Abstract:
A game feeder configured for remote monitoring, the game feeder comprising a feeder body comprising a container for holding feed, a motor configured to disperse the feed, and a motor relay configured to actuate the motor; a computer, the computer comprising a wireless driver configured to communicatively couple the computer to a wireless communication network; and a sensor array having a plurality of sensors adapted to provide data on a plurality of local conditions at the game feeder, the sensor array being communicatively coupled to the computer; wherein the computer is configured to receive the data on the plurality of local conditions from the sensor array and send the data on the plurality of local conditions to the wireless communication network.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/243,585 filed Sep. 18, 2009. 
     U.S. provisional patent application 60/903,786 filed Feb. 27, 2007, U.S. non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 12/069,371 filed Feb. 8, 2008, and U.S. patent publication US2008/0202435, published Aug. 28, 2008, are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     This specification relates to the field of remote monitoring and assessment, and more particularly to a remote monitoring addition for a ground-based game feeder. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A game feeder configured for remote monitoring, the game feeder comprising a feeder body comprising a container for holding feed, a motor configured to disperse the feed, and a motor relay configured to actuate the motor; a computer, the computer comprising a wireless driver configured to communicatively couple the computer to a wireless communication network; and a sensor array having a plurality of sensors adapted to provide data on a plurality of local conditions at the game feeder, the sensor array being communicatively coupled to the computer; wherein the computer is configured to receive the data on the plurality of local conditions from the sensor array and send the data on the plurality of local conditions to the wireless communication network. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a network diagram disclosing a network topology of an embodiment of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder; 
         FIG. 1A  is a network diagram disclosing a network topology of an alternative embodiment of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram disclosing entry relations between components of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder; and 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a single board computer used in one embodiment of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     A remote monitoring system can enhance the benefits of a ground-based game feeder or other game feeder system. The advantages and operation of a ground based game feeder were described in the previous application. The remote monitoring system of the present application provides additional flexibility to the user of the ground-based game feeder. In general, the remote monitoring system includes an instrumentation suite that monitors local conditions around the game feeder. The instrumentation suite may include such elements as a rainfall sensor, barometer, thermometer, hydrometer, and camera. These sensors are selected to provide environmental data for the game feeder so that the user is aware of conditions at the hunting site. In particular, the camera may provide data as to which animals are approaching the game feeder. The camera can be selected to have a motion-activated trigger, so that it will take pictures when animals approach the feeder to feed. This allows the hunter to see which animals are feeding at the site and particularly to discover whether desirable game is available at the location. Advantageously, the present disclosure provides means for the hunter to receive information about the site conveniently and instantaneously. In contrast, without the benefits of the present disclosure, the hunter would have to physically travel to the location of the game feeder, download pictures, view sensor data, and program the feeder. 
     In one embodiment, the sensor array is connected to a single board computer or other similar computation device, which may be ruggedized or shielded for use in rough external environments. The single board computer may be powered by a rechargeable battery, which can be connected to solar panels for extended long term use. The single board computer also may be connected to an antenna that allows it to communicate with a cellular or other wireless network. For example, the antenna may place a single board computer in communication with a general packet radio open service (GPRS) server, which may provide access to the internet over a cellular network. The GPRS server may then relay traffic through the internet to a user workstation, where the user can use the workstation to access available sensor data, download pictures, view present and historical environmental conditions, program the feeder, and even instruct the feeder to take action such as drive a single, unscheduled disbursement of feed. 
     A remote monitoring system will now be described with more particular reference to the attached drawings. Hereafter, details are set forth by way of example to facilitate discussion of the disclosed subject matter. It should be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art, however, that the disclosed embodiments are exemplary and not exhaustive of all possible embodiments. Throughout this disclosure, a hyphenated form of a reference numeral refers to a specific instance or example of an element and the un-hyphenated form of the reference numeral refers to the element generically or collectively. Thus, for example,  102 - 1  may refer to a “pen,” which may be an instance or example of the class of “writing implements.” Writing implements may be referred to collectively as “writing implements  102 ” and any one may be referred to generically as a “writing implement  102 .” 
       FIG. 1  discloses a network topology of an embodiment of a monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder. As disclosed in this drawing, a ground-based game feeder  100  is provided with an instrumentation suite  110  and an antenna  112 . The instrumentation suite  110  collects environmental and other useful data, which can be relayed through antenna  112  to a cellular tower  120 . Although a cellular tower and a cellular network are disclosed, it should be noted that the methods of the present disclosure could also be used with any suitable wireless technology, such as satellite technology, ad-hoc wireless networks, such as IEEE 802.11 or Bluetooth, and other similar wireless technologies. In this exemplary embodiment, cellular tower  120  relays network traffic to GPRS server  132 . GPRS server  132  is operated by a GPRS service provider  130 . GPRS server  132  translates traffic on the cellular network into internet traffic. GPRS server  132  then forwards appropriate data packets through internet  180  to user workstation  140 , which is operated by user  150 . Under the disclosed configuration, user  150  is able to communicate with ground-based game feeder  100  via workstation  140 . Communication between user  150  and ground-based game feeder  100  may be bidirectional and can include transfer of data, transfer of commands, and remote control. 
