U.S. patent application number 15/446256 was filed with the patent office on 2018-01-11 for building asset management system.
The applicant listed for this patent is Tyco Fire & Security GmbH. Invention is credited to Tyler Brown, Juan Miguel Marino Camarasa, David G. Dahlstrom, Federico Fala, Alexandra Norton, Nicolae Bogdan Pavel, Joseph Piccolo, III, Amy Quiring, Oana Secara, Joshua Tanner, Craig Trivelpiece.
Application Number | 20180011461 15/446256 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 60910751 |
Filed Date | 2018-01-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180011461 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Camarasa; Juan Miguel Marino ;
et al. |
January 11, 2018 |
Building Asset Management System
Abstract
A connected services system manages assets of building
management systems of different organizations. An application
server collects information from the assets, which is stored in
various data stores associated with an account of the client
organization, including an asset store, a group hierarchy store, a
user account store, an asset ownership store, and a group ownership
store. The group hierarchy store organizes the assets into tiered
groups such as campuses, buildings, floors and wings. Users view,
on graphical interfaces displayed on the displays of user devices,
information from the asset store pertaining to assets that are
owned by or shared with them according to the group ownership and
asset ownership stores. The graphical interfaces include an asset
panel for displaying detailed information about assets, a grouping
selector, for filtering which assets for which information is
displayed, and a status graphic for providing information
concerning the status of the assets.
Inventors: |
Camarasa; Juan Miguel Marino;
(Midleton, IE) ; Fala; Federico; (Cobh, IE)
; Piccolo, III; Joseph; (Fitzwilliam, NH) ;
Dahlstrom; David G.; (Hubbardston, MA) ; Quiring;
Amy; (Matthews, NC) ; Secara; Oana; (Cork,
IE) ; Pavel; Nicolae Bogdan; (Cork, IE) ;
Norton; Alexandra; (Concord, MA) ; Brown; Tyler;
(Milford, CT) ; Tanner; Joshua; (Tequesta, FL)
; Trivelpiece; Craig; (Mission Viejo, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Tyco Fire & Security GmbH |
Neuhausen am Rheinfall |
|
CH |
|
|
Family ID: |
60910751 |
Appl. No.: |
15/446256 |
Filed: |
March 1, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62359428 |
Jul 7, 2016 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G08B 19/005 20130101;
G05B 15/02 20130101; G05B 2219/2642 20130101; G06F 3/04817
20130101; G08B 25/14 20130101; G06K 19/06028 20130101; G08B 29/145
20130101; G06F 3/0488 20130101; G06K 19/0717 20130101; G08B 25/10
20130101; G05B 19/0426 20130101; G06K 19/07749 20130101; G06F
3/0482 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G05B 19/042 20060101
G05B019/042 |
Claims
1. A system for managing assets of building management systems, the
system comprising: an asset store for storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems; a user
account store for storing information concerning user accounts; and
an ownership store for enabling access by the user accounts in the
user account store to the information in the asset store.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ownership store
enables access by designating user accounts from the user account
store as owners of assets represented in the asset store.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the ownership store
enables access by designating which user accounts with which
information about assets represented in the asset store is
shared.
4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the ownership store
further designates specific types of information to be shared with
the user accounts.
5. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a group
hierarchy store for storing groups for the assets.
6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the groups are ordered
in a tree structure.
7. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the groups have
owners, and the groups can be shared with other users.
8. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the assets include
fire panels and intrusion panels.
9. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising sets of
asset stores, user account stores and ownership stores being
maintained for different organizations.
10. A method for managing assets of building management systems,
the method comprising: an asset store storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems; a user
account store information concerning storing user accounts; and an
ownership store enabling access by the user accounts in the user
account store to the information in the asset store.
11. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising the
ownership store enabling access by designating user accounts from
the user account store as owners of assets represented in the asset
store.
12. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising the
ownership store enabling access by designating which user accounts
with which information about assets represented in the asset store
is shared.
13. The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising the
ownership store designating specific types of information to be
shared with the user accounts.
14. The method as claimed in claim 10, further comprising group
hierarchy stores storing groups for the assets.
15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the groups are
ordered in a tree structure.
16. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the groups have
owners, and the groups can be shared with other users.
17. A system for managing assets of building management systems,
the system comprising: an asset store for storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems; a user
account store for storing information concerning user accounts; an
ownership store, for enabling access by the user accounts in the
user account store to the information in the asset store; and a
custom name store for allowing each of the users to store a custom
name for assets that are owned by or shared with the users.
18. A method for managing assets of building management systems,
the method comprising: an asset store storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems; a user
account store information concerning storing user accounts; and an
ownership store enabling access by the user accounts in the user
account store to the information in the asset store; and a custom
name store storing custom names assigned by the users for assets
that are owned by or shared with the users.
19. A system for managing assets of building management systems,
the system comprising: an asset manager including an asset store
for storing information concerning the assets of the building
management systems, a user account store for storing information
concerning user accounts, and an ownership store, for enabling
access by the user accounts in the user account store to the
information in the asset store; a user device displaying a graphic
user interface including names of assets and an ownership status of
the assets as being owned or shared.
20. A method for managing assets of building management systems,
the method comprising: storing information concerning the assets of
the building management systems; storing information concerning
user accounts; and enabling access users to the information in the
asset store and showing the users names of assets and ownership
statuses of the assets as being owned or shared.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit under 35 USC 119(e) of
U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/359,428, filed on Jul. 7, 2016,
which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0002] This application is related to U.S. application Ser. No.
______ filed on an even date herewith, entitled "Building
Management System Method and Interface", attorney docket number
0324.0026US2/F-FD001622US, now U.S. Patent Publication No.: ______,
which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Building management systems are often installed within
buildings owned or operated by commercial, residential, or
governmental organizations. Examples of these buildings include
offices, hospitals, warehouses, schools, shopping malls, government
offices, and casinos.
