Software Technology for “Methods and systems of sensor feedback for scent diffusion devices”

Communications – Todd H. Becker, Scentbridge Holdings LLC

Abstract for “Methods and systems of sensor feedback for scent diffusion devices”

“The disclosure herein relates to a method that includes receiving at a computing device at least one target scent value for an environment that is distant from the computing device, receiving at the computing device a sensed parameter about the environment, controlling diffusion of liquid from a source of liquid in fluid communication to at least one scent diffuser to achieve the target scent parameter. Controlling also includes setting or changing an operation parameter of at least one of the scent diffusion devices in response to the sensed parameters.

Background for “Methods and systems of sensor feedback for scent diffusion devices”

Field

“This disclosure is general in nature and applies to networked fragrance-diffusing devices, as well as their applications.”

“Description of Related Art”

“Scent is the most closely linked sense of five, and it is also strongly associated with memory. After one month, we recall only a small portion of what we saw. However, we can remember what we smelled with high accuracy for one year. This is due to an intimate connection between the brain’s limbic and the olfactory bulbs, also known as the “emotional brain.”

“Scent of smell is one of the most emotional of the five senses. It is an important element in brand communications and experiential marketing. To put it another way, scent is a powerful sense that can create lasting impressions.

“Leaders in industries such as hospitality, gaming, real-estate, health care, senior living, and retail recognize the power of?scent advertising? They are looking for service solutions that are safe, effective, and simple to use for their commercial establishments. This emerging market has presented a challenge to early service providers. However, it was difficult to achieve precise, consistent, and measurable wide-area dispersion of fragrances. As the quality of smell impressions changes over time and in changing environments, their scent solutions can provide a wide range of experiences.

“Some of the current scent dispersion technology provide standalone solutions that can be managed locally by local employees or subcontractors. It is difficult to maintain consistent fragrance levels across locations because the commercial fragrance devices are manually set and changed frequently. Undiagnosed malfunctioning dispensers, improper dispenser settings, device tampering and scent blindness are all common scent dispersion issues. This happens when employees working in a scented area become sensitive to the fragrance and make unneeded changes to their manual settings.

“It is difficult to predict when the refill dates for scent cartridges will be due because of the variability in local conditions. These elements often contain fragrance oils or other sources of scents. There are many places that have no need for fragrance dispersion if cartridges run low. However, other venues can experience wasted scent oil, higher expense and disposal problems if cartridges are not replaced in a timely manner.

“Consequently, multi-site commercial business owners, local managers and maintenance staff find it difficult to maintain and establish a consistent?acceptable?” “acceptable” or “approved?” scent concentration across their venues. They can control the scent concentration in their venues. It frustrates them that they cannot control the olfactory part of their brand identity. Site surveys show that only a small percentage of venues deliver the brand’s desired sensory experience.

“A scent management system that provides wide-area dispersion of a perfume in accordance to a desired fragrance profile in a consistent, precise, and manageable manner via a remote network or local network is needed.”

“The present disclosure addresses, among other things, these local?compliance?” and brand management issues by enabling effective, centralized management of remotely deployed scent systems, including, without limitation, using microprocessor-controlled and networked diffusion devices that deliver data streams to a centralized network operations center (or NOC), which may be staffed by experienced operators using enterprise class software. Commercial businesses can use this managed service to ensure consistent, high-quality fragrance delivery across a wide area. This document outlines a wide range of technologies and enabling components that can be used to create a fragrance management system.

“In one embodiment, an electrical contact may be required between the device and the package when it is installed. A package’s electrical feature may be in contact with an electronic feature on the device. The contents of the package may be dispensable if contact is made. The package contents can be dispensated if contact is made. An alert may also be sent over the network if the contact is not made.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent distribution device may contain a reservoir that contains a liquid and an assembly for the atomizer head. An anti-tampering identification associated with at least one reservoir and the assembly will be required. The device’s scent diffusion will depend on the state of this anti-tampering IDr. An alert may be sent to a network if the scent diffusion device doesn’t recognize the anti-tampering identification. If this happens, the scent may not be dispensable. An alert is sent to a network if the cartridge is removed from a device that does not recognize the anti-tampering identification. Based on the distance of the networked diffuser to a designated network zone, the state of the antitampering IDr is modified. The atomizer head assembly may include an orifice plate with a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through the atomizing orifice. An anti-tampering indicator may be mechanical, such as a dip switch or the like. Electronics such as RFID, bar/QSR codes, and other electronic anti-tampering identifiers are possible. An anti-tampering code may indicate a deviation from the network zone of the networked fragrance diffusion device. An error or unexpected reading of the liquid level sensor of the networked fragrance diffusion device could be the anti-tampering identification. An electrical contact on the networked fragrance diffusion device may be disconnected and this could cause the anti-tampering identification to be disengaged. An RFID tag may be used to identify the anti-tampering device. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to be mixed and then passed through an atomizing device. The anti-tampering identification may be a mechanical element of at least one reservoir or the atomizer assembly. The anti-tampering identification may refer to the electric field in at least one reservoir or the atomizer heads assembly.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is connected to a networked scent diffuse device may include a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for dispensing scent from it. The atomizer cartridge includes an orifice plate having a flow restriction plate for passing compressed gas through the orifice before passing through an atomizing nozzle and an RFID tag. When an RFID reader connects to the scent diffusion devices, the RFID tag is recognized and scent is dispensable from the cartridge.

“A package that is used with a scent diffuser may contain a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for transporting the liquid. The tube is connected to the atomizer assembly on one end and the tube extends below its surface. The gas inlet passage of an atomizer head assembly may be in fluid communication one end with a compressed-air source, and the other end with a flow restriction plate. The orifice plates can be used to separate the mixing chamber from the gas inlet passage. This mixing chamber may have a first wall that is opposite the orifice, which contains an atomizing plate and a second wall that is fluidly connected with the tube. An expansion chamber can be in fluid communication to the atomizing chamber and a baffle room, with the baffle chamber being connected to the surrounding environment. The flow restriction orifice creates a low pressure area in the mixing chamber which allows liquid from the reservoir to flow into the chamber. This liquid then joins the flow path for the gas through the restrictor orifice, resulting in a mixture of liquid and gas that is atomized by the atomizing orifice. The shape of the liquid reservoir could be substantially cup-shaped. The top edge may be connected to the atomizer head assembly using an ultrasonic welding and/or a twist lock sealed with an o-ring.

An atomizing diffusion device may contain a floating magnet that is positioned within a track in at least one package containing liquid. The floating magnet moves vertically along the track as the liquid level changes. A Hall effect sensor or Hall effects switch may also be included in the device. This will enable the detection of the floating magnet’s position on the track. A processor may be attached to the Hall effect sensor/ Hall effect switch to generate a signal that indicates the position of the floating magnetic pole and a control instruction to turn the device on or off. The control instruction instructs the processor to change the package the diffusion device uses from one package to another package. A solenoid switch could be used as the switch. A scheduling facility may also be included in the device according to claim. This facility receives the signal and determines the schedule for replenishment of the package. A remote computer may also be included in the device. This remote computer can communicate with the processor to receive the signal and generate an alert when a signal is received that indicates the need for replacement or unexpected information. The processor can be configured to send a signal to indicate the switch to a different package in the diffusion system.

“Referring to FIG. 23 is an illustration of a cartridge that has a Hall effect sensor to detect liquid levels. The drawing’s upper section shows the diffusion components, including the cartridge cap assembly 2302 and the cartridge cap assembly 2304. Tubing 2308 is used to extract fragrance oil. An ultrasonic welding 2310 connects the cartridge cap 2304 and the cartridge cup 2314. Between the two, an O-ring 2312 can be found. The cup 2314 has a magnetic flotation 2320. It runs along the cartridge float guide 2318 and rises or falls according to a liquid level.

“In one embodiment, an atomizing diffuse device may contain at least two packages containing liquid in fluid communication with an aroma diffusion device. The liquid level within the package can be exposed through at minimum one of a transparent door or window. To image the liquid level inside the package, at least one imaging sensor can be placed outside of the package. The imaging sensor may be operatedly coupled with a processor to generate a signal indicative the liquid level and a control instructions for a switch. To receive the control instruction from processor, the switch can be operatively connected to the processor. The control instruction causes the diffusion apparatus to switch between utilizing one package and another package in the diffusion devices. A signal may be sent by the processor to indicate that the diffusion device has switched to the other package.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing one or more scent diffuse devices within the environment. The communications facility enables sending and receiving signals to remote computers, as well as receiving at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Remote computers can also control at least one of these scent diffusion device to achieve the desired scent parameter. The control may involve adjusting the operational parameter of the fragrance diffusion device to respond to the environment’s scent level.

“Another aspect of managing scent in an environmental may be to place one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The communication facility that allows sending and receiving signals from remote computers is included in the scent diffusion device. Further, the method may include the placement of at least one sensor in the environment that transmits sensor information to the remote computing device and receiving at most one scent parameter for scenting an environment at the remote computing device. To achieve the scent parameter, the method also includes controlling via remote computer the diffusion of liquid from a source that is in fluid communication to at least one scent diffusion device.

