PREFORMATTED EMERGENCY TEXT MESSAGE

• US 20100003959A1
• Filed: 10/24/2008
• Published: 01/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Ray, Amar Nath, COPPAGE, CARL M., Greene, Lynne T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,472,916 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 13/00 Speech synthesis; Text to speech systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5116 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0261 managing power supply demand, e.g. depending on battery level
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0296 switching to a backup power supply
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A wireless communications device and method for generating and communicating an emergency text message includes in response to receiving a request to communicate an emergency text message, accessing stored personal data for use in generating content of the emergency text message. A determination may be made if current location coordinates are available. The emergency text message may be populated with the accessed stored personal data and current location coordinates, if available. The populated emergency text message may be communicated over a communications network.

Claims

1. A method for generating an emergency text message, said method comprising:

in response to receiving a request to communicate an emergency text message, accessing stored personal data for use in generating content of the emergency text message;

determining if current location coordinates are available;

populating the emergency text message with the accessed stored personal data and current location coordinates, if available; and

communicating the populated emergency text message over a communications network.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein:

determining if the current location coordinates are available includes determining whether GPS coordinates are locally available; and

if GPS coordinates are currently locally available, populating the emergency text message with the locally available GPS coordinates.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

if GPS coordinates are not currently locally available, requesting current location coordinates from the communications network; and

populating the emergency text message with the current network location coordinates if received from the communications network.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein requesting current location coordinates includes requesting cell site coordinates.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein accessing the personal data includes accessing a name and fast track address, if available.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising accessing the current address, if available.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising accessing a stored emergency network address.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein communicating the emergency text message includes communicating the emergency text message to the emergency network address.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the emergency text message is preformatted and the personal data and current location coordinates are positioned in preformatted data fields.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

if current location coordinates were not populated in the emergency text message previously communicated, requesting current location coordinates;

in response to receiving the current location coordinates, populating a second emergency text message; and

communicating the second emergency text message over the communications network.

11. A wireless communications device, comprising:

a memory storing personal data of a user;

an input/output (I/O) unit configured to communicate with a communications network;

a user interface; and

a processing unit in communication with said memory, I/O unit, and user interface, and configured to;

in response to receiving a request to communicate an emergency text message by a user interacting with the user interface, access the stored personal data in said memory;

determine if current location coordinates are available;

populate the emergency text message with the accessed stored personal data and current location coordinates, if available; and

communicate the populated emergency text message over a communications network.

12. The wireless communications device according to claim 11, wherein said processing unit, in determining if the current location coordinates are available, is configured to:

determine whether GPS coordinates are locally available; and

if GPS coordinates are currently locally available, populate the emergency text message with the locally available GPS coordinates.

13. The wireless communications device according to claim 12, wherein said processing unit is further configured to:

if GPS coordinates are not currently locally available, request current location coordinates from the communications network; and

populate the emergency text message with the current network location coordinates if received from the communications network.

14. The wireless communications device according to claim 13, wherein the processing unit, in requesting current location coordinates, is further configured to request cell site coordinates.

15. The wireless communications device according to claim 11, wherein the processing unit, in accessing the personal data, is configured to access a name and fast track address, if available.

16. The wireless communications device according to claim 15, further configured to access the current address, if available.

17. The wireless communications device according to claim 11, further configured to access a stored emergency network address.

18. The wireless communications device according to claim 17, wherein the wireless communications device, in communicating the emergency text message, is configured to communicate the emergency text message to the emergency network address.

19. The wireless communications device according to claim 11, further comprising:

accessing an emergency text message template; and

wherein the emergency text message is formatted based on the emergency text message template and the personal data and current location coordinates are positioned in preformatted data fields.

20. The wireless communications device according to claim 11, wherein said processor is further configured to:

if current location coordinates were not populated in the emergency text message previously communicated, request current location coordinates;

in response to receiving the current location coordinates, populate a second emergency text message; and

communicate the second emergency text message over the communications network.