Abstract:
A technique is disclosed that enables the managing of environmental conditions within an enterprise workplace and, in doing so, provides an improvement in facilities cost management over some techniques in the prior art. A data-processing system such as a private-branch exchange monitors the workplace by using one or more telephones, or other “telecommunications endpoints” to which the exchange is connected, in the workplace area. The exchange determines whether people are present in the workplace area by monitoring which endpoints are in use. Additionally, the exchange monitors the sounds that are received by the microphones of the endpoints. Based on knowing which endpoints are in use, the exchange generates control signals for the purpose of controlling one or more environmental conditions such as temperature, lighting, and so forth. In some embodiments of the present invention, the exchange examines the audio content of the received signals and bases the control signals on the audio content analyzed.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to telecommunications in general, and, more particularly, to a method of managing an enterprise&#39;s non-telecommunications facilities, such as environmental control, via the telecommunications infrastructure that is present. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    An enterprise that desires its employees to be productive has to enable effective communications by providing some type of telecommunications infrastructure. For example, the enterprise can use call-handling equipment such as private branch exchanges to enable employees to communicate conveniently with one another, as well as with people external to the enterprise. A private branch exchange, in particular, is capable of routing incoming calls from a telecommunications network, such as the Public Switched Telephone Network, via one or more transmission lines to any of the on-premises telephones that exist within the enterprise. Similarly, the private branch exchange is also capable of handling outgoing calls from any of the on-premises telephones to the telecommunications network. 
         [0003]    Additionally, the private branch exchange is capable of providing telecommunications features that enable the forwarding of calls, the transferring of calls, conferencing, and so forth. Typically, each user of an on-premises telephone can create a customized profile that is stored at the private branch exchange and indicates to the exchange how to present information to and respond to signals from a telephone. In short, a private branch exchange—or other types of call-handling equipment, for that matter—provides a powerful tool with which employees are able to communicate with one another and accomplish work in the process. 
         [0004]    Meanwhile, the same enterprise that desires productive employees has to provide comfortable working conditions by regulating environmental conditions at acceptable levels, conditions such as temperature and lighting. Of course, from a facilities cost perspective, it can be expensive to maintain such a workplace. Particular costs include those related to providing environmental control, but also other costs such as ensuring employee safety and enforcing building security. Some costs are incurred during normal working hours and some are incurred after hours. 
         [0005]    Often an enterprise has to consider tradeoffs between saving facilities costs and adequately providing for its employees. For example, an enterprise might want to manage its energy costs during the winter by lowering the indoor air temperature by as much as possible and as often as possible. Of course, lowering the temperature too much causes employees to experience discomfort. 
         [0006]    Therefore, an effective technique is needed to manage facilities costs, without some of the disadvantages in the prior art. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention enables the managing of environmental conditions within an enterprise workplace and, in doing so, provides an improvement in facilities cost management over some techniques in the prior art. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention, a data-processing system such as a private-branch exchange monitors the workplace by using one or more telephones, or other “telecommunications endpoints” to which the exchange is connected, in the workplace area. The exchange determines whether people are present in the workplace area by monitoring which endpoints are in use. Additionally, the exchange monitors the sounds that are received by the microphones of the endpoints. Based on knowing which endpoints are in use, the exchange generates control signals for the purpose of controlling one or more environmental conditions such as temperature, lighting, and so forth. In some embodiments of the present invention, the exchange examines the audio content of the received signals and bases the control signals on the audio content analyzed. 
         [0008]    The advantage that is gained in the illustrative embodiment over some techniques in the prior art is accomplished by leveraging much of the existing telecommunications infrastructure within an enterprise. With some techniques in the prior art, improving the management of environmental conditions and facilities costs can require a costly retrofit of an office building with an improved sensor network. In contrast, the management system in the illustrative embodiment is able to leverage the use of the existing infrastructure by using the telecommunications endpoints that are already present, typically in each and every room, in order to manage the non-telecommunications facilities and costs. 
