Patent Publication Number: US-2005137465-A1

Title: System and method for remote monitoring in home activity of persons living independently

Description:
BACKGROUND  
      The invention relates generally to a system and a method for monitoring the in-home activities of persons living independently, and more particularly to a system and a method for remotely monitoring the in-home activities of elderly or disabled persons who live independently.  
      With medical advancements and increased attention to proper nutrition and sufficient exercise, the populace in the western civilization is living longer. For example, the number of elderly persons residing in the United States is increasing, and with the advancing age of the baby boomer generation, the number of elderly persons in the United States will increase significantly over the next several decades. Additionally, increased awareness and understanding of various mental and physical disabilities has led to an increase in the number of persons having diminished mental and/or physical faculties living independently.  
      With the increase in elderly and disabled persons living independently has come anxiety that these elderly and disabled persons are safe and secure in their own residences. There is increased anxiety by the elderly and disabled living alone that they may become injured or incapacitated and be unable to summon assistance. That anxiety is often shared by loved ones living at a distance from the elderly and/or disabled living independently.  
      Currently, the anxiety felt by the elderly and disabled living alone, as well as the anxiety felt by their loved ones, is addressed through several avenues. One way to ease anxiety is through frequent visits to the home by a caregiver. Such visits can be intrusive, time consuming, and often inconvenient and not appreciated. Another way is for the elderly or disabled person to move out of the home and move into a facility better able to monitor his health. This, however, strips the person of his independence, is costly and is often unwelcome. Another way is through technological assistance or monitoring of the person in the home.  
      Such technological systems that assist persons in their home include Personal Emergency Response Systems. In these systems the elderly or disabled individual wears a watch, pendant or other like device and presses a button in the event of an emergency, such as a fall. The depressed button enables an alarm signal. A central monitoring facility provides assistance by responding to the alarm signal and calls the individual to identify the problem. The facility calls a predetermined list of contacts, such as relatives, neighbors or emergency services, as required by the context of the situation. While a valuable service, these systems only identify problems that occur when the individual is able to press the emergency button.  
      Some known in-home monitoring systems collect data obtained from sensors and send the sensor data out of the home to a remote monitoring site using the phone system of the home. These phone calls are placed at set intervals. If the intervals are placed close together, there is often increased cost due to the increased use of the phone. Further, the frequent use of the phone is sometimes inconvenient, since the phone line is tied up at fixed, frequent intervals. The inconvenience is felt both by the resident of the home and by those attempting to contact the resident.  
      Thus, there remains a need, which is increasing, for an economical in-home monitoring system which limits its intrusiveness while providing caregivers a realistic view of the activities of the person residing in the home. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a remote in-home monitoring system in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.  
       FIG. 2  is a process for remote in-home monitoring by the system of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 3  illustrates exemplary steps for communicating data to a remote monitoring center in the process of  FIG. 2 .  
       FIG. 4  illustrates steps for ascertaining the mobility of a resident of a home equipped with the system of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 5  illustrates a method for ascertaining sleep patterns of a resident of a home equipped with the system of  FIG. 1 .  
       FIG. 6  illustrates a hidden Markov modeling technique for analyzing sleep patterns in accordance with the method of  FIG. 5 .  
       FIG. 7  illustrates steps for ascertaining late wake-up of a resident of a home equipped with the system of  FIG. 1 . 
    
    
     SUMMARY  
      The present invention describes a system and a method for remote monitoring of a person through the use of sensors placed in the home and a processing system at a remote location for collating data obtained from the sensors and for contacting caregivers if warranted.  
      One aspect of the invention is an activity monitoring system for allowing a caregiver to monitor activity of a resident residing independently in a home. The system includes at least one activity sensor positioned within the home for collecting data on activity in the home, a near real-time communication platform in communication with the at least one activity sensor, and a monitoring center located remote from the home and in communication with the near real-time communication platform, wherein the near real-time communication platform is adapted to communicate data from the at least one activity sensor to the monitoring center in near real-time to the occurrence of an event.  
      Another aspect of the invention is an activity monitoring system for allowing a caregiver to remotely monitor activity of a resident residing independently in a home. The system includes a plurality of activity sensors positioned within the home for collecting data on activity in the home, a near real-time communication platform in communication with the plurality of activity sensors, and a monitoring center located remote from the home and in communication with the near real-time communication platform. The near real-time communication platform comprises one or more communication media in the group consisting of wired telephone, wireless telephone, two-way walkie-talkie, pager, cable, and the Internet. Further, the near real-time communication platform is adapted to communicate data from the plurality of activity sensors to the monitoring center in near real-time to the occurrence of an event.  
