Abstract:
Security systems typically communicate with alarm monitoring centers using a telephone connection. Security systems will check in with the alarm monitoring center with a diagnostic signal at a predetermined interval—typically once per day. When a security system is connected to a Voice-over-IP service (using Broadband Internet), rather than a standard telephone line, the opportunity exists to poll in real-time the status of the connection, and alert the owner (or alert the alarm monitoring center) that the customer&#39;s connection has been broken. The present invention offers a system and technique for monitoring a security system connected using a Voice-over-IP connection, in real time, and alerting the owner of the security system, or the alarm-monitoring center, when the connection is broken. This alert can be used, for example, to issue a telephone call to the police, informing them of the breach of line integrity and possible compromise of the premise.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     The present application is also a Continuation-In-Part (CIP) of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/462,708 (ELLIOT-0001) filed on Jun. 17, 2003 and incorporated herein by reference. The present application is also a Continuation-In-Part (CIP) of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/840,280 (ELLIOT-0002) filed on May 7, 2004, and incorporated herein by reference. The present application is also a Continuation-In-Part (CIP) of co-pending application Ser. No. 10/861,790, filed on Jun. 7, 2004, and incorporated herein by reference. The present application also claims priority from Provisional U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 60/651,662 (ELLIOT-0004) filed on Feb. 11, 2005 and incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates towards alarm and security system monitoring. In particular, the present invention is directed toward a mechanism, system, and method for creating a private Voice-over-IP (VoIP) network specially suited for the monitoring of security systems (burglar alarms, fire alarms, and the like) and other types of communications.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     More and more consumers are switching to Voice-over-IP (VoIP) for telephone service, such as Vonage™ or AT&amp;T CallVantage™.  FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a typical Voice over IP (VoIP) system. In the system of  FIG. 4 , a telephone  210 , which may comprise a standard analog POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) telephone, is coupled to a Voice over IP adapter, such as the LINKSYS® RT31P2, popularly used by Vonage™ and other VoIP providers. Note that telephone  210  may also comprise a “soft” telephone, which may be implemented through a user&#39;s computer or the like  
         [0004]     VoIP adapter  220  converts analog signals from telephone  210  into digital signals and transmits them over broadband Internet link  230 . Broadband Internet link  230  may comprise a connection through a cable modem, DSL, fiber optic, T2, or other high-speed connection. Other connections, such as satellite uplinks may work, with some limited success. Dialup and other slow-speed connections may not work at all. Digitized signals from VoIP adapter  220  are received at servers at Voice-over-IP service provider  240 , which may comprise Vonage™ or other VoIP telephone company. The digital signals are converted back to analog, and the call then routed to a call recipient  250  over an analog POTS line (if the recipient is not a VoIP subscriber) or sent digitally to the subscriber via the Internet in a similar manner in which the call was received.  
         [0005]     These VoIP telephone companies have been very successful in providing a digital communications service which accurately emulates standard analog POTS service. Users can plug in existing analog telephones and even telephone systems and operate the equipment in a manner identical to POTS service, with no perceived artifacts or effects. However, users have reported problems when attempting to use VoIP with fax machines, modems, credit card “swipe” machines, and alarm systems.  
         [0006]     Voice-over-IP service may impact the reliability of a security (alarm) system by interfering with its ability to report alarms to a consumer&#39;s monitoring station. Although Voice-over-IP services are excellent for voice communication, they may not be suited for transmitting alarm system data to an alarm monitoring company. As a result, many alarm monitoring companies simply do not accept customers who use Voice-over-IP. Some consumers report that their alarm systems will work with VoIP, while others have difficulty. On-line forums as such as the Vonage™ on-line forum have entire discussion forums related to such consumer difficulties. Thus, using an alarm system with VOIP service is a recognized problem in the art.  
         [0007]     Prior Art security systems such as alarm, fire, and other system, typically dial a telephone number to report security events to a central station. Many owners of security systems also use Voice-over-IP (VoIP) services, such as Vonage™ VoIP or the like, which create a virtual phone network on top of broadband Internet technology. When an alarm system is used in conjunction with a typical Voice-over-IP service, the security system will dial a standard telephone number corresponding to the customer&#39;s alarm monitoring service. The Voice-over-IP service, in turn, will route this “virtual”phone call onto a standard telephone line, and re-dial the originally intended telephone number, thereby connecting the call.  
