Abstract:
A communications device for enabling a delivery person to communicate with a person at a remote location regarding the delivery of a package includes a housing for mounting near the entry to a residence or business. A processor is positioned in the housing in operative communication with electronic components for transmitting data to at least one remote device such as a cellular telephone, pager, or computer. The housing includes an actuator button for actuating the processor to establish two-way communication with the remote device and may include additional input devices such as a microphone, keypad, or camera. The camera enables the processor to transmit a picture to the remote device such that the authenticity of the delivery person may be verified prior to a remote user providing delivery instructions.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates to a communications device and, more particularly, to a device that enables a delivery person to communicate with a resident who is not present to receive a delivery. 
         [0002]    Unfortunately, people are frequently not home to receive deliveries when the delivery service arrives with the package, such as from the United States Postal Service, UPS, or FedEx. These deliveries usually occur during normal business hours when residents may be at work. Unless prior arrangements have been made, the delivery person typically will not leave the package unattended at the residence. The package will either be delivered the next day or the package recipient must travel to the delivery company to pick it up. 
         [0003]    In addition to delivery persons needing to contact a resident, emergency personnel such as firefighters may need to contact a homeowner in case of a fire so as to verify if any persons or pets may be inside the dwelling. If the firefighters were able to quickly verify this information, they may avoid engaging in a needless and dangerous rescue attempt. This would also apply to a neighbor or passerby who may be attempting a rescue in an otherwise dangerous situation. The difficulty is that the emergency personnel might not have immediate information on who the homeowner is or how to reach them. 
         [0004]    Various devices have been proposed in the art for enabling a delivery person to communicate via a telephone signal resident to enable the receive instructions or authorization to leave the package unattended. Although assumably effective for their intended purposes, the existing devices or proposals do not provide multiple input devices for use by the delivery person or to verify the authenticity of the delivery person, e.g. a camera. Further, the existing devices do not enable emergency personnel to immediately contact the owner of the residence. 
         [0005]    Therefore, it would be desirable to have a communications device that enables a delivery person to communicate in real time with a resident to receive instructions or authorization regarding a package. Further, it would be desirable to have a communications device that enables a resident to authenticate the identity of the delivery person. In addition, it would be desirable to have a communications device by which emergency personnel can communicate immediately with a resident of a dwelling so as to verify if any occupants or pets are inside. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    Accordingly, a communications device according to the present invention includes a housing for mounting to an entrance of a residence or business. A processor is situated in the housing and includes programming for transmitting data to at least one remote device, such as a cellular telephone, non-cellular telephone, pager, or computer. The housing includes an actuator for actuating the processor to communicate with the at least one remote device. A keyboard may be mounted on the housing for inputting alphanumeric data to the processor for transmission to a cellular telephone, say, through text messaging, or to a computer as e-mail. In addition, a camera may be mounted on the housing for taking a digital picture of the deliver person or even a video for transmission to a remote picture phone or computer. This enables a remote user to verify the identity of the delivery person. 
         [0007]    The processor includes programming for receiving data from the at least one remote device and is in data communication with a speaker. Accordingly, instructions received from a remote user, for example to leave the package with a neighbor or in the garage, may be communicated back to the delivery person. 
         [0008]    Therefore, a general object of this invention is to provide a communications device for two-way communication between a delivery person at the entrance to a residence and a remote resident. 
         [0009]    Another object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, that includes at least one input device enabling the delivery person to enter data to a processor and communicate with at least one remote device. 
         [0010]    Still another object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, having a camera for capturing and transmitting a picture of a delivery person to a remote communications device to enable a remote person to identify the delivery person. 
         [0011]    Yet another object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, having a microphone or display for enabling a user at a remote communication device to communicate with the delivery person. 
         [0012]    A further object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, that is weatherproof. 
         [0013]    A still further object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, that can communicate with a cellular telephone, non-cellular telephone, pager, or computer. 
         [0014]    Another object of this invention is to provide a communications device, as aforesaid, that is inexpensive to manufacture and reliable to use. 
         [0015]    Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein is set forth by way of illustration and example, embodiments of this invention. 
     
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  is a front view of a communications device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 2  is a front view of the communications device not having a keypad input device; 
           [0018]      FIG. 3  is a front view of a remote device in use with the communications device as in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0019]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram showing the electronic components of the communications device according to the present invention; and 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a flowchart illustrating the logic performed by the processor during a setup procedure of the communications device. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0021]    A communications device  100  according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to  FIGS. 1 through 5  of the accompanying drawings. More particularly, a communications device  100  according to the current invention includes a housing  110  for mounting adjacent an entrance, such as a door or gate. The housing  110  is preferably weatherproof and may be constructed of plastic, composite, or another suitable material. Although the housing  110  is illustrated in the figures with a generally rectangular configuration, it is understood that other configurations would also be suitable. 
         [0022]    A processor  120  is positioned in the housing  110 , and the processor  120  is in data communication with means for transmitting data to at least one remote device  130  and means for receiving data from the at least one remote device  130 . A remote device  130  may be a cellular telephone  130   a , a non-cellular telephone, a computer  130   b , or a pager, for example. The means for transmitting data and the means for receiving data may be, for example, a modem used to communicate with telephones (wireless and/or land-line telephones), pagers, and/or computers. Alternately, transmitter components common to cellular and pager devices may also be suitable. 