         [0009]    As an example of how the illustrative embodiment manages a building, suppose first that the building is kept at a slightly cooler temperature at night than during the workday. At the start of the workday, a first person arrives and goes to use his telephone to call a second person across the building. The private branch exchange of the illustrative embodiment senses the “off-hook” condition of the first person&#39;s phone and, when the second person answers, the off-hook condition at the second phone. The exchange infers from the off-hook signals that people must be present in the two offices; it know then to generate a control signal to raise the temperature at or near the first person&#39;s office and additionally near the second person&#39;s office. 
         [0010]    Continuing with the example, in some embodiments the exchange performs a keyword analysis of the audio content of the conversation between the two people. The first person comments in passing, “Gee, it&#39;s too cold in this office.” In monitoring the audio content being uttered by the first person, the private branch exchange discerns the reference to the office being “too cold” and generates a control signal to raise the air temperature in her office. Additionally, if the second person comments that his room “too hot,” the exchange discerns the content and, as a result, generates a control signal to lower the air temperature in his office. 
         [0011]    Finally, at the end of the normally-scheduled workday in the example, if a predetermined amount of time elapses without the exchange having detected any audio signals or endpoint usage, which might suggest that the employees have left for the day, the exchange can then generate a control signal to apply the nighttime settings to the rooms of one or both of the people. 
         [0012]    As suggested by the example above, the illustrative embodiment of the present invention features the management of environmental conditions. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention in which the data-processing system is able to manage other types of facilities, such as building security and employee safety systems. It will also be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, that other techniques are possible that involve using signals from one or more telecommunications endpoints, in order to control a building. 
         [0013]    The illustrative embodiment of the present invention comprises: receiving, at a data-processing system, a first in-use signal from a first telecommunications endpoint that is part of a plurality of endpoints that are situated within a first geographic area and that are served by the data-processing system, the first in-use signal indicating that a user is using the first telecommunications endpoint, the data-processing system being capable of setting up a telephone call between the first telecommunications endpoint and a second telecommunications endpoint; and generating a first control signal for changing a first environmental condition, the first control signal being based on the receiving of the first in-use signal. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  depicts schematic diagram of the salient components of telecommunications system  100  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  depicts a diagram of the salient components of enterprise environment  101  within system  100 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  depicts a block diagram of the salient components of private branch exchange  102  within system  100 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  depicts a flowchart of the salient tasks that are related to managing the environmental facilities within enterprise environment  101 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0018]      FIG. 1  depicts schematic diagram of the salient components of telecommunications system  100  in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. System  100  comprises enterprise environment  101 , private branch exchange  102 , and environmental control system  103 , interrelated as shown. 
         [0019]    Enterprise environment  101  represents the telecommunications facilities at a particular location of an enterprise, such as an office complex of a corporation, a school building, a hospital, a church, and so forth. Environment  101  comprises a plurality of N telecommunications endpoints that are capable of originating, receiving, or otherwise handling telephone calls for their users. Each endpoint within environment  101  is connected to private branch exchange  102  for the purpose of enabling telephone calls and for carrying out the techniques of the illustrative embodiment. Environment  101  is described below and with respect to  FIG. 2 . 
