JPH1166478A - Emergency signal transmitter and alarm system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an emergency signal transmitter which can effectively prevent the false reports and also can transmit an emergency signal so as to improve the receiving reliability of the transmitter. SOLUTION: This transmitter transmits an emergency signal to a prescribed receiving device via an input operation of a user. That is, a transmitter means 1 carries on the non-periodical and intermittent transmission of emergency signals after the input operation is confirmed. On the other hand, an input confirmation means 2 starts the transmission processing when a push-button is continuously pushed for two seconds or longer. Furthermore, it's desirable to decide the shape of an armor case so that the position of an operating part can be confirmed by touching.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an emergency signal transmitter and an alarm system which are carried at all times and transmit occurrence of an emergency to a receiving device such as a centralized monitoring device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the increase in the number of families living alone, it has become a desire of close relatives to know the occurrence of an emergency that can occur daily for a person living alone (hereinafter referred to as a single person). There are various emergency situations, such as fires and gas leaks.However, in order to respond to unforeseen abnormal situations such as sudden illness or criminal encounters, emergency The need is growing.

[0003]

However, the conventional emergency signal transmitter has a problem in that the switch unexpectedly comes into contact with the human body or other objects, or there are many malfunctions due to the mischief of an infant, or at night or in the dark. In addition to the problem that it is difficult to confirm the position of the button, if there are multiple transmitters of the same specifications attached to the gas leak detector or fire detector, When an emergency signal is transmitted from a device, there are some problems that impede the function of the emergency signal transmitter, such as mutual interference and difficulty in receiving. Such false information and poor notification may reduce the reliability of the alarm, and the repeated occurrence of the alarm may cause the alarm to be lost, which may endanger the user.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an emergency signal transmission capable of effectively preventing false alarms and transmitting an emergency signal in a form that can enhance the reliability of reception at a receiver. The purpose of the present invention is to provide an alarm system that can enhance the reliability of communication with a communication device.

[0005]

The emergency signal transmitter is provided with a transmission means for intermittently continuing the transmission of the emergency signal at an indefinite period after input recognition. To prevent erroneous operation, there may be a case where input confirmation means for starting transmission processing by pushing a push button for more than 2 seconds is provided, and a push button switch for accepting the push button is provided with an outer case. In some cases, the upper surface of the push-button switch is formed smoothly and positioned so that the upper surface of the push-button switch can be easily located with a difference in tactile sensation. In some cases, a local rough surface is formed on the surface of the outer case. In the case of a relatively long emergency signal transmitter, in order to provide a difference in tactile sensation in the longitudinal direction, the shape of the outer case is formed in an angular shape near the push button switch so as to be separated from the push button switch. In the part that did
In some cases, the shape is set to a rounded shape.

Further, the alarm system according to the present invention which has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem is an alarm system in which a plurality of emergency signal transmitters perform radio communication with one receiver. For a predetermined time after the input recognition by the user, the emergency signal is transmitted intermittently at a constant period determined for each transmitter, and after the predetermined time has elapsed, the emergency signal is transmitted intermittently with a different period for each transmitter. It is characterized by comprising transmitting means set to transmit.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of an emergency signal transmitter (hereinafter referred to as a transmitter) and an alarm system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The transmitter shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 comprises a transmitting means 1 and an input confirming means 2, has a push button switch 3 as an input means, and has an L as an output means.
A circuit board 9 on which an ED 7 and a buzzer 8 are mounted, and a battery 10 are loaded in an outer case 5.

[0008] The transmitting means 1 comprises: a signal generator 11 for transmitting a series of emergency signals including an ID unique to the transmitter once or a plurality of times as one unit, and a transmission cycle for determining a drive cycle of the signal generator 11 It comprises a generating unit 12 and an antenna 13 for emitting the one unit of emergency signal as an antenna. It is common to use a specific low-power radio wave as an antenna, and if a spread spectrum communication system is used, noise resistance is improved.

The transmission cycle generation section 12 sends out a trigger signal for activating the signal generation section 11 at a constant cycle for one minute by means of a timer IC or a microcomputer. Thereafter, the operation of the timer IC or the microcomputer is controlled by software. By changing the period, the period of issuing the trigger signal is changed slightly longer. For example, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, another transmitter Tx1 transmitting to the same receiver Rx is
In the case of adopting a fixed transmission mode in which transmission is performed for 3 seconds and a pause time t1 is taken for 2 seconds, the transmitter Tx2 transmits an emergency signal that transmits for 3 minutes for 1 minute from the start of transmission and takes 2 seconds for the pause time t2. However, after one minute has elapsed, transmission is performed for three seconds and a pause time t3 of 2.11 seconds is taken.