         [0023]    A first input device  140  (also referred to herein as an “actuator”) may be situated on the housing  110  for actuating the processor  120 , and a second input device  150  may be in data communication with the processor  120  for inputting data to the processor  120  for transmission to the at least one remote device  130 . The first input device  140  may be, for example, a button similar to a doorbell, a switch, a motion sensor, or a presence sensor. The second input device  150  may be, for example, a keypad  150   a , a camera  150   b , or a microphone  150   c . Further, it is possible for multiple second input devices  150  to be included. In other words, a keypad  150   a , a camera  150   b , and/or a microphone  150   c  may be in data communication with the processor  120  for inputting data to the processor  120  for transmission to the at least one remote device  130 .  FIG. 2  illustrates the communications device  100  in a form not including a keypad. It is understood that the keypad may be a full QWERTY keyboard. 
         [0024]    A data-conveying device  160  (for example, a display  160   a  or a speaker  160   b ) may also be situated in the housing in data communication with the processor  120  for presenting the data received from the at least one remote device  130 . Further, it is possible for multiple data-conveying devices  160  to be in data communication with the processor  120  as described. In other words, a display  160   a  and a speaker  160   b  may both be in data communication with the processor  120  for presenting the data received from the at least one remote device  130 . 
         [0025]    The processor  120  may include various programming, such as programming for determining whether the processor  120  was actuated (by the actuator  140 ) in a first predetermined timeframe (e.g. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or in a second predetermined timeframe (e.g. all other times of the day or night); causing the means for transmitting data to transmit the data to a first remote device  130  (e.g., a first cellular telephone) if the processor  120  was actuated in the first predetermined timeframe; and causing the means for transmitting data to transmit the data to a second remote device  130  (e.g., a second cellular telephone) if the processor  120  was actuated in the second predetermined timeframe. The processor  120  may include programming for setting the first and second predetermined timeframes based on data from one or more of the remote devices  130  or data from one or more of the second input devices  150 . The processor may further or alternately include programming for selecting a first remote device  130  from a plurality of remote devices  130  and for selecting a second remote device  130  from a plurality of remote devices  130 . If one of the remote devices  130  is a computer  130   b  having access to the internet, the processor  120  may include programming for setting a password for a website accessible through the internet to allow only authorized users to access the website, and the website may present the data from the second input device  150 . 
         [0026]    In use, the communications device  100  may be affixed adjacent an entry point, such as a door or a gate. A user (such as a delivery person, etc.) at the entry point may actuate the processor  120  with the actuator  140 , and data (such as a request for delivery instructions or the delivery person&#39;s picture or a package&#39;s picture) may be input to the processor  120  through the keypad  150   a , the camera  150   b , and/or the microphone  150   c . The processor  120  may then cause the means for transmitting data (discussed above) to transmit the data to the at least one remote device  130  (e.g., the cellular telephone  130   a  or the computer  130   b ), and the at least one remote device  130  may receive the data (as shown at reference numeral  200  in  FIG. 3 ). The at least one remote device  130  may then transmit data to the means for receiving data (discussed above), and the processor  120  may cause the display  160   a  and/or the speaker  160   b  to output the data (such as delivery instructions, for example) received by the means for receiving data. 
         [0027]    As discussed above, the processor may determine whether the processor  120  was actuated in a first predetermined timeframe (e.g., 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or in a second predetermined timeframe (e.g., all times besides 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and cause the means for transmitting data (discussed above) to transmit the data (such as the request for delivery instruction or the delivery person&#39;s picture or the package&#39;s picture) to the first remote device  130  (e.g., the first cellular telephone  130   a ) if the processor  120  was actuated in the first timeframe or to the second remote device  130  (e.g., the computer  130   b  or the second cellular telephone) if the processor  120  was actuated in the second timeframe. As also discussed above, the keypad  150   a  and/or one of the remote devices  130  (e.g., the first cellular telephone  130   a  or the computer  130   b ) may be used to set the first and second predetermined timeframes and to select the first and second remote devices  130  that correspond to the first and second predetermined timeframes from a plurality of remote devices  130 . 
         [0028]      FIG. 5  is a flowchart illustrating a process that may be followed to set some of the options discussed above. At step S 1 , a user may enter a security code to the processor  120 , such as through the keypad  150   a , the cellular telephone  130   a , or the computer  130   b . If the security code is correctly entered, the process may continue to step S 2 . At step S 2 , the user may select the first and second predetermined timeframes as discussed above, such as through the keypad  150   a , the cellular telephone  130   a , or the computer  130   b , for example. The user may then direct the process to step S 3 , step S 4 , or step S 5 . At step S 3 , the user may select a first remote device  150  to correspond to the first or second predetermined timeframe, such as by entering a telephone number. At step S 4 , the user may select a second remote device  150  to correspond to the first or second predetermined timeframe, such as be entering an email address. At step S 5 , the user may indicate whether he wishes to select a security code to view data at a computer  130   b  over the internet or a local network. If so, the process is directed to step S 6 , where the user may enter the security code to the processor  120 . 
         [0029]    The communications device  100  may be electrically connected to the main electrical power supply of a residence or business. In fact, it may be connected at the same point or as a replacement to a traditional doorbell button. A doorbell button  142  may be situated on the housing  110  and electrically connected through the residence power supply to a doorbell having a speaker positioned inside the residence or business. Accordingly, a visitor, whether it be a delivery person or otherwise, may press the doorbell button  142  to alert the resident or business employees of their presence at the door. If no one answers the call, the person at the door may press the actuator  140  to actuate the processor  120  to make contact with a remote device. 
         [0030]    It is understood that while certain forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims and allowable functional equivalents thereof.