      Another aspect of the invention is a method for allowing a caregiver to monitor activity of a resident residing independently in a home. The method includes the steps of providing activity sensors for distribution throughout the home, collecting data from the activity sensors, communicating, via a near real-time communication platform, the data collected from the activity sensors to a monitoring center remote from the home in near real-time to the occurrence of an event, analyzing the data at the monitoring center, and generating a report to the caregiver upon the occurrence of the event.  
      Another aspect of the invention is a method for allowing a caregiver to remotely monitor activity of a resident residing independently in a home. The method includes the steps of providing activity sensors for distribution throughout the home, collecting data from the activity sensors, and communicating, via a near real-time communication platform, the data collected from the activity sensors to a monitoring center remote from the home in near real-time to the occurrence of an event. The method further includes analyzing the data at the monitoring center and generating an event report to the caregiver upon the occurrence of the event. The method also includes the step of generating, upon request of the caregiver, a status report of activity within the home.  
      Another aspect of the invention is a method for allowing a caregiver to monitor the mobility of a resident residing independently in a home. The method includes the steps of providing activity sensors for distribution throughout the home, collecting data from the activity sensors, communicating, via a near real-time communication platform, the data collected from the activity sensors to a monitoring center remote from the home, searching for activity patterns in the data collected from the activity sensors, studying the amount of time required to accomplish particular activities, and reporting to the caregiver long-term changes in the amount of time required to accomplish the particular activities.  
      Another aspect of the invention is a method for allowing a caregiver to monitor the sleep patterns of a resident residing independently in a home. The method includes the steps of providing activity sensors for distribution throughout the home, collecting data from the activity sensors, communicating the data collected from the activity sensors to a database via a near real-time communication platform, and analyzing the data collected from the activity sensors using a hidden Markov modeling technique to determine if the data indicates a deviation from the comparison data, signaling an abnormal sleep pattern.  
      Another aspect of the invention is a method for allowing a caregiver to monitor the wake up times of a resident residing independently in a home. The method includes the steps of providing activity sensors for distribution throughout the home, collecting data from the activity sensors indicating a wake up time of the resident, communicating the collected data to a monitoring center remote from the home via a near real-time communication platform, and analyzing the data collected from the activity sensors to determine if the data indicates that the resident is not awake by the predetermined normal wake up time, signaling an abnormal wake up time.  
      These and other advantages and features will be more readily understood from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention that is provided in connection with the accompanying drawings.  
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
      With reference to  FIG. 1 , there is shown an activity monitoring system  10  that includes activity sensors  14 , a communication relay panel  18 , and a remote monitoring center  22 . The activity monitoring system  10  lacks mechanisms to intervene in the home  12  or any subsystems (appliances, water, lights, etc.) of the home  12 . Intervention in the home  12 , if any, may arrive through a communication with the resident of the home  12  from outside the home, such as via a telephone call or a visit from a caregiver  38  or other suitable person, such as an emergency response professional. The sensors  14  include motion sensors, door sensors, and any other sensors suitable for collecting and communicating data regarding activities on-going in the home  12 . Other suitable sensors  14  include hazard sensors and security sensors. Preferably, the sensors  14  are wireless sensors capable of wirelessly communicating signals  16 , which include data collected, to the communications relay panel  18 . It should be appreciated, however, that the sensors  14  instead may be sensors wired to the communications relay panel  18 .  
      The communications relay panel  18  communicates the sensor data collected from the sensors  14  by sending a data signal  20  to the remote monitoring center  22  by way of a suitable wired or wireless communications platform  21 , such as, for example, wired telephone, wireless telephone, two-way walkie-talkie, pager, cable, the Internet browser, or any other wireless communication platform. Depending upon the communication platform  21  chosen, the data signals  20  may be sent in near real-time or may be sent at discrete, irregular intervals. For example, data signals  20  may be sent in near real-time via wireless telephone, two-way walkie-talkie, pager, cable, the Internet browser or any other wireless communication platform. For a wired telephone communication platform, the data signals  20  are buffered and transmitted at differing intervals.  
