Patent Application
20230362483
This relates generally to camera devices, including but not limited to, characterizing motion to manage power on camera devices.
Home entryways are sensitive areas often associated with the security and peace of mind of the home's occupants. Home owners and occupants have an interest in monitoring their entryways for security and convenience. Some existing surveillance systems detect persons in the field of view of a security camera, and some initiate a general alert upon such detection. However, a single type of alert is not appropriate for all detected persons; some persons may be welcome guests, occupants, unwelcome visitors, or merely persons passing by the entryway.
In addition, video doorbells and standalone cameras that operate from batteries pose a significant power optimization problem as compared to line-powered cameras. For example, the form factor of such devices generally prohibits the use of large-capacity batteries.
It is a challenge to accurately identify, categorize, and respond to visitors to a home. Human-friendly techniques for discovering, categorizing, and responding to visitors, while reducing the energy usage, are in great need.
Accordingly, there is a need for systems and/or devices with more efficient, accurate, and intuitive methods for entity (e.g., person) and event identification, categorization, and presentation. Such systems, devices, and methods optionally complement or replace conventional systems, devices, and methods for entity and event identification, categorization, and/or presentation.
Users of home monitoring systems can potentially be bombarded with alerts and notifications about unimportant and trivial events if the systems do not employ some recognition/identification and categorization processes. Triggering such alerts generally requires utilization of wireless network(s), which can be a significant drain on a battery-powered device. Moreover, the large number of unnecessary or incomplete information places a larger burden on the users and makes it more difficult to identify and respond to important events.
For example, a user who receives video notifications every time a person walks in front of a battery-powered camera mounted at an entryway of the home may not be able to quickly and efficiently distinguish between passersby and visitors. Moreover, the battery-powered camera consumes significant power in transmitting the video notifications. Thus, it is beneficial to be able to recognize when a detection event is of interest to the user (e.g., is caused by a visitor approaching the entryway).
For example, rather than sending a video notification any time motion is detected. A battery-powered camera could classify the motion and send a text notification that the mailman has delivered the mail and a video notification when an unknown person is lingering on the property. In this way, the user can see at a glance the nature of the event and the camera conserves energy by not sending unnecessary video data for trivial or expected events.
In some implementations, there are three stages of operation for a video doorbell. Each stage requires energy and a superposition of these stages can be used to calculate total power needed to operate the doorbell. The baseline stage is the idle stage of operation. This stage assumes the lowest power while still providing a minimal amount of functionality. Added to the baseline power is the active power of the camera. This stage includes the additional function of capturing and storing the video image. Finally, the transmit stage includes the transmission of video data over a local network.
In some implementations where the video data is transmitted via Wi-Fi, the transmit stage uses the most energy. To minimize energy usage, three modes of operation are used to transmit video data.
Mode 1. A capture, store, and send snapshot mode—In this mode, a motion event triggers capture and store of a video clip on the camera device (without automatic transmission to a remote server or client device). In some implementations, the event generates a notification, e.g., a text-only notification or a notification having a snapshot (or animation of snapshots) of the motion event for the user. Once the user receives the notification, the user can decide whether to request and review the additional video data for the motion event stored at the camera device. In some implementations, the stored clips are overwritten depending on storage or time limitations if they are not saved by the user.
Mode 2. An on-demand video mode—In this mode, the user has a preference for real-time (immediate) transmission of video data. For example, the video stream is automatically transmitted for particular types of events (e.g., a visitor activating the doorbell). The automatic streaming allows for low latency to first image when the user responds to the event (e.g., interacts with the visitor via the doorbell). In another example, the user initiates an on-demand transmission to check status at the door (e.g., delivery of a package). In this example, the transmission incurs an added latency and does not contain roll-back video before the request was initiated since no prior event triggered the capture.
Mode 3. A review mode—In this mode, if, at a later time, the user wants to review a stored clip, they are enabled to browse snapshots and select the snapshot event of interest to playback the full video clip. The video clip stored at the camera is then sent to the user.
Thus, the amount of power used for video transmit is limited by selectively transmitting only those real-time images the user prioritizes as important. The user selectively decides which events should trigger automatic transmission and which events can be requested from a historical archive at the camera device.
In one aspect, some implementations include a method performed at a camera device having memory, one or more processors, and an image sensor. The method includes: (1) while a wireless communication component of the camera device is deactivated: (a) capturing, with the image sensor, a plurality of images containing a motion event; (b) characterizing the motion event; and (c) determining, based on the characterization of the motion event, whether to send video data to a remote computing system; and (2) in accordance with a determination to send video data to the remote computing system: (a) activating the wireless communication component of the camera device; (b) establishing a wireless connection to the remote computing system via the wireless communication component; and (c) sending video information to the remote computing system via the established wireless connection. In some implementations, the motion event is characterized based on a segment of video data (e.g., 2, 5, or 10 second segment). In some implementations, the remote computing system is a cloud server, e.g., a cloud server configured to manage multiple smart home accounts and relay camera information to one or more user devices. In some implementations, the remote computing system is a client device, e.g., the camera device is configured to send the video information directly to the client device.
In another aspect, some implementations include a camera device having one or more processors, an image sensor, and memory storing one or more instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the camera device to perform operations including: (1) while a wireless communication component of the camera device is deactivated: (a) capturing, with the image sensor, a plurality of images containing a motion event; (b) characterizing the motion event; and (c) determining, based on the characterization of the motion event, whether to send video data to a remote computing system; and (2) in accordance with a determination to send video data to the remote computing system: (a) activating the wireless communication component of the camera device; (b) establishing a wireless connection to the remote computing system via the wireless communication component; and (c) sending video information to the remote computing system via the established wireless connection. In some implementations, the camera device is configured to perform any of the methods described herein.
In another aspect, some implementations include a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs, the one or more programs comprising instructions which, when executed by a camera device with one or more processors, memory, and an image sensor, cause the camera device to perform operations including: (1) while a wireless communication component of the camera device is deactivated: (a) capturing, with the image sensor, a plurality of images containing a motion event; (b) characterizing the motion event; and (c) determining, based on the characterization of the motion event, whether to send video data to a remote computing system; and (2) in accordance with a determination to send video data to the remote computing system: (a) activating the wireless communication component of the camera device; (b) establishing a wireless connection to the remote computing system via the wireless communication component; and (c) sending video information to the remote computing system via the established wireless connection. In some implementations, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium includes instructions to perform any of the methods described herein.
Thus, devices are provided with more efficient and effective methods for monitoring and facilitating review of events and persons in video streams, thereby increasing the accuracy, effectiveness, efficiency, and user satisfaction with such devices, while reducing power consumption and extending battery life. Such devices and methods may complement or replace conventional systems and methods for event and person monitoring, presentation, response, and interaction.
For a better understanding of the various described implementations, reference should be made to the Description of Implementations below, in conjunction with the following drawings in which like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the figures.
Like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.
Due to the potentially large amount of trivial and uninteresting motion events detected by a home monitoring system, it is beneficial to employ recognition/identification and categorization to limit a number of notifications or alerts sent to the users. Such limitations preserve energy of the smart devices and prevents the users from receiving large amount of unwanted notifications, potentially making it more difficult for the user to identify important events.
For example, rather than notifying a user every time a person walks in front of a camera mounted at an entryway of the home, it is beneficial to be able to recognize whether the motion event is caused by a visitor approaching the entryway or by a mere passerby, and determine whether to (i) send video data of the event to the user, (ii) store the video data for later retrieval, or (iii) disregard the event. In this example, the camera device sends text, still images, animated images, or video clips based on the classification of the event. This enables the camera device to conserve energy and the user to more quickly and efficiently make a determination as to whether the event requires any action or further review by the user. Further, the user can see at a glance the nature of the event and request more details (e.g., a clip of the event) and/or generate a response (e.g., alert the authorities, or initiate a communication).
Accordingly, some implementations include a battery-powered camera device that recognizes contextual information related to detected visitors. In some implementations, when a visitor presses a doorbell (or knocks or makes a verbal announcement), the camera device sends an indication to the user's device (also sometimes referred to herein as a client device) that there was a visitor announcement (e.g., a doorbell button press or a knock), and the user's device displays an alert (or other type of notification). In some implementations, the alert includes a video clip (e.g., a gif) or a static image of the visitor. In some implementations, if the camera device senses a motion event involving an approaching visitor, and the visitor does not make an announcement (e.g., does not press the doorbell or knock on the door) within a threshold amount of time, the camera device sends a notification to the user's device that there is a visitor that has not yet made an announcement (sometimes referred to herein as an unannounced visitor). In some implementations, the notifications are sent directly to the users' device(s), while in other implementations, the notifications are sent to a server system (e.g., a cloud server) that relays the notifications to the users' device(s).
Turning now to the figures,
It is to be appreciated that “smart home environments” may refer to smart environments for homes such as a single-family house, but the scope of the present teachings is not so limited. The present teachings are also applicable, without limitation, to duplexes, townhomes, multi-unit apartment buildings, hotels, retail stores, office buildings, industrial buildings, and more generally any living space or work space.
