Patent Application
20220202225
The present disclosure relates to an apparatus with enhanced features, in particular, artificial trees and/or plants with natural scent and others.
During the Christmas season, people often use freshly cut pine trees for holiday decorative purposes, celebrating the seasonal occasion. Surrounding ourselves with nature can have a very positive effect on our wellbeing and productivity. Besides decorative use, it has been proven that pleasant scents from certain species of plants and trees, e.g., pine trees, can have a very positive emotional influence on people. Evergreen trees, such as pine trees, produce not only a pleasant smell but chemical compounds, such as flavonols and bioflavonoids, that have a variety of positive effects on human body.
Researchers have found that smelling pleasant fragrances can lift our moods, making us more amiable and even boosting productivity. According to some studies, it has been shown that taking a so called “forest bath” (e.g., taking a walk or hike in the forest) will reduce stress and anxiety, lowering risk for depression. Some choose to bring home pine branches or use pine fragrances in candles or oil diffusers for their scent. Cinnamon is another scent that can have a positive effect on cognitive tasks, enhancing memory and alertness. Many studies showed that cinnamon improved participants' scores on tasks related to attentional processes, virtual recognition memory, working memory, and visual motor response speed. Similar to cinnamon, the scent of peppermint has been shown to increase alertness, boost motivation and increase confidence, speed and energy. Peppermint essential oils also improve memory, concentration and clear thinking. Further, inhaling diffused lavender essential oil can stabilize a mood and help with depression and emotional stress, as well as help to relieve headaches and migraines.
A type of diffuser that may be used to release fragrance is the reed diffuser. This diffuser uses a reed, which has a porous structure that provides a controlled rate of fragrance release, as the fragrance is diffused along the entire length of the reed. Another type of diffuser includes the ultrasonic diffuser.
People love the smell of freshly cut trees in the air and the smell fills the people with a seasonal joy. As such, every year people freshly cut and use pine trees as Christmas trees, which requires growing and/or cutting trees for this purpose. After the season, people usually throw away or dispose of Christmas trees, which is not environmentally friendly. To mitigate this, there are artificial trees made of plastics or other materials, but these artificial trees do not come with scent. Many people miss the scent of the freshly-cut pine trees, whether it is because of preference or possible positive effects. Further, the artificial trees and/or plants are disposed in an environment to make the place more like a natural place, without offering any other features.
Thus, there is still a need for providing advanced means for replacing freshly-cut trees or plants with artificial trees or plants capable of producing scent and providing other enhanced features.
The present technology described herein provides an apparatus for providing one or more enhanced capabilities, for example, artificial trees or plants with various enhanced features such as natural scent, nature sounds, surveillance capability, etc.
In one embodiment of the present technology, an apparatus include a base, a main trunk body coupled to the base, a plurality of branches coupled to the main trunk body, and a plurality of scent component devices each coupled to the main trunk body or the plurality of branches. The plurality of scent component devices are disposed in receiving portions of the main trunk body or the plurality of branches.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the plurality of scent component devices may be configured to be removable and include electrical contact so that when the scent component devices are inserted into the receiving portions of the main trunk body or the plurality of branches they are electrically connected via the electrical contact.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, each of the plurality of scent component devices may comprise a body including a first portion and a second portion, where the body of the scent component device is configured to be inserted into the receiving portions of the main trunk body or the branches. Further, the first portion of the scent component device may be configured to include various components or electronics thereof, and the second portion of the scent component device may be configured to receive one or more scent modules including a scent material. When the scent component devices are inserted and activated, the scent component devices may be configured to produce or release a distinct scent from the scent material, diffusing the scent into an area where the apparatus is disposed.
In still another aspect of the present disclosure, each of the scent modules may include a cartridge form and the distinct scent may be a pine scent.
