GB2502973A

GB2502973A - Setting variable test reminder periods in social alarm clients

Info

Publication number: GB2502973A
Application number: GB201210269A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Richard James Farrell-Smith
Original assignee: Tunstall Group Ltd
Current assignee: Tunstall Group Ltd
Priority date: 2012-06-11
Filing date: 2012-06-11
Publication date: 2013-12-18
Anticipated expiration: 2032-06-11
Also published as: GB2502973B; GB201210269D0

Abstract

A social alarm system is provided for monitoring the safety and wellbeing of a person within their home. A client unit 100 is installed in their home which communicates over a channel 300 with a remote monitoring server apparatus 200. Testing the client unit 100 includes setting a test reminder period in the client unit, and performing a test procedure at the client unit after the test reminder period. The client unit 100 is then reset in relation to a subsequent iteration of the test procedure. The test reminder period then comprises a fixed time period combined with a variable time element within a predetermined time range. The fixed time period may comprise for example 30 days, whilst the variable time period may comprise between 5 and 10 days. The setting of a test reminder period based on a fixed time period combined with a variable time element reduces the possibility of a number of individual client units performing a test call to a monitoring centre at the same time and thus overloading the monitoring centre.

Description

SOCIAL ALARM CLIENT UNIT

AND METHOD OF COMMUNICATING THEREWITH

BACKGROUND

Technical Field

The present invention relates in general to a social alarm system and to a method of communicating with a social alarm client unit.

Description of Related Art

A social alarm system monitors the safety and wellbeing of a client in their dwelling. A social alarm client unit is installed in the dwelling and is arranged to initiate an alarm call to a remote monitoring centre apparatus when an alarm event is detected. As particular examples, the alarm may be triggered by the client pressing an alarm button on the social alarm client unit itself or on a personal radio trigger unit such as pendant.

In the event of an alarm being triggered, an operator using a terminal at the remote monitoring centre is able to open a voice communication path and talk with the client via the client unit. The voice communication path is used to immediately reassure the client and asses their need for further care.

It is important to confirm that the system is functioning correctly. In particular, a difficulty arises in confirming that the client unit is operating correctly and will raise the alarm when needed. However, testing the client unit takes time and attending the clients dwelling to test the unit is costly. Therefore, it is desired to provide an effective, reliable and cost-effective mechanism for testing the social alarm client unit.

Generally, it is desired to address one or more of the disadvantages associated with the related art, whether those disadvantages are specifically discussed herein or will be otherwise appreciated by the skilled person from reading the following description.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus and method as set forth in the appended claims. Other features of the invention will be apparent from the dependent claims, and the description which follows.

In one example aspect there is provided a method of communicating with a social alarm client unit for the purpose of testing the client unit. The method includes setting a test reminder period in the client unit and performing a test procedure at the client unit after the test reminder period. The client unit is then reset in relation to a subsequent iteration of the test procedure.

The test reminder period comprises a fixed time period combined with a variable time element within a predetermined time range.

In one example, the test procedure comprises announcing a test reminder to a user of the client unit; detecting a first user input to the client unit in response to the test reminder; and raising a test alarm call and confirming communication with a monitoring server apparatus over a communications channel. The test procedure may further comprise announcing a second stage of the test procedure to the user; and detecting a second user input to the client unit in response to announcing the second stage to confirm that the first user input was intentionally part of the test procedure or else raising a live alarm call.

In one example aspect there is provided a social alarm client unit. An activation unit is arranged to raise an alarm call over a communications channel to a monitoring server apparatus in response to an alarm trigger event. A test unit is arranged to conduct a test procedure which tests the client unit to confirm that the client unit will raise the alarm call. A timer unit arranged to set a test reminder period in the client unit, initiate the test procedure at the client unit by the test unit after the test reminder period, and reset the test reminder period in relation to a subsequent iteration of the test procedure. The test reminder period comprises a fixed time period combined with a variable time element within a predetermined time range.

As will be discussed in more detail below, the example embodiments address many of the difficulties of the related art. In one example, the test procedure performs a comprehensive examination of the client unit including confirming operation of major components such as a speech transducer and actuation of user input interfaces (e.g. mechanical buttons), and safe operation of the client unit is maintained throughout the test procedure. In one example, the test procedure is performed without overloading resources of the system. These and other features and advantages will be appreciated further from the following example embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the invention, and to show how example embodiments may be carried into effect, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an example social alarm system; Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example internal configuration of a social alarm client unit; Figure 3 is a flow chart showing an example test procedure; Figure 4 is a graph showing an example test reminder interval; and Figure 5 is a graph showing another example test reminder interval.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

The example embodiments will be described particularly with reference to the social alarm system shown in the drawings. The apparatus and method may be applied in many specific implementations, as will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from the teachings herein.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example social alarm system.

