Communications: electrical – Condition responsive indicating system – With particular coupling link
Reexamination Certificate
1996-12-05
2002-09-17
Pope, Daryl (Department: 2632)
Communications: electrical
Condition responsive indicating system
With particular coupling link
C340S531000, C340S505000, C340S538000, C379S039000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06452492
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an alert system, and, more particularly, to a system for alerting a wide range of homes, businesses and the like of an actual or impending emergency, such as a weather emergency.
2. Description of the related art
Today's technology makes it possible to anticipate or to be aware of and track the progress of various “emergencies” and “disasters” or impending disasters such as tornadoes, chemical spills, forest fires, floods, and the like. Though authorities, such as the National Weather Service, police and firemen, have access to the information about the disaster or an emergency, it is often difficult to disseminate the information to that portion of the public which might be affected by the emergency. Originally intended to alert the public in the event of an invasion, civil defense systems were developed and implemented earlier in this century. In metropolitan areas, civil defense systems include sirens to generate an audible alarm. The sirens are now being utilized in some locations to alert the public of a dangerous situation, such as the issuance of a tornado warning for the area.
Reliance on such sirens to alert the public has several shortcomings. First, not only is a significant portion of the general public hearing impaired, the sirens are placed in areas wherein they are only audible to a portion of the public. Also, if an individual is listening to television or stereo, or if a thunderstorm occurs at the time the sirens are activated, the sirens may not be heard. Further, sirens are not installed in all areas. Those in rural areas may not have such sirens available. Finally, it may be difficult to discern the type of emergency when the sirens are activated. An individual may be required to consult media, such as radio or television, to ascertain what is occurring and what precautionary or defensive action must be taken. It is also possible, as in the occurrence of a tornado or hurricane, for example, that electrical power has been interrupted making it difficult for the individual to consult the radio or television. Thus, it is desired to provide an emergency alert system which is effective in a wide area, is not dependent on the auditory capabilities of the individual, is capable of providing the individual with information as to the type of emergency, and which does not require the use of electrical power.
Another well-known alert system is the emergency broadcast system which was also developed to alert the public of major emergencies. Generally, however, the emergency broadcast system is not employed when a tornado warning is issued or in the event of a chemical spill, for example. Also, the individual must have access to a radio or television set to benefit from the emergency broadcast system. It is possible that the individual does not have such access or that access is essentially denied due to the loss of electrical power.
Two examples of storm warning systems are presented in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,603,951 and 4,812,825. In the former, atmospheric disturbances, such as might be generated by a tornado, are detected by a grid of sensors which generate a radio frequency for use by receivers placed in homes, businesses, and the like. The receivers to be activated are selected based on the apparent track of the disturbance as detected by the sensors. Although the receivers do not require electrical power to operate, the system of U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,951 is limited as to the type of disaster detected. Further, placement of sensors is dependent on the location of homes and businesses in the area. If the area were to grow, additional sensors would be necessary and adjustments would need to be made in the appropriate receivers to be selected. It is therefore desired to provide an alert system which is able to easily accommodate growth and changes or additions in the locations of the homes or businesses in the area.
The tornado warning system of U.S. Pat. No. 4,812,825 includes a superheterodyne receiver which receives the amplitude modulated electromagnetic signals which are typically produced by a tornado. Upon receipt of such a signal for a sufficient amount of time, an alarm is activated.
The warning systems of U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,603,951 and 4,812,825 are limited in that they are only capable of detecting an atmospheric storm or a tornado. They do not address the need to alert the public of other emergencies such as chemical spills and forest fires. It is therefore desirable to develop an alert system which is capable of warning the public of a variety of types of emergencies. In addition, these storm warning systems may not provide sufficient warning. For example, depending on the location of the sensors in U.S. Pat. No. 3,603,951, a receiver in a home located on the edge of the grid would not be sounded until the tornado is at or very near that home, giving the occupants insufficient time to react to protect themselves. It is therefore desired to provide an emergency alert system which provides the recipient with adequate time to take precautionary or defensive action as appropriate.
The emergency alert system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,290 utilizes an existing telecommunications network to alert selected individuals of an emergency. The system includes a main unit located at the central office of the telecommunications company and alarm units installed in parallel with the subscriber's telephone. Authorized authorities are permitted to telephone the main unit to invoke the alert system. Codes are entered by the authority to indicate which zones are to be alerted of the emergency. To accomplish the provision of an “alarm”, the telephone service to the selected individuals is interrupted. This interruption is undesirable should the individual be in the process of reporting his/her own emergency via the telephone. Also, it is possible that the individual is in the process of providing information to the appropriate authorities about the very emergency for which the telephone service was interrupted. Thus, it is desired to provide an alert system which does not interfere with the recipient's telephone service, or for that matter, with any communications media including radio and television.
In addition to the interruption of telephone service, the use of the telecommunications system for an alert system inherently causes problems. Many telephone lines are located above ground and are susceptible to interference generated by a multitude of noise sources. For example, tornados are often accompanied or preceded by storms which generate high winds, lighting, rain, and sometimes hail. The telephone lines may be electrically interfered with due to the lightning and rain, or, such lines may be downed by the high winds. Therefore, it is desired to provide an emergency alert system which utilizes a transmission medium which is less susceptible to interruption than is a telecommunications system.
Another shortcoming of the alert system of U.S. Pat. No. 5,029,290 is that, from the recipient's perspective, the system does not identify the type of emergency occurring. Thus, the individual must consult radio, television, or use the telephone system to find out more information about the emergency. Though the telephone service is intermittently available to the individual between alarms which occur every few minutes, so that only short telephone calls may be made and received during the interim periods, it is most likely that the individual will consult radio or television for further information. It is therefore desired to provide an emergency alert system which does not require that radio and television be consulted to ascertain the type of emergency as these devices may not be available or power to the devices may be interrupted.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides an alert system for alerting businesses, homes and the like of an actual or impending emergency or disaster. The alert system is used in conjunction with a cable system network, such as that of a cable
Cable Alarm, Inc.
Pope Daryl
Price, Esq. Gary K.
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