HOME OR WORK ENVIRONMENT”

Description

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to the field of remote control and management systems of all systems relating to a home, an office or the like. More in detail, the invention described below intends to bring together, in a new and innovative way, the plurality of control systems which, to date, invade our spaces and are each dedicated to a specific system.

Prior art

Until the eighties the technique for the construction of electrical systems had been well established for several years. One of the most advanced means of sending documents remotely was still the fax and there was still no hint of that technological and sociological “revolution” which after not many years was meant to be brought by the Internet and cellular telephony.

In this scenario, an Italian company, manufacturer of equipment for electrical systems, launched a competition among professionals in the sector with the aim of rewarding the best projects that applied a new technology already used in some European countries and which, somehow, was meant to subvert certain criteria which had hitherto been absolutely obvious and unquestionable for the construction of lighting systems. In fact, the assumption of the need for the unique connection, through the electric power cable, between a switch and a lamp so that it could turn on, collapsed, while the concept of“bus” cable for the transmission of controls and signals was introduced. Through this“bus” a control unit cyclically queried the switches and, when it recognized that it was closed, proceeded to make the lamps concerned turn on according to the correspondences that had been programmed via its software. These was the beginning of what, through years of continuous evolution, would become the multiple home and building automation solutions available today. After the first approaches developed in Italy towards these innovations, the benefits thereof started to be perceived, related to two characteristics that are still the first to be mentioned when talking about building automation: integrated system management and flexibility. The first applications concerned almost exclusively lighting, mainly in office buildings and similar structures, for which the possibility of optimizing eneigy consumption was immediately evident thanks to the functional integration and the interaction between the manual power buttons and several other automatic control devices, such as presence detectors, twilight switches, time switches, as well as the first electrical load control devices.

Currently, integration is no longer solely between the devices inherent to a single system, being extended to multiple technological systems and up to the more complex BMSs (Building Management Systems). This, in addition to allowing to reach high levels of energy efficiency, entails many other advantages, first of all the possibility of managing a home or an entire building as a whole, both locally and remotely, through the various user interfaces currently available (touch screens, PCs, tablets, smartphones) that allow you to send commands, display signals and alarms, collect and process data, for example regarding energy consumption.

The same possibility of creating even complex scenarios, configured on the specific needs of the user, derives from the wide possibilities of interaction that building automation creates among the most disparate types of systems present in buildings: thermoregulation, darkening systems (roller shutters, Venetian blinds, window shutters, curtains), water supply, security, entertainment and other subsystems.

Although to date home automation systems are at a high degree of development, some problems persist that the art has not yet solved.

In the first place, these are still very expensive systems the installation and configuration whereof requires the intervention of specialized technicians.

Secondly, it is still important to foresee all the possible needs of the user in order to better design the system, also in view of possible future developments, to avoid having to make new conduits and therefore masomy and painting works as the needs change.

The solution, in particular to this latest issue raised, is to set up a new system for any new need for environmental control and management. It follows that, to date, homes are full of remote control systems, control stations, devices that operate on batteries and therefore need to be recharged and, the most advanced probably have more than one App on their smartphone to remotely control some functionality of their home.

Some international patents relate to remote management systems such as, for example, the RO 126446 patent. This relates to a system used for home automation, having both safety and control functions and functions for monitoring temperature, humidity and electrostatic charge in the home. According to the invention, the system mainly comprises some sensors which measure electrostatic charge, humidity and temperature respectively in a monitored area. Also included are motion sensors and smoke detectors connected to a management station that activates acoustic notifications in case of need.

It is evident that neither the invention that has just been briefly described, nor the others that exist and not even the techniques available on the market, are able to solve the above problems in a convincing maimer.

Description of the invention

According to the present invention, a scalable integrated system is provided which is able to monitor and manage a plurality of functions in a working or domestic environment, which effectively solves the above problems.

The advantage pursued by the present invention is to integrate in the same object, or in the same technological control unit, all the electronic instruments which serve to control a room by its occupants.

In particular, it will be the task of a manager to configure the desired features of the environment itself; the system, through appropriate detectors and sensors, will be able to reproduce such a setting (in terms of natural/artificial light, thermo-hygrometric conditions, background music, etc.) and maintain them until further notice.