         [0008]     Many users of alarm systems, credit card swipe machines, and the like, report problems when attempting to use such hardware with VoIP systems. The apparatus may dial the wrong number, or the system might not provide the proper bandwidth or signal clarity to properly send the necessary signals to the central station or dialed number. Similar problems can occur when using Prior Art fax machines and other communications devices (e.g., 56K dialup modems and the like) with VoIP networks.  
         [0009]     These types of errors may occur due to multiple layers of translation back and forth between digital (Internet technology), and analog (telephone) system. As a result, alarm and other types of signals are frequently incorrectly received. For the VoIP provider, such concerns are important if the VoIP service is to be marketed as a replacement for standard POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) lines. One method of overcoming this problem has been to provide higher bandwidth lines specifically for such applications (e.g., dedicated fax line). However, such higher bandwidth lines require a consistently robust broadband connection and can slow down other users on the broadband connection. Thus, an alternative solution to such brute force techniques is required in the art.  
         [0010]     In addition, even if an alarm system can be made to work with an existing VoIP telephone network, the system suffers from the same problem as Prior Art dialup service. Namely, when the alarm dials out, it seizes the phone line, making it impossible for the consumer to call out at the same time. In an emergency or even in the event of a false alarm, this can be frustrating or even dangerous. If the alarm is trying to dial out, and the consumer is trying to contact 911, each may end up blocking the other. The alarm will continue to try dialing out, which may in turn continue to block the consumer&#39;s repeated attempts to dial. In a false alarm scenario (where the consumer is trying to cancel the alarm) this may be merely frustrating. In a medical or other emergency, it may be disastrous.  
         [0011]     Prior Art alarm systems are also limited in many regards in that by using dialup communications, they cannot be monitored in real time. If a burglar disables an alarm system, the alarm company may have no way of knowing the system is off-line. Many alarm systems are programmed to dial up the monitoring station once a day (or at another periodic interval) to report system status. If the status call is not received over a period of time, the consumer may be contacted to inform them their alarm is not operating properly. In practice, this may mean that 24 hours or more may elapse before a malfunctioning or disabled alarm is detected and reported.  
         [0012]     Another problem with Prior Art alarm systems, which is not widely reported is that they are ridiculously easy to defeat. A burglar need only disconnect the POTS phone lines at the residence to prevent the system from reporting a break-in or other alarm. Most phone lines are conveniently located at the side of house and pass through a Network Interface Box (NIB). The phone lines may be disconnected easily at the box (by unplugging the RJ-11 jacks) or by simply cutting the wires. Once inside, the burglar can quickly disarm the alarm siren (e.g., by ripping it from the wall or disconnecting the wires) so that neighbors are not alerted.  
         [0013]     Some alarm companies have tried to overcome this limitation by using wireless communications as the uplink for the alarm system. Such systems are fairly expensive and require that wireless service be available in the area. Wireless signals are subject, however, to electronic jamming and other forms of defeat (e.g., remove antenna). Moreover, many wireless systems also use the periodic status reporting technique and thus a disabled alarm may not be detected for hours or days.  
         [0014]     Another drawback of Prior Art alarm systems is the inability of the consumer to perform remote self-monitoring of system status or remotely arm the system. The systems are generally programmed to only dial the alarm company and/or only the alarm company may dial into the system, the consumer has no idea what the status of the system is, other than what is reported verbally by the alarm company. Alarm systems are basically computer systems, and it would be advantageous if a consumer could access their alarm system and/or be advised of the status of their alarm system via telephone, computer, or the like.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0015]     The present invention is a mechanism for placing an alarm receiver (at security system central station) directly onto a private Voice-over-IP network shared by the customer, thereby eliminating the need for a Voice-over-IP system to re-dial the central station over a standard telephone line. Because both the security system and the alarm receiver are on the same Voice-over-IP network, and because neither end is connected to a standard telephone line (nor do alarm signals ever pass over standard telephone lines), errors are reduced dramatically, and overall response time is improved.  
         [0016]     In addition, security systems typically offer a feature to allow their owners to call the security system, and using touchtones (e.g., dual tone multiple frequency, or DTMF) or other mechanisms, allow them to arm, disarm, or listen-in to their security system. The present invention circumvents the standard telephone system, thereby precluding this form of dial-in access. To address this, another embodiment of this invention designates a standard telephone number to become the “Outside Access Point” (OAP) for an alarm system. By dialing the OAP from a regular telephone, the present invention will route the call onto the private Voice-over-IP network, and subsequently to the security system. In this manner, alarm reporting can be performed over the more reliable Voice-over-IP network, while owner dial-in (for reasons of arming, disarming, listen-in, and the like) can be performed with a standard telephone.  
