Patent Abstract:
The present invention provides a wearable mobile device that receives hazardous condition threat messages from a hazardous condition detection system. The device includes a receiver that receives the warning transmissions generates a physical sensation to alert a user of the warning. The device further includes a display that can provide the user with helpful information relating to the warning. Priority logic prioritizes the received threat messages for display and notification based on their urgency. A user input is further included to enable the user to input control functions to the device. A transmitter allows the device to transmit signals to the hazardous condition detection system.

Full Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates generally to devices, systems, and methods for providing warnings of detected hazards, and, more particularly, to a wearable mobile device that alerts a user of the detected hazard.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Most home or commercial structures are commonly installed with an alarm system that is intended to protect occupants from harm. As is well known in the art, these conventional alarm systems are adapted to send audible warnings to alert the occupants of various local hazards detected within the environment. These local hazards may include harmful elements, such as intruders, smoke, fire, and/or carbon monoxide poisoning. Other alarm systems may provide alerts for more regional hazards, e.g. weather alerts for particular counties, etc. When the alarm system detects the hazard, it typically sounds an audible alarm that is meant to draw the occupants&#39; attention to the existence of the hazard so that appropriate action may be taken by the occupants to avoid harm.  
         [0003]     One problem with such conventional alarm systems is that some occupants may not hear the audible alarm because of a health condition, because they are sleeping, because they are located a distance from the detector that is sounding the alarm, etc. In fact, many people are injured in home fires, tornados, etc. because they slept through the standard alarm warnings. While various alerting devices are used to overcome these problems, each suffers from problems which limit their effectiveness. For example, some alerting devices directed to the hearing impaired uses bright flashing white xenon strobe lights in addition to an audible warning to alert people of the detected hazard. However, the flashing lights may not be seen or may not be enough of a distraction to wake a person from deep sleep. Another prior alerting system utilizes a vibrating pad that is placed under the pillow. However, this method is also inadequate because the occupant may not be sleeping on the pillow when the hazard is detected because the pillow or the pad may have moved or fallen on the floor, or because the occupant is simply not sleeping with his or her head on the pillow. Further, depending on the thickness and material of the pillow, the vibrations may be dampened sufficiently so that the occupant does not feel them.  
         [0004]     Another problem with current hazard detecting and alerting systems is that the occupants do not have or may not have access to any information of the location or type of the detected local hazard. While centralized systems may include a central terminal on which such information may be displayed, this is little help for the occupant who is not in proximity to such central terminal. As a result, the occupant may actually move toward the direction of the local hazard instead of trying to get away from the hazard, or may take action that is inappropriate for one type of hazard because they mistake the alarm for another hazard.  
         [0005]     There exists, therefore, a need in the art for a new and improved alarm system that can interface with hazard detecting and alarming systems, and that can alert an occupant of a detected hazardous condition despite the occupants&#39; sleeping pattern and/or health conditions. Further, there exists a need for such an alarm system that may provide the occupants with helpful information during this critical situation.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved alarm system that can address these and other shortcomings of the prior systems and methods. More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved mobile alerting device that may be worn by an individual. Still further, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved mobile alerting device that is capable of receiving hazard warnings and alerting the wearer of the warning in such a manner so as to overcome the above described and/or other problems existing in the art.  
         [0007]     In one embodiment of the present invention, a wearable mobile device includes a receiver that receives a warning transmission from a hazardous condition detection system. This transmission may take various forms, including radio frequency (RF), infrared (IR), auditory, etc., and may take the form of a proprietary protocol, e.g. a wireless smoke detector system, or public frequency, e.g. weather radio band. Information regarding the type of hazard warning and/or instructions for the wearer is displayed to the user using a display on the device. Preferably, responsive to the transmission a vibrator, electrical circuit, thermal circuit, etc. provides a physical sensation to the wearer, in addition to or as an alternative to an audible alarm. Such stimuli may be sequenced, repetitive, variable in intensity, etc. so as to maximize the probability of alerting the wearer. In this way, the wearer may be alerted of the received transmission and detected hazard, even if the wearer is asleep when the hazard is detected.  
