Facility and method for wireless transmission of location data in a voice channel of a digital wireless telecommunications network
First Claim
1. A method of wireless communication of digital data comprising:
- providing a mobile unit comprising an accessory device coupled to a wireless telephone handset and operable to communicate in a plurality of alternative modes of digital wireless communication, including at least one packet data mode and a voice mode for establishing a call over a voice channel;
operating the mobile unit to assess at least a selected characteristic of each of the alternative modes;
based on the assessment, determining a preferred mode; and
if the preferred mode is the voice mode, transmitting a first digital data set from the mobile unit via the voice mode without significantly interrupting human speech communications over the same voice channel call.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A wireless communication facility and method employs a mobile unit having a number of alternative modes of digital wireless communication. The unit may be a battery pack or other accessory device attachable to a wireless telephone handset. The mobile unit is operated to assess some characteristic of each of the alternative modes, and based on the assessment, a preferred mode is determined. Data is transmitted via the preferred mode. The unit may include a GPS locator, so that the transmitted data may include the location of the unit. A call center is connected via the modes, and receives the data for processing, such as to return information to the user about the location.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A method of wireless communication of digital data comprising:
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providing a mobile unit comprising an accessory device coupled to a wireless telephone handset and operable to communicate in a plurality of alternative modes of digital wireless communication, including at least one packet data mode and a voice mode for establishing a call over a voice channel; operating the mobile unit to assess at least a selected characteristic of each of the alternative modes; based on the assessment, determining a preferred mode; and if the preferred mode is the voice mode, transmitting a first digital data set from the mobile unit via the voice mode without significantly interrupting human speech communications over the same voice channel call. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A multi-mode digital wireless communication system comprising:
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a call center having a server connected to the Internet and to a wireless telecommunication network; the call center being operable to communicate with a remote unit via a plurality of modes selected from the group of modes including voice and data calls via the wireless telecommunication network, wherein the call center is operable to receive a first data set comprising location data from the remote unit and to process the first data set to generate a second data set comprising location information; and the call center is further operable to transmit the second data set to the remote unit. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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14. A method of sending geographic location data from a wireless telephone mobile unit comprising the steps of:
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at the mobile unit, receiving an external request to send location data; responsive to said external request, obtaining location data from a GPS unit coupled to the mobile unit; determining whether a voice mode is a primary transmission mode for location data transmission; if said voice mode is the primary transmission mode for said location data transmission, determining whether a call is currently active; if no call is currently active, establishing a voice mode call over a voice channel to a predetermined call center; converting the location data to a selected format for transmission over the voice channel; and muting the call and then transmitting the location data over the voice channel to the call center. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A method of automatically sending geographic location data from a wireless telephone mobile unit comprising the steps of:
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obtaining location data from a GPS unit attached to the mobile unit; establishing a voice mode call over a voice channel from the mobile unit to a predetermined call center; convening the location data to audio frequency tones; automatically muting any voice communication on the call; transmitting the converted location data in the voice channel to the call center; and automatically un-muting die voice communication on the call. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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Specification