         [0017]     Security systems also typically include functions to dial a standard telephone number or pager to notify the owner of a security event, after it has been reported to an alarm central station. In another embodiment of the present invention, a “virtual phone number” in the Voice-over-IP network can be dialed by the alarm system, which will be routed to the standard telephone network and a real phone number dialed, in order to engage in this owner reporting. In this manner, security events can be reported to the alarm central station using the more reliable Voice-over-IP network, and subsequently, the owner of the security system can be notified via phone call of the event using pre-recorded messages or pager notifications, sent over a standard telephone line.  
         [0018]     Alarm Broadband Network™ by NextAlarm™ was built to solve these problems. Alarm Broadband Network™ allows customers to enjoy the benefits and cost savings of Voice-over-IP service, while still allowing their alarm systems to accurately communicate with our monitoring centers.  
         [0019]     Alarm Broadband Network™ operates over a standard Cable Modem or DSL Broadband (or other) Internet connection, and works with any alarm system capable of sending signals using the Contact ID or other format (including the Abbra Professional Series by NextAlarm™).  
         [0020]     Alarm Broadband Network requires no changes to an existing alarm system, other than a one-time purchase of the ATA Broadband Modem from NextAlarm™ or other source. The consumer simply plugs the Broadband Modem into their home network, and plug their alarm panel into the modem (rather than into a regular telephone line), and NextAlarm™ almost immediately begins monitoring the consumer security system over Broadband. There may be no additional monthly service fees associated with Alarm Broadband Network™. Alarm Broadband Network™ requires no changes to a consumer&#39;s existing alarm system, other than a one-time purchase of the ATA Voice-over-IP adapter.  
         [0021]     Alarm Broadband Network™ offers Line Security, a new security measure not available with standard telephone line hookups. Servers are in constant communication with the Broadband Modems installed at a consumer&#39;s home or business. If the servers lose contact with the device, an E-Notify service can alert the consumer in a matter of minutes. This extra security measure is only possible through the always-on, always-connected nature of Alarm Broadband Network. In contrast, in Prior Art dial-up alarms, signal loss might not be detected for hours or even days, if at all.  
         [0022]     With Alarm Broadband Network™, when the consumer alarm system places a call to the central station, it does not go through the consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP service. Alarm Broadband Network™ operates directly through the consumer&#39;s Broadband Internet Connection, and does not use the consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP service. It runs alongside, rather than through, a consumer&#39;s Vonage, AT&amp;T CallVantage, or other Voice-over-IP service.  
         [0023]     If the consumer does not have Voice-over-IP service, they can still use Alarm Broadband Network™, so long as the consumer has Broadband Internet or other Internet connection. Even for customers who have regular telephone lines, Alarm Broadband Network™ offers the additional convenience of event reporting (such as opens and closes) in real-time without seizing a consumer&#39;s telephone line. In addition, Alarm Broadband Network™ offers the additional protection of Line Security, not available with standard telephone hookups.  
         [0024]     It is unreliable to send alarm signals through a Voice-over-IP provider. When a consumer&#39;s alarm system tries to transmit a signal through a consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP telephone service, it is handled like any other voice phone-call in the following fashion. A hardware device (VOIP Modem) at a consumer&#39;s location captures the audio from a consumer&#39;s panel and translates it into data. This data is sent over Broadband Internet to servers operated by a consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP provider. A consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP provider then re-transmits this data to a regional data center located in the city the consumer is dialing (where a consumer&#39;s alarm monitoring company resides). The regional data center will “pick up” a standard telephone line in the destination city, and dial a consumer&#39;s alarm monitoring company. Once the alarm-monitoring center answers the call, a consumer&#39;s Voice-over-IP company continues to be a middleman for the entire alarm-reporting event.  
         [0025]     In the standard Voice-over-IP scenario, the data sent by a security system goes through so many “hops”, and is translated back and forth between Internet data and audio so many times, that the reliability of the conversation is reduced to almost zero. The Alarm Broadband Network of the present invention is better as it handles alarm event reporting in the following manner. The Broadband Modem at a consumer location captures audio from an alarm panel and translates it into data. This data is sent over Broadband Internet to a server such as a NextAlarm™ Alarm Broadband Network™ server. NextAlarm™ Alarm Broadband Network™ servers immediately hand this data over to alarm monitoring equipment, with no further re-transmission necessary.  