         [0008]     In a further embodiment of the present invention, the device includes a user interface that enables the user to set/access various control and alerting functions. In a preferred embodiment, these functions may include general pager functions, text messaging, silent ring alerts, security alerts, and all standard wrist watch functions. Through the inclusion of a wireless transmitter, the user may also send control signals to the hazard detection and alerting system to query for information, enable hush and locate control functions, etc.  
         [0009]     In another embodiment of the invention, the wearable mobile device is integrated into an alarm system that includes a hazard detector to detect hazardous conditions within an environment. The hazardous condition detector sends a warning transmission responsive to the hazardous condition detected. A control panel receives the transmission and appropriately sends out instructions responsive to the transmission. In response to the instructions from the control panel, an alarm is sounded within the environment to alert occupants of the warning. Also in addition to the transmission from the control panel, the wearable mobile device sends a physical sensation to a user wearing the device.  
         [0010]     In yet another embodiment of the present invention, a method for providing hazard warnings is provided that includes the steps of receiving a warning transmission, displaying a message related to the warning transmission to a user, and sending a physical sensation to alert the user of the received warning transmission, wherein the physical sensation is of a sufficient magnitude to wake the user from sleep. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]     The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate several aspects of the present invention, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a simplified illustration of a home environment containing a local hazard warning system in which the system of the instant invention is installed;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is an illustration of the user wearing the wearable mobile device shown in  FIG. 1  being awoken from sleep;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is an illustration of one embodiment of the wearable mobile device used in the present invention;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is an illustration of exemplary display screen of the wearable mobile device according to one embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is an illustration of an additional exemplary display screen of the wearable mobile device according to one embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is a flow chart illustrating a method for alerting the user implemented in the wearable mobile device according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
       [0018]     While the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, there is no intent to limit it to those embodiments. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0019]      FIG. 1  illustrates a simplified home environment  100  into which the system of the present invention finds particular applicability. However, one skilled in the art will recognize that the system of the present invention is not limited to a home environment, but may also be installed in a commercial environment, etc. Further, while the environment illustrated in  FIG. 1  utilizes a centralized detection and alerting system having separate detectors and alarm units, one skilled in the art will recognize from the following description that the present invention is applicable to other environments that include stand alone detector and alarming units, such as stand alone smoke detectors, etc. that can transmit a hazardous condition detected signal in addition to sounding an audible alarm.  
         [0020]     The home environment  100  of  FIG. 1  has installed therein a centralized alarm system that is intended to alert the occupants of a hazardous condition to protect the occupants from harm. The alarm system includes multiple local hazard detectors  102   a ,  102   b ,  102   c , and  102   d  throughout the home environment  100  for detecting local hazardous conditions at different designated locations. Specifically, as shown, the detector  102   a  is found in an attic location  104 , and detector  102   b  is placed on the second floor  106  where an occupant  108  is shown to be sleeping. The remaining detectors  102   c  and  102   d  are found respectively in a first floor  10  and a basement  112 . This exemplary centralized system also includes at least one alarm unit  116  for alerting the occupants of the house of the detected hazardous condition. This operation is controlled from a central control unit  114 . This central control unit  114  is preferably in wireless contact with the detectors and alarm units, although it may utilize wired connections. In either case, the central control unit  114  includes wireless transmission capability.  
         [0021]     In the present invention, local hazards refer to any type of hazardous condition that may harm either the occupants or structure within the environment. In particular, local hazards may include a variety of harmful elements, such as intrusion, fire, smoke, carbon monoxide gas, gas poisoning, and flammable vapor, but these examples of local hazards are not exclusive. Other harmful elements are contemplated, and they are within the scope of the present invention. Moreover, the proximity of the local hazards can be customized according to the various environments and needs of the implementation. It can be as simple as the home environment  100  shown in  FIG. 1 , as widely dispersed as a county or region, or as complex as a campus having multiple structures. Again, these various alternative embodiments of different dwelling, commercial, and geographic areas are within the scope of the present invention.  