It is also to be appreciated that while the terms user, customer, installer, homeowner, occupant, guest, tenant, landlord, repair person, and the like may be used to refer to the person or persons acting in the context of some particularly situations described herein, these references do not limit the scope of the present teachings with respect to the person or persons who are performing such actions. Thus, for example, the terms user, customer, purchaser, installer, subscriber, and homeowner may often refer to the same person in the case of a single-family residential dwelling, because the head of the household is often the person who makes the purchasing decision, buys the unit, and installs and configures the unit, and is also one of the users of the unit. However, in other scenarios, such as a landlord-tenant environment, the customer may be the landlord with respect to purchasing the unit, the installer may be a local apartment supervisor, a first user may be the tenant, and a second user may again be the landlord with respect to remote control functionality. Importantly, while the identity of the person performing the action may be germane to a particular advantage provided by one or more of the implementations, such identity should not be construed in the descriptions that follow as necessarily limiting the scope of the present teachings to those particular individuals having those particular identities.
The depicted structure 150 includes a plurality of rooms 152, separated at least partly from each other via walls 154. The walls 154 may include interior walls or exterior walls. Each room may further include a floor 156 and a ceiling 158. Devices may be mounted on, integrated with and/or supported by a wall 154, floor 156 or ceiling 158.
In some implementations, the integrated devices of the smart home environment 100 include intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected devices that integrate seamlessly with each other in a smart home network (e.g., 202
In some implementations, the one or more smart thermostats 102 detect ambient climate characteristics (e.g., temperature and/or humidity) and control a HVAC system 103 accordingly. For example, a respective smart thermostat 102 includes an ambient temperature sensor.
The one or more smart hazard detectors 104 may include thermal radiation sensors directed at respective heat sources (e.g., a stove, oven, other appliances, a fireplace, etc.). For example, a smart hazard detector 104 in a kitchen 153 includes a thermal radiation sensor directed at a stove/oven 112. A thermal radiation sensor may determine the temperature of the respective heat source (or a portion thereof) at which it is directed and may provide corresponding blackbody radiation data as output.
The smart doorbell 106 and/or the smart door lock 120 detects a person's approach to or departure from a location (e.g., an outer door), control doorbell/door locking functionality (e.g., receive user inputs from a portable electronic device 166 to actuate bolt of the smart door lock 120), announce a person's approach or departure via audio or visual means, and/or control settings on a security system (e.g., to activate or deactivate the security system when occupants go and come). In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 and/or the smart lock 120 are battery-powered (e.g., are not line-powered). In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes some or all of the components and features of the camera 118. In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes a camera 118. In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes a camera 118 that is embedded in the doorbell 106. In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes a camera that is mounted on or near the doorbell 106. In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes a camera 118 that is not mounted in, on, or near the doorbell 106, but is instead mounted in proximity to the doorbell 106. In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 includes two or more cameras 118 (e.g., one camera facing the entryway, and another camera facing approaching visitors). In some implementations, the smart doorbell 106 has a camera (also sometimes referred to herein as doorbell camera 106) which is separate from a video camera 118. For the purposes of this disclosure, video-related references to doorbell 106 refer to one or more cameras associated with doorbell 106.
The smart alarm system 122 may detect the presence of an individual within close proximity (e.g., using built-in IR sensors), sound an alarm (e.g., through a built-in speaker, or by sending commands to one or more external speakers), and send notifications to entities or users within/outside of the smart home network 100. In some implementations, the smart alarm system 122 also includes one or more input devices or sensors (e.g., keypad, biometric scanner, NFC transceiver, microphone) for verifying the identity of a user, and one or more output devices (e.g., display, speaker). In some implementations, the smart alarm system 122 may also be set to an “armed” mode, such that detection of a trigger condition or event causes the alarm to be sounded unless a disarming action is performed.
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes one or more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected wall switches 108 (hereinafter referred to as “smart wall switches 108”), along with one or more intelligent, multi-sensing, network-connected wall plug interfaces 110 (hereinafter referred to as “smart wall plugs 110”). The smart wall switches 108 detect ambient lighting conditions, detect room-occupancy states, and/or control a power and/or dim state of one or more lights. In some instances, smart wall switches 108 also control a power state or speed of a fan, such as a ceiling fan. The smart wall plugs 110 may detect occupancy of a room or enclosure and control supply of power to one or more wall plugs (e.g., such that power is not supplied to the plug if nobody is at home).
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 of
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes one or more network-connected cameras 118 that are configured to provide video monitoring and security in the smart home environment 100. In some implementations, the cameras 118 are battery-powered (e.g., are not line-powered). In some implementations, as described in more detail below, the cameras 118 are configured to selectively couple to one or more networks and/or selectively capture, store, transmit video data (e.g., based on presence and characterization of motion within the field of view). In some implementations, in the low power mode, a camera 118 detects an approaching visitor using a low power sensor, such as a PIR sensor, which is always on or periodically on.
In some implementations, the cameras 118 are used to determine occupancy of the structure 150 and/or particular rooms 152 in the structure 150, and thus act as occupancy sensors. For example, video captured by the cameras 118 may be processed to identify the presence of an occupant in the structure 150 (e.g., in a particular room 152). Specific individuals may be identified based, for example, on their appearance (e.g., height, face) and/or movement (e.g., their walk/gait). Cameras 118 may additionally include one or more sensors (e.g., IR sensors, motion detectors), input devices (e.g., microphone for capturing audio), and output devices (e.g., speaker for outputting audio). In some implementations, the cameras 118 are each configured to operate in a day mode and in a low-light mode (e.g., a night mode). In some implementations, the cameras 118 each include one or more IR illuminators for providing illumination while the camera is operating in the low-light mode. In some implementations, the cameras 118 include one or more outdoor cameras. In some implementations, the outdoor cameras include additional features and/or components such as weatherproofing and/or solar ray compensation.
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes one or more network-connected doorbells 106 that are configured to provide video monitoring and security in a vicinity of an entryway of the smart home environment 100. The doorbells 106 are optionally used to determine the approach and/or presence of a visitor. Specific individuals are optionally identified based, for example, on their appearance (e.g., height, face) and/or movement (e.g., their walk/gait). A doorbell 106 optionally includes one or more sensors (e.g., IR sensors, motion detectors), input devices (e.g., microphone for capturing audio), and output devices (e.g., speaker for outputting audio). In some implementations, a doorbell 106 is configured to operate in a high-light mode (e.g., a day mode) and in a low-light mode (e.g., a night mode). In some implementations, a doorbell 106 includes one or more IR illuminators for providing illumination while the camera is operating in the low-light mode. In some implementations, a doorbell 106 includes one or more lights (e.g., one or more LEDs) for illuminating the doorbell in low-light conditions and/or giving visual feedback to a visitor. In some implementations, a doorbell 106 includes additional features and/or components such as weatherproofing and/or solar ray compensation. In some implementations, doorbell 106 is battery powered and runs in a low power or a high power mode. In some implementations, in the low power mode, doorbell 106 detects an approaching visitor using a low power sensor such as a PIR sensor which is always on or periodically on. In some implementations, after the visitor approach is detected, doorbell 106 switches to the high power mode to carry out further processing functions (described below).
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 additionally or alternatively includes one or more other occupancy sensors (e.g., the smart doorbell 106, smart door locks 120, touch screens, IR sensors, microphones, ambient light sensors, motion detectors, smart nightlights 170, etc.). In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes radio-frequency identification (RFID) readers (e.g., in each room 152 or a portion thereof) that determine occupancy based on RFID tags located on or embedded in occupants. For example, RFID readers may be integrated into the smart hazard detectors 104.
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes one or more devices outside of the physical home but within a proximate geographical range of the home. For example, the smart home environment 100 may include a pool heater monitor 114 that communicates a current pool temperature to other devices within the smart home environment 100 and/or receives commands for controlling the pool temperature. Similarly, the smart home environment 100 may include an irrigation monitor 116 that communicates information regarding irrigation systems within the smart home environment 100 and/or receives control information for controlling such irrigation systems.
By virtue of network connectivity, one or more of the smart home devices of
As discussed above, users may control smart devices in the smart home environment 100 using a network-connected computer or portable electronic device 166. In some examples, some or all of the occupants (e.g., individuals who live in the home) may register their device 166 with the smart home environment 100. Such registration may be made at a central server to authenticate the occupant and/or the device as being associated with the home and to give permission to the occupant to use the device to control the smart devices in the home. An occupant may use their registered device 166 to remotely control the smart devices of the home, such as when the occupant is at work or on vacation. The occupant may also use their registered device to control the smart devices when the occupant is actually located inside the home, such as when the occupant is sitting on a couch inside the home. It should be appreciated that instead of or in addition to registering devices 166, the smart home environment 100 may make inferences about which individuals live in the home and are therefore occupants and which devices 166 are associated with those individuals. As such, the smart home environment may “learn” who is an occupant and permit the devices 166 associated with those individuals to control the smart devices of the home.
In some implementations, in addition to containing processing and sensing capabilities, the devices 102, 104, 106, 108, 110, 112, 114, 116, 118, 120, and/or 122 (collectively referred to as “the smart devices”) are capable of data communications and information sharing with other smart devices, a central server or cloud-computing system, and/or other devices that are network-connected. Data communications may be carried out using any of a variety of custom or standard wireless protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.15.4, Wi-Fi, ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, Thread, Z-Wave, Bluetooth Smart, ISA100.5A, WirelessHART, MiWi, etc.) and/or any of a variety of custom or standard wired protocols (e.g., Ethernet, HomePlug, etc.), or any other suitable communication protocol, including communication protocols not yet developed as of the filing date of this document.
