Abstract:
An automated, computerized, method of pro-active building protection from weather condition damage involves: receiving a weather alert indicating a particular weather condition will be occurring within an area encompassing a perimeter about a building established by multiple sensors positioned around the building; in response to the weather alert, automatically executing a specific protocol to cause at least some actuators connected to protective devices of the building to change at least one protective device from a non-protective to a protective position; receiving a signal that is one of: a) a cancellation signal that the weather alert is no longer in effect, or b) an indication from at least some of the sensors that the particular weather condition is no longer endangers the building; and in response to receipt of the signal, automatically signaling the at least some actuators to return the at least one protective device to the non-protective position.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/985,068 the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This disclosure relates generally to computing technology and, more particularly, to computer-based security systems. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Inclement weather is a potential danger to buildings, particularly residential houses. That danger can be magnified for residential houses that are rental properties, second homes, etc. which may be remote from the owner/caretaker and go unoccupied for periods of time. 
     While some inclement events, for example hurricanes, provide sufficient warning for an owner or caretaker (or someone designated by them) to go to the building and make sure all windows and doors are closed and secured and, if necessary, additional protections such as storm shutters and storm doors are secured, many weather events are more localized, for example, hail storms, unusual sleet/snow/freeze events in warmer areas, sudden dust/wind/rain storms, and tornadoes, and may occur without much warning. Moreover, it is common for weather paths to change such that a property may initially appear to be clearly outside the path of a weather event, only to have conditions suddenly change, placing the property squarely within the path of the weather event. For those situations, it is often difficult or impossible for the owner or caretaker (or their designee) to take action to secure the building in time. 
     Damage caused by such “short-warning” weather events, if they break windows or breach the exterior envelope of the building can be costly to the property owner and, where insurance coverage is involved, to insurance companies. 
     Recently, smart phones have given people the ability to remotely control aspects of the home like window blinds/shades, lights, and windows using their phone. In addition, some window technology has taken automation a step further and include rain sensors that, when they detect rain will automatically cause an open window to close. 
     However, the remote control technologies require that a person be aware of the localized danger, despite being removed from the area. In the case of the self-closing windows, they purely react to the sensing of rain that is already occurring and cannot take into account other types of weather events. 
     SUMMARY 
     We have devised a method that, without any human intervention, can pro-actively protect a building against a potential weather event threat before an event occurs and, should the event pass or when it does, undo the protective measures it has put into place. 
     One aspect of this disclosure involves an automated, computerized, method of pro-active building protection from weather condition damage. The method involves: at a master controller, receiving a weather alert, via a weather alert message receiver, indicating a particular weather condition will be occurring within an area encompassing a perimeter about a building, the perimeter having been established by multiple sensors positioned around the building; in response to the weather alert, automatically executing a specific protocol from among multiple automated protocols, stored in non-transient storage and accessible to the master controller, to thereby cause at least some of multiple actuators that are connected to protective devices of the building to change at least one protective device from a non-protective position to a protective position; receiving a signal at the master controller that is specified by the specific protocol, the signal being one of: a cancellation signal, received via the weather alert message receiver, that the weather alert is no longer in effect, or an indication from at least some of the multiple sensors positioned around the building that the particular weather condition is no longer endangers the building; and in response to receipt of the specific-protocol specified signal, automatically signaling the at least some actuators to return the at least one protective device to the non-protective position. 
     Advantageously, the method will pro-actively protect the building and/or associated property to help avoid damage as opposed to reacting to the weather as it is occurring or requiring a person to become aware of a potentially local situation from a remote location and take action in response. 