[0004] Building management systems include fire systems, security
systems, access control systems, heating, ventilation and air
conditioning (HVAC) systems, and theft prevention systems. They
each typically include assets such as control panels or controllers
and distributed devices.
[0005] The fire alarm systems, for example, typically include a
number of different types of fire alarm assets. Fire control panels
(or control panels) function as system controllers. Fire
detection/initiation devices and alarm notification devices are
then installed throughout the buildings and connected to the
panels. Some examples of fire detection/initiation devices include
smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, flame detectors,
temperature sensors, and/or pull stations (also known as manual
call points). Some examples of fire notification devices include
speakers, horns, bells, chimes, light emitting diode (LED) reader
boards, and/or flashing lights (e.g., strobes).
[0006] The fire detection devices monitor the buildings for
indicators of fire, Upon detection of an indicator of fire such as
smoke or heat or flames, the device is activated and a signal is
sent from the activated device to the control panel. The control
panel then initiates an alarm condition by activating audio and
visible alarms of the fire notification devices of the fire alarm
system. Additionally, the control panel will also send an alarm
signal to a monitoring station, which will notify the local fire
department or fire brigade.
[0007] The security systems can often include one or more of a
number of related systems and subsystems. Most commonly security
systems include intrusion systems. However, access control systems
and video surveillance systems, for example, can also be a part of
an organization's security systems.
[0008] Intrusion systems typically include a number of different
types of security assets. Usually, intrusion control panels
function as system controllers. intrusion detection devices are
then installed throughout the buildings and connected to the
intrusion panels. Some examples include motion detectors, and
magnetic reed switches to detect window/door opening events, among
others.
[0009] Access control and video surveillance systems will have
their own assets. Access control systems typically include
controllers and readers, which are installed at access points. On
the other hand, video surveillance systems will include video
cameras, video storage systems, monitoring stations, video server
systems and/or video analytics systems.
[0010] The monitoring stations for fire and security systems will
typically monitor multiple fire alarm systems and security systems
for alarm and trouble signals and then notify the proper
authorities. Monitoring stations are often required by regulations,
making them a standard component of most fire alarm systems,
regardless of age or manufacturer of the fire alarm systems'
components. These monitoring stations can be administered by a
third party company, the same company that provides or manufactures
the fire and security systems, or a public agency, among
examples.
[0011] More recently, it has been proposed to use connected
services systems to monitor building management systems. In some
cases, the control panels have been given network connectivity to
communicate with the connected services systems; in other cases,
the technicians have temporarily connected testing computers to the
control panels that functioned as gateways. This has allowed the
control panels to report status information to the connected
services systems, which are typically administered by fire and
security systems companies and include, for example, databases for
storing historical status information. These connected services
systems will also often have remote diagnostic capabilities. As
such, connected services systems facilitate the maintenance,
compliance and tracking of repairs of fire and security
systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] Typically, previous connected services systems assign only
one user account per customer for both accessing information stored
by the connected services systems and for managing and configuring
the assets of these systems. The single user account for each
customer of the connected services system is utilized to configure
and manage the operational state of the assets and display
information associated with each of the assets (e.g. status, state,
type/model number). This "one size fits all" approach creates
problems when different users at the same customer premises, such
as facility managers, fire safety compliance managers, and physical
asset managers, want to manage or view different or overlapping
aspects of the systems and their assets. Specifically, the
presentation of the assets in a web application is typically not
organized or grouped in a way that suits the job functions of each
user.
[0013] The present connected services system provides multiple user
accounts per premises for customers of the service. Users can
organize or group the assets in a logical fashion that suits the
job function or task goals of the users of each account type. For
this purpose, the users assign ownership of each asset to a
specific user account and then share access to the asset across
other user accounts. This is in contrast to current systems, where
typically only one user account is provided per customer, and
therefore all assets are assigned to or associated with the single
user account.
[0014] Multiple user accounts for the same customer are created
that enable potentially different groupings of the assets, and many
kinds of logical groupings of assets are possible.
[0015] In one example, the groupings are determined based on
geographical or physical divisions of the premises or organization,
such as countries, states, campuses, buildings, floors, or
wings.
[0016] In another example, a separate user account for security
guards stationed at a security desk within each campus can be
created. The security guards create different logical groupings of
the same assets, where the groupings of the assets are relevant to
the tasks and objectives of the security guards.
[0017] In another example, a user account associated with a
corporate asset manager user is created. This user account provides
a view of the assets for purposes of ascertaining local and
national fire code compliance for each of the assets of a company,
with a potentially national scope.
[0018] In another example, a grouping can be created that is based
on assets installed on or after a certain date, for
accounting/fiscal year management of assets by users in an
accounting division within a company.
[0019] In yet another example, groupings can be created by security
managers that organize assets in accordance with locations of
relative risk. For example, a fire alarm panel installed at a
chemical laboratory of a building may be assigned to a grouping
associated with a high risk of fire, where a fire alarm panel
installed at a building of the same company that includes corporate
offices would likely be assigned to a grouping associated with a
low risk of fire. At the same time, an intrusion panel asset at the
same corporate building would likely be assigned to a grouping
associated with a high risk of intrusions. This enables enhanced
focus and priority for assets based on the characteristics of each
grouping.
[0020] A graphical user interface displayed on the display of a
user device presents information pertaining to assets owned by and
shared with a specific user account. The interface further allows
the user to filter information concerning assets according to
logical groups via a grouping selector, which displays a graphical
representation of the groups (for example, as graphical node icons)
organized into groups in a hierarchical fashion. The information is
displayed on an asset pane of the graphical user interface,
preferably in a table format.