[0010] The receiver Rx used here receives an emergency signal from the transmitter and sends monitoring information corresponding to the emergency signal including a unique ID to the NCU (Network Control).
control unit for transmitting data to a prescribed monitoring station such as a hospital, a nurse center, a gas company or a fire station via a communication unit and a communication line. In some cases, a control means for performing processing such as closing a gas cock or activating a sprinkler is provided. However, during operation, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG.
The sampling is performed 11 times per second continuously through a pause time of 120 seconds, and the transmission timing coincides with the other transmitter Tx1 by accident (including the case where the transmission timing is slightly shifted. , The same.)
If one unit of the sampling period A1 is missed every 25 seconds, it will not be received until the next sampling time A2. The pause time t3 of 2.11 seconds corresponds to the next sampling period A when the transmission timings coincide with each other.
By the time 2, the time at which the deviation of the transmission timing from the other transmitter Tx1 can be maximized is selected.

That is, 5.11 seconds (transmission time t4: 3 seconds +
By repeating the transmission operation in a period of (pause time t3: 2.11 seconds) for 24 times in 125 seconds, both transmitters Tx1, Tx
A phase shift corresponding to about 2.5 seconds, that is, about 180 degrees is intentionally generated in the transmission timing of x2, and the reception in the first sampling period A1 is missed due to the coincidence of the transmission timing by chance. However, in the next sampling period A2, the emergency signal transmitted by the transmitter Tx2 is surely recognized by the receiver Rx. Therefore, one transmission of the emergency signal by the transmitter Tx2 (Tx1) only needs to cover a maximum of two sampling periods A1 and A2 (a little over 4 minutes), and battery consumption due to unnecessary transmission is reduced. Can be avoided. In addition, by shortening the sampling period of the receiver, recognition can be performed in a shorter time. However, it is undeniable that battery consumption is increased by shortening the time required for recognition. Although it depends on the modulation method, it is sufficient for the transmitter to have a transmission speed of several kilo bps or several tens of kilo bps or more.

[0012] The length of the pause time to be increased depends on the receiving operation specific to the receiver. For example, when the receiver communicates with three or more transmitters, the phase of each transmitter is determined by the receiver. In some cases, different changes are made to the pause times of the transmitters so that they are shifted at approximately equal intervals of about 120 degrees or about 90 degrees during one sampling period (125 seconds in the above example).

Although it is possible to set the transmission periods differently from the beginning as described above, it is possible that the transmission timings of the respective transmitters at the beginning of the transmission are appropriately shifted while the phases coincide during the reception sampling period. In consideration of the fact that there may be cases where no signal is received, and that the balance between the power consumption and consumption of each transmitter and the appropriate transmission frequency is considered, it is preferable that the transmission at a certain period of time at the beginning of transmission be performed at a certain period. .

The input confirmation means 2 does not recognize a push button input of less than 2 seconds as an emergency input and detects transmission of the push button for 2 seconds or more and does not transmit the push button input to the transmission means 1 for the transmission processing. Request to start. As the configuration, the duration of the push button input may be monitored by software using a timer function of a timer IC or a microcomputer, or a suitable circuit may be used to configure the hardware.
A trigger output to the transmitting means may be obtained with a continuous pulse of seconds or longer.

The outer case 5 has a box shape with rounded corners and is divided into a front case 14 and a back case 15. The back case 15 further covers a back case main body 15 a and a battery housing 16. 15b.

The right and left side edges and the edge of the upper case 17 of the front case 14 are relatively angular, and the left and right side edges and the edge of the lower portion 18 are relatively rounded.
In this way, the boundary 19 between the somewhat angular upper part 17 and the lower rounded lower part 18 is clearly attached at the center of the outer case, so that it can be touched only by touching.
The upper and lower sides are distinguished. Further, in the middle of the upper part 17, a relatively long, relatively long groove 2 extending from the surface to the left and right sides.
0 are lined up and down at equal intervals to form a rough surface portion 6,
At the center thereof, a through hole in which the operation unit 4 of the push button switch 3 is accommodated, a window hole 21 for emitting the light of the LED 7 to the outside of the case, and a sound hole 22 for emitting a buzzer sound from the inside are provided. is there.

Push button switch 3 for emergency input
Indicates that the pressing surface of the operation unit 4 is an outer case (front case 1).
4) It is engaged with the through-hole so as to be substantially flush with the surface of 5, and when pressed with a finger, the operation unit 4 is sunk along the through-hole, and as a result, the push button The action section of the switch presses the movable electrode on the circuit board 9 to make the input circuit conductive and causes input processing. The operation portion 4 of the push button switch 3 is formed so that the surface thereof is relatively smooth while the periphery thereof is rough, so that the operation portion 4 can be easily located only by the tactile sensation of the hand. Can be.

