Locate and notify building security system events

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for determining and notifying the location of a building safety system event are described herein. One embodiment includes a method for notifying a user of a fire system event, comprising detecting an event in a building by an event detection device and transmitting information about at least one of the event or the event detection device to a remote server and a first computing device. The first computing device may include a memory in which a floor plan layout for each floor of the building is stored. The method may also include determining, based on the information and by the first computing device, the floor of the building on which the first event was detected; transmitting the specific floor plan layout of the floor to the remote server; determining the specific location within the floor where the first event was detected; generating a visual floor representation including an indication of the specific location based on the specific floor plan and the specific location; and transmitting the visual floor representation to a software application including executable instructions stored in the memory of a second computing device to present the visual floor representation to the user.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to devices, systems, and methods for determining and notifying the location of a building security system event. Background Art

[0002] Large facilities (e.g., buildings), such as commercial facilities, office buildings, hospitals, etc., may have alarm systems that can be triggered during an emergency (e.g., a fire), for example, to warn occupants to evacuate. For example, the alarm system may include a control panel (e.g., a fire control panel) within the building and multiple event devices (e.g., hazard sensing devices, such as fire detectors, smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, carbon dioxide detectors, other hazardous chemical detectors, audio-visual monitoring devices, etc.) located throughout the facility (e.g., on different floors and / or in different rooms of the facility) that are capable of sensing hazardous events occurring in the facility and providing notification of the hazardous events to occupants of the facility via audible or visual alarms or other mechanisms.

[0003] In a conventional alarm monitoring system, once an alarm event signal arrives at a central monitoring station, the event signal is transmitted to a remote server (e.g., a cloud server) and a workstation remote or local application, respectively. The workstation application can also be used to configure a building floor map with all building security device configurations. Upon receiving the event signal, the remote server then transmits information about the event to multiple users via a remote server (e.g., remote), mobile, or local application. The user then receives a notification via the application that contains a detailed description of the event type, but no visual or textual representation of the precise location of the event within the building. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] Figure 1 is an example of a building security event notification system used in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0005] Figure 2 is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a remote or local application showing a summary of events for a building security system generated in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0006] Figure 3 is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a mobile device showing a summary of events for a building security system generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0007] Figure 4 is an illustration of a building security event notification system for use in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0008] Figure 5is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a remote or local application showing a visual floor representation of a floor on which an event has occurred generated in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0009] Figure 6 is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a mobile application showing a visual floor representation of a floor on which an event has occurred generated in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0010] Figure 7 is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a mobile device showing an email notification of an event for a building security system generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0011] Fig. 8A is an illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a remote or local application showing a visual floor representation of one or more floors on which an event has occurred generated in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 8B is Fig. 8A Illustration of a display screen provided on a user interface of a remote or local application showing a visual floor representation of one of the floors on which an event has occurred generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] This article describes devices, systems, and methods for determining and notifying the location of building security events. Currently, there is no mechanism in building security systems to generate a visual representation showing the exact location of a building security event without configuring a remote server (e.g., a cloud server) with a floor plan of each floor of the building. In the present disclosure, notifications of building security events are sent to both a remote server and a computing device (e.g., a personal computer) that already has a floor plan of each floor of the building stored in a memory. The computing device then communicates with the remote server to generate a visual floor representation of the floor on which the event occurred, thereby indicating the specific location of the event.

[0014] By using the embodiments described herein, a visual representation of a building floor on which a building security system event or fault has occurred can be generated without storing a floor plan on a remote server, and the visual representation is transmitted to a mobile, web or desktop application to provide accurate, real-time notification of such events to authorized users. Such users will receive not only a text description of the event, but also a visual map showing exactly where the event occurred. This enables users to better understand where the event occurred, thereby allowing them to quickly navigate there, facilitating effective resolution of the fault, and ensuring that appropriate safety measures are implemented quickly and in the precise area required. For example, when a user receives a visual floor representation generated according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, they are able to decipher the location of the event faster than if they were only sent a text notification.

