Abstract:
A system for detection of intrusions and reporting those intrusions, including a plurality of sensors, the plurality of sensors providing a corresponding plurality of detection outputs to a remote controller, the remote controller operative to receive at least one of the plurality of detection outputs and to provide a high speed output indication of intrusion presence.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present patent application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/878,778, which was filed Jan. 4, 2007. The full disclosure of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/878,778 is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to intrusion detection and warning. More particularly, the present invention relates to a network-based intrusion warning and reporting system and method. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Security systems are typically deployed in homes and commercial buildings to prevent theft, damage, and injury to persons within the buildings. These systems typically include various alarm components which communicate to a central controller. Once one of these alarm components, such as a sensor, detects an intrusion, a transmitter associated with the sensor transmits signals to the central controller. The central controller then alerts a user that an intrusion has occurred. The central controller may alert a user of an intrusion via the user&#39;s cell phone. The central controller traditionally alerts a user by either a vibration, a repeating noise, or a simple visual, such as a flashing light. 
         [0004]    However, the surveillance networks currently available do not provide the information desired for applications such as a hostile military environment. In a military application, it is not sufficient to merely be alerted of an intrusion into an area under surveillance, a user also needs to know location information of the intrusion. With location information, the intruder can be properly tracked and caught, if necessary. This location information is desirable and beneficial for other applications as well, such as home security, industrial security, and the protection of penitentiaries. 
         [0005]    It is highly desirable to provide a new and improved network for providing remote supervision of intrusions. It is thus highly desirable to provide a new and improved communication network between a plurality of sensors at different locations and a controller, where the network utilizes a plurality of sensory displays, signals and prompts to supervise and report intrusions and intrusion information at spaced remote locations. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0006]    The present invention overcomes many of the disadvantages of the prior art by providing an intrusion warning and reporting network designed to detect intrusions in the area, to inform users monitoring the area when an intrusion has occurred, and to inform the users of the location of the intrusion. 
         [0007]    The intrusion detection and reporting network includes one or more sensors and a remote controller. A user will associate the sensors with the controller to form a radio network. The user will place the sensors, before being associated with the controller, in areas where intrusion detection is desired. 
         [0008]    When a sensor detects an intrusion, an appropriate signal is transmitted to the controller via the radio network. A display associated with the controller allows the user to view details concerning the intrusion. These details may include information regarding the time and location of the intrusion, and they may be communicated visually, aurally, and/or haptically. 
         [0009]    The display may be an interactive display, where the user can select screen options from an initial screen. The screen options may be, for example, an alert screen, an add sensor screen, a command screen, or a network status screen. The alert screen may show information regarding the last alert and allow the user to further select an image screen to view images of an intrusion. The add sensor screen allows the user to add more sensors to the network. The command screen allows the user to change the status of a sensor; a sensor could be set to a number of different modes. For example, the sensor could be either active or inactive, depending on whether the particular area within which the sensor is placed requires surveillance. A network status screen may provide the user with information regarding the mode set for each sensor, the amount of battery remaining in each sensor, as well as the type of sensor. If the sensor is, or includes, an imaging sensor, recorded visual images may be transmitted to and shown on the display. In addition, the controller may inform the user of an intrusion with any one of numerous types of annunciators, such as a vibration annunciator. 
         [0010]    The controller may be housed within a computer, such as a laptop or desktop computer. The controller may also be housed within a personal digital assistant, or a wrist-mountable device. 
         [0011]    The intrusion detection and reporting network may have many practical applications. For example, the intrusion detection and reporting network can be applied to military, home, industrial, corporate, neighborhood, or penitentiary use. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]    Various embodiments are described herein with reference to the following drawings. Certain aspects of the drawings are depicted in a simplified way for reason of clarity. Not all alternatives and options are shown in the drawings and, therefore, the invention is not limited in scope to the content of the drawings. In the drawings: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram of an intrusion detection and reporting system according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  depicts an embodiment of a wrist-mountable controller; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  depicts an embodiment of  FIG. 1  wherein sensors of the intrusion detection and reporting system are planted in series; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  depicts various functions that may be implemented by a controller in the system of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  depicts various user interface screens that may be displayed on a display screen of the controller of  FIG. 4 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0018]      FIG. 1  depicts a functional block diagram of an intrusion warning and reporting network  10  according to one embodiment of the system. Intrusion warning and reporting network  10  includes one or more sensors  12  and a controller  14 . Each of the one or more sensors  12  is equipped with a sensor radio  16 . Controller  14  is equipped with a controller radio  18 . Each sensor of the one or more sensors  12  is placed within a monitor area  20  and communicates with controller  14  via a radio network  22 . Controller  14  may comprise a display  24 . 
         [0019]    In operation, a user will associate the one or more sensors  12  with controller  14  to form radio network  22 . The user will place the sensors, either before or after being associated with controller  14 , in areas where intrusion detection is desired. Each area where intrusion detection is desired, i.e. monitor area  20 , is surveilled by a sensor of the one or more sensors  12 . The sensors of the one or more sensors  12  will preferably be disposed within communication range of controller  14 . When one of the one or more sensors  12  detects an intrusion, that sensor transmits an appropriate signal to controller  14  via radio network  22 . Controller  14 , in turn, informs a user visually (via display  24 ), aurally, and/or haptically of the intrusion. 
         [0020]    Display  24  may show details about the intrusion including information regarding the time of the intrusion. Display  24  may also show information regarding the location of the intrusion. For example, details regarding the location of the intrusion may include geographic coordinates. If monitor area  20  is a building, display  24  may show details regarding location that include the building layout, and may further show the specific location of the intrusion within the building layout. Alternatively, if monitor area  20  is an outdoor area, the location information details may include a layout of the outdoor area, and further display the specific location of the intrusion within the specified outdoor area. The location details may include a map display, wherein the location of the intrusion is highlighted on the map display. If the sensor is, or includes, an imaging sensor, recorded visual images may also be transmitted to and shown on display  24 . 
