Mobile correctional facility robots

{
  "publication_number": "US11959733B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Mobile correctional facility robots",
  "abstract": "The present disclosure is directed to mobile correctional facility robots and systems and methods for coordinating mobile correctional facility robots to perform various tasks in a correctional facility. The mobile correctional facility robots can be used to perform many of the tasks traditionally assigned to correctional facility guards to help reduce the number of guards needed in any given correctional facility. When cooperation is employed among multiple mobile correctional facility robots to execute tasks, a central controller can be used to coordinate the efforts of the multiple robots to improve the performance of the overall system of robots as compared to the performance of the robots when working in uncoordinated effort to execute the tasks.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A method for coordinating a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots comprising a first mobile correctional facility robot and a second mobile correctional facility robot in a correctional facility, the method comprising: receiving first status information from the first mobile correctional facility robot, wherein the first status information is associated with a task to be performed; determining, based on the first status information, a route within the correctional facility; identifying, based on the first status information, the second mobile correctional facility robot; assigning, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the task to be performed; and transmitting, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the route, wherein the route is configured to cause the second mobile correctional facility robot to traverse the route in the correctional facility to perform the task.",
    "2. The method of claim 1, wherein the task is a delivery task.",
    "3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first status information includes a delivery request from an inmate in the correctional facility, and wherein the second mobile correctional facility robot is configured to deliver an item, via the route, to a location in the correctional facility.",
    "4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first status information includes a location of the delivery task and wherein identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the location of the delivery task and a current location of the second mobile correctional facility robot.",
    "5. The method of claim 1, wherein the task is a monitoring task.",
    "6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first status information includes a task load information about mobile correctional facility robots proximate to the first mobile correctional facility robot and wherein identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the task load information.",
    "7. The method of claim 1, wherein the task is an enforcement task.",
    "8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first status information includes a location of an event of interest in the correctional facility, and wherein the identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the location of the event of interest and a current location of the second mobile correctional facility robot.",
    "9. A mobile central controller robot for operating within a correctional facility comprising: a plurality of actuators, wherein the plurality of actuators is based on a type of the mobile central controller robot; a sensor array; a transceiver configured to communicate with a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots comprising a first mobile correctional facility robot and a second mobile correctional facility robot; a memory comprising computer program instructions; and a hardware processing unit configured to execute the computer program instructions to perform operations comprising: receiving first status information from the first mobile correctional facility robot, wherein the first status information is associated with a task to be performed; determining, based on the first status information, a route within the correctional facility; identifying, based on the first status information, the second mobile correctional facility robot, wherein the second mobile correctional facility robot is of a second type; assigning, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the task to be performed; and transmitting, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the route, wherein the route is configured to cause the second mobile correctional facility robot to traverse the route in the correctional facility to perform the task.",
    "10. The mobile central controller robot of claim 9, wherein the task is a delivery task.",
    "11. The mobile central controller robot of claim 10, wherein the first status information includes a delivery request from an inmate in the correctional facility and wherein the second mobile correctional facility robot is configured to deliver an item, via the route, to a location in the correctional facility.",
    "12. The mobile central controller robot of claim 10, wherein the first status information includes a location of the delivery task and wherein the identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the location of the delivery task and a current location of the second mobile correctional facility robot.",
    "13. The mobile central controller robot of claim 9, wherein the task is a monitoring task.",
    "14. The mobile central controller robot of claim 13, wherein the first status information includes a task load information about mobile correctional facility robots proximate to the first mobile correctional facility robot and wherein the identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the task load information.",
    "15. The mobile central controller robot of claim 9, wherein the task is an enforcement task.",
    "16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a processor in a coordinator for coordinating a plurality of mobile correctional facility robots comprising a first mobile correctional facility robot and a second mobile correctional facility robot in a correctional facility, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising: receiving first status information from the first mobile correctional facility robot, wherein the first status information is associated with a task to be performed; determining, based on the first status information, a route within the correctional facility; identifying, based on the first status information, the second mobile correctional facility robot, wherein the second mobile correctional facility robot is of a second type; assigning, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the task to be performed; and transmitting, to the second mobile correctional facility robot, the route, wherein the route is configured to cause the second mobile correctional facility robot to traverse the route in the correctional facility to perform the task.",
    "17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the task is a delivery task.",
    "18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the first status information includes a delivery request from an inmate in the correctional facility and wherein the second mobile correctional facility robot is configured to deliver an item, via the route, to a location in the correctional facility.",
    "19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the first status information includes a location of the delivery task and wherein the identifying the second mobile correctional facility robot is based on the location of the delivery task and a current location of the second mobile correctional facility robot.",
    "20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the task is a monitoring task."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "This application relates generally to mobile robots for correctional facilities, including a system and method for coordinating mobile robots for correctional facilities.\n\nA correctional facility is a facility in which inmates are confined and many of their freedoms restricted. Typically, a government institution confines inmates to correctional facilities for a specified period of time after the inmates have been found guilty of committing a crime.\n\nCorrectional facilities in the United States and in other areas abroad are often either overcrowded with inmates or understaffed with guards due to cost constraints. A more succinct way of characterizing the correctional facility situation in the United States and in other areas abroad is that the ratio of inmates to guards in many correctional facilities is often too high. As a result, guards are unable to appropriately monitor inmate activity and respond to events requiring their attention, which endangers not only the guards and inmates at these correctional facilities, but also the general public as well. Also, a substantial amount of the total funds available to correctional facilities is spent on guards, leaving little money left over to pay for programs to reduce recidivism, which only further exacerbates the problem of inmate overcrowding.\n\nIn addition, even assuming additional funds are made available to correctional facilities to increase the number of guards to perform inmate monitoring, studies have shown that humans are often ill-suited to perform routine monitoring through surveillance equipment, such as video cameras.",
  "cpc": [
    "F42B 12/745",
    "F41B 15/02",
    "F41H 13/0012",
    "F41H 7/005",
    "F41H 9/04",
    "G05D 1/0282",
    "G05D 1/223",
    "G05D 1/43",
    "G05D 2101/20",
    "G05D 2201/0209"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "G05D 1/02",
    "F41H 7/00",
    "F42B 12/74",
    "G05D 1/00",
    "G06F 17/00"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Global Tel Link Corp"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Stephen Hodge"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2022-12-19",
  "publication_date": "2024-04-16",
  "grant_date": "2024-04-16",
  "priority_date": "2017-04-19",
  "application_number": "US-202218084178-A",
  "family_id": "63853067",
  "cited_by_count": 2,
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