In some implementations, the smart devices serve as wireless or wired repeaters. In some implementations, a first one of the smart devices communicates with a second one of the smart devices via a wireless router. The smart devices may further communicate with each other via a connection (e.g., network interface 160) to a network, such as the Internet 162. Through the Internet 162, the smart devices may communicate with a server system 164 (also called a central server system and/or a cloud-computing system herein). The server system 164 may be associated with a manufacturer, support entity, or service provider associated with the smart device(s). In some implementations, a user is able to contact customer support using a smart device itself rather than needing to use other communication means, such as a telephone or Internet-connected computer. In some implementations, software updates are automatically sent from the server system 164 to smart devices (e.g., when available, when purchased, or at routine intervals).
In some implementations, the network interface 160 includes a conventional network device (e.g., a router), and the smart home environment 100 of
In some implementations, smart home environment 100 includes a local storage device 190 for storing data related to, or output by, smart devices of smart home environment 100. In some implementations, the data includes one or more of: video data output by a camera device (e.g., a camera included with doorbell 106), metadata output by a smart device, settings information for a smart device, usage logs for a smart device, and the like. In some implementations, local storage device 190 is communicatively coupled to one or more smart devices via a smart home network (e.g., smart home network 202,
In some implementations, some low-power nodes are incapable of bidirectional communication. These low-power nodes send messages, but they are unable to “listen”. Thus, other devices in the smart home environment 100, such as the spokesman nodes, cannot send information to these low-power nodes.
In some implementations, some low-power nodes are capable of only a limited bidirectional communication. For example, other devices are able to communicate with the low-power nodes only during a certain time period.
As described, in some implementations, the smart devices serve as low-power and spokesman nodes to create a mesh network in the smart home environment 100. In some implementations, individual low-power nodes in the smart home environment regularly send out messages regarding what they are sensing, and the other low-powered nodes in the smart home environment—in addition to sending out their own messages—forward the messages, thereby causing the messages to travel from node to node (i.e., device to device) throughout the smart home network 202. In some implementations, the spokesman nodes in the smart home network 202, which are able to communicate using a relatively high-power communication protocol, such as IEEE 802.11, are able to switch to a relatively low-power communication protocol, such as IEEE 802.15.4, to receive these messages, translate the messages to other communication protocols, and send the translated messages to other spokesman nodes and/or the server system 164 (using, e.g., the relatively high-power communication protocol). Thus, the low-powered nodes using low-power communication protocols are able to send and/or receive messages across the entire smart home network 202, as well as over the Internet 162 to the server system 164. In some implementations, the mesh network enables the server system 164 to regularly receive data from most or all of the smart devices in the home, make inferences based on the data, facilitate state synchronization across devices within and outside of the smart home network 202, and send commands to one or more of the smart devices to perform tasks in the smart home environment.
As described, the spokesman nodes and some of the low-powered nodes are capable of “listening.” Accordingly, users, other devices, and/or the server system 164 may communicate control commands to the low-powered nodes. For example, a user may use the electronic device 166 (e.g., a smart phone) to send commands over the Internet to the server system 164, which then relays the commands to one or more spokesman nodes in the smart home network 202. The spokesman nodes may use a low-power protocol to communicate the commands to the low-power nodes throughout the smart home network 202, as well as to other spokesman nodes that did not receive the commands directly from the server system 164.
In some implementations, a smart nightlight 170 (
Other examples of low-power nodes include battery-powered versions of the smart hazard detectors 104, cameras 118, doorbells 106, and the like. These battery-powered smart devices are often located in an area without access to constant and reliable power and optionally include any number and type of sensors, such as image sensor(s), occupancy/motion sensors, ambient light sensors, ambient temperature sensors, humidity sensors, smoke/fire/heat sensors (e.g., thermal radiation sensors), carbon monoxide/dioxide sensors, and the like. Furthermore, battery-powered smart devices may send messages that correspond to each of the respective sensors to the other devices and/or the server system 164, such as by using the mesh network as described above.
Examples of spokesman nodes include line-powered smart doorbells 106, smart thermostats 102, smart wall switches 108, and smart wall plugs 110. These devices are located near, and connected to, a reliable power source, and therefore may include more power-consuming components, such as one or more communication chips capable of bidirectional communication in a variety of protocols.
In some implementations, the smart home environment 100 includes service robots 168 (
As explained above with reference to
In some implementations, a multiple reviewer accounts are linked to a single smart home environment 100. For example, multiple occupants of a smart home environment 100 may have accounts liked to the smart home environment. In some implementations, each reviewer account is associated with a particular level of access. In some implementations, each reviewer account has personalized notification settings. In some implementations, a single reviewer account is linked to multiple smart home environments 100. For example, a person may own or occupy, or be assigned to review and/or govern, multiple smart home environments 100. In some implementations, the reviewer account has distinct levels of access and/or notification settings for each smart home environment.
In some implementations, each of the video sources 222 includes one or more video cameras 118 or doorbell cameras 106 that capture video and send the captured video to the server system 164 substantially in real-time. In some implementations, each of the video sources 222 includes one or more doorbell cameras 106 that capture video and send the captured video to the server system 164 in real-time (e.g., within 1 second, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or 1 minute). In some implementations, each of the doorbells 106 include a video camera that captures video and sends the captured video to the server system 164 in real-time. In some implementations, a video source 222 includes a controller device (not shown) that serves as an intermediary between the one or more doorbells 106 and the server system 164. The controller device receives the video data from the one or more doorbells 106, optionally performs some preliminary processing on the video data, and sends the video data and/or the results of the preliminary processing to the server system 164 on behalf of the one or more doorbells 106 (e.g., in real-time). In some implementations, each camera has its own on-board processing capabilities to perform some preliminary processing on the captured video data before sending the video data (e.g., along with metadata obtained through the preliminary processing) to the controller device and/or the server system 164. In some implementations, one or more of the cameras is configured to optionally locally store the video data (e.g., for later transmission if requested by a user). In some implementations, a camera is configured to perform some processing of the captured video data, and, based on the processing, either send the video data in substantially real-time, store the video data locally, or disregard the video data.
In accordance with some implementations, a client device 220 includes a client-side module or smart home application, such as client-side module 628 in
In some implementations, the server system 164 includes one or more processors 212, a video storage database 210, an account database 214, an I/O interface to one or more client devices 216, and an I/O interface to one or more video sources 218. The I/O interface to one or more clients 216 facilitates the client-facing input and output processing. The account database 214 stores a plurality of profiles for reviewer accounts registered with the video processing server, where a respective user profile includes account credentials for a respective reviewer account, and one or more video sources linked to the respective reviewer account. The I/O interface to one or more video sources 218 facilitates communications with one or more video sources 222 (e.g., groups of one or more doorbells 106, cameras 118, and associated controller devices). The video storage database 210 stores raw video data received from the video sources 222, as well as various types of metadata, such as motion events, event categories, event category models, event filters, and event masks, for use in data processing for event monitoring and review for each reviewer account.
Examples of a representative client device 220 include a handheld computer, a wearable computing device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a cellular telephone, a smart phone, an enhanced general packet radio service (EGPRS) mobile phone, a media player, a navigation device, a game console, a television, a remote control, a point-of-sale (POS) terminal, a vehicle-mounted computer, an ebook reader, or a combination of any two or more of these data processing devices or other data processing devices.
Examples of the one or more networks 162 include local area networks (LAN) and wide area networks (WAN) such as the Internet. The one or more networks 162 are implemented using any known network protocol, including various wired or wireless protocols, such as Ethernet, Universal Serial Bus (USB), FIREWIRE, Long Term Evolution (LTE), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), Wi-MAX, or any other suitable communication protocol.
In some implementations, the server system 164 is implemented on one or more standalone data processing apparatuses or a distributed network of computers. In some implementations, the server system 164 also employs various virtual devices and/or services of third party service providers (e.g., third-party cloud service providers) to provide the underlying computing resources and/or infrastructure resources of the server system 164. In some implementations, the server system 164 includes, but is not limited to, a server computer, a cloud server, a distributed cloud computing system, a handheld computer, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or a combination of any two or more of these data processing devices or other data processing devices.
In some implementations, a server-client environment includes both a client-side portion (e.g., the client-side module) and a server-side portion (e.g., the server-side module). The division of functionality between the client and server portions of operating environment can vary in different implementations. Similarly, the division of functionality between a video source 222 and the server system 164 can vary in different implementations. For example, in some implementations, the client-side module is a thin-client that provides only user-facing input and output processing functions, and delegates all other data processing functionality to a backend server (e.g., the server system 164). Similarly, in some implementations, a respective one of the video sources 222 is a simple video capturing device that continuously captures and streams video data to the server system 164 with limited or no local preliminary processing on the video data. Although many aspects of the present technology are described from the perspective of the server system 164, the corresponding actions performed by a client device 220 and/or the video sources 222 would be apparent to one of skill in the art. Similarly, some aspects of the present technology may be described from the perspective of a client device or a video source, and the corresponding actions performed by the video server would be apparent to one of skill in the art. Furthermore, some aspects may be performed by the server system 164, a client device 220, and a video source 222 cooperatively.