[0015] As used herein, the term "visual floor representation" refers to a representation that is generated based on a floor plan layout of a particular floor and that highlights or otherwise indicates the specific location of an event. Other components, such as other active detection devices on the floor, may also be displayed on the visual floor representation. When displayed on a graphical user interface (UI) of the device, a user is able to find more information about the event by selecting a specific location or hovering over the specific location using their finger or an input device such as a mouse. Alternatively, text providing more information about the event may be automatically displayed in or near the specific location on the visual representation.

[0016] Furthermore, storing the floor plan of each floor in the building on a computing device and transmitting the floor plan from the computing device to the remote server eliminates the need to pre-configure the remote server and user application with the specific floor plan and equipment layout for each floor of the building. Thus, it allows the remote server and user application to be implemented seamlessly without any existing building security system.

[0017] The system of the present disclosure may also be configured to automatically send an email notification to a predetermined user when an event is detected. Such notifications may include an image of the generated visual floor representation. These notifications may be transmitted without the need to open a specific floor representation on a mobile, web, or desktop software application, thus allowing a user of such a software application to continue viewing representations of other floors while a notification is being sent to another user. When a user receives a visual floor representation with a specific fault area indicated by an email notification, they are able to determine any necessary next steps in real time without the need to access another application or device, or even be present in the building.

[0018] As described above, devices, systems, and methods for determining and notifying a building security system of an event are described herein. A system includes an event detection device and a fire panel, the event detection device being configured to detect an event within a building, the fire panel being configured to receive information about the event or the event detection device and transmit the information to a remote server and a computing device. The computing device may be configured to determine the floor of the building on which the event was detected based on the information, and transmit a floor plan corresponding to the floor of the building on which the event was detected to the remote server. The remote server may be configured to generate a visual floor representation indicating a specific location of the event within the floor based on the information received from the fire panel and the floor plan received from the computing device. The remote server may then transmit the visual floor representation to a software application comprising executable instructions stored on the remote server or another computing device to present the visual floor representation to a user via a display.

[0019] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof. The accompanying drawings show, by way of illustration, the manner in which one or more embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced. To the extent that the accompanying drawings contain descriptive text, the descriptive text is meant to be illustrative only.

[0020] These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and process, electrical and / or structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0021] It should be understood that the elements shown in the various embodiments herein may be added, exchanged, combined and / or eliminated to provide multiple additional embodiments of the present disclosure. The proportions and relative sizes of the elements provided in the accompanying drawings are intended to illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and should not be limiting.

[0022] The figures herein follow the following numbering convention: one or more first digits correspond to the figure number, and the remaining digits identify the element or component in the figure. Similar elements or components between different figures may be identified by using similar numerals. For example, 102 may refer to Figure 1 Component "02" in , and Figure 4 Similar elements in may be referenced as 402.

[0023] As used herein, "a" or "several" things may refer to one or more such things, while "plurality" things may refer to more than one such things. For example, "a plurality of components" may refer to one or more components, while "plurality of components" may refer to more than one component.

[0024] Figure 1is an example of a building security event notification system for use according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the illustrated embodiment, the building security event notification system 100 includes an alarm system 102, a central monitoring station having at least one computing device 108, a remote server (e.g., a cloud server) 118, and one or more building owner / operator communication applications 120-1 and 120-2.

[0025] An event alarm signal is generated in response to data from one or more alarm system devices 106 (e.g., smoke detectors) within the alarm system 102 indicating that an event may be occurring. As used herein, the term "event" may refer to any condition occurring within a building, such as a fire, smoke or chemical sensor activation, an alarm trigger (pull box), or a security breach. It may also be referred to as a fault detected in any component of the system 100, such as a fault in one or more of the alarm system devices 106. The central monitoring station may be staffed by employees of the provider of the alarm system 102, and they may not know the specific details of each building they are monitoring, but are responsible for alerting the appropriate response personnel based on the type of response required and coordinating the response to the building to resolve the event occurring in the building.