One aspect of atomizing diffusion in an environment includes receiving liquid level data from a plurality remote atomizing devices. Each remote diffusion device has a communication facility that allows sending and receiving signals to and from a remote computer. Based on the liquid level data, creating an electronic data structure characterizing transformations of the remote diffusion systems via remote computers. The electronic data structure may contain data specifying at minimum one of the following: the purchase of fragrance fragrance, production, management, delivery, and control of the transformation. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in some embodiments. In response to sensor data, control may involve setting or changing an operation parameter for the scent diffusion device. Sensor data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow; presence of odor producing materials; presence of odor sinking factors; lighting; air flow; altitude; traffic flow; occupancy detection (e.g. Camera, CO2 sensor, proximity sensing, detected smell, room volume, area, temperature, humidity and traffic flow. A scent diffusion device contains at least one package that contains a perfume oil, or at most two packages that contain a fragrance oils. One of the scent diffusers is a master node, and the other two scent diffusion devices are slave nosdes. They receive control instructions from a computer via the master node. This embodiment allows each scent diffusion device to adjust its control settings according to the activities of other scent diffusion devices. This may involve configuring the scent diffusers so that one scent diffusion device’s duty cycle is not interrupted by another scent diffusion device. This scent parameter could be related to a brand management objective. This method could also include determining how many scent diffusion devices are needed to be disposed of in an environment, based on the volume of the room. Based on the room volume, the method may also include the determination of one or more locations where the scent diffusion devices should be disposed. One parameter that may be included in the operation parameter is a flow rate, duration, or variation of the flow rate. It could also include an on/off status for the diffusion device, a package to diffuse the fluid, or a switch to another package to diffuse it. The sensor data could relate to distance between the scent diffusion device and a scent target. Information about the HVAC system could include information such as indoor temperature, outdoor temperature, thermostat schedule and energy consumption. Historical operation parameters may also be included. Vent placement, fan speed, fan size, fan speed, maintenance status, and occupied room detection capability are some examples. Information about the building could include information such as the number of people entering or leaving the building, the planned use of the space, the planned occupancy of the space, elevator, escalator, power, lighting, and maintenance status. Sensor data related to the fragrance level can be determined using at least one of the following methods: measuring a proxy/tag mixed with the fragrance; measuring an electrostatic charge; measuring a component or fragrance; measuring particles and determining a concentration. Causing could include scheduling and coordination of resources in order to complete the transformation. This method can also include the measurement of the liquid level in the plurality remote atomizing diffusion device using the liquid-level sensor.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment may involve disposing one or more fragrance diffusion devices within the environment. The diffusion devices include a communication facility that allows transmission and reception of signals from a wide-area, non-fragrance-dispensing network gateway device. Further, the method may include linking the network gateway device with the scent diffusion device. The network gateway device receives control and communication functions from remote computers for distribution to the scent diffusers. The remote computer may receive sensor data from at least one sensor located in the environment. Remote computers may receive at least one target value for a particular environment’s scent parameter. Remote computer control may be used to control diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at most one of the fragrance diffusion devices. This will allow the user to attain the desired scent parameter. Control also includes setting or changing an operation parameter for one or more scent diffusion devices using the sensor data. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in certain embodiments. One of the scent diffusion devices may receive control instructions from a remote computer, and relay control instructions to at most one other scent diffusion device. Control instructions may be relayed by the scent diffusion devices in a series, in an ring, in mesh, or in a star network topology.

“An aspect of managing scent in an environment includes the placement of one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The diffusion devices include a communications device that allows for sending and receiving signals from a local network control device. Networking the local network control device to each scent diffusion device is possible. In this manner, the local network control device receives communication from the diffusion devices and then distributes control instructions. Another method includes locating at least one sensor in the environment to transmit sensor data to a local area control device. The local area control device then receives at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Controlling the diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at most one of the fragrance diffusion devices to achieve the desired scent parameter may also be possible via the local network control device. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in certain embodiments. A local area control device could include a computer, laptop, tablet or pad computer with wireless network communication capability, or a purpose-built scent controller device with wireless network communication capability.

“An aspect of scent casting may involve placing a scent diffusion apparatus within an environment. The communications facility allows for sending and receiving signals from remote computers. This method includes determining the distance between the scent diffusion devices and the scent target location. Remote computer control of the scent diffuser to reach the desired scent parameter can be accomplished by setting the operation parameter of the fragrance diffusion device based upon the distance and the scent parameter. A method may also include placing at least one sensor in the environment to transmit sensor data to a remote computer and setting an operation parameter for the scent diffusion device based on the sensor data. The sensor data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, area, temperature, humidity and weather events. An HVAC tonnage may be used to adjust the operation parameters of the scent diffusion device.

“In one aspect, the method might include sampling air in an environment to determine the fragrance level. Then, the automated sampling program provides feedback to a network scent diffusion devices. Finally, the operation parameter of the scent diffusion device is adjusted in response to the feedback. This allows for consistent fragrance profiles in the environment. The measurement of a proxy/tag containing the fragrance or an electric charge may be used to determine. Adjustment can be made by selecting/adjusting one or more of the available scent modifiers from one or more networked fragrance diffusion devices. An individual user can adjust the overall fragrance level in the area. A scent diffusion device controller will determine the adjustments required for each device. Adjustment may be done by a master diffusion device of the network of fragrance diffusion devices, which adjusts its output level and that of its slaves proportionately according to the adjusted operation parameter. A malodor may be detected by sampling. The operation parameter can be adjusted to neutralize the scent. The operation parameter can be adjusted to stop diffusion of the smell.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The communication facility enables sending and receiving signals to remote computers, taking information about the HVAC system to remote computers, and taking at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Remote computer control includes controlling at least one of these scent diffusion devices, which can be set or adjusted using the HVAC system information. This information could include the HVAC system’s tonnage. Manual entry can be used to collect information about an HVAC system. This could include a feed from a building automation system, a feed from the HVAC system, a data dump from the local processor, or sensors like a flow sensor. The HVAC system may also provide information that can be used to manage the scent of an environment, such as indoor temperature, outside temperature, thermostat schedule and energy consumption. It also has historical operation parameters. This includes vacant room detection capability and occupied room detection capabilities. Vent placement, fan speed, flow, maintenance status, and vent size.

“In one aspect, a method of managing scent in an environment may comprise disposing a plurality scent diffusion device within the environment. The communication facility enables sending and receiving signals from remote computers, monitoring the environment for indicators that a service is being delivered and controlling via remote computer at least one of the plurality scent diffusion device to emit a scent intended to be a companion service.

“An aspect of managing scent in an area may include putting at least 1 scent diffusion devices within the environment. The communications facility enables sending and receiving signals from remote computers. Monitoring an environment via at least 1 sensor determines if a service is being delivered. Controlling, via remote computer, the diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at least 1 scent diffusion to emit a scent intended to be a companion service. This control includes setting or changing an operation parameter for the at most one scent diffusion. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in some embodiments.

“An aspect of computer-implemented automated fragrance environment design and modeling system includes defining objects that are components of an environment. Input data to the environment model is related to one or more sensors. Display information about the diffusion of scent in the surrounding environment using the environment model, the defined items, and at minimum one parameter from the at least 1 scent diffusion device. The environment model, one or more scent impression goals and data may all be used to determine the location of the scent diffusion devices within the environment. These objects can be represented as a three-dimensional relation. A user may be able to set one or more scent goals for the environment. Based on the environment model and one or more scent impression objectives, the method might recommend the placement of one or several scent diffusion devices in the environment. Input data related to sensors may be included in the environment model. This information can be displayed as a graphical user interface, which shows the physical dimensions of both the environment and the objects within it. A 3D display is possible. A 3D overhead view may be used to display the environment. A window, skylight, wall, floor, door, ceiling, fireplace, furniture, plants and an HVAC system with its elements, fans. Hoods, vents. ducts. conduits. A fragrance-free zone. A fragrance zone. Data may include room volume, room geometry and airflow. It could also indicate the presence of odor producing materials or odor-sinking elements. Lighting, temperature, humidity, altitude, traffic flow as well as occupancy, time of day, etc. Based on the scent impression goal, objects can be customized. If a scent plume is detected to be interfering with furniture or plants, they can be removed. To build the environment model, you can use a drag-and drop interface to place objects in the three-dimensional relationships. You may also need to plan for scent-free zones or fragrance zones. The environment model can colorimetrically represent scent plumes/zones as well as airflow/diffusion zones. Optionally, the environment model can depict consumer pathways to allow for multiple exposures and a fragrance-free zone between. A profile of fragrances that are effective in the environment may be suggested based on data about the environment’s scent neutralizing profile. A combination of one or more factors, such as a particle size or a scent concentration factor, can help identify an effective fragrance.

A user interface that is produced using computing equipment to execute program code and stored in a nontransitory storage medium can be used as an interface for a fragrance design and modeling system. A drag-and-drop interface can be used to place objects representing a component of an environment. The environment model is a model of how the objects interact with each other. The environment model also includes one or more scent perception goals. The processor models the environment model’s scent impression goals to determine at most one of the following: a location in the environment and a fragrance-diffusing parameter for one or more scent diffusers. Further data are included in the environment model that relate to any one or more sensors. The environment model can be displayed as a graphical user interface. It shows the physical dimensions of both the environment and the objects within it. Displays may also be 3D. It may also be 3D aerial views of the environment. Drag and drop allows you to drag and drop scent zones based upon a HVAC/building blueprint. This will optimize scent vectors/scent device settings. One of the objects may be a window, skylight, wall, floor, door, ceiling, fireplace, furniture, plants or an HVAC system with its elements. Fans, Hoods, Vents, Ducts, Conductors, Fan, Hoods, Vents, Vents, Ducts, Conduits, a fragrance-free area, a fragrance zone, consumer pathway, and other similar items. Data may include room volume, room geometry and airflow. It could also indicate the presence of odor producing materials or odor-sinking elements. Lighting, temperature, humidity, altitude, traffic flow as well as occupancy and time of day. Based on the scent impression goal, objects can be customized. It may be a three-dimensional relationship. “The object could be the source of a foul odor.”

“In one aspect, a method may be used to calculate a metric for brand impression. The brand impression metric is calculated based on the exposure to a scent delivered via one or more managed, networked fragrance diffusion devices. The metric could be determined based on the following: number of exposures; duration of exposures; and location of exposures. The process of determining the scent may involve A/B testing, matched panel testing, or controlled testing. The process of determining the scent may also include getting feedback from people who have been exposed to it. A survey may be used to collect feedback from people who have been exposed to the scent.

“In one aspect, a method might include comparing the purchase behaviour of a group exposed to a fragrance in a retail environment with that of a similar group who were not. The scent exposure may be due to one or more remote scent diffuser devices located in the retail environment.

“A networked scent diffusion device can be used as a commercial gateway to a consumer environment. It may use one or more integrated sensors that gather information about the environment. A communications facility may be included in a networked scent diffuser device. This facility receives control signals from a center for network operations. These control signals are used to control a scent diffusion device according to a scent impression goal. It also includes one or more integrated sensors that gather information about the environment where the diffusion device is placed. It could be a traffic/occupancy sensors.

