METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DYNAMIC LOCATION-BASED GROUP FORMATION FOR ENSURING REQUIRED RESPONDERS

• US 20170265045A1
• Filed: 03/24/2014
• Published: 09/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: IGUMNOV, ALEXEI VLADIMIROVICH, SAVELIEV, FEDOR GRIGORIEVICH
• Application Number:
  US15/114,414
• Publication Number:
  US 20170265045A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/022 with dynamic range variability
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/027 using movement velocity, acceleration information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/10 Push-to-Talk [PTT] or Push-On-Call services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/44 for communication between vehicles and infrastructures, e.g. vehicle-to-cloud [V2C] or vehicle-to-home [V2H]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/90 Services for handling of emergency or hazardous situations, e.g. earthquake and tsunami warning systems [ETWS]

Abstract

A dynamic location-based group is formed that ensures required responders. A request for a new location-based group call relative to a defined location is received at a controller from an initiating device. The controller determines a plurality of required responder types for responding to the location and forms a group including subscriber units meeting one of a plurality of required responder types and a set of location-based group formation rules. The controller then determines if subscriber units in the formed group meet the required responder types. If not, the controller modifies the location-based group formation rules and re-forms the group including subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified location-based group formation rules. The controller then causes audio or data transmitted by the initiating device to be provided to the subscriber units in the re-formed group.

Claims

1. A method of dynamic location-based group formation for ensuring required responders in a wireless radio communication system comprising a plurality of subscriber units, the method comprising:

receiving, by a controller from one of a first subscriber unit and a dispatch console, a request for a new location-based group call relative to a defined location;

determining a plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

forming, by the controller, a group comprising second subscriber units out of the plurality of subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and a set of one or more location-based group formation rules, for responding to the defined location; and

determining, by the controller, if second subscriber units in the formed group meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

if it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules and re-forming, by the controller, the group comprising second subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified set of one or more location-based group formation rules, for responding to the defined location; and

causing, by the controller, one or more of audio and data transmitted by the one of the first subscriber unit and the dispatch console to be provided to the second subscriber units in the re-formed group; and

if it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

causing, by the controller, one or more of audio and data transmitted by the one of the first subscriber unit and the dispatch console to be provided to the second subscriber units in the formed group.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location based on at least one of (i) a responder type of the first subscriber unit, (ii) a type of incident occurring at the defined location, and (iii) a content of the request.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the determining the plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location is based on the type of incident occurring at the defined location;

the method further comprising accessing, by the controller, an incident to responder type mapping that, for each of a plurality of incident types, indicates the plurality of required responder types for responding to the type of incident at the defined location.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the determining the plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location is based on a responder type of the first subscriber unit;

the method further comprising accessing, by the controller, an initiating device to responder type mapping that, for each of a plurality of initiating device responder types, indicates the plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location:

the method further comprising determining a current location and a responder type of each of the plurality of subscriber units;

wherein the set of one or more location-based group formation rules includes a particular rule that each second subscriber unit must have a current location within a maximum distance from the defined location; and

wherein modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules comprises modifying the particular rule to increase the maximum distance from the defined location.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the maximum distance varies based on the responder type of the second subscriber units.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

wherein the set of one or more location-based group formation rules includes an availability rule that each second subscriber unit must not be identified as busy; and

wherein modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules comprises modifying the availability rule to allow second subscriber units that are identified as busy to be added to the re-formed group.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

and

wherein causing the one or more of audio and data transmitted by the first subscriber unit to be provided to the second subscriber units in the re-formed group comprises receiving the one or more of audio and data transmitted by the first subscriber unit at one of a push-to-talk (PTT) server and a repeater, and forwarding, via the one of the PTT server and the repeater, the one or more of audio and data transmitted by the first subscriber unit to the second subscriber units in the re-formed group.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the request for the location-based group call is received from the dispatch console, and the defined location is determined based on a current location of the first subscriber unit.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

the method further comprising assigning a group identifier to the re-formed group, and providing the group identifier to the one of the first subscriber unit and the dispatch console.