[0021] Additionally, a status graphic can be displayed on the
graphical user interface. The status graphic presents information
concerning the status of the assets, such as the relative
percentage of assets associated with different asset status types.
In one example, the status graphic can be a status circle, with
different arcs that correspond to status "sub-types" of that asset
status type. In addition, in one implementation, the presentation
of the arcs can change in response to the relative percentage of
"Overall Status" that each sub-type contributes to the "Overall
Status". Each arc within the status circle can also be rendered in
a different color, where the color conveys a context-specific
meaning. For example, an arc associated with the status "Normal"
can be green, while the arc associated with the "Alarm status" can
be red or yellow to convey a warning.
[0022] In general, according to one aspect, the invention features
a system for managing assets of building management systems. The
system comprises an asset store for storing information concerning
the assets of the building management systems, a user account store
for storing information concerning user accounts, and an ownership
store for enabling access by the user accounts in the user account
store to the information in the asset store.
[0023] The ownership store preferably enables access by designating
user accounts from the user account store as owners of assets
represented in the asset store. The ownership store also enables
access by designating which user accounts with which information
about assets represented in the asset store is shared. In some
examples, the ownership store further designates specific types of
information to be shared with the user accounts.
[0024] A group hierarchy store can also be provided for storing
groups for the assets. The groups can be ordered in a tree
structure, and the groups can have owners, and the groups can be
shared with other users.
[0025] In the context of cloud-based system, sets of asset stores,
user account stores and ownership stores can be maintained for
different organizations.
[0026] In general, according to another aspect, the invention
features a method for managing assets of building management
systems. The method comprises an asset store storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems, a user
account store information concerning storing user accounts, and an
ownership store enabling access by the user accounts in the user
account store to the information in the asset store.
[0027] In general, according to another aspect, the invention
features a system for managing assets of building management
systems. The system comprises an asset store for storing
information concerning the assets of the building management
systems, a user account store for storing information concerning
user accounts, an ownership store, for enabling access by the user
accounts in the user account store to the information in the asset
store, and a custom name store for allowing each of the users to
store a custom name for assets that are owned by or shared with the
users.
[0028] In general, according to another aspect, the invention
features a method for managing assets of building management
systems. The method comprises an asset store storing information
concerning the assets of the building management systems, a user
account store information concerning storing user accounts, an
ownership store enabling access by the user accounts in the user
account store to the information in the asset store, and a custom
name store storing custom names assigned by the users for assets
that are owned by or shared with the users.
[0029] In general, according to another aspect, the invention
features a system for managing assets of building management
systems. The system comprises an asset manager including an asset
store for storing information concerning the assets of the building
management systems, a user account store for storing information
concerning user accounts, and an ownership store, for enabling
access by the user accounts in the user account store to the
information in the asset store. A user device is further provided
for displaying a graphic user interface including names of assets
and an ownership status of the assets as being owned or shared.
[0030] In general, according to another aspect, the invention
features a method for managing assets of building management
systems. The method comprises storing information concerning the
assets of the building management systems, storing information
concerning user accounts, and enabling access users to the
information in the asset store and showing the users names of
assets and ownership statuses of the assets as being owned or
shared.
[0031] The above and other features of the invention including
various novel details of construction and combinations of parts,
and other advantages, will now be more particularly described with
reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the
claims. It will be understood that the particular method and device
embodying the invention are shown by way of illustration and not as
a limitation of the invention. The principles and features of this
invention may be employed in various and numerous embodiments
without departing from the scope of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0032] In the accompanying drawings, reference characters refer to
the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are not
necessarily to scale; emphasis has instead been placed upon
illustrating the principles of the invention. Of the drawings:
[0033] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a connected services system
monitoring building management systems for different organizations
according to the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram showing the asset store for
storing information concerning the assets of the fire and security
systems;
[0035] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram showing the organization of
the group hierarchy store;
[0036] FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram showing the organization of
the user account store;
[0037] FIG. 2D is a schematic diagram showing the asset ownership
store;
[0038] FIG. 2E is a schematic diagram showing the group ownership
store;
[0039] FIG. 2F is a schematic diagram showing the user account
custom name store;
[0040] FIG. 3 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for user
management;
[0041] FIG. 4 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for user
information editing;
[0042] FIG. 5 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for user
notification preferences management;
[0043] FIG. 6A is an example of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device for a user, showing an interface for
product management;
[0044] FIG. 6B is an example of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device, showing an interface for product
management, in which the asset names are displayed as custom names
for a different user;
[0045] FIG. 7 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for product
detail management;
[0046] FIG. 8 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for finding and
adding an asset to a user's account;
[0047] FIG. 9 is an example of a graphical user interface displayed
on a user device for the users showing an interface for display
asset for selected groups;
[0048] FIGS. 10, 11, and 12 illustrate group selection within the
graphical user interface;
[0049] FIG. 13 is an example of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device for the users showing a dashboard;
[0050] FIG. 14 is an example of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device for the users showing a dashboard when
the status pane is selected;
[0051] FIGS. 15 and 16 are examples of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device for the users showing a dashboard when
an arc segment within the status widget is selected; and
[0052] FIGS. 17 is an example of a graphical user interface
displayed on a user device for the users showing a dashboard when
an arc segment within the status widget is selected.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0053] The invention now will be described more fully hereinafter
with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which illustrative
embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may,
however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be
construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather,
these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be
thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the
invention to those skilled in the art.
[0054] As used herein, the term "and/or" includes any and all
combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
Further, the singular forms and the articles "a", "an" and "the"
are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless expressly
stated otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms:
includes, comprises, including and/or comprising, when used in this
specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers,
steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude
the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers,
steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Further, it will be understood that when an element, including
component or subsystem, is referred to and/or shown as being
connected or coupled to another element, it can be directly
connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements
may be present.
