Distributed industrial facility safety system modular remote sensing devices

• US 10,303,147 B1
• Filed: 03/29/2018
• Issued: 05/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Government of Saudi Arabia)
• Original Assignee: Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Government of Saudi Arabia)
• Inventors: Aljuaid, Muhammad S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Flores, Leon
• Application Number:
  US15/939,685
• Time in Patent Office: 425 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/00 Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents dispensing means incorporated in removable or non-permanently secured container closures B65D47/00; for shops, stores, offices, bars, or the like A47F1/04; showcases or show cabinets with dispensing arrangements A47F3/02; magazines for screws or nuts in combination with spanners, wrenches or screwdrivers B25B23/06; for use in connection with the handling of sheets, webs, or filamentary material B65H
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/048 Monitoring; Safety
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41845 characterised by system universality, reconfigurability, modularity
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41865 characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

Provided are systems and methods for distributed industrial facility safety system remote sensing devices. In some embodiments an industrial facility safety system includes a plurality of removable sensor modules, each adapted to sense a given set of environmental characteristics, and a modular remote sensing device (RSD) adapted to accept removable sensor modules and adapted to be carried by a person working in an industrial facility and to sense characteristics of an environment surrounding the modular RSD and the person. The system further including a non-transitory computer readable medium including program instructions executable by a processor to determine a location associated with the modular RSD, to determine one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location, and sending, to the modular RSD, an alert instructing installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location, into the modular RSD.

Claims

1. An industrial facility safety system, comprising:

a plurality of removable sensor modules, each of the sensor modules configured to sense a given set of environmental characteristics;

a modular remote sensing device (RSD) configured to accept one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules, the modular RSD configured to be carried by a person working in an industrial facility and configured to sense characteristics of an environment surrounding the modular RSD and the person; and

a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon that are executable by a processor to cause the following operations;

determining a location associated with the modular RSD;

determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location; and

sending, to the modular RSD, an alert instructing installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location into the modular RSD.

2. The system of claim 1,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises:

determining the person is associated with the modular RSD; and

determining one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in based on a work schedule that specifies the one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed in the one or more regions.

3. The system of claim 1,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises determining a current location of the modular RSD, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the current location of the modular RSD.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein presentation of the alert comprises a visual display or audible recitation of instructions to install, into the modular RSD, the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein presentation of the alert comprises a flashing light.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the modular RSD is configured to present the alert until the modular RSD determines that the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location are installed into the modular RSD.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein determining that the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location are installed into the modular RSD comprises determining that the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location are physically installed into the modular RSD and activated.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a sensor dispensing kiosk configured to dispense, to the person, the one or more of the sensor modules to be employed at the location.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the modular RSD comprises a wireless interface for communicating wirelessly with the one or more removable sensor modules.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein each of one or more of the plurality of removable sensor modules comprises a battery configured to power the removable sensor module and an energy harvesting system configured to charge the battery.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the modular RSD comprises a battery configured to power the modular RSD and an energy harvesting system configured to charge the battery.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the modular RSD comprises a battery and an energy harvesting system configured to charge the battery.

13. A method of industrial facility safety system monitoring, comprising:

determining, by a facility safety control system (FSCS), a location associated with a modular remote sensing device (RSD), the modular RSD configured to accept one or more removable sensor modules of a plurality of removable sensor modules, configured to be carried by a person working in an industrial facility and configured to sense characteristics of an environment surrounding the modular RSD and the person;

determining, by the FSCS, one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location;

sending, by the FSCS to the modular RSD, an alert instructing installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location into the modular RSD; and

presenting, by the modular RSD, the alert including instructions for installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location into the modular RSD.

14. The method of claim 13,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises:

determining the person is associated with the modular RSD; and

determining one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in based on a work schedule that specifies the one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed in the one or more regions.

15. The method of claim 13,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises determining a current location of the modular RSD, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the current location of the modular RSD.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the modular RSD presents the alert as a visual display or audible recitation of instructions to install, into the modular RSD, the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein presentation of the alert comprises presentation of a flashing light.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the modular RSD is configured to present the alert until the RSD determines that the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location are physically installed into the modular RSD and activated.

19. The method of claim 13, further comprising dispensing, by a sensor dispensing kiosk and to the person, the one or more of the sensor modules to be employed at the location.

20. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising program instructions stored thereon that are executable by a processor to cause the following operations of industrial facility safety monitoring:

determining, by a facility safety control system (FSCS), a location associated with a modular remote sensing device (RSD), the modular RSD configured to accept one or more removable sensor modules of a plurality of removable sensor modules, configured to be carried by a person working in an industrial facility and configured to sense characteristics of an environment surrounding the modular RSD and the person;

determining, by the FSCS, one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location;

sending, by the FSCS to the modular RSD, an alert instructing installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location into the modular RSD; and

presenting, by the modular RSD, the alert including instructions for the installation of the one or more removable sensor modules to be employed at the location into the modular RSD.

21. The medium of claim 20,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises:

determining the person is associated with the modular RSD; and

determining one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in based on a work schedule that specifies the one or more regions of the industrial facility the person is scheduled to work in, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed in the one or more regions.

22. The medium of claim 20,

wherein determining a location associated with the modular RSD comprises determining a current location of the modular RSD, and

wherein determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the location comprises determining one or more removable sensor modules of the plurality of removable sensor modules to be employed at the current location of the modular RSD.

23. The medium of claim 20, wherein the modular RSD presents the alert as a visual display or audible recitation of instructions to install, into the modular RSD, the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location.

24. The medium of claim 20, wherein presentation of the alert comprises presentation of a flashing light.

25. The medium of claim 24, wherein the modular RSD presents the alert until the RSD determines that the one or more of the removable sensor modules to be employed at the location are physically installed into the modular RSD and activated.

26. The medium of claim 20, the operations further comprising dispensing, by a sensor dispensing kiosk and to the person, the one or more of the sensor modules to be employed at the location.