Emergency Alert Signaling

• US 20120126976A1
• Filed: 11/22/2011
• Published: 05/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CenturyLink Intellectual Property LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Embarq Holdings Company LLC (Lumen Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bugenhagen, Michael K.
• Granted Patent: US 8,873,717 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/540
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/14 Central alarm receiver or annunciator arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0896 Bandwidth or capacity management, i.e. automatically increasing or decreasing capacities flow or congestion control using dynamic resource allocation, e.g. in-call renegotiation, H04L47/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/74 Address processing for routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers

Abstract

Novel tools and techniques to allow enhanced distribution of emergency messages and other public information. In one aspect, these tools can provide a secure channel for an emergency message source to prevent compromise of the distribution system, to ensure the integrity of alerts distributed by the system. In another aspect, these can employ a universal signaling point that can receive an emergency message intended for a particular consumer and ensure that the message is distributed appropriately among the consumer'"'"'s devices. The customer signaling point might register customer devices and/or maintain a state machine that devices can access once registered with the customer signaling point.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing, at an Internet service provider (“

ISP”

), a secure channel for receiving emergency messages from an emergency message source;

providing a customer signaling point in communication with one or more customer devices operated by a customer of the ISP;

receiving, at the ISP, an emergency message from the emergency alert system via the secure channel;

routing the emergency message through an access network of the ISP to the customer signaling point; and

providing the emergency message from the customer signaling point to the customer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the emergency message source is an emergency alert system (“

EAS”

).

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

routing the emergency message to a plurality of customer signaling points.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying the customer signaling point as an appropriate recipient of the emergency message, wherein routing the emergency message through an access network of the ISP to the customer signaling point is based on identifying the customer signaling point as an appropriate recipient of the emergency message.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the emergency message comprises context information, and wherein identifying the customer signaling point as an appropriate recipient of the emergency messages comprises:

determining, based at least in part on the context information, that the emergency message should be routed to the customer signaling point.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein:

the context information comprises region information specifying a region to which the emergency message applies; and

determining that the emergency message should be routed to the customer signaling point comprises determining that the customer resides or is located within the region to which the emergency message applies.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the customer signaling point comprises a dedicated customer protocol interface.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the dedicated customer protocol interface is located at a residential gateway.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated customer protocol interface is located within the access network of the ISP.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the customer signaling point comprises a state machine that registers the one or more customer devices.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the state machine tracks emergency messages provided to the customer of the ISP.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the state machine tracks alerting capability of the one or more customer devices.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the emergency message comprises sending a broadcast message from the customer signaling point to the one or more devices.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the emergency message comprises:

receiving, at the customer signaling point, a status query from one of the customer devices; and

sending the emergency message to the one of the customer devices in response to the status query.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the emergency message comprises:

providing a link to an information source for additional information pertaining to the emergency message.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

authenticating the emergency message, the emergency message source, or both, at the ISP prior to routing the emergency message to the customer signaling point.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

authenticating the customer, the customer device, or both, prior to providing the emergency message to the customer.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

establishing, in the access network, an emergency path between the secure channel and the customer signaling point;

wherein routing the emergency message comprises routing the emergency message via the emergency path.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

providing bidirectional communications between the customer and an emergency response team via the emergency path.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein providing bidirectional communications comprises:

determining a location of the customer;

identifying a public safety answering point (“

PSAP”

) corresponding to the location of the customer; and

connecting the emergency path with the identified PSAP.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more customer devices comprise a television set top box.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more customer devices comprise a wireless phone.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more customer devices comprise a personal computer.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein:

receiving an emergency message comprises receiving an emergency message at a master distribution server; and

routing the emergency message comprises;

routing the emergency message from the master distribution server to a subsidiary distribution server; and

routing the emergency message from the subsidiary distribution server to the customer signaling point.

25. A system for providing emergency messages to customers of an Internet service provider (“

ISP”

), the system comprising;

a distribution server operated by the ISP, the distribution server comprising one or more processors and a computer readable medium in communication with the one or more processors, the computer readable medium having encoded thereon a set of instructions executable by the distribution server to perform one or more operations, the set of instructions comprising;

instructions for providing a secure channel for receiving emergency messages from an emergency message source; and

instructions for routing the emergency message through an access network of the ISP; and

a customer signaling point in communication with the distribution server and one or more customer devices, the customer signaling point being configured to;

receive the emergency message via the access network; and

provide the emergency message to the customer.