“A networked scent diffusion system may have a first communication facility that receives control signal from a network operation center. These control signals are used to control a scent diffusion device according to a scent impression goal. A second communication facility is used to exchange data with a mobile device within the consumer environment. This communication could relate to the scent being diffused by a device. A commercial gateway allows the user to control the scent diffuser device from their home. A user may control the device from within the consumer environment using one of the two communication facilities. It may also be an offer.

“An aspect of the invention may involve receiving at a computer at most one target value for a scent parameter in an environment 1602, and receiving at the computer a sensed environment parameter 1604, and controlling diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at minimum one scent diffusion devices to achieve the target scent parameter 1608, where controlling involves setting or changing an operation parameter of at least one of the at least two scent diffusion devices in response to the sensed parameter. The master node may control the remote computer’s commands. Other scent diffusion devices can be slave nodes that receive instructions from the master node. One of the remote computers may send control instructions to at most one scent diffusion device. The remote computer then relays control instructions on at least one other scent diffusion gadget. A brand management goal may be included in the scent parameter. One of the operation parameters may be a flow rate, duration, or volume of liquid. It could also include a switching to another package to diffuse the liquid.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment includes creating an electronic data schema characterizing the transformations of at least one diffuser disposed within the environment (1702), accessing at the remote computing device 1704 data and providing a service plan to the at least one diffuser based on the electronic structure and the target scent parameter 1704. The sensed parameter can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow. Servicing can include setting up at least one scent diffusion system so that it does not operate simultaneously with another scent diffusion system. A brand management goal may be related to the scent parameter. One of the operation parameters may be a flow rate, duration, or volume of liquid. It could also include a switching to another package to diffuse the liquid.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing at least 1 sensor in the environment that transmits data to the remote computing device 1802, and disposing at most one scent diffuser within the environment. The communication facility enables receiving a signal from remote computers. The signal can be a setting or adjustment of an operation parameter of at least 1 scent diffusion devices in response to sensor data in order to reach a target scent parameter 1804. Another method is to determine the number of scent diffusion device to be disposed in an environment using a room volume. Configuring at least one scent diffuser so that the device duty cycle is not interrupted by another scent diffusion device may be included in this method. The distance between the scent target location and the scent diffusion device may be the sensed parameter.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment includes creating an electronic data schema characterizing the transformation at least 1 remote diffusion device 1902, which data includes data about a sensed parameter and at most one target value of a fragrance parameter for the environment. The remote computer then initiates control of diffusion of a liquid from the source of the liquid in fluid communications with at least 1 scent diffusion device to achieve the desired scent parameter. The sensed parameter data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow. At least two fragrance oil-containing packages may be included in the scent diffusion device. A brand management goal may be used as the scent parameter. The sensed parameter that is related to the fragrance level can be measured by at least one of the following: measuring an electrostatic charge, measuring the component of the fragrance and measuring an odorless mark diffused with it, measuring particles and measuring the concentration of volatile organic compound.

“These and other systems and methods, objects, features and advantages of this disclosure will be obvious to those skilled in art from the following detailed description and drawings.”

All documents referenced herein are hereby included in their entirety. If the text does not state otherwise, or it is clear, all references to items in the singular must be understood to include items from the plural. Grammatical conjunctions can express all disjunctive or conjunctive combinations, sentences, words, and other conjoined clauses.

“BRIEF DESCRIPTION. FIGURES”

“The following figures can be used to understand the disclosure and some of the embodiments.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.7 depicts an exemplary embodiment for a location overview.”

“FIG. “FIG.8 depicts an exemplary embodiment for diffuser data.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIGS. “FIGS.

“FIG. “FIG. 11.11 depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG. 13″ depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG. 16” depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. 20 illustrates a method for tampering with atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. 21 shows a method for tampering with atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. 22 shows a diffusion device with a pump assembly, solenoid valves and a pump assembly.

“FIG. “FIG. 23 shows an embodiment of a cartridge.”

“FIGS. 24 A-D show embodiments of a diffusion system.

The scent management system offers businesses a managed service that delivers precise, broad-area fragrances. It is designed to help customers experience exceptional brand impressions and memorable scents. The scent management system enables customers to manage their scent services remotely by integrating intelligence into equipment. It also allows for remote monitoring and management of equipment via a global network and a set of software applications. This ensures that customers receive consistent, efficient, and reliable scent management services. This scent management system can guarantee a certain level of quality due to intelligence embedded in the system. The system monitors the performance of all customers as well as all devices. If desired, the scent management system can deliver identical scent impressions to all locations. This is possible through measurement of fragrance output and in-space measuring for precise concentration. The scent management system delivers consistent brand impressions through dynamic, precise control over a network scent diffusion devices. This can be done in either a remote or local manner. The scent management system features, including two-way communication with networked fragrance diffusion devices to receive data and to control them remotely, and features of the devices including sensors and/or programming for switching between scent packages, allow the system to be deployed in a variety of service models, including full-service and self-service. Users can select the settings and receive notifications regarding replenishment through an application. A full-service model allows users to select and modify settings for multiple locations. This is to meet brand management goals. Refillment alerts can be sent to the NOC, which will then manage replenishment. The communication with the NOC gives users confidence that devices are working as they should without the need to touch them or use a control app. The flexibility of the scent management system allows users (including non-NOC staff), to use control applications to monitor the diffusion devices and to control them as they wish. To preserve brand integrity, the system allows intelligent and deterministic delegations of authority, roles, and permissions amongst the network of diffusers. The system allows users to control permissions, authority, and roles across hierarchical organizations (e.g. To enable diffusion device control at a local level (e.g., on a site basis or at a corporate level), parent company/corporate, franchise, and location are all possible.

The scent management system can be used for more than just scent branding and consistent scent impressions. It may also be used for odor mitigation and odor neutralization, product advertisement, aromatherapy/stress relief, and other purposes. We will also discuss other functional benefits.

One or more diffusion devices may be included in the scent management system. A processor such as a microcontroller may be embedded in each diffusion device. This processor can transmit information (telemetry data), about the diffuser status to one or more Cloud-based applications. The microcontroller might be able to control the units independently, using instructions from the business applications. Business applications keep historical data about diffusion devices. This allows for reporting and mining of data to improve scent management services. The NOC can be used to monitor the health and settings of end-user diffusion device. It may also respond to alarms by creating work orders (e.g. To roll a truck, e mail an on-site contact, and so forth. To address service issues or replenishment concerns. Devices may also be managed by the user themselves, but they are not controlled by the NOC. The networked diffusion devices are part of the Internet of Things in certain embodiments.

“In one embodiment, the scent management software may include: a diffusion device with integrated intelligence, plus communication capabilities enabled by wireless local or wide area network communication module; and network configurations of diffusion devices that support intelligent management and dispersion. These configurations can be used locally or remotely by one or more network operations centers (NOCs), staffed by scent system administrators. The scent management system comprises business processes that are enabled by diffusion devices. These devices are deployed in defined scent dispersion networks configurations. The terms “scent device”, “scent dispersion device”, “diffuser device”, “diffuser” and?”diffuser?” are used throughout this specification. Except where the context requires otherwise, they may be interchangeable with one another and with the term “diffusion device?”. The use of scented liquids within a diffusion device is an example of one type of liquid that could be used in the scent management. In fact, diffusion devices can also use scent neutralizer liquids, disinfectant, cleaning, or other liquids. The terms ‘cartridge? and ‘package? are used throughout this specification. Unless otherwise indicated, the terms?cartridge?,??package? and???reservoir are interchangeable. This document describes various aspects of the scent management systems. It is important to understand that the devices can be used to disperse any liquid, including a gas or vapor colloidal combination. FIG. FIG. 1 shows an example architecture 100 for scent management systems. This embodiment shows a master diffusion device (102) in communication with one or several slave diffusion devices (104), and a server (108) such as a cloud-based server running cloud-based applications. The device 102 communicates to the server 108 in this embodiment to receive control instructions, system updates, and to send telemetry data to a NOC118. The communication may take place via a cellular connection. Devices 102 and 104 can communicate with the environment or have onboard sensors 110. The server 108 may allow NOC user devices (114) to communicate with the devices, 102, and 104. The server 108 may allow the control of the devices 102 and 104 by using a customer control device 120. A user interface for advertiser networks 112 could be communicating with the server108.

“An embodiment of the scent diffusion device includes a cartridge-based removable reservoir for fragrance oil, or any other liquid, and a diffuser that atomizes fragrance oil into small particles in order to achieve targeted and manageable concentrations of the liquid or fragrance oil. You can choose from small or large aerosol particles, as well as micro-droplets. The diffuser is designed to minimize the amount of particles that fall out. A diffuser may include at least one of the following: a micro-droplet generator; an atomizer; a nebulizer; a vapourizer; an evaporativewick; a saturated solid; and the like.

“In one embodiment, the fragrance diffusion device may contain a solid scent medium cartridge. Heat energy is generated by a coil or light bulb, candle, heated burner, heated heat source, or similar to heat the cartridge. A fan blows through this medium to diffuse the fragrance. Remote control of fragrance diffusion may require at least one fan or heat source.

“In certain embodiments, such that a scent diffusion device includes a wick, or other fixed or hard medium, the diffusion rate/efficiency and wicking rate/efficiency can be adjusted over time, or periodically, for example, by changing an aspect of the fan’s operation. As the device works, liquid may become less available for diffusion. The amount of liquid within the device can decrease in certain embodiments at a predictable rate. This could be due to an exponential rate or a physical model. It may be more difficult to incite diffusion of liquids remaining in the device as the liquid becomes less available. This could be caused by changes in the parameters or aspects of a fixed medium used to aid diffusion. A wick can dry out, a solid perfume cake may dry out, and the like. Adjustments can be made to improve diffusion characteristics by controlling the fan speed or other parameter of a device used to promote diffusion. The fan speed of a diffusion device may be altered so that it runs slower when a new liquid cartridge or fixed medium is added to it. This can cause the wick or fixed medium to dry out faster. As the device works, and the characteristics of the wick, or other solid media change, the fan speed can be increased to ensure a consistent level of diffusion. The fan operation may be similar to an exponential curve or elliptoid curve in some embodiments. If the liquid is a perfume oil, the fan can be controlled to maintain a constant level of diffusion. This may lead to a stable fragrance intensity over time.

