Vehicle event notification via cell broadcast

• US 10,171,953 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2016
• Issued: 01/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.), AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Narayanan, Murali, Becker, Thomas, Carter, Zachery, Mahler, Roger, Murphy, George, Nichols, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): ZEWDU, MELESS NMN
• Application Number:
  US15/381,026
• Publication Number:
  US 20180176742A1
• Time in Patent Office: 747 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/091 Traffic information broadcasting broadcasting communication H04H
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096725 where the received information generates an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096741 where the source of the transmitted information selects which information to transmit to each vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096783 where the origin of the information is a roadside individual element
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096791 where the origin of the information is another vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/162 event-triggered
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/164 Centralised systems, e.g. external to vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/205 Indicating the location of the monitored vehicles as destination, e.g. accidents, stolen, rental
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/46 for vehicle-to-vehicle communication [V2V]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Concepts and technologies disclosed herein are directed to vehicle event notification via cell broadcast. According to one aspect of the concepts and technologies disclosed herein, a system can receive an event message in response to an event. The system can extract information associated with the event from the event message. The system can determine an area of relevance for the event. The system can create an event notification message. The event notification message can be formatted as a cell broadcast message to be broadcast to a cell serving at least a portion of the area of relevance.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a traffic optimization management server system comprising a processor, an event message in response to an event;

determining, by the traffic optimization management server system, based, at least in part, upon the event message, an area of relevance for the event, a location of the event, and a description of the event;

determining, by the traffic optimization management server system, a broadcast duration during which an event notification message should be broadcast and a broadcast interval with which the event notification message should be broadcast;

creating, by the traffic optimization management server system, the event notification message specifying the area of relevance, the location of the event, the description of the event, the broadcast duration, and the broadcast interval, wherein the event notification message is formatted as a cell broadcast message to be broadcast, by a cell broadcast center, to a cell serving at least a portion of the area of relevance; and

providing, by the traffic optimization management server system, the event notification message to the cell broadcast center.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the event message in response to the event comprises receiving the event message from a first vehicle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first vehicle also provides, via a designated short-range communications component, the event message to a second vehicle located within a distance from the first vehicle, and wherein the second vehicle provides the event message to the traffic optimization management server system.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the area of relevance comprises a third vehicle located outside of a range of the designated short-range communications component;

and

wherein the third vehicle is served by the cell.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the event message in response to the event comprises receiving the event message from a roadside device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the event comprises a vehicular accident in which a vehicle is involved, and wherein the description of the event comprises accident information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the event comprises:

a traffic event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a traffic condition;

a weather event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a weather condition;

or

a road hazard event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a road hazard condition.

8. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a traffic optimization management server system, causes the processor to perform operations comprising:

receiving an event message in response to an event;

determining, based, at least in part, upon the event message, an area of relevance for the event, a location of the event, and a description of the event;

determining a broadcast duration during which an event notification message should broadcast and a broadcast interval with which the event notification message should be broadcast;

creating the event notification message specifying the area of relevance, the location of the event, the description of the event, the broadcast duration, and the broadcast interval, wherein the event notification message is formatted as a cell broadcast message to be broadcast, by a cell broadcast center, to a cell serving at least a portion of the area of relevance; and

providing the event notification message to the cell broadcast center.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein receiving the event message in response to the event comprises receiving the event message from a first vehicle.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the first vehicle also provides, via a designated short-range communications component, the event message to a second vehicle located within a distance from the first vehicle.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the area of relevance comprises a third vehicle located outside of a range of the designated short-range communications component;

and wherein the third vehicle is served by the cell.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein receiving the event message in response to the event comprises receiving the event message from a roadside device.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the event comprises a vehicular accident in which a vehicle is involved, and wherein the description of the event comprises accident information.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the event comprises:

a traffic event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a traffic condition;

a weather event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a weather condition;

or

a road hazard event, and wherein description of the event comprises a road hazard condition.

15. A traffic optimization management server system comprising:

a processor; and

memory that stores instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising

receiving an event message in response to an event,

determining, based, at least in part, upon the event message, an area of relevance for the event, a location of the event, and a description of the event,

determining a broadcast duration during which an event notification message should be broadcast and a broadcast interval with which the event notification message should be broadcast,

creating the event notification message specifying the area of relevance, the location of the event, the description of the event, the broadcast duration, and the broadcast interval, wherein the event notification message is formatted as a cell broadcast message to be broadcast, by a cell broadcast center, to a cell serving at least a portion of the area of relevance, and

providing the event notification message to the cell broadcast center.

16. The traffic optimization management server system of claim 15, wherein receiving the event message in response to the event comprises receiving the event message from a first vehicle.

17. The traffic optimization management server system of claim 16, wherein the first vehicle also provides, via a designated short-range communications component, the event message to a second vehicle located within a distance from the first vehicle.

18. The traffic optimization management server system of claim 17, wherein the area of relevance comprises a third vehicle located outside of a range of the designated short-range communications component;

and wherein the third vehicle is served by the cell.

19. The traffic optimization management server system of claim 15, wherein the event comprises a vehicular accident in which a vehicle is involved, and wherein the description of the event comprises accident information.

20. The traffic optimization management server system of claim 15, wherein the event comprises:

a traffic event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a traffic condition;

a weather event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a weather condition;

or

a road hazard event, and wherein the description of the event comprises a road hazard condition.