         [0020]    The telecommunications infrastructure that is present within environment  101  provides the connectivity between the endpoints and private branch exchange  102 . The infrastructure comprises one or more telecommunications networks, including a local area network (LAN), along with switches, routers, and other networking equipment. In some embodiments, the infrastructure comprises the Internet or possibly other Internet Protocol-based networks. The endpoints within environment  101 , in some embodiments, might be connected to private branch exchange  102  via the Public Switched Telephone Network, which is a complex of telecommunications equipment that is owned and operated by different entities throughout the World. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, the endpoints within environment  101  might be interconnected with private branch exchange  102  via other combinations of network infrastructure. 
         [0021]    With respect to the non-telecommunications facilities that affect enterprise environment  101 , environmental facilities are used to control the enterprise&#39;s environmental conditions. Such environmental conditions include, but are not limited to, temperature, humidity, lighting, air quality, and so forth. These environmental conditions are controlled by environmental control system  103 . 
         [0022]    Private branch exchange  102  is a data-processing system, such as a server or switch, which enables the users of multiple endpoints to communicate with other endpoint users, in well-known fashion. Exchange  102  receives audio and control signals from endpoints that are involved in one or more telephone calls, generates output signals, and applies those generated signals to selected phone calls or endpoints, in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. Exchange  102  is described in detail below and with respect to  FIG. 3 . 
         [0023]    In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, the techniques of the illustrative embodiment are implemented at a private branch exchange. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention, in which the techniques are implemented at a data-processing system that comprises functionality other than that of a private branch exchange, such as a teleconference bridge. 
         [0024]    Environmental control system  103  comprises infrastructure such as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning units, which are used to provide environmental conditions that make the enterprise environment suitable for occupancy and use by its employees. System  103  receives control signals from private branch exchange  102  and applies those signals for controlling one or more environmental conditions (e.g., temperature, lighting, etc.), in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0025]      FIG. 2  depicts a diagram of the salient components of enterprise environment  101 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. In particular,  FIG. 2  depicts an overhead view of an office workplace, in which many people are situated within the office space and, as office workers, are also users of telecommunications endpoints. Depicted telecommunications endpoints  201 - 1  through  201 -N can be situated on a desk within an employee&#39;s office or cubicle, in a conference room, or in a common area such as a pantry, copy room, or hallway wall. Endpoints  201 - 1  through  201 -N are connected to private branch exchange  102  in well-known fashion. 
         [0026]    For reasons of clarity, the office space depicted in  FIG. 2  is shown as a single space, enclosed by wall  202 , with no additional wall or partitions separating the endpoints from one another. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention, in which there is a different partitioning between two or more of the endpoints than depicted. For example, the endpoints might be in rooms separated by walls, in cubicles with half-wall partitions, or arranged in some combination thereof. Additionally, two or more endpoints might be collocated within the same room or cubicle. 
         [0027]    Furthermore, although  FIG. 2  depicts a total of nine telecommunications endpoints, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments with a different number of endpoints. 
         [0028]    Telecommunications endpoint  201 - n , where n has a value between 1 and N, inclusive, is capable of originating, receiving, or otherwise handling a telephone call for its user, in well-known fashion. Endpoint  201 - n  is able to call, or to be called by, another endpoint. In order for its user to participate in a telephone call, endpoint  201 - n  is able to dial a telephone number that private branch exchange  102  understands; the exchange subsequently routes the corresponding call to the appropriate endpoint being called. Endpoint  201 - n  can be an analog telephone, an ISDN terminal, a softphone, an Internet-Protocol phone, a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a PBX deskset, a conference phone or “speakerphone”, or some other type of telecommunications appliance. 
         [0029]    Enterprise environment  101  as depicted is divided into four environmental control areas, zones  203 - 1  through  203 - 4 . The environmental conditions that apply within each zone are controllable on a zone-by-zone basis. For example, the conditions that apply to the office spaces situated within zone  203 - 1  can be different from those that apply to zone  203 - 2 , which can be different from those that apply to zones  203 - 3  and  203 - 4 . Although four zones are depicted in  FIG. 2 , it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention in which there is a different number of zones within the enterprise area being controlled. 