The window hole 21 is fitted with a light-transmissive coating material 23, which is a fine grained process such as frosted glass, which forms fine irregularities. As a result, the light emission of the LED 7 is applied to the entire window hole 21. It spreads and plays a role of widening the angle at which light from the LED 7 can be viewed.

The rear case 15 has an edge portion of the upper portion 17 which is as angular as the front case 14, but all other edge portions are of such a degree that the difference from the above-mentioned edge portion can be easily recognized only by tactile sensation. Is big and rounded. On the back surface, a lid 15b for closing the storage unit 16 for loading the battery is engaged so as to be engaged through a sliding operation, but the surface of the lid 15b is formed with unevenness as a non-slip portion. In addition, the specifications and the like of the transmitter are often displayed in relief in an uneven manner. However, these irregularities are caused by the rough surface portion 6 of the front case 14.
Since it is set to be extremely shallow as compared with, the front and back of the outer case 5 can be easily recognized, and the location of the operation unit 4 can be accurately located.

[0020]

The emergency signal transmitter according to the present invention is configured as described above, and is capable of intermittently transmitting at an indefinite period, such as a transmission means capable of changing the transmission period by extending a pause after a certain period of time from the transmission of the emergency signal. Provision of a continuous transmission means makes it possible to construct, for example, an alarm system according to claim 5, and includes a plurality of transmitters of the same specification connected to a gas leak detector or a fire detector. In this case, even if emergency signals are sent from multiple transmitters at the same timing by chance, the transmission timing of each transmitter is shifted relatively early, and during the next sampling period, reception is ensured without mutual interference. It becomes to be. 2
Since the input is not recognized unless the button is continuously pressed for more than a second, malfunction due to mischief of the infant does not occur.

Regarding the effect of the configuration of the outer case,
Since the operation part of the push button is immersed in the through hole of the front case, there is no fear of unexpectedly coming into contact with a human body or another object and causing a malfunction. Further, by clarifying the difference in tactile sensation in each part of the outer case, such as the front and back of the transmitter, the upper and lower parts, the operation part of the push button and its periphery, the position of the button at night, in the dark, etc. Can be easily confirmed.

As described above, the use of the emergency signal transmitter and the alarm system according to the present invention almost eliminates false alarms and notification errors due to the various causes described above, and enhances the reliability of alarms. Thus, the safety of a single person or a user such as an inpatient at a hospital can be reliably ensured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an example of an emergency signal transmitter according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side view as viewed from below in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side view as viewed from the right in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an emergency signal transmitter according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a timing chart schematically illustrating an example of a communication state of the emergency signal transmitter according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing in detail an example of a communication state of the emergency signal transmitter according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram illustrating an example of an alarm system according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Communication means 2 Input confirmation means 3 Push button switch 4 Operation part 5 Outer case 6 Rough surface part

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Takashi Tajima 2-18-5 Koinobo Kubo, Nara, Nara (72) Inventor Naohiko Fukumoto 895 Teraya, Hashiya-cho, Nishi-ku, Kobe, Hyogo (72) Inventor Masao Ohne (72) Takashi Yamamoto, Inventor Takashi Yamamoto 5-1-1122, Oanji, Nara-shi, Nara, Japan (72) Katsumi Sakai, Oyama-cho, Kamishinkawa-gun, Toyama Prefecture Address Tateyama Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shinji Okamoto No. 30 Oyamacho, Kamishinkawa-gun, Toyama Prefecture Tateyama Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. Science Industry Co., Ltd.

Claims (5)

[Claims] An emergency signal transmitter for transmitting an emergency signal to a predetermined receiving device by a user's input operation, a transmission means (1) for intermittently continuing transmission of an emergency signal at an indefinite period after input recognition. An emergency signal transmitter. 2. The emergency signal transmitter according to claim 1, further comprising an input confirmation means for starting a transmission process by a push-button input for at least two seconds. 3. An operation section (4) of a push button switch (3) for receiving the push button input is provided so that a pressing surface thereof is substantially flush with a surface of an outer case (5). The emergency signal transmitter according to claim 2, wherein the pressing surface of (3) is formed smoothly, and a local rough surface (6) is formed on the surface of the outer case (5) located around the pressing surface. 4. The operating part (4) of the push button switch (3) has an angular shape near the operating part (4) of the push button switch (3).
The emergency signal transmitter according to claim 3, wherein the portion separated from the emergency signal transmitter is set to have a rounded shape. 5. An alarm system in which a plurality of emergency signal transmitters wirelessly communicate with one receiver, wherein each of the emergency signal transmitters has the same predetermined time after input recognition by a user. An alarm system including a transmission means (1) set to intermittently transmit an emergency signal at a predetermined cycle and to transmit an emergency signal intermittently at a different cycle after a predetermined time has elapsed. .