         [0026]     The main reason why the Alarm Broadband Network™ is more reliable, is that there is that no re-transmission of the consumer alarm panel&#39;s information back out to a standard telephone line is required. Once it is transmitted from a consumer&#39;s home or business to the Alarm Broadband Network™, the alarm signal data is received by, and immediately processed by a NextAlarm™ server. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0027]      FIG. 1  is a simplified block diagram of a VoIP system.  
         [0028]      FIG. 2  is a more graphical block diagram of the block diagram of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0029]      FIG. 3  is a more detailed block diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0030]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a Prior Art VoIP telephone system.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0031]     Voice-over-IP telephone services are typically offered in the following fashion as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The blocks in  FIGS. 1 and 2  may be defined as follows. [A] represents Telephone equipment (such as a phone, a fax machine, or a home security system) is plugged into. [B] represents a VoIP modem (Voice-over-IP modem), a (typically) sub-$100 device that includes a telephone port and an Ethernet port. The VoIP modem is plugged via Ethernet into [C] a hub or router in the home or office, which is connected to the Internet via Broadband.  
         [0032]     Once connected to the Internet, the VoIP modem [B] communicates with [D] a VoIP server or servers, at a remote facility (and usually operated by VoIP companies), which offers telephone services to its customers who connect to it using VoIP modems [B].  
         [0033]     The VoIP modem then connects to a remote server over the Internet, while also offering a dial tone to the telephone device plugged into it. People who have alarm systems in their homes or businesses, and whose telephone lines are VoIP (instead of standard telephone lines), are concerned that, if their Broadband Internet connection were to go down, then their alarm system would not be monitored until the Broadband Internet connection is restored.  
         [0034]     NextAlarm™has invented new technology at point [D], the VoIP Server, which monitors in real-time the connectivity back to each customer&#39;s VoIP modem [B]. If the real-time connection to a customer&#39;s VoIP modem is interrupted, then the VoIP servers at [D] immediately take action. Thus, for example, if power is lost to the VoIP modem, or broadband service is interrupted, the NextAlarm™ server immediately notices the lack of signal from the consumer&#39;s alarm system. In contrast, in a Prior Art dial-up alarm, hours or days may pass before the Central Station notices a lack of alarm status calls. Thus, if a burglar attempts to thwart the system by cutting DSL or cable lines, the interruption of service itself may trigger an alarm.  
         [0035]     In one variant, the action taken can be to generate an alarm signal on behalf of the customer and report it to the central station, such as the “Lost Central Station Polling” alarm signal, or even the “Panel Tampering Alert” alarm signal. In another variant, the action taken can be to generate an e-Mail message, SMS or Pager message, voice telephone call, Remote Procedure Call, or other electronic communication, in order to alert another computer system or alert people that the Broadband Internet connection at the customer&#39;s location has been interrupted. In another variant, the server will continue to monitor for the restoration of the communications with the VoIP modem, and should the device come back online, an “alarm restored” message can be transmitted in the same manners as previously described.  
         [0036]      FIG. 3  is a more detailed block diagram of the invention of  FIG. 2 . Alarm panel  110  may output a signal to VoIP adapter  120 . Note that in the present invention, a separate VoIP adapter may be provided just for the alarm panel. VoIP adapters (modems) such as the aforementioned LINKSYS adapter described previously, are relatively inexpensive. These adapters can be used in tandem with an existing VoIP adapter used for voice communications, and thus when the alarm system “calls out” regular phone service may not be interrupted.  
         [0037]     Data from this dedicated VoIP adapter  120  is then sent over Internet broadband link  130  directly to monitoring center  140 . Since the data is not re-converted to analog and dialed back out from a VoIP server to the monitoring center, an entire layer of D/A and A/D is eliminated, improving the robustness of the communications link.  
         [0038]     Note that the VoIP adapter may be used for existing analog output alarm systems with little difficulty in installation, as the consumer merely plugs the VoIP adapter into the alarm system and Internet connection. In an alternative embodiment, a customized digital adapter may receive digital signals from alarm system  110  and output digital signals directly to Internet  130 . Moreover, alarm panel  110  may be provided with such network capabilities built-in, and thus directly communicate over an Internet link as an Internet appliance. All of these embodiments are within the spirit and scope of the present invention.  
