IP Library › Granted Patent US 11,334,040
Granted Patent B2
US 11,334,040 · App. 17/170,659 · Granted May 17, 2022

Systems and methods for automatically responding to a fire

Inventors: Jackie O. Jordan, II (Bloomington, IL); John Donovan (Bloomington, IL); David Turrentine (Normal, IL); Torri Wollenschlager (Bloomington, IL); Bryan R. Nussbaum (Bloomington, IL); Deanna Stockweather (Normal, IL); Jeffrey W. Stoiber (Atlanta, GA); Kerstin Markwardt (Phoenix, AZ); Gail L. Carlson (Bloomington, IL); Kyle C. Schiebel (Bloomington, IL); Troy Winslow (Bloomington, IL); Joseph P. Harr (Bloomington, IL); Ellakate Wagner (Bloomington, IL); Michael Harris, Jr. (Tempe, AZ); Jennylind Sun (Bloomington, IL)
Assignee: STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY
G05B15/02G01C21/20G06Q10/20G06Q30/01G06Q30/018G06Q40/08G06Q50/163G06V40/172G08B7/062G08B7/066G08B13/22G08B17/10G08B21/02G08B21/043G08B21/0446G08B21/0461G08B21/182G08B21/185H04L12/283H04L12/2818H04L12/2825H04L67/12H04N5/23206H04W4/02H04W4/024H04W4/90
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,334,040
App. No.
17/170,659
Filed
Feb 8, 2021
Granted
May 17, 2022
Kind
B2
Examiner
WU, ZHEN Y
Art Unit
2685
USPC
705/4
Abstract

Methods and systems for generating a response to detecting a fire on a property are provided. In certain aspects, a smart home controller (or other smart controller) may analyze data received from smart devices disposed on, within, or proximate to a property. If it is determined that a fire is present on the premises of the property, the smart home controller may determine a location of the fire as compared to the smart devices. The smart home controller may then generate and transmit instructions causing a portion of the smart devices to perform a set of actions to mitigate risks associated with the presence of the fire on the property. The smart home controller may also compare the location of the fire with a location of an occupant, and generate an escape route for the occupant. Insurance policies, premiums, or discounts may be adjusted based upon the fire response/mitigation functionality.

Claims (62)

1. A computer-implemented method of responding to a fire on a property, the property populated with a hardware controller in communication with a plurality of devices, the plurality of devices including a smart door including a corresponding smart hinge, the method comprising:

analyzing, by one or more processors of the hardware controller, a first set of sensor data received from at least one of the plurality of devices to detect a presence of the fire on the property;

accessing, by the one or more processors, a database of smart device information, wherein, for devices associated with information in the database, the database includes indications of at least one of (i) a location of the device or (ii) a set of functions that the device is capable of performing;

based upon the accessed smart device information, generating, by the one or more processors, one or more instructions corresponding to a set of actions to mitigate risks associated with the fire, wherein at least one action of the set of actions is for the smart door to cause the smart hinge to rotate in a manner that opens or closes the smart door, and wherein each instruction includes (i) an identity of a particular device that performs a particular action from the set of actions and (ii) an action code associated with the particular action; and

directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, at least the portion of the plurality of devices to perform the set of actions by transmitting the one or more instructions to cause the plurality of devices to analyze the identity in the transmitted one or more instructions to determine whether to perform the action associated with the action code.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein directing or controlling the smart door further comprises:

receiving, at the hardware controller via a first communication network, a second set of sensor data from at least one of the plurality of devices, the second set of sensor data indicative of the presence of the set of individuals on the property;

analyzing, by the one or more processors, the second set of sensor data to determine a number of individuals within the set of individuals present on the property;

when the set of individuals present on the property includes no individuals, directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, the smart door to close to facilitate fire suppression; and

when the set of individuals present on the property includes at least one individual, directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, the smart door to open to facilitate evacuation by the set of individuals.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein directing or controlling the at least the portion of the plurality of devices further comprises:

analyzing, by the one or more processors, the first set of sensor data to determine a location of smoke on the property;

