Data Processing System

Abstract

To cause a task that a user is required to perform to be properly carried out regarding a fire alarm device installed within a monitoring area.SOLUTION: A fire alarm device managing system 1 comprises one or more fire alarm devices 11 installed within a housing 10 which is a monitoring area. The fire alarm device 11 communicates with a server device 20 via a wireless router 12 and the Internet 40. Also, the server device 20 communicates with a terminal device 30 used by a user via the Internet 40. When data received from the fire alarm device 11 meets a specified condition, the server device 20 performs a task for, for example, sending a notification to the terminal device 30 to prompt cleaning of the fire alarm device 11.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a data processing system for managing a fire alarm, a program for managing a fire alarm, and a fire alarm.

Background Art

[0002] When a fire alarm installed in a house or the like detects a fire, an alarm system has been proposed that causes a fire alarm to be given to a user from a terminal device used by the user who manages the house or the like. For example, in Patent Document 1, when a residential alarm installed in a house detects a fire, the residential alarm transmits a fire alarm to a mobile phone used by a resident of the house via an in-house communication adapter, a wide-area communication adapter, and an abnormality monitoring server, and the mobile phone that has received the fire alarm notifies the resident of the fire. An alarm system is described.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In order for a fire alarm installed in a house or the like to maintain normal operation, there are operations that the user should perform. For example, regarding a fire alarm that operates on batteries, when the battery is running out, the user needs to replace the fire alarm (or replace the battery). Also, for example, when the detection unit provided for the fire alarm to detect a fire stops outputting a normal signal due to dirt or the like, the user needs to perform a predetermined cleaning operation on the fire alarm. Regarding the operations that the user should perform when these events occur, they are described in the instruction manual of the fire alarm, etc., but there are not a few users who do not read those descriptions or who do not execute the necessary operations as instructed even after reading those descriptions.

[0005] This invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a means to ensure that the tasks that users should perform with respect to fire alarms installed within a monitoring area are carried out appropriately. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention provides a data processing system comprising a receiving means for receiving data generated by a fire alarm installed within a monitoring area via the Internet, and a notification means for notifying a user when the data received by the receiving means satisfies predetermined conditions.

[0007] Furthermore, the present invention provides a program that causes a user's computer to perform the following processes: receiving data generated by a fire alarm installed in a monitoring area via the Internet; and instructing a notification device to send a notification to the user if the data generated by the fire alarm satisfies predetermined conditions.

[0008] Furthermore, the present invention provides a fire alarm that is installed within a monitoring area, detects a fire within the monitoring area, and notifies a user of the detected fire, and includes a transmission means for transmitting data generated for fire detection to an external device via the Internet. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to this invention, it is possible to ensure that the tasks that users should perform with respect to fire alarms installed within a monitoring area are carried out appropriately. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram showing the configuration of a fire alarm system 1 in one embodiment of this invention. [Figure 2] This block diagram shows the configuration of the server device 20 in the same embodiment. [Figure 3] This figure shows the user table TB1 in the same embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure shows the fire alarm table TB2 in the same embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The embodiments of this invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0012] Figure 1 shows the configuration of a fire alarm management system 1 in one embodiment of the present invention. In Figure 1, a fire alarm 11 and a wireless router 12 are installed in the house 10, which is the monitoring area. In the illustrated example, two fire alarms 11 are installed in one house 10.

[0013] The fire alarm 11 mainly uses either a smoke-type sensor, which detects light reflected by smoke particles when light is shone onto the air taken in through a vent, or a heat-type sensor, which detects the temperature of the taken-in air, but the method is not limited. The fire alarm 11 communicates wirelessly with a wireless router 12, for example, in accordance with a wireless communication standard such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark), connects to the internet 40 via the wireless router 12, and transmits log data (described later) to the server device 20 via the internet 40.

[0014] The process of connecting the fire alarm 11 to the wireless router 12 is carried out by a well-known method. For example, if both the fire alarm 11 and the wireless router 12 are equipped with a button such as a WPS button, the user can establish a wireless communication connection between the fire alarm 11 and the wireless router 12 by pressing that button.

[0015] The log data includes data generated by the fire alarm 11 to detect a fire. The data generated to detect a fire includes, for example, in the case of a smoke-type fire alarm equipped with an optical sensor, the output data of the optical sensor or data generated by the fire alarm 11 using such output data (for example, data showing statistical values ​​of the output data), and data showing the estimated smoke concentration based on the output data.

[0016] When the above data satisfies the predetermined conditions for fire detection, the fire alarm 11 is provided with notification means for notifying people (including users) within the house 10 of the occurrence of a fire, for example, by emitting an alarm sound or an alarm message. Separately, the fire alarm 11 is provided with transmission means for continuously transmitting log data to the server device 20.

[0017] Also, the log data may include data indicating the remaining battery level of the fire alarm (when the fire alarm operates on battery). This remaining battery level is an example of data generated by the fire alarm, not data generated for fire detection.