“In some embodiments, the pump can be either a speed control or conventional air pump. A conventional air pump may have a duty cycle that controls the scent output, such as a duty cycle of?on? For 2 minutes, and for?off? For a 33% duty rate, run the pump for 4 minutes. Remote control of pump operation in networked fragrance diffusion devices allows for the adjustment of voltage. This can be done in a range from roughly +/?20% to a 10V standard or 8 V to 12 V. The remote control of voltage also allows for control of the diffusion rate. It is independent of voltage range and independent from duty cycle. The voltage of the pump can be adjusted to alter the output. If multiple diffusers are deployed in the same environment, and all have the same duty cycle, then the voltage driving diffusers in the smaller spaces may be reduced to reduce output, while those in the larger areas of the environment might be increased to increase output. This would be an example of a duty cycle that includes an?on? A duty cycle that includes an?on? portion might produce X micrograms/hour at low speeds. The same duty cycle with the same portion of?on?? would put out X. For 1 minute, a high speed setting might produce 3X micrograms an hour. The pump can be controlled by voltage. Volumetric control allows the pump to run on a continuous, or almost continuous basis.

“Referring to FIG. 22 is an illustration of a diffusion device. The housing 2202 shows a pump assembly 2204. This pump pumps liquid out of the reservoir(s) via tubes attached to it and then assembled into fittings 2212. To turn the pumping on or off, one or more valves (e.g. solenoid valves 2208 and 2210) are placed in line within the tubes.

“The diffusion device could include a programmable microcontroller with a fixed or removable memory for controlling device functionality such as volume control, duty cycle, schedule setting, and the like. A wireless local area network module may be included in the diffusion device. This module can communicate with other devices at a particular location using radio frequency communications, including IEEE standards such as WiFi, Zigbee and Bluetooth. The diffusion device may use one or more of the following communications protocols: Zigbee and MiFi, MiWi DMX, ANT. Z-Wave. Insteon. JenNet-IP. X10, mesh network. Diffusion devices can form a machine to machine network. A removable wireless wide area network module (WWAN) may be included in the diffusion device. This module can allow electronic communication with remote Network Operations Centers via, for instance, a telecommunications cellular network. Refers to the?Network Operations Center? Referring to a?Network Operations Center? This disclosure should be understood as encompassing a single, central center or a group of distributed centers. The diffusion device can include communication technology for wired installations in certain embodiments. The communications network may allow for the transmission of telemetry data such as a fragrance-level replenishment alert. The network may allow for firmware upgrades.

“In one embodiment, connectors can be placed on the motherboard to enable the communication module to be configured quickly or made modular so that it can be swapped in and taken out easily. A device could be made so that a communications module can be installed at a customer, distributor, or customer. The device could be shipped by the manufacturer to the distributor with the cellular communications module already installed. However, upon receipt, it may become necessary to have Bluetooth- or WiFi-enabled devices. Distributors may be able open the devices to swap the cellular communications module with the WiFi-enabled or Bluetooth-enabled one. Some devices can accommodate multiple communication protocols. In this case, the distributor will only need to add the Bluetooth and WiFi modules to the existing cell module. Other embodiments may include firmware embedded in the communications module, which allows for modifications to the capabilities of the device, such as delivery over a cell network using a cellular networking communication protocol or over an IP-based network. The communications module can be embedded in or may use an FPGA (field programmable gate array), so that it can be reprogrammed in field to meet changing needs.

“In one embodiment, a scent diffuser may have a processor that monitors it and generates a status. A user interface provides an alert based upon the status and triggers an event. The event could be scheduling maintenance or the status could be a clog. The status could indicate a need to replenish and the event might be at least one of ordering additional scent or scheduling replenishment. A tampering or an event that causes the device to turn off may indicate the status. A clog, a need to replenish, a tampering or overheating, loss of power, an error in operation, and damage could all be the status. Alerts may include a light 1028 or a color indicator as well as a message and pop-up.

One embodiment of the device can be used as a point use scent disperser. It may be placed in targeted fragrance areas. In an embodiment, another form of the diffusion device may be integrated into the heating/ventilation/air conditioning system of a venue, with fragrance dispersion occurring through the HVAC ductwork or other ventilation system.”

“In one embodiment, the diffusion device can be embedded in the form factor a flameless LED candle.”

“A diffusion device can include a tamperproof closure in an embodiment. A tamper-proof seal may include at least one of the following: a physical key; a software-based or biometric key; a retinal scanner; and the like. The package’s physical features may make it more difficult to alter, such as the inclusion of at least one of a magnetic-welding or spin welding, or a bayonet lock. If contact with the sensors is lost and power is still being sensed or used by the device, the on-board sensors could be used as an anti-tampering system.

“The package for the diffusion devices may contain physical features to prevent tampering. These features could prevent the package from functioning properly in a device that is not capable of accepting it. The package may contain an RFID tag 1208 to identify the package. If the RFID tag is not read correctly, the diffusion device will stop working. The RFID tag can be read on-board by an integrated RFID reader, or with a separate RFID reader during routine inspections. Another example is a package that may contain an additional identification tag such as a QR code 1202 or bar code 1204, which can be imaged using either on-board imaging, or a separate imager. Images may be sent to the NOC for approval, storage or analysis. One embodiment may require that an electrical contact be made between the package’s package and the device during installation. A package’s electrical feature may come into contact with a device’s electrical feature. Other mechanical features, not shown, may also be placed on the package. The contents of the package may be dispensable if contact is made. The package contents can be dispensated if contact is made. An alert may also be sent over the network if the contact is not made.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is connected to a networked scent diffuse device may include a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for dispensing scent from it. The atomizer cartridge includes an orifice plate having a flow restriction plate for passing compressed gas through the orifice before passing through an atomizing nozzle and an RFID tag. When an RFID reader connects to the scent diffusion devices, the RFID tag is recognized and scent is dispensable from the cartridge.

“A scent cartridge for a networked fragrance diffusion device may contain a reservoir that contains a liquid and an assembly with an atomizer head. An anti-tampering identification is associated with at least one reservoir and the assembly. The condition of this anti-tampering ID determines the amount of scent diffusion from the device. If the anti-tampering identification is not recognized by the scent diffusion device, an alert can be sent to a network. In this case, the device may refuse to dispense the scent. An alert could be sent if the device does not recognize the anti-tampering identification and the cartridge is removed.

“In one embodiment, a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent diffuser device may contain a reservoir holding a liquid and anatomizer head, and an RFID tag attached to at least one of the reservoir or the atomizer heads assembly. When an RFID reader connected to the scent diffusion devices recognizes the RFID tag the cartridge will dispense the scent. If the anti-tampering identification is not recognized by the scent diffusion device, an alert may send over a network. The scent may then not be dispensable. An alert may be sent to a network if the anti-tampering identification is lost or the cartridge is removed. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through an atomizing orifice.

“In one embodiment, a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent diffuser device may have a reservoir that contains a liquid, an atomizer assembly, and an electrical contact. The electrical contact contacts a corresponding electrical connection of the scent diffusion devices, and scent is dispensable from the cartridge. If the scent diffusion device doesn’t recognize the anti-tampering identification, an alert may go over a network. The scent may then not be dispensable. An alert may be sent to a network if the anti-tampering identification is lost or the cartridge is removed. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through an atomizing orifice.

An embodiment of securing networked fragrance diffusion devices includes associating an antitampering ID with a reservoir and atomizer heads assemblies of a networked smell diffusion device 2102, determining whether the antitampering identificationr is present on the reservoir 2104 and blocking diffusion if it is absent. Communication of the absence of anti-tampering information to other networked aroma diffusion devices 2108 is another possible method. Another embodiment may be to associate an anti-tampering ID with a reservoir of a networked fragrance diffusion device. This will determine if it is present on the reservoir and block diffusion if it is not. Then, communicate the absence of this anti-tampering identification to other networked smell diffusion devices 2108.

“A diffusion device for atomizing liquids can include at least two reservoirs, a liquid-level sensor disposed within the device, an antitampering identificationr associated with at most one of the reservoirs, and a switch and a processor. The first and second signals are used to generate a signal indicative about the liquid level and a signal indicative that the anti-tampering IDr is present. A control instruction for the switch is generated based on these signals. This allows the device to switch between one reservoir

“In one embodiment, a method of operating networked smell diffusion devices in an environmental to achieve a fragrance impression goal may involve receiving an indication from a networked sniff diffusion device that diffusion is blocked by a tampering indicator 2002, accessing an environment modeling for the environment wherein one or more networked perfume diffusion devices 2004 and programming a scent profile for the environment to be executed only by the non-blocked networked aroma diffusion devices. The model may include two or more networked fragrance diffusion devices in certain embodiments.

“In one embodiment, an atomizing diffuse device may contain at least two packages with liquid in it, an anti-tampering identification associated with at least one package, and a processor that is operatively coupled with the scent diffusion device and determines a Tampering Indication based upon the anti-tampering ID and causes a switching between the packages based the Tampering Indication.”

“A diffusion device may contain a chemical sensor that communicates with the package to detect the presence of a particular component in liquids, as in the embodiment. The package may contain a tracer or tracer molecule that can be used to authenticate the specific component. If the tracer or tag is missing, the package could be considered fraudulent. The chemical sensor can be placed outside of the package but in fluid communication with the package’s contents to collect liquid from the package. This allows the chemical sensor to detect the tracer or tag component in the package. The device can operate to diffuse the liquid if the chemical sensor finds the component and authenticates the package. There are several actions that can be taken if the component is not detected. A visual or audible signal, such a flashing light (e.g. an LED), or a sound may be generated to alert the user or observer about a possible problem. This signal could indicate that the component is missing. It could be caused by tampering or an incorrect package, depleted packages, errors, or any other reason. Other embodiments of the signal can be a message, alert or communication transmitted over a network to a central location, an individual (or manager), a computer, a mobile phone, or other devices. The chemical sensor can sample the air to detect the component. If the component is absent, the sensor can send instructions over the network to the diffusion devices to stop operation.