         [0021]    Radio network  22  may be configured from short-haul radios within each sensor of one or more sensors  12  and controller  14  to form a short-haul communications network. If radio network  22  is a short-haul communications network, it may operate within a range up to approximately 100 meters. As an example, radio network  22  may be a Zig Bee short-haul radio network. However, radio network  22  is not limited to a short-haul network and may comprise a long-haul network. Radio network  22  may also be a short-haul network that is in communication with a long-haul network, allowing for information regarding an intrusion to be sent from controller  14  to a remote monitoring location. 
         [0022]    Radio network  22  may also be an ad-hoc network. The ad-hoc network has a flexible architecture to accommodate different types of sensors and to allow for the communication of varying quantities of sensors with controller  14 . 
         [0023]    Controller  14  may be implemented in accordance with any one of numerous configurations. In one embodiment, controller  14  may be housed within a computer, such as a laptop or a desktop computer. Alternatively, controller  14  may be a handheld computer, such as a personal digital assistant (“PDA”). Controller  14  may be a ruggedized PDA, (“RPDA”) which comprises a hardened case for rugged and dangerous environments. Controller  14  may be a wearable, wrist-mounted controller. In this embodiment, a user simply attaches controller  14  to his or her wrist with straps  26 , as shown in  FIG. 2 . The user may then view information regarding an intrusion via wrist-mounted controller display  28 . 
         [0024]    In addition to providing location information, controller  14  may vibrate to alert a user of an intrusion. In this embodiment, a vibration annunciator may be included and the controller may turn on the vibration annunciator to further alert a user that an intrusion has occurred. 
         [0025]    The one or more sensors  12  may be infrared motion sensors. Infrared motion sensors detect the movement of the body of a human being or animal by detecting a change of emitted infrared energy from the human or animal. Alternatively, the one or more sensors  12  may be a number of other sensors currently known in the art. Each sensor of the one or more sensors  12  may be further configured to create a noise if an intrusion is detected. A situation in which an alerting noise emanating from a sensor may be desired might be to warn an intruder of a dangerous area, such as if an intruder enters a radioactive zone, for example. 
         [0026]    The one or more sensors  12  may be planted in series, as shown in  FIG. 3 . In this embodiment, a first sensor  30  is linked in communication with a second sensor  32 . Second sensor  32  is linked in communication with a third sensor  34 . Although  FIG. 3  shows only three sensors, many other number configurations of sensors may be used. First sensor  30  communicates over first radio network  52  with second sensor  32 . Second sensor  32  communicates over second radio network  54  with third sensor  34 , and third sensor  34  communicates over radio network  56  with controller  14 . If first sensor  30  detects an intrusion, first sensor  30  may send a signal to second sensor  32 , which sends the signal to third sensor  34 , and third sensor  34  sends the signal to controller  14 . Thus in this embodiment, controller  14  can be up to 300 m away from first sensor  30  yet can still monitor the area surrounding first sensor  30 . By setting up these sensors in series, the sensors may communicate with controller  14  over a larger area than any single sensor could reach. 
         [0027]      FIG. 4  depicts various functions that may be implemented by controller  14  in the system of  FIG. 1 . Display  24  may show a control and display screen  36 . Control and display screen  36  may show a plurality of screen options  38 . Although four screen options are depicted in  FIG. 4 , control and display screen  36  is not limited to four screen options, and a number of other screen options may be present. A user may select one of the plurality of screen options  38  from control and display screen  36 . The plurality of screen options  38  shown in  FIG. 4  are an alerts screen  38   a , an add sensor screen  38   b , a command screen  38   c , and a network status screen  38   d . Although only these particular screen options are shown, the display is not limited to these specific options and other options may be included or substituted. 
         [0028]    Once a user selects a screen option, a user interface screen  40  will appear on display  24 .  FIG. 5  depicts various exemplary user interface screens  40  that may be displayed on display  24  of controller  14  of  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 5  shows an add sensor screen  40   a , an alerts screen  40   b , a command screen  40   c , a network status screen  40   d , and an image screen  40   e . As previously described, add sensor screen  40   a , alerts screen  40   b , command screen  40   c , and network status screen  40   d  may be selected from control and display screen  36 . Image screen  40   e  may be selected from alerts screen  40   b . Alternatively, image screen  40   e  may be selected from a different 
         [0029]    Alerts screen  40   b  may show information regarding the last intrusion alert and allow a user to further select image screen  40   e  to view still images or either a recorded or streaming video of an intrusion. Alerts screen  40   b  may also show or provide access to any of the location information of an intrusion previously discussed. 
         [0030]    Add sensor screen  40   a  allows a user to add more sensors to the network. 
         [0031]    Command screen  40   c  allows a user to change the status of a sensor; a sensor could be set to a number of different modes. For example, the sensor could be either active or inactive, depending on whether that particular area within which the sensor is placed requires surveillance. 
         [0032]    Network status screen  40   d  may provide a user with information regarding the mode set for each sensor, amount of battery remaining in each sensor, as well as the type of sensor. 
         [0033]    Although the invention has been described in detail with particular reference to a preferred embodiment, other embodiments can achieve the same results. Variations and modifications of the present invention will be obvious to those skilled in the art and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such modifications and equivalents. The entire disclosures of all references, applications, patents, and publications cited above, are hereby incorporated by reference.