Kitchen sanitization compliance monitoring system

• US 8,963,723 B2
• Filed: 10/22/2012
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ecolab USA Incorporated (Ecolab, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: UltraClenz LLC (Ecolab, Inc.)
• Inventors: Snodgrass, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, Hai
• Assistant Examiner(s): NWUGO, OJIAKO K
• Application Number:
  US13/657,466
• Publication Number:
  US 20130113619A1
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• US Class Current: 340/573.3
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 11/00 Arrangements, systems or apparatus for checking, e.g. the occurrence of a condition, not provided for elsewhere
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/02 Alarms for ensuring the safety of persons

Abstract

A kitchen sanitization compliance monitoring system comprises kitchen staff badges, food prep table beacons associated with food prep tables or areas, dispenser beacons associated with sanitization dispensers, and a central unit for wirelessly communicating with the badges.

Claims

1. A kitchen sanitization compliance monitoring system for a commercial kitchen environment having food prep tables, comprising:

badges wearable by persons, said badges having indicia representing a first-state indicating a sanitary compliant condition of the person, a second-state representing a cautionary state indicating the person'"'"'s contact with a first food prep table or first food prep area, and a third-state representing an unsanitary state indicating the person'"'"'s contact with a second food prep table or second food prep area after contact with, and different from, a first food prep table or first food prep area, each one of said badges also having a wireless transmitter/receiver for communicating an identification signal unique to a single badge, and the current state of the badge;

food prep table beacons, each associated with a different respective food prep table or area, each prep table beacon having a transmitter/receiver capable of wirelessly communicating with said badges;

dispenser beacons, each associated with a sanitization dispenser, and each dispenser beacon having a transmitter/receiver capable of wirelessly communicating with said badges; and

wherein each of the said badges in said first-state changes to said second-state when located in a certain proximity to a food prep table beacon, and transmits a status change signal indicating such first-to-second-state change to the food prep table beacon with the badge identification signal;

wherein each of the said badges in said second-state changes to said third-state when located in a certain proximity to a food prep table beacon different from the food prep table beacon which caused the badge to change from the first-state to the second-state, and transmits a status signal indicating such second-to-third-state change to the food prep table beacon

wherein a dispenser beacon causes a badge to change from the second-state or third-state to the first-state when the person has performed a sanitization procedure at the sanitization dispenser beacon.

2. The system according to claim 1, further including a central unit for wirelessly communication with food prep table beacons, and wherein the food prep table beacon transmits the identification signal of the badge, and the current state of the badge, to the central unit, in response to the badge coming into a certain proximity with a the food prep table beacon.

3. The system according to claim 1, further including a central unit for wirelessly communication with dispenser beacons, and wherein the dispenser beacon transmits the identification signal of the badge, and the current state of the badge, to the central unit, in response to the badge coming into proximity with the dispenser beacon.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the badges'"'"' indicia comprise three different color lights respectively representing the first-, second-, and third-states.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the badges include an audio beeper in response to the dispenser beacon causing a change in the badge state from the second- or third-state to a the first-state.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein, in response to a badge coming in close proximity to a one of the dispenser beacons, the badge transmitter/receiver and the dispenser transmitter/receiver increase their respective transmitter/receiver ranges to permit communication over a wider communication-range, and wherein the respective badge and dispenser beacon lock communication to the exclusion of other badges and dispenser beacons, until communication between the badge and dispenser beacon is complete.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein, in response to any one of the badges coming in close proximity to any one of the prep table beacons, the badge transmitter/receiver and the prep table beacon transmitter/receiver increase their respective transmitter/receiver ranges to permit communication over a wider communication-range, and wherein the respective badge and prep table beacon lock communication to the exclusion of other badges and prep table beacons, until communication between the badge and prep table beacon is complete.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein a badge in the second-state changes to the third-state if the badge leaves the certain proximity to a food prep table and remains out of that proximity for a certain time period and re-enters that certain proximity after the certain time period.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein any one of the badges in the first-state changes to the second-state after a certain time period has elapsed without the badge-wearer performing a the sanitization procedure.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein any one of the badges in the second-state changes to the third-state after a certain time period has elapsed without the badge-wearer performing a the sanitization procedure.

11. A method for monitoring sanitization compliance for a commercial kitchen environment having food prep tables, comprising:

providing badges wearable by persons, said badges having indicia representing a first-state indicating a sanitary compliant condition of the person, a second-state representing a cautionary state indicating the person'"'"'s contact with a first food, and a third-state representing an unsanitary state indicating the person'"'"'s contact with a second food after contact with, and different from, a first food, each one of said badges also having a wireless transmitter/receiver for communicating an identification signal unique to a single badge, and the current state of the badge;

providing food prep table beacons, each associated with a different respective food prep table, each prep table beacon capable of wirelessly communicating with said badges;

providing dispenser beacons, each associated with a sanitization dispenser, and each of the said dispenser beacon having a transmitter/receiver capable of wirelessly communicating with said badges;

changing the state of each of the said badges from said first-state to said second-state when located in a certain proximity to a food prep table beacon, and transmitting a status change signal indicating such first-to-second-state change to the food prep table beacon with the badge identification signal;

changing the state of each of the said badges from said second-state to said third-state when located in a certain proximity to a food prep table beacon different from the food prep table beacon which caused the badge to change from the first-state to the second-state, and transmitting a status signal indicating such second-to-third-state change to the food prep table beacon with the badge identification signal;

changing the status of a each of the said badges from the second-state or third-state to the first-state when the person has performed a sanitization procedure at the sanitization dispenser.

12. The method according to claim 11, including wirelessly communicating with a central unit, and

wherein the food prep table beacon transmits the identification signal of the badge, and the current state of the badge, to the central unit, in response to the badge coming within a certain proximity with a the food prep table beacon.

13. The method according to claim 11, including wirelessly communicating with a central unit, and wherein the dispenser beacon transmits the identification signal of the badge, and the current state of the badge, to the central unit, in response to the badge coming within a certain proximity with the dispenser beacon.

14. The method of claim 11, comprising illuminating badges'"'"' indicia with three different color lights respectively representing the first-, second-, and third-states.

15. The method of claim 11, comprising generating an audio signal by the badges in response to the dispenser beacon causing a change in the badge state from a second- or third-state to a first-state.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein, in response to any one of the badges coming in a certain proximity to any one of the dispenser beacons, the badge transmitter/receiver and the dispenser transmitter/receiver increase their respective transmitter/receiver ranges to permit communication over a wider communication-range, and wherein the respective badge and dispenser beacon lock communication to the exclusion of other badges and dispenser beacons, until communication between the badge and dispenser beacon is complete.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein, in response to any one of the badges coming in close proximity to any one of the prep table beacons, the badge transmitter/receiver and the prep table beacon transmitter/receiver increase their respective transmitter/receiver ranges to permit communication over a wider communication-range, and wherein the respective badge and prep table beacon lock communication to the exclusion of other badges and prep table beacons, until communication between the badge and prep table beacon is complete.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein any one of the badges in a second-state changes to the third-state if the badge leaves the certain proximity to any one of the food prep tables and remains out of that proximity for a certain time period and re-enters that certain proximity after the certain time period.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein any one of the badges in the first-state changes to the second-state after a certain time period has elapsed without the badge-wearer performing the sanitization procedure.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein any one of the badges in the second-state changes to the third-state after a certain time period has elapsed without the badge-wearer performing the sanitization procedure.