Summary for “Methods and systems of sensor feedback for scent diffusion devices”

Field

“This disclosure is general in nature and applies to networked fragrance-diffusing devices, as well as their applications.”

“Description of Related Art”

“Scent is the most closely linked sense of five, and it is also strongly associated with memory. After one month, we recall only a small portion of what we saw. However, we can remember what we smelled with high accuracy for one year. This is due to an intimate connection between the brain’s limbic and the olfactory bulbs, also known as the “emotional brain.”

“Scent of smell is one of the most emotional of the five senses. It is an important element in brand communications and experiential marketing. To put it another way, scent is a powerful sense that can create lasting impressions.

“Leaders in industries such as hospitality, gaming, real-estate, health care, senior living, and retail recognize the power of?scent advertising? They are looking for service solutions that are safe, effective, and simple to use for their commercial establishments. This emerging market has presented a challenge to early service providers. However, it was difficult to achieve precise, consistent, and measurable wide-area dispersion of fragrances. As the quality of smell impressions changes over time and in changing environments, their scent solutions can provide a wide range of experiences.

“Some of the current scent dispersion technology provide standalone solutions that can be managed locally by local employees or subcontractors. It is difficult to maintain consistent fragrance levels across locations because the commercial fragrance devices are manually set and changed frequently. Undiagnosed malfunctioning dispensers, improper dispenser settings, device tampering and scent blindness are all common scent dispersion issues. This happens when employees working in a scented area become sensitive to the fragrance and make unneeded changes to their manual settings.

“It is difficult to predict when the refill dates for scent cartridges will be due because of the variability in local conditions. These elements often contain fragrance oils or other sources of scents. There are many places that have no need for fragrance dispersion if cartridges run low. However, other venues can experience wasted scent oil, higher expense and disposal problems if cartridges are not replaced in a timely manner.

“Consequently, multi-site commercial business owners, local managers and maintenance staff find it difficult to maintain and establish a consistent?acceptable?” “acceptable” or “approved?” scent concentration across their venues. They can control the scent concentration in their venues. It frustrates them that they cannot control the olfactory part of their brand identity. Site surveys show that only a small percentage of venues deliver the brand’s desired sensory experience.

“A scent management system that provides wide-area dispersion of a perfume in accordance to a desired fragrance profile in a consistent, precise, and manageable manner via a remote network or local network is needed.”

“The present disclosure addresses, among other things, these local?compliance?” and brand management issues by enabling effective, centralized management of remotely deployed scent systems, including, without limitation, using microprocessor-controlled and networked diffusion devices that deliver data streams to a centralized network operations center (or NOC), which may be staffed by experienced operators using enterprise class software. Commercial businesses can use this managed service to ensure consistent, high-quality fragrance delivery across a wide area. This document outlines a wide range of technologies and enabling components that can be used to create a fragrance management system.

“In one embodiment, an electrical contact may be required between the device and the package when it is installed. A package’s electrical feature may be in contact with an electronic feature on the device. The contents of the package may be dispensable if contact is made. The package contents can be dispensated if contact is made. An alert may also be sent over the network if the contact is not made.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent distribution device may contain a reservoir that contains a liquid and an assembly for the atomizer head. An anti-tampering identification associated with at least one reservoir and the assembly will be required. The device’s scent diffusion will depend on the state of this anti-tampering IDr. An alert may be sent to a network if the scent diffusion device doesn’t recognize the anti-tampering identification. If this happens, the scent may not be dispensable. An alert is sent to a network if the cartridge is removed from a device that does not recognize the anti-tampering identification. Based on the distance of the networked diffuser to a designated network zone, the state of the antitampering IDr is modified. The atomizer head assembly may include an orifice plate with a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through the atomizing orifice. An anti-tampering indicator may be mechanical, such as a dip switch or the like. Electronics such as RFID, bar/QSR codes, and other electronic anti-tampering identifiers are possible. An anti-tampering code may indicate a deviation from the network zone of the networked fragrance diffusion device. An error or unexpected reading of the liquid level sensor of the networked fragrance diffusion device could be the anti-tampering identification. An electrical contact on the networked fragrance diffusion device may be disconnected and this could cause the anti-tampering identification to be disengaged. An RFID tag may be used to identify the anti-tampering device. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to be mixed and then passed through an atomizing device. The anti-tampering identification may be a mechanical element of at least one reservoir or the atomizer assembly. The anti-tampering identification may refer to the electric field in at least one reservoir or the atomizer heads assembly.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is connected to a networked scent diffuse device may include a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for dispensing scent from it. The atomizer cartridge includes an orifice plate having a flow restriction plate for passing compressed gas through the orifice before passing through an atomizing nozzle and an RFID tag. When an RFID reader connects to the scent diffusion devices, the RFID tag is recognized and scent is dispensable from the cartridge.

“A package that is used with a scent diffuser may contain a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for transporting the liquid. The tube is connected to the atomizer assembly on one end and the tube extends below its surface. The gas inlet passage of an atomizer head assembly may be in fluid communication one end with a compressed-air source, and the other end with a flow restriction plate. The orifice plates can be used to separate the mixing chamber from the gas inlet passage. This mixing chamber may have a first wall that is opposite the orifice, which contains an atomizing plate and a second wall that is fluidly connected with the tube. An expansion chamber can be in fluid communication to the atomizing chamber and a baffle room, with the baffle chamber being connected to the surrounding environment. The flow restriction orifice creates a low pressure area in the mixing chamber which allows liquid from the reservoir to flow into the chamber. This liquid then joins the flow path for the gas through the restrictor orifice, resulting in a mixture of liquid and gas that is atomized by the atomizing orifice. The shape of the liquid reservoir could be substantially cup-shaped. The top edge may be connected to the atomizer head assembly using an ultrasonic welding and/or a twist lock sealed with an o-ring.

An atomizing diffusion device may contain a floating magnet that is positioned within a track in at least one package containing liquid. The floating magnet moves vertically along the track as the liquid level changes. A Hall effect sensor or Hall effects switch may also be included in the device. This will enable the detection of the floating magnet’s position on the track. A processor may be attached to the Hall effect sensor/ Hall effect switch to generate a signal that indicates the position of the floating magnetic pole and a control instruction to turn the device on or off. The control instruction instructs the processor to change the package the diffusion device uses from one package to another package. A solenoid switch could be used as the switch. A scheduling facility may also be included in the device according to claim. This facility receives the signal and determines the schedule for replenishment of the package. A remote computer may also be included in the device. This remote computer can communicate with the processor to receive the signal and generate an alert when a signal is received that indicates the need for replacement or unexpected information. The processor can be configured to send a signal to indicate the switch to a different package in the diffusion system.

“Referring to FIG. 23 is an illustration of a cartridge that has a Hall effect sensor to detect liquid levels. The drawing’s upper section shows the diffusion components, including the cartridge cap assembly 2302 and the cartridge cap assembly 2304. Tubing 2308 is used to extract fragrance oil. An ultrasonic welding 2310 connects the cartridge cap 2304 and the cartridge cup 2314. Between the two, an O-ring 2312 can be found. The cup 2314 has a magnetic flotation 2320. It runs along the cartridge float guide 2318 and rises or falls according to a liquid level.

“In one embodiment, an atomizing diffuse device may contain at least two packages containing liquid in fluid communication with an aroma diffusion device. The liquid level within the package can be exposed through at minimum one of a transparent door or window. To image the liquid level inside the package, at least one imaging sensor can be placed outside of the package. The imaging sensor may be operatedly coupled with a processor to generate a signal indicative the liquid level and a control instructions for a switch. To receive the control instruction from processor, the switch can be operatively connected to the processor. The control instruction causes the diffusion apparatus to switch between utilizing one package and another package in the diffusion devices. A signal may be sent by the processor to indicate that the diffusion device has switched to the other package.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing one or more scent diffuse devices within the environment. The communications facility enables sending and receiving signals to remote computers, as well as receiving at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Remote computers can also control at least one of these scent diffusion device to achieve the desired scent parameter. The control may involve adjusting the operational parameter of the fragrance diffusion device to respond to the environment’s scent level.

“Another aspect of managing scent in an environmental may be to place one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The communication facility that allows sending and receiving signals from remote computers is included in the scent diffusion device. Further, the method may include the placement of at least one sensor in the environment that transmits sensor information to the remote computing device and receiving at most one scent parameter for scenting an environment at the remote computing device. To achieve the scent parameter, the method also includes controlling via remote computer the diffusion of liquid from a source that is in fluid communication to at least one scent diffusion device.