     The foregoing and following outlines rather generally the features and technical advantages of one or more embodiments of this disclosure in order that the following detailed description may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of this disclosure will be described hereinafter, which may form the subject of the claims of this application. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       This disclosure is further described in the detailed description that follows, with reference to the drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates, in simplified form, an aerial overview of part of a map showing residential plots of land containing buildings within a local geographic area; 
         FIG. 2  illustrates, in simplified form, a larger representation of the aerial view of the plot shown in enlarged view in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3A  illustrates, in simplified form, a front exterior view of the building of  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 ; and 
         FIG. 3B  illustrates, in simplified form, the front exterior view of the building of  FIG. 3A  during a time when the master controller is signaling to cause the actuators to move the protective devices from the non-protective state to the protective state in accordance with one of the protocols in response to a weather alert that may affect the local area. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     This disclosure provides a technical solution to address the aforementioned problems that improves upon current computerized home automation technology. 
     In overview, we have devised a system that proactively, and automatically, responds to weather alerts for an area encompassing a building and, based upon the alert alone, or in conjunction with sensors in the area of the building, will select and execute an appropriate protocol to protect the building and/or associated property in advance of a weather condition actually occurring and, once the weather condition is no longer a threat, will remove the protections. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates, in simplified form, an aerial overview of part of a map  100  showing residential plots of land  102  containing buildings  104  within a local geographic area  106 , with one of the plots  102 - 1  shown exploded out and enlarged. 
     As will be described in greater detail below, within a perimeter  108  defining the plot of land  102 - 1  are multiple sensors  110  that collectively establish a geographic perimeter  112  about the building  104 - 1  for weather-related detection purposes as described herein. The sensors  110  are constructed using conventional commercially available sensors that can be used to detect and issue signals relating to various weather-related circumstances, for example, barometric pressure, temperature change(s), rain, wind speed and/or direction, vibrations, amount of, and change in, impinging light, etc. as appropriate for the location and local weather alerts to be dealt with. The sensors  110  may be “dumb” in that they simply convey data reflecting the condition(s) they sense or they may include some level of “intelligence” (e.g., Internet of Things (IoT) sensors) that can allow them to, for example, turn on in response to a weather alert signal, or to poll or communicate with each other to ascertain if a condition actually exists before signaling the master controller  204 . For example, if a rain sensor is getting wet, it may communicate with the other rain sensors to ascertain whether it is truly raining or, for example, a sprinkler is wetting it. Similarly, the sensors might communicate to differentiate a weather condition from, for example, nearby use of a lawn mower or leaf blower. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates, in simplified form, a larger representation of the aerial view of the plot  102 - 1  shown in enlarged view in  FIG. 1 , and illustrating the components of our automated computerized system  200  for pro-actively protecting a building and/or associated property from damage due to weather conditions as described herein. Although not at all to scale, as represented in  FIG. 2 , outside the building are the sensors  110  of the system  200 , and inside the building  104 - 1  are other parts of the system including, a weather alert message receiver  202  that is specifically attuned to receive broadcast weather alert signals (wirelessly, over a wired connection, or both, depending upon implementation) from, for example, the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system, which are emergency messages sent by authorized government alerting authorities through mobile carriers, from the National Weather Service (NWS) via NOAA Weather Radio, NOAA Weather Wire Service, and the iNWS service, or other weather-related local mass notification sources, for example, weather channels and other commercial providers. 
     The weather alert message receiver  202  is connected to a master controller  204  for the system  200 , as are the sensors  110 . Ideally, a signal embedded in the human understandable weather alert signal is also broadcast that may contain specific information regarding the type of weather event, its current location, its expected track and speed, etc. which the weather alert message receiver  202  can pass along to the master controller  204  to aid in decision-making. 
     In order to prevent use of the system  200  to facilitate a break in to the building, the sensors  110  and master controller can be constructed to communicate using a specific handshake signal scheme and may further incorporate use of a strong security method, for example, a Hash Message Authentication Code or rolling key authentication that is augmented by encryption using 128-bit RC5 data encryption or 128 or 256-bit AES data encryption. 
