Indoor camera or other microphone determining occupancy to adjust a thermostat
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional occupancy detection methods in smart homes are imprecise, failing to differentiate between human and non-human presence, and do not effectively utilize audio cues for managing thermostat settings or enhancing privacy.
Innovation Solution
A smart environmental control system using an indoor camera that combines audio and visual data analysis to determine occupancy, distinguishing between human and non-human activity, and adjusts thermostat settings accordingly while preserving privacy through data anonymization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional motion detectors or timers are used for occupancy detection, then the system is simple to implement, but the measurement precision of occupancy detection deteriorates and cannot differentiate between human and non-human presence
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines audio detection capabilities with visual motion detection in a single integrated system. The camera device incorporates both a camera sensor for visual data and a microphone for audio data, merging multiple detection modalities into one device to improve occupancy detection accuracy without proportionally increasing system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The camera device performs multiple functions: it serves as both a security camera and an occupancy detection device. By making the camera multi-functional, the system avoids adding separate dedicated occupancy sensors, thereby improving detection capabilities without linearly increasing device complexity
2Measurement precision
If audio and video data are continuously recorded for occupancy analysis, then the occupancy detection accuracy improves, but privacy concerns increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential occupancy information (presence/absence, human vs. non-human) from the audio and video data without retaining the actual audio recordings or video footage. This extraction approach maintains detection accuracy while removing privacy-sensitive content
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of storing original audio and video data, the system creates simplified representations or copies that capture occupancy patterns without containing personally identifiable information. This allows the system to analyze occupancy while preserving privacy by working with anonymized data copies
3Adaptability or versatility
If simple motion detectors are used, then energy consumption is low, but the ability to distinguish human activity from non-human activity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system processes audio and video data at different levels of detail depending on the situation. For basic occupancy detection, it uses simplified analysis, and only performs full human activity recognition when needed, thereby achieving versatile activity differentiation while managing energy consumption through selective processing intensity
Data Source
AI summary
Presented herein are systems and methods for determining occupancy to adjust a thermostat. The system can include an indoor camera that can monitor an indoor environment. The indoor camera can capture audio data and visual data. The indoor camera can include one or more processors coupled with non-transitory memory to determine, by analyzing audio data or video data captured by the indoor camera, occupancy state of the indoor environment; and to transmit a message to the automation application. The message may indicate the occupancy state of the indoor environment. The automation application can adjust a thermostat upon receiving the message having a particular occupancy state of the indoor environment.