System and method for presence alarming

• US 20050070297A1
• Filed: 09/26/2003
• Published: 03/31/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unify Inc. (Atos SE)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Enterprise Communications, Inc. (Atos SE)
• Inventors: Beyda, William J., Caspi, Rami
• Granted Patent: US 7,848,760 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds

Abstract

A telecommunications system includes a wireless device (150) including a positioning controller (504) and a communications controller (502), said wireless device adapted to cause an audible warning to be generated if said wireless device is determined to be outside a first predetermined range; and an administrative device (30-152) for receiving alerts from said wireless communication device via said communications controller when said positioning controller determines that said wireless device is outside said first predetermined range for longer than a predetermined period or is outside said first predetermined range and a second predetermined range.

Claims

1. A telecommunications device, comprising:

a positioning controller adapted to determine positioning information for said telecommunications device; and

a wireless communications controller adapted to receive said positioning information from said positioning controller and cause an audible alarm to be generated if said telecommunications device is determined to be out of a first predetermined range

2. A telecommunications device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said wireless communications controller is adapted to cause positioning information to be transmitted to an associated administration device when said telecommunications device is determined to be outside said first predetermined range for longer than a predetermined period.

3. A telecommunications device in accordance with claim 1, wherein said wireless communications controller is adapted to cause positioning information to be transmitted to an associated administration device when said telecommunications device is determined to be outside a second predetermined range.

4. A telecommunications device as recited in claim 1, wherein said positioning controller receives Global Positioning System (GPS) signals to determine said positioning information.

5. A telecommunications device as recited in claim 4, wherein said wireless communications controller is a cellular telephone controller.

6. A telecommunications device as recited in claim 4, wherein said wireless communications controller is a personal communications service (PCS) controller.

7. A telecommunications device as recited in claim 1, wherein said predetermined range includes a geographic, date, daily routine, and time-of-day ranges.

8. A telecommunications device as recited in claim 1, wherein said positioning controller is adapted to receive predetermined range information via said wireless communications controller.

9. A telecommunications system, comprising:

a wireless device including a positioning controller and a communications controller, said wireless device adapted to cause an audible warning to be generated if said wireless device is determined to be outside a first predetermined range; and

an administrative device for receiving alerts from said wireless communication device via said communications controller when said positioning controller determines that said wireless device is outside said first predetermined range for longer than a predetermined period or is outside said first predetermined range and a second predetermined range.

10. A telecommunications system in accordance with claim 9, wherein said positioning controller receives global positioning network signals for determining a position of said wireless communications device.

11. A telecommunications system in accordance with claim 10, wherein said communications controller comprises a cellular network controller for transmitting on a cellular telephone network to said administrative device.

12. A telecommunications system in accordance with claim 9, wherein said administrative device is adapted to display location information when said wireless device is determined to be outside said second predetermined range.

13. A telecommunications system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said predetermined range is associated with one or more of a geographic range, time-of-day range, daily routine, or date range.

14. A telecommunications method, comprising:

affixing a wireless device to a predetermined object; and

programming said wireless device to be in a first predetermined range;

generating an audible warning if said wireless device is determined to be outside said first predetermined range.

15. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising transmitting one or more alerting signals to an administrative device when said wireless device is determined to be outside said first predetermined range for longer than a predetermined period.

16. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 14, further comprising transmitting one or more alerting signals to an administrative device when said wireless device is determined to be outside a second predetermined range.

17. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 14, wherein said administrative device comprises a telephony device.

18. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 16, wherein said one or more alerting signals comprise one or more e-mail signals.

19. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 16, wherein said one or more alerting signals comprise one or more Instant Messaging signals.

20. A telecommunications method in accordance with claim 16, wherein said first and second predetermined ranges are associated with at least one of geographic range, daily routine, time-of-day range, or date range.