In some implementations, a video source 222 (e.g., a camera 118 or doorbell 106 having an image sensor) transmits one or more streams of video data to the server system 164. In some implementations, the one or more streams include multiple streams, of respective resolutions and/or frame rates, of the raw video captured by the image sensor. In some implementations, the multiple streams include a “primary” stream (e.g., 226-1) with a certain resolution and frame rate (e.g., corresponding to the raw video captured by the image sensor), and one or more additional streams (e.g., 226-2 through 226-q). An additional stream is optionally the same video stream as the “primary” stream but at a different resolution and/or frame rate, or a stream that captures a portion of the “primary” stream (e.g., cropped to include a portion of the field of view or pixels of the primary stream) at the same or different resolution and/or frame rate as the “primary” stream. In some implementations, the primary stream and/or the additional streams are dynamically encoded (e.g., based on network conditions, server operating conditions, camera operating conditions, characterization of data in the stream (e.g., whether motion is present), user preferences, and the like.
In some implementations, one or more of the streams 226 is sent from the video source 222 directly to a client device 220 (e.g., without being routed to, or processed by, the server system 164). In some implementations, one or more of the streams is stored at the doorbell 106 (e.g., in memory 406,
In some implementations, the server system 164 transmits one or more streams of video data to a client device 220 to facilitate event monitoring by a user. In some implementations, the one or more streams may include multiple streams, of respective resolutions and/or frame rates, of the same video feed. In some implementations, the multiple streams include a “primary” stream with a certain resolution and frame rate, corresponding to the video feed, and one or more additional streams. An additional stream may be the same video stream as the “primary” stream but at a different resolution and/or frame rate, or a stream that shows a portion of the “primary” stream (e.g., cropped to include portion of the field of view or pixels of the primary stream) at the same or different resolution and/or frame rate as the “primary” stream.
Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more of the previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set of instructions for performing a function described above. The above identified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures, or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise rearranged in various implementations. In some implementations, the memory 306, optionally, stores a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, the memory 306, optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not described above (e.g., an account management module for linking client devices, smart devices, and smart home environments).
The event start data 3422 includes date and time information such as a timestamp and optionally includes additional information such as information regarding the amount of motion present, a motion start location, amount of audio present, characteristics of the audio, and the like. Similarly, the event end data 3428 includes date and time information such as a timestamp and optionally includes additional information such as information regarding the amount of motion present, a motion start location, amount of audio present, characteristics of the audio, and the like.
The event segments 3424 includes information regarding segmentation of the motion event T. In some instances, event segments are stored separately from the video data 3426. In some instances, the event segments are stored at a different (lower) display resolution than the video data. For example, the event segments are optionally stored at 480p or 780p and the video data is stored at 1080i or 1080p. Storing the event segments at a lower display resolution enables the system to devote less time and resources to retrieving and processing the event segments. In some instances, the event segments are not stored separately and the segmentation information includes references to the video data 3426 as well as date and time information for reproducing the event segments. In some implementations, the event segments include one or more audio segments (e.g., corresponding to video segments).
The event features data 3430 includes information regarding event features such as event categorizations/classifications, object masks, motion masks, identified/recognized/tracked motion objects (also sometimes called blobs), information regarding features of the motion objects (e.g., object color, object dimensions, velocity, size changes, etc.), information regarding activity in zones of interest, and the like.
The context information data 3432 includes context information regarding the event such as information regarding the visitor (e.g., behavior, clothing, or size characteristics), information regarding approach timing (e.g., time of day, level of brightness), information regarding visitor announcements (e.g., doorbell press, knocking, and associated timing thereof), information regarding scheduling (e.g., proximity in time to a prescheduled event, or proximity in time to a prescheduled status of the smart home environment), information regarding the status or location of one or more users, and the like.
The associated user information 3436 includes information regarding users associated with the event such as users identified in the event, users receiving notification of the event, and the like. In some instances, the associated user information 3436 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a user profile 334 for to the user. The associated devices information 3438 includes information regarding the device or devices involved in the event (e.g., a doorbell 106 that recorded the event). In some instances, the associated devices information 3438 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a device profile 338 for the device.
The user profile 334-j corresponds to a user T associated with the smart home network (e.g., smart home network 202) such as a user of a smart device 204, a user identified by a smart device 204, a user who receives notifications from a smart device 204 or from the server system 164, and the like. In some instances, the user profile 334-j includes user preferences 3342, user settings 3344, associated devices information 3346, and associated events information 3348. In some instances, the user profile 334-j includes only a subset of the above data. In some instances, the user profile 334-j includes additional user information not shown, such as information regarding other users associated with the user T and/or information regarding smart home environments linked to the user.
The user preferences 3342 include explicit user preferences input by the user as well as implicit and/or inferred user preferences determined by the system (e.g., server system 164 and/or client device 220). In some instances, the inferred user preferences are based on historical user activity and/or historical activity of other users. The user settings 3344 include information regarding settings set by the user T such as notification settings, device settings, and the like. In some instances, the user settings 3344 include device settings for devices associated with the user ‘j’.
The associated devices information 3346 includes information regarding devices associated with the user T such as devices within the user's smart home environment(s) 100 and/or client device(s) 220. In some instances, associated devices information 3346 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a corresponding device profile 338. Associated events information 3348 includes information regarding events associated with user ‘j’ such as events in which user ‘j’ was identified, events for which user ‘j’ was notified, events corresponding to a smart home environment 100 of user T, and the like. In some instances, the associated events information 3348 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a corresponding event record 342.
The device profile 338-k corresponds to a device ‘k’ associated with a smart home network (e.g., smart home network 202) such as a camera device 118, a doorbell 106, a client device 220, and the like. In some instances, the device profile 338-k includes device settings 3382, associated devices information 3384, associated user information 3386, associated event information 3388, and environmental data 3390. In some instances, the device profile 338-k includes only a subset of the above data. In some instances, the device profile 338-k includes additional device information not shown such as information regarding a current state of the device ‘k’.
The device settings 3382 include information regarding the current settings of device ‘k’ such as positioning information, mode of operation information, and the like. In some implementations and instances, the device settings 3382 are user-specific and are set by respective users of the device ‘k’. The associated devices information 3384 includes information regarding other devices associated with device ‘k’ such as other devices linked to device ‘k’ and/or other devices in the same smart home network as device ‘k’. In some instances, the associated devices information 3384 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a respective device profile 338 of the associated device.
The associated user information 3386 includes information regarding users associated with the device such as users receiving notifications from the device, users registered with the device, users associated with the smart home network of the device, and the like. In some instances, the associated user information 3386 includes a link, pointer, or reference to a user profile 334 corresponding to the associated user.
The associated event information 3388 includes information regarding events associated with the device ‘k’ such as historical events involving the device ‘k’ or captured by the device ‘k’. In some instances, the associated event information 3388 includes a link, pointer, or reference to an event record 342 corresponding to the associated event.
The environmental data 3390 includes information regarding the environment of device ‘k’ such as information regarding whether the device is outdoors or indoors, information regarding the light level of the environment, information regarding the amount of activity expected in the environment (e.g., information regarding whether the device is in a private residence versus a busy commercial property), information regarding environmental objects (e.g., depth mapping information for a camera), and the like.
The characterization data 348-m corresponds to an event ‘m’ detected by within the smart home environment 100. As shown in
The associated person identifier 3482 includes a label or other identifier for each person represented by the characterization data. In some implementations, a label is applied by a user upon review of the corresponding image. In some implementations, the identifier 3482 is assigned by the system in accordance with a determination that the characterization data 348 matches, or is similar to, other characterization data associated with the identifier.
The associated image identifier 3484 identifies one or more images from which the characterization data 348 was generated. In some implementations, there is a one-to-one mapping between the characterization data and the images, while in some other implementations, there is a many-to-one or one-to-many mapping. In some implementations, the associated image identifier 3484 includes a pointer or logical storage address for the one or more images.
The quality information 3486 includes a quality factor for the characterization data 348. In some implementations, the quality factor is based on one or more of: a blurriness of the image, a resolution of the image, an amount of the person that is visible in the image, how many features of the person are visible in the image, and a distance between the person and the camera that captured the image.
The pose information 3488 identifies a pose of each detected person. In some implementations, the pose information 3488 includes information regarding an angle between the camera that captured the image and the detected person. In some implementations, the pose information 3488 includes information regarding a portion of the person's face that is visible in the image.
The timing information 3490 includes information regarding when the image was captured by the camera. In some implementations, the timing information 3490 indicates the time of day, the day, the month, the year, etc. that the image was captured. In some implementations, the characterization data 348 includes operating information for the camera indicating the mode of operation and settings of the camera (e.g., indicating whether the camera was in a low-light mode when the image was captured). In some implementations, the timing information 3490 is used in conjunction with a device profile 338 for the camera to determine operating information for the camera at the time the image was captured.
The confidence information 3492 indicates a confidence that the associated person identifier(s) 3482 are accurate. In some implementations, the confidence information 3492 is based on a similarity between the characterization data 348 and other characterization data for the associated person(s). In some implementations, the confidence information 3492 includes a confidence score for the characterization data 348. In some implementations, in accordance with a determination that the confidence score is below a predetermined threshold, the association to the person(s) is reevaluated and/or the characterization data 348 and associated image is flagged as potentially having an incorrect associated person identifier 3482. In some implementations, flagged characterization data 348 is presented to a user for confirmation or reclassification.
