Patent Application
20090231129
The present invention relates to a monitoring system and method thereof, and more particularly, a monitoring system and method for monitoring a predetermined maintenance event.
Generally, janitorial and maintenance services are required to monitor and maintain infrastructure, such as, bathrooms, faucets, water coolers, and a plurality of supplies. The maintenance services may also include checking and replenishing supplies. Commercial buildings frequently house several unrelated tenants, with the janitorial service provided by a landlord who is responsible for monitoring facilities. In another scenario, bathrooms and other facilities are often spread over a campus, for example, a college campus or a company campus. Such facilities require monitoring, maintenance, and immediate action when a maintenance event occurs, such as, flooding, power outage, or an emergency item is moved, e.g., a fire extinguisher, or a critical supply is low or missing, or vandalism occurs.
Therefore, janitorial and maintenance facilities which can be the epicenter of maintenance events can be spread out in many locations in a building and/or over a campus. The facilities are thereby difficult to monitor, and responding to a maintenance event can be delayed. Solution to these problems is inadequate and typically includes time intensive inspections and monitoring by maintenance personnel.
It would therefore be desirable to have a monitoring system or method for monitoring multiple facilities in a building or campus. It would further be desirable for such a monitoring system to notify maintenance personnel of a maintenance event. It would also be desirable to reduce the need for maintenance personnel to monitor and inspect facilities and supplies.
In an aspect of the invention, a monitoring system includes at least one sensor for transmitting an alert signal of a predetermined maintenance event. A transceiver device receives the transmission of the alert signal from the sensor and communicates with a messaging device. The messaging device sends an alert message to a receiving device for notifying of the predetermined maintenance event. The messaging device communicates with a computer for analyzing the alert signal and determining a specified notification as the alert message, and the messaging device sends the specified notification to the receiving device. The specified notification may include a predetermined communication corresponding to the maintenance event. For example, the specified notification may include a predetermined text message. In one embodiment of the invention, the messaging device may select from a plurality of alert messages which corresponds to a particular maintenance event. In another embodiment, the receiving device is a personal alert device which may include a beeper or a cell phone.
In a related aspect, a control panel includes multiple zones corresponding to event types and includes a zone for maintenance events. The control panel includes the computer for analyzing the alert signal and determining which of a plurality of alert messages are sent. The alert signal may include a code, and the control panel computer analyzes the code and determines the predetermined maintenance event, and the control panel transmits the alert message to a designated receiving device corresponding to the maintenance event. The control panel may further include an emergency zone, and the zone for maintenance events is a non-emergency zone. The system may further include a plurality of sensors corresponding to a plurality of predetermined maintenance events. The sensors may include a motion sensor, and also may include lever arm microswitch sensors, flood sensors, shock sensors, water flow sensors, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, and gas and vapor detectors.
In another aspect of the invention, a method for monitoring a specified area includes: transmitting an alert signal of a predetermined maintenance event using at least one sensor; receiving the transmission from the sensor and transmitting an alert message using a messaging device; receiving the alert message using a receiving device; and notifying a user of the predetermined maintenance event using the receiving device. The method may further include: analyzing the alert signal using a computer; determining a specified notification as the alert message using the computer, and sending the specified notification to the receiving device using the transceiver device. The specified notification may include a predetermined text message. The method may further include: selecting from a plurality of alert messages corresponding to particular maintenance events; and sending the alert message to the selected receiving device using the messaging device. Additionally, the method may further include: separating a control panel into multiple zones corresponding to event types including a zone for non-emergency maintenance events and a zone for emergency events; analyzing a code in the alert signal using a computer in the control panel; designating the alert signal as a non-emergency maintenance event type; determining the predetermined maintenance event using the code; and transmitting the alert message to a designated receiving device corresponding to the predetermined maintenance event using the control panel.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments thereof, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:
An illustrative embodiment of a monitoring system 10 and method of monitoring a predetermined maintenance event is shown in one embodiment of the invention in
A transceiver device 34 communicates, for example, wirelessly or by hard wire to a messaging device 38. The transceiver 34 receives the transmission of the alert signals 18 from the sensors 14. The messaging device 38 transmits an alert message 42 to one or more receiving devices embodied as a cell phone 52, or a personal alert device embodied as a pager 56. The pager may include a radio pacer or short-range radio device, which may be hand held, which receives a message sent directly using a transceiver without accessing an external messaging network. The alert message 42 may be sent to the cell phone 52 and/or the pager 56 with a specified alert message corresponding to the predetermined maintenance event detected by the corresponding sensor 14. Once a cell phone or pager user is notified of the maintenance event by receiving the alert message 42, the user can proceed to remedy the maintenance event, or, for example, contact appropriate personnel for assistance. The alert message may include a code indicating a particular maintenance event, a text message, an automated call or the like.
Further, the messaging device 38 is connected to a computer 46 for analyzing the alert signals 18 and determine a particular maintenance event. For example, one sensor 14 may be designated to detect a flood, and thus sends a predetermined code to the receiver. The computer 46 analyzes the code of the alert message using a program stored in a storage device 48 of the computer 46 to determine the code's corresponding maintenance event and location of the sensor 14. Other data of the maintenance event may also be analyzed and stored, for example, event times and measurements.
In another embodiment, shown in
While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments thereof it will be understood by those skilled in the art that changes in forms and details may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. It is therefore intended that the present invention not be limited to the exact forms and details described and illustrated herein, but falls within the scope of the appended claims.