[0018] The server device 20 is an example of the data processing system according to this invention. In the illustrated example, the data processing system is constituted by one server device 20, but there may be a case where the data processing system is constituted by a group of server devices including a plurality of server devices. [[ID=##]]

[0019] [[ID=##]] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the server device 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the server device 20 includes a CPU 21, a storage unit 22, and a communication unit 23. The CPU 21 is the control center of the server device 20. The storage unit 22 consists of a non-volatile storage unit such as a ROM and an HDD, and a volatile storage unit such as a RAM. The non-volatile storage unit stores programs executed by the CPU 21. The volatile storage unit is used as a work area by the CPU 21. The communication unit 23 is means for communicating with other devices via the Internet 40.

[0020] The program stored in the storage unit 22 functions as receiving means for the server device 20, which is a computer, to receive data (specifically, log data) generated by the fire alarm 11 installed in the monitoring area via the Internet 40, and as notification means for notifying the user when the data received by the receiving means satisfies the predetermined conditions. Also, the notification means notifies the user by transmitting notification data indicating the notification to the terminal device 30 used by the user.

[0021] Here, in order to notify the user, the server device 20 must be able to identify the terminal device 30 that is the destination of the notification data.

[0022] Therefore, in this embodiment, the user performs the following operations. The user inputs the user ID and password (authentication information) on the login screen of the terminal device 30 during app execution and logs in to the server device 20. The server device 20 can identify the user of the logged-in terminal device 30 by the user ID.

[0023] To perform the above management, the server device 20 stores a user table TB1 with the data configuration shown in FIG. 3 in the storage unit 22. Here, the user ID is information for identifying the user. The password is information (authentication information) for authenticating whether the user is the actual person. The notification destination is information indicating the destination of the notification to the user, for example, an email address, an account name of a social networking service (SNS), etc.

[0024] The server device 20 stores the log data sent from each fire alarm 11 in association with the user ID. Therefore, the user needs to perform an operation (registration operation of the fire alarm) of registering the fire alarm 11 with the server device 20 in association with his / her user ID.

[0025] The user performs the registration operation of the fire alarm, for example, by any of the following methods.

[0026] (1) Manually input the fire alarm ID attached to the fire alarm 11 on the fire alarm registration screen of the dedicated app (already logged in with the user account) running on the terminal device 30.

[0027] (2) Or, on the fire alarm registration screen of the dedicated app (already logged in with the user account) running on the terminal device 30, read the barcode (such as a QR (registered trademark) code, etc.) attached to the fire alarm 11.

[0028] (3) Alternatively, on the fire alarm registration screen of the dedicated application running on the terminal device 30 (logged in with a user account), the notification unit of the fire alarm 11 corresponding to the fire alarm ID selected by the user from the list of fire alarm IDs will make a notification (e.g., flashing LED, sounding buzzer). The user can then confirm which fire alarm ID in the list corresponds to the fire alarm ID of the fire alarm 11 in front of them. The user then registers the selected fire alarm ID with the server device 20 on the fire alarm registration screen.

[0029] In the registration process described above, if the user installs multiple fire alarms 11 in their home, they can identify each fire alarm 11 individually by giving it a name such as "Room A" or "Room B".

[0030] Through the registration process described above, a fire alarm table TB2, as shown in Figure 4, is generated on the server device 20 for each user. Here, the fire alarm ID is information that identifies the fire alarm 11. The fire alarm name is a name set by the user to distinguish the fire alarm 11. The log data is the data that the fire alarm 11 sends to the server device 20. The user input data is the data that the user sends to the server device 20 via the terminal device 30.

[0031] Examples of user input data include, but are not limited to, the following. (Example 1) Data showing the date and time when the fire alarm was first put into use. (Example 2) Data indicating the timing of notifications prompting replacement. For example, if the product life of a fire alarm is 10 years from the date of initial use, the data might state "notifications every month starting six months prior." In this example, the first notification is given 9.5 years after the initial use date, and then reminder notifications are sent every month thereafter. (Example 3) Data indicating the date and time maintenance work was performed. For example, if a user cleans a fire alarm in response to a prompt from a terminal device, this data would indicate the date and time the cleaning work was performed.

[0032] The user selects the target fire alarm 11 by its name on the screen of the terminal device 30 running the application, and then enters the data as described above. The server device 20 stores the data entered by the user as user input data in the fire alarm table TB2.

[0033] The server device 20 stores predetermined conditions for sending various notifications to the user, and the content of the notifications to be sent when those predetermined conditions are met.

[0034] For example, as follows: (Example 1) When a predetermined condition is met, such as "a time set by the user has elapsed since the start date and time of use," a notification such as "The replacement time is approaching in XX months" will be sent. (Example 2) When the predetermined condition is met, "the log data showing the sensor output exceeds a predetermined threshold indicating sensor contamination," a notification will be sent stating, "Please clean the fire alarm (name: ○○) according to the following procedure. (The following is an explanation of the cleaning procedure)."

[0035] The above predetermined conditions change based on user input data. Specifically, the predetermined conditions for providing notifications regarding each fire alarm 11 are determined by the server device 20 (or its determination means) using user input data.