In one example embodiment, the social alarm system 10 comprises a social alarm client unit 100 which is connected in use to social alarm server apparatus 200 at a monitoring centre through a communications channel 300. Suitably, the communications channel 300 is capable of carrying both voice (speech) and data signalling (e.g. using in-band audio tones such as DTMF tones).

As shown in Figure 1, the example client unit 100 has a simple and straightforward user interface suitable for use by a wide range of people of differing abilities. Typically the client unit 100 includes, inter a/ia, a readily identified "alarm" button 101. The client unit may also include a cancel" button 102.

Optionally the client unit 100 may be used in combination with a personal radio trigger which may be worn as a pendent or carried by the user about their person, worn on their wrist or on a belt, or attached to a key ring, for example. The personal radio trigger 110 includes an alarm button 111 so that the user may raise an alarm call in an emergency even when they are not in proximity to the client unit 100. The personal radio trigger 110 communicates with the client unit 100 over a short range wireless radio transmission, e.g. using an EN300 220-2: 2010-Category I radio receiver or transceiver.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example internal configuration of the client unit 100. In this example the client unit 100 includes, inter a/ia, an activation unit 120, a test procedure unit 130 and a timer unit 140.

The activation unit 120 is arranged to initiate an alarm call over the communications channel 300, particularly in response to the user pressing the alarm button 101 on the client unit 100 or pressing the alarm button 111 on the personal radio trigger 110.

Optionally, the client unit 100 is also connected to other sensors such as a fall detector which detects that the user has fallen. These and other sensors may also be used to initiate an alarm call through the client unit 100 as will be familiar to those skilled in the art.

The test unit 130 is arranged to conduct a test procedure which tests the client unit 100 to confirm that the client unit 100 is operating correctly and will raise the alarm when needed.

The test procedure will be described in more detail below.

The timer unit 140 is arranged to initiate the test procedure by the test unit 130 at determined intervals.

A difficulty arises in that, referring again to Figure 1, the monitoring centre 200 is typically connected to a large number of individual client units 100. It is important that the monitoring centre 200 is not overwhelmed by alarm calls and so is able to respond promptly to an alarm call from any individual client unit 100. There may be limited resources available at the monitoring centre 200, such as a finite number of communication channels 300 (e.g. telephone lines) and a finite number of operator terminals for use by available operator personnel.

Therefore, the client unit 100 as shown in Figure 2 has been devised in order to both reliably test the client unit 100 and also avoid overloading the monitoring centre 200.

Figure 3 is a flow chart showing the test procedure as performed within the client unit by the test unit 130.

At step 301 the test unit 130 causes the client unit 100 to announce a test reminder to the user. The announcement may be an audible announcement. For example, the client unit announces an audible reminder through a loud speaker with a recorded message such as test reminder -please press alarm button". In another example, a visual announcement is provided such as by an LED light or by a readable message on a display screen.

At step 302, the client unit 100 detects that the alarm button 101 on the unit (or the alarm button 111 on the personal radio trigger 110) has been pressed by the user.

Conveniently, the activation unit 110 then initiates a test alarm call to the monitoring centre over the communications channel 300 which is identified as being in response to a test procedure. This allows the alarm call to be given a lower priority because, expectedly, the test alarm call has been generated as part of a test procedure rather than an active need for assistance.

At step 303, the monitoring centre 200 receives the test alarm call and performs data signalling with the client unit 100 to confirm the test alarm call. The monitoring centre may log that the test alarm call has been received from this particular client unit 100.

At step 304 the client unit confirms that the communication with the monitoring centre has been performed as expected. An alert may be generated at the client unit 100 should the communication fail, as noted at step 309. For example, a flashing red LED may be activated on the user interface of the client unit 100 to inform the client that the test procedure has failed and that further attention is required. For example, the client unit 100 may have been disconnected or unplugged from a telephone line and thus the communication channel 300 should be re-established.

At step 305, the test unit 130 now announces a second stage of the test procedure for the user to confirm that the alarm button was intentionally part of the test procedure. In this example, the test unit 130 makes an audible message through the loudspeaker of the client unit 100 requesting that the user press the cancel button 102 on the client unit 100 (or a cancel button on the personal radio trigger, if provided).

At step 306, the client unit 100 detects that the cancel button has been pressed as requested and, if so, registers the test as being successfully completed.