[0055] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a connected services system 12
according to the present invention.
[0056] In general, the connected services system 12 facilitates the
monitoring, maintenance, testing, configuration and repair of
building management systems 100-1, 100-2, 100-N for different
organizations 10-1, 10-2, 10-N by gathering and storing information
from connected building management systems.
[0057] The connected services system 12 includes an application
server system 60 that can be implemented as a server computer or a
set of servers. In other cases, the system can be implemented on a
cloud computing system maintained by a third party cloud services
company.
[0058] The application server 60 accesses a number of different
asset managers 14-1, 14-2, 14-N. Each asset manager instantiation
14-1, 14-2, 14-N corresponds to a different one of the
organizations 10-1, 10-2, 10-N. These asset managers manage the
assets of a fire and security system by storing status information
for the assets and information concerning users that have
responsibilities with respect to these assets and the information
accessed by these users. All of the status information for the
assets and the information concerning users are stored in a common
database system, for example. As a result, the information is not
duplicated for each account and for each user within an
organization, for example.
[0059] In more detail, the application server 60 maintains a number
of different data stores 44, 56, 66, 68, 72, 74 in each of the
asset managers 14-1, 14-2, 14-N. These stores 44, 56, 66, 68, 72,
74 are repositories for persistently storing and managing the data
from the fire building management systems in different bins for
each of the client organizations 10-1, 10-2, 10-N, respectively, of
the connected services system 12. Depending on the specific
implementation and the nature of the data, the data stores can be
repositories like databases (relational, object-oriented),
distributed data stores, linked lists, or other files and file
systems. The data is stored in a common database and data for each
of the client organizations 10-1, 10-2, 10-N and not
duplicated.
[0060] In terms of relevance here, the data stores accessed the
application server 60 include a user account store 44, an asset
store 66, a group hierarchy store 56, an asset ownership store 68,
a group ownership store 72, and a user account custom name store
74.
[0061] The application server 60 provides access to the information
contained in the user account store 44, asset store 66, group
hierarchy store 56, asset ownership store 68, group ownership store
72, and a user account custom name store 74 to users 70 by
transmitting the information to user devices 102 operated by the
users 70. Examples of user devices 102 include desktop and
workstation computers and mobile devices such as smart phones,
tablets, laptops, and other mobile computing devices. Each of the
user devices includes a display 103, such as a computer monitor,
touch screen display, or augmented reality display on which a user
interface is displayed, containing information provided by the
application server 60.
[0062] The application server 60 receives information from various
connected building management systems 100-1, 100-2, 100-N typically
via a public network 23, which is a wide area network such as the
internet, and stores the information in the asset manager 14-1,
14-2, 14-N for the corresponding organization.
[0063] In the illustrated example, the building management system
is a fire and security system. However, it will be understood that
building management systems can further include access control
systems, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems,
and theft prevention systems, to list a few other examples.
[0064] The application server 60 gathers data from fire and
security systems 100-1, 100-2, 100-N for different organizations
10-1, 10-2, 10-3 by receiving information reported and transmitted
from the fire and security systems' control panel assets 16, 26.
Control panels 16, 26 are assets that direct the function of fire
and security systems by determining and displaying the operational
status of connected slave de.sup.-vice and by receiving alarm
signals from slave devices, among other examples.
[0065] In addition to control panel assets 16, fire alarm systems
typically include a number different types of fire alarm assets
installed throughout the buildings and connected to the panels 16.
Some examples of fire detection/initiation assets include smoke
detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, flame detectors, temperature
sensors, and/or pull stations (also known as manual call points).
Some examples of fire notification devices include speakers, horns,
bells, chimes, light emitting diode (LED) reader boards,
annunciators and/or flashing lights (e.g., strobes).
[0066] Similarly, other building management systems and security
systems typically include a number of different types of security
assets installed throughout the buildings and connected to the
security control panels 26. For intrusion systems, examples include
motion detectors, magnetic reed switched to detect window/door
opening events. For access control and video surveillance systems,
examples include controllers and readers, which are installed at
access points, video cameras, video storage systems, monitoring
stations, video server systems and/or video analytics systems.
[0067] For example, the details of an exemplary client organization
10-1 are shown. It includes different campuses 12A, 12B, 12C and
different buildings 50A-50F distributed between the different
campuses. Each of the buildings includes one or more assets that
report their status to the application server. For example,
building 50E in the South Campus 12B has an intrusion panel 26-4
that reports to the application server system 60 via the public
network 23. Somewhat similarly, building 50C in the North Campus
12A has a fire panel 16-4 and an intrusion panel 26-2 that report
to the application server system 60 via the organization's
enterprise network 13-1 and the public network 23.
[0068] Each of the fire and intrusion panels 16, 26 will support
one or multiple loops or networks of fire or security assets. For
clarity, however, only one network of fire detection and alarm
notification devices is shown, connected to the fire panel 16-6 of
building 50F. The fire detection devices 109-1 to 109-3 connect to
the fire panel 16-6 via a safety and security wired and/or wireless
network 111 (also known as a loop), which supports data
communication between the devices 109-1 to 109-3 and the control
panel 16-6.
[0069] The illustrated example includes fire and intrusion panels
16-1, 16-3, 16-4, 16-5, 16-6, 26-1, 26-2, 26-3, 26-4, which
transmit data to the application server system 60 via the public
network 23, sometimes through enterprise and/or cellular data
networks 13-1. Data transmitted from fire and intrusion panels
16-1, 16-3, 16-4, 16-5, 16-6, 26-1, 26-2, 26-3, 26-4, to the
application server system 60 include status information, diagnostic
information and testing information pertaining to the control panel
and other slave devices of the fire and security systems such as
fire detection and notification and intrusion devices. Status
information is information about whether the fire alarm system and
intrusion systems are operational and whether an alarm state is
indicated. Generally, diagnostic information is data detected by
various components of the fire and security systems that can be
used to optimize or repair the system, and testing information is
information about any tests of the fire and security systems. In
some examples, diagnostic information includes identification
information such as a unique identifier for the fire or intrusion
panel 16, 26, address of the asset or assets, location information
such as a physical location of the assets, a date and time of the
activation, status information, including a fault state of the
activated assets, analog and/or detected value generated by the
assets such as a detected smoke level or detected ambient
temperature.