         [0022]     To illustrate the functionality of the present invention,  FIG. 1  shows detector  102   d  detecting a local hazard, such as carbon monoxide, in the basement location  112 . In response to the local hazard detected, the detector  102   d  sends a warning message to the control panel  114 . In turn, the control panel  114  directly or indirectly sends instructions to an alarm  116  that sounds an audible warning  118  within the home environment  100 . The control panel  114  may also contact the proper authorities or a corporate based dispatch and monitoring center. However, the audible warning  118  from the first floor location  110  of the alarm unit  116  may not be effective in waking up the occupant  108  from sleep in time to take appropriate action for the detected hazard.  
         [0023]     In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the control panel  114  sends a transmission  120 , preferably a wireless transmission, to a wearable mobile device  200 . Alternatively, and to allow for greater applicability of the mobile device  200  of the present invention, this device  200  may simply receive a wireless signal transmission to the alarm  116  from the controller  114 , without requiring a separate signal transmission. Control logic within the device  200  will decode the wireless transmission to determine the type of threat detected. Based on this information, the mobile device  200  of the present invention provides an appropriate or programmed alert, which may include a physical, audible, etc. alarm and information displayed on the device&#39;s screen as will be discussed more fully below.  
         [0024]     As discussed above, the device  200  of the present invention may also receive transmissions from stand alone hazardous condition detectors that include wireless transmission capability. The control logic within the device  200  decodes the information in the transmission and provided the appropriate or programmed response. By appropriate response it is meant that the device  200  provides, e.g., a carbon monoxide warning when a carbon monoxide condition is sensed by a detector, a smoke warning when a smoke condition is detected by a detector, etc. By programmed response it is meant that the device  200  provides the ability for the user to select the type of alarm, e.g. audible, physical, etc., that will be provided when a detected hazard is signaled, as will be described more fully below.  
         [0025]     Although  FIG. 1  shows the local hazard detector  102   b  of the alarm system triggering the device  200 , the present invention contemplates other transmissions that would also trigger the device. In one embodiment, the wearable mobile device  200  is adapted to receive open standard public hazard warnings broadcasts by The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio or the Emergency Alert System, including in one embodiment Amber Alerts. In another embodiment, the device  200  can be implemented on a radio frequency network that is local in coverage, and the device can passively or actively monitor the network for transmission. In a further embodiment, the device  200  is designed to receive information coded in infrared light waves. In a still further embodiment of the present invention, the mobile device  200  may also receive and decode sound waves. Such decoding relies on the reception of sound waves from smoke and/or carbon monoxide detectors, etc. that broadcast audible warnings in compliance with the tone patterns dictated by the applicable industry standard. Such an embodiment provides operability in environments that have detectors that do not provide any wireless transmissions, but that comply with the standard audio patterns of tone and silence defined for all current smoke or carbon monoxide detectors.  
         [0026]     In response to the wireless transmission of the detected local hazard, depending on the source of the transmission, the wearable mobile device  200  worn by the occupant  108  sends a physical sensation  202  in order to wake up and alert the occupant  108  of the hazard warning. To distinguish different occupants in the home environment  100 , for clarity, an occupant who is wearing the device  200  will herein be referred to as a user.  
         [0027]     Turning next to  FIG. 2 , the user  108  is awoken by the physical sensation  202  from the wearable mobile device  200  at the second floor location  106  of the home environment  100 . The wearable mobile device  200  can send the physical sensation  202  of various magnitudes or a fixed magnitude. Importantly, the strength of the physical sensation should be sufficient to wake the user from sleep. As a result of the physical sensation  202 , the user  108  is awoken to the hazardous condition so that the user  108  may gather the family and escape the dangerous situation or take other appropriate action depending on the type of detected hazardous condition. Because the alarm system does not rely solely on an audible alarm, the wearable mobile device  200  is particularly useful for the handicapped. For example, the wearable mobile device  200  will be able to alert both deaf and blind people.  
