Emergency Text Messaging

• US 20130109344A1
• Filed: 10/24/2012
• Published: 05/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Artax LLC (IPValuation Partners, LLC)
• Original Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Ung, Dara
• Granted Patent: US 8,929,854 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/02 Protecting privacy or anonymity, e.g. protecting personally identifiable information [PII]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/14 Short messaging services, e.g. short message services [SMS] or unstructured supplementary service data [USSD]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

A location privacy configuration module enables location determination to emergency services only relating to an emergency text message or emergency text message session. An emergency text message transmitted to an emergency number is routed to an emergency text message server, which initiates an emergency text indicator for each emergency text message, and requests location information for the emergency texting device by transmitting the emergency text indicator and a location request to a location determination server. Location of the emergency texting device may be obtained without acquiring customer authorization for location determination. The originating text messaging device acknowledges receipt of the emergency text indicator/location request combination and checks the location privacy setting configured thereon. Location determination is permitted if configured to permit location determination if emergency text messaging.

Claims

1. A location privacy module enabling location determination for emergency text messages, comprising:

a location privacy wireless device module, including a configurable setting module on a wireless device to permit current location determination of said wireless device to be determined in relation to an emergency text message addressed to an emergency destination; and

a location privacy network server module, associated with an emergency text message server, to indicate to a location determination server that a particular location request is associated with an emergency text message and thus location is to be provided.

2. The location privacy enabling location determination for emergency text messages according to claim 1, wherein:

said location privacy network server module indicates to said location determination server that a consent request corresponding to said location request is to be inhibited.

3. The location privacy enabling location determination for emergency text messages according to claim 1, wherein:

consent by said located wireless device is to be presumed granted.

4. The location privacy enabling location determination for emergency text messages according to claim 1, wherein:

said text message is a short message system (SMS) text message.

5. The location privacy enabling location determination for emergency text messages according to claim 1, wherein:

said emergency text message is included in an established text message session.

6. A method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device, comprising:

transmitting an emergency text indicator from a network-based emergency text message server to a location determination server;

conveying said emergency text indicator to an emergency texting device; and

performing location determination of said emergency texting device without sending a consent request to said emergency texting device.

7. The method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 6, further comprising:

sending said emergency_text_indicator to said emergency texting device to assist said emergency texting device to determine whether current location is allowed to proceed based on a location privacy setting in said emergency texting device.

8. The method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 6, further comprising:

permitting location determination of said emergency texting device with a configuration setting that also denies location determination in association with non-emergency text messages.

10. The method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 6, further comprising:

sending said emergency_text_indicator to said emergency texting device to assist said emergency texting device to determine whether current location is allowed to proceed based on a location privacy setting in said emergency texting device.

11. The method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 6, further comprising:

permitting location determination of said emergency texting device with a configuration setting that also denies location determination in association with non-emergency text messages.

9. A method of providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device, comprising:

transmitting an emergency text indicator within an emergency text message, from an emergency text message server to a location determination server, said emergency text indicator indicating that an associated location request is in association with said emergency text message, and that no consent need be sent to an emergency texting device that originated said emergency text message during a location determination process to locate said emergency texting device.

12. Apparatus to provide location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device, comprising:

means for transmitting an emergency text indicator from a network-based emergency text message server to a location determination server;

means for conveying said emergency text indicator to an emergency texting device; and

means for performing location determination of said emergency texting device without sending a consent request to said emergency texting device.

13. The apparatus for providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 12, further comprising:

means for sending said emergency_text_indicator to said emergency texting device to assist said emergency texting device to determine whether current location is allowed to proceed based on a location privacy setting in said emergency texting device.

14. The apparatus for providing location privacy to an emergency text messaging wireless device according to claim 12, further comprising:

means for permitting location determination of said emergency texting device with a configuration setting that also denies location determination in association with non-emergency text messages.