[0070] In the illustrated example, fire panel 16-2 is a
non-compatible panel. Non-compatible control panels are legacy or
third party control panels that lack network connectivity and thus
are unable to connect directly via the public network 23. Such
control panels 16-2 can be manufactured by the same company
providing the connected services system 12 but at a time before
network connectivity was desirable in control panels. Third party
control panels are control panels manufactured by different
companies or business entities than that providing the connected
services system 12 and may or may not have network connectivity.
Even if they have network connectivity, third party control panels
will often use different protocols than the connected services
system to communicate status, diagnostic and testing
information.
[0071] Non-compatible control panels 16-2, can be retrofitted with
devices that enable network connectivity. In the illustrated
example, the non-compatible control panel 16-2 connects to a
gateway device 116. The gateway device 116 provides access for the
non-compatible control panel 16-2 to the public network 23 and thus
to the application server system 60.
[0072] FIG. 2A shows the asset store 66, which stores information
concerning the assets of the fire and security system.
[0073] In the illustrated example, the asset store 66 is arranged
in the form of a table as might be found in a relational database.
A first column holds the asset ID. This is usually a multi-digit
number that is unique to each asset. The second column is the asset
pin. This is a number that is generated by and typically only known
by the owner of the asset. The third column is the asset name.
Often this name includes information concerning where the asset is
installed and is commonly assigned at the time of the device's
installation. The fourth column is the asset type. For example, if
the asset is a fire panel or an intrusion panel, this information
is contained in this column. The fifth column provides information
concerning the model of the asset. This is usually the designation
provided by the manufacturer for the specific product.
[0074] The hierarchy assignment column identifies the hierarchy
within the organization that the owner of the asset has assigned to
the asset. This hierarchy is typically created by or for the
organization and is descriptive of where this asset is installed
within a logical framework created by the organization. For
example, in the example shown in FIG. 1, for organization 10-1, the
hierarchy assignment may indicate in which campus and in which
building the asset is installed. In another example, the hierarchy
may further include information concerning the function of the
asset such as whether it is an intrusion panel or a fire panel. It
could also include information such as in which state or country
the panel is installed.
[0075] The product status column indicates the general status of
the product. For example statuses include an alarm state, a trouble
state, a normal state, an offline state, and an armed state.
Specifically, if a fire panel is currently detecting a fire, then
the alarm state will be true. On the other hand, if the intrusion
panel is not working, then its trouble state may be true.
Generally, the normal state is true when the panel, fire panel or
intrusion panel, is operating normally. An intrusion panel will
have a positive armed state when it is armed such as during off
business hours.
[0076] The inspection status column indicates whether the panel has
been properly inspected. For example, fire panels must often be
inspected to ensure operation at least annually. On the other hand,
the organization may designate a certain inspection cycle for
intrusion panels, for example.
[0077] The last three columns are the dirty status, service status,
and updated status. The dirty status is mostly relevant to fire
panels. Often some fire alarm systems' slave devices will become
dirty over time and must be replaced or cleaned. The service status
column indicates whether or not the panel needs to be serviced.
Finally, the updated status column indicates whether or not the
firmware of the panel has been updated to a new version of the
firmware.
[0078] FIG. 213 shows the organization of the group hierarchy store
56. The group hierarchy store 56 stores groups for the assets. In
the illustrated example, the groups are ordered in a tree
structure.
[0079] Many kinds of logical groupings of assets in the group
hierarchy store 56 are possible.
[0080] In one example, the groupings are determined based on
geographical or physical divisions of the premises or organization,
such as countries, states, campuses, buildings, floors, or wings.
In the illustrated example, the groups for the organization 10-1
include campuses, buildings, floors and wings.
[0081] In another example, which is not illustrated, a separate
user account for security guards stationed at a security desk
within each campus can be created. The security guards create
different logical groupings of the same assets, where the groupings
of the assets are relevant to the tasks and objectives of the
security guards.
[0082] In another example, a user account associated with a
corporate asset manager user is created. This user account provides
a view of the assets for purposes of ascertaining local and
national fire code compliance for each of the assets of a company,
with a potentially national scope.
[0083] In another example, a grouping can be created that is based
on assets installed on or after a certain date, for
accounting/fiscal year management of assets by users in an
accounting division within a company.
[0084] In yet another example, groupings can be created by security
managers that organize assets in accordance with locations of
relative risk. For example, a fire alarm panel installed at a
chemical laboratory of a building may be assigned to a grouping
associated with a high risk of fire, where a fire alarm panel
installed at a building of the same company that includes corporate
offices would likely be assigned to a grouping associated with a
low risk of fire. At the same time, an intrusion panel asset at the
same corporate building would likely be assigned to a grouping
associated with a high risk of intrusions. This enables enhanced
focus and priority for assets based on the characteristics of each
grouping.
[0085] In more detail, the group hierarchy store 56 comprises a top
level that corresponds to the organization. In the illustrated
example, the top level corresponds to organization 10-1. Within the
organization are a series of first level groups. For example, in
the example of organization 10-1, there might be three first level
groups: North Campus, South Campus, and Satellite Campus. Then,
each of the first level groups may have their own second-level
groups. For example, the North Campus contains three groups:
building 50A, building 50B, and building 50C. In a similar vein,
the South Campus will have two groups: building 50D and building
50E. Further, the second level groups can each then have their own
third level groups. For example, building 50A may have groups
corresponding to its different floors. In another example, a larger
building may have separate wings. Then, each of those separate
wings could then have their own fourth level groups corresponding
to floor, as shown. Other examples may have a deeper or shallower
level structure depending on its complexity and how that
organization wished to organize its assets.
