Remotely configurable wireless intercom system for an establishment

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DESCRIPTION

Remotely configurable wireless intercom system for a facility

Field of Invention

The present invention relates generally to wireless intercom systems and more especially to wireless intercom systems for commercial establishments.

Background of the invention

It is common for establishments such as retail establishments and, especially, restaurants, to have lanes and service windows in the vehicle for customers who arrive with their vehicle. A customer will typically drive their vehicle to a menu / order board and, from the vehicle, communicate their wishes to workers inside the retail store, including an order receiver. The customer, still in his vehicle, will then go through one or more windows to pay for his purchase, if necessary, and collect the merchandise.

An intercom system can facilitate communication in and around the establishment, especially between the occupant of the vehicle, the customer, and the workers inside the establishment. In a “quick service” restaurant situation, a pole-mounted speaker and microphone next to a menu board are wired to an intercom base station located inside the restaurant. The base station can communicate wirelessly with a portable device wearing an order receiver. The portable device is typically a transceiver worn as a belt pack and accompanied by wired headphones. Alternatively, in some cases, the wearable device is self-contained in a wearable headset, thus eliminating the need for a belt pack. The order receiver typically listens continuously to the pole-mounted microphone and presses a button to speak to the vehicle occupant when necessary. An example of an intercom system comprising a base station and handsets, where the base station and the handsets communicate wirelessly, is WO96110878.

In many systems and methods of ordering items in a facility from an in-vehicle care or “self-service” facility, the request is communicated orally directly from the pole-mounted speaker and microphone to a facility. Receiving orders, typically an in-vehicle service order specialist wearing a headset, on the premises. The ordering specialist, or another person, then collects the ordered item or items and processes the transaction with the customer at the service window in the vehicle, collects the amount of the items ordered, returns the returns and delivers the order to the customer. The vehicle order system is of vital importance to a quick service restaurant. In some quick service restaurants, in-vehicle care constitutes sixty percent (60%) or more of the establishment's revenue. Therefore, it is very necessary to have a reliable intercom system to use it, for example, to take orders from the care facility in the vehicle. If the intercom system experiences a breakdown, malfunction, or other malfunction, the establishment may be unable to process orders placed from the vehicle care facility, which not only prevents the establishment from recording income that would otherwise have been obtained, but can also cause you to lose customers.

Although systems and methods have been developed in which the ordering process shifts outside the establishment, for example, patent application US-2003/0225622, filed by Doan and entitled "Method and system for entering customer orders" , such systems do not prevent a problem locally associated with the establishment's intercom system from disrupting communication.

Also, many intercom systems use wireless techniques to facilitate communication between establishment workers. Such wireless intercom systems may have parameters, such as volume or gain, that affect the ability of the intercom system to function well and reliably. Such intercom systems may, over time, become unreliable and / or inoperable, due, for example, to changing conditions, workers, or improper settings.

In addition to the difficulty of establishing and maintaining a reliable and effective intercom system, there is the fact that establishments using such intercom systems have become widespread in many geographic areas, including in communities where there are no highly specialized personnel trained in the field. maintenance and repair of such intercoms. These staff can often be found at a considerable distance from the establishment's location, often several hours away. Any breakdown or other ineffectiveness of the intercom system in those geographic areas could result in significant downtime in the intercom system and the establishment losing a significant portion of its revenue during the time that a maintenance person and / or repair can travel to the establishment. Even if the establishment is not far from the location of the service personnel, dispatching personnel on a service call can result in significant expense, both in money and time spent to perform any required repairs.

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Brief summary of the invention

Some aspects of the present invention allow a facility's intercom system to be remotely adjusted by a technician or other user without the need for that technician or other user to be dispatched to the facility itself, thus saving a considerable amount of time and time. of money.

A technician or other user can access the intercom system, for example via the Internet, from long distances and may also be able to immediately resolve various issues related to settings. In addition, the intercom system itself may have the ability to self-report fault conditions, such as hardware errors, software errors, and setting errors, for example, or to warn of the possible need for overhaul at or before the time. system fail. This is of great value to the establishment as it can avoid costly establishment downtime. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a remotely configurable wireless intercom system for an establishment that has a few workers. A base station can be connected to a wide area communication network. A plurality of headsets are in wireless two-way communication with the base station. Wireless communication between each of the plurality of headsets and the base station can be configured with at least one parameter that is adjustable by store workers. The parameter can be checked remotely and is adjustable remotely through the wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of providing a remotely configurable wireless intercom system for an establishment that has a few workers, that has a base station that can be connected to a wide area communication network, and that has a plurality of headsets in two-way wireless communication with the base station. Wireless communication between each of the plurality of headsets and the base station is configured with at least one parameter that is adjustable by store workers. The parameter can be checked and adjusted remotely through the wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the system also includes a plurality of parameters, with at least one of the plurality of parameters being adjustable by establishment workers. The plurality of parameters are remotely adjustable through the wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the plurality of parameters are grouped into a parameter template.