       FIG. 1A  discloses a network topology of an alternative embodiment of a monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder. In this embodiment, user  150  uses workstation  140  to log into a remote server  190  through internet  180 . User  150  may then issue commands to and receive data from ground-based game feeder  100 . For example, a command from user  150  may be transmitted from workstation  140  through internet  180  to remote server  190 . Remote server  190  may send the command through internet  180  to a Short Message Service (SMS) server  135 , operated by a SMS service provider  136 . The SMS server  135  translates internet traffic into traffic on the cellular network, forwarding appropriate data packets to cellular tower  120 . Antenna  112  of ground-based game feeder  100  receives transmissions from cellular tower  120 . The command from user  150  may instruct the ground-based game feeder  100  to take action; for example, user  150  may instruct ground-based game feeder  100  to take measurements with instrumentation suite  110 , such as taking a picture or measuring the temperature, or to disburse feed. It should be noted that the methods of the present disclosure could use different wireless technologies for sending and receiving data. For example, ground-based game feeder  100  may transmit pictures and environmental and other useful data using GPRS, but may receive commands and remote control instructions using SMS. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder. Ground-based game feeder  100  includes a motor  220 , which is configured to disburse feed upon receipt from a signal. Motor detector  222  is connected to motor  220  and provides feedback data for monitoring the functionality of motor  220 . A motor control relay  224  is connected to motor  220 , and provides the necessary signal for motor  220  to disburse feed. Motor control relay  224  actuates motor  220 , causing the disbursal of feed. A single board computer  210  connects to motor control relay  224  to provide the necessary signal to cause motor control relay  224  to actuate motor  220 . Single board computer  210  is connected to antenna  112 , through which single board computer  210  is enabled to communicate with a wireless network. While a single board computer  210  is disclosed as an exemplary embodiment, any suitable control device could be used. For example, a simple off-the-shelf computer could be used in place of single board computer  210 . Single board computer  210  is also connected to a sensor array  250 . Sensor array  250  may include a plurality of environmental and other sensors. For example, sensor array  250  may include such sensors as a rainfall sensor  252 , a barometer  254 , a camera  256 , a thermometer  258 , and a hydrometer  259 . The suite of instruments in sensor array  250  are selected in this case to provide data that are useful to a hunter wanting to monitor ground-based game feeder  100 . For example, rainfall sensor  252  will provide information on the rate of rainfall in the area and when it is actually raining. Barometer  254  may be used to assess current weather patterns. Thermometer  258  may be used to assess current temperature. A hydrometer may be used to indicate relative humidity and camera  256  may include a motion activated sensor, which will permit camera  256  to take pictures of animals approaching ground-based game feeder  100 . This may permit the hunter to determine whether there is desirable game feeding at the game feeder, and to assess hunting conditions. 
     The camera  256  in  FIG. 2  may have several modes of operation which may be selected by user  150 . For example, the modes of operation of camera  256  may include a mode for taking pictures at a fixed time interval, a mode for taking pictures when feed is being disbursed, and a mode for taking pictures when the motion activated sensor is triggered. Each mode of operation of camera  256  may have several programmable settings. For example, in the mode for taking pictures at a fixed time interval, the time interval may be programmable. In the mode for taking pictures when the motion activated sensor is triggered, there may be a programmable start time and total duration time, which may allow the camera  256  to take pictures at times when the desirable game is more active. Each mode of operation of camera  256  may also include a programmable delay interval to allow time between photographs for transmitting the photographs to the cellular tower  120 . Typically, a delay interval of 5 minutes is sufficient to transmit a low resolution picture over GPRS. The mode of operation for camera  256  and the programmable settings may be remotely modified by user  150 . 
     Single board computer  210 , motor  220  and other components can be powered by power supply  230 . For example power supply  230  may be a 12-volt DC power supply, which may include a rechargeable battery in order to maximize the ability of ground-based game feeder  100  to operate for extended periods of time without intervention. A solar array  240  may be provided to recharge power supply  230 . The level of power in power supply  230  may be monitored by the single board computer  210  and transmitted to user  150  via remote server  190  or workstation  140 . For example, the ground-based game feeder  100  may periodically transmit a communication with system information or statistics, part of which may be power level information. If the power level of power supply  230  is low, a sleep instruction may be sent to ground-based game feeder  100 . The sleep instruction may be automatically transmitted by remote server  190  or workstation  140 , or manually transmitted by user  150 . 