Obviously, it will be possible for the manager user to monitor and modify the instruments present in the managed environment both on site and remotely, thanks to a dedicated App installed on his/her personal electronic device.

In the place to be monitored, therefore, a single console will be advantageously installed in data communication with the desired sensors, detectors and actuators.

Which devices to connect to the console, thus making them controllable by the manager user, will depend on the use of the environment and on the preferences of its occupants, configuring in any case a new and customized system which, however, will have the advantages of the present invention unaltered.

The electrically powered console will have at least:

A) one LAN routing module for routing the internet connectivity consisting of:

• a plurality of LAN RJ45 ports for connecting the Ethernet network equipment;

• a WAN port for internet connectivity from third party Ethernet apparatus like media converters for FTTH (e.g. optical fiber);

• an RJ11 port for xDSL connectivity;

• an AT A module with 2 FXS ports for using analogue telephones on VoIP lines;

• a Wi-Fi 802.1 In module for connecting 2.4 Gh and 5 Gh wireless equipment;

• an LTE + 5G module for connectivity on mobile line;

B) one USB port for sharing external apparatus such as printers, hard disks and other peripherals by way of example;

C) one alarm event management module with Degree 2 protection consisting of:

• an RF 868 module for a wireless alarm sensor connection;

• an eSim module for voice and data connectivity for alarm reports or for incoming and outgoing calls with other numbers;

• a power supply backup buffer battery x so as to allow the alarm module to operate even in the absence of electric power;

D) at least one HDMI port for interfacing with Audio/Video apparatus, TVs, projectors by way of example;

E) one RF module for proprietary and third party home automation apparatus. This module allows to interface the apparatus both with proprietary peripherals and with peripherals of other manufacturers e.g. DECT, Zwave, ZigBee;

F) one Bluetooth module for interfacing mobile and fixed equipment, also used for mapping and locating internal environments and proximity detection even through Beacon technology;

G) one monitoring sensor for detecting the environmental temperature and overheating of the apparatus;

H) one Led emergency lamp for support in case of power failure.

To ensure the correct operation of the console and therefore the exchange of data with all the connected devices, advantageously, said console also integrates a processor, adapted to collect all the data coming from the connected sensors and detectors to process them and manage the corresponding actuators and devices for the maintenance of the parameters desired by the manager user.

Communication with the devices will be ensured by a common system for connection to an internet or local network accessible by all devices associated to said console arranged in the home or work environment subject of management.

The console, in an even more advantageous version, includes:

• an audio module designed to recognize the voice of the manager user and receive voice commands. In this way, the system will be able to implement what the user wants both when he/she is inside the room, without necessarily having to carry the smartphone with him/her, or remotely, using the latter;

• a video module for connection on image and video display equipment;

e an integrated sound signal for emergency management;

• an integrated and separable display on the equipment housing to view the settings or images of the events;

• an integrated motion sensor capable of detecting movements in the vicinity of the equipment.

The devices to which the console can connect are, but are not limited to:

- electronic locks for each door connected to at least one video intercom;

- a connection device installed at each meter of the appliances such as electricity, water and gas;

- a temperature sensor connected to at least one air conditioner;

- luminous bodies, such as bulbs, LED strips and the like, provided with connection devices, controlled by said console;

- window shielding devices, such as shutters, roller shutters or curtains, provided with connection devices, controlled by said console;

- a common home assistant device;

- an automatic irrigation system designed to activate or deactivate the programmed watering of plants according to the weather forecasts found by said console via the internet;

- security cameras designed to send reports to said manager user via TV or other personal electronic device. In particular, the cameras can be advantageously set up to recognize the presence of unknown users in the managed environment and consequently obscure the video notifications intended for known users;

- at least one thermographic camera adapted to monitor the body temperature of the occupants, sending alarm reports in the event that at least one occupant shows a high temperature;

- at least one smartwatch for monitoring the vital parameters of at least one user, sending alarm signals in the event of exceeding predetermined thresholds of at least one monitored vital parameter;

- presence and/or absence control system of people, animals, objects.