[0026] Alarm system 102 may be any system for monitoring events that will affect occupants of a building. Figure 1 As shown, the alarm system shown is a fire alarm system and includes a plurality of alarm system devices 106 and a control panel 104 for managing the operation of the alarm system 102 and its devices.

[0027] As used herein, the term "control panel" refers to a device used to control components of an alarm system of a facility (building). For example, the control panel 104 may be a fire control panel that may receive information from the event device 106 and determine whether a dangerous event is occurring or has occurred. The control panel may be configured to transmit information about the dangerous event to the computing device 108 and the cloud 118. The information may include, for example, a unique identifier of the event device 106 that detected the event, the date and time of the event, the status of the event (e.g., resolved, unresolved), or the type of event (e.g., smoke detected, communication failure).

[0028] The control panel 104 may be connected to a plurality of alarm system devices 106. As used herein, the term "alarm system device" refers to a device that may receive input related to an event. Such an event may be, for example, a dangerous event, such as a fire. For example, an alarm system device may receive input related to a fire occurring in a facility. Such alarm system devices 106 may be part of an alarm system for a facility and may include devices such as fire sensors, smoke detectors, heat detectors, carbon monoxide (CO) detectors, other chemical detectors, or combinations of these; interfaces; pull-type fire alarm boxes; input / output modules; suction units; and / or audio / video devices, such as speakers, sounders, buzzers, microphones, cameras, video displays, video screens, and other types of alarm system devices.

[0029] These alarm system devices 106 may be automatic self-testing devices, such as smoke detectors, heat detectors, CO detectors, and / or others. Such self-testing devices may include mechanisms that generate aerosols, heat, carbon monoxide, etc. and sense these items to test the performance of the device depending on the type of device being tested in the device. This may be used, for example, to test the thermal sensing, chemical sensing, and / or light sensing capabilities of the event device.

[0030] The alarm system 102 may also include an edge / gateway device 110. The gateway device 110 acts as a pass-through device for communicating between the alarm system 102 in the building and the central monitoring station 108 and other components of the event notification system 100 at a remote location (ie, outside the building).

[0031] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the gateway device 110 of the alarm system 102 reports event alarm signals to one or more central monitoring servers at the facility (building). These servers can be on-site (within the facility) or as Figure 1 As shown in the example of , it is off-site (at a remote location relative to the alarm system components including the gateway device).

[0032] From there, the event alarm signal is reported to the appropriate central monitoring station. This is done by computing device 108. For example, information about the event alarm signal can be displayed on a graphical user interface of a remote or local application on computing device 108. The central monitoring station including an administrator as discussed above coordinates activities based on the type of event that is occurring to respond appropriately. For example, a fire event will require a fire-based response, and if it seems that there may be injuries, the response will likely include alerting the fire station to dispatch a truck and contact medical personnel. For safety issues, security personnel and / or the police will be contacted. For problems related to the operation of the alarm system device 106, a technician will be contacted and directed to the location of the faulty alarm system device 106. The central monitoring server is connected back to one or more alarm systems and / or remote (cloud) servers on site, such as alarm system 102 and remote server 118.

[0033] Event alarm signals are also transmitted to the remote server 118. These signals may include, for example, the time and date of the event, the network name, the unique identifier of the device 106 that detected the event, the event type, or the event status. The remote server 118 may transmit this information to authorized users through applications 120-1 and 120-2. For example, 120-1 may be a mobile application accessible through a mobile device, and 120-2 may be a remote application accessible through a network and a personal computer. In this embodiment, the information is only represented in text. Although very experienced users who are very familiar with the building may be able to decipher the location of the event based on the information provided (such as a unique device identification number), most users will not be able to determine the exact location of the event within the floor through applications 120-1 and 120-2 alone.