In one embodiment, the template is saved for future retrieval.

In one embodiment, the template is stored locally at the store.

In one embodiment, the template is stored at a remote location from the establishment.

In one embodiment, the plurality of parameters can be restored from the previously stored template.

In one embodiment, the plurality of parameters can be restored from the previously stored template remotely from the establishment.

In one embodiment, the template is derived from another establishment.

In one embodiment, the template of the plurality of parameters is set in conjunction with the installation of the wireless intercom system and saved.

In one embodiment, the template of the plurality of parameters set in conjunction with the installation is retrieved at a time after the installation.

In one embodiment, the template of the plurality of parameters is set as the factory default.

In one embodiment, the template of the plurality of parameters set as the default value is retrieved at a time after setting.

In one embodiment, wireless communication is established between an ordering point and at least one of the plurality of headsets.

In one embodiment, a remote facility monitors the communication in the wireless intercom system.

In one embodiment, the parameter is adjusted by remote installation in response to monitoring the communication of the wireless intercom system.

In one embodiment, the establishment comprises a quick service restaurant.

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In one embodiment, the parameter is an audio level.

In one embodiment, the present invention provides a remotely configurable wireless intercom system for an establishment that has a few workers. A base station can be connected to a wide area communication network. A plurality of headsets are in wireless two-way communication with the base station. Wireless communication between each of the plurality of handsets and the base station can be configured with at least one parameter that is remotely reviewable over a wide area communication network. The parameter can be reconfigured remotely via a wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of providing a remotely configurable wireless intercom system for an establishment that has a few workers, that has a base station that can be connected to a wide area communication network, and that has a plurality of headsets in two-way wireless communication with the base station. Wireless communication is configured between each of the plurality of handsets and the base station. At least one parameter is checked remotely via the wide area communication network. It is remotely determined whether a fault condition exists with the plurality of parameters. If a fault condition exists, the parameter is reset to a predetermined value through the wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the parameter is reset upon detection of a fault condition through the wide area communication network.

In one embodiment, the parameter is adjustable by workers at the establishment.

Brief description of the figures

Figure 1 is a block diagram of the functional components of an intercom system;

Figure 2 is a flow chart illustrating intercom communication monitoring and remote setting of intercom system parameters;

Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating the storage and subsequent retrieval of intercom system parameters; Y

Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating the remote review of trouble conditions of intercom systems and the remote restoration of said parameters.

Detailed description of the invention

Intercom systems, eg, wireless intercom systems used in establishments, eg, quick service restaurants, may typically have various parameters that govern the operation of the intercom system.

As shown in Figure 1, facility 10 uses intercom system 12. Base station 14 communicates wirelessly with a plurality of headsets 16a, 16, ... 16n. Headsets 16a, 16, ... 16n are used by staff or workers at establishment 10 and, in a preferred embodiment, they can be used by said workers to receive orders placed through a service facility in the vehicle (not shown). At least one of the staff members communicates with a customer at the in-vehicle service facility to receive a customer order. This staff member may wear one of the headsets 16a, 16, ... 16n, and communicate through it, or may be in wired communication with the base station 14. Other staff members will wear headsets 16a, 16 ,. .. 16n or headphones 16a, 16, ... 16n remaining, mainly to listen or monitor the communication between the customer and the staff member who receives the order.

The intercom system 12 of establishment 10, for example, a quick service restaurant, has various parameters that govern the operation of the system. For example, each of the handsets 16a, 16, ... 16n, may be in full duplex communication with the base station 14 and each of the handsets 16a, 16, ... 16n, may have an audio level of reception, or volume, and / or a transmit audio level associated therewith. Separate volume or gain controls may be provided for each of the headphones 16a, 16, ... 16n for each direction of communication. Many other parameters are also possible, such as lane assignment, receive volume, transmit volume, master volume of a loudspeaker associated with the care facility in the vehicle, individual volume for each channel received by the care facility in the vehicle , base station receive volume, base station transmit volume, attendant, greeter, vehicle detection alert, vehicle approach alert, for example. Many, if not all, of these parameters can be arranged for individual adjustment for one or more staff members .

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It is recognized, however, that an intercom system 12 involving a vehicle care facility, a vehicle care lane, a base station 14 and potentially several headsets 16a, 16, ... 16n, where Each unit is potentially located in a unique environment and with unique conditions, it can be complex to configure and adjust appropriately. If proper setup and balancing is not performed, the operation could be unsatisfactory, for example, causing annoying feedback and / or instability that may make communication difficult, if not impossible. Facilitating that one or more staff members can control the adjustment of at least one parameter, for example, the volume of their earpiece 16, is desirable in order to take into account individual speaking patterns and hearing abilities. However, individual settings may upset the balance of the intercom system 12 and possibly make it unstable and / or unusable.