      The monitoring center  22 , which is remote from the home  12 , includes a database  24 , a programmable event detector  26 , and a continuous status report generator  28 . The database  24  serves as a collection vessel for the sensor data communicated via the signals  20 . Upon a request from the caregiver  38  for a status report, the sensor data is forwarded from the database  24  to the continuous status report generator  28 . The status report generator  28  communicates a near real-time status signal  30  to a personal computer  34  of the caregiver  38 . By near real-time is meant anywhere in the range of almost instantaneously to up to three minutes. For example, for a two-way page communication platform  21 , the amount of time required for the communication can be between two and three minutes. The status report generator  28  may be programmed to update the report for each home  12  at a certain interval, such as, for example, every ten minutes. The status signal  30  includes a report generated by the continuous status report generator  28 . The format and substance of the report are dependent upon the request of the caregiver  38 . It should be appreciated that the signal  30  can instead be communicated via a personal digital assistant (PDA), a pager, a facsimile machine, cable, or a telephone or voice-mail account instead of via the personal computer  34 .  
      The caregiver  38  can also select certain activities that, if they occur in the home  12 , would be considered an event. An event, in general, would include an activity or any important transition occurrence, such as a state transition (the change from one state to another, such as, for example, from active to quiet), of which a caregiver  38  would want to be apprised. For example, the time of wake up, an unusually long period of quiet or no activity, or the use of an exterior door may be considered an important activity or state transition occurrence. The caregiver  38  communicates the parameters of what constitutes an event to the remote monitoring center  22  via a signal  32 . While the caregiver  38  does not define what constitutes an event, the caregiver  38  can select which from a set of predefined activities constitutes an event. Further, the caregiver  38  sets the parameters to configure the events to match the normal activity of the resident in the home  12 . For example, the caregiver  38  does not define what constitutes, for example, “wake up”, but the caregiver  38  can define when “wake up” would be considered late. The sensor data is stored and processed at the monitoring center  22 . If the data indicates the occurrence of an event, a signal  36  is sent to the caregiver  38  via any suitable communication medium, such as, for example, wired or wireless telephone, PDA, pager, facsimile, cable, two-way walkie-talkie, e-mail, or other Internet-supported communication media, such as, for example, through a pop-up announcement format. The caregiver  38  is then provided the opportunity to open a communication pathway  40  with the person residing in the home  12 . The communication pathway  40  may be through a wired or wireless telephone line, the Internet browser (i.e., e-mail or other Internet-sponsored communication tool), cable, PDA, pager, or personal, such as a visit by the caregiver  38  or another suitable person.  
      Next, with specific reference to  FIG. 2 , will be described a method of remote monitoring of a person within the home  12 . At Step  100 , sensors  14  are provided and distributed throughout the home  12 . The arrangement of the sensors  14  throughout the home  12  depends upon the configuration of the house and the areas where activity/motion are more likely to occur and in which the collected data provides a more meaningful accounting of activity. Further, the arrangement of the sensors  14  may be impacted by the cost of the sensors  14  as well as the issue of privacy.  
      Next, at Step  105 , data is collected from the sensors  14 . The collection of the data may be accomplished through the wireless communication of the data from the activity sensors  14  to the communications relay panel  18  via the data signal  20 . The communications relay panel  18  collects the data and holds it until communicated to the remote monitoring center  22  at Step  115 . The amount of time the data is held by the communications relay panel  18  depends upon the communication platform  21 . If the communication platform  21  between the communications relay panel  18  and the remote monitoring center  22  is wireless (wireless telephone, two-way pager, PDA, Internet browser, cable, etc.), the transmission of the data signals  20  is in near real-time. It should be appreciated that a communications relay panel  18  may not be necessary with a wireless communication platform  21 , and the sensors  14  may instead be in direct communication with the remote monitoring center  22  through the wireless communication platform  21 .  
      If, on the other hand, the communication platform  21  is a wired telephone, the data signals  20  are first buffered at optional Step  110 . The buffering Step  110  is for culling through the data signals  20  to ascertain whether any of the signals  20  indicates an important transition between activity and inactivity for either the entire system or a subset of the system. Upon such indication, the data signals  20  (or some subset of them) are then communicated to the remote monitoring center  22 . As noted above, the communication of the data to the remote monitoring center  22  may be through any suitable communication platform  21 , such as, for example, wired telephone, wireless telephone, two-way walkie-talkie, pager, cable, PDA, or the Internet browser. The data is collected at the database  24  of the remote monitoring center  22  and is kept in a way that allows for quick preparation of status reports by the status report generator  28  upon request by the caregiver  38 .  