[0034] The floor plan of each floor of the building may be accessed through the computing device 108. For example, such floor plans may be stored in the memory of the computing device 108. They may also be accessed through an application on the computing device 108. These building floor plans may be configured to include the specific locations of all alarm system devices 106. However, since the computing device 108 may not communicate with the remote server 118 or the applications 120-1 and 120-2, these floor plans will not enhance the notification of events received by the user through the applications 120-1 and 120-2. It may be very difficult for users of these applications 120-1 and 120-2 to respond to event notifications quickly and appropriately because they will not have a visual representation of the exact location of the event.

[0035] Figure 2 Is it in the application (for example, Figure 1120 - 2 ) is an illustration of a display screen 201 provided on a user interface of an application 120 - 2 of the present disclosure, which shows a building security event notification system (e.g., Figure 1 An overview of events of the system 100). Figure 2 As shown, display screen 201 may list event notifications 203 corresponding to event signals received from a remote server (e.g., remote server 118). Event notification 203 is primarily a textual representation of the information transmitted in the event signal. For example, event notification 203 may include, but is not limited to: the date and time 205 of the event (e.g., "September 17, 2020 20:02"), the device type 207 (e.g., "fire alarm") of the device (e.g., device 106) that detected the event, a unique indicator 209 of the device (e.g., "module L1M1"), a state 211 associated with the event (e.g., "starting device"), an event type 213 (e.g., "smoke detection"), and a general location 215 of the detection device. Each floor of the building may be represented by a general location indicator 215.

[0036] Figure 3 is provided on a mobile device (e.g. Figure 1 1) provided on a user interface of a mobile application 120-1) of FIG. 1, which shows a building security system (e.g., Figure 1 In other words, Figure 3 It is suitable for mobile devices Figure 2 Similarly, display screen 301 may display various information segments (including information in combination with the received event signal) corresponding to the received event signal and including information about the event. Figure 2 A notification list 303 of information fragments described.

[0037] Figure 4 is a diagram of a building security event notification system 400 for use in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the illustrated embodiment, the building security event notification system 400 includes an alarm system 402, a central monitoring station having at least one computing device 408, a remote server (e.g., a cloud server) 418, and one or more building owner / operator communication applications 420-1 and 420-2.

[0038] Alarm system 402 may include a plurality of event detection devices 406. Device 406 may be similar to a combination of Figure 1The device 406 may be configured to detect events within the building, such as a malfunction or fire in one of the devices 406, as well as other dangerous conditions. The device 406 may then transmit an event alarm signal to the control panel 404. The control panel 404 may compile information about the event and / or the detection device 406, such as the type of event alarm signal received, the date and time of receipt, a unique indicator of the device 406 from which the event alarm signal was received, and an indicator of the floor of the building on which the device 406 is located. This information may be transmitted to the computing device 408 and the remote server 418.

[0039] The alarm system 402 may also include an edge / gateway device 410 through which information is transmitted to a remote server 418 and computing device 408. The gateway device 410 acts as a pass-through device for communication between the alarm system 402 in the building and the central monitoring station 408 and other components of the event notification system 400 that are in a remote location (i.e., outside the building).

[0040] The gateway device 410 may also include edge intelligence functionality that detects when an event alarm condition exists at one alarm system device and collects data from other devices near the device indicating the event alarm condition. This information may be useful, for example, to provide a more complete picture of an incident.

[0041] For example, edge intelligence may indicate that there are four smoke detector devices (e.g., device 406) to the south of the device indicating the alarm that have slightly increased smoke levels, which indicates to central monitoring personnel which direction the fire may be spreading, and these detector devices are operable to monitor the status of the situation.

[0042] The gateway device 410 may also provide other important functions. For example, during the commissioning of the alarm system 402, the gateway device 410 may provide the function of detecting the quality of the connection between the alarm system device 406 and the gateway device 410, and may report weak connections to the technician during the commissioning process or during the operation of the system. In some cases, it may identify which connections have problems and identify the location of the problem, thereby guiding the technician to solve the problem. In some embodiments, the gateway device 410 may also identify trends in problems, for example, it indicates that problems occur in a certain area every few weeks or months, which may prompt the technician to investigate activities in the space that may trigger recurring problems.