[0086] FIG. 2C shows the user account store 44, which stores
information concerning user accounts. In the typical
implementation, each user has a user ID. This is usually a
multi-digit number that is unique to each user. A user pin is often
secret alphanumeric sequence that the user must enter to access
their account. Other biographic information will also be typically
contained in the user account store 44 such as a name or an email
address and/or mobile phone number. Additionally, the user's role
within the organization may also be stored in this table.
[0087] FIG. 2D shows the asset ownership store 68, which enables
access by the user accounts in the user account store 44 to the
information in the asset store 66. In one example, it includes a
column that specifies a particular asset such as the asset ID. The
second column indicates the owner of that asset. In one example,
the second column has the user ID for the user that is the
designated owner of the corresponding asset. A third column
indicates the users with whom information from this asset are
shared. These are the other users with whom the asset owner has
designated to receive information concerning the asset. Finally, a
fourth column includes share limitations, which indicate any
limitations to the information that is shared with the users
specified in the third column. Share limitations can include
sharing only the product status, sharing only the inspection
status, or sharing only the alarm status of the assets.
[0088] FIG. 2E shows the group ownership store 72. This includes a
column that corresponds to the different groups specified in the
group hierarchy store 56. The second column indicates the owner of
that group. And the third column indicates the users with whom the
owner shares access to the group. In this way, entire groups of
assets can be assigned ownership. Further, that owner can then
assign share access to those assets to still other users. The group
ownership store 72 also includes share limitations.
[0089] FIG. 2F shows the user account custom name store 74, which
allows each of the users to store a custom name for each of the
assets that are owned by or shared with the respective users. This
includes a column that corresponds to user accounts (User ID, a
multi-digit number that is unique to each user), a column that
corresponds to assets (Asset ID, the multi-digit number that is
unique to each asset), and a column indicating a custom name for
the asset to be displayed when the associated user views
information about the asset. In this way, different users can
create, assign and then view different names (which are relevant to
the responsibilities of the user) for the same assets.
[0090] For example, the user with the User ID=3, has assigned the
name "4100ES 012345678" to the asset with the Asset ID=4.
[0091] The custom name assignment might allow an account manager to
assign and/or view an accounting system's asset tracking numbers as
the custom names of assets. In another example, a facilities
manager can assign and/or view the name or number of the room in
which the asset is located as the asset's name. In another example,
a security group can assign and/or view the address of the building
in which the asset is located as the asset's name. In yet another
example, service personnel can assign and/or view the address and
panel, or model number, of the asset as the asset's name. In short,
each of these different users can personalize the naming of the
assets depending on their individual roles.
[0092] FIGS. 3 through 18 show a series of graphical user
interfaces that are displayed on the displays 103 of the user
devices 102 for the users 70. The information contained in the
graphical user interfaces is provided by the application server
system 60 by obtaining the information from the corresponding asset
manager 14-1, 14-2, 14-N of the respective the organization 10-1,
10-2, 10-N for whom the user is employed.
[0093] FIG. 3 shows the overall organization of the graphical user
interface, which is displayed on the display 103 of the user
devices 102. It comprises a user navigation pane 310. In the center
is a user list pane 312. Across the top are four tabs: an assets
tab 12-1, a dashboard tab 12-2, a managed products tab 12-3, and a
users tab 12-4.
[0094] Selection of the users tab 12-4 results in the display of
the user list pane 312 and the user navigation pane 310. The user
list pane 312. lists various users, their email addresses, the
status of their user account, such as validated or waiting to be
validated, and a series of control buttons 34-1 through 34-4 that
allows for management actions to be taken on the indicated
account.
[0095] In the user navigation pane 310, a series of graphical
buttons are provided that allow the user to access accounts by
selecting graphical button 13-1, edit a specific user by selecting
graphical button 13-2, or add a new user by selecting graphical
button 13-3.
[0096] FIG. 4 shows the graphical user interface when the edit user
graphical button 13-2 is selected. Specifically, an edit user pane
316 is displayed on the user device 102. There, the user can enter
an email address, password, the user's first name, their surname,
and a nickname. Further, a profile picture can be uploaded.
[0097] FIG. 5 shows the graphical user interface when the accounts
graphical button 13-1 is selected. Specifically, a notification
preferences pane 318 is displayed. This preferences pane lists the
different assets that are owned or shared with the user.
Specifically, a fire panel asset 320-1 is listed along with an
intrusion panel asset 320-2. For each of these assets, a list of
potential statuses is provided 322-1, 322-2. For example, for fire
panel 320-1, the potential statuses are alarm, trouble, normal, and
offline. An email checkbox 324 and a SMS checkbox 326 is then
provided for each of these statuses for each of these assets. By
selecting the email or SMS checkbox, the asset manager will send
either an email or an SMS message when that status is true for the
corresponding asset. For example, checking box 326 will result in
the asset manager 14-1 executing on the application server 60 to
send an SMS message via the application server system 60 when the
fire panel 320-1 is in an alarm state. Checkbox 328 is selected
when the user wishes to receive a notification when the asset is in
a test mode.
[0098] FIG. 6A shows the graphical user interface when the manage
products tab 12-3 is selected by the user 70. It includes a manage
products navigation pane 350, and a product list pane 352.
[0099] FIG. 6B shows an alternate screen using custom names
displayed by the graphical user interface when the manage products
tabs 12-3 is selected by a different user 70 with custom names
assigned. In the illustrated example, the names are displayed as an
asset tracking number for an accounting system. For example, the
name for the first fire panel (named "James Admin Main Bldg" in
FIG. 6A) is now named "00001."