The location information 3494 includes information regarding a location for the image and/or the detected person. In some implementations, the location information 3494 indicates a location for the camera that captured the image. In some implementations, the location information 3494 identifies the camera that captured the image. In some implementations, the location information 3494 indicates a room or portion of the smart home environment that was captured in the image. In some implementations, the location information 3494 indicates a GPS or coordinates-based location for the image.
The physical feature information 3496 includes information regarding the physical features of the detected person(s). In some implementations, the physical feature information 3496 includes characterization of the person's physical features (e.g., nose, ears, eyes, and hair). In some implementations, the physical feature information 3496 includes information regarding the person's speech, gait, and/or posture. In some implementations, the physical feature information 3496 includes information regarding the person's dimensions, such as the distance between the person's eyes or ears, or the length of the person's arms or legs. In some implementations, the physical feature information 3496 includes information regarding of the person's age, gender, and/or ethnicity. In some implementations, the physical feature information 3496 includes information regarding the person's clothing and/or accessories (e.g., whether the person is wearing a hat, glass, gloves, and/or rings).
The behavioral information 3498 includes information regarding the behavior of the detected person. In some implementations, the behavioral information 3498 includes information regarding the detected person's mood and/or mannerisms.
The sensor(s) 422 include, for example, one or more thermal radiation sensors, ambient temperature sensors, humidity sensors, infrared (IR) sensors such as passive infrared (PIR) sensors, proximity sensors, range sensors, occupancy sensors (e.g., using RFID sensors), ambient light sensors (ALS), motion sensors 424, location sensors (e.g., GPS sensors), accelerometers, and/or gyroscopes.
In some implementations, the energy storage component 420 includes one or more batteries and/or capacitors. In some implementations, the energy storage component 420 includes a power management integrated circuit (IC). In some implementations, the energy storage component 420 includes circuitry to harvest energy from signals received via an antenna (e.g., the radios 406) of the smart device. In some implementations, the energy storage component 420 includes circuitry to harvest thermal, vibrational, electromagnetic, and/or solar energy received by the smart device. In some implementations, the energy storage component 420 includes circuitry to monitor a stored energy level and adjust operation and/or generate notifications based on changes to the stored energy level.
The communication interfaces 404 include, for example, hardware capable of data communications using any of a variety of custom or standard wireless protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.15.4, Wi-Fi, ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, Thread, Z-Wave, Bluetooth Smart, ISA100.5A, WirelessHART, MiWi, etc.) and/or any of a variety of custom or standard wired protocols (e.g., Ethernet, HomePlug, etc.), or any other suitable communication protocol, including communication protocols not yet developed as of the filing date of this document. The radios 406 enable one or more radio communication networks in the smart home environments, and enable a smart device 204 to communicate with other devices. In some implementations, the radios 406 are capable of data communications using any of a variety of custom or standard wireless protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.15.4, Wi-Fi, ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, Thread, Z-Wave, Bluetooth Smart, ISA100.5A, WirelessHART, MiWi, etc.).
The memory 426 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR RAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and, optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, one or more optical disk storage devices, one or more flash memory devices, or one or more other non-volatile solid state storage devices. The memory 426, or alternatively the non-volatile memory within the memory 426, includes a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In some implementations, the memory 426, or the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of the memory 426, stores the following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset or superset thereof:
Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more of the previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set of instructions for performing a function described above. The above identified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures, or modules, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise rearranged in various implementations. In some implementations, the memory 426, optionally, stores a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, the memory 426, optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not described above, such as a sensor management module for managing operation of the sensor(s) 422.
The power parameters 466 includes one or more of power preferences 4662, power settings 4664 and power statistics 4666. In some implementations, the power preferences 4662 include one or more explicit preferences received from a user of the smart device 204 and/or one or more implicit preferences based on activity of the user. In some implementations, the power preferences 4662 include one or more default preferences. In some implementations, the power settings 4664 include one or more settings for the energy storage component 420, one or more settings for the communications interface(s) 404, and/or one or more settings for the image sensor(s). In some implementations, at least some of the power settings 4664 are set by a user of the smart device 204. In some implementations, at least some of the power settings 4664 are based on an operating mode of the smart device 204. In some implementations, at least some of the power settings 4664 are based on a status of the energy storage component 420.
The high power domain 480 includes one or more image sensors 418, a camera controller 474, and video memory 478. In some implementations, components in the high power domain 480 are deactivated in some modes of operation to reduce energy consumption of the smart device 204. For example, in a power conservation mode, the image sensor 418 is deactivated until the sensor data 484 indicates that something of interest is occurring within the field of view of the camera, or a user requests live video from the smart device 204. In some implementations, the components in the high power domain 480 are individually activated in response to particular triggers. For example, in response to a user request to view video data stored in the video memory 478, the video memory and associated access circuitry is activated, while the image sensor 418 remains deactivated. In some implementations, the controller 474 governs operation of the image sensor 418 and/or analyzes video data 472 from the image sensor 418 (e.g., via the analysis module 450). In some implementations, the controller 474 governs encoding of the video data 472, e.g., based on network conditions, storage space in the video memory 478, whether the video data includes motion, one or more user preferences, a power mode of the smart device 204, server load, and the like. In some implementations, the controller 474 determines whether to activate circuitry in the high power domain 482 based on analysis of the video data 472. For example, the controller 474 determines, based on the video data 484, that a particular type of motion is present in a field of view of the image sensor 418 and, in accordance with the motion having the particular type, activates the communications interface 404 to transmit the encoded video data 476-2 to a remote computing system (e.g., a cloud server or client device).
The high power domain 482 includes the communications interface 404 and associated circuitry (e.g., the radio(s) 404, one or more receivers, one or more transmitters, and/or one or more transceivers). In some implementations, the communications interface 404 is configured to wirelessly couple to a local network (e.g., via Wi-Fi) to transmit video data 476-2 and/or sensor data 484 to a remote computing system. In some implementations, components in the high power domain 482 are deactivated in some modes of operation to reduce energy consumption of the smart device 204. For example, in a power conservation mode, the radio(s) 404 are deactivated until the sensor data 484 or video data 472 indicates that an event of interest has occurred, at which time the radio(s) 404 are activated to establish a wireless connection and transmit data regarding the event of interest. In some implementations, the communications interface 404 maintains one or more low power connections (e.g., connections consuming less than 60%, 40%, or 20% of a Wi-Fi connection) to receive updates and/or requests from remote systems (e.g., other smart devices or the server system 164) and/or a user of the smart device 204. In some implementations, the communications interface 404 intermittently (e.g., periodically) establishes a connection (e.g., a Wi-Fi connection) to check for, or receive, updates and/or requests from remote systems (e.g., other smart devices or the server system 164) and/or a user. In some implementations, the control circuitry 486 is configured to enable the communications interface 404 via control signal(s) 490. In some implementations, the controller 474 is configured to enable the communications interface 404 via control signal(s) 492.
The server system 164 receives one or more video stream(s) 504 from the video source 501 (e.g., a video source 222 from
A data processing pipeline processes video information (e.g., a live video feed) received from a video source 501 (e.g., including a doorbell 106 and an optional controller device) and/or audio information received from one or more smart devices in real-time (e.g., within 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or 2 minutes) to identify and categorize events occurring in the smart home environment, and sends real-time event alerts (e.g., within 10 seconds, 20 seconds, or 30 seconds) and/or a refreshed event timeline (e.g., within 30 seconds, 1 minute, or 3 minutes) to a client device 220 associated with a reviewer account for the smart home environment. The data processing pipeline also processes stored information (such as stored video feeds from a video source 501) to reevaluate and/or re-categorize events as necessary, such as when new information is obtained regarding the event and/or when new information is obtained regarding event categories (e.g., a new activity zone definition is obtained from the user).
After video and/or audio data is captured at a smart device, the data is processed to determine if any potential event candidates or persons are present. In some implementations, the data is initially processed at the smart device (e.g., video source 501, camera 118, or doorbell 106). Thus, in some implementations, the smart device sends event candidate information, such as event start information, to the server system 164. In some implementations, the data is processed at the server system 164 for event start detection. In some implementations, the video and/or audio data is stored on server system 164 (e.g., in video and source data database 509). In some implementations, the visual/audio data is stored on a server distinct from server system 164. In some implementations, after a motion start is detected, the relevant portion of the video stream is retrieved from storage (e.g., from video and source data database 509).
In some implementations, the event identification process includes segmenting the video stream into multiple segments then categorizing the event candidate within each segment. In some implementations, categorizing the event candidate includes an aggregation of background factors, entity detection and identification, motion vector generation for each motion entity, entity features, and scene features to generate motion features for the event candidate. In some implementations, the event identification process further includes categorizing each segment, generating or updating an event log based on categorization of a segment, generating an alert for the event based on categorization of a segment, categorizing the complete event, updating the event log based on the complete event, and generating an alert for the event based on the complete event. In some implementations, a categorization is based on a determination that the event occurred within a particular zone of interest. In some implementations, a categorization is based on a determination that the event candidate involves one or more zones of interest. In some implementations, a categorization is based on audio data and/or audio event characterization.