One aspect of atomizing diffusion in an environment includes receiving liquid level data from a plurality remote atomizing devices. Each remote diffusion device has a communication facility that allows sending and receiving signals to and from a remote computer. Based on the liquid level data, creating an electronic data structure characterizing transformations of the remote diffusion systems via remote computers. The electronic data structure may contain data specifying at minimum one of the following: the purchase of fragrance fragrance, production, management, delivery, and control of the transformation. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in some embodiments. In response to sensor data, control may involve setting or changing an operation parameter for the scent diffusion device. Sensor data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow; presence of odor producing materials; presence of odor sinking factors; lighting; air flow; altitude; traffic flow; occupancy detection (e.g. Camera, CO2 sensor, proximity sensing, detected smell, room volume, area, temperature, humidity and traffic flow. A scent diffusion device contains at least one package that contains a perfume oil, or at most two packages that contain a fragrance oils. One of the scent diffusers is a master node, and the other two scent diffusion devices are slave nosdes. They receive control instructions from a computer via the master node. This embodiment allows each scent diffusion device to adjust its control settings according to the activities of other scent diffusion devices. This may involve configuring the scent diffusers so that one scent diffusion device’s duty cycle is not interrupted by another scent diffusion device. This scent parameter could be related to a brand management objective. This method could also include determining how many scent diffusion devices are needed to be disposed of in an environment, based on the volume of the room. Based on the room volume, the method may also include the determination of one or more locations where the scent diffusion devices should be disposed. One parameter that may be included in the operation parameter is a flow rate, duration, or variation of the flow rate. It could also include an on/off status for the diffusion device, a package to diffuse the fluid, or a switch to another package to diffuse it. The sensor data could relate to distance between the scent diffusion device and a scent target. Information about the HVAC system could include information such as indoor temperature, outdoor temperature, thermostat schedule and energy consumption. Historical operation parameters may also be included. Vent placement, fan speed, fan size, fan speed, maintenance status, and occupied room detection capability are some examples. Information about the building could include information such as the number of people entering or leaving the building, the planned use of the space, the planned occupancy of the space, elevator, escalator, power, lighting, and maintenance status. Sensor data related to the fragrance level can be determined using at least one of the following methods: measuring a proxy/tag mixed with the fragrance; measuring an electrostatic charge; measuring a component or fragrance; measuring particles and determining a concentration. Causing could include scheduling and coordination of resources in order to complete the transformation. This method can also include the measurement of the liquid level in the plurality remote atomizing diffusion device using the liquid-level sensor.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment may involve disposing one or more fragrance diffusion devices within the environment. The diffusion devices include a communication facility that allows transmission and reception of signals from a wide-area, non-fragrance-dispensing network gateway device. Further, the method may include linking the network gateway device with the scent diffusion device. The network gateway device receives control and communication functions from remote computers for distribution to the scent diffusers. The remote computer may receive sensor data from at least one sensor located in the environment. Remote computers may receive at least one target value for a particular environment’s scent parameter. Remote computer control may be used to control diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at most one of the fragrance diffusion devices. This will allow the user to attain the desired scent parameter. Control also includes setting or changing an operation parameter for one or more scent diffusion devices using the sensor data. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in certain embodiments. One of the scent diffusion devices may receive control instructions from a remote computer, and relay control instructions to at most one other scent diffusion device. Control instructions may be relayed by the scent diffusion devices in a series, in an ring, in mesh, or in a star network topology.

“An aspect of managing scent in an environment includes the placement of one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The diffusion devices include a communications device that allows for sending and receiving signals from a local network control device. Networking the local network control device to each scent diffusion device is possible. In this manner, the local network control device receives communication from the diffusion devices and then distributes control instructions. Another method includes locating at least one sensor in the environment to transmit sensor data to a local area control device. The local area control device then receives at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Controlling the diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at most one of the fragrance diffusion devices to achieve the desired scent parameter may also be possible via the local network control device. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in certain embodiments. A local area control device could include a computer, laptop, tablet or pad computer with wireless network communication capability, or a purpose-built scent controller device with wireless network communication capability.

“An aspect of scent casting may involve placing a scent diffusion apparatus within an environment. The communications facility allows for sending and receiving signals from remote computers. This method includes determining the distance between the scent diffusion devices and the scent target location. Remote computer control of the scent diffuser to reach the desired scent parameter can be accomplished by setting the operation parameter of the fragrance diffusion device based upon the distance and the scent parameter. A method may also include placing at least one sensor in the environment to transmit sensor data to a remote computer and setting an operation parameter for the scent diffusion device based on the sensor data. The sensor data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, area, temperature, humidity and weather events. An HVAC tonnage may be used to adjust the operation parameters of the scent diffusion device.

“In one aspect, the method might include sampling air in an environment to determine the fragrance level. Then, the automated sampling program provides feedback to a network scent diffusion devices. Finally, the operation parameter of the scent diffusion device is adjusted in response to the feedback. This allows for consistent fragrance profiles in the environment. The measurement of a proxy/tag containing the fragrance or an electric charge may be used to determine. Adjustment can be made by selecting/adjusting one or more of the available scent modifiers from one or more networked fragrance diffusion devices. An individual user can adjust the overall fragrance level in the area. A scent diffusion device controller will determine the adjustments required for each device. Adjustment may be done by a master diffusion device of the network of fragrance diffusion devices, which adjusts its output level and that of its slaves proportionately according to the adjusted operation parameter. A malodor may be detected by sampling. The operation parameter can be adjusted to neutralize the scent. The operation parameter can be adjusted to stop diffusion of the smell.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing one or more scent diffusers within the environment. The communication facility enables sending and receiving signals to remote computers, taking information about the HVAC system to remote computers, and taking at least one scent parameter to scent the environment. Remote computer control includes controlling at least one of these scent diffusion devices, which can be set or adjusted using the HVAC system information. This information could include the HVAC system’s tonnage. Manual entry can be used to collect information about an HVAC system. This could include a feed from a building automation system, a feed from the HVAC system, a data dump from the local processor, or sensors like a flow sensor. The HVAC system may also provide information that can be used to manage the scent of an environment, such as indoor temperature, outside temperature, thermostat schedule and energy consumption. It also has historical operation parameters. This includes vacant room detection capability and occupied room detection capabilities. Vent placement, fan speed, flow, maintenance status, and vent size.

“In one aspect, a method of managing scent in an environment may comprise disposing a plurality scent diffusion device within the environment. The communication facility enables sending and receiving signals from remote computers, monitoring the environment for indicators that a service is being delivered and controlling via remote computer at least one of the plurality scent diffusion device to emit a scent intended to be a companion service.

“An aspect of managing scent in an area may include putting at least 1 scent diffusion devices within the environment. The communications facility enables sending and receiving signals from remote computers. Monitoring an environment via at least 1 sensor determines if a service is being delivered. Controlling, via remote computer, the diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at least 1 scent diffusion to emit a scent intended to be a companion service. This control includes setting or changing an operation parameter for the at most one scent diffusion. It is not diffusion of liquid, but diffusion of gas in some embodiments.

“An aspect of computer-implemented automated fragrance environment design and modeling system includes defining objects that are components of an environment. Input data to the environment model is related to one or more sensors. Display information about the diffusion of scent in the surrounding environment using the environment model, the defined items, and at minimum one parameter from the at least 1 scent diffusion device. The environment model, one or more scent impression goals and data may all be used to determine the location of the scent diffusion devices within the environment. These objects can be represented as a three-dimensional relation. A user may be able to set one or more scent goals for the environment. Based on the environment model and one or more scent impression objectives, the method might recommend the placement of one or several scent diffusion devices in the environment. Input data related to sensors may be included in the environment model. This information can be displayed as a graphical user interface, which shows the physical dimensions of both the environment and the objects within it. A 3D display is possible. A 3D overhead view may be used to display the environment. A window, skylight, wall, floor, door, ceiling, fireplace, furniture, plants and an HVAC system with its elements, fans. Hoods, vents. ducts. conduits. A fragrance-free zone. A fragrance zone. Data may include room volume, room geometry and airflow. It could also indicate the presence of odor producing materials or odor-sinking elements. Lighting, temperature, humidity, altitude, traffic flow as well as occupancy, time of day, etc. Based on the scent impression goal, objects can be customized. If a scent plume is detected to be interfering with furniture or plants, they can be removed. To build the environment model, you can use a drag-and drop interface to place objects in the three-dimensional relationships. You may also need to plan for scent-free zones or fragrance zones. The environment model can colorimetrically represent scent plumes/zones as well as airflow/diffusion zones. Optionally, the environment model can depict consumer pathways to allow for multiple exposures and a fragrance-free zone between. A profile of fragrances that are effective in the environment may be suggested based on data about the environment’s scent neutralizing profile. A combination of one or more factors, such as a particle size or a scent concentration factor, can help identify an effective fragrance.

A user interface that is produced using computing equipment to execute program code and stored in a nontransitory storage medium can be used as an interface for a fragrance design and modeling system. A drag-and-drop interface can be used to place objects representing a component of an environment. The environment model is a model of how the objects interact with each other. The environment model also includes one or more scent perception goals. The processor models the environment model’s scent impression goals to determine at most one of the following: a location in the environment and a fragrance-diffusing parameter for one or more scent diffusers. Further data are included in the environment model that relate to any one or more sensors. The environment model can be displayed as a graphical user interface. It shows the physical dimensions of both the environment and the objects within it. Displays may also be 3D. It may also be 3D aerial views of the environment. Drag and drop allows you to drag and drop scent zones based upon a HVAC/building blueprint. This will optimize scent vectors/scent device settings. One of the objects may be a window, skylight, wall, floor, door, ceiling, fireplace, furniture, plants or an HVAC system with its elements. Fans, Hoods, Vents, Ducts, Conductors, Fan, Hoods, Vents, Vents, Ducts, Conduits, a fragrance-free area, a fragrance zone, consumer pathway, and other similar items. Data may include room volume, room geometry and airflow. It could also indicate the presence of odor producing materials or odor-sinking elements. Lighting, temperature, humidity, altitude, traffic flow as well as occupancy and time of day. Based on the scent impression goal, objects can be customized. It may be a three-dimensional relationship. “The object could be the source of a foul odor.”

“In one aspect, a method may be used to calculate a metric for brand impression. The brand impression metric is calculated based on the exposure to a scent delivered via one or more managed, networked fragrance diffusion devices. The metric could be determined based on the following: number of exposures; duration of exposures; and location of exposures. The process of determining the scent may involve A/B testing, matched panel testing, or controlled testing. The process of determining the scent may also include getting feedback from people who have been exposed to it. A survey may be used to collect feedback from people who have been exposed to the scent.

“In one aspect, a method might include comparing the purchase behaviour of a group exposed to a fragrance in a retail environment with that of a similar group who were not. The scent exposure may be due to one or more remote scent diffuser devices located in the retail environment.

“A networked scent diffusion device can be used as a commercial gateway to a consumer environment. It may use one or more integrated sensors that gather information about the environment. A communications facility may be included in a networked scent diffuser device. This facility receives control signals from a center for network operations. These control signals are used to control a scent diffusion device according to a scent impression goal. It also includes one or more integrated sensors that gather information about the environment where the diffusion device is placed. It could be a traffic/occupancy sensors.

“A networked scent diffusion system may have a first communication facility that receives control signal from a network operation center. These control signals are used to control a scent diffusion device according to a scent impression goal. A second communication facility is used to exchange data with a mobile device within the consumer environment. This communication could relate to the scent being diffused by a device. A commercial gateway allows the user to control the scent diffuser device from their home. A user may control the device from within the consumer environment using one of the two communication facilities. It may also be an offer.