         [0028]     As indicated above, the device  200  can provide other alerts, such as audible alerts including tone patterns and synthesized or recorded voice messages, flashing lights, illumination of the display, etc. Further, the physical sensation provided in the preferred embodiment can be a vibration, shock, temperature, or combination of any of these physical alerts. In another embodiment of the present invention, the device  200  provides its alerting according to the importance of the transmitted data to the device  200 . The varying levels of importance or priority can be retained in the device  200  as manufactured, or alternatively, the user can modify the priority or response to the transmission. In one example, a life threatening condition would activate the higher levels of alarm response, which may include loud sounds in appropriate frequency ranges, recorded voice messages, audible messages stating the nature of the hazard, and physical sensations emitted in multiple strengths, while a non-life threatening alert could be restricted to non-audible alarms or audible alarms that are only activated when the user is not asleep. Such determination may be made by the time of day, programmed by the user, or sensed by the device  200  based on user movement, etc.  
         [0029]     In one embodiment of the present invention, the wearable mobile device  200  is implemented as a wristwatch, such as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . It should be noted, however, that the device  200  can be implemented in numerous ways. The point is to provide a comfortable device that can be easily kept near or more preferably in contact with the body of the person wearing the device  200  to facilitate the alarm functions of the system. As a result, other embodiments, such as an armband or a clip, can also be used for the wearable mobile device  200 . However, the advantage of using the wristwatch  200  is that it can easily include all the normal functions of a typical wristwatch. In fact, there are currently wristwatches that provide Personal Digital Assistant functions such as alarms, pages, messages, appointments, and, news. Unfortunately, such systems do not provide any interface to hazardous condition detectors or other local warning or alerting systems.  
         [0030]     With the use of the device  200 , all alerts could be scaled back for the initial warning, meaning the alert on the device can get stronger as the alert continues, which would allow the user to avoid an undesirable alert. To ensure that a user does not simply ignore the alert, e.g. if the user is sleeping, it is preferable that the alert be repeated until a conscious, intelligent response can be obtained. Such a response may utilize any one of the user input buttons  204   a ,  204   b ,  204   c ,  204   d ,  204   e , and  204   f , a touch screen  210 , or soft keys on the device  200 . In this embodiment the wristwatch  200  includes a main watch body portion  206  and a wristband portion  208 . In this configuration the physical sensation  202  generated during an alert condition can be generated by the main watch body portion  206 , the wristband  208 , or both to ensure that the user feels the physical sensation. As described previously, the physical sensation  202  can include any contact that can alert the user of the hazard warning. Moreover, the device  200  may also include additional alerting mechanisms, such as a sounds or lights. The response and the intensity of these alerts on the device  200  can also be customized according to the transmission  120  received by the device, set by the user, or default settings as manufactured.  
         [0031]     The wearable mobile device  200  is preferably implemented with a display  210  for displaying messages included with the transmission or in response to the transmission. These displayed messages preferably provide users with helpful information relating to the transmission. The screen display  210  is preferably illuminated during such an alerting messaging condition to aid the user in reading the message.  
         [0032]     In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the device  200  contains active circuitry for conducting ongoing self-diagnostics for reporting malfunction of the device. The self-diagnostics may include a warning of typical malfunctions, such as low battery, failed diagnostic tests, out of range conditions, or any other faults that compromise the functioning of the device and the alarm system. Similarly, in systems where the control panel  114  shown in  FIG. 1  includes diagnostics of the alarm system, the control panel  114  may transmit a signal to the device  200  indicating any detected malfunctions for display on the device  200 . Thus, the possible transmissions received by the device  200  do not have to relate only to hazard warnings. They may include any malfunctions or status readings of the system. In this way, the user can keep track of the status and functioning of the hazardous condition detection and alerting system, and can take appropriate actions to correct any malfunctions found in the system. As a result, the user is given an up-to-date status of the system, whereas in a conventional alarm system, the user generally does not know something is wrong until the user is able to access the control panel.  