[0043] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a gateway device 410 of an alarm system 402 at a facility (building) receives event alarm signals from a control panel 404 and reports the event alarm signals to one or more central monitoring servers. These servers may be on-site (within the facility) or, as described in the example of FIG. Figure 4As shown in the example of , it is off-site (at a remote location relative to the alarm system components including the gateway device).

[0044] From there, the event alarm signal is reported to both the remote server 418 and the appropriate central monitoring station (i.e., computing device 408). For example, information about the event alarm signal may be displayed on a graphical user interface of an application on computing device 408. The central monitoring station includes an administrator who coordinates activities to respond appropriately based on the type of event that occurred. For example, a fire event will require a fire-based response, and if it seems likely that injuries may occur, the response will likely include alerting the fire station to dispatch a truck and contacting medical personnel. For safety issues, security personnel and / or police will be contacted. For issues related to the operation of the alarm system device 406, a technician will be contacted and directed to the location of the faulty alarm system device 406. The central monitoring server is connected back to one or more alarm systems and / or remote (cloud) servers on site, such as alarm system 402 and remote server 418.

[0045] Computing device 408 contains floor plans for each floor of the building, which are either stored on the memory of computing device 408 or accessible by computing device 408 through a software application having executable instructions stored, for example, on remote server 418. These floor plans include the exact location of each alarm device 406 within each floor.

[0046] Thus, when computing device 408 receives an event alert signal from gateway device 410, computing device 408 may use the unique indicator / identifier of alert device 406 and the indicator of the floor on which alert device 406 is located to determine the floor on which the event has occurred and generate a floor plan of the floor. The floor plan may show the specific location of the event within the floor. This may be accomplished by generating a floor plan of the appropriate floor and highlighting or otherwise indicating the specific areas within the floor plan that are monitored by device 406 reporting the event, thereby creating a visual representation of the floor. The visual representation may then be transmitted to remote server 418.

[0047] The event alarm signal, including all the information compiled by the control panel 402, is also transmitted to the remote server 418. The remote server 418 can then perform analysis on both the event alarm signal received from the gateway device 410 and the floor plan received from the computing device 408 to generate a visual floor representation. The visual floor representation can be similar to the floor plan generated by the computing device 408, where specific locations correspond to the indicated events. However, the visual floor representation can also include any other information received from the event alarm signal, such as the type of event or the time and date of the reported event.

[0048] Remote server 418 may transmit the visual floor representation to authorized users via applications such as applications 420-1 and 420-2. For example, 420-1 may be a mobile application accessible via a mobile device, and 420-2 may be a local or remote application accessible via a personal computer or mobile device. Figure 5 , Figure 6 , Figure 7 , Fig. 8A and Figure 8B The visual floor representation is further described.

[0049] Applications 420-1 and 420-2 may be software applications accessible via a computing device such as a personal computer or a mobile device such as a laptop or a phone. Applications 420-1 and 420-2 may include executable instructions stored on a memory of computing device 408 to present visual floor representations to a user via a graphical user interface. Applications 420-1 and 420-2 may also be remote software applications (e.g., web applications) that include executable instructions stored on a remote server 418 to present visual floor representations to a user via a graphical user interface of a display device. Such applications may be accessible, for example, via a web browser. The application may be similar to an application used by computing device 408 to access a floor plan stored on remote server 418.

[0050] like Figure 4 As shown in the example of , the event notification system 400 can have various connections that are secured to reduce or eliminate unauthorized connections to the system. For example, in some embodiments, a security protocol can be utilized where real-time status information can only be provided to those parties who enter, for example, a username and password, thereby authorizing the system to provide such information to a party. Such embodiments can also be customized so that parties with different authorization levels can access different information. These levels and the type of information available for each level can be customized, for example, by the building owner / operator or the alarm system provider when configuring the system or once the system is established.