         [0030]      FIG. 3  depicts a block diagram of the salient components of private branch exchange  102 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. Exchange  102  comprises network interface  301 , processor  302 , and memory  303 , interconnected as shown. Exchange  102  is capable of performing the tasks described below and with respect to  FIG. 4 . 
         [0031]    Network interface  301  comprises the circuitry that enables exchange  102  to receive signals from and transmit signals to the endpoints within environment  101 , in well-known fashion. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, interface  301  receives and transmits audio signals that are represented in Internet Protocol packets, in well-known fashion. Additionally, interface  301  comprises the circuitry that enables exchange  102  to exchange signals with environmental control system  103 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, interface  301  receives and transmits environmental control signals via the Building Automation and Control Networks (BACnet) protocol, as is known in the art. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, in some alternative embodiments interface  301  receives and transmits audio or control signals, or both, in a different format. 
         [0032]    Processor  302  is a general-purpose processor that is capable of receiving information from network interface  301 , of executing instructions stored in memory  303 , of reading data from and writing data into memory  303 , and of transmitting information to network interface  301 . In some alternative embodiments of the present invention, processor  302  might be a special-purpose processor. 
         [0033]    Memory  303  stores the instructions and data used by processor  302 , in well-known fashion. Memory  303  might be any combination of dynamic random-access memory (RAM), flash memory, disk drive memory, and so forth. 
         [0034]    In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, memory  303  stores a database that comprises information on where each endpoint is situated relative to other endpoints, what the relationship is between endpoints and zones, and so forth. In some alternative embodiments, the database is stored at another data-processing system, and exchange  102  is able to access the database through the other system. 
         [0035]      FIG. 4  depicts a flowchart of the salient tasks that are related to managing the environmental facilities within enterprise environment  101 , in accordance with the illustrative embodiment of the present invention. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, some of the tasks that appear in the flowchart can be performed in parallel or in a different order than that depicted. Moreover, those who are skilled in the art will further appreciate that in some alternative embodiments of the present invention, only a subset of the depicted tasks are performed. 
         [0036]    At task  401 , private branch exchange  102  receives and processes one or more input signals from endpoints  201 - 1  through  201 -N in well-known fashion. Exchange  102  receives, from endpoints  201 - 1  through  201 -N, one or more signals that indicate whether each endpoint is in use. An endpoint is in use, for example, when its user is utilizing the endpoint to handle a telephone call, to retrieve voice mail, or to invoke some other feature that results in the signaling of exchange  102 . The in-use signaling can come from endpoint  201 - n  in the form of an “off-hook” indication, dialed digits, or a packet message that indicates that the user is utilizing the endpoint. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, other signals from endpoint  201 - n  can be used to indicate that the endpoint is being used. 
         [0037]    In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, at least some of the inputs signals that exchange  102  receives are audio signals, which contain content uttered by the endpoint users. As an example, exchange  102  can receive audio content when an endpoint user calls a designated telephone extension and speaks commands to affect one or more environmental conditions. Alternatively, exchange  102  can receive audio content that is part of the user&#39;s conversations with each other that occur via the private branch exchange. 
         [0038]    In some alternative embodiments, exchange  102  monitors for the presence and utterances of people even when the endpoints are not in use. For example, through the microphone of each endpoint, exchange  102  can monitor for sounds, classify those sounds by probable source (e.g., human-made, etc.), and determine whether a human user is adjacent to an endpoint. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, exchange  102  can check for audio signals continuously, sporadically, or periodically. 
         [0039]    In some other alternative embodiments, exchange  102  supports a digit-based interactive voice response (IVR) system, in which a user who wants to adjust an environmental condition (e.g., temperature, etc.) calls a telephone extension that routes to the IVR system via exchange  102 . Exchange  102  then works through an “IVR tree,” as is well-known in the art. For example, an IVR transaction between the system and a user who is feeling cold in her office in room  3 D- 203  might progress as follows: 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
                 System: “You are calling from room 3D-203. Press or say ‘1’ if 
               