[0036] The server device 20, for example, determines whether the above-mentioned predetermined conditions have been met for each of the fire alarms 11 at predetermined intervals (e.g., every 24 hours), and if it determines that the conditions have been met, it sends a notification to the terminal device 30 according to those predetermined conditions.

[0037] There are two main ways in which the server device 20 can notify the terminal device 30: by sending a push notification to the terminal device 30 while the application is running (while logged in), and by sending a message to the email address, SNS account name, etc., indicated by the data stored in the notification destination of the user table TB1. Both methods may be used, or only one of them may be used.

[0038] Users can receive timely information regarding the maintenance of the fire alarm 11 (such as when to replace the main unit, when to replace the batteries, when to perform cleaning, and the cleaning procedure) through one of the following means: a push notification sent to the terminal device 30 running the app, a notification sent to their account on an SNS service, or a notification sent to their email address.

[0039] [Differentiation] The above embodiment can be modified in the following ways.

[0040] (1) In this embodiment, the server device 20 stores log data, stores templates for predetermined conditions for notification, determines the predetermined conditions using user input data, determines whether or not the predetermined conditions are met, and if they are met, provides a notification to the user according to the predetermined conditions. Alternatively, a system configuration without a server device 20 may be adopted.

[0041] In this case, the terminal device 30 should be equipped with a program that causes the user's computer to perform two processes: receiving data generated by fire alarms installed within the monitoring area via the Internet, and instructing a notification device to notify the user if the data generated by the fire alarms meets predetermined conditions.

[0042] In this embodiment, the terminal device 30 running the application receives and stores log data from the fire alarm 11, stores a template for predetermined conditions for notification, determines the predetermined conditions using user input data, determines whether or not the predetermined conditions are met, and if they are met, sends a notification to the user via a notification device (display, speaker, etc.) that is built into or externally connected to the terminal device, according to the application. In other words, according to the application, the terminal device 30 issues a notification instruction to the notification device that is built into or externally connected to the terminal device 30, and the notification device sends a notification to the user in accordance with that instruction.

[0043] In this embodiment, the program of the terminal device 30 may cause the terminal device 30 to execute a process to acquire data entered by the user and a process to determine predetermined conditions using the data entered by the user. In addition, the program of the terminal device 30 may cause the terminal device 30 to execute a process to instruct the notification device to issue a notification prompting maintenance work for the fire alarm 11.

[0044] (2) The server device 20 may use the log data stored in the fire alarm table TB2 for each of the multiple users to determine predetermined conditions for determining whether or not to issue a notification regarding each fire alarm 11. An example is shown below.

[0045] (Example 1) The server device 20 analyzes log data (big data) collected from a large number of fire alarms 11 (used by different users) and identifies the shape of the time-dependent change in the sensor output signal shown in the log data before a false fire detection occurs due to dirt. Then, when a predetermined condition is met, such as the similarity between the shape of the time-dependent change in the sensor output signal shown in the log data of each fire alarm 11 and the shape before the false detection identified by the analysis reaches a threshold, the server device 20 notifies the user of that fire alarm 11 to clean the fire alarm 11.

[0046] (Example 2) The server device 20 analyzes log data (big data) collected from a large number of fire alarms 11 (used by different users) to identify the shape of the time-series change in the sensor output signal shown in the log data before and after the cleaning work was performed correctly. If the similarity between the shape of the time-series change in the sensor output signal shown in the log data before and after the date and time the cleaning work was performed (as indicated by the user input data) and the shape of the time-series change in the output signal identified by the analysis does not reach a threshold, the server device 20 sends a notification to the user of that fire alarm prompting them to perform the cleaning work again.

[0047] (3) The method by which the fire alarm 11 connects to the Internet 40 is not limited to the method via the wireless router 12. For example, if the fire alarm 11 is equipped with a communication interface that connects to a mobile communication network, the fire alarm 11 may connect to the Internet 40 via the mobile communication network without going through the wireless router 12.

[0048] (4) The server device 20 is an example of a data processing system, and instead of the server device, a data processing system consisting of multiple devices (for example, a group of server devices that work in coordination with each other) may be used.

[0049] (5) The content of the notification, the content of the prescribed conditions for determining whether or not to issue a notification, etc., may be changed in various ways. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 1... Fire alarm management system, 10... House, 11... Fire alarm, 12... Wireless router, 20... Server device, 30... Terminal device, 40... Internet, 21... CPU, 22... Memory unit, 23... Communication unit.

Claims

1. A receiving means that receives data generated by fire alarms installed within the monitoring area via the internet, A notification means that, when the data received by the receiving means satisfies predetermined conditions, notifies the user to perform work to replace or maintain the fire alarm. Equipped with, The receiving means acquires user input data indicating a specific time period entered by the user, The system includes a determination means for determining the predetermined conditions using the timing indicated by the user input data. Data processing system.

2. comprising a storage means for storing a template of the predetermined conditions, The determination means determines the predetermined conditions by changing the template using the specific time period. The data processing system according to claim 1.

3. The user input data includes information specifying the start time of the notification and information specifying the interval at which the notification will be given after the start time, The determination means determines the predetermined conditions for repeating the notification based on the start time and the interval. The data processing system according to claim 1.

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