TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention is generally related to emergency alert systems, and more specifically,
to fire emergency systems.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Conventional emergency alert systems are configured as non-interactive, one-way alert
systems. Fire emergency systems, for example, typically include one or more alarms
located at various locations such as hallways and/or individual rooms. The alarms
can include an audio alert and/or a visual alert that is sensed by one or more persons
located in the vicinity of the alarm system. In this manner, the alarm system only
output alerts without taking into consideration the actions of one or more persons
located in proximity -of the alarm.
[0003] During a fire emergency, it may be imperative that emergency officials evacuate all
persons from the vicinity of the fire. However, the exact location of any person located
in the vicinity of the fire is often difficult to ascertain. In addition, the alarms
are conventionally designed to output a high decibel (dB) sound at fixed volume to
ensure persons in the vicinity are notified of the emergency. High decibel sound further
increases the difficulty of ascertaining a person's location.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to at least one exemplary embodiment, a sound-sensitive emergency alert
system comprises at least one electronic alarm module disposed at a predetermined
location in a building. The at least one electronic alarm module is configured to
perform at least one of output at least one alert, detect at least one acoustic sound,
and adjust the output of the at least one alert based on the detected at least one
acoustic sound. The at least one electronic alarm module is further configured to
transmit information about the detected at least one acoustic sound to components
in communication with the emergency alert system.
[0005] According to yet another embodiment, a method of alerting an emergency event comprises
outputting at least one alert in response to detecting an emergency event. The method
further includes detecting at least one acoustic sound following detection of the
emergency event and detecting a location of the at least one acoustic sound. The method
further includes adjusting the output of the at least one alert in response to detecting
the at least one detected acoustic sound. The method further includes transmitting
information indicating the location of the at least one acoustic sound to an electronic
control module remotely located from the location of the at least one acoustic sound.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0006] The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out
and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing
and other features of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description
taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a voice-sensitive emergency alert system according to
an exemplary embodiment;
FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating operation of a voice-sensitive emergency alert system
according to an exemplary embodiment;
FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating operation of a voice-sensitive emergency alert system
according to another exemplary embodiment;
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a plurality of electronic alarm modules disposed
at a predetermined locations to detect the locality of acoustic voices sensed by a
respective alarm module according to an exemplary embodiment;
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a display provided by a graphic user interface (GUI)
according to an exemplary embodiment; and
FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of detecting the locality of acoustic
voices during an emergency event according to an exemplary embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0007] Unlike conventional non-interactive one-way emergency alert systems, at least one
embodiment of the present disclosure provides a two-way interactive voice-sensitive
emergency alert system. The voice-sensitive emergency system can dynamically adjust
operation in response to detecting one or more acoustic sounds such as voices, for
example, during an emergency event. An emergency event can include various non-limiting
events including, but not limited to, a fire, detected smoke detected carbon monoxide
gas, a security breach of a building, and structural damage of a building. The acoustic
voices include vocal requests for help during the emergency event. In response to
detecting an acoustic voice, the voice-sensitive emergency alert system is configured
to determine and display the location of the acoustic voice. The voice-sensitive emergency
alert system is also configured to dynamically change operation of an individual alarm
module in response to detecting the acoustic voice. For example, a volume of an emitted
audio alert can be decreased to facilitate search/rescue and reduce discomfort of
one or more persons in the vicinity of the alarm module. The audio alert and/or visual
alert may also be output differently at the location where the acoustic voice is detected
to guide the emergency personnel towards the locality of the acoustic voices (e.g.,
the help requests). In addition, the voice-sensitive emergency alert system can interact
with persons requesting for help and can ask for clarification on their location and/or
needs of the user such as, for example, the nature of the situation or amount of people
located in a confined area. While various features of the invention have been described,
it is to be understood that various embodiments of the invention may include only
some or a combination of the inventive features.
[0008] Turning now to FIG. 1, a sound-sensitive emergency alert system 100 is illustrated
according to an exemplary embodiment. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system 100
includes an electronic alarm module 102, an electronic control unit 104 and an electronic
graphic user interface (GUI) 106. The alarm module 102 is disposed at one or more
predetermined locations and is configured to detect one or more acoustic sounds 108
at a respective location.
[0009] The electronic control unit 104 is in electrical communication with each alarm module
102 and is programmed with the location of each respective alarm module 102. In this
manner, the electronic control unit 104 is configured to receive one or more sound
detection signals from a respective alarm module 102, and determine the location of
the respective alarm module 102 which detects the acoustic signal 108. Accordingly,
the electronic control unit 104 can determine the location of one or more persons
110 based on the locality of the detected acoustic signal 108. The GUI 106 is in communication
with the electronic control unit 104 and outputs information indicating the location
of one or more detected acoustic signals 108 to emergency personnel 112, as discussed
in greater detail below.
