The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 28, 2019
Filed:
Feb. 01, 2017
Oracle International Corporation, Redwood Shores, CA (US);
Joseph H. Goldberg, San Carlos, CA (US);
Mark Vilrokx, San Mateo, CA (US);
Diane L. Boross, Belmont, CA (US);
ORACLE INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION, Redwood Shores, CA (US);
Abstract
Embodiments are disclosed that sense vibrations caused by flow of water in pipes, and covert the sensed vibrations into water usage data which can be analyzed, aggregated, and made available to users. In one embodiment, mechanical vibrations of a pipe are sensed, via a piezo-electric sensor attached to an external surface of the pipe, to form analog electrical signals. The analog electrical signals are converted into time-sampled digital data via a microcontroller having analog-to-digital conversion capability. A frequency analysis is performed on the time-sampled digital data, via at least one processor, to generate spectral data. The spectral data is analyzed, via the at least one processor, to determine whether the vibrations are caused by a fluid flowing through the pipe.