Doorbell communication systems and methods

• US 10,674,119 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2017
• Issued: 06/02/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SkyBell Technologies Ip, LLC
• Original Assignee: Skybell Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Scalisi, Joseph Frank, Kasmir, Seton Paul, Norberg, Jeremy
• Primary Examiner(s): Cattungal, Rowina J
• Application Number:
  US15/811,829
• Publication Number:
  US 20180070059A1
• Time in Patent Office: 931 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/07 Target detection
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1472 with force or weight detection
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19619 Details of casing
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19656 Network used to communicate with a camera, e.g. WAN, LAN, Internet
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19676 Temporary storage, e.g. cyclic memory, buffer storage on pre-alarm
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19684 Portable terminal, e.g. mobile phone, used for viewing video remotely
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19695 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors start video recording or forwarding but do not generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/2462 Asset location systems combined with EAS inventory, tracking, logistic G06Q10/00; entrance control systems G07C9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/248 EAS system combined with another detection technology, e.g. dual EAS and video or other presence detection system
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 15/00 Identifying, scaring or incapacitating burglars, thieves or intruders, e.g. by explosives
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 19/005 combined burglary and fire alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 3/10 using electric transmission; using electromagnetic transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2101/663 Transport layer addresses, e.g. aspects of transmission control protocol [TCP] or user datagram protocol [UDP] ports
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/186 Video door telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

The disclosure includes a doorbell having a visitor detection system that can comprise at least one of a camera, a microphone, and a motion detector. The method for using the doorbell can comprise recording, via the camera, video data that represents a video. The method can also comprise recording, via the microphone, audio data that represents audio. The method of using the doorbell can comprise transmitting at least a portion of the video data and at least a portion of the audio data, to a remote computing device that is communicatively coupled to the doorbell. The method can also comprise transmitting the video data and the audio data to a remote server that is communicatively coupled to the doorbell.

Claims

1. A method of using a doorbell having a visitor detection system that comprises a camera, a microphone, and a motion detector, the method comprising:

transmitting, via UDP, at least a portion of video data that represents a video and at least a portion of audio data that represents audio to a remote computing device that is communicatively coupled to the doorbell;

transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to a remote server that is communicatively coupled to the doorbell; and

pausing transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to the remote server in response to exceeding a predetermined transmission capacity between the doorbell and at least one of the remote computing device and the remote server being less than a predetermined threshold.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting, via the visitor detection system, a presence of a visitor.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein recording the video data, recording the audio data, transmitting at least the portion of the video data and at least the portion of the audio data to the remote computing device, and transmitting the video data and the audio data to the remote server are performed concurrently.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the video data defines a larger video file size than the portion of the video data, and the audio data defines a larger audio file size than the portion of the audio data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein pausing transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to the remote server is performed in response to receiving a request from the remote computing device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the request is generated by a user selecting an input on a display screen of the remote computing device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data from the remote server to the remote computing device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the video data and the audio data transmitted, via TCP, from the remote server to the remote computing device is available for viewing and listening on the remote computing device at least a first predetermined amount of time after the recording began, wherein the first predetermined amount of time is 15 minutes.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing, via a ring buffer of the doorbell, a predetermined amount of video and audio, wherein the predetermined amount of video and audio comprises 20 minutes of video and audio, and wherein the ring buffer processes a queue of the video data and the audio data in a first in first out manner.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein transmitting the video data and audio data to the remote server occurs at a rate that is faster than the camera records the video data and the microphone records the audio data.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote computing device comprises at least one of a smart phone and a tablet.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote server is remotely located with respect to both the remote computing device and the doorbell.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to receiving, via the motion detector, a first indication of a presence of a visitor, emitting a first sound from a speaker of the doorbell; and

in response to receiving, via the motion detector, a second indication of the presence of the visitor, emitting a second sound from the speaker of the doorbell, wherein the first sound is audibly different from the second sound.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, by the doorbell, a custom message from the remote computing device and emitting, by a speaker of the doorbell, the custom message in response to detecting a presence of a visitor.

15. A doorbell system comprising:

a doorbell;

a communication transmitter coupled to the doorbell, the communication transmitter configurable to transmit, via UDP, at least a portion of video data and at least a portion of audio data to a remote computing device communicatively coupled to the doorbell, and the communication transmitter configurable to transmit, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to a remote server communicatively coupled to the doorbell, and the communication transmitter configurable to pause transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to the remote server in response to exceeding a predetermined transmission capacity between the doorbell and at least one of the remote computing device and the remote server being less than a predetermined threshold; and

a ring buffer communicatively coupled to the communication transmitter, wherein the ring buffer stores a first predetermined amount of video that represents the video data and a first predetermined amount of audio that represents the audio data, wherein the ring buffer processes a queue of the video data and audio data in a first in first out manner.

16. The doorbell system of claim 15, wherein TCP transmitted video and audio is stored on the remote server and represents a full version of the video data and the audio data, and wherein UDP transmitted video and audio represents a partial version of the video data and the audio data and is live-streamed on the remote computing device in near real-time to the video being recorded by the doorbell and the audio being recorded by the doorbell.

17. The doorbell system of claim 16, wherein the TCP transmitted video and audio file is able to be replayed on the remote computing device at least 15 minutes after the recording began.

18. The doorbell system of claim 15, wherein the first predetermined amount of video comprises up to 20 minutes of video and the first predetermined amount of audio comprises up to 20 minutes of audio.

19. The doorbell system of claim 15, wherein the communication transmitter is configurable to pause transmitting, via TCP, the video data and the audio data to the remote server in response to receiving a request from the remote computing device.

20. The doorbell system of claim 15, wherein the doorbell system is configured to record and store a custom message in response to detecting a first motion of a visitor, and wherein the doorbell system is configured to erase the custom message in response to detecting a second motion of the visitor.