         [0033]     Aside from maintenance related messages, the display  210  is especially useful for life threatening messages. However, it is recognized that the device  200  may receive more than one message at a time. In one embodiment, therefore, all competing messages are prioritized such that the life threatening messages are preferably displayed in a font size and in an order that is readable and relays the importance of the message. Such messages take priority over other messages that are not as urgent. As these messages are acknowledged, the lower priority messages may then be displayed.  
         [0034]     Along with the basic alert warning, additional information or instructions that would be helpful can be included. For example, displaying the location and the type of hazard can assist the user to avoid walking towards the hazard or the exact location that needs to be addressed. The content of the messages could be preprogrammed with additional instructions edited as needed on the device or from the source of the network transmission. Additional information can also be extracted from the transmission and inserted when it is useful.  
         [0035]     In embodiments of the present invention particularly suited for children, a non-silenceable audible alarm could also be activated to assist a parent or rescue worker in locating the user in an emergency. A preferred embodiment of the device  200  includes a wrist strap latching mechanism that is difficult to remove without special tools. This would help keep the device with a person, such as a child, who may require searching to be located during an emergency.  
         [0036]     Two exemplary life-threatening messages are shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 . A smoke warning message to alert the user of a smoke hazard is shown in  FIG. 4 , and a carbon monoxide warning message to alert the user of a carbon monoxide hazard is shown in  FIG. 5 . In this embodiment, because a life-threatening warning message is being displayed, a 911 emergency service message is included to distinguish detected hazards that require assistance of the emergency services. In addition, as shown, the location of the detected hazard is indicated to the user. In this case, the user can avoid the basement as indicated in  FIG. 5 . These exemplary screens also include messages indicating an action that can be taken by the user. Specifically, the screen of  FIG. 4  includes a HUSH command and an OK command. These commands may be activated by selecting them on a touch screen, or by selecting a user input button associated therewith and located in proximity thereto. The OK function simply acknowledges the message. The HUSH function causes the device  200  to transmit a HUSH command to the smoke detector or the control panel  114  to institute a HUSH mode of operation. The INFO command illustrated in  FIG. 5  causes the device  200  to send a query message to request additional information about the detected condition or error.  
         [0037]     Other messages can also include the following type of information: (1) FIRE ALARM!! UPSTAIRS FIRE ALARM!! LEAVE THE BUILDING; (2) CARBON MONOXIDE ALARM FAMILY ROOM CO DETECTED OPEN WINDOWS MOVE TO FRESH AIR; (3) FLAMMABLE VAPOR DETECTED AT WATER HEATER CAUTION NO SPARKS; (4) HIGH TEMPERATURE 90 DEG. BABY&#39;S ROOM; (5) WATER ALARM BASEMENT; and (6) FREEZE WARNING GARAGE. These exemplary messages are included to show the type of messages that can be included with the present invention, and they should be taken as exemplary of the present invention, and not limiting thereof. Thus, other messages are contemplated and within the scope of the invention.  
         [0038]     Turning now to  FIG. 6 , a method for providing hazard warnings that can be implemented with an embodiment of the wearable mobile device  200  is shown and indicated generally at  300 . The process starts at step  302  when the device  200  receives a warning transmission at step  304 . In response to the received transmission, the warning is extracted from the transmission at step  306 . At this time, any additional helpful information relating to the warning is obtained at step  308 . A message that includes the warning and the obtained information is generated at step  310 . A physical sensation is sent from the device  200  to alert the user of the warning at step  312  if appropriate and/or programmed. The physical sensation is preferably of a magnitude or strength that would wake the user from sleep. In addition, at step  314 , an audible alarm is sent out to alert the user as a backup warning. The generated message is displayed to the user on the device at step  316 . The message may also be flashed to indicate the urgency of the message as indicated at step  318 .  
         [0039]     The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) is to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.  
         [0040]     Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

Technology Classification (CPC): 6