Communications: electrical – Condition responsive indicating system – Specific condition
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-01
2002-02-12
Wu, Daniel J. (Department: 2632)
Communications: electrical
Condition responsive indicating system
Specific condition
C340S545100, C340S870030, C340S870030, C049S014000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06346889
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to security systems for use with an automated garage door; and, more particularly to a garage door security apparatus and method for remotely determining a predetermined position of the garage door and providing selective deactivation of the automated garage door system to prevent its operation.
2. Description of Related Art
Automated doors, including automated security doors and, specifically, automated garage doors, are familiar and convenient. These types of doors utilize a motorized mechanism which automatically opens and/or closes the door. The mechanism can be actuated either remotely by means of a radio receiver system or conventionally by means of a switch. Overhead garage doors typically roll on tracks, reversibly, from a closed vertical position to an open, overhead, horizontal position. They also have the ability to be left ajar in various positions to allow ingress and egress of pets, children, and the like.
Occasionally, these automated doors are left ajar or open, whether intentionally or accidently. In hot weather, automatic doors may be purposely left ajar to facilitate cooling of a building's interior. Children also are prone to opening these doors without closing them. These situations are especially problematic with garage doors because an open garage door not only subjects the contents of the garage to theft but, in many homes or buildings, the garage also permits unrestricted access to the interior of the house or building. A door left even only slightly ajar represents a breach of security, since an intruder merely can crawl through the opening. Further, automated doors equipped with radio frequency activated openers occasionally are subject to activation by stray signals. Many TV remote controls and other wireless controls can activate an automated system and inadvertently open an automated door.
These possible breaches of security have been recognized as a problem, and the prior art is replete with garage door security apparatuses of various types, as illustrated and disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,464,651 and 4,433,274. U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,166 sets forth a door safety system. There also have been several proposals for closing open garage doors, such as the apparatuses and systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,035,702; 4,463,292; and 5,510,686. However, there are several disadvantages present in the prior art, one of which is that the door can start to close without warning. Thus, if one wanted to leave the door open during the day, they would have to deactivate the automated closing system and then remember to reactivate the system at a later time. Another problem associated with these systems is that they only function when the door is in its full open position. If the door is left ajar for ventilation during the summer, these systems cannot automatically close the door. Thus, if an owner forgets to close the door at the end of the day, the door would remain open all night. This would provide an intruder the opportunity to slip under the door and either take items from the garage and any unlocked car parked inside or, worse still, gain entry to the house or building attached to the garage.
My prior patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,257, addressed these issues, but the apparatus disclosed in that patent only had the capacity to signal that the door was in other than a fully closed position. Additionally, the device of the earlier patent required a hard wired system. A control panel inside the house had a first switch, to effect selective actuation of a garage door opener motor, and a second on/off switch arranged to effect selective locking engagement and disengagement of the system. An indicator light was arranged to indicate the separation of a garage door from a garage door framework, and an abutment switch was arranged for engagement with a vehicular windshield for actuation of the garage door motor.
There continues to be a need for an improved garage door security apparatus which provides convenience, ease of use, and effectiveness in a manner that has not been satisfactorily addressed by the prior art. It therefore would be advantageous to have a programmable system capable of remotely signaling that the door is not in a predetermined position, no matter the degree to which the door is opened, or, in the alternative, capable of remotely indicating that the door is closed when it should be either open or ajar.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An improved, programmable security device has now been discovered that senses the condition or status of an automated door and remotely transmits a signal when the door is sensed to be out of a predetermined position, which then allows the operator to move the door to the desired position.
In a broad aspect, the security system of the instant invention comprises an automated door having a sensor device for determining the door's position in communication with a signal generating device for generating a signal and a programable warning device for indicating that the door is in other than a predetermined position. The automated door has a means for automatically opening and/or closing the door that is commercially available. The warning device may be programmed to indicate, for example, when the door is in a position other than in a predetermined position or, alternatively, when the door is in the predetermined position, such that a warning signal is produced when the door is in a position other than a desired position, as appropriate.
In an exemplary embodiment, a single unit coupled to the door comprises both the sensor device and the signal generating device. In such embodiments, the sensor device transmits signals to the remotely located warning device by means of radio frequency (RF) or by any other wireless means for transmitting signals as made available by technological advances in wireless systems and as practiced by those skilled in the relevant art. In this manner the warning device need not be hard wired to the sensor, allowing broad application in the retrofit market. In a further embodiment, the warning device is a visual indicator, such as, for example, an indicator light which is illuminated when the door is out of position, such as when the door is in other than in a closed position. Alternatively, the indicator light may flash intermittently when the door is in other than a closed position, or according to any other scheme.
In another aspect, a security system is capable of remote, selective deactivation of the automated garage door opening system, for example, cutting power to the system. In accordance with this aspect, a first switch remotely and selectively actuates the motor which powers the automated door to either open or close the door; and a second, remotely actuated switch effects selective interruption of the electrical power to the door motor to effectively lock (or unlock) the door by rendering the motor incapable (or capable) of responding to the appropriate RF signal transmission, which may be produced by the warning device, by a user, or by any other source. In accordance with various aspects of this embodiment, the second switch is an RF switch that may be inserted into an electrical outlet. The electric door motor is then plugged into the RF switch such that the second switch suitably enables or disables electrical power to the door motor in response to an RF signal.
In another embodiment, an abutment switch is capable of engaging with a vehicular windshield and thereby actuating the garage door motor to close the garage door when a vehicle is sufficiently inside the garage.
In one embodiment, the signaling sensor device is placed so that it will emit a signal when the door is closed. In another embodiment, the sensor is placed to emit a signal when the door is open. In a further embodiment, the sensor is placed to emit a signal when the door is partially open or ajar.
In a further embodiment, the signal generating device employs a transceiver to transmit the signal to the warning device. In one embodiment, the transceiver
Meyer Lee G.
Nguyen Phung T.
Rader & Fishman & Grauer, PLLC
Wu Daniel J.
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