11. The method of claim 10, the method further comprising providing the group identifier to second subscriber units in the re-formed group.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein causing the one or more of audio and data transmitted by the first subscriber unit to be provided to the second subscriber units in the re-formed group comprises the first subscriber unit transmitting the one or more of audio and data with the group identifier, the second subscriber units in the re-formed group directly receiving the one or more of audio and data transmitted by the first subscriber unit, and the second subscriber units in the re-formed group playing back the received one or more of audio and data.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based on the at least one of (i) the responder type of the first subscriber unit, (ii) the type of incident occurring at the defined location, (iii) an incident level metric associated with the incident occurring at the defined location, and (iv) the content of the request, a minimum required quantity of responders for each of the responder types for responding to the defined location;

determining that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the minimum required quantity of responders for each of the responder types for responding to the defined location, and responsively modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules and re-forming the group comprising second subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified set of one or more location-based group formation rules, for responding to the defined location.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules comprises only modifying the location-based group formation rules with respect to the responder types that do not meet the minimum required quantity of responders.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, based on the at least one of (i) the responder type of the first subscriber unit, (ii) the type of incident occurring at the defined location, (iii) an incident level metric associated with the incident occurring at the defined location, and (iv) the content of the request, a maximum required quantity of responders for each of the responder types for responding to the defined location;

determining that second subscriber units in the formed group exceed the maximum required quantity of responders for at least one of the responder types for responding to the defined location, and responsively modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules to include a preference ranking rule and re-forming the group comprising second subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified set of one or more location-based group formation rules and according to the preference ranking rule such that less preferred second subscriber units are not added to the re-formed group if the less preferred second subscriber units would exceed the maximum required quantity of responders for a particular responder type.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

and

wherein the steps of (i) modifying the set of one or more location-based group formation rules and (ii) re-forming the group comprising second subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified set of one or more location-based group formation rules, are iteratively repeated a plurality of times until it is determined that second subscriber units in the re-formed group meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location.

17. A controller for dynamic location-based group formation ensuring required responders, the controller comprising:

a transceiver;

a data store; and

one or more processors configured to;

receive, via the transceiver, from one of a first subscriber unit and a dispatch console, a request for a new location-based group call relative to a defined location;

determine a plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

form a group comprising second subscriber units out of the plurality of subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and a set of one or more location-based group formation rules, for responding to the defined location;

determine if second subscriber units in the formed group meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

if it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

modify the set of one or more location-based group formation rules and re-forming the group comprising second subscriber units meeting one of the plurality of required responder types and the modified set of one or more location-based group formation rules, for responding to the defined location; and

cause, via the transceiver, one or more of audio and data transmitted by the one of the first subscriber unit and the dispatch console to be provided to the second subscriber units in the re-formed group; and

if it is determined that second subscriber units in the formed group do meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

cause, via the transceiver, one or more of audio and data transmitted by the one of the first subscriber unit and the dispatch console to be provided to the second subscriber units in the formed group.

18. The controller of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to determine a plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location based on at least one of (i) a responder type of the first subscriber unit, (ii) a type of incident occurring at the defined location, and (iii) a content of the request.

19. The controller of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine a current location and a responder type of each of the plurality of subscriber units; and

responsive to determining that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location;

modify a particular rule in the set of one or more location-based group formation rules, indicating that each second subscriber unit must have a current location within a maximum distance from the defined location, to increase the maximum distance from the defined location.

20. The controller of claim 17, wherein the processor is further configured to, responsive to determining that second subscriber units in the formed group do not meet the determined plurality of required responder types for responding to the defined location:

modify an availability rule in the set of one or more location-based group formation rules, indicating that each second subscriber unit must not be identified as busy, to allow second subscriber units that are identified as busy to be added to the re-formed group.