Emergency call unit, suitable for mounting in public areas

Abstract: An emergency call unit (10), suitable for mounting in public areas, comprising a base (32) for the support of operating organs, available for manual activation, to allow a live voice communication and transmission of images to a remote operating help station (14), where said communication is carried out by the cellular phone or dial-up telephone network.

Description: The object of this invention is an emergency call unit, particularly suited for installations in public areas. A problem of considerable social interest is to guarantee an adequate level of security to all those frequenting parks, gardens, and more generally areas open to the public. In order to overcome this problem, some emergengy call units have been proposed based on posts or similar supports incorporating a number of elements capable of putting the person requesting help in contact with a remote operating station or with the public security services, all this for the purpose of ensuring a prompt assistance. For example, DE 29604613 discloses an emergency call unit having the technical features of the preamble of the present claim 1. However, the experience gained with such former devices has shown that the situations requiring action are very numerous and varied. There may be, for instance, calls for help by elder persons overcome by illness, or by particularly vulnerable persons, such as women and children, at the moment they are subjected to threats and violent action by ill-intentioned persons. Moreover, the costs and technical problems involved in the installation of such units are quite high, with a particular reference to electrical and telephone connections, which limits the diffusion of such units in a socially detrimental manner. It should further be noted that, while said units are set permanently in place, they are subject to be attacked and voluntarily damaged by ill-intentioned persons wishing to put them out of order. The purpose of this invention is therefore to create an emergency call unit capable of providing a high versatility of use, while offering a considerably facilitated and economical installation. Another purpose of the invention is to create an emergency call unit capable of offering a considerable ease of maintenance. A further purpose of this invention is to create an emergency call unit of as robust type, capable of withstanding any attempts at vandalistic damage. These and other purposes are achieved by an emergency call unit, suitable for mounting in public areas, according to claim 1, which is being referred to for brevity. In an advantageous manner, the unit according to the invention contributes to ensuring the security of citizens frequenting parks, gardens, and more generally areas open to the public, day or night. This result is achieved by means of the following properties of the unit of this invention, in particular by the fact that the unit may be called up at any moment from the operating center, which can thus use the telecamera to view the environment framed in the latter, and the events occurring in the same. The presence of one or more telecameras capable of photographing an eventual aggressor and his potential accomplices has a deterrent effect against acts of vandalism or other violent actions. It should further be noted that the entire installation is protected against vandalistic attacks by means of its structure made of steel, its anti-vibration and proximity sensors by which the unit can automatically alert the operating center or the public security services. Moreover, the installation of the unit may occur without needing any electric or telephone connections, and its servicing for replacing the batteries can, upon a signal sent out by the unit itself, be carried out in an operation requiring only a few minutes. Further purposes and advantages of this invention will become clear from the following description and its attached drawings, supplied for purely exemplifying and non-limiting purposes, in which: Figure 1 represents a front view of an emergency call unit, according to this invention, Figure 2 represents a lateral elevation view of an emergency call unit, according to this invention, and Figure 3 represents a block diagram of the main elements constituting this invention, and their functional relationships. With reference to the mentioned figures, the emergency call unit is globally indicated by the reference number 10. With particular reference to Figure 3, it is worth noting that the arrows connecting the various blocks of the diagram represent electrical communication lines or digital bus lines passing data, information, commands and instructions in the form of electric signals, in only a single or in both directions, depending on the case. The emergency call unit 10 comprises a base 32 housing the operating organs of the unit 10, which allow a live voice communication and transmission of images to the remote help operating station 14. This base 32 carries a pushbutton 31 designed to send a request for action to the remote help operating station 14. The communication with said remote help operating station 14 may occur both over a live voice microphone 11 equipped with a loudspeaker 16 and by sending out images taken by a pair of cameras 12 and 13. This communication occurs by using the cellular phone network over one or more GSM 28 modems. The first telecamera 12 is incorporated in the base 32 of the mentioned unit, and serves to frame the person calling for help, and the scene on the front side of the base 32. The second telecamera 13 is on the other hand installed on top of a pole 27 associated with the base 32, so as to frame the scene from above and allow an overall view of the events occurring around the unit 10. Each of these cameras 12 and 13 can eventually be provided with a remotely controlled maneuvering system. The images framed by the telecameras 12 and 13 are preferably transmitted at predetermined time intervals, for example one every 15 seconds, although different time intervals may be chosen depending on the requirements. The unit 10 is also equipped with an infrared flashing device 30, capable of taking pictures even under highly adverse environmental conditions. The unit 10 also provides for a vibration sensor 20, an inclination sensor 21 and a door opening sensor 22, which are connected to an alarm siren 23. The system is also fitted with a line communicating an alarm to the remote help operating station 14. In addition to the siren 23, the system provides a flashing light 24, for the prompt identification, on the part of the helpers, of the unit 10 from which the alarm was sent. Three different alternatives are provided for communicating between the unit 10 and the operating center 14. A first solution provides for the use of a pair of GSM modems for the simultaneous transmission to the operating center 14 of the voice, using a first GSM modem in a voice mode, and the second GSM modem for the coded images, acting in a data or fax mode. A second solution, represented in a simplified manner in Figure 3, provides for the use of a single GSM 28 modem capable of simultaneously transmitting the voice, in real time by a low bit-rate encoder, and the encoded images, all on a single, low velocity data connection line. Moreover, Figure 3 shows a simplified view of a first block 26 referring to audio signals, and a second block 25 referring to video signals, as well as a central processing unit 33. A third solution provides for the use of a single GSM modem capable of alternately transmitting voice and images at different time periods, by consecutively connecting itself in a voice and data transmission mode, the latter for transmitting encoded images. The electrical feed 15 for the unit 10 may be carried out in various ways. A first solution provides for the use of a non-rechargeable long-duration battery, so as to ensure an independence from the electrical network. A second solution provides for the use of a battery rechargeable during daytime by a solar panel (not shown here). Both of these solutions present the advantage that the installation of the unit 10 can be effected without requiring electrical or telephone connections. A third solution for feeding the unit 10 provides for hooking-up the latter to the public lighting network. The energy available during night time when the lights of the public lighting network are operating is used to recharge a battery. This battery feeds the circuits during the daylight hours, even in the absence of a feed from the public lighting network. The operation of the emergency call unit 10 occurs in the following fashion. The unit 10 is equipped with an automatic help calling system, actuated by a pushbutton 31. If the pushbutton 31 is pressed, the device sends out a request for help by telephone to a central operating station 14, where an operator can immediately communicate by live voice with the person requesting help, by means of the live voice microphone 11 and the loudspeaker 16, and eventually perform a visual identification based on the images taken by the telecamera 12 incorporated in a hidden way in the unit 10. This operation occurs by means of electronic video and audio circuits and telephone-based communication systems exploiting the cellular (or dial-up) telephone network managed by the central processing station 33. The use of the two telecameras 12 and 13 set at different heights allows recording both close-up and distant images, thus allowing a more complete reconstruction of the events taking place in the neighborhood of the unit 10, with particular reference to the possibility of identifying the authors of the offence and their eventual accomplices, as well as to constitute, by means of the same presence of the telecameras 12 and 13, an effective deterrent instrument against said ill-intentioned persons. The vibration sensor 20, the inclinations sensor 21 and the door opening sensor 22 work together to determine whether an act of vandalism is taking place, so as to generate an eventual alarm signal emitted to the outside by the siren 23. The alarm is also transmitted to the remote help operating station 14, by a dedicate communications line. The siren 23 is also associated with another alerting device, that is the previously described flashing light 24. The unit 10 may also be associated with an additional system to prevent or discourage vandalistic acts and to identify the persons eventually responsible for them. Whenever the pushbutton 31 is pressed, it is in fact possible to arrange for the emission, by an appropriate software and for example over the loudspeaker 16, of a message of the type: "Keep the pushbutton pressed up to the operator's answer." or any other similar message, for example: "Keep the pushbutton pressed for five seconds.", all for the purpose of creating a delay of 3-5 seconds capable of allowing the telecameras 12 and 13 to automatically record the scene. If the pushbutton 31 is not pressed for this amount of time, the operator may consider this event to be a false alarm. The above description clearly outlines the characteristics and the advantages of the emergency call unit, suitable for mounting in public areas and the object of this invention. In particular, these are herewith summarized as follows: Possibility of setting up a communication with the unit 10 at any moment, by calling it up from the central operating station, which may thus view the environment covered by the telecameras 12 and 13. Deterrent action of the telecameras, capable of photographing an eventual aggressor or vandalistic person. Reliability of the unit 10, protected against vandalistic attacks by its steel structure, anti-vibration and proximity sensors and the possibility that in case of an attack the unit automatically alerts the central operating station or the public security services. Simple and economical installation of the unit 10, which does not require electrical or telephone connections. Ease of maintenance of the unit 10, whose replacement of batteries can be effected upon receipt a signal provided by the unit 10 itself, by an operation demanding no more than a few minutes. Finally, it is evident that numerous variants of the emergency call unit may be adopted, without thereby abandoning the innovative principles inherent in the inventive idea, and it is likewise clear that in the practical implementation of the invention the materials, the shapes and the dimensions of the illustrated details may be of any kind depending on the requirements, and that the same may be substituted by others of a technically equivalent kind.

