Apparatus and method for broadcasting messages to selected group(s) of users

• US 7,224,957 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2004
• Issued: 05/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AI-CORE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC (Ascend Innovation Management, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Shelley J. Spector
• Inventors: Spector, Shelley J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Huy D
• Application Number:
  US10/509,263
• Publication Number:
  US 20060059495A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,169 Days
• Field of Search: 455/404.2, 455/414.1, 455/426.1, 455/412.1, 455/412.2, 455/519, 455/416, 455/466, 370/260, 370/261, 379/202.01, 379/203.01, 379/204.01
• US Class Current: 455/404.2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/26 Government or public services business processes related to the transportation industry G06Q50/40
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 27/00 Alarm systems in which the alarm condition is signalled from a central station to a plurality of substations
• 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

Abstract

There is disclosed a method and apparatus for transmitting a message to at least one group of users selected from a population of the users. The method comprises the steps of assigning to each member of the one group a common characteristic or indication, collecting from each member of the population an address to which the message may be sent, selecting the common characteristic of a group of message recipients and determining therefrom the users of a particular group or groups based upon the selected common characteristic, whereby messages may be quickly and efficiently sent to all of the users of the selected group(s).

Claims

1. A method in a wireless communications system for transmitting a plurality of messages bearing information about an event to a plurality of users groups of, said method comprising the steps of:

a) dedicating each of a plurality of groups of users to include at least one first user and one second user, transmitting a first message to said one first user and a second message to said one second user, at least one message bearing information that is related to at least one group;

b) registering each user to each of the plurality of groups to receive messages bearing the information related to the one group;

c) accessing from each registered user its address to enable each registered user to receive at least one message in a wireless device;

d) selecting at least one of the plurality of groups; and

e) transmitting to the accessed address of each registered user of the selected group the one message bearing information related to the information of the selected one group wherein there'"'"'s included a further step of ranking and transmitting to said first user and said second user with respect to each other as to which of the first and second users of each group will receive first its message.

2. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein the subject matter related to the selected one group is selected from a set comprising an event, a natural disaster, weather condition, police activity, terrorist attack, the price of a security, an on-time airplane system and/or the outcome of a sports event.

3. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein an administrator of said method composes each of the messages transmitted to the plurality of users.

4. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein the subject matter of the selected one group identifies the geographic location to which the message bearing the information is transmitted.

5. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 4, wherein the geographic location is defined by its zip code.

6. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein the subject matter of the selected one group is selected from a set comprising a natural disaster, a terrorist attach and a utility failure, and there is further included a step of limiting the length and/or the number of messages being sent over a communications network to each of the selected one group of members to thereby prevent the overloading of the communications network.

7. The method of transmitting a plurality of users as claimed in claim 1, wherein the information of the selected one group is selected from a set comprising natural disasters or terrorist attacks, and a plurality of users are selected from a set comprising firemen and/or policemen, and are ranked whereby messages are first sent to officers of a higher rank and messages are sent later to the officers of a lower rank.

8. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein the information of the selected one group defined the delay of an airplane, the users of the one group are passengers on the airplane, and messages are sent to each passenger of the group bearing information indicating that the airplane has been delayed.

9. The method of transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 1, wherein step c) of accessing each registered user for its address includes the substep of downloading over a communications network a screen prompting each registered user to input its address as to whereby at least one message may be sent.

10. A system for transmitting a plurality of messages bearing like information to at least one group of users each of a plurality of groups of users including at least one first user and one second user, said system comprising;

a) a plurality of user terminals, each of said terminals having an address;

b) a database, the database comprising a plurality of files and

c) a server programmed to implement the following steps;

1) constructing the database to store a plurality of groups, each group for storing data related to a plurality of users, each user of its group being related to acorresponding one common criteria;

2) enabling each user to register itself to receive a plurality messages bearing information related solely to the corresponding one common criteria, whereby each of the plurality of registered users that receives information related to the common criteria belonging to a corresponding one group and said one group relates only to the corresponding one criteria;

3) storing in each cell for each user the address of the terminal for the corresponding user;

4) the programmed server composing a message with information related to the corresponding one common criteria;

5) selecting the messages to be transmitted according to their particular criteria, each group comprising its users who have been registered to receive information related to the common criteria; and

6) transmitting the selected message from the programmed server over the telecommunications network of the terminal with the accessed address of the selected user of the corresponding group and rankingsaid first and said second users with respect to each other as to which of the first and second users of each group will receive its message first.

11. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein the criteria is selected from a set comprising a natural disaster, a terrorist attack, the price of a security, and/or the outcome of a sports event.

12. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein there is included an administrator terminal connected to said programmed server, whereby the administrator composes each of the messages transmitted to the plurality of users.

13. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein the criteria identifies the geographical location to which the message bearing the information is transmitted.

14. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 13, wherein the geographical location is defined by its zip code.

15. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein the criteria is selected from a set comprising a natural disaster, a terrorist attach and a utility failure, and the programmed computer limits the length and/or the number of messages being sent over a communications network to each of the selected one group of users to thereby prevent the overloading of the communications network.

16. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein said computer is programmed to rank at least two of a plurality of users of at least one group and to transmit first the message to the user of the higher ranking and thereafter to transmit the message to the member of the lower ranking.

17. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 16, wherein said computer is programmed to select from a set comprising natural disasters or terrorist attacks, and a plurality of users are selected from a set comprising firemen and/or policemen, and to rank officers whereby messages are first sent to officers of a high rank and are sent later to the officers of a lower rank.

18. The system for transmitting a plurality of message as claimed in claim 17, wherein the criteria defines the delay of an airplane, the users of the one group are passengers on the airplane, and messages are set to each passenger of the group and bearing information indicating that the airplane had been delayed.

19. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, said server is programmed to access each register used for its address, and downloads over the communications network a screen prompting each registered user to input its address as to where the at least one message may be may be sent.

20. The system for transmitting a plurality of messages as claimed in claim 10, wherein said system comprises an administrator terminal, whereby an administrator can enter the information in each of the plurality messages and can set the order in which step c) transmits the plurality of messages to the users with the accessed addresses.