Method for Communicating Indoor Location to an Emergency Service System
First Claim
1. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the WCD including a GPS receiver and a wireless transceiver, the method comprising:
- the WCD applying the GPS receiver to receive GPS satellite signals, and the WCD using the received signals to determine GPS location coordinates of the WCD;
the WCD using dead reckoning as a basis to update the GPS location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside a building, thereby establishing indoor location coordinates of the WCD;
the WCD using the wireless transceiver to transmit the established indoor location coordinates in a signaling message seeking to set up a call to the emergency service system; and
at an intermediary in signaling communication with the WCD and the emergency service system, (i) receiving the signaling message, (ii) translating the indoor location coordinates to a building portion descriptor that describes a portion of the building where the indoor location coordinates reside so as to produce a modified signaling message that contains the building portion descriptor, and (iii) sending the modified signaling message along to the emergency service system,wherein the signaling message invokes establishment of a session between the PSAP and the WCD,whereby the building portion descriptor facilitates emergency response.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for communicating location to an emergency service system. A wireless communication device (WCD) such as a cell phone attains a GPS location fix when outdoors and then uses dead reckoning to determine its direction(s) and distance(s) of travel reaching a position inside a building. When a user of the WCD places an emergency call, the WCD conveys an indication of its indoor location in a signaling message to an emergency service center, and an intermediation system such as an IMS system translates the indoor location indication to a textual description of a portion of the building (e.g., room, cubicle, zone, etc.) that encompasses the indicated location. An emergency service operator can thus receive the building portion description, to facilitate emergency service response. Further, a similar process can then be repeated during the call, to provide an updated building portion description to the operator.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the WCD including a GPS receiver and a wireless transceiver, the method comprising:
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the WCD applying the GPS receiver to receive GPS satellite signals, and the WCD using the received signals to determine GPS location coordinates of the WCD; the WCD using dead reckoning as a basis to update the GPS location coordinates in accordance with distance and direction of the WCD inside a building, thereby establishing indoor location coordinates of the WCD; the WCD using the wireless transceiver to transmit the established indoor location coordinates in a signaling message seeking to set up a call to the emergency service system; and at an intermediary in signaling communication with the WCD and the emergency service system, (i) receiving the signaling message, (ii) translating the indoor location coordinates to a building portion descriptor that describes a portion of the building where the indoor location coordinates reside so as to produce a modified signaling message that contains the building portion descriptor, and (iii) sending the modified signaling message along to the emergency service system, wherein the signaling message invokes establishment of a session between the PSAP and the WCD, whereby the building portion descriptor facilitates emergency response. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the method comprising:
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the WCD applying a GPS receiver to receive GPS satellite signals, and the WCD using the received signals to periodically attain GPS location fixes each comprising location coordinates of the WCD, including a latest GPS location fix; the WCD then entering a building where the WCD lacks a clear enough view of the sky to attain a next GPS location fix; once in the building, the WCD applying dead reckoning to determine at least one direction of travel of the WCD within the building and at least one distance of travel of the WCD within the building, and the WCD using the at least one determined direction and the at least one determined distance cooperatively to update the location coordinates of the latest GPS location fix so as to establish indoor location coordinates of the WCD; while in the building, the WCD receiving from a user of the WCD an emergency service call request, and the WCD responsively transmitting, via an air interface to a radio access network for transmission in turn to the emergency service system, a signaling message seeking to set up the emergency service call, including within the signaling message the established indoor location coordinates; and at an intermediary in a communication path between the WCD and the emergency service system, (i) receiving the signaling message, (ii) translating the indoor location coordinates to a descriptor of a portion of the building, and (iii) sending the signaling message, including the descriptor of the portion of the building, along to the PSAP, whereby the signaling message facilitates setup of the emergency service call, and whereby the descriptor of the portion of the building facilitates emergency response. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of conveying location of a wireless communication device (WCD) to an emergency service system comprising a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), the WCD including a GPS receiver, the method comprising:
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receiving at an intermediary a signaling message seeking to set up a call from the WCD to the emergency service system, the signaling message carrying indoor location coordinates that were established by the WCD using dead reckoning to update GPS location coordinates of the WCD that the WCD determined by using GPS signals received by the GPS receiver; the intermediary translating the indoor location coordinates to a building portion descriptor that describes a portion of the building where the indoor location coordinates reside; and the intermediary transmitting the signaling message, including the building portion, to facilitate establishment of the call between the emergency service system and the WCD, whereby the building portion descriptor facilitates emergency response. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification