number of heat sources detected in the area by the second sensor that are not any of the heat sources determined not to be occupants when the area is unoccupied.

16. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining locations of heat sources detected by the first and second sensors in the area that are not occupants based on heuristic data that indicates a heat source at a location is a stationary non-occupant.

17. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining locations of heat sources detected by the first and second sensors in the area that are not occupants by detecting heat sources at locations that spatial knowledge indicates are locations of heat generating fixtures.