Making an emergency call from a pre-established connection

• US 7,162,219 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2004
• Issued: 01/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman Becker Automotive Systems GmbH (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Wolf, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Trost; William
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ewart; James D.
• Application Number:
  US10/912,626
• Publication Number:
  US 20050090226A1
• Time in Patent Office: 887 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.1, 455/404.2, 455/456.1, 455/456.5, 455/456.6, 455/550.1, 455/575.9, 455/414.1
• US Class Current: 455/404.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72418 for supporting emergency services
• 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

Abstract

An emergency call system is presented, which when an emergency call is initiated, instantaneously retrieves and transmits an identification key using an established communication link with a communication network. Therefore, the emergency call system does not need to unregister from the established communication link and establish a new communication link in order to transmit the identification key. The system includes an emergency call device, which includes a mobile communication device for communicating with the communication network, a regular-use data module storing non-emergency use information, an emergency data module storing emergency use information, such as an identification key, a data retrieving module for retrieving information from the emergency and/or regular-use data modules. When the emergency call device is implemented in a vehicle, the data retrieving module for the regular-use and/or emergency data modules may be in communication with a multimedia device via a local communication network.

Claims

1. A method for initiating an emergency call over a communication link established for non-emergency calls between a mobile communication device and a communication network, comprising:

retrieving an identification key from an emergency data module;

transmitting the identification key over the communication link to a recipient device within the communication network; and

initiating an emergency call if the identification key matches an authorized identification;

where retrieving and transmitting the identification key occurs without disconnecting the established communication link.

2. The method of claim 1, where the communication link is established using information stored in a data module.

3. The method of claim 2, where the identification key is unrelated to the information stored in the data module.

4. The method of claim 1, where the mobile communication device includes a cellular phone.

5. The method of claim 1, where the communication network includes a cellular phone network.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising verifying whether the identification key received by the recipient device corresponds to one of a plurality of identification keys stored in a memory module accessible to the recipient device.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a check number from a provider device within the communication network.

8. The method of claim 7, where retrieving the identification key includes determining the identification key based an algorithm retrieved from the emergency data module and the check number.

9. The method of claim 7, where the recipient device and the provider device are included in a single device.

10. A device for initiating an emergency call over a communication link established for non-emergency calls between the device and a communication network, comprising:

a mobile communication device configured to communicate with the communication network over a communication link;

a data module including information relating to non-emergency use of the communication network, and in communication with the mobile communication device;

an emergency data module including information relating to emergency use of the communication network, and in communication with the mobile communication device;

a transmission module in communication with the mobile communication device, and configured to transmit an identification key to the communication network over the communication link; and

a recipient device configured to transmit an emergency call if the identification key matches an authorized identification key.

11. The device of claim 10, where the mobile communication device includes a cellular phone.

12. The device of claim 10, where the transmission module is included in the mobile communication device.

13. The device of claim 10, where the data module is included in the mobile communication device.

14. The device of claim 10, where the data module includes a subscriber identity module card.

15. The device of claim 10, where the data module is included in a multimedia device.

16. The device of claim 15, where the multimedia device includes a headunit configured for installation in a vehicle.

17. The device of claim 10, where the emergency data module is included in the mobile communication device.

18. The device of claim 10, where the emergency data module includes a subscriber identity module card.

19. The device of claim 10, where the information relating to the emergency use of the communication network includes an algorithm for calculating the identification key.

20. The device of claim 10, further comprising a network in communication with the data module and the emergency data module.

21. The device of claim 20, where the network includes an annular databus.

22. The device of claim 10, further comprising a data retrieving module in communication with the mobile communication device and the emergency data module, and configured to retrieve the identification key from the emergency data module.

23. The device of claim 22, where the data retrieving module is included in the mobile communication device.

24. A device for initiating an emergency call over a communication link established for non-emergency calls between the device and a communication network, comprising:

means for mobile communication configured to communicate with the communication network over the communication link;

a data storage means including information relating to non-emergency use of the communication network, and in communication with the means for mobile communication;

an emergency data storage means including an identification key, and in communication with the means for mobile communication;

a transmission means in communication with the means for mobile communication and configured to transmit the identification key to the communication network over the communication link;

means for a recipient device in the communication network to determine if the transmitted identification key corresponds to a stored identification key; and

means for the recipient device to determine whether the emergency call should be placed.