[0010] The alarm module 102 includes an acoustic sensor 114, an acoustic output device 116,
a visual output device 118, an electronic alert communication and control module 120,
an electronic sound recognition module 122, and an electronic communication and control
module 124. According to an embodiment, for example, all the sensing, recognition,
control and notification functions are implemented in the electronic alarm module,
which in turn interfaces with pre-existing emergency systems like pre-existing alarm
units to allow installation within legacy systems.
[0011] The acoustic sensor 114 includes, for example a microphone, and is configured to
detect various acoustic sounds, including human voices 108. In this manner, the acoustic
sensor 114 may sense one or more acoustic voices 108 and convert the acoustic voices
108 into a sound detection signal. Although acoustic voices are described, the acoustic
sensor 114 may also be configured to detect other acoustic sounds such as animal response
(e.g., dog barks) or hand clapping (useful for voice impaired individuals or individuals
wearing gas masks).
[0012] The acoustic output device 116 and the visual output device 118 are each configured
to output an audio alert 117 and a visual alert 119, respectively. The acoustic output
device 116 may include a speaker, for example, and the audio alert 117 may include
various selectable tones and/or voice messages and/or volume levels (i.e., decibels)
output from the acoustic output device 116. The visual output device 118 may include
a lamp, for example, and the visual alert 119 may include a light emitted at various
selectable frequencies and/or colors (i.e., wavelengths).
[0013] The alert communication and control module 120 is in electrical communication with
the acoustic sensor 114, the acoustic output device 116 and the visual output device
118. The alert communication and control module 120 is configured to control the output
of the acoustic output device 116 and/or the visual output device 118 in response
to detecting the acoustic voice 108 via the acoustic sensor 114. According to an embodiment,
the alert communication and control module 120 is configured to control the acoustic
output device 116 to selectively output the audio alert 117 at different decibel levels
in response to detecting the acoustic voice 108. For example, the alert communication
and control module 120 controls the acoustic output device 116 to output the audio
alert 117 at a first decibel level when the sound-sensitive emergency alert system
100 detects an emergency event, and at a second level less than the first decibel
level in response to detecting an acoustic voice 108. In this manner, the requests
for help are not masked during an emergency event such as, for example, a fire. In
addition, the decreased volume reduces discomfort of one or more persons 110 located
near the alarm module 102.
[0014] The alert communication and control module 120 is also configured to control the
visual output device 118 to output light at a first wavelength (i.e., a first color)
and/or first frequency when the sound-sensitive emergency alert system 100 detects
the emergency event. When, however, the acoustic sensor 114 detects an acoustic voice
108, the alert communication and control module controls 120 the visual output device
118 to output the light at a second wavelength (i.e., second color) different from
the first wavelength and/or a second frequency different from the first frequency.
For example, a white light is output at locations where no acoustic voices are detected
whereas a red light is output at locations where a respective alarm module 102 detects
acoustic voices. The second color (e.g., red light) may also be pulsed at a faster/slower
frequency than the frequency of the white light. In this manner, the locations of
detected acoustic voices 108 can be visually distinguished from other locations to
indicate the locality of one or more persons 110 requesting help, which aids emergency
personnel in quickly finding and providing assistance to those persons 110.
[0015] The sound recognition module 122 is in electrical communication with the acoustic
sensor 114 and is configured to convert the acoustic voices 108 into a sound detection
signal. Although acoustic voices are described, the sound recognition module 122 may
also identify other acoustic sounds such as animal response including, but not limited
to, dog barks. In addition to detecting an acoustic voice, the sound recognition module
122 may also determine specific vocal statements of one or more persons 110. The statements
may include, for example, names of one or more persons requesting help, a number of
people in an area near the alarm module 102, the verbal location of one or more persons,
etc. The sound recognition module 122 may utilize various well-known acoustic and
language models and speech recognition algorithms for determining and recognizing
human speech and verbal statements including, but not limited to a hidden Markov model
(HMM).
[0016] The sound recognition module 122 can recognize one or more vocal statements and can
determine a vocal alert response message in response to receiving a vocal statement
from one or more persons 110. For example, the sound recognition module can store
a plurality of vocal alert responses/messages, and select a particular vocal alert
response among the plurality of vocal alert responses based on the vocal statement
received from one or more persons 110. The vocal alert responses include, but are
not limited to, a vocal inquiry, a vocal answer, and a vocal recommended course of
action based on the recognized voice signal,
e.g., the recognized human speech. The selected vocal alert response/message is then communicated
to the alert communication and control module 120 such that the corresponding vocal
alert response 117 is output to nearby persons via the acoustic output device 116,
as illustrated in FIGS. 2A-2B. The vocal alert/response messages include, for example,
information on the location of one or more exits and precise instructions that direct
persons in the vicinity to an exit route leading to the exits. Accordingly, the vocal
alert/response messages can instruct people in the vicinity of the electronic alarm
module about how and when to use the sound recognition feature of this system.