In still another aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus may be further configured to include one or more speakers coupled to the base or the main trunk body of the apparatus, where the one or more speakers may be configured to communicate with a remote device over a network.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, in the example above, the one or more speakers may be wireless speakers capable of communicating with the remote device using WiFi, Bluetooth, or other wireless communications technology.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus may be further configured to include a control unit coupled to the base of the apparatus, where the control unit is configured to manage and control operation of the scent component devices.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit of the apparatus may be further configured to include a machine learning unit for learning about the surrounding environment and automatically adjusting the operation of the scent component devices in response to change in the surrounding environment.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus may be further configured to include one or more security monitoring devices, which are configured to be controlled via a wireless connection.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, each scent component device may include a plurality of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) disposed in the first portion of the scent component device.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus may be configured to include one or more speakers coupled to the base for producing an audio output. The one or more speakers may be controlled by a user device over a wireless connection.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, turning on or off operation of the plurality of LEDs of the scent component devices may be coordinated with reproduction of the audio output by the one or more speakers.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the plurality of LEDs may include LEDs of different colors and are controlled by the user device over the wireless connection.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the one or more security monitoring devices may include one or more surveillance cameras.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the base of the apparatus may include a control device configured to control and manage the scent component devices for intelligent autonomous operation of the scent component devices, in response to a change in the surrounding environment.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the control device of the apparatus may be further configured to include a wireless communication module for communications with a remote device over wireless connections.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the one or more speakers may be further configured to reproduce a variety of nature sounds including bird chirping, waterfall, winds, or the like.
As such, the implementation of one or more aspects of the present technology may provide numerous benefits to people through provisioning artificial trees and/or plants with more enhanced features.
A more detailed understanding may be obtained from the following descriptions in conjunction with the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings.
The detailed description of illustrative examples will now be set forth below in connection with the various drawings. The description below is intended to be exemplary and in no way limit the scope of the claimed invention. It provides a detailed example of possible implementation(s) and is not intended to represent the only configuration in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. As such, the detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts, and it is noted that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring such concepts. It should be noted that like reference numerals are used in the drawings to denote like elements and features.
While the methodologies are described herein sometimes as a series of steps or acts, for the purpose of simplicity, it is to be understood that the claimed subject matter is not limited by the order of these steps or acts, as some steps or acts may occur in different orders and/or concurrently with other acts from that shown and described herein. Further, not all illustrated steps or acts may be required to implement various methodologies according to the present technology disclosed herein. Also, it should be appreciated that the apparatus and methods described herein may be utilized separately or in combination with other aspects of the present disclosure, or in combination with conventional technology, without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure.
Further, in another aspect of the present disclosure, the example may further include one or more speakers 253 that are coupled to the base 207. The one or more speakers 253 may be wired or wireless speakers that may be configured to communicate with the control unit 251 or a remote device (not shown) over a network.
In the example of
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit 251 may be configured to communicate with a remote device or a personal communication device, such as a mobile device for monitoring and/or control of various functions or features of the apparatus. In one implementation, a user application may be installed on a mobile device and may be used to control the scent component devices 215 for controlling and/or managing an amount of scent being produced, released, or diffused in a given area where the apparatus is disposed. The amount of scent produced, released, or diffused may be automatically adjusted based on a number of people present in the space, or alternatively, based on human traffic density over time in which machine learning or artificial intelligence techniques may be employed to collect data, perform needed analysis of the collected data, and take subsequent actions based on the analysis.
Further, in another aspect of the present disclosure, the base 207 of the apparatus 200 may also include an electrical cord for supplying power to various components of the apparatus 200. The electrical cord may be plugged into an electrical outlet. In another aspect of the present disclosure, the base 207 of the apparatus may include one or more rechargeable battery units for supplying power to the various components of the apparatus 200.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the scent component device 215 may be configured to include multiple portions or parts, for example, a first portion 241 and a second portion 243 each including different functions and/or parts. The first portion of the scent component device 215 may include one or more scent cartridges 211 containing a scent material, a control unit 231, and one or more electrical contacts 221 disposed on a bottom or sides of the scent component device 215. It is noted that positions of the one or more electrical contacts 221 of the scent component device 215 are in alignment with positions of the one or more electrical contacts 221′ of the scent component receptacle 205 so that electrical contact is made with each other. Further, the second portion of the scent component device 215 may include a plurality of diffuser holes 207 as well as supporting guides 209 for the purpose of diffusing or releasing the scent from the one or more scent cartridges in the scent component device 215. A group of the plurality of diffuser holes 207 may be opened or closed according to command and control of a control unit 231 or the control unit 251 to control the amount of the scent released into a surrounding environment.