The event analysis and categorization process may be performed by the smart device (e.g., the video source 501) and the server system 164 cooperatively, and the division of the tasks may vary in different implementations, for different equipment capability configurations, power parameters, and/or for different network, device, and server load situations. After the server system 164 categorizes the event candidate, the result of the event detection and categorization may be sent to a reviewer associated with the smart home environment.
In some implementations, the server system 164 stores raw or compressed video data (e.g., in a video and source data database 509), event categorization models (e.g., in an event categorization model database 510), and event masks and other event metadata (e.g., in an event data and event mask database 511) for each of the video sources 501. In some implementations, the video data is stored at one or more display resolutions such as 480p, 780p, 1080i, 1080p, and the like.
In some implementations, the video source 501 (e.g., the doorbell 106) transmits a live video feed to the remote server system 164 via one or more networks (e.g., the network(s) 162). In some implementations, the transmission of the video data is continuous as the video data is captured by the doorbell 106. In some implementations, the transmission of video data is irrespective of the content of the video data, and the video data is uploaded from the video source 501 to the server system 164 for storage irrespective of whether any motion event has been captured in the video data. In some implementations, the video data is stored at a local storage device of the video source 501 by default, and only video portions corresponding to motion event candidates detected in the video stream are uploaded to the server system 164 (e.g., in real-time or as requested by a user).
In some implementations, the video source 501 dynamically determines at what display resolution the video stream is to be uploaded to the server system 164. In some implementations, the video source 501 dynamically determines which parts of the video stream are to be uploaded to the server system 164. For example, in some implementations, depending on the current server load and network conditions, the video source 501 optionally prioritizes the uploading of video portions corresponding to newly detected motion event candidates ahead of other portions of the video stream that do not contain any motion event candidates; or the video source 501 uploads the video portions corresponding to newly detected motion event candidates at higher display resolutions than the other portions of the video stream. This upload prioritization helps to ensure that important motion events are detected and alerted to the reviewer in real-time, even when the network conditions and server load are less than optimal. In some implementations, the video source 501 implements two parallel upload connections, one for uploading the continuous video stream captured by the doorbell 106, and the other for uploading video portions corresponding to detected motion event candidates. At any given time, the video source 501 determines whether the uploading of the continuous video stream needs to be suspended temporarily to ensure that sufficient bandwidth is given to the uploading of the video segments corresponding to newly detected motion event candidates.
In some implementations, the video stream uploaded for cloud storage is at a lower quality (e.g., lower resolution, lower frame rate, higher compression, etc) than the video segments uploaded for motion event processing.
As shown in
In some implementations, the smart device sends additional source information 503 to the server system 164. This additional source information 503 may include information regarding a device state (e.g., IR mode, AE mode, DTPZ settings, etc.) and/or information regarding the environment in which the device is located (e.g., indoors, outdoors, night-time, day-time, etc.). In some implementations, the source information 503 is used by the server system 164 to perform event detection, entity recognition, and/or to categorize event candidates. In some implementations, the additional source information 503 includes one or more preliminary results from video processing performed by the video source 501 (e.g., a doorbell 106), such as categorizations, object/entity recognitions, motion masks, and the like.
In some implementations, the video portion after an event start incident is detected is divided into multiple segments. In some implementations, the segmentation continues until event end information (sometimes also called an “end-of-event signal”) is obtained. In some implementations, the segmentation occurs within the server system 164 (e.g., by the event processor 505). In some implementations, the segmentation comprises generating overlapping segments. For example, a 10-second segment is generated every second, such that a new segment overlaps the prior segment by 9 seconds.
In some implementations, each of the multiple segments is of the same or similar duration (e.g., each segment has a 10-12 second duration). In some implementations, the first segment has a shorter duration than the subsequent segments. Keeping the first segment short allows for real time initial categorization and alerts based on processing the first segment. The initial categorization may then be revised based on processing of subsequent segments. In some implementations, a new segment is generated if the motion entity enters a new zone of interest.
In some implementations, after the event processor module obtains the video portion corresponding to an event candidate, the event processor 505 obtains background factors and performs motion entity detection identification, motion vector generation for each motion entity, and feature identification. Once the event processor 505 completes these tasks, the event categorizer 507 aggregates all of the information and generates a categorization for the motion event candidate. In some implementations, the event processor 505 and the event categorizer 507 are components of the video processing module 3144. In some implementations, false positive suppression is optionally performed to reject some motion event candidates before the motion event candidates are submitted for event categorization. In some implementations, determining whether a motion event candidate is a false positive includes determining whether the motion event candidate occurred in a particular zone. In some implementations, determining whether a motion event candidate is a false positive includes analyzing an importance score for the motion event candidate. The importance score for a motion event candidate is optionally based on zones of interest involved with the motion event candidate, background features, motion vectors, scene features, entity features, motion features, motion tracks, and the like.
In some implementations, the video source 501 has sufficient processing capabilities to perform, and does perform, entity detection, person recognition, background estimation, motion entity identification, the motion vector generation, and/or the feature identification.
The memory 606 includes high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR SRAM, or other random access solid state memory devices; and, optionally, includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, one or more optical disk storage devices, one or more flash memory devices, or one or more other non-volatile solid state storage devices. The memory 606, optionally, includes one or more storage devices remotely located from one or more processing units 602. The memory 606, or alternatively the non-volatile memory within the memory 606, includes a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. In some implementations, the memory 606, or the non-transitory computer readable storage medium of the memory 606, stores the following programs, modules, and data structures, or a subset or superset thereof:
Each of the above identified elements may be stored in one or more of the previously mentioned memory devices, and corresponds to a set of instructions for performing a function described above. The above identified modules or programs (i.e., sets of instructions) need not be implemented as separate software programs, procedures, modules or data structures, and thus various subsets of these modules may be combined or otherwise rearranged in various implementations. In some implementations, the memory 606, optionally, stores a subset of the modules and data structures identified above. Furthermore, the memory 606, optionally, stores additional modules and data structures not described above.
An example of a known event not involving persons is a family pet exiting through a doggy door. A text-only notification for this event is, for example, a text stating that “Spot was just spotted leaving through his door.” An example of a known event involving known persons is a household member returning home from work. A still-image notification for this event is, for example, an image of the household member with text stating that “John has returned home from work.” An example of a known event involving known persons is a delivery person dropping off a package. An animated image notification for this event is, for example, a gif of the delivery person leaving the package with text stating that “The shoes you ordered have been delivered.”
The user interface 702 also includes a plurality of low power preferences 712 enabling a user to limit video data transmissions to conserve power and extend battery life. In the example of
For example, based on the preferences shown in
The event notification 814 includes a text portion categorizing the event (unknown visitor) and giving additional details (visitor's message). The event notification 814 also includes affordances 816 and 818 enabling a user to request video data corresponding to the event. In some implementations, the affordances are provided on event notifications where the video data corresponding to the event is stored at the camera device. In some implementations, the affordances are provided on event notifications having a particular event type or category (e.g., events involving unknown persons). In some implementations, an event notification includes a video portion (e.g., showing a still-image of the event) and one or more affordances for requesting additional video data (e.g., an affordance to request a video clip of the event).
In some implementations, the event notification includes a text portion indicating the category of the motion event (e.g., a person event category) and the time the motion event occurred (e.g., “12:32 PM” or “10 seconds ago”). In some implementations, the event notification is displayed on a home or lock screen of a client device 220. In some implementations, in response to a user selection of event notification, a smart home application is opened or launched (e.g., utilizing client-side module 628,
In some implementations, a user interface with multiple event notifications is presented, each event notification corresponding to a distinct event. For example, a user interface is presented that includes event notification corresponding to a motion event that occurred at 12:10 PM, and a second event notification corresponding to an audio event that occurred at 12:45 PM. In some implementations, the event notifications are sorted chronologically (e.g., with most recent alerts displayed on top). In some implementations, the event notifications are sorted by importance.
The event notification 820 includes a text message indicating that a motion event involving a particular zone (Zone A) had occurred at 12:32 PM. In some implementations, the particular zone is a zone of interest denoted by a user of the smart home application. In some implementations, “Zone A” is a user-defined title for the particular zone. The event notification 822 includes a text message indicating that a motion event likely involving a person had occurred at 12:32 PM. Thus, the event notification 822 conveys information regarding both an event category for the motion event and a confidence level for the category.
The event notification 824 includes a text message indicating that a motion event involving a person had occurred during a particular time period (12:32 PM-12:35 PM). Thus, the event notification 824 conveys information regarding both an event category for the motion event and a duration of the motion event. In accordance with some implementations, the notification 822 is generated as a first notification for a particular motion event and the notification 824 is generated as a second or updated notification for the particular motion event. For example, the notification 822 is generated based on an initial event category and corresponding confidence level for the motion event, such as an event category assigned after analyzing a few seconds (e.g., 5, 10, 15, or 30 seconds) of the motion event. In this example, the notification 824 is generated after analyzing the entire 3-minute event.
The event notification 826 includes a text message indicating that a motion event involving an unknown person had occurred at a particular time (12:32 PM). In some implementations, an unknown person comprises an unrecognized detected person. For example, a person is detected, but the person cannot be identified via facial recognition or otherwise. In some implementations, notification 826 is generated in accordance with a determination that the person is not recognized as any particular person with a confidence score meeting particular criteria. For example, the detected person is determined to be a known person, “John”, with a confidence score of 48 and is determined to be “Paul” with a confidence score of 36. In this example, a confidence score below a confidence threshold of 60 results in the detected person not being identified as the known person. Thus, the detected person is not identified as either “John” or “Paul” and the corresponding text message states “unknown person.”
