A method of detecting and responding to a visitor to a smart home environment via an electronic greeting system of the smart home environment, including determining that a visitor is approaching an entryway of the smart home environment; initiating a facial recognition operation while the visitor is approaching the entryway; initiating an observation window in response to the determination that a visitor is approaching the entryway; obtaining context information from one or more sensors of the smart home environment during the observation window; and at the end of the time window, initiating a response to the detected approach of the visitor based on the context information and/or an outcome of the facial recognition operation.

Disclosed are a paging method, apparatus, and system, used for solving the problems in the prior art of long time lapse and low paging reception reliability in terminals when using an extended DRX cycle to carry out monitoring. The method in the embodiments of this invention comprises: a terminal performs paging reception in an extended paging location within each extended paging cycle; and within at least one extended paging cycle, the terminal performs paging retransmission reception in at least one specific paging location other than the extended paging location. As the terminal performs paging reception at least twice within at least one extended paging cycle, the embodiments of the present invention may improve terminal power-saving and also ensure the time lapse and reliability of paging reception, thereby achieving the aims of assuring user experience and improving system performance.

A wireless, multitenant video intercom door station is provided, along with methods for operating same. A common door station may be installed near a property entry door. The common door station may be utilized to select a desired tenant, and identify one or more tenant door stations and/or tenant personal electronic devices associated with the desired tenant. Notifications may be transmitted to the tenant door stations and/or devices. A tenant may respond to the notification to initiate a video intercom session. Communications may be routed through a cloud server for recording of communication content and/or activity logging.

A hands-free intercom may include a user-tracking sensor, a directional microphone, a directional sound emitter, a display device, and/or a communication interface. The user-tracking sensor may determine a location of a user so the directional microphone can measure vocal emissions by the user and the directional sound emitter can deliver audio to the user. The hands-free intercom may induce the user to move to a desired location and/or to stay within a connectivity area. The hands-free intercom may also or instead induce the user to face in a desired orientation. The directional sound emitter and/or the display device may induce the user by explicitly indicating the desired location, by adjusting an apparent source of the audio or video, by changing quality of delivered audio or video based on user position, by producing irritating audio or video, and/or the like.

A communication device that may be removably coupled to a USB port, the device having a processor and non-volatile memory and configured to execute code, including code for receiving a wireless transmission including an alert signal from a second device, where the second device is a wireless doorbell, code for sounding an alarm via an audio or visual indicator on the communication device in response to the alert signal, code for receiving input from a user and transmitting a response signal to the second device, and code for allowing two-way audio communication between the communication device and the wireless doorbell.

A doorbell system can include a doorbell and a chime. The chime can emit a notification sound in response to a visitor pressing a button of the doorbell. Electrical switches can be electrically coupled between the doorbell and the chime to control the flow of electricity to the chime. In some embodiments, the switches prevent the chime from emitting notification sounds.

A multiple dwelling house interphone system includes a collective entrance machine and a dwelling room master device. Each automatic door requires an unlock operation to pass through for proceeding to each area, and a part of the areas are occupied by facilities other than dwelling units. The collective entrance machine includes a card information input section, and the automatic doors each include an unlock operation section for unlocking using the card medium. The collective entrance machine further includes a card authentication section, an unlocking door storage section, and a card information storage section. The card authentication section permits the unlocking by the card medium when the information input to the card information input section matches the information registered in the card information storage section. The permitted card medium enables unlocking the automatic door stored in the unlocking door storage section in association with the information of the card medium.

In a wireless communication system, a master device includes a wireless communicator that performs wireless communication with the slave device, a power supply that supplies power to each unit of the master device, an interrupt detector that detects various interrupts, and a controller that controls the entire master device, the interrupt detector supplies power from the power supply to each unit when detecting the interrupt, and the controller performs control to continuously transmit a capture signal to the slave device that waits for reception at a reception timing of a first predetermined interval, via the wireless communicator for time longer than the first predetermined interval when the detected interrupt is an interrupt that requests signal transmission to the slave device, and control to await a capture signal transmitted from the slave device through the wireless communicator when the detected interrupt is a timer interrupt occurring at a second predetermined interval.

In implementations described herein, A/V recording and communication doorbell devices (“A/V doorbells”) and signaling devices may be powered from a common AC waveform. In some implementations, an A/V doorbell and its corresponding signaling device may be arranged in a circuit loop where a portion of an AC waveform is used to power the A/V doorbell and the other portions of the AC waveform is used to power the signaling device. For example, a positive phase of the AC waveform may be used to power one of the A/V doorbell or signaling device and a negative phase of the AC waveform may be used to power the other of the A/V doorbell or signaling device. In some cases, an energy harvester device may be used to slow charge a battery or supercapacitor from the circuit loop to power the A/V doorbell and/or signaling device.

Cameras can be used to detect if a visitor enters a field of view. Cameras can be mounted in many different areas, including outside buildings, inside buildings, and near other items such as pools. Cameras can send alerts to remote computing devices regarding visitors. Thus, a user of a camera can see and even speak with visitors who are located far away from the user.