Since the location of facility 10 may be a significant geographic distance from the location of a qualified maintenance technician, it may take a considerable amount of time for such a maintenance technician, once called, to arrive at the location of facility 10 with the order to start the repair. In some cases, facility 10 may be hours away from a maintenance technician. Even if the facility 10 is not within significant distance from a qualified maintenance technician, dispatching a maintenance technician to perform an on-site repair can be a significant cost of both time and money.

However, the intercom system 12 allows establishment 10 personnel to call a technical service facility 18 located far from the establishment 10 location.

However, a service facility 18 located far from the location of facility 10 may be alerted by facility staff 10, automatically or by other means, to access the control parameters of the intercom system 12 in a remotely over a wide area network 20, such as via the Internet. The maintenance technician may be able to access the parameters associated with the intercom system 12, review the parameters of the intercom system 12, and potentially make parameter adjustments to make the intercom system 12 work again or to stop improve the operation of the intercom system 12.

The maintenance technician may be able to solve the problem of the intercom system 12 quickly without the need to dispatch a service technician to the shop location 10. If the shop location 10 is far away, many hours of downtime will be saved from the facility, perhaps even one day if the maintenance technician needs to fly or otherwise travel to a very distant site. Even if the facility site is not far away, a maintenance technician may be able to review many more facilities and solve many more problems more efficiently by making adjustments remotely rather than visiting sites. Remotely adjusting the parameters of the intercom system 12 can minimize or totally eliminate disruption to the facility 10.

It should be recognized and understood that one or more than one parameter of the intercom system 12 may be accessed, reviewed, and potentially modified or adjusted. A parameter, for example, the master volume of the intercom system 12, may be the only parameter reviewed and / or adjusted. On the other hand, it is also contemplated that multiple parameters can be reviewed and that one or more of the reviewed parameters can be adjusted. For example, the volume levels of all 16a, 16, ... 16n headphones can be checked. After review, it may be necessary to adjust the volume level of a single earphone 16, say earphone 16a, or it may be desirable to adjust the volume of more than one or all earphones 16a, 16, ... 16n.

Since multiple parameters may be involved in the configuration, tuning, and balancing of the intercom system 12, and since one parameter may have an effect on other aspects of the intercom system, it may be desirable to form sets of multiple parameters. A given set of parameters of the intercom system 12 may form a template 22, that is, a set of parameters of the intercom system 12 which, when applied, will result in a particular operational characteristic of the intercom system 12. For example, known parameter settings that provide a particular response or performance of the intercom system 12 or that can typically eliminate common problems associated with parameter mismatch can be formed as a template. Such a template can be used, for example, either at a later time in the same establishment or in another establishment that has a similar intercom system 12 or a similar facility, structure and / or arrangement.

Individual parameters or a template 22 or parameter templates can be saved or stored for later retrieval. Template 22 can be saved in memory 24 located locally with respect to establishment 10. Once saved in memory 24, template 22, or one of a plurality of templates 22, can later be retrieved to reset intercom system 12 or to cause a desired change in operating parameters. If the parameters of the intercom system 12 are adversely adjusted, a template previously saved in memory 24 can be retrieved and used to provide a new operational guide for the intercom system 12. In particular, a maintenance technician who is remote from the location of the establishment 10 can access the memory 24 and retrieve a previously saved template 22 to activate the parameters associated with that template 22. Additionally, a technician

ES 2 555 151 T3 remotely located maintenance can retrieve a previously saved template 22 from memory 24 and then perhaps make additional adjustments or modifications to one or more individual parameters to improve or optimize the performance characteristics of the intercom system 12 .

It is also contemplated that the parameters of establishment 10 are stored remotely from establishment 10. For example, the same broadband communication network that allows a maintenance technician to access the parameters of the intercom system 12 from a remote facility 18 can also or alternatively be used to transmit the parameters, preferably from a template 22 , to the remote installation to save or store them in memory 26. Said parameters or templates 22 can subsequently be retrieved as described above to trigger an operating scheme of the intercom system 12 as described above with respect to the locally saved parameters and / or templates 22. In addition, memory 26 associated with remote facility 18 can be used to store a template or templates 22 that can be applied to more than one facility such as facility 10. For example, a particular brand or chain of establishments may store a template 22 that may be relevant to a "standard" quick service restaurant built in many different locations. Stored in this way, it would be relatively easy for the maintenance technician to retrieve the template 22 in order to initially configure and make the intercom system 12 operational at a new location or a new facility that meets the "standard" layout of the brand or chain. Of course, as before, the maintenance technician can adapt the operating parameters for the intercom system 12. However, the standard template 22 can provide the maintenance technician with a substantial head start and make the entire process easier and faster. It should be recognized and understood that, although memory 26 is shown to be directly connected to remote facility 18, memory 26 may also be remote, not from facility 10, but also from remote facility 18. Memory 26 may be physically located in remote facility 18 or it may be located elsewhere and remote facility 18 can access it remotely.