               
                   
                   you are calling about that room” 
               
               
                   
                 User selects ‘1’ 
               
               
                   
                 System: “Press or say ‘1’ if your call is about your room 
               
               
                   
                   climate. Press or say ‘2’ to . . . ” 
               
               
                   
                 User selects ‘1’ 
               
               
                   
                 System: “Press or say ‘1’ if it is too hot. Press or say ‘2’ if 
               
               
                   
                   it is too cold . . . ” 
               
               
                   
                 User selects ‘2’ 
               
               
                   
                 System: “Thank you. Your request is being processed.” 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0040]    As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, other variations of an environment-controlling IVR system are possible. For example, in some embodiments, exchange  102  supports a voice-based IVR system, as is known in the art, in which the system is able to receive and process phrases such as “too hot”, “too cool”, “too humid”, and so forth. 
         [0041]    Exchange  102 , in yet some other alternative embodiments, supports the reception and analysis of keywords, independently of an IVR system. For example, a user can call a telephone extension that routes through exchange  102  and, when the call is answered, can then speak commands such as “Building control. Too hot. Turn down heat.” Alternatively, the user can speak such commands near her endpoint and without having called the extension first; exchange  102  can receive those commands via the endpoint&#39;s microphone and process them. 
         [0042]    Exchange  102 , in some additional alternative embodiments, is able to receive and process audio signals that represent the conversations that endpoint users have with each other when they use their endpoints during the course of a workday. A relatively simple form of processing involves the spotting of keywords, such as “too hot”, “too cold”, “stuffy”, “in here”, “in my room”, and so forth. For example, at one point in the conversation between the two endpoint users, the user of endpoint  201 - 1  utters, “Gee, it&#39;s too cold in my room”. Exchange  102  receives the audio signal from the user and recognizes “too cold” and “in my room”. As a result, the exchange generates a controlling signal, as described below and with respect to task  402 . In a more complex form of conversational analysis, in some embodiments exchange  102  analyzes ongoing conversations between users on their endpoints. 
         [0043]    Private branch exchange  102  is able to discern the audio content of the received audio signals by using speech recognition techniques that are well-known in the art. For example, exchange  102  is able to correlate the received sounds—or lack thereof—with signal profiles stored in its database. In addition, although the examples above feature content without any command syntax, the users&#39; utterances could be alternatively phrased as explicit commands (e.g., “raise the temperature,” etc.) and recognized. 
         [0044]    At task  402 , exchange  102  generates, for a given environmental condition that is controllable by environmental control system  103 , a controlling signal that specifies the value of the environmental condition, such as the temperature to take effect for a particular zone. As those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, other environmental conditions can be controlled as well, such as humidity, lighting, air quality, and so forth. The controlling signal is based on the content of the one or more input signals received from the endpoints. In some embodiments, the controlling signal might be based on one or more in-use signals. Exchange  102  generates a controlling signal for each environmental condition to be controlled. 
         [0045]    For example, suppose that exchange  102  has already set up a telephone call between endpoints  201 - 1  and  201 - 8 . At one point in the conversation between the two endpoint users, the user of endpoint  201 - 1  utters, “Gee, it&#39;s too cold in this room.” In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, private branch exchange  102  discerns in the audio content the user&#39;s reference to the cold temperature and, as a result, generates a control signal to raise the air temperature. In some embodiments, exchange  102  specifies the particular zone of the user, in this case zone  203 - 1 , as part of the generated message. 
         [0046]    As a second example, the same scenario applies, except that the user of endpoint  201 - 8  utters, “Really? Well, it think it&#39;s too hot in my office, and the lighting is too bright in here,” in response to the first user&#39;s comment. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, private branch exchange  102  discerns in the audio content the user&#39;s reference to the hot temperature and bright lighting and, as a result, generates one or more control signals to lower the air temperature and dim the lighting. In some embodiments, exchange  102  specifies the particular zone of the user, in this case zone  203 - 3 , as part of the generated message. 
         [0047]    In some alternative embodiments, the controlling signal can also be based on one or more additional considerations such as the spatial closeness of the first telecommunications endpoint to the second telecommunications endpoint. For example, exchange  102  might generate a controlling signal to raise the temperature by three degrees on behalf of the user of endpoint  201 - 1  if the other endpoint involved is in another zone, but only by one degree if the other endpoint is within the same zone as endpoint  201 - 1 . 
         [0048]    The controlling signal, in some other alternative embodiments, can be based on not having received any content within any audio signal from one or more endpoints within a predetermined amount of time. For example, if endpoint  201 - 1  has not been used for a couple of hours, exchange  102  might assume that the user is no longer in the office and might lower the temperature a bit, in order to save energy. And as those who are skilled in the art will appreciate, different rules can be applied at different times throughout the day (e.g., the start of the workday, the end of the workday, the middle of the night, etc.). 
         [0049]    At task  403 , exchange  102  transmits the generated controlling signal to environmental control system  103  for the purpose of controlling the selected environmental condition or conditions. 
         [0050]    Exchange  102  continually executes the already-described tasks during its operation, thereby controlling the environmental conditions within the geographic area in which the endpoints are situated. 
         [0051]    The illustrative embodiment of the present invention features the management of environmental conditions. However, it will be clear to those skilled in the art, after reading this specification, how to make and use alternative embodiments of the present invention in which the data-processing system is able to manage other types of facilities, such as building security and employee safety systems. As one example of a non-environmental application, the system might detect, through one or more of endpoints  201 - 1  through  201 -N, a human-generated sound that normally should not be present during a particular time of the night; in this case, it notifies building security that a possible intruder might be present. The system can perform detection of specific sounds, such as a loud scream, by accounting for audio characteristics such as timbre, pitch, volume, and so forth, and can take appropriate action based on the values of one or more of the characteristics. So, if the system determines that a signal sounds more like a burglar than a mouse, it can notify building security. 
         [0052]    As another example of a non-environmental application, if the system detects, through one or more endpoints, a human-generated sound of a particularly troubling nature, such as cries for help outside of normal working hours, it notifies building safety that an employee might be in need of medical assistance. 
         [0053]    It is to be understood that the disclosure teaches just one example of the illustrative embodiment and that many variations of the invention can easily be devised by those skilled in the art after reading this disclosure and that the scope of the present invention is to be determined by the following claims.