[0051] The event notification system 400 may also allow workflows to be defined for different types of alarms, and as the progress of one stage moves to another, the graphical user interface may display the current stage details in the user interface. In this way, the building owner / operator can quickly determine the status of the event without having to navigate in the mobile application.

[0052] The remote server 418 may also include artificial intelligence functionality that may, for example, inform the receiver of similar incidents that occurred on a particular date, the time period it took to respond to the previous incident, the current time it took to respond to the current incident, and the estimated time to fully resolve the current incident based on data about one or more previous incidents. This may be accomplished, for example, by applying an inference model. This may be beneficial, for example, by notifying a building owner / manager of a time frame so that they know when they have to perform any incident-related actions they may have to take.

[0053] Figure 5 Is it a remote or local application (for example, Figure 4 FIG. 5 is an illustration of a display screen 501 provided on a user interface of an application 420-2) showing a visual floor representation 517 of a floor on which an event has occurred generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 5 As shown, the visual floor representation 517 may include a floor plan 519 corresponding to the floor of the alarm device that reported the event. The floor plan 519 may have been generated by a computing device (e.g., Figure 4 computing device 408) to access.

[0054] The visual representation 517 may include an indication of a specific area 521 where the event has occurred. As previously described, the specific area 521 may be determined by the computing device based on the area monitored by the alarm device 506 that reported the event. In addition, the remote server (e.g., Figure 4 The remote server 418 of the present invention can further refine the region 521 through inputs and event alarm signals received from other alarm devices 506. For example, if two alarm devices 506 monitor overlapping areas, and one alarm device 506 detects an event, but the other alarm device does not detect the event, the remote server can determine that no event occurred in the overlapping area. Therefore, the specific area 521 can be reduced to only those areas monitored by the detecting alarm devices and not the non-detecting alarm devices.

[0055] Text 523 may be shown adjacent to specific areas 521, thereby providing more information about the event alert signal. For example, visual floor representation 517 may display information about the type of event detected, the time the event was detected, or the operating status or identifier of one or more event detection alert devices 506. In addition, notification 503 of a received event alert signal may be displayed along with some or all of the information transmitted within the signal. In some cases where multiple events are detected within the same floor, multiple areas may be indicated, not just area 521 corresponding to the first event. In the event that an event is detected on a different floor, a second visual floor representation may be opened in a separate window on the display, such as in conjunction with Fig. 8Adescribed in further detail.

[0056] Visual floor representation 517 can be continuously updated as the incident is resolved. For example, if the detection alarm device detects the resolution of the incident, or if the user receives a notification of the resolution through the application, the visual floor representation can be updated to no longer display the specific area of ​​the incident.

[0057] The visual floor representation 517 may also include indicators of exits 525 so that a user can easily see possible escape routes.

[0058] Figure 6 Is it on a mobile device (e.g. Figure 4 420-1) provides a display screen 601 on the user interface of the mobile application 420-1) showing a visual floor representation 617 of the floor on which the event has occurred generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In other words, Figure 6 It is suitable for mobile devices Figure 5 Similarly, display screen 601 may display a visual floor representation 617 of event signals received from a gateway device, with a specific location 621 of such event indicated (eg, by highlighting the specific location 621).

[0059] like Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the embodiments of the present disclosure allow easy viewing and response to event notifications by providing users with efficient representations (517 and 617) of specific event locations within the floor on which the event occurred. Once the event has been resolved, these visual representations 517 and 617 can be stored within the application.

[0060] In some embodiments, the same application can be used to view events in multiple buildings. Figure 6 As shown, the user may have the option of selecting 627 the building to which they are given access.

[0061] Figure 7 7 is an illustration of a display screen 701 provided on a user interface of a mobile device showing an email notification of an event for a building security system generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a system (e.g., system 400) may be configured to automatically transmit a notification 729 of an event from a remote server (e.g., remote server 418) or from a software application (e.g., applications 420-1 and 420-2) via email to a predetermined, authorized user.