Where the client unit 100 does not detect the requested press of the cancel button 102, this may indicate that the user has not been able to complete the test procedure, or possibly that the alarm button has been pressed because an alarm has arisen and the client requires assistance. Thus, at step 307, the client unit 100 is suitably configured to generate a new alarm call in order to raise the alarm with the monitoring centre 200. Similarly, if the alarm button 101 or 111 is pressed again during the test procedure then suitably a live alarm call is generated so that, even while the test procedure is carried out, the user can still trigger an alarm if needed.

Should the user fail to press the alarm button when requested following the announcement of step 301 then the method suitably proceeds to step 308 to note that the announcement has been ignored (or perhaps was not heard by the user) and the announcement process is repeated.

Conveniently, the step 308 includes setting a repeat of the test reminder so that the announcement 301 is repeated again within a short period. Suitably, the test reminder is announced after one day and is repeated until a test call or an alarm call is generated.

However, it has been noticed that the user may well be absent at the same time or times each day and so will not hear the announcement. Therefore, the step 308 suitably includes setting a randomised time period until the announcement of step 301 is repeated. Conveniently, the reminder period is set as one day with a randomised additional time element of less than one day, such as plus or minus between 30-90 minutes. Thus, the next test reminder announcement is varied each time and is more likely to attract the attention of the user to engage the test procedure. In this way, the user will not forget or ignore the announcements and will not neglect to perform the test procedure.

It will be appreciated that the test procedure shown in Figure 3 tests major functionality of the client unit 100 including testing that the voice announcement unit and loud speaker are working correctly to be heard by the client, testing that the alarm button will operate when pressed, confirming that the alarm button causes the communication with the monitoring centre to be successfully completed over the communications channel and confirming that the cancel button operates correctly. Hence the test procedure thoroughly verifies correct operation of the client unit. Further, the test procedure allows the client to become familiar with the client unit and to be well practiced in operating the unit, so that they are better able to use the unit in a live alarm call.

In some examples, the test procedure may also be beneficial by identifying a client unit where the user fails to engage the test procedure as expected. There may be an underlying reason which is difficult to detect otherwise, e.g. because the user has a physical difficulty in activating the alarm button or is unsure how to operate the unit. Additional help or training can then be provided to the user, if needed.

Figure 4 is a flow chart showing a timing procedure performed by the timing unit 140. At step 401, a test procedure has been successfully completed as described above and/or a live alarm event has been triggered by the user. The timing unit 140 now sets a time period T as the interval until the next scheduled test procedure 402. Notably, the time period T comprises both a fixed time element TI and a variable time element T2. The fixed time element is suitably a plurality of days or months. Testing about once per month is preferred, but other intervals are also considered such as once per quarter. The fixed time element may be set as a setting within the client unit.

The variable time element T2 is also a period of one or more days, suitably as a more minor proportion of the overall test period T. The range of the variable time period may also be set as a setting within the client unit 100. Thus the fixed time period Ti and the variable time period T2 together define the scheduled test period T. Suitably, the variable time period T2 is randomised within the defined range. For example, the variable time period T2 is variably calculated for each successive test period. As a result, the next scheduled test will occur at a random period or pseudo-random period after the previous test or alarm event. As an example, the fixed test period is 30 days and the range of the variable test period is plus/minus five days. Hence, the next test period T will occur at some point between 25 days and 35 days and is randomized within this range for each test by each client unit.

Figure 5 is a flow chart showing another example timing procedure as performed by the timing unit 140. In this example, the overall time period T until the next test reminder comprises both a minimum time element Tmin and a variable time Tvar within a time range R. The minimum time element Tmin is suitably a plurality of days and may be set within the unit, such as 25 days. The variable time within a time range R is also a period of one or more days, such as 10 days., and may be configured by a setting within the client unit 100. Thus the minimum time element Tmin and the variable time Tvar within a time range R together define the scheduled test period T. The maximum time element Tmax is the greatest possible time period and is defined as the combination of Tmin and the range R. In this example, the overall time period Twill be set each time between 25 and 35 days.

Given a relatively large cohort of client units, each with randomized timing of the next test procedure, the incoming test alarm calls will tend to be more evenly spread at the monitoring centre 200. Typically, the client units are commissioned in the field in large numbers over a long period of time and hence the exact number of client units in the cohort will vary over months or years. However, providing a separate and variable test procedure timing trigger within each client unit in the manner described above allows the incoming test calls at the monitoring centre 200 to arrive with a relatively even distribution thus evenly distributing work load at the monitoring centre. As a result, the monitoring centre is less likely to be overloaded at any one point in time.

The industrial application of the present invention will be clear from the discussion above. Likewise, the many advantages of the invention will be apparent from these embodiments and/or from practicing the example embodiments of the invention.