     The master controller  204  is a computer that includes at least one processor  206  that runs programming to effect the operation described herein. In addition, storage  208  associated with the system  200 , and accessible to the processor  206  of the master controller  204  contains, among other things, multiple automated protocols  210  (as will be described in greater detail below) that can be executed by the processor in response to a weather alert message. The master controller  204  is also communicatively connected, wirelessly or by wires, to actuators (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) that are themselves physically connected to protective devices (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) of the building  104 - 1 . Depending upon the particular implementation, the protective devices and include, for example, folding or rolling storm/security shutters, storm windows, storm doors, retractable awnings, etc. 
     The storage  208  stores the protocols as well as any other format defining data structures, data-containing structures, and/or program instructions in a non-transitory manner, for example, such as non-transient solid state memory, a magnetic hard drive, a CD or DVD, a tape drive, or an analogous or equivalent storage medium type would. 
     As controlled by the master controller  204 , the actuators cause the protective devices to move back and forth between a non-protective position and a protective position. 
       FIG. 3A  illustrates, in simplified form, a front exterior view of the building  104 - 1  of  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 . As can be seen in  FIG. 3A , the building  104 - 1  includes multiple protective devices  302 , for example, as shown, in the form of moveable window shutters  304 , rolling storm/security shutters  306 , and a retractable awning  308 . 
     As noted generally above, each of the protective devices  302  has one or more actuators  310  connected to it, as do, for example, the windows  312 , so that they can be opened or closed as well. 
     As can also be seen in  FIG. 3A , all of the protective devices  302  are in their respective non-protective state, e.g., the shutters  304  are open, the rolling storm/security shutters  306  are rolled up, and the retractable awning  308  is retracted. 
       FIG. 3B  illustrates, in simplified form, the front exterior view of the building  104 - 1  of  FIG. 3A  during a time when the master controller  204  is signaling (illustrated by the lightning bolt signal symbols) to cause the actuators to move the protective devices from the non-protective to protective state, according to one of the stored automated protocols, in response to a weather alert that may affect the local area  106 . As shown in  FIG. 3B , most window shutters  304  have been closed and one window  314  is in the process of being closed by its actuator  310 - 1  while its window shutters  304  are being closed by their respective actuators  310 - 2 . Likewise, most of the lower level windows  312  are now protected by their rolling storm/security shutters  306  being in the protective position, whereas the actuator  310 - 3  for one of the lower windows  316  is just receiving its signal to close its rolling storm/security shutter  306 . 
     In addition, as shown in  FIG. 3B , due to, for example, the weather alert indicating a localized hail storm, to protect a vehicle  318  parked alongside the building  104 - 1  in a car port, the retractable awning  308  is extended and plastic sheeting  320  has been lowered to surround the vehicle  318 . 
     Having described by way of example, the various components of our automated computerized system  200 , the automated protocols  210  will now be described with reference to certain examples, with the understanding that these protocols are purely provided for purposes of understanding and that different locations and potential weather situations will dictate what specific protocols will be present in a particular implementation and the actions that they will cause as a result. 
     Advantageously, as noted above, our automated computerized system  200  operates such that, when the master controller  204  receives a weather alert via the weather alert message receiver  202  indicating that a weather condition will be occurring in the area  106  that may encompass the area  112 , the master controller  204  will use at least the information in the weather alert and may also use information gleaned from the sensors  110  to decide which of the automated protocols  210  to use. 
     In general, the stored automated protocols  210  are written such that the inputs received by the master controller  204  from the weather alert and/or sensors  110  will dictate the signals to be sent to particular actuators to move their protective devices into a protective position and the conditions that must be present before the master controller  204  will signal the actuators to revert their protective devices back to their non-protective positions. 