The event notification 828 includes a text message indicating that activity was detected at a particular time (12:32 PM). In some implementations, the notification 828 is generated in accordance with a determination that the activity included no particular entities or objects. In some implementations, notification 828 is generated in accordance with a determination that no particular entities or objects in the motion event were recognized with sufficient confidence (e.g., above a predetermined confidence threshold).
The event notification 830 includes a text message indicating that activity involving a particular animal (Sparky the dog) was detected at a particular time (12:32 PM). In some implementations, the notification 830 corresponds to entity detection identifying a dog entity in the activity (e.g., motion event) and entity recognition identifying the dog entity as Sparky the dog. In some implementations, the notification 830 corresponds to a particular event category for Sparky the dog.
The event notification 832 includes a text message indicating that an audio event, probably involving a vehicle, occurred at a particular time (12:32 PM). In some implementations, an audio event comprises an event detected by one or more microphones (e.g., one or more microphones of a smart device 204). In some implementations, an audio event detected by a microphone is associated with a particular portion of a video feed from a camera. For example, an audio event triggered by a microphone on a smart thermostat is associated with a camera feed from a camera located in the vicinity of the smart thermostat (e.g., within the same room or space). Thus, a user may request and/or view video footage for a period of time immediately before, during, and/or immediately after the detected audio event. In some implementations, the audio event was determined to probably involve a vehicle based on an analysis of information from one or more smart devices, such as visual data from a camera or the detected audio data. In some implementations, notification 832 corresponds to a confidence score for the object detection meeting certain criteria, such as within a particular confidence range.
The event notification 834 includes a text message indicating that an event involving an identified person (Jack) and an unknown person occurred within a particular zone of interest (Zone A) at a particular time (12:32 PM). In some implementations, the event comprises one or more of: a motion event, an audio event, and an alert event. In some implementations, the notification 834 indicates that the person denoted as “Jack” was identified with a high confidence level. In some implementations, the notification 834 indicates that the person denoted as “unknown person” was either not identified or not identified with a high enough confidence level. For example, the unknown person was not identified as being any particular person with a corresponding confidence score above a confidence threshold. In some implementations, the notification 834 indicates that the event occurred at least in part within Zone A. In some implementations, Zone A corresponds to a user-defined zone of interest. In some implementations, Zone A corresponds to a recognized zone within a scene (e.g., a front door of a dwelling). In some implementations, notification 834 corresponds to an event category for events involving a known person, an unknown person, and a zone of interest. In some implementations, notification 834 corresponds to multiple event categories, such as an event category for events involving a recognized person, an event category for events involving an unknown person, and an event category for events involving a zone of interest.
In some implementations, one or more notification presentation characteristics are adjusted based on the corresponding event category. For example, notification involving unknown persons, such as notification 826, include an audio component whereas notifications involving known entities, such as notification 834 do not include an audio component. In some implementations, one or more notification display characteristics are adjusted based on the corresponding event category. For example, notifications involving a zone of interest, such as notification 820, include a colored border (e.g., a color corresponding to the particular zone of interest), whereas notification not involving a zone of interest, such as notification 822, include a black border. In some implementations, one or more notification presentation characteristics are adjusted based on the time since the event was detected (or occurred).
In some implementations, the camera device monitors (902) a scene (e.g., utilizing one or more of the sensors 422). In some implementations, the camera device monitors the scene using one or more non-image sensors, such as a PIR sensor or ALS. In some implementations, the camera device monitors the scene utilizing one or more components in a low power domain (e.g., within the low power domain 488). In some implementations, the camera device disables one or more high power domains while monitoring the scene (e.g., the high power domains 480 and 482). In some implementations, the camera device operates an image sensor (e.g., the image sensor 418) in a low power mode (e.g., a low resolution and/or low framerate mode) to monitor the scene.
In some implementations, the camera device detects (904) motion within the scene. In some implementations, rather than motion, the camera device detects one or more sounds (or other sensor data), and activates the image sensor based on analysis of the sounds or other sensor data.
In some implementations, the camera device determines (906) whether the detected motion is trivial (e.g., utilizing event analysis module 450 and/or device-side module 438). In some implementations: (1) in response to detecting the motion, the camera device determines whether the motion is trivial motion; and (2) in accordance with a determination that the motion is non-trivial, the camera device activates the image sensor to capture the plurality of images. In some implementations, in accordance with a determination that the motion is trivial, the camera device forgoes activating the image sensor and the wireless communication component.
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination that the motion is non-trivial, the camera device activates (908) image sensor circuitry (e.g., circuitry within the high power domain 480). In some implementations: (1) in response to detecting the motion, the camera device activates the image sensor to capture the plurality of images; and (2) the video information includes at least a subset of the plurality of images. In some implementations, in accordance with the determination that the motion is non-trivial, the camera device operates the image sensor in a high power mode (e.g., a high resolution, high framerate mode). In some implementations, the camera device activates the image sensor circuitry in response to data from one or more remote devices. For example, the camera device receives a notification from a remote motion sensor that non-trivial motion is present within the camera device's field of view, and, in response, the camera device activates the image sensor circuitry.
The camera device captures (910) video data of the motion event (e.g., utilizing the image sensor 418). In some implementations, while a wireless communication component of the camera device is deactivated, the camera device captures, with an image sensor, a plurality of images containing a motion event. In some implementations, prior to capturing the plurality of images and while the image sensor is deactivated, the camera device detects motion via a motion sensor (e.g., a PIR sensor, radar, or ALS), distinct from the image sensor.
The camera device characterizes (912) the motion event based on the captured video data (e.g., utilizing the event analysis module 452). In some implementations, the motion event is characterized based on the plurality of images and data from other sensors (e.g., motion detected via the motion sensor). In some implementations, characterizing the motion event comprises determining whether the motion event involves a person. In some implementations, the camera device determines whether the motion involves an animal, pet, vehicle, or the like. In some implementations, characterizing the motion event further comprises, in accordance with a determination that the motion event involves a person, determining whether the person is a known person.
The camera device determines (914) whether the motion event is trivial (e.g., the motion event is a tree swaying in the wind, a fan moving, or a television show). In some implementations, the camera device determines, based on the characterization of the motion event, whether to send video data to a remote computing system. In some implementations, the motion event is characterized based on a segment of video data (e.g., 2, 5, or 10 second). In some implementations, characterizing the motion event comprises determining whether the motion event comprises a known (recognized) motion event (e.g., dropping of a package, a car driving by, a tree moving, etc.). In some implementations, characterizing the motion event comprises determining whether the motion event comprises movement toward the camera device, e.g., a person approaching the camera device or home environment versus a person passing by the device or the home environment.
In some implementations, determining that a person is approaching the camera device comprises determining that the person is within a threshold distance to the camera device. For example, if a person is detected within a predetermined distance from the camera device, the person is determined to be an approaching visitor. For example, once the visitor is within 15 feet, 10 feet, or 5 feet of the camera device, an observation window is initiated and context information is obtained. In some implementations, initiating the observation window in response to the determination that the person is approaching the camera device includes initiating the observation window in response to the determination that the visitor is on a track to the camera device (e.g., has entered a walkway, hallway, or perimeter gate leading to the camera device).
In some implementations, the motion event is characterized based on context information. In some implementations, the context information includes timing information (e.g., time of day), a state of the smart home environment in which the camera device is installed (e.g., is the user home), whether motion is expected by the user (e.g., kids arriving home from school), and the like.
In some implementations, context information includes a detected announcement event (e.g., a doorbell button press, a door knock, or a verbal announcement), or an absence of detected announcement events during a predetermined time threshold. For example, a visitor who rings the doorbell within 5 seconds of reaching the entryway may warrant a different response from the smart home environment than a visitor who has reached the entryway but has lingered for more than 30 seconds without ringing the doorbell or knocking on the door. In some implementations, a doorbell press, door knock, or verbal announcement is part of a pre-assigned pattern of doorbell presses or door knocks associated with, or is otherwise associated with, a known visitor. For example, the smart home environment (e.g., a smart doorbell) determines that a particular visitor always knocks at a particular location on the door, in a particular pattern, and with a particular amount of force. In this example, the smart home environment associates such knock attributes with the particular visitor. In another example, a visitor profile for a particular visitor is set (e.g., set manually by a user, or set via machine learning) to associate a particular knock pattern, a particular doorbell ring pattern, or a particular verbal announcement with the particular visitor.
In some implementations, context information is based on a facial recognition analysis result, one or more behavior characteristics of the visitor, one or more physical characteristics of the visitor, one or more clothing and/or accessory characteristics of the visitor, a time of day during which the visitor approaches the entryway, a day of the week during which the visitor approaches the entryway, audio data from the smart home environment, proximity in time to a prescheduled event, proximity in time to a prescheduled status of the smart home environment, a known or unknown status of a user, an expected or unexpected status of a user, a location of a user, an identity of a user, and/or one or more detected visitor actions (e.g., a doorbell activation, a door knock, an audio announcement, and/or any other interaction between the visitor and the smart home environment). In some implementations, the context information is based on a timing of the one or more detected visitor actions (e.g., how long it took for the visitor to press the doorbell or knock on the door since the visitor was detected or was determined to have been approaching or in proximity to the entryway, or how long the visitor has been lingering without pressing the doorbell or knocking on the door since the visitor was detected or was determined to have been approaching or in proximity to the entryway).