      After the communication Step  115 , at Step  120  a report is provided to the caregiver  38  reporting an event. As noted above, the event is selected by the caregiver  38 , which ensures that its occurrence is of high concern to the caregiver  38 . The report is generated by the event detector  26  and communicated to the caregiver  38  through any suitable communication medium, such as, for example, wired or wireless telephone, pager, two way walkie-talkie, facsimile, cable, e-mail, or other Internet-supported communication media, such as through a pop-up announcement format.  
      With specific reference to  FIG. 3 , next will be described a method for communicating to the caregiver  38  via wired telephone in near real-time to the occurrence of an event. As noted above, current in-home monitoring systems generally report out data collected from sensors to a remote processing center at a fixed interval over a phone line. One disadvantage of this is the inconvenience, to the home resident and to those calling in, of the phone line being in use. Another disadvantage is that data that is collected may not be reported for a substantial period of time, such as an hour or longer. As noted above, utilizing a communication platform  21  other than wired telephony, such as wireless telephone, cable, two-way walkie-talkie, pager, or the Internet browser obviates one disadvantage to communicating via wired telephony. By utilizing a communication platform  21  not linked to the wired telephony infrastructure, data can be more freely transmitted to the remote monitoring center  22  at a lower cost. Thus, more frequent communication of the data signal  20  may occur, thereby minimizing the amount of time between the acquisition of data from the sensors  14  and the communication of the data signals  20 .  
      Nonetheless,  FIG. 3  provides a methodology for utilizing a wired telephony communication platform  21  for communicating data signals  20  in near real-time to the occurrence of an event. This methodology utilizes a buffering technique (Step  110  in  FIG. 2 ) to cull through the totality of the data stored in the communications relay panel  18  to ascertain whether any of that data indicates the occurrence of an event, such as a state transition. At logic node  201 , an inquiry is made in the communications relay panel  18  whether the data currently residing therein indicates whether important motion in a particular area within the home  12  has stopped. Important motion would include such motion that, if one knew it had stopped, would cause an alarm. If the answer to that inquiry is yes (meaning a state transition has occurred), at Step  206  the communications relay panel  18  uses the wired telephony communication platform  21  to transmit at least that data evidencing the state transition (if not all or some larger subset of the data stored in the communications relay panel  18 ) to the remote monitoring center  22 . The programmable event detector  26  reports the event, namely the ceasing of activity in that particular area, to the caregiver  38 . Optionally, the event detector  26  can wait an N period of time to allow the collection and communication of more data to ascertain whether activity in that particular area has resumed. The period of time for waiting N may be any suitable time, such as, for example, fifteen minutes. Further, the period of time for waiting can be tailored to the portion of the home experiencing the movement just prior to movement ceasing. At Step  219  the monitoring system  10  cedes the wired telephone line if the resident engages the telephone line.  
      If instead the answer to the inquiry is no, then at logic node  211 , an inquiry is made whether the data collected at the communications relay panel  18  indicates that important motion has started up after having stopped for an X period of time. If the answer to the inquiry is yes (state transition), then the data indicating the state transition (or some larger subset of data) is communicated to the remote monitoring center  22  and a report is generated by the event detector  26  and reported to the caregiver  38  at Step  206 . If the answer to the inquiry is no, then a further inquiry is made.  
      At logic node  216 , an inquiry is made whether the data indicates that a hazard or security sensor, such as, for example, a temperature, fire, or smoke alarm or a panic button, has been tripped in the home  12 . If the answer is yes (state transition), again the data indicating the state transition (or some larger subset of data) is communicated to the remote monitoring center  22  and a report is generated by the event detector  26  and reported to the caregiver  38  at Step  206 . If the answer is no, then the communications relay panel  18  returns to the logic node  201  and awaits the latest update of data to recommence the sequence of inquiries.  
      It should be appreciated that the inquiries in the logic nodes  201 ,  211 , and  216  are exemplary and are not intended to be exhaustive of the type of inquiries that can be made, nor are they exhaustive of the ordering/structure of the series of logic nodes. Alternatively, there may be multiple checks and interdependencies among the logic nodes  201 ,  211 ,  216 . For example, an inquiry can be made as to whether activity has started in a particular location, such as a bathroom or a kitchen, and has stopped within a pre-determined period of time. One possible inquiry could be whether water is detected filling a bathtub, and the length of time the water has been running. Another possible inquiry could be whether a stove has been engaged and for how long it has been running. It should also be appreciated that the period of time for waiting before generating an event report may be tailored depending upon the location of the activity sensor  14  collecting data on the activity. For example, sensors in the kitchen may be set for a longer waiting period of time, such as twelve hours, before a report is generated.  