Although a few preferred embodiments have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications might be made without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method of communicating with a social alarm client unit, comprising: setting a test reminder period in the client unit; performing a test procedure at the client unit after the test reminder period; and resetting the test reminder period in relation to a subsequent iteration of the test procedure; wherein the test reminder period comprises a fixed time period combined with a variable time element within a predetermined time range.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the fixed time period is a plurality of days.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the fixed time period is approximately 30 days.
4. The method of claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the variable time period lies in a range of between 5 days and 10 days.
5. The method of any preceding claim, further comprising configuring the fixed time period and/or the range of the variable time period as a setting in the client unit.
6. The method of any preceding claim, wherein resetting the test reminder period comprises resetting the test reminder period after either of a live alarm call from the client unit and performing the test procedure.
7. The method of any preceding claim, wherein performing the test procedure comprises: announcing a test reminder to a user of the client unit; detecting a first user input to the client unit in response to the test reminder; raising a test alarm call and confirming communication with a monitoring server apparatus over a communications channel.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the test procedure further comprises: announcing a second stage of the test procedure to the user; detecting a second user input to the client unit in response to announcing the second stage to confirm that the first user input was intentionally part of the test procedure or else raising a live alarm call.
9. The method of claim 7 or 8, wherein announcing the test reminder comprises announcing an audible remhider through a loudspeaker of the client unit and/or wherein announcing the second stage of the test procedure comprises announcing an audible message through the loudspeaker of the client unit.
10. The method of claim 7, 8 or 9, wherein detecting the first user input comprises sensing an alarm button on the client unit or an alarm button on a personal radio trigger coupled to the client unit and/or wherein detecting the second user input comprises sensing a cancel button.
11. The method of any of claims 7 to 10, wherein detecting the second user input further comprises sensing that the second user input has not been made within a second response time period and raising a live alarm call.
12. The method of any of claims 7 to 11, further comprising detecting a second press of the alarm button during the test procedure and in response raising a live alarm call.
13. The method of any of claims 7 to 12, further comprising sensing that the first user input has not been made within a first response time period and setting a repeat time period to repeat announcing the test reminder.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the repeat time period repeats announcing the test reminder until the test procedure is completed or a live alarm call is generated.
15. The method of claim 13 or 14, wherein the repeat time period is varied each time by a randomised time period.
16. A social alarm client unit, comprising: an activation unit arranged to raise an alarm call over a communications channel to a monitoring server apparatus in response to an alarm trigger event; a test unit arranged to conduct a test procedure which tests the activation unit to confirm that the client unit will raise the alarm call; and a timer unit arranged to set a test reminder period in the client unit, initiate the test procedure at the client unit by the test unit after the test reminder period, and reset the test reminder period in relation to a subsequent iteration of the test procedure; wherein the test reminder period comprises a fixed time period combined with a variable time element within a predetermined time range.
17. The unit of claim 16, wherein the timer unit is arranged to reset the test reminder period after a live alarm call from the client unit and performing the test procedure.
18. The unit of claim 16 or 17, wherein the test procedure comprises: announcing a test reminder to a user of the client unit; detecting a first user input to the client unit in response to the test reminder; raising a test alarm call and confirming communication with the monitoring server apparatus over the communications channel; announcing a second stage of the test procedure to the user; and detecting a second user input to the client unit in response to announcing the second stage to confirm that the first user input was intentionally pad of the test procedure or else raising a live alarm call.
19. The unit of claim 18, wherein announang the test remhider comprises announcing an audih]e reminder through a loudspeaker of the client unit and/or wherein announcing the second stage of the test procedure comprises announcing an audible message through the loudspeaker of the client unit.
20. The unit of claim 18 or 19, wherein the test unt is arranged to detect the first user input by sensing an aarm button on the chent unit or an a{arm button on a persona radio trigger couped to the client unit end/or to detect the second user input by sensing a cancel button on the client unit or on the personal radio trigger.
21. The unit of any of claims 18 to 20, wherein the test unit is arranged to sense that the first user input has not been made within a first response time period and set a repeat time period to repeat announcing the test reminder.
22. The unit of claim 21, wherein the repeat time period is varied each time by a randomised time period.
23. The unit of any of claims 16 to 22, wherein the activation unit is arranged to initiate the live alarm call in response to sensing an alarm button on the client unit and/or an alarm button on a personal radio trigger.
24. The unit of any of claims 16 to 23, wherein the social alarm client unit is arranged to monitor the safety and wellbeing of a client in their dwelling.
25. A social alarm system, comprising: a monitoring server apparatus; and a plurality of client units; wherein each of the client units is arranged as set forth in any of claims 16 to 24.