Referring back to
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit 231 may be configured to control and manage timings of the release of scent, as well as determine a requisite amount of scent needed from the one or more scent cartridges 211. In addition, the control unit 231 may also be configured to include a wireless transceiver to perform communications with other devices, including but not limited thereto, such as a remote device over a network. In one implementation, the control unit 231 may be configured to communicate with the remote device via WiFi, Bluetooth, cellular, or other wireless technologies. Further, in another aspect of the present disclosure, the control unit 231 may be configured to communicate with the control unit 251 disposed in the base 207 of the apparatus 200 shown in
Referring back to
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the scent component device 215 may include a scent in the form of liquid or solid, e.g., a solid stick or the like. By way of example, in one implementation, when the scent is in the form of liquid, it may be in a cartridge form as in a common scent diffuser. In another implementation, when the scent is in the form of solid, it may include a heating element disposed inside the scent component device 215. In the example, a heating element may be disposed in the first portion of the scent component device 215 and/or the second portion of the scent component device 215, in such a way that the solid scent may melt as the diffuser or the scent component device 215 is in operation. Alternatively, in the case of solid scent, it is also possible to use a method of other solid scent air fresheners. It is noted that various scent release approaches may be used by one skilled in the art.
Further, in one implementation, the second portion of the scent component device 215 may include one or more heating elements for the purpose of diffusing or releasing the scent through the diffuser holes 207. In another aspect of the present disclosure, the scent component device 215 may include a small scale ultrasonic based diffusing mechanism for the purpose of diffusing the scent. It is also noted that other techniques or methodologies may be used for releasing the scent into a surrounding environment.
As mentioned above, in the example disclosed herein, the electrical contacts 221 and 221′ are used to make electrical connections between the scent component receptacles 205 and the scent component devices 215. The electrical contacts 221 are configured to be in contact with electrical contacts 221′ of the scent component receptacles 205, which are used for power to be supplied to the scent component devices 215 for operation of various components including the diffuser and electronics thereof. When in full operation, as shown in
In another aspect of the present disclosure, for the purpose of controlling an amount of scent being released into the surrounding environment, the number of open diffusing holes 207 may be determined and controlled by the control unit 251 or 231 and/or a remote device including a user device 501. The diffusing holes 207 may be configured to open or close. In one implementation, one or more profiles of the environment, but not limited thereto, including collected sensor data may be used to determine the number of open diffusing holes 207 for a requisite release amount of the scent. Further, certain timings of the release of the scent may be controlled by the control unit 251 or 231 and/or the remote device including the user device 501; for example, the release of scent may be made every 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc. for a predetermined duration.
As mentioned, the remote device 501 may be configured to control a plurality of scent component devices 271 or 215 and a plurality of speakers 253. That is, the remote device 501 may wirelessly send command and control data to the scent component devices 215 or 271 for turning-on or turning-off (or changing of colors) of LEDs of the scent component device 215 or 275 in a predetermined pattern and send an audio stream to the one or more speakers 253 for reproducing the audio in one or more coordinated manners while the certain LEDs are turned on or off, as in certain light display shows. In one example, while a certain music piece is played, certain groups of LEDs may be flashed or turned on or off in a predetermined synchronized manner. That is, during a specific occasion (e.g., a birthday event), while the birthday music is played through the one or more speakers 253 of the apparatus 100, select groups of LEDs of the scent component devices 215 or 271 may be flashed at predetermined interval in accordance with various patterns, and a certain scent may be optionally released under the control of the remote device 501. Further, the flashing patterns of the LEDs of the scent component devices 215 or 271, the certain music pieces played through the one or more speakers 253, and the release amount of the scent may also be controlled and/or managed by an application over a network or a user device such as a mobile phone, a tablet, or the like. In this case, the user device may act as a central control device for all the other devices. Further, the plurality of speakers 253 may be detached from the base of the apparatus and be disposed at other locations to suit different purposes or occasions. Further, depending upon the different occasions, different scent may be released into the surrounding environment.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus of the present disclosure may further include a humidifier device for an environmental control purpose. By way of example, the base 207 of the apparatus 100 may be configured to include a humidifier and/or a water reservoir for that purpose. In the example, the apparatus of
In another aspect of the present disclosure, the apparatus of the present disclosure may further include one or more surveillance cameras which may be disposed on the main trunk body or the branches. The one or more surveillance cameras may be used to monitor people traffic as well as observe different moods of people present around the apparatus in the surrounding environment. Through the one or more surveillance cameras, various data on people in the surrounding environment may be collected and used in operating and/or performing the intelligent release of the scent into the surrounding environment as well as performing appropriate control of the scent component devices, LEDs, and many other components.