[0017] Turning back to FIG. 1, the communication and control module 124 is in electrical
communication with the sound recognition module 122, the alert communication and control
module 120, and the electronic control unit 104. The connection between the sound
recognition module 122, the communication and control module 124 and the alert communication
and control module 120 forms a feedback loop that controls operation of the acoustic
output device 116 and/or the visual output device 118 in response to detecting an
acoustic voice. In this manner, the alarm module 102 can operate dynamically based
on the acoustic responses and requests of one or more persons 110 located in the vicinity.
[0018] The electronic control unit 104 is located remotely from the alarm modules 102 included
in the emergency alert system 100 and may operate as an electronic main control and
indicating panel. According to an embodiment, a location signal indicating the predetermined
location of one or more alarm modules 102 may be communicated from the communication
and control module 124 to the electronic control unit 104. The electronic control
unit 104 may also be programmed with the location of each respective alarm module
102. In a system where the electronic control unit 104 is connected to the alarm module
102 using wires or radio protocols (See FIG. 3), the electronic control unit 104 may
determine which connection delivered the sound detection signal to determine the respective
alarm module 102 that detected the acoustic voice 108.
[0019] In a system where the alarm modules 102 are in wireless communication with the electronic
control unit 104 or any other third party equipment with similar purpose, the sound
detection signals may also include data indicating which particular alarm module 102
generated the respective voice signal. In this manner, the electronic control unit
104 is configured to receive one or more sound detection signals from a respective
alarm module 102, and can determine the location of the respective alarm module 102
that detected the acoustic voice 108. In either case described above, the electronic
control unit 104 can determine the location of one or more persons 110 based on the
locality of the detected acoustic voice 108.
[0020] The GUI 106 is in communication with the electronic control unit 104 to input and/or
output information corresponding to the emergency alert system 100 as discussed in
greater detail below. The GUI 106 may be integrated with the electronic control unit
104 and/or may be located remotely from the electronic control unit 104.
[0021] Turning to FIG. 4, for example, a graphical representation of the sound-sensitive
emergency alert system 100 shown in FIG. 3 is displayed by the GUI 106. More specifically,
the GUI 106 displays the predetermined locations (e.g., Units 1-9) containing a respective
alarm module 102. The predetermined locations may also include, but are not limited
to, hallways, stairwells, etc. When an acoustic voice 108 is detected by one or more
alarm units 102, an alert indicator 126 is displayed at the respective location (e.g.,
unit 6 and unit 7) of the detected acoustic voice. Accordingly, emergency personnel
112 can quickly and easily ascertain the location of one or more persons 110 in need
of assistance during an emergency event. The GUI 106 may also display additional information
about each predetermined location including the number of persons, the name of the
persons, etc.
[0022] Referring now to FIG. 5, a flow diagram illustrates a method of detecting the locality
of acoustic voices during an emergency event according to an exemplary embodiment.
The method begins at operation 500, and at operation 502 an emergency event is detected.
The emergency event includes, for example, a fire emergency. The fire emergency may
be detected in various manners including, but not limited to, smoke/fire/heat detectors,
emergency exit usage, and manual detection. At operation 504, audio alerts and/or
visual alerts are output from respective audio output devices and visual output devices.
At operation 506, an acoustic sound such as a voice, for example, is detected by one
or more respective alarm modules. At operation 508, the location of the acoustic sound
is determined. The location of the acoustic sound may be determined based on the location
of the respective alarm module and/or based on a verbal statement provided by a person
in proximity of the respective alarm module. At operation 510, the locality of the
detected acoustic sound is displayed with respect to the predetermined locations of
each alarm unit. At operation 512, the audio alert and/or the visual output from one
or more alarm modules that detected a respective acoustic sound is adjusted. For example,
the volume of the acoustic alert may be decreased and the color of the visual alert
may be changed. At operation 514, a vocal alert message is output from one or more
of the audio output devices that detected the respective acoustic sound, and the method
ends at operation 516.
[0023] As described in detail above, one or more embodiments provide a two-way interactive
voice-sensitive emergency alert system that can dynamically adjust operation in response
to detecting one or more acoustic voices during an emergency event such as, for example,
a fire. The voice-sensitive emergency system therefore is capable of enhancing search/rescue
of individual while reducing discomfort in the vicinity of the alarm module.
[0024] While the invention has been described in detail in connection with only a limited
number of embodiments, it should be readily understood that the invention is not limited
to such disclosed embodiments. Rather, the invention can be modified to incorporate
any number of variations, alterations, substitutions or equivalent arrangements not
heretofore described, but which are commensurate with the spirit and scope of the
invention. Additionally, while various embodiments of the invention have been described,
it is to be understood that aspects of the invention may include only some of the
described embodiments. Accordingly, the invention is not to be seen as limited by
the foregoing description, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims.