      One particular concern of caregivers  38  is the long-term change in a resident&#39;s mobility. Speed of movement is a good predictor of changes in health. Oftentimes, long-term changes in activity are difficult to quantify or verify through continuous observation. As will be described next with specific reference to  FIG. 4 , the long-term mobility of a resident of a home  12  can be quantified through the system  10 .  
      At Step  100 , activity sensors  14  are provided and distributed through the home  12 . The sensors  14  are used to collect data at Step  105 . The data so collected is communicated to the database  24  at the remote monitoring center  22  at Step  110 . Then, at Step  315 , the data stored in the database  24  is searched by a search mechanism  25  ( FIG. 1 ) for patterns in activity. The more useful patterns are those that occur several times a week, such as, for example, data collected from the sensors  14  that indicates activity in the kitchen at mealtime or activity in the bedroom at or near bedtime. Pattern matching algorithms are used to find common patterns that occur on most days.  
      Then, at Step  320 , the completion time for each activity is inferred and studied. The studying may be accomplished through any number of known algorithmic methods. For example, the longest period of time to finish an activity may be mapped over a predetermined time period, such as two months, to develop the change in time over that time period it takes the resident to perform that activity. Alternatively, all the periods of time necessary to finish an activity may be mapped over a predetermined time period. The outlier data, the data existing at the boundaries (such as, for example, 25 percent of the data representing the longest and shortest time periods) may be thrown out and the remaining data used to develop the change in time over that time period it takes the resident to perform that activity.  
      Finally, at Step  325 , the caregiver  38  receives a report on the long-term changes in time it takes the resident to accomplish certain inferred and studied activities. Providing caregivers  38  a report at an earlier timeframe indicating a quantifiable change in mobility of the resident of the home  12  may lead to increased awareness of a change in condition. For example, a change in mobility may be traced to a change in medication, or it may be traced to a change in mood of the resident. Earlier detection of a change in mobility can lead to earlier diagnosis of the cause behind the change in mobility, and hence, can lead to earlier treatment of the conditions causing the change in mobility. It should be appreciated that multiple patterns may be concurrently studied in the home  12 , thereby ensuring robustness for the studying. For example, if long-term changes seem to indicate an increase in the amount of time to accomplish one task and a decrease in the amount of time needed for another task, there may be factors at work other than mobility. On the other hand, if data seems to indicate long-term increases in time to accomplish numerous tasks, then that seems to confirm that the resident&#39;s mobility has decreased.  
      Changes in sleep patterns, like changes in mobility patterns, can signal a medical problem. For example, a change in sleep patterns may be an indicator of depression, or it may be an indicator that a medication needs to be changed or that a recent change in medication is affecting the resident&#39;s sleep patterns.  FIG. 5  illustrates an exemplary method for chronicling the sleep patterns of a resident of the home  12  to ascertain whether any particular sleep pattern is normal or abnormal.  FIG. 6  illustrates one exemplary embodiment for analyzing sleep patterns utilizing a hidden Markov modeling technique.  
      As shown in  FIG. 5 , the method begins with a training period at Step  400 . The training period Step  400  is used to obtain baseline sleep pattern data on the resident of the home  12 . The length of the training period should be sufficient to provide baseline sleep pattern data for all the resident&#39;s sleep patterns. Sleep patterns are determined by the amount of sleep, the location of the sleep, and the frequency and duration of any interruptions to sleep. These factors, as well as the day of the week (weekend versus weekday, for example) often lead to multiple sleep patterns per resident. The length of the training period may be as short as seven days or as long as one month or longer.  
      Once the baseline sleep pattern data has been obtained, data is collected on the resident in the home  12  to facilitate monitoring of the resident&#39;s sleep patterns at Step  405 . Finally, at Step  410 , the sleep pattern data is analyzed to ascertain whether the data supports a conclusion that the resident&#39;s most recent sleep pattern is normal or abnormal with reference to the baseline sleep pattern data. If the data supports a conclusion that the most recent sleep pattern is abnormal, a report may be generated and communicated to the caregiver  38  via communication media described above. Alternatively, a further analysis step may be performed to ascertain whether the abnormality of the most recent sleep pattern is sufficiently abnormal to warrant a report to the caregiver  38 . Whether a sleep pattern is considered sufficiently abnormal may be determined by a predetermined set of rules, feedback from the caregiver (which may assist in retraining the home), or a combination of the two.  
