EMERGENCY INFORMATION SERVICES

• US 20110258266A1
• Filed: 09/30/2010
• Published: 10/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rave Wireless Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Rave Wireless Incorporated
• Inventors: Serra, Matthew A., Marceau, Brett Wilfred
• Granted Patent: US 8,984,143 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 31/04 Antibacterial agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 31/12 Antivirals
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 31/16 for influenza or rhinoviruses
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5116 for emergency applications
• 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 76/15 Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

A method of communicating with a user includes receiving a call from the user via a first mode of communicating; sending, to an emergency information service, via a communications network, a request for information associated with the user; receiving, from the emergency information service, via the communications network, information characterizing more than one mode of communicating with the user; and initiating communication with the user via a second mode of communicating, the second mode of communicating included in the more than one mode of communicating with the user.

Claims

1. A method of communicating with a user, comprising:

receiving a call from the user via a first mode of communicating;

sending, to an emergency information service, via a communications network, a request for information associated with the user;

receiving, from the emergency information service, via the communications network, information characterizing more than one mode of communicating with the user; and

initiating communication with the user via a second mode of communicating, the second mode of communicating included in the more than one mode of communicating with the user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating communication with the user via the second mode of communicating includes initiating communication with the user via the second mode of communicating while maintaining communication with the user via the first mode of communicating.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating communication with the user via the second mode of communicating includes ceasing communication with the user via the first mode of communicating.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating communication with the user via the second mode of communicating includes obtaining information about the user from the second mode of communicating.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the obtained information includes a location of the user.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting the second mode of communicating based on a request by the user.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, from the emergency information service, information characterizing the user.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the information characterizing the user includes a disability of the user.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising selecting the second mode of communicating based on the received information characterizing the user.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first mode of communicating and the second mode of communicating includes text messaging.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

sending a text message to the user; and

receiving a delivery receipt indicative of delivery of the text message to the user.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein sending a text message to the user includes selecting a text message from a predetermined selection of standard text messages.

13. A method for providing data associated with a user to an emergency service provider, comprising:

accepting, via a communications network linked to an emergency information service, information characterizing more than one mode of communicating with a user;

maintaining, in a user profile module of the emergency information service, a user profile database including the information characterizing the more than one mode of communicating with the user;

receiving from the emergency service provider, via the communications network, a request for information associated with the user, the request for information including an identifier of a first mode of communicating with the user, wherein a communication session between the emergency service provider and the user is ongoing via the first mode of communicating with the user when the request for information is received from the emergency service provider; and

providing to the emergency service provider, via the communications network, the information characterizing the more than one mode of communicating with the user.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the information characterizing the more than one mode of communicating with the user includes information indicative of the user'"'"'s preferred mode of communicating.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

accepting information characterizing the user; and

maintaining the information characterizing the user in the user profile database.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the information characterizing the user includes a disability of the user.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein accepting information characterizing more than one mode of communicating with the user includes accepting information from at least one of the user, a communications service provider associated with the user, and a third party data source.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the request for information associated with the user includes an identifier of an initial mode of communicating with the user.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the initial mode of communicating with the user was used by the user to contact the emergency service provider.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising accessing, in the user profile database, the information characterizing the more than one mode of communicating with the user based on the received identifier of the initial mode of communicating with the user.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein the more than one mode of communicating with the user can be used serially to communicate with the user.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein the more than one mode of communicating with the user can be used in parallel to communicate with the user.

23. A method comprising:

maintaining, in a user profile module of an emergency information service, a user profile database including information characterizing more than one mode of communicating with a user;

receiving, via a communications network, a request for information associated with the user from an emergency service provider, the request for information including an identifier of an initial mode of communicating with the user;

storing, in a call log module of the emergency information service, the received identifier;

providing to the emergency service provider, via the communications network, the information characterizing the more than one mode of communicating with the user;

monitoring communication between the emergency service provider and the user, including identifying each mode of communicating with the user utilized for communication between the emergency service provider and the user; and

for each utilized mode of communicating with the user, storing, in the call log module, an identifier of the utilized mode of communicating with the user.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising receiving, from a requestor, a request for a history of communications between the emergency service provider and the user.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising providing to the requestor the identifiers of each utilized mode of communicating with the user.