1. A sound-sensitive emergency alert system, comprising:
at least one electronic alarm module disposed at a predetermined location in a building,
the at least one electronic alarm module configured to perform at least one of:
output at least one alert;
detect at least one acoustic sound;
adjust the output of the at least one alert based on the detected at least one acoustic
sound; and
transmit information about the detected at least one acoustic sound to components
in communication with the emergency alert system.
2. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 1, wherein the system comprises:
an electronic control unit remotely located from the at least one electronic alarm
module, the electronic control unit configured to receive at least one acoustic signal
from the at least one electronic alarm module corresponding to the at least one acoustic
sound detected by the at least one electronic alarm module, and to determine a location
of the at least one acoustic sound based on the at least one acoustic signal and the
predetermined location of the at least one electronic alarm module.
3. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 1, wherein the at least one electronic
alarm module comprises:
an acoustic sensor configured to detect at least one acoustic sound in the building
and to output at least one acoustic signal corresponding to the at least one acoustic
sound detected;
an acoustic output device configured to output an audio alert; and
an alert communication and control module in electrical communication with the acoustic
sensor and the acoustic output device, the alert communication and control module
configured to control the acoustic output device to adjust the output of the audio
alert in response to the detected at least one acoustic sound.
4. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 3, wherein the at least one electronic
alarm module is configured to detect at least one emergency event, and wherein adjusting
the output of the audio alert includes outputting the audio alert at a first decibel
level when the sound-sensitive emergency alert system detects the at least one emergency
event, and outputting the audio alert at a second decibel level less than the first
decibel level in response to the acoustic sensor detecting at least one acoustic sound.
5. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 3, wherein the at least one electronic
alarm module further comprises:
a sound recognition module in electrical communication with the acoustic sensor, the
sound recognition module configured to convert the at least one acoustic sound detected
by the acoustic sensor into an electronic voice signal; and
a communication module in electrical communication with the sound recognition module,
the communication module configured to electrically communicate the electronic voice
signal to the electronic control unit for further processing, storage or transmission.
6. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 5, wherein the sound recognition
module recognizes the electronic voice signal as human speech based on at least one
sound recognition algorithm, and outputs a vocal alert message based on the recognized
human speech.
7. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 6, wherein the sound recognition
module stores a plurality of vocal alert messages and selects a particular vocal alert
message among the plurality of vocal alert messages based on at least one of the detected
acoustic sound, the recognized human speech, and an input received from the electronic
alarm module.
8. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim7, wherein the plurality of vocal
alert messages includes at least one of a vocal inquiry, a vocal answer, and a vocal
recommended course of action based on at least one of the detected acoustic sound,
the recognized human speech, and the input received from the electronic alarm module.
9. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 3, wherein the sound-sensitive
emergency alert system is configured to detect an emergency event, and wherein the
alert communication and control module further comprises:
a visual output device configured to output light having at least one of a selected
frequency and a selected wavelength,
wherein the alert communications and control module controls the visual output device
to output the light at a first selected wavelength and frequency when the sound-sensitive
emergency alert system detects an emergency event, and at a second selected wavelength
or frequency different from the first wavelength or frequency in response to the acoustic
sensor detecting the acoustic sound to indicate the location of at least one individual.
10. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 2, further comprising a graphical
user interface (GUI) in electrical communication with the electronic control unit,
the GUI configured to display the predetermined locations of each alarm module and
the locality of each detected acoustic sound with respect to the predetermined locations.
11. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of claim 5, wherein the sound recognition
module is configured to detect predefined sounds, the predefined sound including at
least one of yelling, hand clapping rhythmic knocking on furniture, footsteps, and
dog barking.
12. The sound-sensitive emergency alert system of any of claims 4-11, wherein the emergency
event includes the presence of at least one of smoke, heat and carbon monoxide.
13. A method of alerting an emergency event, comprising:
outputting at least one alert in response to detecting an emergency event;
detecting at least one acoustic sound following detection of the emergency event and
detecting a location of the at least one acoustic sound;
adjusting the output of the at least one alert in response to detecting the at least
one detected acoustic sound; and
transmitting information indicating the location of the at least one acoustic sound
to an electronic control module remotely located from the location of the at least
one acoustic sound.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the outputted alert is an audio alert, and wherein
the audio alert is adjusted in response to detecting the at least one acoustic sound.
15. The method of claim 13, further comprising recognizing the at least one acoustic sound
as an acoustic voice and outputting a vocal alert message in response to recognizing
the acoustic voice, wherein outputting the vocal alert message includes selecting
a particular vocal alert message from among a plurality of stored vocal alert messages
based on the recognized acoustic voice.