The communication that occurs in the intercom system 12 can be monitored by other personnel within the establishment 12, or associated with it, through the base station 14 or through one or more headsets 16a, 16, .. 16n. Alternatively or additionally, personnel associated with remote facility 18 may monitor communication that occurs in intercom system 12, especially communication used to receive customer orders. Said personnel associated with the remote installation 18, in addition to performing the normal quality control of the ordering functions, can also analyze the quality of the communications and can preventively access the parameters associated with the intercom system 12 and adjust or modify said parameters. parameters, if desired, or to maintain or improve the operational characteristics of the intercom system 12. In this case, the personnel associated with the establishment 10 need not request assistance from a maintenance technician and may not even know that a maintenance technician from a remote facility 18 has performed the overhaul of the intercom system 12.

In addition, the intercom system 12 may contain hardware and / or software used to determine if a trouble condition exists, that is, it is desired that a maintenance technician inspect the intercom system 12. In this case, the intercom system 12 may notify a maintenance technician at a remote facility 18 of the existence of a trouble condition as determined by commonly available hardware and / or software and a maintenance technician at the remote facility. 18 can review the parameters and / or other aspects of the intercom system 12 remotely. The maintenance technician may adjust and / or repair the intercom system 12, again proactively, by reviewing and / or adjusting or modifying the parameters associated with the intercom system 12.

Figure 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method for remotely configuring a wireless communication system, such as that used in the facility's intercom system 12 10. The wireless intercom system is configured (110), in part by adjusting the parameters associated with the system. Such configuration can be done locally using conventional techniques or it can be done remotely, by retrieving or installing a template 22, that is, using remote installation 18, or in any other way. Once configured, the wireless intercom system is ready for facility 10 to communicate (112). Optionally, the communications that occur in the wireless intercom system can be monitored (114) locally or remotely, as, for example, by remote installation 18. In response to a request from establishment 10, in response to an indication of a trouble condition or proactively, remote facility 18 remotely reviews (116) the communication parameters associated with the wireless intercom system via the broadband communications network 20. A maintenance technician, or automated equipment, associated with the remote installation 18 can then analyze the configuration of these parameters and the operation of the wireless intercom system and, if necessary, can remotely adjust or modify (118) one or more communication parameters. Typically such adjustment is made in order to improve the operation of the wireless intercom system or in order to make the wireless intercom system operational. Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating a method of configuring a wireless intercom system with later saved and retrieved parameters. The wireless intercom system is configured (130), in part, by adjusting the communication parameters associated with the system. Again, such configuration can be done locally using techniques

Conventional ES 2 555 151 T3 or by retrieving or installing a template 22, remotely, for example, using remote installation 18, or in any other way. Once configured, the wireless intercom system is ready for the establishment 10 to communicate. The communication parameters associated with the wireless intercom system are stored (132) either in the local memory or in the memory located away from the establishment 10. Said parameters are preferably stored as a set of parameters in a template 22. After saving said parameters, one or more of said parameters can be recalled 134 from memory and used to establish, at least in part, the operational characteristics of the wireless intercom system. Once established, the wireless intercom system can be used to communicate (136) in the operating environment of the establishment.

Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for remotely configuring a wireless intercom system in response to a trouble condition. The wireless intercom system is configured (150), in part, by adjusting the communication parameters associated with the system. Again, such configuration can be done locally by conventional techniques or it can be done remotely, by retrieving or installing a template 22, that is, using remote installation 18, or in any other way.

The remote facility 18 remotely reviews (152) the communication parameters associated with the wireless intercom system over the broadband communication network 20. A maintenance technician, or automated equipment, associated with remote facility 18 can then analyze the configuration of those parameters and the operation of the wireless intercom system to determine (154) if a trouble condition exists. A trouble condition can be the result of one or more improper communication parameter settings or another hardware and / or software trouble condition. After determining a fault, the remote facility may reset (156) the communication parameters associated with the wireless communication system in an attempt to eliminate the fault condition.

Thus, embodiments of the remotely configurable wireless intercom system for a facility have been described. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced with embodiments other than those described. The described embodiments are presented for illustrative purposes and not by way of limitation, as the present invention is limited only by the following claims.