     For example, a weather alert may indicate high winds and a dust storm. One automated protocol  210  may dictate polling the window actuators  310  to identify if any of the windows  312  are open and, if so, to automatically close them. In addition, since blowing debris presents a danger to the windows, the master controller will also note from the weather alert signal the direction of the storm and cause the actuators to close the protective devices  302  for all windows facing the direction the storm is coming from. Advantageously however, because local geography and structures may alter the wind direction near the building  104 , so the protocol may further dictate monitoring the wind speed and direction sensors  110  at regular intervals and, if the wind direction alters and speed exceeds some set threshold, the actuators will be signaled to also (or alternatively) close those protective devices facing the direction that the wind direction sensors  110  indicate in addition to, or instead of, those in the direction specified by the weather alert. In addition, depending upon the wind speed and direction, the protocol may or may not call for the awning  308  to be actuated. Finally, the master controller  204  will continue to monitor for any signal from the weather alert message receiver  202  that indicates that the weather alert is no longer in effect, at which point, the master controller will apply the portion of the protocol it has been following to indicate to the various appropriate actuators  310  for the protective devices  302  to revert to the protective devices to their non-protective position, and, if appropriate or specified, cause windows that were open prior to the weather alert to re-open. 
     Likewise, irrespective of whether a signal is received by the master controller  204  via the weather alert message receiver  202  to indicate that the particular weather condition is no longer a potential danger to the building, the protocol may specify that if certain conditions are detected by the sensors for some period of time, then the protocol may indicate that the weather condition specified in the weather alert is no longer a potential danger to the building within the perimeter  112 , for example, because of a shift in the weather path, and so the master controller  204  can cause the deployed actuators  310  to move their protective devices  302  back to their non-protective positions. 
     Another automated protocol  210  for a weather alert indicating hail, may call for all protective devices  302  for all windows  312  to be moved to a protective position when the light sensor indicates either a sudden darkening that usually precedes a hail storm or detection of a pattern of ground vibrations caused by hail stones beginning to strike nearby. Again, for example, the awning  308  and sheeting  320  might be deployed by a signal to its actuator  310  from the master controller to protect a vehicle  318  parked in that area but might not be deployed if the wind speed exceeds a specified level. Moreover, since hail is largely a summer phenomenon, if the weather preceding the hail storm has been overly hot (as indicated by the temperature sensors  110 ) and a hail storm can result in significant temporary local cooling, once the protective devices  302  over the windows  312  have been closed, the protocol may specify that the windows on the first floor on one side of the building be opened behind their protective shutters  304  be opened and other windows on the second floor on an opposite side of the house also be opened behind their protective shutters to create a cross-draft of the cool air. 
     Advantageously, the protocol may also include safety measures, for example, to allow a limited time period for override of any particular protocol, for example, because the owner or caretaker has arrived on site and will handle securing of the building, or to reverse any actuator from deploying and causing damage if it encounters an obstruction when actuating movement of a protective device between a protective and non-protective position or vice versa, for example, because a tree limb or part of a rain gutter may have fallen and is blocking its movement or because hail build-up during the storm is preventing movement. The protocols of system  200  may further specify a periodic re-trying at certain intervals and/or for some period of time to allow for self-clearing circumstances, for example, melting of the hail, before full movement of an impacted protective device can be completed. 
     Advantageously, the system  200  may further include protocols for notifying the owner, caretaker or other entity if, for example, some actuator  310  cannot be moved, either before or after a weather event, which may indicate, in the former case, that some human protective intervention may be required or, in the latter case, some exterior damage may be present. Such notifications can include automatically sending an e-mail or SMS message, triggering some indication within a mobile app or on a website, causing sending of an automated phone call to a designated number, or some combination thereof. 
     Thus, it should now be understood that systems  200  constructed according to the teachings herein can readily be configured to pro-actively, and automatically, protect against damage from different weather conditions without the need for human intervention, thereby reducing the prospect of damage to an unoccupied building from such conditions. 
     Having described and illustrated the principles of this application by reference to one or more example embodiments, it should be apparent that the embodiment(s) may be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from the principles disclosed herein and that it is intended that the application be construed as including all such modifications and variations insofar as they come within the spirit and scope of the subject matter disclosed.