Alarm system with two-way voice

• US 9,542,829 B2
• Filed: 11/24/2014
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Martin, Jean-Paul, Trundle, Stephen Scott, Goldfarb, David Saul, Hutz, David James
• Primary Examiner(s): WASHINGTON, ERIKA ALISE
• Application Number:
  US14/551,748
• Publication Number:
  US 20150079922A1
• Time in Patent Office: 778 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/00 Burglar, theft or intruder alarms
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/10 using wireless transmission systems G08B25/009 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

Techniques are described for establishing a two-way voice communication session with an alarm system. The alarm system may establish a two-way voice communication session with an operator associated with a monitoring service that provides monitoring services for alarm events detected by the alarm system. The alarm system also may establish a two-way voice communication session with a notification recipient that is interested in receiving notifications associated with events detected by the alarm system.

Claims

1. A method of enabling a notification recipient to establish a voice communication session with an alarm system in response to the alarm system detecting an event, the method comprising:

receiving monitoring data, the monitoring data being transmitted by a communication module included in the alarm system in response to the alarm system detecting an event and the monitoring data indicating the event, wherein the event is not associated with an alarm condition;

subsequent to receiving the monitoring data indicating the event;

accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient that is an occupant of a property monitored by the alarm system;

analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient; and

based on the analysis, identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event;

based on identifying the particular notification recipient, accessing communication information configured for use in establishing a voice communication session between a mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system; and

facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

transmitting a data communication to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, a command to initiate a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient based on the mobile device receiving the data communication; and

forwarding the command to the communication module to cause the communication module to place a call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

placing an automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving a command, as part of the automated phone call, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient in response to user input provided by the particular notification recipient interacting with a call script of the automated phone call;

forwarding the command to the communication module to cause the communication module to place a call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

transmitting, to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, a number and a passcode associated with the communication module to enable the particular notification recipient to place a call to the communication module using the number and to be authenticated by the communication module using the passcode, and

transmitting the passcode to the communication module to enable the communication module to authenticate a call from the particular notification recipient based on the passcode.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

placing an automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving a command, as part of the automated phone call, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient in response to user input provided by the particular notification recipient interacting with a call script of the automated phone call and the command requesting transfer of the automated phone call to the communication module;

accessing a number associated with the communication module; and

transferring the automated phone call to the communication module using the accessed number.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

identifying the alarm system based on the received monitoring data;

determining that the identified alarm system has a two-way voice feature;

waiting for an automated phone call from the communication module in response to determining that the identified alarm system has the two-way voice feature;

receiving an automated phone call from the communication module;

accessing a number for the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient; and

transferring the automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient based on the accessed number.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

placing a first automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the first automated phone call being placed by an automated phone system;

receiving a command, as part of the first automated phone call, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient in response to user input provided by the particular notification recipient interacting with a call script of the first automated phone call and the command requesting a voice communication session with the communication module;

transmitting, to the communication module, a command to initiate a call to the automated phone system;

maintaining the first automated phone call with the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving, from the communication module, a second automated phone call that is different from the first automated phone call, the second automated phone call being received by the automated phone system; and

connecting the first automated phone call with the second automated phone call to establish a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module.

8. The method of claim 1:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on type of event;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a type of the event based on the monitoring data indicating the event and evaluating the determined type of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on type of event; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined type of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on type of event.

9. The method of claim 1:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on time of day;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a time of day of the event and evaluating the determined time of day against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on time of day; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined time of day against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on time of day.

10. The method of claim 1:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on date information;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a date of the event and evaluating the determined date against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on date information; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined date against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on date information.

11. The method of claim 1:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on a combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a type of event of the event, a time of day of the event, and a date of the event and evaluating the determined type of event, the determined time of day of the event, and the determined date of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on the combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined type of event, the determined time of day of the event, and the determined date of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on the combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information.

12. An alarm server comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium coupled to the at least one processor having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to perform operations comprising;

receiving monitoring data, the monitoring data being transmitted by a communication module included in an alarm system in response to the alarm system detecting an event and the monitoring data indicating the event, wherein the event is not associated with an alarm condition;

subsequent to receiving the monitoring data indicating the event;

accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient that is an occupant of a property monitored by the alarm system;

analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient; and

based on the analysis, identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event;

based on identifying the particular notification recipient, accessing communication information configured for use in establishing a voice communication session between a mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system; and

facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information.

13. The alarm server of claim 12 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

transmitting a data communication to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, a command to initiate a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient based on the mobile device receiving the data communication; and

forwarding the command to the communication module to cause the communication module to place a call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient.

14. The alarm server of claim 12 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

placing an automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving a command, as part of the automated phone call, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient in response to user input provided by the particular notification recipient interacting with a call script of the automated phone call;

forwarding the command to the communication module to cause the communication module to place a call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient.

15. The alarm server of claim 12 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

identifying the alarm system based on the received monitoring data;

determining that the identified alarm system has a two-way voice feature;

waiting for an automated phone call from the communication module in response to determining that the identified alarm system has the two-way voice feature;

receiving an automated phone call from the communication module;

accessing a number for the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient; and

transferring the automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient based on the accessed number.

16. The alarm server of claim 12 wherein facilitating establishment of a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module included in the alarm system based on the accessed communication information includes:

placing a first automated phone call to the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the first automated phone call being placed by an automated phone system;

receiving a command, as part of the first automated phone call, from the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient, the command being transmitted by the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient in response to user input provided by the particular notification recipient interacting with a call script of the first automated phone call and the command requesting a voice communication session with the communication module;

transmitting, to the communication module, a command to initiate a call to the automated phone system;

maintaining the first automated phone call with the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient;

receiving, from the communication module, a second automated phone call that is different from the first automated phone call, the second automated phone call being received by the automated phone system; and

connecting the first automated phone call with the second automated phone call to establish a voice communication session between the mobile device associated with the particular notification recipient and the communication module.

17. The alarm server of claim 12:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on type of event;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a type of the event based on the monitoring data indicating the event and evaluating the determined type of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on type of event; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined type of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on type of event.

18. The alarm server of claim 12:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on time of day;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a time of day of the event and evaluating the determined time of day against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on time of day; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined time of day against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on time of day.

19. The alarm server of claim 12:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on date information;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a date of the event and evaluating the determined date against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on date information; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined date against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on date information.

20. The alarm server of claim 12:

wherein accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying the notification recipient includes accessing, from electronic storage, stored information related to rules for identifying a notification recipient based on a combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information;

wherein analyzing the event detected by the alarm system with respect to the rules for identifying the notification recipient includes determining a type of event of the event, a time of day of the event, and a date of the event and evaluating the determined type of event, the determined time of day of the event, and the determined date of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on the combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information; and

wherein identifying the particular notification recipient to be notified of the event includes identifying, from among a set of occupants of the property monitored by the alarm system, a particular notification recipient to be notified of the event based on evaluation of the determined type of event, the determined time of day of the event, and the determined date of the event against the rules for identifying the notification recipient based on the combination of factors including type of event, time of day, and date information.