System and process for distributed network of redundant central stations

• US 9,978,240 B1
• Filed: 05/09/2017
• Issued: 05/22/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Alarm.com Inc. (Alarm.com Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Trundle, Stephen Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Girma, Fekadeselassie
• Application Number:
  US15/590,147
• Time in Patent Office: 378 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44536 Selecting among different versions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/505 considering the load
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/08 by opening, e.g. of door, of window, of drawer, of shutter, of curtain, of blind
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19697 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0227 System arrangements with a plurality of child units
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0255 System arrangements wherein the parent unit emits, i.e. the parent unit incorporates the emitter
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0261 System arrangements wherein the object is to detect trespassing over a fixed physical boundary, e.g. the end of a garden
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0275 Electronic Article Surveillance [EAS] tag technology used for parent or child unit, e.g. same transmission technology, magnetic tag, RF tag, RFID
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/005 Alarm destination chosen according to a hierarchy of available destinations, e.g. if hospital does not answer send to police station
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/009 Signalling of the alarm condition to a substation whose identity is signalled to a central station, e.g. relaying alarm signals in order to extend communication range
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/66 Arrangements for connecting between networks having differing types of switching systems, e.g. gateways
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0816 the condition being an adaptation, e.g. in response to network events
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/50 Network service management, e.g. ensuring proper service fulfilment according to agreements

Abstract

Techniques are described for distributing, to a distributed network of central stations, alarm events detected in monitoring system data collected by sensors included in monitoring systems located at monitored properties. A system receives monitoring system data collected by sensors included in monitoring systems located at monitored properties, tracks alarm events detected within the monitoring system data, and generates, for central station servers in a distributed network of central stations, load profiles that reflect a volume of alarm events being handled at each of the central station servers at a particular period of time. The system determines capacities to handle additional alarm events for the central station servers, determines relative priorities for the central station remote servers based on the determined capacities, and directs subsequent alarm events to the central station servers based on the relative priorities.

Claims

1. A system for distributing, to a distributed network of central stations, events detected in monitoring system data collected by sensors included in monitoring systems located at monitored properties, the system comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one 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 including data collected by monitoring systems located at monitored properties and data from central stations included in a distributed network of central stations;

building load profiles for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations, each of the load profiles reflecting a volume of events being handled by at least one central station of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations;

based on the load profiles, determining capacities to handle additional events for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations;

based on the determined capacities, determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations; and

based on the relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations, handling transmission of events from the monitored properties to the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations is based on comparing the determined capacities to at least one threshold value.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the relative priorities define an ordering in which events are transmitted to the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations.

4. The system of claim 1, the operations further comprising building a repository of monitoring data.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein determining capacities to handle additional events for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations comprises:

calculating a resource availability within the central stations; and

determining a predicted volume of events based on a log of historical monitoring data transmitted to the central stations.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations comprises:

comparing the determined capacities to handle additional events to a predetermined lower threshold for capacity to handle additional events;

determining whether the capacities are below the lower threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a first central station of the central stations is below the lower threshold, a low priority to the first central station.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations further comprises:

comparing the determined capacities to handle additional events to a predetermined upper threshold for capacity to handle additional events;

determining whether the capacities are below the upper threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a second central station of the central stations is below the upper threshold, a medium priority to the second central station.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations further comprises:

determining whether the capacities are above the upper threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a third central station of the central stations is above the upper threshold, a high priority to the third central station.

9. The system of claim 1, the operations further comprising:

detecting statuses of the central stations;

determining that a central station of the central stations is operating atypically based on the statuses; and

ceasing transmission of events to the central station operating atypically.

10. The system of claim 1, the operations further comprising:

classifying events into categories based on the received monitoring data;

determining severities for the events based on the categories; and

assigning priorities to the events based on the determined severities.

11. A method for distributing, to a distributed network of central stations, events detected in monitoring system data collected by sensors included in monitoring systems located at monitored properties, the method comprising:

receiving monitoring data, the monitoring data including data collected by monitoring systems located at monitored properties and data from central stations included in a distributed network of central stations;

building load profiles for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations, each of the load profiles reflecting a volume of events being handled by at least one central station of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations;

based on the load profiles, determining capacities to handle additional events for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations;

based on the determined capacities, determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations; and

based on the relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations, handling transmission of events from the monitored properties to the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations is based on comparing the determined capacities to at least one threshold value.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the relative priorities define an ordering in which events are transmitted to the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising building a repository of monitoring data.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein determining capacities to handle additional events for the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations comprises:

calculating a resource availability within the central stations; and

determining a predicted volume of events based on a log of historical monitoring data transmitted to the central stations.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations comprises:

comparing the determined capacities to handle additional events to a predetermined lower threshold for capacity to handle additional events;

determining whether the capacities are below the lower threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a first central station of the central stations is below the lower threshold, a low priority to the first central station.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations further comprises:

comparing the determined capacities to handle additional events to a predetermined upper threshold for capacity to handle additional events;

determining whether the capacities are below the upper threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a second central station of the central stations is below the upper threshold, a medium priority to the second central station.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein determining relative priorities of the central stations included in the distributed network of central stations further comprises:

determining whether the capacities are above the upper threshold; and

assigning, after determining that the capacity of a third central station of the central stations is above the upper threshold, a high priority to the third central station.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

detecting statuses of the central stations;

determining that a central station of the central stations is operating atypically based on the statuses; and

ceasing transmission of events to the central station operating atypically.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

classifying events into categories based on the received monitoring data;

determining severities for the events based on the categories; and

assigning priorities to the events based on the determined severities.