         [0039]     The separate VoIP link of the present invention allows for yet another advantage. Since the monitoring center  140  is in direct communications with alarm panel  110 , a user may be able to access alarm panel  110  through alarm center  140  via Internet connection  130 . Thus, for example, a consumer can check, via website, e-mail, or telephone, whether the alarm system was set, and even set the alarm if someone forgot to set it. Moreover, a consumer can check alarm messages and determine whether the Police, Fire, or other emergency services need to be notified.  
         [0040]     For example, if the alarm is set off at 10:00 AM and the consumer knows this is the time the maid usually arrives, they can check the status of the alarm through the Alarm Monitoring Center  140  on-line via a cellphone, Blackberry™ or computer, and determine whether the Police need to be summoned. The consumer can even disable the alarm if it was set off accidentally. In another scenario, the consumer can deactivate the alarm when service personnel (e.g., HVAC repair) are scheduled to arrive (or call from the home) so that repairs or other services can be provided. When the service personnel leave, the consumer can then reactivate the alarm remotely. The number of features and uses are really only limited by the imagination of the consumer and the possible scenarios.  
         [0041]     Another advantage of the present invention is that Internet broadband connections that do not support VoIP communications for actual voice can still be used for alarm monitoring. For example, in many rural areas, consumers may be forced to use satellite uplinks such as Hughes™) DIRECTWAY™ satellite service. The DIRECTWAY™ service provides adequate bandwidth for Internet surfing and the like. However, due to the time lag of the satellite signal, it is not sufficient for actual voice communications using VoIP. Experiments with VoIP over satellite broadband show up to a 2 second delay in voice transmission and also poor signal quality for the upstream (uplink) voice signal.  
         [0042]     However, the present invention can use VoIP modems to communicate alarm signals over such limited bandwidth connections. Moreover, the system of the present invention can be used with consumers who do not like or want VoIP telephone service (or for whom VoIP telephone service may not be possible). Again, since the system of the present invention is using a separate data path for the alarm signals, no interruption in phone service will occur when an alarm is triggered.  
         [0043]     Installation of the system of the present invention can be performed by a consumer and may allow a service provider to achieve a “conquest” sale—that is, taking business away from an existing alarm monitoring company. If the consumer wants to change alarm companies, oftentimes such a change is made difficult by the use of proprietary equipment or the programming of the alarm to dial a particular number when an alarm signal is detected. As such, if the consumer wants to change alarm-monitoring companies, they have to either have their alarm system reprogrammed or have a new alarm panel installed. Both may require a visit from a service technician, which is costly and time-consuming.  
         [0044]     In the co-pending applications cited previously, from which the present application claims priority and which are incorporated by reference, techniques are described for converting output from an alarm panel using an aftermarket device to redirect dialing information from an existing alarm monitoring company to a new alarm monitoring company. A simple redialer module may be inserted between the alarm system and the phone line, for example.  
         [0045]     In the present invention, such a redialer may not be necessary. The alarm panel telephone output may be connected to a VoIP module, such as the LINKSYS™ device previously mentioned. The LINKSYS device may be suitably programmed or modified to directly connect to the new alarm company servers (e.g., NextAlarm™ servers), which may ignore outgoing dialing instructions from the alarm panel. This apparatus may be installed easily by the consumer by connecting the alarm phone line to the phone connector on the VoIP box, and an Internet connection (e.g., cat-5 cable or the like) from a cable modem, DSL modem, or the like, to the appropriate connector on the VoIP box. As a simple “plug and play” operation, the apparatus can be easily installed by the consumer.  
         [0046]     In addition, since VoIP boxes are relatively inexpensive and readily available, installation of the system of the present invention is easy to achieve, without the need for special tooling and manufacture of dedicated re-dialers or the like. Note that the term “VoIP” as applied to the present invention is somewhat of a misnomer, as the alarm system is not transmitting actual “voice” signals over the Internet, but rather analog audio signals indicative of alarm data.  
         [0047]     In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, digital data from an alarm system may be output directly to the Internet to the alarm monitoring company server. As in the first embodiment of the present invention, the server may continually monitor the alarm system and indicate an alarm or other notice when the connection is severed.  
         [0048]     While the preferred embodiment and various alternative embodiments of the invention have been disclosed and described in detail herein, it may be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.