Advantageously, the system object of the present invention, in its most advantageous embodiment, comprises biometric recognition means capable of uniquely identifying the manager user allowing remote payments and signing of contracts using the fingerprint, voice or image of his/her face.

The advantages offered by the present invention are clear in the light of the above description and will be even apparent from the accompanying figure and the related detailed description.

Description of the figure

The invention will hereinafter be described in at least one preferred embodiment thereof by way of non-limiting example with the aid of the accompanying figure, in which:

- FIGURE 1 shows the communication network that allows a user to control all the utilities of electricity, water and gas; the setting of the house in relation to lights, shutters and temperature; the opening of the doors by video intercom; the security system through cameras and thermographic cameras; watering of plants; home assistant (such as“Google home” or“Amazon Echo”) and television. Through smartphones and smartwatches, it is also possible to check the health of the user who lives in the house.

Detailed description of the invention

The present invention will now be described purely by way of non-limiting or binding example with the aid of the figure, which illustrates an embodiment relative to the present inventive concept.

Let us assume the use of the present invention in a domestic environment inhabited by a single person.

With reference to FIG. 1, the console 100 and its communication network with other devices is shown in a possible embodiment.

It is important to specify that it will be unlikely that two systems according to the present invention are configured identically to each other. The settings and preferences with which the two systems will be set, in fact, will depend very much on the personal preferences and habits of each individual user, without, for this reason, determining the loss of the unity of invention of the present invention. That of FIG. 1, in fact, is only one of the possible operating schemes of the subject system. From time to time it will be configured according to the equipment that the user wants to control remotely.

The fact that the system is defined as“scalable” means that, even after the first configuration of the system, this can subsequently be configured to expand or restrict its operating range, adding connections with new devices or interrupting the data connection with some of them. Let us imagine that in the house taken as an example there are:

- security cameras 50;

- video intercom 30;

- shutters controllable via Wi-Fi 70;

- lights controllable via Wi-Fi 60;

smart TV 40;

- centralized stereo system;

- air conditioning system controllable via Wi-Fi.

All amenities that are found in numerous homes today.

The installation of the console 100 described in detail below will allow the unification of the controls of all the aforementioned equipment via the same control unit and the same portable electronic device 10 represented by a common smartphone 10 in the possession of the home owner.

Such a console 100 must be connected to the electrical network, provided with at least one SIM card in a special slot 125 for connection to the data network and, through the connection device 160 with which it is provided, the console 100 will be configured to communicate with all the devices necessary for the operation of the house components that can be controlled remotely.

The processor 150 integrated in the console 100 will collect all the data from the sensors and detectors connected thereto to process them and manage the corresponding actuators and devices for maintaining the parameters desired by the manager user.

By way of example and without limitation, the user can set the temperature at which to bring the room's internal environment in certain time slots. Through a temperature sensor 80 connected to said conditioner 85 it will be possible to fulfill the wishes of the user who can monitor the temperature of his/her home in real time via his/her smartphone 10.

Another example is that of the light regulation of the home. Thanks to a brightness sensor 111, the processor 150 will be able to adjust the blinds 70 for natural lighting and the lights

60 for artificial lighting. This function also has particular advantages for application in offices, to preserve the health of workers' eyes.

While the user is relaxing watching television, thanks to the integration of all the aforementioned systems in the same control unit, he/she will be able to view, for example, the images taken by the video intercom 30 should someone press it to request entry.

The consent to open the door, in the preferred embodiment of the invention, can be granted by voice command that the console 100 will perceive thanks to the integrated microphone

140.

Similarly, all changes to connected devices can be controlled by voice, via console 100 or via said App installed on the user's smartphone 10.

The stereo system can also be controlled from the console 100 or music can be listened to via IP streaming.

Let us assume now that the user needs to count the consumption of their gas and electricity utilities.

Even once the console 100 has been installed and configured, it will be possible to purchase a couple of connecting devices 92 to be installed at the gas and electricity meters 91. Said devices will communicate the meter data to the console 100 and therefore will make it consultable in real time by the user through said App installed on the smartphone 10.

Finally, it is clear that modifications, additions or variants may be made to the invention described thus far which are obvious to a man skilled in the art, without departing from the scope of protection that is provided by the appended claims.