Claims: An emergency call unit (10), suitable for mounting in public areas, comprising a base (32) for supporting emergency devices, which can be manually activated to allow a live-voice conversation and a transmission of images to a remote central help operating station (14), by means of a cellular or dial-up telephone line, characterised in that said call unit (10) includes a rechargeable battery, powered, during the night hours, by a public lighting network, connected to said battery, so that said battery is able to power the call unit (10) even during the day hours, when the public lighting network is not able to feed the battery. An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said viva voce conversation and said images transmission are provided by means of a single GSM modem (28), used for a simultaneous transmission of the voice, in real time by a low bit-rate encoder, and of the coded images, in a single low-velocity data transmitting connection. An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said viva voce conversation and said images transmission are provided by means of a single GSM modem (28), used for transmitting voice and images alternatively and at different time periods, by connecting said GSM modem (28) consecutively in a voice mode and in a data transmission mode for transmitting encoded images. An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said call unit (10) includes a vibration sensor (20), an inclination sensor (21) and a door opening sensor (22), wherein said sensors (20, 21, 22) being connected to an alarm siren (23), and means for sending an alarm signal to said remote central help operating station (14). An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said call unit (10) includes a flashing light (24) for a prompt identification of the call unit (10) sending the alarm signal. An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said call unit (10) incorporates two cameras (12, 13) to take the images, wherein a first camera (12), placed on the base (32) of the unit (10), is used to frame the person requesting help and the scene on the front side of the base (32), while a second camera (13), installed on top of a pole (27), is used to frame the scene from above, so as to see everything occurring around the call unit (10). An emergency call unit (10) as claimed in claim 6, characterised in that said call unit (10) also includes an infrared light flash (30), so that said cameras (12, 13) are able to take images even under very poor environmental lighting conditions.

Inventors: BEGHELLI GIAN PIETRO, BEGHELLI, GIAN PIETRO
Applicants: BEGHELLI SPA, BEGHELLI S.P.A.
Application year: 2000
Main classification: G08B25
IPC codes: G08B25