“An aspect of the invention may involve receiving at a computer at most one target value for a scent parameter in an environment 1602, and receiving at the computer a sensed environment parameter 1604, and controlling diffusion of liquid from a source in fluid communication with at minimum one scent diffusion devices to achieve the target scent parameter 1608, where controlling involves setting or changing an operation parameter of at least one of the at least two scent diffusion devices in response to the sensed parameter. The master node may control the remote computer’s commands. Other scent diffusion devices can be slave nodes that receive instructions from the master node. One of the remote computers may send control instructions to at most one scent diffusion device. The remote computer then relays control instructions on at least one other scent diffusion gadget. A brand management goal may be included in the scent parameter. One of the operation parameters may be a flow rate, duration, or volume of liquid. It could also include a switching to another package to diffuse the liquid.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment includes creating an electronic data schema characterizing the transformations of at least one diffuser disposed within the environment (1702), accessing at the remote computing device 1704 data and providing a service plan to the at least one diffuser based on the electronic structure and the target scent parameter 1704. The sensed parameter can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow. Servicing can include setting up at least one scent diffusion system so that it does not operate simultaneously with another scent diffusion system. A brand management goal may be related to the scent parameter. One of the operation parameters may be a flow rate, duration, or volume of liquid. It could also include a switching to another package to diffuse the liquid.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environmental may include placing at least 1 sensor in the environment that transmits data to the remote computing device 1802, and disposing at most one scent diffuser within the environment. The communication facility enables receiving a signal from remote computers. The signal can be a setting or adjustment of an operation parameter of at least 1 scent diffusion devices in response to sensor data in order to reach a target scent parameter 1804. Another method is to determine the number of scent diffusion device to be disposed in an environment using a room volume. Configuring at least one scent diffuser so that the device duty cycle is not interrupted by another scent diffusion device may be included in this method. The distance between the scent target location and the scent diffusion device may be the sensed parameter.

“In one aspect, a method for managing scent in an environment includes creating an electronic data schema characterizing the transformation at least 1 remote diffusion device 1902, which data includes data about a sensed parameter and at most one target value of a fragrance parameter for the environment. The remote computer then initiates control of diffusion of a liquid from the source of the liquid in fluid communications with at least 1 scent diffusion device to achieve the desired scent parameter. The sensed parameter data can relate to at most one of the following: room volume, room geometry and area, airflow. At least two fragrance oil-containing packages may be included in the scent diffusion device. A brand management goal may be used as the scent parameter. The sensed parameter that is related to the fragrance level can be measured by at least one of the following: measuring an electrostatic charge, measuring the component of the fragrance and measuring an odorless mark diffused with it, measuring particles and measuring the concentration of volatile organic compound.

“These and other systems and methods, objects, features and advantages of this disclosure will be obvious to those skilled in art from the following detailed description and drawings.”

All documents referenced herein are hereby included in their entirety. If the text does not state otherwise, or it is clear, all references to items in the singular must be understood to include items from the plural. Grammatical conjunctions can express all disjunctive or conjunctive combinations, sentences, words, and other conjoined clauses.

“BRIEF DESCRIPTION. FIGURES”

“The following figures can be used to understand the disclosure and some of the embodiments.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.7 depicts an exemplary embodiment for a location overview.”

“FIG. “FIG.8 depicts an exemplary embodiment for diffuser data.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIGS. “FIGS.

“FIG. “FIG. 11.11 depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG. 13″ depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG. 16” depicts a method related to atomizing diffusion device

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. “FIG.

“FIG. 20 illustrates a method for tampering with atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. 21 shows a method for tampering with atomizing diffusion device.”

“FIG. 22 shows a diffusion device with a pump assembly, solenoid valves and a pump assembly.

“FIG. “FIG. 23 shows an embodiment of a cartridge.”

“FIGS. 24 A-D show embodiments of a diffusion system.

The scent management system offers businesses a managed service that delivers precise, broad-area fragrances. It is designed to help customers experience exceptional brand impressions and memorable scents. The scent management system enables customers to manage their scent services remotely by integrating intelligence into equipment. It also allows for remote monitoring and management of equipment via a global network and a set of software applications. This ensures that customers receive consistent, efficient, and reliable scent management services. This scent management system can guarantee a certain level of quality due to intelligence embedded in the system. The system monitors the performance of all customers as well as all devices. If desired, the scent management system can deliver identical scent impressions to all locations. This is possible through measurement of fragrance output and in-space measuring for precise concentration. The scent management system delivers consistent brand impressions through dynamic, precise control over a network scent diffusion devices. This can be done in either a remote or local manner. The scent management system features, including two-way communication with networked fragrance diffusion devices to receive data and to control them remotely, and features of the devices including sensors and/or programming for switching between scent packages, allow the system to be deployed in a variety of service models, including full-service and self-service. Users can select the settings and receive notifications regarding replenishment through an application. A full-service model allows users to select and modify settings for multiple locations. This is to meet brand management goals. Refillment alerts can be sent to the NOC, which will then manage replenishment. The communication with the NOC gives users confidence that devices are working as they should without the need to touch them or use a control app. The flexibility of the scent management system allows users (including non-NOC staff), to use control applications to monitor the diffusion devices and to control them as they wish. To preserve brand integrity, the system allows intelligent and deterministic delegations of authority, roles, and permissions amongst the network of diffusers. The system allows users to control permissions, authority, and roles across hierarchical organizations (e.g. To enable diffusion device control at a local level (e.g., on a site basis or at a corporate level), parent company/corporate, franchise, and location are all possible.

The scent management system can be used for more than just scent branding and consistent scent impressions. It may also be used for odor mitigation and odor neutralization, product advertisement, aromatherapy/stress relief, and other purposes. We will also discuss other functional benefits.

One or more diffusion devices may be included in the scent management system. A processor such as a microcontroller may be embedded in each diffusion device. This processor can transmit information (telemetry data), about the diffuser status to one or more Cloud-based applications. The microcontroller might be able to control the units independently, using instructions from the business applications. Business applications keep historical data about diffusion devices. This allows for reporting and mining of data to improve scent management services. The NOC can be used to monitor the health and settings of end-user diffusion device. It may also respond to alarms by creating work orders (e.g. To roll a truck, e mail an on-site contact, and so forth. To address service issues or replenishment concerns. Devices may also be managed by the user themselves, but they are not controlled by the NOC. The networked diffusion devices are part of the Internet of Things in certain embodiments.

“In one embodiment, the scent management software may include: a diffusion device with integrated intelligence, plus communication capabilities enabled by wireless local or wide area network communication module; and network configurations of diffusion devices that support intelligent management and dispersion. These configurations can be used locally or remotely by one or more network operations centers (NOCs), staffed by scent system administrators. The scent management system comprises business processes that are enabled by diffusion devices. These devices are deployed in defined scent dispersion networks configurations. The terms “scent device”, “scent dispersion device”, “diffuser device”, “diffuser” and?”diffuser?” are used throughout this specification. Except where the context requires otherwise, they may be interchangeable with one another and with the term “diffusion device?”. The use of scented liquids within a diffusion device is an example of one type of liquid that could be used in the scent management. In fact, diffusion devices can also use scent neutralizer liquids, disinfectant, cleaning, or other liquids. The terms ‘cartridge? and ‘package? are used throughout this specification. Unless otherwise indicated, the terms?cartridge?,??package? and???reservoir are interchangeable. This document describes various aspects of the scent management systems. It is important to understand that the devices can be used to disperse any liquid, including a gas or vapor colloidal combination. FIG. FIG. 1 shows an example architecture 100 for scent management systems. This embodiment shows a master diffusion device (102) in communication with one or several slave diffusion devices (104), and a server (108) such as a cloud-based server running cloud-based applications. The device 102 communicates to the server 108 in this embodiment to receive control instructions, system updates, and to send telemetry data to a NOC118. The communication may take place via a cellular connection. Devices 102 and 104 can communicate with the environment or have onboard sensors 110. The server 108 may allow NOC user devices (114) to communicate with the devices, 102, and 104. The server 108 may allow the control of the devices 102 and 104 by using a customer control device 120. A user interface for advertiser networks 112 could be communicating with the server108.

“An embodiment of the scent diffusion device includes a cartridge-based removable reservoir for fragrance oil, or any other liquid, and a diffuser that atomizes fragrance oil into small particles in order to achieve targeted and manageable concentrations of the liquid or fragrance oil. You can choose from small or large aerosol particles, as well as micro-droplets. The diffuser is designed to minimize the amount of particles that fall out. A diffuser may include at least one of the following: a micro-droplet generator; an atomizer; a nebulizer; a vapourizer; an evaporativewick; a saturated solid; and the like.

“In one embodiment, the fragrance diffusion device may contain a solid scent medium cartridge. Heat energy is generated by a coil or light bulb, candle, heated burner, heated heat source, or similar to heat the cartridge. A fan blows through this medium to diffuse the fragrance. Remote control of fragrance diffusion may require at least one fan or heat source.

“In certain embodiments, such that a scent diffusion device includes a wick, or other fixed or hard medium, the diffusion rate/efficiency and wicking rate/efficiency can be adjusted over time, or periodically, for example, by changing an aspect of the fan’s operation. As the device works, liquid may become less available for diffusion. The amount of liquid within the device can decrease in certain embodiments at a predictable rate. This could be due to an exponential rate or a physical model. It may be more difficult to incite diffusion of liquids remaining in the device as the liquid becomes less available. This could be caused by changes in the parameters or aspects of a fixed medium used to aid diffusion. A wick can dry out, a solid perfume cake may dry out, and the like. Adjustments can be made to improve diffusion characteristics by controlling the fan speed or other parameter of a device used to promote diffusion. The fan speed of a diffusion device may be altered so that it runs slower when a new liquid cartridge or fixed medium is added to it. This can cause the wick or fixed medium to dry out faster. As the device works, and the characteristics of the wick, or other solid media change, the fan speed can be increased to ensure a consistent level of diffusion. The fan operation may be similar to an exponential curve or elliptoid curve in some embodiments. If the liquid is a perfume oil, the fan can be controlled to maintain a constant level of diffusion. This may lead to a stable fragrance intensity over time.