       FIG. 3  discloses a block diagram of single board computer  210  in an exemplary embodiment of a remote monitoring system for a ground-based game feeder. Single board computer  210  is controlled by a processor  310  which connects to other system components via a system bus  370 . Processor  310  may be any kind of suitable processing device, such as a microprocessor, digital signal processor, field-programmable gate array, applications-specific integrated circuit, or the like. In some embodiments, processor  310  may also be directly connected to a memory  350 , thereby providing direct memory access. In some embodiments, memory  350  may be a high-speed volatile memory technology such as random access memory (RAM), or other similar low latency technology. Stored in memory  350  may be such elements as an embedded operating system, software drivers, a web server, a master data collection program, and stored sensor data. For example, software drivers may enable the embedded operating system to communicate with a sensor bus  380 , which provides a hardware and/or software conduit to sensor array  250 . The master program may then be able to collect data from sensor array  250  and store the data in memory  350 . A web server provides an interactive means for a user to view data and interact with the remote monitoring system. Processor  310  is also connected to a wireless driver  330 , which may also be enabled to communicate to embedded operating system through software drivers. Wireless driver  330  is connected to antenna  112 , and communicatively couples processor  310  to the wireless network. In this embodiment, processor  310  uses the web server to provide a graphical user interface to user  150  over wireless driver  330  via the internet  180 . This two-way communication permits user  150  both to view sensor data, and to manipulate functions of single board computer  210 . Single board computer  210  further includes a timer circuit  360 , which provides processor  310  time-based signals. For example, if user  150  wants ground-based feeder  100  to disburse feed two times per day at a specified time, then timer  360  can track the time between disbursements and provide a signal to processor  310  when it is time for a new disbursement of feed. When processor  310  receives a signal from timer  360 , it may then provide a signal to serial controller  320 , which is connected to the motor detector  222  and motor control relay  224 . This causes motor control relay  224  to actuate motor  220 , causing the feed disbursement. There is also shown in this figure a storage  340  which may be a higher-latency technology than memory  350 , but which may be a non-volatile storage area. Storage  340  may include such information as data logs and stored programs, which will be maintained over long term operation. There is also shown an exemplary DC-DC power supply  370  which receives power from power supply  230 , and distributes power to other system components. 
     It should be noted that the above description of single board computer  210  is divided into functional blocks. While each functional block may represent a separate hardware or software component in some embodiments, other embodiments may combine the functions of several blocks into a single hardware or software component. In other embodiments, one function may be spread across a plurality of hardware and software components. It is therefore not the intention of this specification to limit the claims to the specific configuration disclosed. 
     The signals are digitized in a manner known in the art and power may be supplied to any sensing devices. Images may be dumped real time to a remote server  190  and accessed by the user when the user  150  signs on. The level of feed in ground-based feeder  100  may be directly measured or estimated. For example, the level of feed may be estimated based on (1) the total amount of time that motor  220  has run and (2) the volume or weight of feed disbursed per unit time. Low level feed signal information may be provided to user  150  to indicate level of feed in the game feeder. 
     The materials of which the base and other elements of the game feeder are comprised is typically UV resistant polyethylene plastic. Brass inserts may be used to secure fastening. Typically the entire game feeder may be about 50 inches tall with a base about 48 inches in diameter. The motor may be a heavy duty 12 volt, 5.1 amp with a permanent DC magnet. Solar panel 12 volt,kk 70 milliamps may be provided and timers known in the trade, including heavy duty programmable timers, may be provided. 
     Although the present disclosure has described a remote monitoring system in particular reference to a ground-based game feeder, it should be noted that a similar configuration can be used for a multitude of monitoring purposes. For example, a remote monitoring system could be employed to increase security of a storage facility or other facility that is not frequently visited by people, or that is left alone for extended periods of time. Similarly, a remote monitoring system can be used to provide monitoring and assessment of any area where a user needs a frequent stream of information and means of control but cannot visit regularly. Another application may be, for example, a vacation home that the user visits only during certain seasons of the year. The remote monitoring system could be used to provide security while the user is away from the vacation home and when the user is preparing to visit the vacation home, it can be used to, for example, remotely activate utilities and perform such tasks as automatically turning on the heat or air-conditioning to prepare the home for the arrival of the user. Based on the present disclosure, other abundant users will become apparent to those having skill in the art. 
     While the subject of this specification has been described in connection with one or more exemplary embodiments, it is not intended to limit the claims to the particular forms set forth. On the contrary, the appended claims are intended to cover such alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within their spirit and scope.