Temperature monitoring with simulated thermal buffer computed at a base station

• US 9,767,232 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2016
• Issued: 09/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digi International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Schechter Tech LLC (Digi International Inc.)
• Inventors: Schechter, Harry J., Trapasso, Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Singh, Hirdepal
• Application Number:
  US15/241,696
• Publication Number:
  US 20160357892A1
• Time in Patent Office: 396 Days
• Field of Search: 340585
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 29/00 Arrangement or mounting of control or safety devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01K 1/02 Means for indicating or recording specially adapted for thermometers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/20 Design optimisation, verification or simulation optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/10 using a centralized architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/40 using a wireless architecture
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/823 where the data is sent when the measured values exceed a threshold, e.g. sending an alarm
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom

Abstract

An environmental monitoring system including a base station. The base station may receive at least two reports from at least one environmental sensor in an environment; compute, based on values of physical properties of a simulated object and the at least two reports, a simulated condition of the simulated object within the environment; and transmit, to a computing device, the at least two reports and/or the computed simulated condition of the simulated object. A method of operating a base station of an environmental monitoring system. At least one computer-readable storage medium encoded with executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method of operating a base station of an environmental monitoring system.

Claims

1. An environmental monitoring system comprising:

a base station configured to;

receive at least two reports from at least one environmental sensor in an environment;

compute, based on values of physical properties of a simulated object and the at least two reports, a simulated condition of the simulated object within the environment; and

transmit, to a computing device, at least the computed simulated condition of the simulated object,

wherein the base station comprises;

a first memory configured to store a first plurality of reports and/or the computed simulated condition of the simulated object in a stack; and

a second memory configured to store a second plurality of reports in a buffer, wherein;

the second memory has a lower data processing rate than the first memory, and

the second memory has a higher data capacity than the first memory; and

a transmission control circuit configured to control transmission from the first memory and/or the second memory to the computing device based on detection of a connection to the computing device.

2. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the base station is located in the environment.

3. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the computing device is configured to;

receive, from the base station, the computed simulated condition of the simulated object;

compare the simulated condition to a criterion; and

selectively output an indication of an alarm condition based on the comparing.

4. The environmental monitoring system of claim 3, wherein:

the computing device is further configured to;

receive, from the base station, the at least two reports; and

verify the computed simulated condition of the simulated object based on the at least two reports.

5. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the base station is further configured to;

receive, from the computing device, a signal instructing the base station not to compute the simulated condition of the simulated object;

receive, from the computing device, a signal instructing the base station to compute the simulated condition of the simulated object; and

/or

receive, from the computing device, at least one value of at least one physical property of the simulated object.

6. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the base station is further configured to;

transmit, to a display device, the computed simulated condition of the simulated object.

7. The environmental monitoring system of claim 6, wherein:

the display device is located in the environment and is configured to receive, from the base station, the computed simulated condition of the simulated object.

8. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the first plurality of reports is more recent than the second plurality of reports.

9. The environmental monitoring system of claim 1, wherein:

the base station is configured to;

in response to reaching a first capacity threshold of the first memory, transfer at least one least recent report from the first memory to the second memory; and

in response to reaching a second capacity threshold of the second memory, delete at least one least recent report from the second memory.

10. A method of operating a base station of an environmental monitoring system, the method comprising:

receiving a stream of reports from at least one environmental sensor in an environment;

computing, based on values of physical properties of a simulated object and the stream of reports, a stream of simulated conditions of the simulated object within the environment; and

transmitting, to a server, the stream of computed simulated conditions of the simulated object,

wherein;

a first plurality of the computed simulated conditions are stored in a stack in a first memory; and

a second plurality of the computed simulated conditions are stored in a buffer in a second memory, and

the method further comprises;

in response to reaching a first capacity threshold of the first memory, transferring at least one least recent computed simulated condition from the first memory to the second memory; and

in response to reaching a second capacity threshold of the second memory, deleting at least one least recent computed simulated condition from the second memory.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving, from the server, a signal instructing the base station not to compute a simulated condition of the simulated object; and

based on the signal, transmitting to the server at least a portion of the stream of reports.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

transmitting, to a display device, the computed simulated condition of the simulated object.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

buffering the stream of computed simulated conditions; and

transmitting, based on conditions of a communication link between the base station and the server, the buffered stream of computed simulated conditions.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein:

transmitting the buffered stream of computed simulated conditions comprises transmitting most recently computed simulated conditions before previously computed, buffered simulated conditions.

15. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method of operating a base station of an environmental monitoring system, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of reports from at least one environmental sensor in an environment;

computing, based on values of physical properties of a simulated object and the plurality of reports, a simulated condition of the simulated object within the environment; and

transmitting, to a server, at least two of the plurality of reports and the computed simulated condition of the simulated object,

wherein;

a first plurality of the computed simulated conditions are stored in a stack in a first memory; and

a second plurality of the computed simulated conditions are stored in a buffer in a second memory, and

the method further comprises;

in response to reaching a first capacity threshold of the first memory, transferring at least one least recent computed simulated condition from the first memory to the second memory; and

in response to reaching a second capacity threshold of the second memory, deleting at least one least recent computed simulated condition from the second memory.

16. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, the method further comprising:

receiving, from the server, a signal instructing the base station not to compute a simulated condition of the simulated object; and

based on the signal, transmitting to the server at least a portion of the stream of reports.

17. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, the method further comprising:

transmitting, to a display device, the computed simulated condition of the simulated object.

18. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, the method further comprising:

buffering the stream of computed simulated conditions; and

transmitting, based on conditions of a communication link between the base station and the server, the buffered stream of computed simulated conditions.

19. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein:

transmitting the buffered stream of computed simulated conditions comprises transmitting most recently computed simulated conditions before previously computed, buffered simulated conditions.