[0100] The manage products navigation pane 350 has five graphical
buttons, a list products graphical button 13-4, an add product
graphical button 13-5, a product details graphical button 13-6, a
manage groupings graphical button 13-7, and a share/transfer
graphical button 13-8.
[0101] The products list pane 352 lists the assets to which the
user has access. Specifically, the first column 354 provides the
asset name for the asset. Often this is the location where the
asset is installed. This information is obtained from the third
column of the asset store 66. The second column 356 indicates the
type of the asset, such as whether the asset is a fire panel or
intrusion panel. This information is obtained from the fourth
column of the asset store 66. The third column 358 indicates the
model of the asset. This information is obtained from the fifth
column of the asset store 66. The fourth column 360 indicates the
ownership status of that asset for the user. This information is
obtained from the second and/or third column of the asset ownership
store 68. For example, the indicated user owns the James Admin Main
Building fire panel but shares the James Admin Main Building
intrusion panel. Also shown are other ownership statuses such as
Pending Sharing Request and one case where a request to share was
denied.
[0102] FIG. 7 shows the graphical user interface when the product
details graphical button 13-6 is selected in the manage products
navigation pane 350.
[0103] Specifically, a product detail pane 366 is displayed. This
includes details of the asset displayed in section 364. Section 365
allows management of the asset by entry of information by the user.
Here, the user can edit the name assigned to the asset by selecting
edit in area 368. This process will update the third column of the
asset's record in the asset store 66. The user can change the group
to which the asset is assigned by selecting the edit command in
area 370. This process will update the sixth column of the asset's
record in the asset store 66. The user can delete the other users
with whom the asset is shared by selecting one of the shared
accounts in area 372 and selecting the delete command. This will
delete the corresponding share information stored in the asset
ownership store 68. Finally, the privacy settings can be selected
by selecting the options in area 374.
[0104] FIG. 8 shows the user interface when the add product
graphical button 13-5 is selected in the manage products navigation
pane 350.
[0105] Specifically, an add product pane 405 is displayed. This
allows the user to select an identification type in selection box
410. Then, the user enters the asset ID in box 412 for the asset
that should be added to their account. Finally, in box 414, the
user enters the PIN for the corresponding asset.
[0106] If the user does not have the specific asset ID for the
asset that they want to add, the user can select the search button
418. This will generate list in area 416 of potential assets to
add, indicating the asset ID of those assets and also the ownership
status for the corresponding asset. Once the desired asset is
found, an add graphical button 419 is selected by the user, which
adds the asset to the user's account by updating the asset
ownership store 68.
[0107] FIG. 9 shows the graphical interface when the assets tab
12-1 is selected. Specifically, a group selector pane 510 is
displayed on the left and an asset list pane 512 is displayed in
the center and right region.
[0108] The group selector pane 510 graphically illustrates the
group hierarchy information stored in the group hierarchy store 56.
Nodes 514, 516, 518, 520, 522 are graphic icons that represent
different level groups as stored in the group hierarchy store 56
for the group's asset manager 14. In the illustrated example, the
top level group is indicated by node icon 514, which represents the
organization 10-1, which is the entirety of the exemplary State
University System as illustrated in previous figures. This node
icon 514 is indicated as selected by the "check" graphic. The first
level groups are then shown as a series of nodes 516, 518, 520,
522, which are connected to node 514 and indented. Each of these
nodes corresponds to the North Campus, South Campus, East Campus,
and West Campus, respectively. These nodes correspond to the first
level groups for the organization as stored in the group hierarchy
store 56. In general, in this way, the information in the group
hierarchy store 56 is graphically displayed on the group selector
pane 510 as a series graphical icons representing parent and child
nodes, with parent node icons corresponding to higher level groups
and child node icons corresponding to lower level groups in the
group hierarchy store 56. In the group selector pane 510, selection
of nodes 516. 518, 520, 522 corresponding to higher level groups
causes child nodes corresponding to lower level groups to be
displayed.
[0109] Also provided is a multi-group mode selector 530. With the
top level node 514 selected, the asset list pane 512 lists all of
the assets that are within the selected node, i.e., fall within the
selected group or are within a group under the selected group
within the group hierarchy. Since the top level node 514 is
selected, this is a complete list of assets in the asset list pane
512 or the organization. Specifically, the asset list pane 512
comprises four columns that are populated with information about
the assets in the groups, which is from the asset store 66. The
first column 540 indicates the status of the asset such as normal,
armed, or offline, for example (from column 7 of the asset store
66). The second column 542 provides the name of the asset (from
column 3 of the asset store 66). The third column 544 indicates the
type of the asset such as fire panel or intrusion panel, along with
the model of that asset (from columns 4 and 5 of the asset store
66). Finally, the fourth column 546 indicates the group to which
the asset is assigned in the group hierarchy store 56 (from column
6 of the asset store 66).
[0110] FIG. 10 illustrates how the multi-group mode selector 530,
introduced in FIG. 9, controls the information displayed in the
asset list pane 512. Specifically, when the multi-group mode
selector 530 is deselected or disabled, information about all
assets for all groups are displayed in the asset list pane 512.
Then, selection of one of the nodes 516, 518, 520, 522 then affects
the display of the tree in the group selector pane 510, by
displaying or hiding, in the group selector pane 510, any nodes
connected to the selected node. The assets displayed in the asset
list pane 512 are unaffected. Specifically, control of and the
selection of the nodes 516-522 does not change or filter the list
of assets displayed in the asset list pane 512.
[0111] As shown in FIG. 11, while the multi-group mode selector 530
is deselected or disabled, the user can then select each of the
nodes 516, 518, 520, 522 that correspond to the first level groups.
