Smart occupant alarm system

• US 6,930,614 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2002
• Issued: 08/16/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Slingshot IOT LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Rackham, DeVaughn Lawrence, Dunbar, Anthony Michael, Hintermeister, Gregory Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): TWEEL JR, JOHN ALEXANDER
• Application Number:
  US10/160,648
• Publication Number:
  US 20030222775A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,173 Days
• Field of Search: 340/686.1, 340/573.1, 340/425.5, 340/426, 180/273
• US Class Current: 340/686.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01512 Passenger detection systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/01516 using force or pressure sensing means
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2325/304 Boats
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/1004 Alarm systems characterised by the type of sensor, e.g. current sensing means using door lock sensors B60R25/1001
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0202 Child monitoring systems using a transmitter-receiver system carried by the parent and the child
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/22 responsive to presence or absence of persons
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/24 Reminder alarms, e.g. anti-loss alarms
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12

Abstract

An occupancy alarm system can be integrated into a motor vehicle or can be portable. The occupancy alarm system may be programmed to communicate with a program within a logic unit of the on-board computer within the vehicle or a cellular telephone or other wireless logic device so that if the driver'"'"'s door is open and the engine is turned off but there still is an occupant in the motor vehicle, an alarm is immediately triggered. The GPS coordinates of the motor vehicle or the cellular telephone or other wireless device may be communicated to a remote location service or a local emergency center as part of the alarm. The occupancy sensor may be mounted on the occupant or on the restraint system, and may interact with an ambient temperature sensor and an alarm, both of which may be integrated into a motor vehicle, to indicate that a dangerous condition exists for an occupant within the motor vehicle. The occupancy sensor, the ambient temperature monitor, and the alarm may further be integrated together for a portable alarm system or may be mounted or otherwise integrated onto a portable restraint system. The occupancy alarm system may provide an interface and an override such that when the occupant remains in a potentially hazardous environment, that state is communicated via the interface and, if monitored by a responsible adult, the alarm can be overridden.

Claims

1. An occupant alarm system, comprising an occupancy sensor in combination with an ambient temperature monitor, a logic unit, and an alarm;

the ambient temperature monitor, the logic unit, and the alarm integrated into a motor vehicle, such that when the ambient temperature monitor detects a hazardous temperature for at least a predetermined time period after the occupancy sensor communicates to the logic unit that an occupant is present, the alarm is triggered.

2. The occupant alarm system of claim 1, further comprising a program to interact with the logic unit to allow input from the occupancy sensor, to create and/or modify at least one temperature limit for the ambient temperature monitor, and to create and/or modify an appropriate time delay.

3. An occupant alarm comprising:

1. an occupancy sensor;

2. an ambient temperature monitor;

3. an alarm; and

4. a logic unit having inputs from the occupancy sensor, the ambient temperature monitor, and outputs to the alarm,

such that when the occupancy sensor detects an occupant, and when the ambient temperature is beyond limits of a safe temperature range for a specified time, then the logic unit outputs an alarm signal indicating that a hazardous condition may exist for the occupant.

4. The occupant alarm of claim 3, wherein the alarm signal triggers the alarm.

5. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into in an automobile child safety seat.

6. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into a stroller or pram.

7. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into a backpack.

8. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into a bicycle carrier/caboose.

9. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into a pet carrier.

15. The occupant alarm of claim 3 integrated into a portable child carrier and further comprising:

a location detector that detects a location of the portable child carrier; and

a wireless communication interface that communicates the location of the portable child carrier to an emergency center when when the ambient temperature is beyond limits of a sale temperature range for a specified time.

16. The occupant alarm of claim 15, wherein the location detector comprises a global positioning system receiver.

17. The occupant alarm of claim 16, wherein the portable child carrier is self-contained.

10. A smart occupant alarm for a child restraint system, comprising:

(a) an occupancy sensor;

(b) an ambient temperature monitor electronically connected to the occupancy sensor;

(c) an interface mounted on the child restraint system to communicate to a user a state of the occupancy sensor and the temperature monitor;

(d) an alarm; and

(e) a logic unit having a time delay, the logic unit having inputs from the occupancy sensor and the temperature monitor and outputs to the interface and the alarm, wherein when the state of the occupancy sensor indicates the restraint system is occupied for longer than the time delay and when the temperature monitor indicates that an ambient temperature is beyond preset limits beyond the time delay, when the logic unit communicates to the interface that an alert condition persists.

11. The smart occupant alarm system of claim 10, wherein when an alert condition persists, the alarm is triggered.

12. The smart occupant claim system of claim 10, further comprising an override wherein when alert condition persists but the override is activated, the alarm is not triggered.

13. A portable child safety seat, comprising:

a first sensor that detects whether the portable child safety seat is occupied;

a second sensor that detects an ambient temperature around the portable child safety seat; and

a logic unit operatively coupled to the first sensor and the second sensor, the logic unit adapted to generate an alarm signal beginning a predetermined time interval after both the ambient temperature is outside an acceptable safety range and the portable child safety seat is occupied.

14. The portable child safety seat of claim 13, further comprising a wireless communication interface that broadcasts the alarm signal from the logic unit.