[0062] The notification 729 may include a text notification 703 that includes various types of information, such as the time and date of detection of the event, an identification number corresponding to the event detection device, the event detection device type (e.g., a smoke alarm), and / or the name of the network of which the device is a part, as well as other suitable information. However, the notification 729 may also include a visual floor representation 717 generated by the remote server. The visual representation 717 may include an indicator 721 of the specific location of the event. The indicator 721 may be, for example, a circle surrounding the alarm device 706 that detected the event.

[0063] Fig. 8A Is it in the application (for example, Figure 4 420-2) on a user interface of an application 420-2) showing visual floor representations 817-1 and 817-2 of one or more floors 819-1 and 819-2 generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 8A As shown, the graphical user interface may have two or more windows 831 - 1 and 831 - 2 open simultaneously, even though only one window (eg, the front window 831 - 1 ) is visible on the display screen 801 .

[0064] In some cases, a building security system may detect an event on a certain floor 819-2 of a building and simultaneously open a visual floor representation 817-1 corresponding to a different floor 819-1 on the display screen 801. The application may be configured to capture an image of the visual floor representation 817-2 of the floor 819-2 on which the most recent event was detected and transmit a notification (e.g., Figure 7 729) because the second visual floor representation 817-2 will be displayed in a window 831-2 behind the first generated window 831-1. Therefore, the user can continue to use the application to view the information about the floor 819-1 on the front window 831-1 without interruption, while all necessary users are immediately notified of the event occurring on the other floor 819-2. In addition, if Figure 7 As shown, these users will receive a visual floor representation 717 that may eliminate the need for them to access another application to access event information.

[0065] If the next event detected is detected by an alarm device on the same floor 819-1, the visual representation 817-1 corresponding to that floor may simply be updated to add an indicator for the specific location of the additional event.

[0066] Figure 8B is Fig. 8AAn illustration of a display screen 801 provided on a user interface of an application of , which shows a visual floor representation 817-2 of one of the floors 819-2 on which an event has occurred, generated according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 8B As shown, the user can choose to open a window 831-2 corresponding to the newly received event alarm signal. The window 831-2 will show the visual floor representation 817-2.

[0067] Window 831-2 will also show a real-time queue 833 of incident alert signals received by the system, which can be continuously updated to show only the incidents that have not been resolved and the corresponding floor of each incident. The user of the application can access a visual floor representation including an indication of the specific location of the incident by selecting one of these incident alert signals in the queue 833, as described above. Alternatively, the user can view and interact with various visual representations of different floors 819 of the building through panel 835.

[0068] There are several computing devices used for various functions in the building event notification system. Each of these computing devices (e.g., gateway device, control panel, remote server, building owner / operator communication device, central monitoring station server) includes a processor and memory that can function as described below. Other items that can be provided on such computing devices, such as user input and output components, are also described below.

[0069] The memory may be any type of storage medium that can be accessed by the processor to perform various examples of the present disclosure. For example, the memory may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable instructions (e.g., executable instructions / computer program instructions) stored thereon, which can be executed by the processor according to the present disclosure.

[0070] The memory may be volatile or nonvolatile memory. The memory may also be removable (e.g., portable) memory or non-removable (e.g., internal) memory. For example, the memory may be a random access memory (RAM) (e.g., dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and / or phase change random access memory (PCRAM)), a read-only memory (ROM) (e.g., electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) and / or compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM)), a flash memory, a laser disc, a digital versatile disc (DVD) or other optical storage device, and / or a magnetic medium such as a cassette, a magnetic tape, or a disk, among other types of memory.

[0071] In addition, although the memory is shown as being located within the computing device, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, the memory may also be located within another computing resource (e.g., enabling computer readable instructions to be downloaded via the Internet or another wired or wireless connection).

