Athena

Athena, which has issued (US 9,998,899), aims at providing safety to children and pets in vehicles. Each year, during summer seasons especially, children and/or pets left in vehicles that are rapidly heating up tragically result, in many cases, in severe injury or death.

This patent senses the presence of all lifeforms in the vehicle including driver and other occupants while the vehicle is in motion. Once the vehicle is parked, even if the engine is left on, the system will detect when the driver has exited and a lifeform remains inside. As soon as the driver exits, the system detects that exit and begins a predetermined set of responses comprising a period of pulsed horn and lights activity alerting the driver before he/she can step away from the vehicle. To stop the alert, the driver must either remove the lifeform or press a standby switch. If the latter option is chosen, the driver has a predetermined but short time period in which to return to the vehicle before the alarm recurs. Once the first level alert commences, a second predetermined time period is counted down and if the driver has not returned and the lifeform is still in the vehicle, a message is sent to a list of individuals and, concurrently, a first-responder authority giving the vehicle’s identification information and GPS location.

Finally, during the period prior to first-response arrival, the system keeps track of interior temperature and toxic gas levels and can take steps to remediate either condition. This invention was found to be patentably distinct and was allowed/issued.

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