“In some embodiments, the pump can be either a speed control or conventional air pump. A conventional air pump may have a duty cycle that controls the scent output, such as a duty cycle of?on? For 2 minutes, and for?off? For a 33% duty rate, run the pump for 4 minutes. Remote control of pump operation in networked fragrance diffusion devices allows for the adjustment of voltage. This can be done in a range from roughly +/?20% to a 10V standard or 8 V to 12 V. The remote control of voltage also allows for control of the diffusion rate. It is independent of voltage range and independent from duty cycle. The voltage of the pump can be adjusted to alter the output. If multiple diffusers are deployed in the same environment, and all have the same duty cycle, then the voltage driving diffusers in the smaller spaces may be reduced to reduce output, while those in the larger areas of the environment might be increased to increase output. This would be an example of a duty cycle that includes an?on? A duty cycle that includes an?on? portion might produce X micrograms/hour at low speeds. The same duty cycle with the same portion of?on?? would put out X. For 1 minute, a high speed setting might produce 3X micrograms an hour. The pump can be controlled by voltage. Volumetric control allows the pump to run on a continuous, or almost continuous basis.

“Referring to FIG. 22 is an illustration of a diffusion device. The housing 2202 shows a pump assembly 2204. This pump pumps liquid out of the reservoir(s) via tubes attached to it and then assembled into fittings 2212. To turn the pumping on or off, one or more valves (e.g. solenoid valves 2208 and 2210) are placed in line within the tubes.

“The diffusion device could include a programmable microcontroller with a fixed or removable memory for controlling device functionality such as volume control, duty cycle, schedule setting, and the like. A wireless local area network module may be included in the diffusion device. This module can communicate with other devices at a particular location using radio frequency communications, including IEEE standards such as WiFi, Zigbee and Bluetooth. The diffusion device may use one or more of the following communications protocols: Zigbee and MiFi, MiWi DMX, ANT. Z-Wave. Insteon. JenNet-IP. X10, mesh network. Diffusion devices can form a machine to machine network. A removable wireless wide area network module (WWAN) may be included in the diffusion device. This module can allow electronic communication with remote Network Operations Centers via, for instance, a telecommunications cellular network. Refers to the?Network Operations Center? Referring to a?Network Operations Center? This disclosure should be understood as encompassing a single, central center or a group of distributed centers. The diffusion device can include communication technology for wired installations in certain embodiments. The communications network may allow for the transmission of telemetry data such as a fragrance-level replenishment alert. The network may allow for firmware upgrades.

“In one embodiment, connectors can be placed on the motherboard to enable the communication module to be configured quickly or made modular so that it can be swapped in and taken out easily. A device could be made so that a communications module can be installed at a customer, distributor, or customer. The device could be shipped by the manufacturer to the distributor with the cellular communications module already installed. However, upon receipt, it may become necessary to have Bluetooth- or WiFi-enabled devices. Distributors may be able open the devices to swap the cellular communications module with the WiFi-enabled or Bluetooth-enabled one. Some devices can accommodate multiple communication protocols. In this case, the distributor will only need to add the Bluetooth and WiFi modules to the existing cell module. Other embodiments may include firmware embedded in the communications module, which allows for modifications to the capabilities of the device, such as delivery over a cell network using a cellular networking communication protocol or over an IP-based network. The communications module can be embedded in or may use an FPGA (field programmable gate array), so that it can be reprogrammed in field to meet changing needs.

“In one embodiment, a scent diffuser may have a processor that monitors it and generates a status. A user interface provides an alert based upon the status and triggers an event. The event could be scheduling maintenance or the status could be a clog. The status could indicate a need to replenish and the event might be at least one of ordering additional scent or scheduling replenishment. A tampering or an event that causes the device to turn off may indicate the status. A clog, a need to replenish, a tampering or overheating, loss of power, an error in operation, and damage could all be the status. Alerts may include a light 1028 or a color indicator as well as a message and pop-up.

One embodiment of the device can be used as a point use scent disperser. It may be placed in targeted fragrance areas. In an embodiment, another form of the diffusion device may be integrated into the heating/ventilation/air conditioning system of a venue, with fragrance dispersion occurring through the HVAC ductwork or other ventilation system.”

“In one embodiment, the diffusion device can be embedded in the form factor a flameless LED candle.”

“A diffusion device can include a tamperproof closure in an embodiment. A tamper-proof seal may include at least one of the following: a physical key; a software-based or biometric key; a retinal scanner; and the like. The package’s physical features may make it more difficult to alter, such as the inclusion of at least one of a magnetic-welding or spin welding, or a bayonet lock. If contact with the sensors is lost and power is still being sensed or used by the device, the on-board sensors could be used as an anti-tampering system.

“The package for the diffusion devices may contain physical features to prevent tampering. These features could prevent the package from functioning properly in a device that is not capable of accepting it. The package may contain an RFID tag 1208 to identify the package. If the RFID tag is not read correctly, the diffusion device will stop working. The RFID tag can be read on-board by an integrated RFID reader, or with a separate RFID reader during routine inspections. Another example is a package that may contain an additional identification tag such as a QR code 1202 or bar code 1204, which can be imaged using either on-board imaging, or a separate imager. Images may be sent to the NOC for approval, storage or analysis. One embodiment may require that an electrical contact be made between the package’s package and the device during installation. A package’s electrical feature may come into contact with a device’s electrical feature. Other mechanical features, not shown, may also be placed on the package. The contents of the package may be dispensable if contact is made. The package contents can be dispensated if contact is made. An alert may also be sent over the network if the contact is not made.

“An aspect of a scent cartridge that is connected to a networked scent diffuse device may include a reservoir holding a liquid and an assembly for dispensing scent from it. The atomizer cartridge includes an orifice plate having a flow restriction plate for passing compressed gas through the orifice before passing through an atomizing nozzle and an RFID tag. When an RFID reader connects to the scent diffusion devices, the RFID tag is recognized and scent is dispensable from the cartridge.

“A scent cartridge for a networked fragrance diffusion device may contain a reservoir that contains a liquid and an assembly with an atomizer head. An anti-tampering identification is associated with at least one reservoir and the assembly. The condition of this anti-tampering ID determines the amount of scent diffusion from the device. If the anti-tampering identification is not recognized by the scent diffusion device, an alert can be sent to a network. In this case, the device may refuse to dispense the scent. An alert could be sent if the device does not recognize the anti-tampering identification and the cartridge is removed.

“In one embodiment, a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent diffuser device may contain a reservoir holding a liquid and anatomizer head, and an RFID tag attached to at least one of the reservoir or the atomizer heads assembly. When an RFID reader connected to the scent diffusion devices recognizes the RFID tag the cartridge will dispense the scent. If the anti-tampering identification is not recognized by the scent diffusion device, an alert may send over a network. The scent may then not be dispensable. An alert may be sent to a network if the anti-tampering identification is lost or the cartridge is removed. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through an atomizing orifice.

“In one embodiment, a scent cartridge that is used in a networked scent diffuser device may have a reservoir that contains a liquid, an atomizer assembly, and an electrical contact. The electrical contact contacts a corresponding electrical connection of the scent diffusion devices, and scent is dispensable from the cartridge. If the scent diffusion device doesn’t recognize the anti-tampering identification, an alert may go over a network. The scent may then not be dispensable. An alert may be sent to a network if the anti-tampering identification is lost or the cartridge is removed. An orifice plate may be included in the atomizer head assembly. It contains a flow restriction orifice that allows compressed gas to pass through an atomizing orifice.

An embodiment of securing networked fragrance diffusion devices includes associating an antitampering ID with a reservoir and atomizer heads assemblies of a networked smell diffusion device 2102, determining whether the antitampering identificationr is present on the reservoir 2104 and blocking diffusion if it is absent. Communication of the absence of anti-tampering information to other networked aroma diffusion devices 2108 is another possible method. Another embodiment may be to associate an anti-tampering ID with a reservoir of a networked fragrance diffusion device. This will determine if it is present on the reservoir and block diffusion if it is not. Then, communicate the absence of this anti-tampering identification to other networked smell diffusion devices 2108.

“A diffusion device for atomizing liquids can include at least two reservoirs, a liquid-level sensor disposed within the device, an antitampering identificationr associated with at most one of the reservoirs, and a switch and a processor. The first and second signals are used to generate a signal indicative about the liquid level and a signal indicative that the anti-tampering IDr is present. A control instruction for the switch is generated based on these signals. This allows the device to switch between one reservoir

“In one embodiment, a method of operating networked smell diffusion devices in an environmental to achieve a fragrance impression goal may involve receiving an indication from a networked sniff diffusion device that diffusion is blocked by a tampering indicator 2002, accessing an environment modeling for the environment wherein one or more networked perfume diffusion devices 2004 and programming a scent profile for the environment to be executed only by the non-blocked networked aroma diffusion devices. The model may include two or more networked fragrance diffusion devices in certain embodiments.

“In one embodiment, an atomizing diffuse device may contain at least two packages with liquid in it, an anti-tampering identification associated with at least one package, and a processor that is operatively coupled with the scent diffusion device and determines a Tampering Indication based upon the anti-tampering ID and causes a switching between the packages based the Tampering Indication.”

“A diffusion device may contain a chemical sensor that communicates with the package to detect the presence of a particular component in liquids, as in the embodiment. The package may contain a tracer or tracer molecule that can be used to authenticate the specific component. If the tracer or tag is missing, the package could be considered fraudulent. The chemical sensor can be placed outside of the package but in fluid communication with the package’s contents to collect liquid from the package. This allows the chemical sensor to detect the tracer or tag component in the package. The device can operate to diffuse the liquid if the chemical sensor finds the component and authenticates the package. There are several actions that can be taken if the component is not detected. A visual or audible signal, such a flashing light (e.g. an LED), or a sound may be generated to alert the user or observer about a possible problem. This signal could indicate that the component is missing. It could be caused by tampering or an incorrect package, depleted packages, errors, or any other reason. Other embodiments of the signal can be a message, alert or communication transmitted over a network to a central location, an individual (or manager), a computer, a mobile phone, or other devices. The chemical sensor can sample the air to detect the component. If the component is absent, the sensor can send instructions over the network to the diffusion devices to stop operation.

Click here to view the patent on Google Patents.