In some implementations, the context information includes characteristics of the visitor, such as height, gender, age, and the like. In some implementations, the context information includes determined biometrics of the visitor. In some implementations, if a group of visitors approach the entryway together, the context information includes the number of visitors and/or identified interactions between the visitors. In some implementations, the context information includes information regarding whether the visitor is holding any items and/or identification of such items (e.g., a box, crowbar, or food items). In some implementations, the context information includes information regarding any active or recent (e.g., within the last hour, day, or week) security alerts in the vicinity of the smart home (e.g., within a block, a mile, or 10 miles). In some implementations, the context information includes information regarding previous visitors to the smart home (e.g., whether previous visitors were criminals, salesmen, or neighbors).
In some implementations, context information includes audio data, such as a verbal announcement (examples of which are described above) or conversation of the visitor. Further examples include background noise from sources other than the visitor (e.g., a barking dog, a police siren, or any other sound that may provide context for the visit).
In some implementations, context information includes any combination of the above examples. In some implementations, individual subsets of context information are weighted, and the context information is a weighted combination of the individual subsets of context information. For example, brightness information or time-of-day information may be weighted more heavily than identity information (e.g., if the pool cleaner approaches the entryway in the middle of the night, the time-of-day information is more relevant in determining contextual information for the approaching visitor, and is therefore more heavily weighted).
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination that the motion event is trivial, the camera device deactivates (916) the image sensor circuitry. In some implementations, in accordance with a determination not to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device forgoes activating the wireless communication component.
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination not to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device stores the plurality of images at the camera device (e.g., within the video memory 478). For example, the camera device stores the video data for a preset period of time, until overwritten by later video data, or until a user indicates that the video data should be discarded or transferred to another computing system.
In some implementations, after storing the plurality of images, the camera device (1) receives a request from a user of the camera device to view the motion event; and (2) in response to the user request, sending the stored plurality of images to the remote computing system. For example, the user requests the images via a notification affordance, such as the affordance 818 in
In some implementations, the camera device is configured to send video data for all motion events to the remote computing systems. For example, the user has selected preferences (e.g., as illustrated in
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination that the motion event is non-trivial, the camera device continues capturing (918) video data of the motion event. For example, the camera device continues captured video data until the motion event ends (e.g., until motion is no longer detected). In some implementations, after capturing images of the motion event, the camera device disables the image sensor to conserve power. For example, after determining that the motion event has ended, the camera device disables components in the high power domain 480. In some implementations: (1) the motion event is characterized based on a segment of video data from the image sensor; and the camera device (a) determines, based on the characterization of the motion event, whether to continue to capture video data from the image sensor; and (b) in accordance with a determination not to continue to capture video data, disabling the image sensor to conserve power. In some implementations, in accordance with a determination not to continue to capture video data, the camera device initiates sending a notification to a user of the camera device. In some implementations, one or more additional components are also deactivated, such as an image signal processor, video memory, LEDs, and the like.
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device: (1) activates the wireless communication component of the camera device; (2) establishes a wireless connection to the remote computing system via the wireless communication component; and (3) sends video information to the remote computing system via the established wireless connection. In some implementations, the remote computing system comprises a cloud server. In some implementations, the remote computing system comprises a client device.
In some implementations, the video information includes information regarding the characterization of the motion event and at least a subset of the plurality of images. For example, the video information includes the images shown in the video portion 804 of the notification 802 and the information shown in the text portion 803.
In some implementations, prior to sending the video information, the camera device stores the video data at the camera device so as to improve efficiency of a wireless transfer of the video information. In some implementations, the camera device compresses the video data and transfers the compressed video data so as to improve efficiency of the wireless transfer. For example, the camera device stores the video data until the event ends, then activates the communication circuitry and sends the video data. In this way the camera device can fully utilize the wireless connection and reduce the time the wireless connection needs to be maintained.
In some implementations, after sending the video information, the camera device disables the wireless communication component to conserve power. For example, the camera device disables the wireless communication component until it is activated again in response to a new event of interest.
In some implementations, the camera device determines (920) a category (e.g., category “A”) of the event (e.g., utilizing characterization module 456 in conjunction with category information 468 and/or characterization data 470). In some implementations, in accordance with determining that the event has a particular category (e.g., category “A”), the camera device: (1) activates (922) wireless communication circuitry; (2) establishes (924) a wireless connection to a remote computer; and (3) streams (930) live video to the remote computer. In some implementations, the remote computer is (926) a cloud server (e.g., a cloud server configured to manage multiple smart home accounts and environments) such as the server system 164. In some implementations, the remote computer is (928) a client device, such as the client device 220.
In some implementations, the camera determines whether to send video data to the remote computing system based on the particular category and one or more power parameters of the camera device. In some implementations, the one or more power parameters include a measure of remaining battery power for the camera device. In some implementations, the camera device (1) receives one or more power preferences from a user of the camera device; and (2) sets the one or more power parameters based on the one or more power preferences (e.g., the user preferences illustrated in
In some implementations: (1) the camera device comprises a doorbell (e.g., the doorbell 106); and (2) the determination of whether to send video data to the remote computing system is based on whether the doorbell is activated proximate in time to the detected motion event, e.g., within 30 seconds, 1 minute, or 2 minutes of the start (or end) of the detected motion.
In some implementations: (1) in accordance with the determination to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device determines a format and an amount of the plurality of images to send; and (2) the video information comprises the determined amount of the plurality of images in the determined format. For example, sending a still image, a gif, a video at low, medium, or high resolution, and/or a video a low, medium, or high framerate. As another example, sending a portion of an image (or set of images) such as a headshot or a portion of the frame involving the motion.
In some implementations, in accordance with determining (932) that the event has a particular category (e.g., category “B”), the camera device: (1) stores (934) video data of the motion event at the camera device; (2) instantiates (936) a delay period; (3) activates (938) wireless communication circuitry; (4) establishes (940) a wireless connection to a remote computer; and (5) transfers (942) at least a portion of the stored video data to the remote computer. In some implementations: (1) in accordance with the determination to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device determines whether to delay sending the video data; and (2) the wireless communication component is activated in accordance with a determination not to delay sending the video data. For example, sending the video data promptly (in real time or within 2, 5, 10 minutes). In some implementations: (1) in accordance with a determination to delay sending the video data, the camera device instantiates a delay period; and (2) the wireless communication component is activated upon completion of the delay period. In some implementations, the delay period is a preset period of time. In some implementations, the delay period is to a particular time of day, day of the week, day of the month, etc. In some implementations, the delay period comprises a storage period during which the user can request the video data (e.g., the data is stored for two weeks (or until overwritten) in case the user wishes to view it).
In some implementations, in accordance with determining (9344) that the event has a particular category (e.g., category “C”), the camera device: (1) activates (946) wireless communication circuitry; (2) establishes (948) a wireless connection to a remote computer; and (3) initiates a non-video event notification for a client device (e.g., a text notification, such as the notification 806).
In some implementations, in accordance with a determination not to send video data to the remote computing system, the camera device initiates generation of a text notification (e.g., via the communication module 430 in conjunction with the communications interface(s) 404) of the motion event for sending to a user of the camera device (e.g., the homeowner, or account holder linked to the device).
Although some of various drawings illustrate a number of logical stages in a particular order, stages that are not order dependent may be reordered and other stages may be combined or broken out. While some reordering or other groupings are specifically mentioned, others will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, so the ordering and groupings presented herein are not an exhaustive list of alternatives. Moreover, it should be recognized that the stages could be implemented in hardware, firmware, software or any combination thereof.
It will also be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. are, in some instances, used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first category could be termed a second category, and, similarly, a second category could be termed a first category, without departing from the scope of the various described implementations. The first category and the second category are both categories, but they are not necessarily the same category.
The terminology used in the description of the various described implementations herein is for the purpose of describing particular implementations only and is not intended to be limiting. As used in the description of the various described implementations and the appended claims, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that the term “and/or” as used herein refers to and encompasses any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It will be further understood that the terms “includes,” “including,” “comprises,” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
As used herein, the term “if” is, optionally, construed to mean “when” or “upon” or “in response to determining” or “in response to detecting” or “in accordance with a determination that,” depending on the context. Similarly, the phrase “if it is determined” or “if is detected” is, optionally, construed to mean “upon determining” or “in response to determining” or “upon detecting is detected,” depending on the context.
The foregoing description, for purpose of explanation, has been described with reference to specific implementations. However, the illustrative discussions above are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scope of the claims to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The implementations were chosen in order to best explain the principles underlying the claims and their practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best use the implementations with various modifications as are suited to the particular uses contemplated.
This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser. No. 17/066,264, filed Oct. 8, 2020, which in turn is a continuation of and claims priority to International Patent Application No. PCT/US2018/040781, filed Jul. 3, 2018, which in turn claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/663,149, filed Apr. 26, 2018, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62663149 | Apr 2018 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 17066264 | Oct 2020 | US |
| Child | 18351404 | US | |
| Parent | PCT/US2018/040781 | Jul 2018 | US |
| Child | 17066264 | US |