[0072] The computing device may also include a user interface. For example, the user interface may display Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 5 , Fig. 8A and Figure 8B The embodiment shown in .

[0073] A user (e.g., an operator) of a computing device may interact with the computing device via a user interface. For example, the user interface may provide (e.g., display and / or present) information to the user of the computing device, and / or receive (e.g., input by the user of the computing device) information from the user of the computing device. For example, in some embodiments, the user interface may be a graphical user interface (GUI), which may provide information to the user of the computing device and / or receive information from the user of the computing device. The display may be, for example, a touch screen (e.g., the GUI may include touch screen functionality). Alternatively, the display may include a television, a computer monitor, a mobile device screen, other types of display devices, or any combination thereof, which is connected to the mobile device and configured to receive a video signal output from the mobile device.

[0074] As further examples, a user interface may include a keyboard and / or a mouse that a user may use to enter information into a computing device. However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to a particular type of user interface.

[0075] The user interface can be localized into any language. For example, the user interface can utilize any language such as English, Spanish, German, French, Mandarin, Arabic, Japanese, Hindi, etc.

[0076] Although specific implementations have been illustrated and described herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same technique may be substituted for the specific implementations shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all modifications or variations of various implementations of the present disclosure.

[0077] It should be understood that the above description is given in an illustrative rather than limiting manner.By reading the above description, combinations of the above embodiments, as well as other embodiments not specifically described herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0078] The scope of the various embodiments of the present disclosure includes any other applications using the above-described structures and methods.The scope of the various embodiments of the present disclosure should therefore be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

[0079] In the above detailed description, various features are grouped together in the exemplary embodiments shown in the drawings for the purpose of simplifying the disclosure. This method of disclosure should not be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the embodiments of the present disclosure require more features than are expressly recited in each claim.

[0080] Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment.Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

Claims

1. A method for notifying a user of a fire system event, the method comprising: detecting a first event in the building by a first event detection device; transmitting information about at least one of the first event or the first event detection device to a remote server (118) and a first computing device (108) located at a central monitoring station, wherein the first computing device (108) includes a memory in which a floor plan of each floor of the building is stored; determining, based on the information and by the first computing device (108), a floor of the building on which the first event was detected; transmitting from the first computing device to the remote server (118) a specific floor plan of the floor of the building on which the first event was detected; determining, based on the information, a specific location within the floor where the first event is detected; generating, at the remote server, a first visual floor representation including an indication of the specific location based on the specific floor plan and the specific location; as well as transmitting the first visual floor representation from the remote server to a second computing device, via a software application including instructions executable by a processor and stored in a memory, to present the visual floor representation to a user of the second computing device, The first visual floor representation can be updated according to the status of the first event.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the specific floor plan is transmitted from the first computing device (108) to the remote server (118).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second computing device is at least one of: Mobile device; or Personal computer.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the information includes an identifier of the first event detection device, the identifier being unique relative to identifiers of other event detection devices within the building.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the information is transmitted to the remote server (118) and the first computing device (108) via a gateway device (110).

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a second event in the building by a second event detection device.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising, if the second event detection device is located on a particular floor, updating the first visual floor representation to include an indication of a specific location within the particular floor where the second event was detected.

8. The method according to claim 6, further comprising, if the second event detection device is located on a floor other than the specific floor, then: generating a second visual floor representation including an indication of a specific location of the second event; and presenting, by the application, the second visual floor representation to a user via a user interface; generating, via the application, a first window in which the first visual floor representation is displayed to the user on the user interface; and A second window is generated behind the first window via the application, wherein the second visual floor representation is displayed to the user on the user interface.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting resolution of the first event using the first event detection device or receiving notification of resolution of the first event and updating the first visual floor representation using the first event detection device.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein the specific location is determined by the remote server (118) or the first computing device (108) based on the location of the first event detection device stored in the memory of the first computing device (108) and the range of the first event detection device stored in the memory of the first computing device (108).

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