System, controller and method for alerting mobile subscribers about emergency situations

• US 6,745,021 B1
• Filed: 11/21/2000
• Issued: 06/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Stevens, Gilman R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trost, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): D AGOSTA, STEPHEN M
• Application Number:
  US09/717,731
• Time in Patent Office: 1,288 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 455/411, 455/414, 455/432, 455/422.1, 455/458, 455/466, 455/414.1, 455/414.2, 455/414.3, 455/432.1, 455/432.3
• US Class Current: 455/404.1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 27/006 with transmission via telephone network
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/04 with alarm systems, e.g. fire, police or burglar alarm systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/1091 Fixed mobile conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/205 Broadcasting broadcasting in packet switching networks H04L12/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/04 for emergency applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/14 with services dependent on location where the service is an information service H04M2242/15; services independent of location H04M3/42229
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/15 Information service where the information is dependent on the location of the subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/30 Determination of the location of a subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42 Systems providing special services or facilities to subscribers specially adapted for wireless communication networks H04W4/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42153 by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/46 Arrangements for calling a number of substations in a predetermined sequence until an answer is obtained
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/487 Arrangements for providing information services, e.g. recorded voice services or time announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5322 for recording text messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/53366 Message disposing or creating aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/06 Selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS]; Services to user groups; One-way selective calling services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/08 User group management
• 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]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/50 for emergency connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/022 : One-way selective calling networks, e.g. wide area paging

Abstract

A system, controller and method are described that can effectively alert a mobile subscriber about an emergency situation including, for example, a weather alert, a hostage situation or a hazardous material leak. In particular, the system includes an emergency warning system capable of generating information identifying a geographic area in which there is an emergency situation. The system also includes a controller capable of receiving the information identifying the troubled geographic area and is further capable of requesting and receiving from a wireless communications network a list of the mobile subscribers currently located within the troubled geographic area. Thereafter, the controller is capable of initiating an emergency notification message that is sent to at least one of the mobile subscribers. The emergency notification message can be in the form of a page, a voice message or a short text message.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a wireless communications network;

an emergency warning system capable of generating information identifying a geographic area in which there is an emergency situation;

a controller capable of receiving the information identifying the geographic area and further capable of requesting and receiving a list of mobile subscribers located within the geographic area from said wireless communications network;

said controller further capable of interfacing with a subscriber profile to determine if any of the mobile subscribers have provided special instructions on how, if at all, they are to be alerted about the emergency situation;

said controller is also capable of initiating an emergency notification message that is sent to at least one of the mobile subscribers pursuant to the special instructions if any in the subscriber profile;

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they only want to receive the emergency notification message if there is one type of emergency situation and not receive the emergency notification message if there is another type of emergency situation; and

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to their land based phone if they do not answer their mobile phone.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said controller is capable of directing a short message service to send the emergency notification message towards the at least one of the mobile subscribers.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said controller is capable of directing an interactive voice response system to send the emergency notification message towards the at least one of the mobile subscribers.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said controller is capable of directing a paging service to send the emergency notification message towards the at least one of the mobile subscribers.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein said controller further includes a location based server capable of receiving the information identifying the geographic area and further capable of requesting and receiving the list of mobile subscribers located within the geographic area.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to them even though they are not located within the geographic area experiencing the emergency situation.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said emergency notification message includes information describing the emergency situation.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein said emergency situation includes a severe weather condition, a hostage situation or a hazardous material leak.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein said geographic information further includes geographical coordinates on a map.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said controller is incorporated within a service control point.

11. A method for alerting a mobile subscriber about an emergency situation in a specific geographic area, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving information describing the emergency situation;

receiving information identifying the geographic area in which there is the emergency situation;

receiving a list identifying the mobile subscribers currently located within the geographic area experiencing the emergency situation;

interfacing with a subscriber profile to determine if any of the mobile subscribers have provided special instructions on how, if at all, they are to be alerted about the emergency situation;

sending an emergency notification message containing at least a portion of the information about the emergency situation to at least one of the mobile subscribers pursuant to the special instructions if any in the subscriber profile;

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they only want to receive the emergency notification message if there is one type of emergency situation and not receive the emergency notification message if there is another type of emergency situation; and

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to their land based phone if they do not answer their mobile phone.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to them even though they are not located within the geographic area experiencing the emergency situation.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein said emergency notification message is a short text message.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein said emergency notification message is a voice message.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said emergency notification message is a page.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein said emergency notification message includes information describing what safety precautions should be taken in view of the particular type of emergency situation.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein said emergency situation includes a severe public safety condition.

18. A controller comprising:

a location based server capable of interacting with an emergency warning system to receive information about an emergency situation and to receive information about a geographic area experiencing the emergency situation;

said location based server is also capable of interacting with a wireless communications network to receive a list of mobile subscribers currently located within the geographic area experiencing the emergency situation;

a subscriber profile that contains special instructions from at least one of the mobile subscribers on how, if at all, they are to be alerted about the emergency situation; and

said location based server is further capable of directing that an emergency notification message be sent to at least one of the mobile subscribers pursuant to the special instructions if any in the subscriber profile

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they only want to receive the emergency notification message if there is one type of emergency situation and not receive the emergency notification message if there is another type of emergency situation; and

wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to their land based phone if they do not answer their mobile phone.

19. The controller of claim 18, wherein at least one of the mobile subscribers can have special instructions in the subscriber profile that indicates they want said controller to send the emergency notification message to them even though they are not located within the geographic area experiencing the emergency situation.

20. The controller of claim 18, wherein said emergency notification message is a short text message, a voice message or a page.

21. The controller of claim 18, wherein said emergency situation includes a severe weather condition and said emergency notification message includes information about the severe weather condition.

22. The controller of claim 18, wherein said emergency situation includes a hazardous material leak and said emergency notification message includes information about the hazardous material leak.

23. The controller of claim 18, wherein said emergency situation includes a hostage situation and said emergency notification message includes information about the hostage situation.

24. The controller of claim 18, wherein said controller is incorporated with a service control point in an intelligent network.