Selection of these nodes will then cause the display of second
level nodes for each of the corresponding first level groups. For
example, selection of first level node 516 that corresponds to a
first level group causes the display of the second level nodes 570,
572 that correspond to the second level groups as stored within the
group hierarchy store 56. In a. similar vein, the first level node
518 can be selected to spawn the second level nodes 574, 576 that
correspond to the second level groups under the first level group
to which first level node 518 corresponds.
[0112] FIG. 12 shows how the user interface is displayed when the
multi-group mode selector 530 is enabled. Specifically, the asset
list pane 512, and specifically the specific assets that are listed
in that pane 512, are filtered to be only those assets within the
groups that are selected in the group selector pane 510. Thus, the
assets of groups corresponding to nodes 570 and 520 are displayed
in the asset list pane 512. In the illustrated example, in the
asset list pane 512, information pertaining to exemplary asset "A1"
is displayed, because second-level node 570, corresponding to
exemplary asset "A1" is selected. Similarly, information pertaining
to exemplary assets "C1", "C2", "C3", and "C4" is displayed in the
asset list pane 512, because first-level node, corresponding to
exemplary group "C", which includes assets "C1", "C2", "C3", and
"C4", is selected. No other assets are displayed in the asset list
pane 512, because no other nodes are selected in the group selector
pane 510.
[0113] FIG. 13 shows the graphical user interface when the
dashboard tab 12-2 is selected. Specifically, the graphical
interface in this mode has a status type selector area 118, a
status widget 120, and a status pane 126.
[0114] The status type selector area 118 has a series of graphical
buttons: an overall status graphical button 72-1, a product status
graphical button 72-2, an inspection status graphical button 72-3,
a dirty status graphical button 72-4, a connect status graphical
button 72-5, and a service status graphical button 72-6.
[0115] The status widget 120 is a graphic that provides information
concerning the status of the assets. The status widget 120
generally comprises a series of arc segments 122 arranged along a
common circle. The arc segments 122 correspond to groups of assets
with the same status. Also included are textual annotations 82, 92,
102 that are associated with each of the arc segments 122.
[0116] Finally, the status pane 126 displays textual information
for the assets and comprises an asset name column 610, an overall
status indicator column 612, and a product status column 614.
[0117] The graphical interface displayed corresponds to the
selection of the overall status graphical button 72-1. When this
button is selected, the status widget 120 provides the overall
status of the assets within the user's account, typically all of
those assets either owned by the user or that have been shared with
the user. Specifically, in the illustrated example, the status
widget includes an arc segment 122-1 that is 18% of the complete
circle. This indicates that 18% of the assets are in an alarm state
(see annotation 82-1). The annotation 92-1 provides the percentage
amount. The textual annotation 102-1 indicates that the actual
number of assets is ten. An offline arc segment 122-2 corresponds
to 9% of the circle. This corresponds to the 9% of the assets (see
annotation 92-2) that are in an offline state (see annotation
82-2). The annotations provide an asset count of five with
annotation 102-2.
[0118] The normal assets arc segment 122-3 corresponds to 55% of
the circle and indicates the fact that 55% of the assets (see
annotation 92-3) are in a normal state (see annotation 82-3).
Annotation 102-3 indicates the 55% and the total number of assets
which is 29 (see annotation 102-3). As indicated by the fault arc
segment 122-4, 9% of the assets, or five assets, are in a fault
state. The offline-normal arc segment 122-5 indicates that 9% of
the assets, or five assets, are in an offline-normal state.
[0119] The status pane 126 lists the asset names in column 610. The
second column 612 provides an overall status indicator. Finally,
the product status is indicated in column 614 for each of the
listed assets.
[0120] FIG. 14 shows the graphical user interface when the status
pane 126 is selected. The pane expands to overlap the status widget
120. More detailed status information is provided in the pane from
the information stored in the asset store 66. Specifically, the
expanded status pane 126 shows the asset names column 610, the
overall status indicator column 612, along with the product status
column 614 from the respective columns in the asset store 66. In
addition, however, it further comprises a dirty status column 616,
an inspection status column 618, an updated status column 620, and
a service status column 622. in this way, the inspection status,
updated status, service status and dirty status of the specific
products listed in column 612 are displayed based on the
information contained in the asset store 66 of the asset manager
14.
[0121] FIG. 15 shows how the user interface changes when one of the
arc segments 122 within the status widget 120 is selected.
Specifically, in the illustrated example, the normal arc widget
122-3 has been selected by the user. This causes the status pane
126 to provide a filtered list of assets. Specifically, rather than
all of the assets being listed in the status panel, the list is
filtered to only those assets that have a normal status. In
addition, selection of the normal arc widget 122-3 also causes the
segment to become wider relative to the other arcs, indicating that
it has been selected.
[0122] FIG. 16 shows the user interface when the alarm status arc
122-1 is selected by the user. The status pane 126 is updated.
Specifically, the list provided in the status pane 126 are only
those assets that are in an alarm status. The alarm status arc
122-1 also becomes wider relative to the other arcs, indicating
that it has been selected.
[0123] FIG. 17 shows the graphical user interface when the
inspection status graphical button 72-3 is selected. Specifically,
the status pane 126 is updated to show the inspection status of the
listed assets. Specifically, the asset list column 610 is provided.
But two new columns 670 and 672 are shown. Specifically, column 670
shows the inspection status of the asset such as whether the
inspection status is up to date or it is overdue for an inspection.
In the case where an inspection is due in a short period of time,
an imminent status is indicated. The additional information column
672 provides further information such as, if an inspection is due,
in specifically and how many days, or, if the inspection is
overdue, the number of days by which the inspection is overdue.
[0124] While this invention has been particularly shown and
described with references to preferred embodiments thereof, it will
be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in
form and details may be made therein without departing from the
scope of the invention encompassed by the appended claims.
* * * * *