      One exemplary method for analyzing sleep pattern data is through a hidden Markov modeling technique, which is described with reference to  FIG. 6 . A Markovian property is that given the present state, the next state to occur is independent of all previous states. This leads to the inference that the transition between specific states is probabilistic, and therefore can be modeled. A hidden Markov modeling technique is a technique for modeling a symbolic sequence. It is a probabilistic pattern matching approach that models a sequence of patterns as the output of a random process.  
      As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , there are four states possible that relate to a resident&#39;s sleep patterns, namely the bedroom  415 , in sleep  420 , interrupted sleep  425 , and awake  430 . The transitions between the states  415 ,  420 ,  425 ,  430  are noted, and these state transitions are identified and compared to the baseline sleep pattern data obtained at Step  400 . The in sleep state  420  is a quiet period during a period of time in which sleep would be expected. The term “quiet” is a period where no activity happens in the home  12  for more than 15 minutes. The location before the in sleep state  420  is inferred is marked as the bedroom state  415 . Any activity that happens after the in sleep state  420  is marked as either an interrupt state  425  or an awake state  430 . The difference between the interrupt and awake states  425 ,  430  is that the awake state is an interrupt state that has lasted for more than 30 minutes.  
      With reference to  FIGS. 5, 6 , data is taken from the activity sensors  14  for a training period of time to set up a database of baseline sleep pattern data at Step  400 . The sleep pattern data may automatically separate into similar sleep patterns. After sufficient baseline sleep pattern data has been obtained, various patterns of sleep will have been identified as being normal for a resident. Then, at Step  405 , the resident&#39;s sleep patterns are monitored. A hidden Markov modeling technique is utilized to analyze the sleep patterns at Step  410 . Transitions between the states are done in ten minute slices  435 . This methodology accounts for a number of transition slices. Thus, if a resident&#39;s in sleep state  420  lasts for four hours, then the count of transition from in sleep state to in sleep state will be a count of twenty-four. The baseline sleep pattern data is used to predict whether the resident&#39;s most recent sleep pattern belongs to a previously identified sleep pattern, and therefore is normal, or whether it does not belong to any previously identified sleep pattern, and therefore is abnormal for that resident. If the resident&#39;s sleep pattern is determined to be abnormal, a report is generated identifying a deviation in the resident&#39;s sleep pattern.  
      Another indicator that there may be a problem with a resident of the home  12  is a failure to wake up at a time normal to the resident. Caregivers  38  often worry that a resident may be ill or incapacitated in bed, unable to contact anyone for help, and remaining incapacitated for a lengthy period of time before anyone realizes the problem. As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the system  10  may be used to model wake-up behavior and report to the caregiver  38  when any wake-up time is outside the acceptable limits.  
      At Step  100 , the sensors  14  are provided to and distributed throughout the home  12 . For a period of time, the bedtime and wake-up times of the resident are recorded at Step  450 . By inferring bedtime and wake-up times over a period of time, more accurate data can be compiled pertaining to the normal length of the sleeping period of the resident. This data is used to ascertain sleep patterns. One approach is to utilize the hidden Markov model technique described above with reference to  FIG. 5 . An alternative approach is to look for lengthy periods of quiet in the home  12 , such as six to eight hours. Alternatively, the data can be searched to ascertain the latest wake-up time for a period of time, such as the last 60 days, and a report can be generated if the wake-up time exceeds that period of time by a certain amount, such as by one hour.  
      When the resident wakes up at a normal time, meaning within the predetermined limits based upon the analyzed historical sleep pattern data, at Step  455  an undated status report is generated and sent to the caregiver  38  in near real-time reporting the normal wake-up time. If, on the other hand, there is no wake up identified by the end of the predetermined limit, the caregiver  38  may be contacted at Step  460 . Any suitable method for contacting the caregiver  38  may be used, such as, for example, wired or wireless telephone, pager, two way walkie-talkie, facsimile, cable, e-mail, or other Internet-supported communication media, such as through a pop-up announcement format.  
      While the invention has been described in detail in connection with only a limited number of embodiments, it should be readily understood that the invention is not limited to such disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to incorporate any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or equivalent arrangements not heretofore described, but which are commensurate with the spirit and scope of the invention. Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been described, it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may include only some of the described embodiments. Accordingly, the invention is not to be seen as limited by the foregoing description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims.