Washroom use determination system
AssigneeKimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc.
InventorsFrederick J. Williams, Jr., Reilly Howell, Babak R. Ghazi
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system having a washroom controller configured to communicate with one or more hygiene dispensers in the washroom; a thermal sensor configured detect thermal events at the entrance and communicate data describing the thermal events to the washroom controller; and a data processing apparatus configured to access the data from the washroom controller and analyze the data to determine a number of thermal events over a given time period and a number of dispenses from the at least one of the one or more hygiene dispensers.
Claims15
A system for use in a washroom, wherein the washroom has an entrance, the system comprising:
- a washroom controller configured to communicate with one or more hygiene dispensers in the washroom;
- a thermal sensor, separate from the one or more hygiene dispensers, configured to detect thermal events at the entrance and communicate data describing the thermal events to the washroom controller;
- and
- a data processing apparatus configured to access the data from the washroom controller and analyze the data to determine a number of thermal events over a given time period and a number of dispenses from the at least one of the one or more hygiene dispensers,
- wherein the data processing apparatus is further configured to (i), in response to determining that there have been no thermal events for a set period of time, instructing the one or more hygiene dispensers to enter a low energy state in which one or more hygiene dispensers cannot dispense, and (ii), in response to determining that there have been thermal events, instructing the one or more hygiene dispensers to enter an active state in which the one or more hygiene dispensers dispense in normal operation and can actuate to dispense products in response to an environmental stimulus.
(canceled)
13-17. (canceled)
A method comprising:
- communicating, from a hygiene dispenser in a washroom to a washroom controller, use data describing dispense events from the hygiene dispenser, wherein a dispense event defines an actuation of the dispenser to dispense consumable product;
- detecting, by a thermal sensor, thermal events proximate an entrance of the washroom;
- communicating, from the thermal sensor to the washroom controller, thermal data describing the thermal events;
- analyzing the use data and thermal event data to determine a number of dispense events and a number of occupants that entered in the washroom;
- and
- comparing the number of dispense events to the number of occupants;
- and
- in response to determining that the number of occupants differs from the number of dispense events by a predetermined measure, providing a communication specifying that the hygiene dispenser may be malfunctioning.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.