comparing, by the one or more processors, the location of the smoke to a location of the smart door; and

when the location of the smoke is proximate to the location of the smart door, directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, the smart door to cause a corresponding smart door knob to glow or change color to increase a visibility of the smart door.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein directing or controlling the at least the portion of the plurality of devices further comprises:

analyzing, by the one or more processors, the first set of sensor data to determine a location of fire on the property;

comparing, by the one or more processors, the location of the fire to a location of the smart door; and

when the location of the fire is proximate to the location of the smart door, directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, the smart door to cause a corresponding smart door knob on a first side of the smart door to be illuminated in a color indicative of the fire being located proximate to a second side of the smart door.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:

receiving, from a heat sensor located in a smart door knob corresponding to the smart door, a portion of the first set of sensor data.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the at least the portion of the plurality of devices includes smart evacuation equipment, wherein the smart evacuation equipment includes at least one of an escape ladder, a rope, or a set of stairs, and wherein directing or controlling the at least the portion of the plurality of devices further comprises:

directing or controlling, by the one or more processors, a portion of the smart evacuation equipment to deploy, wherein deploying causes the smart evacuation equipment to become usable by individuals on the property.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:

transmitting, to an insurance provider associated with the property, a notification, wherein the notification includes an indication of at least one of the set of actions, and wherein transmitting the notification causes the insurance provider to perform an insurance-related action.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising:

transmitting, to an emergency services provider, an alert, wherein the alert indicates that the fire is present on the property.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein generating the one or more instructions corresponding to the set of actions further comprises:

generating, by the one or more processors, an escape route for an individual located on the premises of the property; and

transmitting, to an electronic device associated with the individual, the escape route.

10. A system for responding to a fire on a property, the property populated with a hardware controller in communication with a plurality of devices, the plurality of devices including a smart door including a corresponding smart hinge, the system comprising:

a plurality of transceivers adapted to communicate data;

a memory adapted to store non-transitory computer executable instructions; and

one or more processors adapted to interface with the plurality of transceivers, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

analyze, by the one or more processors, a first set of sensor data received from at least one of the plurality of devices to detect a presence of the fire on the property;

access, by the one or more processors, a database of smart device information, wherein, for devices associated with information in the database, the database includes indications of at least one of a (i) location of the device or (ii) a set of functions that the device is capable of performing;

based upon the accessed smart device information, generate, by the one or more processors, one or more instructions corresponding to a set of actions to mitigate risks associated with the fire, wherein at least one action of the set of actions is for the smart door to cause the smart hinge to rotate in a manner that opens or closes the smart door and wherein each instruction includes (i) an identity of a particular device that performs a particular action from the set of actions and (ii) an action code associated with the particular action; and

direct or control, by the one or more processors, at least the portion of the plurality of devices to perform the set of actions by transmitting the one or more instructions via the plurality of transceivers to cause the plurality of devices to analyze the identity in the transmitted one or more instructions to determine whether to perform the action associated with the action code.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein to direct or control the smart door, the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

receive, by the plurality of transceivers, a second set of sensor data from at least one of the plurality of devices, the second set of sensor data indicative of the presence of the set of individuals on the property;

analyze, by the one or more processors, the second set of sensor data to determine a number of individuals within the set of individuals present on the property;

when the number of individuals is zero, direct or control, by the one or more processors, the smart door to close to facilitate fire suppression; and

when the number of individuals is at least one, direct or control, by the one or more processors, the smart door to open to facilitate evacuation by the set of individuals.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein to direct or control the at least the portion of the plurality of devices, the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

analyze, by the one or more processors, the first set of sensor data to determine a location of smoke on the property;

compare, by the one or more processors, the location of the smoke to a location of the smart door; and

when the location of the smoke is proximate to the location of the smart door, direct or control, by the one or more processors, the smart door to cause a corresponding smart door knob to glow or change color to increase a visibility of the smart door.

