Method and system for monitoring computer networks and equipment

• US 8,005,944 B2
• Filed: 12/08/2006
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: American Power Conversion Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Original Assignee: American Power Conversion Corporation (Schneider Electric SE)
• Inventors: Cullen, Gerard L., Fowler, John J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaw; Peling A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ibrahim; Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US11/608,639
• Publication Number:
  US 20070088823A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,719 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/224, 700/1, 700/80, 700/83
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2825 Reporting to a device located outside the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with telemetering systems H04M11/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/44 Star or tree networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2845 Telephone line
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/065 related to network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0817 by checking functioning
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/10 Active monitoring, e.g. heartbeat, ping or trace-route
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

A system and method are disclosed for monitoring a space and its contents over a network. The system can include an embedded Java microprocessor to provide processing and network connectivity capability, and sensors to detect physical parameters associated with the space. The sensors can generate one or more sensor signals representative of the detected physical parameters. An analog-to-digital converter can convert the sensor signals to a digital format and can provide corresponding digital signals to the microprocessor. The system further includes instructions for processing the sensor signals and corresponding digital signals. An alarm signal can be generated when any of the physical parameters exceeds a corresponding threshold value. The system of the present invention can have at least one input/output port for communicating with the network and one or more memory modules for storing system data. The system of this invention can have a network-based interface for providing programming instructions to the microprocessor and for receiving monitoring status and alarm information from the system. The interface can be an HTML interface. A power source provides power to the system.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring a space and its contents over a network, comprising:

a microprocessor to provide processing and network connectivity capability;

one or more sensors to detect one or more physical parameters and generate one or more sensor signals representative of the detected physical parameters;

an analog-to-digital converter for converting one or more of the sensor signals to a digital format and to provide one or more corresponding digital signals to the microprocessor;

an alarm processing program configured to cause the microprocessor to;

determine that an alarm signal has not occurred within a first preset time interval;

compare, responsive to determining that the alarm signal has not occurred within the first preset time interval, the digital signals to one or more corresponding threshold values according to a second preset time interval; and

generate the alarm signal when any of the digital signals exceeds a corresponding threshold value of the one or more corresponding threshold values;

at least one input/output port for communicating with the network;

one or more memory modules for storing system data;

a network based interface configured to control an external load in response to the alarm signal; and

a power source to power the system.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more physical parameters include audio signals within the space and the corresponding threshold value includes a lower bound of a frequency associated with a smoke detector alarm.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more physical parameters include a temperature of the space, the corresponding threshold value includes a pre-set temperature limit and the external load includes an air conditioning unit.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the network based interface is a wireless network based interface.

5. A method for monitoring a space using a solid-state device including at least one sensor, an analog-to-digital converter, a network interface and a microprocessor, the at least one sensor, the analog-to-digital converter and the network interface being coupled to the microprocessor, the method comprising:

detecting, using the at least sensor, at least one physical parameter of the space;

generating, using the at least one sensor, at least one sensor signal representative of the at least one physical parameter;

converting, using the analog-to-digital converter, the at least one sensor signal to at least one digital signal;

determining, using the microprocessor, that at least one alarm signal has not occurred within a first preset time interval;

comparing, using the microprocessor and responsive to determining that the at least one alarm signal has not occurred within the first preset time interval, the at least one digital signal to at least one corresponding threshold value according to a second preset time interval;

generating, using the microprocessor, the at least one alarm signal when the at least one digital signal exceeds the at least one corresponding threshold value; and

controlling, by the microprocessor using the network interface, an external load in response to the at least one alarm signal.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein detecting the at least one physical parameter includes detecting an audio signal within the space and generating the at least one alarm signal includes generating the at least one alarm signal when a frequency of the audio signal exceeds a lower bound of a frequency associated with a smoke detector alarm.

7. The method according to claim 5, wherein detecting the at least one physical parameter includes detecting a temperature of the space, generating the at least one alarm signal includes generating the at least one alarm signal when the temperature exceeds a preset temperature limit and controlling the external load includes controlling an air conditioning unit.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein controlling the external load includes controlling the external load using a wireless network interface.