Remote device interface and telephone entry system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11210876-B2
Application number	US-201916591027-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 2, 2019
Priority date	Oct 3, 2018
Publication date	Dec 28, 2021
Grant date	Dec 28, 2021

Abstract

Methods and systems for granting access to a building are disclosed. The system includes a telephone entry system associated with the building, a processor in communication with the telephone entry system, a non-transitory computer readable medium. The non-transitory computer-readable medium includes one or more programming instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to receive a request including an access code for access to the building code, determine whether the access code is valid, and transmit to the telephone entry system associated with the building a sequence of dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones to cause the telephone entry system to grant access to the building in response to determining that the access code is valid.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for granting access to a building, the method comprising, by a processor:
receiving, through an application downloaded and installed on a mobile electronic device of a user attempting to gain building access, a request for access to the building, wherein the request comprises an access code that comprises a sequence of numbers, letters, special characters, or specific buttons to press and that is entered using the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user;
determining whether the access code is valid; and
in response to determining that the access code is valid, transmitting to a telephone entry system associated with the building a sequence of dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones to cause the telephone entry system to grant access to the building, the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user being separate from the telephone entry system associated with the building,
wherein receiving the request for access to the building comprises receiving, at a server computing device that is separate and remote from the telephone entry system, the request for access to the building,
wherein determining whether the access code is valid comprises determining, by the server computing device, whether the access code is valid, and
wherein the method further comprises transmitting, by the server computing device and prior to receiving the access code, the access code to the user for usage while requesting access to the building.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, by the processor, in response to determining that the access code is not valid, denying access to the building.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the communication device mobile electronic device of the user is configured to transmit the request for access to the building to the processor upon occurrence of at least one of the following: receipt of a user request or detection of proximity to the building.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the mobile electronic device of the user is configured to transmit the request for access to the building to the processor upon occurrence of a user request provided to the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user.

5. The method of claim 3 , wherein the mobile electronic device of the user is configured to transmit the request for access to the building to the processor automatically, by a background process executing on the mobile electronic device of the user, upon occurrence of detection of proximity to the building.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the access code is valid comprises determining whether the access code matches a previously stored access code.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the access code is valid comprises determining whether a time constraint associated with the access code allows for grating granting access to the building at a requested time.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, in response to determining that the access code is valid, transmitting an access granted notification to a user requesting access.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting to the telephone entry system associated with the building the sequence of dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones to cause the telephone entry system to grant access to the building comprises initiating, by the server computing device, a programmatic phone call to the telephone entry system.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the access code to the user for usage while requesting access to the building comprises transmitting, by the server computing device, the access code directly to a visitor based on a request to the server computing device received from an authorized personnel.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting the access code to the user for usage while requesting access to the building comprises transmitting, by the server computing device, the access code to the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user.

12. A system for granting access to a building, the system comprising:
a telephone entry system associated with the building;
a processor in communication with the telephone entry system; and
a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising one or more programming instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
receive, through an application downloaded and installed on a mobile electronic device of a user attempting to gain building access, a request for access to the building, wherein the request comprises an access code that comprises a sequence of numbers, letters, special characters, or specific buttons to press and that is entered using the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user,
determine whether the access code is valid, and
in response to determining that the access code is valid, transmit to the telephone entry system associated with the building a sequence of dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) tones to cause the telephone entry system to grant access to the building, the application downloaded and installed on the mobile electronic device of the user being separate from the telephone entry system associated with the building,

wherein the processor is configured to receive the request for access to the building by controlling a server computing device that is separate and remote from the telephone entry system to receive the request for access to the building,
wherein the processor is configured to determine whether the access code is valid by controlling the server computing device to determine whether the access code is valid, and
wherein the processor is configured to control the server computing device to transmit, prior to receiving the access code, the access code to the user for usage while requesting access to the building.

13. The system of claim 12 , further comprising programming instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to in response to determining that the access code is not valid, deny access to the building.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the communication device mobile electronic device of the user is configured to transmit the request for access to the building to the processor upon occurrence of at least one of the following: receipt of a user request or detection of proximity to the building.

15. The system of claim 12 , wherein the one or more programming instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to determine whether the access code is valid comprises determining whether the access code matches a previously stored access code.

16. The system of claim 12 , wherein the one or more programming instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the processor to determine whether the access code is valid comprises determining whether a time constraint associated with the access code allows for grating granting access to the building at a requested time.

17. The system of claim 12 , further comprising programming instructions that when executed cause the processor to, in response to determining that the access code is valid, transmit an access granted notification to a user requesting access.

18. A method for granting access to a building, the method comprising, by a processor:
receiving, through an application downloaded and installed on a mobile electronic device of a user attempting to gain building access, a request for access to the building, wher

Assignees

• Alarm Com Inc

Inventors

• Taylor Benjamin

Classifications

• G07C9/00309 Primary

  operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks · CPC title

• H04Q2213/13405

  Dual frequency signaling, DTMF · CPC title

• G07C9/00571

  operated by interacting with a central unit · CPC title

• H04Q1/457

  with conversion of multifrequency signals into digital signals · CPC title

• H04M11/025 Primary

  Door telephones (adapted for television H04N7/186) · CPC title