13. The system of claim 10 , wherein to direct or control the at least the portion of the plurality of devices, the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

analyze, by the one or more processors, the first set of sensor data to determine a location of the fire on the property;

compare, by the one or more processors, the location of the fire to a location of the smart door; and

when the location of the fire is proximate to the location of the smart door, direct or control, by the one or more processors, the smart door to cause a corresponding smart door knob on a first side of the smart door to be illuminated in a color indicative the fire being located proximate to a second side of the smart door.

14. The system of claim 10 , wherein the at least the portion of the plurality of devices includes smart evacuation equipment, wherein the smart evacuation equipment includes at least one of an escape ladder, a rope, or a set of stairs, and wherein to direct or control the at least the portion of the plurality of devices, the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

direct or control, by the one or more processors, a portion of the smart evacuation equipment to deploy, wherein deploying causes the smart evacuation equipment to become usable by individuals on the property.

15. The system of claim 10 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

transmit, by the plurality of transceivers, a notification, wherein the notification includes an indication of at least one of the set of actions, and wherein transmitting the notification causes an insurance provider to perform an insurance-related action.

16. The system of claim 10 , wherein to generate the one or more instructions corresponding to the set of actions, the one or more processors are further configured to execute the non-transitory computer executable instructions to cause the system to:

generate, by the one or more processors, an escape route for an individual located on the premises of the property; and

transmit, by the plurality of transceivers, the escape route to an electronic device associated with the individual.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing processor-executable instructions, that when executed cause one or more processors to:

analyze, by the one or more processors, a first set of sensor data received from at least one of a plurality of devices to detect a presence of a fire on a property;

access, by the one or more processors, a database of smart device information, wherein, for devices associated with information in the database, the database includes indications of at least one of (i) a location of the device or (ii) a set of functions that the device is capable of performing, the smart device database storing information related to a smart door that includes a corresponding smart hinge;

based upon the access smart device information, generate, by the one or more processors, one or more instructions corresponding to a set of actions to mitigate risks associated with the fire, wherein at least one action of the set of actions is for the smart door to cause the smart hinge to rotate in a manner that opens or closes the smart door and wherein each instruction includes (i) an identity of a particular device that performs a particular action from the set of actions and (ii) an action code associated with the particular action; and

direct or control, by the one or more processors, at least the portion of the plurality of devices to perform the set of actions by transmitting the one or more instructions to cause the plurality of devices to analyze the identity in the transmitted one or more instructions to determine whether to perform the action associated with the action code.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 8, 2021
From: JORDAN, JACKIE O., II; DONOVAN, JOHN; TURRENTINE, DAVID; WOLLENSCHLAGER, TORRI; NUSSBAUM, BRYAN R.; STOCKWEATHER, DEANNA; STOIBER, JEFFREY W.; MARKWARDT, KERSTIN; CARLSON, GAIL L.; SCHIEBEL, KYLE C.; WINSLOW, TROY; HARR, JOSEPH P.; WAGNER, ELLAKATE; HARRIS, MICHAEL, JR.; SUN, JENNYLIND
To: STATE FARM MUTUAL AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY
Reel/Frame 055187/0060 →
Continuity (18)
Continuation 16692536 · Nov 22, 2019
Continuation 16266423 · Feb 4, 2019
Continuation 14873942 · Oct 2, 2015
Provisional Application 62220383 · Sep 18, 2015
Provisional Application 62201671 · Aug 6, 2015
Provisional Application 62200375 · Aug 3, 2015
Provisional Application 62198813 · Jul 30, 2015
Provisional Application 62197343 · Jul 27, 2015
Provisional Application 62193317 · Jul 16, 2015
Provisional Application 62189329 · Jul 7, 2015
Provisional Application 62187624 · Jul 1, 2015
Provisional Application 62187645 · Jul 1, 2015
Provisional Application 62187666 · Jul 1, 2015
Provisional Application 62187651 · Jul 1, 2015
Provisional Application 62187642 · Jul 1, 2015
Provisional Application 62105407 · Jan 20, 2015
Provisional Application 62060962 · Oct 7, 2014
Related Publication 20210158671A1 · May 27, 2021