Further, the control unit 251 of the apparatus 100 or 200 as shown in
Referring back to
Further, the processor(s) may be configured to control various components of the embodiment(s) to execute one or more predetermined functions. In an aspect of the present disclosure, the processor(s) may be configured to request, search, receive, or use data of the learning unit(s) or the memory unit(s), as well as control the various components of the embodiment(s), to determine and display on a user's controller interface. Also, the processor(s) may be configured to generate one or more control signals for controlling one or more external devices and may transmit the generated one or more control signals to the one or more external devices. Further, the processor(s) may be configured to receive input information and determine a user's requirements based on the received user input(s). The processor(s) may be configured to collect history information including the operation contents of the embodiment(s) or the user's feedback on the operation and may store the collected history information in the memory unit(s) or the learning unit(s) or transmit the collected history information to external device(s). The collected history information may be used to update the learning models. Furthermore, the processor(s) may be configured to control and manage one or more programs stored in the memory unit(s) and operate one or more components to control and manage the one or more programs.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, various implementations of the present disclosure described herein may be realized in hardware components including digital electronic circuitry, logic components, integrated circuits including Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof. These various implementations may include implementations in one or more computer programs that are executable and/or interpretable on one or more programmable systems including at least one programmable processor coupled to receive data and instructions from and to transmit data and instructions to a storage system, at least one input device, and at least one output device. The computer programs may include machine instructions for a programmable processor and may be implemented in a high-level procedural and/or object oriented programming language, and/or in assembly or machine language. The terms “machine-readable medium” and “computer-readable medium” as used herein refer to any computer program product(s), apparatus and/or device used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal.
As shown above, various methods, techniques, arrangements or their variants may be implemented for artificial trees or plants with capability of producing scent or other features. Other embodiments of the present technology may be possible and are not limited to the disclosed embodiments herein.
Further, it is noted that as used in the specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural referents or one or more items, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Also, no element, act, step, or instruction used in the present disclosure should be construed as critical or essential to the present disclosure unless explicitly described as such in the present disclosure. As used herein, except explicitly noted otherwise, the term “comprise” or variations of the term, such as “comprising,” “comprises,” and “comprised” are not used to excluse other additives, components, integers or steps. The term “first,” “second,” and so forth used herein may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the above terms. The above terms are used only to discriminate one component from other components, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Also, the term “and/or” as used herein includes a combination of a plurality of associated items or any item of the plurality of associated items. Further, it is noted that when it is described that an element is “coupled” or “connected” to another element, the element may be directly coupled or directly connected to the other element, or the element may be coupled or connected to the element through a third element. Also, the term “include” or “have” as used herein indicates that a feature, an operation, a component, a step, a number, a part or any combination thereof described herein is present. Furthermore, the term “include” or “have” does not excluse a possibility of presence or addition of one or more other features, operations, components, steps, numbers, parts or combinations. It is also noted that the foregoing relates only to exemplary embodiments of the present invention or technology and that numerous modifications or alternations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure as set forth in this disclosure.
Although the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are provided herein, the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments. There are numerous modifications or alternations that may suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. It is appreciated by one skilled in the art that a wide variety of alternate and/or equivalent implementations may be substituted for the specific examples shown and described without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. As such, the exemplary embodiments should not be construed in any way as imposing limitations upon the scope thereof. One the contrary, it is understood that various other embodiments, modifications, and equivalents thereof which, after reading the description herein, may suggest themselves to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention or disclosure and/or the scope of the appended claims.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional App. Ser. No. 63/133,199, filed on Dec. 31, 2020, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63133199 | Dec 2020 | US |
